Arch d’Trump is GO – The Commission on Fine Arts, hand-picked by the White House, Thursday unanimously approved the president’s massive triumphal arch in Washington near Arlington National Cemetery, Politico reports.
FRIDAY 4/17/26
UPDATE: The Strait of Hormuz is “fully open” to all commercial vessels according to a Truth Social post by President Trump and an X-Twitter post by Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghachi, The Associated Press reports Friday.
But… About 12 minutes following the above posts, Trump Truth Socialed that the US blockade of Iranian ports remains UNTIL SUCH TIME AS OUR TRANSACTION WITH IRAN IS 100% COMPLETE. …
THIS PROCESS SHOULD GO VERY QUICKLY IN THAT MOST OF THE POINTS ARE ALREADY NEGOTIATED.
Meanwhile … New York Stock Market futures indicate a record day ahead as crude oil prices drop 10%, AP reports.
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Ceasefire Upon Ceasefire – Israel’s 10-day ceasefire on Lebanon announced Thursday appears to be holding, NPR’s Morning Edition reports, as thousands of families displaced from Southern Lebanon by the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah are returning to their homes, according to The New York Times. The two-week truce between the US and Iran due to end next week extends to Lebanon, Tehran said, building hopes the new ceasefire could remove a major hurdle to ending the war.
Meanwhile, President Trump says he could attend peace talks soon with Iran in Islamabad, Pakistan.
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Holy War – In his press conference Thursday, war/Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth compared “the legacy, Trump-hating press” (and not others, presumably MAGA-right bloggers and influencers) with the pharisees who persecuted Jesus.
Hegseth, who frequently quotes scriptures, earlier at a Pentagon prayer service repeated word-for-word Samuel L. Jackson’s Jules Winnfield-interpretation of Ezekiel 27:17 in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction.
On NPR’s Morning Edition former Republican congressman and Obama administration Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told A Martinez that we all have religious beliefs, but a Defense secretary should not impose his beliefs on young soldiers.
“It confuses the mission by introducing that element,” Panetta said.
Hegseth’s mission, in other words, seems to be Christian Nationalism v. Islamic Republic.
On the blockades … Panetta also told Martinez “there was no question,” his Defense Department and others pre-Trump planned for enemy closure of the Strait of Hormuz. “That was all in the plan for war with Iran,” he said.
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AAA National Average Unleaded Regular, Friday: $4.076 per gallon, down 3.2 cents from Thursday, up $1.079 over February 26. Diesel: $5.593 per gallon, down 2.1 cents from Thursday, up $2.331 over February 27. --TL
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THURSDAY 4/16/26
UPDATE: Lebanon, Israel Agree to Ceasefire – Lebanese and Israeli diplomats have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire after meeting in Washington earlier this week, The Hill reports. President Trump Truth Socialed Thursday he had an “excellent conversation” on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and has invited him to Washington to work out a permanent peace deal.
Hegseth Warns Iran Again – Iran should “choose wisely” or face US military “maximally postponed” to resume attacks, war/Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a Pentagon briefing Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reports. Hegseth told reporters the US blockade will continue as long as necessary, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine said US military will “actively pursue” dark-fleet vessels aiding Iran, even those outside the Persian Gulf.
Ships sanctioned by the US already are subject to boarding, search and seizure according to United States Naval Forces Central Command, though up to now only those ships entering or exiting Iranian ports.
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Trump Threatens Powell Again – President Trump threatened to fire “incompetent” Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell – whom he nominated during his first term – in an exclusive interview Wednesday with Fox Business Mornings With Maria host Maria Bartiromo. Powell says he will remain Fed chairman past May if Trump’s nominee to succeed him, Kevin Walsh, is not confirmed by the Senate in time. What’s more, Powell’s seat on the Fed board runs to 2028.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) says he will “oppose the confirmation of any Federal Reserve nominee, including for the position of chairman, until the DOJ’s inquiry into Chairman Powell is truly and transparently resolved.”
The president plans to advise US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro (who is actively campaigning for the attorney general seat vacated by Trump's firing of Pam Bondi) to end the investigation of Powell regarding spending for Fed headquarters renovations “that I would have done for $25 million that’s going to cost maybe $4 billion. Don’t you think we have to find out what happened here?”
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Another War Powers Resolution Blocked – The Senate blocked Democrats’ fourth effort to impose a war powers resolution on the Trump administration’s incursion into Iran Wednesday by 47-52 vote, largely along party lines, CQ Roll Call reports. The vote killed a Foreign Relations Committee resolution by Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) that would direct President Trump to “remove the United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Iran, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or a specific authorization for use of military force.”
As in the earlier resolutions, the two crossover votes were Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and John Fetterman (D-PA). Earlier this week, Democrats filed seven more war powers resolutions to force Republican senators on the record in coming weeks.
Unless more Republicans cross over in the coming weeks the Trump administration has to May 1 before the 1973 War Powers Resolution kicks in, Roll Call notes, in which the president must withdraw forces from military conflicts in 60 days if Congress has failed to authorize the war. This can be extended to 90 days – so, to June 1 – to safely withdraw US military forces.
