U.S. Rep. Donald Payne Jr., a Democratic congressman representing New Jersey’s 10th Congressional District, has died after being hospitalized earlier in April, Gov. Phil Murphy announced Wednesday. Payne was 65. “Tammy and I are deeply saddened by the tragic passing of our friend, and a steadfast champion for the people of New Jersey, Congressman Donald Payne, Jr. Our heartfelt prayers are with his family during this difficult time,” Murphy said in an X post. On April17, Payne’s office said that the congressman had been hospitalized earlier in the month after suffering a “cardiac episode based ..read more

 President Joe Biden signed into law on Wednesday a $95 billion war aid measure that includes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and that also has a provision that would force social media site TikTok to be sold or be banned in the U.S. The announcement marks an end to the long, painful battle with Republicans in Congress over urgently needed assistance for Ukraine. “We rose to the moment, we came together, and we got it done,” Biden said at White House event to announce the signing. “Now we need to move fast, and we are.” But significant damage has been done to the Biden a ..read more

Protesters chanted “Blood on your hands” at Tennessee House Republicans on Tuesday after they passed a bill that would allow some teachers and staff to carry concealed handguns on public school grounds, and bar parents and other teachers from knowing who was armed. The 68-28 vote in favor of the bill sent it to Republican Gov. Bill Lee for consideration. If he signs it into law, it would be the biggest expansion of gun access in the state since last year’s deadly shooting at a private elementary school in Nashville. Members of the public who oppose the bill harangued Republicans lawmakers afte ..read more

David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, testified at Donald Trump’s trial Tuesday that the tabloid completely manufactured a negative story in 2016 about the father of Sen. Ted Cruz, of Texas, who was then Trump’s rival for the GOP presidential nomination. The paper had published a photo allegedly showing Cruz’s father, Rafael Cruz, with Lee Harvey Oswald handing out pro-Fidel Castro pamphlets in New Orleans in 1963, not long before Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Trump repeatedly referred to the story on the campaign trail and in intervi ..read more

Pennsylvania primary voters will cast ballots Tuesday in a series of critical races in the key battleground state, even as both the presidential and Senate primaries are mere formalities. They include a bitterly fought Democratic primary around Pittsburgh and a primary in eastern Pennsylvania that features a moderate Republican seeking to fend off a right-wing challenger.  What’s more, activists upset with President Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war are urging Democrats to write “uncommitted” on the state’s primary ballot. And in the GOP primary, Republicans looking t ..read more

The Senate returned to Washington on Tuesday to vote on $95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, the final congressional steps to send the legislation to President Joe Biden’s desk after months of delays and contentious internal debate over how involved the United States should be abroad. The $61 billion for Ukraine comes as the war-torn country desperately needs new firepower and as Russian President Vladimir Putin has stepped up his attacks. Ukrainian soldiers have struggled to hold the front lines as Russia has seized the momentum on the battlefield and gained significant terri ..read more

A longtime tabloid publisher was expected Tuesday to tell jurors about his efforts to help Donald Trump stifle unflattering stories during the 2016 campaign as testimony resumes in the historic hush money trial of the former president. David Pecker, the former National Enquirer publisher who prosecutors say worked with Trump and Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, on a so-called “catch-and-kill” strategy to buy up and then spike negative stories during the campaign, testified briefly Monday and will be back on the stand Tuesday in the Manhattan trial. Also Tuesday, prosecutors are expected to tell ..read more

Morehouse College is set to announce that President Joe Biden will deliver its commencement address on May 19, but some faculty members have raised concerns about the decision, according to two people familiar with the matter and an email to faculty members reviewed by NBC News. “This week, I received an inquiry from concerned faculty about rumors they were hearing about President Biden’s selection as the 2024 Commencement speaker,” Kendrick Brown, Morehouse College’s provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, wrote in the email to faculty members Friday. Brown said he would conve ..read more

Monday’s opening statements in the first criminal trial of a former American president provided a clear roadmap of how prosecutors will try to make the case that Donald Trump broke the law, and how the defense plans to fight the charges on multiple fronts. Lawyers presented dueling narratives as jurors got their first glimpse into the prosecution accusing Trump of falsifying business records as part of a scheme to squelch negative stories about him during his 2016 presidential campaign. Still to come are weeks of what’s likely to be dramatic and embarrassing testimony about the presumptive Rep ..read more

Supporters of legislation aimed at reigning in artificial intelligence are working to keep the bill alive, removing a section critics say would hurt innovation in Connecticut. “This is something of great hope, great promise, but also great threat,” Sen. Martin Looney (D-President Pro Tem) said during a press conference Monday at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford. Senate Democrats remain optimistic they’ll get the bill signed into law, but the legislative sessions is quickly nearing the final stretch. They have identified the issue as one of their top priorities, saying they want to c ..read more