Good morning! If you’ve ever been surprised by the steep learning curve at a new job, you’re in good company. Pope Leo XIV, who celebrated his 70th birthday yesterday, expressed his surprise at the “huge learning curve” he’s facing and compared becoming pope to jumping into “the deep end of the pool very quickly.”

Meanwhile, over in Nepal, the country’s discord has been eased with the selection of a new interim prime minister, who was elected on, well, Discord by a bunch of Gen Z activists. It’s a strange world out there.

POLITICS

🏛️ Senate Republicans go nuclear over nominees

Given the two options of “go big” and “go home,” Senate Republicans broke new ground by choosing both. A week after their month-long vacation ended, the Senate GOP enacted what's usually referred to as the "nuclear option” for confirmation votes.

The situation: The president — that’s Donald Trump right now, for anyone just emerging from a coma — needs the Senate’s permission when he hires people to fill more than 1,300 separate jobs. As you might expect, Senate Democrats don’t like most of Trump’s picks.

• So, in a solid impression of that super cool neighbor who memorized the HOA handbook, they’re using Senate rules to slow roll basically every confirmation vote on Trump’s nominees.

• Part of their strategy? Forcing lower-level nominees to go through long floor debates, limiting the number that can be voted on each month.

Senate Republicans, under pressure from Trump and people with too much time on their hands, got sick of it. Republican leader Sen. John Thune compared the Senate to a "personnel department" and accused Democrats of breaking precedent.

• Thune said lower-level nominees, like a new member of the Farm Credit Administration, haven’t previously been subjected to this process.

• That, he claimed, is usually reserved for higher-level picks, like Cabinet secretaries and heads of large agencies.

Going nuclear: Bipartisan negotiations for a solution broke down last week. In a party-line vote, all 53 Senate Republicans opted to bypass the Democrats’ strategy by changing Senate rules (the nuclear option). Now, the Senate can confirm an unlimited number of nominees in one block vote.

• The change isn’t universal. It only applies to non-Cabinet, executive branch, civilian nominees. That means no judges and no military picks.

• They’ve already teed up one group of 48, which includes seven ambassadors and a host of random undersecretaries and commission members.

Democrats are ticked, and warned Republicans that they will regret this under the next Democratic president. They also believe the change could lead to unqualified nominees escaping scrutiny.

But Republicans say they had no choice and pointed to history. The Senate gave 90% of low-level picks quick voice votes during the Bush and Obama years. That had fallen to about 50% during Trump's first term and the Biden years. This year? It’s down to zero.

Elsewhere in politics:

• Likely 2028 candidate and former Biden Transportation chief Pete Buttigieg doesn’t think Trump is providing the "leadership that we need to bring this country together."

• Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe says he'll sign into law a new map of the state's congressional districts, which will likely flip a seat from D to R next year. Look for the Great Redistricting War to continue in Ohio later this month.

• House Republicans are pushing bills that would replace Washington, D.C.’s elected leaders with presidentially appointed roles. The bills are unlikely to receive enough Democratic support to overcome a filibuster in the Senate.

GOVERNMENT

✈️ If you ask Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, the "next great technological revolution in aviation is here." His Department of Transportation (DOT) announced on Friday the creation of a new pilot program to "accelerate the deployment" of next-gen flight. What does that mean? They're testing unmanned planes, electric planes, and planes that take off vertically. Both passenger and cargo versions. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), an agency of DOT, will work with private companies and state and local governments to develop "new frameworks and regulations" for the new flight tech. Don't expect your next flight to land right at the gate, though. The testing process alone will take years.

👮 President Trump's deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles got tied up in court after the state's Democratic governor rejected it. Deploying the Guard to a Republican-controlled state fixes that problem. So, Trump announced on Friday that he plans to send the Guard — military reserves under dual state-federal control — to Memphis, Tennessee. The state's Republican governor supports the plan as a method of reducing violent crime in one of America's most dangerous cities. But the Democratic mayor isn't so happy. He thinks bringing in federal agencies, like the FBI and ATF, would be a better move.

🌍️ Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Israel on Sunday. He's there to chat with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the war in Gaza and "what the future holds." Israel's attacks on Gaza have increased in recent days as it seeks to wipe out what it claims is the last bastion of the terrorist group Hamas. Down in Qatar, other countries in the neighborhood are meeting today for an Arab-Islamic summit. They're expected to warn Israel that its "hostile acts" threaten its coexistence in the region.

