By MICHAEL R. SISAK and LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Jurors started deliberating Monday in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex trafficking case, weighing charges that could put the hip-hop mogul in prison for life.
After receiving legal instructions from federal Judge Arun Subramanian for more than 2 hours, the jury of eight men and four women headed behind closed doors to deliberate. They’ll be sifting through seven weeks of sometimes graphic and emotional testimony about the rap, fashion and reality TV impresario ’s propensity for violence and his sexual predilections, including drug-fueled sex marathons dubbed “ freak-offs ” or “hotel nights.”
Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to federal charges of racketeering conspiracy, two counts of sex trafficking — relating to two of his ex-girlfriends — and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for allegedly arranging to fly sex workers across state lines.
In closing arguments last week, federal prosecutors and Combs’ defense team took their last shots at convincing jurors to convict or acquit the Grammy Award-winning founder of Bad Boy Records.
“The defendant used power, violence and fear to get what he wanted,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik said. “He thought that his fame, wealth and power put him above the law.”
She said that he used his “close inner circle and a small army of personal staff, who made it their mission to meet the defendant’s every desire, promote his power and protect his reputation at all costs.”
Defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo countered, “This isn’t about crime. It’s about money.” He noted that one of Combs’ accusers in the criminal case also sued him in civil court.
“He is not a racketeer. He is not a conspirator to commit racketeering. He is none of these things. He is innocent. He sits there innocent. Return him to his family, who have been waiting for him,” the lawyer told jurors.
In all, 34 witnesses testified, headlined by Combs’ former girlfriends Cassie — the R&B singer born Casandra Ventura — and “ Jane,” who testified under a pseudonym. Both women said he often was violent toward them. Cassie said he forced her into hundreds of sexual encounters with paid male sex workers while Jane recounted numerous “hotel nights.”
Jurors also saw now-infamous security camera video of Combs beating, kicking and dragging Cassie at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016 and clips from videos of sexual encounters.
Combs chose not to testify, and his lawyers didn’t call any witnesses in their defense case. His attorneys elected instead to challenge the accusers’ credibility during lengthy cross-examination questioning.
The defense has acknowledged that Combs veered into violence, but his lawyers maintain that the sex acts were consensual. They contend that prosecutors are intruding in Combs’ personal life and that he’s done nothing to warrant the charges against him.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s big bill to cut taxes and reduce federal spending on some social safety net programs could have large implications for states, but for many it’s too late to do much about it this year.
Tuesday marks the start of a new budget year in 46 states. Though some legislatures are still working, most already have adjourned and finalized their spending plans without knowing whether federal funding will be cut and, if so, by how much.
“The ebb and flow of rumors and reality have created great uncertainty and some anxiety in state governments,” said David Adkins, executive director of The Council of State Governments.
Several states have taken preemptive steps, setting aside money in reserves or tasking committees to monitor the impact of federal funding reductions. Others are tentatively planning to return in special sessions this year to account for potential funding cuts to joint federal-state programs such as Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Others will have to wait until their legislatures are back in session next year.What’s at stake for states?
“If there are significant cuts, states wouldn’t be able to fully absorb those,” said Brian Sigritz, director of state fiscal studies at the National Association of State Budget Officers.
Nationally, the Medicaid health care program for lower-income residents accounts for 30% of total state expenditures, according to the health policy research organization KFF. That makes it the costliest program in many states, ahead of even K-12 education. The bulk of Medicaid money comes from the federal government, meaning any changes in federal policy can create big ripples for states.
Legislation pending in Congress would affect Medicaid in several ways. New work requirements are expected to reduce enrollment by millions of people, while other proposed changes also could reduce federal payments to states.
Until now the federal government also has covered the full cost of SNAP benefits and half the administrative costs. Trump’s bill would shift more of those costs to states, leaving them to either divert money from other purposes or trim back their food assistance programs.
The Medicaid and SNAP changes are just the latest in a series of Trump policies affecting state finances, including the rollback of grants for transportation and high-speed internet projects and attempts to withhold federal funds from sanctuary jurisdictions that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.Some legislatures are stocking up on savings
A surge in federal aid and state tax revenue during the coronavirus pandemic led to booming budgets and historic cash surpluses in many states. As revenues slow and those surpluses get spent, some states now are trying to guard against federal funding reductions.
