The Latest: Justice Department fires over a dozen employees who helped prosecute Trump

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's first day at the Pentagon is expected to include an array of executive orders, including ''removing DEI inside the Pentagon, reinstating troops who were pushed out because of Covid mandates'' and an ''Iron Dome for America.''

Meanwhile, JD Vance is flying to Damascus, Virginia, for a firsthand look at recovery efforts after Hurricane Helene.

Here's the latest:

Trump wants to ship repeat American criminals out of the US

It's not just undocumented migrant criminals that the president says he wants out of the United States.

''I don't want these violent repeat offenders in our country any more than I want illegal aliens from other countries that misbehave,'' Trump told House Republicans at their annual policy retreat in Miami.

He added: ''We're going to get approval, hopefully, to get them the hell out of our country along with others. Let them be brought to a foreign land and maintained by others for a very small fee as opposed to be maintained in our jails for massive amounts of money, including the private prison companies that charge us a fortune.''

Alaska House votes to urge Trump to keep the name Denali for North America's tallest peak

The Alaska House has voted to urge Trump to reverse course and retain the name of North America's tallest peak as Denali.

Trump last week signed an executive order calling for the name to revert to Mount McKinley. The Interior Department has said efforts are underway to implement Trump's order, though state leaders don't see the matter as settled yet.

Monday's vote was 28-10. Notice of reconsideration was given, meaning the resolution could be voted on again before going to the Senate.

The resolution came from Rep. Maxine Dibert, a Democrat who is Koyukon Athabascan. She said Denali is a Koyukon Athabascan word meaning ''the high one,'' but said Denali is not just a name. She said it's also a symbol of history, culture and respect.

Minority Republicans sought unsuccessfully to amend the resolution to add language expressing ''gratitude'' to Trump for a separate order aimed at boosting oil and gas drilling, mining and logging in Alaska.

Trump says China's AI breakthrough is ‘positive' because it could save money

China-based DeepSeek's progress on artificial intelligence without the same amount of spending caused the U.S. stock market to slide and could possibly undermine the potentially $500 billion AI investment by OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank that Trump touted last week at the White House.

Speaking Monday to House Republicans in Miami, Trump says the DeepSeek news is ''positive'' if it's accurate because ''you won't be spending as much and you'll get the same result.''

Trump says it's also a ''wakeup call for our industries that we need to be laser-focused on competing to win.''

Health and Human Services says it will investigate any use of taxpayer funds for abortions

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is launching an investigation into all programs to ensure no taxpayer money is spent on elective abortions, the agency announced in its first communique since President Donald Trump took office.

The move comes days before Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s health secretary confirmation hearings begin, and as questions linger over the longtime Democrat's commitment to the conservative, anti-abortion movement.

Former Vice President Mike Pence, a Republican, has launched an aggressive ad campaign against Kennedy's nomination, citing his past comments in support of abortion access.

Republicans have long railed against the millions of dollars that flow every year to Planned Parenthood and its clinics, which offer abortions but also birth control and cancer and disease screenings, among other things. Federal law prohibits taxpayer dollars from paying for most abortions.

Trump says tax cuts and border security funding are top legislative priorities

Trump says he wants Congress to ramp up spending on border security and extend and expand his 2017 tax cuts that are set to expire next year.

Speaking to House Republicans in Miami on Monday, Trump said there would be a ''60%'' tax increase if his previous cuts lapse as scheduled. But the president said he also intends ''to keep my promise starting with no tax on tips, no tax on Social Security and no tax on overtime.''

Trump also laid out what he wants to see in order to limit illegal border crossings.

''It should include full funding for a record increase in border security personnel and retention bonuses for ICE and Border Patrol,'' Trump said. ''We also need a massive increase in the number of detention beds and funding for all border security infrastructure and barriers, including the completion of the border wall.''

Billionaire investor Bessent confirmed as treasury secretary

The U.S. Senate confirmation gives Scott Bessent the delicate balancing act of cutting taxes and curbing deficits while putting forward a plan on tariffs that doesn't jeopardize growth.

The South Carolina resident will be the first openly gay individual in the role, a historic first as Trump seeks novel ways to implement a policy agenda driven by both billionaire business leaders with concerns over regulations and a populist base that wants government leaders to fight for them.

