Today’s Big Story

Trade War

With tariffs signed, Trump warns of ‘pain’ to come for Americans

President Trump vowed Sunday to move ahead with steep new tariffs on U.S. allies and trading partners, even as he seemed to acknowledge that it could inflict pain on U.S. consumers. Canada, meanwhile, targeted U.S. imports from oranges to motorcycles with its own tariffs, and Mexico readied financial countermeasures.

“THIS WILL BE THE GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA! WILL THERE BE SOME PAIN? YES, MAYBE (AND MAYBE NOT!), BUT IT WILL ALL BE WORTH THE PRICE THAT MUST BE PAID.” Trump posted, in all capital letters, on his Truth Social platform. His statement seemed to acknowledged what economists, members of Congress and even some of his own aides—in their previous lives—have been saying all along: Americans may find themselves paying the costs.

The tariffs are set to take effect early Tuesday, when American importers will be assessed a new 25% tax on goods from Canada and Mexico and 10% on products from China. Most imports from Canada and Mexico currently face no tariffs, the result of a trilateral trade deal Trump reached with those countries during his first term. Many Chinese products already are assessed tariffs of up to 25%. But now there will be an additional 10% tacked onto Chinese products.

Larry Summers, the former U.S. Treasury secretary under President Bill Clinton, told the Wall Street Journal that Trump’s move amounted to “a self-inflicted supply shock.” Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul said: “Taxing trade will mean less trade and higher prices.” The head of the National Association of Manufacturers, Jay Timmons, said it put American jobs at risk. “The ripple effects will be severe,” he said.

Most Republicans in Congress have stayed silent or praised Trump’s tariffs, even as their constituents express anxiety about rising prices. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday defended the decision, saying in an interview: “Economically, yes, they will, they will feel pain. They will feel what the consequences are, and we'll be able to continue to go forward with the president, who is strong, who is putting America first.”

Recapping Groundhog Day

Punxsutawney Phil makes his annual forecast

Punxsutawney Phil, the famous groundhog weather watcher, was pulled from his warm burrow this morning and saw his shadow, predicting six more weeks of winter. You know the drill, right? Each February 2, on Groundhog Day, the members of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club make the pilgrimage to Gobbler’s Knob—Phil’s official home. Legend has it, if he sees his shadow, six more weeks of winter are on the way. If he doesn’t, an early spring arrives.

Of course, Phil is a cute little creature, but his predictions are not always correct. In fact, he was only right around 40% of the time between 2012 and 2021, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. So, hopefully he's wrong about the frigid temperatures continuing.

And AccuWeather’s long-range meteorologists think he might be. “We're already seeing spring establishing itself in the South,” AccuWeather Long-Range Expert Paul Pastelok said. He noted that springlike weather could be sluggish to arrive farther north, with more information to come in Wednesday's detailed seasonal forecast. Meteorological spring officially begins on Saturday, March 1, while astronomical spring begins on the equinox, which takes place at 5:01 a.m. EST on Thursday, March 20.

Astronomers Are Tracking an Asteroid Headed Towards Us

It has a 1-in-83 chance of hitting Earth in 2032. How do you like those odds?

Feeling lucky? Astronomers say that a newly identified asteroid, potentially as big as a football field, has a 1-in-83 chance of striking Earth in December of 2032. Currently, the space rock is 27 million miles away.

Those odds may seem pretty good (assuming you're hoping for a miss), but consider this: The International Warning Asteroid Network (IAWN), a global collaboration started in 2013 to monitor and track space objects that could impact Earth, issued its first-ever Potential Asteroid Impact Notification for the asteroid, known as 2024 YR4, IAWN Manager Tim Spahr told NPR. The notification is meant to put the astronomical community on alert to collect as much information as possible on the near-Earth object (NEO) in question.

But don’t let it keep you up at night. Even if it were to collide with our planet, Futurism says it wouldn't threaten the entire thing, though it could easily wipe out an entire city. An asteroid roughly similar in size impacted a remote region of Siberia in 1908, obliterating 800 square miles of forest. Such an impact could cause an explosion in the atmosphere, called an ”airburst,” or could cause an impact crater when it slams into the ground.

What Went Down at the 2025 Grammys

Beyoncé made history. Sierra Ferrell won four awards. Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish didn't win any.

The Grammys pulled off the first major awards show since the Los Angeles wildfires with minimal tonal whiplash. They booked great performances from rising stars like Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan and Charli XCX. And they righted some longstanding wrongs in the top awards, giving Kendrick Lamar his first general-category wins for “Not Like Us” and Beyoncé her first Album of the Year trophy for Cowboy Carter. Not bad, right?

In fact, Beyoncé made history as the first Black winner of Best Country Album, after being snubbed entirely at the CMA Awards just a few months ago. Some artists think it’s bad luck to prep an awards show speech in advance. But not Chappell Roan, who said she promised herself years ago she would speak out for fair pay for artists if she ever won a Grammy. And she did just that. Another surprise? Having the Weeknd return to the stage was certainly unexpected. And Sabrina Carpenter’s staged mishaps made us remember why she’s so damn fun.

It was also somewhat surprising that Taylor Swift went 0-6 this year, marking the first time she has ever been blanked when she had six or more nominations. Still, it’s hard to think of it as a snub. Every single voter knew that Swift has amassed more Album of the Year wins than anyone else in Grammy history. Perhaps they simply decided to share the wealth this year? The well-awarded Billie Eilish didn’t pick up any trophies either. Eilish and her brother FINNEAS lost the Song of the Year award, which I expected them to win for their silky ballad “Birds of a Feather”. Rising star Sierra Ferrell, on the other hand, swept all four of her nominations behind her adventurous album Trail of Flowers. The Americana singer-songwriter made the most of her time on stage, sporting a bedazzled silver-and-white ensemble complete with a speech-holding scepter.

Give Some Sweet Underwear for V-Day

MeUndies is all about making you look and feel good

Monday will be over soon.