Supreme court rebuffs Missouri’s push to use redrawn congressional map in November
The US supreme court will not suspend a ruling from Missouri’s highest state court that prevented the use of a Donald Trump-backed US House map in an upcoming election.
Last week the state’s supreme court ruled that the map must go before voters to approve or reject the new districts, meaning it cannot be used in the November election. Trump and Republicans fumed over the decision, with the president calling it “horrible, ridiculous, and unConstitutional”.
Catherine Hanaway, the state’s Republican attorney general, immediately pledged to appeal to the supreme court. The conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh denied the emergency request.
Key events
Summary
We’re wrapping up our live coverage for the day. Here are today’s key developments in US politics:
-
Clashing court rulings plunged Missouri’s congressional elections into uncertainty. The US Supreme Court decided not to intervene to reinstate a Donald Trump-backed US House map, upholding a a ruling from the state’s highest state court that prevented the use of the map in the November elections. But shortly after a federal judge temporarily barred the state from using its old congressional maps in November.
-
The US military destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers after a US navy warship was targeted with ballistic missiles. Iran had targeted the warship twice over two days, the US Central Command said.
-
The US will ban Canadian dairy products, motorcycles and most alcoholic beverages. The move marked an escalation in the ongoing trade war between the North American countries, and comes just after Canada announced retaliatory tariffs on $20bn in US goods.
-
Congressman Chris Pappas beat back progressive challenger Karishma Manzur in the New Hampshire Democratic primary for US Senate. Former senator John E Sununu, who is backed by Trump, won the state’s Republican Senate primary.
-
Lonnie G Bunch III announced he is stepping down as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution after seven years in the role amid Donald Trump’s unprecedented crackdown on the world’s largest museum’s autonomy.
Karen Bass plans to step down from the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Commission. The mayor told the local radio station KFI she would no longer serve on the board because she did not have the time.
LAist recently reported that since Bass appointed herself to the governing body in 2023, she had missed more than half of the meetings.
The agency has been under scrutiny by the Trump administration. Last week Bass was asked been asked to testify before a congressional committee as part of an investigation into the “potential misallocation” of federal funds by the agency. Congressman Robert Garcia described the move as “another attempt by Donald Trump and House Republicans to launch a witch hunt against Mayor Karen Bass and Los Angeles.”
Global oil prices surged to levels last seen in July as the conflict between the US and Iran intensified this week.
Oil prices rose to almost $100 a barrel in early Asia trading, shortly after it emerged that the US military “destroyed” multiple Iranian tankers in response to Iran attempting to strike a US navy warship with ballistic missiles.
Read more on today’s developments from the Guardian’s Shrai Popat:
Shrai Popat
Former senator John E Sununu triumphed on Tuesday in the New Hampshire Republican Senate primary Scott Brown, earning the GOP nod in what will likely be a must-win race if Democrats hope to seize the upper chamber.
Sununu, 61, was the clear frontrunner in the GOP primary. He served one term in the Senate from 2003 to 2009.
Brown represented Massachusetts, later moved to New Hampshire, and served as US ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa during Donald Trump’s first term.
The US president threw his support behind Sununu earlier this year, despite the former lawmaker’s past criticism of Trump, including a 2024 op‑ed in which Sununu called Trump a “loser” and backed Nikki Haley in the Republican presidential primary.
On the trail, Sununu has tried to show daylight between himself and the administration, criticizing Trump’s tariff policy, urging Congress to rein in executive power, and questioning the decision to launch military action in Iran.
Shrai Popat
Congressman Chris Pappas beat back progressive challenger Karishma Manzur in the Democratic primary for US Senate on Tuesday, advancing as most observers expected to what will be a closely watched general election that is critical to Democratic hopes of flipping the upper chamber.
The two were competing for the nomination that opened up after Jeanne Shaheen, 79, the state’s three‑term incumbent Democratic senator, announced her retirement.
