Monday, April 13 | By Cate Martel
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It’s Monday. You have two more days to file your taxes if you haven’t done so already!
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President Trump goes after … *checks notes* … the pope: |
Alessandro Di Meo/Pool Photo via AP
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President Trump fired off a lengthy post on Sunday night bashing Pope Leo XIV, accusing him of being “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy.”
From Trump’s attack on the pope: “He talks about ‘fear’ of the Trump Administration, but doesn’t mention the FEAR that the Catholic Church, and all other Christian Organizations, had during COVID when they were arresting priests, ministers, and everybody else, for holding Church Services, even when going outside, and being ten and even twenty feet apart.” 🔎 Read Trump’s full post — it’s lengthy!
How did Pope Leo take it?: “I’m not afraid of the Trump administration or of speaking out loudly about the message of the Gospel, which is what the Church works for,” the pope said, according to The Associated Press.
What sparked this feud?: During a weekend service, the pope called for leaders to stop to the war in Iran, denouncing the "delusion of omnipotence" with the U.S. and Israel. He didn’t mention Trump by name, though.
Related read, via The Atlantic: ‘The Iran War Showed a New Side of Pope Leo’
💬 Follow today’s live blog
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And Trump portrayed himself as … *checks notes again* … Jesus: |
President Trump angered some of his conservative supporters for posting an AI image depicting himself as Jesus. He apparently removed the image late Monday morning.
More about the image: The image shows Trump healing a sick man while wearing religious garb. He’s surrounded by his followers, an American flag, eagles and the Statue of Liberty. 📸 See the AI image of Trump as Jesus
Some of the criticism:
♦️ Conservative political activist Riley Gaines posted on social media, “Why? Seriously, I cannot understand why he’d post this. Is he looking for a response? Does he actually think this? Either way, two things are true. 1) a little humility would serve him well 2) God shall not be mocked.”
♦️ Conservative political commentator Michael Knowles posted, “I assume someone has already told him, but it behooves the President both spiritually and political to delete the picture, no matter the intent.”
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If you came here hoping for good news, well, *nervous chuckle*: |
The marathon weekend of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran ended with no deal.
Vice President Vance traveled to Pakistan over the weekend, which raised hopes for an agreement. The talks were reportedly friendly, but Vance is on his way back home without a deal after 21 hours of negotiations.
What happens now?: President Trump just began a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
How will the blockade work?: All ships traveling between Iranian ports will be stopped. However, vessels traveling between non-Iranian ports are still allowed to enter the strait. And The Wall Street Journal notes that if Iran attacks U.S. ships, destroyers would be used to combat those attacks.
Iran is taunting the U.S. over it: The speaker of Iran’s parliament mocked the U.S. in a social media post, saying to “enjoy the current pump figures.” “With the so-called ‘blockade’, Soon you’ll be nostalgic for $4–$5 gas,” he added.
And Trump is returning the sentiment: The president just threatened to “ELIMINATE” ships that “come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE.”
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Rep. Swalwell has entered a huge firestorm: |
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) ended his campaign for California governor on Sunday night after being accused of sexual misconduct, including assaulting a former aide.
What we know about the allegations: CNN reports that four women have accused him of sexual conduct.
From CNN: “A former staffer of [Swalwell] … says that the congressman raped her when she was heavily intoxicated and left her bruised and bleeding, an allegation Swalwell strongly denies. ‘I was pushing him off of me, saying no,’ the woman told CNN of the incident, which she said happened in 2024 after she had stopped working in Swalwell’s office. ‘He didn’t stop.’ She said it was the second time Swalwell had nonconsensual sexual contact with her while she was drunk.” Read CNN’s reporting
This has engulfed the House: The Hill’s Emily Brooks reports on the growing calls to expel Swalwell from Congress, plus three other members (two Republicans and a Democrat), who have also been accused of wrongdoing.
Who else has been accused of wrongdoing?:
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) admitted he had an affair with a former congressional staffer who later died after setting herself on fire. He has also been accused of sending sexually explicit messages to a former campaign aide. He ended his reelection campaign.
Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee for allegations of dating violence, campaign finance violations and more. He has denied wrongdoing.
Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) was found by an Ethics subcommittee to have committed 25 Ethics violations related to allegedly using millions in improperly paid federal disaster funds to finance her campaign. She has denied wrongdoing.
Read more: ‘Swalwell furor engulfs others accused of wrongdoing, threatening to upend House’
HAPPENING ON CAPITOL HILL THIS WEEK:
The Hill’s Sudiksha Kochi reports there are “6 big fights Congress faces as it returns.” Heres’ the list
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A judge dismissed Trump’s WSJ lawsuit: |
A judge tossed President Trump’s defamation suit against the Wall Street Journal.
Back story: Remember when the Journal published a 2003 letter Trump allegedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein for his 50th birthday? Trump was furious and sued the newspaper.
The judge determined that the claim did not reach the level of “actual malice,” which is necessary for these defamation claims. “The Complaint comes nowhere close to this standard. Quite the opposite,” the judge wrote.
Is this over?: Not necessarily. Trump can try to amend his lawsuit and file it again.
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— Ticket prices for the US World Cup are breaking records. Fans are furious.
— Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán, a Trump ally, lost his reelection. This is one of the most consequential European elections this year.
— Democrat Janelle Stelson raked in more than $2.1 million in her race against Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.), first reported by The Hill’s Caroline Vakil. This is one of the most competitive House races of this cycle. Oh, and The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) PAC announced it is backing Rep. Chris Rabb (D) in the race for Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District.
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The House is out. The Senate is back from recess. President Trump is at the White House. . (All times EST)
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2 p.m. Trump participates in “signing time.”
4 p.m. Trump participates in a policy meeting.
5:30 p.m. The Senate kicks off voting for the week with a cloture vote on a nomination. 📆 Today’s agenda
7:45 p.m. Trump and first lady Melania Trump have dinner with the king and queen of the Netherlands.
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🍑 Celebrate: Today is National Peach Cobbler Day.
⛳ The first repeat Masters win since Tiger!: Golfer Rory McIlroy won his second Masters in the row! The only other golfers to do this are Tiger Woods, Nick Faldo and Jack Nicklaus.
^ Fun fact: Want to see McIlroy’s health stats during the Masters? He walked 91,000+ steps at the Masters and his heart rate hit 105 bpm on his winning put, per Sportico’s Kurt Badenhausen. More of McIlroy’s stats
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I have the best video to leave you with. Astronaut Christina Koch posted a video of her dog’s reaction with she returned from the Artemis II mission.
Those tears are my allergies!! 🥲🥲
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📺 Miss the previous issue of this newsletter? Catch up with a 1-minute video.
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