Bessent, a past supporter of Democrats who once worked for George Soros, has become an enthusiastic supporter of Trump.

The treasury secretary is responsible for serving as the president's fiscal policy adviser and managing the public debt. He is also a member of the president's National Economic Council.

▶ Read more about Bessent's confirmation and his responsibilities as treasury secretary

Trump recounts his first days back for House Republicans

President Donald Trump opened up his Monday speech to House Republicans, who are gathering in Miami for their annual policy retreat, by ticking through his first week back in the White House.

The president went through his various executive orders and directives, noting the start of deportations of unauthorized immigrants, a freeze in federal hiring, his withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement and his opposition to government support for electric vehicles, among other policies.

Trump also talked up his efforts to strip away diversity, equity and inclusion policies from the federal government, claiming to have ''abolished 60 years of prejudice and hatred'' and turned the United States into a meritocracy.

NIH says ongoing treatment studies continue amid Trump's freeze on the health agency's communications

The National Institutes of Health said Monday that ongoing treatment studies are continuing, seeking to ease some of the fear and confusion sparked by the Trump administration's freeze on health agency communications.

But ''at this time, no new studies are being launched,'' it said.

After some patients reported being told their treatments were suspended, the agency said clinical trials are continuing in the NIH hospital and others around the country. So are NIH laboratory experiments that began prior to Jan. 20.

Monday's update said purchasing, contracting, travel and hiring at NIH would continue ''for anything directly related to human safety, human or animal healthcare, security, biosecurity and IT security.''

Trump Justice Department says it has fired employees involved in prosecutions of the president

The Trump Justice Department said Monday that it had fired more than a dozen employees who worked on criminal investigations into President Donald Trump.

The abrupt action targeting career prosecutors who worked on special counsel Jack Smith's team is the latest sign of upheaval inside the Justice Department. It reflects the administration's determination to purge the government of workers it perceives as disloyal to the president.

The move, which follows the reassignment of multiple senior career officials across divisions, was made even though rank-and-file prosecutors by tradition remain in their positions across presidential administrations and are not punished because of their involvement in sensitive investigations.

A Justice Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the personnel move, confirmed the terminations were made by acting Attorney General James McHenry.

It was not immediately clear which prosecutors were affected by the order.

—Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer

Alaska's Republican Senator pushes back on Trump's efforts to obtain Greenland

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, is pushing back on President Donald Trump's efforts to obtain Greenland, saying in a joint statement with a Danish lawmaker Monday that the massive Danish island should be seen as a partner, not an asset up for sale.

''To ensure our alliance reaches its full potential, Americans must view Greenland as an ally, not an asset. Open for business, but not for sale,'' said Murkowski and Aaja Chemnitz, who represents Greenland in the Folketing, the Danish Parliament.

Murkowski is one of the few in her party still willing to openly defy Trump. She has also pushed back on Trump's order to rename North America's highest peak, Denali, back to Mount McKinley and voted against the confirmation of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

CDC ordered to stop working with WHO immediately

U.S. public health officials have been told to stop working with the World Health Organization, effective immediately.

A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official, John Nkengasong, sent a memo to senior leaders at the agency on Sunday night telling them that all agency staff who work with the WHO must immediately stop their collaborations and ''await further guidance.''

The Associated Press viewed a copy of the memo, which said the stop-work policy applied to ''all CDC staff engaging with WHO through technical working groups, coordinating centers, advisory boards, cooperative agreements or other means — in person or virtual.'' It also says CDC staff are not allowed to visit WHO offices.

—Mike Stobbe

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu may be the first foreign leader to meet with Trump at the White House since his inauguration

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hoping to visit Washington for a meeting with President Donald Trump as early as next week, according to two U.S. officials familiar with preliminary planning for the trip.

Should the trip come together in that time frame, Netanyahu could be the first foreign leader to meet with Trump at the White House since his inauguration last week. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the planning remains tentative, said details could be arranged when Trump's special Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, travels to Israel this week for talks with Netanyahu and other Israeli officials.

The White House had no immediate comment on the plans, which were first reported by Axios. Netanyahu's spokesman, Omer Dostri, said in a statement on Monday that Netanyahu has not yet received an official invitation to the White House.

—Matthew Lee

Trump talks with India's Modi about buying more US military and security goods

The White House says President Donald Trump told Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday that India should buy more of its ''security equipment'' from the United States.

