Hard lines are wavering on the debt ceiling as lawmakers embrace negotiating the less toxic elements — such as clawing back unspent COVID aid — on the GOP’s laundry list of budget cuts.
Why it matters: It's an early signal of bipartisan coalescence after a months-long stalemate between the two parties that heightened concerns about a default on U.S. debts.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) may not have announced that he's running as a third-party candidate for president. But he's acting like it.
Driving the news: Manchin took time from his busy Senate schedule to tell a gathering of Iowa business and community leaders Wednesday in D.C. that he’s "fiscally responsible and socially compassionate" — another hint that he’s considering a potential third-party presidential bid.
GOP leaders like their odds for passing a sweeping border security bill ahead of a new immigration crisis, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) told Axios.
Why it matters: Members on both sides of the aisle have voiced concerns about Thursday's expiration of Trump-era Title 42, which allowed for the swift expulsion of migrants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The big picture: More than 615,000 borrowers have had their student debt wiped clean since October 2021, as tens of millions of others await a decision from the Supreme Court on President Biden's forgiveness plan.
Disney chief executive officer Bob Iger said Wednesday the company plans to launch a "one-app experience" for streaming subscribers in the U.S. that combines the family-friendly content of Disney+ with Hulu's general entertainment content.
Why it matters: The move sheds light on Disney's streaming strategy as it stares down a critical deadline that will force it to make sweeping decisions around Hulu's place in its long-term streaming strategy.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said Wednesday her doctors have advised her to work a "lighter schedule" as she returns to the Senate due to continued side effects from shingles.
Why it matters: The statement came a day after Feinstein flew back to Washington, D.C. following a prolonged absence.
Embattled Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) pleaded not guilty Wednesday to 13 federal criminal charges, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York spokesperson Danielle Hass told Axios.
Driving the news: Santos was released on a $500,000 bond, per Hass, after he was charged earlier Wednesday for alleged wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and lying to Congress.
House Republicans took another swing at the Biden family Wednesday, alleging that the president's son, Hunter, received more than $1 million from a company controlled by a Romanian businessman during the time Joe Biden was vice president.
Why it matters: It was the latest in a series of financial transactions Republicans are highlighting to suggest the Biden family is “influence peddling” — a vague accusation involving capitalizing on the family's name by accepting money from foreign nationals in China and Romania.
More than a dozen of Rep. George Santos’ (R-N.Y.) fellow members of Congress have demanded he resign or be expelled from Congress – calls that ticked up after he was charged and indicted by the Justice Department.
The big picture: Santos has been mired in scandal since it was revealed in December he fabricated vast swaths of his resume, background and more. Now, he faces federal scrutiny for his campaign and personal finances.
Major League Baseball, hoping to reverse a talent drain of African American players, is backing the Black College World Series for the first time this year.
Why it matters: MLB's sponsorship of the event, which starts Wednesday, is one way the league is attempting to dispel years of criticism over the lack of non-Latino Black players.
Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) was indicted on 13 counts, including charges of wire fraud and money laundering, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday.
Driving the news: The embattled lawmaker has been arrested and is scheduled to be arraigned in a Long Island courtroom Wednesday afternoon.
E. Jean Carroll's win in her lawsuit against former President Trump is also a victory for a #MeToo-era New York law that temporarily lifted the statute of limitations on sexual abuse complaints.
Why it matters: Carroll's success in court will likely lead to more litigation — victims have until November 2023 to file civil lawsuits against their alleged abusers — and possibly even more state laws modeled on New York's.
EL PASO, Texas — A day before the end of pandemic-era rules that allow officials to quickly expel migrants who enter the U.S. illegally, the southwest border is already a scene of chaos and desperation.
Makeshift camps, each with hundreds of migrants, have formed on both sides of the border in recent days — some people having already crossed into the U.S., others hoping to do so.
At Sacred Heart Church in El Paso, blankets, cardboard, clothing and plastic bags cover the fences and sidewalks surrounding the brick building — signs of the hundreds of migrants who have taken refuge there.
One woman teared up as she told Axios she had been camping at the church for a week.
Why it matters: In El Paso and many other cities along the southwest border, it's likely to get worse. An estimated 150,000 people in Mexico are headed toward the U.S. as the migration restrictions known as Title 42 end Thursday.
A journalist working for French news agency Agence France-Presse was killed in Ukraine during a rocket strike near the eastern city of Bakhmut on Tuesday, AFP said.
The big picture: Arman Soldin, a 32-year-old Bosnian-French video coordinator, "is at least the 15th journalist to be killed while reporting on the war since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022," per nonprofit the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
A jury ordered former President Trump on Tuesday to pay a total of $5 million in damages to writer E. Jean Carroll for sexual abuse and defamation in a civil suit.
The latest: Both Trump and his defense lawyer Joe Tacopina said the former president would appeal the jury's decision.
House Republicans are expressing increasing weariness with Rep. George Santos’ (R-N.Y.) continued presence in their conference over news he is facing criminal charges from the Department of Justice.
Why it matters: Santos' political future depends on the continued support of his fellow Republicans – and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has not ruled out eventually moving to oust him.
