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MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, May 15

by Alexis Simendinger & Kristina Karisch

Trump defense goes after Cohen; Alsobrooks beats Trone

Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen has always been viewed as an imperfect witness in the Manhattan criminal trial against his former boss. Lawyers for the former president worked Tuesday and will resume Thursday to try to create doubt in jurors' minds about the motivations of the prosecution's star witness.

Attorney Todd Blanche had lots to work with, and prosecutors will seek to circle back in an attempt to undo the damage.

▪ Greed? Cohen made $3.4 million with a pair of Trump-themed books.

▪ Revenge? "Yes, I would like to see" Trump convicted. "Sure," Cohen testified.

▪ Witness flipper to get out of home confinement in New York after pleading guilty to crimes including lying to Congress? Trump's former "fixer" freely agreed.

It only takes one determined juror to decide that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) failed to prove his criminal case against a former president — with Cohen's testimony or any of the assertions by other witnesses, plus emails, texts and phone calls presented to support charges that then-businessman Donald Trump hatched a scheme in 2016 to create false expense records to hide payments he authorized to two women who might have revealed they had sex with him. Cohen says Trump used him as the willing middleman to buy the silence of an adult film personality and a former Playboy Playmate during Trump's presidential bid.

Trump denies all charges, including the alleged sexual encounters.

Cohen, now disbarred, testified he did Trump's bidding as a willing member of the "cult" of Trump. Regrets took a while to set in. It wasn't until a decade had passed, after his family pleaded with him, after the FBI raided his office, apartment and hotel room, that he decided to turn on Trump, Cohen testified.

The Hill's Niall Stanage: Trump lawyers vs. Michael Cohen, five takeaways.

The former president sat through Cohen's testimony with his eyes shut, seemingly in meditation. Under a gag order and a judge's admonishments to remain silent in the courtroom, Trump obliged. But in the court of public opinion, the former president assembled an army of elected Republicans and former primary opponents to spin his messages to the news media.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who recently enlisted Trump to serve as a political shield against his own conservative GOP detractors in Washington, showed up in Manhattan on Tuesday. Johnson, second in line to the presidency, echoed the former president's familiar complaints, despite the chances that Trump could be found guilty of crimes or rejected by voters in November. His New York visit undoubtedly won him points with the former president.

This is the fifth week that President Trump has been in court for this sham of a trial. They are doing this intentionally to keep him here and keep him off of the campaign trail," Johnson said.

"And I think everybody in the country can see that for what it is."

The Speaker was among a group of VIP visitors, some of whom have other motives, perhaps hoping to run with Trump on the GOP ticket. Read more about the former president's courthouse chorus, below.

3 THINGS TO KNOW TODAY

Boeing violated a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement that protected it from criminal charges tied to the fatal 737 Max crashes. The company could now be subject to U.S prosecution.
Louisiana may become the first state to criminalize possession of abortion pills mifepristone and misoprostol without a prescription.
The Federal Reserve has been surprised by inflation data, Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday during remarks in Amsterdam. He reiterated that policymakers were poised to hold interest rates steady at a high level as they wait for evidence that inflation is slowing further.

Leading the Day

POLITICS

PRIMARY WINNERS: Voters in Maryland's Democratic Senate primary Tuesday elevated Angela Alsobrooks to face off against Republican Senate primary victor Larry Hogan, the blue state's popular former GOP governor. He called for bipartisanship in remarks Tuesday night. A Republican senator has not represented Maryland since Sen. Charles Mathias retired in 1987.

Alsobrooks, a Prince George's County executive, defeated fellow Democrat Rep. David Trone in an expensive, roller-coaster open-seat race.

In the Maryland House Democratic primary for the 3rd Congressional District, "workhorse" State Sen. Sarah Elfreth won in a crowded field and overcame the Jan. 6, 2021, national recognition of former U.S. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn, her top rival in the contest.

In West Virginia's gubernatorial race, Attorney General Patrick Morrisey won the Republican nod in a primary to succeed Republican Gov. Jim Justice, who is running for the Senate (The Hill).

In Nebraska's contests Tuesday, Trump won the GOP presidential primary and moderate Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts captured his Senate primary to finish a term he began last year following the retirement of former Republican Sen. Ben Sasse. Nebraska GOP Sen. Deb Fischer sailed through her Republican Senate primary, while Rep. Don Bacon fended off a primary challenge from a conservative hardliner in the state's 2nd Congressional District contest.

