A political newsletter for normal people
WTF Just Happened Today? is a sane, once-a-day newsletter helping normal people make sense of the news. Curated daily and delivered to 200,000+ people every afternoon around 3 pm Pacific.
Day 1910: “No fear.”
1/ The U.S. began a naval blockade of ships entering or leaving Iranian ports after JD Vance failed to secure a peace deal in talks with Iran in Islamabad. Trump framed the blockade as a way to stop what he called Iranian “extortion,” saying Tehran had “chosen not to accept our terms,” and threatened to “finish up the little that is left of Iran” if it didn’t accept a deal. Hours after the blockade took effect, Trump warned that if Iranian “fast attack ships” came “anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED,” calling the method of attack “quick and brutal.” The talks were aimed at extending the ceasefire and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, but broke down over U.S. demands that Iran suspend uranium enrichment, surrender or dilute its highly enriched uranium, and give up control over traffic through the strait. (New York Times / Washington Post / Politico / NPR / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / CBS News / CNBC / Axios / Associated Press)
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U.S. intelligence agencies obtained indications that China may be preparing to send shoulder-fired air defense missiles to Iran. The intelligence remains uncertain, and officials said there’s no evidence the missiles have been delivered or used. Trump, meanwhile, warned Beijing of “big problems” if it arms Tehran. (CNN / Bloomberg / New York Times)
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Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio attended a UFC fight while JD Vance announced that talks with Iran had failed. Trump entered the arena with UFC president Dana White and family members, took his seat near Rubio, and watched the fights as Vance told reporters that Iran had refused to give up the capacity to produce a nuclear weapon. House Democrats criticized Rubio for missing the talks, calling his attendance at the event “not serious leadership.”(The Guardian / Associated Press)
2/ Trump attacked Pope Leo XIV as “WEAK on Crime” and “terrible for Foreign Policy” after the pope condemned the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, saying “God does not bless any conflict” and warning that “military action will not create space for freedom or times of peace.” Leo also denounced the “idolatry of self and money” and the “display of power” surrounding the war. Trump responded, saying he didn’t “want a Pope who criticizes the President of the United States” and told Leo to “stop catering to the Radical Left” and “focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician.” He then posted an AI-generated image depicting himself as a Jesus-like healer, which was later deleted. Leo, meanwhile, replied that he had “no fear” of the Trump administration and would “continue to speak out loudly against war.” Trump refused to apologize for the now-deleted image and insisted it was “me as a doctor, and had to do with Red Cross. It’s supposed to be me as a doctor making people better, and I do make people better.” (Associated Press / Bloomberg / Washington Post / New York Times / ABC News / NBC News / Axios / CBS News / CNBC / Reuters / Wall Street Journal / The Guardian)
- Trump’s erratic behavior and extreme comments revive mental health debate. “As the president threatens to wipe out Iran and attacks the pope, even some former allies and advisers are questioning whether he has grown increasingly unbalanced, describing him as ‘lunatic’ and ‘clearly insane.’” (New York Times)
3/ Rep. Eric Swalwell will resign from Congress and suspended his California governor campaign after sexual assault and other sexual misconduct allegations. Swalwell said he was “deeply sorry” for “mistakes in judgment” and would fight the “serious false allegation” against him, but said it was wrong for his constituents to have him “distracted” from his duties. The House Ethics Committee opened an investigation into whether Swalwell engaged in sexual misconduct toward an employee he supvervised, while the Manhattan district attorney’s office is also investigating one allegation. A former staffer accused Swalwell of sexually assaulting her, and other women accused him of misconduct including unsolicited nude photos or explicit messages, allegations he has denied as false. (Politico / Wall Street Journal / Associated Press / New York Times / Washington Post / NBC News / Politico / ABC News / Washington Post / CBS News / CNN / CNBC / Axios)
4/ The Trump administration agreed to restore the Pride flag at New York’s Stonewall National Monument, reversing a February removal and settling a lawsuit brought by LGBTQ+ and preservation groups. Under a proposed court settlement, the National Park Service will return the flag within 7 days and keep it in place except for maintenance, with the Pride flag flown below the U.S. flag and above the park service flag. A judge still must approve the deal, but the government said it intends to maintain a Pride flag at Stonewall permanently. (Associated Press / New York Times / Reuters)
5/ A federal judge dismissed Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal over its report about Trump’s lewd 2003 letter to Jeffrey Epstein. The judge ruled that the complaint didn’t plausibly show “actual malice,” and said the Journal had sought comment from Trump, the Justice Department, and the FBI before publication. At the time, Trump called the letter a “fake thing” because “I never wrote a picture in my life. I don’t draw pictures of women. It’s not my language. It’s not my words.” House Democrats would later release the letter that he insisted was “nonexistent,” “false, malicious, and defamatory.” The ruling, however, didn’t determine whether Trump wrote the letter. (Axios / Wall Street Journal / Associated Press / New York Times / NBC News)
6/ A federal appeals court temporarily allowed Trump’s White House ballroom project to continue, extending a pause until April 17 while sending the case back to U.S. District Judge Richard Leon to clarify whether stopping the work would interfere with White House security. The ruling didn’t resolve whether Trump can even build the $400 million, 90,000-square-foot project without congressional approval, but the court said it couldn’t determine whether the administration’s claimed of security work, including below-ground upgrades, is actually separate from the ballroom itself. (NBC News / Associated Press / Washington Post)
7/ 50% of local election officials said they were worried about political interference ahead of the midterms, while 45% feared politically motivated investigations and 32% said they had already faced threats, harassment, or abuse. Trump has called for Republicans to “take over” voting in key places, the Justice Department has tried to access voter rolls from states, and the FBI raided a Georgia election office. Trump has also replaced many career officials who resisted his 2020 efforts to overturn the election with appointees tied to the election-denial movement. (ProPublica / Politico)
The 2026 midterms are in 204 days; the 2028 presidential election is in 939 days.
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😬 Dept. of Cringe:
The White House arranged for a McDonald’s DoorDash delivery to the Oval Office so Trump could turn it into a live promotion for his “no tax on tips” law. “Look at this!” Trump said, before asking reporters, “This doesn’t look staged, does it?” He invited the driver, Sharon Simmons, to stand beside him. She said his policy had raised her income by about $11,000. Trump then asked whether she voted for him and whether “men should play in women’s sports.” She replied that she was “here about no tax on tips.” Trump tipped her $100. (Mediaite / CBS News / PBS News / The Hill / New Republic / New York Post / Associated Press)