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"Dario ‌has a very good relationship with the president, one of great trust... He is ‌a great ​public administrator," ​said ​Haddad, who had ‌previously announced he ​would ​step down ahead of Brazil's general ​elections ‌in October.

(Reporting by Isabel ​Teles; Editing by ​Gabriel Araujo)

Antonio Yesayahu Gámez-Cuéllar, 18, and his brother Caleb, 14, along with their 12-year-old brother and parents, were detained on Feb. 25 after they appeared for a scheduled check-in with federal immigration authorities, according to the Mexican American Legislative Caucus. Gámez-Cuéllar was separated from his family, who were detained in a detention center for families in Dilley, while he was held at a Raymondville, Texas, facility about 230 miles away.

The family entered the United States in 2023 through the Biden-eraCBP One appand were awaiting their final asylum hearing that was scheduled for later this year, the Mexican American Legislative Caucus said in anews release. The family had been attending immigration hearings and checking in with immigration authorities, as required, when they were detained.

Study:Deportations from ICE street arrests jump, here's why.

The three brothers were described as "dedicated student mariachi musicians," according to aGoFundMe pagefor the family. Both Gámez-Cuéllar and his brother Caleb are members of the McAllen High SchoolMariachi Oroband, which was invited to Washington, DC, last summer and has won eight state championships.

On March 9, Rep. Joaquin Castro, a Texas Democrat,confirmedthat Gámez-Cuéllar's parents and two brothers were released from the Dilley facility. Gámez-Cuéllar was also released from the detention center in Raymondville, according to U.S. Rep. Monica de la Cruz, a Texas Republican.

"Antonio is going home," De la Cruz said in astatement. "The Gámez-Cuéllar family are valued members of our community. I was honored to stand with Antonio and his fellow mariachis when they visited my office last year, and I am honored to stand with him again."

Trump's second term saw aggressive immigration and trade moves, federal downsizing, and assertive foreign interventions in Venezuela and Iran. President Donald Trump has doubled down on an aggressive immigration agenda, emphasizing record-low levels of illegal border crossings and a sweeping expansion of enforcement. In his February 2026 State of the Union address, Trump highlighted a nine‑month period in which, he claimed, "zero illegal aliens" were admitted into the U.S.—a statement that fact-checkers noted conflated admission with release on parole, though data does show no parole releases during that period.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> The administration has also promoted major enforcement gains: significant declines in illegal crossings, a dramatic reduction in interior releases, expanded deportation operations, and tightened border controls, according to a February 2026 White House summary of its immigration actions. More broadly, the administration continues implementing executive actions that restrict entry at the southern border and increase immigration enforcement nationwide, including policies tied to TrumpÕs 2025 proclamation invoking federal authority to suspend certain entries. [whitehouse.gov]

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> President Donald Trump has intensified his tariff‑driven economic strategy in his second term, expanding duties across global partners while positioning tariffs as a central tool to bolster U.S. industry. Despite broad tariff hikes, the U.S. trade deficit surged in late 2025, reaching a record goods shortfall even as the administration sought to curb imports and revive domestic manufacturing—a goal undercut by a decline in factory employment during the same period.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> President Donald Trump has undertaken an unprecedented downsizing and restructuring of the federal government during his second term, marked by aggressive workforce reductions, major agency overhauls, and expanded executive authority over civil service rules.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Federal workforce cuts accelerated sharply in 2025, with estimates showing reductions ranging from 220,000 to more than 300,000 employees through voluntary departure incentives, pressure campaigns, buyouts, and targeted firingsÑresulting in the smallest federal workforce share recorded since the 1930s.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was created at the start of President Trump's second term to drive sweeping federal workforce reductions. DOGE spearheaded mass buyouts, layoffs, and restructuring across agencies, including the rollout of the Deferred Resignation Program and guidance encouraging the firing of probationary employees. Its initiatives contributed to a net loss of more than 150,000 federal workers early in Trump's second term, with broader governmentwide workforce reductions continuing into 2026.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Elon Musk was appointed to lead DOGE and initially served as the public face of Trump's government‑shrinkage agenda. However, his influence declined significantly after he stepped away from the department and entered a public feud with President Trump. Many DOGE staffers left government during this period, and DOGE became associated with controversial actions including the dismantling of USAID and alleged improper access to agency data. Musk originally claimed DOGE would identify $2 trillion in government savings, but the department's website later estimated only $215 billion, a figure analysts say was overstated.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> President Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill", signed July 4, 2025, reshaped federal tax law by extending lower individual tax rates from the 2017 TCJA, increasing standard deductions, and adding new temporary deductions for tips and overtime.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> The law also phases out clean‑energy incentives and cuts programs like Medicaid and SNAP, with the Congressional Budget Office projecting a $4.1 trillion increase in deficits over 10 years due to the package.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> President Trump has aligned many social policies with the goals of Project 2025, targeting reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ protections, DEI programs, and gender‑affirming care. His administration has signed executive orders eliminating transgender protections, removing DEI offices across federal agencies, and directing schools to deny funding if they allow transgender girls to compete in girls' sports. He has also pursued efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and restrict reproductive‑health access—though not all proposed measures have succeeded.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Trump has moved aggressively to remake federal cultural institutions, ordering the removal of what he calls "anti‑American ideology" from museums, national parks, and research centers. Actions include restoring Confederate statues, removing slavery‑related exhibits and Native‑American history signage from national parks, and pressuring institutions like the Smithsonian and Kennedy Center while installing political allies onto boards. Civil‑rights groups warn these moves risk erasing critical historical truths and reversing decades of social progress

