Good morning. The far right suffered a blow yesterday: Viktor Orban, a beacon for populists around the world, conceded defeat in Hungary’s general election. It was also a loss for President Trump, who had backed Orban. Oil is now more than $100 a barrel, after Trump promised to blockade Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz. He also attacked Pope Leo as being “weak on crime.” The pope, who has criticized the war in Iran, said he wasn’t afraid of Trump. And Lauren Sánchez Bezos just wants to be happy. We’ll tell you about all of that and more. But first, you had some questions for us.
Your news questionsIt’s a journalist’s job to ask questions. And it’s a great job. But it’s not as if any of us here at The Times have cornered the market on curiosity. Subscribers to The Morning have questions, too — this week about mail-in ballots, oil in the Middle East, manufacturing jobs and more. We took them to expert beat reporters for answers. And we’ll keep doing so. Have a news question for us? Submit it here. I live in a state where people can vote by mail, and I wonder how the president’s executive order — trying to limit such ballots — may affect our upcoming elections. | Laura Young, Portland, Oregon Nick Corasaniti, who covers elections, writes: Well, the president has no explicit constitutional authority over elections, and aspects of the order appear difficult to enforce. Legal experts expect courts to block large parts of it. Two issues are likelier to affect mail voting this year: a looming Supreme Court decision on late-arriving ballots and budget changes at the Postal Service. Many election officials, as well as the Postal Service, recommend that voters send their ballots at least one week before Election Day. The Persian Gulf countries are struggling to export their oil because Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz. Why don’t they just build an oil pipeline across Saudi Arabia? | Will Karlin, Denver, Colorado Vivian Nereim, the Gulf bureau chief, writes: Saudi Arabia actually did build an oil pipeline to bypass the strait, decades ago, to prepare for a moment like this. It was transporting up to seven million barrels per day of oil — until it was bombed during the Iran war, reducing its capacity by around 10 percent. The vulnerability of pipelines is one reason that this one isn’t a cure-all. Another is that the six Gulf countries are economic competitors that often have tense political relationships; the Gulf countries are not always inclined to share. So a cross-border project would be a tall order. What happened to all of the people that ICE deported to countries — not the ones they came from — with jails that torture inmates? | Gail Mielziner, St. Louis, Missouri
Eileen Sullivan, who covers the federal government, writes: It is not always clear, and the Trump administration has said it has no duty to follow up on them once they leave U.S. custody. I wrote about their fortunes here. Some are captives — in jails or even decrepit hotels — in places like Cameroon, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini and Rwanda; others, like Cubans deported to Mexico, are struggling to find adequate living situations. Some migrants were sent back to their home countries (Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone, and others) and are now in hiding because they fear for their lives. Lawyers have lost contact with the deportees who are still in South Sudan. Who pays for the electricity that A.I. data centers use? | Beatrice Reiss, Yakima, Washington
Brad Plumer, who covers energy policy, writes: It varies by location. Utilities may have to invest in new power plants and transmission lines to serve new data centers. They can pass some of those costs on to other customers in the form of higher electricity bills, which is wildly unpopular. Many states are now trying to get tech companies to shoulder more of the costs themselves. Are manufacturing jobs coming back, as Donald Trump said they would when he ran for office? | Amy Richards, Mission, Kansas Alan Rappeport, who covers economic policy, writes: On “Liberation Day” a year ago, President Trump said that his sweeping global tariffs would bring jobs and factories “roaring back” to the United States. But manufacturing employment continues to decline, and more than 80,000 of those jobs have been lost since he took office. That’s because the tariffs impose additional costs on domestic producers that rely on imports to make their goods, so it’s harder for them to expand and hire. The administration also noted this month that manufacturing wages and labor productivity are both rising — tech advances mean factories need fewer people to do the same work. Both things make it harder to hire.
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Parents are doing too much for their kids, Rachel Feintzeig argues: “I dream of the day we can all take it down a notch without shame.” Democrats should seek to understand, not push away, Hasan Piker, the popular (and sometimes controversial) left-wing commentator, Ezra Klein writes. Morning readers: Save on the complete Times experience. Experience all of The Times, all in one subscription — all with this introductory offer. You’ll gain unlimited access to news and analysis, plus games, recipes, product reviews and more.
Bieberchella: Justin Bieber headlined Coachella with a nostalgic set — he played videos of himself as a child singing, and harmonized with them live. Watch one song. Lauren Sánchez Bezos: In a profile, we found out she drinks her morning coffee from a mug that says “Woke Up Sexy as Hell Again.” See inside her life. Your pick: You all wanted to know about the best spot cleaner yesterday. Metropolitan Diary: A bird of prey in Morningside Park. Lives Lived: Asha Bhosle, whose voice was the soundtrack for generations of Bollywood films, has died at 92.
15— That is the rough percentage increase in U.S. traffic fatalities on days when albums drop from major pop stars like Taylor Swift, according to a new study. |
