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Monday, February 16, 2026
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Good Morning! On this day in 1923, British archaeologist Howard Carter opened the tomb of Egypt’s King Tutankhamun some 3,000 years after he was laid to rest. Carter had been searching for the tomb for five years.
The Winter Olympics have brought a slew of big moments, but today’s standout is pure romance: former Team USA ice dancer Jean-Luc Baker proposed to Spanish skater Olivia Smart on Valentine’s Day in Milan, turning a former rivalry into an engagement.
Later today, expect The Feel Good Flyover edition in your inbox and The Feel Good Flyover podcast in your earbuds. Why not start your week with a dose of happy? Reply to this email to let us know what your favorite part of the edition is.
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 Board of Peace Pledges $5B
President Trump announced Sunday that members of his newly created Board of Peace have pledged $5 billion toward Gaza reconstruction efforts and will commit thousands of personnel to maintain security.
The pledges will be formally announced at the board’s inaugural meeting on Feb. 19 at the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace in Washington.
Indonesia became the first firm commitment, with up to 8,000 troops expected to be ready by June for potential deployment as part of a humanitarian mission.
More than 20 countries have accepted invitations to join, including Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. The UN estimates Gaza’s full reconstruction needs at roughly $70 billion.
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Olympic Rivals Get Engaged
Former Team USA ice dancer Jean-Luc Baker proposed to Spanish skater Olivia Smart on Valentine’s Day in the streets of Milan, exactly four years after confessing his love to her at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. See photos here.
Smart and Baker were once rivals who competed against each other at two World Championships and the Beijing Games, where Smart finished eighth, and Baker placed 11th in ice dance. Baker won bronze in the team event at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics with partner Kaitlin Hawayek, but hasn’t competed since 2023 due to injuries.
Smart, 28, recently finished ninth with partner Tim Dieck at the Milan Games. Baker, 32, carried the engagement ring throughout Smart’s competition, waiting for her events to conclude before popping the question.
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Chart: Political Affiliation by Generation
More than half of Gen Z and Millennials now identify as political independents rather than Republicans or Democrats, according to new Gallup data.
Among Gen Z, 56% identify as independent compared to just 17% Republican and 27% Democrat, while 54% of Millennials also reject party labels. This marks a dramatic shift from previous generations—in 1992, only 40% of Gen X identified as independent at the same age.
The trend reverses among older Americans. The Silent Generation remains the most partisan, with roughly seven in 10 identifying with either major party after coming of age during the post-WWII era and early Cold War. Overall, 45% of all U.S. adults now identify as independents, up from one-third two decades ago.
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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. Clicking the link will take you directly to these stories:
➤ Forensic experts are urging officials to reopen Kurt Cobain’s death as a homicide case. (Hear Why)
➤ A new national poll ranked U.S. presidents with one clearly winning. (Hear Who)
➤ More adults are hitting pause on work and taking mini-sabbaticals. (Hear Details)
  
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➤ A shutdown at the Department of Homeland Security that began early Saturday is forcing Transportation Security Administration officers to keep screening travelers without pay while Congress remains deadlocked on DHS funding. (More)
➤ Border czar Tom Homan said in an interview Sunday that he doesn’t like the masks worn by ICE agents during immigration enforcement but argued that they are necessary for safety amid a 1,500% increase in assaults on agents. (More)
➤ Former President Obama said of aliens in a podcast interview released Saturday that, “They’re real, but I haven’t seen them.” He added that no aliens are kept in Area 51 “unless there’s this enormous conspiracy, and they hid it from the president of the United States.” (More)
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➤ Tyler Reddick captured the Daytona 500 on Sunday, passing Chase Elliott on the final lap after their cars made contact, and Elliott crashed at Daytona International Speedway. Driving the No. 45 Toyota for 23XI Racing, co-owned by Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin, Reddick led only the final circuit to claim the win in NASCAR’s season-opening race. (More)
➤ Collin Morikawa won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Sunday, closing with a 5-under 67 for a one-shot victory at 22-under par. Morikawa birdied the par-5 18th to secure his seventh PGA Tour title and his first since 2023. (More)
