How Redistricting Will Shape the Midterms; SCOTUS Allows Abortion Pill Access (For Now)

Summary

Podcast Summary: Here's the Scoop (NBC News) – "How Redistricting Will Shape the Midterms; SCOTUS Allows Abortion Pill Access (For Now)"

Date: May 15, 2026
Host: Yasmin Vossoughian
Guests: Jane Tim (Senior Political Reporter), Laura Jarrett (Senior Legal Correspondent), David Cole (Constitutional Lawyer, ACLU)

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Episode Overview

This episode digs into two critical legal and political battles shaping the U.S. in 2026:

1. Redistricting and Its Impact on the Midterm Elections — The ongoing fights over congressional maps, the Supreme Court's role in recent decisions, and how the outcomes could drastically affect political power, especially for Black lawmakers.
2. Supreme Court and the Abortion Pill — The latest SCOTUS decision temporarily maintaining access to mifepristone, the country's most common abortion pill, despite a recent challenge from Louisiana and what this ruling does (and does not) mean for future abortion access.

The tone throughout is urgent but accessible, weaving key facts with conversational explanations.

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1. Redistricting and the Midterms: The New Battlefield

The Republican Advantage After SCOTUS (01:10)

• Republicans are winning the redistricting battle due to control of more state legislatures and a Supreme Court ruling that "gutted" racial gerrymandering protections from the Voting Rights Act.
• Jane Tim:
  “The Republican strategy is really just to draw as many new maps as they can before the midterms. And the ones they can't draw this year, they're going to draw them next year.” (01:42)
• Key Southern States: South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, and Louisiana are redrawing maps to reduce majority-minority districts, potentially eliminating Black congressional representation.

The Shrinking Toolbox for Democrats (03:44)

• Despite tough odds, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries promises, “We're not going to unilaterally disarm, not now, not ever.” (03:17, Laura Jarrett quoting Jeffries)
• Jane Tim: Democrats are focusing on competing aggressively in swing or “softer” districts, leveraging court tosses in places like Virginia, and targeting referenda in states like Colorado and Minnesota.

Dummy Manders & Voter Fluidity (04:08)

• Definition of “dummy mander”: When gerrymandered districts become so narrowly drawn that they backfire, allowing the other party to flip them if voters swing or split their tickets.
• “Gerrymanders are only as effective as the results of elections are consistent... if voters switch sides or they split ticket vote... you can see different results. Americans are not always as predictable as their politicians would like.” (04:28, Jane Tim)

Limits and Potential Backfire (05:09)

• There’s a limit to the Republican gains:
  “America's already really, really gerrymandered. There's not a lot of seats they can target. It truly is Black voting power that they're going to eliminate almost completely to get a few extra seats.” (05:09, Jane Tim)
• Public Backlash: Strong polling evidence shows voters across party lines dislike gerrymandering. Constantly shifting maps could fuel demand for nonpartisan reforms.

Confusion, Turnout & Voter Experience (07:13)

• Novel confusion: In some states, voters may cast ballots that will be literally tossed out and have to vote again as maps are tossed mid-primary.
• “They're going to be allowed to check a box and then that box, it just won't go anywhere. It won't count. And then there'll be another election...” (08:39, Jane Tim)

Key Quotes/Takeaways

• Jane Tim: “The more we continue to gerrymander, there may be a backlash here to both parties... people are kind of sick of it.” (05:37)
• Polling shows: “People do not like it if you ask them. Do you want your politicians to pick which voters should be electing them? In polls across the board? Democrats, Republicans, no one really likes [gerrymandering]. They do like winning, though.” (06:45, Jane Tim)

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2. SCOTUS and Abortion Pill Access (Mifepristone)

Court Grants Temporary Reprieve (10:32)

• Yasmin Vossoughian: “Nationwide access to the abortion pill mifepristone by mail can continue for now... The Supreme Court granted emergency requests... to block a lower court ruling that would have restricted access.”
• Laura Jarrett: The underlying Louisiana challenge targeted the FDA's pandemic-era rules permitting telehealth and mail delivery of mifepristone, not the pill's overall legality.

