作者： root

Trump backs Hilton ahead of California GOP vote, testing Bianco’s grip on party endorsement

2026-04-11T05:00:34-04:00 / Fox News

Trump’s endorsement expected to boost Hilton at San Diego convention but could hurt GOP hopes of an all-Republican runoff

By Paul Steinhauser Fox News

Published April 11, 2026 5:00am EDT

California Republicans this weekend will vote to endorse their pick for California governor in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The vote, this Sunday in San Diego at the California GOP’s annual convention, comes a week after President Donald Trump took sides between the two major Republican candidates in the race, backing conservative commentator and former Fox News Channel host Steve Hilton over Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.

Trump, whose endorsements are extremely influential in GOP primaries, argued in his endorsement statement that California had “gone to hell” and that “Steve can turn it around, before it is too late, and, as President, I will help him to do so!”

The president’s support for Hilton is expected to pay immediate dividends at the state GOP convention.

HERE’S WHO TRUMP IS BACKING IN THE GOLDEN STATE GUBERNATORIAL SHOWDOWN

Republican governor candidate Steve Hilton speaks to press during Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates press event at Huntington Beach on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Huntington Beach, California. Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates announced his run for California attorney general.(Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times)

“I think it definitely can help rally the base behind a candidate and generate some noise and some enthusiasm,” California Republican Party chairwoman Corrin Rankin told Fox News Digital.

Bianco is a loyal Trump supporter who has plenty of friends and support among California Republican insiders. But Trump’s endorsement of Hilton, a top adviser to then-British Prime Minister David Cameron a decade and a half ago before moving to the U.S. and becoming an American citizen in 2021, may boost him at the GOP convention, where backing from 60% of delegates is needed to land the party’s endorsement.

But Bianco, the sheriff who recently grabbed plenty of national attention for seizing ballots in Riverside County, appeared defiant.

“For too long, politicians and insiders from Sacramento to Washington have tried to pick our leaders for us. That’s not leadership, that’s a coronation, and it’s exactly how we ended up with the failed leadership Californians are living with today,” he said in a social media video. “This election belongs to the people, not the political class.”

TOUGH ON CRIME REPUBLICAN SHERIFF LAUNCHES BID FOR CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR

Sheriff Chad Bianco of Riverside County speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on May 15, 2024, in Washington, DC. This week marks National Police Week, which sees thousands of police officers from departments across the country coming to Washington DC to honor law enforcement who died in the line of duty.(Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Trump’s endorsement may have another unintended consequence.

Candidates from both major political parties appear on the same ballot in the left-leaning state’s June primary, with the top two finishers advancing to November’s general election.

Some Democrats were concerned that with nine candidates in the race, support among Democratic voters would be so badly divided in the primary that no contender would reach the general election. Hilton and Bianco had been the top two candidates in some public opinion polls, giving some in the GOP hope of a final face-off between two Republicans.

That scenario may be less likely now, as Hilton’s support is expected to rise and Bianco’s drop in light of the president’s endorsement.Polling in the past week gave a hint of a Hilton surge.

“Trump kills any GOP hopes of an R vs R runoff in the California governor’s race,” Rob Pyers of California Target Book, which describes itself as a non-partisan and unbiased political almanac, wrote last week in a social media post.

MEDIA PERSONALITY STEVE HILTON ENTERS CALIFORNIA GUBERNATORIAL RACE

Trump’s endorsement of Hilton has sent shock waves through California’s Republican Party.(Alex Brandon/AP)

But Hilton dismissed as a pipe dream talk of shutting out the Democrats from the general election ballot.

“That scenario of two Republicans making the general election ballot], I’ve been saying this for months, was always a fantasy,” Hilton said on Fox Business’ “The Bottom Line.” “The idea that the Democrat machine in California was just going to hand over the state to two Republicans was never serious. It was never, never going to happen.”

He further argued, “What was more likely was actually…you were going to have two Democrats in the top two and then we’ll have no chance of change. So this really makes sure that we have a Republican in the top two.”

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No Republican has won a statewide election in California since then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2006 re-election victory.

And with the president’s approval rating in California hovering in the 30s, Trump’s endorsement will likely do Hilton no favors if he makes it onto the November ballot.

Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. He covers the campaign trail from coast to coast.

特朗普政府打击生育旅游 移民局启动专项行动查核签证欺诈

2026年4月11日 18:27 / 联合早报

2020年的一份分析报告估计，在2016年至2017年间，约有2万至2万5000名孕妇以生育旅游为目的赴美。 （示意图／Pixabay）

（华盛顿路透电）美国特朗普政府加大力度打击“生育旅游”。当局指责部分中介机构协助孕妇在签证申请中作假，以确保她们在美国出生的婴儿能自动获得美国公民身份。

路透社获取的一份美国移民与海关执法局（ICE）内部电邮显示，当局在星期四（4月9日）发出的电邮中，要求全国调查人员重点执行一项新的生育旅游（birth tourism）专项行动，查处协助怀孕外国人赴美生产、从而让她们子女获得公民身份的犯罪网络。

特朗普去年1月上任以来，大力推动一系列收紧合法与非法移民的政策。他以生育旅游构成威胁为由，多次表示要限制对在美国境内出生的儿童自动授予公民身份的做法。

白宫发言人凯利说：“不受限制的生育旅游给纳税人带来巨大成本，并威胁国家安全。”她指出，大多数国家并不实行出生即自动赋予公民身份的制度。

美国国土安全部拒绝就具体调查行动置评，但承认已注意到一些网络专门为生育旅游提供赴美行程安排。

国土安全部发言人说：“在美国生育并不违法，但国土安全部将重点识别并处理与这类活动相关的潜在违法行为。”

美国没有法律明确禁止生育旅游，但在特朗普首个任期内，联邦政府曾于2000年出台新规定，禁止以获取新生儿美国公民身份为主要目的申请短期旅游或商务签证，参与相关计划的人可能因欺诈或其他罪名遭起诉。

目前没有官方统计显示，有多少外国人专门赴美生产以为子女取得公民身份，也没有相关数据量化这对纳税人造成的具体成本。

主张限制移民的移民研究中心在2020年的一份分析报告中估计，在2016年至2017年间，约有2万至2万5000名孕妇以生育旅游为目的赴美。相比之下，美国2025年约有360万名新生儿，生育旅游只占其中一小部分。

此次行动由移民与海关执法局旗下的国土安全调查部门主导，目标是揪出签证与身份欺诈案件，但目前尚不清楚当局能查获多少相关个案。

移民局在电邮中指出：“国土安全调查部门正加紧努力，维护美国移民和身份识别系统的完整性，尤其是针对与生育旅游计划相关的欺诈活动。”

移民局强调，将致力于打击利用合法移民程序实施的欺诈、金融犯罪以及有组织的中介网络。

Is strongman leader and MAGA darling Viktor Orbán about to be ousted? What to know ahead of Hungary’s elections

April 11, 2026 / 6:07 AM EDT / CBS News

Budapest – After nearly two decades in power, Hungary’s far-right prime minister Viktor Orbán could be ousted as leader in the country’s parliamentary elections on Sunday.

The latest polls indicate that Orbán, a key international ally of President Trump, and his ruling Fidesz party are trailing the opposition center-right Tisza Party and its leader Péter Magyar in an election that will be closely watched by observers on both sides of the Atlantic.

Independent watchdogs and European Union officials have accused Orbán’s government of launching a sustained assault on the country’s democratic institutions and rule of law since he took office in 2010. In the 16 years since he took office, the country has descended to the rank of most corrupt country in the European Union, according to the U.K.-based anti-corruption group Transparency International.

Orbán has used his party’s current supermajority in Hungarian parliament to undermine the independence of the judiciary, crack down on independent media, demonize migrants and discriminate against LGBTQ people, Human Rights Watch has said. Orbán has also become known for making publicly xenophobic and racist statements, calling refugees “Muslim invaders” and saying Hungarians do not want to become a “mixed race.”

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán speaks at a rally in Budapest on April 7, 2026. Jonathan Ernst / POOL /AFP via Getty Images

Freedom House, a democracy-oriented U.S.-based nonprofit, has designated Hungary as only “partly free,” citing issues with less-than-free-and-fair elections and a stifling of independent institutions under Orbán’s leadership.

