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路透社获得的视频截图显示，巴勒斯坦武装人员周一（4月20日）在加沙南部汗尤尼斯与以色列支持的民兵发生冲突，引起一阵骚动。 （路透社）

（日内瓦综合电）根据欧盟和联合国发表的联合评估报告，估计加沙未来10年的重建需要超过714亿美元（约960亿新元）。

报告指出，首18个月就需要约263亿美元，用于恢复基本服务、重建关键基础设施及推动经济复苏。估算显示，加沙基础设施损失约352亿美元，经济与社会损失约227亿美元。当地经济已萎缩84%，发展水平倒退数十年。

由特朗普倡议设立的和平委员会正与阿联酋国企迪拜环球港务（DP World）探讨参与加沙重建计划，包括负责人道援助及物资进入加沙的物流安排。

目前加沙地带约190万人流离失所，占当地人口的绝大多数，超过六成人失去住所。约37万间房屋被毁或受损，逾半数医院无法运作，几乎所有学校遭破坏。

和平委员会加沙事务首席特使姆拉德诺夫接受路透社访问时说，对推动哈马斯解除武装的方案“相当乐观”，但也承认进展仍需时间。他说，过去几周已与哈马斯进行非常认真的讨论，但谈判过程复杂。

他指出，相关方案仍在推进中，除了解除武装，还包括建立新治理架构和以军撤出安排。

Virginia voters to decide on new House map with major midterm implications

2026-04-21T09:00:56.359Z / CNN

By Jeff Zeleny

2 hr ago

PUBLISHED Apr 21, 2026, 5:00 AM ET

A voter casts a ballot during early voting for the Virginia redistricting referendum, at a polling place in Burke, Virginia, on April 17.

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Virginia is the latest front in an unprecedented coast-to-coast redistricting war, with voters on Tuesday set to determine whether to accept or reject a Democratic plan to dramatically redraw the state’s congressional maps and help shape the midterm elections.

Nearly 1.4 million Virginians have already cast early ballots, a sign of remarkable interest for an April special election. The final day of voting is Tuesday, with polls open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET, on a plan that could help Democrats win 10 of the state’s 11 congressional districts – a major shift from the current balance of six seats held by Democrats and five by Republicans.

“We didn’t start this fight, but I’m saying to Virginia, we need to finish it,” Delores McQuinn, a Democratic member of the House of Delegates, told CNN at a rally in the final days of the redistricting campaign. “We can help level the playing field.”

Virginia is one of the final chapters in a redistricting arms race that President Donald Trump started last year in Texas when he said Republicans were “entitled to five more seats.” California Democrats responded, along with a handful of other states, in a tit-for-tat that has ultimately yielded nine more Republican-friendly seats and six that favor Democrats.

“What’s happening now is the most blatant power grab that has ever been demonstrated,” said Glenn Youngkin, a former Virginia governor and a leading Republican voice against the measure, who avoided mention of how Texas kicked off the rare mid-decade redistricting fight.

Democrats have raised more than twice as much money than Republicans in the closely watched contest that could help determine which party controls Congress after the fall elections. On advertising alone, Democrats have spent $55 million, according to AdImpact, compared to $23 million for Republicans.

Despite the wide disparity, Democrats acknowledge that victory is far from certain, saying turnout on Election Day will be critical. Republicans share that sentiment and believe creating a 10-1 advantage for Democrats is at odds with the electorate in a state former Vice President Kamala Harris won with nearly 52% of the vote in 2024.

Here are a few dynamics at play – for Virginia and the nation.

High stakes for Democrats

For Democrats, the stakes in Virginia are remarkably high. So, too, are the rewards.

If the referendum succeeds Tuesday night, the party suddenly has more breathing room in its quest to win control of the US House in the midterm elections. The national political winds already favor Democrats this year, but a Virginia victory would super-charge their prospects.

“They thought that Democrats were going to step back,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries told supporters during a rally in the final days of the campaign. “Well, we’re making clear we’re not here to step back. We’re here to fight back.”

On the eve of the election, Jeffries told reporters: “It’s gonna be close because Virginia is a purple state.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, center, flanked by Sen. Mark Warner and Congressional candidate Tom Perriello, speaks at the Virginians for Fair Elections rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, on April 11.

Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc./Getty Images

Jeffries has been at the center of the Democratic strategy in Virginia, a plan that has long worried some state party leaders as a potential overreach. His comments Monday underscore how cautiously Democrats are eyeing — and lowering expectations for — the special election, which comes five months after the party swept the Virginia governor’s race by 15 percentage points last fall.

But if Democrats win in November, Jeffries stands the most to gain – likely becoming House Speaker, a fact he rarely mentions, but one that his Republican rivals point out again and again.

“Do you want to see Speaker Hakeem Jeffries?” Speaker Mike Johnson said as he rallied Republican opposition to the referendum, trying to use Jeffries as a motivating force by sounding the alarm about the prospect of the GOP losing its majority next year.

Trump, Obama loom large

The president has been a dominating factor in the race, but nearly an absent one.

Aside from a tele-rally on the eve of the election, Trump played little hands-on role in the GOP campaign urging Virginians to vote against the referendum.

“The whole country is watching it’s so important and so unfair what they’ve done,” Trump said in brief remarks Monday evening. “We need every Virginia patriot to get out and vote no, no, no on the radical Democrats’ unfair ballot referendum.”

Yet he played a central part on the Democratic side, with his name repeatedly invoked to raise enthusiasm among Trump critics.

“Voting yes will stop Donald Trump’s scheme to rig the midterm elections,” Rep. Jennifer McClellan, a Virginia Democrat, told supporters at a rally in Richmond. “Voting yes will stop the MAGA power grab.”

President Donald Trump addresses a Turning Point USA event entitled “Build the Red Wall” at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona, on April 17.

Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

With the midterm elections a little more than six months away, Tuesday’s outcome could offer fresh clues for which side Trump motivates more – Republicans or Democrats.

Former President Barack Obama has also been at the center of the Virginia race – featured in ads on both sides – as Democrats have called on him to rally the party’s base even as Republicans have seized on his previous comments speaking against gerrymandering.

streaming now CNN Why gerrymandering is getting worse

“By voting yes, you can push back against the Republicans trying to give themselves an unfair advantage in the midterms,” Obama said in a video released Friday, which aides said was intended to clear up any confusion. “By voting yes, you can take a temporary step to level the playing field.”

Groups opposing the redistricting effort have featured some of Obama’s past criticisms of gerrymandering, including this sentiment aimed at independent voters in TV ads and mailers: “Because of things like political gerrymandering, our parties have moved further and further apart and it’s harder and harder to find common ground.”

National implications, but local elections

The national implications of the Virginia referendum are clear, given the narrow GOP majority in the House and the redistricting battle playing out across the country for nearly a year.

But the race could also hinge on far more local concerns, including those of rural voters like Tara Bowman of Woodstock. She lives about 90 minutes away from the Washington suburbs of Fairfax and McLean, with whom she has no interest in sharing a member of Congress.

“I think the new map is absolutely horrible,” Bowman said. “I do not want my congressman to be from Fairfax. No, no, no, no.”

To produce a 10-1 advantage in the state’s congressional delegation, Virginia Democrats are proposing a new map that would carve up deep blue districts in northern Virginia and around Richmond, while creating a new district along the Blue Ridge Mountains that connects several college towns.

The constitutional amendment on the ballot Tuesday would allow lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional map before the November elections, returning the authority of drawing districts to a redistricting commission in 2031 following the next census.

If voters reject the referendum, the current map with its 6-to-5 split in favor of Democrats remains in place – and campaigns for those seats will begin in earnest.

For all the national implications hanging over the race, including a question of which party should control Congress in November, the decisions voters make on Tuesday will be done far closer to home.

CNN’s David Wright contributed to this report.

COVID shots, newer vaccines in limbo after US court halts Kennedy’s advisory panel

2026-04-21T10:02:12.386Z / Reuters

By Julie Steenhuysen

April 21, 2026 10:02 AM UTC Updated 26 mins ago

节点运行失败

Dr. Robert Malone listens to Aaron Siri during a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to discuss recommendations for the childhood vaccine schedule at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., December 5, 2025. REUTERS/Alyssa Pointer/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

• Summary
• Companies

• CDC left without advisory panel to recommend new or updated vaccines
• Insurance coverage for new vaccines may be impacted, experts warn
• Several FDA-approved vaccines await ACIP guidance

CHICAGO, April 21 (Reuters) – Americans may face the next respiratory disease season without clear guidance for COVID shots and updated flu vaccines after a federal court ruling last month left several vaccines in limbo, and raised questions about whether some newly approved products would be covered ​by insurers.