Regulatory vs. Abortion Rights Issue (13:14)

• Why did SCOTUS, which overturned Roe, keep pill access?
  “Dobbs...kicks the issue of abortion back to the states. The issue around the abortion pill is really much more of a regulatory issue. And it's a question of the FDA's rules and did the FDA follow its own process, did it do enough to evaluate the safety of it?” (13:14, Laura Jarrett)
• Crucially: This is not a merits ruling, just a “press pause”:
  “This is kicking the can down the road.” (14:12, Yasmin/Laura Jarrett)

The Scope of Abortion Pill Use (14:09)

• Despite near-total bans, abortion rates in states like Louisiana have stayed high (approx. 1,000 per month), indicating widespread use of telehealth and mail-order pills.
• Laura Jarrett:
  “Abortion rates have mostly held steady since the Dobbs decision... telehealth and being able to get it through the mail have to be huge, because otherwise all these places with in-person abortion bans would be bringing down the numbers writ large.” (14:38)

Beyond Abortion: Broader Impact (15:19)

• Mifepristone is also vital for miscarriage care.
• “This is where...people [were] going nuts the last time mifepristone was in front of the Supreme Court... because it saves women's lives.” (15:26, Yasmin/Laura Jarrett)

Future Legal and Political Dynamics (16:01)

• The FDA could further restrict mifepristone by reversing pandemic-era rules, but would need compelling new safety data—a “political calculation” for any administration.
• “There’s a science piece of this, there's a law piece of this, and there's a politics piece of this. And it's one of those issues where all of them are intersecting.” (16:41, Laura Jarrett)

Long-Term Supreme Court Outlook (17:02)

• It’s almost certain this issue will reach SCOTUS for a full merits hearing, likely not before the end of the current term.

Notable Exchange:

• Laura Jarrett: “This is not like ruling in favor of the abortion pill... it's only for now.” (13:59)
• Yasmin Vossoughian: “Kicking the can down the road.” (14:12)

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3. Supreme Court Series Preview (17:44)

• Laura Jarrett will release a special episode (Sat, May 16) featuring ACLU's David Cole discussing SCOTUS and transgender rights, including a look at the precedent-setting case of Amy Stevens.

Teaser Quote:

• David Cole on trans girls in sports:
  “If you view the purpose of sports in school as participation, then why shouldn’t you allow trans women to participate... However, there's also an argument that sports is about competition and that there are advantages that boys have, particularly after puberty, that girls don't have.” (18:49)

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4. Headlines Recap (21:24)

• Trump-Xi Jinping Summit: Some progress on stability, but little detail; possible purchase of 200 Boeings by China; sanctions may be reconsidered.
• Harvey Weinstein Mistrial: After jury deadlocks on third rape trial.
• Raúl Castro DOJ Push: U.S. may seek indictment over 1996 criminal allegations.
• Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire: Extended by 45 days amid ongoing U.S.-brokered negotiations.
• Panda Diplomacy: Two pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, travel from China to Atlanta for a U.S.-China conservation effort.

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Timestamps by Segment

• Redistricting Deep Dive: 01:09 – 08:51
• SCOTUS & Abortion Pill Ruling: 10:32 – 17:18
• SCOTUS Series Teaser (Trans rights): 17:44 – 19:25
• Headlines: 21:24 – end

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Memorable Moments

• “Gerrymanders are only as effective as the results of elections are consistent.” (00:00 & 04:28, Jane Tim)
• “Americans hate gerrymandering... the more we continue to gerrymander, there may be a backlash.” (05:37, Jane Tim)
• “This is not like ruling in favor of the abortion pill... it's only for now.” (13:59, Laura Jarrett)
• “There’s a science piece... a law piece... and a politics piece... all intersecting.” (16:41, Laura Jarrett)
• “Please tune in... extra reason to tune in to the Today show, because Yaz is on with me.” (19:31, Laura Jarrett, friendly banter)

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In summary:
This episode deftly explores how 2026's legal shifts in redistricting and abortion rights are shaping the nation's political future. Through clear explanations and expert interviews, the program outlines both the immediate consequences and long-term uncertainties for democracy, representation, and reproductive access in America.