The two also discussed Modi visiting the White House and India's upcoming hosting this year of the Quad, a group that also includes Australia and Japan.

Trump and Modi also talked about security issues in the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and Europe.

Vice President JD Vance visits a Virginia firehouse to check on Hurricane Helene recovery

He arrived at the Damascus Town Fire Department in Virginia and was greeted by the state's Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

Youngkin said he was proud to see the ''Damascus Strong'' flag on the fire truck as recovery from last fall's Hurricane Helene continues.

Vance addressed the crowd, joking that Youngkin, a former basketball player, is the ''one governor who makes me feel like a short guy.''

Vance later viewed two large photographs of the damage the area sustained from Helene.

Trump's first week in office included a flurry of executive orders on climate and the environment

While former President Joe Biden made climate change a hallmark of his administration and some of his policies remain, at least for now, President Trump is quickly unraveling that, even as many of his moves are likely to be challenged in court.

Experts say Trump's moves to step away from global climate action, ramp up domestic oil and gas production and remove incentives for electric vehicles are worrisome as the planet continues to heat up. 2024 was Earth's hottest year on record, and climate scientists say the rising heat is contributing to extreme weather affecting millions.

''These orders will make our air dirtier, make people sicker, make energy more expensive, and make our communities less prepared for extreme weather,'' wrote Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, a marine biologist, policy expert and author who co-founded the non-profit think tank Urban Ocean Lab.

▶ Read more about Trump's environmental executive orders

Official: Tuskegee Airmen and WASP videos initially removed to quickly comply with Trump's DEI order

The Air Force's newest recruits will continue to be taught about the Tuskegee Airmen and Women's Airforce Service Pilots, or WASPs.

That follows an uproar over the weekend after the Air Force had removed DEI courses that included videos of both storied groups, Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin said in a statement Monday.

The initial course removal, which affected the videos, occurred because the service, like other agencies, had to move swiftly to comply with President Donald Trump's executive order banning DEI content and ensure ''all remnants of the outdated policies'' were removed, with ''no equivocation, no slow-rolling, no foot-dragging,'' Allvin said.

But the stories of both groups will continue to be taught in basic military training, he said. ''The historic legacy and decorated valor these Airmen embodied during World War II and beyond will continue to guide our newest recruits and all who serve in our ranks.''

Hundreds of US visa appointments canceled in Colombia following spat over deportation flights

Visa appointments at the U.S. Embassy in Colombia were canceled Monday following a dispute over deportation flights from the U.S. that nearly turned into a costly trade war between the two countries.

Dozens of Colombians showed up outside the U.S. Embassy in Bogota and were handed letters by local staff that said their appointments had been canceled ''due to the Colombian government's refusal to accept repatriation flights of Colombian nationals.'' Others with visa appointments for Monday received similar email messages.

Obtaining an appointment can take up to two years.

Tensions between Colombia and the United States escalated Sunday after President Gustavo Petro wrote an early morning message on X saying he would not allow two U.S. air force planes carrying Colombian deportees to land in the country. He had previously authorized the flights.

President Donald Trump responded with a post of his own on Truth Social, in which he called for 25% emergency tariffs on Colombian exports to the United States, and also said the U.S. visas of Colombian government officials would be revoked, while goods coming from the South American country would face enhanced customs inspections. Meanwhile, the State Department said Sunday it would stop issuing visas to Colombian nationals until deportation flights resumed.

Tensions decreased Sunday night following negotiations between the countries, with the White House saying in a statement that Colombia had allowed the resumption of deportation flights and ''agreed to all of President Trump's terms.''

▶ Read more about the deportation flights to Colombia

Trump is expected to sign a flurry of new executive orders focused on the military

That includes reinstating troops booted for refusing COVID-19 vaccines, assessing transgender forces and further outlining new rollbacks in diversity programs.

It comes as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth began his first day on the job Monday.

The orders could further clarify initial directives Trump issued shortly after his inauguration last week, when he removed protections for transgender troops put in place by former President Joe Biden and banned diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at federal agencies.

Air Force restores use of Tuskegee Airmen training videos as Hegseth starts his first day

The Air Force restored the use of training material referring to the storied Tuskegee Airmen after a temporary delay to edit its courses to meet the Trump administration's rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, the service said, resolving an issue roiling as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth began his first day at the Pentagon.

