| By Derek Caney (@stax920)
Donald Trump is expected to sweep today's five Republican primaries – Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island. The understated, more presidential Trump displayed his confidence by mocking the eating habits of John Kasich. Digits of the day: 172 That's how many Republican delegates are up for grabs today. As we discussed last week, he can't clinch the nomination tonight. But the most competitive state tonight is Maryland, where Trump has a cozy 20 point lead. That's the main reason we see Kasich and Ted Cruz trying to play nice with each other in Indiana, Oregon and New Mexico: to deny Trump the requisite 1,237 delegates to clinch the nomination. Today's Democratic primaries are a little more exciting. Bernie Sanders is ahead in Rhode Island and only down by 2 points in Connecticut. The data in Delaware is old, but the last poll had Clinton up by 7 points. The two largest states in tonight's contests, Pennsylvania and Maryland, are solidly Clinton. We're waiting for new data from California, which votes June 7. The last poll, covering April 18-21, shows a 2 point lead for Clinton. And, as always, big hat tip to RealClear Politics for the polling data.
U.S. immigration enforcement officers want fingerprints to be taken from all people claiming custody of children who have entered the United States illegally without an adult relative, a measure that the government said could keep thousands of families apart.
SWIFT, the global financial network that banks use to transfer billions of dollars every day, warned its customers of "a number of recent cyber incidents" where attackers had sent fraudulent messages over its system. It was the hacking of SWIFT's software that allowed $81 million to be stolen from Bangladesh's central bank account at the New York Federal Reserve Bank. SWIFT's statement marked the first acknowledgement that the Bangladesh Bank attack was not an isolated incident but one of several recent criminal schemes that tried to exploit the global messaging platform used by some 11,000 financial institutions. I'm a little teapot, short and stout 
People perform yoga at a tea culture park to promote the tea there, in Enshi, Hubei province, April 24, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer
Around Wall Street - Many Russian oil producers are suffering under the recent slump in oil prices, with one notable exception: Russneft, which is controlled by one of Russia's most successful businessmen Mikhail Gutseriyev. By hedging oil sales – a common strategy among U.S. and British producers, but rare in Russia, Gutseriyev was able to sell oil above market prices and expand his empire.
- Mitsubishi Motors has been using non-compliant fuel economy testing methods in Japan for 25 years, much longer than previously known. The company is assembling an external committee to investigate further. Japan's sixth-largest automaker has lost half of its market value – some $3.9 billion – since it admitted last week that it overstated the fuel economy of four domestic minivehicle models, including two produced for Nissan.
- Americans with a high school education or less are returning to the labor force in larger numbers, a trend that points to a broadening of economic growth, but that could also keep wage growth subdued and keep the Federal Reserve from hiking rates. The central bank governors are slated to meet this week and leave interest rates unchanged. But the market is looking for clues to the pace of future rate hikes.
Around the country - Thousands of people flocked to North Carolina's capital from both sides of the transgender rights debate as state legislators returned to work. The state is the first to require transgender people to use restrooms in public buildings and schools that match the sex on their birth certificate rather than their gender identity.
- Speaking of North Carolina, a federal judge upheld a state law that requires voters to show certain forms of photo identification at the polls, in a key victory for Republicans who say the law is needed to prevent fraud. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and individual voters backed by the Justice Department had argued that the law disproportionately burdened African-Americans and Hispanic people, who are more likely than white people to lack the acceptable forms of identification.
- Baltimore voters cast ballots in the Democratic nominating contest for mayor, with a Maryland state senator leading a crowded field a year after the death of Freddie Gray in police custody. State Senator Catherine Pugh leads the polls. DeRay Mckesson, a nationally known activist with the Black Lives Matter movement, polled at less than 1 percent.
Around the world - The time and energy President Obama put into the visits to Britain and Germany signaled his affection and trust for two leaders who have stood with him through his toughest economic and foreign policy decisions. But the trip also highlighted Obama's concerns about the shaky global economy and the ripple effects of the conflict in Syria – priorities he wants to work on before his term ends.
Quote of the day "My goal between now and the time I leave is to make sure that when I turn over the keys to my office, that the desk is clean, and if the world is not completely tidy, that at least it's significantly better off than the way I found it." – President Barack Obama - He has his work cut out for him in Syria. The civil war has destroyed agricultural infrastructure and fractured the state system that provides farmers with seeds and buys their crops. It's deepening a humanitarian crisis in a country struggling to produce enough grain to feed its people.
- North Korea appears to be preparing a second test-launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said. The United States described the first attempt as a "fiery, catastrophic" failure.
Today's reason to live: Bruce Springsteen – Land Of Hope And Dreams |
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