CRIME

🇺🇸 Charlie Kirk funeral to fill NFL stadium

Well, it’s not a good week to be named Tyler Robinson. Why aren’t these guys ever named, like, Sebastian Shufflebottom or something?

Utah prosecutors have booked the alleged murderer of Charlie Kirk on charges of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, and obstruction of justice. That first charge carries the death penalty in the Beehive State.

• The federal Department of Justice (DOJ) also plans to file separate federal charges against him.

• The shooter isn’t cooperating with investigators, but many people close to him are.

The bad guy, according to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, had "leftist ideology" that differed from his conservative family. He was a straight-A student who received a big scholarship to Utah State University before dropping out and becoming "radicalized" online.

• He lived with a romantic partner who had no knowledge of the shooting and is "transitioning from male to female."

• Bullet casings found with the murder weapon were engraved with sayings calling Kirk a fascist and referencing online gaming culture.

As for motives, Gov. Cox and Utah investigators are still trying to “figure it out.” More will be announced on Tuesday. Cox also said the White House is worried about "escalation" and asked him to spread a message of nonviolence.

Charlie Kirk’s funeral will take place next Sunday, September 21, at State Farm Stadium, home of the NFL's Arizona Cardinals. President Trump has promised to attend. The venue typically holds 63,000 people, but thousands more could squeeze in by using the playing field.

• The newly widowed Erika Kirk gave a touching tribute to her late husband on Friday. She vowed to continue his mission and ensure his voice lives on.

• Turning Point USA, the political group Charlie founded, will continue with its fall campus tour as planned. That’s the tour Kirk was on when he was killed last week.

The future: Thousands of people around the country are still being fired for reacting with public glee to the public execution of their political opponent. That includes members of the military. Defense War Secretary Pete Hegseth called it "unacceptable" for Pentagon personnel to "celebrate or mock the assassination of a fellow American.”

• The White House requested an extra $58 million from Congress to boost security for government officials.

• And some Republicans say it’s time to kick Trumpy FBI Director Kash Patel to the curb after some very public FBI goofs since Kirk’s murder last week.

Meanwhile, in the U.K., at least 110,000 people took to the streets of London for right-wing protests, many of which invoked Charlie Kirk’s name.

TRIVIA

The financial world will have its eyes firmly fixed on the Federal Reserve’s big policy meeting this week. Stock traders are expecting the central bank to cut interest rates by 0.25% during its two-day meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. Today’s question won’t get into the nitty-gritty, confusing world of monetary policy. But it does involve a foundational aspect of America’s central bank: In what year was the Federal Reserve System founded?

Hint: The law creating it was signed by President Woodrow Wilson.

BRIEFS

● Jair Bolsonaro served as Brazil's polarizing, Trump-like president from 2019 to 2023. Now, he’ll likely spend the rest of his life behind bars. Brazil's Supreme Court sentenced him to 27 years for attempting to stay in office via coup after losing reelection in 2022.

● Fox News morning show host Brian Kilmeade was forced to apologize for his proposed solution to mentally ill homeless people refusing hospitalization, given on-air last week. Kilmeade’s, umm, controversial suggestion? “You just kill ’em.”

● The U.S. and China began trade talks in Madrid on Sunday. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer hope to make progress on tariffs and work out a deal on TikTok ahead of the Chinese app's Sept. 17 sell-or-ban deadline.

● Penske Media filed a federal lawsuit against Google on Friday, alleging the company's AI summaries use its content without permission and kill traffic to its websites. Penske's brands include Variety, Billboard, Deadline, and Rolling Stone.

● President Trump said Saturday that he's ready to hit Russia with "major" sanctions once other NATO countries stop buying Russian oil. Trump officials and many Europeans believe cutting oil payments to Russia will hurt its war effort in Ukraine.

QUOTE

ANSWER

Knowing that Wilson was president from 1913 to 1921 helps narrow it down to an eight-year stretch. He signed the Federal Reserve Act on Christmas Eve Eve in 1913. Proponents believed the creation of a new, government-controlled central bank would provide financial stability after repeated economic crises