On This Day, April 7: Scandinavian Star ferry fire kills 159
In 1862, Union forces under the command of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant defeated the Confederates at Shiloh, Tenn.
In 1922, under the direction Secretary of the Interior Albert Bacon Fall, petroleum reserves at Wyoming's Teapot Dome Oil Field were leased without competitive bidding to private companies. A Senate investigation ensued, leading to a bribery case that would become known as the Teapot Dome scandal.
In 1933, less than a month after President Franklin Roosevelt asked Congress to permit the manufacture and sale of beer, the Volstead Act was modified to allow for this request.
In 1947, auto pioneer Henry Ford died in Detroit at the age of 83. In 1896, he built his first self-propelled, gas-engine vehicle, and in 1903 incorporated the Ford Motor Company. He is credited for developing the first affordable, mass-produced car, the Model T, and pioneering the assembly line.
In 1990, arson fires aboard the ferry Scandinavian Star killed 159 people in Scandinavia's worst post-war maritime disaster.
In 2009, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il was re-elected to a third five-year term despite failing health since a reported stroke in August 2008. He died in 2011.
In 2011, a 23-year-old former student returned to his public elementary school in Rio de Janeiro and opened fire with two revolvers, killing 12 children and injuring 12 others before shooting himself in the head as police closed in.
In 2012, broadcast journalist Mike Wallace, the CBS 60 Minutes icon, died in New Canaan, Conn. He was 93.
In 2017, the United States fired 59 Tomahawk missiles into a west Syrian airfield from where it was believed President Bashar al-Assad's regime launched a deadly chemical attack that killed and injured hundreds of civilians.
In 2018, forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad launched a gas attack in the town of Douma, killing some 40 people.
In 2022, the Senate voted to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to serve as justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.
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The Hill
6 minutes ago
- The Hill
Slotkin says she would have voted to block arms sales to Israel
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) said Thursday that she would have voted to block arms sales to Israel over hunger in Gaza after missing a series of Senate votes Wednesday night to appear on Stephen Colbert's show. The Michigan senator said she was worried about the lack of food and medicine entering Gaza, and that 'images of emaciated children are hard to turn away from.' 'Should similar votes on offensive weapons come up in the future, I will take them on a case-by-case basis, with the hope of important humanitarian course corrections,' she wrote in a lengthy statement on X. 'While the leaders of Hamas deserve what they're getting in response to October 7, and Israel — like any other country in the world — has the right to defend itself, that doesn't include letting children go hungry.' The resolutions, sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), would have blocked more than $675 million in weapons sales to Israel, and barred another transfer of tens of thousands of assault rifles. They were resoundingly defeated in the Senate, although a record number of Democrats — more than half the caucus — voted in favor. The votes came amidst growing worry in the Democratic caucus over what the United Nations termed 'mounting evidence of famine and widespread starvation' in Gaza, where Israel's war is nearing its two-year mark. President Trump has also expressed concern with the situation, acknowledging earlier this week that there was 'real starvation' in the territory. Slotkin, who is Jewish, served three tours in Iraq as a CIA analyst in the early 2000s. She said in her statement that her experience in the Middle East showed her that aid could be safely distributed in complex war zones. '[E]ven in the most violent years of the war, the U.S. still had the responsibility to facilitate humanitarian supplies into places like Fallujah,' she wrote. 'And militaries that can pull off dangerous and complex operations overseas can also ensure aid is safely distributed in occupied areas.' Slotkin also said that the conduct of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had significantly undermined the country's standing among American lawmakers, writing that he had threatened 'the longstanding bipartisan consensus that have helped keep Israel safe since its inception.' Still, Slotkin appeared to garner criticism from fellow Michigander Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D), the only Palestinian-American in Congress. 'Shame on every senator who voted to continue arming the Israeli apartheid regime or didn't even have the courage to show up and vote,' the representative wrote on X. Michigan is home to one of the largest populations of Arab Americans in the country and was the epicenter of backlash during the 2024 election against the Biden administration's support of Israel.
