Today in one sentence: The EPA finalized the first-ever national limits on toxic “forever chemicals” in drinking water; Judge Aileen Cannon agreed to shield the names of potential witnesses in Trump’s criminal classified documents case; hours after Arizona’s Supreme Court upheld a 160-year-old law banning nearly all abortions, Republicans in the state attempted to distance themselves from the ruling; House conservatives revolted against their own leadership and blocked legislation to extend a warrantless surveillance program after Trump urged lawmakers to “kill” it; and Trump’s former chief financial officer was to five months in jail after admitting that he had lied under oath about helping Trump inflate his net worth to win favorable loan terms.

1/ The EPA finalized the first-ever national limits on toxic “forever chemicals” in drinking water, a group of human-made chemicals that are considered especially harmful because they don’t degrade, can accumulate in the body and the environment, and pose a health risk to people at even the smallest detectable levels of exposure. The new rule is expected to reduce drinking water exposure to these per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, for about 100 million people and prevent thousands of related illnesses and deaths. This is the first time the EPA has set a drinking water standard for a new contaminant since 1996. (Associated Press / NPR / Axios / Washington Post / New York Times / The Verge / Politico / Bloomberg)

2/ Judge Aileen Cannon agreed to shield the names of potential witnesses in Trump’s criminal classified documents case. Special counsel Jack Smith has been arguing since January that witnesses would likely face threats and harassment if their identities were revealed publicly. Among the people Smith was seeking to protect were FBI agents, Secret Service agents, “career civil servants and former close advisers” to Trump, including one who was so concerned about potential threats from “Trump world” that he refused to permit investigators to record an interview with him. Cannon, however, refused to categorically block witness statements from being disclosed, saying there was no basis for such a “sweeping” and “blanket” restriction on their inclusion in pretrial motions. (Washington Post / New York Times / Politico / CNN / Associated Press)

3/ Hours after Arizona’s Supreme Court upheld a 160-year-old law banning nearly all abortions, Republicans in the state attempted to distance themselves from the ruling. Kari Lake, an Arizona Republican running for the U.S. Senate, denounced the ruling, saying it was “out of step with Arizonans” and called on state lawmakers to “come up” with a “solution that Arizonans can support.” Lake, a Trump ally and a 2020 election denier, however, had voiced support for the law in 2022, calling it a “great law” and an example for other states. Despite having supported abortion restrictions in the past two Arizona Republicans in the U.S. House representing districts that Biden won – Rep. Juan Ciscomani and Rep. David Schweikert – called the ruling a “disaster for women and providers” and that the issue “should be decided by Arizonans, not legislated from the bench,” urging the state legislature to “address this issue immediately.” Meanwhile, two days after saying states should make their own decisions about abortion Trump – who has repeatedly taken credit for the Supreme Court decision that ended the federal right to an abortion – said Arizona’s abortion law went too far. “That will be straightened out,” Trump suggested, adding that he wouldn’t sign a national abortion ban if he’s re-elected and passed by Congress. Abortion rights groups in Arizona said they’ve acquired enough signatures to put a constitutional amendment on abortion on the state’s ballot in November. (NBC News / Associated Press / CNN / Politico / Washington Post / Axios)

4/ House conservatives revolted against their own leadership and blocked legislation to extend a warrantless surveillance program after Trump urged lawmakers to “kill” it. It was Mike Johnson’s third attempt to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a controversial surveillance law that Democratic and Republican administrations have claimed is vital to protecting Americans from terrorists, hackers, and other foreign threats. In a 228 to 193 vote, 19 House Republicans blocked the House from debating their own party’s legislation. Although most Democrats and the White House support extending FISA, House Democrats refused to provide votes because Republicans had bundled the measure with an unrelated resolution condemning Biden’s border policies. (Politico / CNN / New York Times / NBC News / Wall Street Journal)

5/ Trump’s former chief financial officer was to five months in jail after admitting that he had lied under oath about helping Trump inflate his net worth to win favorable loan terms. Allen Weisselberg will serve his sentence in New York City’s Rikers Island jail complex. Weisselberg spent three months in jail at Rikers last year after pleading guilty to helping orchestrate a tax fraud scheme at Trump’s company. (Associated Press / Washington Post / NBC News / New York Times / Politico)

Four years ago today: Day 1177: "The biggest decision."
Five years ago today: Day 811: Genesis.