Plus: Courts block some of Musk's moves & Hamas hostage release raises humanitarian questions

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Good morning,

It’s that Monday of the year when I wonder why the Super Bowl can’t be played on a Saturday night… Good news: Starbucks has us covered with free black coffee today.

How it works: You’ll need the Starbucks app on your phone to become a member of their rewards program. Apply the Starbucks Monday coupon to your order before placing it — or just tell the barista.
Even better news… Once we get through today, there’s a lot to look forward to in the days ahead. Valentine’s Day is on Friday, leading into a long holiday weekend!

Just keep chugging that brew.

Lauren (Producer)

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- A growing body of research reveals that optimal health outcomes occur at sodium levels 2-3x government recommendations.
Who it’s for: LMNT is formulated for anyone who stands to benefit from healthy hydration, and is perfectly suited for athletes, folks who are fasting, or those following keto, low-carb, whole-food, or paleo diets.

Members of the Mo News community can get a free 8-count LMNT Sample Pack with any purchase if you order through DrinkLMNT.com/MoNews.

🚨 ONE EXCITING (FOR EAGLES FANS) THING

Super Bowl 59 Recap: Eagles Win, Kendrick Lamar, & The Commercials

The Philadelphia Eagles dominated the Kansas City Chiefs from start to finish with a 40-22 win in the Super Bowl Sunday.

Quarterback Jalen Hurts and coach Nick Sirianni led the team to its second Super Bowl win in franchise history. The first was in 2018 against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.
- Running back Saquon Barkley set the NFL season rushing record in the first half of the game. It was his first season with the Eagles (and also his birthday yesterday!).

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE GAME
Chiefs’ stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce sought to make history by winning their third Super Bowl in a row, but did not come close. It wasn’t until late in the third quarter that the Chiefs finally got points on the board — the Eagles already had 34 points.

The Chiefs have now appeared in 5 of the last 6 Super Bowls, finishing 3-2.
The Eagles’ 26-year-old QB, Jalen Hurts,was named Super Bowl LIX MVP.
- After the win, he shouted out the Eagles’ defensive line: “I think defense wins championships. And we saw how they played today. We saw the difference they made in the game and they gave us opportunities, they gave us short fields and we’re able to do what we do.”

WHAT NON-FOOTBALL FANS WERE WATCHING
Grammy-winner Kendrick Lamar became the first solo hip-hop artist to headline the halftime show. He was joined by SZA, tennis legend Serena Williams (who is from Compton, CA, like Lamar), and actor Samuel L. Jackson. One of our favorite performances was Jon Batiste’s rendition of the national anthem. Trombone Shorty and Lauren Daigle sang "America the Beautiful."

Taylor Swift was spotted cheering on Kelce. Other celebrity sightings: Paul McCartney, Kevin Hart, Adam Sandler, Kevin Costner, Pete Davidson, Paul Rudd, and Bradley Cooper.
President Donald Trump became the fist U.S. president to attend the game.
- The big question was who was going to get more camera time: Trump or Swift? In the end, neither got a ton. Trump appears to feel satisfied, reposting videos on Truth Social that said “Trump gets massive cheers at Super Bowl while Taylor Swift gets booed.”

And finally, the commercials… Here were some of our favorites:

Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan recreated the iconic diner scene from “When Harry Met Sally” for a Hellmann’s ad.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft also founded the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, which had a powerful ad with Tom Brady and Snoop Dogg calling to end all forms of hate.

Matt Damon and David Beckham played twin brothers for some laughs in a Stella Artois commercial.

TikTok star Alix Earle promoted the "hangover burger" in a return to Carl’s Jr.’s famous bikini commercials.

After last year’s iconic Dunkin’ commercial featuring Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Tom Brady, and Jennifer Lopez, the company had big shoes to fill. This year, Ben was joined by Casey Affleck and Jeremy Strong in "The DunKings."

MORE FROM SPORTS/ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Sean Baker’s ‘Anora’ takes top DGA & PGA awards prizes on same night – How could predict Oscars (DEADLINE)

📌 Super Bowl halftime show dancer displays Palestinian, Sudanese flags during Kendrick Lamar performance (NBC)

📌 Ed Sheeran speaks out after police in India abruptly break up his surprise street concert (PEOPLE)

🚨 ONE IMPORTANT THING

Judges Block Some Of Trump’s Moves; We Ask Trump Voters About The First 3 Weeks

Before the game, Trump spoke with Fox News anchor Bret Baier for a pregame interview and said that Elon Musk is “not gaining anything" from his moves in Washington. "In fact, I wonder how he can devote the time to it. He's so into it," Trump added.

Meanwhile, over the weekend, courts temporarily halted some of the most provocative moves from Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — like its ability to access the Treasury Department’s payment system, and its plan to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). In the Fox interview, Trump said that Musk’s attempts to cut spending are not slowing down, adding that the Department of Education is next.