New Mexico enacted a law this year creating a Medicaid trust fund gradually stocked with up to $2 billion that can be tapped to prop up the program if federal funding cuts would otherwise cause a reduction in coverage or benefits.
Hawaii lawmakers, in crafting the state’s budget, left an extra $200 million in the general fund as a contingency against federal funding uncertainty. They plan to return for a special session.
And Vermont’s budget sets aside up to $110 million in case federal funding is cut. That includes $50 million that can be spent while the Legislature is not in session and up to $60 million that could be appropriated in the future to address federal funding shortfalls.
Though not necessarily tied to federal cuts, Florida lawmakers approved a proposed constitutional amendment that would set aside $750 million a year — or an amount equal to up to 25% of the state’s general revenue, whichever is less — in a reserve fund that lawmakers could use for emergencies. That measure still must go before voters.Some governors are cutting back on spending
Because of legislative deadlines, some state lawmakers had to craft budgets well before the details of Trump’s bill took shape.
Virginia lawmakers passed a budget in February for their fiscal year that starts Tuesday. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced several dozen line-item vetoes in May with the goal of creating a roughly $900 million financial cushion.
“There are some short-term risks as President Trump resets both fiscal spending in Washington and trade policies that require us to be prudent and not spend all of the projected surplus before we bank it,” Youngkin said in a statement.
Other states also have left money unspent, even though it has not always been touted as a buffer against federal cuts.
States are “enacting really cautious budgets, knowing that they may have to kind of revise them in special sessions or address changes in next year’s sessions,” said Erica MacKellar, a fiscal affairs program principal at the National Conference of State Legislatures.Some are taking a wait-and-see approach
Before adjourning their sessions, some state legislatures established procedures to monitor federal funding cuts and recommend budgetary changes.
Montana’s budget includes $50,000 for an analysis of the financial implications of federal actions, but that spending kicks in only upon the cancellation of at least $50 million of previously approved federal funding or the anticipated loss of at least $100 million of future revenue.
If federal funding to Maryland decreases by at least $1 billion, a provision approved by lawmakers requires the state budget office to submit a report to the General Assembly with proposed actions and potential spending reductions.
The spending plan passed by Connecticut lawmakers also requires the state budget office to respond quickly to federal reductions by identifying state funds that could be used to preserve programs, particularly those providing health care, food assistance, education and other priorities.
North Dakota lawmakers left room for more work. They adjourned their biennial session six days shy of their 80-day limit, allowing time to reconvene if needed.
Do you remember when arcades were everywhere and you could go and spend hours roaming the games and racking up points? One of those games was the pinball machine and some people have become masters of the flippers. But did you know there is a place to go explore over 80 games in one location for the pinball game? Asheville has a museum for the pinball machine and was awarded the “Best Arcade” award of 2025.
Photo by Getty Images
Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum
North Carolina’s coast is nicknamed the Graveyard of the Atlantic because of the thousands of ships found along the shores. This maritime museum honors those shipwrecks and gives great information about the recovery and preservation of the history just below the water’s surface.
Photo by Getty Images
Sylvan Heights Bird Park
Take a trip to the world’s largest waterfowl park which features over 2,500 birds located in Scotland Neck, North Carolina. These birds come from all over the world and some are even endangered. There is fun for all ages at this adventure.
Photo by Getty Images
Wheels Through Time Transportation Museum
Have you ever been to Maggie Valley, North Carolina? Have you ever heard of the Wheels Through Time Transportation Museum? Well you should take a quick trip down to this fun museum that is all about rare American motorcycles and memorabilia. Many folks who visit say that you might need two days to view and experience everything.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Sunday he will not seek reelection next year, an abrupt announcement that came one day after he staked out his opposition to President Donald Trump’s tax breaks and spending cuts package because of its reductions to health care programs.
His decision creates a political opportunity for Democrats seeking to bolster their numbers in the 2026 midterm elections, creating a wide-open Senate race in a state that has long been a contested battleground. It could also make Tillis a wild card in a party where few lawmakers are willing to risk Trump’s wrath by opposing his agenda or actions. Trump had already been threatening him with a primary challenge, and posted Sunday that Tillis’ announcement was “Great News!”
“In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species,” Tillis said in a lengthy statement.
