Florida-based lobbyist Brian Ballard is no longer in the White House dog house, after scoring a Friday sit-down with President Trump and his chief of staff.
Why it matters: Ballard, a longtime Trump fundraiser and adviser who once lobbied for the Trump Organization, earned the ire of the White House after his firm circumvented the regular channels for lobbying on behalf of a cryptocurrency client.
Hamas said Sunday it will release Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, who has been held for over 550 days, as part of an effort to reach a ceasefire deal and resume humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.
The big picture: Alexander's release is also thought to be a gesture by Hamas to President Trump as he visits the Middle East later this week, sources said.
The U.S. and China appear to have struck some sort of trade deal, with both sides promising details on Monday.
Why it matters: The trade war between the two largest economies brought the world to the brink of recession, and threatened to scramble the global economic order.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday he will travel to Turkey later this week to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a "necessary basis for diplomacy" to end the war.
Why it matters: If the meeting takes place, it will be the first time the two leaders have met since the Russia-Ukraine war began more than three years ago.
One of three Democratic lawmakers whom the Department of Homeland Security said could be arrested over a confrontation that eruptedwhen they sought an oversight visit at a New Jersey ICE facility said Sunday that the agency's threats are creating "an environment of intimidation."
The big picture: New Jersey Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Rob Menendez and LaMonica McIver say they visited the Delaney Hall detention center last week to do legal oversight when chaos erupted and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested for trespassing.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday said U.S.-China trade talks had made "substantial progress," after President Trump said the negotiations led to a "total reset" in the two sides' trade relationship.
Why it matters: An actual reset — with sharply lower tariffs or none at all — would be the relief businesses and investors have been praying for from a trade war that has already significantly damaged the economy.
Democratic members of Congress who were part of a scuffle with law enforcement officers at an ICE facility in New Jersey may face arrests, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Axios Saturday.
Why it matters: It would be a major escalation in the Trump administration's arrests of politicians and other public servants, including the mayor of Newark and a judge in Milwaukee.
The Trump administration is encouraged by the results of the fourth round of nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran in Oman, a senior U.S. official told reporters on Sunday.
Why it matters: The fourth round of talks took place ahead of President Trump's trip to the Middle East later this week.
Pope Leo XIV called for a ceasefire in Gaza, the return of all hostages and peace in Ukraine during his first Sunday noon blessing as the bishop of Rome.
The big picture: Leo's calls echo those of his predecessor, the late Pope Francis, who was an outspoken advocate for the besieged Palestinian population and denounced Russia's war in Ukraine.
Baseline global tariffs of 10% are likely to stay, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday — but he insisted countries and businesses, and not consumers, would pay.
Why it matters: Economists generally disagree, and sentiment surveys say consumers don't believe it, either.
The MAGA movement is no longer just fighting for President Trump. His most fervent loyalists are now engaged in what they see as a battle for "Western civilization" — a rallying cry for the modern right.
Why it matters: The conservative ecosystem that has developed around Trump — and is touted daily in MAGA media — is key to understanding what's behind many of his policies.
