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Politics

Exclusive: No. 2 House Democrat to skip Trump’s State of the Union address

House Minority Whip Katherine Clark joined by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks a press conference at the U.S. Capitol, February 4, 2026, in Washington. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

(WASHINGTON) — House Minority Whip Katherine Clark told ABC News she will not attend President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday night, making her the highest-ranking House Democrat to skip the event.

“And let me tell you why,” Clark told ABC’s Linsey Davis in an exclusive interview. “What we have seen from this president is a series of lies, of disrespect for the American people. He campaigned that he would lower costs on Day 1, he would keep people safe and secure. And he has done just the opposite.”

“So, I’m going to spend my evening, while he is spewing his misinformation tonight, talking to my constituents about their state of the union and how this administration is impacting them,” Clark said.

Dozens of Democrats, at least 45, are set to skip the State of the Union address. Many instead are opting to take part in a counter-program on the National Mall sponsored by the progressive group MoveOn.

House Speaker Mike Johnson earlier Tuesday criticized Democrats who will be absent, saying it was “shameful that they would boycott an address.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has made the case for members of his caucus to attend without outbursts or to sit it out altogether.

“It’s our expectation that there will be some members who attend and attend in silent defiance, and there will be other members who will choose not to attend. And it’s up to every individual member to make the decision that makes the most sense for their constituents,” Jeffries told reporters on Tuesday afternoon.

Still, a majority of Democrats are expected to attend Trump’s speech, which is one of the president’s most high-profile opportunities to address Americans ahead of November’s midterm elections.

Notable guests of Democratic lawmakers include survivors of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the business owner who successfully challenged Trump’s global tariffs and individuals affected by the administration’s immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger will deliver the Democratic response following Trump’s remarks. The two main themes she will focus on are affordability and the chaos the Trump administration has caused at home and abroad, according to Spanberger’s team.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Entertainment

Come to the cottage: The ‘Heated Rivalry’ getaway can now be yours

Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams in ‘Heated Rivalry.’ (Sabrina Lantos/HBO Max)

Heated Rivalry fans, your invitation to come to the cottage has officially been extended.

Unfortunately, it’s not coming from Shane Hollander or Ilya Rozanov, but from Airbnb.

Still, Barlochan Cottage is yours for the taking, with weekend stays available starting in May. 

Located on the shores of Ontario’s Lake Muskoka, the lusty getaway comes complete with loons, a private dock, your own gym and a state-of-the-art kitchen perfect for making tuna melts and smoothies, and perfectly chilling ginger ale. 

It’s also just a short drive from the quaint town of Gravenhurst, Ontario — but why would you ever want to leave?

The first-time rental will open up for booking March 3, and at less than $200 a night, it’s likely to fill up fast. That’s $248.10 in Canadian dollars, a nod to the lovers’ jersey numbers, 24 and 81. 

Consider it timely consolation for fans of the books following the news that the seventh book in the series, Unrivaled, won’t be coming on Sept. 29 as planned, as author Rachel Reid revealed on Instagram Tuesday.

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National

Johnny Gaudreau’s widow speaks out about USA hockey’s emotional tribute at Olympics

Meredith Gaudreau, widow of former Columbus Blue Jackets hockey player, Johnny Gaudreau speaks with ABC News, Feb. 24, 2026. (ABC News)

(NEW YORK) — Meredith Gaudreau, the widow of professional hockey player Johnny Gaudreau, is speaking out about the emotional moment the U.S. men’s hockey team celebrated her husband and their children at the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics.

As soon as USA beat Canada 2-1 in the gold medal game on Sunday, the players brought two of Johnny Gaudreau’s kids onto the ice. Three-year-old Noa and Johnny Jr. — who turned 2 that same day — posed with their dad’s number 13 jersey as they sat in the arms of the new Olympic champions.

“They didn’t have to do that,” Meredith Gaudreau told ABC News Live on Tuesday.

“I was just very, very proud, and I’m very thankful to them for including my kids in it, and just honoring my husband the way they do,” she said. “It’s the classiest thing. They do all these really kind gestures and include our kids in everything, because I know that’s exactly what John would want.”

Meredith Gaudreau said she told her daughter, “Daddy’s friends want to take a picture with you and Johnny. … You get to do this because of daddy and they love and they miss him, too.”

“She was really excited,” she said. “… She’s started to put things together and she’s very, very proud.”

Johnny Gaudreau’s parents were also in the crowd to witness the special moment.

Johnny Gaudreau, a 31-year-old Columbus Blue Jackets star known as “Johnny Hockey,” died on Aug. 29, 2024, alongside his brother, Matthew Gaudreau, 29, a former pro hockey player.

The brothers were riding bikes in New Jersey on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were struck by a driver suspected of being under the influence of alcohol, according to police. The suspected driver was arrested and has pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, evidence tampering and leaving the scene of an accident. He’s not yet gone to trial.

“Still every day is kind of a gut punch,” Meredith Gaudreau said. “So when the guys do what they can to still include John and our kids, it just means everything to me. You know, these guys are really good people, really good friends of ours. And I just consider them really great role models.”

She added that it shows “how much they love John and all the respect they have for him. … I am really proud of John for having that type of impact.”

Meredith Gaudreau said her third baby, Carter — who was born about seven months after his father died — didn’t travel with them to the Olympics, but watched the game from home.

“He doesn’t have a passport yet cause he’s only, almost 11 months old. So I felt so bad, but he watched along and he looks pretty good wearing number 13!” she said.

Matthew Gaudreau also left behind a wife, Madeline Gaudreau, who was pregnant at the time of his death. Their son, Tripp, was born four months after the crash.

Madeline Gaudreau told ABC News last year she wants her husband to be remembered as “a good soul. He was just a pure, happy, good soul, fearless.”

ABC News’ Kyra Phillips, Olivia Osteen, Drew Millhon, KellyMarie Braun and Bridget Perry contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Entertainment

Martin Short’s daughter Katherine Short dies at 42

Martin Short and Katherine Elizabeth Short arrive at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party on Feb. 27, 2011, at the Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood, California. (Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic via Getty Images)

Katherine Short, the daughter of actor Martin Short, has died, ABC News has confirmed. She was 42.

A representative for Martin Short confirmed the news in a statement, saying, “It is with profound grief that we confirm the passing of Katherine Hartley Short.”

The statement continued, “The Short family is devastated by this loss, and asks for privacy at this time. Katherine was beloved by all and will be remembered for the light and joy she brought into the world.”

The Los Angeles Police Department told ABC News that a call came into Katherine Short’s address at 6:43 p.m. PT Monday for a possible suicide. When LAPD and medics arrived, they found a deceased female and an investigation was opened.

The Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed that they responded to reports of a shooting at Katherine Short’s home. When they arrived, they found a woman deceased.

Katherine Short was one of three children the actor shared with his late wife, Nancy Dolman.

Dolman died on Aug. 21, 2010, from ovarian cancer. She and Martin Short were married for 30 years.

They also have two sons, Oliver Patrick Short, 39, and Henry Hayter Short, 36.

Martin Short has previously spoken about how his children were close, telling CNN in a 2013 interview that he was inspired by his own childhood to make sure his children were always close.

“When you have kids you have to just set down this bottom line of what can’t happen,” Martin Short said. “I’ve done it in my house and my parents did it in their house which was: Everyone has to like each other and get along. And if you don’t, you’ll get the wrath of the parents.”

According to People, Katherine Short earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and gender sexuality studies from New York University in 2006.

She then earned her master’s in social work from the University of Southern California in 2010.

Following an internship at the pro bono law firm Public Counsel, training at the West L.A. Veterans Administration and a role at UCLA’s Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital, she worked in private practice as a licensed clinical social worker and also worked part time at the clinic Amae Health.

Katherine Short was also a mental health advocate and was involved with the charity Bring Change 2 Mind.

Over the years, Martin Short brought his daughter with him to several events. She appeared with him and Dolman at the afterparty for The Producers in 2003 and also attended the Vanity Fair Oscar Party with her dad in February 2011.

