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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. A federal judge is temporarily blocking the Trump administration's nearly $1.8 billion fund for people who claim they were targets of politicized prosecutions. NPR's Ryan Lucas reports. The decision is in response to a lawsuit filed by a legal advocacy group.
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In a two page order, U.S. district Judge Leonie Brincama bars the Justice Department from taking any further action to create the so called anti weap weaponization fund, including transferring money to the fund, considering any claims or making any payments out of it. This temporary pause is necessary, the judge says, in order to give the court time for a full briefing from both sides on the legal arguments before any funds are irreversibly paid out. The fund was created as part of a settlement agreement between the Justice Department and President Trump, who in return dropped his lawsuit against the IRS over his leaked tax returns. The fund has faced intense backlash from Democrats as well as many Republicans. Ryan Lucas, NPR News, Washington.
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Israel says it's planning to expand its control over Gaza. NPR's Ehya Batrawi reports. The plan would increase the territory under Israeli control from roughly two thirds of Gaza to about 70%.
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There's still no international peacekeeping force in Gaza and no disarmament agreement with Hamas. Instead, Israeli assassinations of Hamas commanders has ramped up and Palestinian families families say Israeli backed local militias have pushed them to relocate closer to the coast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told an audience this week about the continued push. The next step, he says, is to expand that control to 70%. He said Israel was tightening its grip on Hamas from every direction. Some members of his Cabinet, like the defense minister, support displacing Palestinians from Gaza, or what they call voluntary migration. Aya Baltrawi, NPR News, Dubai.
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On Wall street, the Dow Jones industrial Average crossed the 51,000 mark for the first time ever today. NPR's Scott Horsley reports. Stocks are trading higher as crude oil prices inch down.
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Speculators in futures markets are betting that oil will soon start flowing again through the Strait of Hormuz. But businesses that actually use oil say falling futures prices don't reflect the actual risk to supplies. ExxonMobil warned this week that physical stockpiles of oil are approaching record low levels, and unless they're replenished, prices could spike again in the coming weeks. AAA says retail gasoline prices in the U.S. dipped about 3 cents a gallon overnight, but the average price of $4.39 is still about $1.40 higher than before the U.S. launched its war with Iran. The U.S. trade deficit narrowed slightly last month. The Commerce Department says exports and imports both increased in April, but exports grew more. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.
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On Wall street, the dow was up 342 points. This is NPR. Republicans in Louisiana have approved a new congressional map that could help the party pick up a House seat in this year's midterm elections. The move comes after the Supreme Court struck down the state's redrawn map, which had carved out a second majority black district. Louisiana lawmakers quickly redrew district lines, eliminating the recently created congressional district. A federal judge in Washington, D.C. has rejected an attempt to stop an executive order from President Trump calling for redistricting. Voting by mail NPR's Hansi Lo Wang reports that another judge in Massachusetts is preparing to rule on the same order in the coming weeks.
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U.S. district Judge Carl Nichols found it's too early for an emergency ruling that would buy key parts of an order that the Trump administration has not carried out yet. Rob Weiner of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is representing some of the challengers.
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It was predominantly an issue of timing, and we live to continue fighting through the coming days.
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Trump's order calls for the federal government to create lists of adult U.S. citizens in each state. It also calls for banning the U.S. postal Service from delivering mail in ballots to anyone not on those lists. USPS is a financial supporter of npr. Separately, a federal judge in Boston is preparing to rule on claims that the president's directives violate the Constitution, which gives power to state legislatures and Congress, not the president, to set federal election rules. Hansila Wang, NPR News.
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The price of a forever stamp is set to increase by 4 cents this summer. The U.S. postal Service has proposed raising the cost from 78 to 82 cents beginning July 12th. This is NPR News in Washington.
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