Thursday morning news: March 7, 2024

State of the Union preview » President Biden is preparing to deliver his third State of the Union address today. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president will highlight his accomplishments and lay out his vision for the future.

PIERRE: Looking at what President Biden faced when he came into office and where we are now, it is clear he’s gotten more done in the first three years than most presidents accomplish in two terms.

But Republicans have a different view of his presidency. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer:

EMMER: From the southern border to the economy to foreign policy, the facts are quite clear. Joe Biden has failed on every single issue. Our state of the union has been defined by unprecedented chaos thanks to this administration’s failed policies.

The president will address the nation from the House chamber at 8pm Eastern tonight.

Alabama Sen. Katie Britt will deliver the Republican response.

Haley, Trump/Biden » Donald Trump is wasting no time shifting into general election mode. On Wednesday, he challenged President Biden to a debate “ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE.”

That came just hours after Nikki Haley made this announcement:

HALEY: The time has now come to suspend my campaign.

She congratulated Trump but did not endorse him. Instead she challenged him to earn the votes of her supporters.

But some Republicans are turning up pressure on Haley to throw her support behind Trump. Republican Congressman Mark Alford:

ALFORD: She needs to go a step further. She needs to endorse President Trump. She promised to endorse and get behind the eventual nominee.

House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik was also among those calling on Haley to endorse the presumptive nominee.

House passes package of spending bills » The House passed a $460 billion package of spending bills Wednesday that would keep the lights on at key federal agencies through the rest of the budget year.

AUDIO: On this vote, the yeas are 339. The nays are 85. The resolution is agreed to.

Most of those “no” votes were from Republican members, who said the bill doesn’t address Washington’s spending problem. But Speaker Mike Johnson said GOP members have to be realistic about what they can achieve in a divided chamber.

JOHNSON: We are not going to get everything that we want. We want to cut spending. We want to limit the size and scope of the federal government. The reality right now is that we have a divided government. We have a 2-vote majority, one of the smallest in history.

The Senate is expected to take up the legislation before a midnight Friday shutdown deadline.

Jerome Powell on interest rates » Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell says the board will likely cut rates relatively soon, but not yet. He told a House committee:

POWELL: Reducing policy restraint too soon or too much, could result in a reversal of progress we’ve seen in inflation and ultimately require even tighter policy to get inflation back to 2 percent.

The current inflation rate is just over 3 percent.

On the flip side, he said reducing rates too late or too little could unduly hurt the economy. So those cuts will likely come at some point this year.

A key measure the Fed watches closely indicated that inflation sped up in January by nearly one half of one percent.

Houthi attacks/deaths » At least three civilians are dead after Houthi rebels attacked another commercial vessel on Wednesday in the Gulf of Aden.

They’re the first civilian deaths reported since the Iran-backed terror group began attacking vessels along Middle Eastern shipping routes last November.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller called the casualties inevitable.

Miller: The Houthis have continued to launch these reckless attacks with no regard for the wellbeing of innocent civilians… we will continue to hold them accountable, and we call on governments around the world to do the same.

The Yemen-based rebels claimed responsibility for the attack, and said they won’t stop until the conflict in Gaza ends.

Pastor Cao released » A missionary has been released from a Chinese jail after years behind bars. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin reports.

KRISTEN FLAVIN: Pastor John Cao is finally free after completing a 7-year sentence.

Chinese authorities arrested Cao and his colleague in 2017 and charged them with illegally crossing the border between Myanmar and China.

Cao served as a missionary in Myanmar for four years before he was arrested and regularly crossed the border as part of his work.

A UN watchdog group in 2019 concluded that he was wrongfully imprisoned because of his faith.

The pastor is married to an American woman and is a permanent resident of North Carolina.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

Haiti gangs » As the government of Haiti teeters on the brink of collapse the UN’s high commissioner for human rights is calling for the international community to step in and help.

Volker Turk is calling for a multinational security support mission to restore order to the country.

TURK: There is no realistic alternative available to protect lives. We are simply running out of time.

Schools and businesses in Port-au-Prince have been closed after authorities say gangs seized control of more than 80 percent of the capital.

I’m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: What results on Super Tuesday say about the Republican party. Plus, artificial intelligence in music.

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