What to know today
- The Trump administration is seeking to cut all remaining ties to Harvard and intends to ask agencies to end contracts with the university, a senior administration official said. The move comes amid a standoff over the Ivy League school's policies addressing antisemitism on campus.
- President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to a prisoner exchange, Russia's foreign minister said. The deal, the first since last month, and comes as the United States seeks to broker a peace deal to end the Russia-Ukraine war.
- Trump also threatened to withhold funding from California if it doesn't stop a transgender high school girl from competing in track and field finals.
- Several members of Congress are holding town halls today as members return to their districts for recess. Some congressional events have turned contentious over the last several months as people criticized Trump administration policies.
Trump to pardon reality TV couple convicted on federal fraud charges
Trump called two of the children of imprisoned reality television couple Todd and Julie Chrisley from the Oval Office today, informing them of his plans to pardon their parents as soon as tomorrow.
The pair, known for their roles on the TV show “Chrisley Knows Best,” sought pardons from Trump in February after they were convicted of bilking banks out of tens of millions of dollars in 2022, NBC News reported.
A judge had handed down sentences of 12 years for Todd Chrisley and seven years for his wife, Julie Chrisley, in November 2022 after an Atlanta jury found them guilty of fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States following a weekslong federal trial.
Third judge finds Trump EO targeting a law firm 'unconstitutional'
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has blocked Trump’s executive order targeting the big law firm WilmerHale, finding it is “unconstitutional” and retaliatory.
“I have concluded that this Order must be struck down in its entirety as unconstitutional. Indeed, to rule otherwise would be unfaithful to the judgment and vision of the Founding Fathers!” U.S. District Judge Richard Leon, a Reagan appointee, said in a 73-page ruling permanently blocking the order from taking effect.
Trump's order had cited the firm's work representing immigrant, civil rights cases and election cases that run counter to his agenda as reason to yank government contracts, revoke security clearances and impose other sanctions on the firm.
He also pointed to the firm's hiring of Robert Mueller, the former special counsel who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election, as a reason for the order.
Leon wrote, "This viewpoint discrimination is 'an egregious' violation of the First Amendment!"
"President Trump can 'share [his] views freely and criticize particular beliefs, and [he] can do so forcefully in the hopes of persuading others to follow [his] lead.' He cannot, however, 'use the power of the State to punish or suppress disfavored expression,'” Leon wrote.
In a statement today, WilmerHale said, "The Court’s decision to permanently block the unlawful executive order in its entirety strongly affirms our foundational constitutional rights and those of our clients. We remain proud to defend our firm, our people, and our clients."
Two other federal court judges in Washington issued similarly strongly worded rulings in favor of two other firms the president's orders targeted, Perkins Coie and Jenner & Block. A fourth firm, Susman Godfrey, is also challenging a Trump EO in court. Other firms have evaded Trump's sanctions by pledging to do millions of dollars in pro bono work for causes he supports.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville launches run for governor of Alabama
Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville is running for governor of Alabama, he announced today with the launch of a campaign website.
If he wins, the long-expected move will cap a whirlwind decade for Tuberville. In 2016, he was still the University of Cincinnati’s head football coach (he previously coached at Auburn University in Alabama). In 2020, he won a seat representing Alabama in the Senate, his first foray into elected office.
He could end 2026 as the governor-elect. Tuberville is seeking to succeed Kay Ivey, a fellow Republican who is finishing her second term and cannot run for a third.
His prominence in Alabama, driven by his football career, helped jump-start his political turn, with Tuberville framing himself as a political outsider who still sports the moniker “coach.”
Trump pardon attorney Ed Martin received pardon applications for members of Proud Boys, Oath Keepers
U.S. pardon attorney Ed Martin personally received pardon applications for members of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, including members who were convicted of seditious conspiracy, a former classmate of Trump who is working on the issue told NBC News.
Martin posted photos of him meeting with attorney Peter Ticktin over the weekend, and Ticktin said he delivered pardon applications to Martin last week.
"He had done recommendations for pardons — I listened! Cuz he’s wise," Martin wrote.
Politico first reported whom the applications were for. Enrique Tarrio reposted Martin's post, as did the Proud Boys' Zach Rehl.
"There’s a good deal of reason to be hopeful," Ticktin, who went to the New York Military Academy with Trump, told NBC News.
"No promises were made as to what would be done. That’s not the way it works. We present it and then we hope for the best," Ticktin said.