The decision by Boston-based U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy froze the work of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the panel that advises the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and ‌Prevention on how vaccines should be used.

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Murphy ruled that most members of a panel appointed last year by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were unqualified and ordered that their votes be put on hold, effectively restoring the previous childhood immunization schedule that the U.S. Health Secretary and his allies had sought to revamp.

The ruling leaves the CDC without a functioning advisory body to recommend new vaccines or updated uses of existing ones.

“It’s just uncharted territory,” said Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, former director of the CDC’s National Center for ​Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, who left the agency last year in protest over Kennedy’s moves to rewrite U.S. vaccine policies.

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Without ACIP recommendations, newly licensed vaccines and expanded indications — while legal to prescribe — may ​not be covered by insurers or included in federal programs, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University and longtime ACIP adviser.

Kennedy has yet ⁠to say whether he will reconfigure the panel, using his revamped ACIP charter to circumvent the court ruling, appeal the judge’s order, or both.

The Department of Health and Human Services, which Kennedy leads, did not respond to ​requests for comment on plans for ACIP or the status of vaccine recommendations.

AUTUMN COVID AND FLU SHOTS

The biggest question mark surrounds updated COVID-19 vaccines.

In a normal year, ACIP reviews and updates recommendations for flu and COVID shots ​during its June meeting. Seasonal flu vaccines have a long-standing universal recommendation for everyone six months and older, which means they may not require a new ACIP vote this year, former CDC officials told Reuters.

That may not be the case for COVID vaccines, which are also modified each year but target a newer virus and have a shorter track record of use, they said. The safety of COVID vaccines has been a major focus of ACIP under Kennedy, a longtime anti-vaccine activist.

“You could argue ​that it’s recommended because it’s on the (immunization) schedule, or that it’s not because the previous recommendations were for the 2025-26 vaccine,” said one former CDC vaccine official, who requested anonymity, of COVID shots.

AHIP, the health insurance ​trade organization, has pledged to cover, opens new tab all vaccines that had been recommended by the vaccine advisory panel as of September 1, 2025, through the end of 2026 – a period before major changes to the vaccine schedule had been made.

An insurance industry ‌source said health ⁠plans this year and beyond will continue evaluating the latest medical evidence and clinical guidelines from groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The judge’s stay order also raised questions about Merck’s (MRK.N), opens new tab Enflonsia, a monoclonal antibody treatment for preventing RSV infection in infants. The Kennedy-appointed ACIP voted in June to recommend the treatment. Merck said the product was not a focus of the litigation.

“We have not heard of any changes to the availability of Enflonsia,” said Claire Hannan, executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers, a national organization of state and local immunization officials.

VACCINES AWAITING GUIDANCE

Several vaccines ​already approved by the Food and Drug Administration await ​ACIP recommendations. They include three RSV vaccines for ⁠adults aged 18–49 who are at increased risk of severe disease — Pfizer’s (PFE.N), opens new tab Abrysvo, Moderna’s (MRNA.O), opens new tab mResvia and GSK’s (GSK.L), opens new tab Arexvy.

Currently, respiratory syncytial virus vaccines are recommended only for adults aged 75 and older and for adults aged 50–74 at high risk. ACIP was also due to advise on whether adults 75 and older who already received an ​RSV shot will need a second dose.

Other work typically handled by ACIP has also been put on hold, including a long-running review of whether fewer doses ​of the HPV vaccine could ⁠still prevent cervical cancer.

“That’s the type of work the ACIP should be doing,” said Dr. Jose Romero, a former ACIP chair. “They may be derailed from that.”

The paralysis could also affect vaccines expected to win FDA approval later this year.

ACIP’s new charter, issued earlier this month, still guides the panel to review new vaccines at its first meeting after FDA licensure. If no panel is in place, however, vaccines could linger on the market without any federal recommendation.

That includes ⁠Moderna’s experimental mRNA-based ​flu vaccine, which would be the first of its kind in the United States. An FDA decision is expected by early August.

