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The latest in politics and policy. Direct to your inbox. Sign up for the 12:30 Report newsletter SubscribeIt’s Monday. The first-ever all-female crew went to space this morning on a Blue Origin flight! Katy Perry was on board, and I cannot get her 2011 song “E.T.” out of my head. Keep scrolling for the highlights.
In today's issue:
Trump, El Salvador's Bukele in Oval Office Trump wants '60 Minutes' license revoked New details in Pennsylvania governor house arson Bernie Sanders’s surprise Coachella appearance Meta vs. Trump trial beginsTHE FIRST 100 DAYS
Trump, El Salvador president meet:
President Trump met El Salvador President Nayib Bukele at the White House amid the Trump administration’s deportation efforts.
? Watch the meeting
First, you should know there are two legal battles that are top of mind:
1. The administration seemingly went against a court order by sending Venezuelan immigrants to a prison in El Salvador.
2. A Maryland man was mistakenly sent to El Salvador a few weeks ago. The Supreme Court then ruled that the Trump administration should "facilitate" his return. The Department of Justice argues that federal courts don’t have the authority to get him back.
Highlights from the meeting:
? Wow — El Salvador’s president just said he does not plan to return the Maryland man: “How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States? Of course I'm not going to do it. The question is preposterous.”
Things got testy: At one point, Trump asked CNN journalist Kaitlan Collins why she wouldn't just say it's great to keep criminals out of the United States. "Why can't you just say that?" he asked.
Trump said about Ukrainian President Zelensky: “You don’t start a war against somebody that’s 20 times your size and then hope that people give you some missiles.”
Keep in mind that Russia invaded Ukraine, not the reverse.
Read more: Trump, Bukele say they won’t return mistakenly deported man to US
➤ TIDBIT IN THE WHITE HOUSE:
Politico’s Eli Stokols reports that The Associated Press’s reporter and photographer were denied access to the Oval Office today, despite a judge ordering that they be given access.
All rise in the trial of Trump vs. Meta:
The Trump administration is trying to prove that Meta — the social media company that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — is an illegal monopoly. The trial begins today and is expected to run for several weeks.
What could happen if the Trump team wins?: Meta could be forced to sell Instagram, per the BBC.
Backstory: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleges that Meta has created a monopoly by acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp. The FTC sued at the end of the first Trump administration. The case was dismissed in 2021, but the agency amended its complaint. A judge ruled in November that this case would go to trial.
Timing — some drama at the FTC: President Trump fired the FTC’s two Democratic commissioners, causing quite the stir. Those two commissioners are suing.
Read The Hill’s Julia Shapero’s primer on the trial: ‘Trump FTC faces first major test with Meta trial’
‘60 Minutes’ is not his cup of tea:
President Trump bashed CBS Sunday night regarding “60 Minutes” segments on Ukraine and Greenland, arguing they cast him in a negative light.
OK, so what?: Well, Trump threatened CBS, calling for its broadcast license to be revoked and urged the Federal Communications Commission to fine it for its critical coverage.
Part of Trump’s post: “They did not one, but TWO, major stories on ‘TRUMP,’ one having to do with Ukraine, which I say is a War that would never have happened if the 2020 Election had not been RIGGED, in other words, if I were President and, the other story was having to do with Greenland, casting our Country, as led by me, falsely, inaccurately, and fraudulently.”
? Watch Sunday’s Greenland segment
? Watch Sunday’s Ukraine segment
Keep in mind: Trump has clashed with “60 Minutes” for months. He sued CBS News in October over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. He claimed the interview was edited to portray Harris positively while CBS argued its segments are routinely edited for time. The New York Times reported earlier this month that Trump and Paramount are in mediation with the lawsuit.
Lots of mixed messages:
President Trump announced a big exemption for his escalating global trade war: electronics. Specifically: smartphones, computers and roughly 20 electronics.
Customers have been bracing for potential price hikes, so this would lead to a much-needed reprieve.
For how long?: Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday that the tariff exemptions for electronics are temporary — “a month or two.”
^ But Trump later disputed this as being an exception: “There was no Tariff ‘exception’ announced on Friday,” Trump posted Sunday afternoon. “These products are subject to the existing 20% Fentanyl Tariffs, and they are just moving to a different Tariff ‘bucket.’ The Fake News knows this, but refuses to report it.”? Read Trump’s full post
And Trump said he would be announcing new tariffs on semiconductors soon, though there could be some “flexibility” for some products. Keep in mind that semiconductors are critical to making many electronics.
