Hello Fifthers! In this week's news: economic turmoil, Mahmoud Khalil's fate, and a unanimous Supreme Court ruling against the Trump Administration.

Also a reminder: there will be no newsletter next week, April 18. I'll be back the following week! Hope to see you then.

TOP STORIES

❶ Immigration & Civil Rights

In an upsetting ruling Friday, a federal judge in Louisiana said the U.S. can deport Mahmoud Khalil — a Columbia University student, legal U.S. resident, and soon-to-be father — not because he broke any laws, but because of what he believes. Khalil helped students organize during last year’s Gaza protests and has been detained since early March. AP | PBS

• When pressed for evidence to justify Khalil’s removal, Secretary of State Marco Rubio admitted Khalil had not broken any laws, but said his continued presence would "undermine US policy to combat anti-Semitism." That statement, under the Immigration and Nationality Act, gave the judge legal grounds to approve deportation. Khalil’s lawyers say they will appeal. Rubio’s letter
• Khalil’s wife, a U.S. citizen, called the decision “an indictment” of the U.S. immigration system, saying it “does not reflect truth, justice or the will of the American people.” Middle East Eye

❷ Tariff Turmoil and Market Fallout

After a weekend of golfing, Trump returned to the White House still determined to impose outrageous global tariffs — even after the announcements wiped trillions from financial markets with investors and companies in a panic.

• But, this week, top billionaires and Trump allies pushed back. Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, warned of rising inflation and recession. Elon Musk started publicly feuding with Trump’s trade advisor, Peter Navarro — the same Navarro who served jail time and created a fake economist to support his views.
• Then came a major shift: Investors started dumping U.S. Treasury bonds — like passengers abandoning a ship they no longer trusted to stay afloat. That sent a troubling signal: investors doubted the U.S. government’s ability to repay its debts. If confidence drops, interest rates rise and the economy suffers. Washington Post
• By Wednesday, Trump announced a 90-day pause on most tariffs — except on China, which now faces tariffs up to 145% as punishment for their response by taxing US goods in return. The announcement caused markets to soar after days in the red.
• Just 90 minutes before the pause was announced, Trump posted on Truth Social that it was a good time to buy — signing it “DJT,” which also happens to be the ticker symbol for his publicly traded media company.

• Later, a video surfaced of Trump in the Oval Office with Charles Schwab — yes, that Schwab — joking that Schwab had made $2.5 billion that day. Schwab manages $250 million in assets for Trump’s media company, which Trump has not divested from. That means Trump may be profiting from market swings he triggers himself. (See explainer on The Fifth IG page).
• On Friday, the White House announced a last-minute exemption for phones, laptops, and other electronics. Officials said companies need time to shift production to the U.S. — a fact that was also true last month, if anyone had thought ahead. CNBC
• Democrats are now calling for insider trading and market manipulation investigations.

❸ FROM GAZA

🇵🇸 The Israeli military announced it has cut off Rafah from the rest of Gaza with a new "security corridor." Israel has now stolen 50% of the land. AP

🇵🇸 Hamas has continuously stated that they will return the hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and illegal occupation. Netanyahu has rejected this offer multiple times. Al Jazeera

🇵🇸 Doctors Without Borders says that Israel has destroyed Gaza's source of clean water by damaging infrastructure and cutting off electricity and fuel needed to run desalination plants. In the last month, water output has decreased from 17 million liters per day to 2.5 – an 85% decrease. Israel has not allowed any humanitarian aid in for the last month. Doctors Without Borders

MORE FROM THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

🏛️ On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the White House for the second time this year.

• He and Trump discussed tariffs, hostages, Israel-Turkey relations, and the International Criminal Court — which has an open arrest warrant for Netanyahu for war crimes. A larger press conference was abruptly downgraded to a smaller one with fewer reporters. The Hill | The Guardian
• Maybe because just hours before Netanyahu arrived in DC, Israeli soldiers shot and killed a 14-year-old Palestinian-American in the occupied West Bank. Two other Palestinian-American teens — ages 14 and 15 — were injured. The IDF claimed the group was throwing rocks. The U.S. said Israel is investigating. This marks the third Palestinian-American child killed by Israeli forces since the war began. No one has been held accountable for any of the crimes. CNN
• What probably didn’t come up in the meeting: An autopsy of a 17-year-old Palestinian boy who died in Israeli custody showed signs of starvation and untreated illness, including scabies and colitis. The teen had not been charged with any crime. Experts say medical neglect contributed to his death. Haaretz | Times of Israel | AP

