As President Donald Trump pushes Texas Republicans to adopt a controversial new redistricting plan to pad their congressional majority by up to five seats, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has begun to float a similar scheme of his own: redrawing his state's legislative districts to further benefit Democrats since, as Newsom said on X, "two can play that game." The "existential threat of what Donald Trump and some of these Republican states are trying to do" necessitates equally drastic measures from liberals, he said to reporters on Wednesday. 

'Looking for a fight'
Democratic supporters of blue-state gerrymandering deem it an "essential offensive posture" that could "make the difference" in reclaiming the House next year, said The Texas Tribune. The party needs to "fight fire with fire," said one Democrat to the outlet. "I'm not going to fight with one hand tied behind my back," said another, adding that "we shouldn't be so nice" if Texas' redistricting moves forward. 

Voters are "looking for a fight from the Democratic Party," said former Biden administration official Neera Tanden to Politico. Newsom's response to Texas is the "kind of thing I think they are looking for." 

But the notion of "lowering themselves to Trump's level" has some Democrats "feeling uneasy," said Ja'han Jones at MSNBC. The "counterpoint" to that, though, is that no matter how "concerned about the civil rights implications of California's responsive gerrymander" one may be, the "implications of sitting idly as Texas implements its own are arguably worse."

'Legitimizing the race to the bottom'
Newsom's plan is "all hat and no cattle," said the Los Angeles Times, using a Texas expression. To successfully redraw California's congressional districts, Newsom would have to break the state's 2010 law that left redistricting to a bipartisan commission, leading to an "inevitable lawsuit." Alternately, he could put the redistricting question back to voters through a "new constitutional amendment in a hurried-up special election ahead of the 2026 midterms."

By "legitimizing the race to the bottom" of gerrymandering, Democrats will "ultimately lose," said California Assemblymember Alex Lee (D) at Politico. As an "ambitious governor" who's ostensibly arguing that the state's constitutionally enshrined redistricting commission "ought to be ignored," Newsom risks "violating his oath," said the National Review. Doing so offers "ample justification for impeachment and removal from office."

Maritime shipping routes are the veins that carry the lifeblood of international trade. But a combination of geopolitical tension, outdated capacity and changing weather patterns is clogging up the flow of the world's goods. 

Strait of Hormuz 
About a fifth of the globe's oil passes through this strait each year, making the passage linking the Gulf to the Arabian Sea a crucial chokepoint. But in response to last month's Israeli and American air strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hinted he could close it off completely. That would "trigger an oil price spike with a near-immediate inflationary effect" across the world, said The Guardian. 

Suez Canal 
The 120-mile-long canal connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas is "vital" for global trade and energy security, said the Atlantic Council. Between 12% and 15% of trade, and nearly a third of container traffic, passes through it each year, worth an estimated $1 trillion. As the "fastest sea route between Asia and Europe," disruption can have an "outsize" impact.

In 2021, the massive Ever Given container ship got stuck for six days, damming up worldwide shipping and freezing nearly $10 billion in trade per day. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have also ramped up attacks on ships in the Red Sea, which feeds into the canal, forcing freight companies to detour around southern Africa. 

Panama Canal 
About 40% of all U.S. container traffic passes through the waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. But the canal is not wide or deep enough for the new generation of container ships, so they have to circumvent the southern tip of South America. In recent years, "El Niño-triggered drought" has also "slashed transits," said The Interpreter. 

Alternatives
There are several plans in the works to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, including the Nicaragua Canal project. And as cargo volumes grow, corridors like land bridges and interoceanic "dry canals" become "more viable" and are "cheaper and faster to build," said The Interpreter. In addition, Mexico's Tehuantepec Interoceanic Corridor will connect the two oceans with airports, warehousing and other infrastructure when it's completed mid-2026. 

Warmer weather is also opening up new routes. With some parts of the Arctic predicted to be ice-free during the summer within a decade, said the Financial Times, "military and commercial vessels, particularly from Russia, are stepping up activity."