The hot news this week in politics has been the sober approach of Elon Musk and DOGE to federal spending outlays, specifically to USAID, and the wailing reactions seen from the Democrats and the intemperate criticisms of this in the press. The amazement in all of this has been the outrage that many have expressed over DOGE looking to eliminate wasteful, useless spending. This is apparently so contradictory to political thinkers as to appear like a hate-crime.
Now, we are in the midst of an adjacent storyline, one involving Politico and other news outlets, and the federal spending involving these media sources. There have been outrage, knee-jerk defenses, and mistaken attributions, all amid eye-popping money figures that sometimes defy explanation. So far, we are hearing of a list of journalism outlets and wired services — from The New York Times, The AP,…
