The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact: The alliance between Ted Cruz and John Kasich was all Donald Trump needed to uncork the venom and abandon any attempt at “presidential” behavior. Trump said at a rally, “It shows how weak they are. It shows how pathetic they are.” He was back to calling Ted Cruz, “Lyin’ Ted.”

Cruz and Kasich, neither of whom is close to winning the nomination, are cooperating to deny the nomination to Trump by campaigning in separate states and not challenging each other for votes. Denying the obvious, Kasich announced, “I don’t see this as any big deal.”

Trump tweeted, “Lyin’ Ted Cruz and 1 for 38 Kasich are unable to beat me on their own so they have to team up (collusion) in a two on one.”

Pig in a Poke: Win or lose, today’s Pennsylvania primary is likely to feed Trump’s complaint that the Republican nomination process is rigged. The winner in Pennsylvania gets 17 delegates and Trump has a wide lead going into the vote. But wait. Pennsylvania also has 54 “free agent” delegates who are elected without being required to give any indication how they will vote at the convention.

It’s a “pig in a poke,” as they say in farm country. How those free agents vote could determine whether Trump has the requisite 1,237 to win the nomination on the first convention vote.

Every state has its own rules for picking delegates. Indiana’s delegates have already been appointed, even though the state’s primary isn’t until May 3. The delegates tend to be party insiders and many support John Kasich, even though the primary results might bind them to Trump for the first convention vote.

Getting Closer: Five northeastern states hold their primaries today giving Hillary Clinton the opportunity to all but lock up the Democratic nomination. By tonight, Bernie Sanders may be left with no mathematical hope of winning.

Détente: Fox News announced that Trump will submit to an interview with Megyn Kelly, the host he loves to hate.

Police Beat: The family of Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old Cleveland boy shot by police in 2014 while he was playing with a toy gun, has reached a $6 million settlement with the city. The rookie officer who shot Tamir within a split second of arriving at a public playground was never charged with a crime. In recent months Chicago, Baltimore, and New York have all reached settlements between $5 million and $6.4 million with families of people killed by their police officers.

After Further Review: The New England Patriots may have to play a quarter of their season without their star quarterback. In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the US Court of Appeals in Manhattan reinstated the four game suspension handed to Patriot Quarterback Tom Brady for playing with deflated footballs. The judges overturned a lower court ruling that voided Brady’s punishment by the NFL.

The panel did not rule on whether Brady was complicit in deflating footballs. They only ruled that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was within his authority as commissioner and the rules of the players’ union contract to send Brady to the bench.

The Obit Page: Jazz singer Billy Paul, a product of “Philadelphia Soul” best known for his slow-moving ballad “Me and Mrs. Jones,” died at home in New Jersey at age 80. It was a salacious song about an affair, with sensual rhythms and lyrics. Paul’s real name was Paul Williams, but he changed it so he would not be confused with the songwriter Paul Williams.

Sorry ‘Bout That: Executives of the ABC Network and ABC News have apologized to Kelly Ripa for blindsiding her with the news that her co-host Michael Strahan is moving over to “Good Morning America.” They say they’re sorry, but this is how they always do business and they’d do it again tomorrow. Ripa is expected to return today to “Live: Kelly and Michael” after a brief protest strike. Inquiring minds want to know what she’ll say.

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