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It’s Tuesday, the traditional day for elections and for our pause-and-consider newsletter on politics and policy. We think of it as a mini-magazine in your inbox.

3 BIG THINGS TO WATCH THIS WEEK
By Joshua Barajas
Senior Editor, Digital

Matt Loffman
Senior Producer, Elections

Love it or hate it, April has arrived, and along with it, “April Fools!”

Not sure if y’all have been pranked today, but I didn’t budge when my partner tried to say there was a spider crawling underneath my laptop. (There was no eight-legged friend in sight.)

Maybe it’s because I was already working on this week’s laugh-free edition of Here’s the Deal. While Lisa is out, Matt and I have compiled three big things to watch this week.

In the meantime, double check every viral post or corporate prank. ([link removed]) (No, Tiger Woods is not playing in the upcoming Masters. ([link removed]) )

Stay vigilant, readers!

1. Special elections

Casting ballots yet again. Yes, we’re far away from the 2026 midterm elections. And the ol’ Here’s the Deal chestnut reminds us that what issues are pressing today may not be the same as what matters when the November vote rolls around again.

Yet there are some key races to watch Tuesday, starting with a state Supreme Court election that’s gotten national attention.

Wisconsin’s high-stakes Supreme Court race. The swing state has an open Supreme Court seat that’s drawn both interest and money. [Live results] ([link removed])
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Watch the segment in the player above.
* Who are the candidates? Susan Crawford and Brad Schimel, both county judges, are seeking the seat, which comes with a 10-year term.
* Supreme Court races in the state are officially nonpartisan. But based on her record, Dane County Judge Crawford is generally considered a liberal candidate. She’s been backed by Democrats, including an endorsement from former President Barack Obama. Waukesha County Judge Schimel, from a conservative-leaning Milwaukee suburb, has been backed by Republicans, including President Donald Trump and allies like Elon Musk.
* What’s at stake? This race will determine who replaces one of the four liberal-leaning judges on the seven-member Supreme Court. After 15 years with a conservative majority, the court flipped to a 4-3 liberal majority two years ago.
* Money, money, money. This is considered the most expensive judicial race in history. How expensive? At least $90 million has been spent so far ([link removed]) , according to the Brennan Center for Justice. That includes $20 million from Musk and his political action committee to bolster Schimel’s campaign.
* Zooming out. The race will not only affect expected rulings in the state on union rights and congressional redistricting, among others. It’s perceived as an indicator of voters’ views on Trump’s agenda, the early months of his second term and efforts to shrink the government workforce, spearheaded by Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency.
* Live results of the race can be found here. ([link removed])

Two seats up for grabs in Florida. There are two vacant House seats in the 1st and 6th Congressional Districts, both Republican strongholds. [Live results] ([link removed])
* The previous seat-holders are familiar names. These are seats left behind by Republican Reps. Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz. You may recognize Waltz as Trump’s embattled national security adviser. ([link removed])
* Both Republican lawmakers resigned from Congress for roles in Trump’s Cabinet. Gaetz was nominated to be attorney general, but ultimately withdrew from the Senate confirmation process because of mounting scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking probe. Waltz’s name has been in headlines recently over “Signalgate.” ([link removed]) Waltz was flagged as the person who accidentally added The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg to the group chat.
* Why these races matter: Given the Republicans’ narrow majority in the House, both seats could give the party “some breathing room,” ([link removed]) as the Associated Press puts it. That said, these races won’t determine control of the House.
* Live results of both races can be found here. ([link removed])

2. Trump’s next big tariff announcement
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Watch the segment in the player above.
More tariffs are coming. ([link removed])

As part of Trump’s widening trade war, he’s dubbed April 2 as “Liberation Day.” He’s promised a new set of tariffs, or a tax on imports ([link removed]) , on major U.S. trading partners, though the details have not been fully revealed.

What we do know is how different groups are responding to the president’s ongoing tariff talk.
* Companies, big and small, are worried about sales ([link removed]) and the higher costs of goods they buy from other countries.
* Consumer confidence dropped to a 12-year low, according to the Conference Board’s index. ([link removed]) Uncertain about their financial prospects, some consumers are holding onto their money ([link removed]) or buying things before sticker shock settles in. ([link removed])
* Markets are volatile. Two of the three major U.S. stock indexes closed out their worst quarters ([link removed]) in two and a half years.

Trump’s main argument is that tariffs will revitalize America. Economics correspondent Paul Solman, checking in with several experts, closely examines the president’s claim. ([link removed])

3. Trump v. the courts
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Watch the segment in the player above.
Many of the actions Trump has taken — from mass deportations under the Alien Enemies Act and mass firings of federal workers to the withholding of federal funds — have been challenged and in some cases blocked in federal courts.

The president and his team have grown increasingly frustrated with the legal system. Trump and allies like Musk have called for the impeachment of judges who have blocked Trump’s agenda. The president has issued executive orders targeting law firms he views as hostile to his agenda.

Some Republicans are joining the cause. The GOP-led House Judiciary Committee held a hearing Tuesday on so-called “judicial overreach,” ([link removed]) and House Speaker Mike Johnson has floated the idea of cutting funding for federal courts that rule against Trump. (Other House GOP leaders have signaled that impeachment proposals were more symbolic than anything ([link removed]) .)

The executive branch’s defiance of the judiciary should “worry all Americans,” said Deborah Perlstein, director of the Princeton Program on Law and Public Policy.

“The courts and lawyers have proven among the most effective, so far, institutions in pushing back against some of the president's initiatives,” she told the News Hour on Monday. ([link removed]) “We're also seeing enormous attacks against the institutions themselves and the rule of law.”
More on politics from our coverage:
* Watch: White House holds briefing as Trump readies tariffs ([link removed]) ahead of “Liberation Day.”
* One Big Question: Trump has openly talked about staying in office for a third term. Can he run again? NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter discuss. ([link removed])
* A Closer Look: After the devastating earthquake in Myanmar, China is filling the vacuum ([link removed]) left by USAID’s absence.
* Perspectives: Two former leaders of the Department of Human and Health Services on how new job cuts at the agency could affect Americans. ([link removed])

THIS WEEK’S TRIVIA QUESTION
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Watch the segment in the player above.
By Joshua Barajas
Senior Editor, Digital

The National Park Service joined the April Fools’ fracas ([link removed]) , too. Don’t worry, the cherry blossoms are OK.

Thousands of admirers are still in Washington, D.C., to catch the pink and white flowers ([link removed]) along the Tidal Basin. The trees, gifted to the U.S. by Japan in 1912, represent a century-long bond ([link removed]) between the two countries.

Japan gifted 250 new trees ([link removed]) to D.C. ahead of America’s 250th birthday.

Our question: What did President William Howard Taft give to Japan in return for the cherry blossom trees?

Send your answers to [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.

Last week, we asked: Which U.S. president was the first to have a telephone installed in the Oval Office?

The answer: Herbert Hoover. ([link removed]) Decades after President Rutherford B. Hayes had the first telephone installed at the White House in 1877, Hoover thought to have one in the Oval Office. He'd grown tired of using the phone in the foyer outside the office.

Congratulations to our winners: Nancy Bird and Nabiha Chowdhury!

Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.
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