What to know today
- UKRAINE MISSILES: President Donald Trump announced during a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that the U.S. will send Patriot missiles to Ukraine to help it defend itself against Russian attacks. He also threatened to impose severe secondary tariffs on Russia if the two sides fail to reach an agreement to end the war.
- EDUCATION DEPARTMENT LAYOFFS: The Supreme Court this afternoon said that the Trump administration can move forward with plans to dismantle the Department of Education through mass layoffs. The court’s three liberal justices dissented.
- NEW YORK CITY MAYOR'S RACE: Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that he will continue his candidacy for mayor of New York, as a third-party candidate, after losing to Zohran Mamdani in last month’s Democratic primary. Cuomo will also be competing against Mayor Eric Adams, who’s running as an independent.
- EPSTEIN FILES: The White House said in a statement that top Justice Department officials are working "in lockstep" following reports that Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino clashed over the department's handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
Landlord seeks to evict Republican congressman over unpaid rent at D.C. apartment
Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla., is facing a lawsuit seeking his eviction over alleged failure to pay thousands of dollars in rent at a property in Washington, D.C., according to court papers.
In a complaint filed in D.C. Superior Court last week, Bozzuto Management Company said the congressman did not pay a total of $85,009 in rent between March and July. Monthly rent for the property, according to the court filing, is $20,833.
The management company is asking the court to allow it to evict Mills and for an order requiring that he submit future monthly payments with the court until the case is resolved. An initial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 8.
Rep. Mike Lawler says he wants to meet with Trump before making decision on N.Y. gubernatorial bid
Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., told NBC News today that his decision on whether to run for governor is coming “very soon,” adding that he plans on meeting with Trump first.
NBC News previously reported that GOP leaders and the White House would prefer that Lawler, who represents a key swing district, pass on a gubernatorial bid and instead run for re-election in the House. Trump endorsed Lawler for his House seat in May.
House Republican Elise Stefanik, who reported raising over $2 million in the second quarter of 2025, is expected to jump into the governor’s race. Party leaders are less worried about defending her seat, which Stefanik won by 24 percentage points in November.
Appeals court prevents end of Temporary Protected Status for about 11,000 Afghans in U.S.
An appeals court this evening granted a temporary pause on the termination of what's known as Temporary Protected Status for Afghans living in the United States.
The order from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, which extends through next Monday, allows time for both parties in the lawsuit to brief the court on the issue, and for the court to issue a broader ruling before next week's deadline.
A federal judge in Maryland last week denied a motion seeking a similar pause.
About 11,000 Afghans continue to rely on the protection of Temporary Protected Status to live and work in the United States. They would have lost protection at midnight tonight if not for the court's ruling. TPS protection for Afghans was first granted in May 2022.
Senate confirms Trump's first judicial nominee of his second term
The Senate today voted 46-42 along party lines to confirm Whitney Hermandorfer, Trump’s first judicial nominee of his second term, to serve as an appeals court judge for the 6th Circuit. Twelve Senators — seven Republicans and five Democrats — did not vote.
Hermandorfer clerked for Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Samuel Alito, and for Justice Brett Kavanaugh when he sat on the D.C. Court of Appeals. During her Senate confirmation hearing, Hermandorfer said that “it would not be my role” to carry out Trump’s bidding.
Her background contrasts with another nominee in the Senate: Trump’s former personal lawyer Emil Bove, who is the president's pick to serve on the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals.
During his first term, the Senate confirmed 234 judges nominated by Trump.
Fed chair Jerome Powell sends letter to Senate Banking Committee about renovation project
Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell sent a letter today to the top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee about the central bank's headquarters renovation that has become a source of controversy in the Trump administration.
In the letter, obtained by NBC News, Powell told Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., that the Fed takes “seriously our commitment to transparency.”
“We respect the critical importance of the constitutionally-derived congressional oversight of our activities, and we are committed to working collaboratively with you,” he wrote, adding that the Fed’s staff will discuss the project in further detail with the Senate Banking Committee soon.
The Trump administration has used the project’s overrun of its budget to argue that Powell is mismanaging the central bank, as the president's authority to fire Powell is “being looked into.”
