Monday, Jan. 26
Democratic senators vow to oppose funding bill
Following Alex Pretti’s death, Democratic senators are promising to oppose a bill that would give more funding to the Department of Homeland Security. The move, however, could bring the government closer to a shutdown.
In order to avoid another shutdown, Republicans need some Democrats to vote in favor of remaining spending bills, but a Democratic Senate aide said no realistic solutions have been reached yet, according to The Associated Press.
In the event that some sort of middle ground is not reached, the government could shut down, but it would not be the same as the one from late 2025. Food assistance should not be stopped, but the AP said other government operations would be disrupted.
Tuesday, Jan. 27
Gregory Bovino to leave Minneapolis as Trump makes changes to ICE leadership
President Donald Trump made changes to Immigration and Customs Enforcement leadership, placing “border czar” Tom Homan in charge after former Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino claimed Pretti was going to massacre federal agents, according to the AP.
Bovino’s statement was not substantiated by authorities, according to the AP. The AP also said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey spoke to Trump over the phone to tell him to end the ICE surge and Trump agreed the current situation in the city should not continue. Homan and Frey were set to meet on Tuesday.
It has also been reported Homan will report directly to Trump and will be the “main point of contact on the ground in Minneapolis,” according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Wednesday, Jan. 28
South Carolina surpasses Texas’ overall 2025 total in Measles cases
Health officials in South Carolina have logged almost 600 cases of measles in one month, with 789 total number of cases since September, surpassing Texas’ overall 2025 total of 762, according to the AP.
Measles has been spreading, with cases confirmed in other states including California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Virginia and Washington, according to the AP.
Due to the increase in cases, the U.S. is at risk of losing its measles elimination status. The worst year for measles cases in the U.S. since 1991 was 2025, with 2,255 confirmed cases, nearly 50 outbreaks and three unvaccinated deaths.
Thursday, Jan. 29
National Guard deployed to the South as winter storm surges
National Guard members in Mississippi and Tennessee mobilized to help people trapped in their cars and*homes without electricity after the first wave of the winter storm.
Temperatures dipped down into the teens, with at least 85 deaths so far, reported by the AP. Most of those deaths have occurred in Tennessee, Mississippi and Louisiana.
A large number of power outages have occurred, with the AP reporting “more than 230,000 homes and businesses were without electricity Thursday night, according to the outage tracking website poweroutage.us.”
Friday, Jan. 30
Man impersonating FBI agent attempts to break Luigi Mangione out of jail
Mark Anderson, 36, impersonated an FBI agent, claiming he had a court order to release Luigi Mangione, according to the AP.
Mangione is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, for killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Anderson was arrested and charged with impersonating a federal officer and is now being held at the same jail he tried to break into.
Sunday, Feb. 1
Trump says the U.S. is ‘beginning to talk to Cuba,’ moves to cut oil supply
Trump stated communications are starting between the U.S. and Cuba regarding “key oil supplies” as the Trump administration puts pressure on the island.
Trump recently pushed to cut off oil supplies from Mexico and Venezuela, which would in turn force Cuba to come to the “negotiating table,” according to the AP.
Trump’s overall intentions with Cuba are not yet clear, but he said he thinks the Cuban government is going to fall. According to the AP, Trump did not provide any other information on the topic. He said, “we’re starting to talk to Cuba.”
Trump also signed an executive order last week to put a tariff on goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba, a move that put an increased amount of pressure on Mexico. Trump said a deal could be made with Cuba and that “we’ll be kind.”
