Smash The Bubble

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

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Today's Headlines

How I Became an American

As with many other immigrants who choose to become Americans, my path to US citizenship was a long and difficult one. I was born in Chennai, India, and was raised in India, Indonesia, and Singapore. My parents believed deeply in the importance of …

On the Euro-Rash of Enthusiasm for USA

Our culture emphasizes hospitality, and that friendliness is a Yankee glory to be reveled in.

Commemorating the Dobbs Anniversary

We must not understand ourselves as fighting against a procedure, but rather, for human beings.

China’s Last Moonshot

China’s ghost cities are like a mocking glimpse of the Chinese century we were told to expect, and for which we are still waiting.

Here’s What It Means to Be a Democratic Socialist

Universal health care, taxing the wealthy and opposition to military aid to Israel are among the movement’s key tenets.

After Trump’s Outburst, Senate G.O.P. Reverses Course on Iran

In a late-night vote aimed at mollifying the president, Senate Republicans rejected a resolution directing him to end the war against Iran, a day after a bipartisan rebuke.

Migrants not entitled to apply for asylum while standing on Mexico side of border, Supreme Court rules

The 6-3 decision clears the way for the Trump administration to resume allowing federal agents at the border to turn back asylum seekers before they enter.

Homeland Security Wins Big at Supreme Court on Immigration Issues

Cruise Control

Tom Cruise is so determined to entertain big-screen audiences that now every single film release of his is billed as an “event.”

AC Wars Heat Up (Again)

Air-conditioning saves lives.

Democratic socialists cemented power in New York. Next, the rest of the country?

The Democratic Socialists of America won with support outside their usual base. Winning outside New York may be a different challenge.

Supreme Court Allows Trump to Block Asylum Seekers at Border

A policy of turning back asylum seekers at the border was rescinded in 2021, but the Trump administration wants the flexibility to reinstate it as a tool for border control.

Frank Guarini, Seven-Term New Jersey Representative, Dies at 101

A reform-minded Democrat, he served on the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee and offered a pragmatic mix of progressive legislation and conservative fiscal philosophy.

Oil Industry Analysts Are Eating a Lot of Humble Pie

Despite the biggest supply shock in history, the oil market turned out to be significantly more flexible than most experts anticipated.

NY socialist surge could push Dem voters to defect, GOP governor candidate predicts

Bruce Blakeman warns the Democratic Party has veered too far left, predicting traditional Democrats will increasingly vote Republican in elections.

Trump abruptly cancels signing of bipartisan bill on affordable housing

The president posted on social media that the signing was off until the Senate passes his election integrity bill. It is unclear whether he intends to kill the housing bill.

Mamdani-backed socialist primary winner founded group whose goal is to ‘eradicate' Western civilization

Darializa Avila Chevalier, NYC congressional primary winner, reportedly founded a Columbia group that called for total eradication of Western civilization.

Florida GOP candidate warns NYC socialist primary wins will fuel business, resident exodus: 'Concerning'

Florida GOP congressional candidate Scott Singer says New York's socialist primary wins will drive more people and businesses to flee the city.

The Great Canadian Unmarked-Graves Social Panic (2021–2026)

Mia Hughes and Stella O’Malley of the ‘Beyond Gender’ podcast interview Quillette’s Jonathan Kay about the progressive ideological manias spawned during the Justin Trudeau years.

Representative Tom Kean, Missing for Months, Is Back Home in New Jersey

The congressman, who has been absent from Washington since March, answered the door of his home on Wednesday evening. He was wearing a suit and tie.

California's $20 Million Attempt To Silence Medical Speech

In a trial set to begin June 24, California's Attorney General Rob Bonta is asking a court to do something that should alarm every American, regardless of where they stand on abortion: punish nonprofit organizations with ruinous fines for speaking…

GOP Hangs On as Voters Dislike Democrats More

Right now, the indicators still seem to point toward a House controlled by Democrats, but by a smaller margin than was originally thought.

USPS wouldn't deliver ballots in states that refuse to fork over mail-in voter info under proposed rule

Postmaster General David Steiner says USPS would not mail ballots from states that refuse to share absentee voter list with the federal government.

‘Deranged’ vandals fuel Mall sabotage trend, from blood writing to Reflecting Pool damage

Vandals target the National Mall with blood-written messages on the Washington Monument, 8647 markings, and razor-blade cuts to the Reflecting Pool.

No Jews, No News: Gaza 'Flotilla' Activists Held Captive In Libya for Weeks, Nobody Cared

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…

Post-Dobbs Medical Malpractice in Texas

Can we please stop killing children and hurting women?

