Bondi Goodbye, Hospice Fraud, & Best Pizza

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Adam Rogers
April 03, 2026

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President Donald Trump announced he has fired Attorney General Pam Bondi, replacing her with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as acting head of the Justice Department. Trump praised Bondi’s tenure but said she would move to a private-sector role.
Bondi faced growing criticism over her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case and a series of failed prosecutions targeting Trump’s perceived political opponents. Her leadership also drew scrutiny for firing Justice Department officials and overseeing pardons for Trump allies.
The change comes as lawmakers continue probing the Justice Department’s actions under Bondi, with hearings expected in the coming weeks. Her removal marks the second Cabinet-level shakeup in recent months after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was fired last month.

The FBI arrested a married couple yesterday on charges of billing Medicare $7.45 million while running a hospice with a five-year survival rate above 97%. Most hospice patients are in the final stages of a terminal illness, making the survival rate a major red flag for fraud. The arrests were the first of 15 defendants announced Thursday, some of whom are accused of running fraud operations from inside prison.
The arrests come as investigators found more than 700 of the roughly 1,800 hospices in Los Angeles County triggered multiple fraud indicators, including excessive billing and terminally ill patients later discharged alive. One office plaza had 89 registered hospices, described by a patient advocate as "ground zero" for Medicare fraud.
California's attorney general has brought criminal cases against more than 100 hospice fraud defendants, while the Republican-led House Oversight Committee launched its own investigation last month. The Department of Health and Human Services estimated nationwide hospice fraud at $198 million in 2023.

The NBA received nonbinding bids worth up to $1 billion this week from more than 120 investors for its proposed European basketball league. The league plans to launch in fall 2027 with 14 to 16 teams across 12 cities, including London, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Milan, Berlin, Munich, Athens, and Istanbul.
The proposed league, backed by international basketball's governing body FIBA, would be a separate entity from the NBA with a soccer-style promotion and relegation system (Read how these systems work here). European-raised stars like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, and Nikola Jokic drove record viewership in Europe last season, and the NBA sees Europe's 270 million basketball fans as a largely untapped market.
NBA Europe’s would-be competitor, EuroLeague, threatened legal action against the NBA in January but has softened its stance after hiring a conciliatory new CEO. Collaboration talks are expected to resume soon, with the NBA also exploring competitions that would pit its teams directly against European clubs.

Democratic Party leaders sued to block Trump's executive order limiting mail-in voting, which Democrats say unconstitutionally overrides states' authority to run their own elections. (More)

The Senate sent a partial DHS funding bill back to the House Thursday, a move that should end the government shutdown, though House conservatives must still approve the deal. (More)

Trump ordered a 100% tariff on foreign-made brand-name drugs, giving companies four years to move production to the U.S. or face the full penalty. (More)

A Canadian investigation caught a Quebec maple syrup producer secretly cutting his product with cane sugar and selling it to major grocery chains. (More)

More than 40 countries met to coordinate pressure on Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said is driving up energy and food costs worldwide. (More)

Dutch authorities recovered a stolen 2,500-year-old golden Romanian helmet Thursday, more than a year after thieves used a firework bomb and sledgehammer to raid a Netherlands museum. (More)

US stock markets closed mixed on Thursday (S&P +0.11%, Nasdaq +0.18%, Dow -0.13%) after Trump said the Iran war would continue for weeks. (More)

Amazon will add a 3.5% fuel surcharge for third-party sellers using its fulfillment services starting April 17, joining UPS, FedEx, and the Postal Service in passing rising oil costs to businesses. (More)

The average 30-year mortgage rate climbed to 6.46% this week, its highest in seven months, as rising oil prices tied to the war with Iran stoke inflation fears. (More)

Phil Mickelson withdrew from the Masters citing a family health matter, leaving this year's tournament without both him and Tiger Woods for the first time since 1994. (More)

A federal judge dismissed Blake Lively's sexual harassment claims against Justin Baldoni but preserved her retaliation claim, meaning a jury will still hear much of the case at a May trial. (More)

The Las Vegas Raiders signed quarterback Kirk Cousins to a one-year deal worth $20 million guaranteed, giving their expected top draft pick Fernando Mendoza a veteran to learn behind. (More)

Arizona State University researchers are developing lightweight robotic "muscles" that can operate in boiling water, lift 100 times their own weight, and work without a direct power source. (More)

British engineers set a new internet speed record of 450 terabits per second, roughly 4 million times faster than a typical home connection, using existing commercial fiber optic cables. (More)

The CDC has paused diagnostic testing for rabies, monkeypox, and more than two dozen other diseases, following staff cuts that reduced its laboratory workforce by roughly half. (More)

New England furniture store will refund customers if both UConn teams make the NCAA title games.

World’s oldest tortoise is still alive.

The best pizza in the world, according to celebrity chefs.

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