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> During his second term, President Donald Trump has systematically dismantled diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs across the federal government. Executive orders have eliminated DEI offices and policies, with agencies placing all DEI‑related staff on administrative leave and shutting down DEI programs entirely. His administration also removed DEI departments at major cultural institutions such as the Smithsonian and National Gallery of Art in early 2025. Trump has framed DEI initiatives as "anti‑American ideology," directing agencies and cultural institutions to strip references to DEI, sexual orientation and gender identity from rules, grants, and regulations. These moves reflect a broader cultural agenda aimed at reversing equity‑focused policies across education, federal agencies, and the arts sector.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> On January 3, 2026, President Donald Trump ordered a large‑scale U.S. military operation in Venezuela—Operation Absolute Resolve—resulting in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. U.S. forces conducted coordinated strikes across northern Venezuela to suppress air defenses before extracting the pair, who were flown to New York to face narco‑terrorism–related charges. The Trump administration framed the action as a law‑enforcement mission with military support, asserting inherent presidential authority, while Venezuela and several regional governments condemned it as a violation of sovereignty.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> In late February and early March 2026, President Donald Trump announced that the United States had begun "major combat operations in Iran," launching strikes alongside Israel targeting Iranian leadership, military infrastructure, and missile capabilities. The joint assault targeted high‑level officials, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian, and was framed by Trump as necessary to eliminate "imminent threats" and prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />

Trump second term marked by turbulent moves. See photos

Trump's second term saw aggressive immigration and trade moves, federal downsizing, and assertive foreign interventions in Venezuelaand Iran. President Donald Trump has doubled down on an aggressiveimmigrationagenda, emphasizing record-low levels of illegal border crossings and a sweeping expansion of enforcement. In his February 2026 State of the Union address, Trump highlighted a nine‑month period in which, he claimed, "zero illegal aliens" were admitted into the U.S.—a statement that fact-checkers noted conflated admission with release on parole, though data does show no parole releases during that period.

Lawmakers react to release: 'We are grateful'

The family's detainment sparked bipartisan outrage as lawmakers raised concerns over the Trump administration'scontentious immigration enforcement and its tactics.

The teen musicians are part of a growing number of children who have been impacted by immigration enforcement, including 5-year-oldLiam Conejo Ramosand ayoung, deaf childwho was deported without his hearing aids.

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Castro announced the release after he visited the Dilley facility, which has been underincreased scrutiny for holding immigrant families with childrenand has faced numerous allegations of inadequate conditions.

"When I returned to the Dilley trailer prison today, I brought my colleagues in Congress to meet with the children and families and to bear witness to their stories," Castro said in apost on X. "We are grateful for the release of the Gámez-Cuéllar family and we will not stop until we #FreeOurChildren. All of them."

Following the release of Gámez-Cuéllar's family, Efrén Olivares, vice president of litigation and legal strategy at the National Immigration Law Center, called the 18-year-old's detention a "cruel and calculated attack against him and his family."

"We are glad that Antonio and his family are reunited, thanks to the courageous activism of their friends and community. Antonio's case shows us the power we have when we come together to fight injustice," Olivares said in astatement. "As we celebrate Antonio's release and look forward to his high school graduation, let's use this energy to fight for the release of other immigrant families held in ICE detention across the country."

