Tracy Mumford

It could get pushed through as soon as this morning.

It's the same bipartisan deal that had been floated last week before President Trump and Republicans in the House angrily rejected it.

Since then, there have been behind-the-scenes talks at the White House and on Capitol Hill about how to break the stalemate.

While Congress is technically in the middle of a spring break recess, there are special sessions today that could allow the measure to pass.

That requires, though, that not a single lawmaker object.

And some hard-right Republicans could still throw a wrench in things.

They see the deal as caving to Democrats because it specifically leaves out new funding for ICE and Border Patrol.

And high above the Earth.

NASA's Artemis II mission has now successfully begun its journey to the moon.

It's at the very start of a mission that will take it 250,000 miles away from Earth as it passes all the way behind the moon.

It's expected to make it there on Monday before using the moon's gravity to swing back to Earth without needing to use any power from its engines.

Other than a brief hiccup with the comms and an undisclosed issue with the toilet on board that was resolved, the mission seems to be going well, though the head of NASA said yesterday that, quote, we will hold our celebration until this crew is under parachutes and splashes down.

In other news on the space front, The Times has learned that SpaceX, Elon Musk's rocket and satellite company, is quietly planning to go public.

Yesterday, the company filed confidentially for an IPO, an initial public offering, according to two people familiar with the plan.

That could bring in a huge infusion of cash, possibly tens of billions of dollars.

But it would also force the company to become more transparent.

Musk has made big promises about the company's goals, like creating a colony on the moon, sending people to Mars, and launching floating AI data centers into orbit, many of which are unproven long shots, and going public would amp up the pressure to deliver.

One investment manager whose firm has a stake in SpaceX said he thinks it's a terrible time to go public right now, given the global economic upheaval.

But he said Musk needs cash to fund the expensive, ambitious projects he's pitched.

SpaceX values itself at more than a trillion dollars, and it would be one of the most valuable companies ever to reach the stock market.