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AAA National Average Unleaded Regular, Thursday: $4.108 per gallon, down 1.5 cents from Wednesday, up $1.111 over February 26. Diesel: $5.614 per gallon, down 2.1 cents from Wednesday, up $2.352 over February 27. --TL
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WEDNESDAY 4/15/26
Latest Mixed Messages on Iran War – There is a “high chance” Tehran will host a delegation of Pakistani mediators Wednesday in indirect talks with the US, spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry Esmail Baghei told a news conference in Tehran, The New York Times reports.
“Following the discussions that took place in Islamabad, as well as the talks the Pakistani side has had with the United States, our views have been conveyed, heard,” Baghei said.
Meanwhile on Fox Business’ Mornings With Maria Bartiromo, President Trump said the end of the war may be near, but not because of diplomacy.
“I think it’s over. I think it’s very close to being over,” Trump told Bartiromo, a refrain he has been repeating for weeks. “I don’t know how much longer they can survive. I don’t know how much longer they can go because they’re being hit very hard.
“We could take out every one of those bridges in one hour. We could take out their powerplants, electricity plants, in one hour. … We don’t want to do that, because some day you have to rebuild it, and it takes you 10 years to rebuild the bridges, even if you’re Trump, it takes a long time.”
It seems like there could be something to Jonathan Karl’s report on ABC’s Good Morning America last week that Trump had floated the idea of partnering with Iran to “manage and secure” traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
But Iran has threatened retaliation over the US naval blockade of its Strait of Hormuz ports, according to the NYT, while the US military says it has “completely halted” trade in and out of Iran by sea, with more than 10,000 US soldiers and dozens of airplanes and warships deployed.
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AAA National Average Unleaded Regular, Wednesday: $4.108 per gallon, down 1 cent from Tuesday, up $1.126 over February 26. Diesel: $5.635 per gallon, down 1.5 cents from Tuesday, up $2.373 over February 27.
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Meanwhile, World Economy – Global economic growth is projected to slow to 3.1% in 2026 and 3.2% in 2027 if the war in Iran and Lebanon remain limited in duration and scope, the International Monetary Fund says in its preliminary World Economic Outlook, “Global Economy in the Shadow of War” (hat tip to NPR’s Morning Edition). And global headline inflation is projected to rise modestly before resuming its decline in 2027 (NOTE: This means slowdown in the rate of inflation in ’27, not prices coming down.)
However … There are much greater “downside risks” if the conflict is longer, broader, and “worsening geopolitical fragmentation, a reassessment of expectations surrounding artificial intelligence-driven productivity or renewed trade tensions could significantly weaken growth and destabilize financial markets.”
The summary continues: “Elevated public debt and eroding institutional credibility further heighten vulnerabilities” though with economic gains from AI development a potential mitigation.
The IMF releases its full World Economic Outlook report at the end of April. –TL
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TUESDAY 4/14/26
Those Aren’t Scrubs – Donald J. Trump as Jesus marks the second time this year that the president has quickly removed a social media post. First was Trump’s video depicting the Obamas as apes, The Wall Street Journal's Politics newsletter notes. After immediate criticism as ‘blasphemy’ from right as well as left, Trump took down this image. He admitted it was his, saying “It’s supposed to be me as a doctor. Making people better. And I do make people better.”
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US, Iran to Try Again? – Peace talks between the US and Iran did not end with Vice President JD Vance’s 21-hour effort in Islamabad last weekend. Two anonymous Pakistani officials not authorized to speak officially told The Associated Press those first negotiations were part of an ongoing diplomatic process.
On Monday, two US officials said the next round could begin as early as this Thursday in either Islamabad or Geneva.
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AAA National Average Unleaded Regular, Tuesday: $4.118 per gallon, down 0.7 cents from Monday, up $1.136 over February 26. Diesel: $5.65 per gallon, down 0.2 cents from Monday, up $2.388 over February 27.
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Swalwell, Gonzales Out – Rather than face House Ethics Committee investigations over sexual misconduct allegations, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) Monday stepped down from the House of Representatives. A frequent Trump critic on cable news, the seven-term congressman withdrew as frontrunner in this year’s race for California governor after four women approached The San Francisco Chronicle and CNN with allegations of the congressman’s sexual misconduct.
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) announced Monday on X-Twitter he would resign Congress but did not specify the date. Gonzales faced a bipartisan expulsion effort later this week, Politico reports. Earlier this month, he admitted to an affair with a staff member, Regina Santos-Aviles, who later committed suicide.
Cal gov … Swalwell’s withdrawal from California’s gubernatorial race leaves seven Democrats and two Republicans vying for the June 2 primary, from which the two frontrunners will head into the November 3 election regardless of party. With Swalwell out, the two new frontrunners are also Democrats; former US Rep. Katie Porter and billionaire and former presidential candidate Tom Steyer. –Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa
Editor’s Notebook on Hungary’s Elections – The outcome shows the limits of right-wing populism, and this American of Hungarian descent is glad to hear it! It’s an untimely defeat for Trump and renewed hope for Zelenskyy. The new Hungarian leader can earn friends in the EU if he endorses a package of aid to Ukraine. –Charles Dervarics