00:01A five-hour floor fight, and Republicans push it through.
00:04The move that could unlock billions for immigration enforcement.
00:08Plus, more than $4 and climbing.
00:11The war in Iran is hitting you right at the pump two months in.
00:14And the photo before the attack.
00:17What the suspect did just minutes before rushing the room at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.
00:24The stories that matter, clear and credible,
00:27from across the country to around the world.
00:30These are your Unbiased Updates from Straight Arrow.
00:36Good morning, I'm Craig DeGrelli.
00:38This morning, House Republicans are one step closer
00:40to unlocking billions of dollars to pay for immigration enforcement.
00:44The House voted late Wednesday to adopt a budget framework,
00:48setting up a path to fund ICE and Border Patrol without Democratic support.
00:53The plan could free up about $75 billion for those agencies.
00:57Using a process that only requires a simple majority in the Senate.
01:01The vote was close and messy.
01:04Lawmakers kept it open for hours,
01:06as Republicans pushed through internal disputes,
01:09before finally passing it along party lines.
01:11Democrats opposed the funding without new restrictions,
01:15pointing to recent deadly incidents involving federal agents.
01:18Now Republicans can move forward on a final bill.
01:21President Trump wants it on his desk by June 1st.
01:24This would be just the first step in ending the partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security,
01:30which has dragged on for more than 10 weeks.
01:33This morning, oil prices are spiking as President Trump doubles down on his military blockade of Iran.
01:41Brent crude jumped above $125 a barrel overnight,
01:45a new wartime high before easing back,
01:48but still holding well above $100.
01:50Here at home, the national average for gas has climbed to about $4.30 a gallon,
01:56the highest in nearly four years.
01:58This comes as Trump warns Iran it, quote,
02:01better get smart soon.
02:03According to NBC News,
02:04his national security team has presented multiple options
02:08as Iran continues to disrupt traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
02:12But the president is holding his line,
02:14saying the blockade will stay in place
02:16until Iran agrees to a deal addressing its nuclear program.
02:20Well, the blockade is genius, okay?
02:24The blockade has been 100% foolproof.
02:26It shows how good our Navy is, I can tell you that.
02:29We're not going to let Iran have a nuclear weapon.
02:32And we've knocked out their Navy,
02:35we've knocked out their Air Force,
02:36we've knocked out their anti-aircraft,
02:39everything, apparatus, everything they have,
02:42their radar, they have very little left.
02:44And they have some missiles, a small percentage.
02:47They have a small percentage of missile-making facilities.
02:51We've knocked out about 80% of them.
02:53The rest could come very quickly if we don't make a deal.
02:56Iran is now warning it will not tolerate the blockade
03:00and says it will respond if it continues.
03:02Meanwhile, the USS Gerald Ford is heading home
03:06after a record deployment of more than 300 days,
03:09with American officials saying
03:10it will leave the region in the coming days.
03:13And there are new tensions with Europe.
03:16German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz recently said
03:18the United States is being humiliated by Iran
03:22and criticized what he called a lack of strategy.
03:25Now Trump is threatening to pull U.S. troops out of Germany
03:28as that dispute escalates.
03:30Now to redistricting.
03:33Florida just took a major step
03:35that could reshape the balance of power in Congress.
03:38And it's happening fast, with a fight already brewing.
03:41State lawmakers passed a new congressional map Wednesday,
03:44pushed by Governor Ron DeSantis,
03:46that could give Republicans
03:47as many as four additional seats in the House.
03:50The vote was contentious.
03:52Democrats blasted the plan as a power grab,
03:55even interrupting the floor,
03:56with one lawmaker shouting through a megaphone
03:58as the final vote came down.
04:00The new map redraws districts across the state,
04:04including areas around Tampa, Orlando, and South Florida,
04:07potentially squeezing out Democratic-leaning seats.
04:10DeSantis and his allies argue the plan is legally sound,
04:15pointing to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling Wednesday.
04:17They say changes how states can handle
04:20this specific issue of race in redistricting.
04:22That decision, Louisiana v. Calais,
04:26is already sparking similar moves in other states.
04:28But it's also setting up what could be a lengthy legal fight.