Transcript

[Jane Tim]

Gerrymanders are only as effective as the results of elections are consistent. So if all the same voters vote the same way, you can gerrymander to your heart's content and get the results you expect.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Hey, everybody, and welcome to here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasmin Vasugin. Today on the show. So Republicans are winning the redistricting battle, but how are Democrats fighting back to save their congressional seats before the midterms? Plus, the Supreme Court is going to allow access to the abortion pill by mail for now. Have the justices who overturned Roe v. Wade change their minds? Up first, though, following a series of court victories, including at the Supreme Court, Republican lawmakers have been rapidly redrawing congressional maps across the country. Now, part of the reason for that is the GOP has full control of state governments in more places than Democrats. So Democrats have less options to redraw their own maps ahead of the midterm elections. But how successful will these Republican efforts be in the end? And how are Democrats trying to fight back? For that, I want to bring in NBC News senior political reporter Jane Tim. Hi, Jane.

[Jane Tim]

Hey, it's good to be here.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Great to have you. So last month, the Supreme Court struck down Louisiana's previous congressional map, declaring it an unconstitutional racial gerrymander in a 6 to 3 decision. Since that decision was handed down, there has been a flurry of new redistricting happening with this new legal backing behind them. What is the Republican strategy here going forward? And take me through the roundup of other states that are now jumping on board.

[Jane Tim]

Yeah, the Republican strategy is really just to draw as many new maps as they can before the midterms. And the ones they can't draw this year, they're going to draw them next year. The Supreme Court ruling gutted the racial gerrymandering protections that existed in federal law, giving Republican legislators who control the map drawing process in a lot of Southern states the ability to at long last go after the Democrats that are still in their congressional delegations. So those districts had previously been protected by the Voting Rights act where they said, you know, you have, you have, you can draw these districts to be a majority minority. You should, you can account for your minority voters in your redistricting plans. Now, they're not going to do that. And they can say partisanship is our top goal in our map drawing process and redraw it completely. So you've seen South Carolina is just starting that process. Tennessee redrew their congressional map to eliminate a black district. Alabama, Louisiana, they're working through to get rid of their black districts, to send more Republicans to Congress. It's going to eliminate a lot of black lawmakers in Congress, and it's going to send more Republicans to the House, which is exactly what they're Republican Party and President Trump, at the top of it, are hoping to do with this.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

So along with this decision, there has been a weakening, it seems, of the Voting Rights act because of what came out of the Supreme Court. Top Democrats have warned that a third of the Congressional Black Caucus could be wiped out in this redistricting battle. But you have House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who said Dems are not backing down.

[Laura Jarrett]

We're not going to unilaterally disarm, not now, not ever.

[Ad Voice]

And this redistricting war is just getting started.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

So you talk about how Republicans are basically hoping and redrawing so that they can gain more seats, continue to control the House and the Senate come November. You're hearing Hakeem Jeffries say, we're not backing down, we're going to keep fighting. But how do they keep fighting? What tools do they have?

[Jane Tim]

Yeah, you know, they say they're going to keep fighting. They're going to, you know, draw maps, but there's not much they can do right now. They can try and compete in states like Virginia, where the map was tossed by the courts. They can try and push on these swing districts. They can try and look where they find where some of these new lines are softer for Republicans, where, I mean, they're just more of a competitive seat, they can try and flip them there or turn them into dummy manders.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

What is a dummy mander?

