Today’s edition of quick hits.
* When tensions rise among opposing nuclear powers, pay attention: “India launched missiles at neighbor and rival Pakistan on Wednesday, dramatically escalating tensions between the nuclear powers in what Pakistan called an ‘act of war.’ … Pakistan’s armed forces have been authorized to take ‘corresponding actions’ following the strikes, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office said today.”
* Fed Chairman Jerome Powell delivers the news Trump didn’t want to hear: “The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it was leaving interest rates unchanged as it warned that the chances of both higher unemployment and higher inflation had climbed in the wake of President Donald Trump’s tariffs plan. In its latest assessment of the economy, the Fed did not cite the tariffs specifically but noted that volatile trade activity affected the economic data it relies on to make its policy decisions — a reference to the negative gross domestic product figure reported last week.”
* The second such loss in about a week: “For the second time in eight days, a fighter jet was lost in the Red Sea after it went overboard from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier Tuesday, two U.S. officials told NBC News. There were only minor injuries after the two-seater F/A-18F Super Hornet went off the deck as it was landing around 9:45 p.m. local time Tuesday (early afternoon ET) and crashed into the sea, the officials said.”
* Expect a court fight: “The Trump administration is planning to transport a group of immigrants to Libya on a U.S. military plane, according to U.S. officials, another sharp escalation in a deportation program that has sparked widespread legal challenges and intense political debate.”
* Wouldn’t it make sense to devote finite intelligence resources to actual security threats, instead of Greenland? “The U.S. is stepping up its intelligence-gathering efforts regarding Greenland, drawing America’s spying apparatus into President Trump’s campaign to take over the island, according to two people familiar with the effort.”
* Interesting: “Moderna’s combined Covid and flu shot outperformed the existing standalone vaccines for both viruses, according to the results of a phase 3 clinical trial published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.”
* Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was asked to explain during a congressional hearing who pays tariffs. It did not go well.
* He sure does like to rename things: “President Donald Trump plans to announce while on his trip to Saudi Arabia next week that the United States will now refer to the Persian Gulf as the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Arabia, according to two U.S. officials.” * JD Vance’s apparent attempt at humor about World Cup visitors really wasn’t funny: “Members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet said Tuesday that while they look forward to the United States’ co-hosting next year’s FIFA World Cup, they want to make sure foreign visitors don’t stay longer than they’re allowed.” * Every presidential offensive against traditionally independent agencies is another step in a regressive direction: “The vice chair of the National Transportation Safety Board has been abruptly removed from his position, the White House confirmed Tuesday, a rare move that comes as the federal agency charged with investigating aviation disasters juggles more than 1,000 cases. The Trump administration removed Alvin Brown a little more than a year after he was sworn in for a term that was expected to end in 2026. The White House didn’t say why he was removed and Brown has not publicly commented.” 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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