Evening Wrap

My spring art project this year was having my kids paint some birdhouses so that we might play landlord to some bird families. (We don’t charge rent, but we do ask that you let us ogle you from time to time.) Once they were painted I applied a few coats of spray sealant, which I did outside over several days in a probably futile attempt to avoid inhaling carcinogens. We finally went out to hang them this weekend, at which point my son announced that his birdhouse had a bug inside.

School’s in session.

This is your semi-regular reminder that 2024 elections are not limited to November. That’s both a commentary on modern politics (in an election year, it is never not Election Day) and an accurate assessment of the daily shenanigans unfolding at the state level. It’s a new adventure, all the time.

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) may fight federal bribery charges at trial next month by blaming his wife Nadine for hiding her allegedly illegal dealings with shady businessmen, leaving him in the dark about a scheme to swap his political influence for cash, gold bars and a Mercedes, according to a court filing unsealed Tuesday. Without that information, there was no way for Menendez to knowingly commit a crime or participate in the plot, the New Jersey Monitor reported.

A majority of U.S. Supreme Court justices appeared leery Tuesday of allowing the Department of Justice to prosecute Jan. 6 rioters under a federal obstruction statute, a stance that could derail more than 300 court cases and weaken the government’s election interference case against Donald Trump, per reporting from our D.C. bureau.

Donald Trump on Monday reported to court in New York for jury selection in his first trial, elevating American exceptionalism to new heights by cementing his place in history as the first former president to face criminal prosecution. Trump did not appear bowed by the weight of the moment. Mostly, he seemed annoyed — and tired, to the point of dozing off at least twice, our national bureau reported.

It’s been nearly two years since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion, which is another way of saying that it’s been two years since reproductive rights took center stage in American politics.

An Arizona appeals court on Tuesday declined to grant a new trial to Abe Hamadeh, a Republican seeking to overturn his 2022 loss in the state attorney general race while also running for Congress, the Arizona Mirror reported. (Abe Hamadeh gets more done before 9 a.m. than most people do all day!) 

Nebraska lawmakers on Tuesday night advanced a proposal to divert $10 million in public money to private school scholarships, voting 31-12 to move the bill forward after four hours of debate and a narrowly averted filibuster. The measure, if approved, would likely replace a 2023 law granting dollar-for-dollar tax credits for donations to private school scholarships, which public school advocates said was a blatant attempt to circumvent a voter referendum that could repeal the policy, the Nebraska Examiner reported.

When Michael Whatley assumed control of the Republican National Committee last month, his marching orders were clear: Renew the party’s focus on “election integrity” — or, in GOP terms, file more lawsuits, install more right-wing election observers, and broadcast Donald Trump’s continued (and thoroughly debunked) claims of election fraud. Whatley, a hardcore election denier, was game. Within days, he’d outlined those priorities for RNC staffers in a three-page memo that emphasized voter outreach, ballot harvesting “where legal,” litigation over post-2020 election policies, and a push to hire and train slews of poll watchers. 

Fear not, newsletter fam: You can look directly at everything in this message.

So much to talk about, guys. Let’s dive in.