Good morning, it’s Wednesday.
On this day in 1971, Selena Quintanilla was born in Lake Jackson, Texas, the daughter of a former musician (her father, Abraham Quintanilla Jr., and a homemaker (her mother, Marcella Ofelia Samora). She was the youngest of three children, preceded by her brother, A.B. Quintanilla, and her sister, Suzette Quintanilla.
No one had any inkling at the time that the baby would grow up to be known simply as “Selena” – one of the most celebrated Mexican-American entertainers of the late 20th century.
Dubbed the “Queen of Tejano Music” (also the “Mexican Madonna” and/or “Latin Madonna”), Selena’s influence continues to be felt today, long after she was murdered in March 1995 at the age of 23 by Yolanda Saldívar, the founder of her fan club and former manager of the singer’s clothing boutiques.
As an aside, in one of those hard-to-believe “the world is so small” facts, Selena’s birth was attended by an obstetrician-gynecologist named Ron Paul, who would go on to become a congressman, presidential hopeful, and father of Sen. Rand Paul.
The former congressman actually delivered thousands of babies in rural Texas, which some people say is part of the reason for his successful political career, but that’s a story for another day.
Selena’s father, who was also her manager, said he recognized her musical talent very early on. She started performing around the age of 10 and the lead singer in a band called Selena Y Los Dinos, which also included her brother and sister. There was someone else in the band, too, a lead guitarist named Chris Perez, who went on to marry Selena. The couple eloped when she was just 20 years old and he was 22.
As an aside, after Selena’s death, Chris Perez and her father had a falling out, which led to a protracted legal dispute over Perez’s desire to create a miniseries based on his 2012 memoir, “To Selena, With Love.” Abraham argued that Perez has signed away his rights to Selena’s likeness and name, granting them solely to her estate after her murder.
In 2021, Perez announced that he had finally ended this legal battle and mended fences with his deceased wife’s family.
The family band recorded seven albums together. Selena – at the age of 18 – recorded her self-titled solo album in October 1989, with her brother as her primary music producer and songwriter.
Winning the Tejano Music Award for Female Vocalist of the Year in 1987 helped advance Selena’s career considerably and landed her a contract with EMI Latin. She went on to win that award for another eight consecutive years in a row.
Selena’s mother was Mexican-American with some Cherokee ancestry, while her father was Mexican American. She grew up speaking English as her first language, but her father taught her to sing in Spanish – she used phonics at first – because he wanted her to resonate with the Latino community.
He turned out to be quite prescient, as Selena went on to be the first female Tejano artist to win the Grammy for Best Mexican-American Album in 1994. Her album Dreaming of You, also released that same year, soared to the top of the Billboard 200 chart and was the first predominantly Spanish-language album to make it there.
A number of individuals have played Selena on screen in variations of tributes to her after her death, most notably J-Lo, who starred as the late singer in a 1997 biopic.
If Selena has lived, she would be celebrating her 54th birthday today. Given the fact that her fame has continued so many years after her death, it’s hard to imagine exactly what she would have gone on to accomplish. She was working on her first English-language album when she died.
If you’re like me, the Selena song you’re most familiar with is one of her most recognizable signature hits “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” – a truly danceable groove that has stood the test of time. Click on that link and give it a listen in her honor.
The on-again/off-again spring weather trend continues today, with a return to cold-ish temperatures and blustery conditions. It will be cloudy with strong winds developing as the day progresses. Gusts of up to 30 mph are possible, and it will struggle to get out of the low 40s. Hope you didn’t pack those sweaters away just yet.
In the headlines…
A federal judge yesterday blocked President Donald Trump from punishing the law firm Susman Godfrey, calling the retribution campaign he has waged from the White House against the nation’s top firms “a shocking abuse of power.”
In her ruling, the judge, Loren L. AliKhan of the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia, said that the executive order Trump signed last week targeting the firm stemmed from a “personal vendetta.”
Though the restraining order technically is only good for 14 days, the judge left little doubt as to her views on the constitutionality of Trump’s order, saying it likely violates the first and fifth amendments of the U.S. Constitution.
Another federal judge said that she will order sworn testimony by Trump administration officials to determine if they complied with her orders to facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported to a notorious El Salvador prison.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland issued her order after Trump officials continually refused to retrieve Abrego Garcia, saying they defied a “clear” Supreme Court order.