Texas Rep. Ramon Romero Jr., chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, said the organization was "relieved that the Gámez-Cuéllar family is returning home."

'Fear of coming to school':Is Trump's immigration crackdown worsening school absenteeism?

"Families who follow the rules and show up to their ICE appointments in good faith should not be punished for doing exactly what the system asks of them," Romero said in a statement.

Other lawmakers of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, composed of members of the Texas House of Representatives, shared similar sentiments. The organization's vice-chair, state Rep. Erin Gámez, said she was praying for the "entire Gámez-Cuéllar family as they endure the pain of unjust separation and detention."

"This family did it the right way entering the country through the proper legal channels and working hard to build a life in pursuit of the American Dream," Gámez said in a statement. "The targeting and detention of legally present individuals and families is inhumane and deeply troubling. Policies that tear families apart rather than support those striving to contribute to our communities must come to an end."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Teenager mariachi brothers, family released from ICE custody in Texas

First and second graders continue to perform worse than their pre-pandemic counterparts on math and reading tests, according to a report published Tuesday by the education assessment and research group NWEA. But while math scores have inched up every year,reading scoresremain stagnant, the report shows. The data suggests the slump in academic performance is not rooted only in instructional disruption. Broader societal shifts might be at play.

In the youngest students' failure to recover, "there's something kind of systemic here happening ... within schools and outside of schools," said Megan Kuhfeld, a researcher at NWEA. "We can't pinpoint one specific cause."

The pandemic's effects on older children'sacademic achievementare well-documented. COVID-19 forced kids out of classrooms and into online learning. Students lost out on face time with instructors, theirmental healthsuffered in the isolation, and their well-beingdeterioratedas some families endured hardship. Some schoolchildrenstopped showing up to schoolaltogether.

The federal government gave billions of dollars to school districts to help students catch up — with mixed results. In 2024, reading scores for fourth- and eighth-graderscontinued a downward slide, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Math scores, however, trended upward.

Testing for younger kids is less common, so the NWEA report offers insights into the depth of the academic disruption. It's based on assessments given to students in the 2024-25 school year.

Kindergarten scores for math and science remained roughly the same throughout the pandemic. First and second graders are trending in the same way as their older peers. Math and reading scores are still falling short of pre-pandemic levels, although math scores are slowly rising. Reading scores have remained roughly the same since the spring of 2021, when the first full school year in the pandemic was wrapping up.

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It's unclear what is depressing the scores. Kuhfeld pointed to emerging data showing that fewer parents are reading to their children, an activity that has been shown to boost literacy. A 2024 survey of parents in the United Kingdom found that less than half of children under 5were regularly read to, a 20-point drop from a dozen years prior.

In Minnetonka Public Schools outside Minneapolis, school leaders say that while reading scores dipped during the pandemic, they have since recovered. Teachers now focus more onphonicsand also regularly assess students on literacy. Students who are behindreceive extra helpon the parts of reading where they struggle. A student who has difficulty reading aloud might be asked to read to one of their classmates, for example.

But some things are out of the district's control. During the pandemic, Associate Superintendent Amy LaDue said, many young children were homebound. They missed out on activities like going to museums and playing with other children, which are helpful for language and literacy development. She believes that's one factor that continues to hamper kids, especially those from low-income families.

"These kids weren't in school when the pandemic happened, but (some) were ... in early childhood and preschool," LaDue said. "Their opportunities ... to have those experiences outside of their home that build literacy skills and to apply them with peers probably were impacted because they were home."

Along with interventions at school, a growing number of states and cities are investing in pre-kindergarten to help children with early literacy. California has introduced universal pre-kindergarten, and New York City is expanding its pre-kindergarten program to 2-year-olds, giving toddlers an early start on learning.New Mexicohas made child care free for nearly all families.

The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP'sstandardsfor working with philanthropies, alistof supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

According to Michelle Gardner of the Arizona Republic,part of the USA TODAY Network, the reports that surfaced Monday afternoon of the Sun Devils and Hurley expected to "part ways" at the end of the season are "premature."

There were multiple reports Monday that mentioned the Sun Devils and Hurley are expected to go their separate ways at the end of the season, which could be as soon as Tuesday afternoonin the Big 12 tournament,after 11 years in Tempe.

Hurley entered the 2025-26 season on the final year of his contract and already under heat after the Sun Devils finished with losing records in back-to-back seasons.

