Approaching one hundred days into the new administration, the Trump administration is declaring the border is secure. Illinois’ Democrat Governor JB Pritzker is fueling presidential buzz after a fiery speech targeting Trump. And, while courts block Trump’s agenda, the administration strikes back – arresting judges charged with illegally shielding migrants.
It’s Tuesday, April 29, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Starting this week, Morning Wire is now available on video. You can watch today’s episode here:
If you’d rather listen to the news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
Trump Secures Border In 1st 100 Days
Topline: The White House is celebrating 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency – and a huge part of its focus is on securing the border.
The White House has placed roughly 100 posters of deported illegal aliens and their various criminal offenses in plain view of the White House lawn to highlight the administration’s efforts to secure the border and deport illegal aliens, prioritizing individuals with particularly serious criminal histories.
“I started in Border Patrol in 1984,” Border Czar Tom Homan said in a White House press conference on Monday. “I’ve been at this for over 40 years. I’ve worked for six presidents. … Joe Biden was the first president in the history of this nation who came into office and unsecured the border on purpose. … Now, President Trump and this administration, the success is unprecedented … border numbers are at historic lows.”
Border crossings have dropped dramatically since Trump took office – according to the Department of Homeland Security, encounters at the border have fallen by 95%. Members of the administration credit the close collaboration of several departments, including the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Homeland Security for the rapid turnaround.
Democrats Position Themselves For 2028
Topline: Democratic lawmakers are stepping up their rhetoric against President Trump, with one presidential frontrunner being accused of inciting violence against Republicans.
Following the election, the big question for lawmakers on the Left was whether they should work to find common ground with Donald Trump and Republicans or oppose their every move. Polling shows the majority of the party’s voters now support the fight Trump approach, and lawmakers on the Left seem to be listening. This week, Illinois Governor JD Pritzker turned heads at a speech to Democrats in New Hampshire.
“Never before in my life have I called for mass protests, for mobilization, for disruption, but I am now,” Pritzker said. “These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace!”
At this point, that’s basically boilerplate rhetoric from the far-Left, but it’s a bit of a surprise coming from Governor Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotel empire who’s generally been considered more of a mainstream, establishment Democrat. In a sign that he’s looking to shake that label and prove his progressive credentials, Pritzker had a clear message for moderate Democrats who’ve taken the common-ground approach with Trump. “Do-nothing Democrats want to blame our losses on our defense of black people and trans kids and immigrants instead of their own lack of guts and gumption.”
“The Democrats have no plan, no vision, and no leader,” Congresswoman Lisa McClain, chair of the House Republican Conference, told Morning Wire. “And when you can’t beat us on the issues, you have to personalize it. … they can’t debate the issues because they’re on the wrong side of the issues.”
Some Democrats are urging the party to take a more unifying approach – notably California Governor Gavin Newsom, who has invited Right-leaning guests on his podcast and walked back some of his previous statements on gender issues. The problem for Newsom and other Democrats pushing that strategy is that they were on the record for years saying the exact opposite, so they now run the risk of looking like flip-floppers to moderates, and sellouts to progressives, who are the loudest contingent on the Left.
One silver lining for Democrats is that President Trump’s approval rating has taken a hit in recent weeks. Three polls from ABC, CNN, and The New York Times all show him at 42 or 43% — 12 to 14 points underwater. His biggest hit has come from his handling of the economy — an issue where he’s typically been most popular. CBS has him down to 42% approval on the economy — that’s a ten point dip in the last two months. NBC has him at 40%, and Washington Post shows him with just 39%. If those numbers don’t improve, Republicans could be facing an uphill battle in the midterms — the big question is if Democrats can unify and capitalize, or whether their divisions will lead to another crushing defeat.
The Judiciary vs The Executive
Topline: Federal judges stepped in and blocked several of President Trump’s executive orders last week. The court orders targeted Trump’s moves on elections, immigration, and his efforts to reform the federal government.
