You might have read something about Ross Douthat’s podcast last week. Becca Rothfeld reviews the new book by Leah Libresco Sargeant, one of the guests on that show. www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/1...

Most of Trump’s deportation campaign is inaccessible because after arrests are made, it is moving quickly, far from public view. For every person arrested whose name and story we’ve learned, there are thousands we haven’t heard about @caitlindickerson.bsky.social www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...

How many kids first experience of the state will be of masked men grabbing people?

real sense in which last night was fairly predictable. real question is why our pundits and the elites who listen to them couldn’t see it. (gift link)

Breaking news: Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani is elected as the next mayor of New York City, defeating former New York governor Andrew Cuomo and becoming the first Muslim and first of Indian descent to hold the office. https://wapo.st/47rlrDf

Every single county in Virginia shifted Blue.

NYC is on pace to see its highest voter turnout since the 1960s. Nearly 2 million New Yorkers have already cast their ballots in the mayoral race between Mamdani and Cuomo — and the polls are still open.

All day, many of you have been asking for a Cheney obituary from me. Get ready:

thank you for all the support; the statement from our union is now live here with some more reporting. now that this is public I can confirm that the majority of today’s layoffs were women of color. there are no longer any Black women working at Teen Vogue.

I’m crying www.semafor.com/article/10/2...

*clicks dramatically*

Justice Sotomayor with a graphic dissent as the Supreme Court allows Alabama to move forward with the execution of Anthony Boyd by lethal gas:

"Being alive at the slop tipping point doesn’t feel like an emergency, exactly, but more like slowly giving over to a pervasive disorientation." Always read @cwarzel.bsky.social on AI. Sharing with a gift link: www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...

absolutely chilling lede in @davidmcswane.bsky.social & @hannahallam.bsky.social story today: "What kind of police go around without license plates?" www.propublica.org/article/trum...

My latest, on a man who supported the war in Afghanistan, came to the U.S. legally, applied for asylum, had two kids, became a bookkeeper, bought an American flag bumper sticker. Then ICE arrested him. If he's deported, he expects the Taliban to kill him. wapo.st/49aGaw2

We’ve met with Greta Thunberg and others in the flotilla. They describe hours-long scenes of torture and sexual harassment in Israeli captivity. Experts conclude that they have been subjected to serious crimes – Sweden’s foreign minister believes they have themselves to blame. tinyurl.se/crR

"... he reminds himself of the promise America made to Afghans who supported its cause: 'Nobody will be left behind.'" Now he's in an ICE detention center. If he's deported, he expects the Taliban to kill him. A must-read by @johnwoodrowcox.bsky.social. Gift link: wapo.st/49aGaw2

SCOOP: The State Department's new reorganization plan includes the opening of an "Office for Remigration," a term popularized by far right extremists and neo-Nazis in Europe. The office will coordinate directly with DHS "to advance the President’s immigration agenda." My report:

📣Calling parents, for a story: Do you have a tween/teen who has interacted with/is currently interacting with an AI companion? I'd love to talk to you about your thoughts/experiences with this issue (and we can avoid identifying you/your kid if needed). Please email me: [email protected].

“Why a teapot should be of such importance to this dog, I don’t know.” 😭 I love him wapo.st/4q7G5zs

BREAKING: Friday night massacre underway at CDC. Doznes of "disease detectives," high-level scientists, entire Washington staff and editors of the MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) have all been RIFed and received the following notice:

In case it wasn’t clear, the anti-DEI crusade has never been about merit. Zero news experience. Never been a reporter. Elevated to Editor in Chief of CBS News, one of the most storied news institutions in the nation. www.mediaite.com/media/news/p...

I know 91 years is an extraordinary run, and Jane Goodall couldn't have put them to more magnificent and meaningful use, but goddamn. It is so painful when someone of this rare caliber leaves us. What a gift she was to every living being on this Earth. wapo.st/3WmnTUU

A top Mamdani adviser tells me internal data shows taking on Trump's authoritarian abuses resonates. It appeals to working class voters across all demographics, countering the frequent claim that this is a "distraction" from issues working people "really" care about. newrepublic.com/article/2011...

This passage nearly broke me.

