Smash The Bubble

News and opinion from both the left and the right, mixed together so you can break out of your filter bubble.

more info

Today's Headlines

‘They’re Delusional if They Think This Is Going to Go Away’

The Trump administration’s release of the long-awaited Epstein files didn’t provide what survivors were looking for.

Trump Pardoned CO Election Clerk, Gov. Polis Should Too

As Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus, Tina Peters' supporters call on Gov. Polis to reflect that spirit.

DOJ Fact Sheet Explains Drip of Epstein Files Under Review

Amid a firestorm over the release of Jeffrey Epstein files ordered by Friday, the Department of Justice issued a fact sheet Sunday explaining that records remain under review, are subject to redactions, and that some photos have been removed to pr…

Vance Rejects 'Self-Defeating Purity Tests' in GOP

The next presidential election is three years away, but Turning Point USA already knows it wants Vice President JD Vance as the Republican nominee.

Trump’s Affordability Weave

The president can’t seem to stay focused on the issue that voters care about most.

Polygraph Dispute Triggers Suspensions at Cybersecurity Agency

At least six career staffers at CISA were placed on paid leave this summer after organizing a polygraph test that the agency’s acting director failed, Politico reported.

Sen. Paul: Oil Tanker Seizures 'A Prelude to War'

Sen. Rand Paul on Sunday criticized President Donald Trump's military mission off Venezuela's coast, warning that the U.S. seizures of multiple oil tankers in the Caribbean Sea amount to "a provocation and a prelude to war."

U.S. Seizes Another Vessel Off Venezuela's Coast

Personnel from the United States boarded and seized a vessel off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday, according to a US official familiar with the matter, as the Trump administration ramps up pressure on Caracas.

The Last MAGA Prisoner

Trump desperately wants Tina Peters released but can’t make it happen without help.

Our Gift to You This Holiday Season

FBI Director Kash Patel says bureau ramping up AI to counter domestic, global threats

FBI Director Kash Patel announces artificial intelligence expansion to combat evolving threats and keep America ahead of "bad actors" in the digital age.

How Kyrsten Sinema's decision makes Democrats' 2024 Senate map tighter

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema decided to shake up the political world on Friday by becoming an independent. The former Democrat is still caucusing with the party in the Senate, so the Democratic caucus still has 51 members. Now, instead of 49 Democr…

A Bear in a China Trap

It is not easy to see how Putin can get out from underneath China’s thumb.

Bondi Was Not a Surprise

The massacre at Bondi Beach was shocking—but after years of denial and equivocation about antisemitism, it was inevitable.

Trump Takes America’s ‘Imperial Presidency’ to a New Level

In his first year back in the White House, President Trump has greatly expanded executive power while embracing the trappings of royalty in ways not seen in the modern era.

BBC Can't Admit the Obvious

Witkoff: Ukraine Talks Over Past Few Days Were Productive

A White House envoy said Sunday he held "productive and constructive" talks in Florida with Ukrainian and European representatives to end the nearly four-year war between Russia and Ukraine.

Media ‘complicity’ blamed as feds say Minnesota fraud crisis could reach $9B: 'Shown their true colors'

Minnesota's media outlets are facing scrutiny from conservatives after a massive fraud scandal has exploded on the national scene after over five years of speculation.

AmericaFest honors Target employee Jeanie Beeman after viral video shows calm response to harassment

Target employee Jeanie Beeman was honored at AmericaFest after going viral for calmly handling a confrontation over her Charlie Kirk T-shirt at work.

DNI Gabbard warns ‘Islamist ideology’ threatens Western freedom at AmFest

Tulsi Gabbard warns of "Islamist ideology" threat at conservative gathering, citing canceled Christmas markets in Germany as security concerns mount.

Bondi Beach Massacre: Australia’s Deadliest Terrorist Attack

Fifteen people are dead after gunmen opened fire at a Jewish Hanukkah festival on one of Sydney’s most iconic beaches.

