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Welcome back to Morning Wire and thanks for joining us as we kick off the week. In the news today: A look at Sunday’s Rededicate 250 mass prayer rally in Washington; China agrees to boost trade for U.S. agricultural products; and parents of newborns push for NICU leave. Also, the journey of a Michigan student who will become the first woman to represent the U.S. at a world welding competition.
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Teddy May, from Mobile, Ala., kneels while worshiping during Rededicate 250, on the National Mall Sunday in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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Thousands flock to the National Mall in Washington for an America-themed prayer rally
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The event on Sunday was billed as a “rededication of our country as One Nation under God.” Most speakers celebrated Christianity’s ties to American history, a blending of ideas that critics flagged ahead of the prayer gathering as supporting Christian nationalism. Read more.
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- The event was organized by Freedom 250, a public-private partnership backed by the White House. Congressional Democrats have questioned the nonprofit’s structure and finances.
President Donald Trump read a passage of Scripture in a video shown at the rally. Filmed in the Oval Office, it was the same footage used during a marathon Bible-reading event last month. The verses from 2 Chronicles are often cited by those who believe America was founded as a Christian nation, a narrative disputed by many historians and other religious traditions.
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China agrees to boost trade for US ag products such as beef and poultry following Trump-Xi summit
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The White House announced Sunday that China will buy at an annualized rate of $17 billion per year for 2026 and at that level for 2027 and 2028. The deals are on top of previous commitments to buy U.S. soybeans. Read more.
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The agreement comes as China sharply cut back on U.S. imports last year after Trump launched a trade war against the country. It offers some hope to American farmers harmed by the trade war as they saw a major export market dry up.
The agreement includes restoring market access for U.S. beef and resuming poultry imports from certain states. There was no immediate confirmation of the terms from Beijing, but China on Saturday had signaled progress.
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Tiny patients, big fight: NICU parents win leave in 2 states and push for more
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Colorado became the first state to adopt paid neonatal intensive care unit leave. Illinois will soon guarantee unpaid leave for NICU parents. Read more.
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Parental leave for parents with newborns in intensive care often doesn’t account for the time their newborns spend in the NICU. Many choose to keep working while the baby is in the NICU to save parental leave for when the baby comes home. While advocates want more states to adopt NICU leave, a major focus now is galvanizing support for a federal bill to add NICU leave to the Family and Medical Leave Act.
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Student Mikala Sposito welds at Washtenaw Community College on May 1, in Ann Arbor., Mich. (AP Photo/Mike Householder)
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Trailblazing in welding
“I always wanted to be the first female to do something.” Those are the words of Mikala Sposito, a community college student from Michigan, who is achieving that goal. This year, Sposito won a national competition, giving her the chance to be the first woman to represent the United States in welding at the WorldSkills Competition in China, often called the Olympics of the skilled trades. Watch the sparks fly as Sposito works and hear how she hopes to inspire other women.
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Please let us know what you think of this newsletter. You can sign up for more and invite a friend here. For news in real time visit APNews.com. - Nadja
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