Tillis said he was proud of his career in public service but acknowledged the difficult political environment for those who buck their party and go it alone.
“I look forward to having the pure freedom to call the balls and strikes as I see fit and representing the great people of North Carolina to the best of my ability,” Tillis said in a statement.
Republicans hold a 53-47 edge in the Senate.
Trump, in social posts, had berated Tillis for being one of two Republican senators who voted on Saturday night against advancing the massive tax bill.
The Republican president accused Tillis of seeking publicity with his “no” vote and threatened to campaign against him, accusing the senator of doing nothing to help his constituents after last year’s devastating floods in western North Carolina from Hurricane Helene.
“Tillis is a talker and complainer, NOT A DOER,” Trump wrote.
The announcement from the two-term senator surprised senior Republicans with its timing, but not necessarily the substance. Tillis had planned to announce his reelection plans later this year, likely September at the latest, but had been heavily leaning in favor of retiring, according to a person close to the senator.
In the hours before his announcement, Tillis was weighing two questions: whether Trump and the White House would give him freedom to campaign with some independence, and whether Tillis would have the full protection of Senate Republican leaders, said the person, who was granted anonymity to discuss internal dynamics.
The GOP leadership’s decision to forge ahead with cuts to Medicaid that Tillis repeatedly warned would devastate North Carolina, and the president’s Truth Social post calling for a primary challenger to the senator made it clear to him that the answers to those two questions were no.
Tillis then decided he would announce his retirement, with the thinking that it would remove any ambiguity whether he would flip his opposition to the GOP’s sweeping tax bill.
He informed Trump and Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Saturday night of his decision to retire.
The North Carolina Republican Party chairman, Jason Simmons, said the party wishes Tillis well and “will hold this seat for Republicans in 2026.” Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, the chairman of the campaign arm for Senate Republicans, did not mention Tillis in a statement but said the party’s winning streak in North Carolina will continue. Scott noted that Trump won the state three times.
Democrats expressed confidence about their prospects.
“I’ve flipped a tough seat before and we’re going to do it again,” Nickel said in a statement.
Some said Tillis’ decision is another sign of the dramatic transformation of the Republican Party under Trump, with few lawmakers critical of the president or his agenda remaining in office.
It “proves there is no space within the Republican Party to dissent over taking health care away from 11.8 million people,” said Lauren French, spokesperson for the Senate Majority PAC, a political committee aligned with the chamber’s Democratic members.
Tillis rose to prominence in North Carolina when, as a second-term state House member, he quit his IBM consultant job and led the GOP’s recruitment and fundraising efforts in the chamber for the 2010 elections. Republicans won majorities in the House and Senate for the first time in 140 years.
Tillis was later elected as state House speaker and helped enact conservative policies on taxes, gun rights, regulations and abortion while serving in the role for four years. He also helped push a state constitutional referendum to ban gay marriage, which was approved by voters in 2012 but was ultimately struck down by the courts as unconstitutional.
In 2014, Tillis helped flip control of the U.S. Senate to the GOP after narrowly defeating Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan. During his more than a decade in office, he championed issues such as mental health and substance abuse recovery, Medicaid expansion and support for veterans.
As a more moderate Republican, Tillis became known for his willingness to work across the aisle on some issues. That got him into trouble with his party at times, most notably in 2023 when North Carolina Republicans voted to censure him over several matters, including his challenges to certain immigration policies and his gun policy record.
“Sometimes those bipartisan initiatives got me into trouble with my own party,” Tillis said, “but I wouldn’t have changed a single one.”
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Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro and Joey Cappelletti in Washington and Makiya Seminera in Raleigh, North Carolina, contributed to this report.
DETROIT (AP) — Aldrich Potgieter ended the protracted Rocket Classic, making an 18-foot birdie putt on the fifth playoff hole to outlast Max Greyserman for his first PGA Tour title on Sunday.
“I finally got one to the hole,” Potgieter said after missed opportunities on the green by three players led to the longest playoff of the season on the tour.
He celebrated by embracing his caddie and shaking hands with Greyserman and his caddie before giving his father, Heinrich, a hug.
The 20-year-old Potgieter is the youngest player on the tour and its biggest hitter, averaging 326-plus yards off the tee. He became the ninth player to win for the first time this season.
