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1 Opinions About Israel Are Divided On Capitol Hill
Yesterday, several highly-placed officials weighed in on the revelation that the Biden administration held back a shipment of 3,500 bombs because Israel went ahead with attacks against the city of Rafah. Sen. Bernie Sanders appeared on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” yesterday, and said that after their attack on Rafah, the country shouldn’t receive “another nickel of US aid.” Also appearing on “Meet the Press” yesterday was Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, who compared Israel’s war against Hamas to the US dropping atomic bombs on Japan to end World War II. Secretary of State Antony Blinken appeared on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” and said that it was “reasonable to assess” that Israel has violated international law during its war on Gaza.
2 Michael Cohen on deck as Trump Prosecutors Say They Could Rest Case Next Week
Prosecutors said Friday that they plan to call only two more witnesses in Donald Trump’s criminal trial, and they could rest their case by the end of next week. One of those final two witnesses will be Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen, who is reportedly expected to begin testifying Monday.Cohen’s late-2016 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels is at the heart of the historic trial in Manhattan Supreme Court. Late in the day, Trump’s attorneys complained to Judge Juan Merchan that Cohen is regularly insulting his former boss on social media, but the ex-president is prohibited from responding because of a gag order that bars Trump from talking about witnesses in the trial. “It’s becoming a problem every single day that President Trump is not allowed to respond,” defense lawyer Todd Blanche told Judge Juan Merchan after the jury left for the day. Lead prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said the District Attorney’s office has asked Cohen and other witnesses not to speak about the ongoing trial. But ultimately, they cannot control the witnesses’ speech. Merchan told the prosecutors to explain to Cohen that the judge is asking him to refrain from publicly discussing the case. Steinglass said he would convey the message to Cohen.
3 Auroras Expected To Continue This Week Across Much Of The US
Did you see the Northern Lights over the weekend? If not, you may not be out of luck quite yet. Geomagnetic storm activity caused the aurora to spread from the North Pole as far as the deep south, and there were reports of sightings in Germany, Switzerland, China, England, and Spain. The latest forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show that the activity from another burst of solar radiation that started arriving at Earth yesterday could keep the aurora visible farther south than usual again tonight.