REQUIRED READING:ASU welcomes underdog role at Big 12 tournament

Hurley's contract, which was obtained by the USA TODAY Sports Network, is set to run through June 30 with the Sun Devils. This means, even if the Sun Devils don't elect to renew Hurley's contract, there will be some money going to him if he is let go by the athletic department. Hurley is owed approximately $900,000 if he is fired.

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The Sun Devils have only made it to the NCAA Tournament three times under Hurley, and have finished with a winning record in four seasons. Hurley, the former Duke guard and brother to Connecticut coach Dan Hurley, has only won 20 or more games four times and has not led the Sun Devils to a conference title.

Since the Sun Devils moved to the Big 12, they are 29-35 overall and 11-27 in Big 12 play. The best win forArizona Stateunder Hurley in the Big 12 came just last week against No. 16 Kansas and Darryn Peterson in Tempe. It marked just the 15th win over a ranked team in his 11-seasons, and the ninth over a top-15 ranked team.

Arizona State opens up Big 12 tournament play on Tuesday, March 10 at 12:30 p.m. ET against Baylor at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri as the No. 12 seed in the bracket.

Bobby Hurley record at Arizona State

Here's a season-by-season breakdown of how Arizona State has fared under Hurley:

• 2015-16: 15-17 overall

• 2016-17: 15-18 overall

• 2017-18: 20-12 overall (NCAA Tournament)

• 2018-19: 23-11 overall (NCAA Tournament)

• 2019-20: 20-11 overall

• 2021-22: 14-17 overall

• 2022-23: 23-13 overall

• 2023-24: 14-18 overall

• 2024-25: 13-20 overall

• 2025-26: 16-15 *

* Denotes season still in progress

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Arizona State says Bobby Hurley exit reports 'premature'

The ‌food industry is being upended by consumers' changed eating habits as a result of the 12% of Americans ‌who have used GLP-1 drugs. While fast-food and snack companies are projected to lose billions of dollars in revenue due to the upheaval, peddlers of ​tangy, sweet or fiery sauces are benefiting and fetching more interest in the M&A marketplace, dealmakers say.

Two recent deals stand out: Japanese barbecue sauce Bachan's and hot sauce brand Tapatio. Both companies were sold in the last two months at above-average valuations and in competitive auction processes that attracted multiple bidders, people familiar with the deals said.

Specialty food products maker The Marzetti Company paid ‌approximately $400 million last month for Bachan's, which ⁠generated net sales of $87 million in 2025. On a February 3 earnings call following the announcement, Marzetti CEO David Ciesinski told investors Bachan's was "GLP-friendly."

Dallas-based private equity firm Highlander Partners bought California-based Tapatio ⁠in late January for an undisclosed sum, touting it as the No. 5 hot sauce brand in the U.S.

Highlander Partners President and CEO Jeff Hull said in the announcement that Tapatio was "poised to benefit from several secular trends that are dramatically reshaping consumer food ​choices."

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Among ​those: the rise in healthy, lean protein consumption. GLP-1 drugs can ​cause muscle atrophy, leading some users to bulk up ‌with proteins, which often spurs home chefs to raid the cupboard for dry rubs or marinades.

"The move towards protein, particularly meats and eggs, as well as vegetables and other healthier parts of the food pyramid – they don't always naturally have a lot of flavor. So, as people move away from processed foods to more wholesome areas, those naturally are an opportunity for a lot of these sauces and seasonings," said Justin Craig, managing director and head of food and beverage at investment ‌bank Moelis.

There's some science behind this. Patients taking GLP-1s have, in multiple ​studies, reported the drugs are dulling their taste buds.

Richard L. Doty, a ​professor at the University of Pennsylvania and director of ​the Smell and Taste Evaluation Center, found that GLP-1s significantly alter the body's sense of ‌taste, according to a recent study. Researchers led by ​Doty wrote in the March ​2025 ScienceDirect Journal that the medication significantly dulls all five basic tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter and savory.

With the emphasis on lean protein in diets, Ciesinski said there's been a rise in chicken consumption.

"And we all know ​that chicken tastes like chicken, so it ‌begs for flavor," he said in a statement to Reuters. Bachan's was "a perfect complement to our other brands," ​he said, which include Caesar Cardini's salad dressing and its own line of condiments.

(Reporting by Abigail Summerville ​in New York; Editing by Dawn Kopecki and David Gaffen)