Good morning. In this edition:

• 🏛️ Congress is split over a new budget
• 📈 Fake job seekers are on the rise
• 🥶🥵 The biggest 24-hour temperature shift in history

Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~4.87-minute read (1,296 words).

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"Success does not consist in never making mistakes, but in never making the same one a second time."

–George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)

On Saturday, the Senate approved a budget blueprint that aims to extend trillions of dollars worth of tax cuts enacted by President Trump in 2017, and also reduce government spending.

• For context: Among other things, the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, capped deductions for state and local taxes (SALT) at $10,000, doubled standard deductions for taxpayers, and expanded the child tax credit. See the full details.

The 51-48 vote, which fell mostly along party lines, unlocks a maneuver allowing GOP lawmakers to bypass the 60-vote Senate filibuster and enact their Trump-approved budget later this year without any Democratic votes.

But over in the other chamber of Congress, lawmakers are split over whether to approve the new budget blueprint.

A House divided

Republican leaders in the chamber are seeking to approve the Senate’s version of the budget resolution, which offers few specific details beyond committing to an extension of $5+ trillion worth of Trump-era tax cuts over the next decade, alongside a minimum of $4 billion in spending cuts (though lawmakers’ stated target is much higher).

• But several individual House GOP members have voiced opposition to the Senate bill, saying it fails to guarantee enough federal spending cuts to avoid the risk of unacceptably large budget deficits.
• House Republicans in late February approved a budget resolution calling for a minimum of $1.5 trillion in spending cuts combined with $4+ trillion in Trump-era tax cuts, with the expectation that faster economic growth will make up for the ~$2.5 trillion gap. (For context: here’s what the Trump tax cuts entailed)

Eviction notice? As of late Monday, GOP opponents in the House—where Republicans hold a slim 220-213 majority—already had more than enough declared “no” votes to block the Senate’s version of the bill from passing. But Speaker Mike Johnson has overcome this kind of math before, including three such instances already this year.

Looking ahead…Both chambers of Congress must pass the same version of a budget resolution before lawmakers can advance a bill that avoids the Senate filibuster, as Republican leaders are aiming to do.

📊 Flash poll: In general, do you agree with congressional Republicans’ plan to extend most or all of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts while also enacting cuts to federal spending?

• Yes
• No
• Unsure/other

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Samsung just introduced its newest friendly household robot vacuum cleaner, the Bespoke AI Jet Ultra (retailing for $1,099). The smart appliance does more than just clean the floors: it's equipped with AI, Bluetooth, and an LCD display control panel that can notify you when you have an incoming text message or phone call.

• The announcement is part of the company's broader push to introduce smart appliances to the home. Samsung's newest washer/dryer is equipped with much of the same tech, though it allows users to actually answer a call directly on a built-in 7-inch LCD screen.
• The tech giant also offers a smart refrigerator, wall oven, and robot vacuum—complete with a front-facing camera that warns owners of possible intruders or disturbances when they're out of the house.

Zoom out: Smart home-related products are becoming as plentiful as side bangs and skinny jeans in the early 2000s. LG Electronics sells a smart dishwasher, Bosch peddles an AI-powered oven, and Revolution makes smart toasters. Overall, the smart home appliances market is projected to grow from ~$174 billion in 2025 to ~$251 billion in 2029.

But…The more tech (and parts) introduced, the more room for malfunctions and costly repairs. And survey data indicates an increasing number of Americans are growing frustrated with the amount of tech integrated into products—especially when it comes to cars.

International art sales fell 12% to reach $57.5 billion in 2024, according to the Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report published yesterday. The report is widely seen as the best indicator of the notoriously opaque money laundering art market.

It indicates a decline in all of the art trade’s key geographic regions:

• The US retained its position as top dawg of the global art market, but sales fell 9% YoY to $24.8 billion, in part due to “the political uncertainty surrounding the presidential election,” per the report.
• The UK, the world’s second-largest art market, saw sales decline 5% to $10.4 billion.
• In China, the art market walked off a plank, falling 31% to $8.4 billion, its lowest level since 2009, as a result of “slower economic growth, a continued property market slump and other economic challenges.”

One bright spot: Though the dollar value of the market declined in 2024, photo shopping went up. Overall artwork transactions increased 3%, with the growth largely driven by lower-priced paintings (sales of works <$5,000 rose 7%). The smallest dealers also attracted the biggest share of new buyers, per the report.

Big picture: The art market peaked in 2014, at $68.2 billion, and has been flat or declining ever since. That’s despite billionaire wealth more than doubling between then and now.

