Here’s a recap of the day so far
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Senate Republicans did not use the pro forma session today to try to pass a stopgap funding bill advanced by House GOP leaders on Friday. John Hoeven, the Republican senator from North Dakota, told reporters that the continuing resolution could not pass by unanimous consent because Democratic senator Chris Coons objected. This comes amid a record-breaking partial government shutdown that has lasted 45 days.
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Karoline Leavitt continued to blame Democratic lawmakers for the ongoing funding lapse, after both chambers of Congress remain at an impasse on passing a bill to reopen a portion of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Congress is now on a scheduled two-week recess, and many members have left Washington for their districts. The press secretary said today that the president is encouraging lawmakers to return to Capitol Hill and secure a deal, after negotiations broke down last week.
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While Donald Trump has signed an executive order to pay TSA employees as the shutdown continues, Leavitt offered no more information as to how they administration is securing these funds to issue paychecks. Airport security officers are expected to see their first full paycheck today, after the president directed the DHS secretary, Markwayne Mullin, to issue payments immediately on Friday.
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The Department of Justice sued Minnesota’s education department and the state’s school athletics body for allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports. In a lawsuit, the DoJ claims that by making against female student athletes compete against transgender girls, as well as share locker rooms and bathrooms with them, Minnesota is violating Title IX – the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination for any programs that receive federal funding.
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The average price for a gallon of gasoline in the US is about to hit $4, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). This is up 33% from a month ago, when the average price was $2.98 per gallon. It’s the highest national average since 2022, after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The price at the pump is the most tangible hit Americans have felt since the US‑Israel war on Iran began almost five weeks ago.
Key events
California Congressman Ro Khanna requested a meeting with King Charles during his upcoming visit to the US. Khanna said he’d like to bring survivors of the late sex offender Jefferey Epstein to the meeting.
“As you are aware, this is not solely an American matter,” Khanna wrote in a letter to King Charles. “Epstein’s network had significant ties to the United Kingdom through Ghislaine Maxwell, through Epstein’s relationships with British public figures, and through the social and political circles in which he operated. These connections raise broader questions about how Epstein was able to maintain influence, credibility, and protection across borders for so long.”
Khanna is the co-author of the Epstein Files Transparency Act and has been active in advocating of behalf of Epstein’s victims and calling for the release of the files regarding the disgraced financier.
King Charles is scheduled to visit the US the week of April 27th and is expected to address a joint meeting of Congress. King Charles’ younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was arrested in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office relating to his ties to Epstein. Peter Mandelson, a former UK ambassador to the US, was also arrested in February on similar allegations.
“A meeting with survivors would provide an opportunity to identify any additional information British institutions and individuals may be able to share and open a dialogue about whether there will be a full accounting of how Epstein’s and Maxwell’s network operated in the United Kingdom,” Khanna wrote in his letter. “It would also ensure that survivors are heard directly and that these matters are addressed with transparency, seriousness, and accountability.”
Florida to rename Palm Beach airport after Donald Trump
Donald Trump is now getting an airport that bears his name. Ron DeSantis, Florida’s governor, signed a bill on Monday saying the Palm Beach International Airport was being renamed to the President Donald J. Trump International Airport.
Trump’s family business filed a trademark application for the airport name in February. If approved, the name change would take effect on July 1.
The Florida airport is the latest in a series of buildings, institutions, government programs, navy battleships, national parks passes and even money to be named after the president.
DeSantis also worked last year to get a parcel of land in Miami to be the home for Trump’s presidential library. On Truth Social on Monday, Trump posted a video of a rendering of the library, which showed a massive mirrored skyscraper emblazoned with his name and the American flag.
The Pentagon is denying reports that a broker for Pete Hegseth looked into making investments in defense companies before the Iran war. Sean Parnell, a spokesperson for the Pentagon and assistant to Hegseth, said in a post on X that the allegations are “entirely false and fabricated”.
“Secretary Hegseth and the Department of War remain unwavering in their commitment to the highest standards of ethics and strict adherence to all applicable laws and regulations,” Parnell posted.