Potgieter was born in South Africa, moved to Australia when he was 8 and returned to South Africa at age 17 because the COVID-19 pandemic limited his opportunities to compete.
“We had to give up a lot, moving to Australia, moving back,” he said. “Emigrating is definitely not the easiest thing. Coming alone at the start of my career to the States and giving it a grind, and having my dad here has helped so much.”
Potgieter won the British Amateur at the age of 17 and became the youngest Korn Ferry Tour winner last year, paving the way for him to become the second-youngest player to earn a PGA Tour card through the minor league just after his 20th birthday. The youngest was Jason Day, who was 19 in 2007.
Chris Kirk was eliminated after missing a 4-foot putt on the second playoff hole — that after pushing a 9-foot putt past the cup on the first extra hole with a chance to win.
Greyserman and Potgieter each had opportunities to win end it on the 72nd hole at Detroit Golf Club, but couldn’t convert on birdie opportunities to break a tie at 22 under with Kirk.
“This one’s going to sting for a little bit,” Greyserman said.
Potgieter, two strokes ahead entering the round, closed with a 3-under 69, and Greyserman and Kirk each shot 67.
Greyserman missed a 12-foot putt and Potgieter came up short on an uphill, 42-foot putt. That set up Kirk with an opportunity to win it, but he couldn’t take advantage. After Greyserman two-putted from 39 feet for par and Potgieter did the same from 20 feet, Kirk had a chance to win it with a 9-foot putt only to push it to the right of the cup to extend the playoff.
The trio then went to the par-3, 158-yard 15th and Greyserman was the only one who was accurate off the tee and didn’t take advantage.
The trend continued on the par-4 16th, where both Greyserman and Potgieter missed 16-foot putts with a chance to win.
At the par-5 14th, Greyserman hit is drive 361 yards — his longest of the week — and was just 2 yards behind Potgieter’s blast. Potgieter hit his approach from 195 yards to 19 feet and he pulled his putt. Greyserman two-putted from from 29 feet for birdie.
Back at No. 15 for a second time in the playoff, Greyserman two-putted from 34 feet and then Potgieter finally ended it.
“Just wasn’t my time,” said Greyserman, who finished second for the fourth time after coming up short for his first PGA Tour victory.
Michael Thorbjornsen (67) and Jake Knapp (68) finished a stroke out of the playoff.
Collin Morikawa, meanwhile, is still waiting to end his drought.
He shot a 68 to finish 19 under and in an eighth-place tie. The two-time major winner, who was the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 5 in the world, has not won the PGA Tour since October 2023 at the Zozo Championship in Japan.
Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, who rose to No. 7 in the world after winning the Travelers Championship last week, closed with 67 to tie for 41st at 12 under.
A T-shirt worn by Beyoncé during a Juneteenth performance on her “Cowboy Carter” tour has sparked a discussion over how Americans frame their history and caused a wave of criticism for the Houston-born superstar.
The T-shirt worn during a concert in Paris featured images of the Buffalo Soldiers, who belonged to Black U.S. Army units active during the late 1800s and early 1900s. On the back was a lengthy description of the soldiers that included “their antagonists were the enemies of peace, order and settlement: warring Indians, bandits, cattle thieves, murderous gunmen, bootleggers, trespassers, and Mexican revolutionaries.”
Images of the shirt and videos of the performance are also featured on Beyoncé’s website.
As she prepares to return to the U.S. for performances in her hometown this weekend, fans and Indigenous influencers took to social media to criticize Beyoncé for wearing a shirt that frames Native Americans and Mexican revolutionaries as anything but the victims of American imperialism and for promoting anti-Indigenous language.
A spokesperson for Beyoncé did not respond to a request for comment.
Who were the Buffalo Soldiers?
The Buffalo Soldiers served in six military units created after the Civil War in 1866. They were comprised of formerly enslaved men, freemen, and Black Civil War soldiers and fought in hundreds of conflicts — including in the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II — until they were disbanded in 1951.
As the quote on Beyoncé’s shirt notes, they also fought numerous battles against Indigenous peoples as part of the U.S. Army’s campaign of violence and land theft during the country’s westward expansion.
Some historians say the moniker “Buffalo Soldiers” was bestowed by the tribes who admired the bravery and tenacity of the fighters, but that might be more legend than fact. “At the end of the day, we really don’t have that kind of information,” said Cale Carter, director of exhibitions at the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston.
