And Yemeni Houthis struck an American ship, the Gibraltar Eagle, on Monday. “The Yemeni armed forces consider all American and British ships and warships participating in the aggression against our country as hostile targets,” said Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree. The United States is weighing whether to re-designate the Houthis as a terrorist group following dozens of strikes on commercial ships in the Red Sea (and retribution for those attacks doled out by the U.S. and allies).

Analyzing the Iowa caucuses: Former President Donald Trump “showed striking weakness in suburban and urban areas,” reports Politico. “So while the data show how Trump has managed to consolidate a majority of Republican support, it also reveals his relative vulnerability among suburban and highly educated voters—raising questions about how he will win over a voting bloc that has long viewed him with skepticism and helped fuel his 2020 loss.”

Still, Trump improved on his 2016 Iowa caucus showing in a major way. (If you recall, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz won the Iowa caucuses eight years ago, with 27.6 percent of the vote compared to Trump’s 24.3 percent.) “Several dozen precincts gave Trump less than 10 percent of their caucus vote eight years ago; this year, he won 35 percent of the vote in those areas,” reports Politico.

Government shutdown? Yesterday, the Senate moved forward a stopgap bill, which would temporarily stave off a government shutdown. (We’ve heard this one before, haven’t we?) “By a 68-to-13 vote, senators voted to take up the legislation, which would temporarily extend funding for some federal agencies until March 1 and for others through March 8,” reports The New York Times. “It would keep spending levels flat while lawmakers and aides hammer out the details of a $1.66 trillion deal reached between Speaker Mike Johnson, the Louisiana Republican, and Democrats.”

Some right-wing members of Congress have voiced opposition to the spending bill, particularly the fact that it does not stipulate securing the border, forcing Johnson to seek support from Democrats.