Catching Our Eye News Roundup, April 21, 2026

Every morning in the Ohio Capital Journal’s free newsletter, The Eye-Opener, we round up the news and commentary from across Ohio and around the country and world that is catching our attention. We call this feature Catching Our Eye, republished here.

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Catching Our Eye

• Bribery scandal fallout. The Associated Press’ Julie Carr Smyth reports, “Republicans plan big spending to keep Ohio’s Senate seat. A bribery scandal adds to their challenges.”

As he seeks to retain his U.S. Senate seat this fall, Ohio Republican Jon Husted has been unable to escape the shadow of a $60 million bribery scandal that has roiled state politics for more than five years.

Husted was recently called to testify as a defense witness in the related criminal trial of two former energy executives, testimony he might have to reprise after a hung jury led to a mistrial in the case in March. A judge in Akron scheduled the retrial to begin Sept. 28, meaning Husted could be back on the witness stand a week before early voting begins for the November elections.

The former lieutenant governor and Ohio secretary of state has never been charged with or accused of any wrongdoing. But the vast public record that has emerged from the scandal has raised questions about Husted’s dealings with key players who have been indicted or imprisoned in the scheme, which revolved around legislative approval of a $1 billion bailout for the state’s two nuclear power plants.

• JD Vance vs. the Pope. The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Dan Horn reports, “JD Vance told Catholics to stop arguing. Then he took on Pope Leo.”

Pope Leo XIV and JD Vance made headlines with their public dispute over the Iran war. But America’s two most prominent Catholics had been building to that moment for more than a year.

The pope and vice president disagree on a wide range of issues, from the death penalty and climate change to President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.

• Iran war. The Wall Street Journal reports, “Behind Trump’s Public Bravado on the War, He Grapples With His Own Fears.”

A president who thrives on drama is bringing an even more intense version of his unorthodox, maximalist approach to a new situation—fighting a war. He is veering between belligerent and conciliatory approaches and grappling behind the scenes with just how badly things could go wrong.

At the same time, the president sometimes loses focus, spending time on the details of his plans for the White House ballroom or on midterm fundraisers—and telling advisers he wants to shift to other topics.

• Insider trading? BBC News reports, “The insider trading suspicions looming over Trump’s presidency.”

Throughout US President Donald Trump’s second term in office, traders have been betting millions of dollars just before he makes major announcements.

The BBC has examined trade volume data on several financial markets and matched them to some of the president’s most significant market-moving statements. It found a consistent pattern of spikes just hours, or sometimes minutes, before a social media post or media interview was made public.

Some analysts say it bears the hallmarks of illegal insider trading, whereby bets are made by people based on information that is not available to the general public.

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