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Today’s edition of quick hits.
* The wrong day to review the value of your portfolio: “Major stock indexes tanked Monday, continuing a sell-off that gathered steam last week as rattled investors began zeroing in on the prospect of a significant falloff in U.S. growth amid persistent inflation and a wobbling job market.”
* Do you ever get the feeling that Trump’s assurances about Putin’s interest in peace are wrong? “Russia launched heavy aerial attacks on Ukraine for a second night Saturday after the United States stopped sharing satellite images with the Ukrainian government, officials said. At least 22 people have been killed.”
* In Canada: “Former central banker Mark Carney will become Canada’s next prime minister after the governing Liberal Party elected him its leader Sunday as the country deals with U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war and annexation threat, and a federal election looms. Carney, 59, replaces Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who announced his resignation in January but remains prime minister until his successor is sworn in in the coming days. Carney won in a landslide, winning 85.9% of the vote.”
* Many illnesses don’t care about territorial boundaries: “Dangerous pathogens left unsecured at labs across Africa. Halted inspections for mpox, Ebola and other infections at airports and other checkpoints. Millions of unscreened animals shipped across borders. The Trump administration’s pause on foreign aid has hobbled programs that prevent and snuff out outbreaks around the world, scientists say, leaving people everywhere more vulnerable to threatening viruses and bacteria. That includes Americans.”
* All is not well at HHS: “Most of the 80,000 federal workers responsible for researching diseases, inspecting food and administering Medicare and Medicaid under the auspices of the Health and Human Services Department were emailed an offer to leave their job for as much as a $25,000 payment as part of President Donald Trump’s government cuts. ... The email was sent to staff across the department, which includes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and the National Institutes of Health as well as the Food and Drug Administration, both in Maryland.”
* All is not well at DHS, either: “The Department of Homeland Security has begun performing polygraph tests on employees to determine who might be leaking information to the media about immigration operations, according to four sources familiar with the practice.”
* Why do this? “The country’s preeminent federal fire training academy canceled classes, effective immediately, on Saturday amid the ongoing flurry of funding freezes and staffing cuts by President Donald Trump’s administration. The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced that National Fire Academy courses were canceled amid a ‘process of evaluating agency programs and spending to ensure alignment with Administration priorities,’ according to a notice sent to instructors, students and fire departments. Instructors were told to cancel all future travel until further notice.”
* Also, why do this? “The Environmental Protection Agency is rewriting a rule providing safeguards to prevent accidents at chemical plants, according to a motion filed Thursday in federal court, a move that would affect nearly 12,000 chemical facilities around the country.”
* There are no other statewide bans like this one: “Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said he would sign a bill that bans the use of fluoride in public water systems, rejecting the practice that many public-health experts say is a crucial protector against tooth decay.”
* Hiding good news: “America’s national parks saw more than 331 million visits last year, a record. But the Trump administration does not want to call attention to those numbers, according to a National Park Service memo, amid mass firings of rangers and other employees at the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Arches and other popular destinations.”
* The future of the Post does not appear bright: “Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus resigned Monday after accusing the paper’s CEO and publisher of killing her column criticizing owner Jeff Bezos’ latest editorial edict. Marcus, an associate editor and columnist with The Post’s opinion section, is leaving the paper where she’s been employed since 1984.”
* And if readers haven’t heard, Kevin Drum — a political blogging pioneer, and a writer I considered a friend, mentor, and hero — died late last week, after a long battle with cancer. He will be missed.
See you tomorrow.