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

Something’s Missing

9/11 took a piece of America with it. My generation has no idea.

C.I.A. Officer Found With Gold Bars in Basement Reaches Tentative Plea Deal

David J. Rush was fired from the C.I.A. after the F.B.I. found 303 gold bars in his Virginia home. Officials have said he created a fake classified program to funnel himself millions of dollars.

Ted Cruz Is Right About the ‘Islamism’ Threat

Cruz was blunt about the nature of the threat that the progressive left is incubating.

C.I.A. Releases Intelligence Sent to Clinton and Bush on Al Qaeda Before 9/11 Attacks

The spy agency released dozens of intelligence documents it had sent to Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, outlining what was known about Al Qaeda.

Path to Zero: The Botched Withdrawal From Afghanistan

Five years after the fall of Kabul, this Wall Street Journal opinion documentary investigates the day-to-day process of America's disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, told by the people who lived it.

EXCLUSIVE: Pence group knocks Vance plan to pay stay-at-home parents up to $9K per child

Advancing American Freedom warns JD Vance's childcare subsidy for stay-at-home parents could invite government intrusion and create work disincentives.

For years, Bush was mocked for this 9/11 moment. Now he’s painted it.

President George W. Bush took up painting after leaving the White House in 2009 and has since made it a conspicuous part of his post-presidency.

Reflecting Pool Contractor Blames Its Own Repairs, Not Vandals, for Damage

The contractor said the pool’s new blue liner peeled and tore because of “human oversight” and a flawed plan that involved layering two incompatible chemicals, documents show.

9/11 sent them to war. 25 years later, veterans grapple with what followed

John Byrnes was at Hunter College on 9/11 before securing Ground Zero. Now he and four other veterans wrestle with what the wars accomplished.

Case Studies of How Democrats Lie to Voters

Sometimes, candidates just acknowledge things that everyone already knows but that no one ever says out loud.

The Worst Day

The creeping anxiety induced by low-flying planes of any sort lasted for years.

Sept. 11 Tested Us, But It Did Not Break Us

In her speech at the Pentagon, President Bush's national security adviser recalls the horror of that morning.

Mail-in Ballot Case and Trump’s Statutory Authority

The Constitution makes states and Congress supreme in regulating elections. The president cannot usurp that power on the pretext of overseeing the Postal Service.

Federal Judge Poised to Dismiss Lawsuit Challenging Trump’s Library

The judge, in halting the pretrial fact-finding process, said President Trump’s claim of immunity could “dispose of the entire case” involving the library to be built in Miami.

Saudis Shut Down Major Pipeline After Drone Attack

Color Me Confused: How Are Chinese Nationals Working on CBP Computers?

Pro-Natalist Policies Can Work

The mixed record of such programs in other countries suggests that the design of particular policies matters a lot.

‘Open sore’: Families face agonizing wait as 9/11 mastermind's trial pushed nearly 27 years after attacks

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's 9/11 trial is set for 2028, but a ruling barring key FBI statements raises doubts families will ever see a verdict.

Woman deported to Afghanistan in first use of Alien Terrorist Removal Court

Nazira Haji Zada conceded being an “alien terrorist” in a case heard by a secretive court established three decades ago but which held its first hearing this year.

What Came After the Planes Hit Gives Me Hope

Twenty-five years after the attacks, our city has changed. But the colleagues and neighbors we lost have not been forgotten.

At Ground Zero, 9/11 families turn to Trump as Obama’s old decision resurfaces

Terry Strada accused successive administrations of protecting Saudi Arabia and urged Trump to release unredacted 9/11 files on the 25th anniversary.

NY Times: A Partisan Reminder on How Inflation Works

Politics of the Day

Politics of the Day

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…

Something Is Very Off About the Latest AI Panic

Why are big AI firm trying to create billionaires from a technology they say may end the world? There are real risks to AI, but something is very off about the latest social panic.

A Bright September Day

Reflections on a morning that changed the world as we knew it.

The Retro Fashion of the Wealth Tax

Every few decades, the ideas with the worst track records come back into style.

Will Stark Warnings About AI Shape the Midterm Elections?

Stark warnings from A.I. researchers have reverberated across the country.

Britain Votes for Life: A Defeat for Assisted Suicide in Parliament

Thanks be to God. The last thing we need is more murder.

