Axios

Unless Donald Trump shocks the world by testifying, the prosecution's witness list in the first-ever criminal trial of a U.S. president is complete for now.

Why it matters: The who's who witness list in District Attorney Alvin Bragg's hush money case delivered a remarkably vivid look into former president's past-and-present orbit.

• Hope Hicks, the notoriously low-profile Trump and White House aide, who testified about panic within Trump's circle after the 2016 revelation of the "Access Hollywood" tape.
• Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress and director, who testified about having sex with Trump in 2006 and their subsequent contacts.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is the most bipartisan senator, according to the the Lugar Center's index for 2023, which takes into account bills sponsored or co-sponsored by members of both parties.

Why it matters: Collins, whose state has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in the last eight elections, has been known to break with her party including on abortion and in refusing to endorse former President Trump.

Republicans and Democrats in Congress are telling radically different stories about the biggest threats to the election system in the run-up to November.

Why it matters: Confidence in U.S. elections cratered among Republican voters after the 2020 election, and the theories being pushed by congressional conservatives could sow even more distrust.

Unless Donald Trump shocks the world by testifying, the prosecution's witness list in the first-ever criminal trial of a U.S. president is complete for now.

Why it matters: The who's who witness list in District Attorney Alvin Bragg's hush money case delivered a remarkably vivid look into the former president's past-and-present orbit.

The cargo ship Dali had an electrical outage the day before the March accident that resulted in the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge according to a preliminary report released Tuesday by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Why it matters: The NTSB said it is still investigating if the prior outage contributed to the two blackouts that occurred just minutes before the vessel slammed into the bridge.

Former President Trump's latest gag order workaround may be to just let his surrogates do the talking.

Why it matters: Trump loyalists have flocked to the Manhattan courthouse in recent days and they've echoed many of the criticisms Trump is unable to say under the gag order.

Former President Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche attempted to undermine the credibility of Trump's onetime fixer Michael Cohen during cross-examination Tuesday.

Why it matters: Cohen has been a key witness in the hush money case, providing details about how he was reimbursed for facilitating a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

The Arizona Supreme Court on Monday agreed to delay for another 90 days enforcement of an 1864 ban on nearly all abortions.

Why it matters: The ban was recently repealed and the delay narrows the window during which it could be temporarily enforced, a win for reproductive rights advocates.

1. Ecuador's Constitutional Court ruled this weekend that the latest state of emergency declaration by the government was not properly justified, leaving the April decree in limbo.

• The state of emergency was set for the seven provinces most affected by criminal gang activity, after another emergency declaration lapsed early last month.
• The court said the declaration, part of President Daniel Noboa's bet to fight crime by more easily deploying armed forces, did not justify why "criminality in these areas cannot be tackled through the regular constitutional order."

2. Peruvian President Dina Boluarte's brother, along with her lawyer, were taken into custody this weekend as part of a corruption investigation into Boluarte's finances.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan plans to travel to Saudi Arabia and Israel this weekend amid the rising tensions over the Israeli military operation in Rafah, three U.S. and Israeli officials with knowledge of the plans tell Axios.

Why it matters: The White House continues to try to dissuade Israel from launching a broad military operation in the southern Gaza city that would cross President Biden's "red line" for withholding weapons to Israel.

The Department of Justice told a federal judge on Tuesday that former Trump adviser Steven Bannon should begin serving a four-month prison sentence for his contempt of Congress convictions.

Why it matters: The Justice Department said a stay on Bannon's sentence now has "no legal basis" since a federal appeals court last week upheld his conviction.

House Democratic leadership is throwing its full weight against a Republican bill to force President Biden's hand on allowing weapons shipments to Israel to move forward.

Why it matters: Dozens of pro-Israel Democrats have criticized Biden for withholding the arms transfers, and at least one is likely to vote for the bill.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kyiv on Tuesday as much-needed U.S. military aid began arriving in Ukraine.

Why it matters: Blinken's trip comes weeks after Congress passed a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine after months of stalling in a delay that U.S. officials said had hampered Kyiv's war efforts.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is expected to attend the Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday for former President Trump's ongoing New York criminal trial, the latest high-profile GOP lawmaker to flock to New York.

Why it matters: The courtroom has become the new venue for displays of Trump loyalty, as well as the high-profile audition to be Trump's running mate.

Former President Trump's ex-fixer Michael Cohen is back on the witness stand Tuesday to resume his testimony in Trump's ongoing criminal hush money trial.

Why it matters: Trump's legal team could begin cross-examining Cohen, the prosecution's star witness, as early as Tuesday and try to discredit his testimony and cast him as seeking revenge against his former boss.

Private equity is breathing easier this morning, after a federal judge in Texas dismissed what could have been a landmark antitrust lawsuit against Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe.

Why it matters: The Biden administration took a big swing against private equity. And it missed.

The American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (AFIPO) on Tuesday released a music video of people around the world singing Hatikvah — the national anthem of Israel — played with the Israel Philharmonic.

Why it matters: The two-month-long Global Hatikvah initiative is meant to promote peace. It attracted thousands of submissions from 72 countries across six continents and was edited into a "virtual choir" for Israel's Independence Day.

By trying to stem the tide of cheap Chinese climate technology without slowing U.S. decarbonization, the White House is betting it can have its cake and eat it too.

Why it matters: It's an environmental gamble as officials unveil higher tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, steel, batteries, solar cells, critical minerals and more.

Spanglish — a mix of English and Spanish — is slowly surging in political ads and campaign outreach ahead of November's elections.

Why it matters: Communicating in Spanish is key to wooing Latino voters, who are nearly 15% of the electorate and who could swing critical races in battleground states.

President Biden is launching a preemptive strike against cheap Chinese imports of electric vehicles, batteries, solar equipment and other goods with aggressive new tariffs on Tuesday.

Why it matters: It's a long-term protectionist play to allow America's nascent green technology, infrastructure and manufacturing industries — which Biden is subsidizing with over $1 trillion in direct investments — to get up to scale.

Racial segregation in schools across the country has increased dramatically over the last three decades, according to two new reports and an Axios review of federal data.

Why it matters: As the U.S. marks the 70th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education ruling on Friday, American public schools are growing more separate and unequal even though the country is more racially and ethnically diverse than ever.

President Biden doesn't believe his bad poll numbers, and neither do many of his closest advisers, according to people familiar with the matter.

Why it matters: The dismissiveness of the poor polling is sincere, not public spin, according to Democrats who have spoken privately with the president and his team.

Crews in Baltimore conducted a controlled explosion of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge on Monday that was "flawless," the city's mayor announced.

Why it matters: The Port of Baltimore is one of the busiest in the U.S. and vessel traffic has been restricted since the cargo ship Dali struck the bridge and caused its fatal collapse in March.

Department of Justice officials said Tuesday unprecedented threats against election workers are being "supercharged by advanced technologies" including artificial intelligence.

Why it matters: Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a briefing ahead of a DOJ Election Threats Task Force meeting there has been "a dangerous increase in violent threats against public servants" ahead of November's election.

President Biden on Monday signed a bipartisan bill banning imports of Russian enriched uranium, with waivers for companies to continue bringing it in until 2028.

Why it matters: The U.S. spends an estimated $1 billion per year on nuclear fuel from Russia, so the new law cuts off a key source of revenue as Putin's forces escalate their war on Ukraine and drive military spending to levels not seen since the Soviet Union in the mid-1980s.