“A Trump administration task force announced Monday that it would block Harvard University from receiving $2.2 billion in federal grants and $60 million in contracts after the Ivy League school defied demands to adopt new policies on student and faculty conduct and admissions. The Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism said it was taking the measure because Harvard and other universities had not taken adequate steps to address the harassment of Jewish students in recent years. … The loss of federal funding is a significant blow to Harvard and affiliated institutions, such as Mass General Brigham and Boston Children’s Hospital. Other schools, including Columbia University, have opted to accept administration demands to avoid the cuts.” (04/14/25)
“The president of El Salvador said in a meeting with Donald Trump in the White House on Monday that he would not order the return of a Maryland man who was deported in error to a Salvadoran mega-prison. … The comments came a day after the Trump administration claimed it is not legally obligated to secure the return of the [Kilmar] Abrego García, despite the US supreme court ruling that the administration should ‘facilitate’ bringing him back. … Earlier this month, the Trump administration acknowledged that Abrego García, an immigrant from El Salvador who was living in Maryland with protected status, was deported to a prison in El Salvador on 15 March as a result of an ‘administrative error.'” (04/14/25)
“Haiti’s government announced Monday that it approved what it called a ‘war budget’ of $275,000 aimed at alleviating the country’s crisis as gang violence surges. Nearly 40% of the money will go toward Haiti’s police and military [gangs] ‘to fight the armed groups that threaten national stability,’ while nearly 20% will go to fortify the border it shares with the Dominican Republic, Haiti’s transitional presidential council said in a statement. Another 16% will go to social programs including those focused on education, health and humanitarian assistance.” (04/14/25)
“The White House’s Office of Management and Budget has proposed gutting the State Department’s budget by almost 50%, closing a number of overseas diplomatic missions, slashing the number of diplomatic staff, and eliminating funding for nearly all international organizations, including the United Nations, many of its agencies and for NATO headquarters, officials said. The proposal, which was presented to the State Department last week and is still in a highly preliminary phase, is not expected to pass muster with either the department’s leadership or Congress, which will ultimately be asked to vote on the entire federal budget in the coming months.” [editor’s note: It would be a good start, at least! – TLK] (04/14/25)
“The European Commission is issuing burner phones and basic laptops to some US-bound staff to avoid the risk of espionage, a measure traditionally reserved for trips to China. Commissioners and senior officials travelling to the IMF and World Bank spring meetings next week have been given the new guidance, according to four people familiar with the situation. They said the measures replicate those used on trips to Ukraine and China, where standard IT kit cannot be brought into the countries for fear of Russian or Chinese surveillance. ‘They are worried about the US getting into the commission systems,’ said one official. The treatment of the US as a potential security risk highlights how relations have deteriorated since the return of Donald Trump as US president in January.” (04/14/25)
“A degree of calm returned to Wall Street, with stocks and bonds notching a twin rally after a tumultuous week in the grip of President Donald Trump’s disruptive trade war. With the White House signaling a tariff reprieve on key consumer electronics …. Treasuries snapped a five-day slide that drove 10-year yields up by the most in over two decades. … The S&P 500 rose 0.8% as of 4 p.m. New York time …. The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.6% ….The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8% Treasuries snapped a five-day slide that drove 10-year yields up by the most in over two decades.” (04/14/25)
“Suspected U.S. airstrikes around Yemen’s rebel [sic]-held capital killed at least seven people and wounded 29 overnight, the Houthis said Monday as they also claimed shooting down another American MQ-9 Reaper drone. Since its start nearly a month ago, the intense campaign of U.S. airstrikes under President Donald Trump targeting the rebels [sic] over their attacks on shipping in Mideast waters — related to the Israel-Hamas war — has killed over 120 people, according to casualty figures released Monday by the Houthis’ Health Ministry.” (04/14/25)
“French opposition parties on Monday threatened to topple Prime Minister Francois Bayrou’s government with a no-confidence motion after his finance minister said next year’s budget would require billions of euros in savings. A vote on the 2026 budget is not due until the end of this year, but the subject is already testing the staying power of the government of Bayrou, who came to office in December after clashes over the 2025 budget brought down predecessor, Michel Barnier. Finance Minister Eric Lombard said in an interview with BFM TV on Sunday that a plan to lower the budget deficit to 4.6% of economic output in 2026 from 5.4% this year would require savings of 40 billion euros. Bayrou, who has survived other no-confidence votes, is due to make a budget speech on Tuesday, in which he is expected to outline the bruising austerity measures on the horizon.” (04/14/25)
“Hungary’s parliament on Monday passed an amendment to the constitution that allows the government to ban public events by LGBTQ communities, a decision that legal scholars and critics call another step towards authoritarianism by the populist government. The amendment, which required a two-thirds vote, passed along party lines with 140 votes for and 21 against. It was proposed by the ruling Fidesz-KDNP coalition led by populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban. … The amendment declares that children’s rights to moral, physical and spiritual development supersede any right other than the right to life, including that to peacefully assemble. Hungary’s contentious ‘child protection’ legislation prohibits the ‘depiction or promotion’ of homosexuality to minors aged under 18.” (04/14/25)
“Facebook parent Meta Platforms faces a high-stakes trial in Washington starting on Monday on claims it built an illegal social media monopoly by spending billions of dollars to acquire Instagram and WhatsApp, in a case where U.S. antitrust enforcers seek to unwind the deals. The acquisitions more than a decade ago aimed to eliminate competitors who could threaten Facebook’s status as the go-to social media platform for users to connect with friends and family, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission claims. It filed the case in 2020, during U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term. The FTC is trying to force Meta to restructure or sell parts of its business. That means if the commission is successful, Instagram and WhatsApp could be hived off from Meta to become their own entities once again.” [editor’s note: Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp combined aren’t anything approaching or resembling a monopoly – TLK] (04/14/25)
