President Trump's global dealmaking blitz is facing new obstacles, with early optimism eclipsed by broken ceasefires, pissed-off allies and thinning patience at home and abroad, Axios' Zachary Basu and Dave Lawler write.

• Why it matters: Ten weeks isn't a long time in foreign policy. But it was Trump who promised instant results.

Zoom in: Nothing has redefined America's relationship with the world like Trump's plans for sweeping tariffs, which will be announced tomorrow with Rose Garden fanfare on what he calls "Liberation Day."

• Leaders all over the world are seeking last-minute deals to avoid tariffs, while lamenting that Trump hasn't actually made clear what they could do to placate him.
• So instead, they're vowing retaliation — setting the stage for a massive global trade war that could plunge the U.S. and other countries into a recession.

🖼️ The big picture: Today is just Day 72 of Trump's term. He's scored early victories in getting Latin American countries to cooperate on deportation flights, including a high-profile prison deal with El Salvador.

• And he may still clinch peace pacts for Ukraine and Gaza, or win major concessions on trade from China or the EU.

But on five fronts, Trump's ambitions for big international deals are hitting early hurdles:

🇺🇦 1. On Ukraine, Trump campaigned on securing a deal to end the fighting within 24 hours — though now he claims that promise was "a little bit sarcastic."

• Trump did get Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table, and to agree to stop bombing each other's energy infrastructure. But Russian President Vladimir Putin has cast doubt on the possibility of a peace deal any time soon.

🇵🇸 2. On Gaza, Trump helped deliver a breakthrough before even taking office when his team worked with the outgoing Biden administration to secure a ceasefire.

• That truce is now over. Israel announced yesterday it'll massively expand its renewed ground operation in Gaza.

🇮🇷 3. On Iran, Trump issued an ultimatum demanding Tehran agree to a new nuclear deal within two months or face potential military strikes. That's led to further threats from both sides.

• Iranian leaders have rejected the idea of direct negotiations with the Trump administration, but left open the possibility of indirect talks.
• "If they don't make a deal, there will be bombing," Trump told NBC on Sunday.

🇬🇱 4. On Greenland, Trump continues to insist that the U.S. "needs" to obtain the autonomous Danish territory, perhaps by military force.

• Vice President Vance laid out one path to a deal last week: Greenland votes for independence from Denmark, then signs a security pact with the U.S.
• The island's new prime minister announced a new coalition last week in part to unite against U.S. pressure.

💰 5. On tariffs, it's unclear if Trump is actually using them as leverage to cut deals, as Wall Street once assumed, or if he wants the levies in place long-term.

🥊 White House assistant press secretary Liz Huston said: "President Trump is the master dealmaker, and in just two months, he has made more progress than Joe Biden did in years. Since President Trump's return to office, foreign leaders have flocked to the White House, announcing historic investments and restoring America's dominance on the world stage."

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Tariff uncertainty and recession fears just drove U.S. stocks to one of their worst quarters in years, Axios' Ben Berkowitz writes.

• Why it matters: A sharp decline in stocks used to be enough to get President Trump to change his policy positions — but these are different times.

🧮 By the numbers: The S&P 500 ended the first quarter down 4.6%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 10.4% and the broad Russell 3000 fell 5%.

• It was the worst performance since mid-2022 for all three.

The intrigue: U.S. stocks badly underperformed the world to start the year.

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Trump's online chorus is railing against an international "deep state" following a series of setbacks for overseas allies of President Trump, Axios MAGA media expert Tal Axelrod writes.

• Why it matters: Trump's loyal movement has sought to steadily expand its influence abroad, allying itself with right-wing parties and leaders in Europe, Latin America and Asia.

Now, they're denouncing legal challenges faced by some of those allies and are egged on by a leader in the White House eager to intervene in other countries' affairs to enforce his worldview.

🔭 Zoom in: Marine Le Pen, the leader of a far-right French party, was convicted of embezzling European Parliament funds yesterday and deemed ineligible to stand in French elections for the next five years. Trump called the verdict a "very big deal."

• "She was banned for running for five years, and she's the leading candidate. That sounds like this country," he added.
• Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is being prosecuted for allegedly staging a failed coup after losing reelection in 2022.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is fending off corruption allegations.

Between the lines: The MAGAverse draws parallels between those cases and the criminal prosecutions of Trump before his return to office.

• At the same time, prominent Trump allies in the media are using the foreign case to attack U.S. judges for blocking Trump's executive orders.

🎙️ What they're saying: "They'll do anything to stop a nationalist-populist movement of Europe," well-connected podcaster Charlie Kirk said yesterday, while raising the prospect that Trump could tariff France over the ruling.

• Steve Bannon, a top adviser in Trump's first term, said on his "War Room" podcast: "This is exactly what Trump is facing here in the United States with these judges, with these radical judges."

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Above: President Trump signs an executive order with Kid Rock on ticket scalping and reforming the ticket industry.

• "I want the fans to have fair ticket prices. There's plenty of money to go around. Nobody's going to lose here," Kid Rock said.

🤖 Also yesterday: Trump set up a new entity within the Commerce Department to "facilitate and accelerate investments above $1 billion in the United States," the White House announced.

• The new United States Investment Accelerator will also oversee CHIPS Act funding.

Harvard has been placed under investigation by the Trump administration over allegations that the school hasn't done enough to address antisemitism on campus, Axios' April Rubin writes.

• Why it matters: Some $9 billion in federal grants and contracts between the university and the U.S. government will be reviewed and could potentially be cut.

Harvard president Alan Garber said that if the funding is stopped, "it will halt life-saving research and innovation."

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Rainstorms are getting more intense in many U.S. cities amid human-driven climate change, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick writes from a new analysis.

• Why it matters: More intense precipitation events can cause flash flooding, landslides, dangerous driving conditions and other potentially deadly hazards.

Zoom in: Hourly rainfall intensity increased between 1970 and 2024 in nearly 90% of the 144 locations analyzed, according to a new report from Climate Central, a research and communications group.

• Wichita, Kansas (+38%), Reno, Nevada (+37%) and Fairbanks, Alaska (+37%) had the biggest gains in hourly rainfall intensity between 1970 and 2024.

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Hooters — the chain of bars best known for scantily-clad servers — is filing for bankruptcy as part of a rebound plan backed by some of its founders.

• The group buying the company pledges to take the company "back to its roots."

Why it matters: Hooters, like other casual dining restaurants, has struggled in recent years due to inflation, the high costs of labor and food, and declining spending by cash-strapped American consumers.

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Maxim Naumov — an American figure skater who lost both parents in January's plane crash at Reagan National Airport — got a one-minute standing ovation at the world championships in Boston.

• "This is for you guys. You guys are with me. I love you both," he said after his performance on Sunday.

Why it matters: Naumov has become in many ways the face of the tragedy — or at least its effect on the skating community.

• His parents, former world pairs champions Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, were among the more than two dozen people in the figure skating community who were killed in the crash.

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