Today’s edition of quick hits.

* The Supreme Court tells Trump what he wanted to hear: “Chief Justice John Roberts issued an order on Friday that lets the Trump administration continue construction of the White House ballroom for now. The order from Roberts, who handles emergency litigation requests from Washington, backs the administration at least for the time being, while giving the full Supreme Court more time to decide the issue that ran up against a Friday deadline.”

* If, by the White House’s logic, tariffs don’t push prices higher, why would removing tariffs push prices lower? “President Donald Trump on Friday morning said the United States will allow up to 300,000 metric tons of product for ground beef to be imported over the next three months without being subject to out-of-quota tariffs. … Trump will formally sign an executive order on the tariff waiver for beef trimmings imports within the next two weeks, according to the White House.”

* The more the administration says the Strait of Hormuz is open, the more we’re reminded otherwise: “Seven commodity ships sailed along the Strait of Hormuz on ​Thursday, just half the previous day’s tally, showed ‌data from shiptracker Kpler, amid concern over risk to Middle East shipping as U.S.-Iran peace talks remain in limbo. Of the total, ​four ships entered and three exited the waterway, ​which was used by nearly a fifth of ⁠global shipments of crude oil and liquefied natural ​gas before war began in February.”

* No one benefits from such needless cruelty: “The first deportation flight to Haiti since the Trump administration ended humanitarian protections for 350,000 people living in the United States landed Thursday in the Caribbean nation, and activists say immigration arrests are beginning to ramp up. The flight carrying 170 people, ranging in age from 19 to 71, landed in Cap-Haitien, on the northern coast of Haiti.”

* Martin won’t be missed: “President Donald Trump announced Friday that Ed Martin, his controversial pardon attorney, is leaving the Justice Department to take on outside legal work for the upcoming midterm and presidential elections.”

* The White House’s war against the ABA is ongoing: “The Trump administration is opening a new front in its campaign to remake higher education: threatening the American Bar Association’s power to accredit law schools. On Friday, the Education Department is taking the first step toward removing the ABA’s authority to accredit law schools, said David Barker, assistant secretary of education.”

* A case we’ve been following for a while: “A Texas court on Friday ruled that the $50 million in damages that Infowars founder Alex Jones was ordered to pay to the parents of a 6-year-old killed in the Sandy Hook shooting was too large a sum, lowering the judgment to $1.5 million.”

Have a safe weekend.

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