Here’s what’s inside the mammoth bill meant to implement most of the president’s legislative agenda.
|
|
|
| “Nothing is hidden from the eyes of the observing world.” |
| |
|
-
The House of Representatives approved President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” in a 215–214 vote on Thursday. Here’s what’s inside the mammoth bill meant to implement most of the president’s legislative agenda.
-
The Department of Homeland Security has revoked the certification of Harvard University’s foreign student admissions program, prohibiting the school from enrolling international students.
-
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes a tax break for Americans older than 65 in the form of a temporary deduction of $4,000. Here’s how it will work.
-
CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis said that China represents an “existential threat” to the United States and that the agency’s top priority is outpacing the Chinese Communist Party in a high-stakes technological arms race that spans semiconductors, biotechnology, and artificial intelligence.
-
🍵Health: This zero-calorie sweetener balances blood sugar and reduces cravings.
|
☀️ Good morning! It’s Friday. Thank you for reading the Morning Brief, an exclusive newsletter for Epoch Times subscribers. 👋New to Morning Brief? Subscribe.
🎧 Prefer to listen? Get the podcast.
|
|
|
| Ivan Pentchoukov
National Editor |
|
|
Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., on April 16, 2025. (Learner Liu/The Epoch Times) |
The Department of Homeland Security has revoked the certification of Harvard University’s foreign student admissions program, prohibiting the school from enrolling international students.
“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X on May 22.
“It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments. Harvard had plenty of opportunities to do the right thing. It refused. They have lost their Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification as a result of their failure to adhere to the law.”
Harvard’s existing foreign students must transfer to another school or lose their legal status, the DHS statement said.
“Harvard’s leadership has created an unsafe campus environment by permitting anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators to harass and physically assault individuals, including many Jewish students, and otherwise obstruct its once-venerable learning environment,” the statement read.
“Harvard’s leadership further facilitated, and engaged in coordinated activity with the CCP, including hosting and training members of a CCP paramilitary group complicit in the Uyghur genocide.” Harvard University called the federal government’s action unlawful.
“We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host our international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University—and this nation—immeasurably,” Harvard University spokesman Jason Newton said in an email to The Epoch Times.
“We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.” (💬 Comment) More Politics |
-
President Donald Trump’s commission on health recommended that the government should launch new clinical trials on nutrition and improve the surveillance of vaccines and other drugs given to children. (The takeaways from the report.)
- At an event highlighting the roadmap report by the Commission to Make America Healthy Again, President Trump encouraged his cabinet not to be intimidated by corporate lobbyists and special interests.
-
The Supreme Court on Thursday voted 4–4 to reject authorization for the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter school.
-
Here’s why a medication which costs $67 in France costs $798 in the U.S.
-
Secretary of State Marco Rubio promised to facilitate passage of legislation countering the Chinese regime’s state-sanctioned forced organ harvesting.
|
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes a tax break for Americans older than 65 in the form of a temporary deduction of $4,000.
In lieu of President Donald Trump’s campaign pledge to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits, this deduction, called the “senior bonus,” would offer a smaller tax cut, targeted to benefit lower-income seniors.
The House bill allows seniors, whether they take the standard deduction or itemize their returns, to deduct an additional $4,000 from their taxable income. It phases out for single filers earning more than $75,000, or $150,000 for taxpayers filing jointly.
The deduction would last from 2025 through 2028. For those who qualify, it would amount to dollar savings of $480 for those in the 12 percent tax bracket, and $880 for those in the 22 percent tax bracket. The deduction reduces taxable income and is distinct from a tax credit, which would be a dollar-for-dollar reduction in taxes.
Jessica Riedl, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute focusing on budget, tax, and economic policy, told The Epoch Times that “Republicans converted the pledge of no taxes on Social Security benefits into the $4,000 additional senior deduction for two reasons.”
“First, because congressional rules forbid altering Social Security or its taxes in a reconciliation bill,” Riedl said.
“Second, ending Social Security income taxes would overwhelmingly benefit wealthier seniors, because their benefits currently face higher taxes, and this deduction is instead targeted to lower-earning seniors.” (💬 Comment) More U.S. News |
-
Many economists have forecast that President Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs would, by driving up the cost of imports, revive inflation. The most recent data, however, indicate that the rate of price increases has remained subdued thus far. Economists are odds on whether it will stay that way.
-
The man accused in the shooting deaths of two Israeli Embassy staffers outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington on Wednesday was charged with murder of foreign officials.
-
As the trade war between the United States and communist China continues to unfold, many Chinese Americans—who often base their small businesses on imports from China—are weighing their options. Some expect to survive the price hikes, some will consider sourcing their goods elsewhere in Asia, and still others are pondering closing down.
- This year’s hurricane season is forecast to have “above-normal” storm activity, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
|
CIA Deputy Director Michael Ellis says that China represents an “existential threat” to the United States and that the agency’s top priority is outpacing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in a high-stakes technological arms race that spans semiconductors, biotechnology, and artificial intelligence. “China is the existential threat to American security in a way we really have never confronted before,” Ellis told Axios in an interview published on May 21, adding that a key CIA objective is to help U.S. companies maintain a “decisive technological advantage” to counter the CCP’s malign actions against the homeland.