Boston Globe
6 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Trump isn't done with the judiciary
But now that he is a part of a conservative supermajority, he seems pleased as punch. He is the first (due to deference given to him by his colleagues) to ask questions during each argument and is generally much more engaged. I'd say he's even less likely to retire than he was a decade ago. Advertisement Same for Justice Samuel Alito, 75, who hasn't shown any sign of wanting to slow down after authoring his career-defining decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Still, it should come as no surprise that Trump is making a list and checking it twice in the event he has an opportunity to add more justices to the high court. One-third of the court is already made up of Trump appointees. But according to a Advertisement Of course he is, as any president would be. But while the Time piece focuses on those in Trump's circle seeking a conservative's conservative to add to the court, I suspect another qualification is top of mind for Trump: loyalty. Many within MAGA — including Trump, reportedly — have become disillusioned with Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Even though she is a reliably conservative vote on the court, the few times she broke with her fellow GOP-appointed colleagues have reportedly Which is where people like Bove might come in. Having served as Trump's personal criminal defense attorney and then helped shape the Department of Justice in Trump's image, he's the Roy Cohn-type Trump will find hard to resist, especially now that he's been confirmed to a seat on the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Other names mentioned in the Time piece include conservative federal appellate Judges Raymond Kethledge, Amul Thapar, and Andrew Oldham. There is also Judge Aileen Cannon, who drew attention for seemingly placing a thumb on Trump's side of the scale in the criminal case against him for mishandling classified documents — a case she ultimately dismissed. Though Cannon hasn't been on the bench long, I don't count her out given Trump's loyalty requirement. And adding Trump's fondness (like many presidents) for making historic news, I also place high on the list Judges Neomi Rao and James Ho, which would allow Trump to install the first ever Asian American justice. Advertisement But Trump, most of all, wishes for a court full of Cohns to do his bidding. And I can't think of anyone who fits that bill more than the Senate-confirmed Bove. Watch this space. This is an excerpt from , a newsletter about the Supreme Court from columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Kimberly Atkins Stohr is a columnist for the Globe. She may be reached at
Politico
7 minutes ago
- Politico
Senate appropriators defend the NIH
WASHINGTON WATCH Senate appropriators came out hard in support of the National Institutes of Health on Thursday, giving the agency a $400 million funding boost for the 2026 fiscal year. How so: The Senate Appropriations Committee upped the agency's budget to $48.7 billion in the 2026 funding bill that cleared the panel with a 26-3 vote Thursday. If the bill becomes law, it would increase cancer research by $150 million; Alzheimer's research by $100 million and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, research by $25 million. The NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Office of Research on Women's Health would each get a $30 million boost. Research on maternal mortality, diabetes and rare diseases would also see an increase, among others. Why it matters: The funding boost is a rebuke from both Republicans and Democrats to the Trump administration's demand to decrease the NIH funding in the next fiscal year by as much as 40 percent, or $18 billion. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) said the legislation 'prioritizes funding to help make Americans healthier and supports life-saving medical research.' Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the top Democrat on the panel, said the budget increase was a message to 'the scientists wondering if there will even be an NIH by the end of this administration. This committee's resounding message is: 'Yes, Congress has your back.'' Murray urged scientists to continue their research in the U.S. despite the efforts of other countries to lure them away. The appropriators also adopted an amendment Thursday that would limit the Trump administration's control over NIH research funding. An amendment in the bill's manager's package limits the administration's plan to shift funding for most NIH grants from a multiyear schedule to an upfront single-year payment. The amendment states that no funds appropriated in the fiscal 2026 spending bill can be used to increase the proportion of grants fully funded in the first year of the award, compared with fiscal 2024. The NIH can only increase that proportion of forward-funded grants if the agency ensures it isn't cutting grants to do so. What's next: The bill is cleared for floor action. But congressional leaders haven't started bipartisan negotiations toward overall government funding totals, increasing the odds that lawmakers will again resort to a stopgap funding patch before the next fiscal year starts on Oct. 1. WELCOME TO FUTURE PULSE This is where we explore the ideas and innovators shaping health care. Peacock feathers have reflective structures that can amplify light into a laser beam, Science reports. Share any thoughts, news, tips and feedback with Carmen Paun at cpaun@ Ruth Reader at rreader@ or Erin Schumaker at eschumaker@ Want to share a tip securely? Message us on Signal: CarmenP.82, RuthReader.02 or ErinSchumaker.01. MORNING MONEY: CAPITAL RISK — POLITICO's flagship financial newsletter has a new Friday edition built for the economic era we're living in: one shaped by political volatility, disruption and a wave of policy decisions with sector-wide consequences. Each week, Morning Money: Capital Risk brings sharp reporting and analysis on how political risk is moving markets and how investors are adapting. Want to know how health care regulation, tariffs, or court rulings could ripple through the economy? Start here. WORLD VIEW A draft United Nations plan to make the world healthier no longer includes several targets cracking down on sugary drinks, trans fats and tobacco to prevent and control noncommunicable diseases globally. Struck down: A target of 80 percent of countries taxing sugary drinks at levels recommended by the World Health Organization by 2030, POLITICO's Rory O'Neill reports. That goal was a pillar of the initial draft, which will take the form of a nonbinding political declaration world leaders are expected to endorse at a Sept. 25 meeting in New York, on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly. The latest version has also dropped commitments to eliminate trans fats and aims instead to reduce them to the 'lowest level possible.' It also requires front-of-pack labels with nutritional information. A requirement for health warnings on tobacco packaging to be graphic and accompanied by elements that make it unattractive to consumers is also gone. The new draft has softer language on tobacco advertising, requiring countries to restrict it instead of eliminate it. 'Make no mistake, the Declaration in its current form is a backslide,' said Alison Cox, director of policy and advocacy at the NCD Alliance, in a statement. The alliance is a Switzerland-based civil society group working to promote chronic disease prevention. Why it matters: World leaders aim to reduce premature mortality from noncommunicable diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes by 2030 through prevention and treatment and to improve mental health and well-being globally. Noncommunicable diseases killed 18 million people under age 70 in 2021, according to the WHO. Most deaths were in low- and middle-income countries. The aims align with the U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again agenda, but it's unclear how much the U.S. is involved in drafting the final text. HHS did not respond to a request for comment. What's next: Negotiators are meeting this week in New York to discuss the text.