Despite concerns over Democratic backsliding in the country, a Thursday poll conducted by the independent pro-democracy research group the IDEA Institute showed that Orbán’s Fidesz party had the support of only 37% of decided voters. The center-right Tisza party has the support of 50% of decided voters, according to the poll.

Could Trump lose a key ally?

Orbán has been one of President Trump’s closest global allies since Mr. Trump was first elected as U.S. president in 2016. He was the only European Union leader to publicly endorse Mr. Trump’s first successful bid for the presidency, and the relationship has deepened between the two men over the past decade.

On Thursday, Mr. Trump gave a full-throated endorsement of the Hungarian leader on Truth Social.

“Highly Respected Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán, is a truly strong and powerful Leader, with a proven track record of delivering phenomenal results,” Mr. Trump wrote. “Viktor works hard to Protect Hungary, Grow the Economy, Create Jobs, Promote Trade, Stop Illegal Immigration, and Ensure LAW AND ORDER!”

The partnership between the Trump administration and Orbán was on full display Tuesday when Vice President JD Vance publicly campaigned alongside the Hungarian leader in Budapest.

Vice President JD Vance and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at a rally on April 7, 2026 in Budapest, Hungary. Jonathan Ernst-Pool / Getty Images

“Will you stand for sovereignty and democracy? Will you stand for Western civilization? Will you stand for freedom, for truth and for the God of our fathers?” Vance asked attendees at an Orbán campaign rally. “Then my friends, go to the polls on the weekend, stand with Viktor Orbán because he stands for you and he stands for all these things.”

The relationship goes wider than just public displays of support. Orbán’s policies have been hailed by some American conservative policy experts as a blueprint for how the U.S. should be governed. Dr. Kevin Roberts, president of the influential Heritage Foundation think tank, described Orban’s leadership as a “model for conservative governance” in 2024.

As CBS News has previously reported, pro-Orbán conservative think tank the Danube Institute also agreed to host visiting researchers from The Heritage Foundation to study Hungarian policies in various fields in 2023. Heritage and Danube signed an agreement that involved no financial transactions by either party.

“I am proud to call Viktor Orbán a friend and ally, and I am proud of the strong relationship between Heritage and The Danube Institute,” Roberts told CBS News at the time.

Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump at the “Board of Peace” meeting in Davos on January 22, 2026. Fabrice Coffrini /AFP via Getty Images

Orbán also attended the launch of Mr. Trump’s “Board of Peace” in Davos and its inaugural meeting in Washington, D.C. In February, the United States and Hungary signed a civilian nuclear cooperation agreement.

Budapest has also played host to global far-right leaders and MAGA influencers at the international version of the Conservative Political Action Conference for the past four years.

“I do think it’s good that we are collaborating with each other,” CPAC Founder Matt Schlapp, a former White House political director, told CBS News last year, regarding bringing the conference to Hungary.

“I think (Hungary’s) policies on the border and on immigration have changed the whole conversation in Europe,” Schlapp said. “It’s certainly between Orbán and Trump that have normalized this idea that you don’t just have to take an unspecific number of illegal migrants because some global institution tells you that you must.”

伊朗新领袖穆杰塔巴据报重伤未愈 但仍主导重大决策

2026年4月11日 18:34 / 联合早报

这是伊朗最高领袖穆杰塔巴（中）2019年在德黑兰街道拍摄的照片。他今年3月8日被任命最高领袖以来，当局未曾发布他的任何照片、视频或音频。 （法新社）

（迪拜路透电）据报道，伊朗新任最高领袖穆杰塔巴在战争初期的空袭中面部和腿部受重伤，虽未痊愈但逐渐康复，他现在精神状态良好，并参与重大决策。

路透社星期六（4月11日）引述接近穆杰塔巴核心圈子的三名消息人士报道，2月28日美国和以色列向德黑兰发动空袭时，炸死了穆杰塔巴的父亲、前最高领袖哈梅内伊，他本人则面部毁容、一条腿或双腿重伤。

