He is disposed by maga. I am watching videos of it. He thinks he is going to follow Trump as president. The only way that Vance will ever be president is if Trump dies in office. He is a smarmy hateful man who is barely human who has no principles and will do anything for power. Hugs
JD Vance Gave A Speech To Almost No One And The Photos Are Wild
Awkwaaaard.
Read in BuzzFeed: https://apple.news/AfHnrxHn4T3-qIIqlD7NFYw
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There’s gotta be something each of us wants to know, and likely are things we need to know but may not be covered by traditional or partisan news outlets. It’s long, of course.
Good morning, everyone!
Be sure to check out my Notes page, where I will keep you up to date with the dayโs historical snapshots and notable quotes.
(embedded post on the page; reformatted by WP below:)
Today, a bronze statue of the two men stands in Gdaลsk, Poland, to commemorate their efforts against totalitarianism.59310
Today, we will look at yesterdayโs congressional resignations, President Donald Trumpโs criticism of Pope Leo, and other news spanning each continent.
Letโs get to it.
United States
-Both Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell and Republican Congressman Tony Gonzalez resigned from the House of Representatives yesterday amid a slew of ethical and legal controversies related to sexual misconduct.
The House Clerk read their respective resignation letters on the floor, which were met by bipartisan applause.
View it here: https://youtu.be/d7ZRrw1cb-U?si=N4Hy8Cd-KlhUyOA4
Their departures leave the lower chamber with 216 Republicans and 213 Democrats.
-California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a proclamation yesterday setting the date for a special election to fill the remainder of Swalwellโs term for August 18.
-House Democrats introduced a bill that would establish a commission to assess whether President Donald Trump should be removed from office.
-Wholesale inflation rose to 4% in March, a four-year high, according to new data released yesterday.
The uptick was fueled by a 15.7% rise in gasoline prices, accounting for half of the increase due to the war in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, the average U.S. gas price stood at $4.11 yesterday, according to AAA.
-Senate Majority Leader John Thune said yesterday that Republicans โwould be prepared to confirmโ a nominee to the Supreme Court in the event of a retirement ahead of the midterm elections.
For weeks, rumors in Washington have circulated around whether Justice Samuel Alito could retire in the next several weeks.
The 76-year-old conservative has been on the Court since 2006 and is the second-oldest on the high court, behind Clarence Thomas.
-The Senate Banking Committee is expected to hold a confirmation hearing next Tuesday on Trumpโs nominee to lead the Federal Reserve.
-Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said yesterday that Trump is readying an executive order that would mandate U.S. banks to collect citizenship information.
-The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Connecticut and the city of New Haven over its sanctuary policies.
-The Republican National Committee (RNC) ended February with $109 million, seven times as much as its Democratic counterpart.
-Democratic Senate candidate Roy Cooper raised more than $13.8 million in the first quarter of the year.
-Trump said that he was โnot a big fanโ of Riley Gaines after the conservative activist criticized his posting of an AI-generated image depicting himself as Jesus.
-Streamer Hasan Piker called the Republican Party the โbiggest domestic terroristโ group in the country on Pod Save America.
The comment comes as Democrats wrestle with whether to welcome or distance themselves from the content creator ahead of this yearโs elections.
-Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a prospective 2028 Democratic presidential candidate, will be honored by the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund in Washington this weekend.
-Former President Joe Bidenโs official portrait was unveiled yesterday at Syracuse University.
View the full ceremony here.
-On this day in 1865, President Abraham Lincoln died one day after being shot by John Wilkes Booth.
In 1945, three days after his death, President Franklin Roosevelt was buried in the Rose Garden of his estate in Hyde Park, New York.
In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball.
Africa
-Authorities in Nigeriaย apprehended a 33-member gangย allegedly responsible for abducting 38 people at a church in the countryโs central Kwara state in November.
The arrest is part of the central governmentโs crackdown on criminal groups.
-Libyaโs eastern- and western-based administrations participated in military exercises hosted by the United States for the first time on Tuesday.
