Monday 04.07.25

The US Naval Academy has removed 381 books from the Nimitz Library to comply with the Trump administration’s decision to remove diversity, equity and inclusion efforts from the federal government. Among the texts that cadets are no longer allowed to access are: “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou, “Our Time Is Now: Power, Purpose, and the Fight for a Fair America” by Stacey Abrams and "Memorializing the Holocaust” by Janet Jacobs. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and on With Your Day.
 

By Jade Walker

(Masahiro Sugimoto/The Yomiuri Shimbun/AP)

Global markets

President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war continued to cause turmoil today across world financial markets. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed 7.9% lower and the Shanghai Composite Index ended down more than 7%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index tumbled nearly 12% while South Korea’s Kospi finished 5.6% lower. In Europe, Germany’s Dax opened down 9% and London’s FTSE was off about 5%. The picture is just as grim on Wall Street, where stocks are set to open sharply lower, putting the S&P 500 on the precipice of a bear market — a decline of 20% from its peak and an ominous sign for investors and perhaps the broader economy.

Israel

It’s been a month since Israel cut off humanitarian supplies to the Gaza Strip and without that much-needed aid, the living situation of 2 million civilians has rapidly deteriorated. In the past few weeks, Israel’s renewed bombing campaign has claimed hundreds of lives and displaced more than 280,000 people, according to UN officials. Without access to food, fuel and clean water, hunger in Gaza is worsening and could lead to famine. A lack of basic infrastructure and sanitation could also spark outbreaks of disease. The UN and other aid groups have accused Israel of violating international law by blocking the flow of aid into Gaza and using starvation as a weapon of war. On Sunday, Israel announced that it would continue to withhold aid to pressure Hamas into releasing more hostages and would impose new conditions on the extension of the ceasefire agreement.

Flooding

Violent storms that swept through the central US have claimed the lives of at least 19 people in seven states since Wednesday. In addition to strong winds, hail and tornadoes, the severe weather system dropped potentially record rainfall in areas unaccustomed to flooding. Rising river levels have prompted Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear to declare a state of emergency. Numerous water rescues took place in the Colesburg area some 30 miles south of Louisville as the Rolling Fork River rose rapidly on Sunday. Drone footage from nearby towns showed streets, fields, homes and businesses under vast quantities of water. Evacuations and warnings have also been issued near the Kentucky River, which is expected to crest at a historic high later today. 

Deportations

The Trump administration has until 11:59 p.m. today to return a Maryland man who was deported to El Salvador in March. A federal judge issued the order Friday after the administration conceded in a court filing that it had mistakenly deported Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia. He is currently being held in a notorious mega-prison. Abrego Garcia had been living in the states under protected status since 2019 after fleeing gang violence in El Salvador. In its filing, the Trump administration admitted that ICE was aware of Abrego Garcia’s protected status and that his deportation was due to “an administrative error.” Now the White House claims it can’t get him back and is appealing the judge’s ruling. 

Sea lions

Sea lions have been washing up dead or sick on Southern California’s coastline due to contact with a toxic algal bloom, often referred to as red tide. Although the toxin is naturally present in the Pacific Ocean, human-caused climate change, upwelling and land development has been feeding the outsized blooms. When the neurological toxin gets in the sea lions’ food supply, it causes them to suffer from domoic acid toxicosis, a condition that causes seizures, difficulty breathing and aggressive or scared behavior. The illness has already led the poisoned animals to attack several humans in the water. “When they are affected with this toxin, they’re out of their minds,” John Warner, CEO of the Marine Mammal Care Center in Los Angeles, said. The center normally receives 3,000 to 4,000 calls per year about sick and stranded animals, but in the past five weeks, their hotline has received more than 2,000 calls. Dolphins have also been affected, causing dozens to strand themselves on beaches. Unlike sea lions, which can be rehabilitated, dolphins suffering from domoic acid poisoning are usually deceased when they strand, but the few still alive have to be euthanized.  

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Huskies are back on top!
UConn beat the defending champions South Carolina 82-59 on Sunday to win the women’s NCAA tournament national championship game. The victory helped the Huskies set another record: their 12th national title.

Mining for big bucks
“A Minecraft Movie,” starring Jack Black and Jason Momoa, grossed $157 million at the box office this weekend. It was the biggest opening weekend of the year and the biggest domestic opening weekend for a film based on a video game.

Bad things happen in threes
Did you catch the third season finale of “The White Lotus” last night? I won’t give anything away if you’re behind, but it certainly ended with a bang.

More charges for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
Just one month before the music mogul is set to go on trial in New York for three sex trafficking charges, federal prosecutors have added two more. One was for transportation to engage in prostitution and the other was an additional count of sex trafficking. He has pleaded not guilty.

Missed your chance to see Bernie Sanders on tour?
CNN plans to host a town hall with the independent Vermont senator Wednesday at 9 p.m. 

In memoriam

Actor Jay North, who starred as the title character in the CBS sitcom “Dennis the Menace,” died at 73. He also made appearances in numerous TV shows, including “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” "My Three Sons," “Lassie” and “The Simpsons.”

895

That’s the number of goals 39-year-old Alex Ovechkin scored to surpass hockey legend Wayne Gretzky as the NHL’s all-time leading scorer.

To oversimplify history is to distort it. Americans are not infants: they can handle complex and challenging historical narratives. They do not need to be protected from the truth.

— Historian Fergus Bordewich, after learning that the National Parks Service website for the Underground Railroad had been edited to remove Harriet Tubman along with several references to enslaved people and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850.

Is it a bird? Is it a boat? This vessel ‘flies’ above the water.
The eFoiler is the world’s first commercially viable, zero-emission propulsion solution for high-speed maritime transport.