Morning Rundown: Biden after debt standoff, cause of deadly train crash in India,and Taylor Swift phenomenon

In today’s newsletter: President Biden shifts gears after signing the bipartisan debt ceiling deal. A sonic boom alarmed Washington D.C. residents after fighter jets were scrambled. Plus, the likely cause of the devastating train crash in India.

Here's what to know today.

The debt limit deal has been signed, sealed and delivered. What’s next for Biden?

Now that President Biden officially signed the bipartisan debt ceiling agreement over the weekend, he is planning to shift focus back to his shadow re-election campaign.

The campaign was only days old when treasury secretary Janet Yellen warned the U.S. was weeks away from running out of money. The ensuing few weeks triggered ominous economic warnings and fresh reminders of the deep divides in Washington.

Even though the bill averted economic catastrophe, the biggest victory for Biden may have been something that wasn’t listed in the text of the document: the fact he was able to put together a bipartisan approach to solve the debt crisis. As he looks toward 2024, his campaign will point to the achievement to burnish his image with voters as a consensus-builder who’s making strides on his promise to unite the country.

The early phase of Biden’s 2024 campaign aims to showcase him as a drama-free leader who has defied expectations in working across the aisle.

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Russia says Ukraine launched a major attack in the east

Russia said that Ukraine’s military had launched a significant attack in a bid to break through its defenses on the war’s eastern front lines.

Kyiv did not confirm or deny the claims, made by officials in Moscow and the country’s influential military bloggers, but did caution against Russian misinformation. It was not immediately clear if this marked the beginning of the major counteroffensive that Kyiv has been preparing for months to reclaim land occupied since last February’s invasion.

The Russian defense ministry said in an overnight statement that Ukrainian ground forces had launched “a large-scale offensive” at five areas in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine late yesterday.

Fighter jets scramble to private plane that ultimately crashed

A sonic boom shook the Washington D.C. region yesterday, as F-16 fighter jets were scrambled at supersonic speeds to intercept a private plane whose pilot was unresponsive, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command, known as NORAD.

NORAD said pilots tried multiple times to contact the pilot until the moments before the plane crashed near George Washington National Forest. One senior government official said the plane may have run out of fuel. No survivors had been found, and the search was suspended. Officials said four people were onboard.

Signal error blamed for deadly India train disaster

An error in an electronic signaling system that led a train to incorrectly change tracks and crash was the cause of the accident in eastern India that killed nearly 300 people and injured hundreds more, according to officials.

A preliminary report signed by railway officials and obtained by NBC News found that a signal was given to the high-speed Coromandel Express to enter the main track line, but that signal was later taken off. The train then entered another line, and crashed into a goods train that was parked there. Another incoming train then crashed into the overturned coaches and also derailed, the report said.

Authorities said about 400 of the 1,175 injured remained hospitalized, only a day after rescue efforts to find survivors were halted. The reported cause of the train crash emerged as families from across India rushed to the site of missing loved ones while workers rushed to restore service.

▼ Today’s Talker

Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has ignited fans to get creative...

… by gathering outside packed stadiums after being shut out of the disastrous Ticketmaster concert sales in the fall. Diehard Swifties came together in stadium parking lots to hear their favorite tunes and not miss out on one of the biggest tours of the year.

▼ Politics in Brief

Classified docs: A grand jury that has been hearing evidence in the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump is expected to meet this coming week in Washington after a hiatus.

Meet the Press: Chuck Todd will be departing NBC’s “Meet the Press” in the coming months after nine years of hosting the talk show.

Election 2024: Republican candidates challenging Trump for the 2024 presidential nomination criticized him for congratulating North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Truth Social.

▼ Staff Pick

Drag icons who made ‘herstory’

For this year’s NBC Out Pride 30 list, we wanted to choose a theme that was both relevant and fun — and drag queens were the obvious choice. The art of drag, which has deep roots in the LGBTQ community, has been around for centuries, but it has only recently become a hot-button political issue. This year’s list celebrates 30 of the most iconic drag performers in modern history, from a queen who dared to roam the streets of London in the 1700s to the stars of the Emmy-winning show “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”—Brooke Sopelsa, editorial director of NBC Out

▼ In Case You Missed It

A record surge of viruses this past winter has some experts concerned about what summer could look like.

The body of one of three men who had been missing after the partial collapse of an apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, has been found.

An 18-year-old Pennsylvania man was shot and killed after he allegedly hit two state troopers with his car.

A woman who had been imprisoned for 20 years over the deaths of her four children was pardoned after new evidence suggested they died of natural causes.

The U.S. military has released a video showing a close encounter between a Chinese warship and an American destroyer in the Taiwan Strait over the weekend.

▼ Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

Each month, our Select team tries tons of new products to see if they should get a stamp of approval. Now they’re sharing the products they think are worth your money, from skin care to tech. Here are the 10 products our editors tired and loved last month.

Thanks for reading today’s Morning Rundown. Today’s newsletter was curated for you by Elizabeth Both. If you’re a fan, please send a link to your family and friends. They can sign-up here.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com