The Supreme Court is poised to rule on Trump’s presidential immunity case today. Biden’s family discussed the future of his campaign as donors look for other options. And the gymnasts who will compete for Team USA at the Paris Olympics have been selected.
Here’s what to know today.
Supreme Court set to rule on Trump immunity in election interference case
The Supreme Court is expected to issue its ruling today on whether former President Donald Trump can claim immunity from prosecution for at least some of his actions in seeking to overturn the 2020 election.
Chief Justice John Roberts announced that Monday would be the last day of rulings in the current nine-month court term, with the Trump case one of four yet to be decided. They will be issued one by one, starting at 10:00 a.m., with the Trump case most likely to be the last.
The legal question before the court is “whether and if so to what extent does a former president enjoy presidential immunity from criminal prosecution for conduct alleged to involve official acts during his tenure in office,” the order said. The court has already faced fierce criticism from the left — both for hearing the Trump case in the first place, thereby preventing a trial from taking place in March, and taking so long to decide it, making it difficult if not impossible for a trial to begin before the election.
Trump faces a four-count indictment for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election that culminated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, in which a mob of his supporters sought to prevent Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s election.
The justices could set a new test for determining what official acts receive immunity and then send it back to lower courts to determine how that affects Trump’s indictment. But time is running short for a trial to take place before November’s election, in which Trump is seeking to regain power.
Read more on the Supreme Court rulings:
- The Supreme Court overturned a 40-year-old precedent that was targeted by the right because it was seen as bolstering the power of “deep state” bureaucrats.
- Amy Coney Barrett — one of Trump’s three appointees to the nine-justice court — is at times unwilling to indulge the more extreme arguments that reach the court.
- The Supreme Court ruled in favor of a former police officer who was seeking to throw out an obstruction charge for joining the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
Biden’s family urges him to ‘keep fighting’ as donors look for alternatives
As Democrats offered support for Biden throughout the weekend, his advisers worked privately to push back against suggestions that he step aside, with his campaign manager describing the mechanics of replacing him on the ticket as messy and impractical.
During a tense call with a group of about 40 of Biden’s financial backers, campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez laid out what could and could not be done with the campaign’s infrastructure if Biden were to step aside while emphasizing throughout the call that he had no intention of doing so. Jen O’Malley Dillon, the chair of the Biden campaign, is also set to hold a call with a larger group of donors tonight, according to two sources familiar with the plans.
The call was just one of a series of similar conversations top Biden advisers and campaign leaders have been holding with Democratic officials and donors after Biden’s halting debate performance rattled the party elite.
Meanwhile, Biden’s family met and discussed the future of his campaign during a long-planned gathering at Camp David, Maryland. The message from Biden’s children and grandchildren, together for a photo shoot Sunday with famed photographer Annie Leibovitz, was to “keep fighting,” said two sources familiar with the discussions.
Read more:
- Top Biden allies came to his defense across the Sunday news programs, acknowledging the president’s subdued debate performance, but arguing that he remains the strongest contender against Trump.
- Rep. Jamie Raskin acknowledged that there are “very honest, and serious and rigorous conversations taking place” in the Democratic Party about Biden’s political future.
Far-right ‘at the gates of power’ after historic France election result
France’s far-right swept to victory in the first round of legislative elections after President Emmanuel Macron’s almighty gamble backfired. Now the centrist leader and the country’s left, reeling from the historic results, are scrambling to thwart the National Rally (RN) in the decisive second round and prevent France’s first far-right government since the Nazi occupation in World War Two.
According to official results released by the country’s interior ministry early Monday, Marine Le Pen’s party and allies led the way with 33% of the vote, a bloc of left-wing parties followed in second with 28% and Macron’s centrist alliance trailed in third with just 20%. Turnout was unusually high, adding to the sense of volatility and the clear rebuke for the president and his governing party.
What’s next? While first-round results offer a picture of overall voter sentiment, what the French National Assembly will be made up of remains to be seen as parties regroup, make alliances in some constituencies and pull out of others ahead of the runoff vote on July 7.
