Morning Brief: Another Shutdown Standoff Looms, Guthrie Mystery Deepens, & Super Bowl Preview

President Donald Trump works to avert a second government shutdown, the mystery surrounding Nancy Guthrie continues, and controversy swells around Sunday’s big game halftime show as the Seattle Seahawks square off against the New England Patriots.

Trump Takes On Shutdowns And Renovations

After Congress scrambled to end a government shutdown, President Trump is already working to avert another one over Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump signed a spending package on Tuesday that ended the partial government shutdown, but another shutdown is looming ahead if Democrats and Republicans can’t come to an agreement on ICE and DHS discussions. Trump is still fielding questions on ICE and Minneapolis from reporters, and he told NBC News on Wednesday evening that he will always have law enforcement’s back – though he wants the situation to improve. The president spoke Thursday morning at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, where he vowed to rededicate the United States as “one nation under God,” and he announced that on May 17, all Americans are invited to the National Mall for an event of prayer and thanksgiving. He also announced this week that he is shutting down the Kennedy Center for two years for renovations, that he is installing a statue of Christopher Columbus outside the White House, and that he is putting up an Independence Arch in the nation’s capital.

The Nancy Guthrie Kidnapping Timeline

The nation has been holding its breath since the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of “Today Show” host Savannah Guthrie. Authorities on Thursday gave a clearer picture of what went on Saturday into Sunday morning when Nancy Guthrie was forcefully taken from her home.

Investigators in the missing-persons case of Nancy Guthrie, 84, the mother of NBC anchor Savannah Guthrie, confirmed that blood found on the front porch of Guthrie’s home belongs to her.

Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos updated the public on the investigation on Thursday. While law enforcement has neither identified a suspect nor a person of interest, Nanos said that more samples of DNA, in addition to the blood on Guthrie’s porch, had been sent in for analysis.

According to Sheriff Nanos, she arrived home from a family member’s house, where she had dinner just before 10 p.m. Early Sunday morning, her doorbell camera was disconnected at 1:47 a.m. Roughly 30 minutes later, a person was detected on a camera inside the home. And at 2:28 a.m., Nancy’s pacemaker disconnected from her phone. Investigators have yet to identify any suspects or persons of interest.

Super Bowl Preview

The Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots face off this Sunday in Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, California. This is a rematch of the 2015 Super Bowl, when New England defeated Seattle with a last-minute interception by Malcolm Butler. The Patriots are competing in their first Super Bowl since the tandem of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick won the title in 2019. They are representing the AFC, where they compiled a record of 14-3 this season under first-year Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. The Seahawks, representing the NFC, also went 14-3 this season under second-year head coach Mike Macdonald. A win this weekend would be the franchise’s first Super Bowl victory since 2014, when they won the title under Pete Carroll. Bad Bunny is set to perform the halftime show, a choice that has sparked some controversy.