šŸ”µ Trump Megabill Drama

Good evening. It’s Saturday, June 28.

Senate Republicans are moving toward an initial vote Saturday afternoon on their latest version of President Donald Trump’s massive tax and spending bill. But the changes made to the bill overnight may not be enough to satisfy enough senators, let alone conservatives in the House.

Senate leaders got a jolt of momentum midday Saturday when Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) said they will vote to open debate. Hawley said he’ll vote for final passage, while Collins told reporters she’s ā€œleaning againstā€ backing the bill without major changes.

But the measure, which contains most of Trump’s domestic agenda, is far from on a glidepath.

 
 

Former DOGE head and tech mogul Elon Musk took to X on his 54th birthday Saturday to bash the latest Senate draft of President Donald Trump’s ā€œbig, beautiful bill,ā€ which would ā€œdestroy millions of jobsā€ and raise taxes on all wind and solar projects that have not yet started construction.

ā€œThe latest Senate draft bill will destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country! Utterly insane and destructive,ā€ Musk wrote in the post.

The post comes after Musk had a public falling out with Trump earlier this month over the administration’s ā€œbig, beautifulā€ spending bill.

The top Democrat in the Senate plans to inflict maximum pain on Senate Republicans in their march to pass President Donald Trump’s "big, beautiful bill" before lawmakers even get a chance to debate the legislative behemoth.

Indeed, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., plans to force clerks on the Senate floor to read the entirety of the GOP’s 940-page megabill. His move to drain as much time as possible will come after Republicans vote on a key procedural test to open debate on the legislation.

"I will object to Republicans moving forward on their Big, Ugly Bill without reading it on the Senate floor," Schumer said on X. "Republicans won’t tell America what’s in the bill."

Israel’s military ā€œeliminatedā€ a founding Hamas military leader and mastermind behind the Oct. 7 attack, Tel Aviv officials said Saturday.

Hakham Muhammad Issa Al-Issa was killed during a targeted airstrike on the Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City, Israel Defense Forces said.

Al-Issa was one of the final remaining founding members of the terrorist organization’s military wing and played a crucial role in the Oct. 7 attack that launched the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

President Trump said Friday he halted plans to potentially ease sanctions on Iran after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei downplayed the success of U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear program.

Trump also claimed in a Truth Social posting that he saved Khamenei from a ā€œVERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATHā€ by opposing Israeli plans to assassinate the Iranian leader.

Trump and his advisers had hoped Iran would agree to a meeting with the U.S. next week, in which the White House planned to offer incentives — including limited sanctions relief — to jumpstart negotiations.

Gas prices are sitting at a four-year low as the ceasefire between Iran and Israel has eased fears that conflict in the Middle East could disrupt global oil supplies.

The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.20 on Friday as oil prices remained where they were before tensions in the Middle East caused a ā€œknee-jerkā€ reaction in the markets, according to industry experts.

U.S. strikes on three key Iranian nuclear sites on Saturday caused petroleum futures to spike Sunday evening, with oil climbing to $78 a barrel. That quickly dissipated by Monday, according to AAA.

Another UK band has come under fire for its ā€œthreateningā€ comments against Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza — stirring up a frenzy at an outdoor music festival Saturday.

English-based punk duo Bob Vylan whipped the crowd at England’s annual Glastonbury Music Festival into a furor, and led the massive audience in gang chants of ā€œFree, free Palestineā€ and ā€œDeath, death to the IDFā€ in referencing the Israeli Defense Forces.

Police are said to be investigating the band’s performance, Deadline reported.

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