Week 76 — The Return

This week, as the country entered the eighth week of Trump’s Iran War, Trump appeared to be backed into a corner. He spent the week spewing false claims about the state of negotiations, the ever-changing objectives of the war, and on what had been achieved; but by the week’s end, amid all his bluster and bravado, he chose to extend the ceasefire for the fifth time, this time indefinitely. Troubling reporting by the WSJ indicated that while Trump projected bravado, privately he was scared about a war that has gotten away from him, and with his erratic behavior and impatience, national security officials had taken to excluding him from the room during a major operation.

Meanwhile at home, the federal agencies are in disarray. Trump fired a third cabinet member, Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the third firing in recent weeks, all women. FBI Director Kash Patel sued The Atlantic over an article detailing his alcohol abuse and its impact on his work, notably during a war. Homeland Security Sec. Markwayne Mullin suggested his agency would run out of money in early May, again during a war. Health and Human Services Sec. Robert Kennedy continued his free-fall, as measles cases continued to spike, and he refused to back Trump’s latest pick to lead the Centers for Disease Control.

All the while, Trump found time to focus on his ballroom, his arch, and pursuing retribution and petty grievances against his perceived enemies. In fact, reporting continued to indicate he repeatedly tried to pivot away to other topics from the Iran War, which he has put himself in unilateral control of, as this week once again, both the Senate and the House failed to pass measures to rein in his war power. Trump’s polling continues to crater to new lows of not only the second regime, but both regimes. The American people largely do not support his Iran War, or his increasingly erratic behavior, including his continued conflict with Pope Leo XIV.

1. On Sunday, an NBC News poll found Trump’s approval rating at a new low for the second regime, with 37% approval, 63% disapproval, with 50% saying they disapproved strongly. His approval with Republicans fell to 83% in the poll, down 4% since early 2026.
2. Just 33% of Americans approved of Trump’s handling of the Iran War, while 67% disapproved, 54% strongly. On the economy, 32% approved of Trump’s handling, a new low. His only improvement was in the area of immigration, where the regime had softened its approach.
3. On Wednesday, Director of the National Economic Council Kevin Hassett admitted on Fox News that the DOJ got involved with investigating the Federal Reserve construction at Trump’s direction, saying, “the president wanted to investigate the cost overrun.”
4. The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were all Trump appointees, approved the concept for Trump’s Triumphal Arch, which would be 250 feet tall, dwarfing the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument. Three in four people at a public meeting opposed the arch.
5. On Thursday, a federal judge again halted construction of Trump’s White House ballroom, finding the regime had used a workaround to get by his order. The judge said he would allow work on the underground bunker to proceed, but halted the rest of the project.
6. Shortly after, in a 782-word post on Truth Social, Trump ranted about the ruling, calling the judge a “Trump Hating” judge, and adding, “The Ballroom is deeply important to our National Security, and no Judge can be allowed to stop this Historic and Militarily Imperative Project.”
7. WAPO reported according to Trump’s ballroom contract, which was only made public after a lawsuit, donors’ identities would be shielded, allowing wealthy donors and corporations who had business before the Trump regime to skirt conflict rules.
8. FT reported that the European Union planned its biggest relaxation of corporate merger rules in place since 2000, in an effort to create “European champions” to take on corporate giants in the U.S. and China.
9. FT reported that demand for attending the World Cup hosted in 11 U.S. cities was unexpectedly weak due to inflation fears and anti-American sentiment, resulting in hotels slashing their room rates. FIFA also canceled thousands of contracted hotel rooms for staffers and teams.
10. NYT reported that Samuel Samson, a 27 year-old diplomat with the State Department, five years out of college, has been meeting with and buoying far-right leaders, and advocating Trump’s policies and agenda in Europe, creating ill will with more mainstream European leaders.
11. Hungary’s new leader Péter Magyar told reporters that Viktor Orban’s government was making large payments, using taxpayer monies, to the Conservative Political Action Conference for years, and called for an investigation.
12. WSJ reported that Trump quietly reversed himself on lowering the amount of H-2B temporary visas after members of his Florida clubs lobbied him, saying they needed workers. Trump increased the number from his proposed 35,000 to 64,716 for 2026.
13. FT reported the Trump and Witkoff families’ World Liberty crypto venture faces a backlash over corporate governance by investors, after its WLFI token had fallen by 16%, amid the Trump family borrowing against the token, and concerns about forced liquidation.