Last week, the Trump administration suffered several high-profile setbacks in the courts. On Tuesday, a judge in the D.C. Circuit ordered Trump to reinstate Voice of America employees while his order to deconstruct VoA and other federally-funded outlets moves forward. On Wednesday, a federal judge in Maryland ordered the Trump administration to seek the return of a second deported migrant – a 20-year-old Venezuelan national who was deported to El Salvador after he was convicted of drug charges earlier this year.
Then on Thursday, that same judge in Maryland blocked some of the Department of Education’s anti-DEI efforts. The judge said that the department’s guidance to universities to scrap DEI programs or risk losing federal funds violated the First Amendment. Another federal judge in D.C. blocked parts of Trump’s order on federal election reform – specifically parts that required a voter to prove citizenship in order to register for federal elections. That same day, a federal judge in California blocked the administration from withholding funds from cities it deemed “sanctuary” jurisdictions that refuse to work with deportation enforcement. Finally, to end the week, a federal judge in D.C. blocked the administration from banning unions across dozens of federal agencies.
Vice President JD Vance called it a “pattern” that “is not consistent with the Constitution.” As he explained on X, the “Biden administration does something the American people elected Donald Trump to undo,” but then a “lawless district court judge substitutes his policy preferences for the will of the people.” The administration is clearly frustrated with how these cases are playing out in court, and how consistently judges issue these sweeping orders that in many cases go way beyond whatever question the plaintiff sued over to begin with.
Meanwhile two judges have been arrested on charges of obstruction of justice after aiding and abetting illegal aliens in their attempts to evade immigration authorities.
According to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Judge Hannah Dugan of Wisconsin snuck a defendant, who had illegally entered the United States in 2013 and was facing charges of domestic violence, out of her courtroom when she learned ICE was outside waiting to pick him up. Former Judge Jose Luis Cano and his wife were arrested after allegedly sheltering a fugitive member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization. Cano and his wife were also charged with evidence tampering – according to the federal affidavit, Cano attempted to scrub the social media account of an alien tenant living on his property and went so far as to smash a cell phone with a hammer to prevent police from accessing its contents.
[#item_full_content]
[[{“value”:”
Approaching one hundred days into the new administration, the Trump administration is declaring the border is secure. Illinois’ Democrat Governor JB Pritzker is fueling presidential buzz after a fiery speech targeting Trump. And, while courts block Trump’s agenda, the administration strikes back – arresting judges charged with illegally shielding migrants.
It’s Tuesday, April 29, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Starting this week, Morning Wire is now available on video. You can watch today’s episode here:
If you’d rather listen to the news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
Trump Secures Border In 1st 100 Days
Topline: The White House is celebrating 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency – and a huge part of its focus is on securing the border.
The White House has placed roughly 100 posters of deported illegal aliens and their various criminal offenses in plain view of the White House lawn to highlight the administration’s efforts to secure the border and deport illegal aliens, prioritizing individuals with particularly serious criminal histories.
“I started in Border Patrol in 1984,” Border Czar Tom Homan said in a White House press conference on Monday. “I’ve been at this for over 40 years. I’ve worked for six presidents. … Joe Biden was the first president in the history of this nation who came into office and unsecured the border on purpose. … Now, President Trump and this administration, the success is unprecedented … border numbers are at historic lows.”
Border crossings have dropped dramatically since Trump took office – according to the Department of Homeland Security, encounters at the border have fallen by 95%. Members of the administration credit the close collaboration of several departments, including the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Homeland Security for the rapid turnaround.
Democrats Position Themselves For 2028
Topline: Democratic lawmakers are stepping up their rhetoric against President Trump, with one presidential frontrunner being accused of inciting violence against Republicans.
Following the election, the big question for lawmakers on the Left was whether they should work to find common ground with Donald Trump and Republicans or oppose their every move. Polling shows the majority of the party’s voters now support the fight Trump approach, and lawmakers on the Left seem to be listening. This week, Illinois Governor JD Pritzker turned heads at a speech to Democrats in New Hampshire.
“Never before in my life have I called for mass protests, for mobilization, for disruption, but I am now,” Pritzker said. “These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace!”
