“The Biden administration and congressional Republicans are making progress in their negotiations over federal spending and raising the debt limit, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said, adding that she believes the talks could result in an agreement,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Sen. Dianne Feinatein’s (D-CA) office “had an on-call system — unbeknownst to Feinstein herself — to prevent the senator from ever walking around the Capitol on her own,” Rolling Stone reports.
“At any given moment there was a staff member ready to jump up and stroll alongside the senator if she left her office, worried about what she’d say to reporters if left unsupervised. The system has been in place for years.”
Washington Post: “Jack Teixeira, dressed in camouflage fatigues, his finger wrapped around the trigger of a semiautomatic rifle, faced the camera and spoke as though reciting an oath.”
“Jews scam, n—–s rape, and I mag dump.”
“Teixeira raised his weapon, aimed at an unseen target and fired 10 times in rapid succession, emptying the magazine of bullets.”
“The six-second video, taken at a gun range near Teixeira’s home in Massachusetts, affords a brief but illuminating glimpse into the offline world of the 21-year-old National Guard member, who stands accused of leaking a trove of classified military intelligence on the group-chat platform Discord.”
New York Times: “Ukraine’s planned counteroffensive against Russia has overshadowed talk of a potential negotiated settlement in the conflict, but some U.S. and European officials say the next phase of the war could create momentum for diplomacy…”
“President Biden’s aides have been exploring potential endgames, trying to identify an outcome that could be acceptable to both Kyiv and Moscow if real peace talks started, U.S. officials say.”
Associated Press: “Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy arrived in Rome on Saturday for talks with Italian officials and Pope Francis, who has said the Vatican has launched a behind-the-scenes initiative to try to end the war launched last year by Russia.”
“The Minnesota Senate DFL majority passed new gun safety measures late Friday, punctuating a historically productive 2023 session by successfully wrangling one of the toughest issues in U.S. politics,” the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
“The gun provisions were part of an $880 million public safety spending package that passed on a 34-33 party-line vote. The House, as well as the Senate Judiciary Committee, already backed the gun measures, but the vote after nine hours of debate was the first by the full Senate this session.”
“The bill includes expanded background checks for private transfers and gun show sales, along with red flag-style laws allowing judges to remove guns from individuals determined to be dangerous.”
CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy was scolded by CNN chairman Chris Licht over his critical coverage of the network’s Trump town hall, Puck reports. Licht “summoned” Darcy and his editor “to a meeting with himself and top executives in which they told him that his coverage of Trump town hall had been too emotional and stressed the importance of remaining dispassionate.”
“President Trump showed a comfortable command of the room. He had an exquisite knowledge of the facts.”— Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), describing Donald Trump’s town hall performance on Newsmax.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) voiced his support for Daniel Penny, the Marine charged in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, WFLA reports.
Said DeSantis in a tweet: “We must defeat the Soros-Funded DAs, stop the Left’s pro-criminal agenda, and take back the streets for law abiding citizens. We stand with Good Samaritans like Daniel Penny. Let’s show this Marine… America’s got his back.”
“Penny caused national outrage after he put Neely, a Michael Jackson impersonator who had been dealing with mental health issues and homelessness, in a chokehold for about 15 minutes on a New York City subway.”
“An obscure financial entity with connections to a Caribbean-island bank that bills itself as a top payment service for adult entertainment sites would gain a sizable stake in former president Donald Trump’s media company if its merger deal proceeds,” the Washington Post reports.
Paul Kane: “The third-year senator [idiot racist Tommy Tuberville] believes Pentagon leaders are forcing troops to read liberal books. That they are helping provide abortion services. And, in new remarks the past few days, that they are inappropriately driving ‘white nationalists’ out of the service. … These positions have placed Tuberville — whose military background consists of using war metaphors to inspire his teams during three decades coaching college football — in the spotlight as the leading conservative antagonist to the Defense Department.”
“North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper on Saturday vetoed a bill banning abortions after the first trimester, teeing up an override vote by the GOP supermajority legislature,” Politico reports.
Vice President Kamala Harris has been quietly forming a small, outside group of women allies to help amplify her role as the White House’s leading warrior against GOP abortion bans, Axios reports.
Scores of FBI agents and Florida police ambushed Trump Tower III on Sunny Isles Beach to search a condo unit owned by Russians, the Miami Herald reports.
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