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Library turf war, Syria switch and Pete Rose clemency

 
Today's POLITICS story

Senate rejects Trump's Library of Congress takeover

What happened
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) yesterday joined Democrats in pushing back against President Donald Trump's effort to install his own leadership team at the Library of Congress, which is part of the legislative branch. Trump fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden (pictured above) last week and Shira Perlmutter, head of the U.S. Copyright Office, over the weekend. But the Justice Department officials he named as their replacements have been rebuffed at the Library of Congress, with congressional support. 

Who said what
Congress' quiet resistance to the president's "attempt to exert control" over "the legislative branch's premier research body" is a "rare bipartisan effort to defend its institutional authority" from Trump, The Washington Post said. On Monday, Trump named Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, a close ally and his former personal lawyer, as acting librarian of Congress, but lawmakers said Hayden's deputy, Robert Newlen, was still in charge for now.

Library of Congress employees on Monday turned away two Trump appointees seeking to take over the Copyright Office. "For the time being, the acting librarian is the acting librarian," Sen. Alex Padilla (Calif.), the top Rules Committee Democrat, said yesterday, and Trump's people "seem to be respecting that." 

Thune told reporters that Trump administration officials met with the Senate Rules Committee and "we made it clear that there needs to be a consultation around this" and congressional "equities" must be respected and protected. "It's the Library of Congress, not the library of the executive branch," said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.).

What next?
The implications of Trump "installing a close ally as librarian of Congress could be far-reaching," above and beyond separation-of-powers concerns, The Associated Press said. The librarian, for example, could see and pass on confidential "requests made by lawmakers to the Congressional Research Service" for analysis on legislation. And some conservatives were as worried as Democrats that Elon Musk's DOGE team would siphon up the library's vast trove of copyrighted works to train AI, a move Perlmutter warned would be illicit in a report released days before Trump fired her.

 
 
Today's International story

Trump vows to lift Syria sanctions

What happened
President Donald Trump yesterday announced plans to drop American sanctions against Syria that have been in place since 1979, saying the financial lifeline could help the new government stabilize the country after 14 years of civil war. Trump made his unexpected announcement after arriving in Saudi Arabia for a four-day visit to the region. 

Who said what
The new government of former jihadist Ahmed al-Sharaa "will hopefully succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace," Trump said during a speech in Riyadh. "I say, good luck, Syria. Show us something special." Syrian officials said al-Sharaa, who met with Trump in the Saudi capital this morning, wanted to "share his vision of a Marshall Plan–style reconstruction in which American and other Western companies would win out over China and other powers," The Wall Street Journal said.

The U.S. has been "weighing how to handle al-Sharaa since he took power in December" after overthrowing Bashar al-Assad, The Associated Press said. Turkey and Arab Gulf leaders have "rallied behind the new government," calling it a "bulwark against Iran's return to influence in Syria," but Israel has been "deeply skeptical of al-Sharaa's extremist past."

What next?
Syria is still a designated state sponsor of terrorism and "waiving congressionally passed sanctions is a complicated process," said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). It should be done carefully "in a coordinated fashion with our allies — especially our friends in Israel."

 
 
Today's SPORTS Story

MLB lifts ban on Pete Rose, other dead players

What happened
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred yesterday reinstated disgraced baseball great Pete Rose and other deceased players on MLB's permanently ineligible list. Manfred's decision, announced in a letter to the Rose family's lawyer, opened the door to Baseball Hall of Fame induction for Rose and 16 other dead people banned for gambling and other scandals.

Who said what
Rose, who died last September, agreed to a permanent ban in 1989 after he was caught betting on his team, the Cincinnati Reds, as a player and as manager. Other players now eligible for posthumous induction include Shoeless Joe Jackson and his seven Chicago Black Sox teammates banned for throwing the 1919 World Series.