其中两人透露，56岁的穆杰塔巴依然思维敏捷，并通过音频会议参与高层会议，主导战争以及与美方谈判等重大决策。

这是至今关于穆杰塔巴状况的最详细信息，但路透社无法独立核实消息人士的说法。

穆杰塔巴3月8日被任命继承父亲的领导位子，但伊朗当局至今未发布他的任何照片、视频或音频，因此他的行踪、状况和执政能力，外界一无所知。

延伸阅读

知情者指伊朗最高领袖毁容腿受伤 但思维仍清晰
【早知】抵抗到底决不屈服：穆杰塔巴上台意味着什么？

伊朗官方也不曾就新领袖的伤势发表声明，但伊朗国家电视台的一名新闻播音员在穆杰塔巴被任命为最高领袖时，曾称他为“janbaz”，这是波斯语，指在战争中受重伤的人。

有关穆杰塔巴伤势的最新报道与美国战争部长赫格塞斯3月13日的声明内容相符，他当时说穆杰塔巴受了伤，可能毁容。

另一熟悉美国情报评估的消息人士也告诉路透社，穆杰塔巴很可能失去了一条腿，但中央情报局拒绝对穆杰塔巴状况置评，以色列总理办公室也没回应有关提问。

中东研究所高级研究员瓦坦卡说，无论穆杰塔巴的伤势是轻是重，这名缺乏经验的新领导人都不太可能拥有他父亲那样的绝对权势。虽然他被视为政权的延续，但要建立起同等的威望，可能需要数年时间。

“穆杰塔巴会发声，但不会起决定性作用。他须证明自己可发出可信赖、强大、可压倒一切的声音。整个政权必须就未来的走向做出决定。”

接近穆杰塔巴核心的其中一人透露，预料伊朗当局会在一两个月内发布穆杰塔巴的照片，届时他甚至可能公开露面。不过三名消息人士都强调，他只会在健康状况和安全形势允许的情况下才现身。

穆杰塔巴缺席已在伊朗社交媒体和聊天群上引发热议，网上也出现阴谋论，质疑他的健康状况和谁在实际掌权。

不过，伊朗政府的支持者认为，鉴于美以空袭已重创伊朗领导层，穆杰塔巴保持低调至关重要。一名巴斯基（Basij）民兵说：“他为什么要公开露面？成为这些罪犯的目标吗？”

伊朗新领袖穆杰塔巴据报重伤未愈 但仍主导重大决策

2026年4月11日 18:34 / 联合早报

这是伊朗最高领袖穆杰塔巴（中）2019年在德黑兰街道拍摄的照片。他今年3月8日被任命最高领袖以来，当局未曾发布他的任何照片、视频或音频。 （法新社）

（迪拜路透电）据报道，伊朗新任最高领袖穆杰塔巴在战争初期的空袭中面部和腿部受重伤，虽未痊愈但逐渐康复，他现在精神状态良好，并参与重大决策。

路透社星期六（4月11日）引述接近穆杰塔巴核心圈子的三名消息人士报道，2月28日美国和以色列向德黑兰发动空袭时，炸死了穆杰塔巴的父亲、前最高领袖哈梅内伊，他本人则面部毁容、一条腿或双腿重伤。

其中两人透露，56岁的穆杰塔巴依然思维敏捷，并通过音频会议参与高层会议，主导战争以及与美方谈判等重大决策。

这是至今关于穆杰塔巴状况的最详细信息，但路透社无法独立核实消息人士的说法。

穆杰塔巴3月8日被任命继承父亲的领导位子，但伊朗当局至今未发布他的任何照片、视频或音频，因此他的行踪、状况和执政能力，外界一无所知。

知情者指伊朗最高领袖毁容腿受伤 但思维仍清晰

【早知】抵抗到底决不屈服：穆杰塔巴上台意味着什么？

伊朗官方也不曾就新领袖的伤势发表声明，但伊朗国家电视台的一名新闻播音员在穆杰塔巴被任命为最高领袖时，曾称他为“janbaz”，这是波斯语，指在战争中受重伤的人。

有关穆杰塔巴伤势的最新报道与美国战争部长赫格塞斯3月13日的声明内容相符，他当时说穆杰塔巴受了伤，可能毁容。

另一熟悉美国情报评估的消息人士也告诉路透社，穆杰塔巴很可能失去了一条腿，但中央情报局拒绝对穆杰塔巴状况置评，以色列总理办公室也没回应有关提问。

中东研究所高级研究员瓦坦卡说，无论穆杰塔巴的伤势是轻是重，这名缺乏经验的新领导人都不太可能拥有他父亲那样的绝对权势。虽然他被视为政权的延续，但要建立起同等的威望，可能需要数年时间。

