• Chana Widawski handed in her notice after feeling burned out at work.
• She celebrated her 50th birthday with a yearlong sabbatical.
• Now 51 and back in New York, she says the sabbatical taught her to prioritize living over making a living.

Burnout is real, and so is turning 50.

As I neared both, I knew it was time for a sabbatical. I needed a break from my job as a social worker and from my hectic life in the concrete jungle of New York City. I craved travel and needed to recharge. I decided that it was time.

Sabbaticals are an almost foreign concept in my field and for most Americans in general. Losing both of my parents at a young age and working for years with families who had lost loved ones made it clear to me that life is short.

As with most things, dreaming it up was easy; actualizing was not.

I cherished many aspects of my job and life. I loved the neighborhood free store and composting initiative I started. I relished opportunities to dance and partake in happenings around the city.

But those all-too-familiar feelings of stagnation, burnout, and wanderlust prevailed. While I didn't quite know how I would spend my break or exactly when I'd start it, I handed in my notice.

It was transformative, even though my actual last day on the job came 6 months later.

In January 2023 my journey began. Single and without children or aging parents to care for, I was free of responsibilities and faced no objections to traveling into the next half-century of my life with positive energy and openness.

Traveling solo, at my own pace

I used the airline points I had accrued to book a one-way flight to India, unsure of how long I would stay or where I'd head next.

Eliminating my primary expense, housing, came easy, as a friend was more than happy to use my affordable, centrally located apartment in my absence.

Once abroad, I opted for the adventure of low-cost public transportation. This included a 24-hour bus journey from Kathmandu to Delhi and sitting on sacks of rice with someone's child on my lap for segments of a packed bus ride toward Muktinath in Nepal.

Similar to my life back in New York, I avoided lavish spending and saved money by living a socially conscious lifestyle — bicycling, camping, gardening, volunteering, foraging, eating home-cooked meals, and wearing secondhand clothes.

My background in social work gave me a sense of openness while I moved about the world.

I lived with the Lohani family in Nepal, volunteering on their farm and eating the best home-cooked dal baht, a rice dish with lentils. We hiked through the mountainside to join the entire village for its rice planting festival and for a baby's rice feeding ceremony.

Self-discovery through solo travel

I traveled slowly and covered a lot of ground, from Nepal and India to Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, both coasts of the US, and lots in between.

A friend from home joined me to trek the mountain villages of Svaneti, Georgia. I spent time with new friends at gatherings in Germany, a festival in the Czech Republic, a conference I presented at in Croatia, and on a canoe trip back in the US, on Utah's Green River.

But nothing compared to the powerful serendipities and exchanges I experienced while traveling alone.

On the day of my 50th, I didn't get any hugs, phone calls, or even text messages. My phone was in a drawer at the picturesque Kopan Monastery in Nepal while I spent 10 days in silence, with people from across the globe, learning, meditating, reflecting and just being. It was idyllic.

My sabbatical turned out to be more than just a break; it transformed my way of being.

Two years later, I'm back in New York.

I'm still in love with the city and still disillusioned by the rat race and concrete jungle. The trip taught me to continue to prioritize living over making a living.

The NIT semifinals have arrived, and it's Chattanooga taking on Loyola Chicago at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Tuesday night.

In a closed-door meeting on Monday night, President Trump's top economic advisers promised GOP senators they would show their work on how they plan to deliver 3% GDP growth to help lower the cost of the "one big, beautiful bill."

Why it matters: The promise of a booming economy, even if it includes some shock therapy, is central to Trump's overall theory on how businesses and individuals can receive tax cuts while deficits simultaneously can be reduced.

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• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett told Senate Finance Republicans last night they would share their plans later this week.
• "They were just very optimistic about how much growth we're going to have moving forward, and how popular this plan is and how important it is for our economic health," a senator familiar with the discussions told us.
• Some senators are willing to be persuaded that Trump can cut taxes and juice the economy like he did in his first term, but he has some work to do.

Zoom in: Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is dealing with three GOP factions that are colliding over the Trump budget bill.

1. Debt hawks: Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) expressed their concerns about the overall amount of deficit spending. Johnson wants to return to pre-pandemic spending, and Cassidy has been publicly saying that if a current policy baseline is used, Congress must pay for it. (Thune embraced a current policy approach today.)
2. Free traders want to know if the administration's rosy economic assumptions would include the expected impact of Trump's tariffs, which he's expected to announce tomorrow.
3. Medicaid defenders: Moderate Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) and others like Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) continue to question how deeply Trump and congressional Republicans want to cut Medicaid.