According to a report by the Financial Times, which cited three people familiar with the matter, a Morgan Stanley broker who worked for Hegseth contacted BlackRock in February with an inquiry about making a multimillion-dollar investment in the equity fund Defense Industrials Active ETF. The investment reportedly didn’t go through.
Parnell said: “Neither Secretary Hegseth nor any of his representatives approached BlackRock about any such investment. This is yet another baseless, dishonest smear designed to mislead the public.”
The TSA workers union is calling on congress to end the shutdown and fund the Department of Homeland Security. In a statement on Monday, Hydrick Thomas, the union’s president, said TSA workers have been showing up to work for weeks despite not getting paid.
“We have performed our duty,” Thomas said. “Unfortunately, Congress has failed to perform theirs. To leave Washington while tens of thousands of workers are going without pay shows a clear lack of respect for the essential employees tasked with keeping our nation safe.”
Congress just started a two-week recess as the partial government shutdown, which is now the longest in US history, sees no end in sight. The shutdown has left thousands of federal workers without pay checks and travelers stuck in long TSA lines at airports. Late last week, Donald Trump issued an executive order for TSA agents to receive backpay for at least two paychecks.
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) TSA Council 100 is the exclusive union for more than 45,000 TSA officers across the country. Thomas said that even with agents now getting some backpay, it’s still financially difficult.
“Many of our members have seen bills pile up, interest and late fees add up, cars repossessed, and families thrown into disarray because Congress has failed to do their jobs,” Thomas said. “Backpay alone does not fix those problems… To say we are utterly disgusted and disappointed with our elected officials is an understatement.”
US directs its embassies to wage campaign against foreign ‘hostility’
Joseph Gedeon
The United States has directed every American embassy and consulate across the world to launch coordinated campaigns against foreign propaganda and endorses Elon Musk’s X as an “innovative” tool to help do it.
The cable, signed by the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, on Monday and obtained by the Guardian, also suggests embassies and consulates work alongside the US military’s psychological operations unit to address the problem of rampant disinformation. It lays out a sweeping set of instructions for how embassy staff should push back against what it describes as coordinated foreign efforts to undermine American interests abroad.
It comes as the United States is at war with Iran, whose government has for decades operated one of the world’s most sophisticated and prolific state disinformation apparatuses, and as Russian and Chinese influence operations continue to target American allies across Europe, Asia and Latin America.
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Pete Hegseth’s broker inquired into defense fund investment before Iran war, FT reports
A broker working for Pete Hegseth allegedly aimed to make major investments in key defense companies before the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, according to the Financial Times.
The defense secretary’s broker, who worked at Morgan Stanley, apparently contacted BlackRock in February with an inquiry about making a multimillion-dollar investment in the equity fund Defense Industrials Active ETF, per the Financial Times, which cited three people familiar with the matter.
The inquiry was flagged internally at BlackRock, due to the request being made on behalf of a potential client who was high-profile. The equity fund’s holdings include some of the world’s biggest defense corporations, including RTX, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Palantir.
According to the Financial Times, the investment didn’t go through as it wasn’t yet available for Morgan Stanley clients to purchase.
Hegseth has been leading the war in Iran and has said that the US will continue to fight for “as long as we need to”. During briefings, he’s quotes bible scripture and a review by the Guardian has found that Hegseth has expressed a violent antipathy towards Iran for years.
José Guadalupe Ramos, a Mexican national, dies in ICE detention in LA
Roque Planas
A Mexican immigrant has died at a detention center outside Los Angeles, marking at least the 14th death in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody since the year began.
Security staff at the Adelanto detention center found José Guadalupe Ramos unconscious and unresponsive in his bunk on 25 March, according to an ICE press release. Staff attempted to carry out life-saving procedures, including CPR, then called emergency services, who took Ramos to Victory Valley Global medical center in nearby Victorville. He was pronounced dead there at 9.29pm.
At his medical screening on 24 February, ICE found that Ramos suffered from diabetes, hypertension and hyperlipidemia. He received “daily medication to treat his illness”, according to ICE.
It was not clear whether he received medication for a single illness or all three. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.
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A protest statue has appeared on the National Mall in Washington DC: a baroque-styled marble and gold toilet. It’s built like a throne, where anyone can sit on the commode as if it were a chair.
