Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A deadly mass shooting in Kashmir: “Gunmen shot and killed at least 26 tourists on Tuesday at a resort in Indian-controlled Kashmir, police said in what appeared to be a major shift in a regional conflict in which tourists have largely been spared. Police said it was a ‘terror attack’ and blamed militants fighting against Indian rule.”
* A breakthrough does not appear to be close: “President Donald Trump slammed Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday, accusing him of derailing negotiations to end the war in Ukraine while a peace deal was ‘very close.’”
* On a related note: “High-level talks aimed at bringing a pause to fighting in Ukraine disintegrated earlier after Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff pulled out, dealing a blow to Kyiv’s hopes for a short-term peace agreement.”
* New Jersey wildfires: “Evacuation orders have been lifted and roads reopened in parts of New Jersey, police said, after a wildfire that erupted Tuesday night burned at least 12,000 acres. Heavy smoke conditions are expected throughout Wednesday and possibly in days to come.”
* So much for his “Day One” promises: “Trump said this afternoon that it could ‘be a little while’ before the economy stabilizes in the wake of the sweeping global tariff agenda he launched this month.”
* The IMF says what the White House doesn’t want to hear: “The global economy will slow sharply this year, weighed down by President Donald Trump’s imposition of the highest import taxes in more than a century and the cloud of uncertainty that has billowed in their wake, the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday.”
* The intensifying measles outbreak: “The spread of measles in the Southwest now constitutes the largest single outbreak since the United States declared the disease eliminated in 2000, federal scientists told state officials in a meeting on Monday. The New York Times obtained a recording of the meeting. Until now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had not publicly described the outbreak in such stark terms.” * The Biden-era emphasis on student loan debt relief was nice while it lasted: “The Education Department said Monday it will be restarting ‘involuntary’ repayment of federal student loans that are in default. The payments were paused during President Donald Trump’s first term in 2020 as a response to the Covid pandemic.” * All is not well at the platform formerly known as Twitter: “When Mr. Musk purchased X in 2022, he promised to create a free speech haven and named himself a ‘free speech absolutist.’ Critics still feared that Mr. Musk would use his control of the app to pick and choose his favorites, amplifying voices he admired while suppressing people or topics he loathed. The New York Times found three users on X who feuded with Mr. Musk in December only to see their reach on the social platform practically vanish overnight.” 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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