Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A fragile ceasefire: “Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth today that ‘Israel will respect the ceasefire — as long as the other side does.’”
* The fact that these agents were called away from their duties in the first place is itself important: “The FBI is reassigning some agents who focus on national security — and who had been pulled from their duties to work on immigration cases — back to their old jobs, out of concern over potential Iran-related threats, four people with direct knowledge of the matter told NBC News.”
* It’s hard not to wonder if this news had anything to do with this news: “The Trump administration on Tuesday postponed classified briefings for members of Congress on the recent U.S. strikes against Iran, fueling outrage among Democrats that President Trump has yet to share key details of the operation with the legislative branch.”
* Also on Capitol Hill, seniority suffered a major setback to youth: “Democrats on Tuesday elected Rep. Robert Garcia of California as their leader on the House Oversight Committee, installing a fresh, young face in one of the party’s key roles to take on President Donald Trump. It marks a rapid ascent for Garcia, 47, in only his second term in Congress.”
* A key ruling from the Second Circuit: “In this latest case in a genre that shouldn’t exist, a ‘confluence of administrative errors’ is what the government blamed for the illegal removal of Jordin Alexander Melgar-Salmeron to El Salvador on May 7. The problem is that the government had told the court that it ‘would forebear removal until May 8.’ That led a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Tuesday to order the government to facilitate Melgar-Salmeron’s return ‘as soon as possible.’”
* And speaking of the administration’s setbacks in courts: “University of California researchers succeeded in their bid to temporarily pause hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding cuts while their class action [lawsuit] over the lost grants proceeds.” * The White House is drawing our traditional allies closer together, as they leave the United States behind: “Canada signed a defense partnership with the European Union on Monday, the latest indication that two of America’s closest allies are deepening their military cooperation as President Trump pulls away and promises to reduce the United States’ role in international security.” * Trump’s tariffs haven’t been front-page news lately, but there should be no doubt that they still matter: “Toy prices are rising at their fastest pace on record, the result of stiff new tariffs in an industry where 3 out of 4 items come from China — one of the first examples of just how quickly new trade policies are raising prices for Americans.” 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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