Carter and other museum staff said that, only in the past few years, the museum made broader efforts to include more of the complexities of the battles the Buffalo Soldiers fought against Native Americans and Mexican revolutionaries and the role they played in the subjugation of Indigenous peoples. They, much like many other museums across the country, are hoping to add more nuance to the framing of American history and be more respectful of the ways they have caused harm to Indigenous communities.
“We romanticize the Western frontier,” he said. “The early stories that talked about the Buffalo Soldiers were impacted by a lot of those factors. So you really didn’t see a changing in that narrative until recently.”
There has often been a lack of diverse voices discussing how the history of the Buffalo Soldiers is framed, said Michelle Tovar, the museum’s director of education. The current political climate has put enormous pressure on schools, including those in Texas, to avoid honest discussions about American history, she said.
“Right now, in this area, we are getting pushback from a lot of school districts in which we can’t go and teach this history,” Tovar said. “We are a museum where we can at least be a hub, where we can invite the community regardless of what districts say, invite them to learn it and do what we can do the outreach to continue to teach honest history.”
Historians scrutinize reclamation motive
Beyoncé’s recent album “Act II: Cowboy Carter” has played on a kind of American iconography, which many see as her way of subverting the country music genre’s adjacency to whiteness and reclaiming the cowboy aesthetic for Black Americans. Last year, she became the first Black woman ever to top Billboard’s country music chart, and “Cowboy Carter” won her the top prize at the 2025 Grammy Awards, album of the year.
“The Buffalo Soldiers play this major role in the Black ownership of the American West,” said Tad Stoermer, a historian and professor at Johns Hopkins University. “In my view, (Beyoncé is) well aware of the role that these images play. This is the ‘Cowboy Carter’ tour for crying out loud. The entire tour, the entire album, the entire piece is situated in this layered narrative.”
But Stoermer also points out that the Buffalo Soldiers have been framed in the American story in a way that also plays into the myths of American nationalism.
As Beyoncé’s use of Buffalo Soldiers imagery implies, Black Americans also use their story to claim agency over their role in the creation of the country, said Alaina E. Roberts, a historian, author and professor at the University of Pittsburgh who studies the intersection of Black and Native American life from the Civil War to present day.
“That’s the category in which she thought maybe she was coming into this conversation, but the Buffalo Soldiers are even a step above that because they were literally involved in not just the settlement of the West but of genocide in a sense,” she said.
Online backlash builds ahead of Houston shows
Several Native influencers, performers, and academics took to social media this week to criticize Beyoncé or decry the shirt’s language as anti-Indigenous. “Do you think Beyoncé will apologize (or acknowledge) the shirt?” indigenous.tv, an Indigenous news and culture Instagram account with more than 130,000 followers, asked in a post Thursday.
Many of her critics, as well as fans, agree. A flood of social media posts called out the pop star for the historic framing on the shirt.
“The Buffalo Soldiers are an interesting historical moment to look at. But we have to be honest about what they did, especially in their operations against Indigenous Americans and Mexicans,” said Chisom Okorafor, who posts on TikTok under the handle @confirmedsomaya.
Okorafor said there is no “progressive” way to reclaim America’s history of empire building in the West, and that Beyoncé’s use of Western symbolism sends a problematic message: “That Black people, too, can engage in American nationalism.”
“Black people, too, can profit from the atrocities of (the) American empire,” she said. “It is a message that tells you to abandon immigrants, Indigenous people, and people who live outside of the United States. It is a message that tells you not only is it a virtue to have been born in this country, but the longer your line extends in this country, the more virtuous you are.”
BEIJING (AP) — While China’s men’s soccer team hasn’t generated much excitement in recent years, humanoid robot teams have won over fans in Beijing based more on the AI technology involved than any athletic prowess shown.
Four teams of humanoid robots faced off in fully autonomous 3-on-3 soccer matches powered entirely by artificial intelligence on Saturday night in China’s capital in what was touted as a first in China and a preview for the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games, set to take place in Beijing.
Four teams of humanoid robots faced off in a fully autonomous 3-on-3 soccer match powered entirely by artificial intelligence in Beijing on Saturday night. (AP Video)
According to the organizers, a key aspect of the match was that all the participating robots operated fully autonomously using AI-driven strategies without any human intervention or supervision.
Equipped with advanced visual sensors, the robots were able to identify the ball and navigate the field with agility
They were also designed to stand up on their own after falling. However, during the match several still had to be carried off the field on stretchers by staff, adding to the realism of the experience.
China is stepping up efforts to develop AI-powered humanoid robots, using sports competitions like marathons, boxing, and football as a real-world proving ground.
Cheng Hao, founder and CEO of Booster Robotics, the company that supplied the robot players, said sports competitions offer the ideal testing ground for humanoid robots, helping to accelerate the development of both algorithms and integrated hardware-software systems.
He also emphasized safety as a core concern in the application of humanoid robots.
“In the future, we may arrange for robots to play football with humans. That means we must ensure the robots are completely safe,” Cheng said. “For example, a robot and a human could play a match where winning doesn’t matter, but real offensive and defensive interactions take place. That would help audiences build trust and understand that robots are safe.”
Booster Robotics provided the hardware for all four university teams, while each school’s research team developed and embedded their own algorithms for perception, decision-making, player formations, and passing strategies—including variables such as speed, force, and direction, according to Cheng.
In the final match, Tsinghua University’s THU Robotics defeated the China Agricultural University’s Mountain Sea team with a score of 5–3 to win the championship.
Mr. Wu, a supporter of Tsinghua, celebrated their victory while also praising the competition.
“They (THU) did really well,” he said. “But the Mountain Sea team (of Agricultural University) was also impressive. They brought a lot of surprises.”
China’s men have made only one World Cup appearance and have already been knocked out of next years’ competition in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
By LISA MASCARO, KEVIN FREKING and JOEY CAPPELLETTI Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans voting in a dramatic late Saturday session narrowly cleared a key procedural step as they race to advance President Donald Trump’s package of tax breaks, spending cuts and bolstered deportation funds by his July Fourth deadline.
The tally, 51-49, came after a tumultuous night with Vice President JD Vance at the Capitol to break a potential tie. Tense scenes played out in the chamber as voting came to a standstill, dragging for more than three hours as holdout senators huddled for negotiations, and took private meetings off the floor. In the end, two Republicans opposed the motion to proceed, joining all Democrats.
Senate Republicans voting in a dramatic late Saturday session narrowly cleared a key procedural step as they race to advance President Donald Trump’s package of tax breaks, spending cuts and bolstered deportation funds by his July Fourth deadline. The tally, 51-49, came after a tumultuous session with Vice President JD Vance on hand if needed to break the tie. (AP Video)
There’s still a long weekend of work to come.
Republicans are using their majorities in Congress to push aside Democratic opposition, but they have run into a series of political and policy setbacks. Not all GOP lawmakers are on board with proposals to reduce spending on Medicaid, food stamps and other programs as a way to help cover the cost of extending some $3.8 trillion in Trump tax breaks.
“It’s time to get this legislation across the finish line,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.
Ahead of roll call, the White House released a statement of administrative policy saying it “strongly supports passage” of the bill. Trump himself was at his golf course in Virginia on Saturday with GOP senators posting about the visit on social media.
But by nightfall, Trump was lashing out against holdouts, threatening to campaign against one Republican, Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who had announced he could not support the bill because of grave Medicaid cuts that he worried would leave many without health care in his state. Tillis and Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted against. The president was working the phones from the Oval Office late Saturday night, according to a person familiar with the discussions who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Pressure was mounting from all sides — billionaire Elon Musk criticized the package as “utterly insane and destructive.”
The 940-page “One Big Beautiful Bill Act was released shortly before midnight Friday, and senators are expected to grind through all-night debate and amendments in the days ahead. If the Senate is able to pass it, the bill would go back to the House for a final round of votes before it could reach the White House.
With the narrow Republican majorities in the House and Senate, leaders need almost every lawmaker on board. A new analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the Senate bill would increase by 11.8 million the number of people without health insurance in 2034.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York said Republicans unveiled the bill “in the dead of night” and are rushing to finish the bill before the public fully knows what’s in it. He immediately forced a full reading of the text late Saturday in the Senate, which would take hours.
Make-or-break moment for GOP
The weekend session could be a make-or-break moment for Trump’s party, which has invested much of its political capital on his signature domestic policy plan. Trump is pushing Congress to wrap it up and has admonished the “grandstanders” among GOP holdouts to fall in line.