Between the lines: Trump officials are confident the real economy is faring much better than the equities market and they are optimistic that Friday's jobs report will show solid growth.

• Economic forecasters don't seem convinced. They continue to warn about the dangers of the reciprocal tariffs that Trump will announce.
• And the specter of stagflation — or the "S-word" as Axios' Neil Irwin calls it — is lurking.
• Senate leadership is barreling forward without the parliamentarian and hoping to vote on the new budget resolution this week. But Thune reminded senators they still need to make sure they have 51 votes.

The other side: Democrats are howling at the GOP's full embrace of using a current policy score to lower the cost of extending Trump's 2017 tax cuts.

• "The people who said they believed in fiscal discipline want to use funny money to give tax cuts to their billionaire buddies," Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) told Axios.
• "It is alarming to see — through press reports — that Republicans believe they don't need to defend their effort to hide the true cost of their multitrillion-dollar tax giveaways that will add trillions to the national debt while gutting programs hard-working families rely on," a spokesperson for Democrats on the committee said.

Russian president Vladimir Putin's close adviser Kirill Dmitriev is expected to visit Washington this week for talks on Ukraine with President Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, two U.S. official tell Axios. He'll be the most senior Russian visitor to Washington since the 2022 invasion.

Why it matters: Trump said Saturday that he was "pissed off" at Putin for his recent comments on Ukraine and warned of economic penalties if Russia blocks his ceasefire push. The visit from Dmitriev is a chance to break the stalemate in negotiations.

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• Dmitriev is the head of Russia's sovereign wealth fund and a senior member of Putin's negotiating team in the indirect ceasefire talks with Ukraine, which the Trump administration is mediating.

What they're saying: "His visit is part of ongoing efforts to get a ceasefire with Ukraine," a U.S. official said.

• CNN first reported on Dmitriev's visit.

Behind The scenes: Dmitriev is under U.S. sanctions, which the Treasury Department had to suspend for 7 days to allow the State Department to issue him a visa, according to a source with knowledge of the issue.

State of play: The indirect talks between Russia and Ukraine are stuck, U.S. officials say.

• While Ukraine agreed to all U.S. proposals for an unconditional ceasefire, and subsequently agreed to plans for a smaller-scale maritime ceasefire, the Russians laid out last week a series of new demands, including the lifting of some U.S. sanctions.
• The Russians made the new demands after three days of talks in Saudi Arabia — and after the White House had issued a statement saying Russia agreed to a ceasefire in the Black Sea.
• Russia's deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, said on Tuesday that while Russia takes the U.S. ceasefire proposals seriously, they do not address the "root causes" of the conflict.
• National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said Tuesday that Trump is frustrated with the Russian position but that talks continue.

A House Democrat is introducing long-shot legislation that would force billionaire Trump lieutenant Elon Musk and his staffers at DOGE to undergo routine drug testing, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) cited a Wall Street Journal report from 2024 that alleged Musk has used illegal drugs including LSD, cocaine, ecstasy, mushrooms and ketamine as the impetus for her bill.

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• DOGE spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment.
• An attorney for Musk told the Journal that Musk is "regularly and randomly drug tested at SpaceX and has never failed a test."

Driving the news: Sherrill's bill, a copy of which was first obtained by Axios, would require special government employees to undergo a drug test before they begin work and enter into a random drug testing program.

• Anyone who tests positive for certain illegal drugs would be barred from federal service for at least a year.
• Citing Signalgate, Sherrill said it is "more important than ever to protect the American people from the Trump Administration's reckless incompetence and blatant disregard for national security."

Between the lines: Musk and many DOGE staffers have been designated as special government employees.

• The Justice Department defines a special government employee as "anyone who works, or is expected to work, for the government for 130 days or less in a 365-day period."
• The title is usually used for subject-matter experts who are brought on to assist with specific projects.

What they're saying: "Those with access to sensitive information must be thoroughly vetted, clear-eyed, and exercise good judgment," said Sherrill, a former Naval aviator running for New Jersey governor.