“穆杰塔巴会发声，但不会起决定性作用。他须证明自己可发出可信赖、强大、可压倒一切的声音。整个政权必须就未来的走向做出决定。”

接近穆杰塔巴核心的其中一人透露，预料伊朗当局会在一两个月内发布穆杰塔巴的照片，届时他甚至可能公开露面。不过三名消息人士都强调，他只会在健康状况和安全形势允许的情况下才现身。

穆杰塔巴缺席已在伊朗社交媒体和聊天群上引发热议，网上也出现阴谋论，质疑他的健康状况和谁在实际掌权。

不过，伊朗政府的支持者认为，鉴于美以空袭已重创伊朗领导层，穆杰塔巴保持低调至关重要。一名巴斯基（Basij）民兵说：“他为什么要公开露面？成为这些罪犯的目标吗？”

彭博：DeepSeek在内蒙古招聘数据中心工程师

2026年4月11日 17:08 / 联合早报

中国人工智能（AI）初创公司深度求索（DeepSeek）正在内蒙古招聘数据中心相关岗位。 （法新社档案照片）

中国人工智能（AI）初创公司深度求索（DeepSeek）正在内蒙古招聘数据中心相关岗位。

据彭博社报道，4月2日发布的招聘信息显示，DeepSeek此次招聘一名工程师和一名交付经理。其中，工程师主要负责服务器及网络设备的维护与优化，并确保数据中心运营符合相关法规。

招聘要求还提到，具备在大型科技公司或研究机构运行AI加速器集群经验者将优先考虑，但未说明所使用的具体晶片类型。

另一则招聘信息显示，交付经理将负责数据中心项目的启动、建设推进及上线运行，显示公司可能正加快在内蒙古的布局。

此外，这也是DeepSeek首次公开披露公司数据中心所在地。路透社2月底曾报道，DeepSeek使用英伟达最先进的Blackwell人工智能晶片训练最新模型，而美国目前已禁止向中国出口这类晶片。报道引述一名美国官员称，相关Blackwell晶片很可能集中部署在内蒙古一处数据中心内。

Trump, sounding like Biden, says he deserves more credit

2026-04-11 5:00 a.m. EDT / The Washington Post

America’s last two presidents have spent years as political foils. Both feel the American public does not give them enough credit.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — JANUARY 20, 2026: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 20, 2026. (Salwan Georges/The Washington Post)

By Cleve R. Wootson Jr.

In full damage control mode after receiving the worst inflation report of his second term, President Donald Trump’s White House stressed that critics were looking too hard at the wrong things.

Instead, aides on Friday pointed to pockets of improvement — lower prices for some goods, tax cuts and falling drug costs — as evidence the broader picture was being missed.

A key criminal case could soon get tossed because of acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s comments

2026-04-11T10:00:55.795Z / CNN

By Devan Cole

PUBLISHED Apr 11, 2026, 6:00 AM ET

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, left, and acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche.

Getty Images/Reuters

As Todd Blanche takes the reins at the Justice Department, a federal judge is set to decide whether controversial remarks made last year by the now-acting attorney general should lead to the unravelling of one of the Trump administration’s marquee criminal cases.

Blanche’s public statements about human smuggling charges brought against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who the US wrongly deported to a mega-prison in El Salvador, have for months frustrated prosecutors’ ability to bring the case to trial as Abrego Garcia has asserted that he’s being vindictively targeted.

A judge is poised to decide at any time whether to use those comments to dismiss the charges. But if doesn’t toss out the charges, he could decide to summon Blanche to his courtroom in Nashville, Tennessee, to answer questions under oath about the department’s motivation for criminally pursuing Abrego Garcia.

