Trump says no exemption for iPhones and other Chinese-made electronics

 

President Trump settled the debate over the tariffs on iPhones and other Chinese-made devices — saying that there is no “exemption” and that new duties are coming.

“NOBODY is getting ‘off the hook,'” Trump said on Truth Social Sunday. “There was no Tariff ‘exception’ announced on Friday. These products are subject to the existing 20% Fentanyl Tariffs, and they are just moving to a different Tariff ‘bucket.’”

“We are taking a look at Semiconductors and the WHOLE ELECTRONICS SUPPLY CHAIN in the upcoming National Security Tariff Investigations.”

Late in the day on Friday, Trump’s team filed a rule that exempted a myriad of electronic devices from the president’s steep “reciprocal” tariff on Chinese imports to the US.

The ruling appeared to grant a reprieve for Apple and other consumer electronics makers, who were facing tariffs of up to 145% under Trump’s sweeping new rules.

More than 80% of Apple products are assembled in China, according to data from Evercore ISI. Apple CEO Tim Cook has courted close relations with Trump amid the tariff push.

Even before Trump upped the ante on China, experts were suggesting that top iPhone models could increase in price to $2,300 under the tariff regime.

Prior to Trump’s clarification Sunday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick publicly explained that electronics being imported from China will soon face their own unique tariff.

“So what he’s doing is he’s saying they’re exempt from the reciprocal tariffs, but they’re included in the semiconductor tariffs, which are coming in probably a month or two. So these are coming soon,” Lutnick told ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday.

“All those products are going to come under semiconductors, and they’re going to have a special focus type of tariff to make sure that those products get restored.”

Last Wednesday, as Trump’s suite of customized “reciprocal” tariff rates were set to go into effect, the president abruptly reversed course and announced a 90-day pause while his team negotiates new deals with various countries. Trump remarked that people were “getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid” as markets cratered amid tariff fears.

Trump kept the 10% baseline tariff on virtually all imports in effect and announced a 125% tariff against goods and services coming in from China. White House officials clarified that China will still face a 20% tariff announced earlier this year due to fentanyl concerns, which brings the total rate on most Chinese imports to 145%.

Will Trump let Iran stall its way into going nuclear?

 

All the cut-a-nuke-deal-with-Iran enthusiasts are marveling that Tehran’s negotiator deigned to meet face-to-face with President Donald Trump’s envoy on Saturday, and agreed to meet again a week later.

Huh: Sure looks the Iranians still mean to drag the talks out until they’ve already gone nuclear; Trump needs to ensure Steve Witkoff doesn’t get sucked into the illusion of progress.

Tehran has already enriched enough uranium to weapons-grade to build multiple nuclear weapons; it only needs to play for time.

Yet the regime is more vulnerable than it’s been in decades, its Hamas and Hezbollah proxies eviscerated after going to war against Israel while US strikes are now defanging its Houthi paws — even as it has lost its Syrian puppet with the ouster of the Assad clan.

Meanwhile, renewed sanctions threaten to spark outright rebellion even as “supreme leader” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei nears death with an uncertain succession.

And Tehran’s direct exchanges of strikes with Israel have eviscerated its air defenses.

Trump rightly would rather Tehran verifiably dropped its nuke-quest than act militarily to end the nuke threat, but the regime needs to move a lot faster to offering detailed hard commitments to a full squad of US experts, and not get away with empty symbolic concessions.

The Obama crew handed Tehran a full decade with the 2015 deal; all Iran’s negotiators need do now is stall a month or three and they can go nuclear on Trump’s watch.

Don’t let Witkoff get snowed.

Victims of upstate NY plane crash ID’d as family members heading for Pesach Celebration

 

Dr. Michael Groff, Karenna Groff, Dr. Joy Saini, and James Santoro (left to right) were identified as victims of the small plane crash in upstate New York on April 12, 2025.

A family of doctors and high-achieving student athletes were among six people killed when a small plane crashed in a muddy field in upstate New York over the weekend.

The Groff family – neuroscientist father Michael Groff, urologist mother Joy Saini, their MIT-grad daughter Karenna and her boyfriend James Sontoro – were all killed Saturday when the private Mitsubishi MU-2B they were travelling in smashed into the ground in Copake, not far from the Massachusetts border, Sontoro’s father confirmed.