[Jane Tim]

A dummy mander is where a party tries to gerrymander and essentially is they fly too close to the sun, if you will. They make it so that the lines are so narrow that the other party can then flip the seat. So in places like Florida, where Republicans are hoping and drawing maps based on previous election results, they may see, you know, if Democrats have a really good year, those election results might not pan out. Gerrymanders are only as effective as the results of elections are consistent. So if all the same voters vote the same way, you can gerrymander to your heart's content and get the results you expect. But if voters switch sides or they split ticket vote, which means to vote for one candidate top of the ticket and one candidate lower ticket, you know, you can see different results. Americans are not always as predictable as their politicians would like.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Talk me through the possibility that this redistricting battle doesn't necessarily work. In the favor of Republicans and or Democrats, depending on what district we're talking about, because we've seen examples of that happen before. Yeah.

[Jane Tim]

And I think there were some fears that this decision would essentially just eliminate the Democratic Party for a generation. That's not gonna happen in large part because America's already really, really gerrymandered. There's not a lot of seats they can target. It truly is black voting power that they're going to eliminate almost completely to get a few extra seats. And what's more, like we said, you can't just draw districts, you have to win them, too. That means you need strong candidates who can win in districts where voters are willing to change their mind. Places where Donald Trump saw really big gains last cycle, you know, in, with minority voters, with Latino voters, particularly in the south and in Texas, those districts might see swing voters in or split ticket voters. You can definitely see different results. And I also should point out that Americans hate gerrymandering. They don't like it. And the more we continue to gerrymander, there may be a backlash here to both parties, depending on who's doing the gerrymandering, where people are kind of sick of it. You know what I mean? We're going to see new maps all through next year where you're going to see Democrats are already working hard to compete in states like Minnesota to get a referendum through in Colorado to redraw map after map after map. We're going to be doing this in until the next census is completed and we start the process all over again. Some people may get sick of that and may start pushing through changes to state governments or advocating for federal policy that gets rid of this kind of partisan gerrymandering that is, at this point, relentless.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

What reflects that Americans don't like gerrymandering? Where have we seen evidence of this?

[Jane Tim]

Oh, polling across the board. People do not like it if you ask them. Do you want your politicians to pick which voters should be electing them in polls across the board? Democrats, Republicans, no one really likes. They do like winning, though.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

We're in the primary calendar right now. There is a race tomorrow, a primary race tomorrow in Louisiana on Tuesday. We got Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon, Pennsylvania as well. How are these new maps going to impact these races, if at all?

[Jane Tim]

Yeah, you know, this is something that has just never been tested before in politics that I can even remember the idea that people will be voting and those votes just won't count and then they'll be asked to vote again. So in places where they' redone the map and the primary is underway. They're literally tossing out the congressional votes in those districts. So, you know, Wes Allen was out there in Alabama this week saying, you know, all those House votes, they will not count. They'll be thrown out and then we'll do it again. I mean, Alabama's legislation to prepare themselves for the court ruling that they did get this week that allowed them to use their new map essentially said we'll hold a primary and we'll plan to just toss out the results if we can get our new map in time. You know, I don't think Americans have a real strong understanding or personal experience with the idea that those votes aren't gonna count because of this redistricting thing. I think it's gonna definitely confuse voters. You may see turnout affected there. And you're also gonna see in Louisiana, they're gonna go back to a jungle primary. So they're gonna elevate to the runoff the top two vote getters, which may not benefit the Republican candidates. It's not gonna be a single primary runoff. It's everybody runoff.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

So they won't be told necessarily when they go to vote that they are actually in the wrong district because of these newly drawn maps.

[Jane Tim]

They're going to be allowed to check a box and then that box, it just won't go anywhere. It won't count. And then there'll be another election and they'll go and see sort of what which candidate's on the ballot.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Wow. Jane, Tim, thank you as always.

[Jane Tim]

Thanks.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

All right, we're going to take a very quick break and when we are back, the Supreme Court's ruling on mifepristone and what their change up on abortion could mean for long term access. And also. Okay, so while you're waiting, why not hit the subscribe button? And if you already subscribe, then if you could please rate and review us. It'll really help with other listeners finding us as well. And maybe we will feature your review on the podcast. All right, we'll be right back.

