Five Republican state senators ousted in one primary night after crossing Trump. The president backed challengers against Indiana lawmakers who opposed his redistricting plan for the state… and most of them went down by double digits. What are usually low-profile state races turned into a multi-million-dollar political fight, pulling in national attention — and showing how strong Trump’s grip remains on the party. Nearly $12 million was spent on advertising across the seven races where Trump-backed challengers took on sitting state senators, with the bulk of that spending coming from outside groups aligned with the president and targeting the incumbents.

A commercial passenger plane will take off from the US to Venezuela on Thursday morning for the first time in nearly seven years, as the countries continue to restore economic ties following the ouster of Venezuela's strongman leader in January.