- Monday April 20th, 2026
- "It Is Not A Question of Who Is Right Or Wrong But What Is Right Or Wrong That Counts."
- --Geoff Metcalf
- Providing an on line Triage of the news since 1998
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World & Nation
Iran’s refusal of second round of US peace talks was ‘posturing’: Pakistani sources
After Iran claimed it had refused to attend a second round of peace
talks on Sunday, Tehran is now “willing for a second round” of
negotiations — and its bluster so far is mere posturing for the best
deal possible, Pakistani sources exclusively told The Post on Monday.
“Current hard stance is posturing to extract maximum advantage when
second round happens,” the person said, citing takeaways from
discussions with the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman.
Security personnel guarding a street with banners for "Islamabad Talks" featuring flags of the US, Pakistan, and Iran.
However, Iran still had not yet decided whether it would attend as of Monday afternoon local time, the source said.
US Navy destroyer ‘blows a hole’ through Iranian cargo ship that tried to break Hormuz blockade, Trump says
The US seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship after “blowing a hole” in
its engine room when it tried to break past the Navy blockade of the
Strait of Hormuz, President Trump revealed Sunday.
The USS Spruance destroyer intercepted Iran’s Touska cargo ship in the
Gulf of Oman, taking custody of the ship after it refused warnings to
stop, according to the president.
“Today, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship named TOUSKA, nearly 900 feet
long and weighing almost as much as an aircraft carrier, tried to get
past our Naval Blockade, and it did not go well for them,” Trump
boasted on Truth Social.
“Right now, U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel,” the president
added. “The TOUSKA is under U.S. Treasury Sanctions because of their
prior history of illegal activity. We have full custody of the ship,
and are seeing what’s on board!”
UN Amb. Waltz: Trump Willing to Escalate Iran Conflict
Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that
President Donald Trump is prepared to escalate the conflict with Iran
if peace negotiations fail, defending potential U.S. strikes on
infrastructure and rejecting claims such actions would be war crimes.
Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," ABC's "This Week," and CBS' "Face
the Nation," Waltz repeatedly said "all options are on the table" ahead
of a Wednesday ceasefire deadline and renewed talks expected Monday in
Islamabad.
"The president has made it very clear. He is prepared to escalate to de-escalate this conflict," Waltz said on "Meet the Press."
Waltz pushed back on criticism from Democrat lawmakers and others who
have warned that targeting bridges, power plants, and other
infrastructure could violate international law.
DOJ demands 865K Detroit ballots, threatening possible legal action
Assistant AG Dhillon vows to keep pressure on Democrat-run states objecting to probes
Michigan is among states doubling down on rejecting Trump
administration investigations and oversight into elections, claiming
protection of the right to vote, potentially setting up a battle that
could escalate to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Justice Department is demanding roughly 865,000 ballots and
hundreds of thousands of related election records from the Detroit
area’s 2024 election, threatening to seek a court order if the
materials are not turned over within 14 days.
In an April 14 letter to Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett, Assistant
Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon asked for "all ballots (including
absentee and provisional), ballot receipts, and ballot envelopes" from
the November 2024 federal election, saying the department was acting
under federal records-retention law and investigating whether election
laws were followed.
Energy Chief: Gas Prices Could Stay Above $3 per Gallon Until Next Year
Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday he believes gas prices
have peaked but predicted that they may stay above $3 per gallon until
next year.
Gas prices have risen during the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran and
Iranian attacks on nearby countries, creating political headwinds for
President Donald Trump ahead of the November midterm elections, where
his Republican Party will defend slim majorities in the Senate and
House of Representatives.
Gas below $3 a gallon "could happen later this year, that might not
happen until next year. But prices have likely peaked, and they'll
start going down," Wright told CNN’s "State of the Union" program.
"Certainly with the resolution of this conflict, you’ll see prices go
down."
Netanyahu, Milei Announce Isaac Agreement, Trump Credited
The governments of Israel, Argentina, and the United States on Sunday
jointly announced the launch of the "Isaac Accords," a new trilateral
and hemispheric strategic framework aimed at deepening cooperation on
security, economic development, and democratic alignment across the
Western Hemisphere.