14. Trump’s social media company, Trump Media & Technology, announced it was replacing Devin Nunes as its chief executive after four years. The company’s share opened at $58, and more recently fell below $10. The company lost $712 million in 2025, on $3.7 million of revenue.
15. NYT reported that in an effort to get sanctions lifted on Syria and its businesses, Syrian billionaires marketed that they would build a Trump National Golf course as part of redevelopment, part of a pattern of seeking favor from Trump in order to impact U.S. foreign policy.
16. Politico reported that Liberty Energy, an oil company founded by Energy Secretary Chris Wright, paid no federal corporate income taxes last year. Instead, the company received a $10 million refund, despite earning net income before taxes of $193 million.
17. On Wednesday, the California Supreme Court ruled that attorney John Eastman, who tried to help Trump overturn the 2020 election, would be disbarred and his name stricken from the state roll of attorneys.
18. On Friday, the DOJ removed Maria Medetis Long, a career prosecutor in Miami, from overseeing the case against Trump’s perceived enemy, former CIA director John Brennan. The news took attorneys by surprise, as they had yet to decide whether to bring charges.
19. Medetis Long was replaced by a Trump loyalist, Joe diGenova, who helped in Trump’s failed legal effort to overturn the 2020 election. DiGenova had not served as a prosecutor for decades, and had more recently echoed Trump’s conspiracy theories about the 2020 election.
20. On Monday, after diGenova, 81, was sworn in, the DOJ rescinded subpoenas issued days prior, requiring witnesses to testify before a grand jury in D.C., as part of the regime’s efforts to establish a perjury case against Brennan. No reason was given for the reversal.
21. The DOJ opened an investigation into Eric Swalwell, a perceived enemy of Trump, after he resigned from Congress and suspended his campaign for California governor over sexual assault allegations.
22. On Friday, Michigan AG Dana Nessel rebuffed the Trump regime’s demand for ballot materials from Wayne County for the 2020 election, saying allegations of election fraud were “baseless,” and the state stood ready to defend against claims and future election interference.
23. On Tuesday, Virginia voted to pass a gerrymandered map that would help Democrats pick up potentially four additional seats. With the vote, the net pick up for both parties was essentially neutral, months after Trump started the battle by calling on GOP-led states to gerrymander.
24. On Tuesday, the DOJ charged civil rights group the Southern Poverty Law Center with financial crimes, claiming it defrauded donors by using funds to infiltrate hate groups. Acting AG Todd Blanche claimed the payments were made to help the groups, while offering no evidence.
25. On Wednesday, Pope Leo XIV posted on X, “Let us reject the logic of violence and war,” adding, “The world thirsts for #Peace! Enough of war and all the pain it causes through death, destruction, and exile!” In remarks, he called for “unity among all people.”
26. Bishop James Massa, chairman of the U.S. Catholic bishops’ doctrine committee, defended Pope Leo, saying, “When Pope Leo XIV speaks as supreme pastor of the universal Church, he is not merely offering opinions on theology, he is preaching the Gospel.”
27. Later Wednesday, the home of Pope Leo’s brother was the target of a bomb threat, according to Illinois police. After a police search, it was determined to be fake.
28. The Miami Herald reported that the Trump regime 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 that dated back to the 1960s, amid Trump’s feud with the Pope.
29. On Thursday, Pope Leo criticized those who use religion for political and military gain, saying in a speech, “Woe to those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic or political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.”
30. Pope Leo also reiterated his call for peace and refuted tyrants, saying, “Blessed are the peacemakers,” adding, “The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants, yet it is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters.”
31. Trump told reporters on Thursday that the Pope needed to understand that Iran was a “threat to the world,” lying that the Pope said “Iran can have a nuclear weapon. I say Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
32. Trump loyalists defended him, with Rep. Troy Nehl telling reporters that Trump was “almost a second coming.” Fox News host Sean Hannity called the Pope a “run-of-the-mill Trump-hating Democrat that lacks moral clarity about radical Islam” on his prime time show.
33. On Friday, the regime announced Trump would participate in a public Bible reading on April 21, saying he would “read Scripture via video message from the Oval Office.” Trump and some regime members continued to invoke Christian language in public affairs.
