Donald Trump’s influence over Congress is proven with the passage of his megabill. A military analysis contradicts Pete Hegseth’s stated reason for halting a weapons shipment to Ukraine. And why some feel like the verdict in Sean Combs’ trial is a setback for the #MeToo movement.
Here’s what to know today.
Trump takes victory lap after Congress advances his agenda
President Donald Trump is expected today to sign the megabill containing many of his agenda priorities after the Republican-led House passed the legislation in a 218-214 vote, capping a tense 24 hours of negotiations and arm-twisting. The Fourth of July signing ceremony at the White House will include fireworks, sources said, and the possibility of a military plane flyover.
Trump applauded Republicans after the bill passed, writing on social media that the effort signaled a unified Republican Party. He continued celebrating yesterday evening at a rally in Iowa organized to mark Independence Day, telling his audience there was “no better birthday present for America” than this bill.
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The 887-page package, dubbed the “one big, beautiful bill,” includes a tax-cut and spending package that is projected to increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion over a decade. The bill also adds $5 trillion to the debt ceiling.
The House vote yesterday was mostly along party lines, with just two Republicans — Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania — joining all Democrats in voting against the bill. Before the House passed the bill, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries gave the longest House floor speech ever and stalled a vote for over eight hours.
The bill’s passage through Congress, regardless of the hurdles along the way, displays Trump’s influence over the Republican Party that many of his predecessors would have envied. In a procedural vote Wednesday night that stretched into Thursday morning, Republican critics folded one by one and accepted demands they insisted they wouldn’t, thanks to efforts by Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson.
The president’s demands didn’t always match reality. For example, the bill includes Medicaid cuts despite Trump’s insistence that he wouldn’t touch the program. And since Trump’s takeover of the Republican Party, its core tenet of fiscal conservatism has been set aside.
So will the bill unleash the economic growth that Trump predicts? Or will the steep cuts in the social safety net alienate some of the same blue-collar voters that Trump wrested from the Democratic coalition? Next year’s midterm elections will serve as a huge test.
More coverage of Trump’s megabill:
- Bettors are worried about a provision in the bill that some fear could lead to the professional gambling industry folding.
- Two states with Medicaid work rules already in place offer a preview of what’s to come.
- Federal lands and waters will be opened up for oil and gas drilling, as well as coal mining, under the new law, while key support for solar and wind power will end.
More politics news:
- Trump said he “didn’t make any progress” toward a potential ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war when he spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday by phone.
- Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention center has so far received no federal funds despite assurances otherwise from Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis, court documents reveal.
- The judge presiding over Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s criminal case directed both the government and Abrego’s lawyers to stop making public statements about the case.
- The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to move forward with plans to send eight convicted criminals to South Sudan despite them having no ties to the war-torn country.
Beach closures in several states over fecal bacterial concerns
As millions set out to celebrate Fourth of July weekend, at least five states have issued advisories for certain beaches and lakes that have tested positive for above-safe levels of fecal bacteria. Almost two dozen beaches in Massachusetts are closed, as well as four beaches in New York and three beaches in Michigan. Meanwhile, Illinois has issued at least eight advisories in the past few weeks, and Los Angeles County has released eight ocean water quality advisories. And in North Carolina, officials urged people to keep children and pets away from water that appears bright green, blue or scummy over concerns about cyanobacteria algae blooms.
The bacteria being monitored include E.coli, which is more likely to be found in freshwater, and Enterococcus, which can form in both marine and freshwater. Here’s what else to know.
Hegseth’s reason for halting weapons to Ukraine contrasts military analysis
The Defense Department halted a shipment of U.S. weapons to Ukraine this week over what officials said were concerns about low stockpiles. But an analysis by senior military officers found that the aid package would not jeopardize the American military’s own ammunition supplies, according to three U.S. officials.
