🎧News Brief: Trump Says He’s Not Sharing War Plans as Musk Visits Pentagon; Says US Will Sign Ukraine Minerals Deal ‘Very Shortly’

President Donald Trump speaks out against disturbing claims concerning Elon Musk, the Pentagon, and a possible war with China...

Elon Musk and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth laugh at the Pentagon in Washington, March 21, 2025 in this screenshot from a video. Idrees Ali/Reuters

Good morning, and welcome to The Epoch Times News Brief for Saturday, March 22, 2025. I’m Bill Thomas, we have some urgent stories to share with you right now, and here’s what’s happening both nationally and around the world.

President Donald Trump speaks out against disturbing claims concerning Elon Musk, the Pentagon, and a possible war with China; he gives an encouraging update regarding a potential mineral rights deal between our nation and Ukraine; and a federal judge issues a critical ruling concerning one government agency’s attempts to access the Social Security database.

Also, a number of food products are pulled from shelves due to potentially harmful health risks, and the Trump administration reveals who’s going to handle a number of consequential responsibilities following the dismantling of a longtime federal department.

The weekend is here, we have a number of urgent stories to share with you, and we begin here: The Trump administration is trying to quell rumors regarding exactly why Elon Musk is visiting the Pentagon, and more now on our top story.

Trump Says He’s Not Sharing War Plans as Musk Visits Pentagon

President Donald Trump says a recent New York Times story, which stated in an anonymously sourced report that the Pentagon will brief Musk on U.S. military plans for a potential war with China, is “fake news” and “completely untrue.” He also says that, personally, he would not share such intelligence with anyone.

The New York Times report cited a number of anonymous sources it said were U.S. officials. It claimed that during his visit, Musk would be given a presentation of the war plans by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth himself, along with other top U.S. military leaders.

Meanwhile, Musk attended a morning meeting at the Pentagon yesterday that lasted for about an hour and 20 minutes. According to the president, he was there “to address costs” in relation to his role in leading the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

For his part, Hegseth says that Musk was welcome in the Pentagon, and that their conversation included DOGE, efficiencies, and innovations to the Department of Defense. He went on to call Musk a “patriot” and an “innovator” who provides a great deal of capabilities that both our government and our military rely on.

However, a number of Democratic lawmakers and other groups have raised concerns about possible conflicts of interest involving Musk. They point to his involvement with DOGE, as well as his stakes in both Tesla and SpaceX, which is a major aerospace contractor for the federal government.

For their part, the White House says that Musk will recuse himself if any conflicts of interest arise between his business dealings and his role in cutting federal government spending. Meanwhile, Musk recently paid a visit to the National Security Agency, shortly after saying the intelligence agency “needs an overhaul.”

Another story making headlines today deals with the president indicating that a deal regarding Ukraine and highly valued rare earth materials is in the making, and more now on what we’re learning.

Trump Says US Will Sign Ukraine Minerals Deal ‘Very Shortly’

Following a number of significant delays, the president now says that a crucial minerals and natural resources deal with Ukraine is back on track and that he expects it to be signed in the near future.

As you may recall, Trump was planning to sign that deal with Ukraine a few weeks ago; however, an argument in the Oval Office with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy derailed the proceedings.

Meanwhile, he made his latest comments at the White House, shortly after he signed a new executive order aimed at increasing our country’s mining and production of a number of critical minerals, as well as uranium, copper, and gold.

The president went on to say the United States is signing a variety of agreements across the globe in an effort to unlock rare earths and minerals, which are key components in the manufacturing of a great deal of modern technology, including smartphones and electric vehicles.

Trump also says that both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin have tentatively agreed to a cease-fire agreement, which would see the two nations refrain from attacking each other’s energy infrastructure for 30 days.

He says he thinks negotiations are going well, and that, hopefully, thousands of people will be spared from needlessly dying and the war will finally come to an end.

Another story we’re following very closely today: A federal judge stopping the White House agency charged with targeting waste and fraud in the federal government from gaining access to Social Security records; the Trump administration is fighting back, and more now on what we know.

Federal Judge Blocks DOGE From Accessing Social Security Information

A federal judge in Maryland has just temporarily blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing personal information at the Social Security Administration. She also says that DOGE must delete any personally identifiable data which they already have in their possession.