Why Johnny Can't Read

ICE lodges detainer for illegal immigrant charged in brutal killing of New York taxi driver

An immigration detainer was issued for a suspect in a gruesome cab driver killing, as the Trump administration continues with border security crackdown efforts.

Cynthia Lummis, a One-Term G.O.P. Senator, Will Not Seek Re-election

A conservative who has served in the Senate since 2021, Ms. Lummis attributed the decision to the “difficult, exhausting session” this fall on Capitol Hill.

Wonder Confronts Certainty, Then and Now

When it comes to human beings, learning must not consist in committing a pre-packaged truth to memory, but an endless process of discovery and self-critique.

John Roberts’s Dream Is Finally Coming True

The chief justice has been working to neuter the Voting Rights Act since the beginning of his career.

The Axe Files with David Axelrod

Go beyond the soundbites and get to know some of the most interesting players in politics.

Move Aside, Snowflake: ‘Theater Kid’ Is the New Go-To Political Insult

Zohran Mamdani, New York’s mayor-elect, is among the latest politicians to be tagged with the term, raising the question: What did theater kids do to deserve such scorn?

Susie Wiles Gets in Trouble for Saying What Everyone Knows

The Trump administration delivers yet more shocks but no surprises.

Vance says 'America First' movement rejects 'purity tests,' welcomes critical thinkers

JD Vance tells AmericaFest that president Trump built the greatest coalition by rejecting purity tests and welcoming freethinkers to America First.

After rough 2025 elections, top GOP hopeful says conservatism’s future runs through sound economic message

Former RNC Chair Michael Whatley campaigns across North Carolina for Senate seat, joining Trump at Rocky Mount rally as GOP aims to flip key races in 2026.

The Infinite Reopening of History

Removal, expulsion, ethnic cleansing, erasure, even genocide. These are the fruits of the idea that the world can be made right again by undoing history.

The Bigots in Mamdani’s Midst

Catherine Almonte De Costa’s resignation does not mitigate the problem represented by Mamdani’s prejudices and those for which his transition team selects.

“These Songs Are Timeless”

Forty Years on, Dire Straits’ bassist John Illsley talks to Quillette about the band’s 1985 masterpiece, ‘Brothers in Arms.’

Trump makes affordability pitch in struggling corner of N.C., his last rally of 2025

Trump used the rally to hammer the issue his advisers want him to emphasize as his poll numbers lag.

Lou Cannon, Post reporter and preeminent Reagan biographer, dies at 92

His books on Reagan “have never been transcended,” said presidential historian Douglas Brinkley.

Friday's Final Word

The notable legal clouds that continue to hang over Donald Trump

All eyes are on former President Donald Trump, who has launched another White House bid.

Lindsey Graham Warns: Hamas and Hezbollah Rearming

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., warned on Sunday that Hamas appeared to be rearming and trying to strengthen its control of Gaza, while Hezbollah continued to produce weapons in Lebanon.

Saturday's Final Word

The State That Handed Trump His Biggest Defeat Yet

Indiana Republicans overwhelmingly rejected a redistricting plan backed by the president.

Trump's team reports concrete progress in Ukraine peace negotiations with European partners

Ukraine peace talks in Florida reportedly show major progress as president Trump's envoy works with Ukrainian officials on framework to end Russia war.

From the Goldberg’s to the Icebergs

Bondi is Australia, Australia is Bondi Beach.

3I/ATLAS Shrugs (or Not)

In the extraordinarily unlikely event that it was some sort of alien craft, its best moment for getting in touch or wiping us out has passed.

Nicki Minaj Praises Trump, Vance at Turning Point Event

Female rapper Nicki Minaj on Sunday made a surprise appearance at a Turning Point USA event in Arizona that was memorializing late conservative leader Charlie Kirk, and used her time on stage to praise President Donald Trump and Vice President JD …

In the wake of the Republican National Convention earlier this month, Fareed speaks with historian Niall Ferguson about how and why the modern-day GOP has changed since the Reagan era of the 1980s.

Bondi Was Not a Surprise: How Antisemitism Was Normalised in Australia

Why the Bondi attack was not an aberration, but the consequence of years of tolerated antisemitism across Australian public life.

Trump faces narrowing options on Venezuela action

The administration’s death toll from strikes on alleged drug boats crests 100 as it ratchets up a unilateral blockade of sanctioned Venezuelan oil tankers.

9 Pharma Companies Strike Deal To Lower Drug Prices

President Donald Trump has pushed to lower drug prices for Americans, which are on average nearly three times higher than overseas.

DOJ Appealing Decision Dismissing Comey, Letitia James Cases

The Department of Justice announced it would appeal a judge's decision to dismiss the cases against former FBI director James Comey and New York Attorney Letitia James, insisting that the prosecutor ruled unlawfully appointed by the court remains …

A Progressive Blueprint To Fix Government

Government is slow, inefficient, and sclerotic. A former senior Biden official offers a progressive blueprint to fix it.

Dispelling Polyamory and Other Delusions — The Newest Issue of NR Is Out

The February 2026 issue of National Review magazine is a gem.

NEW: Trump Orders Seizure of Second Tanker Carrying Venezuelan Oil (Updated)

A Nakedly Imperialistic President

After pretending the attacks on Venezuela were about drugs, Trump confirms it's about the oil.

Trump’s Inferno of Hate Is Intensifying

When a man with the president’s personality feels besieged and abandoned, he becomes more desperate and more dangerous.

Instead of Draining the Swamp, Trump Starts Renaming It After Himself

The biggest takeaway from the Kennedy Center name change is the pointlessness of it all.

Father and Son, Partners in Terror

The identity of the Bondi Beach terrorists reveals some uncomfortable but important truths about antisemitism within Australia’s Muslim population.

Do We Need to Worry About Donald Trump’s Age?

It’s not time to be alarmed about Trump’s age. But as Yogi Berra once said, it gets late early here.

Sen. Lankford Warns Against US Arms in Venezuela

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., warned against using the U.S. military to force regime change in Venezuela, adding, "if you break it, you buy it."

Let the Lord Enter: Sunday Reflection

What Norman Podhoretz Taught Me

By standing boldly for what he believed in, he helped shape the course of the 20th century.

Conservatives Want the Antebellum Constitution Back

The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments are in trouble.

Epstein Files Photos Disappear From Government Website, Including One of Trump

A total of 16 photos were taken down at some point on Saturday from the website that the Justice Department created. One featured an open drawer containing other photos, including at least one of President Trump.

Two lawmakers seek to find Bondi in contempt over Epstein files

Justice Department explains deletion of documents on agency’s website, including the temporary disappearance of an image that includes a photo of Trump with bikini-clad women.

Trump Says He’ll Meet with Insurance Companies Amid Affordability Push

‘I’m going to call in the insurance companies that are making so much money, and they have to make less, a lot less.’

Property Tax Revolt Exploding Across US

Can Money Buy Americans Happiness?

Ordinary Americans today enjoy a living standard that would have awed kings for most of human history.

It's Never Been a Worse Time To Be a Democrat

The Democrats appear bent on not learning a thing from their 2024 disaster. Instead of learning from their autopsy, they are ignoring it.

Sunday Smiles

White House teases major housing affordability plan as prices squeeze Americans

Kevin Hassett says President Donald Trump will review housing policy ideas at Mar-a-Lago after Christmas, promising relief for struggling homebuyers.

Everything you need to know about Biden's student loan forgiveness program

President Joe Biden's federal student loan forgiveness program, which promises to deliver up to $20,000 of debt relief for millions of borrowers, is on hold indefinitely as legal challenges work their way through the courts.

