In a Thursday meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, President Donald Trump said he’s “in no rush” to reach trade deals with foreign nations. Meloni met with Trump as Italy’s premier.
But she has effectively been “knighted” to represent the European Union after the Republican president placed 10% tariffs on imports from the EU. Meloni has portrayed the U.S. and Europe as natural allies, saying “the goal for me is to make the West great again.”
Here's the latest:
Medal of Honor winner for heroism in Afghanistan is rejoining the military
Dakota Meyer, a Marine who was awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in the Afghanistan War but later became a sharp critic of the Biden administration over its chaotic withdrawal from that conflict, is reenlisting in the military and will serve in the Marine Reserves.
In a briefing with reporters Thursday before his reenlistment ceremony, Meyer said he’s returning to military service after 15 years out of uniform because he felt he “had more to give.” He’s also close to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
But Meyer said he would refrain from politics while in uniform.
“The great part about being in the reserves is I’m still a citizen when I’m not on orders,” he said. “When I’m on orders, I’ll comply obviously with whatever the standard is.”
Trump says he’s in ‘not in a rush’ for military action on Iran
“I’m not in a rush to do it because I think that Iran has a chance to have a great country and to live happily without death, and I’d like to see that,” Trump told reporters as he hosted Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni at the White House. “That’s my first option. If there’s a second option, I think it would be very bad for Iran.”
Trump’s latest comments on Iran’s nuclear program comes as his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are set to gather Saturday for a second round of talks.
The New York Times on Thursday reported that Israel had recently developed a plan to attack Iranian nuclear facilities, but Trump wanted to give negotiations more time.
Asked about the report, Trump said “I wouldn’t say waved off,” while reiterating his position that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.
“It’s really simple,” Trump added. “We’re not looking to take their industry. We’re not looking to take their land. All we are saying is you can’t have a nuclear weapon.”
Despite their ‘great’ relationship, Trump says Meloni didn’t change his mind on tariffs
“No, tariffs are making us rich. We were losing a lot of money under Biden,” the U.S. president said. “And now that whole tide is turned.”
Trump took time to lavish praise on the Italian prime minister, however.
“She’s doing a great job, certainly one of our great allies,” he said. “She’s a fantastic person and doing a great job and our relationship is great.”
IRS is investigating Harvard, but White House says it’s not because of Trump
After Harvard defied the Trump administration’s demands, the president suggested on social media the university should lose its tax-exempt status “if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting ‘Sickness?’”
The White House suggested IRS scrutiny of Harvard’s tax status predated Trump’s post Tuesday on Truth Social. Federal tax law prohibits senior members of the executive branch from requesting that an IRS employee conduct or terminate an audit or investigation.
“Any forthcoming actions by the IRS will be conducted independently of the President, and investigations into any institution’s violations of its tax status were initiated prior to the President’s TRUTH,” White House spokesperson Harrison Fields said in an email Thursday.
But a person familiar with the matter said the Treasury Department directed Andrew De Mello, the IRS’s acting chief counsel, to begin the process of revoking Harvard’s tax exempt status shortly after Trump’s post. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal matters.
▶ Read more about Harvard and the IRS
— Fatima Hussein
Voting rights advocates warn of state proof of citizenship voting requirements
Many conservative states, including Florida, Texas and Indiana, have recently introduced bills aiming to create or expand proof of citizenship voting requirements amid legal challenges to an executive order attempting to make the mandate national.
“Even if not a single tenet of this executive order stands up to legal challenge, the goal of the executive order was and is to send clear marching orders to the states and Congress to tell them exactly what President Trump wants them to be doing,” said Liz Avore, senior policy advisor at the Voting Rights Lab. “And they’re listening.”
Avore said 22 states this year are considering or have considered bills that require proof of citizenship, which voting rights advocates say risks disenfranchising millions of Americans without ready access to the proper documents.
Supreme Court keeps hold on Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship but sets May arguments
Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship for the children of people who are in the U.S. illegally has been halted nationwide by three district courts around the country.
The Republican administration had sought to narrow those orders to allow for the policy to take effect in parts or most of the country while court challenges play out. That’s expected to be the focus of the high court arguments.
▶ Read more about the birthright citizenship case
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent: Administration working on ‘big 15 economies’ first on trade deals
Trump asked Bessent to comment on the trade negotiations during the president’s Oval Office meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Bessent noted that he and other administration officials held talks Wednesday with Japan. He said South Korean officials will be visiting next week.
Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes slams SAVE Act as ‘trash’
The bill, which the House passed last week, aims to require proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote for federal elections. It’s one of Trump’s top election-related priorities and Democrats and voting rights advocates have warned it risks disenfranchising millions of Americans without ready access to the proper documents.
“It makes no sense,” Fontes said Thursday. “This is an alleged solution that searching desperately for a problem. And the solution is far more dangerous to the rights of American voters.”
Fontes also criticized Trump’s executive order on elections as a “nonsensical attack” on trust in elections.
“American citizens’ rights are under attack, and it’s a damn tragedy it’s coming from the White House,” he said.
Trump says mineral deal with Ukraine is ready
After lots of false starts, the president said the U.S. is ready to deal with Ukraine on access to critical minerals in the country.
“We have a minerals deal,” Trump said in the Oval Office.
Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were originally supposed to sign such an agreement when the Ukrainian leader visited the White House, only to have their meeting end in acrimony.
Trump continued to criticize Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell
“Oh, he’ll leave,” Trump said in the Oval Office as he welcomed Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni. “If I ask him to, he’ll be out of there.”
He did not respond to a follow-up question on whether he would try and remove the Federal Reserve chairman.
Meloni says Trump will visit Italy
The Italian premier said in the Oval Office that Trump has accepted an invitation for an official trip to her country.
No date was disclosed. Vice President JD Vance is leaving Friday for his own visit to Rome.
She flattered the U.S. leader in their meeting, saying “the goal for me is to make the West great again,” echoing Trump’s campaign slogan. Meloni said she shares his fight against “woke” ideology.
Trump also praised his Italian counterpart. “She has taken Europe by storm,” he said.
Trump responds to the shooting at Florida State University
The president opened his Oval Office meeting with the Italian premier with comments on the shooting.
Trump said he’d been “fully briefed.”
“It’s a horrible thing. It’s horrible that things like this takes place,” he said.
Sen. Van Hollen says he was denied entry to El Salvador prison where Kilman Abrego Garcia is held
Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland is in El Salvador to push for Abrego Garcia’s release after he was sent there by the Trump administration in March despite an immigration court order preventing his deportation. He said in a video posted on X that his car was stopped when he tried to enter the prison Thursday to check on Abrego Garcia’s health.
“Today’s purpose was just to see what his health condition is,” Van Hollen said in the video. He said his car was stopped by soldiers about 3 kilometers from the prison, even as they let other cars go on.
Abrego Garcia is a a Salvadoran citizen who was living in Maryland when he was deported.
▶ Read more about Kilman Abrego Garcia’s case
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni invites Trump to visit Italy
The official invitation came at the start of their White House meeting.
Vice President JD Vance is already scheduled to head to Rome later this week and will meet with Meloni while he’s there.
Trump visited Italy during his first term when he attended the 2017 Group of Seven summit in Taormina.
Trump says he’s in ‘no rush’ to reach any trade deals
The president played down the likelihood of reaching any trade agreements as a result of his tariffs.
Trump told reporters while meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that “at a certain point” deals would come together.
“We’re in no rush,” said Trump, saying he liked the revenues he expected the tariffs to generate for the U.S. government.
US Treasury says no decision has been made on the future of the Direct File program
That’s according to a Treasury spokesperson who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agency’s thinking on the topic.
Direct File is an electronic system for filing tax returns directly to the agency for free, developed during the Biden administration. The Associated Press reported Wednesday that the Trump administration plans to eliminate the program according to two people familiar with the decision.
The Treasury official, in an emailed statement, said the department viewed Direct File as a “very disappointing” program that costs tens of millions of dollars a year and was used by about 200,000 people out of 300 million, or less than 0.1% of taxpayers.
However, the program wasn’t available in all 50 states. It was launched as a pilot in 2024 in 12 states, then made permanent and expanded to 25 states for the 2025 filing season and was still growing. The agency accepted 140,803 submitted returns in 2024.
— Fatima Hussein
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni has arrived at the White House for her meeting with Trump
The two leaders posed for photos together before heading inside.
Former Pentagon spokesperson tied to online DEI purge asked to resign, official says
John Ullyot was one of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s initial communications office hires and oversaw some of its most visible but controversial moves, including a broad edict to the military services to strip away online images that were considered a promotion of diversity, equity or inclusion.
That directive led to public outcry when images of national heroes like Jackie Robinson and others were removed.
Ullyot told Politico on Wednesday he decided to resign.
A senior defense official told The Associated Press on Thursday that Hegseth’s office asked Ullyot to resign. The official familiar with the decision spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details that haven’t been made public.