The joint declaration, announced at a press conference in Jerusalem by
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Argentine President Javier
Milei, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, describes the Isaac
Accords as a platform for "strengthening cooperation between Argentina,
Israel, and like-minded partners in the Western Hemisphere."
Huckabee credited President Donald Trump as instrumental to the agreement, saying he helped "change swords into plowshares."
The ambassador described the Isaac Accords as "an extraordinary
opportunity" for Israel and Argentina to do something that would change
"the Western Hemisphere, the Middle East, and the rest of the world."
US military announces another deadly strike against 'narco-terrorists'
Three men were killed in the strike, SOUTHCOM noted
The U.S. military announced that it killed three "narco-terrorists" in a Sunday strike. (US Southern Command via X)
The U.S. military announced another deadly strike against a vessel that it alleges was involved in "narco-trafficking" efforts.
"On April 19, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis L.
Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic
strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations,"
U.S. Southern Command indicated in a post on X.
"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known
narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in
narco-trafficking operations," the post continued.
Virginia redistricting referendum could have national implications
Virginia’s
redistricting referendum could have a seismic political impact on
congressional districts in the commonwealth, but if it passes, it could
also affect the balance of power in the U.S. House.
Several states
have undergone redistricting since President Donald Trump announced he
wanted Republican-led states to do everything possible to add GOP seats.
But Virginia
would potentially undergo the biggest change of any state, since
Democrats currently hold only a 6-5 edge in the state’s congressional
delegation. Democrats could gain a 10-1 advantage with redrawn
districts.
“In many ways,
what happens in Virginia, may very well be the deciding factor in terms
of which party controls Congress next year,” said Stephen Farnsworth,
professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington.
“If the amendment passes, that’s a significant advantage for Democrats
going into those November 2026 midterms.”
That’s because the GOP House majority remains razor thin.
Senate Republicans hope Supreme Court ‘surprise’ could help save majority
Senate
Republicans who fear their three-seat majority could be in danger in
this year’s midterm election would welcome the retirement of
conservative Justice Samuel Alito as an “October surprise” that could
change their political fortunes by rallying GOP-leaning voters to the
polls.
GOP senators
are being careful not to prod Alito, a leading conservative voice on
the high court, out the door, but privately hope that a retirement
announcement in the fall could shift several races in their direction.
They think this
would help their party in this year’s Senate elections just as the
battle over Justice Brett Kavanaugh did in the 2018 midterms.
Supposed new Iran peace talks are looking more like a joke than a hope
By New York Post Editorial Board
As US negotiators head back to Pakistan for more peace talks, we have to ask: What’s the point?
It wasn’t even clear as of late Sunday if the Iranians would send a
team to talk: At least one Tehran-run news outlet was saying they
wouldn’t.
And if negotiators do show, it’s likely that any concessions they make will get vetoed by the real powers back home.
Last week, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced to the
world that the Strait of Hormuz was “completely opened” for commercial
vessels, news that President Donald Trump joyfully shared with the
world.
Then Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the parliament speaker, said Trump had
it wrong — and Tehran’s forces on Saturday opened fire on multiple
tankers as they proceeded toward the Strait.
Top Democrat governors are hoping to ride their records to the White House. Can they?
IRS data shows taxpayers fleeing all top blue states as regulatory burdens and energy costs continue to climb
By Brooke Medina
The midterms are quickly approaching, and while political pundits are
focused on the battle for the U.S. House and Senate, a handful of
governors’ races could have a significant impact on 2028.
Governors serve as the chief executive of their state, with broad
authority to enforce laws, oversee state agencies and manage the
executive branch. Those agencies shape everything from education to
healthcare, business regulation, public safety, infrastructure and
public health. This November, Americans in 36 states will head to the
ballot box to decide who holds that power — and they should choose
carefully.
Although state politics is often overshadowed by Washington, D.C.,
nothing quite shapes American daily life like what happens at the state
level — and the governor sits at the center of it all.
Voters should pay close attention to the gubernatorial races in
Illinois, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Democratic Govs. JB Pritzker, Wes
Moore and Josh Shapiro are all seeking re-election while quietly
auditioning for 2028. The Democrat Party’s bench of possible contenders
consists primarily of current or former governors — a notable shift
from recent years of nominating candidates from Capitol Hill.