Since the ouster of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the North African country has been rocked by civil conflict and divided government authority, with competing geographic factions vying for territorial control since 2014.
-On this day in 1958, the First Conference of Independent African States was held in Accra, Ghana, bringing together the leaders of the eight independent African nations at the time to coordinate their opposition to colonialism and foster continental unity.
At the gathering, the leaders designated April 15 as โAfrican Freedom Day.โ
In 1963, the Organization of African Unity moved the date to May 25.
In 2023, civil war broke out in Sudan after the countryโs army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) descended into a battle for control of the capital, Khartoum.
Since then, the country has been gripped by widespread death and disease.
According to some estimates, there have been at least 150,000 deaths since the war broke out, with some 14 million more people having been displaced.
According to the United Nations, an estimated 19 million people, or about 41% of the population, are facing โhigh levels of acute food insecurity.โ
Americas and the Caribbean
-Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney suspended the fuel tax amid heightened prices due to the situation in the Middle East.
The move is Carneyโs first act since his Liberal Party secured a majority in parliament following two Toronto by-election victories on Monday.
With the victories, the Liberals now hold 174 seats in the 343-seat House of Commons.
Carney held a press conference in Ottawa yesterday following the victory.
View it here: https://www.youtube.com/live/7zPo9AGbIrE?si=8pWwRzeY22MuphU-
-Brazilian President Luiz Inรกcio Lula da Silvaย calledย for the extradition of former spy chief Alexandre Ramagem after he was apprehended in the United States.
Ramagem fled Brazil after he was convicted of his role in plotting a coup with now-former President Jair Bolsonaro following his 2022 election defeat.
Bolsonaro is currently serving a 27-year prison term.
-A younger generation of Castro family members are assuming leadership positions in Cuba, according to The Wall Street Journal.
-On this day in 1959, Fidel Castro visited the United States, just four months after successfully leading a revolution that toppled Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista.
Asia/Indo-Pacific
-North Korea carried out another test of its strategic cruise and anti-warship missiles on Sunday as relations between Pyongyang and South Korea continue to deteriorate.
-Five countries in the Indo-Pacific will participate in U.S.-led military exercises in the region starting next week.
The drills, which will run from April 20 to May 8, come as U.S. allies in the region worry that Washingtonโs strategic focus has shifted from Asia to the Middle East amid its conflict with Iran.
Australia, Canada, France, the Philippines, and New Zealand will contribute forces to the multilateral effort.
-Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. did a few rounds of jumping jacks in a bid to dispel rumors of his failing health.
-The United Nations said that around 250 people are missing after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals capsized in the Andaman Sea due to heavy winds.
-On this day in 1998, Pol Pot died in his sleep.
During his four-year rule over Cambodia, his Khmer Rouge regime carried out a genocide against the Cambodian people, killing an estimated 1.5 to 3 million people, accounting for nearly one-quarter of the Southeast Asian nationโs population.
Europe
-Days after President Trump criticized Pope Leo for his opposition to Washingtonโs war against Iran, the Vatican issued a statement warning the advanced democracies risked sliding into โmajoritarian tyranny,โ a seemingly veiled shot at Trumpโs populist movement.
-In an interview with an Italian newspaper, Trump said that he was โshockedโ by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloniโs opposition to his decision to launch a military operation against Iran, representing a break between the conservative allies.
In response to Meloni calling his attacks on the Pope โunacceptable,โ Trump said, โItโs her whoโs unacceptable.โ
-Trump called on the United Kingdom to drill oil from the North Sea to offset surging global energy prices.
-The Irish government survived a no-confidence vote amid nationwide protests over the rising cost of fuel.
-U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will once again skip a virtual meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group today. Instead, the Pentagonโs policy chief, Elbridge Colby, will attend in his place.
The grouping of over 50 defense chiefs seeks to coordinate military assistance to Ukraine as it wards off invading Russian forces.