Suspending the shipment of military aid to Ukraine was a unilateral step by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, three congressional aides and a former U.S. official familiar with the matter said. This week’s move blindsided the State Department, members of Congress, officials in Kyiv and European allies, multiple sources said. In fact, some of the weapons had already been loaded onto trucks in Poland and other European countries, only for those handling the shipment to receive word that the delivery had been called off.
While the White House has defended the decision, bipartisan lawmakers have expressed disapproval. Read the full story here.
What the Sean Combs verdict says about the #MeToo movement
Dozens of news crews, hundreds of curious bystanders and law enforcement were set up outside the Manhattan courthouse this week when the verdict in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex-trafficking trial was read. Among them were also influencers, content creators and provocateurs who hoped to boost their online followings. And then there were Combs’ supporters — some dressed in costumes, others wielding baby oil — who cheered “Free Puff!” when he was acquitted of racketeering and sex trafficking.
The celebratory mood among Combs’ supporters stood in contrast to the reactions from some sexual assault survivors and advocates who feel the trial’s outcome was a devastating “step back” for the #MeToo movement, which gained prominence in 2017 after producer Harvey Weinstein was accused of assault.
In the years since the movement took hold, it has “suddenly started to shift to ‘Don’t believe all women,’ or ‘Women are liars,’” said Kaja Sokola, who was one of three women who testified in Weinstein’s May retrial. Nicole Bedera, a sociologist who studies sexual violence, said she “we’re in a new era where instead of people trying to convince us not to believe survivors, they tell us the survivors deserved it.” Read the full story here.
Meanwhile, Combs’ team described the verdict as a “great victory.” But Combs did not come out of the trial scot-free, with the jury convicting him on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution. His future in the music industry will depend heavily on how he owns up to the “freak offs” and other transgressions that his legal team didn’t dispute.
Read All About It
- Michael Madsen, a prolific character actor known for his frequent collaborations with filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, has died at the age of 67.
- Men in the U.S. are spending a record-high amount of time on household activities, a new analysis found. These charts show which tasks they’re tackling most.
- ICE agents arrested renowned Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez Jr. outside his Los Angeles home on allegations that he is involved in organized crime and trafficking and is an affiliate of the Sinaloa Cartel.
- Indie rock band Velvet Sundown is gaining traction on Spotify, but some critics are convinced the band and its music are 100% AI-generated.
- The 2025 Tour de France kicks off this weekend, promising another showdown between two frontrunners and a more challenging finish to the race.
Staff Pick: ICE shut down this Latino market — without even showing up
Latinos across the Las Vegas Valley have flocked to the thriving Broadacres Market, a massive swap meet where items like semilla pipianera, micheladas and banana leaves are part of the standard fare. With little warning, the marketplace, which has been in operation for nearly 50 years, announced that it was closing indefinitely.
The reason? To avoid an ICE raid, which recently happened at another swap meet in Southern California that the Broadacres owners also manage. The act of caution has further affected small business owners who run the stalls and the shoppers who rely on them for food and community.
“As a family, we’re facing questions like: What are we going to do about the mortgage payment, with groceries? How are we going to recover from this?” Rico Ocampo — whose family has run their business selling nuts, seeds, cheeses, and other goods at Broadacres for 20 years — told reporter Denise Chow, who spoke to Ocampo and other community members reeling from the market’s sudden closure. Ocampo’s family’s stock is slowly running out, and with it, the safety of their steady business, as they call on lawmakers and Broadacres management to do something to protect those whose lives might be disrupted by an ICE raid. — Michelle Garcia, BLK editorial director
NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified
July Fourth is here, and so are the sales. Here are 50 deals worth checking out, with discounts on brands like Apple, Yeti, Dyson and more. And get up to 80% off during Amazon’s Fourth of July sale, which has deals on TVs, mattresses, outdoor gear and more.
Sign up to The Selection newsletter for hands-on product reviews, expert shopping tips and a look at the best deals and sales each week.
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