• She argued the special government employees at DOGE should "be held to the same standard as other executive branch employees."
• That includes "conflicts of interest or passing a drug test to maintain employment or a security clearance," she said.

Reality check: Sherrill's bill is highly unlikely to become law any time soon as Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the White House.

Go deeper: Musk's DOGE days will eventually end, Trump suggests

Wisconsin voters on Tuesday will elect a single state Supreme Court member in a special election that will determine if the bench keeps its liberal majority.

Why it matters: The swing state race is the first major election in the U.S. since November and has become the most expensive judicial race in American history.

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• The winning candidate will serve a 10-year term.

About the candidates

State of play: The election has become a proxy battle for greater partisan political fights in the U.S., although both candidates are technically nonpartisan.

• Off-year elections typically see lower turnout than midterm and presidential elections, but the race will show the power of President Trump's coalition.

Brad Schimel, a Waukesha County Circuit Court judge and former state attorney general has been backed by Trump and Elon Musk.

• If he wins, the court will have a conservative majority until at least 2026.

Susan Crawford, a Dane County Circuit Court judge, has received support from former President Barack Obama and billionaire megadonor George Soros.

• If she wins, the court will have a liberal majority until at least 2028.

Context: The primary, initially scheduled for February, was canceled because only two candidates filed to run.

• Liberals have held a majority since 2023.

Elon Musk's involvement

By the numbers: Musk has spent millions on the race.

• It's the most expensive state Supreme Court race on record, at $68.1 million total spent on advertising as of March 26, per AdImpact.

Between the lines: Musk on Sunday gave $1 million checks to two people at an event in an effort to turn out the vote.

• Wisconsin's Supreme Court justices unanimously declined to hear a lawsuit alleging that Musk's actions violated state law.

Abortion, redistricting, voting rules on the table

The big picture: The state's Supreme Court, as of March 14, had pending cases concerning abortion rights, voting rules and legislative redistricting.

• In 2023, a liberal justice won a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat by 11 percentage points, which reflected an adverse reaction to the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, Michael Waldman, president and CEO of the Brennan Center for Justice, wrote in March.
• "This year, Republicans want the debate to be driven by support for Donald Trump in a state he won just a few months ago," Waldman wrote.

Go deeper: Exclusive: Elon Musk group's playbook in Wisconsin's court race

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional details.

• President Donald Trump said Willkie Farr & Gallagher pledged $100 million in pro bono work for "conservative ideals."
• Legal activists are calling for Doug Emhoff to resign and "stand on the side of the rule of law."
• Federal judges have blocked most of Trump's orders that target Big Law and their security clearance.

Willkie Farr & Gallagher, the law firm where Doug Emhoff, former Vice President Kamala Harris' husband, is a partner, is pledging at least $100 million in pro bono legal work for causes aligned with "conservative ideals," President Donald Trump said on Tuesday via social media.

Willkie would be the third top law firm to formalize such a deal with Trump, following similar pledges from Paul Weiss and Skadden.

"Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP proactively reached out to President Trump and his Administration, offering their decisive commitment to ending the Weaponization of the Justice System and the Legal Profession," said the White House, according to Trump's post on Truth Social.

Doug Emhoff and Willkie did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump's social media post also said that Thomas M. Cerabino, Chairman of Willkie Farr & Gallagher, stated that "the substance of that agreement is consistent" with the firm's views on access to legal representation by clients and that the firm has a "history of working with clients across a wide spectrum of political viewpoints."

The announcement comes amid a wave of executive orders from Trump targeting Big Law over their affiliations — both with political adversaries and with causes he has publicly criticized. These executive orders have included reviewing the security clearances of law firms and terminating their contracts with the government.

Most of these executive orders, including ones targeting Perkins Coie, WilmerHale, and Jenner & Block, have been blocked by federal judges — some indefinitely until an official ruling has been reached.

"Willkie Farr's capitulation to Trump is absolutely shameful," said Molly Coleman, executive director of the People's Parity Project, an organization of law students and attorneys. "Emhoff and other partners need to show they stand on the side of the rule of law by resigning — there's absolutely no other option."

"If anyone should have the courage to refuse to practice the law under Trump's thumb, it should be Doug Emhoff," she added.

Paul Weiss has also faced criticism for bowing to Trump's demands, and at least two lawyers have publicly resigned from Skadden before and after its agreement with Trump, with one calling the act "a craven attempt to sacrifice the rule of law for self-preservation."