34. On Thursday, the acting director of ICE, Todd Lyons, who had been with ICE since 2007, said he planned to resign in May. Lyons’ resignation came a month after Markwayne Mullin took over as the homeland security secretary.
35. NYT reported that ICE arrested Marie-Thérèse Ross-Mahé, 85, in her nightgown, after her husband died. One of her stepsons used his government position to have her arrested so he and his brother could split the inheritance. She had been trying to get American citizenship.
36. On Friday, Aled Damien Carbonell-Betancourta, 27, a Cuban immigrant died in what according to ICE “appeared to be a suicide attempt,” marking the 48th death in ICE custody during Trump’s second regime.
37. On Monday, CBS News reported ICE arrested Rivera Ortega, the wife of a U.S. Army sergeant who had served for 27 years, at an immigration appointment in Texas. Ortega had been in the U.S. since 2016, when she was granted legal protection from being deported to El Salvador.
38. On Tuesday, NYT reported that Trump was in talks to send 1,100 Afghans, who aided U.S. forces during the war there, to the Democratic Republic of Congo, after Trump previously halted a U.S. resettlement program. Among them were 400 children.
39. On Friday, The Atlantic reported FBI Director Kash Patel was drinking excessively, resulting in an “irregular presence” at the FBI, and needing to reschedule meetings. On multiple occasions his security detail had trouble waking him, and once needed to used “breaching equipment.”
40. Patel has also had many unexplained absences, including during the Iran War when he and the homeland could be targeted. He oversaw 38,000 employees. He “freaked out” once when unable to log in to his computer, frantically calling aides to say he had been fired by Trump.
41. Patel posted on X that he would sue The Atlantic, over what he called “false reporting” and “fake news,” with his personal attorney posting, “the claims were categorically false and defamatory.” Atlantic reporter Sarah Fitzpatrick said, “I stand by every word.”
42. On Sunday, Patel told Fox News that the FBI would soon be making arrests related to the “rigged” 2020 election, saying, “I can announce on your show that we’ve got all the information we need,” adding, “we are going to be making arrests…and I promise you, it’s coming soon.”
43. On Monday, Patel sued The Atlantic and Sarah Fitzpatrick for $250 million in the District of Columbia, alleging the story contained 17 claims that were “false and defamatory statements of fact.”
44. On Tuesday, a federal judge tossed out Patel’s 2025 lawsuit against Frank Figliuzzi, who has been an analyst for NBC News and MSNBC, and had said on air that Patel had reportedly “been visible at nightclubs far more than he has been on the seventh floor of the Hoover building.”
45. Later Monday, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned, the third cabinet departure in recent weeks. Notably, all three were women.
46. FT reported Iran quietly purchased a satellite system from China in late 2024 that gave it a powerful capability to target the U.S. military across the Middle East.
47. On Wednesday, NYT reported on Trump’s portrayal of the Iran War being at odds with reality so far. Trump continued to baselessly claim there was a regime change, telling Fox Business, “It’s a new regime,” adding, “We find them pretty reasonable to be honest with you.”
48. Trump also repeatedly claimed the war was all but over, and baselessly claimed that the U.S. had “wiped out” Iran’s navy, air force, and antiaircraft equipment, and all but assured victory.
49. WSJ reported that the Pentagon approached the chief executives of General Motors and Ford Motors, as well as other U.S. manufacturers, to shift some of their production capacity to boosting manufacturing of weapons.
50. On Wednesday, Central Command said it had struck an alleged drug boat in the Pacific, the third strike in three days, and the 51st attack against boats in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. Three were killed, bringing the death toll to at least 177 people.
51. On Thursday, at a press conference, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth blasted the press, calling them “unpatriotic,” calling their coverage of the war “garbage,” and comparing them to the biblical Pharisees. Hegseth limited attendance to only friendly news outlets.
52. Hegseth also continued to threaten civilian targets if a deal was not reached, saying the U.S. military was “locked and loaded on your critical dual-use infrastructure, on your remaining ​power generation, and on your energy industry,” adding, “We’d rather not have to do it.”
53. Hegseth also quoted a version of Ezekiel 25:17 in the Bible, saying, “So the prayer is CSAR 25:17 and it reads, and pray with me please,” but used a version of the prayer used in the movie “Pulp Fiction” rather than the actual prayer.
54. The Economist noted Hegseth had fired 21 generals, for no reason other than their race, sex, or suspected political leanings. One former military official who watched the press conference said, “He’s a 12-year-old boy with a set of army action figures who likes to play war.”