The departure isn’t tied to an investigation into unauthorized disclosures of information, which so far has led three other senior Pentagon aides to be put on leave.
European Central Bank cuts interest rates for 7th time as global trade tensions escalate
The rate cuts Thursday are to counter worries about economic growth fueled by President Trump’s tariff onslaught.
The bank’s move should support economic activity in the 20 countries that use the euro currency by making credit more affordable for consumers and businesses.
ECB President Christine Lagarde said at a post-decision news conference that “the major escalation in global trade tensions and the associated uncertainty will likely lower euro area growth by dampening exports.”
“And it may drag down investment and consumption,” she said.
▶ Read more about the European Central Bank’s interest rate cuts
Talks between Iran and US over Tehran’s nuclear program are ‘in a very crucial’ stage
The comments Thursday come from the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog while on a visit to the Islamic Republic.
Speaking in Tehran, Rafael Mariano Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency also acknowledged his agency likely would be key in verifying compliance by Iran should a deal be reached. Iran and the U.S. will meet again Saturday in Rome for a new round of talks after last weekend’s first meeting in Oman.
The stakes of the negotiations and the wider geopolitical tensions in the Mideast couldn’t be higher, particularly as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in the Gaza Strip. President Trump repeatedly has threatened to unleash airstrikes targeting Iran’s nuclear program if a deal isn’t reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
▶ Read more about nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran
Homeland Security Department threatens to revoke Harvard’s ability to host international students
That’s if the university doesn’t agree to turn over “detailed records on Harvard’s foreign student visa holders’ illegal and violent activities” by April 30.
More than 27% of Harvard’s student body comes from another country.
The department also said it was cancelling two grants totaling $2.7 million to the university.
The moves are an escalation of the Trump administration’s crackdown on Harvard, which so far has defied the administration’s demands in a battle over federal funding, diversity policies and campus activism.
Schumer wants DOJ to find out if attack on Pennsylvania governor’s home is federal hate crime
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is calling on the Justice Department to investigate whether the arson attack on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s official residence qualifies as a federal hate crime.
The suspect, Cody Balmer, has “admitted to harboring hatred” toward Shapiro, who’s Jewish, according to a police affidavit. Police obtained warrants to search Balmer’s writings or notes for any references to “the name of Josh Shapiro (or a) reference to Palestine, Gaza, Israel or the current conflict in Gaza.”
In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday, Schumer said the incident “warrants immediate and serious federal scrutiny.”
“I appreciate your strong condemnation of the attack and urge you to ensure that the federal government does everything in its power to pursue justice and uphold the fundamental values of religious freedom and public safety,” wrote Schumer, who’s the highest-ranked Jewish official in the U.S.
Ukraine’s future is at the center of talks in Paris with Rubio, Witkoff and top European officials
Paris is hosting the series of talks Thursday about Ukraine and its security, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and presidential envoy Steve Witkoff, French President Emmanuel Macron and top Ukrainian and European officials.
Rubio and Witkoff were having lunch discussions with Macron and “talks with European counterparts to advance President Trump’s goal to end the Russia-Ukraine war and stop the bloodshed,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
The meetings come as concerns grow about Trump’s readiness to draw closer to Russia, and after weeks of U.S. efforts to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine. There’s also frustration over the Trump administration’s other moves, from tariffs on some of its closest partners to rhetoric about NATO and Greenland.
▶ Read more about the talks on Ukraine
Trump’s schedule for Thursday
At 12 p.m. ET, the president will greet Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, according to the White House schedule for Thursday. The pair are scheduled to participate in a bilateral lunch followed by a meeting in the Oval Office, where they may speak to the White House Press Pool.
Meloni is the first European leader to have a face-to-face with Trump since he announced, and then suspended, 20% tariffs on European exports. Meloni secured the meeting at a critical juncture in the trade war as Italy’s leader, but she also has, in a sense, been “knighted” to represent the European Union. She’s been in close contact with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ahead of the trip, and “the outreach is … closely coordinated,” a commission spokesperson said this week.
At 4:00 p.m. ET, Trump is scheduled to sign executive orders.
Federal judge will hear arguments as groups try to block Trump’s executive order on elections
The judge will hear arguments Thursday in three cases from national Democrats and voting rights groups that are challenging President Trump’s recent executive order on elections, which, among other changes, would require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.
The Democratic National Committee, the League of United Latin American Citizens, the League of Women Voters Education Fund and others are seeking to block Trump’s sweeping overhaul of federal election processes, alleging the changes he wants are unconstitutional.
