ELON MUSK (Shutterstock).

Billionaire Elon Musk is telling people that he’s not responsible for the firing of thousands of federal workers.

According to the Associated Press, in meetings with Republican lawmakers, he is reportedly saying he merely points out instances of waste and redundancy in the national work force.

“Elon doesn’t fire people,” said Rep. Rochard Hudson (R-North Carolina) after meeting with Musk over pizza. “He doesn’t have firing and hiring authority,” said Hudson. “The president’s empowered him to go uncover this information, that’s it.”

Although tens of thousands people have received termination notices, President Donald Trump said he has urged department secretaries to “use a scalpel rather than the hatchet.”

“I don’t want to see a big cut where a lot of good people are cut,” said Trump later on Thursday. Referring to agency leaders and Cabinet secretaries, he said, “If they can cut, it’s better. And if they don’t cut, then Elon will do the cutting.”

Trump backtracks on tariffs

Two days after imposing tariffs of 25 percent on many imports from Mexico and Canada, President Donald Trump signed executive orders suspending them.

TARIFFS on Canada, Mexico and China are coming (Shutterstock).

The New York Times is reporting that he preserved exemptions in an agreement Trump had signed in his first term as president.

In what could be a response to the uncertainty about tariffs, stocks on Wall Street on Thursday fell sharply.

The S&P 500 fell by 1.8 percent, a decline that – taken with the week’s earlier statistics – brings the decline to 3.6 percent for the week, the steepest drop in two years.

ALSO IN THE NEWS: Pope Francis, recovering from a variety of ailments, made an audio recording broadcast to visitors in St. Peters’s Square in Vatican City. United Press International reports that he thanked them for their prayers for his health … California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a podcast that it was “deeply unfair” for transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports, according to USA Today.

Weather: Sunny and then ….

The good news about the forecast for our West Orange County cities is that sunny skies are expected for the next three days. The not-quite-as good news is that Monday is expected to bring several days of rainy weather. Friday should have a daytime high of 64 with an overnight low of 46. Saturday should be warmer at 69 (45) and Sunday even warmer at 73 (46). But the rain should move in on Monday with temps at 64 (50).