Hostile takeover
Plus: Gaga says she prayed for Trump to lose
No one voted for this man, but Elon Musk appears to be taking a chainsaw to the U.S. government even as his approval rating craters. Meanwhile, FLOTUS just got her first magazine cover of her husband’s second term.
Welcome to this week’s issue of Whig. Read to the end for full coverage of the 67th annual Grammys. — Hunter
Hostile takeover:
Musk appears to be doing to the federal government what he did to the social network previously known as Twitter. Musk aides have reportedly locked career civil servants out of U.S. government computer systems that include data from millions federal employees, according to Reuters, officials working for his team now have access to the U.S. Treasury’s payments system, and Musk took steps to close the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, which provides humanitarian aid around the world and will reportedly be merged with the State Department.
Federal workers also received a memo last week titled “A Fork in the Road,” which was also the subject line of an email Musk sent to Twitter staff after he took the company over that encouraged people to resign. In the memo, federal workers are encouraged to quit by sending an email that says “Resign” in the subject line and told they’ll receive pay and benefits through September. Federal workers are wondering if the offer is legal.
The language of the memo sounds an awful lot more like Musk than the professional, detached voice of typical federal communication (“Q: Can I take an extended vacation while on administrative leave? A: You are most welcome to stay at home and relax or to travel to your dream destination. Whatever you would like.”). Meanwhile, multiple polls show Musk’s approval rating is underwater.
FLOTUS covers Hello!:
First Lady Melania Trump graced the latest digital cover of Hello!, a U.K.-based celebrity magazine. The shoot, which includes behind-the-scenes snaps from the Inauguration, was photographed by Regine Mahaux, who also shot Trump’s official portrait.
“She’s always been hands on, but she’s more free nowadays to make a statement,” Mahaux said. “She’s a different person than she was eight years ago and has always been true to herself. This time, it feels like a different energy with new people that the President has surrounded himself with.”
How much could Trump’s tariffs cost an American household?:
President Donald Trump on Saturday signed an executive order that would have imposed 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on goods from China before backing off today and reaching an agreement to delay the tariffs with Canada and Mexico by a month. A tariff is a tax or duty placed on imported goods.
The nonpartisan Tax Foundation, a think tank, estimates that if passed, the tariffs could result in an average tax increase of more than $830 per household in 2025 and shrink economic output in the U.S. by .4%. The threat of a trade war isn’t playing well with our neighbors. Canadians booed the U.S. National Anthem at NBA and NHL games over the weekend :(.
Trump fires Jan. 6 prosecutors as pardoned Jan. 6 defendants do more crimes:
The Trump administration fired prosecutors on Friday involved in criminal cases related to the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Meanwhile, it continues to become increasingly clear that when Trump was sending his people to the Capitol that day to overturn an election, he wasn’t sending his best.
Pardoned defendant Matthew Huttle was shot and killed in an “altercation” during a traffic stop on Jan. 28, Emily Hernandez was sentenced on Jan. 29 to 10 years in prison as part of a 2022 drunken-driving crash, and it turns out other pardoned defendants are reportedly very bad dudes. Guy Reffitt Theodore Middendorf is still in prison after pleading guilty to raping a 7-year-old child, David Daniel has been charged with possession and production of child pornography, and law enforcement is looking for Andrew Taake on previous charges related to soliciting a minor online. QAnon’s being awfully quiet about this, don’t you think??
Trump’s DEI derangement syndrome:
I have to say I’m disappointed but not surprised. After claiming during his Inauguration that he wanted to be a peacemaker and a unifier, Trump missed an opportunity to do just that after the tragic collision last week between a passenger jet and U.S. Army Black Hawk that killed 64 people outside Reagan Washington National Airpot.
After asking for a moment of silence (good, mature, what the American people expect of their leader), he launched into attacks against his political enemies and blamed the tragedy without evidence on diversity hiring (mean, unnecessary, unhelpful).
Trump administration firsts:
Last week saw some historic firsts from the Trump administration. At 27, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is the youngest-ever White House press secretary. During her first press briefing last Tuesday, she announced the drones over New Jersey were authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, and many were flown by hobbyists and private individuals, and she also spread some nonsense that the U.S. had spent $50 million on condoms for Gaza. That’s not true.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also made history last week when he was confirmed and became the highest-ranking openly gay government official in U.S. history, just fifth in line to the presidency. “We need pro-equality LGBTQ+ nominees and LGBTQ+ people at all levels of government,” Kelley J. Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, or HRC, said in a statement. “The LGBTQ+ community is counting on openly LGBTQ+ nominees like Scott Bessent to step up for the community.” Bessent was also named acting head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, a consumer-protection agency, and he’s ordered staff there to halt much of their work.
Rubio talks tough on Panama Canal:
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in Central America this week for his first foreign trip in the new job, and he told Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino the U.S. will “take measures necessary” if Panama doesn’t reduce or eliminate Chinese influence at the Panama Canal. Rubio’s five-nation tour will include stops in Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic.
Biden signs with CAA:
Former President Joe Biden now has Hollywood representation. The ex-POTUS signed with Creative Artists Agency, or CAA, the powerhouse talent agency that represents star athletes, actors, and musicians. Biden was previously signed to CAA from 2017 to 2020.
“President Biden is one of America’s most respected and influential voices in national and global affairs,” CAA co-chairman Richard Lovett said in a statement announcing the news today. “His lifelong commitment to public service is one of unity, optimism, dignity, and possibility. We are profoundly honored to partner with him again.”
