Morning Brief: Senate Passes The Big Beautiful Bill, Alligator Alcatraz & Idaho Plea Deal

President Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill heads back to the House after a marathon Senate session – and a tie-breaking vote from JD Vance. Trump and Governor Ron DeSantis put aside past differences at Alligator Alcatraz — touting the power of their federal-state alliance. And, Bryan Kohberger avoids the death penalty – pleading guilty to murdering four Idaho students.

It’s Wednesday, July 2, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.

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The Senate Passes Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill

(Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Topline: After a marathon vote in Congress, the Senate narrowly passed Donald Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill, pushing his sweeping policy agenda toward the finish line.

Senators and their staff spent the last 48 hours debating the bill non-stop — in what Washington calls a Vote-a-Rama, where members submit last minute amendments before a final vote. Votes were held on 45 proposed amendments covering everything from Medicare cuts and electric car subsidies to health care for illegal immigrants and Planned Parenthood funding. That process went all night Monday and well into Tuesday afternoon.

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Democrats made clear that they viewed the Vote-a-Rama as a means of forcing Republicans to go on the record with their views, but more importantly, to stall. That tactic angered Republicans and even some Democrats who opposed the bill, including Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman.

“Oh my God, I just want to go home,” Fetterman said during the Vote-a-Rama. “Keeping us here until some ungodly hour isn’t helping anyone.”

Given their slim majority, the GOP could only afford to lose three Republican votes. Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Susan Collins (R-ME) were definite no votes, so it came down to Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski. Ultimately, GOP leadership won her over by offering major concessions, exempting Alaska from a number of funding cuts in the bill. The final tally was 50-50, allowing Vice President JD Vance to step in and cast the deciding vote.

The bill will now head to the House, where it’s expected to pass, though not without some difficulty – some hardline Republicans have expressed concerns about some of the Senate’s changes. Given the delay from Senate Democrats, the bill might not be voted on before President Trump’s desired deadline of July 4th. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has said he would honor the customary 72 hour period to allow members three days to review the legislation – so it’ll be tight.

Trump-DeSantis Alliance & Alligator Alcatraz

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Topline: President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held a press conference down at the state’s new “Alligator Alcatraz” on Tuesday.

Trump and DeSantis have reconciled since Trump beat the Florida governor in the GOP presidential primary last year, and Trump’s win in November pushed the two even closer, especially on immigration, but also on other issues as well.

“Ron, I would like to thank you, personally,” Trump said during a joint press conference. “You’re my friend. You will always be my friend. We may have some skirmishes even in the future — I doubt it — but I will always come back. We have blood that seems to match pretty well. We have a relationship that’s been a very strong one.”

DeSantis is term-limited as Florida’s governor, and he signaled that his wife Casey may jump into the 2026 race to replace him. An endorsement from Trump would be a huge boon in a Republican primary that has the potential to be extraordinarily competitive.

The press conference took place during a visit to Alligator Alcatraz – an immigration facility being built in the everglades. It could hold thousands of illegal aliens slated for deportation. In addition to the new detention facility, Trump also plans to deputize Florida National Guardsmen as immigration judges, which could massively cut down the time it takes to schedule immigration hearings – from a matter of years to just a few days.

Detention capacity has been a big constraint to Trump’s immigration agenda. That’s why we’ve seen the Trump administration partner with El Salvador, for instance, to hold illegal aliens, or ship them to Guantanamo Bay. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is now arresting hundreds of illegal aliens a day, and Trump is doing whatever he can to make sure none of them are released back into the public after they’ve been caught.

Accused Murderer Accepts Plea Deal

Ted S. Warren-Pool/Getty Images

Topline: The man accused of the 2022 Idaho murders has accepted a plea deal. The death penalty trial was originally set to begin on August 18th.

Byran Kohberger will accept the prosecution’s plea deal and plead guilty to all charges. Those include four counts of murder, as well as burglary. In exchange, the state has agreed to take the death penalty off the table – he will serve four consecutive life sentences with no possibility of parole, and he has waived the right to appeal. There will be a change of plea hearing on Wednesday, which may provide some closure for the families of the four victims: Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin.

Kaylee Goncalves’ sister Aubrie called the decision to take the death penalty off the table “shocking and cruel.” The family posted a statement to social media saying, “We are beyond furious at the state of Idaho. They have failed us.”

The defense has maintained that Kohberger is innocent, although initially the evidence against him seemed overwhelming. His car was caught on surveillance, his cell phone data was consistent with him being near the scene — not just on the night of the murder, but the next morning, and on about a dozen occasions leading up to the crime, always late at night. Most damning, his DNA was found on the knife sheath left at the scene, and his purchase history showed a black ski mask similar to the one described by the witness. He was also a criminology student with apparent interest in serial killers.

Defense attorney Anne Taylor did raise arguments for reasonable doubt. First, she filed a motion to have the DNA evidence thrown out because it was obtained, according to her, through an illegal genealogy search – that would have been devastating to the prosecution’s case. She also raised the issue of mystery DNA found in the bloody handprint. Investigators determined that there was DNA from two mystery males found in that print on the bannister, and DNA from a third mystery male was found on a glove outside the residence. There was also DNA from multiple individuals found under the fingernails of one of the victims, although it was inconclusive. The defense was planning to float an alternative suspect theory, and all they had to do was make one juror have doubts. These issues also could have theoretically provided fertile ground for appeals down the road.

However, in the past week, the judge dismissed the defense’s attempt to introduce alternative suspects. And not long before that, it was revealed that a DoorDash driver may have been at the scene delivering food at 4 a.m. when the crime occurred. In leaked police interview footage, that driver can be heard saying, “I saw Bryan there,” and she claimed she parked next to him.