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After President Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) signed off on a final budget agreement and a raise of the debt ceiling, the two sides moved onto a difficult task: selling the legislation to their respective parties to get it passed through Congress.

Conservative Republicans and progressive Democrats have been quick to voice concerns with certain aspects of the deal, with each side expressing worry that their leadership gained too little or conceded too much in negotiations.

White House officials and McCarthy’s team spent much of Sunday working to spin the deal as a victory for their own side and assure members that it was the other party that ultimately caved on certain priorities.

“Right now the Democrats are very upset,” McCarthy said on “Fox News Sunday,” asserting that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffires (D-N.Y.) told him “there’s not one thing in the bill for Democrats.”

In remarks Sunday evening, Biden said the final agreement “protects key priorities and accomplishments and values that congressional Democrats and I have fought long and hard for.”

Asked what he would say to members who believe Biden made too many concessions, the president responded, “They’ll find I didn’t.”

The White House has focused on reassuring Democrats about the bill largely by pointing to ways that it is significantly watered down from the Republican legislation that passed the House in late April, dubbed the Limit, Save, Grow Act.

While the 99-page bill does include changes to work requirements for government assistance programs, White House officials argued the agreed upon language would have “much less severe consequences” than the House GOP legislation.

The White House has also argued that the overall spending agreements are ultimately a win for Democrats. A White House source argued the deal would help avert “enormous cuts to key programs and investments.”

And officials were also quick to point to key priorities that were left untouched in the final legislation, including that there are no changes to Medicare work requirements and that veterans medical care will be fully funded.

Perhaps the broadest argument the White House will make to persuade Democrats to back the agreement is that passing the bill would mean raising the debt ceiling and averting a default that experts warned could have triggered a recession and sunk the economy that will be central to any reelection campaign for Biden.

While some conservatives had pushed for the debt ceiling to be pushed into 2024, making it an issue in next year’s election, the agreed upon bill would suspend the debt ceiling into 2025.

“We think taking the threat of default off the table into 2025 is a significant upside for the economy, a significant accomplishment,” a White House official said.

Republicans have painted a similarly rosy picture of how the agreed upon text amounts to a victory for their side.

Some in the GOP argued the fact that Republicans pulled the White House to the negotiating table over the budget in order to pass a debt ceiling increase was a win in itself, because it allowed the party to extract some concessions in the process.

“We have something, right? We negotiated,” Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.), House GOP conference secretary, told reporters. “Is it what we wanted or what I wanted? No. I wish we would’ve gotten more. It’s clearly better than a clean debt ceiling, that’s for sure.”

But there are also specific policies in the bill that Republican leadership has been keen to highlight to members.

The agreement includes changes to work requirements for food stamps and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program.

A document distributed to Republican offices about the agreement highlights a rollback of non-defense discretionary spending to fiscal year 2022 levels, while limiting topline federal spending to 1 percent annual growth for six years.

The same document highlighted an agreement to cut a fiscal year 2023 funding request for new IRS agents and a deal to claw back billions of dollars in unspent COVID-19 relief funds, two priorities for Republicans.

In a nod to the GOP’s conservative wing, the deal includes a measure to cap continuing resolution to fund the government at 99 percent of current levels until Congress passes all 12 appropriations bills, an idea that has been backed by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.).

“The American people elected House Republicans to stop the out-of-control inflationary spending that has broken family budgets,” members of House Republican leadership said in a joint statement on Sunday night. “Today, we secured a historic series of wins worthy of the American people.”

Ultimately, both the White House and Republican leaders only need to convince enough of their respective parties to back the budget agreement so that it gets a majority in the House and 60 votes in the Senate.

The rhetoric from Biden and McCarthy on Sunday simultaneously reflected two leaders seeking to portray themselves as having gotten the better side of negotiations, while acknowledging that working in a divided government often means settling for a final product that doesn’t contain every single priority. The Memo: Trump and his primary rivals get set for fight over Ukraine Companies and individuals without AI expertise will be left behind: tech CEO

“Maybe it doesn’t do everything for everyone, but this is a step in the right direction that no one thought that we would be able to today,” McCarthy told “Fox News Sunday.”

Speaking Sunday evening at the White House, Biden said the deal “represents a compromise, which means no one got everything they want. But that’s the responsibility of governing.”

–Mychael Schnell contributed

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Waltrip latest to join AF1 Nashville’s ownership

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Waltrip latest to join AF1 Nashville's ownership

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip has joined the ownership group of the Nashville Kats, a founding franchise of the Arena Football 1 league.

