Search for missing continues after catastrophic Texas floods: Weekend Rundown
Dozens of people were killed over the weekend; the death toll at 5 p.m. ET Sunday was 79 across six counties. In Kerr County, officials reported 68 deaths — including those of 28 children — and 11 children were still missing from Camp Mystic.
Meanwhile, the National Weather Service extended the flood watch over much of south-central Texas as several inches of rain fell on the region.
President Donald Trump signed a major disaster declaration for Kerr County. The declaration will allow first responders to have access to the resources they need as they continue search and recovery efforts.
Were the warnings adequate? Critics blamed recent cuts by the Trump administration for damaging officials' ability to properly warn residents about incoming flood conditions. A White House spokesperson pushed back against the claims, telling NBC News the accusations were 'disgusting' lies to target political opponents. On Saturday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also was challenged about whether the federal government did enough to warn Texans.
'I had to swim through the window': The flash floods left residents to escape through rising waters with nothing but their lives.
Trump signs 'big, beautiful bill' into law
Trump on Friday signed into law his sweeping tax cut and spending package, which he has called the 'big, beautiful bill,' in a Fourth of July ceremony packed with patriotic pomp and symbolism.
The White House ceremony took place alongside a military picnic. It included an armed forces flyover, and it was attended by jubilant Republican lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, both of Louisiana, who helped muscle the legislation through the House by a razor-thin margin.
'Our country has had so much to celebrate this Independence Day as we enter our 249th year. America's winning, winning, winning like never before,' Trump said before he signed the bill.
In getting his sweeping domestic agenda passed, Trump displayed a mastery over his party that many of his predecessors would have envied.
Politics in brief
Deep freeze: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth halted a weapons shipment for Ukraine despite military analysis that the aid wouldn't jeopardize U.S. readiness, blindsiding the State Department, Ukraine, European allies and members of Congress, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the matter.
Shaken, not stirred: GOP Sen. Thom Tillis' surprise retirement announcement has shaken up not only North Carolina's Senate race, but also the broader fight for the majority in the Senate heading into next year's midterm elections.
Another goodbye: Centrist Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, one of the most vulnerable Republicans in the House, said he doesn't have the 'hunger' for another grueling re-election campaign and won't run for a sixth term next year.
Tinker to Evers to ... chance? In Wisconsin, one of the country's most closely divided battleground states, there's one big question on both parties' minds: Is Gov. Tony Evers going to run for a third term next year?
The Octagon vs. the Ellipse: UFC plans to host a fight card on the White House grounds, a spokesperson for the promotion confirmed to NBC News.
The 'Prince of Darkness' rises again
Ozzy Osbourne rose from beneath the stage on a leather throne adorned with a bat and two diamond-eyed skulls. It was part rock 'n' roll theater, part medical necessity. At 76, the 'Prince of Darkness' has Parkinson's disease, his spine is held together with screws and plates, and his ailing voice sometimes struggles for pitch.
But this was an emotional display of bloody-minded defiance.
On Saturday night in Birmingham, England, Osbourne forced his battered body through the final concert of his band, Black Sabbath, the godfathers of heavy metal formed in 1968. It capped a 10-hour marathon featuring the biggest names in hard rock, from Metallica and Guns N' Roses to supergroups packed with A-listers from Aerosmith, Rage Against the Machine, the Smashing Pumpkins and even Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones.
The heavy metal masters weren't the only British band to make a return. Oasis, who split up in 2009, returned from their 16-year hiatus with a show in Cardiff, Wales.
Housebuilding hammered by tariff uncertainty
The total cost of building a mid-range single-family home could rise by more than $4,000 as a result of Trump's tariffs, an NBC News analysis of building materials shows — an estimate that industry experts who reviewed the analysis called conservative.
Products from China, Mexico and Canada — which are tariffed at high rates — are responsible for the largest projected cost increases, calculated using a weighted tariff rate for each item based on the share of imports from each country.
Materials primarily imported from China would add $1,708 to per-home costs, Canadian products would contribute $1,300, and Mexican imports would add $981.
