Axios

The Department of Homeland Security offered employees the choice between deferred resignation, early retirement or an immediate buyout, according to an email obtained by Axios Monday evening.

Why it matters: The email from Secretary Kristi Noem is part of a broader push to drastically reduce headcount across the federal government, including at the nation's top cyber defense agency.

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Trump administration to resume use of the Aliens Enemies Act to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador.

Why it matters: It's a big win for President Trump's immigration policies, though the court ruled that the government has to give deportees "reasonable time" to challenge their removal in court before leaving the country.

The Trump administration is formally taking on fluoride in drinking water, with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy planning to tell the CDC to end its longtime recommendation for the practice.

• EPA head Lee Zeldin also said his agency is "ready to act."

Why it matters: Public health and dental experts have warned ending the addition of fluoride to drinking water will harm children's teeth.

Elon Musk's brother Kimbal bashed President Trump's sweeping tariff regime on Monday as a tax on American consumers.

Why it matters: The Musk family is making their feelings very publicly known on the president's signature policy — the widest chasm yet between Trump and his "first buddy."

A tariff-fueled stock market decline over the last few days has stoked "Black Monday" fears among nervous investors.

The big picture: The comparison is mostly overblown. The S&P 500's 11% decline over the last three sessions, while steep, is nothing like the uncontrolled crash that roiled markets 37 years ago.

The Supreme Court on Monday temporarily paused a federal judge's midnight deadline to return a Salvadorian national who was mistakenly deported while the justices weigh the case.

The big picture: Chief Justice John Roberts set a 5pm Tuesday deadline for a response from Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia's attorney after the Trump administration argued the lower court order improperly imposed on the president's foreign policy powers.

President Trump and China are now firmly engaged in a high-stakes game of tariff chicken.

• Trump today threatened an extra 50% in tariffs on China if the country didn't back down from its own retaliatory tariff on U.S. goods Friday.
• That announcement suggests the total tariffs on Chinese goods could now reach 104% or more, Axios' Ben Berkowitz writes.

💹 The intrigue: U.S. stocks were only down slightly today, compared to the deep losses they suffered last week. But the smell of desperation is still palpable, Axios Closer author Nathan Bomey writes.

President Trump said in a surprise announcement this afternoon that the U.S. has been holding "direct talks" with Iran and that a "very big meeting" involving "very high-level" officials will be taking place this Saturday.

• Trump has repeatedly warned that Iran must sign a new nuclear deal or face military strikes. Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had ruled out direct talks with the U.S. so long as Trump kept his "maximum pressure" policy in place, Axios' Barak Ravid writes.

1. ⚾️ The Los Angeles Dodgers visited the White House today to celebrate winning last year's World Series. Go deeper.
2. 📱 Apple said it plans to source more iPhones from India in response to Trump's tariffs on China, The Wall Street Journal reports (gift link).
3. ⚖️ Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily blocked an order that directed the Trump administration to bring Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia back to the U.S. today. Roberts' order does not settle the larger dispute over Abrego Garcia's deportation. Go deeper.

Axios' Analis Bailey snapped this pic yesterday at Tampa's Amalie Arena as the UConn women's basketball team celebrated winning its 12th national championship.

• The men's championship, between Florida and Houston, tips off tonight at 8:50pm Eastern on CBS.
• Betting odds slightly favor Florida, but it's close.

President Trump is planning a military parade through Washington, D.C. on June 14, coinciding with the 250th anniversary of the Army's founding and his 79th birthday, D.C. city leaders say.

Why it matters: Trump wants to remake the nation's capital — and a military parade is one thing he never got in his first term.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Monday said it would not renew 50-year-old agreements with the federal government to provide children's services and refugee support.

Why it matters: The decision marks the shuttering of one of the country's largest and longest-serving refugee resettlement initiatives. It comes as the Trump administration continues pursuing its immigration crackdown.

President Trump on Monday threatened to impose an extra 50% tariff on China, but opened the door to talks with other nations on a path to lowering their import levies.

Why it matters: The administration's steadfast message in recent days has been that the tariffs were coming and there was no way out.

Rep. André Carson (D-Ind.) could soon join the ranks of veteran House Democrats facing primary challenges as a local Democratic operative eyes launching a bid for his seat this week.

Why it matters: George Hornedo, like other Democratic insurgents, is framing his likely run as a clash of energy as the party's grassroots agitate for their elected officials to be more pugnacious — or step aside.

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to halt a federal judge's Monday deadline to return a Salvadorian national who was mistakenly deported.

The big picture: U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis blasted the government over its "grievous error" in deporting Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, who was legally living in Maryland, to El Salvador, where he faces risk of harm that "shocks the conscience."

President Trump would veto a bill introduced by Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) that would limit the president's authority to unilaterally impose tariffs, according to a White House statement seen by Axios.

Why it matters: In the midst of a potential trade war, Trump wants to ensure that the president retains full authority to tariff products entering America.

House Democrats Monday launched an investigation into potential conflicts of interest between NASA and Elon Musk, who has inserted himself into the federal government under President Trump.

Why it matters: The billionaire's SpaceX is one of the agency's largest private sector contractors, and Musk has been overhauling federal spending at the helm of DOGE.

The D.C. Circuit on Monday blocked President Trump, for now, from firing Democratic members of two different federal labor boards.

Why it matters: The case is widely expected to set up a Supreme Court battle over a president's right to fire members of independent agencies.

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) is expanding his holds on President Trump's nominees to include an additional 50 names — along with a batch of bipartisan foreign affairs bills, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: That brings the total number of Trump nominees Schatz has now ground to a halt to more than 300, intensifying his protest of what he calls the White House's "lawlessness."

President Trump is planning to attend the National Republican Congressional Committee's big donor event Tuesday night, on the eve of a consequential House vote on the budget package that passed the Senate Saturday.

Why it matters: Expect something between "pep rally" and pressure campaign, sources tell Axios.

Three-fourths of the Venezuelan migrants flown from Texas to a notorious maximum security prison in El Salvador three weeks ago had no apparent criminal record, a CBS News 60 Minutes report out Sunday found.

Why it matters: The lack of evidence of a criminal record is consistent with many other immigrant removals under the Trump administration so far and poses serious questions over the deportations to El Salvador, as a judge ordered at least one man returned.

Wall Street titans, including some of President Trump's wealthy allies, are publicly urging caution as the president's historic tariffs tank stock markets globally.

The big picture: The administration is plowing forward with its sweeping tariffs despite warnings from economists and MAGA-friendly CEOs that the levies will fire inflation and hinder growth, setting the stage for a recession.

With markets nosediving across the globe, President Trump played golf, raised money for MAGA and dug in deep on his tariff plans, after warning Americans to buckle up.

• "THIS IS AN ECONOMIC REVOLUTION, AND WE WILL WIN," he said on Truth Social on Saturday. "HANG TOUGH, it won't be easy, but the end result will be historic."

Why it matters: For one of the first times in his career, Trump seems more bent on making a point than making a deal. He's confident nations will bend to his will, just as universities and law firms have.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. advocated for the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine during a visit to West Texas on Sunday to comfort two families whose children died of the disease.

Why it matters: Kennedy has been criticized for downplaying measles risks and the efficacy of vaccines, notes Axios' Marc Caputo, who first reported on the secretary's visit to Texas.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said Sunday she's had death threats for seeking the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, the man charged with murder in connection with the December killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

What they're saying: "I feel like these young people have lost their way," Bondi said on Fox News Sunday in addressing a question from anchor Shannon Bream about some young people's support for Mangione, whose arrest triggered massive debate about the U.S. health care system.

President Trump on Sunday denied engineering a stock market sell-off, and likened the pain of re-ordering the global economy to taking medicine for an illness.

Why it matters: After plunging Thursday and Friday, global markets sank even further Sunday night, threatening one of the worst three-day routs in history.