Wow: Representative Seth Moulton, Candidate for Senate, Assaults Questioner

Congress Could but Won’t

The 21st Century Road to Housing Act is bipartisan legislation aimed at the public’s top concern: affordability.

State of Failure

Trump ignored Clausewitz, and disaster ensued.

How Europe Became the World Champion of Heat Deaths

The continent with the lowest number of hot days leads the world in heat mortality. Europe’s self-inflicted aversion to air conditioning betrays a deeper hostility to energy and to progress itself.

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.

Senate Democrats Will Train Staff as Election Observers

Senator Chuck Schumer, the minority leader, said the program was aimed at counteracting potential efforts by the Trump administration to manipulate elections.

Chemours to Pay $450M in First Federal PFAS Settlement

The settlement addresses the dumping of PFAS “forever chemicals,” which have been linked to cancer and other risks, by Chemours in several states.

Agency and Adaptation

Humans have not merely been shaped by evolution—we have shaped it too, through the environments we chose to inhabit and the lives we chose to lead.

Bernie Sanders, DSA reveal demands for Dem party after socialists sweep New York elections

Bernie Sanders and the DSA warn Democrats after socialist candidates swept New York City's Tuesday elections, claiming a democratic socialist mandate.

After Banner Night, D.S.A. Sharpens Its Policy and Political Ambitions

After democratic socialists captured two House primaries and several state legislative contests in New York, the group’s leaders mulled how to use their expanding influence.

The Hostile Takeover of the Democratic Party That Everyone but the Democrats Saw Coming

There’s some belated grumbling in Democratic ranks about the socialist usurpers. But the party long ago missed its chance to bar the door.

Is It Possible to Defeat AI Cheating by Students?

Let’s go back to pen and paper.

FDA Has Wrong Mission. That's Why It Fails

Congress introduced legislation this month allowing seriously ill patients to access select treatments their physicians would prescribe - without FDA approval.

We May Have Reached the End of the Reflecting Pool Story

Supreme Court Rejects Lawsuit Against Bayer Alleging Roundup Weedkiller Caused Cancer

The court’s decision is likely to determine the future of thousands of lawsuits against Bayer, which manufactures the weedkiller, over similar claims.

Supreme Court hands Trump two major immigration victories

Supreme Court rules migrants turned away at the border cannot apply for asylum and blocks TPS recipients from judicial relief in two major decisions.

With TPS and Southern Border Decisions, Supreme Court Expands Trump’s Power Over Immigration

The court handed President Trump victories in his push to rescind deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of people and turn away migrants at the southern border.

CNN Political Briefing

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

Mamdani Has Power. Here's What He Wants To Do

Being the mayor of New York is an enormous task for anyone, let alone a 34-year-old. But Zohran Mamdani's ambitions seem to go beyond leading the Big Apple. He wants to help remake the national Democratic Party.

Rubio’s new job? Selling Trump’s Iran deal to a worried Gulf.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Arab Gulf leaders to reassure them that America isn’t cutting them out of negotiations with Tehran.

Democratic socialists are winning key races in cities. What that label means.

Zohran Mamdani won the New York mayor contest last year, and two candidates he and the Democratic Socialists of America backed have now won U.S. House primaries.

The Axe Files with David Axelrod

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

Wednesday's Final Word

Supreme Court strikes down blue state's 'vampire rule' in major win for gun rights

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 against Hawaii in Wolford v. Lopez, delivering a major victory for concealed carry holders in the blue state.

Will Moderate Democrats Head for the Exits? Will It Matter if They Do?

Fraud Is an Open Wound on the Social Contract

Fraud draws down more than taxpayer money. It draws down trust, the basic currency of the safety net. A program endures only so long as the public believes resources are going where they should-that benefits reach the people who qualify and no one…

SCOTUS to Hawaii on #2A: Welcome to America, Pals

Democratic socialist won N.Y. primary despite scrutiny over inflammatory posts

Darializa Avila Chevalier, a first-time candidate who unseated a House Democrat, has spent years advocating for Palestinians.

The AC Wars (2)

No moral panic is complete without its superstitions.

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…

Benedict Beckeld on Oikophobia, Islam, and the Crisis of Western Identity | Quillette Cetera Episode 66

Philosopher Benedict Beckeld speaks with Zoe Sankey about oikophobia, the decline of the West, Islam's incompatibility with Western values, and why civilisations at the height of their power sow the seeds of their own undoing.

The 4 GOP senators who broke ranks and voted to block Trump from resuming Iran war

The president seethed at Susan Collins, Bill Cassidy, Lisa Murkowski and Rand Paul after the war powers resolution passed, saying: “I will get it done, one way or the other.”