MORE FROM THE COURTS
U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols — a Trump appointee — temporarily paused the administration’s plan to put 2,200 USAID employees on leave at midnight on Friday. The move also reinstated about 500 staff members who had already been placed on leave, and removed the Feb. 14 deadline for overseas employees to leave their host countries.

The judge said his order, in effect until midnight Friday, would prevent the "accelerated removal" of staff, ahead of another hearing on Wednesday. There were major security concerns about letting go of USAID personnel, including in war zones, and lackluster planning around the Trump administration gutting the agency nearly overnight.
- In his order, Nichols said, “Even if a future lawsuit could recoup any financial harms stemming from the expedited evacuations—like the cost of breaking a lease or of abandoning property that could not be sold prior to the move—it surely could not recoup damage done to educational progress, physical safety, and family relations."

Early Saturday, U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer — an Obama appointee — blocked DOGE from accessing Treasury Department records that contain millions of Americans’ sensitive personal data, such as Social Security and bank account numbers, after 19 Democratic attorneys general sued. Another judge is set to hear arguments on the case this Friday.

Engelmayer added that DOGE employees who accessed the sensitive information without proper clearance must destroy all downloaded materials.
- But, federal-government IT professionals told the Atlantic, “You can’t un-ring this bell. Once these DOGE guys have access to these data systems, they can ostensibly do with it what they want.”
- Rewind: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent gave the group “read-only” access, but it is unclear if that was lawful.

Reactions from the White House were swift, calling the court’s move “judicial overreach.”

HOW VOTERS ARE FEELING
A new CBS poll puts Trump's approval rating at 53% — higher than at any point during his first term. Here’s what Trump voters in the Mo News community had to say:

MORE FROM WASHINGTON

📌 Russell Vought, CFPB's new acting head, issues directives to halt portions of bureau activity (NBC)

📌 Trump orders U.S. to prioritize refugee resettlement of White South Africans (CBS)

📌 Trump declares Feb. 9 ‘Gulf of America Day’ on flight to Super Bowl (PBS)

📌 Trump plans 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports into the U.S. Monday (CNN)

🚨 ONE THING WE ARE WATCHING

More Israeli Hostages Freed As Ceasefire Negotiations Resume

This weekend, three Israeli hostages — Eli Sharabi (52), Or Levy (34), and Ohad Ben-Ami (56) — were released from Hamas captivity after 491 days.

🚨 Health officials report they are suffering from malnutrition and untreated infections. The released hostages described physical and psychological abuse, including receiving minimal food during captivity.
The men were handed over to the Red Cross following a staged propaganda ceremony in Gaza, where they appeared emaciated and unsteady.

In exchange, Israel released 183 Palestinian prisoners, including more than a dozen serving life sentences for murdering dozens of Israelis in terror attacks, as well as more than 100 detainees from Gaza who had been held without trial during the last year.

THE HOSTAGES’ RETURN
Ben-Ami reunited with his wife and three daughters, while Sharabi and Levy returned to heartbreak.

Levy was informed that his wife was one of nearly 400 people murdered by Hamas at the Nova music festival, from which Levy was kidnapped.
- Their 3-year-old son had been staying with the boy’s grandparents since the massacre on Oct. 7.
Sharabi was kidnapped with his brother Yossi, who died in Gaza. When he was reunited with his mother and sister, they told him that his wife and two daughters, 13-year-old Yahel and 16-year-old Noya, were killed in the Oct. 7 attack.
- Hours before his release, Hamas paraded Sharabi on stage where he said to a crowd, “I feel very, very happy today to return to my family and friends, to my wife and my daughters” – during a showing that some are calling psychological warfare by Hamas.
76 hostages still remain in Gaza. In light of the recently released hostages’ conditions, people are calling on the government to do whatever it takes to bring the rest of them home.

ISRAELI RESPONSE
Israeli officials condemned Hamas for its treatment of hostages, with the Israeli Foreign Minister accusing the terror group of crimes against humanity. Negotiations for the next phase of the ceasefire deal began in Doha on Saturday, but tensions remain high.

There are reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not interested in second phase of a ceasefire deal – which could see the release of the remaining hostages – because he does not believe it serves him politically. “He is sending a team without a mandate and without the ability to do anything,” said sources.

MORE FROM AROUND THE 🌍

📌 Magnitude 7.6 earthquake strikes in the western Caribbean (NBC)

📌 Israel completes withdrawal from key road dividing Gaza as part of ceasefire deal (CNN)

ICYMI FROM THE 📲

In case you missed it… Kendrick Lamar smiled into the camera while saying Drake’s name (their rap feud led to his hit song ‘Not Like Us’).