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[Yasmin Vasugin]

And we are back with here's the scoop from NBC News. So nationwide access to the abortion pill mifepristone by mail can continue for now. On Thursday, the Supreme Court granted emergency requests brought by two drug makers to block a lower court ruling that would have restricted access to mifepristone in some states. Louisiana had challenged a Biden era FDA regulation that allows the pill to be sent by mail without an in person appointment with a clinician. So why did the same court that overturned Roe v. Wade hand abortion rights advocates a win here? And is it going to hold up for this? I want to bring in Laura Jarrett, senior legal correspondent for NBC News. Hey, Laura.

[Laura Jarrett]

So happy to be here.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

So there are several pieces going into this latest ruling from the court. Explain for us the underlying case here and why it is the court granted a stay that allows mifepristone to be accessible by mail. For now, by the way. And that's the key word here. For now.

[Laura Jarrett]

The state of Louisiana has tried to get mifepristone, which is one of the most common abortion pills used in the country, every day across the country. Instead of trying to get it taken off the market, they're trying to make it harder to get because they know blue states are shipping in abortion abortion pills to Louisiana, which has an abortion ban like so many other Southern states. So they say, okay, what can we do to stop the flow of pills into Louisiana? We can try to roll back some of the regulations that the FDA put in place after Covid. They said you can use it telehealth, you can get it by the mail just so people didn't have to go in person. At one point, you had to go in person three times to get the pill.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Wow.

[Laura Jarrett]

So the FDA says, let's make it easier to get after Covid. Louisiana says, aha. That's how we're gonna go after it. We're gonna go after the FDA regulations and say the FDA didn't do enough to test the safety of getting it by the mail versus going in person. And they managed to get the 5th Circuit to say, yep, you're right. And so they managed to get those regulations that made it easier to get put on hold. Now the FDA says, hey, we're taking a look at the pill too, to make sure it's still safe. They could have said, well, wait till the FDA goes through its safety review. But they did not. And so that's what causals a this flurry of activity because the fifth Circuit, that court of appeals said, yep, we're gonna block the pill by mail. Therefore, the maker of the pill says, oh, no, you're not. And they appeal it all up to the Supreme Court. And the Supreme Court yesterday says, we don't want anything to do with this, but we're just gonna press pause on everything and maintain access to the pill.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

I think what's interesting though is this is the same court that overturned Roe with the Dobbs decision. Is there anything to make of this?

[Laura Jarrett]

So I think you gotta think about it in a couple different ways. Dobbs. What Dobbs does is it kicks the issue of abortion back to the states. Yeah, the issue around the abortion pill is really much more of a regulatory issue. And it's a question of the FDA's rules and did the FDA follow its own process, did it do enough to evaluate the safety of it? And so it really isn't the same issue because the states are not the ones to get to determine that safety and efficacy of an FDA approved drugs. Got it Right. That's what the federal government is there for. That's the whole point of having that agency. And so the Supreme Court actually ruling in favor of abortion advocates here, you can't make too much of it because they're just like comparing apples and oranges. This is not doing anything savings.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Not the same arguments.

[Laura Jarrett]

It's not the same arguments. This is not like ruling in favor of the abortion pill. I've heard that. I've heard that described. And as you said in the intro, it's only four now.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Yeah.

[Laura Jarrett]

So this is not a ruling on the merits.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Kicking the can down the road.

[Laura Jarrett]

This is kicking the can down the road.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

I think what's incredible about Mythophysione, that a lot of people don't know is how readily it's used. Louisiana's attorney general noted in court papers that despite her state having an almost total ban on abortion, roughly a thousand abortions a month take place in that state because of mifepristone pills. How does that track with other states across the country and their usage of mifepristone?

[Laura Jarrett]

All the data that I have seen will show you that abortion rates have mostly held steady since the Dobbs decision rolled back. Roe v. Wade, which tells you telehealth and being able to get it through the mail have to be huge because otherwise all these places with in person abortion bans would be bringing down the numbers writ large. Does that make sense? Right. Like if across the country, Right.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

If you had a ban on access to abortions, you would think then you

[Laura Jarrett]

would see a massive drop off.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

But you're not happening.