At the same time…Sales of other luxury goods, such as Rolexes and Birkin bags, soared.

Niphtio is our #1 way to keep our browsers tidy and save important content, and it just unveiled exciting new features …

• 📂 After many requests, they’ve added the ability to organize bookmark collections into sections, allowing for a more structured and tidy experience
• 📩 You can now import your existing bookmarks from Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers into Niphtio
• 🍎 They’ve just launched their app for iOS users in the Apple App Store

Among Us could soon be required training material for hiring managers across corporate America. US companies are increasingly running into AI-enhanced imposters while trying to hire job candidates for remote roles, according to a new CNBC report. 300+ have already been hoodwinked.

How it works: These fake job seekers, who typically hail from North Korea or criminal groups in Russia/Malaysia/South Korea, take advantage of AI tools to fabricate photo IDs, mask their faces in video calls, generate fake employment histories, and provide answers during interviews.

Their intentions vary depending on the company, according to experts. In many cases, deceitful employees are simply collecting a paycheck they wouldn’t otherwise be able to—but other imposters use their position to install ransomware, or to steal data, trade secrets, and/or company funds.

Looking ahead…If the trend continues, an estimated 1 in 4 job candidates globally will be fake by 2028, per research and advisory firm Gartner.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📉 US markets fell across the board (S&P: -1.6%; Dow: -0.8%; Nasdaq: -2.1%); the S&P is trading 19% below its record set in February.
• 💨 The DOJ disbanded its crypto regulations enforcement unit.
• 📝 New US tariffs on 86 countries took effect just after midnight, including a 104% tariff on China; Beijing said it'll "fight to the end" and take countermeasures.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

in partnership with Autio

• 📀 Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment will sell its various brands and assets—including Redbox DVD and streaming service Crackle—at a post-bankruptcy auction later this month.
• 🎥 Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning will debut at the Cannes Film Festival on May 14; the movie’s trailer dropped this week. | 💋 Boop!, a new musical based on the infamous Betty Boop cartoon, has opened on Broadway.
• 🏰 Disney placed its Tangled live-action remake on hold indefinitely following Snow White’s poor box office performance. (Dive deeper: Disney’s controversial Snow White hits theaters)

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SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🤖 Meta reportedly fudged some benchmarks to boost the ranking of its new Llama 4 AI models on LMArena, a popular site where humans compare AI outputs.
• ⚡ A tropical tree in Panama has evolved to kill its “enemies” with lightning.
• 🛰️ The problem of space debris in Earth’s orbit is getting worse, as humans keep sending up satellites at a much faster rate than they come down, per a new ESA report. (Dive deeper: Space junk: a growing problem)

US, WORLD & POLITICS

in partnership with Remi

• 🧑‍⚖️ The Supreme Court halted a federal judge’s ruling that had required several federal agencies to reinstate ~16,000 workers the Trump admin sought to fire.
• 🏥 The US government announced a bigger-than-expected increase in its 2026 reimbursement rates for Medicare Advantage plans, which are approved by Medicare but run by private insurers.
• 🏛️ The IRS reached a deal with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to share immigrants’ tax data for the purpose of identifying and deporting those residing illegally in the US; it marks a major change from previous IRS policy aimed at encouraging migrants to file taxes. | 🏛️ Health Secretary RFK Jr. said he plans to tell the CDC to stop recommending fluoride in drinking water.

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👆 Visual Capitalist mapped the most popular language studied on Duolingo for each country in 2024; English held the top spot in the most countries (134), followed by Spanish (33) and French (16).

🤔 Did You Know? The world record for biggest 24-hour temperature shift occurred in Loma, Montana, where the temperature rose from -54°F to 49°F on January 15, 1972 (an overall change of +103°F).

📰 Worth a Read: Navy SEAL. Harvard Doctor. NASA Astronaut. Don’t Tell Mom About This Overachiever

🖱️ Clickbait: America's 51 most beautiful places to visit

🚗 Uber published its annual Lost & Found Index, a record of items left behind in ride-share cars. This year's edition includes a mannequin head with real human hair, a live turtle, and a 5-gallon bucket of beans.

🦒 Maryland zookeepers were shocked when four-year-old giraffe Kipepeo gave birth to a healthy calf late last month. The twist? No one at the zoo knew she was pregnant.

🦽 Iceland has built 1,756 wheelchair ramps in the past four years to make their public spaces more accessible.

Kamchatka Peninsula is home to 300+ volcanoes, 29 of which are active. In which country is it located?

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