Closing the tabs ...

Elon Musk escalated his war of words with Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro on Tuesday, calling him "truly a moron" and "dumber than a sack of bricks" over comments about Musk's businesses.

Why it matters: The gloves are off, and Musk — who has already challenged Trump's trade policy publicly — is now getting increasingly personal with the architect of that policy, too.

Ed: They're both getting personal with each other, it's safe to say. The "moron" comment came in this X thread from Musk ...

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Navarro is truly a moron. What he says here is demonstrably false.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 8, 2025

By any definition whatsoever, Tesla is the most vertically integrated auto manufacturer in America with the highest percentage of US content.

Navarro should ask the fake expert he invented, Ron Vara.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 8, 2025

Ed: This is a dumb spat, but it's dumber for Navarro than for Musk. 

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A U.S. judge canceled a hearing set for Tuesday over whether to impose a longer-lasting block on President Donald Trump's deportations of Venezuelans under a 1798 law historically used only in wartime after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted his temporary ban, but he did not immediately dismiss the case. ...

In a brief written order on Tuesday, Boasberg asked lawyers for the detained Venezuelan migrants to tell him by April 16 whether they intend to move forward with their bid for a longer-lasting preliminary injunction.

Ed: SCOTUS vacated Boasberg's TRO on the basis of it being in the wrong venue. This is an attempt by Boasberg to encourage the plaintiffs to refile in a way that he can claim jurisdiction again. I doubt this will work, but Boasberg seems intent on throwing sand in the gears as long as he can. This is an example of what I meant when I suggested the ruling would not discourage district-court judges.  

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🚨🔥"Americans overwhelmingly voted for it. And it's not particularly a controversial matter."

Scott Jennings injects some sanity into debate over deportations — when panelist fear mongers that American citizens could be deported:

“You're conflating legal American citizens with… pic.twitter.com/46peogPD81

— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) April 8, 2025

“You're conflating legal American citizens with people who came here illegally. We do this all the time in these debates."

"I think what the administration is trying to do is be as aggressive as possible at deporting different kinds of populations. One, people who've committed heinous, violent crimes. Number two, people that were violent before they came here."

"Number three, anyone who came here illegally, I mean, look, I'm sorry, but if you came here illegally, no matter how well-intentioned you were, there's probably a decent chance you're going to be sent back."

"And that's what the administration clearly communicated to the American people in the election. They overwhelmingly voted for it. And it's not particularly a controversial matter."

Ed: Do CNN's panelists review their own polling? 

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When MSNBC splits from NBC News later this year as part of Comcast’s “SpinCo” pivot, it will lean in hard to digital as a growth engine. On Tuesday, MSNBC president Rebecca Kutler announced that Madeleine Haeringer will be the executive tasked with leading that charge.

Haeringer, most recently the executive vp and gm of Crooked Media, is joining MSNBC as its senior vp of digital, audio and longform, effective May 7.

Ed: I laughed at the "Crooked Media" connection at first, and then remembered that we call this site Hot Air. Full credit to those who snark! This is still interesting in seeing how MSNBC plans to compete after they get cut loose from NBCUniversal by Comcast. Their biggest problem isn't "digital," but the fact that they will be cut off from their former parent news organization. 

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🚨NEW: I am announcing an investigation and issuing a Civil Investigative Demand (“CID”) to USA Fencing over potential violations of Texas state law.
USA Fencing recently disqualified a female competitor, Stephanie Turner, for bravely taking a knee instead of competing against… pic.twitter.com/IbwHa4u9ad

— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) April 8, 2025

Ed: I doubt this will go far; the tournament took place in Maryland, not Texas. From the press release, it seems as though Paxton may be considering a civil action on behalf of Texas consumers who watched the competition. That seems like a stretch, and looks more like a publicity effort, albeit in a good cause.  One has to wonder whether Pam Bondi will take an interest in this, though. USA Fencing operates in multiple states.

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In recent weeks Xi has sought to reach out to international businesses, seeking to assure them that China is a welcoming place to invest – having spent much of the last decade oozing hostility towards them. He has also sought to boost the role of private companies, particularly in the tech sector, which under his rule have faced a relentless crackdown, with entrepreneurs purged from the companies they set up – or have simply disappeared. ...

It all smacks of desperation and not the “super economy” of CCP propaganda. Xi is unlikely to remove the 34 percent retaliatory tariffs on US goods as demanded by Trump. That would be an enormous loss of face. Trump, on current form, will go ahead with his additional 50 percent. Xi could then hit high-profile targets – Apple and Tesla, for instance, both heavily reliant on the Chinese economy. But both have been important partners for Beijing in modernising its technology supply chains and cheerleaders for engagement with China. For all the bravado coming from Beijing, the Chinese economy is highly vulnerable and will come off worse from the slugfest that is now gathering pace.

Ed: The Spectator has been anything but a cheerleader for tariffs the past few weeks, so this insight is doubly interesting. Trump has a perhaps winning advantage here; let's see whether he can woo other countries to our side, even while hitting them with punitive tariffs. 

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Jasmine Crockett: "WE ARE DONE PICKING COTTON"

Democrats really just wanted to import slave labor this whole time, didn't they?pic.twitter.com/dRXbaoBet4

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) April 8, 2025

Ed: The illegal aliens aren't picking crops, either. Most of that work is now automated anyway. But you'll never go broke underestimating Jasmine Crockett's intellect or overestimating her chutzpah.