More fiery exchanges at Donald Trump’s money trial as his former attorney testifies. Families involved in Brown v. Board of Education met with President Joe Biden to mark the case’s 70th anniversary. And Israel was accused in world court of trying to “destroy Palestinian life.”
👋Hey Thursday!Laura Davis here. It’s time for to get caught up on the news!
But first: Disney after dark! 🎢 What happens at Disney World when a park closes? We stayed to find out.
More fiery exchanges at Trump trial
Former President Donald Trump’s defense team tried to undermine star witness Michael Cohen’s credibility at Trump’s New York hush money trial Thursday.
🗣️ What they’re saying: “That was a lie!” Trump lawyer Todd Blanche exclaimed about Cohen’s testimony that a call with Trump’s bodyguard Keith Schiller was about paying porn star Stormy Daniels to stay silent about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump.
Cohen delivered crucial testimony for the prosecution earlier this week, telling the jury not only that Trump instructed him to pay $130,000 to Daniels ahead of the 2016 election, but also that Trump approved a scheme to cloak his reimbursement to Cohen as monthly payments for legal services. 👉 More updates from the courtroom.
Brown v. Board of Education at 70: Biden’s historic meeting
It’s been a decade since Cheryl Brown Henderson, the daughter of the namesake plaintiff in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education civil rights case, last stepped foot in the White House, meeting the nation’s first Black president, Barack Obama. When the Kansas native and founder of the Brown Foundation returned this Thursday for a conversation with President Joe Biden and other families involved in the case, she was celebrating another milestone – the 70th anniversary of the May 17, 1954, decision that led to the desegregation of schools. The case became a catalyst for major civil rights developments, from the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to the Fair Housing Act of 1968. 🤝 A historic meeting.
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Israel ‘must be stopped’: South Africa says to World Court
South Africa asked the top international court Thursday to order a halt to the Rafah offensive, accused Israel of genocide and said the country’s war effort “must be stopped” to protect the Palestinian people. South Africa’s legal representatives at the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, said Israel’s shutdown of the Rafah and Kerem Shalom border crossings has plunged Gaza into unprecedented levels of humanitarian need. “From the onset, Israel’s intent was always to destroy Palestinian life and to wipe them off the face of the earth,” said South African law professor Max du Plessis. “Rafah is the final stand.” 👉 More updates.
Biden invokes executive privilege to keep interview tapes confidential
President Joe Biden invoked executive privilege Thursday to keep the recording of his deposition about storing classified documents at his home confidential as House Republicans set two committee votes to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for refusing to release the recording.
At issue: Recordings of the controversial interview that led Special Counsel Robert Hur to report that Biden is a “sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” 🔎 Here’s what we know about the investigation.
A break from the news
Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Say hi:[email protected]. Support quality journalism like this?Subscribe to USA TODAY here.
