Zoran Mamdani (3:15)

New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants, and as of tonight, led by an immigrant. So hear me, President Trump, when I say this. To get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us.

Shemitah Basu (3:50)

There were also two critical gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey that we've mentioned. In those states where President Trump improved on his MARGINS in the 2024 election, Democrats running as self styled moderates won easily. Former Representative Abigail Spanberger will become Virginia's first ever female governor, defeating Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earl Sears. Virginia, along with Jersey, is one of two states that holds gubernatorial elections the year between a presidential contest and the midterms, making it a political bellwether for observers. Spanberger won by more than 10 points, the largest Democratic margin in 40 years, according to Semaphore.

Democratic Strategist (4:30)

We sent a message to the whole world that in 2025, Virginia chose pragmatism over partisanship. We chose our commonwealth over chaos.

Shemitah Basu (4:53)

Virginia is home to more than 147,000 federal workers, making it one of the most severely affected areas from the government shutdown so far, most polls show voters place more blame on Republicans for the impasse. In New Jersey, some polls suggested a closer race. But in the end, Democrat Mikey Sherrill easily beat Republican candidate Jack Ciatarelli by double digits. It's the first time in decades that any party has led the state for three consecutive terms. As she's following a two term Democratic governor Sheryl focused her campaign on defending New Jersey from Trump, a theme that she returned to last night.

Democratic Strategist (5:30)

We're gonna follow Lady Liberty speaking. We're not going to give in to our darker impulses here in New Jersey. We know that this nation has not ever been, nor will it ever be, ruled by kings.

Shemitah Basu (5:47)

Republican consultant and pollster Robert Kahaly offered his analysis on Fox News, saying the gridlock in Washington loomed big in these local elections.

Fox News Analyst (5:57)

Shut down, shut down, shutdown. That had a big effect on this election. We saw many Republicans start to go down as the weeks continue to go with the shutdown. Tomorrow the legacy media is going to say it's Donald Trump, it's all his trouble. It's not. It was a shutdown. Number two, the GOP has to figure out how to turn out races without Donald Trump on the ballot.

Shemitah Basu (6:17)

And finally, in California, the yes win for Proposition 50 will give California Democrats the chance to redraw their maps in time for the midterms as a response to recent gerrymandering efforts by Republican states. But Governor Gavin Newsom's speech was sober in tone, a stark contrast to the celebrations elsewhere. He called it an extraordinary night for his party, but there were no smiles or fist pumps as he addressed supporters.

George Storr (6:43)

We stood tall and we stood firm in response to Donald Trump's recklessness. And tonight, after poking the bear, this bear roared with an unprecedented turnout in a special election with an extraordinary result.

Shemitah Basu (7:02)

Yesterday, Trump's press secretary, Caroline Levitt, said the administration was looking into executive action after Trump made unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud in California. California's agency in charge of elections described that claim as baseless. Late into the night, Democratic strategists poured over the results in search of takeaways. The party has spent the past year debating what lessons to take from a punishing 2024 defeat. Today, for the first time in a while, the key question is how to understand their success. Now to the Supreme Court, which today will consider whether President Trump had the legal authority to impose many of his sweeping global tariffs. Their decision could define a central plank of Trump's agenda and send ripples through the global economy. The Constitution grants Congress the power to impose tariffs, but to get around that, Trump has relied on a decades old Emergency Economic Powers Act. As Bloomberg Supreme Court reporter George Storr told us, the case today rests on a key question.

George Storr (8:15)

Does Donald Trump need clear congressional authorization to do what he wants to do? And the president is arguing that notion doesn't apply here because we're dealing with foreign affairs and national security, and those are areas where usually the court defers to the president because the president does have constitutional authority over those areas.

Shemitah Basu (8:37)

Storr said that Trump's argument rests on two claims that both the trade deficit and the flow of fentanyl into the US Amount to emergencies that he should be able to address using tariffs. If the Supreme Court disagrees, it's unclear how easily the White House could achieve their goals by other means. Or if Trump has to completely unwind this crucial pillar of his economic agenda and geopolitical strategy. It would also raise questions about the fate of tariff revenue that's been collected so far. According to Data collated by U.S. customs and Border Patrol, American businesses have paid the government almost $90 billion to cover the specific tariffs being challenged here.

George Storr (9:19)

If the court rules against the president, it would seem as though the people who paid the tariffs, you know, U.S. companies, importers, are entitled to a refund. Exactly that happens, though may be complicated for multiple reasons.

Shemitah Basu (9:33)

Trump has acknowledged that a ruling against him would mean that refunds could potentially be issued. A ruling against the administration could also impact the way in which it's used tariffs and the threat of them to negotiate with other countries. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant told CNBC yesterday there were, quote, other options, but he conceded they were cumbersome and less effective.

Fox News Analyst (9:56)

It gives the US and the president the most negotiating authority. And again, this is a signature policy for the president. And traditionally SCOTUS has been loathe to interfere with these signature policies.

Shemitah Basu (10:11)

Besant has acknowledged in court papers that the legal challenges have left some world leaders wondering about the president's authority on the matter, and countries have begun planning their domestic policy on the assumption of tariffs. Sticking around Just yesterday, Canada unveiled its federal budget that outlines new spending plans in response to Trump's policies. Storr said that the administration could have some pathways to continue with tariffs even with an unfavorable ruling.

George Storr (10:39)

There's a lot of trade laws out there, so what we'll probably see is the administration trying to reimpose at least some of these tariffs using those different tools and the president continuing to say, oh, we can still slap you with tariffs. We just have to go through this other process.

Shemitah Basu (10:57)

If Trump wins and the court disagrees with the plaintiffs, they could further legitimize his authority to regulate aspects of the economy without the input of Congress. Before we let you go, a few other stories we're following. A UPS plane crash has left at least seven people dead in Louisville, Kentucky. The cargo plane erupted into a fireball moments after takeoff. Reuters reports that authorities were forced to halt flight operations after several buildings near the Runway also caught fire after the crash. The Louisville airport is a global hub for the shipping company's air cargo operations and its largest package handling facility worldwide. Eleven people on the ground were left with significant injuries. An investigation is now underway to determine the cause. The government shutdown is now the longest in history, but lawmakers are starting to talk with a little more optimism than before. Republican Senator Mark Wayne Mullen suggested to NBC he was, quote, pretty confident of a deal this week and that Democrats had privately indicated they could vote for a short term funding bill, while Politico reports that up to a dozen Democrats now privately believe it's time to vote to reopen the government. A 14th vote failed yesterday with no change to the voting dynamics. Meanwhile, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Tuesday of mass chaos if the shutdown continues into next week and said he may be forced to close some airspace. And in a somewhat eerie mistake, the state of Maine's biggest healthcare system inadvertently sent condolence letters to more than 500 of its patients who are still alive, effectively informing them of their own death. Maine Health said the letters were the result of a computer error and apologized. The Guardian reports, when one woman who received a letter called MaineHealth to let them know about the error. An employee told her they were glad to hear she was alive and well. To which she responded, yeah, me too. You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the News app, right now, we've got a narrated article coming up next. Rolling Stone reports on a company in Tennessee selling plots of land in the hopes of building a new town for conservative Christians. But even in a deep red state, the plan is raising eyebrows. If you're listening in the podcast app, follow Apple News Narrated to find that story. And I'll be back with the news tomorrow.