Pappas, a popular centrist, has served in the House since 2019 and has crossed the aisle at various points. He calls himself “battle‑tested” and has consolidated establishment backing, earning endorsements from leading Democratic lawmakers and former vice‑president Kamala Harris.
Missouri’s congressional maps have been thrown into more chaos following a federal judge’s decision to bar the state from using its old congressional maps in the November midterm elections.
While Republicans in the state are celebrating the decision, it’s unclear exactly what it will mean for Missouri voters. The Associated Press reports that an attorney for People Not Politicians said another order from Missouri’s supreme court against using the new map remains in effect.
“An individual federal judge cannot overrule the Missouri Supreme Court,” said Chuck Hatfield.
The US will ban Canadian dairy products, motorcycles and most alcoholic beverages, the White House said on Tuesday.
The move marks an escalation in the ongoing trade war between the North American countries, and comes just after Canada announced retaliatory tariffs on $20bn in US goods.
Earlier in the day following Canada’s announcement, Trump also announced plans to exclude Canadian products from large US government contracts.
The ban is set to take effect in three weeks.
Shortly after the US Supreme Court decided not to intervene in the battle over Missouri’s new congressional map earlier today, a federal judge temporarily barred the state from using old districts in the November elections.
Last week Missouri’s highest state court blocked the use of a newly drawn congressional map backed by Donald Trump, ruling that voters must approve or reject the new districts. The map had already been used in August primary elections.
The decision outraged Donald Trump and Catherine Hanaway, the state’s Republican attorney general, who immediately pledged to appeal to the supreme court. The supreme court, however, turned back the emergency appeal on Tuesday, letting the state court’s ruling stand.
But almost immediately after, a federal judge in Missouri issued a temporary restraining order that bars Missouri from using anything other than the new Republican backed map. Hanaway said in a statement that Missouri would “follow and comply” with the judge’s order.
“We maintain that changing the congressional map in between the primary and general elections is simply not feasible and profoundly unjust to Missouri voters,” she said.
The US military destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers after a US navy warship was targeted with ballistic missiles.
Iran had targeted the warship twice over two days, the US Central Command said in a statement on Tuesday. The ship evaded the attacks and no personnel were harmed, according to the statement.
Speaking from Colombia, secretary of state Marco Rubio said if Iran attacks US warships, the US military will hit Iranian oil tankers.
“Iran continues to try to hit US naval ships, and for every time they do that or try to do that, they’re going to lose tankers,” Rubio told reporters.
The US Supreme Court decision not to reinstate a Donald Trump-backed US House map in Missouri is a blow to Republicans and the president’s mid-decade redistricting effort.
Missouri was the second Republican state to act in response the president’s push to redraw congressional maps to favor Republicans. Mike Kehoe, the state’s governor, called the legislature into a special session last year to create new boundaries ahead of the US midterm elections. The state utilized the new map in its primary elections in August.
But last week the state’s supreme court, which includes five Republican-appointed judges, unanimously ruled voters must approve the map in November before it can be utilized. The state’s attorney general argued the decision thrust Missouri into a “full‑fledged constitutional crisis”.
Supreme court rebuffs Missouri’s push to use redrawn congressional map in November
The US supreme court will not suspend a ruling from Missouri’s highest state court that prevented the use of a Donald Trump-backed US House map in an upcoming election.
Last week the state’s supreme court ruled that the map must go before voters to approve or reject the new districts, meaning it cannot be used in the November election. Trump and Republicans fumed over the decision, with the president calling it “horrible, ridiculous, and unConstitutional”.
Catherine Hanaway, the state’s Republican attorney general, immediately pledged to appeal to the supreme court. The conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh denied the emergency request.
Senator Alex Padilla praised Lonnie Bunch III, the outgoing Smithsonian chief, for his “longstanding service” and “telling the full story of America”.