The Kats announced Waltrip joining the group Friday along with his craft beer company Michael Waltrip Brewing. The ownership group already includes former NFL coach Jon Gruden with Jeff Fisher, a former coach of the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans, majority owner.

“We now have three living legends attached to the Nashville Kats — Jeff Fisher, Jon Gruden, and Michael Waltrip — all with the ultimate goal to win championships and raise the AF1 to its ultimate potential along with any team associated with the AF1,” said Bobby DeVoursney, the Kats’ CEO and managing partner.

Waltrip’s brewery now is the team’s official craft beer. The team also plans a “Waltrip Winner’s Circle” fan zone for the upcoming season.

The Kats play the Southwest Kansas Storm on Sunday in Clarksville in the AF1 semifinals.

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Trump’s update on Iran timeline is significant – but it still keeps everyone guessing

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Donald Trump weighing up many risks before possible US strike on Iran

This is the most significant statement from the US president in days, though it still keeps everyone guessing.

In a message conveyed through his press secretary, he is giving diplomacy up to two weeks to work.

“Based on the fact that there’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,” Karoline Leavitt quoted him as saying.

It is not clear what “whether or not to go” entails.

Israel-Iran conflict: Latest updates

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Trump: Iran ‘weeks away’ from nuclear weapon

We know that he has been given a spectrum of different military options by his generals and we know that the Israelis are pressuring him to use American B2 bombers with their bunker-busting bombs to destroy Iran’s nuclear facility at Fodow.

The Israelis are encouraging no delay. But against that, he is weighing up many risks, both military and political.

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Militarily, it is not clear how successful a bunker-busting strike on Fordow would be.

Experts have suggested it would require several of the massive bombs, which have never been used in combat before, to be dropped on the site.

It is not as simple as one clean strike and job done.

Politically, the president is under significant pressure domestically not to get involved in Iran.

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MAGA civil war breaks out over Iran

Within his own MAGA coalition – influencers, politicians and media personalities are lining up in criticism of involvement in the conflict.

One of those leading the criticism, his former chief strategist Steve Bannon, who maintains huge influence, was seen entering the White House on Thursday.

His press secretary reiterated to us that the president always wants to give diplomacy a chance and she confirmed that his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff has spoken to the Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi.

Steve Bannon speaks at a conservative conference in Maryland earlier this month. Pic: AP
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Steve Bannon, seen recently at a conservative event in Maryland, is against US involvement in Iran. Pic: AP

European leaders, including the UK foreign secretary David Lammy, who is in Washington, are meeting Mr Araghchi in Geneva on Friday.

The two-week window – assuming it lasts that long – also gives space to better prepare for any strike and mitigate against some of the other risks of US involvement.

Read more from Sky News:
Is Trump losing his MAGA support?
Gantz defends conflict with Iran
‘Love Trump’ says Israeli minister

There are 40,000 troops in bases across the Middle East. It takes time to increase security at these bases or to move non-essential personnel out. It also takes time to move strategic military assets into the region.

The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier and its support vessels were redeployed from the Indo-Pacific on Monday. Their last known position was the Strait of Malacca two days ago.

The Nimitz Carrier Group will overlap with the USS Carl Vinson group which was deployed to the Middle East in March.

The potential two-week window also allows for more time for a ‘day after’ plan, given that the Israeli strategy appears to be regime change from within.

Since the Israeli action in Iran began last week, the worst-case scenario of mass casualties in Israel from Iranian attacks has not materialised.

The president is said to be surprised and encouraged by this. “Israel has exceeded a lot of people’s expectations in their abilities,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

The Israeli success, the absence of a mass casualty event in Israel, and the lack of any sustained counterattack by Iranian proxies in the region remove reservations that previous presidents have had about taking on Iran.

That said, sources have told Sky News that the president is determined that the diplomatic solution should be given a chance despite current pessimism over the chances of success.

A critical two weeks ahead.

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Trump’s two-week timeline: What next for Iran?

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Trump's two-week timeline: What next for Iran?

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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has said Donald Trump will make a decision on whether to militarily strike Iran in the next two weeks. That’s as diplomatic talks between Western governments and the Iranians ramp up.

In today’s episode, US correspondents Mark Stone and Martha Kelner unpick why the delay might be, and the competing voices in the ears of the president.

If you’ve got a question you’d like the Trump100 team to answer, you can email it to trump100@sky.uk.

Don’t forget, you can also watch all episodes on our YouTube channel.

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