White House to tell U.S. agencies to prepare for first government shutdown of pandemic  —  Officials stress the preparations are part of standard practice but come amid multiple vexing fiscal fights in Washington  —  The White House budget office will tell federal agencies on Thursday …

Schumer announces Senate-House deal on tax ‘framework’ for $3.5T package  —  Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Thursday morning announced that the Senate, House and White House have reached a deal on a “framework” to pay for the massive human infrastructure spending package …

Pelosi signals she won't move $3.5T bill without Senate-House deal  —  Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has signaled to colleagues in both chambers that she will not put the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package on the House floor for a vote until it's clear that it can also pass the 50-50 Senate.

Steve Bannon Confirms His Involvement in January 6 Insurrection on ‘War Room’ Podcast  —  Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon admitted on his War Room podcast that he had a hand in planning the rally for then-President Donald Trump that preceded the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6.

Some experts see signs of hope as COVID cases fall  —  New coronavirus cases are continuing to decline, and some experts are cautiously optimistic that the virus will continue to wane even into the fall and winter.  —  The big picture: The next few months are highly uncertain, and some localized outbreaks are all but guaranteed.

Nearly half of the unvaccinated say they're willing to get a coronavirus shot.  The challenge is trying to get it to them.  —  Yolanda Orosco-Arellano decided she would get the coronavirus vaccine long before it became available.  But securing an appointment for it was less straightforward.