President Donald Trump late Thursday signed an executive order to end collective bargaining with federal labor unions in agencies with national security missions.

The order cites his authority granted under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 and will affect most of the federal government. 

Agencies such as the Departments of State, Defense, Veterans Affairs, Energy, Health and Human Services, Treasury, Justice and Commerce and the part of Homeland Security responsible for border security are just a few listed in the executive order.

The need to end collective bargaining with federal unions in these agencies is because of their role in safeguarding national security, according to the order. 

‘President Trump is taking action to ensure that agencies vital to national security can execute their missions without delay and protect the American people. The President needs a responsive and accountable civil service to protect our national security,’ according to a White House fact sheet regarding the order.

It also claims that ‘Certain Federal unions have declared war on President Trump’s agenda,’ and that the ‘largest Federal union describes itself as ‘fighting back’ against Trump. It is widely filing grievances to block Trump policies.’

According to the administration, VA’s unions have filed 70 national and local grievances over President Trump’s policies, averaging over one a day since the inauguration.

‘President Trump supports constructive partnerships with unions who work with him; he will not tolerate mass obstruction that jeopardizes his ability to manage agencies with vital national security missions,’ the White House said.

Police and firefighters will continue to collectively bargain.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., fired back after Elon Musk unflinchingly stood behind the decision to label the lawmaker a ‘traitor.’ 

Musk made the accusation earlier this month when replying to a post in which the senator, who is also a Navy veteran and retired astronaut, argued that it is important for the U.S. to ‘stand with Ukraine.’

When Fox News’ Bret Baier asked Musk why he leveled the accusation, Musk indicated that Americans should care about U.S. interests over those of another nation, adding, ‘if they don’t, they’re a traitor.’

‘But he’s a decorated veteran, a former astronaut, a sitting U.S. senator,’ Baier pressed.

Musk said that does not mean it is ‘OK’ for Kelly to place the interests of another nation over the U.S.

Kelly fired back during an appearance on CNN. 

‘My entire life has been about serving this country,’ he declared, asserting that he always supports America’s best interests and ‘standing with our allies and standing up for democracy is in the best interests of the United States.’

Kelly added that he would categorize Musk as being ‘much closer to Russia.’

Earlier this month, after Musk called him a ‘traitor,’ the senator announced that he would get rid of his Tesla electric vehicle, saying he did not want to drive a ‘car built and designed by an a–hole.’ 

‘I bought a Tesla because it was fast like a rocket ship. But now every time I drive it, I feel like a rolling billboard for a man dismantling our government and hurting people. So Tesla, you’re fired! New ride coming soon,’ he tweeted.

He later announced that his ‘new ride’ is a Chevrolet Tahoe SUV.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said Friday that the Trump administration intends to boost military ties with the Philippines to strengthen deterrence against Chinese aggression in the disputed South China Sea.

The assurance came during a meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in the Philippines, part of Hegseth’s trip to Asia to reaffirm Washington’s ‘ironclad’ commitment to the region under the administration of President Donald Trump.  

‘Deterrence is necessary around the world but specifically in this region, in your country, considering the threats from the communist Chinese,’ Hegseth told Marcos. ‘Friends need to stand shoulder to shoulder to deter conflict, to ensure that there is free navigation whether you call it the South China Sea or the West Philippine Sea.’

‘Peace through strength is a very real thing,’ Hegseth said, praising the Philippines for standing ‘very firm’ to defend its interests in the contested waters.

China claims virtually the entire South China Sea, a major security and global trade route. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims to the resource-rich and busy waters, but confrontations have spiked between Chinese and Philippine coast guard and naval forces in the last two years.

Chinese forces have used powerful water cannons and dangerous maneuvers in the high seas to block what Beijing said were encroachments by Philippine ships into China’s waters. Chinese military aircraft have also approached Philippine patrol planes at alarmingly close distances to drive them away from the Scarborough Shoal, a hotly disputed fishing atoll in the disputed waterway.

