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Donald Trump avoided a financial and personal catastrophe in sixty bizarre minutes in New York, but he came dangerously near to historical shame. On Monday, things didn’t go too badly for the former president. An appeals court more than cut in half the amount of a half-billion dollar bond commitment that was required to prevent prosecutors from taking possession of some of his properties, or what he candidly referred to as his “babies” on social media, giving him a victory in the legal realm. Things might become much better on Tuesday when a combined firm that included Trump’s media company goes public, potentially increasing his net worth by $3 billion. However, the scene that the world will most likely remember was in a Manhattan courthouse, where Trump was sitting irately while a judge blocked his most recent attempt at postponement and scheduled his hush money trial.

If nothing unexpected happens, Trump will go on trial for the first time as an ex-commander in chief on April 15. This will add a surprising element to the election in November and break yet another presidential record. His plan to use his political movement to undermine his opponents and cast doubt on the integrity of the court system will be put to the test in the upcoming trial. However, in spite of all of Trump’s attempts to stall the concurrently ticking legal clocks, there is now a genuine chance that one of the presidential contenders is a convicted felon. Of course, Trump can also be found not guilty in this criminal case. Thirty-four counts of fabricating company documents pertaining to hush-money payments made prior to the 2016 election in order to conceal an alleged relationship with adult film actress Stormy Daniels are brought against him. (Trump has denied the affair and entered a not guilty plea.)

Trump’s appearances on Monday during and after a pre-trial hearing in the hush money case were driven by his conflicting emotions: relief that he isn’t losing the empire that made him famous, at least for the time being, and rage at the humiliating trial that will now take place in just three weeks. He congratulated the judges who, in his opinion, gave him good decisions and chastised those who, in his opinion, mistreated him. Regarding the result pertaining to the civil fraud case, Trump declared, “We will, I think, do very well. We appreciate and respect the appellate decision very much.” He replied, “It will be an honor to post.” The fact that a lower $175 million bond posting requirement is considered a significant victory speaks something about how far down Trump’s legal road he has gone. However, the court ruling was a lifesaver for him because he had been struggling for a month to find an insurance company to pay the huge original bail amount and was in serious danger on Monday morning.

Even yet, Trump will be required to pay New York state more than $450 million to cover the unjust gains he made by inflating his assets in order to obtain better loan and insurance agreements, should his appeal against the civil fraud judgment ultimately be unsuccessful. Keeping that in mind, Trump sided with the prosecution’s attorney general, Letitia James of New York, and judge Arthur Engoron in an attempt to support his claim that he is the victim of Democratic persecution. We have an incredibly crooked attorney general and a judge who, in my opinion, is corrupt. According to the former president, we did nothing improper at all. Turning to Judge Juan Merchan, who had ruined the former president’s day by announcing the trial date, Trump leveled yet another venomous grievance. “I’m not sure if you’ll be having the trial. I’m not sure how a trial of this nature can take place during a presidential election.

Janja Garnbret is one of the few people who has experience in the realm of competitive climbing, having won eight world championships and an Olympic gold medal. After reaching the pinnacle of the sport, the Slovenian intends to utilize her position to advocate for change about “cultural” climbing traps that, in her opinion, are fueling the epidemic of eating disorders. According to her, the issue arises from the antiquated belief that a lighter weight corresponds with a speedier ascent. She claims that because of this mentality, young athletes are starting to skip or drastically reduce their meal intake, sometimes with disastrous results.

Although she does not personally struggle with eating disorders, she is well aware of friends and competitors who have harmed their bodies in the name of losing weight. Weight does play a part in climbing, as Garnbret acknowledges in an interview with CNN Sport. “This is a cultural thing in climbing, it’s integrated in our brains that the lighter you are, the stronger you are.” It goes without saying that you don’t want to weigh too much or too little; the ideal weight is somewhere in the middle. “I firmly think that participating in any sport, including climbing, can be done in a healthy way.” Growing up, Garnbret claims that all of her climbing role models were “super skinny,” which only served to perpetuate the idea that losing weight was necessary in order to compete at the international level. “You aspire to emulate those who succeed when you witness them. You wish for outcomes similar to theirs. You wish to resemble them,” she remarks. “I was in the similar situation, but fortunately I escaped this trap.

There were folks there to help me choose the correct course.”I attempted to assist those who had fallen victim to this scam as much as I could. For about two years, I was making a lot of effort to help them escape, but I was unable to do so. I found it really difficult to watch people harm themselves both physically and mentally. These kinds of encounters led Garnbret to write a message regarding eating disorders on Instagram in July 2023. “Do we wish to raise skeletons for the future generation? Having brittle hair, wearing a lifeless expression, and pretending to be alright but are you really? In an extensive post, she attempted to shed light on the previously forbidden subject. US rock climber Sasha DiGiulian was among many who expressed support for the post, which generated a tremendous amount of attention and waves throughout the climbing world.

The syndrome known as Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) is what Garnbret discussed in her message. It is a condition that happens to people of any gender who have overtrained or underfed for an extended period of time in an effort to increase their athletic performance, frequently without realizing the risks of not making up for the energy they use in training, competition, and daily life. Medical professionals claim that REDs can impair an athlete’s performance on the field as well as their metabolism, immunological system, cardiovascular health, menstrual cycle, mental health, and bone health, which can result in more fractures.

Sunday afternoon in Orlando, Florida is cool and bright, making it the ideal day to hit one of the more than 1,000 golf courses located around the Sunshine State. Instead, though, Annika Sorenstam—possibly the greatest female golfer of all time—is enjoying a casual game of putting in their Lake Nona garden alongside her spouse and two kids. Her professional legacy is unrivaled, beginning with her historic 59, the lowest-scoring game in women’s competition history, and continuing with her 90 international victories. She is working just as hard now to return favors to the sport that has greatly benefited her. The former professional has put her family and her organization, which supports young women in golf, first since quitting in 2008.

Similar to the topic of this year’s International Women’s Day, Sorenstam thinks that putting money into women will guarantee their success in life as well as in golf. In a recent interview with CNN from her Florida home, Sorenstam stated, “There’s no doubt that the girls that come through the foundation, they are great golfers, but many of them don’t go on to necessarily play professional golf, which is not really the purpose of the foundation.” “It’s more about encouraging them to achieve their goals.” In this sport, there are numerous options for women. Prior to becoming the golf “GOAT,” Sorenstam was just a young child from Bro, Sweden, a small village. She enjoyed playing a variety of sports but wasn’t particularly interested in golf. “I really wasn’t all that excited about golf at first,” the woman remarked. “I was hoping for a little bit more speed and action.” She did, however, admit that she gradually began to like the game and how challenging it was because she lived so close to a golf course and her parents used ice cream to entice her and her sister Charlotta to play. She knew she could make a living in the sport when she was eighteen, the year she won the World Amateur Championship.

She added how crucial it was to have such representation and mentioned how other women players at the time, including Nancy Lopez and Beth Daniel, had also influenced her. Following the 1988 US Open victory of Swedish professional golfer Liselotte Neumann, Sorenstam remarked, “I thought, ‘Wow, she has a similar background like me, so maybe there’s a chance I can do it.'” Although Sorenstam was aware of the differences in golf earnings and visibility between men and women when she turned pro, she claimed she was too thrilled to play the game to give the differences much thought. She remarked, “I knew women’s golf was going to grow and hopefully we will get there one day.” The Swede had no idea at the moment how she would contribute to the dawn of a new era in women’s golf, raising the game to a whole new level. Sorenstam won 10 majors and 72 Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) events during her professional career (plus one senior major in 2021).

A record amount of Vare Trophies, which are awarded for having the lowest scoring average across a season, and Rolex Player of the Year accolades were also given to her. Her career turning point came in 2001 when she became the first female competitor in history to cross the 60-year mark in an official competition. Being the first woman to accomplish something in this circumstance lends you credit and earns you the charming moniker “Miss 59.” It’s about having the ability to “set the bar high… just keep working and you can break barriers,” Sorenstam continued. Her success paved the way for her to compete against males at the 2003 Colonial, making history as the first female player in a PGA event to compete in more than 50 years. “I recall being ecstatic at the time. I recall thinking, “Wow, I’m going to push even harder,” she remarked. “I wanted to demonstrate our ability to play, and it was a wonderful experience.”

