--:-- Shamita Basu: Good morning. It's Friday, June 9th. I'm Shamita Basu. This is Apple News Today.
--:-- Shamita Basu: On today's show, a surprising ruling from the Supreme Court upholding the Voting Rights Act, the movement to ban forever chemicals, and how AI made its way to the French Open. But first, Donald Trump has been indicted, now for the second time since leaving office, this time on federal criminal charges.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Washington Post is reporting the Justice Department filed seven counts against the former president related to the mishandling of classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago. Trump's lawyers have confirmed that he's being charged with willful retention of national defense secrets, as well as obstruction of justice and conspiracy, which carry the potential of prison time if Trump is found guilty.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Trump has been ordered to appear in federal court in Florida on Tuesday. On social media, Trump confirmed that he had been indicted and maintained his innocence. His lawyer, Jim Trustee, appeared on CNN last night to defend his client.
--:-- Jim Trustee: I know all attorneys go on the air and say, "my client's innocent." And then after the trial, we're going to win the appeal. Well, here, he is innocent. I mean, everything about this case is absolutely rotten.
--:-- Shamita Basu: If you need a reminder on how we got to this point, the Post has a helpful timeline. Starting back in May of 2021, when the National Archives contacted Trump's team to say government documents appear to be missing. Trump's team handed over some boxes, which led to more questions about possible mishandling of classified records.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Last August, the FBI conducted a court-ordered search of Trump's home, recovering more than 100 additional sensitive documents. That brings us up to speed with Jack Smith, the special counsel appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland to independently oversee this investigation, now pursuing criminal charges against Trump.
--:-- Shamita Basu: President Biden declined to comment on the indictment, but earlier yesterday, he was asked by a reporter about the independence of the Justice Department.
--:-- President Biden: I have never once, not one single time, suggested to Justice Department what they should do or not do, or else I'm bringing a charge or not bringing a charge.
--:-- Shamita Basu: You'll remember Biden also discovered he had sensitive documents from his time as vice president. There's an investigation underway for that, too. According to NBC, it doesn't seem close to wrapping.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Former Vice President Mike Pence also discovered documents. Just last week he was cleared of wrongdoing. Trump faces several other ongoing criminal investigations.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Special counsel Jack Smith is also looking into Trump's role in the January 6th Capitol attack. A district attorney in Georgia is investigating whether Trump acted illegally by trying to overturn the election results in the state in 2020. We should know more about where that case is heading in September.
--:-- Shamita Basu: In October, a civil lawsuit that seeks to permanently bar Trump and three of his children from running companies in New York state goes to trial. And in March, Trump is scheduled to face state criminal charges in New York for allegedly falsifying business records in connection to hush money payments.
--:-- Shamita Basu: As for these latest federal charges, it's not clear whether a trial will happen before the 2024 election. As the Post explains, that timing will depend largely on the federal judge assigned in the case, though Trump's defense team will probably ask to delay the trial until after the election.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Let's check in on some other big stories in the news. A new agreement between China and Cuba has potentially big implications for the United States. The Wall Street Journal and other outlets are reporting they've reached an agreement for China to build a spy facility in Cuba.
--:-- Shamita Basu: It would be roughly 100 miles from Florida, putting Chinese intelligence services close enough to intercept electronic communications from U.S. military bases in southeastern states. A spokesperson for the National Security Council told the journal the U.S. is monitoring the situation.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Cuba's embassy said the reports are not true. China's embassy had no comment. The Supreme Court issued a ruling yesterday that upholds a major part of the Voting Rights Act. In a 5-4 decision, the majority of judges said congressional districts in Alabama, recently drawn by Republicans, were unconstitutional and must be redrawn.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Legal challengers argued that the maps would dilute the voting power of Black Alabamans in congressional elections. The court's decision was seen as surprising by many legal watchers, given the conservative majority on the court, and could impact legal challenges in other states related to Republican-drawn maps.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And finally, we are continuing to watch air quality in the Northeast. Smoke from wildfires in Canada is moving down the Mid-Atlantic to Washington, D.C. and the surrounding region. The worst appears to be over for major metros in the area, and air quality conditions are expected to slowly improve over the weekend.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Let's turn now to our ongoing series State of the State where we take a closer look at how states are dealing with an issue and how it's being debated and discussed among people who live there. This week, we're looking at how state lawmakers across dozens of states, red and blue, are taking action to ban so-called forever chemicals.
