It’s Thursday. Aside from all the chaos in Washington, D.C. today (see below lol), my social media feeds have been filled with photos of the gorgeous sunrise this morning. Like this. And this. And this. OK, now here’s that chaos I mentioned:

• The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments today in whether former President Trump can be barred from appearing on election ballots. This is a big, big deal.
• Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson interviewed Russian President Vladimir Putin, marking the first interview from a member of the Western media since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The controversial interview is expected to publish at 6 p.m. today.
• House Republicans are picking up the pieces after an embarrassing series of failed votes. The disputes within the party are very much on display.
• An incredible photo of a polar bear napping on an iceberg won a big photography award. Don’t worry, I link to the photo below!

I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send tips, commentary, feedback and cookie recipes to cmartel@digital-release.thehill.com. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up here.  

The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments today in former President Trump’s challenge to being booted from Colorado’s ballot under the 14th Amendment.

Justices in initial questioning Thursday morning appeared broadly skeptical of arguments for keeping Trump off the ballot.

💻 Listen to the oral arguments live

Why the 14th Amendment?: Colorado courts argue that Trump is ineligible to appear on the ballot over his actions related to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.

What Trump’s lawyers argue: Trump did not engage in insurrection. The Trump team also argues that the ban prevents individuals from “holding” office, not “seeking” it. Therefore, he must remain on the ballot.

A possible, less contentious ruling: Instead of the Supreme Court weighing in on the question of whether Trump engaged in an insurrection, it could rule that the insurrection ban just simply doesn’t apply to the president.

This case is just about one state — why does it matter so much?: Colorado was the first state to ban Trump from the ballot, but there are pending cases in several other states. The Supreme Court’s decision is expected to dictate Trump’s status nationwide.

The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld and Ella Lee have a helpful explainer on what to expect.

📝 Live blog of highlights from today’s Supreme Court oral arguments

📝 SCOTUSblog live updates

🔎 Lawfare tracker of the pending Trump ballot cases

Riot vs. insurrection: The Hill’s Caroline Vakil pointed out that a lawyer representing Trump disputed the idea that the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack was an “insurrection.” Instead, she called it a “riot.”

This!: Media journalist Brian Stelter remarked that “television cameras would be ideal, but let’s take a moment to appreciate that the Supreme Court does provide live audio of oral arguments on days like today. A big transparent step forward.”

📸 Outside the Supreme Court this morning: It looks pretty quiet.

• ‘Former Trump White House lawyer predicts crushing defeat at Supreme Court’: The Hill
  
• ‘The Ghost of Bush v. Gore Haunts the Supreme Court’s Colorado Case’: The New Yorker
• ‘Supreme Court may not escape unscathed from its latest date with Trump’: Analysis from CNN
• ‘DC Circuit Gives Supreme Court Easy Out of Trump Immunity Fight’: Bloomberg Law
• ‘Breaking Down the Amicus Briefs in Trump v. Anderson’: Lawfare
• ‘What the Law Says in 3 Cases That Could Decide Trump’s Fate’: The New York Times

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin is airing this evening.

Where and when?: 6 p.m. on TuckerCarlson.com, Carlson announced in an Instagram post.

Why this is significant: It will be Putin’s first interview with a member of Western media since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Keep in mind: Carlson has publicly opposed the U.S.’s support for Ukraine.

📹 Watch Carlson’s announcement of the interview

‘What It’s Like to Interview Putin — and How to Judge Tucker Carlson’: Politico

CNN’s Christiane Amanpour weighed in on the interview: Amanpour called Carlson’s claim that other Western journalists haven’t tried to interview Putin “ridiculous.” 📺 Watch her reaction

From former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: “[Carlson] says things that are not true. He parrots Vladimir Putin’s pack of lies about Ukraine, so I don’t see why Putin wouldn’t give him an interview,” Clinton told MSNBC’s Alex Wagner.

‘Tucker Carlson joins long line of “useful idiot” journalists helping tyrants’: Politico

House Republicans had a series of embarrassing defeats that highlight the internal disputes within the caucus.

On Tuesday: “Republican leaders … barreled ahead with two votes they deem crucial to the party’s messaging efforts: impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and providing military aid to Israel.”

Both votes failed.

Why that’s significant: “The two items could have served as messaging to counter a Senate deal that paired border reforms with aid to Israel and Ukraine, which House GOP leadership helped kill after rejecting it as inadequate.”

The Hill’s Mike Lillis, Mychael Schnell and Emily Brooks break down the dynamics: “Stunned rank-and-file Republicans are sifting through the ashes in search of who should bear the blame.”

Sen. Chris Murphy (Conn.), one of the lead Democratic negotiators behind the border security deal that quickly fell apart after months of work, called the bill’s collapse “shocking.”

Murphy told The Washington Post’s The Early 202 newsletter: “I mean, the whole thing is still shocking to me. I am still shaking, having watched the most bizarre, maddening phenomenon I’ve ever been a part of in politics.”

🍪  Celebrate: Today is National Molasses Bar Day!

🧊  This is such a cool photo: British amateur photographer Nima Sarikhani won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award for a stunning photo of a polar bear curled up on an iceberg. 📸 The winning photo

🎬  A familiar gig: Former Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) is playing a senator in a forthcoming Netflix series, “The Residence.” Keep in mind that Franken was an actor before serving as a lawmaker. (The Hill)

👀  The best thing I’ve read today: Aside from the right-wing conspiracy theories about Taylor Swift and the NFL, The Washington Post’s Alexandra Petri points out some *actual* conspiracies that Swift sings in “plain sight.”

“’Look What You Made ME Do’: In 2016, Maine nearly went for Donald Trump, awarding him one of its four electoral votes.” 👀

“’Got a long list of X lovers’ (‘Blank Space’): Swift is making a list of people still active on Elon Musk’s social media site, formerly known as Twitter.” 👀 👀

“’Don’t Blame ME’: Is Biden campaigning enough in Maine?” 👀 👀 👀

More ~suspicious~ lyrics: The Washington Post

The House is out. The Senate is in. President Biden and Vice President Harris are in Washington, D.C. Harris has no public events scheduled. (all times Eastern)

• Noon: The Senate votes. 🗓️ Today’s agenda
• 1:30 p.m.: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre briefs reporters. 💻 Livestream
• 4 p.m.: Biden speaks at the House Democratic Caucus Issues Conference at Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg. 💻 Livestream

Because it’s been a long week in news, let’s end on something light. Watch this slo-mo video of a dog eating a lemon. The range of emotions is great.