Russian leader Vladimir Putin has decided to skip the summit with Ukraine he called for and send a lower level delegation for the direct talks planned to take place in Istanbul on Thursday.
The latest: PresidentTrump responded to the decision on Thursday, telling reporters: "I don't believe anything is gonna happen, whether you like it or not, before Putin and I get together."
Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen was among seven people arrested during Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s testimony on Capitol Hill Wednesday, police confirmed.
The big picture: Cohen, who along with the ice cream company has long engaged incorporate political activism, indicated he was protesting the U.S. response to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
An AI chatbot integrated into X (formerly Twitter) has begun to respond to users with unrelated, misleading claims about violence against white people in South Africa, users noticed this week.
Why it matters: The findings about Grok come as President Trump welcomes white South Africans into the U.S. as refugees and as Elon Musk has slammed his home country for what he's called a "genocide of white farmers."
A House Democrat abruptly scrapped his plans to force a vote on impeaching President Trump, which was set to come to the House floor on Wednesday, three sources familiar with the matter told Axios.
Why it matters: Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) was under considerable pressure from Democratic leadership to pull the vote, which had angered many of his colleagues.
This story is adapted from the forthcoming book "Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again," by CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson, out May 20.
In the last year of Joe Biden's presidency, some members of his Cabinet lacked confidence the president could be relied on to respond to a crisis in the middle of the night, CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson write in their new book, "Original Sin."
CNN on Wednesday first reported that revelation from the book, which also describes how Biden's inner circle shielded him from several Cabinet members "for months" at a time in 2023 and 2024.
Why it matters: The authors' reporting shows thateven as the White House was moving to assure the public and the media of Biden's fitness,top administration officials were worried about his decline in the final years of his presidency.
Rep. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.) on Wednesday added his name to the list of House Republicans who are not fully satisfied with his party's massive tax and spending cuts bill during the Axios Future of Health summit in D.C.
Why it matters: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will need virtually every House Republican to vote for the package,, but he has struggled to appease all corners of his conference.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) slammed testimony from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to Congress, saying on Wednesday it is "deeply troubling" he was confirmed for the position.
Why it matters: Kennedy, a former Democrat, has become one of the party's most scrutinized figures in the Trump administration.
There is "a war on the American public having transparency" about their health and their treatment, White House health adviser Calley Means said Wednesday at Axios' Future of Health Summit in D.C.
Why it matters: The former health influencer turned White House aide has become an ally of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who shares his disillusionment with the U.S. medical system.
Texas Democrats are trying to ban U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican, from attending college playoff games, saying he's "a well-known curse" for teams in the state.
Why it matters: Cruz's love for Houston teams has become a thorn in his side.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was pressed on mass layoffs at the Department of Health and Human Services, billions in cuts to the agencies he oversees and the ongoing measles outbreak during testimony on Capitol Hill Wednesday.
Why it matters: Kennedy's appearances before a House panel and the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee marks his first time testifying before Congress since he was sworn in earlier this year.
Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said during Wednesday testimony before a House panel that he would "probably" vaccinate his child for measles, if he had one today.
The big picture: As measles cases continue to spread throughout the U.S., critics have highlighted Kennedy's history of vaccine skepticism.
A direct line between the Pentagon and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport's air traffic control tower has been inoperable since March 2022, a Federal Aviation Administration official testified Wednesday.
A rogue Trump impeachment push was criticized as "idiotic" and "horrible" in a closed-door House Democratic meeting Wednesday, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: The comments from Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) were met with applause from lawmakers and backed up by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), according to six sources familiar with the matter.
The signature legislation of this Congress has crossed a key hurdle. But the choices and trade-offs involved in major tax legislation could limit its pro-growth effects.
The big picture: The current version of the "one big, beautiful bill," as President Trump calls it, which moved through the House Ways and Means Committee overnight Tuesday, would sunset several key provisions after a few years.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Tuesday said New Jersey Democrats should be censured for an altercation with immigration enforcement officers.
Why it matters: The lawmakers could be penalized for what they said was exercising their oversight authority.
Trump administration officials, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., made their case for imposing new work requirements for Medicaid and other safety net programs in a Wednesday New York Times essay.
The big picture: Republicans in Congress appear poised to embrace the White House's plans to tighten eligibility for the critical programs. They've already proposed new or revised work requirements for Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
It's going to cost nearly $1 trillionto operate, maintain and upgrade America's nuclear arsenal over the next decade — more per year ($95 billion) than what's spent on many federal agencies.
Why it matters: That eye-popping estimate from the Congressional Budget Office is catnip for critics, who argue Washington is spending blindly or that portions of the triad are vestigial.
The $400 million jet that President Trump says the Air Force plans to accept from Qatar would be worth 100 times more than every other presidential gift from a foreign nation combined since 2001, according to an Axios analysis of State Department data.
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg confirmed on Tuesday he's considering a possible 2028 presidential run and weighed on former President Biden's impact on the 2024 election.
The big picture: Buttigieg was in Iowa on Tuesday, where he won a Democratic primary during his unsuccessful 2020 presidential run while mayor of South Bend, Indiana, which saw him make a splash and earned him a place in the Biden administration.
A coalition of 20 Democratic attorneys general is suing President Trump's administration over threats to withhold billions of dollars in federal funding if they don't follow his immigration enforcement polices.
The big picture: California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who's leading the two lawsuits, said at a Tuesday briefing that threats to cut funds for emergency services and infrastructure maintenance represented "a blatantly illegal attempt to bully states" into enacting Trump's agenda.
Top Senate Democrats are challenging their older colleagues to embrace Twitch and Snapchat, a potential shock to the media operations of a caucus in which nearly a third of the members are over 70.
Why it matters: Democrats are scrambling to reach younger voters after their tough losses last year. But they're making progress against Republicans in daily social media engagement, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) told them in a private briefing last week.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is tantalizingly close to a deal with blue state Republicans on a SALT compromise, according to people familiar with the matter.
Why it matters: Johnson is "not quite there yet," he told reporters, but sources say Johnson is close to solving one of the thorniest problems in the "big, beautiful bill."
A federal grand jury on Tuesday indicted the Wisconsin judge who was arrested by the FBI last month for allegedly trying to help an undocumented defendant avoid arrest.
The big picture: Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan was indicted on charges of concealing a person from arrest and obstruction of proceedings, allowing the case to proceed, according to local media reports.