Tuesday will mark the Supreme Court’s first abortion case since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, drastically altering the landscape of reproductive rights in the United States. Think about how much the nation has changed as a result of the justices’ ruling: Currently, access to abortion is severely restricted in seven states and completely prohibited in fourteen. Some states that forbid abortion are attempting to prevent the importation of abortion drugs and, in addition, are attempting to overturn a federal statute that permits ER doctors to end a pregnancy when it is medically necessary. Additionally, some, including President Joe Biden, linked an Alabama Supreme Court ruling that affected in vitro fertilization—a procedure meant to begin rather than stop a pregnancy—to the Court’s infringement on a woman’s right to privacy when it overturned the Roe decision. Abortion has surged to the top of election-year political agendas, with Democrats hoping that public outcry over restrictions will continue to benefit their candidacies.

Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has raised the possibility of outlawing abortion nationwide at 15 weeks of pregnancy. The public’s perception of the Supreme Court has deteriorated throughout. The justices will consider a dispute on Food and Drug Administration regulations regarding access to the abortion drug mifepristone on Tuesday, against this culturally charged backdrop. A group of doctors who oppose abortion have filed a lawsuit against the FDA, arguing that the agency’s evaluation of the drug’s safety was flawed and that it had improperly removed “critical safeguards” for its usage. The organization seeks to restrict women’s access to the pill, which is one of two medications used to abort a fetus in its first few weeks of life and is now the most popular method of pregnancy termination in the United States. Two of the most contentious clauses are one from 2016 that extends the drug’s use beyond seven weeks of pregnancy to ten, and another from 2021 that allows women to get their prescriptions via mail instead of in person.

Medication abortion has caused an unanticipated increase in abortions since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, which overruled Roe. In the United States, over a million abortions were performed last year—a 10% rise from 2020 and the highest rate in over ten years. In its written brief in the new case, the Biden administration, defending the FDA, had not once mentioned the Dobbs ruling. This could have been done to sidestep a potential constitutional hot spot and highlight the larger implications of government control and expertise. Rather, it centers on the procedure for approving drugs. Referring to a federal appellate court’s 2023 ruling against the FDA, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the justices, “To the government’s knowledge, this case marks the first time any court has restricted access to an FDA approved drug by second-guessing FDA’s expert judgment about the conditions required to assure that drug’s safe use.” Prelogar stated that more than 5 million American women had used mifepristone to terminate their pregnancies since the medication was originally approved for sale in 2000.

But organizations that have submitted “friend of the court” filings point to Dobbs and the events that have transpired in the United States since the Supreme Court struck down almost fifty years’ worth of abortion rights precedent. New York notes the general disruption to reproductive care since Dobbs and claims that medication abortion via telemedicine “spiked dramatically in the first year after Dobbs,” joining 22 other states and the District of Columbia in supporting the FDA. However, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops used the majority opinion of Dobbs to support their positions against the FDA, stating that “Abortion is a unique act.” The anti-abortion groups’ attorneys addressed the justices, quoting earlier rulings, “This Court acknowledges that ‘(a)bortion is inherently different from other medical procedures, because no other procedure involves the purposeful termination of a potential life.”

While dismissing Ukraine’s denial of any involvement, Russian official media is adamantly accusing the West and Ukraine for the tragic attack on the Crocus Hall, echoing earlier assertions by the Kremlin. Independent-minded critics, on the other hand, are skeptical of such assertions, claiming that state security failed to stop this attack at home because it was preoccupied with the conflict in Ukraine. The most shocking attempt at misinformation by Russian state media may have been when NTV aired a film featuring Oleksiy Danilov, the top security official in Ukraine, that seemed to have been created using artificial intelligence. Shortly after the incident, the film appeared on Russia’s third most popular station. Danilov was supposedly heard stating, “It’s fun in Moscow today. I hope we can plan something enjoyable for them on a regular basis.”

However, we have proven that the video clip is a combination of two separate interviews that were released over the past week, and that the voice in the video was most likely produced by artificial intelligence (AI). Calling this the “Western version” of events, prominent pro-Kremlin bloggers and Russian TV presenters have questioned whether the Islamic State organization (IS) was behind the Moscow attack. During his prime-time news review program on March 24, popular commentator and pro-Kremlin propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov stated, “There are already attempts to have everyone chasing down the wrong lead.” “IS has distinct characteristics. Suicide attackers who do not attempt to escape after carrying out acts of violence in the name of IS,” he said, asserting: “It is an indisputable fact that the terrorists sought salvation in Ukraine, which is where they headed after committing the crime.” Despite the fact that the Islamic State group (IS) acknowledged responsibility for the attack, these remarks are made.

Additionally, the group has released verified video showing the attackers’ points of view, which the BBC has been able to access. “The motivation behind this act of violence by this bunch of radical Islamists is unknown. State-run Channel One claimed that “the explanations of American experts seem forced, as if tailoring a solution to a ready-made answer.” Similar claims were also made by Margarita Simonyan, head editor of Russia Today, the state channel RT. “The ghouls lacked “shahid belts,” or explosive belts. They were not going to perish. None of them were extreme believers. ISIS wasn’t even close by,” she stated on Telegram. There have also been other attempts to assign responsibility for the attack on Western nations and Ukraine. Some publications, such as the state-run Rossiyskaya Gazeta, assert that the weapons used by the assailants, which were camouflaged in yellow-green, “are very similar to the weapons that traitors from the Russian Volunteer Corps use.” The gang is fighting for Ukraine as a pro-Russian formation.

Even more absurd accusations were made by certain commentators. Gennady Zyuganov, the leader of the Communist Party, stated on Rossiya 24 TV, a rolling news channel: “Unfortunately, many of our citizens have not fully realised that the Anglo-Saxons, NATO members are simply waging a war of destruction on the Russian world.” He said, “This wild, absolutely disgusting barbaric terrorist attack is eloquent evidence of this,” and then he advanced a conspiracy theory suggesting that the US was responsible for the 9/11 incident. Andrei Medvedev, a State Rossiya 1 reporter, claimed to have seen the hand of MI6, saying that it “chose precisely migrants to carry out a monstrous terrorist attack” and “patronises the Ukrainian HUR” (Main Intelligence Directorate).

Now, days of absence and suffering instead of weeks or months, are Rachel Goldberg-Polin’s new calendar. She writes a number on a piece of tape and attaches it to her clothes every morning when she wakes up. It’s the number of days that Hamas kidnapped her son Hersh and claimed him as his own. That number is 155 when we get together in Jerusalem. When she checked her phone in the morning on October 7, she saw two texts from Hersh. First, they said, “I love you.” The second message that was sent out right away was, “I’m sorry.” Her call went unanswered. Her words, “It rang and rang,” I penned, ‘Are you alright? Tell me if you’re alright. There was never any evidence of those texts. My gut turned inside and my throat tightened. I simply knew that a terrible thing was happening, and I knew he knew it too.” Hersh became entangled in the chaos that Hamas had unleashed during the Supernova music festival. He went to a crowded bomb shelter for safety. Hand grenades were being thrown in by Hamas fighters who were nearby.

The 23-year-old’s most recent photo appears in a Hamas video. With shooters all around, he is being carried onto a pickup vehicle. It’s blasted off his left arm. 1,200 Israelis were murdered in the Hamas strikes, the most of them were civilians. Since then, officials in the Hamas-run region of Gaza claim that Israel has attacked the area nonstop, killing over 31,000 people. There, women and children make up 70% of the deceased. Rachel’s quest is to return her son and the other prisoners home while the conflict rages in Gaza. Hersh is one of the 130 hostages from the strikes of October 7th that are still in Gaza. Israel estimates that at least thirty have already passed away. “Every morning I make a concerted effort and say to myself, ‘now, pretend to be human so that I can get up and try to save Hersh and the other remaining hostages’,” she shares with me. “What I want to do is lay in a ball on the floor weeping, but that won’t help them.”

Despite her petite size and slight build, Rachel is a formidable mother of three. We get together at the office of a venture capital firm, which a friend leased us, which serves as her family’s campaign headquarters. She currently works as a campaigner full-time. Ever since the day of the assaults, she has not returned to her job. Jon, her spouse, hasn’t either. However, after five months, both domestically and internationally, attention is beginning to shift away from the hostages. Family members are fighting arduously to maintain their public profile. When you inquire about her, Hersh, a smile appears on her face. “That’s my favourite subject – my children,” she continues. “Hersh is a carefree, easygoing soccer enthusiast. Since he was a young boy, he has been enthralled with travel and geography, and he is a huge music festival enthusiast.” Her son, a dual citizen of the United States and Israel, was scheduled to depart for a year or two of travel throughout the globe. He had already purchased his ticket.

The date of departure was December 27. There was talk of a possible agreement to free the Palestinian captives and bring an approximate 40-day peace in exchange for the hostages being released before the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. A dismal Ramadan has arrived, devoid of any progress. But in the coming day or so, negotiations on a potential deal are scheduled to pick back up in Doha. I’m terrified, uncertain, and anxious all the time, says Rachel. “You know the adage, don’t count your chickens before they hatch? Don’t count yourself hostage, in my opinion, until you’ve given them a hug.” However, she maintains that optimism “is mandatory”. “I believe it and I have to believe it, that he will come back to us.” Even in the midst of her suffering, she recognizes the suffering of Gazan families without delay. The suffering, she believes, has to end, and not just for Israelis. “There are thousands and thousands of innocent civilians in Gaza who are suffering,” she continues. “There is an abundance of misery in the world. And I would adore it if all of our leaders declared, “We’re going to do whatever it takes to make the lives of ordinary people better.”

According to a law enforcement source who spoke with CNN, search warrant action at the residences of producer and musician Sean “Diddy” Combs on Monday was connected to a continuing investigation into sex trafficking. Due to the delicate nature of the inquiry, the insider would not say if Combs was the specific target. The Department of Homeland Security Investigations New York acknowledged that it had “executed law enforcement actions as part of an ongoing investigation” in response to reports of raids at Combs’ residences. According to CNN correspondents on the scene, law enforcement was spotted at two of Combs’ residences on Monday: one in the Miami region and the other in Los Angeles.

According to HSI New York, local law enforcement, HSI Miami, and HSI Los Angeles all provided support in this action. “We will furnish additional details as they become accessible,” the law enforcement division informed CNN. The US Department of Homeland Security’s principal investigative division, HSI, is in charge of looking into threats and transnational crimes, including human trafficking. Carlos Suarez of CNN was informed by an HSI Miami spokesman that the police conduct amounted to a “search warrant execution.” It’s unclear at this time if Combs or other locals are the intended targets of the police activity. CNN has contacted Combs’s agents to request a statement. Multiple armed law enforcement personnel were seen strolling around Combs’ Los Angeles home’s grounds in aerial imagery. Agents were processing documents on card tables at his Miami area home and the Los Angeles home, both of which had mobile command post vehicles visible. Considering the extent of the properties, it will probably take some time to find and process the evidence.

Combs (54), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy and Diddy, started the record company Bad Boy in 1993. Combs, who is recognized for his contributions to the development of the hip-hop genre, has received 14 nominations and three Grammy awards during his career. Although Combs first found fame with his music, he also rose to prominence as a producer and businessman. The incident comes after months of controversy for Combs, however it is unclear if Monday’s law enforcement action is connected. Combs resolved a lawsuit filed in November 2023 by singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, his ex-girlfriend, who claimed Combs had sexually assaulted her and mistreated her repeatedly over a period of years. “A choice to resolve a lawsuit, particularly in 2023, is not an acknowledgement of misconduct,” Combs’ lawyer Ben Brafman stated in a statement to CNN at the time. “Mr. Combs’ choice to resolve the litigation does not contradict his categorically asserted denial of the allegations in any way. He’s glad they were able to come to an amicable agreement and hopes the best for Ms. Ventura.

A few weeks later, Combs was the target of at least two more civil cases brought in New York, one of which was brought in federal court in December and contained accusations of sex trafficking in addition to the charges of sexual assault. In reaction to the December lawsuit, Combs stated, “I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation, and my legacy.” I’ve been the target of horrifying accusations from people hoping to get rich quick. To be crystal clear, I did not do any of the horrible things that are being said. I’ll stand up for the truth, my family, and my name. In a separate civil case brought by a former male employee last month, Combs was accused of sexual assault and harassment. Combs, via his counsel, refuted the allegations.

