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Maryland Democrats Look Set to Redistrict in 2028

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New York Times: “After months of disagreement, Maryland Democrats appear to be closer than ever to eliminating the state’s lone Republican-held congressional district in time for the 2028 cycle.”

“Bill Ferguson, the leader of the Maryland Senate and the face of Democratic opposition to redrawing maps this year, said in an interview with a local news outlet on Friday that the Supreme Court’s decision on the Voting Rights Act, which led to a scramble among Republican-led legislatures across the South to dismantle or dilute majority-Black, Democratic-controlled districts, forced him to change his calculus.”

Former Kamala Harris Staffers Don’t Want Her to Run

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Vanity Fair: “Despite a certain air of inevitability, the Democratic Party’s movers and shakers are trembling at the prospect of another Harris run. I spoke with more than two dozen Harris campaign staffers, former White House aides, elected officials, political operatives, and big-dollar donors for this piece. Aside from her own close advisers, none spoke enthusiastically about a Harris 2028 campaign.”

New College Grads Face a Tough Job Market

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Wall Street Journal: “The college class of 2026 is entering one of the most nerve-racking job markets in recent memory. Employers have sharply reduced hiring—awful news for those trying to land their first job. Worries that artificial intelligence will be able to perform many of the skills graduates spent years honing are running high. Commencement speakers lauding the technology are drawing jeers.”

“A widely followed quarterly report from the New York Fed, based on the detailed data that underlies the Labor Department’s monthly jobs report, shows that as of March, the unemployment rate for people with bachelor’s degrees, and between the ages of 22 and 27, was a seasonally adjusted 5.6%. That was a big step up from the 3.6% registered in December 2019, before the Covid pandemic.”

Trump to Make Green Card Applicants File Overseas

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Wall Street Journal: “Most green-card applicants will need to go abroad to apply for permanent residency at an American consulate, rather than filing from within the U.S. as they do now, the Trump administration announced Friday.”

“Under the new policy, most foreigners—from tech workers to spouses of U.S. citizens—would need to prove they have ‘extraordinary circumstances’ to apply for permanent residency within the U.S., or else risk being denied. Most would need to go abroad to apply at a U.S. consulate, where they risk losing whatever legal status they held in the U.S. and being unable to return.”

Trump Skipping Wedding of His Son

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“President Donald Trump on Friday said he won’t attend the wedding this weekend of his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., to socialite Bettina Anderson,” CNBC reports. 

Said Trump: “While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Jr., and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government, and my love for the United States of America, do not allow me to do so.”

U.S. Warns of Russian and Chinese Spying in Cuba

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Wall Street Journal: “China and Russia have in recent years expanded their intelligence operations in Cuba, investing in electronic-eavesdropping facilities used to spy on U.S. military sites in Florida and roughly tripling the number of intelligence personnel to staff them since 2023, according to officials familiar with U.S. intelligence assessments.”

“The findings suggest that Beijing and Moscow see their separate posts as increasingly vital to their espionage capabilities, adding more up-to-date equipment within listening range of two U.S. military headquarters overseeing operations in the Middle East and Latin America.”

The GOP Is Revolting

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Charlie Sykes: “It almost felt like a unicorn sighting: Republicans on Capitol Hill openly defying Trump and (if one did not know them better) taking principled stands of independence. The change in the political mood was head-snapping; just days earlier, Trump was celebrating his latest victory in his revenge tour as he tightened his grip on the party. Puffed up with the wins, Trump clearly expected Republicans to react in the usual way: by cringing and fawning. He brandished the heads of Thomas Massie and Bill Cassidy as he threatened congressional Republicans, rolled out his most brazen bits of corruption, and — in a moment of pure political snit — endorsed Texas AG Ken Paxton over incumbent John Cornyn…”

“But this week, Trump crossed an invisible line, and for the first time in the Trump Restoration, GOP senators and reps seem genuinely pissed at the president; and willing to break with him on issues that Trump cares about deeply.”

Tulsi Gabbard Resigns

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Tulsi Gabbard is resigning from her post as Director of National Intelligence to support her husband through his battle with “an extremely rare form of bone cancer,” Fox News reports.

Gabbard notified President Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office Friday.

Lutnick Donated to House GOP Before Epstein Testimony

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New York Times: “Howard Lutnick, President Trump’s secretary of commerce, made a $5 million donation last month to a committee supporting House Republicans, an unusually large contribution for a sitting cabinet secretary.”

“The donation was made on April 1, four weeks after the House Oversight Committee arranged to interview Mr. Lutnick about his ties to the sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.”

Most Americans Doubt U.S. Government Will Regulate AI

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CBS News Poll: “Most Americans continue to believe AI will reduce the number of jobs in the U.S., but that’s not their only AI concern. They are also skeptical about whether the U.S. government will implement a policy to ensure the technology is used appropriately.”

“That skepticism is fairly widespread. Majorities across age groups and education levels don’t think government policy will ensure AI is used appropriately. Democrats and independents share that view, while Republicans are generally divided.”

The Republican Senate Candidate Who Could Lose Texas

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Elaine Godfrey: “Donald Trump is a historically unpopular politician. Gas prices, high inflation, and the war with Iran have all systems flashing fire-engine red for Republicans in November. Yet here was the president, throwing his political weight behind Paxton—a man who has been indicted, impeached, and allegedly unfaithful to his wife.”

“In Washington, D.C., Senate Republicans were apoplectic at the president’s casual betrayal of one of their own…”

“By choosing Paxton, the president is rewarding his—and his base’s—unwavering devotion. He is likely also guaranteeing Paxton a primary victory over Cornyn. And in so doing, Trump may have cemented a set of very difficult circumstances for his party. If Paxton wins on Tuesday, Democrats will probably be better positioned to win statewide in Texas than they’ve been in the past 40 years.”

U.S. Pauses $14 Billion Arms Sale to Taiwan

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The acting secretary of the U.S. Navy said that arm sales to Taiwan had been put on “pause” to ensure that the American military had sufficient munitions for its Iran operations, CBS News reports. 

President Trump has not committed to following through with the sale, raising concerns over his commitment to support for Taiwan.

Poll Suggests a Possible Path Forward for Democrats

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Nate Cohn: “Ever since Kamala Harris’ defeat in 2024, Democratic politicians, activists and policy wonks have argued about whether the party should move toward the left or the center.”

“But in this week’s New York Times/Siena poll, there’s a lot more common ground than one might expect within the Democratic coalition — a group defined here as Democrats, Democratic-leaning independents and independents who voted for Ms. Harris.”

“A surprisingly clear majority of the Democratic coalition is mostly fine with where the party stands on the issues overall. Only 20 percent say it’s ‘too far’ to the left; only 17 percent say it’s ‘too far’ to the right. The dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party seems less about its ideology and more about its failures to stop President Trump — whether in the last election or once in government.”

Kevin Warsh to Be Sworn In as Fed Chair

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Wall Street Journal: “Warsh is set to be sworn in as the nation’s top central banker at the White House on Friday, the first Fed chair to take the oath there since Alan Greenspan in 1987. It is also his first public appearance with Trump since the president chose him in January after a monthslong public contest.”

“He takes over at a moment fraught with risk. Inflation is rising, long-term bond yields are climbing, and a growing number of investors say the Fed’s next move could be a rate increase—not the cut Trump wanted and Warsh was hired to deliver.”

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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