ACIP ​recommendations would be needed if Pfizer and Valneva’s (VLS.PA), opens new tab Lyme disease vaccine wins approval. The vaccine missed its primary goal but showed about 70% efficacy in a late-stage trial, and Pfizer has said it plans to seek FDA authorization.

“If the vaccine is not fully recommended and it’s ​a newer vaccine, will the payers pay?” said Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota. “We don’t have any guarantee of that.”

Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Bill Berkrot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

伊朗战争重创德国景气 投资者信心跌至三年多新低

2026年4月21日 18:16 / 联合早报

德国智库周二公布，4月份投资者信心指数骤降至三年多来的最低点。图为今年3月24日法兰克福证券交易所，德国达克斯（DAX）指数的走势图。 （路透社）

德国智库周二公布，4月份投资者信心指数骤降至三年多来的最低点。图为今年3月24日法兰克福证券交易所，德国达克斯（DAX）指数的走势图。 （路透社）

美以伊战争正在侵蚀欧洲最大经济体的复苏势头，德国投资者信心跌至三年多来最低点。

分析人士警告，这场冲突对德国经济的负面影响已不止于推高通货膨胀，企业对长期能源供应短缺的担忧正削弱投资。

彭博社报道，德国智库欧洲经济研究中心（ZEW）星期二（4月21日）公布的调查显示，德国4月经济预期指数从3月的负0.5降至负17.2，创下2022年以来最差表现，衡量当前经济状况的指标也同步下滑。

ZEW总裁万巴赫（Achim Wambach）指出，伊朗战争的经济后果远不止物价上涨，企业对能源长期短缺的担忧正在抑制投资，并削弱政府刺激措施的效果。

德国主要研究机构已将今年经济增长预期下调至不足几个月前预测的一半；在经历连续两年萎缩后，德国2025年GDP仅微增0.2%，基础设施和国防领域的公共投资则提供了一定支撑。

面对能源危机，德国政府已推出16亿欧元（约24亿新元）燃油价格减免措施，并指若局势继续升级，将准备进一步应对方案；欧洲央行则预计在4月30日维持利率不变，以评估战争造成的损害。

德国智库周二公布，4月份投资者信心指数骤降至三年多来的最低点。图为今年3月24日法兰克福证券交易所，德国达克斯（DAX）指数的走势图。 （路透社）

美以伊战争正在侵蚀欧洲最大经济体的复苏势头，德国投资者信心跌至三年多来最低点。

分析人士警告，这场冲突对德国经济的负面影响已不止于推高通货膨胀，企业对长期能源供应短缺的担忧正削弱投资。

彭博社报道，德国智库欧洲经济研究中心（ZEW）星期二（4月21日）公布的调查显示，德国4月经济预期指数从3月的负0.5降至负17.2，创下2022年以来最差表现，衡量当前经济状况的指标也同步下滑。

ZEW总裁万巴赫（Achim Wambach）指出，伊朗战争的经济后果远不止物价上涨，企业对能源长期短缺的担忧正在抑制投资，并削弱政府刺激措施的效果。

德国主要研究机构已将今年经济增长预期下调至不足几个月前预测的一半；在经历连续两年萎缩后，德国2025年GDP仅微增0.2%，基础设施和国防领域的公共投资则提供了一定支撑。

面对能源危机，德国政府已推出16亿欧元（约24亿新元）燃油价格减免措施，并指若局势继续升级，将准备进一步应对方案；欧洲央行则预计在4月30日维持利率不变，以评估战争造成的损害。

Ethics panel to decide penalty for Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick over theft allegations

April 21, 2026 6:00 AM EDT / CBS News

Washington — The House Ethics Committee will hold a public hearing Tuesday to determine whether any punishment is warranted for Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, three weeks after concluding she was guilty of more than two dozen charges stemming from an alleged campaign finance scheme.

The hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m.

In November, the Justice Department charged the Florida Democrat with stealing $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency funds for her campaign. She has pleaded not guilty to 15 counts laid out in the federal indictment and has denied any wrongdoing.

After a lengthy investigation into Cherfilus-McCormick’s alleged misconduct, the bipartisan Ethics Committee released its findings in January, concluding there was “substantial reason to believe” the congresswoman violated multiple federal laws and House rules.

The investigation found “substantial evidence of conduct consistent with the allegations in the indictment, as well as more extensive misconduct,” according to the 59-page report.

In addition to the alleged campaign finance violations, committee investigators accused Cherfilus-McCormick of spending the funds on luxury goods, including jewelry from Tiffany & Co.; a Tesla; designer clothing; high-end hotels; and a cruise.

“The 25 violations at issue here are very serious standing on their own,” the committee’s counsel said in a memorandum ahead of Tuesday’s hearing. “The scope and continuous nature of the conduct, as well as Respondent’s failure to take responsibility for wrongdoing, may be considered as aggravating factors.”

Short of expulsion, the committee could recommend censure, fines or a reprimand, as well as other measures involving removal from committee assignments, reduction in seniority or requiring an apology.

Last month, the panel’s adjudicatory subcommittee held a rare public “trial,” after which it determined that 25 of the 27 allegations against Cherfilus-McCormick in the committee’s report “had been proven.”

Republican Rep. Greg Steube of Florida has been waiting for the Ethics Committee to wrap up the matter before forcing a floor vote on her expulsion.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said last week that the panel’s findings were “alarming” and that it would be “the consensus of this body that she should be expelled.”

“The facts are indisputable at this point,” he told reporters.

Expelling Cherfilus-McCormick from the House would require a two-thirds vote, requiring 70 Democrats to support it.

House Democratic leaders have held off on weighing in on Cherfilus-McCormick’s potential punishment, citing the Ethics Committee’s work. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, said Monday that Democrats would “convene as a caucus” after the panel makes its recommendations to discuss next steps.

“Then we will proceed in a manner consistent with our approach to these types of ethics matters, which is to always and at all times follow the facts and apply the relevant law without fear or favor,” he said.

Jaala Brown contributed to this report.

涉委任驻美大使不当 英国首相斯塔默深陷下台危机

2026年4月21日 18:26 / 联合早报

英国下议院周一（4月20日）发布的照片​​显示，首相斯塔默就英国前驻美国大使曼德尔森的审查程序发表声明。 （法新社）

（伦敦综合电）英国首相斯塔默周一否认在委任工党元老曼德尔森出任驻美国大使上刻意误导国会，反而指责外交部官员隐瞒后者安全审查不过关的信息。

斯塔默周一（4月20日）在国会针对这起政治风波发表讲话时承认，任命曼德尔森为驻美大使是他判断错误。他说：“我对此决定负全部责任，并再次向爱泼斯坦的受害者道歉，我的决定显然辜负了他们。”

自去年9月彭博社披露曼德尔森与已故美国性罪犯爱泼斯坦的密切关系以来，曼德尔森丑闻屡次浮出水面，给斯塔默带来政治压力。

民调显示，斯塔默是英国史上最不受欢迎的首相之一，部分原因在于多项政策失误。他因选择曼德尔森而不断受到关于其判断力的质疑，使他在5月7日关键的地方选举中承受更大压力。根据民调，他领导的工党可能遭遇重挫。如果这一结果成真，他将面临领导挑战。

涉委任驻美大使不当 英国首相斯塔默深陷下台危机

2026年4月21日 18:26 / 联合早报

英国下议院周一（4月20日）发布的照片​​显示，首相斯塔默就英国前驻美国大使曼德尔森的审查程序发表声明。 （法新社）

（伦敦综合电）英国首相斯塔默周一否认在委任工党元老曼德尔森出任驻美国大使上刻意误导国会，反而指责外交部官员隐瞒后者安全审查不过关的信息。

斯塔默周一（4月20日）在国会针对这起政治风波发表讲话时承认，任命曼德尔森为驻美大使是他判断错误。他说：“我对此决定负全部责任，并再次向爱泼斯坦的受害者道歉，我的决定显然辜负了他们。”

自去年9月彭博社披露曼德尔森与已故美国性罪犯爱泼斯坦的密切关系以来，曼德尔森丑闻屡次浮出水面，给斯塔默带来政治压力。

民调显示，斯塔默是英国史上最不受欢迎的首相之一，部分原因在于多项政策失误。他因选择曼德尔森而不断受到关于其判断力的质疑，使他在5月7日关键的地方选举中承受更大压力。根据民调，他领导的工党可能遭遇重挫。如果这一结果成真，他将面临领导挑战。

Inside Todd Blanche’s audition for attorney general

2026-04-21T10:00:55.196Z / CNN

By Paula Reid, Casey Gannon

1 hr 59 min ago
PUBLISHED Apr 21, 2026, 6:00 AM ET

Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 7.

Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche traveled to Florida on Monday where he met with a new prosecutor tapped to handle one of the most important cases to President Donald Trump — the investigation into former CIA director and Trump critic John Brennan.

The meeting comes as Blanche fights to prove he’s the man to deliver on Trump’s biggest priority: prosecuting the president’s political adversaries.

Less than two weeks in, Blanche has taken public steps toward delivering on Trump’s agenda by making changes to the team investigating Brennan, releasing a much-anticipated report on anti-abortion protests, and overseeing an effort to vacate the convictions of members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers involved in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Trump has commended Blanche’s work as acting attorney general so far, and, according to current and former administration officials who spoke to CNN, the job appears to be his to lose.

But officials say Blanche must still contend with many of the hurdles that plagued the tenure of former Attorney General Pam Bondi before her recent firing.

Pam Bondi testifies before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on “Oversight of the Department of Justice” on February 11.

Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images/File

Like Bondi, he must face low morale among prosecutors and the persistent controversy surrounding the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

The high profile prosecutions of Trump’s political foes must survive judges and grand juries who have so far rebuffed many of the attempts.

And buy-in from career prosecutors tasked with the investigations isn’t guaranteed.

“There are many prosecutors out there who are opposed to the president’s agenda and are not interested in doing the kinds of cases that are important to the White House,” Civil Rights Division Chief Harmeet Dhillon recently told CNN.

Blanche will have to face these challenges while other top Justice Department officials attempt to prove their ability to carry out Trump’s agenda if he cannot.

Prosecuting Trump’s political foes

Former CIA director John Brennan testifies before the House Intelligence Committee to take questions on “Russian active measures during the 2016 election campaign” in the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on May 23, 2017.

Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

While in Florida to speak at a legal event Monday, Blanche met with Jason Reding Quiñones, the US attorney for the southern district of Florida; justice official Christopher-James DeLorenz; and newly installed Counselor to the Attorney General Joseph diGenova, according to a Justice Department official. The meeting had not previously been reported.

DiGenova will now work on the investigation into Brennan, which is focused on one of the president’s longest standing political grievances — the 2017 intelligence assessment that found ​Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election to help him.

For Trump, prosecutions like Brennan’s — and the pursuit of debunked claims of a stolen 2020 election — are top of mind. He previously complained directly to Justice Department officials that he has not been pleased with the slow-moving progress.

Related article Justice Department adds former Trump lawyer to investigation of Trump critic John Brennan 2 min read

Some prosecutions that did move along quickly since fell apart. In November, a federal judge dismissed the charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey. The Justice Department tried multiple times to re-indict James, but failed to convince a grand jury to bring charges.

In February, a grand jury rejected criminal charges against six Democratic lawmakers who posted a video urging service members to defy illegal orders from the Trump administration.

The job of delivering on Trump’s agenda took a toll on Bondi, who sources said believed that she was at times being asked to do the impossible.

Bondi declined to comment for this story.

When she first took office, she formed the “Weaponization Working Group” which was tasked with investigating actions by prosecutors during the previous administrations who Trump officials allege were politically motivated.

Their targets include the cases brought by James, as well as former special counsel Jack Smith, and the sprawling prosecution against those involved in the US Capitol riot. The group was tasked with issuing public reports that could support criminal charges.

By the time Bondi left office in early April, however, the group had not produced a single report.

Related article How Pam Bondi lost her job 7 min read

Associate Attorney General Stan Woodward, the second highest ranking official at the Department, defended the pace of the weaponization group work to CNN.

“It is incumbent upon us not to simply label those travesties as weaponization, but to prove it and go find the evidence of weaponization,” he said. “And that takes time.”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 7.

Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

In his first week in office, Blanche oversaw the release of the group’s first report — one that alleged the Biden Justice Department was biased in how it went after abortion protesters. The department fired four prosecutors who worked on the cases.

The report was significant to some Republicans, but the group still has not produced anything related to the people whose investigations resulted in criminal charges against the president.

