Today in one sentence: Biden announced executive actions to protect some 500,000 immigrants without legal status in the U.S. from deportation; the New York Court of Appeals rejected convicted felon Trump's appeal of the gag order in the election interference case involving falsified business records; the House Ethics Committee is expanding its investigation into Matt Gaetz amid allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use; plus ✏️ Notables.

1/ Biden announced executive actions to protect some 500,000 immigrants without legal status in the U.S. from deportation. The new policy will shield undocumented individuals if they’ve lived in the U.S. for 10 or more years and are married to a U.S. citizen. The protection also provides a streamlined path to citizenship. About 500,000 undocumented spouses and 50,000 undocumented stepchildren of U.S. citizens are expected to be eligible to apply. Biden also announced a policy that makes DACA recipients and so-called “Dreamers” eligible for work visas, rather than temporary work authorization. “Today’s a good day,” Biden said. (New York Times / Associated Press / Politico / NBC News / Bloomberg / Washington Post / ABC News / CNN)

  • Increased immigration to the U.S. is expected to drive higher economic growth and labor supply, grow federal revenues and shrink deficits over the next 10 years. (Axios)

2/ The New York Court of Appeals rejected convicted felon Trump’s appeal of the gag order in the election interference case involving falsified business records, in which he was convicted last month. The court wrote that Trump’s appeal was dismissed because “no substantial constitutional question is directly involved.” As a result, Trump’s gag order, which bars him from speaking about jurors, witnesses and other parties involved in the Manhattan Supreme Court case, remains in effect. After Trump was found guilty on 34 felony counts, his lawyers argued that the order should be lifted because the trial was over. (Associated Press / NBC News / CNN / Politico / Axios / CNBC)

3/ The House Ethics Committee is expanding its investigation into Matt Gaetz amid allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. The bipartisan committee said its investigation was paused in deference to the Justice Department’s investigation, but reopened it after the DOJ declined to bring charges. “There has been a significant and unusual amount of public reporting on the Committee’s activities this Congress. Much of that reporting has been inaccurate,” the committee said. The investigation is reportedly focused on whether Gaetz “engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.” So far, the comittee has conducted more than a dozen interviews, issued 25 subpoenas, and received thousands of pages of documents. (Washington Post / CNN / Politico / Associated Press / NBC News / CBS News / Axios / Wall Street Journal)

  • 📌 Day 71: The Justice Department is investigating whether Rep. Matt Gaetz had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old and violated federal sex trafficking laws by paying her to travel with him. Attorney General William Barr opened the investigation in the final months of the Trump administration. Trump and several senior Justice Department officials were notified of the investigation. Gaetz called the investigation part of a scheme involving “false sex allegations” to extort his family for $25 million, adding that he and his father, Don Gaetz, have been cooperating with the FBI by “wearing a wire.” Gaetz, meanwhile, has privately told confidants that he’s considering not seeking re-election and possibly leaving Congress early for a job at Newsmax. (New York Times / Politico / Axios)
  • 📌 Day 135: The Justice Department is investigating whether Rep. Matt Gaetz obstructed justice when he called a witness in a potential sex crimes investigation. The obstruction probe stems from an inquiry about whether Gaetz had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old and paid for her travels with him. The witness is one of the women allegedly connected to Gaetz through his “wingman” Joel Greenberg, a Florida tax collector who pleaded guilty to several crimes, including the sex-trafficking of a 17-year-old girl in 2017. While Gaetz has denied all wrongdoing, including obstructing justice or having sex with the trafficked 17-year-old, Greenberg struck a plea deal with prosecutors last month and is cooperating with authorities in the investigation. (Politico / NBC News / CNN / CNBC)
  • 📌 Day 757: The Justice Department closed its sex trafficking investigation into Matt Gaetz and will not charge the congressman. Federal prosecutors and the FBI began investigating Gaetz in 2020 over allegations that the congressman had violated federal law by paying for sex, including sex with a minor that he transported across state lines to engage in prostitution. Gaetz’s close friend, Joel Greenberg, pleaded guilty in 2021 to six federal crimes, including sex trafficking involving a person under 18 years old, and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. Greenberg was sentenced to 11 years in prison. (CNN / Politico / Washington Post / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / NBC News)

✏️ Notables.

  1. Jack Smith’s Moment of Truth at the Supreme Court. “All eyes are on the Supreme Court as the justices are expected, any day now, to release their opinion on whether Trump is immune from criminal prosecution in his federal election interference case.” (Slate)

  2. But his emails: Trump’s increasingly unhinged calls for violence. “Trump claims he may face death sentence, threatens Joe Biden with “DAY OF RECKONING.” This really isn’t normal.” (Salon)

  3. Trump World Seems Worried. Either that, or they’re betting their base doesn’t care about the truth. (The Atlantic)

  4. Trump’s Tariff Is a Scheme to Shift the Tax Burden to the Non-Rich. Why do we keep calling this “populism?” (New York Magazine)

  5. Replacing Taxes With Tariffs Would Take Us Back to the 1800s. Trump a populist? Populism came about to lower tariffs! (The New Republic)

  6. The Christian right is coming for divorce next. Some conservatives want to make it a lot harder to dissolve a marriage. (Vox)

  7. Why the most powerful men in America are the worst dressed. Twitter’s menswear guy explains, from Trump Republicans’ shiny red ties to the horror of “dress sneakers.” (Vox)

  • 📅 The WTFJHT Calendar: Now until then.

  • ⛔️ June 19: Juneteenth – No WTFJHT.
    📺 June 27: Biden-Trump debate.
    ⛔️ July 4: Independence Day – No WTFJHT.
    ⚖️ July 11: Trump is sentenced.
    🐘 July 15: Republican National Convention.
    🇮🇱 July 24: Netanyahu addresses joint session of Congress.
    🫏 Aug. 19: Democratic convention.
    ⛔️ Sept. 2: Labor Day – No WTFJHT.
    📺 Sept. 10: Biden-Trump debate.
    📆 Oct. 6: Last day to register to vote in some states.
    ⛔️ Oct. 14: Indigenous Peoples’ Day – No WTFJHT.
    🗳️ Nov. 5: Presidential Election.