Friday morning news: December 12, 2025

Editor's note: The following text is a transcript of a podcast story. To listen to the story, click on the arrow beneath the headline above.

Healthcare proposals » A fight over the direction of the U.S. healthcare system is heating up again on Capitol Hill …

AUDIO:  On this vote, the yeas are 51, the nays are 48, three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn not having voted in the affirmative. The motion is not agreed to.

A pair of dueling healthcare measures failed to pass in the Senate … with Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire this month.

A Democrats-authored bill would have extended the COVID-era tax credits for three years. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer:

SCHUMER:   How can Republicans look themselves in the mirror knowing they have to go back home and tell people over the holidays, “I voted to send your premiums up.”

But Republicans say Democrats just blocked a better plan. Majority Leader John Thune:

THUNE:  If it's really about affordability, let's focus on affordability and driving down insurance premiums. What the Democrats are doing is continuing to drive them up and giving the money to the insurance companies.

The rival Republican plan would have replaced the expiring subsidies with payments sent to Americans’ health savings accounts.

Jobless claims » New unemployment claims rose last week, raising fresh questions about the job market. The Labor Department says about 236,000 people applied for jobless benefits, up sharply from the week before and higher than expected. Some of that jump likely reflects holiday-related swings around Thanksgiving.

The Trump administration argues the labor market remains resilient, pointing to historically low layoff levels and steady consumer spending.

Even so, hiring has slowed, making it harder for people out of work to find new jobs. The unemployment rate has climbed to 4.4 percent, its highest level in four years.

Ukraine latest » Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has a message for President Donald Trump...who has been calling for Kyiv to hold new presidential elections.

ZELENSKYY: We can try to hold elections. Ukraine is not hiding from democracy, but to make elections possible, there must be a security component and America can help with this the most. If there is a need for elections now, there must be a ceasefire, at least during election.

Zelenskyy's message came one day after he handed over his proposed revisions to a U.S.-backed peace proposal to end the war with Russia.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters yesterday that President Donald Trump is aware of the revisions, but offered no further comment.

She also said Trump may send representatives to Europe for meetings on Ukraine...but only if there's a real chance of signing a peace agreement.

LEAVITT: The president is extremely frustrated with both sides of this war, and he is sick of meetings just for the sake of meeting. He doesn't want any more talk. He wants action. He wants this war to come to an end.

Zelenskyy previously said any deal ceding Ukrainian land to Russia is off the table. It's not yet clear what revisions Ukraine has made to the plan.

Abrego Garcia reportedly released » Leavitt also sounded off on the release of a Salvadoran national from immigration detention.

A federal judge ordered the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia as his legal fight continues. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled that immigration authorities lacked a clear legal basis to continue holding him after he was returned to the United States earlier this year.

Leavitt says the Trump administration is appealing.

LEAVITT:  The White House, the administration opposed this activism from a judge who is really acting as, as a judicial activist, which we've unfortunately seen in many cases across the country. Abrego Garcia is present in our country illegally. He is a proven human trafficker. He is a proven gang member. 

Abrego Garcia’s lawyers dispute those claims.

Kilmar has lived in Maryland for years with his American wife … but he is not a legal resident. He entered the country illegally in 2011 … but a immigration judge later shielded him from deportation.

The Trump administration detained and deported him in error back in March of this year. A legal battle has continued since then.

U.S.-Japan joint drills » U.S. and Japanese forces are stepping up joint air drills as tensions with China continue to rise in the region. WORLD’s Benjamin Eicher has more.

BENJAMIN EICHER: American B-52 bombers flew alongside Japanese fighter jets this week in exercises near Japan’s western airspace. Officials say the drills highlight the strength of the U.S.–Japan alliance and their readiness to respond to growing security threats.

The flights came just days after Chinese military aircrafts locked radar on Japanese jets — a move often seen as a warning or preparation to fire.

The drill also came after Chinese and Russian bombers flew together near Japan, prompting Tokyo to scramble fighters.

For WORLD, I’m Benjamin Eicher.

Myanmar hospital strike » A nighttime airstrike in western Myanmar destroyed a hospital killing dozens.

The attack happened late Wednesday in an area controlled by the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group fighting the military government.

Rescue officials say a jet dropped two bombs, one hitting a hospital recovery ward and the other landing nearby, killing at least 34 people and wounding about 80 others.

Myanmar’s military has not commented.

I’m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: Culture Friday with John Stonestreet. Plus, a review of an award winning true-crime documentary. 

This is The World and Everything in It.

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