In separate remarks, including an interview at the beginning of May with investor Anthony Pompliano, Ellis emphasized that President Donald Trump’s intelligence team is laser-focused on denying China any strategic edge, especially in advanced technologies that underpin both the economy and national defense. However, fields such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing are not areas that the U.S. intelligence community (IC) has traditionally been much involved in—and the CIA is looking to change that.
“The IC is very good at ... counting Soviet tanks ... to be ready for a possible conflict in Europe in the Cold War,” Ellis said. “But ... when you ask the IC to look at issues ... where Chinese companies are in artificial intelligence research, it’s not one that we’ve been well-positioned historically to think about.” As part of its shift in focus toward the tech race against adversaries such as China, the CIA is looking to develop more resources, including personnel, Ellis said, adding that this includes recruiting people with expertise in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
“We need more people with science and technology backgrounds, which is again a little different than the global war on terrorism mindset of the last 20 years,” he said, adding that the CIA is also increasingly looking at partnering with private-sector leaders—including recent consultations with Elon Musk—on how to cut waste, adopt artificial intelligence tools, and stay ahead of adversaries using emerging technologies like drone swarms. (More)
More World News: |
-
Following a wave of high-level purges, China’s military leadership has recently seen unexplained absences and rumors of suicide. Experts say an internal “anti-corruption” crackdown reversed course in July 2024, shifting from Chinese leader Xi Jinping targeting rivals to rivals eroding his control.
-
China is experiencing a resurgence of COVID-19, with patients reporting symptoms of severe, burning throat pain, experts say.
-
April economic data released by the Chinese communist regime showed that China’s economy slowed month over month in nearly all sectors.
-
Who is the South African radical in the Trump Oval Office video singing “kill the farmer?” Meet Julius Malema.
-
Defeated Romanian presidential candidate George Simion had his request to annul the recent election thrown out by the country’s Constitutional Court.
|
📷 Photo of the Day: Members of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment place flags at the headstones of U.S. military personnel buried at Arlington National Cemetery, in preparation for Memorial Day in Arlington, Va., on May 22, 2025. Nearly 1,500 service members entered the cemetery at pre-dawn hours to begin the process of placing a flag in front of approximately 260,000 headstones. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images) |
🎙️ Podcast: On today’s episode of Constitution Avenue, Epoch Times reporter Lawrence Wilson breaks down what’s in the “One, Big Beautiful Bill,” and why the Democrats oppose it. (Listen)
🎤 Interview: Ludwik Klimkowski shares the remarkable story behind Canada’s anti-communist memorial. (Watch)
✍️ Opinion: The Philippines’ Diplomatic Power Play to Counter China by Wang He 💛 Inspiration: Eight habits that can add decades to life. 🎵 Music: Beethoven - Symphony No. 6 (Listen)
🎥 Documentary: Electric Vehicles: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (Watch) … and don’t forget:
♥️ Follow us on Facebook, X, Instagram, or Truth Social
📫 Forward this email to a friend and tell them to subscribe. (Here)
☕ Love coffee, mugs, stickers, and clothes? Check out our shop. 💬 Feedback? Reply to this email or write to ivanmb@epochtimes.nyc |
Andriy Blokhin/Shutterstock |
Donna began using allulose anywhere she’d once used sugar, including treats like brownies and pumpkin muffins. Looking back, she says finding allulose was key. “It’s the main thing I’ve done differently compared to other low-carb diets.”
Semaglutide and other new GLP-1 medications have dominated the weight loss industry, offering appetite suppression and improved blood sugar control. At roughly $1,000 per month before insurance, they are beyond reach for many people. For others, it’s the side effects of these drugs that have them searching for natural alternatives.
Enter allulose—a zero-calorie, rare sugar that stimulates the same GLP-1 hormone, though to a more modest extent than the drugs, and provides mild metabolic benefits.
Allulose is a naturally occurring sugar found in small amounts in foods like figs, raisins, and maple syrup. Unlike regular sugar, allulose is absorbed in the bloodstream but not fully metabolized into energy—about 90 percent is excreted in urine—so it provides almost no calories or usable energy.
Research shows that this unique metabolic fate, which avoids spiking blood sugar or insulin levels, sets allulose apart from table sugar. Allulose also has a unique metabolic profile among low-calorie sweeteners.
GLP-1 is a hormone released by the gut in response to food intake. It promotes satiety—the feeling of fullness after meals— slows gastric emptying, and enhances insulin secretion. Together, these effects help people lose weight on the GLP-1 agonist drugs. (More)
|
|
|
Thanks for reading. Have a wonderful day. |
—Ivan Pentchoukov, Madalina Hubert, and Kenzi Li. |
|
|
Copyright © 2025 The Epoch Times, All rights reserved.
Our mailing address is: The Epoch Times. 229 W. 28 St. Fl. 7 New York, NY 10001 | Contact Us
Our Morning Brief newsletter is one of the best ways to receive the most up-to-date information. Manage your email preferences here or unsubscribe from Morning Brief here.
|
|
|
|