The Party of the Worker Is Now the Party of the Bureaucrat

The old fight was labour versus capital. The real fight now is between those who create value and those who administer it, and Australia's new budget has picked the wrong side.

How Brexit Made Britain European

Keir Starmer is just the latest victim of a political reality created by Brexit—one that has, counterintuitively, turned Britain into a European country.

Can the Would-Be Revolutionaries Stop Subway Stabbings?

Whoever figures out how to mobilize the folks fed-up with the current state of the city can make New York City great again.

Trans Cultist Charged with Murder of 'Her' Parents

Freedom 250 vs. America250: Who's Doing It Better?

Atwo-week, 50-state fair on the National Mall kicked off Wednesday night with music, fair food, and Air Force flyovers. The crowd of roughly 1,000 sat in folding chairs or stood on a portion of the Mall between the Washington Monument and the U.S.…

On Iran Trump Is Neither Neocon or Obama--and It Is Working

There's vastly too much hand-wringing over President Trump's diplomacy and potential dealmaking with Iran, and it's coming from friends and foes alike.

White House seeks $88 billion from Congress for Iran war

The request mostly includes money for the Pentagon, with $67 billion going toward replenishing the military’s stocks of munitions and the cost of sending so many forces to the Middle East.

Politics of the Day

Politics of the Day

Brexit Didn’t Cost the UK Its Prosperity

The data argue against rejoining the EU.

The British Government Prefers Its Citizens Well Done

Mamdani emerges as kingmaker, and other takeaways from Tuesday’s primaries

Democratic socialist candidates won key races in New York, while more establishment candidates prevailed in other contests.

Jill Biden Sees No Evil

The former first lady’s cataractous view from the East Wing.

Perceptions of Weakness

In his panic-stricken effort to disentangle America from the Middle Eastern mess, Trump now appears to be falling into line with Tehran’s wishes.

Socialist election wins spawn wider identity questions for Democrats

Tuesday’s primary victories for a slate of leftist candidates endorsed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani foretell bigger battles for a Democratic Party trying to win back power nationally.

Petro Puppet Concedes Colombian Election

Trump Throws Tantrum, Holds Housing Bill Hostage

"This bill is a major step toward reducing housing costs for millions of American families, and Donald Trump just doesn't care," Elizabeth Warren told HuffPost.

The Narrow Path for Democrats To Save the Republic

Not to be melodramatic, but I really believe the future of American democracy has been hanging in the balance the past few years.

Federal Judge Strikes Key Parts of Trump Order Restricting Mail Voting

The ruling rejected the Trump administration’s attempt to change federal election procedures through an executive order.

Mamdani-backed candidates sweep House primaries in NYC. See live results.

Three left-wing hopefuls backed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani won their races, including two who unseated incumbents.

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.

China is Tightening the Noose Around Taiwan

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.

How About We Just Play Baseball?

Athletes have every right to reject Pride symbols that—as activists themselves loudly insist—signify an increasingly radicalised set of ‘queer’ political demands.

The Art of Looking

A tribute to David Hockney (1937–2026).

Judge Throws Out Federal Suit Against 4 N.J. ‘Sanctuary’ Cities

Judge Evelyn Padin ruled the Justice Department’s lawsuit ​was flawed because it did not also challenge a state directive limiting local cooperation with federal immigration agents.

Dobbs at Four

Pro-lifers should rightly celebrate Dobbs, but we need to be clear-eyed about the challenges we face in the future.

Most Trump supporters still back NATO despite years of Trump's criticism, new poll finds

A new Reagan Institute poll finds 73% of Americans, including 61% of MAGA Republicans, say keeping the U.S. in NATO is important to national security.

Skateboarders vs Communism

Johnson races to break House GOP blockade in high-stakes meeting with Trump

House Speaker Mike Johnson will meet with Trump in an effort to break the impasse as GOP infighting stalls key legislation ahead of the August recess deadline.

'As long as it takes': Trump allies freeze House floor to pressure Senate on voter ID bill

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna leads conservatives vowing to block all House floor votes until Republicans pass the SAVE America Act.

Senate Republican pushes overhaul to cut red tape and speed up American energy projects

Sen. Alan Armstrong introduces the American Energy and Mineral Infrastructure Act of 2026, aiming to reform permitting and boost U.S. energy production.

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.

Claire's Weekly Letter: Perceptions of Weakness

Hegseth thwarted internal efforts to extend key Army general’s career

Gen. Christopher Donahue, seen as a top warfighter, is the latest apparent casualty in a purge of senior military leaders by the Trump administration.