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The U.S. Capitol building in Washington on March 6, 2025. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

House Republicans revealed a Trump-approved spending bill on Saturday that lays out a plan to keep the federal government and its agencies funded through the end of the fiscal year.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) wants his chamber to vote on the 100-page continuing resolution on March 11, while Democrats, led by Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) already stand in opposition.

Congress has until midnight on March 14 to avoid a partial government shutdown.

“All Republicans should vote (Please!) YES next week. Great things are coming for America, and I am asking you all to give us a few months to get us through to September so we can continue to put the Country’s ‘financial house’ in order,” President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on March 8.

“Democrats will do anything they can to shut down our Government, and we can’t let that happen. We have to remain UNITED — NO DISSENT — Fight for another day when the timing is right. VERY IMPORTANT. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

According to House Republican leadership staff, the bill would allow for $892.5 billion in defense spending and about $708 billion for nondefense spending. This is a slight increase in defense allocations and an approximately 8 percent drop in nondefense spending compared to last year. (More)

More Politics:

A Missouri judge has found China’s communist leadership liable in a multi-billion dollar case over the regime’s hoarding of medical supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is liable for $24 billion in damages to Missouri for exacerbating the pandemic by obstructing American access to medical supplies, the judgment found.

“This is a landmark victory for Missouri and the United States in the fight to hold China accountable for unleashing COVID-19 on the world,” Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said.

The State of Missouri brought the case against China, its communist leadership, and several subordinate departments and institutions including the Wuhan Institute of Virology, where some intelligence leaders believe that the COVID-19 virus originated.

District Judge Stephen Limbaugh rendered the decision by default after officials from the CCP did not appear to plead their side of the case, a common outcome in cases dealing with foreign entities.

The judgement took particular care to underscore the CCP’s role in obfuscating information about the virus early on during the initial outbreak in China, as well as the regime’s efforts to hoard personal protective equipment (PPE), causing shortages in the United States. (More)

More U.S. News

A Palestinian man accompanied by a child walk near a fallen minaret of a destroyed mosque in the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on March 7, 2025. (Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images)

Several European nations are throwing their weight behind an Arab-backed plan for the reconstruction of Gaza that would cost $53 billion and avoid displacing Palestinians.

The Arab-backed backed plan competes with the one proposed by President Donald Trump, who has envisioned the United States taking over Gaza, relocating the Palestinians to neighboring countries, and redeveloping the area.

Foreign ministers from France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom announced on March 8 that they supported the plan drawn up by Egypt and adopted by several Arab nations earlier in the week.

“The plan shows a realistic path to the reconstruction of Gaza and promises—if implemented—swift and sustainable improvement of the catastrophic living conditions for the Palestinians living in Gaza,” the ministers said in a joint statement.

The Arab plan would mandate that Hamas can no longer rule Gaza and must not present any threat to Israel.

Israel and the United States have rejected the plan.

“President Trump stands by his vision to rebuild Gaza free from Hamas,” White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said earlier this week. (More)

More World News:

🇺🇲 American Thought Leaders: Why are 7.2 million able-bodied men not looking for work? (Watch)

✍️ Opinion: What Calvin Coolidge’s 1925 Inauguration Can Teach Us Today by Lawrence W. Reed

🍵 Health: Exercises for limber hips and 7 reasons why you’ll want to do them.

🍿 Documentary: The real story of Cleopatra. (Watch free on Gan Jing World)

🎵 Music: Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 21 (Listen)

📷 Photo of the Day: Members of the emergency services communicate with a protester holding a Palestinian flag positioned on the side of the Elizabeth Tower, commonly known by the name of the clock’s bell “Big Ben”, at the Palace of Westminster, home to the Houses of Parliament, in central London, on March 8, 2025. 👇

Ben Stansall/AFP via Getty Images

Day in Photos: Women’s Day in Syria, Climbing Big Ben, and Navy Open Day in Sydney

Could it be simple, basic things, like freedom to explore, that allow children to flourish? (New Africa/Shutterstock)

From the time a child is just a twinkle in the eye, almost every good parent begins dreaming of giving that baby the best of everything in life.

And the years that follow see parents doing everything they can to execute that hope by providing excellent nutrition, the best education affordable, and lessons in piano, dance, soccer, computer programming, and every other thing imaginable that might bring that child happiness and future success.

But have you ever wondered if all those efforts are over the top? What if the elements of our child’s future success are actually in more simple things?

This question came to mind while reading the autobiography of Russell Kirk, called “The Sword of Imagination.” Kirk, although not necessarily a household name, certainly led a successful life—in fact, he is considered to be one of the leading conservative thinkers of the 20th century, influencing millions of Americans by founding—and writing in—such prominent publications as National Review and Modern Age.

One would think that such a successful, influential man was raised with the best of everything—and he was, but not in the way many of us would think. In reality, his childhood was one of simplicity, characterized by the following four things:

A Happy Family—Kirk benefited from a close-knit family that valued domesticity and loving parent-child interactions.

Extended Family—Kirk also spent a good deal of time with his maternal grandfather who introduced him to many deep thoughts, wisdom, and character.

Regular Reading—Kirk was encouraged by his mother and grandfather to love and cherish books.

Freedom to Explore—Kirk was given the freedom to explore and learn by doing. (More)

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Thanks for reading.

Have a wonderful day.

—Ivan Pentchoukov, Madalina Hubert, and Kenzi Li.

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