How the birthright citizenship argument is shifting and Medicare covers weight loss drugs: Morning Rundown

Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” has changed who gets help from the government in the year since it was signed. The Supreme Court’s birthright citizenship ruling was closer than expected. And a New York City racetrack shuts down after 132 years.

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How Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ is reshaping America

One year after President Donald Trump signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” it has reshaped the country — altering who gets help from the government.

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The most consequential legislation of Trump’s second term reaches into nearly every corner of American life. It supercharges immigration enforcement. It rewrites student loan rules. It dismantles tax incentives for electric vehicles and clean energy. It creates a national school-voucher tax credit.

And at its core is a seismic shift: extending roughly $4.5 trillion in tax cuts disproportionately benefiting corporations and the wealthy over 10 years while cutting about $1.1 trillion from healthcare and food assistance programs serving poor and working-class people.

Supporters frame the act as a long-overdue correction. They argue it’s reducing dependence on government programs, rooting out waste, encouraging work and making American businesses more competitive. But many health policy experts, economists and antipoverty advocates see it as something else: one of the largest transfers of resources from low-income Americans to the rich in U.S. history.

Medicare begins covering weight loss drugs, but there’s a catch

Starting today, people on Medicare will be able to get weight loss drugs, including Wegovy and Zepbound, for $50 a month. But patients hoping for quick or permanent access may be disappointed. That’s because the program is a short-term workaround to Medicare’s ban on weight loss drug coverage that’s set to run for only 18 months. And the $50 monthly copays don’t count toward a patient’s deductibles or annual out-of-pocket limit. An anticipated surge in prescriptions could also cause a supply bottleneck and cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

How a once-mocked argument against birthright citizenship got four votes at the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court yesterday blocked President Trump’s contentious attempt to limit citizenship at birth for those born on U.S. soil, delivering a major blow to his agenda. The court, divided 6-3, ruled that the executive order Trump issued on the first day of his second term was unlawful.

Five justices said the order violated the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which has long been interpreted to bestow birthright citizenship on almost anyone born in the U.S. Trump has argued that citizenship shouldn’t apply to everyone, and yesterday, conservative justice Brett Kavanaugh said the order violated federal law — but not the Constitution.

Kavanaugh’s opinion rendered the outcome of the case a much closer call than many experts predicted. It also signaled a shifting mindset around an argument that was once considered a fringe theory, thanks to two intertwined developments: growing support for Trump’s hard-line immigration policies and heated academic debate in which conservative scholars provided new ammunition for the administration in court.

How Trump and his supporters were able to move the needle.

More Supreme Court news:

Democratic socialist Melat Kiros wins Colorado House primary

Rep. Diana DeGette, who has represented Colorado’s 1st District for three decades, was defeated yesterday in the state’s Democratic primary, with voters selecting democratic socialist Melat Kiros to advance to the general election. It’s the latest victory for the insurgent left wing of the party over an entrenched incumbent this year.

DeGette has supported progressive policies like “Medicare for All” and was an impeachment manager during Trump’s 2021 Senate trial after the riot at the U.S. Capitol. But it wasn’t enough to stave off Kiros, a 29-year-old lawyer. The issues which helped Kiros soar in popularity.

In other Colorado primary races, Sen. John Hickenlooper fended off a progressive challenge from state Sen. Julie Gonzales. And Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser won the state’s Democratic primary for governor, upsetting Sen. Michael Bennet.

More politics news:

Can a historic World Cup run finally fix U.S. soccer?

Thanks to its massive talent base, top facilities and resources for coaching and training, the U.S. has regularly produced world-class teams and athletes in multiple sports. However, men’s soccer has remained the stubborn exception — despite the palpable optimism heading into tonight’s match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Why does the U.S. lag behind South America and European powerhouses? The answer is likely to differ depending on who you ask. What is universally agreed upon is that things must change — starting with youth soccer.

What the pro players, coaches and experts had to say.

🇧🇦 For subscribers: Esmir Bajraktarević was born and raised in America. But tonight, the “Milwaukee Messi” hopes to bring Bosnia and Herzegovina a victory .

⚽ For subscribers: The 2026 tournament has the highest rate of goals per match in decades. Is the ball to blame? .

💥 What you missed: Norway defeated the Ivory Coast 2-1. France delivered a decisive 3-0 win against Sweden. And Mexico ended a 40-year knockout drought in a 2-0 win over Ecuador.

🗓 What to watch today: England takes on Democratic Republic of the Congo at noon ET. Belgium and Senegal play at 4 p.m., and the U.S. and Bosnia and Herzegovina play at 8 p.m. See the full schedule.

📩 Join the excitement: Sign up for The Sports Desk newsletter for more in-depth World Cup coverage.

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Staff Pick: 132-year-old curtain falls on New York City’s Aqueduct Racetrack

Photographer Lili Kobielski and I roamed the grandstands, rails and paddock of 132-year-old Aqueduct Racetrack on Sunday, looking for fans who remember the sport’s heyday and enjoying a final gallop down memory lane.

That nostalgia could be felt the moment you walked into Aqueduct as the Norman Pors jazz quartet serenaded fans with old school standards like “New York, New York,” “Come Fly with Me” and “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head.”

There were 6,886 paid customers on hand Sunday to say goodbye to the Big A, which felt like a capacity audience compared to the dozens on hand for a normal day of racing in South Ozone Park, Queens. While it’s still a far cry from the 73,375 that packed the house to see Gun Bow win the Met Mile on May 31, 1965, it felt like that kind of atmosphere.

“This is a special day, but it’s a sad day as well,” jockey Kendrick Carmouche said moments after winning the first race. “Coming here 12 years ago, I didn’t know where my career would go. I came here, fought it out, had a couple of winners here at Aqueduct and man it sure did turn it around for me.”

Horse racing in metro New York will be consolidated at the newly-renovated Belmont Park, starting on Sept. 18.

NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

Prepping for a big Fourth of July weekend? Make sure to double check you’re not using a recalled wire brush and consider swapping to a non-toxic grilling tool to keep metal and chemicals out of your food. And, as you’re shopping for all your BBQ necessities, add one of these canned mocktails to your list. They taste as good as the real thing.

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