Trump: Iran doing ‘very poor job’ of allowing oil to pass through Strait of Hormuz; Pakistan hosting US-Iran peace talks; Artemis II returns home Friday in nail-biting, 14-minute journey through Earth’s atmosphere; FLOTUS disavows links to Epstein perpetrated by media; World watches Hungarian Sunday election, Trump endorses Orbán; GOP legislators push amnesty bill; Christians face increasing repression in Nicaragua; Catholics look forward to special graces of Divine Mercy Sunday; Catholics celebrate Easter Friday as a day of no fasting; and more —
Trump says Iran is doing ‘very poor job’ of allowing oil to pass through Strait of Hormuz
“Iran is doing a very poor job, dishonorable some would say, of allowing Oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “That is not the agreement we have!”
President Donald Trump slammed Iran Thursday night for doing a “very poor job,” of letting oil pass through the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf.
The United States and Iran reached a two-week ceasefire on Tuesday that was contingent on Iran reopening the Strait, which is a critical waterway where about 20% of the world’s oil passed through before the conflict broke out in February.
“Iran is doing a very poor job, dishonorable some would say, of allowing Oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “That is not the agreement we have!”
The president also warned Iran not to charge oil tankers who are traveling through the Strait, stating that if they are doing so as reported then they “better stop now.”
Read more at Just the News
Pakistan hosts peace talks in Islamabad, VP Vance leads US delegation
Watch @ConnectingPak
How JD Vance became Trump’s ‘closer’ in Iran peace talks by Rob Crilly
Welcome to [the April 9] edition of Washington Secrets, which is something of a deep dive into Vice President JD Vance’s role in the Trump administration. Much of it is played behind a wall of silence. His aides are not bigging up his achievements or strategically leaking to bolster his position. The result has been an assumption that his anti-conflict credentials have put him at odds with the President. Instead, they have provided him a vital role…
As the clock ticked down on Donald Trump’s threat to wipe out an “entire civilization” in Iran, his vice president was on another continent.
Vance, whether by accident or design, has often been absent at critical moments during Trump’s wars. This time, one of the most war-skeptical members of the Cabinet was in Hungary offering a helping hand to Viktor Orban, the country’s prime minister, who is at risk of defeat in Sunday’s election.
But as crunch time arrived, he turned his attention away from Hungary and hit the phones, talking to U.S. negotiators and key Pakistani figures to secure a ceasefire.
“My key role was I sat on the phone a lot, I answered a lot of phone calls,” he told reporters traveling with him on Air Force Two. “I made a lot of phone calls. And again, I’m happy about where we are.”
Read more at the Washington Examiner
Artemis II to return home Friday in nail-biting, 14-minute journey through Earth’s atmosphere
Artemis II’s long journey to the moon and back is expected to end with a glorious splashdown in the Pacific Ocean Friday evening.
The crew is scheduled to hit the water around 8:07 p.m. ET about 80 miles off the coast of San Diego, concluding a historic 685,000-mile flight that began 10 days ago on the Florida coast and marked the first manned flight to the moon in 54 years.
Friday’s splashdown is unlikely to be as dazzling a sight here on Earth as the April 1 launch was — but the astronauts will have a show from within their capsule as they soar through the atmosphere at nearly 25,000 mph on a tail of fire and the capsule heats to upward of 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
Read more at the New York Post
Splashdown of Artemis II expected around 8:07pm ET, Friday, April 10 off coast of San Diego
Watch @JesseBWatters; see also @NASAArtemis
POTUS gives Viktor Orbán ‘full endorsement’ before Hungarian election
See @EricLDaugh
Catholic media pushes back on fake news
Read @CatholicArena
Melania Trump makes major address on rumors linking her to Epstein
First Lady Melania Trump shreds those ‘lying’ about her and calls out ‘smears’ about alleged ties to Epstein.
Watch at Fox News
First Lady’s written statement
Read @FLOTUS
Worst Thing GOP Could Do For Midterms Is Embrace Amnesty, So Of Course They’re Doing That by Shawn Fleetwood
America is either a nation with defined borders and laws, or it’s not. There is no in-between.
You almost have to admire how far some Republicans are willing to go to lose the 2026 midterms — and ultimately, the country.
Throughout their recent two-week vacation, several GOP lawmakers have been making the media rounds to tout “bipartisan” legislation they claim will finally solve America’s broken immigration system. There’s just one teensy-weensy important detail that somehow gets brushed aside: The bill would allow millions of illegal aliens to continue living in the United States.
