South Carolina voters will choose the Republican candidate in the race to replace the late Sen. Lindsey Graham. The Trump administration plans its largest mass visa revocation in history. And how Penn State students reacted to a massive drug ring bust that made national news.
Here’s what to know today.
South Carolina offers the next major test of Trump’s influence
President Donald Trump quickly threw his weight behind Sen. Darline Graham when she announced her bid to run for a full term after the sudden death of her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham. But her candidacy has faced skepticism, particularly after a misstep at a debate last week. Now, the president’s influence faces its next test this election season.
The Republican Senate runoff today in South Carolina between Graham and Rep. Ralph Norman will show whether a Trump endorsement is still an important factor in Republican contests. Norman is a staunch conservative who has painted Graham as the “establishment” pick, and some Trump supporters are wary about Graham’s lack of experience.
Trump’s influence also faces a test in the Oklahoma GOP primary for governor. State Attorney General Gentner Drummond has touted his closeness to the president, even though Trump backed his opponent, former state Sen. Mike Mazzei. Trump has since panned Drummond as a “fake Republican.”
The Oklahoma race has become particularly brutal and personal. Fighting between the two candidates over accusations about their fitness for office led to the two men releasing drug tests in recent days.
Here are the other primary races to watch.
NBC News’ chief data analyst, Steve Kornacki, takes a closer look at a potentially decisive South Carolina district in The Data Dive, a new subscriber-exclusive newsletter on the numbers, trends and data shaping the biggest stories heading into the midterms. Read today’s edition here.
More politics news:
- The Supreme Court handed an initial win to the Trump administration in its effort to implement an executive order aimed at limiting who can receive mail-in ballots before the midterm elections.
- For subscribers: On the campaign trail, Trump branded himself as the “fertilization president” and promised to make IVF free. What happened?
Bessent threatens new sanctions on Iran in follow-up to ‘economic D-Day’ threat
Bessent pressures countries to cut economic ties with Iran
The U.S. took steps aimed at further isolating Iran after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent threatened an “economic D-Day” against the Islamic Republic. Bessent said yesterday that his department is sanctioning nearly 60 corporations, individuals and vessels that it says enable the Iranian regime’s “recklessness.” Bessent said Trump has been making phone calls to world leaders requesting that they stop trading with the Iranian regime. Earlier yesterday, the United Arab Emirates said it will end all trade relations with Iran.
While Iranian leaders downplayed the threat, experts said the success of Bessent’s announcement will hinge on whether the country’s most powerful trading partners — China, India and Russia — decide the U.S. threats are credible.
More on the reaction to Bessent’s announcement.
Related coverage:
- Canadian leaders traded barbs with Trump over the new wave of tariffs imposed by the U.S., with Ontario Premier Doug Ford saying “everything is on the table” in terms of retaliation.
U.S. prepares for mass visa revocation
The State Department is expected to announce in the coming weeks the revocation of business and tourism visas issued between 2016 and 2026 whose holders have sought asylum or are now seeking asylum, according to State Department documents obtained by The Associated Press and two U.S. officials. The move to revoke so-called B1 visas — which are generally used for business trips — and B2 visas — which are are generally issued for tourism, family visits or medical care — could affect up to 200,000 foreigners and would be the largest single mass revocation of visas in U.S. history.
The revocations would not necessarily result in the holders’ immediate deportation, and they would be likely to face legal challenges.
Staff Pick: The reaction at Penn State to an alleged drug ring
When prosecutors announced that 14 people had been charged in what authorities described as a highly profitable cocaine-trafficking ring centered on two Penn State fraternities, the allegations quickly made national headlines and became the butt of online fodder. But when I went to State College, Pennsylvania, to see how the news was reverberating on campus, I found something unexpected: Students barely seemed to care.
For two days, I knocked on fraternity and sorority doors and talked to students about the alleged scheme. Of those who did stop to chat, most said they didn’t know the defendants, hadn’t heard about the alleged operation before the arrests, or didn’t think it was that big of a deal.
My story captures the striking disconnect between the seriousness of the allegations and the decidedly muted reaction on campus, even as it has endured years of national scrutiny and Greek life-related scandals. — Matt Lavietes, breaking news reporter
Read All About It
- Nearly two weeks after powerful storms roared through the Midwest, thousands of people in Gary, Indiana, are still waiting for the power to come back on.
- San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges after his arrest in Ohio.
- Former child actor Raquel Lee Bolleau has alleged in a lawsuit that a male Disney employee sexually assaulted her while she was filming a Disney Channel movie in 2001.
- For subscribers: Ukraine sanctioned the makers and distributors of the Russian children’s cartoon “Masha and the Bear,” calling the show pro-Kremlin propaganda that threatens its national security.
- For subscribers: Google and Samsung unveiled their newest foldable phones, with Apple expected to soon join the market. Here’s how the phones compare to each other — and to traditional smartphones.
NBC Selected: Online Shopping, Simplified
Shoppers say this rolling duffel bag holds seven days of clothes and lasts a decade. It’s less than $50 today. Plus, Baggu’s summer sale is almost over and the NBC Selected team is grabbing its favorites before they sell out, including items featuring adorable Hello Kitty prints and the brand’s popular crescent bag.
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