The Hill’s 12:30 Report

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The Hill’s 12:30 Report: One day to ‘Acela primary’ | Tom Brady’s suspension reinstated | Cruz picking a VP? | Kasich, Cruz alliance against Trump | Get ready for severe weather

JON KARL WITH A BOLD PREDICTION: ABC’s Jon Karl says Ted Cruz may name a running mate in the next week to shake up the race. “And if there’s one person I would put on that list, maybe only one person, it’s Carly Fiorina.” Mic drop. http://bit.ly/1SZOs7W

It’s Monday, and D.C.’s Democratic Primary is 50 days from today! We’re also one week from the highly anticipated White House Correspondents’ Association dinner weekend — AKA “nerd prom” — Cue consultants and reporters wooing … and you know, selling off their first-borns for party invites. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of what you missed this morning — and what’s on tap for the rest of the day. Send comments, story ideas and predictions as to whether Jon Snow will return to life to cmartel@digital-release.thehill.com, @CateMartel and on Facebook.

BIG STORY TODAY — YOU SCRATCH MY BACK. I SCRATCH YOURS: Ted Cruz and John Kasich have unveiled a coordinated strategy to team up and take on Donald Trump. Kasich will clear a path for Cruz in Indiana, while Cruz will back down in two other states. “Donald Trump doesn’t have the support of a majority of Republicans — not even close, but he currently does have almost half the delegates because he’s benefited from the existing primary system,” Kasich chief strategist John Weaver said in a statement. 

So, how well do you think this is going over with Trump: “It is sad that two grown politicians have to collude against one person who has only been a politician for ten months in order to try and stop that person from getting the Republican nomination,” Trump responded in a statement. Sooo, that went well! http://bit.ly/1SZqB8g

Tweet from NBC’s Mark Murray: Kasich on whether Indiana voters should vote for him or Cruz: “They ought to vote for me.” http://bit.ly/1SnnX0q So this is going well so far (?)

Twitter response from Kasich strategist John Weaver: We’re not telling voters who to vote for in IN, only where we are going to spend resources to ultimately defeat Hillary. They get it. http://bit.ly/1ruwSDt 

BREAKING LATE THIS A.M. – BRADY SUSPENSION REINSTATED: A U.S. appeals court has reinstated Patriots quarterback Tom Brady‘s four-game suspension after “Deflategate.” As you can guess, this news is getting heated and mixed reviews on social media: http://bit.ly/1VO8HN4 Safety note: When bringing this up with Boston fans, tread very, very carefully.

SPARK NOTES FOR CONGRESS THIS WEEK: Via The Hill’s Cristina Marcos and Jordain Carney, the Senate is in today, the House returns tomorrow and both chambers will be in session this week before a recess next week. Here’s what’s on tap:

• Puerto Rico: It’s looking like Congress will leave town at the end of the week without taking action on Puerto Rico and the debt crisis. Deadline: The island faces a May 1 default deadline, and it’s increasingly likely they will have to deal with it without help from Congress. 
• Energy: Senate leadership is hoping to wrap up work on its first (!) appropriations bill of the year. The Senate is scheduled to vote on more amendments to the bill today and tomorrow. 
• Fiduciary rule: The House is expected to consider the so-called fiduciary rule that requires retirement advisers to act in their clients’ best interests. 
• Email privacy: Also on tap for the House is a measure to require the government to obtain a warrant before forcing technology companies to release consumers’ electronic communications. http://bit.ly/24f8oMb

{mosads}POPULAR ON SOCIAL: A 90-YEAR-OLD FORMER SENATOR IS MARRYING A MAN: 20 years after his wife passed away, 90-year-old former Sen. Harris Wofford (D-Pa.) writes that he has found love again — this time with a man. Here’s the op-ed he wrote in The New York Times: http://nyti.ms/1NLqa06

GET READY FOR A SEVERE WEATHER WEEK: NBC meteorologist Bill Karins has warned that 13 million Americans could be in the path of severe storms this week that could involve large hail and tornadoes. Here’s the map and specific predictions by region: http://nbcnews.to/1YQaZbO

OUT TODAY — THE HILL’S DEEP-DIVE ON ENERGY: The Hill’s energy team of Timothy Cama, Devin Henry and a team of policy reporters have released a major deep-dive of the future of energy policy. It’s worth checking out. And look for the shiny, new print edition tomorrow at The Hill’s newspaper boxes. http://bit.ly/26ojgJM

