Here's what federal programs are headed for a (possibly brief) shutdown

Senate passes massive government funding package, sending it to House

The Senate voted overwhelmingly Friday to pass a major funding package consisting of five regular appropriations bills and a two-week stopgap measure for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) but the legislation won’t become law before parts of the government shut down at

Senate passes $1.2T government funding deal — but a brief shutdown is certain

With the House not voting until Monday, the Pentagon and most domestic agencies are set to shutter briefly.

Lady Gaga: Heart aches for families 'mercilessly targeted by ICE'

Lady Gaga said Thursday her heart aches for families in the U.S. "mercilessly targeted" by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid President Trump's immigration crackdown and growing tensions with Minnesota local and state officials over immigration operations. "In a

Reid Hoffman urges Silicon Valley to speak out against Trump

{beacon} Technology The Big Story Reid Hoffman urges Silicon Valley to speak out against Trump LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman argued Silicon Valley “can’t bend the knee” to President Trump after a second American was killed by federal agents amid an immigration crackdown

Health care costs top concern in new poll

Americans are more worried about affording health care than any other household necessity, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll published Thursday. The poll, conducted with 1,426 adults Jan. 13-20, found that two-thirds of respondents said they felt more anxious about

Kamala Harris: Don Lemon arrest 'an affront to our rights and freedoms'

Former Vice President and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is blasting President Trump's administration over the arrest of journalist Don Lemon and several other independent media members in connection with a protest at a church in Minnesota earlier this

Crockett, Talarico locked in dead heat in Texas Senate primary: Poll

The top two Democratic candidates in Texas's Senate race are neck and neck in a new poll. A Texas Public Opinion Research poll surveyed likely Democratic primary voters ahead of the state party’s upcoming primary elections on March 3. In response to a question about whom they

Trump removes some Venezuelan oil sanctions

{beacon} Energy & Environment Energy & Environment The Big Story Trump removes some Venezuelan oil sanctions The U.S. is lifting some sanctions on Venezuelan oil, seeking to allow American firms to trade and sell more oil that is produced there. © Evan Vucci, Associated

Johnson backs fast-track process requiring Democratic support to swiftly end shutdown

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told House Republicans he wants to utilize a special fast-track process that will require cooperation from Democrats to swiftly pass the funding package that the Senate is poised to send over and end what lawmakers hope will be a brief government

House GOP leaders eye bipartisan path for spending package

Axelrod warns Democrats against campaigning on abolishing ICE

Democratic strategist David Axelrod on Thursday warned Democratic lawmakers and candidates to avoid calling for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be abolished on the campaign trail. "Well, you know the problem that we’ve seen before when people said abolish the

Trump Was in Contact With Epstein Long After Saying He’d Cut Him Off

Donald Trump and his allies stayed connected to Jeffrey Epstein well after they claimed they had stopped communicating. The president has long asserted that his close friendship with the child sex trafficker ended after the duo had a falling out over real estate in Palm Beach,

Macaulay Culkin honors on-screen mom Catherine O'Hara: 'I thought we had time'

"Mama. I thought we had time."

Senate Democrats blast Zeldin's EPA over proposal to roll back federal water protections

U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and 15 other Senate Democrats sent a letter to the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers rebuking a proposed rule that would limit federal water protections, arguing that it ignores science and threatens drinking water for millions of Americans.

Former Google engineer convicted of selling AI trade secrets

A former Google engineer was convicted Thursday of stealing AI-related trade secrets from the tech giant for Chinese companies, according to the U.S. attorney's office for the Northern District of California. Linwei Ding, also known as Leon Ding, was found guilty of seven

Newsom files a civil rights complaint against Dr. Oz over accusations against LA Armenian community

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Thursday filed a civil rights complaint against Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz, claiming he discriminated against Armenians in Los Angeles County by accusing them of hospice fraud. The complaint

Senate poised to pass massive funding package

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) announced Friday afternoon that the Senate is poised to vote on a series of amendments and then pass a massive package of appropriations bills to fund the federal departments and agencies. Thune announced votes on seven amendments,