If you are in crisis or know someone in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741. You can reach Trans Lifeline at 877-565-8860 (U.S.) or 877-330-6366 (Canada) and The Trevor Project at 866-488-7386.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Local newsPolitics

Spanberger to hit on affordability in Democrats’ State of the Union response

Abigail Spanberger, governor of Virginia, during an inauguration ceremony at Capitol Square in Richmond, Va., Jan. 17, 2026. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

(WASHINGTON) — Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, a rising star in the Democratic Party who captured the governor’s office last year by a large margin, will deliver the Democrats’ response Tuesday night to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, focusing on affordability and the chaos she believes the Trump administration has caused at home and abroad, her team told reporters.

Spanberger, who was inaugurated in January after serving three terms in the House of Representatives, will discuss lowering the persistently high costs of housing, health care, energy and groceries despite the administration’s insistence that some of these costs have come down.

The daughter of a law enforcement officer and a nurse, Spanberger focused relentlessly on affordability throughout her 2025 gubernatorial campaign. Despite the economy being the top issue Trump ran on in the 2024 election, it’s been one of the issues he’s struggled with the most during his second term, as Americans still haven’t felt the “Trump boom” they were promised.

In an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll, 57% of Americans disapprove of how Trump’s handling the economy, and 64% disapproved of how he’s handling tariffs on imported goods.

Spanberger, a former CIA officer, will also address how the Trump administration is contributing to greater worldwide uncertainty.

Trump and his team have spent a large portion of his second term so far focusing on foreign policy, including Trump going head-to-head with some U.S. allies and becoming more aggressive on the world stage. A former federal law enforcement officer who worked on narcotics and money-laundering cases for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Spanberger will also address what critics call the chaos caused by the Trump administration, which continues its immigration enforcement efforts that Americans are seeing in their communities.

She is also expected to challenge Republicans in Congress for not standing up to Trump.

Several Democrats have invited survivors of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to attend Trump’s address, while others plan to skip the event altogether in protest.

The governor will give her speech live from Colonial Williamsburg, the restored 18th century capital where Virginian representatives voted for its delegation to Congress to propose independence for all 13 colonies from Great Britain, and later adopted the Virginia Declaration of Rights — which influenced the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights.

Spanberger has been able to appeal to both Democratic and Republican voters. She won the governor election in November by more than 15% — the largest margin for a Democrat in the state since 1961 — winning counties that voted for Trump in 2016, 2020, and 2024.

There are at least two major counter events that several Democrats plan to attend, including MoveOn’s People’s State of the Union, which is promoting the participation of more than 20 members of Congress; and the “State of the Swamp” event by Defiance.org that features a handful of celebrities appearing by video or in person, such as Robert De Niro.

Spanberger prepared for her remarks by watching speeches other Democrats have delivered in response to Trump’s previous addresses to Congress.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Entertainment

‘One Battle After Another’ star Teyana Taylor talks 1st Oscar nomination

Actress Teyana Taylor appears on ‘Good Morning America’ on Feb. 24, 2026. (ABC News)

With the Oscars less than three weeks away, actress Teyana Taylor is feeling mixed emotions.

“Oh, my God, my stomach is in my booty. It’s that feeling you can’t even describe,” Taylor said on Good Morning America Tuesday morning.

Taylor is nominated for an Oscar for the first time as an actress in a supporting role for her portrayal of Perfidia in the drama/thriller One Battle After Another, which also stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Regina Hall and Chase Infiniti.

“No matter the outcome, I am blessed,” Taylor continued. “I’m just filled with so much gratitude to be a part of this moment and of this journey and of this chapter and of the conversation. So I’m very, very happy, nervous, but very happy.”

For Taylor, one of the highlights of One Battle After Another was getting to act alongside veteran actor DiCaprio, an experience the 35-year-old likened to attending a “super master class.”

“He’s been a great mentor and I really admire his leadership because he’s a legend, he’s an icon,” Taylor said. “So I’m really honored that I get to share scenes with him.”

In her prep to play Perfidia, Taylor said she followed an acting method she used previously for the role of Inez in the 2023 crime film, A Thousand and One.

“I identified her layers and then I color-coordinated those layers. So coming into Perfidia, seeing that she was even more [of a] complex character, I wanted to do the same thing,” said Taylor.

“If I feel like, OK, I’m in a moment of feeling vulnerable, maybe that color is pink … if I’m feeling rage, that moment is highlighted in red. So I literally color-coordinate [Perfidia’s] emotions,” she explained.

