Will Wall Street's Circuit Breakers Go Off?

Good Monday morning. These photos will remind you to appreciate the rain. Have a great start to your week.

In Today’s Brief

• Border: Bribery

• Myanmar: Death toll

• AOC: Schumer poll

• Big Lots: Comeback begins

• UConn: National title

... and more

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Top Tips

1) High anxiety

A prominent commentator has a dire prediction as markets prepare to re-open today with President Donald Trump doubling down on his tariff plans.

• The news: CNBC's Jim Cramer said he believes today could be another "Black Monday," a callback to the 1987 stock market crash. The Dow Jones crashed 22.6% in a single day then. Dow futures were down close to 1K points last night; the Nasdaq and S&P 500 were also down big after two brutal sessions last week following Trump's "Liberation Day" rollout.

• Sudden stop: There is also speculation stock prices could drop far enough to set off a circuit breaker on one or more of the major indexes. That is a regulatory mechanism that halts trading for a set period -- depending on the severity of the drop -- to stabilize markets and prevent panic sell-offs. You can read more about the process here; markets in Taiwan and Japan had already hit circuit breakers as of last night.

• Mixed messages: Trump -- and key figures in his administration -- have offered conflicting information about whether it is willing to negotiate tariffs on a nation-by-nation basis. The president has said he will not back off the tariffs due to the market losses, equating the situation to a sick person taking medicine to get better. The White House has said Trump is not trying to purposely tank the stock market to force the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.

• Of note: Billionaire advisor Elon Musk has appeared to break with Trump on the tariffs. The DOGE head said he would ideally like to see there be no tariffs between the European Union and U.S. Musk has also gotten into a public war of words with Peter Navarro, a White House economic advisor who is a tariff hawk.

2) ‘Wholly lawless’

A federal judge has ordered the Trump Administration to return a Maryland man it accidentally deported to El Salvador.

• The news: U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ordered Kilmar Abrego Garcia be brought back into the country by 11:59 p.m. ET tonight. She called his removal "wholly lawless" and refused a White House request to delay the deadline pending appeal.

• Catch up: Garcia, a Salvadoran national and green card holder, was on a deportation flight (that violated a court order) to an infamous prison in El Salvador. He was sent there despite an immigration judge's order of protection against being returned to his home country.

• More details: Garcia was arrested in 2019 in Maryland and cops at the time said a confidential informant claimed he was a member of the MS-13 gang. He denies the claim, has never been convicted of a crime and there is seemingly no evidence pointing to gang membership beyond the informant's claim. But the Trump Administration insists he is a gang member with Vice President J.D. Vance falsely calling him a convicted member.

• Big picture: The Trump Administration has claimed it has no power to compel Garcia's return once he arrived in El Salvador. The federal judge rejected that claim. But it is unclear if the White House intends to comply. The Justice Department put an attorney who expressed concerns about the government's handling of the case during a hearing on administrative leave.

3) Goal king

A seemingly unbreakable record has been broken.

• The news: Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin scored his 895th career goal yesterday, becoming the NHL's all-time leader. He passed Wayne Gretzky, considering the greatest player in hockey’s history. Gretzky was in attendance on Long Island when Ovechkin broke the record against the New York Islanders.

• More details: Gretzky held the record for over 30 years and retired with almost 100 more goals than the next closest player at the time. Gretzky remains the all-time points leader (counting assists) by almost 1K points. Ovechkin scored his 895th goal in his 1,487th career game; the same number of games Gretzky played in his.

• Of note: Ovechkin, 39, is Russian and has drawn criticism throughout his career for his close ties to President Vladimir Putin. The two men are friends and Ovechkin has campaigned for him, although he has called for peace in the war with Ukraine.

