They had to knee the guy? Really?

The acting head of the CDC has canceled publication of a study showing the Covid vaccine sharply cut hospitalizations and emergency visits last winter.

And we're all going to die anyway.

Sen. Roger Marshall on the Iranian people: "We're literally starving them. They can't feed themselves very long."

BENNET: Do you agree that 89% of children who died from flu were unvaccinated?

RFK Jr: I don't know the exact number

BENNET: That is the exact number, Secretary Kennedy

RFK Jr: *death growls*

BENNET: You took down the HHS communications promoting the flu vaccine. Do you regret that?

HASSAN: Does the president know about your self-promoting videos using official HHS resources?

RFK Jr: I didn't know about a number of those videos. I just happened to not see them.

HASSAN: So you don't know how your own team is managing official resources?

HASSAN: Did the president approve your decision to fire all 17 members of the CDC's vaccine committee in June 2025?

RFK Jr: Uhhhhh -- you mean did I talk to him directly? We talked to the White House DPC

The Inside Story of Five Days That Remade the Supreme Court

Remarkable SCOTUS reporting in the NYTimes, which pretty much confirms what observers have always assumed, but still astonishes. (Gift link)

www.nytimes.com/2026/04/18/u...

The Inside Story of Five Days That Remade the Supreme Court

There’s so much to say about the remarkable reporting from Jodi Kantor & Adam Liptak—and I’ll say a lot of it in Monday’s newsletter.

But the most striking thing about all of it is the role & behavior of Chief Justice Roberts. “Calling balls and strikes” this ain’t:

www.nytimes.com/2026/04/18/u...

Yikes! Always something…

We better wake up to what’s happening online. The right isn’t just posting anymore; they’re scaling influence with AI.

📌 AI-generated pro-Trump “influencers” are surging on social media and are starting to shape what people see and believe.

President Obama and Mayor Mamdani read to kids in the Bronx…

Child: I know your name. Mamdani.

Obama: What’s his first name?

Child: Mayor.

Mayor Mamdani and President Obama read a picture book to a group of children.

Mayor Mamdani and President Obama chat and laugh with a group of children.

Mayor Mamdani and President Obama chat and laugh.

Children hug Mayor Mamdani.

Today, President Barack Obama and I read to a group of toddlers at Learning Through Play Pre-K Center in the South Bronx. 

In between singing wheels on the bus, we discussed our administration’s vision for this City — one where New York’s Cutest have the strongest start possible.

Barack Obama and Zohran Mamdani sing ‘Wheels on the Bus’ to kids in NYC

Texas Medical Board Sanctions Three Doctors for Delayed Care That Led to the Deaths of Two Pregnant Women The two women died during miscarriages. The state’s medical board has ruled that substandard care led to their deaths.

NEW: Porsha Ngumezi and Nevaeh Crain died during miscarriages in Texas after doctors delayed treatment.

The state’s medical board has ruled that substandard care led to the deaths, but the doctors were given minimal punishment.

By Kavitha Surana and Lizzie Presser

When a prosecutor finds that there is insufficient evidence to prosecute one of Trump’s enemies after a thorough assessment of the facts and law, he just fires the prosecutor and gets a new one to hack it up. Authoritarianism 101 from Trump’s Gangster Lawless DOJ.

This! Fucking EPICNESS! FUCKING EPIC MIC 🎤 DROP! Repost my friends 🔄

We live to fight another day! A victory tonight—as we killed a backroom deal Johnson and the WH cut to extend FISA authority for five more years. Dropped in the middle of the night.

We killed it on the Floor. But, it will be back. So we must keep fighting!

NPR Receives $113 Million From 2 Gifts The donations, from the philanthropist Connie Ballmer and an anonymous donor, will support the network’s long-term strategy.

NPR on Thursday said it had received two gifts totaling $113 million, including the largest donation from a living donor in the network’s history. The donations, from the philanthropist Connie Ballmer and an anonymous donor, will support the network’s long-term strategy.

What I Saw Inside the Kennedy Center I spent 10 months working at the institution because I thought I could help protect it. What I observed there is far worse than the public knows.

Heartbreaking description of the pointless, thoughtless damage being done to the Kennedy Center. It was such an important part of life in Washington, and is now being destroyed for no reason

www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...

Brilliant social post.

🚨FISA VOTE TONIGHT! 🚨 While you are sleeping, Republicans plan to jam a bill through the House tonight allowing the Admin to spy and collect data for the next FIVE YEARS.

No warrants REQUIRED. No real assurances a shady AG, FBI, or DNI director will follow the law. I am a NO!

Haiti hunger crisis deepens as almost 6 million face acute food insecurity Mass displacement, economic strain and gang violence are keeping the ‌Caribbean nation in the grip of a deepening humanitarian crisis.

Haiti hunger crisis deepens as almost 6 million face acute food insecurity reut.rs/4cAxwav

13. Anyway, I'm heading to the floor now to listen to the debate. Groggily. Somewhat grumpily. But with an open mind. If you're up, I'd encourage you to watch as well. Final votes should be in 1 - 2 hours. Stay tuned. /fin

Live link to House

live.house.gov

So there's a really important debate on civil liberties and national security going on on the House floor right now. It is shameful that it's taking place at this late hour of the night / morning. But I'm going to at least do something productive & try to explain here:

Panama Canal downplays report of $4 million 'line-jumping' auction payment amid higher traffic The Panama Canal Authority on Thursday downplayed a report that an LPG vessel paid $4 million to jump the transit queue, ​saying the result reflected temporary market conditions rather than a fee ‌set by the waterway, as the Iran war drives more traffic to the canal.

Panama Canal downplays report of $4 million 'line-jumping' auction payment amid higher traffic reut.rs/4sJj9H1

Voting on spy powers at 2am will definitely help with trust in the government!

Days after the president blasted the Pope as “weak on Crime,” his own DOJ moved to dismiss criminal cases against individuals convicted of conspiring to use force to prevent the peaceful transfer of power.

Some of the conduct for which Rhodes was convicted:

www.lawfaremedia.org/article/oath...

Justice Department Moves To Toss Seditious Conspiracy Convictions Of Oath Keepers And Proud Boys The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to throw out the seditious conspiracy convictions of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders.

A truly dark day for our country.
www.huffpost.com/entry/us-cap...