Iranian official talks nuclear deal and RFK Jr. pressed on vaccines: Morning Rundown

Trump offers “an olive branch” and threats to Iran over potential nuclear deal. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hearings get heated when lawmakers question him on vaccines. And a mountain climber survives a 200-foot fall in Washington state — without breaking a bone. 

Here’s what to know today.

Top official claims Iran is ready to sign a nuclear deal with Trump

A top Iranian official said the country is ready to sign a nuclear deal with the U.S. in exchange for lifting economic sanctions after President Donald Trump offered Iran “an olive branch,” as well as threats should the country not accept an agreement.

In an interview with NBC News chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel, Ali Shamkhani, a top political, military and nuclear adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Iran would commit to never making nuclear weapons and get rid of its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium, along with other concessions. In exchange, Shamkhani said Iran would want an immediate lifting of all economic sanctions. 

This is Morning Rundown, a weekday newsletter to start your day. Sign up here to get it in your inbox.

But Trump’s tone in a speech yesterday, in which he threatened crippling economic sanctions if Iran didn’t accept an agreement to limit its nuclear program, left leaders on edge. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian criticized Trump in comments broadcast on state television. Shamkhani said, “He talks about the olive branch, which we have not seen. It’s all barbed wire.” 

The U.S. and Iran have been holding talks over Tehran’s nuclear program for weeks, with Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, calling the last round of talks “encouraging.” 

Trump’s trip this week to the Middle East includes stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Yesterday, he met with Syria’s new president Ahmed al-Sharaa, after lifting longstanding sanctions on the country. Today, he’s scheduled to give remarks to troops at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. 

Read the full story here.

More on Trump’s Middle East visit:

• Trump’s meeting with al-Sharaa marks an effort to forge a new relationship with the country. But experts say it’s too soon to know if al-Sharaa, who U.S. leaders once called an Al Qaeda terrorist, will fulfill his pledges.
• Trump has praised the warming Qatar-Saudi Arabia relationship and showered flattery on his hosts. As the Trump Organization’s footprint in the Middle East grows, so do the ethical concerns.  

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s contentious congressional hearing

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hearings with the House Appropriations and Senate Education, Labor and Pensions committees were heated at times as Democratic lawmakers pressed him on past statements about vaccines and actions to reduce funding. 

💉 During the House Appropriations hearing, Kennedy told Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan that he would “probably” vaccinate his children against the measles today, but added, “I don’t think people should be taking medical advice from me.” 

💉 And during the Senate hearing, Kennedy seemed to suggest that the measles vaccine was unsafe in a heated back-and-forth with Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy. When asked about whether he would recommend the measles vaccine, Kennedy said, “I am not going to just tell people everything is safe and effective if I know that there are issues. I need to respect people’s intelligence.” 

💰 Actually, the purpose of the hearings was to discuss next year’s budget for HHS and the recent mass layoffs Kennedy has overseen, but some lawmakers were displeased with him for appearing to be unaware of basic details. For example, Kennedy said they didn’t intend to get rid of the childhood lead poisoning department, though those workers were fired. However, he did confirm that 328 DHS employees who faced terminations were reinstated, including those involved in screening for “black lung” disease in coal miners and for health issues in 9/11 first responders. Read the full story here.

Beyond measles and layoffs, facets of Kennedy’s “Make America Health Again” agenda — including food regulation efforts that could raise costs for farmers and his anti-fluoride push — are making some Republicans so nervous that they’re conducting polling to see what impact he could have on midterm elections. 

More politics news:

• The Supreme Court today weighs whether to allow Trump’s reinterpretation of the Constitution’s guarantee of birthright citizenship to go into effect, at least in part, while litigation continues.
• The Department of Veterans Affairs incorrectly gave veterans about $5 billion more in disability compensation and pension payments than it should have in the last four fiscal years. In an oversight hearing, lawmakers pressed VA officials on how it would address the problem.
• House Republicans’ ongoing standoff over how to tackle “SALT” tax deductions in Trump’s agenda bill have reached a boiling point.
• A House Democrat backed off his threat to force a vote on a resolution to impeach Trump after leaders in his party objected to the effort.