“Autism does not destroy families. The struggles and battles to get systems of support for their loved ones — THAT is what typically destroys families.” Grateful to the families in the autism community who shared their thoughts, experiences and insight for this one. Gift link: wapo.st/4gNUxZc

Kimmel’s defiant return highlights one of the most disturbing dynamics of Trump II, that so many people in positions of leadership are chickenshit frauds who would rather fold in advance than put up anything resembling a fight www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

Yes I will be fighting back against the unjust firing by @washingtonpost.com. I have filed a grievance and will be represented by none other than the amazing @katiephang.bsky.social and an incredible legal team. Journalistic freedom is a bedrock of a healthy society and is worth battling for.

Here's the full letter: "She did precisely the job you hired her to do as an opinion writer and acted fully in compliance with The Post’s own social media policy."

scoop: Karen Attiah, The Washington Post opinion writer fired by The Post earlier this month over social-media posts related to Charlie Kirk's death, has responded with a four-page letter, saying she was wrongfully terminated. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/b...

An incredible ode to an incredible city. www.washingtonpost.com/entertainmen...

my word nymag.com/intelligence...

Breaking news: Thirty-one journalists were killed in Israeli airstrikes on a newspaper complex in Yemen last week, according to a new report by the Committee to Protect Journalists. They say it was “the deadliest strike on journalists in the Middle East.”

Not really an overstatement to say that the test of a free society is whether or not comedians can make fun of the country's leader on TV without repurcussions.

"Vaccines are safe. They are life-saving, and I would encourage any parent who is concerned about whether or not their child should get a vaccine to talk to their pediatrician to understand the benefits of these life-saving medical products..." — Former CDC director Susan Monarez

Well, Kennedy is going to change the childhood vaccine schedule despite a promise not to—this month, ousted CDC head Susan Monarez says. Kennedy also wanted her to meet with his anti-vaccine lawyer friend, Aaron Siri, the guy who petitioned to revoke the polio vaccine. www.msnbc.com/top-stories/...

"I urge every government, every leader and every citizen to ask: What will we say when our children and grandchildren ask what we did while Gaza was burned to the ground? Every act of genocide is a test of the humanity that binds us." Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/o...

Statement from @postguild.bsky.social on the firing of Karen Attiah:

The right to speak freely is the ultimate personal liberty and the foundation of Karen’s 11-year career at The Post. We’re proud to call Karen a colleague and a longtime union sibling. The Post Guild stands with her and will continue to support her and defend her rights.

The Washington Post wrongly fired Opinions columnist Karen Attiah over her social media posts. The Post not only flagrantly disregarded standard disciplinary processes, it also undermined its own mandate to be a champion of free speech.

Statement from Post Guild Leadership: The Washington Post Guild condemns the unjust firing of columnist Karen Attiah

Some personal news: I've been fired from the Washington Post in the aftermath of the Charlie Kirk shooting. Thread incoming. substack.com/@karenattiah...

“It will take decades to recover from this, if we ever do.” America’s cancer research system, which has helped save millions of lives and is in one of its most productive moments, is under threat by the Trump administration.

Wrote about the week. How the shooter's ID didn't appear to matter to ppl. How the discourse takes place in very same spaces that incubate/perpetuate hate & violence. How shooters now know that their acts will be flattened, analyzed, argued over & amplified. How all of this feels so dark & poisonous

wrote on charlie kirk for the newsletter this weekend

This thread & responses are so funny -- they've inspired a story for the @washingtonpost.com Have you found anything wild or noteworthy in your kid's room? Send me a reply or email [email protected] if you're open to chatting. ty in advance!

All this suggests is that the shooter wants people to believe they're a far-left ideologue. Maybe they are; without more evidence, we don't know. But a far-right "accelerationist" wanting civil war, more hatred, more violence would do the exact same thing.

As scary as this moment is, remember that support for political violence went DOWN after the July 2024 assassination attempt against Trump, not up www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1... We need to make the same thing happen this time.

By the way, you don't have to watch murder videos, and there is a real cost to all the "brutal voyeurism" the internet inflicts on us, as I wrote (and talked with @henryhenryhenry.com about) in 2023. drewharwell.com/stories/what...