Today in one sentence: Congressional leaders agreed on a short-term funding bill to avert a partial government shutdown; Trump won the Iowa Republican caucuses by an unprecedented margin; Biden is reportedly "running out" of patience with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; the U.S. has carried out its third military strike against Yemen-based Houthis; the Biden administration demanded that Texas stop blocking federal Border Patrol agents from accessing a section of the U.S. southern border after a woman and two children drowned in the Rio Grande; and Trump returned to a New York courtroom for the start of his second civil trial over a defamation lawsuit filed by E. Jean Carroll.

1/ Congressional leaders agreed on a short-term funding bill to avert a partial government shutdown. The House, however, canceled votes on the spending bill due to a winter storm despite several agencies and government functions set to run out of funding on Friday. The continuing resolution will extend the current two-tier funding deadline structure through March 1 and March 8 to give lawmakers more time to write and pass all 12 spending bills for the current fiscal year. (Politico / Axios / NPR / CBS News / NBC News)

2/ Trump won the Iowa Republican caucuses by an unprecedented margin, defeating Ron DeSantis by some 30 points. About 31 minutes after caucusing began, networks declared Trump the winner. Trump, facing 91 charges across four criminal cases, won 98 of 99 counties in Iowa. (Axios / Associated Press / New York Times / Washington Post / Bloomberg / CNN)

  • [Poll] 66% of Iowa caucus-goers said Biden did not legitimately win the presidential election in 2020. 69% of those voters supported Trump. (Washington Post)
  • [Poll] 72% of Republicans agree that immigrants who enter the U.S. illegally are “poisoning the blood” of America. (CBS News)
  • Vivek Ramaswamy suspended his presidential campaign following Iowa caucuses. Ramaswamy won about 8% of support from caucusgoers. (CBS News / NBC News)
  • Asa Hutchinson suspended his presidential campaign after coming in last place at the Iowa caucuses. (CBS News)

3/ Biden is reportedly “running out” of patience with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the war against Hamas in Gaza entered its 100th day. Despite unprecedented military and diplomatic support, Biden hasn’t spoken to Netanyahu in more than 20 days due to Netanyahu’s resistance to address U.S. priorities, unwillingness to discuss plans for after the war, and his rejection of the U.S. plan for a reformed Palestinian Authority to have a role in post-Hamas Gaza. One U.S. official remarked: “The situation sucks and we are stuck.” Netanyahu, nevertheless, vowed to keep fighting until “total victory,” adding: “Nobody will stop us — not The Hague, not the axis of evil and not anybody else.” The Hague is currently hearing accusations that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza. (Axios / New York Times / NBC News / CNN)

4/ The U.S. has carried out its third military strike against Yemen-based Houthis, targeting four anti-ship ballistic missiles apparently being readied by the Iran-backed rebel group to attack commercial vessels and Navy ships. The militants have launched nearly 30 attacks on merchant ships in the region since November, vowing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and linking their actions to Western support for Israel. Many of the group’s targets, however, have had no connection to Israel. (New York Times / Washington Post / Associated Press / ABC News / CNN)

5/ The Biden administration demanded that Texas stop blocking federal Border Patrol agents from accessing a section of the U.S. southern border after a woman and two children drowned in the Rio Grande. Homeland Security said that when Border Patrol agents tried to respond to a distress call, they were “physically barred” by Texas Military Department agents from accessing the area, which had blocked off the area with fencing, gates, and razor wire. Texas officials said the three drownings had already occurred when Border Patrol asked for permission to enter the area. “It is impossible to say what might have happened if Border Patrol had had its former access to the area — including through its surveillance trucks that assisted in monitoring the area,” the Justice Department said. “At the very least, however, Border Patrol would have had the opportunity to take any available steps to fulfill its responsibilities and assist its counterparts in the Mexican government with undertaking the rescue mission. Texas made that impossible.” (CBS News / New York Times / CNN)

6/ Trump returned to a New York courtroom for the start of his second civil trial over a defamation lawsuit filed by E. Jean Carroll, who previously brought a civil lawsuit alleging Trump raped her in a Manhattan department store and then defamed her when he denied her story. Last year, a jury found Trump had sexually abused Carroll and then defamed her, awarding her $5 million in damages. This trial is for a separate incident of defamation, and will determine the damages Trump owes after remarks he made about Carroll during a televised town hall last year following the end of the first trial. (NPR / Axios / Politico)

Four years ago today: Day 1092: "Do impartial justice."
Five years ago today: Day 727: Damage.
Six years ago today: Day 362: Subpoenaed.