Ticktin said he expected the applications to go to Alice Johnson, the White House pardon "czar."
Martin was named pardon attorney after his nomination to take over the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia on a permanent basis stalled in the Senate. He is also director of the Weaponization Working Group.
In his conversation with NBC News, Ticktin floated a conspiracy theory about the 2020 election, saying the real insurrection was not the Jan. 6 riot but the 2020 election itself, and he compared Jan. 6 to the Reichstag fire.
"So really, what happened on Jan. 6? Was it a whole bunch of people that got unruly because they were upset over the results of the election, or was this planned in advance by the people that were behind Biden? We know that Biden didn’t fix the election. Joe Biden couldn’t fix a flat tire. So who fixed it? Who did that?" Ticktin said.
Trump demands California stop trans girl from competing in state high jump finals
Trump threatened to withhold federal funding if California does not stop a transgender girl in high school from competing in state track and field finals and said he would discuss it with Gov. Gavin Newsom today.
Trump, in a social media post, appeared to be referring to AB Hernandez, 16, who has qualified to compete in the long jump, high jump and triple jump championship run by the California Interscholastic Federation at a high school in Clovis this weekend.
Trump Media says it’s raising $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin
Reporting from Las Vegas
Trump Media announced a $2.5 billion raise from institutional investors today to bankroll one of the largest bitcoin treasury allocations by a public company.
Shares of the company fell about 10% following the news. It’s the latest and most ambitious move in its evolution from a free-speech social platform to a financial services player.
CDC ends Covid vaccine recommendation for healthy kids and pregnant women
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced today that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will no longer recommend routine Covid shots for healthy children and pregnant women.
“We are now one step closer to realizing @POTUS’s promise to Make America Healthy Again,” Kennedy said on X.
Obama world loses its shine in a changing, hurting Democratic Party
After Kamala Harris entered the presidential race last year, she reached out to Barack Obama campaign alum Jim Messina to help lead her White House bid.
But when Messina shared news of the vice president’s offer with a friend, he got a stern warning.
“I said, ‘Jim, if you get involved in this, it’ll be political suicide,’” Democratic megadonor John Morgan, a longtime Harris critic, recalled of his conversation with Messina, who served in Obama’s White House and managed his successful 2012 re-election campaign. “You’re going to be a loser. And your whole shine is you’re undefeated.”
Messina declined the job. And after Harris lost to Trump, it may not have been a bad move.
David Plouffe, long hailed as the brilliant architect of Obama’s 2008 victory, served in a key role in Harris’ campaign and is now among those tagged with a devastating defeat.
“The shine’s off Plouffe now. He was the golden boy,” Morgan said. “Now he’s just an old broken-down boy who lost. Big.”
While many Democrats still admire Plouffe’s successes, the harsh words punctuated a growing sentiment across a party searching for a path forward: Team Obama’s bloom may be falling off the rose.
Sen. Chuck Grassley urges Trump to sanction Russia
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, urged Trump today to hit Russia with more sanctions.
"I believe president trump was sincere when he thought his friendship w Putin wld end the war. Now that 'game over,'" Grassley wrote on X in his signature shorthand.
Grassley made a similar plea yesterday on X: "I’ve had enuf of Putin killing innocent ppl. Pres Trump Take action AT LEAST SANCTIONS."
Over the weekend, Trump declared on Truth Social that he has "always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him." He said Putin has "gone absolutely CRAZY."
In a post today, Trump wrote, “What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realize is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He’s playing with fire!”
Supreme Court rejects student’s challenge to ‘two genders’ T-shirt ban
The Supreme Court declined to hear a Massachusetts student’s challenge to his middle school’s prohibition on his wearing a T-shirt bearing the slogan “There are only two genders.”
The case arose from student Liam Morrison’s dispute with Nichols Middle School in Middleborough.
Supreme Court turns away Native American lawsuit over copper mine on sacred land
The Supreme Court declined to consider whether Native Americans can challenge a massive copper mining project in Arizona that would destroy a sacred site used for tribal ceremonies, a weighty dispute that pitted religious rights against business interests.
The court rejected an appeal brought by the nonprofit group Apache Stronghold asserting that its members’ religious rights will be violated if the Resolution Copper mine goes forward because it would obliterate Oak Flat, the site in question.
Stocks set to surge after Trump resets E.U. tariff deadline
Stocks were poised for large gains early today after Trump said he was resetting a deadline to impose tariffs on the European Union.