[Laura Jarrett]

But you're not. Because my guess is if we dug behind those numbers, you would see blue states like California, Illinois, New York are shipping out tons of pills all over the country.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Also, I think what people don't know is mifepristone is also used after miscarriages, not just for abortions.

[Laura Jarrett]

And this is where the like the

[Yasmin Vasugin]

size, which by the way, saves women's lives.

[Laura Jarrett]

And this is where you saw people going nuts the last time mifepristone was in front of the Supreme Court. And in that case it was about taking it off the market entirely.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Right.

[Laura Jarrett]

They wanted to strip it off entirely. And it was brought by a group of advocates, but they were anti abortion advocates and doctors who did not want to prescribe mifepristone. They did not want to use it at all, but they wanted to get it taken off the market. And in that case, the Supreme Court said, okay, those people don't even want to use it. They don't even have standing to be here. This one's a little bit of a different issue. And so it's not clear that the Supreme Court would come out the same way if they took it up on the merits.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Could the administration eventually limit access to mifepristone? Absolutely, if they wanted to. As the FDA is reviewing the safety protocols.

[Laura Jarrett]

Absolutely.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

How would they go about doing that?

[Laura Jarrett]

So the FDA would have to roll back its own regulations. And the FDA can do that. They have the authority to do that. But I think the question be, what new safety data are they relying on that makes them think that this drug that has been used now for more than 20 years, what are they seeing that's different?

[Yasmin Vasugin]

What new are they seeing?

[Laura Jarrett]

What new are they seeing? And I think there's a political calculation for the president. This is the most commonly used pill. There are people who support President Trump that are using this pill.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Right.

[Laura Jarrett]

So I just think there's a science piece of this, there's a law piece of this, and there's a politics piece of this. And it's one of those issues where all of them are intersecting.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

And I think also something that we have looked at over the years, especially as we got closer and Closer to a potential decision when it came to Dobbs is abortion access is popular across the country, even amongst conservative voters.

[Laura Jarrett]

Yes.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Is this eventually going to end up back at the Supreme Court based on its merits?

[Laura Jarrett]

110%. Looks like you have been studying your

[Yasmin Vasugin]

Supreme Court procedure, but we don't know the timing of that.

[Laura Jarrett]

It will take months. It will not be this. I would be shocked if they even get it before they go out for summer recess.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

So before we go, you have another special episode coming out tomorrow on Saturday for those doing double duty because you're hosting Today show in the morning and then you have this piece coming out as well.

[Laura Jarrett]

Look at you with the double tease. Okay. You didn't even mention it, by the way.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

I'm gonna be on the Today show and more tomorrow morning as well, so I'll tease for myself.

[Laura Jarrett]

So extra reason to tune in to the Today show.

[Ad Voice]

Exactly.

[Laura Jarrett]

Because Yaz is on with me. On a completely unrelated subject, no, but

[Yasmin Vasugin]

you're doing this incredible series on the Suprem Court over the month of May, the second of which is coming out tomorrow. What can we expect tomorrow?

[Laura Jarrett]

So throughout the month, we've been talking to lawyers and also legal historians, and we've been talking about the big cases that are in this term. Cuz there's so many important issues to people's lives. So we've been talking about birthright citizenship, we've talking this week about transgender rights, in particular the big transgender sports cases, they're in front of the court. And so I interviewed David Cole. He's a very well known constitutional lawyer at the aclu. And he explains to me how he won the case on behalf of Amy Stevens, who was fired for being transgender. She was fired from her job and they did not make any secret about why they were firing her. But before that point, there had never been any definitive ruling from the Supreme Court that transgender people are protected under Title vii. So David Cole won that case. And the interesting thing is that I asked him what he thinks the chances are the athletes who wanna play on the girls team that are transgender will win in their case. Given his landmark win, he set the precedent. He's not so sure they're going to win.

[David Cole]

It's an issue on which reasonable people can differ. It's a hard issue. If you view the purpose of sports in school as participation, then why shouldn't you allow trans women to participate and trans girls to participate on the women's team or the girls team? However, there's also an argument that sports is about competition and that There are advantages that boys have, particularly after puberty, that girls don't have.

