NEWS
Good morning!🙋🏼♀️ I’m Nicole Fallert. Your morning needs this bacon hack.
Take a quick glimpse at Tuesday’s news:
Trump administration freezes billions in funding to Harvard
The federal government will freeze $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts to Harvard University after the school rejected the Trump administration’s demands to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
The announcement Monday came hours after the Ivy League school said it would not comply with a list of demands made by President Donald Trump‘s administration to change its practices.
- What Trump says: Among its demands, the Trump administration called for changes to programs and departments that “fuel antisemitic harassment.”
- But Harvard says Trumps orders aren’t about protecting Jewish students: “Although some of the demands outlined by the government are aimed at combating antisemitism, the majority represent direct governmental regulation of the ‘intellectual conditions’ at Harvard,” Harvard President Alan Garber wrote in an email Monday to the university community.
- Why it matters: Harvard’s move marks the highest-profile pushback so far against Trump’s efforts to overhaul the American higher education.
Paige Bueckers selected No. 1 by Dallas Wings
Just eight days after the 2024-25 women’s college basketball season concluded with the Huskies defeating the South Carolina Gamecocks, UConn’s Paige Bueckers was taken with the No. 1 overall pick Monday night by the Dallas Wings. The 23-year-old guard, who overcame two serious knee injuries and led the Huskies to their first national championship in eight years, is the sixth UConn player to be drafted No. 1 overall in the draft’s 30th edition. Here’s who else scored at the draft.
More news to know now
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Measles cases in America hit a new high mark
The U.S. reached a grim milestone by the end of last week, surpassing 700 confirmed measles cases in 2025, according to figures posted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Thirty-two percent of cases occurred in patients younger than 5, while 38% were reported in those between 5 and 19 years old, according to the agency. More than 540 measles cases have been reported in Texas, according to the state’s health department, where two unvaccinated children with no underlying health conditions have died.
Would Trump deport US citizens?
“Homegrown criminals are next. I said homegrowns are next, the homegrowns. You’ve gotta build about five more places.”
~President Donald Trump suggested to Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on Monday his administration could send U.S. citizens who commit violent crimes to El Salvador. He said the “homegrowns are next” and urged Bukele to build more prisons to house them. Trump has already turned to El Salvador to imprison alleged criminal non-U.S. citizens deported from the U.S.
Today’s talkers
Suspect in arson attack at Pennsylvania governor’s home denied bail
The man charged in a shocking arson attack on the home of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro told police he was “harboring hatred” for the public official. Cody Balmer, 38, was denied bail after he turned himself in to authorities and faces multiple charges including attempted murder, aggravated arson, burglary and terrorism. No one was injured in the attack, but there was extensive damage to the governor’s mansion in Harrisburg. Shapiro, who hosted a Passover dinner hours earlier, safely evacuated the home with his wife, Lori, their four children and another family. Images released by state officials show the mansion charred by flames.
Photo of the day: Glad to be home
Pop star Katy Perry kissed the ground after Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket landed in Texas on Tuesday following a commercial spaceflight. Perry was one in a group of six notable women that was the first all-female astronaut crew since 1963.
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at [email protected].
