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Wisconsin decides, Mangione faces death and Booker talks past Thurmond

 
Today's NATIONAL story

Democrats win high-stakes Wisconsin high court seat

What happened
Wisconsin Democrats won yesterday's hotly contested race for an open seat on the state Supreme Court. Judge Susan Crawford's victory, which cemented a liberal majority on the court, capped the most expensive judicial race in U.S. history, with Elon Musk notably pouring in at least $25 million to back conservative Judge Brad Schimel. Total spending was close to $100 million. Republicans retained two House seats in Florida yesterday, with state chief financial officer Jimmy Patronis winning a special election in former Rep. Matt Gaetz's (R) district and state Sen. Randy Fine claiming national security adviser Michael Waltz's seat.

Who said what
The "trio of contests provided the first significant electoral test" of President Donald Trump's "72 disruptive days" in office, USA Today said. The verdict: "Democrats have a pulse." Democrats view Crawford's 10-point win as a "sign they can flip Congress" in 2026, The Washington Post said. It "destabilized Republicans," who had hoped Trump's backing and Musk's money would juice turnout among "Trump supporters who don't vote in court elections."

Musk "expended more political capital" than anyone in the Wisconsin race, The New York Times said, and Democrats made him their "primary boogeyman." Crawford said at her victory party she "never could have imagined that I'd be taking on the richest man in the world for justice in Wisconsin. And we won!"

Democrats also celebrated their overperformance in the Florida races, halving Trump's 30-percentage-point margin from November in both deeply red districts. Still, the Republican victories bumped their slim majority in the House to 220-213, at least until Texas and Arizona hold elections for vacant seats in heavily Democratic districts.

What next?
Crawford's victory should give liberals a 4-3 majority on Wisconsin's high court until 2028and "at a national level," the Times said, it could "soon lead to a redrawing of Wisconsin's Republican-tilted congressional maps," potentially giving Democrats two more House seats.

 
 
Today's Criminal justice story

Bondi seeks death penalty for Luigi Mangione

What happened
Attorney General Pam Bondi said yesterday she was instructing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, the man charged with fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last December.

Who said what
Bondi's "widely anticipated" decision is part of her and President Donald Trump's "push to revive the widespread use of capital punishment" after lifting former President Joe Biden's federal moratorium, said The New York Times. First, "federal prosecutors would have to convince a group of jurors to vote unanimously for him to be put to death," a task that "may be difficult." After his arrest, Mangione "became the subject of praise and fascination for some people," especially critics of the health insurance industry, The Washington Post said. 

What next?
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to New York State charges that carry a maximum penalty of life in prison. He has not entered a plea in the federal case, since "federal prosecutors have yet to seek a grand jury indictment," The Associated Press said. The cases were expected to "proceed on parallel tracks," with the state charges going to trial first, though it "wasn't immediately clear if Bondi's announcement will change the order."

 
 
Today's POLITICs Story

Sen. Booker's 25-hour speech beats Thurmond

What happened
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) last night completed the longest speech in recorded Senate history, speaking for 25 hours and 5 minutes to protest President Donald Trump's hardline policies and aggressive cuts. Colleagues and supporters in the Senate chamber cheered when Booker toppled the previous record — 24 hours, 18 minutes — set by segregationist Sen. Strom Thurmond (D-S.C.) in his filibuster of the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

Who said what
Booker took to the floor at 7 p.m. Monday, saying he would speak "for as long as I am physically able." For the next day, he did not eat, sit or go to the bathroom, per Senate rules. "These are not normal times in our nation," Booker said. "And they should not be treated as such in the United States Senate." 

Booker's speech wasn't a filibuster, since it did not hold up specific legislation, but his "remarkable show of stamina" cheered Democrats "frustrated" at their party's lack of aggressive stands against Trump's agenda, The Associated Press said. More than a million people watched parts of Booker's speech online, and over 350 million people liked it on TikTok live.

What next?
Booker's "marathon speech ended with applause but not with action," USA Today said. The "attention and applause of its base" were things Democrats "desperately needed in the Trump era," Axios said. For a party in a hole, "Booker's stemwinder" could prove a "turning point."

 
 

It's not all bad

A member of the lasso peptide family recently discovered in soil was found to kill bacteria, including several resistant to existing antibiotics, researchers at McMaster University and University of Illinois at Chicago reported. The peptide, lariocidin, could soon be used as a powerful tool in the fight against drug-resistant bacteria. "Time will show whether some other peptides of this kind will be even more active than this one," said UIC postdoctoral researcher Dmitrii Travin. "But we already have our foot in the door."

 
 
Under the radar

Gaza's ongoing humanitarian crisis has created yet another problem for residents: a desperate shortage of currency. With the Israeli siege blocking supplies of fresh legal tender into the territory, Palestinians are having to mend their "tattered bills and rusted coins" to buy essential goods, said the Financial Times. Gaza's last working ATM closed late last year, while most of its banks have either shut due to security fears or been destroyed by Israeli airstrikes. 

Much of the remaining currency has ended up in the hands of "powerful wholesalers" trading in goods from Egypt and Israel, said the Financial Times. They use bank transfers to pay for the imports but insist that buyers pay cash for the goods. This has led to a "lucrative" sideline for black market money brokers, who buy cash from the traders and then sell it for "exorbitant" fees to desperate Gazans, receiving payment via electronic bank transfers. Those charges have increased following Israel's renewed bombardment of Gaza. Traders have doubled their asking price from 15% to 30%.

Some Gazans have turned the situation to their advantage, restoring old, ripped notes for a price. But not everyone can repair or replace their currency, including some of the exchangers themselves. Money broker Abdallah Al-Mzeiny has found himself a victim of vendors' refusal to accept 10-shekel coins for fear they are counterfeit. He has more than 10,000 shekels — some $2,700 — in the coins. Nevertheless, he will continue his trading, saying, "It's a way for anyone with cash to earn money."

 
 
On this day

April 2, 2005

Pope John Paul II died at age 84, bringing his 26-year pontificate to an end. Born Karol Wojtyla in Poland, John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in more than 400 years and remains one of the Catholic Church's most notable figures. He was succeeded by Pope Benedict XVI, who resigned eight years later.

 
 
TODAY'S newspaperS

"Mass layoffs start at health agencies," the Chicago Tribune says on Wednesday's front page. The "mass firings at CDC eliminate 2,400 jobs," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says. "Chaos greets federal staff" told to return to the office, with "no privacy and no toilet paper" for some, The New York Times says. "Liberals win Wisconsin race in blow to Musk," The Wall Street Journal says. National security adviser Michael Waltz's "team Gmail use draws flags on security," The Washington Post says, while Donald Trump's "OMB starts a study on cost to 'get' Greenland."

► See the newspaper front pages

 
 
Tall tale

Frame and fortune

Antique shop owner Heidi Markow is waiting to find out if the drawing she snagged for $12 at a Pennsylvania auction is an original work by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. This piece "just stood out to me as something special," Markow said to ABC News. Upon further inspection, she realized the frame, type of paper used and a faint signature pointed toward this potentially being a Renoir. Markow is now "cautiously optimistic" that authentication will show the "masterpiece" is by the famed painter, she said.

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Theara Coleman, Nadia Croes, Catherine Garcia, Scott Hocker, Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, Justin Klawans, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz and Peter Weber, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Scott Olson / Getty Images; Win McNamee / Getty Images; Win McNamee / Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images