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Super Tuesday wins for Joe Biden and Donald Trump set up a probable November rematch as Nikki Haley plans to exit the race. A Georgia state Senate panel’s investigation into Fani Willis moves forward. And the 25-year-old son of two “Sister Wives” stars has died.
Here’s what to know today.
An encore matchup between Biden and Trump
Get ready for another Biden and Trump rematch.
Voters in 16 states largely chose President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in their respective primaries on Super Tuesday. The wins all but mathematically secure an encore of their 2020 election fight. The matchup is now even more solid as Haley plans to exit the presidential race this morning.
Trump and Biden each saw small losses that kept them from earning a few delegates. Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley kept Trump from a Super Tuesday sweep, winning the Republican presidential primary in Vermont. Still, Trump piled up wins in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
And Biden won in all states, but faced a surprise defeat in American Samoa. There, a venture capitalist named Jason Palmer garnered 51 votes — more than Biden’s 40 votes, and enough to propel him to victory. If this is the first you’re hearing of Palmer, here are a few things to know.
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In a speech from Mar-a-Lago last night, Trump didn’t mention Haley but blamed Biden for the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, inflation and illegal immigration. Biden chose not to speak publicly but released a statement that set up the stakes for the November election.
Results from other key down-ballot races
- Five Super Tuesday takeaways: Meddling in California, MAGA moves in North Carolina and more.
- California Senate: Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey advanced to the general election in the hotly contested race.
- Texas Senate: Democratic Rep. Colin Allred will take on GOP Sen. Ted Cruz in the general election, setting up a key matchup in the fight for control of the Senate.
- North Carolina governor: Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson won his party’s primary for governor in North Carolina. Robinson has gained notoriety for speaking out against abortion rights and other hot-button issues.
- Texas House speaker: Incumbent Dade Phelan is headed to a primary runoff against Republican challenger David Covey, who is backed by Trump and state Attorney General Ken Paxton.
- Alabama House 1st District: Rep. Barry Moore defeated Rep. Jerry Carl in a rare incumbent versus incumbent Republican primary spurred by redrawn congressional districts.
Biden ramps up criticism of Israel over Gaza
Biden is trying to ramp up political pressure on Israel’s government to allow in more humanitarian aid and rein in its offensive in the Gaza Strip but has stopped short of cutting off weapons deliveries to America’s main ally in the Middle East, current and former officials say.
Reluctant to enter into a full-blown confrontation with Israel, the Biden administration instead has airdropped humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians and held talks in Washington with Benny Gantz, a political rival of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It has also stepped up public criticism of Israel’s tactics in Gaza — though, as NBC News has reported, apparently not as much as Vice President Kamala Harris would have liked.
Dismayed at the plight of Palestinian civilians and with no letup in the Israeli campaign, the White House National Security Council asked the Pentagon in recent weeks for possible options to get more aid into Gaza by air, land and sea, two administration officials told NBC News.
The administration’s “soft power” approach emphasizing humanitarian relief is shaped by both the domestic political pressure Biden is under at home to help stop the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, as well as a pragmatic belief that focusing on aid is the president’s best option while delicate negotiations continue to secure a six-week cease-fire deal, current and former officials said.
Georgia GOP panel moves forward with Fani Willis probe
The attorney who has led efforts to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from the Georgia election interference case is expected to testify today after she was given a subpoena in the state Senate’s investigation of Willis. Ashleigh Merchant, who represents Trump co-defendant Michael Roman, was asked to bring documents related to the disqualification effort. That’s likely to include her text messages with Terrence Bradley, a former law partner and divorce attorney for Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor with whom Willis had a relationship.
The probe by the state Senate’s Special Committee on Investigations is expected to take months to complete and include more subpoenas along the way — possibly Willis herself, a source said. But the committee doesn’t have the power to discipline Willis.
Illegally stored materials suspected in deadly Michigan warehouse fire
Hours after an enormous fire at a suburban Detroit warehouse ignited explosions, shook homes and rained down debris as far as a mile away, officials appeared to focus on combustible materials that they said were stored there illegally. “We know they were not allowed to have these canisters,” Clinton Township’s emergency management coordinator said during a news conference yesterday afternoon, referring to butane and nitrous oxide canisters at the facility.
The fire that ignited Monday night at the warehouse, which housed a vape wholesale business and a vape and nitrous oxide brand, resulted in the death of a 19-year-old man who was at a nearby car wash and was hit in the head with a canister. He was taken to a hospital where he later died, officials said. Here’s what else we know.
Politics in Brief
Menendez charges: Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey was hit with new charges alleging that he and his wife conspired to obstruct justice in the bribery case against them.
Senate seat open: Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema will not run for re-election this year, ending a term that saw her paint Arizona blue, leave the Democratic Party and play a key role in numerous negotiations.
Trump trials: Trump’s attorneys filed a motion for a new trial in writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation case and asked a judge to reduce the $83.3 million judgment against him.
Credit card fees: The Biden administration proposed an $8 cap for credit card late fees, a move that business groups warn could end up costing consumers more money and result in lower credit scores.
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I started reporting on Jam Master Jay’s murder more than 15 years ago. After two suspects were convicted in the killing last week, I heard from a number of sources that the narrative that emerged from the trial didn’t tell the full story. So I set out to tell that story through interviews with the people who knew the trailblazing Run-DMC DJ the longest. — Rich Schapiro, investigative reporter
Select: Online Shopping, Simplified
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