Mystery solved — sort of. After weeks of intense speculation, the White House revealed yesterday who sits atop the convoluted cost-cutting entity DOGE, even as both Elon Musk and President Donald Trump continue to operate as if Musk is the ultimate authority for the amorphous group. While that may be the case in practice, the administration's revelation this week that Amy Gleason, a little-known Trump associate, is DOGE's "acting administrator" has only served to heighten speculation as to how DOGE functions.

Gleason was reportedly unaware that the White House was planning to make her identity public. She has a long history of working with Trump and his associates but has maintained a low profile throughout her time in the president's orbit. 

From USDS to DOGE
Gleason is a "career official" who worked for Trump's "digital service unit" during his first administration, said The New York Times. As part of that posting, she was assigned to coordinate with the Health and Human Services department, where she "worked on Covid response." According to a brief bio accompanying her 2020 TEDx talk, Gleason "began her career in nursing" and "worked on several different electronic medical records applications." 

Gleason's LinkedIn profile has shown her serving as a "senior adviser at the United States Digital Service," the agency that was transformed into and subsumed by DOGE, since January, said Politico. It's "unclear" when she was appointed to the acting administrator role for DOGE and "what exactly her relationship with Musk" is regarding running the group's operations. 

Her appointment to the upper echelon of DOGE's still-nebulous chain of command "came as a surprise" to her colleagues, said CBS News. Many of those coworkers learned of her elevated title only after her name was made public. 

Longstanding ties to Trumpland
Before rejoining the Trump administration for his second term, Gleason remained in the president's extended orbit in the private sector, working at several health-care-focused startups helmed by "key DOGE leader" Brad Smith, said The Washington Post. It was Smith who "looped" Gleason into DOGE "conversations," said Fox News. 

Smith previously worked with former Trump adviser and presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner, said The New York Times. He has been advising Musk's DOGE effort since "late last year."

News that Pope Francis is being treated in the hospital for double pneumonia as part of a "complex clinical situation" has generated an outpouring of well wishes for the elderly pontiff. It has also led to hushed speculation over who could be in line to replace him if the worst happens.

In his memoir, "Life: My Story Through History," Francis confirms he signed a statement promising to resign if bad health precludes him from performing his duties. He has been hospitalized several times during his 12 years as leader of the Roman Catholic Church, suffering several health issues. Now age 88, he's the oldest pope in over a century.

How's a new pope chosen?
A total of 138 cardinals are currently under age 80 and so are eligible to participate in the papal election called the conclave. After the death or resignation of a pope, cardinals convene in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, where they take an oath of secrecy and discuss the merits of likely candidates. 

Voting is held through a series of secret ballots, with each cardinal elector writing a name on a piece of paper. Ballot papers are burned, giving off smoke that can be seen by onlookers outside. If the smoke is black, the cardinals have failed to reach a decision, while white smoke signifies a new pope has been chosen.

The group of cardinals who form the conclave is the "world's most powerful electorate" for its size, said the Financial Times. Francis, the first non-European pope since the eighth century, has done a "great deal to shape the choice" of the next conclave. 

Who are the front-runners?
The conclave could return a conservative whose appointment would "send a powerful message about the direction the Church would be taking" or choose a pope from the "developing world," said the Catholic Herald. A pick like the Philippines' Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle would be "hailed by liberals, given the changing demographic of the Church." Longstanding favorites to win include Vatican Secretary of State and Italy's Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Turkson, Hungary's conservative Cardinal Peter Erdo and Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet.