Trump verdict fallout, Boeing’s delayed launch and Mexico’s historic election: Weekend Rundown

On Jun 2, 2024

Netanyahu aide says Israel agreed to Biden’s cease-fire plan

An aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel had agreed to the framework for President Joe Biden’s plan to bring an end to the war in Gaza, though he said it was “not a good deal.”

Biden announced Friday that Israel had proposed a three-part plan that would ultimately lead to a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, as well as the release of all hostages who have been held there for the last eight months. On Saturday, Netanyahu appeared to undermine the plan, releasing a statement that called a permanent cease-fire in Gaza a “nonstarter” until long-standing conditions for ending the war are met.

But in an interview with Britain’s Sunday Times, Ophir Falk, chief foreign policy adviser to Netanyahu, emphasized that Israel was not rejecting the deal, saying that it was “a deal we agreed to — it’s not a good deal but we dearly want the hostages released, all of them.”

Trump suggests ‘breaking point’ for U.S. if he’s imprisoned

Former President Donald Trump is awaiting sentencing on 34 felony counts in New York on July 11, and could potentially receive a jail sentence days before the Republican National Convention.

In a Fox News interview Sunday, Trump said he is “OK with it” if he’s imprisoned or placed under house arrest, but suggested it could be “tough” for the public. “At a certain point, there’s a breaking point,” he said.

With the end of the New York trial, the Biden campaign now sees a window of opportunity to draw in disengaged voters with a new pitch: that Trump is more focused on himself than them.

One longtime Democratic donor noted that in private conversations for several months, campaign officials said the president’s poll numbers would improve once Trump became the presumptive nominee. “It hasn’t happened,” this person said.

Mexico is set to elect its first female president

Zocalo square in Mexico City on May 29.Pedro Pardo / AFP via Getty Images

Voters in Mexico are participating in the country’s largest election ever. The top two presidential candidates are Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico’s governing political party and Xóchitl Gálvez of the opposition coalition Broad Front for Mexico.

One of them is expected to make history as Mexico’s first female president.

But the election has been largely overshadowed by rampant violence between criminal groups taking over large parts of Mexico and a rise in violence against political figures.

Security has been a top issue of concern for Mexican voters, with one survey finding about 6 in 10 adults consider the city where they live to be unsafe due to robberies or armed violence. And Sheinbaum and Gálvez have very different ideas on the best way to reduce crime.

Boeing calls off Starliner launch

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on June 1.John Raoux / AP

NASA and Boeing were once again forced to call off the first crewed launch of the company’s Starliner spacecraft.

The launch attempt on Saturday afternoon was scrubbed with only 3 minutes and 50 seconds to go in the countdown, after an automatic hold was triggered on a computer known as the ground launch sequencer.

Launch scrubs are not uncommon in the world of human spaceflight. “This is the business that we’re in,” said one Boeing official in a post-scrub news briefing. “Everything’s got to work perfectly.”

There are additional opportunities for the launch on June 5 and 6, according to NASA.

Idaho doomsday author sentenced to death

Chad Daybell, who was found guilty of murder in the deaths of his first wife and his second wife’s two youngest children, was sentenced to the death penalty Saturday.

During the more than monthlong trial in Boise, Idaho, prosecutors painted Daybell as someone infatuated with apocalyptic thoughts and who called people “zombies” and “dark spirits.”

Several family members read victim impact statements before the sentence was handed down. “There’s a hole in my heart and the hearts of every member of my family that can never be filled and will remain for the rest of our life,” said Kay Woodcock, the grandmother of one of the slain children.

Meet the Press

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said on “Meet the Press” that he would accept the 2024 election results and would vote to certify the results in 2025, just as he did in 2020, “if it’s a fair and free election.”

Cotton is rumored to be on the shortlist as a potential Trump vice presidential pick. In recent weeks, other senators rumored to be on the shortlist have refused to say on “Meet the Press” whether they would accept the results this year.

“[Trump and I] had a disagreement about what can happen that day,” Cotton said of his decision to certify the 2020 election. “I don’t think Congress has the constitutional authority to reject electors, and as a practical matter, it was never going to happen.”

“I will accept the results of the election and certify them if it’s a fair and free election,” he said.

You can watch the full interview here.

Politics in brief

Doxxing attempts: The Trump trial verdict spurred a wave of violent rhetoric and other posts targeting the prosecutors, the judge and the jurors.
Hunter Biden trial: Joe Biden’s son is headed to court on Monday, facing a criminal trial on federal gun charges that could potentially land him in jail.
TikTok turnaround: Trump announced Saturday that he has joined TikTok, a platform he tried to ban as president.
Cease-and-desist: The Trump campaign wants Republican Rep. Bob Good to stop using Trump’s name and image to promote his campaign.
Legal woes: As Trump awaits sentencing in the hush money trial, other potentially perilous legal problems loom, including up to three criminal trials where he faces more serious charges.

A pilot was shot down near her home. Decades later, she’s keeping his memory alive.

1st Lt. Paul Chaufty pictured in the cockpit of his P-47 Thunderbolt fighter plane.Chaufty family

Marie Bastien was just 14 when American fighter pilot 1st Lt. Paul Chaufty was shot out of the sky near her village in northern France, as allied forces battled to drive out Nazi occupiers. The pilot managed to bail out of his plane but fell to his death when his parachute failed. Her father found his body the next day and they were able to identify him from his dog tags.

Last week, Bastien, who is now 94, stood alongside some of Chaufty’s American relatives while a plaque honoring his memory was unveiled in the village, close to where her family recovered his body.

Paying hundreds for a concert? ‘Hard pass.’

At a time when many consumers are struggling to pay for basic necessities, people are seeing ticket prices for their favorite artists and saying, “Thanks, but no thanks.” Spending fatigue is among the reasons why some major artists like Jennifer Lopez are suddenly canceling shows — and in some cases, even entire tours.

Jennifer Lopez. — Jennifer Lopez canceled her summer tour “This Is Me…Live” to spend time with her family and friends, according to a statement from Live Nation.Marco Ugarte / AP file

Another reason big concerts aren’t selling the way they used to is because they now serve a different economic purpose for artists. Bands used go on tour as a way of marketing an album. “Now they’re making records to sell the tour,” said Dave Clark, editor of Ticket News. “That paradigm has a lot to do with it. It’s just a very overloaded market.”