One Battle After Another, which is nominated for 13 Oscars, including best picture, was first released in September 2025. It is still in theaters and also available to stream.

The 98th Oscars will air on Sunday, March 15, at 7 p.m. ET on ABC and Hulu.

The Walt Disney Co. is the parent company of ABC and Hulu.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

World news

Airport operations gradually resuming after violence erupted over killing of drug lord ‘El Mencho,’ Mexico’s president says

A view of the site where Mexican Army troops killed Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as ‘El Mencho,’ leader of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion (Jalisco New Generation), during a federal operation in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico on February 22, 2026. (Stringer/Anadolu via Getty Images)

(NEW YORK) — Airport operations are gradually returning to normal in Mexico after violence ignited in the country following the killing of the drug lord known as “El Mencho,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said at a press conference Tuesday.

Sheinbaum said there were “seven roadblocks” in Mexico Tuesday morning, but “all of them” have now been cleared. Flights have resumed at Guadalajara Airport, and operations are “gradually returning” at Puerto Vallarta airport, she added.

School was suspended in Jalisco and Michoacan on Tuesday, but “activities are expected to return to normal tomorrow,” Sheinbaum added.

Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was killed in an operation led by Mexican authorities on Sunday in Jalisco, Mexican officials said.

Widespread cartel-organized violence erupted following his death, with vehicles set on fire, hundreds of road blockages and attacks on gas stations and businesses, according to Mexican authorities.

Mexico’s security strategy “has not changed,” after the operation, emphasizing that law enforcement were attempting to arrested an individual with an outstanding warrant, Sheinbaum said Tuesday.  

“Members of the Army were attacked and responded. He later died while being transferred. But we will never act outside the law. That is very important. Here, the objective was never to kill anyone,” Sheinbaum said.

“Yes, this was a very significant member of organized crime, but the strategy has not changed. The strategy remains the same and is grounded in our laws and our Constitution,” she added.

Sheinbaum said that as of Monday morning, there are no longer any blockades and “normal activity has largely been restored.”

Oseguera Cervantes was one of the most wanted criminals in both Mexico and the United States. He was one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into the U.S., and last year President Donald Trump designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, the White House said.

When Mexican forces moved in to arrest him on Sunday, “El Mencho’s security detail opened fire,” Mexico’s Secretary of National Defense Ricardo Trevilla Trejo said Monday.

El Mencho “fled the location, leaving behind a group heavily armed,” Trevilla said. “The attack by organized crime members was extremely violent.”

Mexican special forces members continued to pursue El Mencho and eventually were able to injure him and two of the bodyguards with him, according to Trevilla.

El Mencho and the two bodyguards died during the helicopter evacuation flight that was heading towards a medical facility in Jalisco, Trevilla added.

Ultimately, 25 members of the Mexican National Guard and 30 cartel members were killed in Jalisco, Mexican officials said. Four cartel members were also killed in Michoacan, officials said.

Among those killed was a “principal confidant” of El Mencho in Jalisco who was “coordinating road blockades, vehicle burnings, and attacks on military and government facilities,” Trevilla said.

Seventy cartel members have been detained across seven states, Mexican officials said Monday.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico on Monday continued to urge Americans in locations throughout Mexico to shelter in place due to “ongoing security operations and related road blockages and criminal activity.”

“While no airports have been closed, roadblocks have impacted airline operations, with most domestic and international flights cancelled in both Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta,” the U.S. Embassy said in a security alert. “All ride shares are suspended in Puerto Vallarta.  Some businesses have suspended operations.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

National

NASA targets Wednesday for rollback of Artemis II rocket and spacecraft

Artemis II: the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft at Launch Pad 39B, on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

(MERRITT ISLAND, Fla.) — Weather conditions have again delayed operations leading to the launch of the Artemis II rocket mission to the moon.

The rollback of the Artemis II rocket and spacecraft at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida was originally scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. Due to high winds in the area, NASA said its plans to move the rocket and Orion spacecraft for Artemis II off the launch pad and back to the vehicle assembly building were pushed to Wednesday morning.