Sunday afternoon in Orlando, Florida is cool and bright, making it the ideal day to hit one of the more than 1,000 golf courses located around the Sunshine State. Instead, though, Annika Sorenstam—possibly the greatest female golfer of all time—is enjoying a casual game of putting in their Lake Nona garden alongside her spouse and two kids. Her professional legacy is unrivaled, beginning with her historic 59, the lowest-scoring game in women’s competition history, and continuing with her 90 international victories. She is working just as hard now to return favors to the sport that has greatly benefited her. The former professional has put her family and her organization, which supports young women in golf, first since quitting in 2008.

Similar to the topic of this year’s International Women’s Day, Sorenstam thinks that putting money into women will guarantee their success in life as well as in golf. In a recent interview with CNN from her Florida home, Sorenstam stated, “There’s no doubt that the girls that come through the foundation, they are great golfers, but many of them don’t go on to necessarily play professional golf, which is not really the purpose of the foundation.” “It’s more about encouraging them to achieve their goals.” In this sport, there are numerous options for women. Prior to becoming the golf “GOAT,” Sorenstam was just a young child from Bro, Sweden, a small village. She enjoyed playing a variety of sports but wasn’t particularly interested in golf. “I really wasn’t all that excited about golf at first,” the woman remarked. “I was hoping for a little bit more speed and action.” She did, however, admit that she gradually began to like the game and how challenging it was because she lived so close to a golf course and her parents used ice cream to entice her and her sister Charlotta to play. She knew she could make a living in the sport when she was eighteen, the year she won the World Amateur Championship.

She added how crucial it was to have such representation and mentioned how other women players at the time, including Nancy Lopez and Beth Daniel, had also influenced her. Following the 1988 US Open victory of Swedish professional golfer Liselotte Neumann, Sorenstam remarked, “I thought, ‘Wow, she has a similar background like me, so maybe there’s a chance I can do it.'” Although Sorenstam was aware of the differences in golf earnings and visibility between men and women when she turned pro, she claimed she was too thrilled to play the game to give the differences much thought. She remarked, “I knew women’s golf was going to grow and hopefully we will get there one day.” The Swede had no idea at the moment how she would contribute to the dawn of a new era in women’s golf, raising the game to a whole new level. Sorenstam won 10 majors and 72 Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) events during her professional career (plus one senior major in 2021).

A record amount of Vare Trophies, which are awarded for having the lowest scoring average across a season, and Rolex Player of the Year accolades were also given to her. Her career turning point came in 2001 when she became the first female competitor in history to cross the 60-year mark in an official competition. Being the first woman to accomplish something in this circumstance lends you credit and earns you the charming moniker “Miss 59.” It’s about having the ability to “set the bar high… just keep working and you can break barriers,” Sorenstam continued. Her success paved the way for her to compete against males at the 2003 Colonial, making history as the first female player in a PGA event to compete in more than 50 years. “I recall being ecstatic at the time. I recall thinking, “Wow, I’m going to push even harder,” she remarked. “I wanted to demonstrate our ability to play, and it was a wonderful experience.”

On Monday, the courts gave Donald Trump a lifeline and set a trial date for the first-ever criminal trial of a former president in US history. These two decisions underscored the ongoing legal upheaval that surrounds him. The two decisions on Monday, which were issued about an hour apart, addressed issues with Trump’s reputation and his renowned business empire in the context of his bid for a second term in office. Judge Juan Merchan said on Monday that jury selection for President Trump’s historic criminal trial in the New York hush money case will take place on April 15. Originally scheduled to commence on April 15, the start date was pushed back due to a disagreement over the late provision of documents.

A New York appeals court’s decision on Monday to permit Trump to post a smaller $175 million bond while he challenges the $464 million civil fraud judgment against him, his adult sons, and his business, may have been the most consequential decision for the billionaire. Trump assured reporters that he would use cash as security to cover the bond. What can be learned from yet another momentous day for President Trump? For at least one of his trials prior to the November election, the former president will be tried by a jury on criminal charges, barring another unanticipated incident—which is never something to rule out when Trump is involved. The purpose of the hearing on Monday was to discuss Trump’s request to have the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office sanctioned and the charges dismissed.

