Daily Briefing: Trump's address to a divided nation
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President Donald Trump addressed lawmakers about his administration's actions so far. Severe weather forced New Orleans to reschedule Mardi Gras celebrations. One parent shared with USA TODAY their journey to provide gender-affirming care to their pre-teen.

**🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm ,** Daily Briefing author. !

### Trump defends America's direction

President Trump's address Tuesday night to a joint session of Congress was the longest of its kind in modern U.S. history at 1 hour and 39 minutes.

**_Trump began his address by declaring "America is back":_** The speech offered ample reminders of how the second-term Republican president has already tested the limits of executive authority in almost every facet of the job.

- **.** The president faced an impatient nation that is skittish over his imposition of 25% tariffs on foreign allies, which may raise everyday costs.
- **.** Instead, Trump praised Elon Musk's work with the Department of Government Efficiency, which has aggressively downsized or eliminated federal agencies.
- ****: Women wore pink. Some walked out of the chamber. Others held up signs.

**👉 "Change doesn’t need to be chaotic or make us less safe":** .

### A US-Ukraine mineral deal is pending

President Donald Trump's administration and Ukraine plan to sign a much-debated minerals deal Tuesday, four people familiar with the situation said. The deal was put on hold last week after a contentious Oval Office meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that resulted in the Ukrainian leader's swift departure from the White House. The deal to be signed last week included no explicit security guarantees for Ukraine but gave the United States access to revenues from Ukraine's natural resources. **_.**

### More news to know now

- **The Trump administration gave schools a DEI ultimatum** – .
- **Is there really** ? 
- **Starliner astronauts are finally preparing** .
- **What's the fate** of ? 
- **Here's how** hundreds of .

**Sally's .** .

### Fire and ice grip the US

While a massive winter storm unleashed damaging winds in the South, it is also set to bring heavy snow and blizzard conditions to portions of the north-central U.S. into Wednesday. Blizzard warnings are in effect in six states, and some 6 million people could be impacted, the National Weather Service said. The storm has already unloaded heavy winds, rain and snow across much of the country, killing two people in Mississippi, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of customers and forcing officials to reschedule Mardi Gras events in New Orleans. **.**

### A mother and her pre-teen drive cross-country for medical care

#### “This kid is not ready to decide how he would feel about boobs and a period if it happens at the age it did for me, which was 11. My kid needs that pause to have that adult conversation with therapists.”

~ Amanda, who requested to only print her middle name to protect her child's medical privacy, travels with her son to western New York every six months to meet with doctors and get puberty blockers. The treatment has recently been threatened after President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to take action against hospitals that continue to provide gender-affirming care. **.**

### Today's talkers

- **Today** .
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- **See next fall's trends** debuting . 
- **"Meghan Markle"** . 
- **Texas A&M just knocked off** .

### Gene Hackman investigation excludes gas, carbon monoxide

As the investigation into the deaths for Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa's Australian Kelpie mix, Zinna, was being concluded, the possibility of a gas leak inside their home appeared to be conclusively ruled out. Officials found "no significant findings" of gas leaks and carbon monoxide at Hackman's home, where he and his wife were found dead alongside their dog. Authorities have called the circumstances of the deaths "suspicious," while noting "no foul play" is suspected at this time. **__**

### Photo of the day: Doechii feels wonderful

Doechii found her place to bloom and feel beautiful. The Grammy-winning U.S. rapper joined other stars donning stunning fashion at the Louvre in Paris on Tuesday for "Le Grand Diner du Louvre," a glamorous exhibition held at the iconic French art museum. **_.**

_Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, . Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com_.
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