Wednesday, July 2nd, 2025 - Vance breaks tie; ICE’s Mobile Fortify; Penn’s trans athlete ban; Gaza ceasefire; DOJ eyes denaturalization; Diddy verdict stalled

Today’s Headlines: Vice President JD Vance cast the tie-breaking vote to advance Trump’s budget bill in the Senate, though it now heads back to the House due to major revisions. Elon Musk—still unhappy about the bill’s impact on his businesses—threatened to fund primary challengers, prompting Trump to joke about deporting him and downplaying his success. Meanwhile, Trump toured Florida’s new “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center, touting its reptilian security. The DOJ is expanding efforts to denaturalize U.S. citizens under Trump’s deportation agenda, while Trump floated a new “temporary pass” system for immigrant laborers—essentially a work visa. ICE is also using a newly revealed app called Mobile Fortify, enabling agents to identify individuals with facial recognition via smartphone. Trump claimed Israel has agreed to a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, though Hamas hasn’t confirmed. This follows his threat to cut Israel’s military aid unless Netanyahu’s corruption charges were dropped. At the University of Pennsylvania, a federal deal has banned transgender athletes from competing in sports and revoked swimmer Lia Thomas’s titles, aligning with Trump’s reinterpretation of Title IX. And finally, the jury in Diddy’s sex trafficking trial reached verdicts on 4 of 5 charges, but deliberations continue on the most serious racketeering count after jurors said they were deadlocked. Resources/Articles mentioned in this episode: PBS: Senate passes Trump’s reconciliation bill with Vance casting tie-breaking vote NYT: On Pivotal Day for His Bill, Trump Leaves Washington for ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ The New Republic: Justice Department Announces Chilling Plan to Revoke Citizenship NBC News: Trump says the administration is working on a 'temporary pass' for immigrants in certain industries 404 Media: ICE Is Using a New Facial Recognition App to Identify People, Leaked Emails Show AP News: Live updates: Trump says Israel agrees to 60-day ceasefire in Gaza The New Republic: The Unbelievable Reason Trump Is Threatening to Cut Aid to Israel NYT: Penn Agrees to Limit Participation of Transgender Athletes AP News: Jury reaches verdict on 4 of 5 counts in Diddy trial but is told to keep deliberating Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices