Happy Thursday! Today's forecast in DC: ☁☁️ 48° (Find you Weather here))

In this edition:

• White House suddenly becomes a candidate for Yank Doc CDC
• Senate Dem is looking for cover in the fundraising battle
• Pete Buttigieg passes Senate bid
• Trump threatens 200% tariffs on European alcohol
• “Queer Eye” will be cast on DC

Ball is in Senate Democrats' court over whether the federal government will be shut down in the middle of the night Friday.

Where things stand: Democrats held two closure meetings this week to discuss strategy. Will Republicans help Republicans by having at least eight people from a “yes” vote on a six-month government fundraising extension? Or do Republicans refuse to help Republicans by separating them from negotiations and vote “no” as the united front? The latter would shut down the government.

Senate Democrats should not ask for helping Republicans from Wednesday's meeting by voting “yes.” This caused an insanity of uncertainty as it didn't appear to have caused the Democrats to shut down until Wednesday.

What's actually happening behind the scenes: Senate Democrats have personally said they won't be shutting down the government on Saturday despite progressive pressure, Oka reports Alexander Bolton. They just don't want to do it in an easy way. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) will first force the vote to vote for a month extension, allowing more time to negotiate. If that vote inevitably fails, at least eight Democrats are expected to support the Republican proposal.

Why are Democrats choosing the hard way?: Simply to save the face.

But here is the problem: There's not much wiggling room for all of this to unfold. If something unexpected happens, you may be seeing government shutdowns.

Some analysis: CNN's Stephen Collinson Make a claim “The first big chance to check out the Democrats' first big chance may make them look even weaker.”

The White House suddenly retracted its nomination. Dave Weldon This morning he will lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just before his scheduled Senate confirmation hearing.

why?: Sources told Hill that Weldon doesn't have enough votes to confirm.

What do you know about Weldon?: “Weldon was facing a growing scrutiny of his anti-vaccine views, including extensive record of his time in Congress raising questions about vaccine safety and potential links to autism. His history has sparked concerns among the Senate and others close to the process, and has promoted constant rumors that he will be withdrawn over the past few weeks.”Politics))

New York Times I spoke with Weldon: Weldon said a White House official told him last night. “It's a shock, but in a way, it's a relief,” Weldon said. “The government work demands a lot of you. If God doesn't want me, then I'm fine with that.”

Please be aware: This is a rare set-off for the Trump team. Few Trump candidates have been drawn from consideration.

More than 20 Democratic attorney generals are suing the Trump administration over efforts to fire almost half of their education department employees.

Backstory: Trump tried to dismantle the education department. While it officially closed, it would require Congressional approval, but his administration began to take it away as much as possible. More than 1,300 staff members were let go earlier this week (not including hundreds of people who were taken on leave or made acquisitions).

“The StudentAid.gov website was down for hours Wednesday after the education department fired half of its workforce. At Down Detector, hundreds of users are reporting a suspension of free applications for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) used by students using by university students to receive financial aid.”hill))

President Trump If the European Union does not resolve the tariffs on whiskey, it is threatening a 200% tariff on European alcohol, including wine and champagne.

Trump posted to the True Society: “One of the world's most hostile and abusive tax and customs authorities formed for the sole purpose of using the US, the European Union places a nasty 50% tariff on whiskey.” 🔎 Read the full Trump post

What caused this: The European 27 Country trading block says it will allow current contracts to expire on April 1st, causing a 50% tariff on American whiskey.

This made me laugh: US news and global reports Olivienox I was kidding“If you come from the freak region of France, it's just a retaliatory tariff. Otherwise it's just a sparkling protectionism.”

High-tech mega billionaire Elon MuskThe government's Office of Efficiency (DOGE) is requesting savings within the federal government, but the media outlet has discovered some errors on its published list.

Well, the Doge team has now blurred some of the details of their findings – making it difficult to find those errors – “[but The New York Times] I was able to still detect another batch of mistakes. ” Read the report from David A. Fahrenthold and Jeremy Singer-Vine

• Wall Street Journal: Trump is cracking down on universities. Florida had a head start.
• New York Times: Small farms and food banks are caught off guard by spending cuts
• Vox: A decades-long quest by conservatives to destroy the Ministry of Education
• axios: CEO wants patience with Trump

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Battigeg He should not run this morning in the Michigan Open Senate race.

Why is this important?: Buttigieg reportedly was considering running a retirement center. Gary Peters's (d-mich.) seat. If you leave this race, you will be free to run for the president in 2028.

Why this may make some Democrats feel uneasy“Democrats are rushing to stop their seats by retiring Sen. Gary Peters in a critical swing state. Republicans see it as the best pick-up opportunity after they approach to overturn the final cycle of other Senate seats in the state.”Politics))

🥥 celebrate:Today Coconut torte Day nationwide.

✨ Do you know who can use a bit of eneuje?: “Queer Eye” casts people in Washington to appear on the Netflix Show. (Washington))

🚀 Another scratching that brings the astronaut home: NASA and SpaceX had to cancel Wednesday's launch to retrieve astronauts who have been stuck in space since June. The mission was discarded an hour before the mission due to launch pad problems. The next oldest day is Friday.

👔 Best outfit? :Derek manalso known as X's “The Menswear Guy.” Politico list About Capitol Hill's most stylish lawmakers. There may be one or two hot takes.

The house is leaving. There is the Senate. President Trump I'm in Washington. (Always East)

• today: The Foreign Ministers of Seven Nations Group will meet in Quebec.
• noon: Members of the Hispanic Caucus in Congress speak at the annual House Democrat retreat in Leesburg, Virginia. 💻 Live stream
• 12:20pm: Trump meets with NATO Executive Director Mark Latte.
• 1pm: Two Senate votes. Two more votes are scheduled for 4:30pm 📆 Today's Agenda
• 1:45pm: New Democrat coalition members will speak at the Democratic Party Issues Conference. 💻 Live stream
• 3:30pm: Congressional Black Caucus Leaders speak at Democrat hideaways. 💻 Live stream
• 5:30pm: Congress' progressive caucus leaders speak at Democrat retreat. 💻 Live stream
• Friday at 11:59pm: Government funds expire without any transactions.

To add a little zen to your day, Look at this panda munch on squash.

Do you miss the 12:30 report yesterday? Here we catch up with a one-minute video summary.

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