Ohio Senate campaign staffer used Nazi soldiers as profile photo

A top staffer for Sen. Jon Husted's reelection campaign recently made a playlist of songs in honor of White colonists in Rhodesia and wore a Nazi uniform.

Clinton, Bush received multiple warnings on bin Laden hijack plots before 9/11, declassified files show

Bill Clinton and George W. Bush received repeated CIA warnings that Usama bin Laden's network planned to hijack jets and attack U.S. cities.

The Axe Files with David Axelrod

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

Influencers Invited to the Republican Midterm Convention Largely Avoided Talking About The Economy

Online media stars eager to promote President Trump and Republicans worked to find a message that would resonate with an audience that is struggling with an affordability crisis.

AOC, Mamdani interaction caught on cam at 9/11 memorial sparks online fury

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were seen grinning at the 9/11 Memorial as a mourner sobbed nearby on camera.

The $64 Question, Again

Anna D. Shapiro’s recent revival of Eric Bentley’s 1972 play about the HUAC hearings offered entertainment along with the pleasures of moral certainty and ideological reinforcement.

No, Pro-Life Laws Are Not Responsible for Reported Increase in Ectopic Pregnancy Deaths

Blaming pro-life laws for bad health outcomes has become a cottage industry among journalists who support legal abortion.

Friday's Final Word

Trump Is Bold, Brave and Right on the Iran War

He defied almost all his advisors, including Vice President J.D. Vance, and has done all the right things on the Iran War.

Dems Got Themselves a Case of the Cray Crays and They Just Can't Seem to Shake the Loons Off

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.

AOC’s ‘modern-day lynchings’ claim torn to shreds online as Black hanging case findings tell a different story

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley demand DOJ and FBI investigate Black hanging deaths, alleging racial terror and modern-day lynchings.

Enraging: AOC and Mamdani Laugh It Up at 9/11 Memorial As Names of the Victims Read

Mamdani draws fury from 9/11 mourners over Ground Zero appearance: ‘Disrespectful’

Footage captured Zohran Mamdani greeting Rudolph Giuliani at Ground Zero as victims' families and first responders criticize his 9/11 attendance.

First use of Alien Terrorist Removal Court sends Afghan woman back after Election Day ISIS plot: DOJ

Nazira Haji Zada admitted she was an "alien terrorist" in the first-ever use of a specialized federal court created 30 years ago by Congress after an ISIS Election Day plot.

Measuring the Economic Cost of Affirmative Action in Academia

A new report on the Canada Research Chairs program analyses the reduced standards applied to scholars belonging to ‘equity groups.’

GOP state senator who defied Trump named winner, four months after close election

The Indiana state Senate election was held in May but was close, prompting a challenge.

Bernie's Ban on Superintelligence Is a Terrible Idea (and His Other Bill Is Worse)

Reporter's Notebook: Countdown is on as Senate races to pass crypto, college sports bills

Trump's Clarity Act faces a critical 60-vote test as Democrats demand crypto ethics rules tied to the President's $1.4 billion digital currency earnings.

4 takeaways from the GOP midterm convention

Trump got his big show. Vance took the baton. “Common sense” was the refrain. No bad vibes allowed.

Trump Appears to Defend Iran War During 9/11 Anniversary Speech

The president appeared to embrace the idea that after 9/11, no risk can be tolerated, an echo of reasoning used by previous American officials in the “forever wars” that he has long denounced.

CNN Political Briefing

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

San Francisco Mayor Declares a 'Rent Emergency'

At the Pentagon, Trump ties the legacy of 9/11 to his Iran war

President Donald Trump spoke at a solemn Pentagon ceremony marking the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and edged close to embracing policies he has long criticized.

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.

Antizionist City

A community that embraces a set of shared beliefs is not necessarily a bad thing, but the value of solidarity depends entirely on the merits of the cause in question.

Trump Heads to Ireland for the Irish Open at His Golf Course

President Trump’s trip comes after a two-day Republican rally in Dallas, where he tried to energize voters amid fears that the party could face losses in the midterms.

Fact-Checking Trump’s Attacks on Democratic Senate Candidates

The president attacked three Democrats running for Senate this week with inaccurate claims to portray them as too extreme.

