Trump's Erratic Behavior and Extreme Comments Revive Mental Health Debate  —  As the president threatens to wipe out Iran and attacks the pope, even some former allies and advisers are questioning whether he has grown increasingly unbalanced, describing him as “lunatic” and “clearly insane.”

Illiberalism Is Not Inevitable  —  If Viktor Orbán can lose, then his Russian and American admirers can lose too.  —  In the end, the defeat of Viktor Orbán, Hungary's autocratic prime minister, required not just an ordinary election campaign or new messaging but rather …

U.S. begins blockade in Strait of Hormuz; Trump warns Iran ‘attack ships’ to stay away … The U.S. on Monday said it began blocking ships from entering or exiting Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz, attempting to ratchet up pressure on Iran to reopen the key oil route after peace negotiations collapsed.that a

Inside Trump's Effort to “Take Over” the Midterm Elections  —  Reporting Highlights  — Safeguards Destroyed: In advance of this year's midterm elections, President Donald Trump has systematically demolished federal guardrails that prevented him from overturning the 2020 election.

Judge Dismisses Trump's Defamation Lawsuit Against WSJ Publisher  —  The president alleged an article about a bawdy Epstein birthday letter was defamatory  —  A federal judge on Monday dismissed President Trump's defamation lawsuit against the publisher of The Wall Street Journal.

The world's worst dealmaker screws up the Iran negotiations  —  PN is supported by paid subscribers.  Become one ⬇️  —  🤝 Subscribe to PN 🤝  —  “The Iranians don't seem to realize they have no cards, other than a short term extortion of the World …

Iowa looks competitive, according to new Dem poll  —  Iowa looks to be seriously in play for Democrats in November up and down the ballot, according to a new survey from a Democratic group that backs moderate candidates.  Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand holds an eight-point lead in the governor's race …

Harmeet Dhillon Is Not Wasting Any Time … Last may, one month into her time as the assistant attorney general for civil rights, Harmeet Dhillon stood behind the lectern at a meeting of the conservative Federalist Society and set out her vision for the Justice Department's civil-rights work.

Meta builds AI version of Mark Zuckerberg to interact with staff  —  CEO is training and testing his own character as part of wider push to develop ‘personal superintelligence’

Voters grill Republican lawmaker in crucial swing district on Iran war  —  The conflict has animated voters in the suburban district of Republican Rep. Mike Lawler ahead of the midterm elections.  —  Summary  —  MAHOPAC, N.Y. — Rep. Mike Lawler faced another tough crowd at a town hall late Sunday night …

April 12, 2026  —  By the end of 2024, inflation in the U.S., which had soared in the aftermath of the Covid-19 lockdowns, was almost back to the Federal Reserve's goal of 2%.  Even so, during the 2024 presidential campaign, candidate Donald Trump promised he would bring prices down on Day One …

What the death of Direct File tells us about state capacity  —  This tax season, American taxpayers will spend billions of hours and hundreds of billions of dollars — not to pay their taxes, but to report them to the government.  In addition to tariff- and war-induced inflation …