Hegseth echoed that pledge by expressing ‘the ironclad commitment’ of Trump and him ‘to the Mutual Defense Treaty and to the partnership.’

Marcos told the U.S. defense chief that by visiting the Philippines first in Asia, he ‘sends a very strong message of the commitment of both our countries to continue to work together to maintain peace in the Indo-Pacific region, within the South China Sea.’

‘We have always understood the principle that the greatest force for peace in this part of the world would be the United States,’ Marcos said.

Hegseth’s visit to the Philippines comes a month before the longtime treaty allies hold their largest annual combat exercises that will include live-fire drills. 

The defense secretary’s visit comes as he faces calls back home for his resignation for texting attack plans to a Signal group that included top-level U.S. security officials and the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) launched its first-ever ad buy Friday targeting Elon Musk and the millions of dollars he has injected into the Wisconsin Supreme Court race, previewing what could be a broader strategy for the party going forward.

The DNC ad buys, which are slated to run through Tuesday in seven local newspapers across Wisconsin, take aim at the $19 million Musk and his affiliated PACs have spent on behalf of conservative candidate, Brad Schimel, in a high-stakes state Supreme Court election that will determine whether the court retains its current 4-3 liberal majority.

Musk ‘has threatened Medicare, gutted Social Security services, and now he thinks he can buy himself a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court,’ DNC Chair Ken Martin said in a statement Friday. ‘That’s why, today, the DNC is out with our first paid media explicitly calling out Musk for his attempts to meddle in Wisconsin’s elections.’

DNC officials told Fox News Digital that the ads will run in seven local newspapers across the state – the Chippewa Herald, the Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter, the Beloit Daily News, the Daily Jefferson County Union, the Janesville Gazette, the Watertown Daily Times and the Oshkosh Northwestern – and highlight the message, ‘Wisconsin is not for sale.’

‘Wisconsinites deserve a Supreme Court justice who looks out for them, not the ultra-wealthy,’ Martin said. ‘Now and forever, Wisconsin is not for sale.’

The closely-watched state Supreme Court in Wisconsin is already the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history, reaching a total of more than $81 million in spending and far eclipsing the $56 million spent on the state Supreme Court race just two years earlier, according to figures compiled by the Brennan Center for Justice. 

Musk’s two super PACs spent more than $17 million on Schimel’s behalf, while Musk personally donated $3 million to the Wisconsin Republican Party earlier this year – funds that in turn can be used for Schimel’s campaign. 

President Donald Trump and Musk have thrown their weight behind conservative candidate Schimel, with Trump himself stumping for Schimel during a Thursday evening tele-town hall event and billing the race as one that could have an ‘outsized impact on the future of the country.’

‘I know you feel it’s local, but it’s not,’ Trump said, adding, ‘The whole country is watching.’

Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama and other notable Democrats have thrown their weight behind liberal opponent Susan Crawford, the current Dane County circuit judge whose campaign has attracted more than $25 million in funding ahead of the race. 

Democrats, for their part, see the race as fertile proving grounds to test their attack against Musk as they look to retain a critical state Supreme Court seat in Wisconsin and gear up for the 2026 midterm elections.

The efficacy of the ad campaign in Wisconsin, a that narrowly elected Trump in both the 2016 and 2024 presidential contests, remains to be seen. 

However, it comes as Democrats have struggled to coalesce around a unifying message in the aftermath of the 2024 elections, which could make Musk, and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), more attractive targets. 

Polling numbers in Wisconsin also bear this out. Fifty-three percent of Wisconsin voters said earlier this month that DOGE is disrupting programs required by law, according to a survey from Marquette University Law School, while a slightly lower 47% said the quasi-agency is carrying out Trump’s agenda. 

A larger 59% majority said Trump’s freezing spending and his closing of federal agencies is beyond his governmental authority.