Evening Wire: Hayden Panettiere Passes Away & SCOTUS Rejects Trump Appeal | 8.17.26

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**Georgia Howe** (1:19)
The Supreme Court rejects President Trump's appeal again in the E Jean Carrol case. AI helps discover the identity of a Nazi executioner who was anonymous for 80 years, and actress Hayden Panettiere has tragically passed away at age 36
I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire executive editor John Bickley. It's Monday, August 17th, and this is Evening Wire.

**John Bickley** (1:42)
The Supreme Court has again rejected President Trump's request to reconsider his appeal of a $5 million jury award to writer E Jean Carrol that effectively ends his challenge to that judgment. Carrol's representative said Trump paid the award back in July.
Carrol has accused Trump of sexually abusing her in a Manhattan department store in the 1990s. In a highly controversial ruling, a federal jury rejected her claim that she was raped under New York's legal definition at the time, but then found Trump liable for sexual abuse and battery anyhow. The Supreme Court gave no explanation for its decision and no justice publicly dissented. Trump is still challenging a separate $83 million defamation judgment stemming from comments he made about Carrol in 2019, arguing that those statements were made in his capacity as president and thus protected by presidential immunity.

**Georgia Howe** (2:32)
The movement to abolish ICE is now officially supported by the Democratic National Committee.
On Saturday, the DNC approved a resolution that encourages lawmakers to close the immigration agency and, to hedge, it also approved a resolution that takes the softer approach of reforming how the agency operates. Neither resolution is considered part of the 2028 party platform, which will be decided at the last convention before the election. The movement to abolish ICE has gained traction among the Democratic left wing, while moderates within the party fear the stance will cost the party future elections. DNC chairman Ken Martin sidestepped the rift in a statement. He said, quote, The one thing that unites Democrats is the belief that what ICE is doing right now and CBP and the federal government should stop.

**John Bickley** (3:17)
The U.S.'s 60-day ceasefire with Iran officially expired today while Jared Kushner and Benjamin Netanyahu met about a Gaza peace plan. Foreign affairs reporter Cassie Akiva has the latest.

**Cassie Akiva** (3:27)
The Pentagon is moving to replenish weapons stocks, awarding Raefi on a $22.9 billion contract for Tomahawk missiles. The deal comes amid reports of strained US missile inventories, following months of war with Iran. The White House has claimed that there is no shortage. Meanwhile, the 60-day window established under the June U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding expired Monday without a broader agreement.
Washington and Tehran remain divided over Iran's nuclear program in the future of the Strait of Hormuz. Reports that the two sides had agreed to extend the arrangement were rejected by Iran's foreign ministry, which said there was nothing to extend, and accused Washington of failing to honor the original agreement. Trump's Board of Peace, which includes his son-in-law Jared Kushner, said talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the Gaza peace plan were, quote, deep and constructive, with the sides agreeing that Israel will not redeploy from Gaza until Hamas is fully disarmed and the territory is demilitarized.

**Georgia Howe** (4:26)
Attorney General Todd Blanch appeared on NBC's Meet the Press over the weekend, where host Kristen Welker suggested his loyalty to the president could override his duty to the country. Here's how Blanch handled it.

**Kristen Welker** (4:37)
Can you pledge that the Justice Department will always act independently of the White House?

**Todd Blanch** (4:42)
No, I'm not going to pledge that and no attorney general should ever pledge that. I will act with integrity. Our prosecutors will act with integrity. We will prosecute without fear or any sort of favor. And that's exactly what we've been doing and that's what every department of justice should do.