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Today’s top stories

Today, we will receive a snapshot of how the job market looked just before the economic chaos of recent weeks. The Labor Department report is expected to show relatively solid growth. It will not include the tens of thousands of firings in the federal government.

• 🎧 The report comes from a survey during the week leading up to many of the federal job cuts that happened on Feb. 14, NPR’s Scott Horsley tells Up First. Horsley says that even though the report will look good on the surface, there are still some warning signs. The outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas keeps a tally of layoff notices. Its February figure shows the biggest job cuts since 2020. Andy Challenger says there were 172,000 layoffs announced in February, including more than 62,000 in the federal government.

President Trump signed an executive order last night to create a strategic bitcoin reserve. The move is a major step toward his campaign promise of making the U.S. the “crypto capital of the planet.” He’s expected to speak today about the reserve at a White House summit on cryptocurrency.

• 🎧 The White House argues the U.S. is losing money by selling the bitcoin they have already seized from court proceedings, according to NPR’s Deepa Shivaram. David Sacks, the White House czar for AI and cryptocurrency, described the reserve as a “digital Fort Knox,” where bitcoin will be stored. People in the crypto space see today’s summit as an opportunity to talk about building a regulatory framework for the currency, which didn’t happen under the Biden administration. Biden was more focused on enforcement and cracking down on crypto.

The first phase of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas ended without any agreement on next steps. Trump has said his previous threats forced the ceasefire that began six weeks ago. This week, Trump issued his “last warning” to Hamas after meeting with former Israeli hostages.

• 🎧 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu didn’t send negotiators to hammer out details of a second phase because he wants a different deal that doesn’t permanently end the war, NPR’s Aya Batrawy says. Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, developed a new plan that gives the prime minister what he wants. Witkoff’s plan would have Hamas release half of the remaining hostages currently held in Gaza in exchange for only the promise to negotiate a lasting end of the war after six weeks. To pressure Hamas into the new deal, Israel has blocked food, fuel and aid in Gaza for six days.

Deep dive

President Trump joked that “nobody has ever heard of” the southern African nation of Lesotho during his address to Congress on Tuesday night. He was defending his administration’s humanitarian aid cuts to different countries, including Lesotho. The country’s foreign minister, Lejone Mpotjoane, says the U.S. government has an embassy in his country, and the two countries have had “a long cooperation.” Mpotjoane invited Trump to visit the country.

• 🌍 Lesotho is one of the countries most severely affected by the AIDS epidemic. The majority of USAID funds sent to the country go toward HIV prevention. Some epidemiology experts fear that without these funds, there could be a resurgence of the disease.
• 🌍 Despite being rich in diamonds, the country is poor, and its economy relies heavily on selling water to South Africa.
• 🌍 Britain’s Prince Harry is a big fan of the country. He is close to Lesotho’s king and queen and even set up a children’s HIV/AIDS charity named Sentebale with Lesotho’s Prince Seeiso in 2006.

Learn more about the country here.

Weekend picks

Emily Bett Rickards, right, plays the lead role of 20th century women’s wrestling champion and trailblazer Mildred Burke in Ash Avildsen’s new film Queen of The Ring.

Steve Squall/Sumerian Pictures

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Steve Squall/Sumerian Pictures

Check out what NPR is watching, reading and listening to this weekend:

🍿 Movies: The Queen of the Ring explores the rise of women’s wrestling and how Mildred Burke could be a powerful champion in the ring and, at times, powerless outside of it.

📺 TV: In Daredevil: Born Again, the hero, Matt Murdock, turns his back on superhero life, convinced he caused as much harm as good. Here’s what NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says about the show.

📚 Books: Deb Dana’s Glimmers Journal: Reflect on the Small Moments That Bring You Joy, Safety, and Connection is about appreciating the tiny things in your life that bring joy. Check out this excerpt from the book. (via WBUR)

🎵 Music: It’s new music Friday! Dozens of new albums, EPs and mixtapes from electronic to hip-hop have hit streaming services. Check out the the playlist that’s updated weekly.

❓ Quiz: I didn’t get the bonus question right… but other than that, 10 out of 10! That’s a pretty great comeback. Can you match or beat me?

3 things to know before you go

A new report finds butterfly populations are declining in the U.S.

twomeows/Getty Images/Moment RF

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twomeows/Getty Images/Moment RF

1. The number of butterflies in the U.S. has fallen by 22% on average since 2000. Every region of the country saw a decline, though the southwest saw the biggest drop.
2. Daylight saving time begins on Sunday, meaning the majority of clocks in the U.S. will spring forward one hour. Prepare for the time change by signing up for Life Kit‘s Guide to Better Sleep. This one-week newsletter series will send you strategies to help you sleep better, deeper and longer.
3. The musical Hamilton is canceling its 2026 run at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., in response to Trump’s decision to take over the institution.

This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.