“Secretary Bunch has been instrumental in telling and preserving the story of our nation and our culture, putting truth and accuracy over politics,” the Democratic lawmaker said in a statement.
“In the face of Donald Trump’s attacks on the Smithsonian, Secretary Bunch spoke truth to power and reasserted his commitment to defend and uphold American history and values.”
Here’s a recap of the day so far
-
Lonnie G Bunch III has announced he is stepping down as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution after seven years in the role amid Donald Trump’s unprecedented crackdown on the world’s largest museum’s autonomy. In an interview with the New York Times (paywall), Bunch, 73, said it was not the Trump administration’s pressure campaign to control how the Smithsonian presents US history and values that had led to his departure.
-
In response to the news that Lonnie Bunch III will step down as chief of the Smithsonian Institution, some Republicans have assailed his tenure leading the storied collection of museums. “Good riddance,” wrote Josh Hawley, a GOP senator from Missouri. The lawmaker and fierce defender of Donald Trump said that Bunch “should return his salary to the American people”. Meanwhile, Democrats have praised Bunch for his seven years leading the organization. “He is a student of history who has devoted his life to telling America’s full history and cultivating our nation’s continued love of learning and exploration,” said Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat from Nevada, who serves on the Smithsonian’s 17-member board and will be responsible to selecting his replacement.
-
US Central Command (Centcom) said that a submarine drone, that Iranian forces claimed to have captured, actually “malfunctioned more than a day ago”. In a statement to the Guardian by US Navy Capt Tim Hawkins, a Centcom spokesperson, said that the underwater drone was surveying regional waters in support of the ongoing military operation in the region. Hawkins said the submersible was “defective” and an older model. He also downplayed that it was a sophisticated piece of technology, adding that it “neither collected sensitive data nor carried any classified sonar or radar equipment”.
-
Marco Rubio said today that US is “not going to do what the UK did” and impose sweeping sanctions on trade with Israeli settlements, but stopped shy of commenting on the matter while speaking to reporters today. However, the secretary of state said that the US does not “want to see some uptick in violence or an uptick in conflict or tensions in the West Bank at a very tenuous time in the region”.
-
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that New York City would release 170,000 pages of previously undisclosed documents that show officials at the time knew that the air quality after the 9/11 terror attacks posed health risks, despite assuring the public and first responders that the air quality was safe. Ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attacks, the city has published the documents to a publicly accessible portal, which includes air quality reports and correspondence between New York officials. Mamdani directed $34m of the city’s budget to create the portal for the records.
-
Democrats have hit back against Donald Trump’s suggestion that the state of New Mexico should be renamed “New America”, accusing the US president of trying to distract from his war on Iran and rising prices. Michelle Lujan Grisham, the state’s Democratic governor said in a post on X that New Mexico’s name “isn’t up for debate – it’s been ours since before the United States existed.” She added: “While the President tries to distract Americans from his disastrous war in Iran, gas prices keep soaring.” More here
-
The court of appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a block by a lower court judge that prevents the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from sharing tax return information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The court also noted that IRS’ argument against the preliminary injunction – namely that it “impedes and delays federal law enforcement by improperly restricting the information that ICE is entitled to receive” – is actually a problem that needs to be addressed through legislation in Congress, not the court. The judges added that the administration’s claim is “weak sauce”.
Federal appeals court upholds block on IRS sharing tax return information with immigration enforcement
The court of appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a block by a lower court judge that prevents the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from sharing tax return information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“No statute authorizes the IRS to disclose ‘return information’ for non-tax civil investigations without the taxpayer’s consent, or to disclose ‘taxpayer return information’ for any purpose,” the court writes in its ruling.
The court also noted that IRS’ argument against the preliminary injunction – namely that it “impedes and delays federal law enforcement by improperly restricting the information that ICE is entitled to receive” – is actually a problem that needs to be addressed through legislation in Congress, not the court.
The judges added that the administration’s claim is “weak sauce”.
