Principals

1. Congress digests tariffs
2. Tariffs scramble alliances
3. GOP advances budget
4. NSC firings
5. Stefanik’s next role
6. US jobs report
7. Delaware gov talks Dems

PDB: Global recession risks rise

US markets wipe out $3.1 trillion in value ... Powell speaks on economic outlook … South Korea’s Yoon removed from office by court

Both parties grapple with tariff fallout

All eyes were on the Senate as lawmakers struggled to come to terms with President Donald Trump’s latest batch of sweeping tariffs. Democrats, emboldened by four GOP senators’ support for their effort to tank Trump’s Canada tariffs, scrambled to line up new challenges to the levies he announced Wednesday. That includes a bill from a bipartisan pair of senators that would require Congress to approve new tariffs, which has already garnered backing from key GOP lawmakers. Republicans, meanwhile, fought off concerns over heavy Wall Street losses by urging patience as they prepared to advance Trump’s ambitious tax-cut agenda — a process that is sure to bring more tests of their united front today, as critics try to force related budget votes. “If the market today is any indication,” tariffs “are overshadowing everything else,” said Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.

— Eleanor Mueller and Burgess Everett

Tariffs give China an opening

Trump’s tariffs are scrambling global alliances and creating an opportunity for one of the US’ foremost competitors: China. The duties could push US trading partners towards Beijing, while also driving a wedge between Washington and the European countries the US will need to rely on if it wants to counter China’s influence. “Countries that are looking to find ways to export more, they’re going to see China as a big potential opportunity, especially if the US is off the table,” said Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, who called the tariffs a “political opportunity for China.” To be sure, China will feel pain from the tariffs, which are likely to be a significant drag on its domestic economy. And Japan and Taiwan will look for ways to sidestep the tariffs, Cooper predicted, in order to preserve their security partnerships with the US.

— Morgan Chalfant

Senate starts its budget sprint

The Senate GOP is on course to approve a budget resolution setting up Trump’s tax cuts, though not without some last-minute drama. Senate Majority Leader John Thune met with senators who had concerns about moving forward on Thursday. Among the deliberations: a question about whether the parliamentarian will be overruled if she ends up finding issues later with Republicans’ plans to make expiring tax cuts permanent without paying for them. “We’re not going to overrule the parliamentarian,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. And before voting to advance the bill, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., spoke to Trump, who assured him he won’t sign a bill that cuts Medicaid. With the successful procedural vote, the Senate Republicans are on course to finish their budget and send it back to the House — but not before getting through an unlimited vote-a-rama, probably on Friday night.

— Burgess Everett

A ‘bloodbath’ at Trump’s NSC

At least six National Security Council officials were fired after the right-wing agitator Laura Loomer met with Trump at the White House, two sources confirmed to Semafor. Trump, on his way to Florida on Thursday evening, denied Loomer played a role in the firings, although she came to the White House for her meeting this week armed with “receipts” aimed at proving a number of staffers were disloyal to the president, The New York Times first reported. Four senior directors — David Feith, Brian Walsh, Thomas Boodry, and Maggie Dougherty — were fired, one source told Semafor, in addition to two others, Kristina Obecny and Seamas Whitesel. NSA Director Timothy Haugh was also ousted Thursday. Trump praised Loomer, telling reporters she often makes recommendations on staffing decisions to him. The “bloodbath,” as one official described it, raised questions in Trump’s orbit about Loomer’s influence.

— Shelby Talcott and Yinka Adegoke

Speaker charts plan for Stefanik’s return to leadership

House Republicans are mulling offering Rep. Elise Stefanik a landing spot, after Trump withdrew her nomination to be ambassador to the UN. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Stefanik’s team have discussed making her chair of the elected leadership committee, Semafor’s Kadia Goba reports. The leadership position was resurrected after a 10-year hiatus in 2023, when then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy appointed former Louisiana congressman Garret Graves to the spot to help broker debt limit negotiations. Two Republicans familiar with the negotiations said the revived role would involve more “heft” and “teeth.” But the scenario is undeniably tricky: “We can’t give her a gavel. We can’t give her one of the elected positions. So we want to bring her back in to have a seat at the leadership table,” Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain, R-Mich., who replaced Stefanik, told Semafor.

US jobs growth on track to slow

The US will get a more complete picture of how employers are handling Trump’s policies when the government releases the March jobs report later this morning. Economists predict the US economy to add 140,000 jobs in March, a sign of a slowing job market. There have been mixed signals about the employment situation in the US this week: While a new report indicated private companies added more jobs than expected in March, a separate measure found layoffs surged 205% last month compared with the prior year (a trend fueled by DOGE cuts to the federal workforce). More unwelcome news may be headed the Trump administration’s way in the wake of its tariff announcements: Automaker Stellantis said it would temporarily lay off hundreds of US workers and pause production at sites in Mexico and Canada.

Delaware gov on Dems’ next leader

The next leader of the Democratic Party will be a governor — at least, if you ask Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer. “My bias is towards governors,” he told Semafor in an interview. In the Trump era, he continued, governors are “sort of the last line of defense.” Meyer, who took office this year, name-dropped Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey. Meyer sidestepped a question on whether the party needs to make a clean break from Joe Biden, who hails from his state, but stressed that delivering for constituents on issues like education and affordable housing will boost Democrats in 2026. Meyer also weighed in on congressional Republicans’ treatment of Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., the first transgender member of Congress, calling it “totally disrespectful.” (One GOP member recently referred to her as “Mr. McBride.“)

— Morgan Chalfant

Blindspot: ICE threats and arrests

Stories that are being largely ignored by either left-leaning or right-leaning outlets, curated with help from our partners at Ground News.

What the Left isn’t reading: A man in Texas was arrested for making threats against ICE agents and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

What the Right isn’t reading: ICE touted the arrest of 72 people in the second Trump administration’s first weeks, the “worst of the worst.” Half were already in prisons or jails, per the Washington Post.

Beltway Newsletters

Punchbowl News: Senate Republicans discussed potentially staying through the weekend to process more of President Trump’s nominees, in hopes of starting the next recess a little early. That means nominees like US ambassador for Israel pick Mike Huckabee could be confirmed this weekend.

Playbook: White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller dropped in on a lunch for Senate chiefs of staff to defend Trump’s tariffs.

WaPo: “I think there are members of the Republican caucus who are growing increasingly uncomfortable with what’s going on,” Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said.

White House

• President Trump told reporters he’s supportive of a bipartisan push to allow House members who are new parents to vote remotely.
• Economists criticized the way Trump’s team calculated tariffs as nonsensical. — WaPo

Congress

• The Senate confirmed Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in a party-line vote.
• A Senate committee advanced Trump’s picks for key economic jobs, including nominee for Securities and Exchange Commission chair Paul Atkins, in another party-line vote.

Campaigns

• Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., is officially running for Senate in New Hampshire.

Outside the Beltway

• In response to tariffs, GM is planning to ramp up production of Chevy and GMC trucks at its Fort Wayne, Indiana plant. Meanwhile, Volkswagen will add an “import fee” to cars sold in the US sometime this month.
• Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said she was withholding funding from Maine for “certain administrative and technological functions in schools,” citing Gov. Janet Mills’ support for allowing transgender women and girls to play on women’s and girls sports teams.

Education

• The Education Department is threatening to withhold federal funding from public K-12 schools that participate in what the White House sees as “illegal DEI practices.”
• The White House wants to block $510 million in federal grants for Brown University.

Polls

• President Trump’s approval rating dropped to its lowest level since his return to office, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.

Business

• Even companies President Trump hailed for planning 10- and 11-figure investments in the US saw their stock price plunge.
• In the wake of Trump’s tariff announcement, French President Emmanuel Macron told European businesses to pause US investments.
• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Financial Literacy for All author John Hope Bryant to kick off the department’s financial literacy month.

Economy

• JPMorgan raised the risk of a global recession this year to 60%.
• Fitch downgraded China’s sovereign debt rating.

Courts

• Nineteen blue states sued the Trump administration over President Trump’s executive order seeking to enforce new voter ID requirements, arguing the executive branch can’t control how states run their elections.
• US District Judge James Boasberg is considering holding White House officials in contempt for ignoring an order to prevent the deportation of Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador.

National Security

• The Pentagon inspector general is scrutinizing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of Signal to communicate Houthi attack plans.
• The Army is considering cutting 90,000 active-duty troops. — Military.com

Health

• Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said a large number of laid-off HHS workers will likely need to be rehired, “because we’ll make mistakes.” — Politico

Foreign Policy

• Secretary of State Marco Rubio told a NATO gathering in Brussels that President Trump supports the alliance.
• OPEC+ announced a surprise move to increase oil outputs.

Technology

• Microsoft is scaling back its plans for data centers. — Bloomberg
• Intel and TSMC are eyeing a chip joint venture. — The Information

Media

• Columnist Eugene Robinson is leaving The Washington Post. — NYT

Principals Team

Edited by Morgan Chalfant, deputy Washington editor

With help from Elana Schor, senior Washington editor

And Graph Massara, copy editor

Contact our reporters:

Burgess Everett, Kadia Goba, Eleanor Mueller, Shelby Talcott, David Weigel

Peter Welch is a Democratic senator from Vermont.