"In my view, once an individual has passed away, the purpose of Rule 21" — which prohibits players and team staff from betting on any game in which they are directly involved — "has been served," Manfred wrote. Deceased players no longer "represent a threat to the integrity of the game." Marcus Giamatti, the son of the late MLB commissioner who banned Rose, disagreed. Manfred's decision "makes this a very dark day for baseball, the country and the fans," he said.

What next?
"Convincing Manfred to lift the ban on Rose may turn out to be the easy part" for his supporters, The Wall Street Journal said. Rose's stats are "unimpeachable," but he "committed one of baseball's gravest sins" and could "still face long odds" when the Hall of Fame's "Classic Era Committee" next votes in late 2027.

 
 

It's not all bad

Weight-loss injections could cut the risk of obesity-related cancers nearly in half, a new study published in eClinicalMedicine suggests. Researchers found that GLP-1 drugs like Saxenda and Trulicity were as effective as bariatric surgery at reducing cancer risk, despite less weight loss. Experts say the findings could revolutionize cancer prevention, and trials are planned to test these drugs' efficacy against breast, colorectal and pancreatic cancers. Researchers also want to ensure the drugs do not increase the risk of other cancers.

 
 
Under the radar

A grassroots revolution has helped Pakistan pull off one of the fastest solar power transformations in the world. Even as the nation "grapples with poverty and economic instability," it imported 17 gigawatts of solar panels last year, more than double the previous year, said CNN.

Pakistan's solar panel boom is the result of a "perfect storm" of factors, Waqas Moosa, chair of the Pakistan Solar Association and CEO of Hadron Solar, told CNN. One significant reason is the rise of electricity costs, which have "shot up" 155% over the past three years. Chinese "overproduction" of solar panels has also lowered costs, said the World Economic Forum, turning Pakistan into the third-largest destination for Chinese exports. 

Although Pakistan's government has tried to claim credit for the uptake of solar, it has been "very bottom-up," Mustafa Amjad, from the Renewables First think tank in Islamabad, told CNN. Demand from "the people" has pushed markets to import more solar panels. 

For some analysts, Pakistan's embrace of solar power "undermines an increasingly popular narrative that clean energy is unaffordable, unwanted" and only possible with "large-scale government subsidies," CNN said. And for those living in the country, it offers a respite from the expensive and often unreliable energy supplied by the traditional power grid. The story of solar in Pakistan, particularly the way that adoption of the technology has been "driven primarily by market forces and with minimal political support," holds "valuable lessons for other emerging markets," added the World Economic Forum.

 
 
On this day

May 14, 1853

Gail Borden patented his process for creating condensed milk — cow's milk with most of the water removed through evaporation, then often sweetened. Condensed milk quickly became a popular kitchen item across the U.S. and then the world, and it is still used today in a variety of baked goods and desserts.

 
 
TODAY'S newspaperS

Israeli officers "privately admit" that "Gaza nears starvation," The New York Times says on Wednesday's front page. "Israel hits hospital, says target was bunker," The Washington Post says, as "Trump remakes U.S. foreign policy" in the Mideast, on a visit that "overlaps the interests" of his family business. "Trump to lift Syria sanctions, warns Iran on nuclear deal," The Wall Street Journal says. Closer to home, "could Trump strike cartels" in Mexico? says the Los Angeles Times. "Trump seeks curb on judges' orders," USA Today says. 

► See the newspaper front pages

 
 
Tall tale

A sucky situation

An 8-year-old in Kentucky ordered 70,000 Dum-Dum suckers from Amazon, telling his mom he wanted to throw a carnival and give them away as prizes. Holly LaFavers tried to stop the delivery, but 22 cases made it to her home. The total cost for the Dum-Dums was about $4,000, and after explaining the situation to her bank and on local TV news, LaFavers received a refund from Amazon. She also changed her phone's settings to prevent a repeat order.

 
 

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

Image credits, from top: Shannon Finney / Getty Images; Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images; Bettmann via Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images