At this point, that’s basically boilerplate rhetoric from the far-Left, but it’s a bit of a surprise coming from Governor Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotel empire who’s generally been considered more of a mainstream, establishment Democrat. In a sign that he’s looking to shake that label and prove his progressive credentials, Pritzker had a clear message for moderate Democrats who’ve taken the common-ground approach with Trump. “Do-nothing Democrats want to blame our losses on our defense of black people and trans kids and immigrants instead of their own lack of guts and gumption.”
“The Democrats have no plan, no vision, and no leader,” Congresswoman Lisa McClain, chair of the House Republican Conference, told Morning Wire. “And when you can’t beat us on the issues, you have to personalize it. … they can’t debate the issues because they’re on the wrong side of the issues.”
Some Democrats are urging the party to take a more unifying approach – notably California Governor Gavin Newsom, who has invited Right-leaning guests on his podcast and walked back some of his previous statements on gender issues. The problem for Newsom and other Democrats pushing that strategy is that they were on the record for years saying the exact opposite, so they now run the risk of looking like flip-floppers to moderates, and sellouts to progressives, who are the loudest contingent on the Left.
One silver lining for Democrats is that President Trump’s approval rating has taken a hit in recent weeks. Three polls from ABC, CNN, and The New York Times all show him at 42 or 43% — 12 to 14 points underwater. His biggest hit has come from his handling of the economy — an issue where he’s typically been most popular. CBS has him down to 42% approval on the economy — that’s a ten point dip in the last two months. NBC has him at 40%, and Washington Post shows him with just 39%. If those numbers don’t improve, Republicans could be facing an uphill battle in the midterms — the big question is if Democrats can unify and capitalize, or whether their divisions will lead to another crushing defeat.
The Judiciary vs The Executive
Topline: Federal judges stepped in and blocked several of President Trump’s executive orders last week. The court orders targeted Trump’s moves on elections, immigration, and his efforts to reform the federal government.
Last week, the Trump administration suffered several high-profile setbacks in the courts. On Tuesday, a judge in the D.C. Circuit ordered Trump to reinstate Voice of America employees while his order to deconstruct VoA and other federally-funded outlets moves forward. On Wednesday, a federal judge in Maryland ordered the Trump administration to seek the return of a second deported migrant – a 20-year-old Venezuelan national who was deported to El Salvador after he was convicted of drug charges earlier this year.
Then on Thursday, that same judge in Maryland blocked some of the Department of Education’s anti-DEI efforts. The judge said that the department’s guidance to universities to scrap DEI programs or risk losing federal funds violated the First Amendment. Another federal judge in D.C. blocked parts of Trump’s order on federal election reform – specifically parts that required a voter to prove citizenship in order to register for federal elections. That same day, a federal judge in California blocked the administration from withholding funds from cities it deemed “sanctuary” jurisdictions that refuse to work with deportation enforcement. Finally, to end the week, a federal judge in D.C. blocked the administration from banning unions across dozens of federal agencies.
Vice President JD Vance called it a “pattern” that “is not consistent with the Constitution.” As he explained on X, the “Biden administration does something the American people elected Donald Trump to undo,” but then a “lawless district court judge substitutes his policy preferences for the will of the people.” The administration is clearly frustrated with how these cases are playing out in court, and how consistently judges issue these sweeping orders that in many cases go way beyond whatever question the plaintiff sued over to begin with.
Meanwhile two judges have been arrested on charges of obstruction of justice after aiding and abetting illegal aliens in their attempts to evade immigration authorities.
According to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Judge Hannah Dugan of Wisconsin snuck a defendant, who had illegally entered the United States in 2013 and was facing charges of domestic violence, out of her courtroom when she learned ICE was outside waiting to pick him up. Former Judge Jose Luis Cano and his wife were arrested after allegedly sheltering a fugitive member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization. Cano and his wife were also charged with evidence tampering – according to the federal affidavit, Cano attempted to scrub the social media account of an alien tenant living on his property and went so far as to smash a cell phone with a hammer to prevent police from accessing its contents.
“}]]