The Republican president’s executive order says the U.S. has failed “to enforce basic and necessary election protections” and calls on states to work with federal agencies to share voter lists and prosecute election crimes. It threatens to pull federal funding from states where election officials don’t comply.
▶ Read more about Trump’s executive order on elections
Trump says Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell ‘termination cannot come fast enough’
Trump hinted at moving to fire Powell, whose term doesn’t expire until next year, as he reiterated his frustration that the Fed hasn’t aggressively cut interest rates.
The president’s broadside comes a day after Powell said in a speech that Trump’s broad-based tariffs have left the Federal Reserve seeking “greater clarity” on the impact of policy changes in areas such as immigration, taxation, regulation, and tariffs before making potential cuts.
“Oil prices are down, groceries (even eggs!) are down, and the USA is getting RICH ON TARIFFS,” Trump said in a social media post. He added that Powell “should have lowered Interest Rates, like the ECB, long ago, but he should certainly lower them now. Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!”
Powell was initially nominated by Trump in 2017, and appointed to another four-year term by President Joe Biden in 2022. At a November new conference, Powell indicated he would not step down if Trump asked him to resign. He has also said the removal or demotion of top Fed officials was “not permitted under the law.”
Trump administration issues order to stop construction on New York offshore wind project
The Trump administration issued an order Wednesday to stop construction on a major offshore wind project to power more than 500,000 New York homes, the latest in a series of moves targeting the industry.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum directed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to halt construction on Empire Wind, a fully-permitted project. He said it needs further review because it appears the Biden administration rushed the approval.
Trump has been hostile to renewable energy, particularly offshore wind. His first day in office, Trump signed an executive order temporarily halting offshore wind lease sales in federal waters and pausing the issuance of approvals, permits and loans for all wind projects. Last month, the administration revoked the Clean Air Permit for an offshore wind project off the coast of New Jersey, Atlantic Shores. Construction on that wind farm had not yet begun.
▶ Read more about Trump’s pause on the project
Trump joins tariff talks with Japan as US seeks deals amid trade wars
Trump on Wednesday inserted himself directly into trade talks with Japanese officials, a sign of the high stakes for the United States after its tariffs rattled the economy and caused the administration to assure the public that it would quickly reach deals.
The Republican president attended the meeting alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, top economic advisers with a central role in his trade and tariff policies.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told reporters Thursday in Tokyo that his chief trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, told him from Washington that the talks were “very candid and constructive.”
Ishiba said he will closely watch how ministerial talks go and plans to visit Washington to meet with Trump at an appropriate time.
Trump’s choice to get directly involved in negotiations points to his desire to quickly finalize a slew of trade deals as China is pursuing its own set of agreements.
▶ Read more about trade talks with Japan
Judge says labor unions’ lawsuit over DOGE access to Labor Department systems can move forward
A federal judge says he won’t dismiss a lawsuit from labor unions seeking to block Elon Musk’s team from accessing systems at the Labor Department.
The labor unions say that allowing Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to access the systems violates the federal Privacy Act because they contain medical and financial records of millions of Americans. They also contend DOGE doesn’t have the legal authority to direct the actions of congressionally created agencies like the Department of Labor.
In a ruling Wednesday, U.S. District Judge John Bates said those claims could move forward in court. But some other, more specific arguments made by the unions — including that the U.S. Health and Human Services Department violated health care privacy laws by allowing DOGE access — were dismissed by the judge.
The federal Privacy Act generally prohibits an agency from disclosing records about a person to another agency, unless the person has first given written permission.
▶ Read more about the ruling
DOGE targets a community service program in its latest cost-cutting effort
A 30-year-old community service program that sends young adults to work on projects across the U.S. was the latest target of the Trump administration ’s campaign to slash government spending.
AmeriCorps’ National Civilian Community Corps informed volunteers Tuesday that they would exit the program early “due to programmatic circumstances beyond your control,” according to an email obtained by The Associated Press.
The unsigned memo to corps members said NCCC’s “ability to sustain program operations” was impacted by the Trump administration’s priorities and Trump’s executive order creating the Department of Government Efficiency. Members would be officially dismissed April 30.
More than 2,000 people ages 18 to 26 serve for nearly a year, according to the program’s website, and get assigned to projects with nonprofits and community organizations or the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It celebrated its 30th year last year.
The organization said on social media last month that teams have served 8 million service hours on nearly 3,400 disaster projects since 1999.
▶ Read more about DOGE cuts to AmeriCorps
The Associated Press