The situation underscores how public missteps by the Justice Department’s top brass have the potential to lead to major real-world consequences for an agency that is of particular interest to President Donald Trump.

When Pam Bondi was attorney general, her inaccurate comments on Epstein landed her in hot water more than once – most notably when she suggested on Fox News she had a list of names of men who were clients of Jeffrey Epstein.

“The judge’s determination as to the truthfulness of Blanche’s statements takes on extra importance now that Blanche is the acting attorney general and, potentially, a candidate for the permanent job,” said Elie Honig, a CNN senior legal analyst and former federal prosecutor.

“If the judge finds that Blanche’s statements support a finding of vindictive prosecution, that’ll be a black eye for Blanche, and for DOJ, and will impact his credibility,” Honig added.

Related article Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during a press conference at the Justice Department in Washington, DC, on April 7, 2026. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters Acting AG says ‘Nobody has any idea why’ Pam Bondi was fired except for Trump 3 min read

The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment.

The Abrego Garcia case has been a sore spot for the Trump administration since he was deported in error last March to his home country of El Salvador. Courts at every level of the federal judiciary said the mistake needed to be corrected, yet officials spent months resisting demands that they bring back to Maryland the father of three whom the US government claims is a dangerous member of the MS-13 gang.

He was finally flown back to the US in June after federal prosecutors in Tennessee secured a pair of human smuggling charges against him that stemmed from a traffic stop in the state years earlier.

The day officials announced Abrego Garcia’s return, Blanche told Fox News that the Justice Department started probing Abrego Garcia after a judge in Maryland both concluded that the administration “had no right to deport him” and accused officials “of doing something wrong” in its approach to him.

Abrego Garcia’s lawyers seized on those words as they pressed the judge overseeing his case, Waverly Crenshaw, to dismiss the two charges based on their contention that the charges were brought as a vindictive prosecution. A pair of rulings from the judge last year showed that he was leaning toward doing just that.

The appointee of former President Barack Obama said in October that the burden was on the government to fend off a presumption that officials only reopened a years-old probe into Abrego Garcia, and subsequently asked a grand jury to approve charges, to punish him for filing the case in Maryland over his wrongful deportation.

“Deputy Attorney (General) Blanche directly linked the Maryland lawsuit to the investigation of criminal behavior by Abrego. At minimum, this suggests the (Trump administration’s) frustration with Abrego, and that his case was not a run-of-the-mill prosecution,” Crenshaw wrote at the time.

Crenshaw gave prosecutors the chance to fend off the presumption that they were wrongly prosecuting Abrego Garcia by putting witnesses on the stand earlier this year to buttress their claim that key decisions in the matter were made locally and not by top officials in Washington, like Blanche and his deputies, or through indirect pressure from them.

That testimony, Abrego Garcia’s attorneys told the judge this week, does little to aid prosecutors’ crumbling case. They argued that the two witnesses who answered questions under oath about the matter “were unable or unwilling” to fill in critical details that could ultimately keep the case alive.

And, importantly, they pointed to the fact that Blanche himself was not there to explain his comments from last June that have imperiled the case.

“Mr. Blanche did not come to court to rebut the presumption resulting from his own statements,” they wrote in court papers. “The government has fought tooth and nail to put any explanations beyond the court’s reach.”

“The most likely explanation for that resistance is that any attempted explanation would be futile and expose the vindictiveness at the core of this prosecution,” Abrego Garcia’s lawyers argued.

For its part, DOJ maintains that the lead prosecutor in the case, Robert McGuire, was the sole decision-maker when it came time to seeking an indictment against Abrego Garcia.

“That decision was not animated by animus toward (Abrego Garcia),” prosecutors told Crenshaw on Monday. “It was not made under political pressure or expectation. Equally as undisputed, the decision to indict was not ordered by leadership at the Department of Justice. Rather, the decision was guided only by the evidence.”

If Crenshaw concludes that prosecutors successfully rebutted the presumption of vindictiveness, the decision will kick off another round of court proceedings that will include him having to decide whether Blanche himself must testify about the origins of the case.

