Congressional intern from Massachusetts killed in D.C. shooting
Police said Wednesday the victim was Eric Tarpinian-Jachym, 21, of Granby, Massachusetts. He was a rising senior at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst majoring in finance with a minor in political science. He was working for Rep. Ron Estes (R-Kansas).
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Why the GOP doesn't want you biking to work but will spend millions on a ‘heroes' sculpture garden
A version of this story appeared in the CNN Business Nightcap newsletter. To get it in your inbox, sign up for free here. The Republican tax and spending bill is 900 pages of barely readable text full of complicated proposals that would, among many other things, slash the social safety net in America and lavish wealthy households with tax cuts. It is reviled on the left for hurting poor people and reviled on the far-right for not going far enough to cut spending. It's a hard pill to swallow for lawmakers across the political spectrum, which is why it's loaded up with super niche provisions that reflect some of the ideological contradictions within the Trump coalition. Like, killing the $2 billion 'qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement,' a relatively cheap incentive that, at least in theory, would align with the 'Make American Healthy Again' sect of Trump loyalists. The benefit was suspended in Trump's first term, but before then it allowed employers to offer workers a $20 a month tax-free reimbursement for biking to work. (Healthy! Good for the environment!) The GOP package in Congress would eliminate it for good. There's also $40 million earmarked for a 'National Garden of American Heroes' — 250 life-size sculptures that Trump wants completed in the next 12 months ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary. The ambitious project is a longtime Trump vision that, according to Politico, will be almost impossible to pull off in time without the help of foundries in China. Incidentally, the money for the sculpture garden would be directed to the National Endowment for the Humanities, a government agency that Trump has been trying to eliminate since his first term. The NEH recently laid off 2/3 of its staff, canceled more than 1,000 grants and is marshaling its remaining resources to focus on next year's anniversary. These seemingly arbitrary small items are essentially sweeteners to win over lawmakers who might quibble with the broader thrust of the legislation. 'Now that we essentially do policy-making at a large scale, through these huge mega-bills in reconciliation… you have to stuff everything that you possibly can to try to get your entire coalition on board, particularly within the margins,' said Alex Jacquez, chief of policy and advocacy at Groundwork Collaborative, a progressive think tank. 'So that's where you see a lot of these, 'huh, where did that come from?' items.' The clearest example of that is the litany of carve-outs for the state of Alaska and its 740,000 residents, known by some critics as the Kodiak Kickback. (Fun fact: 'Alaska' shows up in the text of the Senate bill more than 20 times; other states, if they're mentioned at all, show up fewer than four times.) The reason for all the Alaska love is simple: As GOP leaders drummed up support, it became clear that Sen. Lisa Murkowski would be a holdout because of the bill's expanded Medicaid work restrictions and changes to federal food assistance programs. Over the weekend, staffers scrambled to rewrite key pieces of the bill to win her support, my CNN colleagues reported. As a result, Murkowski locked in several Alaska-specific breaks, including a tax deduction for meals served on fishing vessels, a special tax exemption for fishing villages in the western part of the state, and a five-fold expansion of a deduction for whaling boat captains. Like the commuter cycling reimbursement that the bill would eliminate, these aren't big-ticket items. But they illustrate the haphazard and at times punitive way government spending decisions get made. On the cycling benefit, Jacquez says it is likely just a target for Republicans who see it as a culture war issue — a 'green' activity that largely benefits people in cities who tend to vote for Democrats. You can see that dynamic play out in other provisions, too. Republicans have tried to shield some of their rural constituencies from the worst effects of the bill, Jacquez notes. There is a rural hospital bailout fund designed to blunt the impact of Medicaid cuts, for example. But that doesn't do anything to help urban hospitals in New York City, where some 4 million residents, nearly half the population, are enrolled in Medicaid. In the grand scheme of a $3.3 trillion spending package, $150 million for America's birthday might seem fine. 'But that's $150 million that's not going to be spent on food assistance,' Jacquez said. 'Or it's a billion dollars that's not going to be spent on Medicaid. When every cent allegedly matters, these things do add up.'
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
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Trump floats hosting UFC fight on White House grounds
President Trump on Thursday floated the idea of hosting an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event at the White House next year as part of celebrations of the country's 250th anniversary. Trump told supporters at a 'Salute to America' event in Iowa that there would be a youth sporting event called the 'Patriot Games' to mark the year-long celebration. Advertisement He also said national parks and historic sites, including the White House, would host special events to mark the 250th anniversary of the country's founding. 'We're going to have a UFC fight, think of this, on the grounds of the White House. We have a lot of land there. We're going to build a little — we're not, Dana's going to do it. Dana's great. One of a kind,' Trump said, referring to UFC president Dana White. Trump suggested the event would be a full 'championship fight' and could host up to 25,000 people. Such an event would likely require various permit approvals to take place at or near the White House. Trump has become something of a regular at UFC fights. The president has a years-long friendship with White. Many of the fighters who compete at UFC events have publicly expressed support for Trump, including in the Octagon. Advertisement Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump Reveals the Cringe Nickname He Calls Melania
President Donald Trump has revealed his pet name for wife Melania, which he even uses in the bedroom. Speaking in Iowa on Thursday as part of his Salute to America event, Trump went off-script when referencing conversations with his wife. As Trump bounced around topics from ethanol to UFC, he raised talking about issues with the American military with his wife, stating, 'I remember saying to our great First Lady...' Trump stopped himself and clarified, 'I call her 'First Lady,' isn't it terrible?' He continued, 'I'm saying `Good night, First Lady, my darling,' because it reminds me that I'm president, that's why. I said 'First Lady, it's terrible nobody wants to join our military force.' Trump's lament is notable, given that he avoided the Vietnam War draft by claiming 'bone spurs.' Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer, testified before the House Oversight Committee in 2019 that Trump admitted to lying about the injury, reportedly telling Cohen: 'You think I'm stupid? I wasn't going to Vietnam.' While her husband was in Des Moines, Melania was meeting patients at the Children's National Hospital in Washington. The First Lady talked to the kids about their plans for Independence Day. 'It's a very special day,' she said. 'So we will have a big party at the White House… When you feel better, maybe next year, you come over and we'll celebrate together.' When one child praised Taylor Swift, Melania agreed that the superstar was 'very talented.' This is not an opinion shared by her husband, who posted in May, 'Has anyone noticed that, since I said 'I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT,' she's no longer 'HOT?'' The First Lady also outed herself as a Sabrina Carpenter fan, telling one patient: 'She's great, too.' (The president has yet to make his feelings on the 'Espresso' singer known, but she did tell fans in Seattle 'Sorry about our country' two days after the 2024 election.)
