The Iran nuke deal countdown begins. The United States and Cuba have ties again. And Donald Trump had a wild weekend.
It’s Monday, and here are five things to know for your New Day.
IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL
Start the clock: The 60-day clock for Congress to review the nuclear agreement with Iran starts today. Members of the Obama administration were out in force this weekend defending the deal, with Secretary of State John Kerry warning if Congress killed the deal “then we have no inspections, we have no sanctions, we have no ability to negotiate.” As for the Republicans? Let’s just say they disagree. Scott Walker — Wisconsin governor and GOP presidential hopeful — said he would rip up the agreement on “Day 1” of his presidency. No confusion there.
U.S.-CUBA RELATIONS
Reconnection: Something else big happens today. For the first time since 1961, the United States and Cuba have re-established diplomatic ties with each other. Cuba’s foreign minister is set to go to the Cuban Embassy in Washington today to raise his country’s flag. That will be live, must-see TV back in Havana, where U.S. diplomats have prepped everything from new business cards and signs at the soon-to-be U.S. Embassy. But the party will have to wait until August, when Secretary of State John Kerry visits Cuba to officially reopen the facility.
BILL COSBY
More revelations: America’s (once) favorite TV dad made headlines once again this weekend, with the release of more details from a civil lawsuit deposition taken a decade ago. In it, Bill Cosby said he had sexual relationships with at least five women outside of his marriage, gave prescription sedatives to women he wanted to have sex with and tried to hide the affairs from his wife. Cosby — who has never been criminally charged — said in the deposition that the sex and drug-taking were consensual.
CHATTANOOGA SHOOTING
Still searching: The hunt for a motive continues in last week’s shootings at two military centers in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Investigators are still digging into the past of gunman Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez, who killed four Marines and a member of the Navy. The gunman’s family spoke out publicly for the first time and has told investigators he was depressed and abused drugs.
DONALD TRUMP
Turning point? Riding high in the polls, Donald Trump once again dominated the political news this weekend — but probably not for the reasons he would like. On Saturday, Trump insulted Sen. John McCain, saying he was considered a war hero only because McCain was captured during the Vietnam War and “I like people that weren’t captured, OK?” Um, OK. As you can imagine, that didn’t go over very well. Republicans on Twitter exploded, and Trump was asked Sunday to apologize. Trump refused and hit McCain again: “He’s all talk, and he’s no action.” Has this campaign officially jumped the shark? We’ll see when the next couple of polls come out.