Politics
- PoliticsAssociated Press
Key takeaways from the opening statements in Donald Trump's hush money trial
Monday's opening statements in the first criminal trial of a former American president provided a clear roadmap of how prosecutors will try to make the case that Donald Trump broke the law, and how the defense plans to fight the charges on multiple fronts. Lawyers presented dueling narratives as jurors got their first glimpse into the prosecution accusing Trump of falsifying business records as part of a scheme to squelch negative stories about him during his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump
7 min read - PoliticsNBC News
2024’s remarkably, stubbornly stable race — for now
The Biden-Trump contest has been remarkably stable — and remarkably competitive — with what movement there's been coming within the margin of error.
4 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
The Supreme Court will decide whether Trump is immune from federal prosecution. Here's what's next
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week with profound legal and political consequences: whether former President Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a federal case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. In addition to establishing a potentially historic ruling about the scope of presidential power, the court’s decision — whenever it comes — will undoubtedly go a long way in determining a trial date for Trump in one of the four criminal prosecuti
6 min read - PoliticsBusiness Insider
It looks like Trump might regret RFK Jr.'s campaign
President Joe Biden leads former President Donald Trump in an NBC News survey when third-party candidates like RFK Jr. are in the mix.
2 min read - USAssociated Press
Man who attacked police after storming US Capitol with Confederate flag gets over 2 years in prison
A Kentucky man who stormed the U.S. Capitol while carrying a Confederate battle flag was sentenced on Monday to more than two years in prison for pepper spraying two police officers in the face, partially blinding them for hours during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot. Isreal Easterday was 19 years old when he joined a mob of Donald Trump supporters in invading the Capitol. Chief Judge James Boasberg cited Easterday's youth as a reason for handing down a prison term — two years and six months — that was
4 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Trump's $175 million bond in New York civil fraud judgment case is settled with cash promise
New York state lawyers and an attorney for former President Donald Trump settled their differences Monday over a $175 million bond that Trump posted to block a large civil fraud judgment while he pursues appeals. The agreement cut short a potential day-long court hearing in Manhattan that was to feature witnesses. As part of a deal struck during a 20-minute recess, lawyers for Trump and Knight Specialty Insurance Company agreed to keep the $175 million in a cash account that will gain interest
2 min read - PoliticsReuters
Biden sets new target to protect vast US water sources
The Biden administration on Tuesday set a new goal to protect vast U.S. water sources, from rivers to wetlands, as part of a series of announcements marking Earth Week. The administration plans to announce a new goal of protecting, restoring and reconnecting 8 million acres (3.2 million hectares) of threatened wetlands and 100,000 miles (161,000 km) of rivers and streams, according to White House documents. The White House, which is hosting a water summit on Tuesday, also plans to pledge $1 bi
1 min read - PoliticsReuters
In Florida, Biden to blame Trump for abortion ban
President Joe Biden visits Tampa, Florida, on Tuesday to tie opponent Donald Trump to new abortion restrictions, hoping to boost his own chances in a state that has drifted out of Democrats' reach in recent elections. Earlier this month, Florida's Supreme Court cleared the way for a six-week abortion ban starting May 1, a time-frame before many women realize they are pregnant. Biden's re-election campaign quickly declared battle, saying he would win the state in November because of the ban.
3 min read - PoliticsHuffPost
Why Biden Thinks He Has A Shot Now At Winning Florida
Trump won the Sunshine State's 29 Electoral College votes in 2020. But Biden's campaign thinks a critical ballot measure puts the state in play for Democrats.
3 min read - WorldAssociated Press
$8 billion US military aid package to Taiwan will 'boost confidence' in region: president-elect
A $8 billion defense package approved by the U.S. House of Representatives over the weekend will “strengthen the deterrence against authoritarianism in the West Pacific ally chain,” Taiwan’s President-elect Lai Ching-te said Tuesday, in a reference to key rival China. The funding will also “help ensure peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and also boost confidence in the region” Lai, currently Taiwan’s vice president, told visiting Michigan Representatives Lisa McClain, a Republican, an
2 min read - WorldAssociated Press
Modi accused of hate speech for calling Muslims 'infiltrators' at a rally days into India's election
India's main opposition party accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using hate speech after he called Muslims “infiltrators" — some of his most incendiary rhetoric to date about the minority faith in a campaign rally days after the country began its weekslong general election. At the rally on Sunday in the western state of Rajasthan, Modi said that when the Congress party was in government, “they said Muslims have the first right over the country’s resources.”
4 min read - PoliticsBusiness Insider
Trump's all-caps, high-octane rage posting is even more intense than it was during his 2016 campaign: report
Donald Trump posts 29 times a day on Truth Social, a Washington Post analysis has found.
3 min read - WorldAssociated Press
As Blinken heads to China, these are the major divides he will try to bridge
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is starting three days of talks with senior Chinese officials in Shanghai and Beijing this week with U.S.-China ties at a critical point over numerous global disputes. The mere fact that Blinken is making the trip — shortly after a conversation between President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, a similar visit to China by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and a call between the U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs — might be seen by some as encouraging, but ti
5 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
What to know about the Supreme Court case about immunity for former President Trump
The Supreme Court has scheduled a special session to hear arguments over whether former President Donald Trump can be prosecuted over his efforts to undo his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden. The case, to be argued Thursday, stems from Trump's attempts to have charges against him dismissed. Lower courts have found he cannot claim for actions that, prosecutors say, illegally sought to interfere with the election results.
6 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Pennsylvania's primary will cement Casey, McCormick as nominees in battleground US Senate race
Tuesday's Pennsylvania primaries will cement the lineup for a high-stakes U.S. Senate race between Democratic Sen. Bob Casey and Republican challenger David McCormick, a contest that is expected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars and could help decide control of the Senate next year. Casey, seeking his fourth term, is perhaps Pennsylvania's best-known politician and a stalwart of the presidential swing state's Democratic Party — the son of a former two-term governor and Pennsylvania’s long
5 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
In Tampa, Biden will assail Florida's six-week abortion ban as he tries to boost his reelection odds
President Joe Biden is wading deeper into the fight over abortion rights that has energized Democrats since the fall of Roe vs. Wade, traveling to Florida to assail the state’s forthcoming ban and similar restrictions that have imperiled access to care for pregnant women nationwide. Tuesday's campaign visit to Tampa takes Biden to the epicenter of the latest battle over abortion restrictions. The state’s six-week abortion ban is poised to go into effect May 1 at the same time that Florida vote
5 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Trump could avoid trial this year on 2020 election charges. Is the hush money case a worthy proxy?
Former President Donald Trump faces serious charges in two separate cases over whether he attempted to subvert the Constitution by overturning the results of a fair election and illegally remain in power. Trump is charged in the so-called hush money case with trying to falsify business records, but it was hard to tell that as the trial opened Monday. Lead prosecutor Matthew Colangelo wasted little time during opening statements tying the case to Trump's campaigning during his first run for the
6 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Republican candidates vying for Indiana governor to take debate stage
Candidates seeking the Republican nomination for Indiana's next governor will take to the debate stage Tuesday night, two weeks ahead of the state's May 7 primary election. Each of the six candidates in the competitive, multi-million dollar primary race have cast themselves as an outsider in an appeal to conservative voters, despite five holding statewide roles at some point. Tuesday is the last televised debate before the primary for the candidates vying to replace term-limited Republican Gov
2 min read - USAssociated Press
US advances review of Nevada lithium mine amid concerns over endangered wildflower
The Biden administration has taken a significant step in its expedited environmental review of what could become the third lithium mine in the U.S., amid anticipated legal challenges from conservationists over the threat they say it poses to an endangered Nevada wildflower. The Bureau of Land Management released more than 2,000 pages of documents in a draft environmental impact statement last week for the Rhyolite Ridge mine. Lithium is a metal key to the manufacture of batteries for electric
5 min read - BusinessAssociated Press
Trump called this visa 'very bad' for Americans. Truth Social applied for one
The social media company founded by former President Donald Trump applied for a business visa program that he sought to restrict during his administration and which many of his allies want him to curtail in a potential second term. Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind Truth Social, filed an application in June 2022 for an H-1B visa for a worker at a $65,000 annual salary, the lowest wage category allowed under the program. Federal immigration data shows the company was approved f
5 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump says RFK Jr. will hurt Biden. In private, he’s not so sure.
After mostly ignoring Kennedy earlier, Trump has stepped up his efforts to brand the independent candidate as left-wing and make him Biden’s problem.
7 min read - WorldNBC News
Papua New Guinea leader defends nation after Biden's 'cannibals' comment
Papua New Guinea’s leader defended the nation after President Joe Biden appeared to imply his uncle’s body was eaten by “cannibals” there during World War II.
3 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Biden to speak at Morehouse College commencement, sparking faculty concerns
Morehouse College is set to announce that President Joe Biden will deliver its commencement address on May 19, but some faculty members have raised concerns about the decision.
3 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Rousing a sleeping giant: Trump perks up as testimony begins in hush money trial
No one will ever accuse former President Donald Trump of being woke.
4 min read - PoliticsNBC News
The remarkably stable 2024 race: From the Politics Desk
The 2024 presidential race between Joe Biden and Donald Trump has been remarkably stable, NBC News polling shows, despite the drama of the campaign.
5 min read - PoliticsNBC News
Trump's lawyers argue 'democracy' in response to 'porn star payoff' allegations. What you missed on Day 5 of his trial.
More than a year after securing an indictment, New York prosecutors for the first time on Monday laid out their case against Donald Trump in a courtroom.
5 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Without cameras to go live, the Trump trial is proving the potency of live blogs as news tools
They watched from the courtroom or via closed-circuit television in an overflow room — roughly 140 reporters, most with laptops or other silenced electronic devices, serving up news at its most elemental and in rapid-fire fashion. Observations on how Donald Trump is reacting. “Let me give you some quotes to make you feel like you’re inside the courtroom,” MSNBC’s Yasmin Vossoughian said before reading the reports of colleagues.
4 min read - PoliticsBusiness Insider
Trump cedes control of the cash collateral for his $175M civil-fraud bond under new agreement with NY officials
The GOP frontrunner and his bond underwriters agreed Monday to keep the cash in what's essentially a Trump-proof lockbox while he appeals.
2 min read - PoliticsThe Guardian
Trump on Trial: Prosecutors call hush money ‘a scheme to corrupt the 2016 election’
Former president Donald Trump’s first criminal trial got going in earnest today with opening statements from prosecutors and defense
5 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Tennessee's GOP governor says Volkswagen plant workers made a mistake in union vote
Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee said Monday that he thinks workers at a Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga made a mistake by voting to unionize under the United Auto Workers in a landslide election but acknowledged the choice was ultimately up to them. Ahead of the vote, Lee and five other Southern Republican governors spoke out publicly against the UAW's drive to organize workers at factories largely in the South, arguing that if autoworkers were to vote for union representation, it would jeop
2 min read - PoliticsReuters
Factbox-Key quotes from Trump's criminal hush money trial
Opening statements kicked off on Monday in the criminal hush money trial of Donald Trump and the first prosecution witness, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, took the stand. Trump has pleaded not guilty to falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment made by Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
3 min read - USAssociated Press
Iowa lawmakers address immigration, religious freedom and taxes in 2024 session
After a marathon day that stretched into Saturday's early hours, Iowa lawmakers wrapped up a four-month legislative session that focused on reforming the way special education is managed and speeding up tax cuts. The Republican-led General Assembly also waded into issues like immigration and religious freedom, which have proven core to the party's 2024 campaign message. Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, pushed many priorities through the Legislature after submitting 18 requests for bill drafts,
5 min read - PoliticsThe Guardian
Trump’s hush-money trial: what happened on 22 April at a glance
Donald Trump is the first former president to face criminal charges. Here’s what you need to know about the New York case
4 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Biden will send Ukraine air defense weapons, artillery once Senate approves, Zelenskyy says
President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday the U.S. will send badly needed air defense weaponry once the Senate approves a massive national security aid package that includes $61 billion for Ukraine. Zelensky said in a posting on X that Biden also assured him that a coming package of aid would also include long-range and artillery capabilities. Ukraine is awaiting U.S. Senate approval after the House this weekend approved the $95 billion package that also includ
3 min read - PoliticsYahoo News
Trump trial updates: Prosecutors say Trump engaged in criminal conspiracy and a cover-up. Defense lawyers call it 'democracy.'
Former President Donald Trump's historic trial on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records got underway in Manhattan on Monday.
3 min read - PoliticsAssociated Press
Supreme Court denies request by Arizona candidates seeking to ban electronic vote tabulators
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider a request by Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake to ban the use of electronic vote-counting machines in Arizona. Lake and former Republican secretary of state candidate Mark Finchem filed suit two years ago, repeating unfounded allegations about the security of machines that count votes.
2 min read - USNBC News
Supreme Court to decide if Biden administration can regulate 'ghost guns'
The Supreme Court will consider whether the Biden administration can regulate so-called ghost guns — firearms that can be assembled from online kits.
3 min read - PoliticsBusiness Insider
Hush money isn't illegal, it's 'democracy,' Trump lawyer says in defiant trial opening statements
Opening statements in Donald Trump's hush-money trial began Monday. A prosecutor said the case is about a "criminal conspiracy and a coverup."