Earlier this month, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York turned over tens of thousands of documents pertaining to the federal prosecution of Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney and fixer, in 2018. Merchan rejected the charges made by Trump’s attorneys before midday, ruling that there were no infractions and that jury selection would start the trial on April 15. Alvin Bragg, the district attorney for Manhattan, has charged Trump on 34 counts of falsifying business records. The allegations stem from Cohen’s reimbursement of Trump for hush money payments he made to adult film star Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 election in order to prevent her from disclosing an alleged affair with him. The former president has denied the affair and entered a not guilty plea. Although the date is three weeks later than planned, it won’t have much of an impact on Trump’s 2024 timetable, and it’s still unclear if any of his other three trials will take place before the election.

Trump was unable to post a $464 million bond to appeal the civil fraud judgment against him, according to his attorneys last week. Letitia James, the attorney general of New York, gave Trump until Monday to post bond or she would start the process of taking his properties. However, the appeals court decision granted Trump an extra 10 days to deposit a $175 million bond—a sum the outgoing president claimed he could manage. This month, Trump has already posted a $91 million bond while he files an appeal against the defamation ruling in the case of E. Jean Carroll. The decision is a significant win for Trump since it eliminates the chance that James may try to take the former president’s assets in order to carry out the judgment against him. The enforcement of the civil fraud judgment against the former president, his sons, and their corporation is halted until at least September once Trump pays the $175 million bond.

The powerful political apparatus in New Jersey may be about to collapse. This week, a federal court in Trenton is expected to make a decision about a lawsuit that seeks to restrict the power of local powerful people over party primaries and the nomination process. But first lady Tammy Murphy’s decision to halt her candidacy on Sunday has called into question how urgent it is to make a choice before the primary on June 4. Andy Kim, a Democrat running for the Senate, is requesting a preliminary injunction from the court to remove the so-called party line, a voting arrangement that permits county officials to give their preferred primary candidates preference on the ballot. With the state’s off-year elections approaching, a decision in favor of the South Jersey congressman would hasten the dissolution of a system that has for decades permitted hedonistic party bosses to control the composition and character of New Jersey politics. The decision would only apply to the June primary, though. In the Garden State, there has been a battle for electoral fairness and openness for over a century.

Over the course of the 20th century, the machine regained dominance after reformers experienced some notable early victories. The system seemed to be rigged in favor of the tabloid star-turned-politician Donald Trump by the time he entered the scene in 2015. However, even in a state where he was defeated by almost 500,000 votes in 2016, Trump’s rise to the presidency set off a popular uprising that ultimately placed the “party line” in the crosshairs for proponents of good governance. Following the incident at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, President Joe Biden and national Democrats adopted a “pro-democracy” strategy that helped push the topic farther into the public eye. Because of his primary against Murphy, Kim’s lawsuit—which is essentially a carbon copy of one that was first filed three years ago—had garnered national attention. After losing her bid on Sunday, the wife of two-term governor Phil Murphy stated that she would not “waste resources tearing down a fellow Democrat.”

Several candidates, including Kim, are running to succeed Sen. Bob Menendez, a longstanding Democratic incumbent who is currently facing a broad range of allegations of corruption that could send him to prison for an extended period of time. Though he once more hinted at the idea of running as an independent this summer, Menendez declared on Thursday that he would not seek reelection in the Democratic primary. Murphy received a barrage of endorsements upon entering the primary in November, roughly two months after Kim, many of which either assured or strongly hinted that she would be awarded a prime spot on the ballot – and a potentially decisive advantage over Kim before the campaign had officially kicked off. What could be a generational realignment in a state historically dominated by powerful party bosses in the manner that many Americans associate with a bygone era—reminiscent of New York’s Tammany Hall of the mid-19th century—was sparked by Murphy’s decision to run for the seat and the speed with which local pooh-bahs lined up behind her.

Over the past few decades, those structures have largely collapsed elsewhere, but New Jersey Democratic leaders have managed to hold onto their distinct influence, largely because of “the line,” which is shorthand for the valuable ballot real estate held by county party officials, many of whom are also unelected. It is customary to list party-endorsed candidates’ names in a single, conspicuous column for a range of positions. Those who are not selected for “the line” are dispersed over the voting paper, abandoned in what is sometimes called “Ballot Siberia.” Reformers and left-leaning Democratic organizations that don’t have the support of the established establishment have long decried the practice, branding it anti-democratic and equivalent to voting suppression.