Sleepy Don. By several accounts, ex-President Trump nodded off during his trial yesterday …
■ … although, in a development that CNN’s Oliver Darcy says “underscores the information vacuum that has been birthed by the lack of transparency into the case,” the Trump campaign denies it …
■ … and Trump himself reportedly glared for several seconds at one reporter who noted his catnap.
■ Warning that “Trump is filling the void with lies,” columnist Brian Beutler says President Biden “should end his vow of silence on Trump’s legal jeopardy.”
■ The matter triggered a field day for late-night TV hosts—including Jimmy Kimmel, who’s dubbed Trump “Dozo the Clown.”
‘A pretty good start.’ That’s law professor Joyce Vance’s assessment of the first round of jury selection: “More than half of Trump’s prospective jurors in the first panel of 96 people were excused after they told the judge they could not be fair and impartial. That suggests 45 or so were willing to at least consider it.”
■ Trump’s niece Mary counts “10 big losses” for him in court yesterday.
■ … as are The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, MSNBC’s Adam Klasfeld and CNN’s Norm Eisen.
■ Historian Heather Cox Richardson: “Trump is trying to undermine the rule of law not only out of apparent fear of the outcome of his trials, but also because his appearance in court is likely to hurt his popularity.”
■ Contrary to some mainstream media pooh-poohing, columnist Dan Pfeiffer calls this trial “a big deal with massive implications.”
■ Politico: “The reality of being a criminal defendant on trial finally dawned on Trump. He didn’t take it well.”
‘Greater risks than typical social media platforms because of … the involvement of President Donald J. Trump.’ Donald Trump’s Trump Media & Technology Group tells the Securities and Exchange Commission that Donald Trump himself poses a threat to Trump Media’s Donald Trump-centric social media app, Truth Social.
■ Fun exercise: Search the registration statement for the word “Donald.”
‘The story seems cooked up.’ A short surveillance video recorded two blocks from where Chicago police killed Dexter Reed has fueled columnist Eric Zorn’s doubts about cops’ explanation for why they stopped Reed in the first place.
■ A Tribune editorial: The chief administrator of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability needs to step up the agency’s game.
Money for nothin’. WBEZ: Cook County’s set aside $20 million for suburbs to help migrants, but only two towns have applied.
■ The Chicago City Council’s advanced a plan to spend $70 million more for migrant care.
Costly move. Chicago City Treasurer—and unsuccessful congressional candidate—Melissa Conyears-Ervin has been fined $60,000 for violating the city’s ethics ordinance.
■ An Indiana corruption case before the Supreme Court yesterday could impact laws in Illinois and across the country.
Pride goeth. Limited in size by new city regulations, Chicago’s Pride Parade has denied slots to all the Chicago schools that participated last year.
■ The school board wants your ideas for its five-year strategic plan …
■ … and you can sign up here.
‘What are the teams in these f**king wars?’ If you need a scorecard to figure out who’s allied with whom in the Mideast—well, Jon Stewart’s with you.
■ As world leaders counseled restraint, Israel was vowing a response to Iran’s attack Saturday.
■ Some of Chicago’s Jewish and political leaders—including Ald. Debra Silverstein, who called the offer “hollow”—skipped Mayor Johnson’s roundtable on antisemitism yesterday.
Plugs Pulled Dept. Apologizing for cutting off Billy Joel’s Sunday night concert prematurely, CBS has scheduled a rebroadcast in full Friday night.
■ R.I.P., CNN’s Gayle King-Charles Barkley show.
■ Jason Koebler at 404 sees TV’s dystopian future: AI-generated garbage.
‘Losing roughly $300,000 a month.’ Semafor reports that The Intercept—“the left-wing U.S. newsroom that’s been a thorn in Joe Biden’s side and a hub for pro-Palestinian coverage”—is running out of cash.
■ News credibility rating site NewsGuard has stripped The New York Times of its perfect rating.
■ News biz critic Mark Jacob condemns journalists who just bend over and take it when liars lie to them.