One presidential trend to watch: In the three states Tuesday, former Republican contender Nikki Haley, who has not competed since March, pulled in votes, an indication that while Trump and President Biden triumphed in their respective primaries in Maryland, West Virginia and Nebraska, they face headwinds with the electorate (The Hill).

👉 Follow Tuesday's primary results at Decision Desk HQ and The Hill's Election Center.

Meanwhile, Biden's struggles, according to recent polls in key battleground states, could become a drag on Democratic Senate candidates who feel nervous that their party's narrow chances to hold the majority are looking more precarious (The Hill).

In a sign of the newly scrambled politics of trade, labor leaders, many Democratic lawmakers, some industry groups and even environmentalists praised Biden's Tuesday announcement on trade tariffs aimed at China, while the Republican National Committee slammed it — complaining that Biden was not being tough enough on Beijing (The New York Times).

The increased tariffs will apply to about $18 billion worth of annual imports from China, White House officials said. The biggest increase will be the quadrupling of tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles to 100 percent from 25 percent. That move is aimed at shielding a corner of the American automotive industry that is in line to receive hundreds of billions of dollars in federal subsidies to help the United States transition to a clean-energy future, the Times reported. Biden is betting on his efforts to use government investments in heavy manufacturing, including electric vehicles and other green technologies, to create middle-class jobs and help win the key swing states that are home to parts of those industries.

The Hill: Biden, Trump battle over China tariffs.

2024 ROUNDUP

Veepstakes: Trump's Manhattan trial is a magnet for elected Republican VIP visitors who bash the prosecution's case and serve as surrogates and possibly understudies for the former president, who is constrained by a gag order. In addition to Speaker Johnson's appearance Tuesday, senators seen as contenders to be Trump's running mate include GOP Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio, who popped up at the Manhattan courthouse (The Hill). Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina is a Trump acolyte who gently competed against him in the GOP presidential primary. Florida Sen. Rick Scott, Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville and New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis are Republicans who also made the trek to New York to support Trump (The Hill).
North Dakota Republican Gov. Doug Burgum, another name on Trump's favored surrogates list and possible VP list, appeared in New York Monday and with Trump at a recent New Jersey rally (The Hill and Politico).
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is shaping up to be a polling wildcard. Half of his supporters said they were voting chiefly for him, and nearly half said their support was mostly a vote against Biden or Trump.
The House majority in 2025 will likely be narrow and determined by voters in a handful of states, according to The Cook Political Report: "We believe the most likely outcome is a single-digit gain for either party, and that while Republicans might retain the slightest of advantages, the House is being fought on more favorable terrain for Democrats than the Senate or Electoral College."

Where and When

The House will meet at 10 a.m.

The Senate will convene at 10 a.m.

The president will head to the Capitol to speak at noon at the National Peace Officers' memorial service. Biden will receive the President's Daily Brief at 2:45 p.m. The president will host a meeting of the Joint Chiefs and combatant commanders at 4:30 p.m. in the Cabinet Room. The president and first lady Jill Biden will host a dinner at 6:30 p.m. for Combatant Commanders and their spouses at the White House.

The vice president will join the president for the President's Daily Brief in the Oval Office at 2:45 p.m. She and husband Doug Emhoff will host an event to celebrate Día de las Madres at the vice president's residence.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Kyiv and will this morning visit Esper Bionics, which is developing prostheses for Ukrainians. He will lay a wreath with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba at midday, followed by a meeting between the two men. Blinken will join a press conference with Kuleba in the afternoon.

The first lady will speak at 11:30 a.m. at a Women's Health Lab event in New York City.

The White House daily press briefing is scheduled at 1:30 p.m.

Zoom In

CONGRESS

BIDEN WOULD VETO a House GOP bill intended to pressure him to send weapons to Israel, the White House said Tuesday, calling the legislation a "misguided reaction to a deliberate distortion of the Administration's approach to Israel." The pushback comes ahead of an expected vote this week on the Israel Security Assistance Support Act, which GOP lawmakers introduced after Biden warned he would withhold certain offensive weapons for Israel if their forces invaded Rafah. Biden said the U.S. would continue to supply defensive materials, such as missiles for the Iron Dome, regardless of Israel's actions (The Hill).

Indeed, the White House notified Congress Tuesday that it was moving forward with more than $1 billion in new weapons deals for Israel, less than a week after the White House paused a shipment of bombs over a planned Israeli assault on Rafah (The Wall Street Journal).