“Part of the reason the weaponization work has been difficult is that you need people who are MAGA and who are really competent,” said Chad Mizelle, former chief of staff for Bondi. “Many career prosecutors are not interested in this kind of work. It’s a very small group of people.”

Mizelle worked alongside Blanche and notes that even if the Justice Department can bring a case against one of Trump’s political adversaries, they will be up against top defense attorneys.

In the end, though, Mizelle said he is “confident” Blanche will be successful in these prosecutions.

As for career prosecutors who may resist these kinds of investigations, it may have to do with the strength of those cases, said CNN Senior Legal Analyst Elie Honig.

“DOJ prosecutors generally do not shy away from challenging, boldface cases; if anything, they’re more likely to be drawn towards high-stakes matters,” said Honig, a former state and federal prosecutor. “So when you see career, nonpolitical prosecutors expressing doubts about certain cases with political overtones, that’s typically because they simply don’t see the proof to support a criminal charge. DOJ prosecutors are aggressive but they’re not reckless, and they won’t bring a charge that they don’t believe will stick.”

But in an administration that has seen a rift between those dedicated to traditional conservatism and diehard Trump loyalism that has become known as being “MAGA,” some still question whether Blanche is willing to do what it takes to deliver on what the president wants.

Related article A rift between Trump’s favorite lawyers exposes a broader MAGA divide in the administration 6 min read

One senior administration official questioned whether Blanche has done enough to support the MAGA movement.

“Todd is running the show at DOJ, but he has not done enough to support MAGA,” the official said.

Others disagree.

“Todd Blanche put everything on the line to defend President Trump for many years, including representing President Trump in court daily for many years,” said Mike Davis, a longtime Trump legal adviser. “He doesn’t need to prove his MAGA credentials to anyone.”

Epstein still stings

The MAGA base has repeatedly criticized the department’s handling of the Epstein files.

In February 2025, Bondi told Fox News that the Epstein client list — which the department later said there was no evidence of ever existing — was sitting on her desk. Her department also hyped “Epstein binders” of records and handed them out to MAGA influencers, but in the end that initial release contained information that was already in the public domain.

As Bondi repeatedly stumbled, Blanche became the department’s primary spokesman on the investigation and eventually oversaw the release of millions of documents.

His controversial visit to Ghislaine Maxwell in July 2025 and his statement that no charges are expected in the Epstein matter unless new information comes forward had also faced scrutiny.

“First of all, the Epstein situation was the original sin of this Justice Department and Todd doesn’t get us away from that,” said senior administration official

The Justice Department, though, has defended its Epstein efforts.

“The Acting Attorney General met last year with Ghislaine Maxwell and her attorney because she had never met with law enforcement, and it was in the public interest to determine if she had information that had previously not been shared. The entire interview is publicly available,” a Justice Department official said recently.

“As for the file production, all files responsive to the law were released after reviewing millions of documents in a very short timeframe to comply with the Act,” the official said. “Despite it being a popular talking point on social media, any Attorney General will see the same, that all files have been released.”

Justice Department officials on the sidelines

If Blanche cannot satisfy the president, there are several high-profile Justice Department officials who appear poised to step-in.

Over the last few months, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro — a well-known TV personality with a direct line to the president — has sought the limelight.

She set up a tip line for any information regarding former Rep. Eric Swalwell amid allegations of sexual abuse, and she held a press conference scorching a federal judge for blocking DOJ subpoenas against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Pirro’s ability to operate with more autonomy than other US attorneys — at times having surprised the White House with her work — has raised questions about whether she’s auditioning for the attorney general job.

In response to suggestions that she may want to step into the role, Pirro issued a statement to CNN saying: “As United States Attorney for D.C., I have seen firsthand the competence, experience, and leadership ability of Todd Blanche. With over 15 years in the Department of Justice and a unique relationship with the president, he is the best person to run the Department of Justice.”

Dhillon, the hard-charging civil-rights chief, has also been floated as a possible pick for the job. She has worked to reshape the division to focus on reversing DEI initiatives and targeting antisemitism.

She told CNN, “Todd is the President’s choice and I fully support it. I have a great working relationship with him. He is very supportive of rank and file and career lawyers in the building at main justice.”

According to the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, Blanche can serve in the role of acting attorney general for up to 210 days, so the position does not need to be permanently filled until November.

