In a rare bipartisan effort for a deeply divided Congress, the Senate has passed a broad bill to make U.S. housing more accessible and affordable. The bill passed on Thursday would reduce regulations, regulate corporate investors and expand how housing dollars can be used to build affordable homes and rentals. It now heads back to the House, which passed a separate version earlier this year. It is unclear whether President Donald Trump would sign it after declaring last weekend that he won't sign any new measures unless Congress passes legislation that would require voters to show proof of citizenship.

The Trump administration has issued a sweeping new order that could lead to the arrest of tens of thousands of refugees who are lawfully in the United States but do not yet have permanent residency. A memo filed by the Department of Homeland Security ahead of a Thursday federal court hearing in Minnesota says refugees applying for green cards must return to federal custody one year after they were admitted to the U.S. for reviews of their applications. DHS "may maintain custody for the duration of the inspection and examination process," said the memo, which was filed Wednesday.

A man accused of shooting two National Guard troops near the White House has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and assault charges. Rahmanullah Lakanwal made his initial court appearance by video from a hospital bed for charges stemming from the Nov. 26 shooting that killed Specialist Sarah Beckstrom and wounded Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe. Lakanwal, who was shot during the confrontation, laid in a hospital bed during the hearing and his attorney entered his not guilty plea on his behalf.

The Trump administration says pharmaceutical companies have agreed to slash the Medicare prices for 15 prescription drugs after months of negotiations and that it's expected to produce billions in savings for older adults. But the net prices unveiled Tuesday aren't what Medicare recipients will pay at their pharmacy counters because those final amounts will depend on each individual's plan and how much they spend annually on prescriptions. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. touted the deals as part of efforts to address affordability concerns. The negotiation program is mandated by law and began under the Biden administration.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence says it will dramatically reduce its workforce and cut its budget by more than $700 million annually. The move Wednesday amounts to a major downsizing of the responsible for coordinating the work of 18 intelligence agencies, including on counterterrorism and counterintelligence. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard says the office "has become bloated and inefficient, and the intelligence community is rife with abuse of power, unauthorized leaks of classified intelligence, and politicized weaponization of intelligence." The reorganization is part of a broader administration effort to rethink how it tracks foreign threats to American elections, a topic that has become politically loaded.

Republicans can't stop talking about former President Joe Biden. The GOP-controlled House of Representatives has launched investigations that assert Biden's closest advisers covered up a physical and mental decline. The Republican-controlled Senate has started a series of hearings focused on his mental fitness. And President Donald Trump's White House has opened its own investigation into the Biden administration's use of the presidential autopen. It all fits with Trump's practice of blaming his predecessors for the nation's ills. But the strategy also carries risks. The more Republicans and Democrats talk about the 82-year-old former president, the less they are able to make arguments to voters about Trump's presidency ahead of the 2026 midterms.