Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A difficult process: “The United States and China announced a 90-day pause on most of their recent tariffs on each other, fueling hopes on Wall Street of a cooldown in the trade war between the world’s two largest economies. The combined U.S. tariff rate on Chinese imports will be cut to 30% from 145%, while China’s levies on U.S. imports will fall to 10% from 125%, the countries said early Monday morning.”
* Edan Alexander: “An American-Israeli soldier held hostage for more than 19 months in the Gaza Strip was released by Hamas on Monday. Edan Alexander, who is believed to be the last living U.S. citizen held captive in Gaza, was handed over to Red Cross representatives in the enclave’s southern city of Khan Younis.”
* A tenuous ceasefire: “India and Pakistan have accused each other of violating a ceasefire agreement that was reached on Saturday.”
* If the administration has already arrested a judge and a mayor, will House members be next? “The Department of Homeland Security is actively investigating Democratic lawmakers involved in a confrontation with officials at an ICE facility in New Jersey, spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin confirmed.”
* If the DOGE folks are looking for wasteful and inefficient spending, I have a great story for them: “The Trump administration spent at least $21 million transporting migrants to Guantanamo Bay on military aircraft between January 20 and April 8, according to figures provided to Congress by the U.S. military. The naval base there currently holds 32 migrants, according to a defense official, a tiny fraction of the 30,000 that President Donald Trump promised.”
* The latest with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission: “The Trump administration has tightened its control over the independent agency responsible for overseeing America’s nuclear reactors, and it is considering an executive order that could further erode its autonomy, two U.S. officials who declined to speak publicly because they feared retribution told NPR. Going forward, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) must send new rules regarding reactor safety to the White House, where they will be reviewed and possibly edited.” * Avelo Airlines is making a name for itself: “Despite weeks of protests from customers and elected officials, Avelo’s first flight for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement appears to have departed on Monday morning from Mesa, Ariz., according to data from the flight-tracking services FlightAware and Flightradar24.” * I’m eager to hear the White House’s response to Santos’ plea: “Former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), who faces more than seven years behind bars after pleading guilty to wire fraud and identity theft, revealed this week that he will be seeking clemency from President Trump. ‘I’ll take a commutation, clemency, whatever the president is willing to give me,’ Santos told British media personality Piers Morgan.” 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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