Hegseth said in a post on X on Sunday that any move to cut the training was ''immediately reversed.'' But the swirl of confusion reflects an ongoing struggle as leaders across the Defense Department try to purge diversity mentions from their websites and training.

Hegseth didn't mention the issue as he walked into the building Monday morning accompanied by Gen. CQ Brown Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. But in other comments, Hegseth said ''military training will be focused on the readiness of what our troops in the field need to deter our enemies.''

▶ Read more about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's first day

JD Vance is making his first trip as vice president

He's flying to Damascus, Virginia, for a firsthand look at recovery efforts after Hurricane Helene.

Vance, then still a senator from Ohio and a vice presidential candidate, visited the town near the Tennessee border in early October, shortly after Helene hit.

Helene's destruction was most extensive in western North Carolina and President Donald Trump paid a visit there Friday. But the storm caused damage in several states, including Virginia, and recovery efforts are ongoing.

Vaccine bills stack up in statehouses across the US

Vaccination bills are popping up in more than 15 states as lawmakers aim to potentially resurrect or create new religious exemptions from immunization mandates, establish state-level vaccine injury databases or dictate what providers must tell patients about the shots.

Many see a political opportunity to rewrite policies in their states after President Donald Trump's return to the White House and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 's nomination as the next secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. The agency oversees virtually every aspect of vaccination efforts in the U.S., from funding their development to establishing recommendations for medical providers to distributing vaccines and covering them through federal programs.

Childhood vaccination rates against dangerous infections like measles and polio continue to fall nationwide, and the number of parents claiming non-medical exemptions so their kids don't get required shots is rising.

▶ Read more about vaccination bills

All Senate Democrats but Fetterman condemn Jan. 6 pardons in resolution

All Democratic senators but one signed a resolution Monday condemning President Donald Trump's decision to pardon Jan. 6 rioters who were charged with assaulting U.S. Capitol police officers.

The non-binding resolution is Democrats' latest effort to blast the president for his efforts to rewrite the violence that happened four years ago when Trump's supporters tried to block congressional certification of Joe Biden‘s 2020 election victory.

Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the lone Democrat to not sign the resolution. Democrats are expected to bring the measure to the floor this week but given Republican's majority, it will likely fail.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has arrived at the Pentagon and said his first official day will be busy

Speaking Monday morning, he said that would include additional executive orders expected ''on removing DEI inside the Pentagon, reinstating troops who were pushed out because of COVID mandates, Iron Dome for America — this is happening quickly,'' Hegseth said in response to questions from reporters. The Iron Dome is an advanced air defense system used by Israel.

Hegseth was also asked if he intended to fire Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. CQ Brown Jr — and in response said ''I'm standing with him right now,'' while patting Brown on his back. Brown did not say anything in response.

Incarcerated transgender woman challenges Trump's order on gender

A transgender woman has sued President Trump and the head of the federal prison system over a plan to move her to a men's prison.

The lawsuit was filed Sunday in U.S. District Court in Boston and is among the first court challenges related to the executive order Trump signed on his first day in office stating that the federal government would recognize only two sexes: male and female. The order defines them as being based on the reproductive cells present at conception and says they can't change.

The plaintiff says she was moved from the general population at a women's prison in Massachusetts to an isolated unit in Massachusetts the day after Trump signed the order, and that she was told she would be moved to a men's facility.

By Saturday, she says, the federal Bureau of Prisons changed her gender marker on publicly available prison records from female to male.

The plaintiff says she's been on hormones since she was a teenager and has never been in a men's prison. She says she would be at high risk there of harassment, abuse, violence and sexual assault. She also says she could be harmed if officials stop providing her with hormone treatment.

She says she's being deprived of due process to challenge the changes.

The Bureau of Prisons has not responded to questions from The Associated Press since last week about whether it is moving all transgender women inmates to men's facilities. As of last week, there were nearly 2,300 transgender inmates in federal prisons — about 1.5% of the total population.

Trump's celebration of American greatness puts a spotlight on a little-known panel of experts

Within hours of taking office, President Donald Trump outlined in one of his many executive orders a mission to celebrate American greatness and to recognize those who have made contributions throughout history.