How are the markets doing today?: U.S. stocks rose a bit this morning following the exception made for electronics.
"I don't want to hurt anybody," Trump said Monday afternoon, discussing his trade policies. "But the end result is we're going to get to the position of greatness for our country."
?️ NEWS THIS MORNING
To quote Katy Perry's 2011 banger — 'It's supernatural, extraterrestrial':
Blue Origin launched six women into space this morning as part of its space tourism endeavor.
? Watch the rocket launch
Who was on board?: Pop star Katy Perry, media personality Gayle King, philanthropist Lauren Sánchez (CEO Jeff Bezos’s fiancée), former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, film producer Kerianne Flynn and civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen
? Katy Perry’s tour of the capsule
? Oprah tears up watching her friend Gayle on board
How long was the mission?: 10 minutes and 21 seconds! They were briefly able to experience weightlessness.
?️ OVER THE WEEKEND
This is horrific:
A 38-year-old man has been arrested over suspected arson at Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s (D) residence early Sunday morning.
Shapiro, his wife, their four children and two dogs were all home, as well as other family, per CNN. They had just hosted a Passover dinner a few hours earlier. The family was woken at 2 a.m. by state troopers and rushed out of the home. No one was injured.
New details today: Local officials said today that the suspect used Molotov cocktails and “would have beaten” Shapiro “with his hammer” if he had run into him in the home.
? Footage of the damage— oh my gosh, this is scary.
The Trump administration weighed in: President Trump just called the attacker a “whack job.” Vice President Vance called the incident “really disgusting violence” and Attorney General Pam Bondi said she is “deeply relieved that Governor Shapiro and his family are safe.”
? Watch Shapiro discuss the incident
⏱️ON CAPITOL HILL
If history is the measure, 2026 is not looking great for the GOP:
“Republican lawmakers say there’s a good chance that President Trump’s trade war will boomerang on Republicans politically in 2026, as rising prices and shrinking growth could offset other accomplishments by the GOP,” reports The Hill’s Alexander Bolton.
How so?: “Republican senators are pointing to the 1932 and 1982 elections as historical examples of when trade wars and resulting price inflation hurt their party at the ballot box, and they are worried that history could repeat itself.”
I understand why they’re nervous: “Many Republican lawmakers view tariffs as a tax hike on American consumers, and some note that the last two times Congress enacted tax hikes on the scale of Trump’s recent tariffs, the president’s party suffered a wipeout in the next election.”
Read Bolton’s comparison to 1982 and 1932: ‘Republicans fear Trump’s trade war could lead to political wipeout’
➤ THE ISSUE THAT COULD MAKE OR BREAK TRUMP’S AGENDA:
Medicaid. As part of Trump’s legislative agenda, Republicans want to drastically slash spending to the government health program for low-income Americans. That is unsurprisingly controversial, splitting some congressional Republicans who are worried about their constituents.
Expect to hear a lot about the internal Medicaid debate over the next few weeks.
Read The Hill’s Mike Lillis’s reporting: ‘Spotlight shifts to Medicaid, a make-or-break issue for Trump’
COMING UP
The House and Senate are out. President Trump is in Washington. (All times EST)
3 p.m. Trump hosts the Ohio State University football team to celebrate its 2025 national championship. ? Livestream
? INTERNET BUZZ
? Celebrate: Today is National Pecan Day.
? Surprise guest at Coachella!: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) came on stage at the Coachella music festival Saturday night. ? Watch
^ He also jokingly referred to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) as his daughter during a Utah rally Sunday.
? The talk of SNL this weekend: The ? cold open of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” was about Trump’s tariffs, Jesus and Easter. There was also a “White Lotus” parody — ? “The White POTUS” — spoofing the president’s family. Actress Aimee Lou Wood called the sketch’s portrayal of her teeth “mean and unfunny,” then later she said the show reached out and apologized.
? ‘Make America Hot Again?’: The Washington Post reports that a conservative lifestyle publication hosted a party in Washington, D.C., with an “America Is Hot Again” theme. Think: Lots of “button-ups, pleated skirts, blazers, bows, pearls” and red MAGA hats. ? Photos from the party
? AND FINALLY…
To lighten things a bit, watch this dog do his best to make a friend.
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