Prominent right-wing commentators publicly excoriated Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch on Monday after he authored a 6-3 majority opinion ruling that employers cannot fire employees based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Why it matters: Gorsuch was President Trump's first nomination to the Supreme Court. The successful appointments of conservative federal and Supreme Court judges have frequently been cited as one of the main reasons that conservatives have supported the president's re-election.
An independent panel commissioned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found that two top officials violated the agency’s code of ethics during a series of events that led to an NOAA statement contradicting its own meteorologists to support President Trump’s false claims about the path of Hurricane Dorian.
Why it matters: The September episode, which came to be known as "Sharpiegate" after Trump drew on a map of Hurricane Dorian's path to support his assessment that it could hit Alabama, embroiled the NOAA in a scandal about possible political interference within the scientific agency.
America now has a 5th major Supreme Court ruling on LBGTQ rights, this time based on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Why it matters: Before today's ruling, only about half of U.S. states had comprehensive laws that protect people from being fired based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Jon Stewart, the former host of "The Daily Show," opened up about his legacy and the current state of U.S. politics in an extensive interview with the New York Times, admitting that the "evisceration expectation" that encouraged him to platform people like former Fox News host Bill O'Reilly is the show's "worst legacy."
Why it matters: Stewart's popular parodies of cable news paved the way for a new generation of political comedy shows, including "The Colbert Report" and "Last Week Tonight." The comedian and film producer has stayed largely out of the public eye since retiring in 2015, but has continued to champion certain political causes.
The New York Police Department will disband its anti-crime unit, which consists of hundreds of plainclothes officers that target violent crime, commissioner Dermot Shea announced at a news conference Monday.
The big picture: The unit, which consists of some 600 officers, "was involved in some of the city’s most notorious police shootings," according to the New York Times. Officers in the unit will be given new assignments, including in the NYPD's neighborhood policing initiative.
President Trump told reporters Monday that his former national security adviser John Bolton will have a "very strong criminal problem" if he proceeds with publishing his tell-all book on June 23, calling it "highly inappropriate" and claiming: “I will consider every conversation with me as president to be highly classified."
Why it matters: The memoir by Bolton, a prolific note taker, is expected to shed light on alleged misconduct by Trump related to his dealings with foreign countries. ABC News reported Monday that the administration is planning to file a lawsuit this week seeking an injunction in federal court to block the book from publishing.
President Trump's campaign will require temperature checks and will distribute face masks and hand sanitizer to each person attending his rally in Tulsa on Saturday, a spokesperson said Monday.
Why it matters: The decision to move ahead with the rally as the number of coronavirus infections continues to be on the rise in many states has prompted scrutiny from public health experts and local officials in Tulsa. It will be the first rally by any presidential candidate since the pandemic was declared in March.
Joe Biden's presidential campaign and two committees associated with the Democratic Party jointly raised nearly $81 million in May, Politico reports.
Why it matters: Biden deputy campaign manager Rufus Gifford points out that in addition to being the campaign's largest monthly haul of the 2020 cycle, it's also a larger total than the Obama campaign raised in May 2012 ($60 million) and the Clinton campaign raised in May 2016 ($38 million).
63% of U.S. adults say they are either "extremely" or "very" proud to be American — a seven-point decline from 2019 and the lowest figure since Gallup began tracking the question in 2001.
Why it matters: It comes as the country faces multiple simultaneous crises like the coronavirus pandemic and a reckoning with systemic racism and police brutality after the killing of George Floyd.
Voice of America Director Amanda Bennett and Deputy Director Sandy Sugawara both resigned from their posts at the state-sponsored international news agency after the confirmation of a Trump political appointee to VOA's parent agency, Deadline reports.
The big picture: The reshuffle follows an onslaught of public attacks from the White House, which has accused VOA of promoting Chinese propaganda in its coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. An email from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released after a freedom of information request told communications staff not to respond to media requests from VOA.
The Supreme Court on Monday denied petitions for appeals of 10 cases involving gun rights, CNBC reports.
Why it matters: The decision is a blow to gun rights advocates who have sought to expand the rights of gun owners through the conservative-majority court. The court has long been reluctant to weigh in on battles over Second Amendment rights.
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson told Hugh Hewitt's radio show Monday that he believes President Trump will "get there" on understanding why professional athletes have kneeled in protest during the national anthem.
Why it matters: Trump has long condemned the protests — started by NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick to bring light to the issue of police brutality — and called them disrespectful to the anthem and members of the military.
The FDA ended Monday its emergency use authorizations for two controversial drugs, hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, as a potential coronavirus treatment.
The Supreme Court ruled Monday that employers cannot fire employees based on their sexual orientation or gender identity under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Why it matters: The 6-3 opinion marks a huge win for LGBT rights in a court with a clear conservative tilt. It was authored by conservative justice Neil Gorsuch, who was joined by the court's more liberal and swing members.
The NBA's ambitious plan to resume the season at Walt Disney World hit an impasse over the weekend, with the two crises that have shaken the U.S. — the pandemic and the protests — causing division amongst the ranks.
The state of play: Last week, the NBA's board of governors approved the league's return-to-play plan, followed by the NBA players' association one day later — but a number of players have begun asking themselves: do we actually want to participate in this?
The editorial board for the Tulsa World, the city's daily newspaper, criticized on Monday President Trump's upcoming rally there, saying "we don’t know why he chose Tulsa, but we can’t see any way that his visit will be good for the city."
Why it matters: It argued that Tulsa is still recovering from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic — and noted that a large, indoor gathering could spark an outbreak, leaving the local health care system to deal with the repercussions.
The 100 largest U.S. companies have so far committed $1.63 billion to organizations fighting racism and inequality, according to company announcements and an Axios analysis.
What's happening: Since protests began over the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, companies have released statements of support for black communities and pledged donations to organizations like the NAACP, National Urban League, Equal Justice Initiative, and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights.
The twin crises of coronavirus and systemic racism in policing have suddenly turned the national spotlight on local governments, and are forcing local leaders to make many of the most important decisions in the country.
Between the lines: Elected city leaders — many of whom do the jobs on a part-time basis — certainly weren't prepared to respond to multiple crises at once. But they have no choice.
Thousands of protesters marched to New York City's Brooklyn Museum on Sunday to support black transgender Americans.
Why it matters: The deaths of two black transgender women in recent days that are being investigated as homicides have prompted calls to tackle transphobia, per CBS News. Black trans women are "particularly vulnerable because they face multiple kinds of discrimination," Beverly Tillery from the LGBTQ+ nonprofit NYC Anti-Violence Project told Time Magazine on Friday.
Rayshard Brooks sustained organ damage and blood loss when he was shot twice in the back during his fatal shooting by police in Atlanta, Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office said Sunday evening, per the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Details: The autopsy found Brooks' manner of death was homicide, CBS News reports. This means it was determined that the death was caused by the actions of another person and it's up to law enforcement to decide what charges to bring, according to the Medical Examiner's Office, which notes not all homicides are murders.
