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Daily Briefing: A 'big, beautiful bill'

Jane Onyanga-Omara   Paste BN

In a dramatic turnaround, House Republicans advanced the plan for President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill." The Supreme Court will hear arguments in a "reverse discrimination" case where a heterosexual woman claims she unfairly lost jobs to gay colleagues. The nation's largest measles outbreak in six years is projected to keep surging.

👋🏾 I'm Jane, Daily Briefing author. There's a new plant species at Big Bend National Park ‒ meet the "Wooly Devil."

House Republicans advance plan for Trump's legislative agenda

The House voted 217-215 to advance the GOP plan for President Donald Trump's legislative agenda Tuesday, after an all-day whip effort convinced a few Republican holdouts to come on board in a dramatic last-minute turnaround.

It was the first major test of the House Republican conference, which seeks to pass Trump's priorities for the border, energy and taxes through one of the narrowest legislative margins in modern American history.

  • Trump had endorsed the House's plan to roll all of his campaign promises into one "big, beautiful bill."
  • The proposal would set out the money Congress could spend to implement Trump's priorities and the total amount they must cut.
  • But a handful of fiscally conservative House Republicans said the legislation didn't reduce the deficit enough. Other moderate Republicans raised concerns that the proposal would necessitate cuts to Medicaid, which provides health insurance to 72 million low-income Americans.

'Reverse discrimination' case before SCOTUS amid DEI siege

A heterosexual woman is alleging she unfairly lost jobs to gay colleagues in a workplace "reverse discrimination" case being argued at the Supreme Court on Wednesday, amid a broad assault by President Donald Trump against DEI programs. Marlean Ames twice lost jobs at the Ohio Department of Youth Services to other candidates she thought were less qualified. At issue is whether some courts have created an extra hurdle for discrimination suits brought by people who haven’t faced historical patterns of prejudice. That’s different than whether the Trump administration can take various steps to end DEI policies, which the White House calls discrimination. Read more

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Texas measles outbreak isn't going away anytime soon

More than 130 people in rural Texas and New Mexico have been infected with measles ‒ and the nation's largest outbreak in six years is projected to keep surging. What began in a tight-knit West Texas Mennonite community has expanded to other under-vaccinated groups, including across state lines. Experts warn that communities with low immunization rates are primed for measles' spread. "We're still in free-fall," said Dr. Peter Hotez, of the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development. "It still has a lot of energy and steam behind it ... and that energy and steam are all the unvaccinated kids." Read more

A mineral deal to 'recoup' Ukraine war costs is imminent

A deal that would see Ukraine turn over some revenue from its mineral resources to the U.S. appears imminent, following a public pressure campaign from President Donald Trump. Trump has forcefully argued that Kyiv should repay the U.S. for money it spent defending Ukraine in the three years since Russia invaded. "We've pretty much negotiated our deal on raw Earth and various other things," he said, and suggested Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be in Washington to sign an agreement on Friday. The Ukrainian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Read more

Today's talkers

Consumers to protest 'corporate greed' on Friday

Consumers are preparing for a 24-hour economic blackout Friday, Feb. 28. It is one of several boycotts planned by groups of consumers or activists to protest what they call corporate greed, companies that have rolled back their diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and President Donald Trump's efforts to eliminate federal DEI programs since taking office. On Friday, consumers in the U.S. are encouraged not to spend any money anywhere for one day. If they do have to, they are encouraged to buy from a local business. Here's what to know.

Photo of the day: See stars arrive for the Oscar nominees dinner

The Oscars are nearly upon us ‒ and the nominees were invited to an opulent dinner at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. Stars, including Demi Moore, Cynthia Erivo, Zoe Saldaña, Timothée Chalamet and Ariana Grande, were in attendance at the soiree Tuesday, five days before Sunday's awards show. Check out these photos from the event.

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