“A Throne Fit for a King,” reads a plaque attached to the statue. “In a time of unprecedented division, escalating conflict, and economic turmoil, President Trump focused on what truly mattered: remodeling the Lincoln bathroom in the White House.”
The throne comes as Donald Trump is remaking the White House in his image. Along with renovating the Lincoln bathroom, he’s had gilded doilies attached to the walls of the Oval Office and had the East Wing of the building torn down to build a massive ballroom. The president is long-rumored to own a gold toilet.
The statue comes after another protest piece appeared on the Mall depicting Trump and the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein holding hands. The roll of toilet paper with the toilet throne reads “The Secret Handshake”, which is the name of the group that claimed responsibility for the hand-holding statue.
Lindsey Graham appears to have spent last weekend at Disney World, riding Space Mountain in the theme park’s Magic Kingdom, according to TMZ. The Republican senator from South Carolina’s Florida vacation comes amid a more than six-week partial government shutdown over funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
Photos captured by TMZ show Graham waiting in line for rides, eating at a breakfast buffet and strolling through Disney World with what looks like a bubble wand in his hand. The gossip news site said Graham spent three days at the theme park.
The partial government shutdown, which is now the longest in US history, has left thousands of federal workers without pay checks and travelers stuck in long TSA lines at airports. Graham told TMZ he was in Florida to meet with Trump officials, and then went to Orlando afterwards.
On Monday, Graham blamed the democrats for the shutdown in a post on X and referenced working on a “new deal” for DHS: “Threats to our country are through the roof and it’s well past time to pay all workers. Schumer and gang are playing a dangerous game with our homeland security.”
Army investigates after two helicopters hovered by Kid Rock’s pool
The army is investigating what appears to be a detour taken by two Apache helicopters on a training run on Saturday. The helicopters under question visited and hovered alongside Kid Rock’s hillside swimming pool in Tennessee.
Kid Rock, an outspoken Donald Trump supporter and rock musician, posted a video to X showing him salute the choppers as they flew by.
“This is a level of respect that shit for brains Governor of California will never know. God Bless America and all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to defend her,” Kid Rock wrote on his post, along with an American Flag and prayer hands emoji.
According to the Associated Press, there was no official request from Kid Rock to have the helicopters fly by, which is what triggered the administrative review.
“Army aviators must adhere to strict safety standards, professionalism, and established flight regulations… Appropriate action will be taken if any violations are found,” the army said in a written statement.
Two-year-old detained by ICE is not receiving adequate help, Democratic lawmaker alleges
A two-year-old detained in a family detention center in Dilley, Texas, is sick and not getting adequate help, said Joaquin Castro, a Democratic congressman from San Antonio. The boy, Kaleth, has a fever and is not eating the food served at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, which Castro said detainees have complained of having mold and worms.
“When his mother asked for help, the staff said it was all ‘mental,’” Castro wrote in a post on X. “A vulnerable child at the Dilley trailer prison was suffering and ICE denied their reality and their needs. It’s shameful and must stop.”
Dilley has been criticized for not providing adequate care and food for families. In February, the detention center reported two measles cases. It’s the same facility where five-year-old asylum seeker Liam Conejo Ramos and his father were kept for a week after being detained in Minneapolis.
Castro has been calling for the detention center to be “shut down immediately” and has long said Donald Trump’s immigration agenda is inhumane.
The congressman has sought to get several immigrants released from Dilley. Castro said: “I am calling for ICE to provide proper medical care to Kaleth and to release him and his mother Joani immediately.”
Here’s a recap of the day so far
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Senate Republicans did not use the pro forma session today to try to pass a stopgap funding bill advanced by House GOP leaders on Friday. John Hoeven, the Republican senator from North Dakota, told reporters that the continuing resolution could not pass by unanimous consent because Democratic senator Chris Coons objected. This comes amid a record-breaking partial government shutdown that has lasted 45 days.
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Karoline Leavitt continued to blame Democratic lawmakers for the ongoing funding lapse, after both chambers of Congress remain at an impasse on passing a bill to reopen a portion of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Congress is now on a scheduled two-week recess, and many members have left Washington for their districts. The press secretary said today that the president is encouraging lawmakers to return to Capitol Hill and secure a deal, after negotiations broke down last week.