55. WSJ reported that Hegseth’s public battle with Army Sec. Dan Driscoll has also boiled over into public view. Military experts noted the timing of the firings, which are blamed in part on Hegseth’s personal vendettas, could not be worse given the wartime environment.
56. On Thursday, Trump told reporters that he expected a deal fairly soon, that would give the U.S. “free oil and free Hormuz Strait.” Asked about the spike in gas prices, Trump again diminished concern, saying, “it’s about half what people thought it would be if you did what I had to do.”
57. On Thursday, White House budget director Russell Vought refused to give an estimate for the cost of the Iran War while testifying before Congress. After refusing to give a specific number, he was pressed for a cost range, and refused, claiming he did not “want to be inaccurate.”
58. USA Today reported families of U.S. sailors deployed in the Middle East expressed concern that crew members were being forced to ration food supplies, and had no fresh produce. Pictures shared showed mostly empty trays and tasteless, inedible-looking food.
59. Care packages and other mail were not reaching navy ships, with thousands of packages stuck in limbo, nor were letters written by sailors being delivered home, after the post office suspended mail. One crew member said in a message that morale was “at an all-time low.”
60. On Thursday, Trump attacked former regime official Joe Kent in a lengthy post on Truth Social, posting, “Who’s dumber, Tucker Carlson or Joe Kent? Kent, horribly, lost his wife. Her casket was being brought to Dover, although he married again, quite quickly, in my opinion.”
61. Trump also attacked Fox News host Jessica Tarlov, shortly after she said, “He has a 35 percent approval rating in most polls,” calling her “one of the Least Attractive and Talented People on all of Television,” and adding, “GET HER OFF THE AIR, SHE IS BAD FOR OUR COUNTRY!”
62. On Thursday, at an event in Las Vegas to talk about the economy, Trump said of his ‘no tax on tips’ bills, “I just want to say: You’re welcome.” Trump brushed off the decline in tourism, especially from Canada, and rising fuel costs, saying, “we’re having some fake inflation.”
63. On Thursday, Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chair Michael Selig told Congress that the CFTC was investigating suspicious oil trades made before Trump’s pivots on Iran, including at least two instances on March 23 and April 7.
64. On Friday, before markets opened, Iran’s foreign minister posted on X that the strait had been reopened. Trump said the blockade would remain in place, and made a series of optimistic posts, claiming that the war was almost over, and that Iran had agreed to many of his demands.
65. Trump also blamed the media, posting on Truth Social, “They are desperately looking for a reason to criticize President Donald J. Trump on the Iran situation, but just can’t find it,” adding, “Why don’t they just say, at the right time, JOB WELL DONE, MR. PRESIDENT.”
66. Trump claimed in an interview with CBS News that Iranians had “agreed to everything,” including removal of enriched uranium. Asked how it would be removed, Trump claimed “no troops,” saying, “We’ll go down and get it with them, and then we’ll take it.”
67. Trump later told reporters that Iran had made key concessions in order to end the seven-week war, claiming, “Iran wants to make a deal. They are willing to do things today that they weren’t willing to do two months ago.”
68. Markets soared, and the price of oil plummeted on remarks that the strait was opened. At least 12 ships did a U-turn or stopped during the day as matters became less clear. Trump claimed the “process should go very quickly in that most of the points are already negotiated.”
69. On Friday, Trump again targeted the far-right influencers on Truth Social who had been critical of the war, posting, “Tucker is a Low IQ person… So are Megyn Kelly, ‘Candace’ (Really Dumb and mentally ill!), and Bankrupt Alex Jones, who is completely ‘fried.’”
70. Iranian officials disputed Trump’s claims after the market closed. Iran’s top negotiator and the speaker of its Parliament posted on X that Trump had “made seven claims in one hour, all seven of which were false.” He added that the U.S. would not make progress in negotiations with lies.
71. Later Friday, Trump spoke at his first Turning Point USA event since 2024. While the goal was to rally young voters, the crowd in Arizona was noticeably older, and 1,500 of the 4,500 seats were empty. Before he spoke, many speakers acknowledged the rift in the party over the war.
72. In a 53 minute speech, Trump claimed victory in Iran, and promised to “make Lebanon great again,” and baselessly claimed, “I ended 8 wars, and if we add Iran and Lebanon, that will be 10.” He bragged about toppling Venezuela’s president, and said he would “help out” Cuba.