The forum was established in April 2022 just after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Since assuming office, the Trump administration has delegated its leadership role in the body.
-French President Emmanuel Macron said he would seek a coordinated approach to ban minors from using social media across the 27-member European Union.
-On this day in 1452, Leonardo da Vinci was born in Italy.
In 1912, the RMS Titanic sank in the North Atlantic.
Middle East
-U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted officials from Israel and Lebanon in Washington yesterday for ceasefire negotiations.
View their opening statements here: https://youtu.be/EbyHClXJ5jw?si=WVgGfovpzYAF7XdV
Shortly after the U.S. and Israel launched a joint military operation against Iran on February 28, the Israeli military began striking Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon, ending a teetering ceasefire agreement.
According to estimates, the fighting has killed around 2,000 people and displaced over one million people in Lebanon.
Meanwhile, President Trump said yesterday that talks with Iran could resume as early as this week.
Last weekend, Vice President JD Vance led a U.S. delegation for talks with Iranian officials in Pakistan. After those talks broke down, Trump said that he would impose a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to get Iran to agree to a long-term agreement to settle the war and to place limits on its nuclear program.
Vance appeared on Fox News on Monday to discuss the talks.
View it here: https://youtu.be/3uY2tEY0qms?si=0jJXFgjDKPRUN-g7
It is believed that Iran has planted mines in the strategic waterway, and Tehran has threatened to attack ports belonging to Arab Gulf states if its ports are attacked.
Prior to the recent war in the region, the Strait served as a conduit for 20% of the worldโs daily oil consumption.
-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuโs public approval rating has continued to slide following the countryโs war with Iran.
The 76-year-old, who has dominated politics in Israel for the better part of the past two decades, is expected to seek another term in office in parliamentary elections due by late October.
Last week, a long-running public corruption trial against Netanyahu restarted after pausing due to the war.
-On this day in 1993, President Bill Clinton hosted Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in the Oval Office to discuss the Middle East peace process.
Later that year, Clinton would host Rabin, along with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, at the White House for the signing of the Oslo Accords, establishing a framework for the eventual settlement of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
In 1995, Rabin was assassinated as he departed a peace rally in Tel Aviv by an Israeli radical angry over Rabinโs peace overtures to the Palestinians.
Speaking at Rabinโs funeral service in Jerusalem, Clinton said, โYour Prime Minister was a martyr for peace, but he was a victim of hate. Surely we must learn from his martyrdom that if people cannot let go of the hatred of their enemies, they risk sowing the seeds of hatred among themselves.โ
Thatโs all for today. See you tomorrow.
โNo peaceโ: Nearly a year after her sonโs death, she learned that ICE was responsible
Ruben Ray Martinez is considered the first person to be killed by ICE during President Trumpโs second term. His mother believes his death could have been avoided.
Read in NPR: https://apple.news/AJn4yZ6X2R-CiMaErxjP3iw
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some really cool fiction. We all need a brain cleanser, and this is short and sweet. The bit underneath the End emojis is in German, though your device may translate, which will be a duplicate. I included the German in case someone will enjoy that one, too.