Son Jared Groff, along with his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, also died, according to the Times Union. 

A third child of the Massachusetts doctor couple, daughter Anika, was not on the plane. 

The Groffs were headed to the Catskills aboard Michael’s private jet for a birthday and Passover celebration when the tragedy struck.

“They were a wonderful family,” John Sontoro said. “The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We’re all personally devastated.”

His son was also an MIT graduate and worked in finance, while Karenna was studying medicine at New York University after being named the NCAA woman of the year in 2022 for her soccer and academic achievements at MIT.

“Really, this recognition is a testament to my MIT women’s soccer family and all of the guidance, support, and friendship they have provided for me over the years,” she said in an interview after earning the prestigious sports award.

Dr. Groff was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and also served as the executive director of neuroscience at Rochester Regional Health, the Times Union reported. He was also an experienced pilot. 

“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved family members,” a statement from the surviving family read. “We will remember them as the six brilliant, dynamic, and loving people that they were.”

The family departed from a White Plains airport Saturday morning and was due to land at the Columbia County Airport around noon.

But the plane’s pilot alerted air traffic controllers that they’d missed their approach and were requesting directions for a second attempt – when the tower indicated a “low altitude alert” and then lost all contact with the plane.

Within moments, the small plane crashed in the field, National Transportation Safety Board investigator Albert Nixon said at a press conference Sunday.

The federal agency is continuing to investigate the accident.

Slonomer Rebbe Bringing his Followers Back to the Stone Age ...calls to divest from email

 DIN: It is unclear whether the next step would be to prohibit emails altogether. Today, you cannot possibly function without emails. 

The Slonim Hasidic community announced on the eve of Passover the cessation of its weekly email service that had operated for about a decade.

The move was made under the direct instruction of the Rebbe and as part of a broader struggle against the dangers of technology.

The last email sent to hundreds of followers on the eve of the holiday contained the following message: "At the request of several individuals, from the Shabbat before the weekly Torah portion 'Vayigash' of 5774, and weekly ever since, we have provided updates every Shabbat about good news, community announcements, the 'Chayenu' organization, and charity funds; we did not hold back from emphasizing the importance of donations to the Land of Israel."

"We have received guidance from our esteemed Rebbe, and we did not refrain from executing his holy words immediately. From now on, this weekly announcement will no longer be sent," the last message stated. "As we received reward for doing it, we will be rewarded for stopping, and we will lack for nothing."

This is an unusual step even within the Haredi framework, as the email service is seen as a 'clean' communication channel that does not require internet browsing.

In many Haredi communities, dozens of public computer points provide access to email only, and it serves as a central communication tool for transmitting community information, happy events, and announcements..

Trump & Israel have Iran leaders shaking in their boots

 

Nearly 20 years ago, Henry Kissinger established the rules for decoding the push and pull of Iran’s foreign policy. Iran, Kissinger famously said, had to decide whether it is “a country or a cause.”

His challenge revolved around the question of whether the ayatollah and his government were pragmatic in dealing with other nations, or militarily fanatical in a quest to spread their Islamic revolution. 

The ensuing years of regional terrorism, threats of war against America, Israel and Arab nations and oppression at home provide mountains of evidence that Iran is not interested in normal statecraft. 

Indeed, the history is so one-sided that the current despot, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, doesn’t even pretend to be concerned about anything other than Islamic supremacy. 

Yet much of the world, including recent American presidents and the usual suspects in Europe and the United Nations, have found it convenient to assert that the answer to Kissinger’s challenge remains elusive.

Fortunately, America now has a president who is calling B.S. on claims that Iran is anything but a terror state. 

Most important, Donald Trump is prepared to end the charade once and for all. 

His public position is that Iran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.

That’s dramatic in itself, but his private bottom line is even more so. 

Revealed here for the first time, Trump’s position is that Iran’s leaders either destroy their nuclear facilities, or the US, likely with Israel’s help, will do it for them by taking military action. 

That’s his offer, and no other options are on the table, the president tells confidants. Certainly there will be no more agreements requiring international inspections that rely on Iranian honesty and compliance.

Nor will there be any tolerance for Iran’s enriching uranium at levels that have no use other than nuclear bombs.