Robert Dietz, chief economist at the National Association of Home Builders, said the tariffs have an impact beyond their direct cost as they send uncertainty rippling through the supply chain and leave builders unsure how to plan for the future.
'About three-quarters of homebuilders right now are having difficulty pricing their homes for buyers because of uncertainty due to construction input costs,' Dietz said.
Notable quote
Traveling to Europe is getting cheaper — kind of. Flight prices might be going down, but everything is more expensive once you get there as a weaker dollar takes a bite out of Americans' budgets abroad and global economic uncertainty looms over travel.
In case you missed it
Actor Julian McMahon, who was known for playing Dr. Doom in the early-2000s 'Fantastic Four' movies and starring in fan-favorite shows including 'Nip/Tuck' and 'Charmed,' died of cancer at 56.
Human remains were found at the site of a massive fireworks warehouse explosion that detonated in Northern California, officials said.
The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, turned 90 after a week of celebrations by followers, during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope to live beyond 130 and reincarnate after he dies.
Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei made a public appearance, the first time he has been seen amid conflict Israel and the United States.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and several teammates gathered in Portugal to attend the funeral of Diogo Jota and his brother, André Silva, who died in a tragic car crash.
Famed competitive eater Joey Chestnut reclaimed his title at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July hot-dog eating contest after he skipped last year's gastronomic battle in New York for the coveted Mustard Belt.
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Russia fires drones at civilian areas of Ukraine after sacking transport chief
Russian airports grounded hundreds of flights due to the threat of Ukrainian drone attacks. At least 10 civilians were killed and 38 injured, including three children, in Russian attacks over the previous 24 hours, Ukrainian officials said. Russia has intensified its aerial strikes on civilian areas after more than three years of war. Over the past week, Russia launched some 1,270 drones, 39 missiles and almost 1,000 powerful glide bombs at Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday. Russia's bigger army is also trying hard to break through at some points along the roughly 620-mile front line, where Ukrainian forces are severely stretched. The strain of keeping Russia's invasion at bay, and the lack of progress in direct peace talks, has compelled Ukraine to seek more military help from the US and Europe. Mr Zelensky said on Saturday that Ukraine had sealed deals with European allies and a leading US defence company to step up drone production, ensuring Kyiv receives 'hundreds of thousands' more this year. 'Air defence is the main thing for protecting life,' Mr Zelensky wrote on Telegram on Monday. That includes developing and manufacturing interceptor drones that can stop Russia's long-range Shahed drones, he said. Extensive use of drones has also helped Ukraine compensate for its troop shortages on the front line. One person was killed in the southern city of Odesa, 27 were injured in north-eastern Kharkiv and falling drone debris caused damage in two districts of Kyiv, the capital, during nighttime drone attacks, Ukrainian authorities said. Russian short-range drones also killed two people and injured two others in the northern Sumy region, officials said. Sumy is one of the places where Russia has concentrated large numbers of troops. Also, nine people were injured and seven killed in the eastern Donetsk region, governor Vadym Filashkin said. Meanwhile, Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that its troops shot down 91 Ukrainian drones in 13 Russian regions overnight, as well as over the Black Sea and the Russian-annexed Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. The Kremlin dismissed transport minister Roman Starovoyt on Monday, an order published on the Kremlin website said. The announcement did not give a reason for Mr Starovoyt's dismissal. Over the weekend, hundreds of flights were cancelled or delayed at Moscow's Sheremetyevo and St Petersburg's Pulkovo airports. Other airports in western and central Russia also faced disruption because of Ukrainian drone attacks.
