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  I'm Jonathan Tamari, senior Washington reporter for Bloomberg Government, and each weekday morning I'll be coming to you with inside-the-room reporting and insights that reveal what's really happening in Washington—and how it impacts you. Email me with feedback and comments here. If this newsletter was forwarded to you sign up here. In today's edition: Bessent's deficit dreams run aground, deepfakes come for CEOs, and Trump urges the GOP to "make this one for Jesus." But first: Mullin's Daunting TaskMarkwayne Mullin, the incoming Homeland Security secretary, is known for bouncing a pink rubber ball as he travels through the Capitol. It's a sign of restless energy in the outgoing Oklahoma senator — and that's without caffeine. "Markwayne does it all on decaf," said the Senate's top Republican, John Thune Mullin will need that energy in his new role.  Mullin during his confirmation hearing earlier this month Photographer: Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg He is taking over a department whose budget has soared as it carries out Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Its tactics drove Democrats to block annual funding and played a key role in the ouster of former secretary Kristi Noem. Now, ICE agents are being deployed to another political flashpoint — heading to airports to help deal with long security lines stemming from the shutdown. Mullin doesn't plan major policy changes, but will be tasked, in part, with reforming the image of an agency whose public standing has plummeted, while still carrying out Trump's deportation agenda. "He's a guy who reads very carefully not only the temperature of the Congress," but also "what people back home are saying," Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski said last week. "That needs to be relayed to folks in the White House." Some 56% of Americans have little or no confidence in ICE, a YouGov poll found early this month. One early headache — lack of funding — may soon ease. Key lawmakers and the White House have made significant progress toward a deal to end the shutdown, members of both parties said last night. It could resolve one major sticking point that has jammed up the department for more than a month, and end the airport chaos. The rough outlines of the deal would involve both parties voting to fund all of DHS, except for ICE's removal operations, reports Steven T. Dennis. ICE is already flush with cash from last year's GOP tax and policy bill, and Republicans would aim to pay for removals and other Trump priorities (possibly including some version of voter ID) through reconciliation, the process that allows them to pass bills through the Senate without Democratic votes. It'll be a big lift. The procedure is difficult, time-consuming, and has many limitations, plus it will test the GOP's tiny House majority. But it would end the standoff for now. Democrats would get some ICE reforms, possibly including requirements for ICE to wear identification, but much less than they wanted. They had been demanding that agents remove their masks in most situations and get judicial warrants to enter people's homes. Trump yesterday urged Republicans to cancel their planned break over the next two weeks to find a way forward, saying not to worry about Easter. "Make this one for Jesus, OK?" he said. Maybe that did it. More likely, it was scenes of long lines at airports, and the prospect for lawmakers of more time stuck in DC. Top NewsDeepfake CEOs: Scammers broke into the cell phone of a Fortune 500 CEO, accessed his WhatsApp account and used it to schedule a Zoom call with the CFO about a wire transfer. It's one example of new ways corporations need to protect themselves from deepfakes, Kaustuv Basu writes in an exclusive deep dive. Iran Latest: The Iran conflict continued unabated overnight despite Trump's claims of "productive conversations." Missile and drone attacks targeted Israeli cities including Tel Aviv and US bases in the Middle East. Election Shift: More than a dozen states would have to rewrite their election laws if the Supreme Court rules against provisions allowing mail-in ballots to be accepted if they're post-marked by Election Day but arrive later. Greg Giroux explains what this could do to November's midterms, and Greg Stohr detailed the SCOTUS hearing Monday. Debt Woes: The Iran war, a ruling against Trump's tariffs, and new inflationary pressure from rising oil prices have all dented Scott Bessent's hopes of bringing down the deficit, per Enda Curran. Watch & Listen  "This is not a program that's based upon time, it is based upon reaching our goals," Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota, speaking about the war with Iran to Kailey Leinz and Joe Mathieu on Bloomberg's Balance of Power. Hill Watch LivePrimary season has started, putting the midterms and their potential aftermath front and center. Click here to join the discussion today at 11 a.m.  What's Next
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