Former President Donald Trump and two of his co-defendants have requested to have their cases separated from the indictment in Georgia over attempts to overturn the state's 2020 election results. Trump entered a plea of not guilty and waived his right to appear in court, while attorneys Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro filed motions to have their cases severed from the other defendants. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is currently in negotiations with the squadron of co-defendants, and the outcome of the requests for separation is yet to be seen.
News Mash
Donald Trump has entered a plea of not guilty to 13 felony counts related to an alleged scheme to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia. He waived his right to be present at his arraignment and submitted the plea in writing, as is allowed under Georgia law. This is the first time a president in U.S. history has faced criminal charges after leaving office, and it is still unclear how the case will proceed.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has disclosed trips paid for by his friend, billionaire Harlan Crow, in his annual financial disclosure report. This has renewed focus on judicial ethics, as it is the first disclosure form filed by the justice since he came under scrutiny for his relationship with the Texas developer. The remaining seven justices have filed their 2022 reports, but it is unclear if any of them have had similar trips paid for by outside sources.
Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida's Big Bend region as a Category 3 storm on Wednesday, bringing with it powerful winds and devastating flooding. The National Weather Service declared it an unprecedented event, as no major hurricanes have ever passed through the bay abutting the Big Bend. Photos of the aftermath show water-logged communities and the destruction left in the storm's wake, and emergency crews are working to restore power and clear debris.
On Monday, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was rocked by a deadly shooting on campus, leaving students in a state of panic. In response, the student newspaper The Daily Tar Heel featured a string of real text messages exchanged by students during the hours of lockdown on its front page, accompanied by a headline that read “LOADING ERROR LOADING”. The paper’s coverage of the shooting was a fitting tribute to the life of Zijie Yan, and a reminder of the need for gun control measures to protect students and faculty on college campuses.
Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver have come together to create a podcast, "Strike Force Five," to discuss the Hollywood strikes. The podcast features conversations about the strikes and aims to raise awareness about the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes. The podcast is available on Spotify and will feature weekly conversations about the strikes.
At least 58 people have died and 43 have been injured in a devastating fire in a five-story building in Johannesburg, South Africa, that had been taken over by homeless people. Firefighters are searching the building floor-by-floor and the death toll is expected to rise. Robert Mulaudzi, a spokesman for the emergency services, said he had "never come across something like this" in his 20 years of service. The South African government has promised to provide assistance to those affected by the tragedy.
Fabian Nelson, a 38-year-old realtor from Byram, Mississippi, has won the Democratic primary election runoff, making him the first openly gay state legislator in Mississippi. He will face Republican candidate Robert Foster in the November general election, and if elected, he will be the first openly gay black man to serve in any state legislature in the United States. Nelson has been a vocal advocate for LGBTQ rights and has said he has wanted to be a state legislator since he visited the state capitol as a high school student.