Monday, June 16 | By Alexis Simendinger & Kristina Karisch |
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| ▪ Minnesota suspect arrested after manhunt ▪ Trump pulled into Israel-Iran warfare ▪ Trump targets Democratic-run cities for ICE raids ▪ Russia escalates Ukraine drone attacks |
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©️ The Associated Press | George Walker IV |
Minnesota lawmaker shootings suspect captured, ending manhunt |
Minnesota law enforcement authorities late Sunday apprehended Vance Boelter, 57, suspected in the weekend murders of state lawmakers, which led to the largest manhunt in the state's history. Boelter is accused of murdering state House Democratic leader Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman and injuring State Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, and his wife Yvette. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), who announced Boelter's arrest shortly before midnight after a two-day search, described the shootings as "targeted political violence." The violence has renewed concerns from members of Congress about security and threats facing elected officials and their families. President Trump told ABC's Rachel Scott during a weekend phone interview that the shootings were "a terrible thing," but he sidestepped public calls to dial back political broadsides. While decrying the murders, Trump described Minnesota's governor as a "grossly incompetent person." Walz competed last year alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris to try to defeat Trump and his running mate, then-Sen. JD Vance, with whom Walz spoke on Saturday. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) on NBC's "Meet the Press" faulted "some of the things that the president says," while pointing to security concerns among elected officials who also worry about the safety of their relatives. "We all have to acknowledge on both sides of the aisle the need to bring about a more civil discourse, but the need to condemn political violence, no matter who the target is," he added. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D), who received additional protection from Capitol Police along with Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) at the urging of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), said it's time to call politicians out for using dangerous rhetoric in remarks and on social media. "Some people need to look in the mirror and say, 'Hey, I've got to stop this or stop my colleagues from doing this because it makes it much worse,'" she told CNN's "State of the Union." Former Vice President Mike Pence told NewsNation's "The Hill Sunday" that the shootings "must be universally condemned." House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) told MSNBC on Sunday that extra protection for elected officials is warranted, describing the Minnesota murders as another wakeup call amid America's inflamed political environment. He plans a meeting Monday to discuss added protection. Politicians and judges nationally have long faced questions about whether they have adequate security: Former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.) was shot in the head in 2011 and survived while holding an event with constituents. House GOP Majority Leader Steve Scalise (La.) was shot and gravely injured in 2017 by an Illinois man during a baseball practice near Washington. An assailant broke into the San Francisco home of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) when she was not in residence in 2022 and beat her husband, Paul, with a hammer. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh received extra security in 2022 after an armed man threatened to kill the justice at his Maryland home after traveling there from California. Trump's ear was bloodied last year by a would-be assassin's bullet in Pennsylvania. Separately, authorities arrested a man armed with a high-powered rifle while the president golfed a few hundred yards away. Blake Burman's Smart Take will return June 23. |
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©️ The Associated Press | Leo Correa |
ISRAEL AND IRAN: Trump on Sunday left the door open to the United States getting directly involved in the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, even as his administration seeks to distance itself from Israel's decision to preemptively attack its chief Middle East foe. Israeli and Iranian leaders are signaling they don't have plans to deescalate anytime soon. Iranian missiles struck Tel Aviv and the port city of Haifa today, killing at least eight people. Israel's defense minister warned that residents in Iran's capital, Tehran, would "pay the price and soon." On Sunday, Israeli strikes killed an Iranian intelligence officer and his deputy, days after successfully targeting commanders and nuclear scientists. Some of Iran's missiles have also made it past Israel's air defenses, with Israelis urged to stay near shelters. Residents in both countries have been bracing for further violence as casualties mount heading into the fourth day of conflict. More than 200 people have died in Iran since Israel's attack began late last week, while more than a dozen people have been killed in retaliatory strikes against Israel. The Wall Street Journal: Within 48 hours of starting its war on Iran, Israel said it gained air superiority over the western part of the country. Trump was asked Sunday as he left for the Group of Seven (G-7) summit in Canada if the U.S. intended to continue to support Israel's defenses, replying, "We do." When asked about how he plans to de-escalate the situation between Iran and Israel, Trump responded, "it's time for a deal." "Sometimes they have to fight it out," he added. "We'll see what happens." Earlier in the day, the president told ABC News that the U.S. has not been involved in Israel's strikes, but "it's possible we could get involved." "We're not involved in it. It's possible we could get involved. But we are not at this moment involved," the president said. He warned Tehran not to attack any U.S. targets as the conflict escalates, saying Iran would face the "full strength and might" of the American military. ▪ Reuters: Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, and said he would be open to the Russian leader mediating between Israel and Iran. ▪ Axios: Lawmakers urge defense if Iran attacks U.S. targets. ▪ The Hill: Republicans respond to Israel's strikes on Iran: "Game on." Trump is pushing for a deal — while seeking to keep his options open. Multiple media outlets reported over the weekend that Trump opposed an Israeli plan to kill Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the president aims to keep Washington out of the fray of fighting for now. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday on Fox News that regime change in Iran "could certainly be the result" of Israel's military campaign. Other world leaders have urged de-escalation, wary of another wider conflict in the region. Amid the rising tensions, the G7 summit has taken on fresh urgency as the world risks a further escalation in a simmering situation in the region. ▪ Politico: Forget the G7. Now it's the G6 versus Trump. ▪ The Hill: Israel claims it hit an Iranian airport. ▪ The Washington Post: Israel's clash with Iran boosts Netanyahu, but Israelis worry about a long fight. The Trump administration had been attempting to broker an agreement with Tehran to limit its nuclear capabilities, something the president has indicated it may still try to do in the wake of the Israeli attack. Trump, who stated he gave Iran a "60-day ultimatum" to "make a deal," said Sunday he is not setting a new deadline. "No, there's no deadline," Trump said on ABC News, referring to Iran. "But they are talking. They'd like to make a deal. They're talking. They continue to talk." |
- The House will convene on Tuesday at 11 a.m.
- The Senate will meet at 4 p.m.
- The president is participating in the annual summit of the Group of Seven industrialized nations, underway this year in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada. Trump will hold a bilateral meeting at 9 a.m. local time with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. He will attend a welcoming event for leaders at 10 a.m. and participate in three separate summit topic discussions before he joins a group photo at 5:45 p.m. Trump will participate in a fourth topic session of the summit in the evening before attending a cultural event at 9 p.m.
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©️ The Associated Press | Damian Dovarganes |
IMMIGRATION: Trump, following Saturday's protests nationwide aimed at administration policies, directed federal immigration officials to prioritize deportations from Democratic-run cities. The president used a social media post on Sunday to urge Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents "to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History." He added that to reach the goal officials "must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America's largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside." FROM CRACKDOWN TO STAND DOWN: Why did Trump switch gears last week to ease his migrant policies in the agriculture sector? Answer: Lobbying of the president by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, according to The New York Times. She was persuasive, so soon after, the restaurant industry weighed in. Trump made a decision. Some of his advisers were furious, but within two days, ICE alerted agents about a change in policy, telling them there was a "hold on all work site enforcement investigations/operations on agriculture (including aquaculture and meat packing plants), restaurants and operating hotels." Farmers rely on immigrants to work long hours, Rollins told the president, according to the Times, noting that farm groups had been warning her that their employees would stop showing up to work out of fear, potentially crippling the agricultural industry. 👉Immigration and border security is Trump's strongest policy issue (51 percent approval to 49 percent disapproval), according to a poll released Sunday by NBC News. CONGRESS: Senate Republicans face a critical week for Trump's complicated "big, beautiful bill," reports The Hill's Al Weaver. Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee today will release key legislative text and brief colleagues. The Senate has a short work week because members are off on Thursday to mark Juneteenth. MORE POLICY UPDATES: 🩺 Health: How Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s overhaul could make vaccines more expensive and raise fears ahead of the next school year. 🔥FEMA: When wildfire season coincides with threats to federal emergency support. 👥 Ally to adversary over disease response: The president's former surgeon general, Jerome Adams, has become one of Trump's most pointed critics. 🗳️Federal Election Commission: Experts warn that the watchdog agency that examines elections has no "bark or bite" without a quorum. 🥈Democratic National Committee: American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten resigned from the DNC this month, citing disagreements with DNC Chair Ken Martin. Meanwhile, here are the four candidates competing for two vice chair seats on the committee. |
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©️ The Associated Press | Kateryna Klochko |
RUSSIA AND UKRAINE: Moscow has ramped up its airborne attacks against Ukraine in recent weeks, launching as many as 479 drones and missiles in a single night. The assaults are not just bigger and more frequent, they are also flown at higher altitudes, making them harder to combat. Meanwhile, Russia's summer offensive in eastern Ukraine is showing battlefield gains across multiple fronts — deploying small, fast-moving units as fighting escalates daily. Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Sunday urged Trump to immediately push for legislation that would ratchet up sanctions against Russia. "I think the president should call on the Senate to vote approval of the Russian sanctions bill literally tomorrow," Blumenthal said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "He's on his way tonight to the G7 meeting. He will be sitting across from world leaders. Right now, very bluntly, the perception may be one of weakness in terms of America's position on Ukraine. He can be there in a position of strength." Graham on Thursday made his case for the sanctions in an op-ed for Fox News. ▪ Reuters: Russia says it struck an oil refinery that supplies the Ukrainian army with fuel. ▪ The Washington Post: Ukraine's field hospitals keep getting hit, so they are moving underground. AIR INDIA CRASH: Indian authorities said they found the flight data recorder of the Air India plane that crashed last week, killing more than 270 people. It could be months before there is a definitive explanation for the crash, but videos and other evidence have begun to offer clues. Among the initial questions: whether the plane's wing flaps and slats extended properly, and why the landing gear, which creates drag, remained down. |
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©️ The Associated Press | Kathy Willens |
And finally … The power of artificial intelligence (AI) can manipulate a human's voice for a comforting, emotionally important mission, reports radio personality and tech adviser Kim Komando. Over the weekend, she described her response to "Mark" in Washington, D.C., who asked if artificial intelligence such as ChatGPT could recreate the voice of the questioner's recently deceased father to "read" favorite bedtime stories to his young children. "Yes, you can absolutely do this with a little bit of AI magic and some tech know-how," Komando said while explaining each step. "Imagine your kids hearing
'Goodnight Moon' or 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' from Grandpa. This is more than tech, it's creating an emotional time capsule," she said. The New York Times: Never say good-bye: A growing field known as Grief Tech ranges from chatbots trained on the communications of a person who has died to a program that uses virtual reality to create a 3D avatar of a deceased loved one. |
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