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12:30 REPORT
It’s Thursday. And what a busy morning it is. The Trump trial resumed and has already had some fireworks today. Here’s what’s happening:
- One of former President Trump’s criminal trial jurors was excused this morning. She was concerned about her identity being revealed to the public.
- Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) foreign aid package has been moving along. The text has been released, and President Biden says he would sign it into law.
- The bipartisan TikTok ban bill could pass as part of the foreign aid package.
- A little girl asked lawmakers questions on the House floor. It’s adorable and worth watching.
I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send tips, commentary, feedback and cookie recipes to cmartel@thehill.com. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up here.
💰Trump’s Criminal Trial
Actually, make that *six* jurors…:
One of the selected jurors in former President Trump’s historic criminal trial was excused this morning. The woman’s family and friends were able to recognize her from media reports — and she was concerned about being identified. The judge slammed the press for publishing information about the jurors.
What now?: The brings the number of selected jurors from seven to six. A total of 12 jurors and six alternates are needed to begin the trial. The judge brought in another batch of 96 prospective jurors this morning.
How to follow the trial: Here is The Hill’s live blog for highlights and updates from the courtroom. Zach Schonfeld is covering the trial from the courtroom
➤ TRIAL HIGHLIGHTS TODAY:
📸 Photos of Trump in the defendant’s seat: He’s sporting a bright blue tie today.
Trump stayed seated: The former president didn’t stand as he was introduced to the new group of 96 prospective jurors. The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld noted that Trump stood and smirked when was introduced to the last batch of 96 possible jurors.
Did Trump violate the gag order?: Prosecutors accuse Trump of violating his gag order seven more times since Monday, including posting about prospective jurors. His lawyers pushed back.
What Trump posted about prospective jurors: Trump, who is barred from making statements about any juror or prospective juror, criticized prospective jurors on Truth Social, “They are catching undercover Liberal Activists lying to the Judge in order to get on the Trump Jury.” He credited this claim to Fox News’s Jesse Watters. Trump’s Truth Social post
Trump took a phone call: Trump took a short phone call right after entering the courtroom.
➤ HOW TRUMP IS CAPITALIZING OFF THE MEDIA SPECTACLE:
The Hill’s Brett Samuels explains how the Trump campaign is taking advantage of the hush money trial spectacle. The trial has been getting a ton of attention, and Trump’s aides note that his remarks outside the courtroom have been getting “wall to wall” coverage. As did his campaign stop at a bodega in Harlem on Tuesday. (The Hill)
📱 In Congress
A TikTok ban could pass soon:
Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) plan to pass a foreign aid bill is to split it up into four separate, à la carte votes. Then, House lawmakers can pick and choose which parts they like. Those bills include aid to Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan — and then a fourth, catchall bill that includes Republican national security priorities.
Well, included in that catchall bill is a U.S. ban on TikTok, unless the Chinese Communist Party divests from the app.
Read more on what else is in that catchall bill: ‘GOP unveils national security bill as last piece of Ukraine aid package’
By the way: Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) says she supports the bipartisan TikTok bill once the time frame for forced divestment was changed from six months to a year.
➤ ANOTHER PIECE TO THE FOREIGN AID PUZZLE:
President Biden said Wednesday he supports the three bills that had been unveiled by that time (Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan aid) — and said he would sign them into law.
➤ AND TO THROW CONSERVATIVES A BONE:
House Republican leaders unveiled a new border bill to appease conservatives who are unhappy that the foreign aid package doesn’t include any border security measures. Conservatives don’t seem to buy it, though.
➤ JOHNSON’S IN A TOUGH SPOT:
The Hill’s Mike Lillis and Mychael Schnell that “momentum is growing quickly behind the effort to remove Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) from power if he moves to alter the motion to vacate rule as part of a package of foreign aid that’s expected to pass through the House this weekend.”
A possibility: “Johnson is reportedly flirting with a proposal to raise the threshold for forcing a vote on a motion to vacate, which can currently be called by a single lawmaker. That would reverse an agreement that former GOP leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) cut with conservatives in January of last year as a condition of gaining their support for his Speakership.” (The Hill)
➤ A PROBLEM WITH THIS PROCESS BEING DRAWN-OUT FOR MONTHS:
The Hill’s Laura Kelly pointed out that after months of delays in giving Israel and Ukraine aid, they have expended more resources and raised questions about whether the $95 billion national security package will be enough.
Read more: ‘Ukraine, Israel aid package faces major challenge: Lost time’
➤ INTERESTING READS ON THE TIKTOK BAN:
The New York Times published an interesting story idea of “how an obscure Chinese real estate startup paved the way to TikTok.”
“Court records, mistakenly made public, tell a story about the birth of ByteDance, its bumpy road to success and the role of the Republican megadonor Jeff Yass’s firm.” (The New York Times)
Plus: ‘What a TikTok Ban Would Mean for the U.S. Defense of an Open Internet’
I swear I saw Jeff Bezos get his impeachment articles dismissed yesterday…:
The Senate voted to dismiss the impeachment articles against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Thursday, preventing a lengthy trial and ending the GOP-led saga that many deemed political.
No, but really. I can’t look at a Mayorkas photo without first thinking it’s Jeff Bezos...
How it went down: Instead of a floor trial or referring it to a special committee to handle, the Senate just dismissed the impeachment articles outright. Republicans tried several motions to delay the dismissal, but those failed on party-line votes. The Senate voted 51 to 49 to dismiss the impeachment. Full explainer
🐝 Internet Buzz
🦒 Celebrate: Today is National Animal Cracker Day!
🎤 The cutest video I’ve seen today: Rep. Morgan McGarvey (D-Ky.) posted a video of a 5-year-old girl asking lawmakers questions on the House floor with a tiny microphone. It has more than 1.3 million views so far. 📽️ Watch the clip
👗 This dress ~ruffled~ some feathers: The Hill’s Judy Kurtz and Amie Parnes report that social media users have been critical of the dress Lauren Sánchez, the TV host-turned-philanthropist and fianceé of Amazon founder and The Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos, wore to the recent White House state dinner. (The Hill)
📗 Nancy Pelosi is writing a memoir: Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is publishing her memoir, titled “The Art of Power,” on Aug. 6.
🗓 On The Agenda
The House and Senate are in. President Biden is in Philadelphia this afternoon. Vice President Harris in in Washington, D.C. (all times Eastern)
- 12:45 p.m.: Biden holds campaign events in Philadelphia. Btw, several Kennedy family members are expected to endorse Biden today. 😬
- 1 p.m.: A Senate cloture vote on FISA. (More votes are expected today.) 📆 Today’s agenda
- 4:55 p.m.: Biden returns to Washington, D.C.
👋 And Finally…
Let’s close this thing out with something entertaining. Watch this panda try to contain its sneeze.
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