Even if Blanche gets the job, Trump’s past attorneys general have all, eventually, been fired, replaced, or resigned.

If he doesn’t get the job, though, Blanche recently told reporters he won’t hold it against the president.

“If he chooses to nominate somebody else and asks me to go do something else, I will say: ‘Thank you very much, I love you, sir.’”

Senate GOP readying party-line funding bill despite divisions, anger at the House

2026-04-21 05:00 EDT / Fox News

Adding more issues to the reconciliation package would slow the process, Republicans warn

By Alex Miller Fox News

Published April 21, 2026 5:00am EDT | Updated April 21, 2026 5:20am EDT

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6393487889112 Blackburn blasts Democrats’ war powers push, condemns Michigan candidate

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., analyzes the Democratic strategy to limit President Donald Trump’s war powers regarding Iran, calling it a ‘delay tactic.’ She emphasizes confronting Iran’s nuclear ambitions and its role in funding terrorist groups like Hamas. Blackburn also criticizes a Michigan Senate candidate for his anti-Israel comments.

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Senate Republicans hope to nail down the first step of their party-line funding package for immigration operations this week, but other legislative obstacles and divisions could slow the process.

Republicans and President Donald Trump are in agreement that the partisan budget reconciliation process is the key to bypassing Democrats’ blockade of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol funding.

But in order to hit that fast-approaching deadline, Senate Republicans largely want to keep the package as narrowly tailored as possible to avoid any hiccups in the process. The main plan from Republican leadership is to fund immigration operations for the next three years with the current reconciliation package and look to a future bill as a later landing spot for other issues.

SENATE REPUBLICANS RACE TO FUND ICE, CBP WITHOUT DEMOCRATS AS SHUTDOWN DRAGS

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., acknowledged that other Republicans viewed the current package as a vehicle that could fit several other issues.(Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., will kick off the process with a budget resolution that will act as the guiding document for the GOP as they push forward into reconciliation. That resolution will tee up the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee as the main panels running the process.

“I hope we can get moving on it as early as next week,” Graham said before lawmakers left Washington, D.C., for the weekend.

Despite keeping the resolution, in theory, as slim as possible, other lawmakers in the upper chamber and in the House want more added to the package.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told FOX Business’ Larry Kudlow last week that he was making the case that Republicans should “go big” on reconciliation. Cruz said he wants a decade of funding for ICE and Border Patrol and, more broadly, tax cuts and affordability measures.

SENATE GOP VOWS TO ‘GO IT ALONE’ ON ICE FUNDING AS DEMS DOUBLE DOWN ON SHUTDOWN

Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026.(Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg)

“Right now, leadership’s plan is to have the skinny, anorexic bill that just has funding for ICE and Customs and Border Patrol. I think that is short-minded, short-sighted,” Cruz said.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., reiterated that the forthcoming package would have to “fall within the contours of what we’re trying to do here,” but he acknowledged that other Republicans viewed the current package as a vehicle that could fit several other issues.

“We have another vehicle available, we’ll see, but right now, keep it tight,” he continued. “That’s the plan.”

GOP RACES TO PASS ICE, BORDER PATROL FUNDING BILL AS PRIORITIES PILE UP, DIVISIONS EMERGE

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, holds a press conference on Dec. 15, 2025, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.(Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

Part of the problem with adding more to the package is that more committees would have to get involved, like during the crafting of Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” which involved every panel in the Senate and House and narrowly survived in the upper chamber.

And House Republicans are on the same page as Cruz — they want to supersize the bill to take advantage of the GOP’s trifecta in Washington, D.C., ahead of the midterm elections in the fall.

It’s a give-and-take between the chambers in their quest to end the longest shutdown in history. House Republicans aren’t keen on passing the Senate’s bill to fund the bulk of DHS, minus funding for ICE and chunks of CBP, until the reconciliation package passes.

But that could further prolong the shutdown, and Republicans in the upper chamber argue that DHS should be reopened while they hammer out the details for funding immigration operations in the background.

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Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., told Fox News Digital that adding more to the package would slow down the process.

“Every time you add stuff to it, you add committees of jurisdiction, you add complexity, and you add more time,” Hoeven said. “So if they want it expeditiously, which is what we’re working on right now, then you wouldn’t add stuff, right?”

Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.