He jumpstarted the effort by ordering the name of North America's tallest peak to be changed from Denali back to Mount McKinley in honor of the nation's 25th president, William McKinley. He also called on the U.S. Interior Department to work with Alaska Natives and others to adopt names for other landmarks that would honor their history and culture.

The U.S. Board on Geographic Names will play a role. The little known panel made up of officials from several federal agencies has been in existence since 1890.

▶ Read more about the U.S. Board on Geographic Names

Trump could test intelligence sharing ties between the US and its allies

As Russia moved closer to invading Ukraine nearly three years ago, the United States and its allies took the extraordinary step of declassifying and sharing intelligence to expose Moscow's plans.

Information flew across the Atlantic from U.S. spy agencies to NATO and Western partners showing Russia was poised to launch the biggest attack on a European country since World War II.

It was designed to muster support for Kyiv, and on the strength of the U.S. warning, some nations sent weapons to Ukraine, which moved some equipment out of the range of Russian strikes.

Now, officials are bracing for a potentially changed security landscape under President Donald Trump. He's criticized America's allies and lambasted its intelligence agencies. He's been accused of disregarding secrecy rules and hoarding classified documents.

Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's pick for director of national intelligence, has parroted Russian propaganda while his nominee to lead the FBI, Kash Patel, has promised changes that could significantly curtail the flow of intelligence to America's friends. Both are expected to face sharp questioning from lawmakers during confirmation hearings Thursday.

▶ Read more about how Trump could affect intelligence sharing

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s famous name and controversial views collide in his bid for top health job

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said vaccines aren't safe. His support for abortion access has made conservatives uncomfortable. And farmers across the Midwest are nervous over his talk of banning corn syrup and pesticides from America's food supply.

The 71-year-old, whose famous name and family tragedies have put him in the national spotlight since he was a child, has spent years airing his populist — and sometimes extreme — views in podcasts, TV interviews and speeches building his own quixotic brand.

A son of a Democratic political dynasty, Kennedy is seeking to become the nation's top health official under President Donald Trump. To get there, he's softening those long-held beliefs, hoping to win approval from the Republican Party.

At stake is Kennedy's control of the nation's sprawling $1.7 trillion U.S. Health and Human Services agency, which oversees food and hospital inspections, health insurance for roughly half of the country and vaccine recommendations. The job would finally give him the kind of political power Kennedys have wielded for decades.

▶ Read more about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Some key moments from over the weekend

The Trump administration's first weekend in office is already offering signals about how his next four years in the White House may unfold.

Here are some of the key moments:

1. Pete Hegseth was quickly sworn in as defense secretary after dramatic Senate vote

2. Trump visited Las Vegas and leaned into his pledge to eliminate taxes on tips at a rally

3. The Senate confirmed Kristi Noem as Homeland Security secretary

4. Trump fired about 17 independent inspectors general at government agencies, a sweeping action to remove oversight of his new administration

5. Trump changed the name of Alaska's Denali back to Mount McKinley,but many Alaskans say they'll never stop calling the mountain Denali.

6. Trump wants Jordan and Egypt to accept more Palestinian refugees and floated a plan to ‘clean out' Gaza. But the idea fell flat

7. Trump eliminated Biden's ''Justice 40'' initiative, which required 40% of the benefits from certain environmental programs to go to hard-hit communities

Where things stand with Colombia

The White House claimed victory in a showdown with Colombia over accepting flights of deported migrants from the U.S. on Sunday, hours after President Donald Trump threatened steep tariffs on imports and other sanctions on the longtime U.S. partner.

Long close partners in anti-narcotics efforts, the U.S. and Colombia clashed Sunday over the deportation of migrants and imposed tariffs on each other's goods in a show of what other countries could face if they intervene in the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. The White House held up the episode as a warning to other nations who might seek to impede his plans.

Earlier, the U.S. president had ordered visa restrictions, 25% tariffs on all Colombian incoming goods, which would be raised to 50% in one week, and other retaliatory measures sparked by President Gustavo Petro's decision to reject two Colombia-bound U.S. military aircraft carrying migrants after Petro accused Trump of not treating immigrants with dignity during deportation. Petro also announced a retaliatory 25% increase in Colombian tariffs on U.S. goods.

Trump said the measures were necessary because Petro's decision ''jeopardized'' national security in the U.S. by blocking the deportation flights.

▶ Read more about the U.S.-Colombia tariff showdown