The Senate approved Trump's spending cut bill and sent it to the House of Representatives.
On Thursday morning, the Senate narrowly approved President Donald Trump's request to restore $9 billion in foreign aid and federal funding for public broadcasting, giving the administration a victory in its ongoing power struggle with Congress over federal spending.
The voting concluded with a score of 51 to 48. Two Republicans – Senators Susan Collins (Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) – voted with the Democrats against the bill. One Democrat, Senator Tina Smith (Minnesota), was hospitalized at George Washington University Hospital on Wednesday after feeling unwell and did not vote.
The bill now returns to the House of Representatives, which must pass it by Friday under a law that Republicans are using to repeal previously approved spending by Congress. The repeal – as such cuts are called – will be the first passage at the request of the president in a decade.
Republicans in the Senate, concerned about the cuts, secured an important concession, restoring $400 million for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which the administration sought to cut. It is estimated that PEPFAR has saved 26 million lives since its inception in 2003 by President George W. Bush.
But there was no postponement for public broadcasting. The bill provides for a reduction of $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds PBS and NPR. Democrats warn that the cuts will devastate local stations, especially in rural areas, which depend much more on federal funding than NPR or PBS themselves. The last amendment by Murkowski and Collins to cancel most public broadcasting cuts failed on Thursday morning.
Other Republicans argued that taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize stations that have other sources of funding, including donations, corporate sponsorship, and grants from private foundations.
'Many states are already investing in public broadcasting,' said Senator Eric Schmitt (Republican from Missouri), the main sponsor of the bill, in the Senate chamber. 'It is entirely reasonable and, frankly, long overdue to expect them to take on a greater share of the burden.'
The package also includes billions of dollars in cuts to foreign aid, including funding for refugees, promoting democracy, and the United Nations. Russ Vought, the White House budget director, called some expenditures 'almost comically wasteful,' such as funding electric buses in Rwanda and wind power plants in Ukraine.
This bill will become Trump's second victory in the legislature in recent weeks if it is passed by the House of Representatives. Earlier this month, Trump signed a law that extends his 2017 tax cuts and injects hundreds of billions of dollars into immigration control and protection.
Israel struck Syrian military headquarters.
The Israel Defense Forces stated that they struck the 'entrance' to the Syrian military headquarters in Damascus on Wednesday.
At least one person was killed and 18 others were injured on Wednesday due to Israeli airstrikes on the capital Damascus, the Syrian Ministry of Health reported to the state Syrian Arab News Agency.
A loud strike occurred against the backdrop of a wave of interfaith violence in the southern Syrian city of Sweida, where the Druze population faced local Bedouin Sunni tribes and the recently established Syrian government led by interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa, who overthrew former president Bashar al-Assad in December.
The Druze are an offshoot of Shiite Islam. Approximately 1 million Druze live in Syria, Israel, and Lebanon. Most reside in Syria, concentrated in the southern part of the country.
'The Israel Defense Forces continue to monitor developments and actions by the regime against the civilian population of Druze origin in southern Syria,' the Israel Defense Forces stated. 'In accordance with the directives of the political echelon, the Israel Defense Forces strike in this area and remain prepared for various scenarios.'
The 'most convoluted' EU budget has been proposed.
The long-awaited EU budget plan released by the European Commission was described by Ursula von der Leyen as 'the most ambitious ever proposed.' It has also undeniably become the most convoluted. Even the head of the Commission herself could not explain how her 'simplified' budget, also known as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), which will operate from 2028 to 2034, reached the declared €2 trillion. 'As for the details and figures, I believe that a technical briefing will provide you with the necessary information,' she told reporters. However, the subsequent briefing only further confused journalists. EU officials, who were visibly perplexed by what the Commission head had presented, asked journalists to ask questions only about the so-called 'Chapter 1.' That is, the Commission was only willing to explain what it proposed to do with less than half of the €2 trillion of taxpayer money it wants to spend. Firstly, spending on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and cohesion policy was sharply reduced. The actual CAP amount was cut by about 30%. The proposal has understandably angered farmers in the bloc (especially in France) as well as major beneficiaries of cohesion funds, such as Poland. Secondly, the attempt to tie funds to specific reforms is seen by many as an attempt to centralize power in Brussels. Thirdly, it is very unlikely that Germany and the Netherlands will agree to increase the budget without a fight. Dutch Finance Minister Elco Heine has already warned that a 'difficult choice' (i.e., cuts) needs to be made. The fourth and final issue concerns Global Europe. Hungary, in particular, is concerned that the Fund would not be used for significant support for Ukraine's accession, which it categorically opposes. 'The European Commission's budget proposal is not only unfair, it is even non-negotiable,' wrote Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Twitter. In short, the budget is not only ambitious and very convoluted. It may also be doomed to failure.
Leaders of the UK and Germany will sign an agreement on defense, trade, and migration.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz intend to sign a treaty on Thursday that commits to strengthening defense ties and enhancing cooperation between law enforcement against the illegal transport of migrants across the English Channel. This is Merz's first official visit to the UK since taking office in May. Starmer visited Berlin in August 2024, where he announced plans to conclude a treaty on 'friendship and cooperation.' The treaty is based on a defense pact signed last year by the UK and Germany. It includes a promise to provide assistance to each other in the event of an attack. A priority for Starmer is combating human smuggling across the Channel. In 2024, around 37,000 people were detected crossing the Channel from France in small boats, and in the first six months of 2025, there were already over 20,000 individuals. Last year, Berlin agreed to consider the illegal importation of migrants into the UK a criminal offense, which will give law enforcement greater powers to investigate the supply and storage of small boats used for crossing the border.
Binance announces Caldera (ERA) as the 27th HODLer Airdrop project.
20 million ERA tokens (2% of supply) will be distributed among eligible BNB holders who signed up for Simple Earn between July 1 and July 5.
Spot trading for ERA/USDT, ERA/USDC, ERA/BNB, ERA/FDUSD, and ERA/TRY begins on July 17 at 15:30 UTC.
Circulating supply at listing: 148.5 million ERA (14.85% of total).
Binance has introduced Caldera (ERA) as the latest project presented on the HODLer Airdrops platform. Dubbed the 'internet of rollups,' Caldera provides a network of customizable, modular, and interconnected chains designed to provide scalable infrastructure for Web3 applications.
Ukrainians bought nearly 31 thousand used cars aged up to 5 years.
Ukrainians purchased 30.8 thousand imported used cars aged up to 5 years in the past six months. The largest share in this segment of imported cars was covered by electric vehicles – 49%. Next came: gasoline cars – 34%, hybrid – 9%, diesel – 6%, gas-powered vehicles – 2%. The most in-demand used cars aged up to 5 years were: TESLA Model Y - 2968 units; TESLA Model 3 - 1722 units; KIA Niro - 1035 units; NISSAN Rogue - 1007 units; MAZDA CX5 - 879 units; HYUNDAI Kona - 830 units; VOLKSWAGEN Tiguan - 717 units; CHEVROLET Bolt - 711 units; AUDI E-Tron Sportback - 627 units; AUDI Q5 - 600 units.
News in brief
Russia dropped an aerial bomb in Dobropillia: there are casualties and many injuries.
In the new government, five ministries will be merged into two.
The Verkhovna Rada allowed people over 60 years old to enter into military service contracts.
Fico stated that Slovakia will never support the EU's refusal of Russian gas.