--:-- Kimberly Kendi: I'm Kimberly Kendi, investigative reporter with The Washington Post. We're talking about several forms of cancer, high blood pressure, immune system problems, fertility problems, low birth rates. And there continues to be more and more studies looking at whether or not there are other health implications that people should be aware of.
--:-- Kimberly Kendi: Forever chemicals got their nickname because they don't break down in our bodies or in nature. They're water, oil, and stain-resistant, which is why they're used in a lot of household and industrial products, things like nonstick pans, carpets, and firefighting foam.
--:-- Kimberly Kendi: The EPA is proposing to ban two chemicals and restrict four others. But there are thousands of these kinds of chemicals in use, and new ones being developed. And many state lawmakers say federal regulators just aren't moving fast enough to issue guidelines.
--:-- Kimberly Kendi: In recent years, both Democratic-led and Republican-led state governments have passed more than 100 laws pertaining to these chemicals. Some set deadlines that will require all or most products in their states to be free of forever chemicals. Dozens of other bills are under consideration.
--:-- Kimberly Kendi: Washington state has been a leader. They were the first state to actually pass a comprehensive bill that banned the entire class of chemicals. In most situations with firefighting foam, but also with food packaging. And since then, they've continued to strengthen their laws and make them more expansive.
--:-- Kimberly Kendi: The chemical industry says the surge in new legislation is an overreaction and that most of these chemicals are safe.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Kendi says there are a few reasons why this issue has drawn rare bipartisan support. One is, simply, these chemicals are in all of our lives. Regardless of where you live or how you vote. Once the information about the potential health risk became well-known to the public, constituents started demanding that something be done.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Some of the people who were fighting the hardest to pass these bills were firefighters and farmers who are beloved by both parties. It starts to put pressure on the federal government to step up.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The French Open is wrapping up this weekend. But tucked in the background of the tennis tournament is a technology storyline that caught our attention. Artificial intelligence being used by the athletes. And no, not for training, but for their online safety.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The tournament is offering an AI app to players that can block hateful comments and messages they receive on social media. It's a huge problem in this sport. Sloane Stevens, a Black player from the U.S., told reporters in a recent press conference, the racist hate and harassment she gets has only gotten worse over her career.
--:-- Sloane Stevens: I have a lot of keywords banned on Instagram and all of these things, but that doesn't stop someone from just typing in an asterisk or typing it in a different way, which obviously software most of the time doesn't catch.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The app, called Bodyguard AI, claims to be a more sophisticated filter. The co-founder told NPR the software is capable of detecting the context around a message, making it better at blocking hateful messages than a keyword filter might.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Top players like Iga Sviantic are using the app and loving it. She says she used to get discouraged by what she'd see on social media after losing a match.
--:-- Iga Sviantic: So it frustrated me a little bit, and I realized that there's no sense to read all that stuff. So the app, I think it's a great idea.
--:-- Shamita Basu: For the latest scores, analysis, and more from the French Open, check out MySports in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the news app right now, stick around. Our weekend interview show, In Conversation, is coming up next.
--:-- Shamita Basu: This week, I talked to Sandeep Jahar, the cardiologist on a quest to better understand his father's Alzheimer's diagnosis. In his journey to find best practices, he visited a dementia village in the Netherlands, where caretakers are reimagining what assisted living can look like.
--:-- Shamita Basu: There are caregivers who would staff the supermarket or they would tend to the gardens, but they were always keeping an eye out for the patients. And it's sort of like the Truman Show, you know, where people are, they're almost like props, but they are there to serve the freedom of patients with dementia and let them have the best possible life that's left to them.
--:-- Shamita Basu: That episode is queued up to play for you next. Enjoy the weekend, and I'll be back with the news on Monday.