Honig said that while Blanche’s temporary – and potentially more lasting – perch atop the department could cut in his favor if the case moves to that phase, his position is no proverbial get-out-of-jail-free card.

“As a technical legal matter, it makes no difference whether the person is the deputy AG or the acting attorney general or the confirmed attorney general,” he said. “As a practical matter, though, the higher up you get in the Justice Department, the more judges are going to try to avoid dragging someone into the courtroom – unless it’s simply unavoidable.”

Administration still wants to deport Abrego Garcia to Africa

Meanwhile, the government’s desire to bring Abrego Garcia to trial is confounding the Maryland judge who initially ordered officials to work to bring him back stateside last year.

US District Judge Paula Xinis, who has issued a series of rulings preventing the government from quickly re-detaining and re-deporting Abrego Garcia, sharply questioned Justice Department lawyers on Tuesday about their efforts to remove those barriers so the Department of Homeland Security can move ahead with deporting him to Liberia while other lawyers at DOJ are working at the same time to keep his criminal case on track.

DHS has for months been trying to deport Abrego Garcia to several different African countries, while simultaneously rejecting his desire to be sent to Costa Rica, which has said it would grant him some form of legal status should he arrive there. He’s unable to self-deport to the Central American country because of the pre-trial release conditions imposed on him in the Tennessee case.

“The Department of Justice and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche are prosecuting him in the Middle District of Tennessee,” Xinis said during a hearing, adding later: “You can’t have it all ways.”

“There seems to be no inclination that the Department of Justice is dismissing this indictment,” the judge said. “The bottom line is either you want him here for the criminal case or you don’t.”

“But if you want expeditious removal and you want the criminal case to proceed, that raises some serious concern about what’s happening in” Liberia, she added, appearing sympathetic to Abrego Garcia’s argument that the US’ push to “exile” him to the West African country is little more than “punishment” for his decision to sue over his initial deportation last year.

More wrangling over Xinis’ orders barring the government from re-deporting him is expected to play out at another hearing later this month.

National Action Network Convention offers first glimpse of 2028 Democratic field

April 11, 2026 / 7:38 AM EDT / CBS News

By Anne Bryson

While Govs. Wes Moore and Josh Shapiro, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Ruben Gallego were among the gaggle of potential 2028 presidential contenders to attend this year’s National Action Network Convention in New York City, it was former Vice President Kamala Harris who seems to maintain the support of the organization’s members as she eyes another presidential run.

The former vice president appeared on Thursday and participated in a conversation with NAN founder and president, the Rev. Al Sharpton. Her appearance received some of the loudest applause of the convention thus far. At one point during her remarks, one attendee shouted “run again!” which led to the greater audience repeatedly chanting the same.

When asked by Sharpton if she plans to run again, Harris said, “Listen, I might. I’m thinking about it.”

Former Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during The National Action Network Convention 2026 on April 10, 2026 in New York City. Johnny Nunez/WireImage

“I served for four years, being a heartbeat away from the presidency of the United States. I spent countless hours in my West Wing office, footsteps away from the Oval Office. I spent countless hours in the Oval Office, in the Situation Room. I know what the job is. And I know what it requires,” Harris said.

Many attendees told CBS News they would support her if she chooses to do so, including Adolphus Lacey, the pastor of Bethany Baptist Church, where Sharpton worships.

“I would support her because I still think that we could use her voice. Her voice is needed for such a time as this, and it shouldn’t be a one-and-done,” Lacey said. “I mean, some of these people have been running for president all their life. I mean, Donald Trump ran for president three times. I think she did a good job for, what, 101 days running, but if you give her a full time to be able to articulate and earn people’s votes, I think she’ll do well.”

Patricia Felder, an attendee from Philadelphia, told CBS News, “I supported her before and I will support her again. I think those who haven’t supported her initially regret it.”

Should Harris run again, Felder said she hopes Harris is “bolder” this time around.

“I would hope that she comes with a lot more audacity – staying intentional and bold in her messaging, especially, should be easier because a lot of naysayers are now feeling the effects of the Trump presidency,” she said.

President Trump was, in a way, the focal point of this year’s conference, as the speakers and attendees alike repeatedly expressed their concern about the current administration’s actions and policies.