The 4-mile trek is expected to take 12 hours, the space agency said.

The move was deemed necessary after crews detected an interrupted flow of helium to the Artemis II rocket’s upper stage on Saturday. Helium did not flow properly during normal operations and reconfigurations that followed the wet dress rehearsal that concluded on Thursday.

The upper stage uses helium to maintain the proper environmental conditions for its engine and to pressurize liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellant tanks, according to NASA. Essentially, helium is a critical element that ensures the proper flow of fuel into the rocket.

Once back in the vehicle assembly building, teams will install platforms to access the helium flow issue, NASA said. Teams will review potential causes of the issue as well as data from the 2022 Artemis I mission, in which teams had to troubleshoot helium-related pressurization of the upper stage before launch.

The Artemis II mission is a test flight that will send four astronauts on a more than 600,000-mile journey around the moon to test critical spacecraft systems, according to NASA. The crew will fly over the far side of the moon — passing between 4,000 and 6,000 miles above it — and spend a day observing and photographing the region.

After the lunar flyby, the astronauts will circle the moon for a return to Earth, in which the Earth-moon gravity field will help pull the spacecraft back to Earth over the course of its three-day return trip.

The Orion will then splashdown off the coast of San Diego after re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere, and the U.S. Navy will recover the astronauts from the Pacific Ocean.

The journey is expected to take 10 days total.

The mission sets the stage for the future Artemis III, which aims to someday land astronauts near the moon’s South Pole. The region has never been explored by humans before.

Artemis II will mark the first time humans have traveled beyond low Earth orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972.

In January, NASA delayed the Artemis moonshot due to near-freezing temperatures at the launch site.

Heaters were deployed to keep the Orion capsule on top of the rocket warm, while rocket-purging systems were adapted to the cold.

The rollback of Artemis II means it will not launch during the March launch window, NASA said.

The quick preparations will potentially preserve the April launch window, pending the outcome of data findings and repair efforts, according to the agency.

ABC News’ Briana Alvarado and Matthew Glasser contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Business

Trump’s 10% global tariff takes effect

President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, February 20, 2026. (Aaron Schwartz/Getty Images)

(NEW YORK) — A 10% global tariff took effect on Tuesday, marking the first duty enacted by President Donald Trump after a recent Supreme Court decision invalidated most of his levies.

Within hours of the high court’s ruling on Friday, Trump signed an executive order imposing a 10% tariff on nearly all imports for up to 150 days. The directive called for enforcement of the duty to begin at 12:01 a.m. ET on Tuesday, Feb. 24.

Soon after signing the order, Trump vowed to hike the global tariff to 15%. As of Tuesday, however, the president had not issued an executive order formalizing that increase.

Stocks ticked higher Tuesday morning, recovering some of the losses suffered a day earlier in the first trading session since Trump announced the tariff increase.

Trump enacted the 10% tariff under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the White House to address “large and serious” balance-of-payments deficits, or disparities between a country’s total payments in transactions with other nations and its total earnings.

Under the measure, the president can also impose levies to “prevent an imminent and significant depreciation of the dollar.”

The Section 122 tariffs will result in price increases amounting to $800 in additional costs for an average U.S. household over the next 150 days, the Yale Budget Lab projected. In order to extend the across-the-board 15% tariff beyond that time window, Trump would need to secure Congressional approval.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Monday that Democrats would oppose an extension of Section 122 tariffs, which could deny Trump the 60 votes necessary to overcome a potential Senate filibuster.

In a social media post on Monday, Trump affirmed what he said was his authority to issue tariffs, saying he does not need to consult Congress before erecting new trade levies.

Trump also reiterated his commitment to his policy approach, warning other countries that they may face a “much higher Tariff, and worse.”

The high court ruled in their February 20 decision that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEPPA) does not authorize Trump to impose levies, nullifying a major swathe of tariffs issued by the president on April 2 of last year, which he dubbed “Liberation Day,” and a host of other measures.

If the Supreme Court had opted to uphold tariffs issued under IEPPA, the nation’s effective tariff rate would have remained at 16%, the Yale Budget Lab said. Taking into account the Section 122 tariffs, the effective tariff rate now stands at 13.7%, the group said.

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