[Yasmin Vasugin]

So that's going to be in your feed tomorrow morning, Saturday morning at 5am so be sure to listen to that. Thank you, Laura.

[Laura Jarrett]

Please tune in

[Yasmin Vasugin]

after the break. Tensions between the US And China are heating up and President Trump is not the only one heading to the US From China. We've got pandas packing their bamboo for a trip. Next in the headlines.

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[Jane Tim]

Breaking news just coming in moments ago.

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[Yasmin Vasugin]

And we are back with here's the scoop from NBC News. Let's get to some headlines. President Trump's summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping has wrapped up with both sides saying they have made progress stabilizing the relationship but without any clear breakthroughs. Trump said on Friday that China would purchase 200 Boeing aircraft and billions of dollars worth of soybeans from the United States and said that he would consider lifting sanctions on Chinese companies that buy Iranian oil. Trump told reporters that they discussed denuclearization and China's claim over the self ruling democracy of Taiwan. But he said tariffs and computer chips did not come up. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson did not confirm the Boeing purchases when asked. A judge has declared a mistrial in the third rape trial of Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. After the jury deadlocked, NBC News has reached out to the Manhattan DA's office to see if they plan on trying Weinstein a fourth time on the charge tied to rape allegations made by former actress and hairstylist journalist Jessica Mann. Mann claims Weinstein assaulted her at a Manhattan hotel back in 2013. Weinstein has pled not guilty to the charge and has denied all allegations of non consensual sex. Two U.S. officials tell NBC News that the Department of Justice is pushing to indict Raul Castro, the 94 year old former president of Cuba. One official said the criminal allegations involved two civilian planes that Cuba shot down in 1996, killing four Cuban Americans. NBC News reports that President Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with the Cuban government's ability to hold onto power amid U.S. sanctions, which have led to fuel shortages and energy blackouts. NBC News has reached out to Cuba's Foreign Ministry in Havana and the island's embassy in Washington and has not heard back. The U.S. state Department says that Israel and Lebanon are extending their ceasefire by 45 days following what it called highly productive talks between the two countries in Washington, Washington, D.C. this week. The cease fire has been in effect since April 16, but a fighting between Israel and the Iran proxy Hezbollah has continued in southern Lebanon. The State Department says Israel and Lebanon would resume negotiations in early June. And finally, so what, what is the farthest that you think that you would actually travel for a blind date? Just think about it for a second. I think for me it would honestly be maybe a couple blocks. I'm not very motivated when it comes to blind dates, but that's maybe because I'm married. So there's, that's maybe a good thing. Love you, babe. But for two pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, the answer is something like 8,000 miles. They're both from southwest China, but they're going to meet in a zoo in Atlanta, Georgia, as part of a new 10 year conservation agreement between China and the United States. They could hit it off. They're both six years old. They both like food, they like to eat. Ping Ping, he loves bamboo. And Fu Shuang apparently loves apples. And earlier panda pairs, Lun Lun and Yang Yang, who came to the US back in 1999. They ended up having seven cubs. So who knows what this romantic sojourn to Atlanta, Georgia could turn out for these two potential lovebirds. Here's hoping it works out for them. All right, that is gonna do it for us at here's the Scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasmin Desugin. We'll be back tomorrow with a special episode of here's the Scoo Scoop Supreme Court Edition hosted by Laura Jarrett. For now, if you like what you heard, subscribe wherever you get your podcast. And you can also subscribe to our daily newsletter, the Inside Scoop. It is a deeper dive on the main stories of the day that comes out every weeknight straight to your inbox. You can sign up for the Inside Scoop as part of our paid subscription@NBC news.com.

[Meet the Press Announcer]

This week on Meet the Press, we'll have the very latest on the war with Iran. Could a deal be within reach? And a very special common ground conversation with Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Democratic Governor Wes Moore, how both political parties are working together to address our nation's maternal health crisis. Listen to the full episode now. Wherever you get your podcasts.