Iran’s nuclear program; NATO summit; Emil Bove : NPR

Good morning. You’re reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day.

Today’s top stories

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, has informed NPR that the Defense Intelligence Agency believes the damage to Iran’s most important nuclear site, Fordow, was limited. According to the official, Iran’s nuclear program has probably been set back by “a few months” or so. This is an early assessment by the DIA, and comes after President Trump claimed the U.S. air campaign against three Iranian nuclear sites destroyed Iran’s nuclear program.

• 🎧 The White House responded to the assessment saying it is wrong, but said the classified “top secret” report was leaked by someone in the intelligence community, NPR’s Greg Myre tells Up First. Additionally, the White House hasn’t provided evidence on why it believes there was complete destruction of the three sites in Iran. Iran’s nuclear network has many parts and there is no doubt that every piece of its known nuclear program was targeted and has suffered damage. However, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog agency recently said Iran has about 900 pounds of highly enriched uranium, which could have been moved fairly easily before the U.S. and Israeli attacks.

President Trump will meet with NATO allies today at the summit in the Hague, in the Netherlands. The NATO nations are expected to commit 5% of their gross domestic product to defense and defense-related activities by 2035. The new NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is hosting his first summit and working to keep the event controversy-free.

• 🎧 To make sure there are no clashes, Rutte has been holding one-on-one meetings with Trump and other leaders to get everyone on board with the spending increase, NPR’s Eleanor Beardsley says. Rutte has even visited Trump in Mar-a-Lago and been criticized for being too accommodating to the president. Rutte is working to keep the U.S. engaged in Europe and with European security and defense. However, on Trump’s flight to NATO, a reporter asked him if he would commit to NATO’s Article 5, which is its core principle of mutual defense. The president stated that it depends and that Article 5 could mean a lot of things.

Emil Bove, a top official at the Justice Department, will be on Capitol Hill today for a confirmation hearing. He’s in line to become a federal appeals court judge, a role that carries a lifetime appointment. Bove spent several years as a federal prosecutor in Manhattan and rose to national attention when he helped defend Trump in four different criminal cases over the past few years. Since January, Bove has been in charge of day-to-day operations inside the Justice Department.

• 🎧 Bove has helped execute Trump’s campaign this year to overhaul the Justice Department, NPR’s Carrie Johnson says. Bove has assisted in firing people who prosecuted the president, ordered a list of FBI agents and intelligence analysts who worked on Jan. 6 cases and directed prosecutors in New York to move to drop the corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams. The White House says that Bove should be a shoo-in for the job. Senate Democrats plan to bring up the claim that shortly after Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act to speed up deportations, Bove said planes carrying migrants needed to take off no matter what.

Life advice