Penn Governor Josh Shapiro’s home set on fire while his family slept

 Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family were forced to evacuate the governor’s mansion after an arsonist set it on fire overnight while they were sleeping, he announced.

The blaze broke out just hours after the governor posted a picture of his family celebrating the first night of Passover on Saturday, ABC 27 reported. 

The arson attack remains under active investigation, police said. 

“Last night at about 2AM, my family and I woke up to bangs on the door from the Pennsylvania State Police after an arsonist set fire to the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg,” Shapiro wrote on twitter.

“The Harrisburg Bureau of Fire was on the scene and while they worked to put out the fire, we were evacuated from the Residence safely by Pennsylvania State Police and assisted by Capitol Police. Thank God no one was injured and the fire was extinguished,” he added.

The fire was deemed as an “act of arson” and caused a “significant amount of damage” to the residence, according to Pennsylvania State Police.  

Fortunately, Shapiro and his family were sleeping in a different part of the home from where the fire was located, police added.  

The high profile Democratic governor is seen as a possible top contender for the White House in 2028, and was strongly considered as Kamala Harris’ running-mate in 2024.

Investigators are offering a $10,000 reward for tips that lead to the arrest of a suspect. 

The Governor’s Residence stands at 2035 North Front Street and has served as the home of eight governors and their families since 1968. 

Bye Bye Khalil! Immigration Judge ruled Friday that the U.S. can deport him!

A Louisiana immigration judge ruled Friday that the U.S. can deport Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil based on the federal government’s argument that he poses a national security risk.

Immigration Judge Jamee Comans made the determination at the end of a nearly two-hour hearing. Khalil can appeal the ruling.

Khalil, who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the school, was detained by federal immigration agents on March 8 in New York and transferred to an immigration detention center in Jena, Louisiana.

Khalil’s lawyers have challenged the legality of his detention, saying the Trump administration is trying to crack down on free speech.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he can deport Khalil because his presence in the U.S. threatens the country’s foreign policy.

 

Why is Mahmoud Khalil being deported?

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt explains it perfectly clearly! pic.twitter.com/obEjSIFLKA

— Dr. Maalouf ‏ (@realMaalouf) April 12, 2025

והיא שעמדה - שוואקי ויונתן רזאל

 

Zera Shimshon Parshat Tzav & Pesach

 

Hamas Terrorist Behind Hostage Parade Eliminated

 

The IDF and Shin Bet have announced that 11 terrorists who participated in the October 7, 2023, invasion of Israel were eliminated in recent airstrikes in Gaza.

In a major overnight development, the Hamas terrorist who paraded Israeli hostage Eli Sharabi and others on stage during grotesque propaganda events has been eliminated. The terrorist was a leader of Hams’s feared “Shadow Unit”—the elite division responsible for guarding and managing hostages in Gaza.

According to the IDF, nine of these terrorists were killed during the initial wave of strikes on March 18, when Israel restarted its military operations against Hamas. These individuals were directly involved in the brutal killings and kidnappings of Israeli civilians and soldiers during the October 7 attacks.

The military identified the nine terrorists killed on March 18 as:
• Hassan Naam, responsible for abducting Sgt. Shaked Dahan.
• Ismail Shakhshah, who murdered civilians, threw grenades at the Re’im Junction shelter, and launched a surface-to-air missile.
• Jalal Qaraan, who took part in the murder of hostage Inbar Haiman, attacked the Nova festival and IDF bases, and recorded himself killing two civilians.
• Mohammed Isa, who stormed Kibbutz Mefalsim and joined the massacre.
• Mohammed Sakar, who attacked Kibbutz Nir Oz during the onslaught.
• Mohammed Shabki, Fares Qarshin, Yahya Astal, and Mohammed Astal, all of whom infiltrated Israel and took part in the attack.

The IDF also reported that two additional terrorists who infiltrated Israel during the October 7 assault had been killed in earlier airstrikes:
• Mohammed Asfor, involved in desecrating the bodies of Col. Asaf Hamami, Staff Sgt. Tomer Ahimas, and Sgt. Kiril Brodski during their abduction.
• Khaled al-Din, who murdered civilians at the Nova festival and stole property belonging to Erick Peretz and his 16-year-old daughter Ruth, both of whom were killed.