She went on to point out that although the American public may support the Trump administration’s mission to “root out fraud, waste, and bloat from federal agencies,” DOGE is essentially engaging in what she called a “fishing expedition” at the Social Security Administration, based on “little more than suspicion.”

The judge also says that DOGE appears to have started “a search for the proverbial needle in the haystack, without any concrete knowledge that the needle is actually in the haystack.”

She went on to note that DOGE’s efforts included “unbridled access” to the personal data of millions of Americans, including medical records, bank and credit card information, tax forms, income history, addresses, and more.

For their part, lawyers for the Trump administration say that the plaintiffs lack standing to bring the lawsuit in the first place because they haven’t suffered any injury from DOGE’s efforts.

They also point out that DOGE has a 10-person team at the SSA, that most of them have been granted limited access to agency systems, and that nearly all of them have passed recent background checks.

We have some important health news to share with you now and for many people, a quick, easy, and affordable meal option is the decades-old frozen dinner. However, citing health concerns, some of those dinners are being recalled, and more now on this developing story.

Nestlé Recalls Frozen Meals

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says that Virginia-based Nestlé USA is recalling a number of its Lean Cuisine and Stouffer’s frozen food items over concerns that a wood-like material has contaminated its products.

The company says it’s taking the action following a potential choking incident related to the material. It also says it’s currently investigating the source of the contamination, that it’s taken steps to address the issue, and that it’s working with the federal government to recall the potentially contaminated products.

Nestlé went on to say that the recall involves a limited quantity of batches of Lean Cuisine’s Butternut Squash Ravioli, Spinach Artichoke Ravioli, and Lemon Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry, as well as Stouffer’s Party Size Chicken Lasagna.

By the way, those items were distributed to major retailers across the country, and they all have best-before dates ranging from September 2025 to April 2026.

In related news, the federal Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) says that a company called Idaho Smokehouse Partners is pulling nearly 30,000 pounds of its ready-to-eat beef stick products from the market because they may be contaminated with pieces of metal.

The FSIS says the problem was discovered after two people complained to the company that they found metal in their food. Additionally, the agency is classifying the recall under its most severe category, meaning there’s a “reasonable probability” that eating the product will cause “serious, adverse health consequences,” or possibly even death.

The recalled product is “Chomps Original Beef Stick Mild.” The items have an expiration date of Feb. 10, 2026, and were sold through retail outlets in both Illinois and California.

Finally today, a follow-up to a story we shared with you on this program yesterday. As the Trump administration downsizes the Department of Education, other government agencies will be stepping in to assume some of that department’s functions, and here’s what we know.

SBA Will Take Over Student Loans as Part of Education Department Overhaul

The president says that two primary responsibilities formerly administered by the Department of Education will now be assigned to other federal agencies.

He says that the responsibility for student loan processing will shift over to the Small Business Administration (SBA). Additionally, the oversight of funding, along with some programming for students with special needs, will now be overseen by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Trump said these steps will save taxpayers a significant amount of money while improving public education in every state.

He went on to say that moving forward, it will be important for students to get guidance regarding their education from the people who care the most for them, including their parents, school boards, and the leaders of their states.

The president’s latest announcement was made shortly after he signed an executive order calling for the partial elimination of the Department of Education, while also preserving some funding and oversight related to Pell grants, special education, and low-income students.

Meanwhile, as it now stands, the federal and state governments split most of the costs for special education, which can make up a large chunk of public school budgets because individualized learning plans are required for special needs students.

And now, it looks like our time is just about up for today, so we’re gonna call it a wrap for the Saturday edition of The Epoch Times News Brief.

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Finally, as we do each day on this program, we wrap everything up with a very notable quote, and this one comes to us from Socrates, who said:

“Man must rise above the Earth—to the top of the atmosphere and beyond—for only thus will he fully understand the world in which he lives.”

Socrates was a philosopher and soldier who is considered the founder of Western philosophy. He was known for his questioning nature and his teaching style, which involved asking questions to help students reach their own understanding.

For all of us here at The Epoch Times News Brief, I’m Bill Thomas.

The Epoch Times News Brief program is written each day by David Ross.

Thank you for making us your one-stop source for a concise, accurate, and unbiased daily synopsis of many of the news stories you need to know about.

Enjoy the remainder of your day and we’ll see you right back here next time for another edition of The Epoch Times News Brief.

For now, it’s imperative that we all continue to watch out for one another and have an absolutely superb day today. Bye for now.