MUST READ: The Hill’s Timothy Cama, Julian Hattem and Devin Henry investigated how the historically low oil prices are changing the debate over energy policy. Are they the new normal? If so, they’re actually causing new issues. Essentially, low prices are creating concerns over the domestic industry and threatening the global economic order. http://bit.ly/230TgzD

WHAT. AN. OFFER.: Via The Hill’s Peter Schroeder, on HBO’s “Last Week Tonight,” the creator of the hit musical “Hamilton” is pitching a personalize performance for Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in exchange for a Puerto Rico relief bill. “Paul Ryan, I’ll come sing ‘Hamilton’ at your house,” he rapped. “I’ll do-si-do with Pelosi. I’ll wear my Hamilton blouse.” http://bit.ly/1Ucsxj9 

NOT EXACTLY A STORY YOU WANT TO READ BEFORE BEDTIME…: The Washington Post’s Robert McCartney and Paul Duggan investigated the Metro’s “failure-prone subway” and how the transit agency neglected to heed warnings that its aging equipment and poor safety culture would someday lead to chronic breakdowns and calamities. How heartwarming. http://wapo.st/1rugnau

POP CULTURE TO KNOW WHEN TALKING TO CO-WORKERS: This weekend, Beyoncé released her new album “Lemonade” as an hour-long special on HBO. http://usat.ly/1SYCCLj

 

NOTABLE TWEETS:

Politico’s Shane Goldmacher (This was when the news of the Kasich-Cruz alliance was announced)
So that sure looks like Cruz campaign manager Jeff Roe behind home plate with the Cruz sign on ESPN http://bit.ly/1T93rwH

IJ Review’s Joe Perticone (interesting graph)
Donald Trump is tweeting (and retweeting) much less these days http://bit.ly/1NtvI4w 

 

ON TAP:

The House is out until tomorrow.

2 p.m. EDT: John Kasich holds a town hall in Rockville, Md.

2 p.m. EDT: Hillary Clinton holds a “Get Out the Vote” event in Youngwood, Pa.

2:30 p.m. EDT: Bernie Sanders holds a rally in Pittsburgh.

4 p.m. EDT: Donald Trump holds a rally in West Chester, Pa.

4 p.m. EDT: Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.) bring a live cheetah and an Australian shepherd to a hearing on poaching. Yes, you read that right — a live cheetah and an Australian shepherd.

5:30 p.m. EDT: The Senate votes on water and energy appropriations. 

7 p.m. EDT: Rep. David Jolly (R-Fla.) and Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) hold a debate in Orlando. Live stream: http://bit.ly/1SIbwOC 

7 p.m. EDT: John Kasich holds a town hall in McKees Rocks, Pa.

7 p.m. EDT: Donald Trump holds a rally in Wilkes-Barre Township, Pa.

7:10 p.m. EDT: President Obama returns from Germany. 

7:15 p.m. EDT: Hillary Clinton holds a “Get Out the Vote” event in Philadelphia.

 

WHAT TO WATCH:

8 p.m. EDT: MSNBC’s Chris Hayes interviews Bernie Sanders for an hour-long town hall in Philadelphia.

9 p.m. EDT: MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow interviews Hillary Clinton for an hour-long town hall in Philadelphia.

10 p.m. EDT: Donald Trump and Ted Cruz will appear on Fox News’s “Hannity.”

8 p.m. EDT tomorrow: The polls close in the Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island primaries. 

 

NOW FOR THE FUN STUFF…:

Today is National Zucchini Bread Day!

16 YEARS LATER AND NO ONE WILL LET YOU FORGET IT — TODAY IS THE PERFECT DATE: In the movie “Miss Congeniality,” Miss Rhode Island was asked to describe her perfect date. Her response: “That’s a tough one. I’d have to say April 25. Because it’s not too hot, not too cold, all you need is a light jacket.” Trust me, if you go on social media today, you will see or hear some reference to this quote today. 

UGH, PLEASE STOP, AMERICA: Via Business Insider’s Hayley Peterson, Burger King is now selling chicken donuts. Yes, chicken donuts. I suppose it isn’t any different than other shaped chicken nugget, but mentally, there’s a big difference. And if a six-piece of these chicken rings isn’t enough, Burger King also announced that it’s bringing back its $1.49 10-piece nuggets promotion. http://read.bi/1VU9xHp

And because it’s Monday and we need happy thoughts, here are some cats who think they’re turtles. Easy mistake. http://bit.ly/1SZRedg

 

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