• Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigns: Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer has been dismissed from her position and will be temporarily replaced by Deputy Secretary Keith Sonderling. Despite protestations that Chavez-DeRemer is leaving to take a position in the private sector, the truth is she was hounded out for her many faults. Accusations have surfaced that she was having an affair with her security guard, that she was drinking on the job, that she tasked junior staff with bringing her alcohol to keep the party going, that she instructed her subordinates to invent trips that allowed her to take taxpayer-funded vacations, and more. Her husband was banned from the Labor Department HQ over sexual harassment complaints. Her allegiances were never rock solid, either — Teamster leader Sean O'Brien pushed her nomination with assistance from American Federation of Teachers leader Randi Weingarten.

• Mace moves to expel Mills from Congress: Republican Rep. Cory Mills of Florida already faces a House Ethics Committee investigation, and now Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina has introduced a resolution that would remove him from Congress. Mills’s troubles come from allegations of sexual misconduct and dating violence. Speaker Mike Johnson does not support Mace’s resolution, arguing that the Ethics Committee investigation needs to run its course before any such move. For his part, Mills has brushed off comparisons between himself and recent resignees Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales since he is unmarried and has no complaints of sexual assault. Mace, a sexual assault survivor, has been tenacious on this kind of allegation, arguing that the swamp has protected assailants for too long. She previously introduced a resolution in November to censure Mills, which was referred to the Ethics Committee.

• SCOTUS takes another Colorado case discriminating against Christians: The state of Colorado will once again defend itself before the U.S. Supreme Court over a law that discriminates against Christian faith. The case concerns the state’s universal preschool choice program, which requires schools to provide applicants with equal opportunity to attend, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity. The Archdiocese of Denver directed Catholic schools not to accept children from families who don’t support the church’s teaching on sexuality and gender. In response, Colorado excluded Catholic schools from the program. The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with Colorado, ruling, “The restrictions imposed by the nondiscrimination requirement universally cover enrollment policies and conduct, but they are not a targeted burden on religious use.” However, Catholic institutions argue that the state’s rules for participation force viewpoint conformity that directly challenges Catholic values.

• Amazon’s book banning: In 1973, French novelist Jean Raspail published a dystopian novel in which huge numbers of Indian and African immigrants move to European and Western countries and refuse to assimilate, completely overwhelming the native populations and destroying cultural norms. The book has seen popularity in anti-immigrant circles and strong pushback from cultural gatekeepers for years. In 2025, publisher Vauban Books listed its print edition of the novel on Amazon, which sells a wide variety of controversial books. The listing did well, selling over 20,000 copies and receiving a 4.8-star rating. Nevertheless, last Friday, Amazon removed the paperback listing for “offensive content” despite still having listings for far more controversial books like Mein Kampf. After Vauban Books made a statement on the subject, Amazon appears to have backed down. Still, questions remain about the reason for the removal; perhaps it hit too close to home.

• Montana’s gender bending: The Montana Supreme Court overturned a state law on Monday that required a person’s birth certificate to record their biological sex, not their declared gender identity. The court found this law to be unconstitutionally discriminatory toward “transgender”-identifying individuals. “Transgender discrimination is, by its very nature, sex discrimination,” the court wrote, and subject to protection under the Equal Protection Clause of the state constitution, which notes that “no person shall be denied equal protection of the law.” How can a “sex identity” exist that, in fact, is the denial of biological sex? It’s nonsense and should have no legal standing because it has no basis in reality.

• Rotten civics in Chicago: Teachers unions do not care about educating students. Nothing makes this truth more obvious than the curious case of Chicago civics. In that city, which spends $93,000 per student and still has 0% of students reading at grade level, students are being encouraged to take May 1 off for “A Day of Civil Action.” The Chicago Teachers Union boasted about winning the fight for this day of action, saying it’s about “standing up to the White House’s attacks on our community.” Opponents are already making predictions that the students will be encouraged to make pro-Palestine, anti-ICE, anti-Trump signs to wave during the protests. Time will tell, but given the open desire to radicalize high school students, those predictions seem likely.

• Kansas legislators override pro-censorship governor: Kansas Democrat Gov. Laura Kelly recently vetoed the Kansas Intellectual Rights and Knowledge (KIRK) Act, intentionally named for Charlie Kirk. The KIRK Act states, “Any individual who wishes to engage in non-commercial expressive activity on campus shall be permitted to do so freely, so long as the individual’s conduct is lawful and does not materially and substantially disrupt the functioning of the postsecondary educational institution.” Kelly claimed the bill was unnecessary because free speech is already protected, while also arguing that public discourse has been declining and needs to be toned down. However, the Kansas legislature successfully overrode Kelly’s veto. That Kirk was assassinated on a college campus for simply debating and sharing his views demonstrates the need for legislation like this.

• Colleges choose more Dems and fewer Republicans to address graduates: Too many colleges and universities across the country are bastions of leftist ideology. Proving this reality is the number of Democrat lawmakers who have been invited to give commencement addresses this spring compared with Republican lawmakers. Furthermore, Democrat lawmakers and governors such as Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro have been invited to speak at UPenn; not a single Trump administration official or Trump-supporting Republican lawmaker has been confirmed as a commencement speaker at traditional universities. “Left-leaning college administrators are simply reverting to their comfort zone,” observed Peter Wood, president of the conservative National Association of Scholars. “This year, they are emboldened by their sense that a blue wave will emerge this fall.”

• Minimum wage memo to Newsom: Thanks to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s bill AB 128, which requires a $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers at chains with 60 or more locations, iconic burger chain Carl’s Jr. has declared bankruptcy. According to CEO and founder Harshad Dharod, who filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the wage increase implemented in 2024 “materially increased operating expenses.” He also mentioned increased competition in the fast-food industry and executive turnover as contributing factors to the financial strain. The New York Post reported that the company is “seeking to use cash collateral to fund essential expenses, including payroll for approximately 1,000 employees, inventory purchases, rent, insurance, and other contractual obligations” to keep things afloat during the bankruptcy process.

Headlines

• Iran negotiations uncertain as ceasefire expiration approaches (NewsNation)

• Virginia votes on redistricting shake-up (Fox News)

• RNC holds $117 million in its coffers while DNC still in the red (Washington Examiner)

• Apple taps John Ternus as CEO to replace Tim Cook, who will become chairman (CNBC)

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