Beatrice Halton – Bee Writes Apr 14, 2026
โHeโs done it at last?โ
โI guess so, look at how he is jumping around!โ
โLike a rabbit on speed!โ
โThere is this rumour he had trouble with drugs back in the โ80s.โ
โIs that when he started building thisโฆ this wellโฆ I know itโs what they called a house on earthโ
โYes, I remember when he pulled the whole planet out of the other dimension. I think he had planned to build the house on the planet but of course, thatโs not possible. You canโt build from one dimension to another. โ
โBut itโs in this dimension!!!!โ
โNo, itโs not. See thatโs the problem with quantum physics. Nothing is how it seems.โ
โAh. So he got frustrated and into drugs?โ
โProbably.โ
โHe managed somehow thoughโฆโ
โAs we can see but he has a planet stuck on his entrance door.โ
โStupid!โ
โYes, really stupidโ
๐ ๐คฃ๐ ๐คฃ๐ ๐คฃ๐ ๐คฃ๐ ๐คฃ
โHat er es endlich geschafft?โ
โIch glaube schon, schau mal, wie er da herumhรผpft!โ
โWie ein Kaninchen auf Speed!โ
โEs gibt dieses Gerรผcht, dass er in den 80ern Probleme mit Drogen hatte.โ
โIst das die Zeit, als er angefangen hat, dieses โฆ dieses โฆ nun ja โฆ ich weiร, man nennt so etwas auf der Erde ein Haus.โ
โJa, ich erinnere mich, als er den ganzen Planeten aus der anderen Dimension geholt hat. Ich glaube, er hatte vor, das Haus auf dem Planeten zu bauen, aber das ist natรผrlich nicht mรถglich. Man kann nicht von einer Dimension in eine andere bauen.โ
โAber es ist doch in dieser Dimension!!!!โ
โNein, tut es nicht. Siehst du, das ist das Problem mit der Quantenphysik. Nichts ist so, wie es scheint.โ
โAh. Also war er frustriert und hat mit Drogen angefangen?โ
โWahrscheinlich.โ
โEr hat es aber irgendwie geschafft โฆโ
โWie wir sehen kรถnnen, aber er hat einen Planeten an seiner Eingangstรผr hรคngen.โ
โDumm!โ
โJa, wirklich dumm.โ
Before Donald Trump posted the ridiculous AI image of him as Jesus healing the sick, he attacked Pope Leo in a lengthy tirade on Truth Social.
Trump wrote, โPope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy. He talks about โfearโ of the Trump Administration, but doesnโt mention the FEAR that the Catholic Church, and all other Christian Organizations, had during COVID when they were arresting priests, ministers, and everybody else, for holding Church Services, even when going outside. I like his brother Louis much better than I like him, because Louis is all MAGA.โ (snip-MORE)
Iโm not religious so the fact that Trump posted an image showing himself as Jesus doesnโt personally insult me. But some of the criticism have described his actions as blasphemous, which I think is dangerous territory for a secular society. There are countries which have blasphemy laws that have led to horrendous murders, just because someoneโs religious sensibilities have been offended. It has no place in a democracy. What Americans ought to be outraged about was the gaslighting response Trump gave to a reporter when asked about the image. Either he was lying through his teeth or his dementia is further along than I thought.
Hereโs an cartoon from 2020 when Trump pandered to Christian voters by demanding governors open houses of worship during the Covid pandemic shutdown.
Yesterday, after posting a tirade against the Pope on Truth Social, Donald Trump shared an AI-created image of himself as Jesus Christ. A lot of people didn’t take kindly to this, probably because Donald Trump posted a picture of himself as Jesus Christ.
Asย The New York Timesย describes it, โThe image had showed Mr. Trump (sic) dressed in white and red robes, with the presidentโs hands emitting shining lights. His right hand was touching the forehead of a man lying on a bed in a hospital gown, evoking religious art that depicts Jesus healing the sick.โ (snip-MORE)
Woot! He has mentioned in other posts that this one is longer than usual, so relax and enjoy. Also, remember Josh is on The Late Show, with Stephen Colbert, tonight!
This is what working for the people, working for the public means. This is what representing the will of the people / public looks like. This is what is attracting the people / public voters to the democrats, yet Chuck Schumer as yet to endorse Mamdani. Why? Because the two are the opposite sides of the political coin.ย One wants to serve and represent the people / public and the other is a corporate democrat beholden to big money donors and major lobbyist groups.ย Same with Hakeem Jerofies who only endorsed Mamdani when on election night it became clear he would be the winner.ย Hugs
This is a doctor working in Gaza.ย He describes the conditions. The Israelis are sniping World Health doctors. Israelis are moving the “yellow line” that they are claiming is the new boundary line between Israel and Palestinians.ย They are slowly moving the line deeper ad deeper into Gaza.ย The Israeli snipers were shooting the young boys in different areas on different days, now they are using drones to fire on young children alone with horrific results. Remember from the last clip he was saying how Israel is blocking and destroying the medical supplies and equipment. Israel is deliberately shooting and killing children.ย They want the chaos it causes, they like the fear it promotes, and they like that no new generations of Palestinians are growing. The doctor spoke of other atrocities that Israel is inflicting daily on the Palestinians.ย Israel is a criminal nation doing a genocide, and much of our democratic leadership is deeply in the pockets of AIPAC.ย Notice that Hakeem Jeffries was also at the same event.ย People here have asked why I am so anti-democratic leadership; this is one of the reasons why. They are beholden to the big money donors and lobbies doing their bidding while ignoring the desires and will of the people they are supposed to represent, not rule over.ย Hugs
Senate Minority Leaderย Chuck Schumerย has emphasized his commitment to maintaining pro-Israel sentiments within theย Democratic Party. In recent statements,ย Schumerย articulated that his role is to ensure that the left remains supportive of Israel, a position he conveyed during an interview withย The New York Times. This assertion reflects a broader concern regarding the changing dynamics of the Democratic Party’s support for Israel and Jewish causes. Schumer’s comments have sparked discussions about the implications of this shift, particularly in light of the party’s historical alignment with pro-Israel policies. Opinion pieces have noted that Schumer views the preservation of American institutions as integral to protecting religious minorities, highlighting the intersection of Jewish identity and political advocacy.ย https://deepnewz.com/middle-east/chuck-schumer-emphasizes-role-keeping-left-pro-israel-says-job-to-keep-the-left-f0ff217c
โI have many jobs as [Senate] leader… and one is to fight for aid to Israel โ all the aid that Israel needs,โ Schumer said at a gathering of Jewish leaders and community members in New York on Sunday.
โI will continue to fight for it.,โ Schumer continued. โWe delivered more security assistance to Israel, our ally, than ever, ever before.โ
According to Jacob Kornbluh, who provided footage of the remarks whileย reportingย forย The Forward, Schumer told the audience that his support for Jewish security funding will only continue growing under his leadership, calling it his โbaby.โย https://www.commondreams.org/news/schumer-israel-aid
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York) said on Sunday that one of his most important jobs as Senate minority leader is to โfight for aid to Israel,โ as the Trump administrationโs masked federal agents continue their deadly raids of the U.S. with little to no pushback from Democrats.
In remarks atย a breakfast gathering of Jewish leadersย in New York City, Schumerย said, โI have many jobs as leader โฆ and one is to fight for aid to Israel, all the aid that Israel needs.โ Part of the remarks at the โโUJA-Federation of New York gathering were posted online byย The Forward reporter Jacob Kornbluh. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York) also spoke at the event.ย https://truthout.org/articles/as-trumps-dhs-ravages-us-schumer-says-his-job-is-to-fight-for-aid-to-israel/
Dr. Tarek Loubani, a Canadian emergency room physician who has been volunteering in Palestine joins the program from Gaza for a harrowing interview. If you can, please support Dr. Loubaniโs Glia Project, a medical solidarity organization that empowers low-resource communities to build sustainable, locally-drive healthcare projects.
Today’s Morning Memo from Talking Points Memo.
David Kurtz Apr 14, 2026
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 07: U.S. President Donald Trump (L) welcomes Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban as he arrives at the White House on November 07, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump and Orban are holding a bilateral lunch today and are expected to discuss trade and energy. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
In the aftermath of Viktor Orbรกnโs defeat in Hungary, a typically shallow conventional wisdom has already emerged that unless President Trump gets the economy turned around, Republicans are going to have hell to pay in the 2026 and 2028 elections.
The NYT quotes the right-wing commentator Rod Dreher, who decamped to Hungary to work for an Orbรกn-funded think tank, as explaining the election result thusly: โWhen all boats arenโt rising, everybody looks at whoโs on the yacht. In terms of MAGA, populism is great, but if you canโt deliver on the economy, none of it is going to matter.โ
That is abundantly true and yet terribly misleading because the economic mess weโre in is entirely of Trumpโs own doing. Heโs not the usual American president held hostage to the vagaries and cycles of an economy largely beyond his control.
