Justice Sonia Sotomayor issues unusual apology over ‘hurtful’ remarks about colleague Brett Kavanaugh  —  The liberal Supreme Court justice had criticized her conservative colleague while she was talking about an opinion he wrote last year in an immigration case.

Hegseth Borrows Violent Prayer from ‘Pulp Fiction’ to Bless Iran War at April Pentagon Worship Service  —  For the second month in a row, Pete Hegseth, who likes to call himself “secretary of war,” read a violent prayer — that echoes a scene in the Quentin Tarantino film Pulp Fiction …

Tillis vows to keep blocking Fed nominee and says Trump should apologize for pope attacks  —  The North Carolina senator tries not to criticize the president directly, but has a lot of thoughts about those who are giving Donald Trump “bad advice.”  —  WASHINGTON — During an interview …

House opposes Trump on immigration with move to help Haitians  —  The vote to advance a bill extending protections for Haitians marks the first time Republican lawmakers have voted this term to oppose Trump's immigration policy.  —  Summary  —  Several House Republicans joined Democrats …

Amid quarrel with pope, Trump strips Miami charity of funding to house migrant kids  —  The Trump administration has abruptly canceled an $11 million contract with Catholic Charities to shelter and care for migrant children who enter the U.S. alone, ending a relationship between the Catholic Church …

Jury Finds Live Nation Acts as a Monopoly in a Victory for States  —  In a verdict that could have far-reaching consequences in the music industry, the live colossus that includes Ticketmaster was found to have violated antitrust laws.  —  A federal jury on Wednesday found that Live Nation …

Trump believes diet soda kills cancer cells, Dr Oz reveals  —  Physicians issue reminder to public after TV doctor and CMS chief relays president's claim on Don Jr podcast  —  Donald Trump defended his consumption of diet soda by suggesting it might help prevent cancer …

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Cut Penis off Raccoon  —  ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. I CUT OFF DEAD RACCOON'S PENIS  —  Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sounds like a bizarro Dr. Doolittle ... because he once chopped off a dead raccoon's penis.  —  President Trump's Secretary of Health and Human Services has a new biography out …

I Was Falsely Accused of “Censorship” in The Free Press.  Then Their Editors Censored The Truth.  —  I prefer to keep drama off main in this newsletter, so I would rather not have to publish a post like this.  But one of the things I've been meaning to write about is the way that partisan media ecosystems protect their own.

Key Trump lawyer who tried to overturn 2020 election permanently disbarred  —  The California Supreme Court Wednesday permanently disbarred John Eastman — a key architect in President Donald Trump's failed attempt to overturn the 2020 election — delivering one of the most consequential …

Longtime Immigration Court Interpreter Arrested by ICE at South Texas Airport … Last month, Meenu Batra, 53, who has lived in the South Texas border colonia of Laguna Heights since 2002, was on her way to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to work another case.  She's been a court interpreter for over 20 years …

In group chats and meetings, Republicans are privately petrified the Iran war could cost them the midterms  —  Many Republican lawmakers and strategists told NBC News they worry the party has little to run on.  “Right now, the voters don't see a message or a strategy,” a Trump pollster said.

U.S. sends thousands more troops to Mideast as Trump seeks to squeeze Iran  —  The deployment includes sailors and Marines due to arrive as the administration attempts to enforce a maritime blockade against the regime in Tehran.  —  Summary  —  The Pentagon is sending thousands …

The Deepfake Nudes Crisis in Schools Is Much Worse Than You Thought  —  An analysis by WIRED and Indicator found nearly 90 schools and 600 students around the world impacted by AI-generated deepfake nude images—and the problem shows no signs of going away.  —  It usually starts with a photo downloaded from social media.

Harvard Asks Donors to Endow $10 Million Professorships for ‘Viewpoint Diversity’ Initiative  —  Harvard is quietly asking donors for $10 million gifts to establish new endowed professorships in a sweeping bid to reshape its faculty under the banner of “viewpoint diversity,” according to two people familiar with the initiative.

Labor Dept. Investigates Texts Among Secretary's Family and Staff  —  Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer asked staff members to bring wine to her hotel room, and to keep in touch with her husband and father.  —  The Labor Department's inspector general is reviewing material showing …

Donald Trump messed with the wrong pope  —  The White House cannot stop fighting with the pope.  —  On Tuesday night, Vice President JD Vance — who converted to Catholicism in 2019 — accused Pope Leo XIV of not understanding the Church's stance on war, saying it was “very …

Exclusive: Pentagon ramps up planning of possible military ops in Cuba  —  Kim Hjelmgaard Rick Jervis Francesca ChambersUSA TODAY  —  WASHINGTON — Military planning for a possible Pentagon-led operation in Cuba is quietly ramping up, in case President Donald Trump gives an order to intervene there, USA TODAY has learned.

DOJ hosts anti-abortion advocates after it fired staff for work with abortion-rights orgs  —  The CEO of Americans United for Life said he was “just applauding the administration and DOJ” after it released a report critical of prosecutors during the Biden administration.

Stocks Hit Record High as Wall St. Looks Beyond War  —  Investors appear to be treating an end to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran as a foregone conclusion, as the S&P 500 closes above 7,000.  —  The S&P 500 hit a fresh record high on Wednesday, reflecting investors' optimism that a peace deal …

Trump posts AI image of being embraced by Jesus Christ amid criticism for other religious posts  —  President Trump shared a post on Truth Social Wednesday that featured an image of him being embraced by Jesus Christ amid the criticism he has received for another image that featured him as Jesus.

Visionary NPR leader Kevin Klose, who led network to new heights, has died  —  Former NPR President and CEO Kevin Klose, a buoyant and transformative leader who helped to propel the public broadcaster into the top ranks of major U.S. networks, died Wednesday morning in his sleep from complications of Alzheimer's disease.

District Court, District of Columbia  —  Citation: United States v. COLE, 1:26-cr-00001, (D.D.C. Apr 14, 2026) ECF No. 64  —  Add Note Search this PDF Download PDF  —  SECOND SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT as to BRIAN J. COLE, JR (1) count(s) 1ss, 2ss, 3ss, 4ss.  (zmcg) (Entered: 04/15/2026)  — PDF

The Nation's Emergency Cell Network Failed in Emergencies.  Lawmakers Want Change.  —  Federal authorities are pushing for more oversight of the multibillion-dollar backup network, operated by AT&T  —  America's publicly funded emergency-communications network has sometimes failed during …

Cato Institute official pushes back after Trump touts its immigration data  —  The Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, is pushing back on President Trump's claim that its immigration research shows the Trump administration's handling of the southern border is “the best in the History of the U.S.A.”

Critical Atlantic current significantly more likely to collapse than thought  —  Scientists say finding is ‘very concerning’ as collapse would be catastrophic for Europe, Africa and the Americas  —  The critical Atlantic current system appears significantly more likely to collapse …

New York Governor's Proposed Pied-à-Terre Tax Gains Momentum  —  Plan for a tax on luxury second homes is emerging as a popular solution for taxing the wealthy  —  Gov. Kathy Hochul has thrown New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani a lifeline on his plan to raise taxes on the wealthy …

Machines in bloom  —  Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook: Remaking Government, your guide to Donald Trump's unprecedented overhaul of the federal government — the key decisions, the critical characters and the power dynamics that are upending Washington and beyond.

U.S. Puts Little Pressure on Israel to Stop Attacks on Lebanon  —  Despite hailing negotiations between the two sides as a “historic milestone,” Washington did not call for a halt to Israeli strikes or for a withdrawal from Lebanese territory.  —  The United States hailed rare talks …