Ohio Senate primary stakes and Princess Kate spotted in new video: Morning Rundown

A heated Senate GOP primary in Ohio will be a referendum on Donald Trump. New research suggests an intermittent fasting diet could be risky. And Princess Kate is spotted out and about after weeks of online speculation about her health.

Here’s what to know today.

The Senate race that’s also a referendum on Trump

Bernie Moreno and Matt Dolan are leading the pack in today’s Ohio Senate Republican primary, and while Gov. Mike DeWine says the race is only about who will represent the state, it is widely seen as a referendum on former President Donald Trump.

Moreno, a wealthy businessman, heads into today’s race with support from Trump and his allies, who warn a vote for Dolan is a vote against the MAGA movement. The days leading up to the race have been full of attacks as Trump, Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake and Sen. JD Vance of Ohio barnstormed the state to campaign for Moreno. 

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Dolan, whose family owns the Major League Baseball franchise in Cleveland, enjoys the support of DeWine and has painted himself as a champion of Trump policies but with a much milder personality than the former president.

The primary sets up a face-off in November against Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown that many see as a toss-up. 

Reporters Henry J. Gomez and Emma Barnett recap the campaigns’ road to the primary. Read the full story here.

More 2024 elections coverage: 

• Other elections today in Ohio and Illinois will set the stage for pivotal House battleground races this fall. Here are four dynamics to watch.

Supreme Court keeps blocking Texas immigration law

The Supreme Court extended a temporary block on a new Texas immigration law indefinitely, giving justices more time to determine the next steps to take. The Biden administration is challenging the law known as SB4, which would allow police to arrest migrants who illegally cross the border from Mexico and impose criminal penalties. The law was originally due to go into effect this month, but Justice Samuel Alito has now stepped in three times to ensure a lower court ruling remains on hold. 

On Monday, the Supreme Court also rejected a bid by former Trump adviser Peter Navarro to avoid reporting to prison (which he’s expected to do today) to serve a four-month sentence for defying a congressional subpoena.

Justices also rejected an appeal by “Cowboys for Trump” co-founder Cody Griffin, who lost his job as a county commissioner in New Mexico over his role in the Jan. 6 riot. Griffin’s case concerned the same constitutional provision that Trump successfully argued in a separate case could not be used to throw him off the ballot in Colorado. 

In Haiti, stranded Americans evacuated and power stations attacked

At least 13 people were evacuated from Haiti over the weekend as security concerns mount and the shutdown of the country’s primary airport leave foreigners stranded, Rep. Cory Mills of Florida confirmed yesterday. Among them was Miriam Cinotti, a missionary who had been in Haiti for 14 years. She said she spent the past three weeks stranded in a remote village and described the challenges of coordinating her own evacuation.

In Port-au-Prince, armed groups broke into four electrical substations and left them “completely dysfunctional” by taking electrical installations, batteries, computer and office equipment and important documents, the country’s power company said. Now, several areas in and around the city are without power, including the entrance to the U.S. embassy.

Research suggests perils of intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting, a diet that involves alternating between fasting and eating, might not be as good for heart health as previously thought, according to a new analysis. Research presented this week at the American Heart Association’s scientific sessions found that people who restricted food consumption to less than eight hours per day had a 91% higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease over a period of eight years, relative to people who ate across 12 to 16 hours. 

It’s too early to make specific recommendations about intermittent fasting based on this research alone, a co-author said, which hasn’t been peer-reviewed or published in an academic journal. Also, some experts said they found the analysis too narrow.

New video released as search for Riley Strain continues

Nashville police have released a new video showing Riley Strain on the night he disappeared, revealing new information about his movements as the search for the 22-year-old continues. The video shows Strain walking briskly past an officer on the night of March 8. The officer asks Strain how he’s doing, to which Strain replies, “I’m good, how are you?” 

Meanwhile, Strain’s stepfather, Chris Whiteid, said yesterday that Strain had gone to two more bars on the same night before he was kicked out of a third. Whiteid also heard Strain and his mother FaceTiming that night and said Strain didn’t sound like he’d been drinking a lot. 

Strain had been visiting Nashville with friends from his college fraternity and went missing after he was kicked out of a bar in the city’s downtown. His bank card was found last weekend, and police say no evidence of foul play has surfaced. Read the full story here.

Politics in Brief 

Government funding: Congressional leaders struck a deal on funding for the Department of Homeland Security — the last big sticking point among negotiators— paving the way for lawmakers to avert a government shutdown this weekend, two sources familiar with the talks said.

Israel-Hamas war: President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against Israel’s planned military operation in Rafah, where more than a million people have taken refuge.

Trump cases: New York state Judge Juan Merchan denied Donald Trump’s bid to keep his former lawyer Michael Cohen and adult film star Stormy Daniels from testifying in the former president’s criminal trial related to a 2016 hush money payment. Also, Trump’s lawyers said in a new court filing that he has not been able to get a bond to secure the $464 million civil fraud judgment against him and his co-defendants. And in Georgia, lawyers for Trump and seven of his co-defendants in the election interference case are seeking a review of the decision not to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

Biden impeachment inquiry: Devon Archer, a key witness in the Republican impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden and a former business associate of Hunter Biden, declined an invitation to appear this week at a public hearing.

Social Security and Medicare: Donald Trump hasn’t said how he would address looming shortfalls over two major retirement programs. So what are his plans for Social Security and Medicare? An NBC News examination found his views have zigzagged over the years. 

2024 election: Deep-pocketed centrist group No Labels is still working to find its dream third-party presidential ticket for 2024, but it has been spurned by at least a dozen prominent figures, including Sen. Joe Manchin, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and former Rep. Liz Cheney.

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Staff Pick: In the room with a victorious Putin

Putin’s election win was anything but surprising – but our team’s account of their experience in the room with the victorious president and across a celebratory Moscow reveals some unusual details, including a woman who says she repurposed a diamond Chanel brooch into a symbol of support for the war in Ukraine.

— Annie Hill, platforms editor

Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

Flat irons don’t just smooth your hair. You can also use them to create curls, which minimizes your need for extra hair tools, especially if you’re traveling. Here are the 14 best flat irons.

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