Quick Tips

U.S. News

• Two U.S. border inspectors in California allegedly accepted bribes to allow people into the country illegally. The men are accused of taking thousands to let migrants pass without documents; they reportedly corresponded with human traffickers (More)

• Texas confirmed its second measles-related death involving an unvaccinated school-aged children. An unvaccinated adult is believed to have died in New Mexico, but the cause of death remains under investigation (More) 

• A Nevada man was arrested after officials seized seven tigers from his home. The man claims the cats are emotional support animals; he was also charged with resisting arrest and unlawful possession of a firearm (More)

World News

• The Myanmar earthquake death toll has risen to almost 3.5K people. The Southeast Asian nation is expected to have thunderstorms and rain all week with temperatures approaching 100 degrees (More)

• The United Nations called on Canada to repeal part of its assisted death law. A committee on rights for disabled people said it is "extremely concerned" patients who do not have terminal illnesses are now eligible (More)

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the White House today. It will be his second time in Washington this year; he and President Trump will give joint statements (More)

Political News

• New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has a double-digit lead on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a new 2028 primary poll. A Data for Progress survey has Ocasio-Cortez up 55-36 on the embattled Schumer among Democrats (More)

• Virginia's gubernatorial race is set. Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears will be the Republican candidate this fall with Gov. Glenn Youngkin term-limited; former Rep. Abigail Spanberger is the Democratic candidate (More)

• President Trump fired the National Security Agency director, sparking bipartisan criticism. Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh was also head of U.S. Cyber Command; conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer reportedly advised the president on the decision (More)

Business & Markets

• Major indexes closed lower on Friday as the tariff-sparked sell-off continued. The Dow Jones plummeted more than 2.2K points while the Nasdaq dropped almost 1K (Dow -5.50%, Nasdaq -5.82%, S&P 500 -5.97%).

• Big Lots will re-open nine locations across the Southeast this week. The budget retailer is expected to resume operations at 200-400 locations nationwide under new management after finalizing its bankruptcy process (More)

• China is reportedly holding up a TikTok deal in response to President Trump's tariffs. The president granted a second deadline extension for the social media platform's Chinese parent company to divest its U.S. business after hinting the app could be part of trade talks (More | More)

Entertainment & Sports

• UConn routed reigning champion South Carolina to win the women's basketball national title in Tampa; it is coach Geno Auriemma's 12th career championship. Florida and Houston meet in the men's national title game tonight in San Antonio (More | More)

• A Minecraft Movie had a $157M opening weekend at domestic box offices, shattering expectations. It is the biggest debut by a video game-inspired film ever; the international total was $301M (More)

• Russell Brand faces rape and sexual assault charges tied to incidents between 1999 and 2005 in the United Kingdom. The British actor and comedian denied the allegations, which London's Metropolitan Police began investigating after media reporting (More)

Quick Hitters

• Feel Good: A group of coworkers supported a colleague with Down syndrome at his soccer match. Then he scored a goal.

• Be Safe: Close to 200K blenders sold at Targets nationwide have been recalled. The blade in the Vivitar Blender Bottles presents a laceration risk.

• Go Deep: President Trump's provocative statements about and tariffs on Canada have strained the relationship between the nations. The actions have also had a significant impact on historical reenactments.

• New Idea: Researchers have developed the world's smallest pacemaker. The device could be a breakthrough for newborn babies who have heart defects.

• Life Hack: The "Sunday Scaries" can be brutal. Here are some tips on how to cope with them next weekend.

Watch This

HBO has released a trailer for the second season of The Rehearsal, a mind-bending docu-comedy series starring comedian Nathan Fielder.

Links

• All the companies reportedly trying to buy TikTok 🤳

• George Santos is looking at hard time ⚖️

• Two more states may eliminate income tax 💰

• Pope Francis returned to St. Peter's Square 🔔

• Germany is getting concerned about its gold in the U.S. 🇩🇪

• Busting up a $22M illegal gambling ring in Houston 🚨

• A Happy Days reunion 50 years in the making 📺

• When April Fool's pranks work for a business 📈

• Get ready to paint some Easter potatoes 🥔

• Making the case against woolly mammoth de-extinction 🦣

Looking Ahead …

London Luton Airport received government approval to undergo significant expansion. The airport will almost double its capacity, going from 18M passengers annually to 32M, unofficially making it London's third-largest airport.

Question of the Day — Monday Trivia

Friday’s results:

Ronald McDonald first appeared in a national commercial during what event?

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1965.