Hurricane Beryl closes in on Caribbean as dangerous Category 3 storm
Hurricane Beryl is closing in on the southeastern Caribbean as a dangerous Category 3 storm, with meteorologists warning of “life-threatening winds and storm surge.”
The storm was expected to make landfall Monday morning on the Windward Islands, with maximum rainfall of up to 10 inches expected in the Grenadines and up to 6 inches across Barbados, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said early Monday. Hurricane warnings were in effect for Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Grenadine Islands, Grenada and Tobago.
“This is a very dangerous situation,” the NHC said in a separate post early today, pleading with residents to heed local government warnings to take shelter.
Morgan Freeman calls out TikTok video that used AI replication of his voice
Oscar winner Morgan Freeman spoke out after a TikTok creator pretended to be his “nepo niece” by replicating his voice with artificial intelligence.
In what the creator later stated was an “obvious joke,” TikTok account Justine’s Camera Roll had posted a video in which she claimed to be Freeman’s niece. The vlog, which went viral after it fooled some users on X, had an AI-generated version of Freeman’s voice narrating the influencer’s day. The actor, whose distinct voice has made him heavily sought-after in film narrations, shared a statement on social media thanking internet users who pointed out that the voice was fake.
“Thank you to my incredible fans for your vigilance and support in calling out the unauthorized use of an A.I. voice imitating me,” he wrote. “Your dedication helps authenticity and integrity remain paramount. Grateful. #AI #scam #imitation #IdentityProtection.”
Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles and more named to U.S. Olympic gymnastics team
The gymnasts who will compete for Team USA at the Paris Olympics have been confirmed after this weekend’s trials in Minneapolis. NBC News reporter Kaetlyn Liddy attended the trials and logged the most exciting moments. Here’s what you missed:
Simone Biles, Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, Jade Carey and Hezly Rivera made the women’s team and are heading to Paris. Joscelyn Roberson and Leanne Wong were named as alternates. With four returning Tokyo Olympians, it is the oldest and most-decorated U.S. Olympic women’s gymnastics team in history. Biles, 27, will be the oldest female American gymnast to compete at the Olympics in 72 years.
The men’s team was also named over the weekend: Frederick Richard, Brody Malone, Paul Juda, Asher Hong and Stephen Nedoroscik are going to Paris. After the team announcement, Malone said the U.S. men are determined to earn a medal at the Olympics for the first time since 2008.
More Olympics highlights:
- Quincy Wilson is set to become the youngest male American track Olympian at 16 after being selected for the U.S. 4×400 meter relay team.
- Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won the 400-meter hurdle final and set a world record for the event at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials on Sunday.
- Gabby Thomas beat Sha’Carri Richardson in the highly anticipated 200-meter final of the U.S. Olympic track and field trials.
Politics in Brief
Wind energy: The U.S. is way behind Europe and its own wind power targets, but a giant ship nearing completion in Texas could give a jolt to the industry.
Steve Bannon: Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon is continuing to defend the actions that resulted in his four month prison sentence that begins today.
Election 2024: NBC News’ national polls show a huge swing toward Trump among voters who skipped recent national elections versus voters who cast ballots in 2020 and 2022.
McCarthy replacement: Kevin McCarthy’s congressional replacement is bringing Asian representation to a deep-red California district. Vince Fong, the son of Chinese immigrants, is the first Asian American to represent California’s 20th District in Congress.
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Staff Pick: What is ‘queer food’?
In 2019, right before the pandemic began, I made my first sourdough starter. She’s still alive, nearly five years later, and I’ve become what some in the LGBTQ community would call a “baking gay.” So when my editor asked me to write about “queer food,” I was interested. The term has become increasingly popular as LGBTQ people have claimed certain foods and drinks. What I didn’t expect to find was a rich, decades-long history of queer food, including what is essentially a cookbook-turned-gossip-magazine about Pablo Picasso, an AIDS humor zine (yes, you read that right) with a cooking column called “Get Fat, Don’t Die” and a national network of LGBTQ potlucks.
— Jo Yurcaba, NBC Out reporter
