Israeli Embassy staffers killed and House to vote on Trump agenda bill: Morning Rundown

Two Israeli Embassy staffers were killed in a shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. The massive bill for Donald Trump’s agenda faces a vote in the full House. And a gay rights activist is honored on what would have been his 100th birthday.

Here’s what to know today.

2 Israeli Embassy staff members fatally shot in Washington, D.C.

Two staff members of Israel’s Embassy in Washington, D.C. were fatally shot last night outside the district’s Capital Jewish Museum, officials said.

Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a press conference that the suspect, identified as Elias Rodriguez, of Chicago, shouted “Free, free Palestine” while in police custody and “implied” that he committed the shooting. He also told authorities where he discarded the weapon, Smith said.

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The man had been pacing back and forth outside the museum, which was hosting an event, when he approached a group of four people and opened fire using a handgun around 9 p.m., Smith said. He then entered the building and was detained by security.

The victims were exiting the museum when they were gunned down. A spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington described the victims as two embassy staff members. Yechiel Leiter, Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., said they were a couple on a night out and soon to be engaged. “The young man purchased a ring this week with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem.”

President Donald Trump condemned the violence on social media, while Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the attack “a despicable act of hatred, of antisemitism.”

Read the full story here, and follow our live blog for updates.

House committee advances Trump’s agenda bill

The Republican-led House Rules Committee advanced a sweeping package for President Donald Trump’s agenda, teeing it up for a vote in the full chamber. The 8-4 committee vote along party lines capped a marathon meeting that started at 1 a.m. ET Wednesday and ended around 10:40 p.m.

On Wednesday evening, GOP lawmakers released a 42-page amendment to the multi-trillion-dollar legislation, which addressed major sticking points, including:

✔️ Medicaid changes: Work requirements for able-bodied adults, from age 18 to 64, were moved up to no later than the end of 2026, up from the beginning of 2029. Hard-liners in the conservative House Freedom Caucus pushed for the change so federal savings take effect sooner. Under the new language, states would be allowed to move the date to earlier if they choose to do so, meaning some Americans could potentially lose benefits before the 2028 election and possibly before midterms.

✔️ SALT cap: The new bill boosts the amount federal taxpayers can deduct in state and local taxes to $40,000 for individuals making less than $500,000 a year. The original bill had hiked the cap to $30,000, drawing opposition from Republicans who represent districts in high-tax blue states.

The revised bill also includes changes to clean energy tax breaks from former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and a trivial change to so-called “MAGA Accounts.” Read the full story here.

More politics news:

• What started as a friendly first meeting between Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Oval Office quickly devolved over Trump’s baseless claims of genocide against white people.

• A federal judge said the Trump administration “unquestionably” violated a previous court order when a deportation flight left Texas reportedly intended for South Sudan.

• The Pentagon has officially accepted a luxury megajet from Qatar to use as the new Air Force One for Trump. Now, the administration must get it ready for him as quickly as possible despite several issues.

• More than 200 crypto buyers who spent a collective $394 million on the $TRUMP token are having dinner with the president tonight. The price of admission: $55,000 to $37.7 million.

• Congress is closer to making Trump’s pledge to cut taxes on tips and overtime pay a reality. Here’s what it could look like in practice.

• Senate Republicans pushed forward with a vote to undo an electric vehicle mandate in California. But a bigger consequence at play, the 60-vote filibuster rule, could alter how the Senate operates.

Rapper Kid Cudi to testify in Diddy’s trial

Grammy award-winning rapper Kid Cudi is expected to delve into details about his romantic relationship with Casandra “Cassie” Ventura from more than a decade ago when he takes the stand in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal trial. His testimony, which may begin as soon as today, could prove to be pivotal for prosecutors as they try to bolster their charges that Combs engaged in racketeering and sex trafficking.

Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, will likely face questioning about allegations made in Ventura’s 2023 civil lawsuit that Combs blew up Mescudi’s car. Ventura said in testimony last week that after Combs found out about her and Mescudi’s relationship, Combs told her that “Scott’s car would be blown up” when she was out of the country. In her lawsuit, Ventura said she was terrified when Mescudi’s car “exploded in his driveway,” and “she began to fully comprehend what Mr. Combs was both willing and able to do to those he believed had slighted him.” Read the full story here.

Yesterday, a federal agent took to the stand to walk jurors through photos of items seized during a search of Combs’ Miami home last year. Here are more highlights from yesterday’s testimony.

Sign up for the “Diddy on Trial newsletter” to receive the latest news, including insights and analysis from our team inside the courtroom.

Read All About It

• Jim Irsay, the Indianapolis Colts’ owner for almost three decades, died in his sleep at the age of 65.

• Two people who allegedly assisted some of the inmates who escaped Orleans Parish jail last week have been arrested.

• Three men were sentenced to decades in prison for facilitating a drug-induced robbery scheme at New York City gay bars that ultimately killed two men.

• Columbia University’s acting president was booed again during a commencement ceremony when she acknowledged the absence of graduate student and pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil.

• Billions of “bourbon brood” cicadas are set to emerge for a famously noisy mating ritual. The emergence will mostly be centered in Kentucky and Tennessee (hence the nickname) but also appear in Illinois, North Carolina, Virginia and several other states.

Staff Pick: Honoring a trailblazing gay rights activist

I love when a story surprises me by filling in a critical gap in my timeline of history. In my mind, the gay rights movement burst into the American public consciousness after the 1969 Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village. Wrong I was. And thanks to Evan Brechtel’s story about a ceremony honoring Frank Kameny, I now know the public fight for LGBTQ equality goes back over a full decade earlier and involves other brave and influential characters.

It was Kameny, a Harvard-educated astrophysicist who was fired from the Army for his sexuality in 1957, who first brought the fight for gay rights to the Supreme Court despite having no legal experience. Eventually, he took the fight public in the streets of major cities. Kameny also fought in a way that was revolutionary at the time: He didn’t deny he was gay. Instead, he challenged long-held social beliefs that there was something inherently wrong with same-sex attraction.

I encourage you to take a few minutes to get to know Frank Kameny, who was honored yesterday for his contributions to civil rights history on what would have been his 100th birthday. — Richie Duchon, deputy platforms editor

NBCU Academy: Soccer is improving teens’ grades in this small city

Within the smallest state is the one-square-mile city of Central Falls, Rhode Island. The working-class, majority-Latino community is home to a unique soccer program called Project Goal, which has helped improve students’ school attendance, behavior and grades.

Founded by friends and former soccer players Javier Centeno and Darius Shirzadi, Project Goal pairs 90 minutes of free tutoring with 90 minutes of soccer. “It just gives the students and the kids the opportunity for them to come here to play soccer, but also to have a better education, a better lifestyle,” said Centeno.

Watch how Project Goal is helping students succeed on and off the field.

NBCU Academy is a free, award-winning education program for developing new skills and advancing careers in journalism, media and tech.

NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

75,000 cases of eye care products were voluntarily recalled after an FDA audit at BRS Analytical Service. Here’s a full list of the recalled eye lubricants, which help relieve dry and irritated eyes, and some options you can use instead. Plus, Dermstore’s summer sale is happening now, just in time for Memorial Day weekend, with deals on products like Supergoop sunscreen, CosRX moisturizer and more.

Sign up to The Selection newsletter for hands-on product reviews, expert shopping tips and a look at the best deals and sales each week.

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