Just a week after Trump was sworn in for his second term, Wilkie announced it had hired Emhoff as a partner. In 2023, Wilkie brought on Tim Heaphy, the former chief investigative counsel for the House select committee that probed the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

The firm represented Trump during a 1990s bankruptcy case and successfully defended his close ally, Thomas Barrack, in a 2022 federal case. The firm also represents X, the social media company now owned by Trump ally and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel hinted at a potential Joe Milton trade on NFL draft night when asked about Milton and the swirling trade rumors.

Former NBA great Carmelo Anthony shares his desire to be the owner of this Eastern Conference squad.

Republican Randy Fine is projected to win the race for Florida's 6th Congressional District, according to the AP.

Sen. Cory Booker's (D-N.J.) record marathon speech on the Senate floor won the floundering Democratic Party something it has desperately needed in the Trump era: attention and the applause of its base.

The big picture: Top Democrats believe they are in their deepest hole in nearly 50 years after losing the White House, Senate and House, and the party's base has grown impatient with leaders who haven't countered President Trump more aggressively.

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• Booker said his speech highlights the "recklessness" of the Trump administration, which has plowed ahead with efforts to radically reshape the federal government and its workforce.

By the numbers: As of 7:30pm Tuesday ET, his livestream had more than 76,000 views.

• AP's stream of the speech over 156,000 views, and another on X had more than 879,000.
• Since his speech began Monday night, Google searches for Booker spiked 1,000% — to more than half a million queries.

Between the lines: For a party that's been struggling with approval ratings and direction, Booker's more than 24-hour speech could be a turning point.

• After months of people begging Democratic leaders to step up against Trump's agenda, Booker's grand gesture — which appears to have support from a wide swath of Democrats — could impact public sentiment.
• Booker's stemwinder was the rare incidence of Democrats stealing the spotlight from Trump, who has commanded nearly every news cycle since returning to office.

Zoom in: "Senator Booker's marathon speech on the floor of Senate is intended to do two things," said Shana Gadarian, professor of political science at Syracuse University, in an emailed statement Tuesday.

• "First, bring attention to the threat that Booker and Democrats argue that Donald Trump poses to the health of American democracy and the welfare of the American public and two, be a rallying cry for other Democrats to act boldly with whatever means they have," Gadarian said.
• "Members of the minority party have fewer formal tools to enact their preferred policies but, in the Senate, they can stop action from happening, they can bring issues on to the agenda, and they can embolden other people in the party and in the public to articulate their values," Gadarian added.
• "Democrats across the country have been calling for more aggressive ways to counter the president and Elon Musk but also a more a clear articulation for what the party stands for. Booker is heeding that call."

Zoom out: Booker said in a social media video posted before he took the floor at 7pm ET Monday that he's heard calls from across the nation for lawmakers to "do more" to "recognize the urgency, the crisis of the moment."

• The former presidential candidate said "we all have a responsibility, I believe, to do something different, to cause, as John Lewis said, good trouble."

Go deeper: Cory Booker's marathon speech ranks among the Senate's longest

Editor's note: This article has been updated with comment from Syracuse University Professor Shana Gadarian, with the latest viewing figures and to reflect Sen. Cory Booker's record.

Trump's reciprocal tariffs take effect April 2, targeting nations like India and the EU. Here's who's hit, and how countries may respond.

• The US is officially extending the deployment of an aircraft carrier in the Middle East.
• The Pentagon is also directing a second carrier to the region while another moves into the Pacific.
• The force posture changes come amid high tensions between the US and Iran and its proxies.

American aircraft carriers are on the move as the US military reacts to the rising tensions in the Middle East.

The US is officially extending the deployment of an aircraft carrier in the Middle East and sending another to the region, the Pentagon announced on Tuesday. A third one is heading to the Western Pacific to maintain a US presence there amid the heightened focus on the Central Command area of responsibility.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group to stay in the Middle East region "in support of regional deterrence and force protection efforts," Sean Parnell, the chief Pentagon spokesperson, said in a statement.

The strike group led by the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman entered the US Central Command area of responsibility, which covers the Middle East, in mid-December to take over the Navy's yearlong fight against the Houthis in Yemen.

