Uncharted territory

Donald Trump’s indictment ensures he’s still dominating the headlines [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Joe Biden might be US president, but Donald Trump is still dominating headlines as if he never left the Oval Office. His indictment yesterday by a Manhattan grand jury makes him the first former commander-in-chief to face criminal charges. The decision to proceed with a case against him for his role in paying hush money to a porn star set off a familiar rush of angry tweets and cable news craziness. Key reading: - [Trump Indicted in Historic Case, Set to Be Arraigned Next Week]( - [Trump’s New York Indictment Leads String of Potential Legal Woes]( - [Will Trump Do a Perp Walk? Everything to Know About Indictments]( - [DeSantis Says Won’t Help Extradite Trump After NY Indictment]( - [Trump Indictment Is Going to Make US Politics Even More Divisive]( - Help us make this newsletter better by [filling out this survey.]( There are still many unknowns, such as when Trump will surrender and whether or not he’ll have to do a perp walk. His defense attorney says the arraignment make take place as soon as Tuesday. Trump was at his Mar-a-Lago home when the indictment came down. But he won’t have to worry about Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a potential rival in the 2024 Republican presidential primary, sending federal officers to arrest him. He ruled out state cooperation in an extradition request. Another potential rival, his former vice president, Mike Pence, called the indictment an “outrage.” Twice impeached and acquitted while in power, Trump still faces possible prosecutions in other cases, including his role in inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection and trying to overturn the election results in Georgia. While details of the charges haven’t been disclosed, Trump now joins an ignominious list of indicted political leaders with popular followings who have pursued — and often won — high office, including Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi and Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu. A key question centers on the impact his legal troubles will have on the Republican presidential race. A Fox News poll, taken after reports of his impending indictment were well known, showed Trump expanding his lead over DeSantis and other GOP hopefuls. With Trump’s arrest apparently imminent, the country is rocketing forward into an even more bitterly partisan era than before. He has already warned of “potential death and destruction.” The plot line for next year’s presidential election is now set: Trump versus the establishment, with the future of the country hanging in the balance.— [Joshua Green]( Trump at the Conservative Political Action Conference on March 4. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg Coming Soon: Understand power in Washington through the lens of business, government and the economy. [Sign up now]( for the new Bloomberg Washington Edition newsletter delivered weekdays. Click [here]( for this week’s most compelling political images, and if you are enjoying this newsletter, sign up [here](. Global Headlines Low-key approach | The Biden administration is going to unprecedented lengths to [play down]( the importance of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen’s visit to the US this week, as officials try to keep an already soured relationship with China from getting worse. [Jenny Leonard]( and [Cindy Wang]( report that Tsai scrapped some events and limited her press engagements, which were seen as most likely to draw Beijing’s ire. - Biden’s efforts to put [a floor]( under the rapidly deteriorating relationship with China have not yet succeeded, his top Asia adviser said. Tsai in New York yesterday. Photographer: John Minchillo/AP Photo Chip restrictions | Japan said it will expand restrictions on exports of 23 types of cutting-edge [chipmaking technology](, as the US ratchets up efforts to limit China’s access to key semiconductor knowhow. About 10 Japanese companies including leading gearmaker Tokyo Electron would need to get licenses to ship a broader-than-expected array of equipment used to transform silicon into chips. The UK will join an 11-nation Indo-Pacific free-trade bloc, becoming the first new member since its creation, in a bid to strengthen ties with new partners following its divorce from the European Union. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government sees [membership]( of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which includes Australia, Japan and Canada, as a boost for economic growth and geopolitical relations. Debt worries | More than their European peers, Finnish voters are fretting about the state of the Nordic country’s [public finances](, making debt a top issue in a close-run election. While the three main parties are neck-and-neck in polls heading into Sunday’s ballot, Petteri Orpo’s opposition National Coalition Party, which wants a strict limit on borrowing, is narrowly in the lead. - Turkey’s parliament voted to approve Finland’s membership in NATO, removing the final [obstacle]( to the accession of Russia’s neighbor into the defense alliance as its 31st member. Prime Minister Sanna Marin, left, and Orpo during a televised election debate on Wednesday. Photographer: Markku Ulander/Getty Images Best of Bloomberg Opinion - [Elon Musk Wants to Pause AI? It’s Too Late for That: Parmy Olson]( - [UK Can Learn From Bangladesh on Climate Crisis: Lara Williams]( - [Macron Should Stand His Ground Against Protesters: Editorial]( Impeachment process | Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso insisted he is innocent of a graft charge leveled by the opposition, calling the accusations and a move to impeach him a [power grab](. The embattled 67-year-old leader faces removal from office less than two years into his term after the Constitutional Court voted to send a case against him to congress. Explainers You Can Use - [How China Aims to Counter US Efforts at ‘Containment’]( - [Flight to Money Funds Is Adding to the Strains on Small Banks]( - [New Oil Heavyweights in Asia Spark Rush for Ships to Move Fuel]( G-20 optimism | India is turning more optimistic about [achieving a consensus]( from Group of 20 nations on the language used to describe Russia’s war in Ukraine, a source says. [Sudhi Ranjan Sen]( reports that representatives from various countries have stayed in the same room in recent meetings, marking a contrast with the regular walkouts during similar talks last year in Indonesia. Watch Bloomberg TV’s Balance of Power at 5pm to 6pm ET weekdays with Washington correspondents [Annmarie Hordern]( and [Joe Mathieu](. You can watch and listen on Bloomberg channels and online [here](. News to Note - Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree to enroll into the army 147,000 [conscripts]( aged between 18 and 27 during the spring draft that will start tomorrow, according to the Kremlin. - The European Commission told member states that a $60-a-barrel cap on the price of Russian oil is proving [effective]( in hurting the Kremlin’s access to petrodollars while not disrupting the market, and will remain unchanged for now. - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will face his [main opponent]( Kemal Kilicdaroglu at general elections on May 14 alongside two other contenders, in one of the biggest tests yet to Erdogan’s two decades in power. - Malaysia’s highest court rejected Najib Razak’s application to review his conviction related to the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal, in a [fresh blow]( to the jailed former prime minister. Pop quiz (no cheating!) Which South Pacific atoll is asking the International Court of Justice to rule on what countries must do ensure the global temperature rise is below the Paris Agreement target of 1.5 degrees Celsius? Send your answers to balancepower@bloomberg.net. And finally … A Cairo landmark that housed the notorious security service may now become a place to [hang out](, shop and even willingly spend the night. Egypt’s sovereign wealth fund said it plans to turn the former Interior Ministry headquarters into a mixed-use destination that includes retail, technology hubs, a business school campus and a hotel. It’s part of a push to transform buildings once synonymous with dysfunction and bureaucracy, as well as reports of unlawful detentions and beatings. A sign in front of skyscrapers in Egypt's New Administrative Capital, east of Cairo, in July 2022. Photographer: Islam Safwat/Bloomberg Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? 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