Budget Chief Halts Funding to Consumer Protection Agency, Says Not Needed

‘This spigot, long contributing to CFPB’s unaccountability, is now being turned off,’ Vought wrote on X. Office of Management and Budget chief Russ Vought, who recently took over as the acting head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), said on Feb. 8 that he is suspending the flow of new funding to the agency.

Acting Chief Halts Funding to Consumer Protection Agency, Says Not Needed

‘This spigot, long contributing to CFPB’s unaccountability, is now being turned off,’ Vought wrote on X. Office of Management and Budget chief Russ Vought, who recently took over as the acting head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), said on Feb. 8 that he is suspending the flow of new funding to the agency.

Weekend Beacon 2/9/25

In case you haven’t noticed, the late-night talk shows are getting clobbered. Ratings for “top-rated” The Late Show with Stephen Colbert are down 32 percent from five years ago, pulling in a 9 percent share of TV audiences in its time slot. (Maybe it’s the lousy skits? Or politics?) Contrast this with The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, which in its

Group of Cities, Counties Sue Over Trump’s Bid to End Sanctuaries

The coalition is alleging that the Trump administration is unlawfully forcing their participation in illegal immigrant deportations. As the Trump administration continues a broader effort to curb illegal immigration, a coalition of cities and counties filed a lawsuit on Feb. 7 challenging his executive order that forces sanctuary jurisdictions to cooperate with deportations. The group

Carson’s Century

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Johnny Carson, the late-night television talk show host and, at his peak in the 1970s and ’80s, probably the most famous and best-paid entertainer in the USA. To celebrate the occasion we have this just-published fanboy biography, Carson the Magnificent. The book has had a

AI in the Crosshairs

Perhaps the best that can be said for Gary Marcus’s new book sounding the alarm about the dangers of artificial intelligence is that it comes from a good place. A decorated AI developer, a renowned neuroscientist and psychologist, and a highly successful entrepreneur, Marcus notes at the outset of Taming Silicon Valley, his polemic against

Love, Virtually

Twenty-two-year-old Haliey Welch, who went viral for coining the phrase “Hawk Tuah,” launched the most recent iteration of the dating app this year: Pookie Tools, which coaches individuals on how to interact with each other virtually instead of pairing matches like a regular dating app. The AI-driven program can analyze dating app profiles and rank