Congress approved a spending package Tuesday afternoon that secures funding for the vast majority of federal agencies through September, ending the second government shutdown in the span of four months.

But what’s left unfinished — funding for the Department of Homeland Security — will be a doozy, with partisan tensions over President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda threatening another lapse for the embattled department that also includes TSA, FEMA and other crucial agencies.

The package the House passed in a bipartisan 217-214 vote Tuesday afternoon only funds DHS through next week. Democrats are refusing to support months of additional cash until Republicans agree to rein in the actions of ICE and Border Patrol agents following the fatal shootings last month of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota. (POLITICO – Continue Reading)

Iran has demanded changes to the venue and format for negotiations with the U.S. this Friday, two sources with knowledge tell Axios.

- Meanwhile, the Iranian military conducted two provocations against U.S. vessels in the Gulf, according to U.S. officials.

Why it matters: The incidents and new demands risk pushing President Trump off the diplomatic path and toward the military option at a time when he has already assembled enormous firepower in the Gulf. (Axios – Continue Reading)

The U.S. military on Tuesday shot down an Iranian drone that "aggressively" approached the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, the U.S. military said, in an incident first reported by Reuters.

The incident came as diplomats sought to arrange nuclear talks between Iran and the United States, and U.S. President Donald Trump warned that with U.S. warships heading toward Iran, "bad things" would probably happen if a deal could not be reached. (Reuters – Continue Reading)

Headline consumer price growth in the Eurozone last month likely fell even further beneath the level preferred at the European Central Bank, where the officials could maintain monetary policy for all of the current year and beyond, according to observers.

An economists’ poll predicted that the annual Eurozone headline inflation rate in January slipped two-tenths to 1.7%, which would bring it well below the ECB’s target of 2.0% over the medium term.

The less-volatile core rate was set to remain at 2.3% y/y, observers said. (LiveSquawk – Continue Reading)

Ukraine faces escalating pressure from the United States to make peace with the Russian Federation. Ongoing peace negotiations would require Ukraine to make many painful concessions, including ceding some of its territory and agreeing not to join NATO. Following talks between U.S. and Ukrainian leaders, Ukraine has looked to Europe for support and security guarantees. Even as diplomatic efforts are ongoing, the war continues, with Russian drone strikes regularly pummeling Ukrainian population centers.

Tipping the balance requires heightened pressure on the Russian economy and its sources of tax revenues. Carefully coordinated, specifically targeted, and legally unassailable sanctions from the United Kingdom and Europe would give Ukraine greater leverage at the negotiating table, increasing the chances of a just and lasting peace. European policymakers who want to help Ukraine and protect their own nations must act decisively to enforce such sanctions against Russia’s “shadow fleet” of oil tankers. As we argue below, this can most efficiently be accomplished by encouraging flagging states to require adequate insurance for vessels that fly their flags. (Brookings Institution – Continue Reading)

Businesses that held the line on tariff-related price increases last year might be passing more of those costs on to consumers at the start of 2026.

Why it matters: The Trump administration is celebrating how little its huge levies have impacted inflation. But new signs indicate the policies are appearing with a lag, complicating their push to address affordability concerns. (Axios – Continue Reading)