Top of the Fold

• Ukraine war update: The Russian military continues to amass troops in the eastern region of Ukraine with the clear objective of taking and “securing” the region. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, has been experiencing a sustained barrage of Russian shelling over the past two days, though the Russians have made little progress. Down in the south, the Black Sea city of Mariupol has still not fallen to the Russians despite being surrounded now for weeks. When the city does most likely fall, there will be little of it remaining, as Russian shelling has reduced over 80% of the city to rubble. Causality numbers are growing on both sides, with some reports that Russian soldiers killed in action are nearing 20,000 and those of Ukraine over 18,000. Russia is now warning that if NATO continues arming Ukraine, it could invite a direct conflict with Russia, although such warnings in the face of Russia’s dismal performance appear as little other than bluster. Even so, at this point the war seems far from over.

• Finland and Sweden seek NATO membership: If Vladimir Putin’s goal for invading Ukraine was to counter NATO expansion, then it has proven to be a “massive strategic blunder.” As the war in Ukraine rages on, with the Russian military seeing little progress and amidst more revelations of Russian war crimes, the rhetoric coming from Moscow is almost laughably incongruent with the reality on the ground. Far from dissuading eastern European countries from joining NATO, Russia’s actions are pushing nations like Finland and Sweden into NATO’s arms. Despite the claims from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov that “the alliance remains a tool geared towards confrontation,” it’s been Putin-led Russia that has been the most confrontational and destabilizing element in Europe. As evidence, look to Russia’s invasion of Georgia in 2008 and the invasions of Ukraine in 2014 and today. NATO hasn’t invaded anyone. Now Finland, which has long maintained a neutral stance toward both NATO and Russia, is aggressively seeking NATO membership. “Any intimidation, threat or cyber attack from Russia will only increase support for NATO membership in Finland,” asserted Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb. “The train has left the station. We are on board. Destination NATO HQ in Brussels. An application is imminent, latest in June. Membership 2022.” Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson also recently said, “I do not exclude NATO membership in any way.”

• Biden touts ethanol expansion to cut pump prices: The Biden administration will be announcing a temporary expansion of high-ethanol-content gasoline, up from the current 10% to 15%, in an effort to “do something” to ease the current high gas prices. The plan calls for the allowance of 15% ethanol blended gasoline from June through September. The irony is that 15% ethanol blended gasoline produces more smog during the hot summer months, and oil-industry experts suggest that the decision will have little impact on the price of gas. Furthermore, the increase in ethanol production will have a negative impact on food costs, as Americans will see the already jumping cost of food rise even more. American Petroleum Institute senior vice president of policy Frank Macchiarola states, “We’re concerned that the administration is not focused on the real structural problems here and is attempting to find short-term fixes that don’t get at the heart of the issue.” Exactly.

• New York Lt. Gov. arrested: Tuesday morning authorities arrested New York Democrat Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin on campaign finance-related charges. Benjamin has been viewed as a rising star in Democrat circles, but now he is facing charges of bribery among others. “His arrest comes after reports that Manhattan federal prosecutors and the FBI were investigating whether Benjamin knowingly engaged in a campaign finance fraud scheme,” ABC News 4 reported. “The investigators also looked into whether Benjamin helped dole out state money to contributors and/or their projects as part of the alleged fraud.”

Headlines

• Brooklyn subway shooting leaves 13 wounded, “undetonated devices” found (Fox News)

• Year-over-year consumer prices rose 8.5% in March, the highest since 1981 (CNBC)

• “Voters know Biden is to blame for higher prices”: RNC slams White House for pinning inflation on “Putin’s price hike” (Daily Wire)

• Biden says “ghost gun” crackdown should be “just the start” on gun control (Fox News)

• ATF pick Steve Dettelbach facing long odds for confirmation (Washington Times)

• Elon Musk signals that he was told to “play nice and not speak freely” by Twitter board (PM)

• Instagram removes pro-life video (Daily Wire)

• Ron DeSantis signs law that supports involved fatherhood in Florida (The Hill)

• Policy: The government could stop inflation within a year. Instead, expect things to get worse. (The Federalist)

• Satire: AOC drafts legislation opposing ghost guns: “Ghosts don’t even need guns since they’re dead already” (Babylon Bee)

For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit Headline Report.

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