73. Trump also chastised NATO, saying, “now that the Hormuz Strait situation is almost over, I received a call from NATO asking if we would like some help,” calling them “absolutely useless when we needed them…we never needed them,” adding “They need us.”
74. On Friday, Commerce Department Sec. Howard Lutnick said in a speech that the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement is a “bad deal” that needed to be renegotiated, and that Canada slowing down negotiations was “like the worst strategy I’ve ever heard,” adding, “They suck.”
75. Later Friday, the Trump regime quietly extended a sanctions exemption on the sale of some Russian oil, two days after Treasury Department Sec. Scott Bessent had publicly said at a White House briefing that the exemption would not be extended.
76. Early Saturday, Iranian State TV announced the strait “has returned to its previous state” of being closed, citing the U.S. failing to uphold its commitments and continuing “piracy and maritime robbery under the so-called blockade.”
77. A U.S. defense official told Axios that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had conducted attacks on at least three commercial ships, saying, “Approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered cooperation with the enemy.” Two of the ships which were Indian-flagged were shot at.
78. Asked about the closure, Trump told reporters that Iran “got a little cute,” adding, “as they have been doing for 47 years, and nobody ever took them on. We took them on.” Trump added of Iran, they “can’t blackmail us.”
79. On Sunday, after midnight, Trump posted a three-minute video of Frank Sinatra singing his iconic song, ‘My Way,’ raising further concerns about Trump’s mental health.
80. On Sunday, Trump again threatened to hit civilian infrastructure, posting on Truth Social that if Iran did not accept his “very fair and reasonable deal,” then he was “going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”
81. Shortly after, Trump told Fox News of Iran, “If they don’t sign this deal, the whole country is going to get blown up.” He later told the New York Post that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would head to Islamabad, but wavered by the hour on whether VP JD Vance would go too.
82. On Sunday, NYT reported that Iran still had 40% of its prewar arsenal of drones, and 60% of its prewar stockpile of launchers (and could get to 70% by digging through the rubble), and its ability to control the strait would be viewed as a blueprint to deter their adversaries.
83. On Sunday, WSJ reported that while showing bravado over the war in public, and oscillating between belligerence and conciliation, in private, Trump is grappling with fears that things have gone wrong. He frequently tried to change the topic to midterms and other issues.
84. When a U.S. plane was downed in Iran, Trump demanded the military rescue the second crew member immediately, citing Jimmy Carter, worried it would hurt his presidency. During the operation, aides kept him out of the room because his impatience would not be helpful.
85. Trump’s pronouncements on social media, including his posts on Easter about destroying a civilization and mocking a religion, are often done without national security input. This is the first time his impulsivity and erratic style were tested in a sustained military attack.
86. Aides have told Trump to limit his impromptu interviews since he was providing contradictory messages; he stopped, then continued. He obsesses over the markets, and knows his words have impact. He mused about awarding himself the Medal of Honor, the highest military honor.
87. Later Sunday, Trump posted on Truth Social that the U.S. Navy had attacked an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that tried to pass the U.S. blockade, posting, “The Iranian crew refused to listen, so our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks” and took custody of the vessel.
88. On Sunday, Iran did not confirm their attendance at the next peace talks. On Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry said that there are “no plans” to attend, citing the U.S. engaging in actions that in no way “demonstrate seriousness in pursuing a diplomatic process.”
89. Iran also refuted Trump’s claims that it would hand over its “nuclear dust” as part of a peace deal, saying a transfer of its uranium had not been discussed in negotiations.
90. On Monday, asked by PBS News what would happen if the ceasefire expired Tuesday evening without a deal, Trump said, “Then lots of bombs start going off.” CBS News noted Trump had shifted from claiming that Iran “agreed to everything” 48 hours before.
91. Trump told Bloomberg the ceasefire expired on “Wednesday evening Washington time,” a day later than the two week window, and said it’s “highly unlikely that I’d extend it” if no deal is reached, claiming he would not be rushed, “we’ve got all the time in the world.”
92. Trump told the New York Post that Vance, Witkoff, and Kushner were already on their way to Islamabad for a second negotiation. Half an hour later, Vance’s motorcade pulled up to the White House. Later it was said that Vance was leaving on Tuesday.