Georgetown scholar released from ICE detention

Badar Khan Suri, the postdoctoral scholar and professor at Georgetown University, was released from ICE custody after a judge ruled that his detention was in violation of the First Amendment, the right to free speech, and the Fifth Amendment, the right to due process. Khan Suri had been targeted for deportation by the Trump administration and accused by the Department of Homeland Security of “actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.” But Eastern District of Virginia Judge Practicia Giles said in her ruling that the government had failed to provide evidence of its claims or proof that he would be a national security risk. 

After his release from the Prairieland Detention Center, where he has been since March, Khan Suri spoke out. “There was no charge, there was nothing,” he said. “They made a sub human out of me.” He also decried the conditions inside the Texas detention center where he had been held since March. Read the full story here.

More immigration news: 

• Kseniia Petrova, a Russian-born Harvard scientist who was arrested at Boston’s airport in February, was charged this week with smuggling biological material into the U.S. The escalation in the case comes after a federal judge questioned the legality of Customs and Border Patrol officers revoking her visa.
• The drummer of Texas rock band Lord Buffalo was “forcibly” removed from a flight headed to Europe and detained by immigration officials, the band said.
• Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard fired two top intelligence officials who oversaw a recent assessment that contradicted Trump’s assertions about the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang and undermined his rationale for using the Alien Enemies Act to deport suspected gang members.
• FBI field offices around the country have been ordered to assign significantly more agents to immigration enforcement. 

Cassie recounts terror and trauma in Diddy trial testimony

Casandra Ventura, the R&B singer and model who dated Sean “Diddy” Combs off-and-on for 10 years, returned to the witness stand yesterday in the hip-hop mogul’s federal trial, going into excruciating detail about her relationship with Combs and his alleged pattern of violence and sexual abuse. She’s expected to be back on the stand today for cross-examination. 

In Wednesday’s testimony, Ventura alleged Combs raped her on her living room floor in 2018, echoing allegations she made in a 2023 civil lawsuit, which she said settled for $20 million — the first time the settlement amount has been publicly revealed. She also recounted the aftermath of Combs’ attack on her at a Los Angeles hotel in 2016, which was recorded by a security camera and has been played multiple times this week. 

Ventura also went into more detail about Combs’ alleged “freak offs,” which she said happened so often that she would get sores on her tongue. Ventura added that she developed “an addiction to opiates” that would help her feel “numb” after marathon sex sessions with male escorts. Read more about Ventura’s second day of testimony.

Sign up for the “Diddy on Trial” newsletter to receive the latest news daily, including insights and analysis from our team inside the courtroom.

Read All About It

• A New Jersey 18-year-old’s mother and stepfather have been charged after the teen escaped captivity and told authorities she was abused over a seven-year span and forced to live in a dog crate.
• Streaming service Max changed its name back to HBO Max. Here’s what’s behind the surprise reversal.
• The strongest solar flare so far this year hurled streams of plasma and charged particles into the cosmos and caused communications blackouts on five continents.
• Hackers that did damage to large U.K. retailers are now setting their sights on American brands, Google’s chief analyst warned.

Staff Pick: A climber’s ‘miraculous’ story of survival

Let me start by saying this story is devastating. Three mountain climbers in Washington state died after an apparent anchor failure that sent the group plunging 200 feet onto jagged rock, and then they slid uncontrollably another 200 feet down a chute. But there were four climbers in the group — meaning one survived, somehow, without broken bones, though he did have internal injuries and head trauma. Nonetheless, the lone survivor, a 38-year-old man from Seattle, found his way to his car and drove to safety. His story, as one county official put it, “is miraculous to say the least.” — Elizabeth Robinson, newsletter editor

NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

NBC Select reporter Harry Rabinowitz tested out the Oura ring 4 for a few months. In his review, he shares what he likes and doesn’t like about the popular smart ring. Plus, whether you’re a seasoned gardener or a newbie with a green thumb, here are some of the best weeding tools available.

 Sign up to The Selection newsletter for hands-on product reviews, expert shopping tips and a look at the best deals and sales each week.

Thanks for reading today’s Morning Rundown. Today’s newsletter was curated for you by Elizabeth Robinson. If you’re a fan, please send a link to your family and friends. They can sign up here.