Daily Briefing: A chilling effect on corporate DEI efforts
Corporations could follow suit after Donald Trump dismantled decades of antidiscrimination protections for federal employees this week. "Dangerous fire weather conditions" are expected to last through at least Friday across Los Angeles and Ventura counties as firefighters battle multiple blazes. American Madison Keys has reached the Australian Open final.
🙋🏼♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. A meteorite crashed into Earth?!
Federal DEI rollback threatens workplace progress in corporate America
A flurry of Donald Trump-issued executive orders this week gutted the enforcement of antidiscrimination mechanisms or redirected them to address purported discrimination against white Americans. The act of overturning decades of affirmative action and diversity precedent is now expected to have an immediate chilling effect on corporate DEI efforts.
A legacy of inclusion ends? Experts told Paste BN these protections, combined with affirmative action in hiring, maintained employers to improve their treatment of historically underrepresented groups across industries.
- Why is Trump going after Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs? Republicans claim diversity initiatives focus on race and gender at the expense of individual merit, and they celebrated the president’s actions.
- Trump is sending a clear message to corporate America: Follow the federal government’s lead and “end illegal DEI discrimination” — or face civil rights investigations.
- It'll be on individual companies whether they align with Trump. In one case of a company rejecting Trump's lead, Costco shareholders voted down an investor proposal from a conservative think tank that urged management to investigate the business risks of its diversity initiatives.
Red flag warnings extended for Los Angeles-area
Firefighters continue to battle a fast-moving blaze in northern Los Angeles County on Friday that forced thousands to flee their homes. Meanwhile, two new fires are burning near San Diego amid relentless Santa Ana winds and bone-dry conditions that have kept Southern California on high alert for over two weeks. Overnight, crews were challenged by "extreme fire behavior, terrain, and weather," according to an incident update from fire officials. Here's what to know if you're in the affected area.
More news to know now
- The South’s cold snap won’t last forever. But these effects are expected to linger.
- A New Jersey mayor says ICE detained a veteran and U.S. citizens in an immigration raid.
- Trump criticized Ukraine's president over its war.
- Trump's release of JFK, RFK and MLK assassination docs opens a window into the nation's most debated mysteries.
- Pete Hegseth moves a step closer to being Trump's Defense secretary.
What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.
Federal health agencies pause public communications
A senior official with the Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday instructed agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to temporarily halt public messaging including advisories, scientific reports, website updates and social media posts. Dorothy Fink, who was appointed as President Donald Trump's acting secretary for HHS, said in a memo to agency leaders that health documents and communications should not be shared until they have been been "reviewed and approved by a presidential appointee." Meanwhile, the communications pause has extended to advisory boards that routinely meet to discuss emerging public health threats. Read more
Why Democratic AGs sued Trump over citizenship
"For states, it would mean we'd have to absorb costs of providing health care and educational services that are currently, in part, paid for by the federal government."
~ New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, one of the 18 state attorneys general suing to block President Donald Trump's attempt to end birthright citizenship. Platkin told Paste BN he fears the order will erase funding for children's health care and education.
Today's talkers
- Here's how to watch Oscar-nominated movies at home.
- Taylor Swift made an announcement — but it wasn't "Reputation (Taylor's Version)."
- Read the top women's college basketball storylines.
- I'm 37, single and have been searching the country for a date. Here's how it's going.
- Your pet can be your Valentine.
Madison Keys is playing the best tennis of her life
American Madison Keys is in a Grand Slam final for the first time in eight years after holding off No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek in the Australian Open semifinals. A few weeks from her 30th birthday, Keys played the match of her life Thursday morning to outlast Swiatek 5-7, 6-1, 7-6, capped by a 10-8 tiebreak in which it seemed like Keys was fighting from behind the entire way until a late burst of energy lifted her over the finish line. She will face two-time defending Australian Open champion and world No. 1 ranked player Aryna Sabalenka in the final on Saturday. Read more
Photo of the day: Welcome, Bao Li and Qing Bao!
Panda fanatics are ready to welcome Bao Li and Qing Bao, the latest bears loaned by China as part of its decades-long "panda diplomacy” program. The three-year-old bears’ public debut at the National Zoo in Washington is Friday.
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at Paste BN, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.