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While Donald Trump has signed an executive order to pay TSA employees as the shutdown continues, Leavitt offered no more information as to how they administration is securing these funds to issue paychecks. Airport security officers are expected to see their first full paycheck today, after the president directed the DHS secretary, Markwayne Mullin, to issue payments immediately on Friday.
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The Department of Justice sued Minnesota’s education department and the state’s school athletics body for allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports. In a lawsuit, the DoJ claims that by making against female student athletes compete against transgender girls, as well as share locker rooms and bathrooms with them, Minnesota is violating Title IX – the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination for any programs that receive federal funding.
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The average price for a gallon of gasoline in the US is about to hit $4, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). This is up 33% from a month ago, when the average price was $2.98 per gallon. It’s the highest national average since 2022, after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The price at the pump is the most tangible hit Americans have felt since the US‑Israel war on Iran began almost five weeks ago.
Trump justice department sues Minnesota for allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports
The Department of Justice sued Minnesota’s education department and the state’s school athletics body for allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls’ sports.
In a lawsuit, the DoJ claims that by making against female student athletes compete against transgender girls, as well as share locker rooms and bathrooms with them, Minnesota is violating Title IX – the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination for any programs that receive federal funding.
“Minnesota’s policies and practices create unfair competition, deny girls equal educational opportunities, and expose girls to a hostile educational environment with heightened risks of physical injury and psychological harm,” the justice department argues in the suit filed on Monday.
There are currently 27 states which restrict transgender athletes from participating in school sports consistent with their gender identity, according to the Williams Institute.
Senate Republicans forgo trying to pass stopgap House GOP spending bill to end DHS shutdown
Senate Republicans did not use the pro forma session today to try to pass a stopgap funding bill advanced by House GOP leaders on Friday.
John Hoeven, the Republican senator from North Dakota, told reporters that the continuing resolution could not pass by unanimous consent because Democratic senator Chris Coons objected.
Hoeven said Republicans now plan to move a DHS funding bill for the remainder of Trump’s time in office through reconciliation, which requires only a simple majority in the Senate and is not subject to the filibuster.
He argued that doing so would prevent another funding standoff. “We’re taking this off the table, that that’s enough of this with the Democrats,” he said.
Reconciliation is the same process Republicans used last year to pass Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Leavitt was also asked about the “massive complex” being built by the military underneath Trump’s ballroom. He referenced the plans on Air Force One on Sunday.
The press secretary noted that she was not authorized to comment about the plans; however, she noted that the military is “making some upgrades to their facilities here at the White House”.
On Cuba, the press secretary said that the Trump administration allowed a Russian oil tanker to the island amid a worsening energy crisis and consistent blackouts, but noted that this is not a “formal change” to the US’s sanction policy.
“These decisions are being made on a case by case basis,” Leavitt added. “Cuba’s non-functional economy cannot be fixed unless they undergo dramatic political and leadership change.”
Trump interested in calling on Arab states to help pay for Iran war, White House says
Lucy Campbell
Donald Trump would be interested in calling on Arab countries to pay for the cost of his war on Iran, Leavitt says, adding that she thinks Trump would have more to say on the issue.
Asked whether Arab countries would step up to help pay for the war, Leavitt said she would not get ahead of the president but that Trump has had this idea.
I think it’s something the president would be quite interested in calling them to do. It’s an idea that I know that he has and something that I think you’ll hear more from him on.
When asked why Donald Trump did not step in to issue emergency payments for TSA agents amid the ongoing partial government shutdown earlier than Friday, the press secretary blamed Senate Democrats for failing to pass a funding bill to reopen the entirety of the DHS.
Lawmakers failed to advance a GOP-backed measure seven times, before eventually passing a bill that only funded the TSA, the US Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (Cisa), and withholding funds for ICE and the border patrol. Ultimately, the House rejected the Senate-passed bill, instead passing a continuing resolution to fund the DHS for two months. Democrats in the upper chamber remain adamant they won’t take that up.