Deal reached to get spending bill through Senate

Trump’s Pick for Fed Chair Pops Up in Latest Epstein Files

Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next chairman of the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, appeared in the government’s Friday release of additional Jeffrey Epstein tiles. Warsh’s name appears to be on an emailed list of guests to “St. Barth’s Christmas 2010,” among others such as

Epstein Files Expose His Friendship With Steve Bannon and Elon Musk

A new batch of documents released by the Justice Department on Friday confirm that sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein had active—and seemingly close—relationships with Elon Musk and Steve Bannon. One email shows Musk reaching out to Epstein in December 2013, mentioning that he

Blanche says Gabbard's presence at election office 'shouldn't surprise anybody'

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Friday defended Tulsi Gabbard’s presence days earlier at an FBI raid at an election office in Georgia, as questions mount over the notable appearance for a director of national intelligence. “Could you please explain Tulsi Gabbard’s role

O'Reilly: Frey should face federal charges

Political commentator Bill O’Reilly said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) should face federal charges for defying federal immigration laws in the city. “He’s in trouble,” O’Reilly said Thursday on NewsNation’s "Katie Pavlich Tonight," adding, "What you’ve got now in Minnesota

Epstein Emails Reveal How He Tried to Hide His Friendship With Trump

President Donald Trump was named in more of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s unsealed emails on Friday. After the Department of Justice released a new trove of emails, social media sleuths and journalists scoured the files for mentions of Trump, who had a long and

Walz, Ellison to testify on Minnesota fraud in March

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) and state Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) confirmed Friday they will testify on March 4 before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee over the state's welfare fraud scandal. “Americans deserve answers about the rampant misuse of

Top Trump Official Admits Epstein Files Cover Up Key Evidence

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is claiming that, somehow, the Justice Department has no knowledge on the men who used convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s network to abuse dozens of young women—and it certainly won’t be found in the millions of new documents released

DOJ Briefly Erases Long List of Tips Against Trump in New Epstein Docs

In the latest part of its Epstein files rollout, the Justice Department released a long list of sexual abuse allegations against Donald Trump. Then it temporarily retracted it. The DOJ published three million pages of the Epstein files Friday, more than a month past its

What to know about the temporary government shutdown this weekend

The government is likely to temporarily shut down this weekend after the Senate failed to pass a funding package on Thursday due to challenges from Democrats to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) bill. Here’s what you need to know about the partial government shutdown.

Mark Carney praises Trump Fed pick Kevin Warsh

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney praised President Trump's nomination of former Federal Reserve board member Kevin Warsh to serve as its next chair in a post Friday on social platform X. “Kevin Warsh is a fantastic choice to lead the world’s most important central bank at

US lifts some sanctions on Venezuelan oil

The U.S. is lifting some sanctions on Venezuelan oil, seeking to allow American firms to trade and sell more oil that is produced there. The move comes as the administration has said it will sell Venezuelan oil following its capture of leader Nicolás Maduro. Previously, two

ICE Is Buying Up Mega Warehouses Across America

Immigration and Customs Enforcement is buying up warehouses across the country to build a massive network of detention centers. Hundreds of millions of dollars have already been spent to create huge immigrant jails, often in small towns, Bloomberg reports . The agency paid $102

Catherine O'Hara, star of 'Home Alone' and 'Schitt's Creek,' dies at 71

Renowned actress Catherine O'Hara has died at the age of 71, according to multiple reports.

Reid Hoffman argues Silicon Valley 'can't bend the knee to Trump' after fatal shootings

LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman argued Thursday that Silicon Valley “can’t bend the knee” to President Trump after a second American was killed by federal agents amid an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis. Hoffman, a major Democratic donor, said in an op-ed in the San

The Clintons have no (legal) defense. Will they seek a deal?

