Trump preps ‘Liberation Day’ announcement as tariffs cause volatility: Live updates

Multiple Republican leaders in Congress downplayed Trump’s assertions that he will seek an unconstitutional third term as president, saying the president was just messing with the media.

“You see it with like Greenland, like with the Panama Canal – there’s a lot of things the president talks about ultimately it gets people talking and it addresses some other issues too,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise told reporters.

Scalise said there was “no proposal” to change the Constitution.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters, “You guys keep asking the question and I think he’s probably having some fun with it and probably messing with you.”

An official allied with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency has been put in charge of the U.S. Institute of Peace, a congressionally created and funded think tank targeted by President Donald Trump for closure, according to a federal court filing Monday.

Two board members of the Institute of Peace have authorized replacing its temporary president with Nate Cavanaugh, the filing says. They ordered him, it says, to transfer the institute’s property to the General Services Administration, the federal government’s real estate manager, which is terminating hundreds of leases at DOGE’s behest.

The action follows a Friday night mass firing of nearly all of the institute’s 300 employees. Former employees say only a small number did not get notification, including colleagues who are abroad, who were given until April 9 to return to the U.S., and the regional vice presidents, who direct the areas where they are based.

Amid Trump’s unprecedented slash-and-burn of the federal government, many Democratic voters feel their party is not doing enough to fight back. John Bowden reports from State College, Pennsylvania on a former congressman looking to meet the moment:

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said there would be “no exemptions” for farmers on the incoming tariffs that Trump plans to impose on Wednesday.

The results of a scorecard appear to be enough to determine whether Venezuelan immigrants can be sent to a notorious El Salvador prison and remain there indefinitely.

Under Donald Trump’s order invoking the Alien Enemies Act for the fourth time in U.S. history, Venezuelans over age 14 who are determined to be “members” of the Tren de Aragua gang can be summarily deported as “alien enemies.”

All it takes is a score of eight, according to the guide.

Tattoos alone are four points. “Dress” associated with Tren de Aragua — including “high-end streetwear” and clothing with Michael Jordan logos — is another four points.

Read more from Alex Woodward:

Servicewomen who wish to be in combat will have to meet the same standards as men when it comes to physical, mental and psychological fitness in order to do so – a rule that already exists for certain combat roles.

On Monday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Department of Defense to begin developing a “comprehensive plan” to determine combat and noncombat occupations based on one sex-neutral standard for both men and women.

However, he emphasized that “no standards will be lowered,” – indicating women will now have to meet men’s standards.

“This effort will ensure that our standards are clear, mission-focused, and reflective of the unique physical demands placed on our Service members in various roles,” Hegseth said.

The defense secretary has been criticized for making comments in the past, insisting women should be left out of combat roles.

Each service currently has its own fitness test with benchmarks that vary by age and gender but higher gender and age neutral standards already exist for certain combat roles.

The stock market took a dive to start trading Monday as investors brace for President Donald Trump’s promised reciprocal tariffs to “all countries” to take effect this week.

Within the first few minutes of opening Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 302 points, or .74 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 320 points, or 1.85 percent.

The stock market tumble comes one day after the president told reporters aboard Air Force One that he’d plan to impose tariffs on “all countries” rather than the countries that have large trade imbalances with the U.S.

Kelly Rissman has the details.

The logistics of rebuilding Gaza are complex — and will take years, perhaps even decades, experts tell Holly Baxter

Just a week after The Atlantic revealed its editor-in-chief had been added to a Signal group chat with other Trump administration officials, the White House says the “case has been closed.”

“As the president has made it very clear, Mike Waltz continues to be an important part of his national security team and this case has been closed here at the White House as far as we are concerned. There have been steps made to ensure something like that can never happen again and we’re moving forward,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

The National Safety Transportation Board said it would investigate a near-incident that occurred near the Reagan National Airport on Friday.

Shortly after Delta Flight 2983 took off on Friday afternoon, its system alerted of a nearby jet setting off an alert from the collision avoidance system.

The Delta flight had a close call with an Air Force T-38 Talon jet – four of which were doing a flyover of Arlington National Cemetery.