Good morning. It has been a night of drama as crucial election results have unfolded \u2013 or not \u2013 across the US.<\/p>\n
In California, the crucial race for governor remains too close to call<\/a>. With mountains of ballots left to count, the Republican Steve Hilton was leading the field with the Democrats Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer following. A quirk of the state\u2019s political system means the top two candidates face off in the general election regardless of which party they belong to.<\/p>\n In the heated primary for Los Angeles mayor, Karen Bass came out ahead<\/a> \u2013 but falling short of a 50% majority means she will have to defend her seat in November\u2019s general election against either the former reality TV star Spencer Pratt or the city council member Nithya Raman. The San Jose mayor, Matt Mahan, and the former LA mayor Antonio Villaraigosa conceded early.<\/p>\n Where else were primary elections held? In many other states. Many eyes were on Iowa, where Josh Turek, backed by millions in outside spending, clinched the state\u2019s Democratic primary<\/a>, defeating the state senator Zach Wahls, who had pitched himself as an anti-establishment outsider. On the Republican side, Randy Feenstra\u2019s second-place finish in the gubernatorial race ended Donald Trump\u2019s perfect endorsement streak, which had held strong since March.<\/p>\n When will we know the full results? Voting experts say it could take weeks to finalize the tightest races<\/a>.<\/p>\n CBS News fires 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley Scott Pelley at a CBS event. Photograph: Charles Sykes\/AP<\/p>\n The veteran 60 Minutes journalist Scott Pelley has been ousted<\/a> after clashing fiercely with the network over staff cuts. CBS management recently shocked staffers by firing the show\u2019s executive producer, executive editor and correspondents Cecilia Vega and Sharyn Alfonsi without giving a reason.<\/p>\n Pelley\u2019s exit followed his blunt rebuke of Bari Weiss, the opinion commentator who took over as editor-in-chief of CBS News in October. Pelley reportedly said: \u201cShe\u2019s murdering 60 Minutes \u2026 She was brought in to kill it and is doing exactly that.\u201d<\/p>\n What was Pelley said to have done? In an email, the newly appointed executive editor, Nick Bilton, claimed Pelley had \u201chijacked my first meeting \u2026 to disparage me, my qualifications, and my intentions with remarkable incivility and contempt\u201d. In a message to staff he said that after repeated, failed attempts to find common ground over the weekend, \u201cwe have parted ways with Scott Pelley\u201d.<\/p>\n Pentagon appoints convicted January 6 rioter to sensitive counter-terrorism roleElias Irizarry looks down from a wall in the grounds of the US Capitol on 6 January 2021. Photograph: FBI<\/p>\n The Department of Defense has appointed Elias Irizarry<\/a> \u2013 convicted for his role in the January 6 Capitol insurrection \u2013 to a sensitive counter-terrorism role. Irizarry, who pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge, will reportedly join a 40-person counter-terrorism and irregular warfare team within the special operations and low-intensity conflict office, which manages highly classified military operations.<\/p>\n Joel Valdez, the Pentagon\u2019s acting press secretary, defended the appointment in an email, while attacking the Washington Post journalists who first reported on it. \u201cUnlike Mr Irizarry, the Washington Post does not care about national security given its track record of low-tier reporters publishing and soliciting classified information that could hurt our nation on a daily basis,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n What did Irizzary do on 6 January? He was pictured brandishing what appeared to be a metal pole on the day of the attack. He was 19 at the time, and apologized for his actions in court, but was criticized by the judge for failing to stop the violence despite having been in a position to do so.<\/p>\n In other news \u2026Donald Trump and his family will be immune from IRS audit. Photograph: Samuel Corum\/Pool\/Samuel Corum – Pool\/CNP\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n The federal government is abandoning an effort<\/a> to create a $1.8bn secretive fund to compensate Trump\u2019s allies, but is maintaining an agreement that prohibits the IRS from auditing him, his family and related entities.<\/p>\n The US supreme court ruled in a 6-3 decision that Alabama can use a redrawn congressional map<\/a> that eliminates one of the state\u2019s two majority-Black districts in this year\u2019s midterm elections, another major blow to Black voters and a win for Republicans.<\/p>\n Authorities are investigating<\/a> whether the disgraced former Republican congressman George Santos engaged in insider trading by betting on a prediction market regarding his own attendance at the State of the Union.<\/p>\n Far-right activists addressed a crowd that clashed with police<\/a> outside a Southampton police station in the UK to protest against the police response to the murder of Henry Nowak, a cause taken up by Elon Musk.<\/p>\n The White House correspondents\u2019 dinner will be rescheduled for 24 July<\/a>. The Washington event was abruptly cancelled in April after a shooting.<\/p>\n Stat of the day: One-tonne cocaine bust reveals secret US-Mexico tunnelOfficials stand outside a border tunnel found near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego, California. Photograph: Carlos Moreno\/NurPhoto\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n Members of the Jalisco New Generation cartel used a fake retail store in San Diego as a front for trafficking drugs, officials have claimed. Federal agents said they had found a 55ft-deep tunnel<\/a> equipped with electricity and ventilation. It was accessed using a sophisticated hydraulic lift that extended more than 1,000ft to the US-Mexico border, and they said they believe it continued for 800ft into the Mexican city of Tijuana.<\/p>\n Well actually: Elizabeth Smart on her journey from kidnapping survivor to bodybuildingElizabeth Smart at her home in 2023. Photograph: Chad Kirkland for The Washington Post via Getty Images<\/p>\n Elizabeth Smart, an activist and kidnapping survivor, recently revealed<\/a> she had spent the past year secretly competing in bodybuilding competitions under her married name. \u201cI\u2019m the kind of person who needs a goal, a deadline. Let me tell you, it\u2019s pretty good motivation to know you have to get on stage with a bikini!\u201d<\/p>\n But you don\u2019t need to actually do the latter to take advantage of her advice: \u201cGet a good coach. Lift heavy. Eat tons of protein\u201d.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss this: Is this film AI slop \u2013 or the future of film-making?A still from Dreams of Violets (2026). Illustration: Courtesy of Ash Koosha<\/p>\n The use of AI in creative endeavours has been a hot topic, and now Dreams of Violets is bringing a whole new angle to the debate, becoming the first fully AI-generated \u201clive action\u201d feature accepted at a major film festival. Every image and character in the drama about Iran\u2019s anti-government protests was made with AI, with the director, Ash Koosha, arguing it would be too dangerous to base characters on living people in Iran. Cath Clarke interviewed him<\/a>.<\/p>\n Climate check: Trump officials to dismantle key ocean monitoring systemStaff at work at the Ocean Observatories Initiative. Photograph: Sheri N White \u00a9 WHOI<\/p>\n The Trump administration plans to dismantle a $368m deep-sea observation system<\/a> that has provided crucial data on ocean systems and climate change for more than a decade. The notice came days after Trump fired all members of the independent board that oversees the National Science Foundation.<\/p>\n Last Thing: Jill Biden recalls pressure Joe faced to drop out of 2024 raceJill Biden in conversation with Whoopi Goldberg. Photograph: Jamie McCarthy\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Jill Biden has recalled<\/a> the immense pressure that her husband, Joe, faced in the aftermath of his disastrous 2024 debate performance, saying he told her: \u201cJilly, I had no choice\u201d but to drop out of the presidential race. The former first lady made her comments during a Tuesday book event coinciding with the release of her memoir, View from the East Wing.<\/p>\n Sign up<\/p>\n Sign up for the US morning briefing<\/p>\n First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you\u2019re not already signed up, subscribe now<\/a>.<\/p>\n Get in touch<\/p>\n