🛑 Axios PM: Trump tests courts

Plus: Speaker's race scoop | Monday, October 16, 2023

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Google   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Oct 16, 2023 Good Monday afternoon. Today's PM — edited by Noah Bressner — is 496 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for the copy edit. 🚨 SCOOP: Four House Republicans walked away from conversations with GOP speaker nominee Jim Jordan under the impression that he'll allow a vote on linking Ukraine and Israel funding if he wins the gavel. Keep reading.     1 big thing: Trump gag orders test courts Former President Trump speaks in West Palm Beach, Fla., last week. Photo: Rebecca Blackwell/AP Two gag orders against former President Trump in two weeks are pushing the U.S. justice system into uncharted territory. Why it matters: There's not a ton of precedent for restricting the speech of criminal defendants who are also major political candidates, and legal experts think it has a good chance of reaching the Supreme Court, AP notes. What's happening: The federal judge overseeing Trump's election interference case in D.C. imposed a narrow gag order today, Axios' Ivana Saric writes. Under the order, District Judge Tanya Chutkan said Trump would not be allowed to mount a "smear campaign" against prosecutors and court personnel. "No other criminal defendant would be allowed to do so, and I'm not going to allow it in this case," she said. 🔎 Zoom in: Trump has unleashed tirades against a healthy percentage of the people involved in cases against him. Prosecutors said a gag order was necessary to protect the integrity of judicial proceedings. Trump's lawyers argued it would violate his right to free speech and hamstring his 2024 presidential campaign. Earlier this month, the New York judge overseeing Trump's civil fraud case issued a gag order that prevents Trump from making personal attacks against court staff. 👀 What we're watching: How the judges enforce the gag orders if Trump violates them. Keep reading.     2. 🧠 Mapping the brain Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios   Scientists have completed a census of the cells in the human brain — a key step in creating a detailed map of the organ where our thoughts, movements and emotions originate, Axios managing editor Alison Snyder writes. Why it matters: Scientists say this parts list will help provide much-needed insights into diseases and disorders that affect the brain. 🔬How it works: Researchers studied 100 tissue samples from different regions across the human brain. Keep reading ... Get Axios Science.     A message from Google AI is helping to prevent blindness in diabetes patients     ARDA, Google Research's AI-powered diabetic retinopathy screening tool, helps clinicians prevent blindness by expanding access to screening at scale, supporting over 250,000 screenings. Learn more.     3. Catch me up Teens make heart signs for a group photo before attending the Taylor Swift concert film in Century City, Calif. Photo: Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images 🎥 Taylor Swift's Eras Tour movie grossed between $95 million and $97 million at the box office. It set a domestic record for the highest-grossing opening weekend for a concert film, Axios' Rebecca Falconer writes. 🇮🇱 Secretary of State Tony Blinken urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza to maintain international support for the Israeli operation to dismantle Hamas, Axios' Barak Ravid reports. ⚖️ Violent crime in the U.S. dropped last year, but property crimes skyrocketed, according to data in the FBI's annual crime report. More from Axios' Russell Contreras.     4. 🏀 Coming soon: College basketball Data: AP. Table: Axios Visuals Kansas was the clear preseason favorite in the first AP men's college basketball poll, released today. Five teams received first-place votes: Kansas, Duke, Purdue, Michigan State and UConn — the defending champion. The season begins on Nov. 6 for most teams. Keep reading.     A message from Google John Jay College is using AI to help more students graduate     DataKind, a Google.org grantee, built an AI model with John Jay College to identify college students most at risk of dropping out and help advisors identify and proactively intervene with those students. Since using the AI model, senior graduation rates have increased from 54% to 86%. Learn more.   Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. To stop receiving this newsletter, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: