Skip to content
1.5 billion
Astronomers discover the largest known structure in the universe to date, a cosmic filament—a strand connecting dark matter, galaxies, and more—roughly 1.3 billion light-years in length, reports .
<$400 billion
“Elon Musk’s net worth fell below $400 billion for the first time in two months, dragged down by a double-digit slide in Tesla Inc.’s share price,” Bloomberg reports.“The automaker’s stock has fallen 27% after hitting an all-time high in mid-December on hopes that Musk’s proximity to President Donald Trump would boost the company’s fortunes. Tesla shares and options make up more than 60% of Musk’s wealth, which peaked at $486.4 billion on Dec. 17 in the wake of Trump’s election.”
$7.30
The cost of eggs continues to hit record highs in the US, with data from the USDA showing wholesale prices above $7.30 for a dozen large white eggs (see data here; click on “Egg Markets Overview”). The figure is up from around $5 at the beginning of the year and almost three times as much year over year.
53% to 47%
With most describing him as “tough,” “energetic,” “focused” and “effective” — and as doing what he’d promised during his campaign, a new CBS News poll finds President Trump has started his term with an approval rate of 53% to 47%. One takeaway: 59% of voters approve of mass deportation and 64% support sending troops to the U.S. Mexico border.
1,600
New York Times: “Senators were informed this week that the Senate phone system was receiving 1,600 calls per minute, a sharp increase from the usual 40 calls a minute … While the phones had not completely stopped ringing, as they have in the past under heavy loads, members were told that some constituents would be sent straight to voice mail to prevent a complete shutdown.”
$350 billion
“Senate Republicans unveiled a plan to fund President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign, proposing to spend close to $350 billion on immigrant detention facilities, deportation raids and national security priorities,” the Washington Post reports.
$25,000
“Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be FBI director, was paid $25,000 last year by a film company owned by a Russian national who also holds U.S. citizenship and has produced programs promoting ‘deep state’ conspiracy theories and anti-Western views advanced by the Kremlin,” the Washington Post reports.
$5–$11.2 trillion
“President Donald Trump’s tax cut wish list would cost would the federal government between $5 trillion and $11.2 trillion in lost revenue over the next decade, according to a new analysis from a budget watchdog group,” Bloomberg reports.
43% to 51%
New internal Democratic polling finds Elon Musk’s approval rating is upside down, 43% to 51%, and his favorability is even worse, 42% to 51%.
20,000
At least 20,000 federal employees have heeded the Trump administration’s call to leave their jobs and get paid through September, officials told news outlets yesterday, reported the Morning Brew newsletter. That means ~1% of the 2+ million-strong federal workforce is taking the deal first introduced in an email announcing a “Fork in the Road” (the same language Elon Musk used to offer buyouts to non-“hardcore” Twitter employees). This falls short of the White House’s goal of having 5% to 10% of federal staffers turn in their notice to cut down on government spending, but officials say the number continues to climb as the Feb. 6 deadline for accepting the offer nears.