04:32Their new plan, that will undoubtedly face a state court challenge.
04:36I'm not sure whether it will face a federal court challenge now,
04:39given Calais.
04:41But that leaves things up in the air in Florida as well.
04:46Democrats and voting rights groups are already promising to sue,
04:49arguing the map violates Florida's constitutional limits on gerrymandering.
04:54The bill now heads to the desk of Governor DeSantis.
04:57If or when he signs it,
04:59the legal battle will begin almost immediately.
05:02We are learning more about the suspect accused of trying to assassinate
05:06President Trump at the White House Correspondents' Dinner,
05:09including what he was doing just minutes before the attack.
05:12New court filings show Cole Allen took this photo right here,
05:16a selfie, inside his hotel room.
05:18He was armed with guns, knives, and ammunition
05:21just before he headed for the dinner event.
05:24Prosecutors say he had been tracking the president's movements that night,
05:27even watching live coverage as Donald Trump arrived at the Washington Hilton.
05:32Investigators also say he sent scheduled emails with an apology and explanation
05:37suggesting the attack was planned in advance.
05:40Moments later, video shows Allen sprinting past security toward the ballroom,
05:45where the president and hundreds of guests were gathered.
05:47He fired a shotgun, sparking an exchange of gunfire with Secret Service agents.
05:52A Secret Service officer was hit in the bulletproof vest, but survived.
05:57Prosecutors say Allen intended to kill and call him a serious danger if released.
06:02Allen is now charged with attempted assassination.
06:05A hearing on whether he should remain in custody is set for later today.
06:09A major shakeup of federal gun rules is now in motion.
06:14The Justice Department and the ATF are rolling out 34 proposed changes
06:18tied to President Trump's executive order on gun policy.
06:22Officials say the focus is on easing regulations for law-abiding gun owners and businesses
06:27and shifting enforcement toward criminal activity.
06:31One key change under review?
06:33Rolling back a Biden-era rule that expanded background checks at gun shows.
06:37The ATF also says it will scale back penalties for minor paperwork violations by licensed dealers.
06:44Gun control groups are pushing back,
06:46saying the proposal weakens safeguards at a time of heightened security concerns.
06:51The public will have 90 days to comment before any of these changes are finalized.
06:55Finally this morning, a group of students in Mississippi being hailed as heroes,
07:01and with good reason, after stepping in when their school bus driver lost consciousness.
07:06Listen to this.
07:06A 46-year-old driver had just left a middle school in Hancock County with about 40 students on board
07:13when she suffered an asthma attack and passed out.
07:16The bus was moving along a four-lane highway when it started to swerve.
07:20A 6th grader sitting right behind the driver grabbed the wheel,
07:24while another rushed forward and hit the brakes.
07:26The student steered the bus into the median, shifted it into park, and brought it to a stop.
07:32Wow.
07:32Another student called 911.
07:34Once the bus was secure, they found the driver's nebulizer
07:38and helped her use it until first responders arrived.
07:41The driver is expected to be okay, and so is everybody on board.
07:45Local officials are now praising the students for their quick thinking and calm under pressure,
07:50and with good reason.
07:52Way to go.
07:53Just 6th graders.
07:54Wow.
07:54That is quick thinking.
07:55All right.
07:56Before we head out, here's what we're tracking today.
07:58At 8.30, the Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims.
08:01Later this morning, President Trump and King Charles hold a formal farewell at the White House.
08:07At 11, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Dan Cain testify
08:11before the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the DOD budget.
08:16At 3, a Texas judge weighs a bid by The Onion to take over Alex Jones' Infowars.
08:22No noise, no sides, just the news.
08:25NewsGuard gives us a perfect score for reliability.
08:28All sides gives us a center rating for balance certification.
08:32Hey, by the way, have you signed up for our Unbiased Updates newsletter?
08:35It's a great way to start your day a little bit smarter.
08:38Go to san.com slash newsletters.
08:41Those are Unbiased Updates for this Thursday.
08:43We'll see you back here tomorrow, Friday.
08:45We love that.
08:46And by the way, also the 1st of May.
08:48For all of us here at Straight Arrow, I'm Craig DiGrelli.
08:50Have a great day.
08:53We'll see you back here.
Comments