➤ NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said on Saturday that the league has seen an uptick in tanking this season and is considering stronger penalties. Silver said the recent fines were intended as a warning and that the NBA may consider forfeiting draft picks or changing the lottery system. (More)
➤ Jamaica’s men’s soccer unveiled new home and away kits on Friday, ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, collaborating with the Bob Marley Foundation on red, green, and gold designs honoring the reggae icon. (See Kits)
➤ Yesterday’s Results: Daytona 500 | NCAAM | NCAAW | NCAAB | NCAASB | Soccer | Golf
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| 2026 Winter Olympics is brought to you by:
 The United States beat Germany 5–1 in Olympic men’s hockey preliminary play, finishing unbeaten in group stage and earning a direct quarterfinal berth. (See Details)
Italy’s Federica Brignone captured her second gold medal of these Olympics in giant slalom, her fifth Olympic medal overall, while American Mikaela Shiffrin finished 11th, extending her medal drought to eight straight Olympic races. (More)
Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale won Britain’s first-ever Winter Olympics gold medal on snow Sunday in Livigno, Italy, taking the mixed snowboardcross title. (See Details)
Curling controversy erupted as Canadian and British teams face accusations of illegal double-touching stones, with video evidence circulating on social media sparking heated denials from athletes. (More)
Yesterday’s Results: Daily Events | Global Medal Tracker
Yesterday’s U.S. Medal Count: 🥇5 | 🥈8 | 🥉4
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➤ Major hotel chains, including Hyatt and Holiday Inn, are eliminating or scaling back free breakfast offerings as operators seek to reclaim roughly 5% of revenue consumed by the amenity. (More)
➤ OpenAI has officially retired its GPT-4o model, which is known as a more conversational and flattering version of ChatGPT and is mentioned in multiple wrongful death lawsuits against OpenAI. (See Details)
➤ The Food and Drug Administration announced a recall of tens of thousands of peanut butter packs across three Ventura Foods products, saying that the butter might contain foreign material in the form of blue plastic. (More)
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➤ The International Space Station is fully staffed at seven again after four astronauts docked on Saturday. They replaced four astronauts who came home early due to a medical issue. (More)
➤ A SpaceX rocket launch left behind a stunning display in the desert sky Friday. The glowing spiral visual, sometimes called a space jellyfish, often occurs during dusk launches when conditions are clear. (See Photo)
➤ The International Skating Union will incorporate AI into its judging format for figure skating competitions starting in July, with the intent to let human judges focus “on the artistry, on the human element,“ while AI looks “more at the technical, the cut-and-dry aspects.” (More)
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➤ Scientists have uncovered a surprising “deep-space” solution to one of astronauts’ biggest health threats: toenail fungus. Long missions created the perfect breeding ground—but this newly discovered antifungal breakthrough can help clear yellow, brittle nails for good. Now available to the public, learn more in this short video.
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➤ Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Majid Takht-Ravanchi, said that Iran is willing to discuss compromises on its nuclear program, including diluting 60% enriched uranium, if the U.S. is ready to talk sanctions relief. (See Details)
➤ Kim Jong Un’s 13-year-old daughter is being positioned as North Korea’s next leader, but may face a deadly succession fight with her 38-year-old aunt Kim Yo Jong, the regime’s second most powerful figure. (More)
➤ 9.5 billion trips are expected during China’s Lunar New Year celebration this year in what is considered the world’s largest human migration. The 40-day observance ushering in the Year of the Horse kicked off Sunday. (More)
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➤ U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn announced via social media that she was cleared to return home after a fourth surgery on her broken leg “went well.” Vonn broke her tibia when she crashed in the downhill race at the start of the Milan Olympics. (More)
➤ Summer Worden, formerly married to astronaut Anne McClain, has been sentenced to federal prison for falsely accusing McClain of illegally accessing her bank account while aboard the International Space Station. (See Details)
➤ A shipwreck search team says it has found the Lac La Belle, a luxury steamer that sank in a Lake Michigan gale in 1872, about 20 miles offshore between Racine and Kenosha, Wisconsin. (See Details)
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 Daily Quote
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“It’s kind of a game, like solve the puzzle. Sometimes you don’t have many pieces to put the puzzle together but this one worked out and we found it right away.”
— Paul Ehorn, Illinois shipwreck hunter, on discovering the wreck of the Lac La Belle in Lake Michigan
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Today’s Trivia