Sponsored by Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., and other lawmakers, the so-called DIGNIDAD (Dignity) Act permits “certain long-term undocumented immigrants to earn legal status, without amnesty or a path to citizenship” so that foreign nationals who broke U.S. immigration law can have an “opportunity,” according to a Salazar press release. The measure would notably create a “Dignity Program,” which the Florida congresswoman’s office described as a “7-year earned legal status program allowing undocumented immigrants to live and work legally, with renewable status based on good conduct and restitution.”
Read more at The Federalist
‘8 Insane Things in the Amnesty Bill’
See @briannalyman2
MA Senator: Trump impeachment is the Dem agenda’
Watch @BreitbartNews
Killer of Iryna Zarutska is not off the hook, REMAINS in federal custody
See @AAGDhillon
Ben Sasse’s Golgatha
See @roddreher; read more at Rod Dreher’s substack
Christians face increasing repression in Nicaragua: report
The Nicaraguan government subjected Christians to mounting repression throughout 2025, a new report documenting 309 separate violations of freedom of religion or belief in the country during the year has found.
Of the 309 cases, 200 involved Roman Catholics and 108 involved Protestant Christians, including Seventh-day Adventists, according to the report covering the calendar year 2025, published by the U.K.-based group Christian Solidarity Worldwide.
The government of Co-Presidents Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo imposed “precautionary measures” on 36 religious leaders in 2025, more than triple the number documented the year before, the report reveals. Under these measures, religious leaders were required to report weekly in person to local police stations, disclose their planned activities and obtain prior authorization before leaving their municipality.
Threats and harassment featured in 228 of the 309 cases, allegedly carried out by government officials or their surrogates, including pro-government activists and paramilitaries.
Read more at The Christian Post
[Nigerian] Cardinal Arinze: Manner of celebrating the liturgy ‘shows what we believe’
The Nigerian cardinal issued a renewed appeal for clergy to adhere to liturgical reverence, since the liturgy gives witness to the practice of the faith.
Cardinal Arinze has highlighted the great need for reverence in the liturgy, warning that if priests invent new or unlawful aspects of the Mass themselves then they “damage” the Church.
The Church’s liturgical life is intimately linked to the practice of the faith, as summarized by the phrase “lex orandi, lex credendi” – the law of faith is the law of belief. For Francis Cardinal Arinze, former prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, this element is key, since a Mass which is poorly celebrated with irreverence, abuses or personal whims can turn people away from the Catholic faith.
Arinze, consecrated at the age of 32 to become the world’s youngest bishop at the time, has a storied career as a diocesan bishop in his native Nigeria, before being brought to the Vatican in 1984 for a long and distinguished service in the Roman Curia.
Read more at Per Mariam
Nuncio’s Pentagon meeting was ‘frank exchange of ideas,’ officials say
U.S. and Vatican officials described the meeting as ‘tense’ and ‘honest’ but dismiss reports of threats
Pentagon officials have insisted that a January meeting with the Vatican’s apostolic nuncio was a “cordial” and frank conversation, while some Vatican sources have told The Pillar that while no threats were implied or made by U.S. officials, the discussion between defense leaders and Cardinal Christophe Pierre was at times “tense.”
The comments came in response to an April 6 report from the Free Press, suggesting that Pierre had been summoned to the Pentagon for a dressing down, reportedly in response to a speech on world peace by Pope Leo XIV.
“Under Secretary Colby’s meeting with Cardinal Pierre was a productive, cordial meeting, and a chance for real dialogue on serious issues. They had an honest and respectful conversation. Reporting about threats or disrespect is false and scurrilous,” a senior defense department official speaking on background told The Pillar on Thursday.
Meanwhile, a Vatican official described the meeting as “tense” at times, characterizing some exchanges as “aggressive,” but confirmed that there was “no question of anyone threatening anyone,” despite suggestion in recent media reports.
Read more at The Pillar
US ambassador to Vatican dismisses reports nuncio summoned to Pentagon for ‘dressing down’
See @BrianBurchUSA; see more context here
Catholic WV legislator weighs in on brouhaha
See @RepRileyMoore
The Promise of Divine Mercy Sunday
Watch @ChrisStephanick
Today is Easter Friday
See @father_rmv