Last year, the IRS established the “Data-Exchange Procedure” with ICE, which provides the agency with the last-known addresses of 1.2 million taxpayers who may be undocumented. Soon after the plaintiffs challenged the new policy, blocked the data sharing, which the government appealed.
Centcom says that unmanned US drone Iran claims to have captured was ‘defective’ and carried no classified equipment
US Central Command (Centcom) said that a submarine drone, that Iranian forces claimed to have captured, actually “malfunctioned more than a day ago”.
In a statement to the Guardian, US Navy Capt Tim Hawkins, a Centcom spokesperson, said that the underwater drone was surveying regional waters in support of the ongoing military operation in the region. Hawkins said the submersible was “defective” and an older model. He also downplayed that it was a sophisticated piece of technology, adding that it “neither collected sensitive data nor carried any classified sonar or radar equipment”.
Hawkins added that operations in area waters continue.
Earlier today, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed to Iranian state TV that its naval forces “captured one of the most modern, unmanned, and smart submarines of the US terrorist army at the entrance to the strait of Hormuz”.
They added that the drone was “equipped with the latest technology”.
Republicans welcome Smithsonian chief’s retirement, while Democrats praise his ‘trailblazing leadership’
In response to the news that Lonnie Bunch III will step down as chief of the Smithsonian Institution, several Republicans have assailed his tenure leading the storied collection of museums.
“Good riddance,” wrote Josh Hawley, a GOP senator from Missouri. The lawmaker and fierce defender of Donald Trump said that Bunch “should return his salary to the American people”.
Similarly, Congressman Brandon Gill – a hardline conservative from Texas – said that he was “glad to see” Bunch retire.
“The days of using America’s museums to teach Americans to hate their own country are coming to an end,” Gill said on X. “New leadership must tell America’s story accurately.”
As we reported earlier, Trump has spent much of his second term in office undermining the content, programming and leadership of Smithsonian, including signing an executive order to “restore” the institution to “its rightful place as a symbol of inspiration and American greatness”.
Democrats, however, have praised Bunch for his seven years leading the organization. “He is a student of history who has devoted his life to telling America’s full history and cultivating our nation’s continued love of learning and exploration,” said Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, a Democrat from Nevada, who serves on the Smithsonian’s 17-member board and will be responsible to selecting his replacement.
Meanwhile, Representative Terri Sewell, a Democrat from Alabama, thanked Bunch for his “trailblazing leadership” and appeared to push back on the criticism from Republicans that Bunch had attempted to rewrite American history.
Sewell said that the outgoing chief “helped ensure that all Americans can see themselves – and their history – reflected in the Smithsonian”.
Victoria Bekiempis
A US appellate court has decided that the federal constitution does not guarantee a right to clean water.
That legal opinion came in the form of a decision on Friday from the fifth circuit court of appeals to uphold a lower court’s dismissal of a 2022 lawsuit from several Jackson, Mississippi, residents claiming that tainted drinking water violated their constitutional rights.
Those residents of Mississippi’s capital city contended that their local drinking water was unsafe to drink because of high lead levels and other contaminants.
The New Orleans-based fifth circuit’s majority opinion held that the residents wanted “recognition of two new constitutional rights lacking any foundation in the history and tradition of our nation” – those being “the right to be free from exposure to contaminated water and the right to accurate information from public officials”.
In the majority’s view, residents should have gone about their legal fight for clean water another way, such as pursuing “tort claims” or by “electing representatives who will better manage the public-water system, and petitioning their representatives for other remedies”.
Tort claims allege “harms caused by others” while seeking “to impose liability on parties responsible for the harm, and to deter others from committing harmful acts”, according to Cornell University’s law school.
Friday’s decision also said that state and federal officials were working hard to improve the majority-Black city’s drinking water. The residents who filed suit alleged that public authorities had for years failed to mitigate lead levels and failed to inform them about an increase.