The legislation is an ambitious but complicated series of GOP priorities. At its core, it would make permanent many of the tax breaks from Trump’s first term that would otherwise expire by year’s end if Congress fails to act, resulting in a potential tax increase on Americans. The bill would add new breaks, including no taxes on tips, and commit $350 billion to national security, including for Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
But the cutbacks to Medicaid, food stamps and green energy investments, which a top Democrat, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon said would be a “death sentence” for America’s wind and solar industries, are also causing dissent within GOP ranks.
The Republicans are relying on the reductions to offset the lost tax revenues but some lawmakers say the cuts go too far, particularly for people receiving health care through Medicaid. Meanwhile, conservatives, worried about the nation’s debt, are pushing for steeper cuts.
Tillis said he spoke with Trump late Friday explaining his concerns. Paul of Kentucky had been opposed to the bill’s provision to raise the nation’s debt limit by $5 trillion.
And GOP Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who initially voted no, switched hours later after private talks to agree to advance the bill.
As the roll call teetered, attention turned to Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska who was surrounded by GOP leaders in intense conversation. She voted to proceed.
A short time later, Thune drew conservative holdouts Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming to his office, with Vance and Johnson also joining. Talks dragged on.
Then swiftly, Vance led them all back in to vote.
Later, Scott said he had met with the president, adding, “We all want to get to yes.”
Lee said the group “had an internal discussion about the strategy to achieve more savings and more deficit reduction, and I feel good about the direction where this is going, and more to come.”
After setbacks, Republicans revise some proposals
The release of the bill’s draft had been delayed as the Senate parliamentarian reviewed the measure to ensure it complied with the chamber’s strict “Byrd Rule,” named for the late Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va. It largely bars policy matters from inclusion in budget bills unless a provision can get 60 votes to overcome objections. That would be a tall order in a Senate with a 53-47 GOP edge and Democrats unified against Trump’s bill.
But over the past days, Republicans have quickly revised those proposals and reinstated them.
The final text includes a proposal for cuts to the Medicaid provider tax that had run into parliamentary hurdles and objections from several senators worried about the fate of rural hospitals. The new version extends the start date for those cuts and establishes a $25 billion fund to aid rural hospitals and providers.
The CBO had said that under the House-passed version of the bill, some 10.9 million more people would go without health care and at least 3 million fewer would qualify for food aid. The budget office has started releasing initial assessments of the Senate draft, which proposes steeper reductions.
Top income-earners would see about a $12,000 tax cut under the House bill, while the package would cost the poorest Americans $1,600, the CBO said.
SALT dispute shakes things up
The Senate included a compromise over the so-called SALT provision, a deduction for state and local taxes that has been a top priority of lawmakers from New York and other high-tax states, but the issue remains unsettled.
The current SALT cap is $10,000 a year, and a handful of Republicans wanted to boost it to $40,000 a year. The final draft includes a $40,000 cap, but limits it for five years. Many Republican senators say that is still too generous, but House Republicans are not fully satisfied either.
House Speaker Mike Johnson sent his colleagues home for the weekend with plans to be on call to return to Washington.
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Associated Press writers Ali Swenson, Fatima Hussein, Michelle L. Price and Matthew Daly contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Chief Justice John Roberts, speaking at a moment when threats against judges are on the rise, warned on Saturday that elected officials’ heated words about judges can lead to threats or acts of violence by others.
Without identifying anyone by name, Roberts clearly referenced Republican President Donald Trump and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York when he said he has felt compelled to issue public rebukes of figures in both parties in recent years.
“It becomes wrapped up in the political dispute that a judge who’s doing his or her job is part of the problem,” Roberts said at a gathering of lawyers and judges in Charlotte, North Carolina. “And the danger, of course, is somebody might pick up on that. And we have had, of course, serious threats of violence and murder of judges just simply for doing their work. So I think the political people on both sides of the aisle need to keep that in mind.”
Roberts appeared at the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judicial conference on the day after the Supreme Court issued the final decisions of its term, including a major victory for Trump that limits judges’ ability to use court orders with nationwide reach to block his agenda. C-Span carried Roberts’ conversation with Judge Albert Diaz, the 4th Circuit’s chief judge.
