Thursday's Headlines: Despite Wisconsin, Cruz struggles to gain mainstream support

Trump to hire 'seasoned operatives' to help navigate looming convention; Obama antagonizing business interests in last year in office; When first ladies meet: An awkward post-election White House tradition; The mysterious message that launched the Panama Papers: 'Hello. This is John Doe.';   The morning's most important stories, selected by Post editors   Top Stories Mary Altaffer / AP Despite Wisconsin, Cruz struggles to gain mainstream support Even after his most convincing victory yet over Donald Trump, Ted Cruz faced a lukewarm reception from many establishment Republicans, highlighting the difficulty he faces in recasting himself as a candidate who can unite the party after years of burning bridges. By Sean Sullivan and Paul Kane  •  Read more » Trump to hire 'seasoned operatives' to help navigate looming convention A larger staff designed to prepare for a likely contested convention could limit the billionaire's ability to micromanage his campaign, which has proven to be both a benefit and a drawback. By Jenna Johnson and Karen Tumulty  •  Read more »   Obama antagonizing business interests in last year in office As evident in three controversial decisions this week, the president seems to have shed any hesitation to take actions critics might call "anti-business" and is making moves that fit the current mood of an angry American electorate. By Juliet Eilperin and Jim Tankersley  •  Read more »   When first ladies meet: An awkward post-election White House tradition A new book offers a look at what happens when it's time to hand over 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. to a new family. The transition hasn't always gone smoothly. By Kate Andersen Brower  •  Read more »   The mysterious message that launched the Panama Papers: 'Hello. This is John Doe.' More than a year after an anonymous source first contacted two German reporters to provide documents that outline how world leaders, celebrities and others allegedly have used offshore companies to shield their wealth from public disclosure, the journalists still have no idea who their source is or why he or she (or possibly they) came to them. By Paul Farhi  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Opinions   Sanders can help or hurt Clinton. It's up to her. By E.J. Dionne Jr.  •  Read more »   GE CEO: Bernie Sanders says we're 'destroying the moral fabric' of America. He's wrong. By Jeffrey R. Immelt  •  Read more »   The voters have spoken: Never Trump By Dana Milbank  •  Read more »   Cruz readies to trounce Trump at the GOP convention By George F. Will  •  Read more »   Obama destroyed Syrians' 'glimmer of hope' that we would intervene By Fred Hiatt  •  Read more »   Iran should pay a price for its ballistic missile tests By Editorial Board  •  Read more » ADVERTISEMENT   More News   The conservative from Kansas behind restrictive voting laws The man who advised Mitt Romney on the idea of "self-deportation" and who wrote Arizona's strict "show me your papers" immigration law is accused of making it harder for minorities to vote. He says it should be easy to vote, but hard to cheat. By Sari Horwitz  •  Read more » Attorneys for former House Speaker Dennis Hastert ask he be spared prison sentence Hastert, 74, pleaded guilty last year in a case involving payments made to a former male student who accused him of sexual molestation. By Matt Zapotosky  •  Read more » Merle Haggard carried life's burdens to the end of the road The country legend, who died Wednesday, filled his most indelible songs with heavy regrets, the kind that haunt life's most tragic transactions. By Chris Richards  •  Read more » After months of restraint, Mexico adopts a new strategy: Standing up to Trump To counter the anti-Mexican sentiment stoked by the GOP presidential front-runner, the government has reshuffled top diplomats and aims to defend the image of its countrymen abroad. By Joshua Partlow  •  Read more » North Carolina's Republican Party has declared war on itself The state GOP's top officials and its chairman — in a rare, public airing of dirty laundry — have traded accusations of website hacking and racism. By Amber Phillips  •  Read more » Texas executes inmate who said he drank 12-year-old victim’s blood The 38-year-old inmate's death marked the 11th execution in the United States this year. More than half of those have been in Texas. By Mark Berman  •  Read more » Calvin Trillin and the New Yorker slammed for poem about Chinese food One critic called the poem "light white verse" while another called it "casually racist." But Trillin and the esteemed magazine both defended it. By Justin Wm. Moyer  •  Read more » 7 charts show who gets divorced in America Data over time shows that the divorce rate is lower than half, but some groups are much more likely to split up than others. By Ana Swanson  •  Read more » Would you park your dog in a locker while you eat brunch? A rentable sidewalk doghouse allows New Yorkers to stash their furry charges while they do errands complicated by a leash and a Labrador. By Kerry Lauerman  •  Read more »         Share Today's Headlines:       Twitter      Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you are signed up for Headlines. 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