Trump pronounces deal to promote weight-loss medicine together with Ozempic for reasonable on authorities web site: Live updates

While announcing a new deal for GLP-1s, President Donald Trump jokingly asked his cabinet members and staff if they were on the popular weight-loss drugs.

“You taking any of this stuff, Howard?” Trump asked Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, leading to laughter.

Lutnick responded, “Not yet.”

“Mehmet Oz, he doesn’t take it,” Trump added speaking of his CMS Administrator.

“And we have Steve, where’s Steve? Head of public relations for the White House – he’s taking it,” Trump said.

The Trump administration has reached a deal with two drug makers to lower prices of popular GLP-1 diabetes medications for Americans on Medicare and Medicaid as well as for those who purchase the drugs on the administration’s forthcoming TrumpRx web site.

The deal will also see Medicare and Medicaid expand coverage for the medications to permit Americans with certain medical conditions or a Body Mass Index above certain thresholds to receive the injections as treatments for obesity and other serious maladies.

It’s the latest in a series of announcements by drug companies that have capitulated to Trump’s demand that they offer their products on a “most-favored nation” pricing plan, bringing the cost Americans pay for their drugs down to a level on par with countries that pay lower prices through their single-payer health care systems.

Spirit Airlines joined other major airlines in waiving rebooking fees or airfare difference fees for customers during the travel advisory period issued by the FAA.

The airline contends that fare differences could apply “after the rebooking period from the Travel Advisory ends.”

American Airlines customers who are impacted by the reduction in flights due to the government shutdown will be permitted to change, cancel or request a refund for a flight without facing any penalty, the airline said Thursday.

“We expect the vast majority of our customers’ travel will be unaffected, and long-haul international travel will remain as scheduled,” American Airlines said. “As schedule changes are made, we’ll proactively reach out to customers who are impacted. As always, we encourage all customers to check their flight status on aa.com or the mobile app, which will provide real-time updates.”

Delta Airlines announced Thursday it will allow customers, even at the basic economy level, to change, cancel or refund flights if they are impacted by the FAA’s reduced flight order that begins Friday.

Reductions are expected to begin at most major airports in response to the ongoing government shutdown, which has led to air traffic controller shortages.

The FAA is ordering the reduction to keep air spaces safe.

“We will work to give customers as much notice as possible about any changes to their flights and apologize for any inconvenience these changes may cause. We encourage customers to check their flight status on delta.com or the Fly Delta app for the latest information,” a press release from Delta said.

United Airlines, which operates the largest fleet and the most destinations in the U.S., says all customers are eligible for a refund if they no longer wish to fly during the reduction in flight period.

In a press release, the airline said any customer, even those with non-refundable tickets or basic economy, will be eligible for a refund regardless of whether their flight was impacted.

It’s part of their extended flexibility while the FAA reduces flights to ensure airspace is safe during the government shutdown.

President Donald Trump reacted to the news of Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi retiring from Congress after four decades, calling it “a great thing for America.”

“The retirement of Nancy Pelosi is a great thing for America. She was evil, corrupt and only focused on bad things for our country,” Trump said, according to Fox News.

“She was rapidly losing control of her party and it was never coming back. I’m very honored she impeached me twice and failed miserably twice. Nancy Pelosi is a highly overrated politician.”

Pelosi and Trump were notable political opponents.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the “Core 30” airports, otherwise known as the busiest airports in the U.S., are among the 40 that will be impacted by reduced flights beginning Friday, which includes LaGuardia, Chicago O’Hare, Los Angeles, Washington Dulles, Dallas/Fort Worth and more.

Flights at the “high-volume” airports will be reduced by 10 percent to account for safety measures as fewer air traffic controllers show up to work amid the government shutdown beginning Friday.

Klobuchar attended arguments alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

“I thought, first point, conservative justices, especially Justice Gorsuch, made it very clear that they believe it’s Congress that has the power to assess these tariffs,” Klobuchar pointed out on MSNBC’s Morning Joe.

Conservative justices, who generally support Trump’s agenda, appeared unsure if Trump had the legal authority to impose sweeping tariffs on nearly every one of the U.S.’s trading partners.

“So, it was actually quite fun to be there, quite fun to watch the faces of the Cabinet officials while you listened to these conservative justices ask these probing questions. So, maybe I can’t predict what the court’s going to do, but when I look at this, this thing is illegal, and they’re going to side with the lower courts, and they’re going to throw these tariffs out.”