Roberts first took issue with Trump’s comments in 2018, when Roberts responded to Trump’s description of a judge who rejected his migrant asylum policy as an “Obama judge.” In March, Roberts rejected calls for impeaching judges, shortly after Trump demanded the removal of one who ruled against his deportation plans.
In 2020, Roberts called out Schumer for remarks that Roberts termed inappropriate and threatening after the senator said Trump-nominated Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch “will pay the price” for votes in a then-pending Louisiana abortion case. Schumer later said he should not have used those words.
Two years later, with the court on the verge of overturning Roe v. Wade’s constitutional protections for abortion, police arrested an armed man outside Kavanaugh’s home in suburban Washington. In April, Nicholas John Roske pleaded guilty to trying to kill Kavanaugh.
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Home-state favorite Chase Elliott passed Brad Keselowski on the final lap and won the the crash-filled NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta on Saturday night for his 20th career victory.
Elliott, the popular driver from Dawsonville, Georgia, earned a spot in the NASCAR playoffs with his first victory since April 2024 at Texas. It was his first win in Atlanta since 2022.
“I’ve never in my whole life, this is unbelievable,” Elliott said. “This is something I’ll remember the rest of my life.”
Keselowski was second, followed by Elliott’s Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet teammate, Alex Bowman, and Tyler Reddick. Bowman helped block Keselowski following Elliott’s last-lap pass.
“The 48 and 9 just got together,” Keselowski said, referring to Bowman and Elliott. “… At they end they were able to double-team me.”
Elliott climbed into the stands to celebrate with fans after ending a 44-race winless streak.
“I’m happy for the 9 team,” Bowman said. “It’s a big win for him in his hometown. … I’m glad to have a Hendrick car in victory lane. I wish it was us.”
The race’s second crash early in Stage 2 took out many of the sport’s biggest names and left others with damaged cars. Pole-winner Joey Logano, who led the first 36 laps before light rain forced the first caution, was among the many drivers caught up in the big crash.
Among others knocked out of the race: William Byron, Austin Cindric, Ross Chastain, Josh Berry, Corey LaJoie and Daniel Suarez.
“It wrecked the whole field,” Logano said. “I still don’t know exactly how it started … but it was total chaos. Cars were sideways and on the brakes. I got hit from every corner possible.”
Added Denny Hamlin, who suffered damage to his Toyota in the crash: “Some zigged. Some zagged. Most crashed.”
The Atlanta race at EchoPark Speedway, formerly known as Atlanta Motor Speedway, was the debut of the 32-driver In-Season Challenge, a five-race, bracket-style tournament.
The parade of highly regarded drivers to be knocked out so early in the race showed the perils of trying to pick NASCAR winners on a March Madness-style bracket sheet. The top two seeds were among the early casualties.
Hamlin, the No. 1 seed in the tournament, finished 31st and lost to Ty Dillon, who finished eighth.
Chase Briscoe, who held off Hamlin for his first win for Joe Gibbs Racing last week at Pocono Raceway, was the No. 2 seed before being knocked out in a crash and losing to Noah Gragson in the tournament.
A $1 million prize awaits the winner as part of a new media rights deal that includes TNT.
Elliott and Keselowski were on the front row when a caution with 33 laps to go forced a decision on whether to pit for fresh tires. Both stayed on the track and Elliott faded following the restart until making his decisive charge at the very end.
Bracket busters
Ryan Blaney, the race favorite according to BetMGM Sportsbook, was knocked out on a wreck late in the first stage. Christopher Bell hit the wall, triggering the crash that ended the stage with Cindric in the lead.
Cindric was involved in the bigger crash early in Stage 2. Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Bubba Wallace were among others involved in the crash.
Photo finish
Tyler Reddick beat Elliott to the finish line by .001 seconds to win Stage 2 in a battle between drivers looking for both their first stage win and overall win of the season.
Weather woes
Lightning and rain delayed qualifying Friday and the Xfinity race won by Nick Sanchez late Friday night. More lightning and rain threatened Saturday night’s race. Fans were encouraged to leave the stands about 90 minutes before the race due to severe weather in the area but were allowed to return as pre-race were conducted as planned.
Up next
The Cup Series moves to Chicago for the Chicago Street Race on Sunday, July 6.
