Good morning — here’s a concise update on today’s top stories.
San Diego mosque shooting investigated as hate crime
San Diego police are treating a deadly attack at the Islamic Center of San Diego in the Clairemont neighborhood as a suspected hate crime. Officers responded to a call and found three people dead inside the center. Investigators also discovered two teenagers — ages 17 and 18 — dead in a vehicle nearby; police say both appear to have died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds. Authorities have not released the identities of the victims or the teens. Police Chief Scott Wahl said “there was definitely hate rhetoric involved,” and the FBI has opened a parallel investigation.
NPR reporting indicates one of the victims was a security guard at the mosque and that families waited hours before children evacuated from a school housed in the building. Community members described shock and long-standing fears that places of worship are increasingly targeted.
Midterm primary day underway
Today is the busiest primary day so far in the 2026 midterms, with voters casting ballots in Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon and Pennsylvania. Several Republican contests will test former President Trump’s influence over the party. In Kentucky, GOP Rep. Thomas Massie faces a Trump-backed challenger, Ed Gallrein, reflecting a recent trend in which primary voters have moved to replace incumbents Trump views as disloyal. Democrats are also holding competitive primaries as they try to unseat Republican-held seats in November.
Trump’s $10 billion IRS lawsuit dismissed after settlement
A federal judge dismissed former President Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit accusing the IRS of leaking his tax returns after Trump asked to drop the case. The dismissal followed a settlement in which the Department of Justice agreed to create a $1.7 billion “anti-weaponization fund.” The administration says the fund will reimburse people who were mistreated by the prior Justice Department; Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will appoint a board to administer it. The settlement allows the president to remove board members, and the fund would be financed with taxpayer dollars.
Questions remain about transparency and eligibility. Watchdog groups worry payments could reach people involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol; it’s unclear whether the government will disclose recipients. Critics note the settlement reverses earlier DOJ positions opposing third-party payouts and call the fund an inappropriate use of public money. The judge did not formally approve the fund as part of a signed order.
Elon Musk suit against OpenAI figures tossed by jury
A California jury rejected a lawsuit brought by Elon Musk against OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman, finding Musk waited too long to sue. Musk had alleged they breached a charitable trust by abandoning OpenAI’s founding mission and profiting from that shift. The nine-member advisory jury reached a unanimous decision in under two hours, saying the claim was barred by the statute of limitations.
Climate Solutions Week: Utah communities push renewable projects
As the federal government scales back certain clean-energy initiatives, a coalition of 19 Utah communities — from Salt Lake City to small rural towns — is moving ahead with clean-power plans. The Utah Renewable Communities initiative aims to add enough solar and wind capacity to serve nearly 300,000 homes and businesses. After years of regulatory work, the coalition has updated rules, partnered with utility Rocky Mountain Power and secured funding to build solar arrays and wind farms. Local efforts like this are being highlighted as models for climate action at the city and regional level.
Picture show: a runaway tortoise
In Phoenix-area suburbs, a large sulcata tortoise named Rex escaped and wandered through neighborhoods, prompting a wide search and a reminder about the challenges of owning such pets. African sulcata tortoises can grow very large — often weighing up to 200 pounds and living many decades — and require spacious enclosures, clean water, warm dry shelter and opportunities to dig. The U.S. banned new imports of the species in the early 2000s, though breeding remains legal.
Three things to know before you go
1) The NTSB and other federal safety investigators will hold a fact-finding hearing today into last November’s crash of UPS Flight 2976 near Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. Preliminary data show the cargo plane reached only about 30 feet before crashing.
2) A new KFF analysis warns that up to 5 million people could drop coverage from Affordable Care Act marketplaces this year after enhanced premium tax credits expired at the end of last year.
3) In Manhattan, a state judge ruled prosecutors may present a gun, a silencer and a notebook found with Luigi Mangione at the time of his arrest in Pennsylvania; other items were excluded. The evidence decision relates to the high-profile trial connected to the fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO.
This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.