7 min read - PoliticsReuters
Ex-Japan PM Aso to meet with Donald Trump on Tuesday
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Former Japanese prime minister Taro Aso, a senior figure in the country's ruling party, will meet Donald Trump on Tuesday, a Trump campaign official said, as the U.S. ally continues to ramp up engagement with the Republican presidential candidate. Japan has been trying to connect with people close to Trump ahead of the Nov. 5 U.S. election, reflecting concerns that if he wins, the former president could resurrect protectionist trade measures or take other steps that could
2 min read - WorldAssociated Press
South Africa's ANC loses another court case against rival party led by former president Zuma
South Africa's ruling African National Congress lost a second court case against a new rival party fronted by former President Jacob Zuma on Monday. A judge in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in the eastern city of Durban dismissed the ANC's case alleging copyright infringement against the MK Party for using a name and a logo the ANC claims ownership of. The MK Party was formed late last year and was given added importance ahead of a national election in May when former ANC leader Zuma joined.
2 min read - USReuters
US Supreme Court to hear challenge to Biden's 'ghost guns' curbs
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide the legality of a federal regulation aimed at reining in homemade "ghost guns" as President Joe Biden's administration combats the increasing use of these largely untraceable weapons in crimes nationwide. The justices took up the administration's appeal of a lower court's decision finding that the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) exceeded its authority in issuing the 2022 rule targeting part
4 min read - PoliticsThe Guardian
Liz Cheney urges US supreme court to rule quickly on Trump’s immunity claim
Republican former congresswoman writes in New York Times that 2020 election interference case must go to trial before November
3 min read - USAssociated Press
Supreme Court will take up the legal fight over ghost guns, firearms without serial numbers
The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to take up a Biden administration appeal over the regulation of difficult-to-trace ghost guns that had been struck down by lower courts. The justices by a 5-4 vote had previously intervened to keep the regulation in effect during the legal fight. Ghost guns, which lack serial numbers, have been turning up at crime scenes with increasing regularity.
2 min read - PoliticsNBC News
The Jewish vote could play a huge role in 2024. Pennsylvania is about to put up an early test.
Jewish voters are right in the middle of the fight for control of the White House and Congress in 2024.
13 min read - USPolitico
Gavin Newsom and House Republicans find common cause on homelessness
The Democratic governor and GOP representatives like Darrell Issa are asking the Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that prohibits the dismantling of homeless encampments.
2 min read - WorldReuters
Russia says new U.S. aid to Ukraine will not change situation on battlefield
A new U.S. package of military aid to Ukraine will not change the situation on the front lines, where Russia has the upper hand, the Kremlin said on Monday. The U.S. House of Representatives on Saturday approved more than $60 billion in new aid for Ukraine which has been held up in Congress for months, causing Kyiv's forces to run low on ammunition. "The Russian armed forces are improving their positions at the front... The money allocated and the weapons that will be supplied will not change
1 min read - PoliticsReuters
Biden unveils $7 billion for rooftop solar in Earth Day message
TRIANGLE, Va. (Reuters) -President Joe Biden on Monday celebrated Earth Day by announcing $7 billion in grants for residential solar projects that will power nearly a million low-income households. Biden revealed the funding in a speech at Prince William Forest Park in Triangle, Virginia, where he also announced that applications are open to join the American Climate Corps, a program to prepare young people for jobs in climate-related industries. Young voters, who tend to be more concerned abo
3 min read - PoliticsReuters
VP Harris to unveil nursing home rules in battleground state of Wisconsin
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to the political battleground state of Wisconsin on Monday to announce two final rules aimed at improving access to long-term care and ensuring the quality of care-giving jobs, a White House official said. The White House said Monday's announcements finalized two rules first announced in September as part of U.S. President Joe Biden's pledge to crack down on nursing homes that endanger resident safety, and to improve access to high-quality care. Ha
2 min read - PoliticsPolitico
Robert Kennedy Jr. pivots right on climate change — but sharpens his threat to Biden
The scion of the Kennedy political dynasty is drawing attacks from both Democrats and Republicans — and from his former environmental allies, who call him "no different than Donald Trump."
11 min read - USAssociated Press
Local election workers fear threats to their safety as November nears. One group is trying to help
The group gathered inside the conference room, mostly women, fell silent as the audio recording began to play. The male voice, clearly agitated, railed against what he thought had been fraud that cost former President Donald Trump reelection four years ago. The call had been directed at one of their own, a city clerk who had overseen elections in 2020 in her suburban Detroit community.
5 min read
