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The Daily Briefing

YOUR MORNING NEWS ROUNDUP

Fri Mar 14 2025

Nicole Fallert | Newsletter Writer

@nicolefallert

Good morning!🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Happy Pi Day 🥧🍕!

Quick look at Friday's news:

•	Senate Democrats are in a pickle to avoid a government shutdown.
•	A pretrial conference will deliberate the terms of Diddy's criminal trial.
•	Selection Sunday is just a few days away.

Why this government shutdown threat is unlike previous ones

Typically during a government shutdown, hundreds of thousands of federal workers, those deemed nonessential, are furloughed, or sent home without pay. They are reimbursed when they return.

But this year isn't normal: Government workers are already hurting amid President Donald Trump's mass firings.

•	It's not clear what departments would remain open during this shutdown. The White House removed guidelines on shutdown contingency plans from its website earlier this week.
•	Where the threat stands right now: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he will vote for a Republican funding bill, reducing shutdown odds.
•	Democrats must choose between two options they despise: Accept GOP-drafted funding extension that empowers Trump, or risk being blamed for shutting down the government and losing further control over government agencies while the American economy is teetering toward a recession.

Diddy's trial is getting closer

Sean "Diddy" Combs' legal team and prosecutors are set to dispute various aspects of the rapper's trial in a pretrial conference set for Friday afternoon. The embattled hip-hop mogul, who was arrested in September 2024 on federal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, is set to go to trial on May 5. Counsel are expected to discuss matters including jury selection, submitted evidence and the trial's court timeline. Diddy's lawyers want his alleged victims named.

More news to know now

•	California is sinking.
•	It's been five years since police in Louisville, Kentucky, killed Breonna Taylor.
•	Trump wanted fast deportations. Some migrants are already coming back.
•	Authorities issued an international alert for a missing University of Pittsburgh student.
•	An American Airlines plane caught fire after landing in Denver.

Make Friday fun with our crossword! Sally's hint: Picture Frames.

Protesters supporting Mahmoud Khalil arrested at Trump Tower

"As Jews, as people of conscience, we know our history. We know where this leads."

~ Sonya Meyerson-Knox, a spokesperson for Jewish Voice for Peace, told USA TODAY in a phone interview from the Trump Tower's lobby in Manhattan on Thursday. Protesters from the Jewish group occupied the ground floor of the building over the ICE arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian graduate student and activist at Columbia University.

Demonstrators from the human rights organization Jewish Voice for Peace hold a civil disobedience action inside Trump Tower in New York on March 13, 2025.

TIMOTHY A. CLARY, AFP via Getty Images

Here's what Russia said about a Ukraine ceasefire plan

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday he supports but won't immediately agree to a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal for Ukraine because he wants to see an "enduring peace" that removes the "underlying cause of the crisis." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Putin's response to the U.S. plan was "very predictable" and "manipulative" and called for more sanctions on Russia to force a deal. Putin's comments were the first official response from the Kremlin to a U.S.-backed proposal for a 30-day ceasefire agreed by Ukraine this week.

Today's talkers

•	Americans are tired of hearing cost-cutting tips.
•	Do you come from an "ask" or a "guess" family?
•	"Landman" Season 2 strikes oil.
•	Move over King Charles, another royal needs room for a podcast.
•	USA TODAY Women of the Year: Ilona Maher isn't afraid to take up space.
•	Guess how fast Brad Pitt drove for a Formula 1 racing movie?

Time to get the office bracket ready

Selection Sunday is just days away, and the 68-team field for March Madness will soon be revealed. The excitement is building as teams begin their quest to be the last one standing. On the women's side, UCLA has bolstered its argument to be the top overall seed after avenging two regular-season losses to USC in the Big Ten tournament final. Still, the women's NCAA Tournament feels wide open. Meanwhile, Duke has taken over as the new No. 1 in the men's Top 25 rankings after Auburn ended its regular season with back-to-back losses. Here's what you need to know about Selection Sunday.

Texas guard Tramon Mark (12) dribbles the ball against the defense of Texas A&M guard Manny Obaseki during the SEC men's basketball tournament at Bridgestone Arena.

Steve Roberts, Imagn Images

Photo of the day: A 'blood moon' over America

For the first time in more than two years, the Earth made its way between the sun and moon, resulting in a total lunar eclipse, also known as the "blood moon." Missed it? Here's when a partial solar one is visible.

A total lunar eclipse is visible in the sky over Hanover, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, March 14, 2025, in Hanover Borough.

Harrison Jones, The Evening Sun

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 NFallert@usatoday.com.