Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Trump-appointed judges strike again: “A federal appeals court ruling on Monday will allow the Trump administration to send National Guard troops into Oregon against the state’s wishes, hitting pause on a lower court’s order that had barred the deployment.”
* A delicate ceasefire: “Israel on Sunday launched its heaviest wave of attacks on Gaza since a fragile cease-fire took hold a week ago and said it had temporarily suspended humanitarian aid after accusing Hamas of violating the truce by firing on its soldiers, killing two.”
* Rising tensions: “President Gustavo Petro of Colombia accused the United States of murdering a fisherman in an attack on a boat that the American authorities claimed was carrying illicit drugs. President Trump responded on Sunday that he would slash assistance and impose new tariffs on the country.”
* In related news: “Colombia said on Monday it has recalled its ambassador from Washington after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would raise tariffs on the South American nation and stop all payments to it, intensifying a feud stemming from U.S. military strikes on vessels allegedly transporting drugs. Trump also called Colombian’s leftist President Gustavo Petro an ‘illegal drug leader’ on Sunday, which Petro’s government described as offensive.”
* Unexpected releases: “The two survivors of an American military strike on a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean will be sent to Ecuador and Colombia, their home countries, President Donald Trump said Saturday. The military rescued the pair after striking a submersible vessel Thursday, in what was at least the sixth such attack since early September.”
* Gavin Newsom was right to be concerned ahead of this fiasco: “A 155-millimeter shell fired during a live-fire demonstration for the 250th anniversary of the Marine Corps at Camp Pendleton on Saturday prematurely detonated, dropping fragments of the shell on a California Highway Patrol vehicle and motorcycle that were part of Vice President JD Vance’s protective detail, according to a patrol report.”
* This is a doozy of a story: “In the days before the Trump administration deported hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to a notorious prison in El Salvador, the president of that country demanded something for himself: the return of nine MS-13 gang leaders in U.S. custody. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a March 13 phone call with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, promised the request would be fulfilled, according to officials familiar with the conversation.” * Trump said his Memphis deployment enjoyed broad and bipartisan support, and yet, here we are: “Seven Tennessee officials sued on Friday over the deployment of the National Guard in Memphis, the latest lawsuit against the push to send troops to Democratic-led cities perceived as overrun with crime.” * Jim Justice’s lingering unpaid assessments: “The IRS recently filed notices of a federal tax lien against Republican Sen. Jim Justice of West Virginia — the latest example of ongoing financial troubles that have trailed the former governor, members of his family and their network of businesses over the years.” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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