NEWS THIS MORNING

Another layer to the onion that is Elon Musk:

© Giphy

Late last night, Elon Musk sent a mysterious tweet: “_______ is the Night.” https://bit.ly/3876rOH 

Musk didn’t elaborate, but: “Users quickly offered suggestions of what they believed he might be proposing should his offer to buy the platform for that price be rejected by Twitter’s board, including ideas like ‘tender is the night’ and ‘tonight is the night.’ ” 

More on the cryptic message: “Users also mentioned that he made the tweet close to ‘4/20,’ or April 20. Musk once said he was considering taking Tesla private at $420 a share.” However ... "April 20, also known as 4/20, is known as World Cannabis Day. Musk has often made references to marijuana.”

What we know: https://bit.ly/3OtAZee

It’s Wednesday. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@thehill.com — and follow along on Twitter @CateMartel and Facebook.

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THE LATEST IN UKRAINE

The situation in Mariupol is not great:

© AP/Alexei Alexandrov

Via CNBC’s Natasha Turak, “Russia has set a new ultimatum for surrender in the battered city of Mariupol, where Ukrainian forces and reportedly hundreds of civilians are holed up in the Azovstal steel plant potentially facing their “last days, if not hours,” one Ukrainian commander said. Vastly outnumbered, the Ukrainian troops have pledged to keep fighting.” https://cnb.cx/3K0lFC7

HAPPENING TODAY:

President Biden is meeting with military leaders, followed by a dinner for invited officials and their spouses. 

Who: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the combatant commanders.

Wimbledon is banning players from Russia and Belarus:

© AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth

Via The Washington Post’s Cindy Boren and Adela Suliman, “Wimbledon barred players from Russia and Belarus from playing in the tournament Wednesday because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a decision that will affect two of the world’s highest-ranked players.” https://wapo.st/3xGcnZu

Which players will be affected: “Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, who was briefly the world’s No. 1 player and is now ranked second to Novak Djokovic, and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, the world’s fourth-ranked female player, will not be permitted to play in the tournament, which runs from June 27 to July 10.”

Tidbit: All I can picture is a bunch of military officials intensely playing Halo — and I’m happy with that imagery: 

Via The New York Times’s Steven Erlanger, “NATO countries are engaged in a large annual war game to test and improve defense against cyberattacks, an exercise with more importance this year given Russia’s war against Ukraine.” https://nyti.ms/3KZe6gr

It's an especially important time: “There is widespread concern that Russia will use its considerable cyberabilities to disrupt countries that are providing weapons and financial aid to Ukraine, though Moscow has largely held off from doing so.”  

How the game works: “NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defense Center of Excellence organized the event, which includes fictional attack exercises, most of them based on real events, that teams must confront under time pressure. More than 2,000 people from 32 countries are taking part, including a team from Ukraine, which aspires to NATO membership.”  

The full story: https://nyti.ms/3KZe6gr

‘CAN TECHNOLOGY BRING VLADIMIR PUTIN TO JUSTICE?’:

Via The Washington Post’s Steven Zeitchik: https://wapo.st/3OtJQwu

IN THE WHITE HOUSE

One started crying and now everyone’s crying: 

© Giphy

“President Biden’s critics on both the left and the right are accusing him of going too small in response to the massive challenges facing the country.” https://bit.ly/3rG9aW1

What the left is mad about: “Progressives express dismay that Biden has not done more on prized priorities, including voting rights, the battle against climate change and student loan forgiveness.” 

What the right is mad about: “Conservatives and many independent voters argue that Biden is failing to meet the mark to address two huge issues — inflation and immigration. The inflation rate is at its highest point in decades. So too are the numbers of unauthorized migrants trying to cross the southern border.”  

What the Biden administration is hoping will happen: “Biden is gambling that a focus on unspectacular but concrete achievements will pay dividends with voters.” 

How Biden is hoping to achieve that: https://bit.ly/3rG9aW1

LATEST WITH THE CORONAVIRUS

The legal community is mixed on the judge’s interpretation of the mask mandate law:

© AP/Evan Vucci

Via The Hill’s John Kruzel, “A federal judge in Florida stirred controversy Monday by striking down the Biden administration’s mask mandate for public travel in a ruling that critics derided as overly formalistic and divorced from the health imperatives of a global pandemic.” https://bit.ly/36vVQfz 

The most contentious aspect of the ruling, according to some legal experts: The judge used an interpretive method to the law, called textualism. Some legal experts see that as flawed. 

Here’s an explanation of why that method of interpretation is controversial: https://bit.ly/36vVQfz

HOW THE SUDDEN MASK MANDATE RULING SPARKED CONFUSION AND MIXED MESSAGES:

Via The Hill’s Alex Gangitano: https://bit.ly/3L05iXv

‘DOJ TO APPEAL MASK RULING IF CDC DEEMS MANDATE NECESSARY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH’:

Via The Hill’s Morgan Chalfant: https://bit.ly/3v0GQzC

CASE NUMBERS

Coronavirus cases in the U.S.: 80,733,172

U.S. death toll: 989,366

Breakdown of the numbers: https://cnn.it/2UAgW3y

VACCINATION NUMBERS

Total number of vaccinations administered in the U.S.: 568 million shots have been given. 

Seven-day average of doses administered: An average of 124,786 doses 

For context: The U.S. population is roughly 331 million. 

Breakdown of the numbers: https://bloom.bg/3iVTPLH

LATEST MIDTERM HEADLINES

© AP/John Raoux, file

‘DEMOCRATS EMBRACE RICK SCOTT AS MIDTERM BOOGEYMAN’:

Via The Hill’s Jordain Carney: https://bit.ly/3kdY4Ul

‘HOUSE DEMOCRATS CLAIM REDISTRICTING VICTORY AHEAD OF FINAL MAPS’:

From The Hill’s Reid Wilson: https://bit.ly/3874KRl

‘5 PLOT TWISTS THAT COULD UPEND THE MIDTERMS’: 

From Politico’s Steven Shepard: https://politi.co/3Ex27nJ

NOTABLE TWEETS

The best video I’ve seen today:

Twitter user @ramseyboltin tweeted a video of what happened with UPS and USPS delivered packages at the same time. Watch — it has nearly 4 million views already: https://bit.ly/3L2MiYm 

⏱ ON TAP:

The House and Senate are out. President Biden is at the White House. 

10:15 a.m. EDT: President Biden received the President’s Daily Brief. 

4 p.m. EDT: President Biden meets with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the combatant commanders. 

5:30 p.m. EDT: President Biden and first lady Jill Biden host a dinner for Austin, Hicks, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the combatant commanders and their spouses. 

📺 WHAT TO WATCH:

3 p.m. EDT: White House press secretary Jen Psaki holds a press briefing. Livestream: https://bit.ly/389qFr2

IN LIGHTER NEWS:

Today is National Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Day.

And to leave you on a good note, here’s a ball pit that may or may not have a dog hidden underneath: https://bit.ly/3uWeUx1