93. On Monday, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found Trump’s approval remaining at 36% approve, 62% disapprove. Just 26% said Trump was even-tempered, 25% said the strikes on Iran would make the U.S. safer, and 16% backed the U.S. exiting NATO.
94. American Research Group, another select pollster, found Trump’s approval falling to a new low for that pollster, with 32% approval, and 63% disapproval.
95. Trump also reacted to his dismal polling, posting on Truth Social, “I watch and read the FAKE NEWS Pundits and Polls in total disbelief,” baselessly claiming “90% of what they say are lies,” and “The polls are rigged, much as the 2020 Presidential Election was rigged.”
96. Trump also lashed out at his critics, posting Democrats “are doing everything possible to hurt the very strong position we are in with respect to Iran,” calling them “Weak and Pathetic” and “TRAITORS,” and saying, “I’m not going to let them rush” the U.S. into making a deal.
97. Trump also contradicted Energy Sec. Wright, saying he was “totally wrong” to suggest that gas prices would stay above $4 a gallon into 2027. Trump claimed that prices would drop “as soon as this ends,” contradicting most energy experts.
98. On Monday, CNN reported Trump officials privately acknowledged that his public pronouncements had been harmful to negotiations, including Trump baselessly claiming that Iran had made concessions when they were not finalized, and making Iranian leaders look weak.
99. On Tuesday, in an interview with CNBC before the markets opened, Trump claimed, “We’re gonna end up with a great deal. They have no choice,” repeating the lies that “We’ve taken out their navy, we’ve taken out their air force, we’ve taken out their leaders. It is regime change.”
100. Trump also threatened that if Iran did not agree to U.S. demands, and a deal was not reached, “I expect to be bombing,” adding, “we’re ready to go. I mean, the military is raring to go. They are absolutely incredible.”
101. Asked about the war entering its eighth week, Trump compared it to the length of other wars in U.S. history that were longer, claiming, “I would’ve won Vietnam very quickly if I were president,” and “Look at Venezuela. I took it over in 45 minutes.”
102. Trump also said that he was considering offering financial support to the U.A.E, after the country requested help amid the oil embargo and having been hit by Iran, saying the U.A.E. had “been a good ally of ours, and you know, these are unusual times.”
103. Shortly after, Vance, Witkoff, and Kushner’s travel was put on hold. Trump had previously said they were on their way to Islamabad. Iran said they would not show, citing Trump’s blockade, and saying U.S. forces boarding an Iranian oil tanker earlier Tuesday was an act of war.
104. Later Tuesday, after repeatedly saying in recent days he would not extend the ceasefire unless a deal was in the offing, Trump posted on Truth Social that he was “indefinitely” extending the ceasefire, marking the fifth time he had done so.
105. Trump claimed in his post that the extension was at the request of Pakistan, and due to the fact that the leadership in Iran is “seriously fractured.” Iran claimed they did not ask for a ceasefire extension, and that the losing side does not dictate terms.
106. Shortly after, Trump posted a 296-word tirade about the WSJ, after an opinion writer there wrote that Iran “takes him [Trump] for a sucker,” calling the opinion writer an “idiot,” and saying the paper had “lost its way” and was “just another failing political RAG.”
107. On Wednesday, shortly before the stock market was set to open, Trump told the New York Post that a new round of peace talks was “possible” in the next 36 to 72 hours, calming the markets. Oil had skyrocketed to $105 a barrel.
108. On Wednesday, E.U. energy commissioner Dan Jorgensen warned that Europe faced years of higher prices due to the Iran War, saying, “This is a crisis that is as serious as 1973 and 2022 crises combined.”
109. Bloomberg reported that at least 34 Iran-linked tankers and gas carriers, including two Iranian ships carrying oil carrying four million barrels of oil, had passed through the U.S. blockade during the week.
110. On Wednesday, Trump lashed out at the Supreme Court in a lengthy Truth Social post, calling Ketanji Brown Jackson the “new, Low IQ person,” and saying the six GOP-appointed justices showed him “very little loyalty,” while the Democrat-appointed “stick together like glue.”
111. On Wednesday, Trump continued to push Congress to extend the FISA surveillance law, posting on Truth Social, “I am willing to risk the giving up of my Rights and Privileges as a Citizen,” an issue for which he had repeatedly sued and fired government officials.
112. On Thursday, the DOJ appealed a court ruling that barred national security agencies from using certain tools to process data gathered on Americans under the FISA Act, which allowed warrantless surveillance.