The White House is urging Colombia to halt the implementation of new auto safety regulations that could jeopardize US car exports to Colombia, as the nations prepare to discuss tariffs imposed on Colombian products like coffee, avocados, flowers and oil.
The Trump administration is considering plans to close 10 embassies and 17 consulates and reduce or consolidate the staff of several other foreign missions, according to an internal State Department memo viewed by The New York Times.
Dan Caldwell, a senior adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, has been placed on administrative leave and was escorted out of the Pentagon by security yesterday, two defense officials said.
The officials said Caldwell’s sudden downfall was tied to an investigation into unauthorized disclosure of department information. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters.
Trump threatened to strip Harvard of its tax-exempt status yesterday and said the university should apologize, a day after it rejected what it called unlawful demands to overhaul academic programs or lose federal grants.
White House officials said that the IRS would make its decision about Harvard’s tax-exempt status independently, but the president has made clear in private that he has no intention of backing down from the fight with the university.
Columbia University, which has faced criticism for not striking a more defiant stand against efforts by the Trump administration to set its agenda, showed signs this week of adopting a tougher tone.
The Trump administration is seeking to deport a Columbia student because his activities could “potentially undermine” the Middle East peace process, according to a memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that was reviewed by The New York Times.
Mohsen Mahdawi, a legal permanent resident, has lived in the United States for 10 years and was arrested in Vermont. He has not been charged with a crime.
Cornell University and the University of Rochester have joined a lawsuit against the Department of Energy and the DOE secretary, Chris Wright, alleging they took “flagrantly unlawful actions” by “slashing ‘indirect cost rates’ for government-funded research.”
Former President Joe Biden, who hasn’t spoken much publicly since leaving the White House, warned that Trump has “taken a hatchet” to Social Security, weighing in on a critical issue for millions of Americans as he briefly returned to the national stage.
In his first expansive public comments since leaving the White House, Biden said that Trump had taken aim at Social Security, doing “damage and destruction” to a program that millions of Americans depend on.
“Fewer than 100 days, this new administration has made so much — done so much damage and so much destruction. It’s kind of breathtaking it could happen that soon,” Biden said.
Biden touted his own work on Social Security, which he called “a sacred promise,” without directly name-dropping his successor — but he took swipes at Republicans in Congress and the administration more broadly as he sounded alarm bells.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has raised $9.6 million since January – more than double her second-highest quarter – amid increasing calls by progressives for her to mount a 2028 primary challenge to U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
A retrial of the yearslong defamation case brought by Sarah Palin against The New York Times got underway before a Manhattan jury yesterday.
State lawmakers said they and the governor reached what they’re calling a “framework” with the state’s district attorneys on proposed changes to the state laws governing pretrial criminal discovery, one of Hochul’s top priorities.
State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said that legislative leaders reached the framework deal with New York City prosecutors, who have been in line with Hochul’s position on discovery. A state Senate Democrats spokesperson confirmed the tentative deal.
Gov. Kathy Hochul has yet to give the agreement her OK as the state budget remains in limbo. She held an event on discovery an hour away from the Capitol in Kingston, at which she asked those in attendance to call lawmakers to lobby for her plan.
Hochul did say at the event that “there could be a resolution in sight,” and that she was eager to return to Albany to seal the deal.
With a compromise on discovery changes in reach, state leaders are expected to return their attention to Hochul’s controversial proposal to expand forced psychiatric treatment for New Yorkers with severe mental health conditions.
Hochul and her husband, William Hochul, raked in nearly $1.5 million last year, according to the couple’s joint tax returns.
New York residents show low confidence in Hochul, according to a Marist Poll conducted from April 3 to April 9. Only 39% of surveyed New Yorkers approved of her job performance, while 46% disapproved and 16% couldn’t decide.
New York Attorney General Letitia James — who infamously declared that “no one is above the law” when she was targeting Trump — was hit with a federal criminal referral for instances of alleged mortgage fraud.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte said in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi that James appears to have falsified records to meet certain lending requirements and receive favorable loan terms.
Pulte alleges that James “falsified records” so she could get a $218,780 mortgage to buy a home in Virginia in August 2023, just weeks before she prosecuted Trump in his civil fraud trial.