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Russia fires drones at civilian areas of Ukraine after sacking transport chief
Russian airports grounded hundreds of flights due to the threat of Ukrainian drone attacks. At least 10 civilians were killed and 38 injured, including three children, in Russian attacks over the previous 24 hours, Ukrainian officials said. Russia has intensified its aerial strikes on civilian areas after more than three years of war. Over the past week, Russia launched some 1,270 drones, 39 missiles and almost 1,000 powerful glide bombs at Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday. Russia's bigger army is also trying hard to break through at some points along the roughly 620-mile front line, where Ukrainian forces are severely stretched. The strain of keeping Russia's invasion at bay, and the lack of progress in direct peace talks, has compelled Ukraine to seek more military help from the US and Europe. Mr Zelensky said on Saturday that Ukraine had sealed deals with European allies and a leading US defence company to step up drone production, ensuring Kyiv receives 'hundreds of thousands' more this year. 'Air defence is the main thing for protecting life,' Mr Zelensky wrote on Telegram on Monday. That includes developing and manufacturing interceptor drones that can stop Russia's long-range Shahed drones, he said. Extensive use of drones has also helped Ukraine compensate for its troop shortages on the front line. One person was killed in the southern city of Odesa, 27 were injured in north-eastern Kharkiv and falling drone debris caused damage in two districts of Kyiv, the capital, during nighttime drone attacks, Ukrainian authorities said. Russian short-range drones also killed two people and injured two others in the northern Sumy region, officials said. Sumy is one of the places where Russia has concentrated large numbers of troops. Also, nine people were injured and seven killed in the eastern Donetsk region, governor Vadym Filashkin said. Meanwhile, Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that its troops shot down 91 Ukrainian drones in 13 Russian regions overnight, as well as over the Black Sea and the Russian-annexed Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea. The Kremlin dismissed transport minister Roman Starovoyt on Monday, an order published on the Kremlin website said. The announcement did not give a reason for Mr Starovoyt's dismissal. Over the weekend, hundreds of flights were cancelled or delayed at Moscow's Sheremetyevo and St Petersburg's Pulkovo airports. Other airports in western and central Russia also faced disruption because of Ukrainian drone attacks.
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Trump seeks to pressure trading partners to make deals before tariffs deadline
That furthers the uncertainty for businesses, consumers and America's trading partners, and questions remain about which countries will be notified, whether anything will change in the days ahead and whether President Donald Trump will once more delay imposing the rates. Mr Trump and his top trade advisers say he could extend the time for deal-making but they insist the administration is applying maximum pressure on other nations. Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, told CBS's Face The Nation on Sunday that Mr Trump would decide when it was time to give up on negotiations. 'The United States is always willing to talk to everybody about everything,' Mr Hassett said. 'There are deadlines, and there are things that are close, so maybe things will push back past the deadline or maybe they won't. In the end the president is going to make that judgment.' Stephen Miran, the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, likewise said countries negotiating in good faith and making concessions could 'sort of, get the date rolled'. The steeper tariffs that Mr Trump announced on April 2 threatened to overhaul the global economy and lead to broader trade wars. A week later, after the financial markets had panicked, his administration suspended for 90 days most of the higher taxes on imports just as they were to take effect. The negotiating window until July 9 has led to announced deals only with the United Kingdom and Vietnam. Mr Trump imposed elevated tariff rates on dozens of nations that run meaningful trade surpluses with the US, and a 10% baseline tax on imports from all countries in response to what he called an economic emergency. There are separate 50% tariffs on steel and aluminium and a 25% tariff on vehicles. Since April, few foreign governments have set new trade terms with Washington as the Republican president demanded. Mr Trump told reporters on Friday that his administration might be sending out letters as early as Saturday to countries spelling out their tariff rates if they did not reach a deal, but that the US would not start collecting those taxes until August 1. On Sunday, he said he would send out letters starting Monday — 'could be 12, could be 15' — to foreign governments reflecting planned tariffs for each. 'We've made deals also,' Mr Trump told reporters before heading back to the White House from his home in New Jersey. 'So we'll get to have a combination of letters, and some deals have been made.' He and his advisers have declined to say which countries would receive the letters. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rejected the idea that August 1 was a new deadline and declined to say what might happen on Wednesday. 'We'll see,' Mr Bessent said on CNN's State Of The Union. 'I'm not going to give away the playbook.' He said the US was 'close to several deals' and predicted several big announcements over the next few days. He gave no details. 'I think we're going to see a lot of deals very quickly,' Mr Bessent said.
