• Gov’t shutdown: Over the weekend, the federal government entered a partial government shutdown for the second time in less than six months after Senate Democrats objected to a bipartisan deal to fully fund the government (read: DHS) in the wake of two deaths in Minnesota of anti-ICE agitators who interfered with law enforcement. The White House worked out a deal under which the government would be funded except for DHS, whose funding would be hammered out separately over the next two weeks. While a number of Senate Republicans were unhappy with the deal, they agreed to pass it and send it to the House. The problem is that with the Republicans’ razor-thin House majority, Speaker Mike Johnson can afford no defections in order to pass the legislation with no Democrat help. Therefore, how long this shutdown lasts will depend on Johnson’s ability to get Republicans on board.

• Epstein files: The Epstein files will likely never stop being a subject of conspiracies, but the total release of documents collected relating to the notorious sex trafficker this weekend should put an end to them. Three million more pages of collected information, including over 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, were released last Friday as mandated by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which also required redacting any information or images that could expose victims. The DOJ explained that all the women in the photos were redacted as potential victims except Ghislaine Maxwell, and that no men were redacted except in the interest of redacting a woman. Many of these files and images were submitted to the DOJ as potential evidence and are not verifiably related to Epstein. Time will tell if even this colossal release of information will satisfy the public.

• Dueling immigration rulings for Minnesota: Two legal cases relating to immigration enforcement actions in Minnesota saw rulings over the weekend. First, Clinton-appointed Judge Fred Biery ordered the release of the illegal immigrant who fled arrest, leaving his five-year-old to be taken care of by ICE agents. After the child’s family refused to take custody of him from ICE, his father, who had since been detained, insisted on keeping his son with him. Judge Biery’s order was dated “February 31st.” The second ruling concerns the lawsuit brought by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, which argued on 10th Amendment grounds for a Temporary Restraining Order to halt immigration enforcement in that state. Not even Biden-appointed Judge Katherine Menendez could rule in favor of Ellison’s case, which essentially argues that the federal government has no supremacy.

• Civil rights probe into Alex Pretti’s death? The Department of Justice is leaving no doubt that the death of an American citizen at the hands of law enforcement is not taken lightly. Even in a case where that citizen was not the good guy — he was interfering with law enforcement and violently struggling until the moment of his death. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said that the FBI is investigating Pretti’s death with potential assistance from the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division. Blanche insisted this is a preliminary probe, and even if it escalates, the bar to bring any kind of legal action against the two (Hispanic) officers involved in the incident is very high.

• Dems flip GOP seat in TX: Democrat candidates got two wins in recent special elections in Texas. The headline victory came over the weekend when a state Senate seat that had been recently vacated by Republican Kelly Hancock was flipped by Democrat Taylor Rehmet, who prevailed over Trump-endorsed candidate Leigh Wambsganss with a 14-point victory. DNC Chair Ken Martin gloated, “Republicans just lost a district Trump won by 17 points — in Texas. That’s not an anomaly, it’s a pattern.” Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson will swear in today Democrat Rep. Christian Menefee, who won a special election in Texas’s 18th district, replacing the late Democrat Rep. Sylvester Turner. This leaves Republicans with a majority of just 218-214.

• Trump announces two-year closing to renovate Kennedy Center: In the wake of a number of famous performers, such as composer Philip Glass, canceling shows at the Kennedy Center over their objections to the board’s recent decision to add Trump’s name to the famous venue, President Trump announced on Sunday that the facility will be closing down for a two-year period for renovations. In a social media post, Trump wrote, “This important decision, based on input from many Highly Respected Experts, will take a tired, broken, and dilapidated Center, one that has been in bad condition, both financially and structurally for many years, and turn it into a World Class Bastion of Arts, Music, and Entertainment.” The renovations are scheduled to begin in July.

• Babylon Bee gets free speech win: The political and social satire site The Babylon Bee got a big free speech win recently after U.S. District Judge Shanlyn Park ruled that Hawaii’s 2024 Act 191 violated both the First and 14th Amendments. The law banned the use of AI-generated media that was “materially deceptive” and had a “risk of harming the reputation or electoral prospects of a candidate in an election” or changing “voting behavior.” Park found “that Act 191 discriminates based on content and speaker and, in doing so, restricts constitutionally protected political speech, making Act 191 presumptively invalid and subject to strict scrutiny.” Alliance Defending Freedom legal counsel Matthew Hoffman, who represented The Babylon Bee, welcomed the decision, stating, “The court is right to put a stop to Hawaii’s war against political memes and satire.”

• Melania’s documentary blows up critics’ forecast: Despite critics predicting that Melania Trump’s documentary would be an epic fail, the film has soared past expectations. The Washington Times reported that it opened “to the strongest ticket sales for a documentary in a decade” and that moviegoers were giving it high ratings in reviews. The movie made $8 million in its opening weekend, earning an A ranking from CinemaScore and a whopping 99% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The $40 million documentary from Amazon MGM studios, co-produced by the first lady, follows Melania in the 20 days leading up to the 2025 presidential inauguration. Some are comparing its financial success to that of faith-based films and noting that 72% of the audience was older conservative women. Mrs. Trump commented at the premiere Thursday night, “For myself, it’s already successful. I’m very proud of what we did.”

• No death penalty for Brian Thompson’s assassin: While the state of New York does not have the death penalty, federal felonies can still result in the enforcement of the federal death penalty. Apparently, the cold, callous, execution-style assassination of a stranger is not enough to warrant that federal death penalty, at least when the assassin is a darling of the Left. U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett dismissed the federal murder charge against Luigi Mangione, arguing that it only applies if the killing is committed during another “crime of violence.” None of the assassin’s remaining charges carries the death penalty. Mangione still faces a second-degree murder charge in the state of New York, although the highest penalty in that case is 25 years in prison.

Headlines

• Appeals court spikes DOJ misconduct accusation against Judge James Boasberg (Fox News)

• ICE arrested 650 in West Virginia in January; state hailed “professionalism” of agents (Washington Times)

• “Detransitioner” wins $2 million medical malpractice lawsuit (National Review)

• Gaza’s Rafah crossing reopens for first time in a year (Jerusalem Post)

The Executive News Summary is compiled daily by Jordan Candler, Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, and Sophie Starkova. For the archive, click here.