Trump’s New Tariffs Target Foreign Metals

President Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum today, reprising a policy from his first term. All imports of the metals, no matter the country of origin, would face a 25 percent tax, according to the White House.

Domestic steel makers say they are struggling to compete against cheap foreign steel. They benefited last time Trump imposed similar tariffs, Ana Swanson, our international trade reporter, told me.

“But there’s a big trade-off,” Ana said. “They increase costs for other businesses that use steel and aluminum. And there are a lot of those — makers of cars, machinery, planes and food packaging come to mind.”

The new fees are likely to rankle allies like Canada and Mexico, who supply the bulk of U.S. metal imports. They would also hit at China, which dominates the global steel and aluminum industry, even if it does not export a lot of steel or aluminum directly to the U.S.

In his three weeks back in office, Ana pointed out, Trump has already threatened more tariffs globally than he did in his entire first term, when he ended up imposing levies on foreign solar panels, washing machines, metals and more than $300 billion of products from China.

A judge said the White House had defied his court order

A federal judge in Rhode Island said today that the Trump administration had failed to comply with his order to release billions of dollars in federal grants. The ruling was the first time a judge expressly declared that Trump or his aides were disobeying a judicial mandate.

The judge, John McConnell, an Obama appointee, did not specify any penalties for failing to comply. But his ruling marked a step toward what could become a high-stakes showdown between the executive and judicial branches. Just yesterday, Vice President JD Vance claimed that “judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.”

More than 40 lawsuits have been filed against the Trump administration. My colleague Adam Liptak, a lawyer and reporter covering the Supreme Court, asked several legal scholars whether the U.S. was already in a constitutional crisis; here’s what they told him.

In other politics news:

Hamas halted hostage releases ‘until further notice’

A spokesman for Hamas said today that the group had indefinitely postponed the release of Israeli hostages who were set to be freed from Gaza this weekend. Hamas blamed the delay on Israel’s government, which it accused of violating the cease-fire deal.

Both sides have previously accused each other of violating the fragile truce, but until now hostage-for-prisoner exchanges have proceeded each week. Today’s change also threatens the prospects for agreement on a lasting end to the war. Talks on that subject were supposed to begin last week.

Musk led a bid to buy OpenAI

A group of investors led by Elon Musk has made a $97.4 billion bid to buy the nonprofit that controls OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company that created ChatGPT.

OpenAI declined to comment, but Sam Altman, the company’s chief executive, posted a response on social media: “No thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.” Musk, who has had a yearslong rivalry with Altman, replied to the post: “Swindler,” he said.

When was peak S.N.L.?

At the end of this week, “Saturday Night Live” is celebrating its past with a 50th anniversary special. So our TV critic James Poniewozik went back and picked out his favorite episode.

James, perhaps like most people, was fondest of the show when he was in high school, and he would often quote lines from it with his friends at the cafeteria table. In December 1984, Eddie Murphy returned for just one night, in which he showed off his comic range (and his piano skills). For James, it just hit the spot.

For more: It has become quite difficult to decipher which TV shows are most popular.

Ankle monitor? No, that’s my Apple Watch.

A small but growing movement of fitness enthusiasts believe that an Apple Watch is best worn as an ankle accessory. Some claim it’s a more comfortable, and perhaps even more accurate, way to track exercise goals. It’s also a workaround for medical professionals who can’t wear watches on their wrists at work.

One downside: People said the device may be confused for a court-issued ankle monitor. One user said she felt as if she should be reassuring her neighbors. “It’s not what it looks like,” she said. “I promise.”

Have an active evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow. — Matthew

Sean Kawasaki-Culligan was our photo editor today.

We welcome your feedback. Write to us at evening@nytimes.com.