THE SHOW NOTES: Stubborn Inflation, Biden And The Border, & What’s Happening in Arizona?

Welcome! Michigan’s Rashida Tlaib and Gretchen Whitmer remain silent over “Death to America” chants in Dearborn.

BIAS: MSNBC revolted over Ronna McDaniel but is interviewing Stormy Daniels’ lawyer from prison.

WATCH: Biden literally shuffled across the White House front lawn.

DOWN: Markets are down big after March’s unexpectedly high inflation report.

HEADLINE: Is Biden losing his voice against rising antisemitism? - JI

THE MASTERS: Scottie Scheffler Vows To Withdraw From The Masters If His Wife Goes Into Labor - Barstool

BIDEN: Is Biden finally going to close the border? - Axios

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Stubborn Inflation

Another hotter-than-expected inflation report is casting doubt on the Fed’s ability to cut rates later this year.

Details: The Consumer Price Index indicated that March’s inflation reading exceeded analysts’ expectations with a 3.5% year-over-year gain and increased 0.3% from the month before. Shelter and gasoline prices contributed more than half of the overall inflationary pressure. This is the highest monthly increase since September. Core prices - which exclude volatile food and energy prices - jumped by 3.8% during the same period.

The concern: Economists and investors are most worried about core inflation. For the past three months, core inflation has beaten analysts’ expectations with no sign of slowing down. Here are the key drivers of inflation over the past year:

• Car insurance: +22.2% (largest increase since 1976)

• Eldercare: +14.2% (largest increase ever)

• Car repair: +12%

• Baby formula: +10%

• Veterinarian: +10%

• Rent: +5.9%

• Electricity: +5%

• Restaurants: +4.2%

Two Bloomberg analysts summed it up best:

“March is supposed to be a month where seasonal patterns are favorable for disinflation. The fact that March core CPI came in the same as February’s — even if it maps to a lower core PCE inflation reading — is not a good development for the fight against inflation.

Related: With inflation back up, the long-predicted storm clouds in the economy may actually be forming - CNN

What’s Happening in Arizona?

Media outlets are outraged by an Arizona state Supreme Court ruling that has reimposed an abortion ban from 1864 after the Supreme Court repealed Roe v Wade. The news has prompted dystopian headlines that Arizona is returning to a Civil War era where women’s rights are being eroded.

But that’s not what happened: The abortion law from 1864 was the previous state law on the books before Roe v Wade was imposed at the federal level in 1973. With Roe no more, the court simply states the previous law, still on the books, governed the situation until the legislative process changed it. In this case, it was the 1864 abortion law. The Arizona Supreme Court even went as far as to explain that this was not an endorsement of the law, but the legal process when a federal law is overturned. Regardless, the media has singularly focused on how the Republican-appointed Arizona Supreme Court is taking women back to the dark ages.

Hamas Balks at U.S. Plan for Temporary Gaza Truce

Hamas largely rejected a U.S. plan for a temporary cease-fire in Gaza, mediators said Wednesday, and plans instead to put forward its own road map for a permanent end to the six-month-old conflict with Israel.

The dismissal illustrates the wide disagreement between the two parties on the contours of a deal and reflects Hamas’s growing confidence that diplomatic and domestic pressure on Israel to end the war gives the U.S.-designated terrorist group the upper hand in negotiations.

Hamas is seeking a permanent cease-fire and the full withdrawal of Israeli soldiers from Gaza in return for the release of hostages held in the strip. Israel has expressed openness to negotiating on the U.S. proposal for a temporary truce but wants the option of continuing its military campaign afterward.

Full story at The Wall Street Journal (paywall).

Trending news:

• Defiant Crumbleys head to prison — 'Not once did they say ... they're not the victims' - Detroit Free Press

• Klain on Biden: He is focused too much on bridges - Politico

• Lone Star rep lures New York's finest to 'escape' the Big Apple for the heart of Texas - Fox News

• The rich are getting second passports, citing risk of instability - CNBC

• Some Apple Vision Pro users suffer black eyes, headaches and neck pain - Marketwatch

• Crime concerns grow as members of a violent Venezuelan gang arrive in American cities - Yahoo

• Kari Lake Blasts Abortion Ban She Once Was ‘Thrilled’ About - The DailyBeast

• US Navy warship commander mocked for holding rifle with scope mounted backward - NY Post

• Priest jailed after man collapsed from too many erectile drugs at cleric’s sex party - The Telegraph

• Fiancé of man killed in staged robbery for U-Visa speaks out, once charged with murder - Fox 26

• CNN wants you to know that a guy who shot at police is the victim. - Twitter

• Boeing Crisis of Confidence Deepens With 787 Now Under Scrutiny - Yahoo

• Biden Tells Ukraine Not to Hit Russia - WSJ (paywall)

Market snapshot: