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Good morning. In the news today: Former special counsel Jack Smith faces lawmakers over his Trump probe; the Supreme Court gives the administration the go-ahead to continue third-country deportations, at least for now; and an Associated Press analysis looks at why so many people most at risk of flooding remain uninsured. Plus, ballet dancers keep leaping forward in Cuba, and if you’ve been following Alaska’s Fat Bear Week, this year’s winner has been announced!
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Former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
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Ex-Trump prosecutor Smith forcefully defends investigations as Republicans assail his team's tactics
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Former special counsel Jack Smith forcefully defended his prosecutions of President Donald Trump and his investigative tactics, pushing back against repeated Republican criticism in an hours-long congressional hearing Tuesday. Read more.
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- It was the latest congressional effort to revisit federal cases that accused Trump of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 race and of hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. The hearing offered a forum for Republicans to try to paint Smith as a political operative and assail him anew for what they contend were politicized prosecutions that unfolded during the 2024 presidential race. The hearing also featured a senator’s bungled attempt to accuse him of lying about a basketball game.
Smith, for his part, defended his work. “Anybody who has worked with me and knows me during the course of my career knows that I would not let politics play a role," he said.
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Supreme Court lets quick deportations to third countries resume for now while it weighs Trump policy
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The Supreme Court on Tuesday let President Donald Trump’s administration continue swiftly deporting people to countries other than their own for now. The apparent 6-3 order temporarily lifts lower court requirements for migrants to get a chance to object before being sent to countries to which they have no ties. Read more.
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The conservative majority has sided with the administration before on the core Trump administration policy, allowing deportation flights to temporarily continue last year. Under a series of often-secret agreements, the administration has deported some 25,000 people to more than two dozen countries, from Liberia to Guyana. Attorney General Todd Blanche called the policy “an entirely lawful and critical tool for immigration enforcement” in a social media post.
Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson would have kept the lower court order in place. The Supreme Court will hear arguments in December.
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Millions who need flood insurance the most don’t have it, as flawed federal program raises prices
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Amid the rising risk of flooding across many areas of the United States, just 2.4% of properties nationwide are covered by 4.5 million federal flood insurance policies, but 8.4% are at severe or extreme risk of flooding. Read more.
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It’s getting worse. The count of policies is down roughly 500,000 in five years. Price increases are a big factor. The problem is especially bad in eastern Kentucky, where hundreds or thousands of buildings are at extreme risk of flooding, according to figures from the federal government and data provided exclusively to the AP by the risk analysis group First Street. Coastal areas including parts of southern Louisiana stand out, too. Areas at high risk of flooding and where few people are insured tend to be poorer, experts said, as are areas where FEMA’s flood maps don’t properly convey the severity of the risk or mandate that enough people buy coverage.
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A dancer from the National Ballet of Cuba adjusts her ballet shoes before rehearsal in Havana, Cuba, August. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
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That's all for today. Know someone who would enjoy Morning Wire? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here. - Nadja
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