Carter wins posthumous Grammy:
The late Jimmy Carter won his fourth Grammy Sunday. Carter’s 2004 book Last Sundays in Plains: A Centennial Celebration beat out books by Dolly Parton, Barbara Streisand, George Clinton, and Guy Oldfield to win the Grammy for Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording.
Carter previously won the Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album for his books Faith: A Journey For All, A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety, and Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis. That’s four more Grammys than Katy Perry’s ever won.
Beyoncé finally wins AOTY:
The most-awarded woman in Grammy history now has a Grammy for Album of the Year. Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter took home the top album prize Sunday, which was handed out by members of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
“I’d like to thank and acknowledge and praise all of the firefighters for keeping us safe,” Bey said in her acceptance speech, which brought Lady Gaga to tears. “I just feel very full and very honored. It’s been many years.”
Beyoncé now has 35 career Grammy wins, including from her time in Destiny’s Child. Next up: the Cowboy Carter Tour, which is scheduled for 22 shows and will kick off in April in Los Angeles.
Chappell Roan calls for healthcare for musicians during acceptance speech:
Wearing the most incredible pointed princess hat I’ve ever seen, Chappell Roan won Sunday’s award for Best New Artist and used her acceptance speech to call out record labels and recall how she lost her health insurance when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
“I told myself if I ever won a Grammy, and I got to stand up here in front of the most powerful people in music, I would demand that labels and the industry profiting millions of dollars off of artists would offer a livable wage and health care, especially to developing artists,” she said. “Because I got signed so young, I got signed as a minor, and when I got dropped I had zero job experience under my belt, and like most people, I had a difficult time finding a job in the pandemic and could not afford health insurance. It was so devastating to feel so committed to my art and feel so betrayed by the system.”
“Labels, we got you, but do you got us?” she added. Bravo.
Gaga says she prayed for Trump to lose:
Gaga, who won the Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with Bruno Mars for “Die With A Smile,” says the fact she has an album coming out called Mayhem at a moment like this wasn’t pre-planned. “What’s bizarre is I did not write this album thinking that this would happen. I prayed it would not. But here we are,” she told Elle UK for her cover story.
“I know for a lot of people this election was devastating for their existence and so community is going to be the number one thing,” Gaga said. “This just reminds me that we need each other and supporting each other is important. I am one of many people that supports [the LGBTQIA+ and other marginalised] communities. And we're not going down without a fight. We will stick together. It's going to be hard but I'm up for it. We're up for it. And I just want everyone to know how deeply they're loved and not invisible.”
Gaga used her acceptance speech Sunday to say “trans people are not invisible. Trans people deserve love,” and she used the Grammys to premiere the music video for her new song “Abracadabra.” The new track is classic Gaga for all the “Alejandro” and “Judas” fans out there, featuring industrial dance beats and chanting. We are so back.
Janelle Monáe calls out Nelly for performing at Trump Inauguration ball:
After wowing the Grammy audience with an incredible cover of Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ‘Til Ya Get Enough” as part of the tribute to Quincy Jones, Janelle Monáe had some choice words for Nelly at a Grammy afterparty.
“I used to like Nelly, but then he went to perform for Donald Trump,” Monáe said while covering the rapper’s “Hot in Herre.” “You sold out.”
Finneas doesn’t want pop stans to fight with each other:
Finneas is out here showing more leadership than some politicians. After Billie Eilish was locked out from any awards Sunday, her brother wrote on his Instagram Story, “So honored to have been nominated amongst so many amazing songs/albums. I don’t wanna see ANYONE with a photo of me or Billie as their [profile picture] gettin’ in fights with other artists’ fans in comment sections!!!”
Travis Scott debuts at No. 1:
Travis Scott racked up his fifth No. 1 on the new Billboard Hot 100 out today with “4X4.” Scott debuted the song at the College Football Playoff National Championship halftime show last month, and all the proceeds from the sale of the CD single will go to Direct Relief’s California Wildfire Response Fund.
This is the most-played song on MTV:
This is kind of funny. Devo’s “Uncontrollable Urge” from the band’s 1978 album Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! is the most-played song on MTV because it happens to be the theme song to “Ridiculousness” lol.
“In the beginning of MTV you saw a lot of Devo because they were early to make videos, but MTV started questioning the videos Devo were making. [The videos] were subversive, they didn’t like them and wouldn’t play them anymore,” Anita Greenspan, the wife and manager of Devo lead singer Mark Mothersbaugh told Rolling Stone. “Now ‘Uncontrollable Urge’ is easily the most-played song on MTV, so [Devo] wins.”
SNL stars talk political comedy:
In a video for People’s special 50 years of Saturday Night Live cover, SNL stars past and present spoke about their experiences and the pressures of the show. When it comes to political sketches, Seth Meyers said, “It still has to play. I mean, no matter how strongly you feel, Lorne’s [Michaels, SNL’s creator and producer] never going to put something on that’s just making a point. So ultimately comedy has to be the first order of business.”
Leslie Jones said she “didn’t know s**t about politics until I came to SNL and I was like, ‘oh, the Senators? Oh, is that what they do? Oh wow I should be paying attention.’” Bowen Yang said the show gives viewers “a digest of what happened in the week politically from the cold open to Update. You do get this pretty neatly curated thing of what’s going on.”
Kate McKinnon said her approach to playing political figures on the show was “really thinking about the inner life of these people who have such a profound effect on all of our lives and why they’re doing what they’re doing.”
Thanks for reading! See you next week. ⭐