A “specific power of attorney” document signed by James on August 17, 2023, shows her intent to change her residence to Norfolk, Virginia. The attorney general authorized her relative, Shamice Thompson-Hairston, to act on her behalf.
James’ office is scrutinizing whether insider trading took place in connection with Trump’s 90-day pause on customized “reciprocal” tariffs announced last week.
The operators of a retail cannabis store in New York City have filed a federal lawsuit against the state CCB and OCM challenging the constitutionality of a requirement in the law that legalized marijuana for all licensees to have labor peace agreements.
The New York City Council has sued the Adams administration over its move to return federal immigration officials to Rikers Island — bashing it as “poisoned fruit” of the deal struck between the mayor and the Trump admin.
The complaint, filed in Manhattan state Supreme Court, argues City Hall’s authorization of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement outpost on Rikers Island — home to a sprawling detention complex — failed to follow proper procedure.
“This is a naked attempt by Eric Adams to fulfill his end of the bargain for special treatment he received from the Trump administration,” Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who is running against the mayor, said in a statement.
Richard Davis, a CFB member, has recused himself from voting on any matters related to Mayor Adams after penning an op-ed in which he blasted the Trump Justice Department’s dismissal of the mayor’s corruption indictment as “ludicrous.”
Indicted tow truck operator Mike Mazzio helped raise nearly $400,000 for Adams’ 2021 campaign and hired the mayor’s former state Senate colleague Jeff Klein as his lobbyist — all while facing charges for illegally rigging the industry.
Newly appointed First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro was in charge of New York City’s government for two days as Adams traveled to the Dominican Republic to honor the victims of a deadly nightclub collapse in the Caribbean nation’s capital.
Mayoral hopeful Andrew Cuomo was denied public matching funds in his bid for City Hall — delivering a fundraising blow to the tune of nearly $3 million to the current front-runner aiming for a political comeback.
Cuomo’s campaign said they’d received an email from CFB last Friday informing them that due to “a technical software error,” donations collected on one of their vendor platforms was missing “one of the fields” required by the board.
Cuomo continues to hold a commanding lead in the Democratic primary field for the 2025 New York City mayor’s race, bolstered by strong support from older voters, according to a new poll released yesterday.
The poll from AARP New York and the Siena College Research Institute found Cuomo was the top first-choice pick among registered city voters, earning 34% support.
Rep. Nydia Velázquez and six other Democrats from Brooklyn will endorse a slate of three candidates in the New York City mayor’s race today, hoping to stop former Cuomo’s momentum.
Assemblymember and mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani still reaps royalties from his rap career — although it’s not much C.R.E.A.M., according to his tax return released yesterday.
Hundreds of thousands of immigrants in New York City and beyond are receiving emails from the Trump administration stating their authorization to remain in the United States has been revoked and they must leave the country immediately.
The FAA accused the owner of the company behind last week’s fatal Hudson River helicopter crash of firing its director of operations in apparent retaliation for voluntarily shutting down all copter tours — and has ordered the company grounded.
A new crop of high-tech trash containers began landing on streets in upper Manhattan this month, the latest step in the sanitation department’s years-long effort to banish piles of trash bags from city sidewalks.
NJ Transit and Amtrak yesterday declared they’re on track to fix the infrastructure issues that sparked chronic service meltdowns at Penn Station last year.
Lincoln Center’s sweeping summer arts festival is back for its fourth season, with more than 200 free or $5 minimum “choose-what-you-pay” events, ranging from jazz and classical music to dance and theater to opera and comedy.
Astoria, the wild turkey who rose to fame last year when she unexpectedly appeared in Midtown, visiting luxury retailers, dining at high-end restaurants and roosting on Park Avenue, returned to Midtown East on Sunday.
A grand jury has handed up criminal indictments against roughly 10 state correction officers in connection with the March 1 beating death of 22-year-old Messiah Nantwi at Mid-State Correctional Facility in Oneida County.
“The tragic death of Mr. Nantwi at the hands of correction officers who are responsible for protecting the incarcerated population is deeply, deeply disturbing,” Hochul said in a brief video message.
Sticker Mule, the online custom printing and promotional merchandise company led by would-be congressional candidate Anthony Constantino, has laid off 68 employees at its Amsterdam production facility, Constantino confirmed via email.
Federal officials offered preliminary details of their investigation into the plane crash that killed six people in Columbia County over the weekend.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