Podcast #317: Sri Lankan by Birth, Tamil by Heritage, Canadian by Choice

Jonathan Kay speaks with Roy Ratnavel about his journey from a prison cell in war-torn Sri Lanka to the heights of Canada’s financial industry—and the lessons about immigration and multiculturalism he learned along the way.

Sydney Sweeney’s Offscreen Image Contrasts With Progressive Onscreen Roles

Onscreen, she tends to play women fighting the patriarchy; offscreen the image she cultivates has meant conservatives consider her one of their own.

Chanukah Is Relevant for Everyone -- but Not in the Way You Might Think

Reporting from Bondi Beach After the Terror Attack

Claire Lehmann reports from Bondi Beach on the sombre atmosphere and public anger following the terror attack.

Sen. Graham: Putin Pulling a 'Lucy With the Football'

Russia's Vladimir Putin is potentially playing the U.S. and the world with disingenuous peace talks, likening the effort to Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown, according to Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

Senator Hawley, the White House, and Abortion

Axios claimed that Hawley’s new pro-life initiative is a way to position himself to JD Vance’s right in time for the 2028 presidential primaries.

The Nazi in My Family

Evil pollutes everything it touches; for a long time I wrestled with my own shame, as though I bore some guilt by association.

Meet the woman steering Biden's bipartisan winning streak on Capitol Hill

The Biden administration managed to rack up a long list of major legislative wins in its first two years despite facing one of the most closely-divided Congresses in history. From bipartisan action on infrastructure, gun safety and same-sex marria…

Cooke: Yes, Of Course They Discriminated Against White Males on the Basis of Race 

‘It seems entirely obvious that what is described in that Compact piece happened and happened at scale. There’s no point denying it.’

CNN Political Briefing

The political news you need to know, in 10 minutes or less. Hosted by David Chalian.

Government Control in the Digital Age

Rapper Nicki Minaj teams up with new Turning Point USA leader Erika Kirk for Q&A session

Rapper Nicki Minaj shifts political support toward President Donald Trump after speaking about Christian persecution in Nigeria, and teams up with Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk.

Podcast #316: The Genius of Jane Austen

Iona Italia talks to English Literature professor John Mullan about the innovative genius of Jane Austen.

U.S. strikes dozens of sites in Syria in retaliation for troops’ deaths

The expansive operation follows the killing last weekend of two U.S. soldiers and their interpreter at a military base in the city of Palmyra.

What Parents and Teachers Should Be Asking

Parent empowerment, along with learning innovations developed outside of the federal government, are the future.

What Explains Trump’s Aggression Toward Venezuela? Who Knows.

To better understand the president’s foreign policy, one must study the behavior of small children.

Cynicism and Cigarettes

Richard Linklater’s film about the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s ‘À Bout de Souffle’ is a delight.

The year Trump broke the federal government

How DOGE and the White House carried out a once-unthinkable transformation of the nation’s sprawling bureaucracy.

Politics of the Day

Politics of the Day

Vice President Kamala Harris, a former US senator from California who previously served as the state's attorney general, could be the first Black woman and Asian American to lead a major party ticket after receiving President Joe Biden's support t…

How the Supreme Court’s Mail-In Ballot Ruling Could Affect Voters

Hundreds of thousands of Americans in rural and urban areas alike could see their votes rejected if the court decides that ballots must arrive by Election Day.

Blanche Says Mentions of Trump in Epstein Files Won’t Be Removed

In an interview with NBC, the No. 2 official at the Justice Department denied that officials were protecting the president from what has been disclosed.

Trump Still Needs Susie Wiles

The president made clear he supports his chief of staff despite her Vanity Fair comments.

Epstein files include child porn complaint a decade before federal investigation

Maria Farmer has long claimed that she warned the FBI about Jeffrey Epstein in the 1990s but that the agency ignored her complaint.

Government’s historic role as trusted information source is under threat

The U.S. government for decades has been the world’s leading provider of reliable data. Many researchers wonder if that is still the case.

