The price of Trump’s spending cuts

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Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello, thank you for spending some of your weekend with us.

Today we have the latest from Myanmar, where a 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit at 'worst possible time'. From the US, a thoughtful read on the rural Americans who have been hit by Trump cuts.

And don't forget to listen to our weekend podcast, which unpacks the war on universities.

In disaster-stricken Myanmar, a desperate bid to rescue survivors with bare hands

A damaged building after a strong earthquake struck central Myanmar, Mandalay, March 28, 2025. REUTERS/Stringer

What's going on: Foreign rescue teams began flying into Myanmar to aid the search for survivors from an earthquake that killed more than 1,000 people. The quake has destroyed critical infrastructure in the poor Southeast Asian nation amid a grinding civil war.
Science of the damage: Myanmar lies on the boundary between two tectonic plates and is one of the world's most seismically active countries. According to experts the shallow depth of the magnitude 7.7 earthquake meant the damage would be more severe. The Reuters Graphics team mapped the quake.

Republican's town hall draws boos and jeers at Trump spending cuts

Trump fought the law: President Donald Trump's executive orders targeting elite US law firms have shared a common theme: his perceived grievance that an attorney linked to the firm has personally done him wrong. While law firms WilmerHale and Jenner & Block sued the administration over the orders, another firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom struck a deal with the president.
Higher learning: Columbia University's interim president, Katrina Armstrong, has stepped down - a departure that comes one week after the institution agreed to significant changes amid a heated battle with the Trump administration over its federal funding. Some of the colleges targeted by the administration are confused. Reporters Helen Coster and Julia Harte ask, why is the White House targeting these universities?

Zelenskiy says he won't sign deal that could impoverish Ukraine for decades

The deal's tough terms: The terms of a mineral deal between Ukraine and the US have not yet been finalised, Ukrainian officials said, after a summary of Washington's latest offer suggested it was demanding all of Ukraine's natural resources income for years.
A second incursion: Just as Ukrainian forces are losing their grip on the pocket of Russia's Kursk region they captured last year, they have staged a so-far little-publicised incursion into the adjacent Belgorod region, according to Russian military bloggers.

Wall Street straps in for Trump's tariff reveal

Waiting: Trump's scheduled April 2 tariff policy announcement could clear a fog of uncertainty that has clouded financial markets this year, yet few investors expect to get the definitive guidance they seek.
Driven away: Major automakers can deal with Trump's tariffs on US auto imports in a number of ways, but all of them lead to higher prices, fewer choices of models or limits on features for consumers, industry experts said. If you are trying to keep up with the latest tariff news, our new daily digest offers a rundown of the top headlines on global trade. Sign up for Tariff Watch here.

Before I forget…

US Vice President JD Vance, on a visit to Greenland, accused Denmark of not doing a good job keeping Greenland safe. Vance suggested the US would better protect the island that President Trump has pressed to take over. Polls have shown that nearly all Greenlanders oppose becoming part of the United States.
French companies holding US government contracts have been ordered to a comply with a Trump executive order banning diversity, equity and inclusion programmes, two people familiar with the matter said.
Elon Musk's xAI has acquired X in a deal that values the social media platform at $33 billion and allows the value of his artificial intelligence firm to be shared with his co-investors in the company formerly known as Twitter. Meanwhile, a judge ruled Musk must face a fraud lawsuit for waiting too long to disclose his Twitter stake.
In case you missed it earlier this week we published an exclusive about a teenage DOGE staffer and his stint providing tech support to cybercrime ring.
Israel carried out its first major airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs in months, retaliating for an earlier rocket launch from Lebanon in the most serious test of a shaky ceasefire deal agreed in November.
Berlin's economic success is now raising concerns that as it becomes more affluent and expensive, it might be losing that "something" that made the city's former mayor once describe Berlin as "poor but sexy."
This week's City Memo comes from Bogota, where our correspondent introduces you to Colombia's capital via Andean hikes, bar games and world-class coffee.

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