Washington, DC

1. Trump addresses nation
2. Trump threatens NATO exit
3. Consumer spending in focus
4. Trump’s legal challenges
5. Lawmaker travel scrutinized
6. New Dem media project
7. Nigeria caucus struggles
8. US-Europe divide on Iran

PDB: Hegseth sets date for House testimony

Happy April Fool’s Day … Trump to attend Supreme Court arguments … DHS shutdown continues with Congress out

World looks to Trump’s Iran address

President Donald Trump is slated to give a primetime Oval Office address on Iran this evening, his first since starting the war more than a month ago. The most prominent theory is that the president will announce he is easing the US out of the war, either through a formal agreement with Iran or by declaring that Washington has achieved its objectives, as the conflict weighs on the global economy. Brent crude fell below $100 a barrel Wednesday after Trump said the war could end in two to three weeks, that “we have had regime change,” and that his goal of ending Iran’s nuclear program had been attained. The president also said Iran’s military was so reduced that the Strait of Hormuz would “automatically open,” although emphasized the US would “have nothing to do with” maintaining safe passage. Tehran also expressed willingness to end hostilities under certain conditions.

— Shelby Talcott

Trump threatens NATO withdrawal

Trump said he was strongly considering pulling out of NATO over its refusal to back his Iran war. When asked about Washington’s membership of the military alliance, the president remarked to The Telegraph that “I would say [it’s] beyond reconsideration, I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and Putin knows that too, by the way.” Trump’s comments entrench a transatlantic rift that has deepened over his second term as a result of his threats to levy tariffs against the EU and to annexe European territory, and, most recently, his demand that NATO back his and Israel’s bombing campaign in Iran. France and Spain have reportedly denied permission for US warplanes to use their airspace, Italy has blocked access to a base, and Britain has permitted the use of its facilities solely for defensive purposes.

Gas prices poised to weigh on spending

The Commerce Department will release data today that reveals how consumers were spending their money before the war in Iran forced them to contend with higher gas prices. Goldman Sachs analysts predicted retail sales would increase more in February than they did in January — but cautioned that “spending headwinds from higher inflation due to the recent energy price surge are likely to weigh on spending growth for the rest of the year.” While gas prices broke an average of $4 a gallon Tuesday for the first time since 2022, Trump brushed off concerns about prices at the pump Tuesday evening. “All I have to do is leave Iran — and we’ll be doing that very soon — and they’ll become tumbling down,” he told reporters. On the ground, however, most signs point to the US getting more involved in the conflict.

— Eleanor Mueller

Trump voting order adds to legal fights

The Trump administration is navigating a mess of legal minefields as it presses forward with its agenda — and the president is facing a losing streak. Trump’s new order restricting mail-in voting has already invited challenges from states like Oregon. And the administration faces headwinds as it goes before the Supreme Court today to defend the president’s executive order ending birthright citizenship — a case in which legal experts think the high court will eventually rule against Trump. Other losses piled up on Tuesday, as a federal judge blocked the administration from stopping federal funding from flowing to NPR and PBS, while another halted construction on Trump’s White House ballroom. Trump did secure a victory in his administration’s effort to probe discrimination at the University of Pennsylvania; a judge greenlit officials’ request to obtain information about Jewish people on campus.

Traveling lawmakers get TMZ treatment

The ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown is putting a harsh spotlight on lawmakers’ travel over Easter recess. TMZ’s open call for evidence of politicians vacationing has landed photos in the typically celebrity-centric outlet of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., at Disney World, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, in Florida, and Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., in Las Vegas. Photos seen by Semafor also show House Republicans from the pragmatic Main Street Caucus at Edinburgh Castle in Scotland — a group that included several dozen lawmakers, including Reps. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., Mike Flood, R-Neb., Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis. A Main Street Caucus spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment, but a source familiar with the trip said it had been approved by the Ethics Committee months ago and was focused on economic development, foreign partnerships, and business engagement.

— Nicholas Wu

Biden vet’s biweekly streaming show

Two veteran Democratic communications strategists are launching a live politics show on YouTube and X, Semafor’s Max Tani scoops. Later this month, former President Joe Biden’s onetime digital chief, Rob Flaherty, and Accountable Tech co-founder Jesse Lehrich will launch Nobody Knows Anything, a 90-minute biweekly show that they say will pair “semi-professional quality analysis and aesthetics with entirely unprofessional behavior.” Since Kamala Harris’ loss in 2024, Flaherty has devoted much of his time to thinking about the challenges that the new media landscape presents for Democrats and where the opportunities are for left-leaning voices to emerge. Flaherty told Semafor that in his conversations with podcasters, streamers, and creators over the last several years, he became most interested in the live video streaming show format. “Everything is moving toward live video. Even podcasts now seem less intimate and real than streamers,” Flaherty said.

Nigeria-US groups battle to revive caucus

Nigerian-American organizations are struggling to resurrect the Congressional Nigeria Caucus as the Trump administration’s visa restrictions test ties between Washington and Abuja. Representatives from a coalition of Nigerian-American organizations identified reviving the caucus — which went dormant several years ago — as their primary near-term legislative goal during a Capitol Hill briefing last week. “A congressional caucus serves as more than a symbolic body, it creates a consistent space for dialogue and policy coordination,” said Nkechi Ilechie, policy director at The Nigerian Center. Ilechie told Semafor the group has reached out to several members of Congress about leading the revived caucus, but finding co-chairs has proven more difficult than expected. While some members have expressed willingness to join as rank-and-file members, none have committed to a co-chair role, with several offices offering noncommittal responses when pressed on the question.

— Adrian Elimian

View: The warning Europe ignored

As Trump pressures Europe over the Strait of Hormuz, one of his first-term advisers is arguing that the rift in the transatlantic alliance over Iran was a long time in the making. In a Semafor column, former Trump Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt recalls a 2019 conference during which European leaders signaled reluctance to confront the Tehran regime, despite warnings from Arab states, Israel, and the US about the inability of diplomacy alone to contain the threat. “For those who now ask why Trump did not do more to bring some European governments along before the war, or why he is urging European powers to do more to secure their own energy flows, Warsaw offers a direct answer. He tried,” Greenblatt writes. “Some European governments heard [the message], understood it, and chose their economic interests instead.”

Blindspot: Antifa and ICE

Stories that are being largely ignored by either left-leaning or right-leaning outlets, curated with help from our partners at Ground News.

What the Left isn’t reading: Trump administration counterterrorism officials are planning an international summit focused on pushing back on antifa, Reuters reported.

What the Right isn’t reading: ICE agents will be stationed outside Marine Corps graduation events to screen for undocumented immigrants. 

Bob Jordan, president and CEO of Southwest Airlines; Bob Pragada, chair and CEO of Jacobs; Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple; Christian Sewing, CEO of Deutsche Bank; Lorenzo Simonelli, chairman and CEO of Baker Hughes; and more will join the The Economics of Infrastructure session at Semafor World Economy. This session will examine how infrastructure investment is reshaping global connectivity, shifting economic influence towards emerging hubs, and testing which countries can sustain the financing, governance, and vision to become the infrastructure capitals of the 21st century.

April 13, 2026 | Washington, DC | Apply to Attend