• Half a trillion dollars for tax compliance: It’s tax day in America, which, unsurprisingly, is about as far away from Election Day as it can get. Taxpayers are expected to spend a cumulative 6,930 million hours filing their taxes, though that pales in comparison to the $477 billion they will spend to come into compliance with tax laws and regulations. If that amount were the GDP of an independent country, it would be the 40th-largest economy worldwide, ahead of the Czech Republic. Some $319.7 billion of that figure represents the lost man-hours Americans spend determining which tax regulations apply to them. The remaining $157.1 billion represents out-of-pocket expenses on tax software and professional services. The full tax code contains 4.26 million words. For perspective, the Bible has around 750,000 words.

• Boasberg’s contempt probe quashed: On Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit directed anti-Trump Judge James Boasberg to end his crusade against the Trump administration. Boasberg, who has waged a contempt-of-court fight against the Trump administration over its deportation of a number of illegal alien gang members, has essentially been chastised by the higher court, which ruled that he was engaged in “abuse of discretion.” Writing the court’s majority decision, Circuit Judge Neomi Rao stated, “Criminal contempt is available only for the violation of an order that is clear and specific. [Boasberg’s March 2025 order] did not clearly and specifically bar the government from transferring plaintiffs into Salvadoran custody.” The ruling was a significant win for the Trump administration, which has been hounded by Boasberg over its immigration enforcement.

• Trump responds to Pope Leo, again: The president and the pope have been bickering in recent days. Pope Leo decried American actions aimed at increasing global security and asked everyone to just be nice, though he has been suspiciously quiet about the violence and warfare coming from Iran, Russia, China, and elsewhere. President Donald Trump responded by … posting an AI image depicting himself as Jesus. This isn’t up to the standard of the Lincoln-Douglas debates; it’s closer to schoolyard arguments. Most recently, Trump correctly pointed out that Leo has been berating U.S. actions in the area while seemingly ignoring the “at least 42,000” protesters the Iranian regime killed just this year. Pope Leo seems ignorant of his own church’s just war theory. Still, we hope the hothead from New York and the cleric from Chicago stop arguing, at least in public.

• Riley Gaines takes the high road: Former college athlete Riley Gaines has been a supporter of President Trump, especially regarding his actions to protect women’s sports and spaces. Yet she criticized his posting of a meme depicting himself as Jesus, warning that “God shall not be mocked.” Instead of taking Gaines’s message to heart, Trump responded, “I didn’t listen to Riley Gaines. I’m not a big fan of Riley, actually.” Her response was a classic demonstration of the humility she was calling him to, as she reiterated her love for Trump and his America First agenda. “We’re imperfect people,” she added. “I know I am. I don’t get my feelings hurt easy and I know with the President it’s really not personal. I want to spend eternity in a real place called Heaven. I’d love for Trump to be there too.”

• Erika Kirk pulls out of TPUSA event over serious security threats: Two hours before Erika Kirk was set to speak at a TPUSA event in Athens, Georgia, she was forced to withdraw due to serious death threats against her. Andrew Kolvet, who spoke in her place at the University of Georgia, explained that “some very serious threats in her direction” came up. Vice President JD Vance, who was also one of the main speakers at the event, consulted with his Secret Service detail about the possibility of canceling the stop entirely, but decided to proceed. Vance defended Kirk’s decision to withdraw and said that she should “do what she needs to do for her and her family.” He admonished those criticizing Charlie Kirk’s widow, “If your instinct is to go after a young mother because she’s grieving in a way that you find wrong, well, why don’t you stay in your lane and mind your own business?”

• Spanberger signs a number of anti-2A laws: Virginia’s Democrat legislature recently passed several sweeping Second Amendment-infringing bills, which have now become law. Governor Abigail Spanberger signed or amended six of them, while letting others pass without her taking action. The new laws do things such as lowering the legal size of magazines from 20 rounds to 15, as well as expanding what is classified as an “assault firearm” — encompassing semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines and any number of common features such as a folding stock, pistol grip, or flash suppressor; any semiautomatic pistol with two or more of these features; and semiautomatic shotguns. The minimum age for purchasing a handgun has been raised from 18 to 21. The future sales of “assault firearms” will also be banned in the state. Expect immediate lawsuits against a majority of these laws.

• California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer is extremely anti-ICE: With former Rep. Eric Swalwell having ended his gubernatorial campaign following revelations of sexual abuse, billionaire Tom Steyer now leads the pack of Democrats vying for the California governor’s mansion. This is bad news for California, as Steyer holds radical leftist views on everything from the environment to illegal immigration. Regarding immigration enforcement, Steyer recently released his policy views, which include abolishing ICE, jailing ICE agents, and “treat[ing] them like the mob.” He also advocates bringing people “kidnapped & detained by ICE back home” and taxpayer-funded legal representation for illegal aliens. Far from addressing one of the major underlying issues that has made crime such a problem in California — illegal immigration — Steyer is advocating lawlessness. If he does get elected, California’s problems will only get worse.

• Bruce Jenner admits hypocrisy: Grading on a very steep curve, Bruce “Caitlyn” Jenner seems to have a decent head on his shoulders, at least compared to most men who pretend to be women. Jenner openly fights to keep men out of women’s sports, despite doing much to ignite the “trans” movement when he “came out” in 2015. In a recent interview, he seemed to have a moment of clarity where he reflected on accepting Glamour’s “Woman of the Year” award in 2015: “What a hypocrite. I’m still XY.” It seems Jenner may be coming to the realization that you can’t artificially destroy the natural definition of sex and protect women from competing against men in sports. Perhaps the former Olympic champion will come to understand and repent of the damage he has done to himself, his family, and our culture, and finally drop the “Caitlyn” act.

• Roblox reform: Roblox is a popular sandbox video game platform that is extremely popular with children. The platform allows users to create and compete in video games built entirely within Roblox. Unfortunately, the platform has also become a hunting ground for sex predators seeking to exploit the children who are innocently playing games. In June, Roblox will be rolling out age-based accounts intended to protect children from these exploitative adults. Children between the ages of five and eight would only have access to a “Roblox kids” account, which has communication disabled by default, although it allows parents to opt their kids in to chat with other players under 13 and “trusted friends.” Unfortunately, users who turn nine are automatically upgraded to “Roblox Select” accounts, which allow them to chat with other users in the 9-15 age range. Parents still need to exercise caution, as groomers can still pose as kids.

Headlines

• Swalwell accused of “drugging, choking and raping” woman after promising to help her company (NY Post)

• House committees argue ActBlue obstructed and misled Congress (Just the News)

• Maine lawmakers pass first-in-nation temporary ban on data centers (Washington Examiner)

• Mamdani’s $30 million communist grocery store unveiled (RedState)

The Executive News Summary is compiled daily by Jordan Candler, Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, and Sophie Starkova. For the archive, click here.