Futures indicated that the three major U.S. stock indexes were set to open more than 1% higher when markets open at 9:30 a.m. ET. The price of gold, which has been moving in the opposite direction of stocks in recent months, fell more than 2%.
Trump says he's 'extremely satisfied' with 50% tariff on E.U. as bloc seeks meetings
Trump said in a post on Truth Social that he was "extremely satisfied with the 50% Tariff allotment on the European Union," adding that 27-nation bloc was working to set dates for talks.
His message comes after he threatened the tariff rate Friday and said over the weekend that he extended the deadline to avoid the rate to July 9.
"I have just been informed that the E.U. has called to quickly establish meeting dates," Trump said in his post. "This is a positive event, and I hope that they will, FINALLY, like my same demand to China, open up the European Nations for Trade with the United States of America."
Putin and Trump agree to prisoner exchange, Russia says
Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, have agreed to an exchange of prisoners, Russia’s foreign minister said today.
“President Trump is a man who wants results,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in Turkey, claiming that Trump’s efforts were being “sabotaged” by some European countries as he referred to ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire in Ukraine.
NPR sues Trump over executive order cutting federal funding
National Public Radio sued Trump today over his executive order to cease all federal funding for the nonprofit broadcaster.
Trump’s May 1 order violates the First Amendment’s protections for speech and the press and steps on Congress’ authority, NPR and three other public radio stations claim in the lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, D.C.
Some members of Congress to hold town halls today
Some members of Congress are holding town halls today after returning to their districts for recess after the House passed a massive bill to advance Trump's agenda.
Reps. Mike Flood, R-Neb., Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., have scheduled town halls in their states.
Recent town halls for Republican lawmakers in particular have been derailed by attendees booing lawmakers and protesting government decisions. Republican leaders ultimately advised GOP lawmakers to avoid in-person town halls, arguing there were more efficient ways to reach constituents.
Trump administration to ask agencies to cut ties with Harvard
The Trump administration aims to cut all remaining ties with Harvard University and will ask federal agencies today to find ways to end their contracts with the Ivy League school, a senior administration official said.
“GSA will send a letter to federal agencies today asking them to identify any contracts with Harvard, and whether they can be canceled or redirected elsewhere,” the senior official told NBC News, referring to the General Services Administration.
The development was first reported by The New York Times.
The General Services Administration told administration officials in a letter that it "is assisting all federal agencies in a review for termination or transition of their federal government contracts with Harvard University and affiliates."
In the letter, obtained by NBC News, the agency's federal acquisition service commissioner, Josh Gruenbaum, accused Harvard of engaging in "race discrimination" and "a disturbing lack of concern for the safety and wellbeing of Jewish students."
"We recommend that your agency terminate for convenience each contract that it determines has failed to meet its standards, and transition to a new vendor those contracts that could be better serviced by an alternative counterparty," the letter said. "Going forward, we also encourage your agency to seek alternative vendors for future services where you had previously considered Harvard."
Gruenbaum asked agency officials to provide a report of their actions or intended actions on Harvard contracts by June 6.
An administration official confirmed to NBC News that about 30 contracts worth an estimated $100 million would be under review.
The move is the latest escalation in a monthslong standoff between the Trump administration and Harvard over the school's policies on addressing antisemitism on campus.
Trump said yesterday in a post on Truth Social that he was considering cutting $3 billion in grant money to what he called “a very anti-Semitic” Harvard and giving those funds to trade schools instead.
FBI deputy director says bureau will pour resources into cases including Supreme Court leak and cocaine at the White House
Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino said yesterday that his agency will revive or devote more resources into several investigations of unsolved cases from the Biden administration that have “garnered public interest” and have long ignited claims of corruption by allies and supporters of Trump.
Bongino identified three cases that he said pointed to “potential public corruption,” including an investigation into a pair of pipe bombs that were found near the Democratic Party and the Republican Party headquarters Jan. 6, 2021, and the discovery of a bag of cocaine at the White House in 2023.
Sen. Ron Johnson says there’s enough opposition in the Senate to hold up Trump’s ‘big, beautiful’ bill
As the Senate prepares to consider the sprawling domestic package that House Republicans passed last week, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said he thinks there are “enough” Republicans to “stop the process” in order to prioritize stronger reductions in spending and the national deficit.
The Wisconsin Republican has criticized the bill’s impact on the deficit, characterizing outsize spending as “mortgaging our children’s future.” The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the bill would add $2.3 trillion to the federal deficit over 10 years.