Welcome to the Daily Briefing. Here’s what’s to read this morning:
- TSA is sharing passenger data with ICE.
- Travelers are reconsidering international trips.
- Life in space isn’t as spacious.
Nicole Fallert here, bringing you the news to know on Monday, from the latest on the war in Iran, the elections this week, and the final chapter for this year’s March Madness.
What to know about Trump’s expletive-laden Iran threat
What happened: President Donald Trump took to social media on Easter Sunday to applaud the U.S. military’s rescue of the second airman whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran and deliver a profanity-filled message to the Middle Eastern nation to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Why it matters: After extending the deadline on his ultimatum for Iran to cease its blockade on ships passing through the oil route, the president said the regime now has until Tuesday to meet his demands, threatening strikes on critical Iranian infrastructure.
What happens now: Iran condemned Trump’s post, while the war remains unpopular among Americans who are skeptical of the goal in attacking Iran. Follow Monday’s developments on the war in Iran live here with USA TODAY.
More news to know now
- Trump wants a national mail-in voting system for the midterms. Experts told USA TODAY it would take years, not months, to create even a basic national system.
- On Tuesday, voters in Georgia’s 14th congressional district will cast ballots in a runoff for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s replacement in the U.S. House of Representatives, while Wisconsin voters will choose a new judge for the state Supreme Court, among other local positions.
- The famous hurricane map got a makeover. Gone is the “cone of uncertainty.”
March Madness
UCLA’s storybook ending
UCLA finally broke through, winning its first women’s basketball national championship of the NCAA era. The Bruins dominated South Carolina, routing the Gamecocks 79-51 Sunday at the Mortgage Matchup Center. The team, which features five senior starters and six players likely to be drafted into the WNBA on April 13, posted a wire-to-wire win. Watch UConn and Arizona in the men’s final tonight.
Artemis II
To do at work today: Look at the moon
The lunar mission’s moon flyby will happen on Monday, in a roughly six-hour window when the sun, moon, and Orion spacecraft are aligned to give the crew a view of the far side of the moon that can’t be seen from Earth.
Before you go
- It was a royal Easter.
- Her dad died, and she can’t stop laughing about it.
- “The Pitt” inspired a rescue litter.
Have feedback on the Daily Briefing? Shoot Nicole an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.
