Melania Trump Says She Was Not Associated With Jeffrey Epstein  —  Responding to what she said were smears, the first lady said she never had knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse and was not a victim of his.  She called for a congressional hearing for his victims.

Consumer prices rose 3.3% in March, as energy prices spiked due to Iran conflict  —  Consumer prices spiked in March as the Iran war sent energy costs soaring and took the Federal Reserve further from its inflation target, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report Friday.

Trump's Economy: You're Either an Insider or a Chump  —  A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE GETTING RICH off the Trump presidency.  Donald Trump himself tops the list, of course, but it also includes his kids and in-laws; other grifting nepo-babies; cabinet members (as well as their staff and children) …

These Republican-on-Republican disputes are keeping Congress frozen … In the one instance where the president appears truly invested, in passage of a sweeping GOP elections bill, his fixation has only made the intraparty divisions worse.  —  Lawmakers will return to Washington next week …

Calls to Impeach Trump Collide With Reluctant Democratic Leadership … That restraint has now ended amid the Iran War and in particular a social media post threatening to wipe out “a whole civilization.”  Dozens of Democrats this week called for a premature end to Trump's second term …

Now would be a great time to send US ambassadors to the Middle East  —  At a time when many question American leadership, there's an underrated value in simply showing up  —  The writer is a distinguished diplomatic fellow at the Middle East Institute and served as US deputy assistant secretary of state under the Biden administration

I'm a Nobel Prize-winning immigrant.  I can no longer recognize this country.  —  Attacks on science and immigrants are destroying America.  —  Home of the Brave  —  I was born in London.  My family's ancestors came from England and Poland.  I was raised in Canada, and went to high school and college in Montreal.

Exclusive: How Roger Stone persuaded Trump not to fire Tulsi Gabbard  —  President Trump sounded ready to dismiss top intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard until he got an earful last week from one of his oldest friends and advisers, Roger Stone, Axios has learned.

Iran's Schools and Hospitals in Ruins From U.S.-Israeli Strikes  —  As a fragile cease-fire takes hold, Iran is sorting through the wreckage from U.S.-Israeli strikes, which have exacted a heavy toll on its civilian infrastructure.  The New York Times has verified damage to 22 schools …

America learns about “personalist regimes” the hard way  —  PN is supported by paid subscribers.  Become one ⬇️  —  👑 Subscribe to PN 👑  —  Remember how there were endless fights over whether it was appropriate to say President Trump was a fascist?

Is Chuck Schumer leaving his top candidate recruit twisting in the wind?  —  Maine's Democratic governor, Janet Mills, has gone negative against Graham Platner.  The attacks have not worked, and Minority Leader Charles Schumer so far has declined to bail her out.

Fox host asks if “we could build a canal through Oman” to avoid the Strait of Hormuz  —  Newsmax host says “no tangible end is in sight” of the Iran war  —  On Deadline: White House, Angelo Carusone discusses infighting in MAGA media and how it's splitting the Republican Party

Trump Is Turning America Into a Psychotic State  —  It has been clear for a long time that President Trump is a person with a disorganized mind and a disordered personality.  What the past few months and especially the past few weeks have brought into focus is how the president's pathologies …

Strait of Hormuz stays shut as Trump demands Iran stop tolls  —  President Trump on Thursday demanded Iran stop charging tolls for tankers to cross the Strait of Hormuz, as Iran's supreme leader promised the country would control the crucial waterway.

Ready to rumble?  Hunter Biden challenges Trump's sons to cage match  —  Americans could see a first-of-its-kind fight as they prepare to celebrate the country's 250th independence: a cage match between the sons of a sitting U.S. president, and the son of a former president.

The 2028 Democratic primary turns visible  —  With help from Eli Okun, Ali Bianco, Irie Sentner and Makayla Gray  —  Happy Friday.  It's Adam Wren fresh off the midterm — or 2028?— campaign trail in Michigan and Ohio.  One of my takeaways?  Voters feel unheard.  Get in touch.

Her Name Was Nilufar Easmin.  —  Her name, according to the Bangladeshi press outlets that bothered to cover her murder, was Nilufar Easmin.  —  She had come to this country from Gorarbag village, in the Kushakhali Union of Lakshmipur District, in southeastern Bangladesh …

Trump can't quit NATO alone.  But he can hurt it.  —  President Trump can't abandon NATO on his own, but he can still turn the relationship toxic as he rails at American allies who sat out his Iran war. … - “It's already pretty well understood and feared amongst a number of Europeans …

US defense official overseeing AI reaped millions selling xAI stock after Pentagon entered agreement with company  —  Expert said federal law bars officials from taking actions in their jobs that benefit their own financial interests  —  A high-profile US defense department official …

Trump officials deny threatening Vatican over Pope Leo's criticisms  —  Pope Leo XIV has become increasingly concerned over Washington's military policies  —  The Trump administration is trying to calm a furore over claims it threatened Pope Leo XIV's ambassador to Washington in an effort …

Judge Rejects Hegseth's Second Attempt to Restrict Reporters at Pentagon  —  A federal judge gutted a set of rules that were adopted after the court declared an earlier press policy unconstitutional, in a case brought by The New York Times.  —  A federal judge on Thursday rejected an attempt …

Pete Hegseth is a disaster of a defense secretary.  It's no surprise  —  The former Fox host has misled the public, prayed for violence and clashed with the press.  This is not a serious military leader  —  With his jawline firm and his hair coiffed, Pete Hegseth was a good fit as a Fox News personality.

To Fill Air Traffic Controller Shortage, F.A.A. Turns to Gamers  —  Avid players of video games have emerged as a target demographic for recruiters at range of federal agencies, including the military and the Department of Homeland Security.  —  As the Trump administration seeks to fill …

Louisiana GOP races to eliminate an elected office won by an exonerated man  —  A man imprisoned for nearly 30 years before being exonerated won a landmark election in New Orleans promising to fix a judicial system that failed him.  Now, Louisiana's Gov. Jeff Landry and the GOP-controlled Legislature …

From Drill, Baby, Drill to Toll, Baby, Toll  —  The U.S. attack on Iran will end badly.  It's still not clear, however, exactly what that bad end will look like.  The loudly announced cease-fire is on the edge, with Trump and the Iranian regime making very different claims about what was agreed …

New Jerseyans begin to wonder if even Jeff Van Drew could be vulnerable in midterms … “Even Van Drew's race is going to be competitive,” said Chris Venis, a New Jersey Republican who just launched a super PAC, the National Policy Action Committee, that he says may work to boost Van Drew's reelection.

Trump Quietly Scraps His Own Playbook on China  —  The White House walks back the aggressive approach of the first administration, in a dramatic reversal  —  When Pentagon officials last fall briefed President Trump on a draft of a bureaucratic defense strategy document …