Daily Briefing: It's Super Tuesday

Super Tuesday – the day when more than a dozen states and territories hold their primary elections – has long had the power to reshape a presidential race. Also in the news: For the first time ever, Americans can get birth control pills without a prescription. Eagles' legend Jason Kelce delivered an emotional retirement announcement.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. Use these tips to use AI in your daily life.

Here is the news to know Tuesday.

Why Super Tuesday matters in 2024

Super Tuesday promises to answer pressing questions for voters across the country in 2024's already complicated election cycle. Americans in 15 states and one territory will vote in presidential primaries, in addition to a number of heated congressional contests, as well as the first gubernatorial primary in the competitive swing state of North Carolina.

The questions Tuesday may answer: Will Nikki Haley drop out of the GOP presidential race? Will Donald Trump attract moderates? Will President Joe Biden overcome opposition among liberal voters caused by his support of Israel?

• While Super Tuesday can’t clench the Republican nomination for Trump, Tuesday could very well boost him closer to the finish line.

• Former South Carolina governor Haley has repeatedly said she has no plans to drop out of the 2024 race for the White House. But Tuesday has the potential to deliver one of the heaviest blows to her campaign, and speculation has grown about her next steps.

• Trump will remain on primary ballots for Colorado and all states for the 2024 presidential election, the U.S. Supreme Court announced in a unanimous ruling just ahead of Super Tuesday.

Related: Joe Biden's problem with angry liberal voters isn't going away on Super Tuesday.

VP Harris meets with Netanyahu rival amid rising tension with Israel

Vice President Kamala Harris met Monday with Benny Gantz, a member of Israel’s wartime Cabinet and centrist political rival of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a sign of growing White House frustration with the Israeli government. The White House meeting, which was not authorized by Netanyahu, marked a major test for President Joe Biden's relationship with the Israeli leader. The U.S has become increasingly at odds with Netanyahu over Israel's refusal to scale back the war in Gaza and its efforts to get humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians. Read more

• How will the Israel-Gaza war shape Super Tuesday and beyond for Gen Z?

More news to know now

• A librarian sued Texas county after being fired for refusing to remove banned books.

• Over 10 feet of snow in Tahoe brings snowfall totals above average after a March blizzard.

• Fraternities and sororities at the University of Maryland are suspended amid a hazing probe.

• A new satellite will "name and shame" large-scale polluters.

• On today's The Excerpt podcast, half of Americans who applied for loans in the past two years were turned down. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your smart speaker.

What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

America's first over-the-counter birth control pill will be available soon

More than 50 years after the oral contraceptive pill went on the market in the United States, the country's first over-the-counter birth control pill will be available in stores and online nationwide later this month. Known as Opill, the birth control pill will be available without prescription in major retailers and pharmacies in late March, the drug's maker, Perrigo, announced. Opill, which is 98% effective at preventing pregnancy, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in July 2023. Read more about Opill.

More news about reproductive rights:

• Vulnerable House Republicans are "all talk, no action" on IVF after Alabama ruling.

• France became the only country to enshrine the right to abortion in its constitution.

• North Carolina's gubernatorial race is a bellwether on abortion in America.

• CVS and Walgreens will carry the abortion pill mifepristone within weeks.

Jack Teixeira pleads guilty to massive leak of Pentagon secrets on social media site Discord

The Massachusetts Air National Guard member charged with sharing hundreds of classified documents on social media, which led to punishment for 15 service members, pleaded guilty to all six charges against him. Airman 1st Class Jack Teixeira had been charged with six counts of willful retention of defense records for allegedly sharing classified documents through the social media platform Discord. The leaks exposed embarrassing secrets and analysis from across the U.S. intelligence community involving Russia's war in Ukraine and North Korea's race to develop nuclear weapons. Read more

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The best moments from Jason Kelce's emotional retirement speech

An NFL legend, Philadelphia Eagles icon and big brother, Jason Kelce announced his retirement on Monday. An often-emotional farewell press conference felt like far more of a family affair than a business decision with Jason's younger brother, Travis Kelce, sitting nearby. A speech peppered with instant classics was at its heart a long list of memories from Kelce's life around the NFL and football. There wasn't a dry eye in the house, especially from the two Kelces who have dominated this sport for over a decade. Read more

Photo of the day: Tumbleweeds overwhelm Utah neighborhoods

Videos shared online show massive amounts of tumbleweeds swarming parts of Utah, even stacking several feet high around homes. In Pahrump − just outside of Death Valley National Park − tumbleweeds could be seen sweeping roads in every direction. Read more

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Support journalism like this – subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Associated Press contributed reporting.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Super Tuesday, Israel-Hamas war, birth control, Jack Teixeira, Jason Kelce: Daily Briefing