“There has been a breach in every area you could think of: breaching laws, breaching human rights, breaching voting rights. Everything has been broken. Everything’s been smashed,” Dr. Elaine Duvall, an attendee from New York, said about the current state of the country. “I think that we need a time of reparation. A time of repair. A time of rebuilding.”

Mr. Trump’s handling of the conflict in Iran was a particularly prominent subject. “Trump’s war of choice” was the phrase frequently used to describe the war with Iran by these Democratic leaders, from Shapiro to Harris.

“I think we have to acknowledge this was a war of choice by the president of the United States, a war I did not support, and a war where the president never came to the American people and said, ‘this is our objective,’” Shapiro said on Wednesday.

In her remarks, Harris touted her foreign policy experience and the insight she gained while serving as vice president.

“I met with over 150 world leaders, presidents, prime ministers, chancellors and kings, many of them multiple times, and formed relationships. I have traveled the globe many times over,” Harris said. “One thing that I realized is that the relationship that we have with allied nations, yes, can be forged and reinforced by the leaders, but I will tell you, the true strength of those relationships is the people of those nations. feeling some level of identity and connection with the people of our country and that includes the people in this room.”

Duvall told CBS News that of all the potential ’28 contenders that spoke at this year’s convention, she thinks Harris has the most experience to be president.

“I think more than any other presidential candidate, she was prepared,” Duvall reasoned. “She was a senator, she was an attorney general of a very large state, she was vice president and as she said here today, she knows the job, she knows what to do. It wouldn’t be on-the-job training.”

Other attendees said that while they believed the former vice president deserved consideration, they wanted to meet and hear from other potential presidential contenders.

“It is still early,” a gentleman from Ohio said in the hallway of the Sheraton Hotel when asked about a possible third Harris presidential bid.

A former senior Harris campaign official who spoke to CBS News on Friday said that while many Democrats were grateful for her historic run in 2024 under a contracted timeframe but many in the party were now ready to move on.

“People don’t like looking in the rearview mirror,” the former Harris official said. “She has a steep uphill climb.”

Reverend Al Sharpton, founder and president of the National Action Network, left, and Pete Buttigieg, former U.S. Secretary of Transportation, during the National Action Network (NAN) 35th Anniversary Convention in New York, US, on Friday, April 10, 2026. Adam Gray / Bloomberg via Getty Images

When asked by Politico if she thinks the nominee in 2028 should be a Democrat who didn’t serve in the Biden administration, mentioning Buttigieg and Harris, Sen. Elissa Slotkin, of Michigan, said, “I think there’s a lot of baggage there.”

Slotkin, who has also raised speculation that she is considering running in 2028 after a recent trip to Iowa, added, “I don’t know if it’s insurmountable, but I know that the strongest feeling I get from a room like this, from being in Columbus, being in Iowa, being in Wisconsin, Idaho, Kansas, is that people want something new.”

Harris is set to hold events in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia this coming week, bolstering support from the Democratic Party’s base of Black voters in the South and fueling further speculation that she’s committed to running in 2028.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/top-democrats-gather-national-action-network-convention/

巴基斯坦总理会见美国副总统万斯 和平谈判“正式启动”

2026年4月11日 18:43 / 联合早报

4月11日，美国副总统万斯（中）抵达伊斯兰堡伊斯兰堡附近城市拉瓦尔品第的努尔汗空军基地，巴基斯坦国防军总司令兼陆军参谋长阿西姆·穆尼尔（左）以及巴基斯坦副总理兼外交部长穆罕默德·伊沙克·达尔到机场迎接。 （法新社）

巴基斯坦总理夏巴兹办公室宣布，总理在伊斯兰堡会见了美国副总统万斯，并补充说，旨在结束中东战争的和平谈判已经“启动”。

法新社引述办公室星期六（4月11日）的声明称：“随着伊斯兰堡和谈今日启动，巴基斯坦总理穆罕默德·夏巴兹·谢里夫会见了美国副总统约翰·迪·万斯。总理重申，巴基斯坦期待继续为双方在实现地区可持续和平方面取得进展提供便利。”