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted to hold Bill and Hillary Clinton in contempt for refusing to comply with subpoenas in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation, and if the resolution passes the full House, the Department of Justice will have to decide whether

Queen's Brian May says he's 'thinking twice' about performing in US: 'America is a dangerous place'

English musician Brian May, the lead guitar player for Queen, hinted that the band probably wouldn’t perform in the United States in the near future, if at all.

Judge refuses to release DC pipe bomb suspect

A federal judge has rejected a request to be released pending trial from the suspect accused of planting pipe bombs outside the Republican and Democratic national committees ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. U.S. District Judge Amir Ali, an appointee of former

Is Kevin Warsh Really the Fed Chair of Trump’s Dreams?

President Donald Trump, who is an inflation dove, announced Friday morning that he will name Kevin Warsh—whose past record is that of an inflation hawk—to succeed Jerome Powell as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Trump has been so desperate to lower interest rates that last

Holder on Gabbard presence at Fulton County raid: 'Huge concerns'

Former Attorney General Eric Holder (D) said Thursday he has “huge concerns” about Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s presence during the recent FBI raid of election offices in Georgia, arguing she has “no role” in domestic activities. “I have huge concerns. The

Trump says he didn't discuss rate cuts with Warsh: 'Inappropriate'

President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday that he did not discuss interest rate cuts with his Federal Reserve chair pick Kevin Warsh, insisting that would be “inappropriate.” When asked whether Warsh had committed to him that he would cut interest rates if he

DOJ opens federal civil rights probe into the death of Alex Pretti, but holds back on Renee Good

The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Rights Division will join a variety of federal entities investigating the killing of Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti, tapping the involvement of a segment of the DOJ that reviews excessive force by police. Deputy Attorney General Todd

Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’: Big stage, big claims, no mechanism for real peace

Donald Trump's "Board of Peace" was presented as a new architecture for global stability at Davos, but lacks the necessary components of a functioning international institution and risks creating a U.S.-centric club that sidelines dissenting states and normalizes bypassing

DOJ Prosecutors Want Nothing to Do With Don Lemon’s Arrest

After a magistrate judge left Attorney General Pam Bondi furious by rejecting a criminal complaint against journalist Don Lemon on January 18, she tried to get her revenge Friday morning. The Department of Justice arrested Lemon in Los Angeles on charges related to his

The Craziest Part About Trump’s Massive IRS Lawsuit

Donald Trump has sued the IRS and the Treasury Department after an agency contractor leaked his tax returns, revealing that he hadn’t paid income tax for a decade—but his lawsuit isn’t likely to stand up to scrutiny. In court documents filed late Thursday, Trump demanded that

Republican Senate campaign arm raised $88 million in 2025

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) raised $88 million in 2025, the campaign arm announced Friday, as the party fights to hold onto the Senate in the midterms later this year. It’s the NRSC’s best off-year fundraising haul since 2021, leaving nearly $20 million

Trump signs executive order bringing IndyCar race to streets of DC

President Trump signed an executive order Friday that will bring the IndyCar race to the streets of Washington, D.C., this summer as a part of the country’s 250th anniversary. The race’s theme, which will be dubbed "Greatness with American Motor Racing," will take place by the

Cotton PAC polling says voters want ICE to ‘tone down’

Polling from a group linked to Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) found that a generous sum of Americans want Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to “tone down” its tactics, according to a report from Punchbowl News. A poll by America One Policies PAC showed that 41 percent of

Senate set to pass government funding bill Friday after Graham pledges to lift hold

The Senate is on track to pass a government funding package Friday afternoon after Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told colleagues that he will release his hold on the massive spending bill if he gets a vote on legislation to crack down on sanctuary cities. Graham brought the

China, Russia and Iran are investing billions to influence the US midterms

The billions flowing into these operations are funding a new kind of weapon: industrialized artificial intelligence.

Friday news roundup: DOJ drops 3M Epstein files, Don Lemon arrested, shutdown looms

12:30 Report is The Hill's midday newsletter. Subscribe here. Happy Friday! This has been quite the news dump Friday. There’s so much going on. Let’s get into it… In today's issue: DOJ releases millions more Epstein files Congress barrels toward midnight funding deadline