🏛️ The Trump Administration is cracking down on free speech at US colleges and universities by:

• quietly revoking hundreds of student visas, affecting more than 100 schools in the U.S., citing activism or other unexplained reasons. Most students, including currently detained Tufts student Rumeysa Ozturk, were not informed that their visa status had changed.
• working to get Columbia University to enter a “consent decree” that would give the government sweeping oversight over campus activity — especially protest and activism involving Palestinians. Unlike voluntary agreements entered under Biden at Rutgers and Brown, this would be binding. Columbia has lost $400 million in federal funding and may capitulate for the money. Sounds like a #freebrittany situation.
• cutting grants to and government contracts with Cornell and Northwestern, citing concerns over their civil rights policies — largely tied to how the schools have responded to anti semitism accusations.

DOJ: Top Lawyers Out, Crypto Crimes Ignored

• At the Department of Justice, elite attorneys in the Solicitor General’s office — the team responsible for defending the government before the SCOTUS — are resigning in large numbers. The lawyers say they can no longer stomach the idea of representing the Trump Administration in court or working under Attorney General Pam Bondi. Washington Post
• At the same time, DOJ is scaling back enforcement of crypto-related crimes, disbanding a specialized team created during the Biden administration to tackle fraud and abuse in digital currencies. This comes even as President Trump continues to own a meme coin, raising serious questions about conflicts of interest. The DOJ says it has “other priorities.” WSJ

Social Security: Digital Erasure of Immigrants

• The Social Security Administration (SSA) has quietly added the names of 6,100 immigrants — all still alive — to its official “Death Master File,” a federal database of people who are legally dead. Being listed means those people are erased from the system — unable to work, open bank accounts, receive government benefits, or in some cases, maintain legal status.
• The administration claims these individuals are criminals or national security threats, but has not provided any evidence to back it up. Many on the list had legal status under Biden-era programs, but are now undocumented after losing access to benefits and protection. A White House official told the Washington Post that the next phase will include 92,000 immigrants with criminal convictions — and then, eventually, undocumented immigrants with no criminal history at all. Washington Post
• One SSA executive who objected to the plan, saying it was illegal and constituted falsifying federal records, was fired and escorted out by security. Experts in government ethics, consumer rights, and immigration law agree the policy is likely illegal. Washington Post
• Due to massive staffing cuts — especially in communications — SSA says it will no longer post public updates or guidance on its website. Instead, it will use X (formerly Twitter) to share key announcements, despite the fact that federal employees are not allowed to download the app on their government devices. This creates chaos not only for the public, but also for SSA employees and the nonprofits that help people navigate the system. Wired | Federal News Network

DOD: Fired for Speaking Up

• Colonel Susannah Meyers, the U.S. military commander in charge of Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, was fired for sending an email critical of Vice President JD Vance — just days after his visit there.
• During that visit, Vance gave a speech suggesting that Greenland would be better off under U.S. control instead of Denmark (a longtime NATO ally). In response, Meyers sent a base-wide message stating that Vance’s “concerns” were not reflective of the mission or values of the base. The White House deemed her message too partisan, and she was removed from her post.
• In a statement, the U.S. Space Force said commanders are expected to “remain nonpartisan at all times.” Military.com | Official Statement

HHS: Measles Death, Autism and Fluoride

⚕ A second child died from measles this week — an 8-year-old girl who had not been vaccinated, according to the hospital that treated her. ABC News

• Despite this, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr falsely claimed measles cases had plateaued; they are rising. There are now at least 712 confirmed cases across the country and five active outbreaks (defined as 3 or more cases in a state) up from more than 400 one week ago. A New Mexico man also died last month, bringing the current outbreak’s death toll to three. Ninety-seven percent of those infected are either unvaccinated or their status is unknown. AP
• Kennedy, long known for promoting vaccine conspiracy theories, now says vaccines are “the most effective way to avoid measles.” The Bulwark

⚕ Kennedy announced this week that HHS:

• will launch “research” into the causes of autism, with results expected by September. Despite overwhelming scientific consensus that vaccines are not linked to autism, Kennedy has repeatedly claimed otherwise. AP
• will instruct the CDC to stop recommending fluoride in drinking water. While fluoride occurs naturally, it is added to water systems serving more than 70% of Americans to help prevent cavities — reducing tooth decay by as much as 25%, according to scientists. Kennedy and other critics claim it's toxic and want it removed. The Hill

THE COURTS

From the Supreme Court:

⚖️ In a unanimous decision, ruled that the government must comply with a lower court order to “facilitate” the return of Kilmar Abrego-Garcia, an asylum seeker who was deported by mistake to El Salvador.

• Garcia — who has no criminal record, was in the U.S. legally, and is a married father — was sent to a notorious Salvadoran prison despite seeking protection from persecution. CNN
• At a follow-up hearing, the government claimed it did not know where Garcia was, prompting the judge to demand daily updates on the efforts to locate and return him.
• The DOJ attorney who first acknowledged that Garcia had been deported in error — Erez Reuveni — has been placed on leave.
• Reuveni told the judge he had urged his “clients” (i.e., the government) to bring Garcia back. But Attorney General Pam Bondi later said Reuveni was simply “not good at his job.” Politico

⚖️ In a 5–4 decision, ruled that the Trump Administration can resume deportations of Venezuelan nationals under the Alien Enemies Act.

• But the Court said those individuals must be given notice and an opportunity to challenge their removal in court — specifically, in Texas, where they are being detained. AP
• While the justices disagreed over where due process must occur, all nine agreed that it is constitutionally required.

⚖️ Ruled 7–2 to block a lower court’s order that would have forced the administration to reinstate 16,000 fired federal workers.

• The justices said that the nonprofits bringing the lawsuit lacked standing, and therefore the lower court’s ruling could not stand. Politico
• In a related case, a separate federal judge has ordered the reinstatement of probationary employees across 20 federal agencies in 19 states and D.C. There is now confusion over how to resolve the conflicting rulings.

From District Court:

⚖️ A federal judge – appointed by Trump – ruled that the White House cannot discriminate against the Associated Press for using the term “Gulf of Mexico” instead of “Gulf of America.”

• The AP had been denied access to official events — the judge said that’s a First Amendment violation. He also clarified the AP is not entitled to special treatment either. AP

CONGRESS

🏛️ A former Meta employee testified before Congress that Mark Zuckerberg lied when he said Facebook wasn’t working with China.

• Sarah Wynn-Williams, Facebook’s former global policy chief, said the company collaborated “hand in glove” with China to develop AI surveillance tools and gave them access to Americans' private data. MSNBC
• Wynn-Williams also exposed how Meta targets vulnerable teens. She says advertisers are alerted when kids delete selfies — prompting ads for beauty products aimed at exploiting their insecurities. Tech Crunch
• Wynn-Williams also testified that Meta monetizes the emotional vulnerability of children ages 13–17. She described how when a teenager deletes a selfie, advertisers are alerted — prompting them to promote beauty products or weight loss ads that feed on perceived insecurity.

HEADLINES

📰 Trump wants to make your shower-head great again by rolling back Obama-era water flow limits — citing the need to “take care” of his “beautiful hair.”

📰 A ProPublica investigation shows Trump’s administration is broadly undoing energy efficiency regulations that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lower costs for consumers.

📰 To justify cutting conservation programs, the administration is now celebrating a shady experiment by a private biotech firm claiming to have resurrected "dire wolves." Slate

📰 The White House denied it had scheduled a military parade for Flag Day — which also happens to be Trump’s birthday — but D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said the administration had reached out to discuss it. NBC

📰 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Naval Academy to remove hundreds of books that violate Trump’s anti-DEI rules. Banned books include ones on gender identity, women’s rights, race, and the Holocaust — including Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Meanwhile, Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf remains on the shelves. The List | NYT

📰 Trump removed Obama’s official portrait to hang a large painting of himself — taken from a real photo after the assassination attempt last summer. The photographer, Evan Vucci, has since been banned from the White House over the “Gulf of Mexico” controversy. NBC

📰 A Florida teacher was fired for using a student’s preferred name without parental permission.

📰 After backlash, the National Park Service restored its Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman pages.

📰 Leaked documents show Meta removed posts critical of Israel at the request of Israeli officials. Drop Site News

📰 A mother and her three children in Sackets Harbor, NY — arrested and detained by ICE for 11 days — are finally home. 1,000 locals (out of a town population of 1,351!) rallied for their release. NPR | WaPo gift link

📰 Some critical foreign aid programs in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Ecuador — previously cut — will be restored.

📰 The government has spent $154 billion more than this time last year under Biden, according to the WSJ. Despite claiming he could cut $1-2 trillion from government spending, DOGE head Elon Musk reported this week that they’ve cut $150 billion so far.

Thanks for reading this far! Finally, some of the most interesting signs from last week's protests: