April 2, 2025
MIDDLE EAST | UKRAINE | U.S. TARIFFS | U.S. BOMBERS | U.S. SENATE | U.S. PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING | WISCONSIN | FLORIDA | U.S. IMMIGRATION | GUINEA | PARAGUAY AND BRAZIL | R.I.P. | TODAY IN HISTORY
MIDDLE EAST | Update from regional conflicts:
- Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said today that his country's renewed military operations in Gaza will be expanded to seize "large areas" and that the seizures will involve the "extensive evacuation" of populations from the yet-unspecified areas affected. [more]
UKRAINE | Today is day 1133 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:
- Russia and Ukraine today accused each other of violating a U.S.-brokered moratorium on attacks targeting energy infrastructure, with Russian officials saying a Ukrainian drone attack in the Kursk region shut off power to more than 1,500 households and Ukrainian officials claiming that a Russian drone hit an energy substation in the Sumy region overnight. [more]
U.S. TARIFFS | President Donald Trump is expected to announce sweeping new tariffs on imported goods this afternoon in a move the White House has referred to as "Liberation Day." Specifics of the import duties have not yet been released, but are expected to include so-called "reciprocal tariffs" that match those placed on U.S. goods by other countries. [more]
U.S. BOMBERS | The Associated Press cites satellite imagery as showing that at least six U.S. B-2 Spirit bombers have been deployed to Camp Thunder Bay on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean and notes both that the B-2 has been used previously to target Houthi rebels in Yemen and that placement of the bombers on Diego Garcia puts them within striking distance of both Yemen and Iran. [more]
U.S. SENATE | New Jersey Senator Cory Booker ended his marathon speech on the Senate floor yesterday after speaking for 25 hours and 5 minutes. Booker spent much of the record-setting speech assailing the policies of President Donald Trump and ended by invoking late congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis' exhortation to "go out and cause some good trouble, necessary trouble, to redeem the soul of our nation." [more]
U.S. PUBLIC HEALTH FUNDING | Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit yesterday seeking to force the Trump administration to restore some $11 billion in federal funding allocated during the COVID-19 pandemic to support various public health projects across the country. [more]
WISCONSIN | Liberal candidate Susan Crawford will serve on the Wisconsin Supreme Court following yesterday's election win over conservative-backed Brad Schimel. The race is reported to have been the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history, with an expected total outlay of more than $100 million, including more than $21 million spent by Tesla CEO and Trump administration Department of Government Efficiency leader Elon Musk, who supported Schimel. [more]
FLORIDA | Republicans held onto two Florida congressional seats in yesterday's special elections, though reports note that the electoral victories were by significantly more narrow margins than those seen in the most recent presidential race, in which Donald Trump won by more than 30 points in the two districts. [more]
U.S. IMMIGRATION | A federal judge in California yesterday ordered the restoration through April 16 of legal aid to tens of thousands of migrant children currently in the U.S. without a parent or guardian. Reports note that the contract to provide the legal aid was terminated by the Department of Health and Human Services on March 21. [more]
GUINEA | According to a decree released yesterday, Guinea's military leader has set September 21 as the date for a constitutional referendum that political analysts suggest could be the West African nation's first move toward a return to democracy and civilian rule since the military leadership took power in September 2021. [more]
PARAGUAY AND BRAZIL | Paraguay recalled its ambassador to Brazil yesterday following an acknowledgment by Brazilian authorities that Brazilian intelligence services spied on Paraguayan officials in 2022. [more]
R.I.P. | Actor Val Kilmer, widely known for his roles in "Top Gun," "Batman Forever," "Tombstone," and "The Doors," died yesterday from complications of pneumonia at the age of 65. [more]
TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1982, Argentine troops seized the disputed Falkland Islands from the United Kingdom, sparking the Falklands War. [more history]