Today’s edition of quick hits.
* An intensifying outbreak in Texas: “The number of measles cases has risen to 400, a spike of 73 cases over the last three days, as the historical outbreak continues to rage on in West Texas, according to state officials on Friday. Of those, 41 patients have been hospitalized.”
* Tragedy in Lithuania: “The bodies of three U.S. Army soldiers who went missing in Lithuania during a training exercise last week have been found, and a fourth remains missing, military officials said Monday. The soldiers went missing the morning of March 25 after their M88A2 Hercules armored recovery vehicle became submerged in a peat bog during a mission to repair and tow an immobilized tactical vehicle.”
* A devastating death toll climbs higher: “The death toll from a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar has risen sharply to over 1,600, with fears it could climb much higher, state-run MRTV reported Saturday, as rescuers scrambled through rubble and desperate cries for help echoed from collapsed buildings. The quake, whose epicenter was near Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, devastated one of the world’s poorest nations as it reverberated through the country and across Southeast Asia.”
* A dramatic verdict in France: “Far-right French leader Marine Le Pen was handed a four-year prison sentence and banned from holding public office for five years by a French court Monday, in what could be the biggest setback for her political cause in a generation. Until this week, Le Pen had looked like the likeliest winner in France’s next presidential election set for 2027, but she was found guilty Monday by a court of embezzling European Union funds.”
* If recent history is any guide, he’ll figure out a way to back down on tariffs: “President Donald Trump said on Sunday that reciprocal tariffs he is set to announce this week will include all nations, not just a smaller group of 10 to 15 countries with the biggest trade imbalances. … ‘You’d start with all countries,’ he told reporters aboard Air Force One.” * An investigation worth monitoring: “Federal authorities are investigating a fire early Sunday that damaged the entryway to the headquarters of the Republican Party of New Mexico in Albuquerque.” * A rough quarter for your retirement account: “The S&P 500 ended March with its steepest monthly decline in more than two years, driven by uncertainty about the scope of President Trump’s tariffs, which investors fear could accelerate inflation, slow consumer spending and stall the U.S. economy. … The decline in March caps off the S&P 500’s worst quarter at the start of a president’s term since President Barack Obama took over in 2009 during the financial crisis.” 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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