The US military has noticeably intensified its campaign against the Houthis in recent weeks as the Trump administration directs American forces to hit the rebels with airstrikes until they halt their attacks on Red Sea shipping. The Truman strike group has been involved in these efforts.

Parnell said that the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, which is led by the carrier USS Carl Vinson equipped with F-35C stealth fighter jets, will arrive in the Centcom area of responsibility "to continue promoting regional stability, deter aggression, and protect the free flow of commerce in the region" after it finishes a scheduled exercise in the Indo-Pacific.

It is unclear how long the two Navy carrier strike groups could overlap in the Middle East, but it's a notable show of force. The Navy last had two carriers in the region in the summer as the Houthis fired missiles and drones at ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The Pentagon's official force posture update confirms earlier reporting and comes amid high tensions between the Trump administration and Iran and the Tehran-backed Houthis.

Parnell said that Hegseth directed more aircraft to the Middle East. The US has been moving both A-10 attack planes and B-2 stealth bombers to the region. The Vinson also brings with it a considerable air wing.

"Secretary Hegseth continues to make clear that, should Iran or its proxies threaten American personnel and interests in the region, the United States will take decisive action to defend our people," the Pentagon spokesman said.

His comments echo those of President Donald Trump, who said on Monday the strikes against the Houthis will continue if the rebels don't stop attacking US ships. He warned that "the real pain is yet to come" for the Houthis and Iran.

As the US masses forces in the Middle East, the Pentagon said that the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group led by the aging USS Nimitz has started a deployment to the Western Pacific, where it will maintain the Navy's aircraft carrier presence there.

There have previously been concerns that an overemphasis on deploying carriers and other warships to the Middle East leaves gaps in the US force presence in the Indo-Pacific, which is home to top US rival China, a priority challenge.

• My newborn daughter had a traumatic ICU experience.
• The immediate outpouring of support from family and friends got us through.
• A care package from a former high school acquaintance provided immense comfort.

My daughter was two days old when she was hospitalized with bacterial sepsis. The blinking monitors and beeping machines of the ICU felt like the soundtrack to my worst nightmare. Every hour seemed to pass in a painful haze of I.V.s, seizure medications, and bad news.

When I could muster the energy, I turned to Facebook, posting small pieces of our daughter's journey and asking for prayers and encouragement.

Not wanting to leave our medically fragile child alone, my husband and I spent the nights sharing a cramped window seat as a makeshift bed or slumped over on the room's solo hardback chair. We had arrived at the hospital by ambulance empty-handed and frazzled, yet our community had immediately and graciously stepped up to help us.

Everyone supported us

My sister and her husband cared for our older child. My mom packed a suitcase with our clothes and toiletries and brought it to us. Friends delivered homemade meals, baked goods, additional clothes, and even fresh-squeezed juices that were gentlest on my stressed stomach. I'd never been more grateful for our friends and family. Seven years later, I still remember the minutest gifts and acts of service that sustained us in those dark hours.

However, one of the most generous offerings came from outside that close circle, and its unexpected thoughtfulness continues to amaze me.

A week into our hospital stay, I received a care basket from someone whose name was vaguely familiar. Where did I know her from? I repeated it several times before it hit me — an old high school friend I hadn't spoken to in 11 years.

And yet, more than a decade later, she'd taken the time to drive probably half an hour to an hour from home to deliver a care basket for my family and me. The generosity overwhelmed me.

Inside the basket, I found an inspirational, hardback journal, fuzzy socks, sweetly scented soaps, snacks, and other sweet offerings that spoke to her own experience as a mom of a sick child. In the card, she shared how her daughter battled cancer and how the things inside this basket were the things she felt she would have benefited from having during her long, difficult hospital stays, including the socks for the cold, sterile floors.

The generosity moved me

It's one of the most moving examples of generosity I've ever experienced, and to this day, the memory floods me with gratitude

My daughter made a full, miraculous recovery. She is a healthy, strong 7-year-old — it's easy to forget she was ever on the cusp of death because her life's so full of vitality. But I never want to forget what that care basket and other gifts, meals, and thoughtful gestures meant to my family. They are why I am convinced it's important to always show up for others facing hard circumstances.

Since my own experience in the hospital, I have tried to pay it forward to other families in crisis by delivering meals, offering a listening ear, or sending a care package of my own. Because I know, from the deepest part of my heart, that in the darkest hour, even the smallest act of kindness brings hope.

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