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 …

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.

In the House, Republican Plans Go Awry Amid Party Divides  —  Fresh off a two-week break, lawmakers returned to turmoil in the House, where legislation to reopen the Department of Homeland Security is stalled and the G.O.P. is struggling to keep its agenda on track.

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 …

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 …

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 …

Jury finds that Ticketmaster and Live Nation had an anticompetitive monopoly over big concert venues  —  A jury found Wednesday that entertainment giant Live Nation, which hosts tens of thousands of concerts a year, and its Ticketmaster subsidiary had a harmful monopoly over big venues.

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 …

RFK Jr. once chopped off a dead raccoon's penis to ‘study later’ while on a family road trip  —  Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an avid animal genitalia researcher in his spare time, once pulled the family sedan to the side of the road after spying a dead raccoon and swiftly cut off its sex organs so he could “study them later.”

Scoop: Trump discussed “Jesus” meme with Bill Pulte before posting it, sources say  —  Before President Trump posted an image of him as a Christ-like healer, he discussed the meme with his controversial housing finance chief Bill Pulte, Axios has learned.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas blasts progressivism as threat to America  —  He said values in the Declaration of Independence have “fallen out of favor.”  —  Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Wednesday delivered a televised broadside against progressivism …

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.

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.

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.

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 …

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.

Trump's ‘Triumphal Arch’ Draws Backlash, Even From an Expert Who Proposed It  —  The story of how President Trump quadrupled the size of the original proposal for the arch follows a now-familiar pattern.  —  During his first term, President Trump visited the Arc de Triomphe in Paris to attend …

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 …

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.

White House calls oil CEOs as energy prices squeeze voters … The impromptu conference with leading executives comes as the Trump administration escalates confrontation with Iran, whose closure of the Strait of Hormuz in response to joint U.S.-Israel attacks has spiked global oil prices and created fuel shortages in some countries.

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.

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.

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 …

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 …

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

Republicans worry White House ‘nonsense’ is hurting midterm prospects … Like others in this story, the person was granted anonymity to discuss political calculations.  —  The latest diversion came Wednesday morning when President Donald Trump, during what was supposed to be a friendly interview …

Israel hits a low point with Democrats in Congress  —  Israel's relationship with Democrats on Capitol Hill is rapidly deteriorating, with a growing number of lawmakers saying they can no longer support U.S. funding for even the country's defensive weaponry. … No longer.

Swalwell's Stunning Downfall Creates a Reckoning for Democrats  —  California congressman earned endorsements from top Democrats in his bid to become governor before sexual-misconduct allegations became public  —  Things were looking up for Rep. Eric Swalwell.

‘I dig it’: Graham Platner praised Hamas tactics in 2014 graphic video of murders of Israeli soldiers  —  Platner, in Reddit post on Hamas terrorist attack: ‘From a strictly professional standpoint, this was a damn fine looking and successful raid against a superior opponent’