In historic fashion, Trump has torpedoed key pillars of the global economy by launching unprecedented trade wars and an unjustified elective war in the Middle East that has bottled up world oil supplies to such an extent that it threatens a recession. At home, he has dramatically throttled back the economic engine of immigration, targeted Americaโs world leading universities, and decimated its vibrant scientific and biomedical research base.
Except for the racist assault on immigrants, all of these moves are not driven by ideological imperatives but by corrupt impulses. The economic damage Trump has done was crafted purposely to create opportunities for self-enrichment for him and his allies. It generates its own currency which can be used to perpetuate his political power. What he dispenses he can take away.
The AP sums up the Trump family kleptocracy succinctly:
The family real estate business is undergoing the fastest overseas expansion since its founding a century ago, each deal potentially shaping everything from tariffs to military aid.
Led by Eric, and his brother, Donald Jr., the family business has expanded into cryptocurrencies with ventures that brought in billions of dollars but raised questions about whether some big investors received favorable treatment in return.
The brothers have also joined or invested in a number of companies that aim to do business with the government their father runs. Last month, they struck a deal giving them stakes worth millions in an armed drone maker seeking contracts with the Pentagon and with Gulf states under attack by Iran and dependent on the U.S. military led by their father.
It always sounds a bit earnest to deplore corruption, but one of the practical reasons for eschewing corruption is because at best it acts like an invisible tax on economic growth. At worst, it corrodes the economic engine to the point that it doesnโt properly function any longer. Before Trump, the United States was a world leader in combatting corporate and political corruption abroad for the unapologetically realpolitik reason that American companies could win on a level playing field. Under Trump II, the DOJ has explicitly stopped enforcing the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and weโre now in a grubby race to the bottom.
Any notion that Trump can get the economy โback on trackโ or dampen the economic shockwaves he has unleashed ignores the substance of what heโs done. Not only are Trumpโs second term attacks on economic growth hard to reverse, let alone quickly, theyโre deeply wired into who he is and what heโs about.
The U.S. attacked an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Eastern Pacific on Monday, bringing the campaignโs overall death toll to at least 170. In announcing the attack, the U.S. Southern Command introduced new Orwellian language: โApplying total systemic friction on the cartels.โ
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is waging a pressure campaign against the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to squash a potential investigation into the boat strike campaign, The Intercept reports.
TPMโs Josh Kovensky reports from Frisco, Texas, the countryโs fastest growing city and a haven for South Asian immigrants, which far-right activists are seizing on as โproofโ of the Great Replacement Theory.
Local authorities in St. Paul, Minnesota have launched a criminal investigation into the notorious ICE detention in January of Hmong American ChongLy โScottโ Thao. Theyโre investigating the warrantless raid on an American citizenโs home as a potential kidnapping, burglary, and false imprisonment.
Cheryl Kelley in The Hill:
American law is built on a simple rule: The government cannot get around legal limits by creating a new structure to do the same thing another way. The Posse Comitatus Act reflects that rule. It exists to prevent the federal government from using a large, armed force for general policing inside the U.S. But by tripling ICEโs size, giving it $75 billion in multi-year funding insulated from normal oversight, and deploying it far beyond immigration enforcement โ from neighborhood operations to general airport security โ the administration has achieved in practice what those restrictions were designed to prevent.
In a rapid-fire combo of scandal-fueled resignations, Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Tony Gonzales (R-TX) both announced last evening that they would resign their seats โ though neither gave a date certain for their departures. Depending on the exact timing, the resignations should be a wash and not effect majority control of the House.
Wired: Government Workers Say Theyโre Getting Inundated With Religion
The senior senator from Ohio:
Unintentional Edginess From CSPAN
(snip)
Scottie's Playtime 