113. On Friday, Congress voted to extend the FISA law for 10 days only, as the House Freedom Caucus expressed concern that parts of the program could infringe on Americans’ privacy rights, and House Democrats said the regime could exploit it by spying on Trump’s perceived enemies.
114. House Republicans defied Republican leaders, with 10 voting along Democrats in a 224 to 204 vote to preserve temporary protections for Haitians. The vote, although largely symbolic since Trump could veto it, was seen as a rebuke of him on one of his signature issues.
115. On Thursday, WAPO reported that Trump planned to nominate Cameron Hamilton again to lead FEMA. Trump fired Hamilton last May after Hamilton testified before Congress that the agency should not be dismantled.
116. NBC News reported the FDA planned to consider easing restrictions on seven peptide injections promoted by Health and Human Services Sec. Robert Kennedy Jr., which were popular with wellness influencers, fitness gurus, and celebrities, but scientifically unproven.
117. NYT reported Utah had become the latest center for measles with nearly 600 cases, with roughly one-third seeking treatment in emergency rooms, and 49 hospitalized. Doctors said some children arrived gasping for breath.
118. Unlike outbreaks over the past decades that appeared in communities with insular religions, the outbreaks in the past year had spread through the broader population, and jumped state lines between unvaccinated people.
119. On Tuesday, testifying before Congress, Kennedy refused to commit to supporting the vaccine recommendations of Dr. Erica Schwartz, Trump’s nominee to become the head of the Centers for Disease Control. Schwartz was seen as pro vaccine.
120. After a breakthrough in an mRNA pancreatic cancer vaccine trial, when asked by CNN about the Trump regime’s cutting $500 million from mRNA cancer trials, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said, “We just felt like it should be the companies funding…Not taxpayer dollars.”
121. On Tuesday, Hegseth announced that U.S. military members would no longer be required to get an annual flu shot, rolling back a mandate that had been in place for seven decades. The move raised concerns from public health experts and legislators on troop readiness.
122. Bloomberg reported that the Trump regime was preparing to make a version of Anthropic’s artificial intelligence model, Mythos, available to all major federal agencies, despite the pending lawsuit with the company.
123. Days later, Trump said a deal between Anthropic and the Pentagon is “possible,” claiming the company was “shaping up,” and they are “very smart people,” even though “they tend to be on the left, radical left, but we get along with them.”
124. On Monday, as Trump was set to attend his first White House Correspondents Dinner as president, more than 250 broadcast journalists said in a letter to organizers that they should “forcefully” show opposition to his “efforts to trample freedom of the press.”
125. The letter, signed by some of the most prominent journalists, stated, “These are not normal times,” and added, “this cannot be business as usual with the press standing up to applaud the man who attacks them on a daily basis.”
126. On Monday, the Trump regime took its first step to refunding the $166 billion collected in tariffs, debuting a system that would process requests for refunds by companies for illegal tariffs. Millions of Americans who paid higher prices were not eligible for refunds.
127. Trump said he would favor companies that do not seek refunds for tariffs on a newly opened portal, saying, “Brilliant if they don’t do that…Actually, if they don’t do that, they’ve got to know me very well…If they don’t do that, I’ll remember them.”
128. On Tuesday, Trump’s nominee for Fed Chair, Kevin Warsh, was questioned by the Senate Banking Committee. Warsh claimed he had never promised Trump he would cut rates, even as Trump has promised in interviews that there would be rate cuts when Warsh got in.
129. Warsh repeatedly claimed he would maintain his independence, but when asked, he refused to acknowledge that Trump lost the 2020 election, saying instead, “We try to keep politics out of the Fed.” Ranking member Elizabeth Warren called him a “sock puppet.”
130. On Monday, Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to fund energy projects that use coal, domestic oil, and liquefied natural gas. Unlike former president Joseph Biden and European countries, especially during the war, Trump took no steps to advance renewable energy.
131. On Tuesday, a federal judge issued a temporary injunction blocking the Trump regime from imposing roadblocks like extra approvals and creating permitting bottlenecks, which advocacy groups said had stymied wind and solar energy projects nationwide.
132. On Tuesday, Department of Homeland Security Sec. Markwayne Mullin told Fox News his agency would again run out of money for paychecks in the first week of May, unless Congress reached a deal to reopen the department.