Powell's letter, which mostly echoed the FAQ website the Fed posted last week, said that the Fed has taken “great care” to ensure the project is “carefully overseen,” and that the renovation has been subject to annual budget approval. It also said the Fed's Office of Inspector General conducted an audit in 2021, and has had “full access” to information about the project, including monthly reports on the construction program.
“I have asked the Board’s IG to take a fresh look at the project,” Powell wrote.
The Trump administration has used the project’s overrun of its budget to build a case that Powell is mismanaging the agency, as Trump’s authority to fire Powell is “being looked into.”
Pam Bondi dismissed charges in alleged Covid scam after the case had passed review for ‘weaponization’
Trump administration officials had already reviewed a criminal case against a Utah doctor accused of selling fake Covid vaccination cards and allowed it to proceed before Attorney General Pam Bondi suddenly intervened over the weekend and ordered the case dismissed, a defense attorney said.
Dr. Michael Kirk Moore was on trial last week in a case involving claims that more than $28,000 in Covid-19 vaccinations were destroyed as part of an alleged scheme involving the issuance of fake vaccine cards. Moore was indicted on the charges in 2023.
On Saturday, Bondi announced on the platform X that she was ordering the charges against Moore dismissed, writing that the doctor “gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so.” Bondi said the dismissal “would not have been possible” without Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and thanked Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah.
Moore’s attorney, Kathy Nester, told NBC News that she submitted information about the case for review by Justice Department leadership earlier this year after Bondi announced the formation of a “Weaponization Working Group“ to investigate claims of federal law enforcement being used against Trump allies and advocates.
NBC News’ Morgan Radford sits down with Stacey Abrams to discuss her new book, “Coded Justice,” and its story about the ethical and legal questions about the development of artificial intelligence. The book’s release comes amid real-world discussions about AI’s impact, after Grok, social media platform X’s artificial intelligence, issued an apology for antisemitic posts it had made.
Democrats put aside previous misgivings to hit Trump over Jeffrey Epstein files
Democrats are echoing criticism from the right of how Trump and his administration have handled case files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — a change from Trump’s first term, when Democrats swiftly condemned Trump’s unfounded conspiracy theories about the investigation into the financier and his death.
The party has spent days poking the bear after an administration memo knocked down conspiracy theories related to Epstein’s past activities and his suicide in 2019. In Congress, Democratic committees and lawmakers are demanding that the Trump administration release more documents related to the investigation into Epstein, accusing the president and his allies of either a cover-up or a cynical ploy to exploit conspiracy theories about Epstein for political gain.
And on the campaign trail, the Democratic National Committee and Democratic candidates — including ones running in places Trump won in 2024 — have been fanning the flames as some of Trump’s most prominent right-wing supporters threaten a revolt over the issue.
With MAGA-world seething, key members of his administration at odds, and Trump himself on the defense, Democrats are embracing the raw politics of the situation, despite their previous scolding.
Kennedy says he doesn't consider 25-year high of measles cases a public health emergency
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said today that he doesn’t consider the number of measles cases in the U.S. a public health emergency.
Speaking at a media availability at the Department of Agriculture, Kennedy said his department has teams from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “everywhere governors have requested it,” and that the agency was taking steps to take care of populations that don’t want to vaccinate.
“We’re making sure there are protocols for people who actually get measles. In the individual states...we are there for them, but I don’t at this point consider it a national emergency,” Kennedy said.
Measles cases in the U.S. reached 1,277 last week, a record since the disease was eliminated in the country 25 years ago.
Though Kennedy has called for people to get the Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine, he has previously characterized vaccination as a personal choice. Last month he gutted the CDC’s panel of independent vaccine experts before appointing new members.
Zelenskyy details 'very good' phone call with Trump
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media that he had a "very good" phone call with Trump today and praised efforts to increase defense spending.
"Thank you for the willingness to support Ukraine and to continue working together to stop the killings and establish a lasting and just peace," Zelenskyy wrote in a post on X thanking Trump and the United States.
"We discussed the necessary means and solutions with the President to provide better protection for people from Russian attacks and to strengthen our positions. We are ready to work as productively as possible to achieve peace," he added.
Trump has not publicly commented on the phone call.
Trump met today with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office and has pledged to send Patriot missiles to Ukraine to aid in its defense against Russia.
Rutte is scheduled to meet this week with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and members of Congress.
