The Morning Briefing: Earthquake, Irma, 9th Circus Court and Much, Much More

Good Friday Morning.

Here’s what’s on the President’s agenda today:

In the morning, President Donald J. Trump will receive a National Security Council briefing.
The President will then receive a hurricane update.
In the afternoon, the President and First Lady Melania Trump will depart the White House en route to Camp David.

Your elevator pitch version of the news

A massive earthquake hit Mexico overnight, killing 5 people. The quake registered 8.1 on the Richter’s scale, which is ridiculously strong. Now there’s a tsunami watch and aftershocks in Mexico. Hurricane Irma continues its Florida trajectory, but its path keeps moving so it’s hard to know exactly where it’s going to go. Landfall is expected on Saturday and you need to evacuate if officials are telling you to flee. The 9th Circus Court upheld the injunction from a lower court on the administration’s restrictions on family for the travel ban. The Justice Department will appeal. Trump needs to split up the 9th Circus and create another court for the poor non-California states in the circuit. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is planning on scraping the Obama administration campus witch-hunt, sexual assault rules.

Picture of the day:

USA’s Wilma Rudolph, Clarksville, Tenn., hits the tape to win the gold medal in the women’s 4 x 100-meter relay at the Summer Olympics in Rome, Sept. 8, 1960. Rudolph was the anchor for the U.S. team which combined for a time of 44.5. (AP Photo)

Other morsels:

5 dead and minor tsunami waves triggered after magnitude 8.2 strikes off southern Mexico

Dangerous winds, storm surge threaten Florida even as Hurricane Irma weakens to Category 4

Irma powers toward Florida, leaving behind path of death, destruction

Irma impact likely to be far worse than Hurricane Andrew, experts say

Former presidents band together in call for Harvey, Irma relief aid

Meet the New Orleans woman who saved more than 100 shelter animals from Harvey

National Guard Authorized to Confiscate Peoples’ Guns Ahead of Hurricane

Govs. John Kasich and John Hickenlooper detail plan to shore up Obamacare, break health care stalemate

Bannon: McConnell told Trump to back off “Drain the Swamp” talk

Yet Another Anonymously Sourced Trump-Russia Story Falls Apart

Justice Department to take latest travel ban ruling to Supreme Court