| | | | Political world focuses on North Korea | | As tensions mount, the North Korean government used a festival commemorating former leader Kim Il Sung's birthday to parade a series of missiles before the world — including, and perhaps especially, President Donald Trump, who spent the weekend in Mar-a-Lago.
Many observers expected Easter weekend to also include a possible nuclear weapons test in North Korea, but as of this writing, there was only a missile test, which the United States and South Korea said was a failure.
Trump has seized on North Korea's nuclear weapons program, speaking with Chinese President Xi Jinping and tweeting about it repeatedly. His national security adviser, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, said "this problem is coming to a head" and pledged that all options were still on the table. Vice President Mike Pence visited South Korea with his wife and pledged to stand by the US ally.
CNN's Will Ripley reported from Pyongyang and offered his thoughts on "State of the Union" with Jake Tapper: "We know with North Korea that if at first you don't succeed, try, try again."
And with that, happy Easter. | | "Just because you're in the United States illegally doesn't necessarily get you targeted. It's got to be something else." -- Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly on NBC's "Meet the Press," explaining his approach to immigration enforcement. | | | | Protesters clashed on Saturday in Berkeley, California, where pro- and anti-Trump demonstrators got into repeated fights in view of the police. Read more. | | Trump 2020 efforts raking in funds | | Less than 100 days in office and President Donald Trump's campaign committee reported it had raised over $7.1 million. Over the same period, Trump's campaign spent $6.3 million.
Some of the money went to John Pence, Vice President Mike Pence's nephew, Bannon Strategic Advisors and a few of Trump's own properties.
And the Republican National Committee raised just under $30 million in January and February.
The Trump campaign also received more than $3.5 million in transfers for the 2020 primary. (In case you were wondering, it's less than three years until the Iowa caucuses.) Read more from CNN's Eugene Scott. | | | Protesters came out this weekend to call on President Donald Trump to release his tax returns. His Sunday morning thoughts on the tax talk. | | | CNN has been nominated for a few Webby awards, and if you'd like to take the time to vote, we'd appreciate it. Click here to vote. | | 5 things you may have missed | | National security adviser visits Afghanistan: Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster visited Afghanistan and met with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani days after the United States dropped the "mother of all bombs" there. Ghani's predecessor has blasted the United States, saying it "has lost whatever claim of purpose it had," while Ghani's office in a statement said he appreciated US support. Read more from me.
Know your White House aides: When President Donald Trump has a problem, Keith Schiller is often the solution. One former campaign aide called him the "most underestimated person on Trump's team." Read more from CNN's Dan Merica.
Hacking group dumps spy tools: The Shadow Brokers, a group that has posted stolen material in the past, posted serious Windows exploits allegedly used by the NSA. CNNMoney's Selena Larson has the story.
SCOTUS to hear religious rights case: With Justice Neil Gorsuch now in place, the Supreme Court is set to hear a high-profile case. Read more from Reuters' Andrew Chung.
"Nobody's got to use the Internet": At a town hall, someone asked Rep. James Sensenbrenner about Congress' decision to repeal Obama-era privacy rules. His response has offered critics a line to pounce on. Read more from The Washington Post's Kristine Phillips.
| | | Does President Donald Trump want to be the world's policeman after all? ... FBI documents show a Russian agent had this to say of Carter Page: "He flies to Moscow more than I do." ... Trump defends his about-face on labeling China a currency manipulator. ... Trump names someone who voted against reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank to run it. ... A statewide race in Montana pits a singer against a millionaire. ... Sen. Bernie Sanders explains his opposition to the Syria strike. | | Thanks for reading the CNN Politics Nightcap. Your bartender is Eli Watkins. The tip jar: nightcap@cnn.com. | | | We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Check out Five Things for Your New Day, CNN's morning newsletter. Give us five minutes, and we'll brief you on all the news and buzz people will be talking about. | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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