HOUSE REPUBLICANS ARE EAGER to recover from their own internal chaos and shift the spotlight to Democratic divisions over Israel, which will be on display this week as the chamber considers the resolution. The Hill's Mychael Schnell and Mike Lillis report if the GOP resolution is poised to splinter the Democratic vote, however, the party appears united in criticizing the GOP's motivations for staging it. Indeed, heading into the vote, even those Democrats likely to support the pro-Israel proposal bashed it as a shameless political ploy.

"They again chose to divide Congress and use Israel, as they have with antisemitism, as a political weapon, and that is bad for everyone, except maybe their candidates," Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) told The Hill. "It's a very unfortunate and unnecessary decision."

Ahead of the vote, top House Democrats plan to oppose the legislation — and are actively urging a no vote in their caucus. Punchbowl News estimates roughly a dozen rank-and-file Democrats may vote for the bill, down from an earlier whip count closer to 40.

Even so, the Democratic-controlled Senate is unlikely to act on the legislation after it passes the House, and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he was not sure if the legislation could pass that chamber or whether it would even get a vote (Politico and Axios).

"President Biden is right," said Durbin, who opposes the bill. "Unless we have some sort of boundary, in terms of the action of Israel, this situation could be even worse, and people could die."

Axios: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is considering bringing the failed bipartisan border deal back to the floor for a vote later this month — turning the tables on the GOP's favorite 2024 issue.
NBC News: Congress passed a law mandating a Capitol memorial for law enforcement officers who defended the building on Jan. 6, 2021. One Democrat said it is "deeply troubling that this memorial has not been installed."
The Hill: House Democrats are probing Trump's request for $1 billion in campaign cash from major oil companies.
Reacting to congressional and administration action, eight TikTok creators sued the U.S. government Tuesday over a new law that would force the sale or ban of the popular video app, arguing it violates First Amendment rights.

Elsewhere

INTERNATIONAL

CEASE-FIRE TALKS between Israel and Hamas have reached a stalemate following Israel's operations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said Tuesday. The strikes have closed a main crossing point for aid from the border with Egypt, a move humanitarian groups say has worsened the already dire situation in the enclave. Qatari, Egyptian and U.S. officials have been working for weeks to mediate a truce between the two sides (Reuters).

"Especially in the past few weeks, we have seen some momentum building but unfortunately, things didn't move in the right direction, and right now we are in a status of almost a stalemate," Sheikh Mohammed said at an economic forum in Doha. "Of course, what happened with Rafah sent us backward."

ABC News: The International Court of Justice said it will hold hearings over Israel's attacks on Rafah during the war in Gaza, after South Africa sought new emergency measures as part of its ongoing case accusing Israel of violating the Genocide Convention.

A MAJOR RUSSIAN PUSH in the northeastern Kharkiv region has created one of the most significant challenges to Ukrainian troops since the beginning of the war. The Hill's Brad Dress writes that while Russia does not appear to have the forces to take significant ground in Kharkiv, Russian troops have advanced with relative ease.

The Washington Post: Niger's prime minister said a crucial military relationship with the U.S. ruptured this spring after a U.S. official made threats during negotiations over whether American troops would be allowed to remain in the country.
The Hill: Georgia's passage of a Russian-inspired law pushes the country to the breaking point.

Opinion

Between Trump and Biden, what should real Republicans do? by former Sens. John Danforth (R-Mo.), William Cohen (R-Maine) and Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.), guest essayists, The Washington Post
Trump's New York trial: Where's the crime? by Andrew Cherkasky and Katie Cherkasky, opinion contributors, The Hill.

The Closer

And finally … 🌪️ We're not in Kansas anymore! Tornado season is back, and while severe storms in spring are nothing new, there have been subtle changes in their patterns in recent years that point to a more dangerous future for communities across the country.

An increase in tornado clusters, for example, means people may get buffeted with natural disasters and have to anticipate multiple events in a short period of time. Those in the affected areas would also have to prepare for a quick series of storms and ensure that they have shelter and supplies to endure all of them (Vox).

"You might have waves of these storms coming through your area, which means you can't just be on for an hour or two, you kind of have to be on for the entirety of that day," said Tyler Fricker, a co-author of a 2019 study on shifting tornado patterns. "And so from a human and from a property perspective, outbreaks are more likely to be disruptive, and they're more difficult to really prepare for ... because there's so much more going on."