What Rob Reiner Said About and Did to Donald Trump

Turning Point’s Annual Gathering Turns Into a Gripefest

At AmericaFest, conservative leaders insulted one another, revealing serious rifts over conspiracy theories, antisemitism and who belongs in America.

The fine print of the Respect for Marriage Act

Let's start with the positive: Republicans and Democrats are coming together to protect same-sex marriage from the Supreme Court.

Republicans' Self-Created Health Care Problem

Another series of failures ensures that a debate they can't win will extend into the election year of 2026.

Hope, Hopelessness and the Case for Prayer

On the science of hope and hopelessness

Democrats Are Letting Illegal Immigrants Kill People

Democrats are so devoted to illegal immigration that they are letting violent illegal immigrants free and getting people killed.

Fareed explains why AI's massive energy demands are straining the power grid, but also why AI could enable big breakthroughs in sustainability and clean energy.

US Pursues Third Oil Tanker Off Coast of Venezuela

The U.S. Coast Guard on Sunday was pursuing another sanctioned oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea as the Trump administration appeared to be intensifying its targeting of such vessels connected to the Venezuelan government.

U.S. Coast Guard Boards Tanker Carrying Venezuelan Oil

Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, said a vessel had been “apprehended.” It was the second action this month against a tanker carrying Venezuelan oil.

USAID Hired the Right-Wing Influencer Responsible for Its Decimation

Mike Benz was brought aboard to find evidence for his claims that the agency is secretly a spy operation.

Bill Clinton Photos in Epstein Files Show He Can’t Escape Scandal

The Republican-led Justice Department’s release of photos of the former president with Jeffrey Epstein will introduce yet another generation to his flaws and controversies.

Margins of Error

Look closely at almost anything and you'll find data—lots of it. But what are those numbers really saying about who we are and what we believe? Harry Enten is on a mission to find out.

Assessing the President’s Drug Deals

Trump has cajoled major drugmakers into offering discounts in exchange for tariff and regulatory relief, but few patients will see any savings as a result.

Trump Is Leaning on Son-in-Law Jared Kushner for Difficult Diplomacy

As the dawn rose on President Donald Trump's second term, one key figure from his first administration stood back, content to focus on his personal business interests and not retake a formal government role.

Former Brown University student and friend to Ella Cook blames 'spending priorities' for lack of security

Brown University allegedly failed to prevent a campus murder due to outdated security systems, says former student who exposed administrative waste.

Byron Donalds urges conservatives to ‘focus on the mission’ at AmericaFest after 2025 setbacks

Byron Donalds urges conservatives to 'focus on the mission' after recent losses, emphasizing need for tangible results and voter turnout strategies.

Tucker Carlson inflames a raging battle for MAGA’s future

The provocative podcaster has an audience – online, among influencers and inside the White House. That worries some on the right.

Angela Alsobrooks on first Senate year: The mission was ‘crystal clear.’

Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks profile rose after her grilling of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during his appointment hearing went viral.

U.S. Coast Guard Is Chasing an Oil Tanker Linked to Venezuela

U.S. forces had boarded a different tanker on Saturday. The actions signaled a crackdown on such vessels.

U.S. Has Been Stuck for Too Long, We're Due for 5% Growth

GDP is still the best overall measure of our economy. It stands for gross domestic product. It covers consumption, investment, government, and trade.

Republican women shrinking their ranks in Congress

Retirements, resignations and tough elections could cut into their growing numbers from recent elections.

What’s in the Epstein files? Documents mention Trump, Clinton, celebrities

Some files that were posted to the site were deleted without explanation, only to be restored several hours later.

Is Florida Right to Propose Freezing the Hiring of Foreign Profs?

Governor Ron DeSantis has done yeoman’s work in trying to reshape higher education in his state.

Mamdani Inauguration to Usher in ‘New Era’ With Broadway Block Party

Zohran Mamdani will be sworn in as New York City’s new mayor on Jan. 1, alongside a party spanning seven blocks that will accommodate 40,000 spectators, his transition team said.