Protecting New York Today

A discussion with former NYPD director of intelligence analysis Mitchell Silber

Trump’s ‘Midterm Convention’ Tried to Reach Die-Hard Republican Voters, but Lacked Oomph

The long, odd two-night TV production hoped to reach a select audience of die-hard voters (if football didn’t intercept them).

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…

Lindsay Clancy Jury Narrative Buster

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.

Inside Trump’s intimate meeting with nation’s bravest soldiers during whirlwind Texas trip

Trump toured the new National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington, Texas, then signed legislation for a new monument near the Lincoln Memorial.

Literary Studies Without the Literature

English departments are increasingly ignoring the great works of the past, in favour of popular literary works that reflect activist themes and nonliterary works of political and social theory.

Claire's Weekly Letter: Naked in America

Refuse 9/11 Revisionism

‘I’m proud of Ted Cruz for speaking honestly and openly about the nature of this threat, because we will not confront it unless we define it.’

The Extraordinary Courage of Ordinary People on 9/11

The enduring legacy of heroes.

The Uprising Keeps Its Hands Too Clean

Films don’t owe us the accuracy of a documentary, but greater fidelity to the historical record would have made for a better story.

These congressmen went to war after 9/11. It changed them in different ways.

Two veterans from different political parties took disparate lessons from the post-9/11 wars.

The Lost Journalistic World of 9/11

The mainstream press was far from perfect. But before the era of hot takes, information silos, steep budget cuts, and ugly charges of fake news, it had strengths that we need now.

Trump asks convention crowd to pledge to him they will vote, ‘cheat like hell’

At the midterm event, the president had audience members raise their hands and repeat after him.

El-Sayed ignites firestorm after sharing 9/11 message on social media: 'Piece of s---'

Abdul El-Sayed's 9/11 video message drew fierce online backlash over his association with Hasan Piker, who notoriously claimed America deserved 9/11.

Thinking 9/11 Through

9/11 was a powerful demonstration that notions of happy universalism were bunkum.

Charlie Kirk Assassination Was This Generation's 9/11

May the 25th anniversary of our 'never forget' moment find us with something true, good, and beautiful to show for it.

Ballot scramble hints at chaos under Trump proposal, Fla. election official says

A county elections supervisor in the state said the Postal Service initially rejected the ballots envelope he was planning to use over a 0.014-inch discrepancy.

The Long Shadow of 9/11

We scoured hundreds of The Wall Street Journal's articles to show how the terrorist attacks continue to reverberate a quarter-century later

Dana Milbank and the Weak Washington Sun

The Houthis Finally Open a Second Front in the Iran War

The stakes in this already high-stakes game of chicken keep rising.

The Learning Crisis Begins Before the Classroom

Differences in height between men and women—a biomarker of stressor exposure in childhood—suggest that poor early health and nutrition constrain what children are achieving at school.

The post-9/11 wars changed politics. Not everyone who served agrees how.

Interviews with two veterans in Congress highlight how the terrorist attacks that sparked wars in Iraq and Afghanistan changed the nation’s politics but did not leave its leaders with monolithic views.

Muslims Hit Hardest: the Theme of the Day Again

Trump Trolling Shows Push for Hemispheric Domination

The president's social media posts are ludicrous distractions from his policy failures-but they also put his fascistic views on full display.

The Case for Elites with Richard Hanania | Quillette Cetera Episode 71

Political scientist Richard Hanania discusses why populism usually fails, why Western elites matter, immigration, MAGA, H-1B visas, housing and declining fertility.

How Trump Is Using the Postal Service to Intervene in Elections

Our politics reporter Reid Epstein explains how the Trump administration is using the Postal Service to intervene in mail-in voting in state elections.

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.

Last Man Standing

Francis Fukuyama’s new memoir assesses an intellectual life devoted to the health of the liberal-democratic idea.

This Is the Way the World Ends

Sex is declining because the options seem endless. This is counter-intuitive, but biologically it makes sense.

Republicans try at midterm convention to aid Paxton in his tight Senate race

Republicans hoped to boost enthusiasm for Ken Paxton during the two-day event in Dallas. The Texas attorney general is facing off against Democrat James Talarico in November for a U.S. Senate seat.

Why So Many Young Men Are Giving Up on Work

Sydney psychiatrist Tanveer Ahmed on why men who quit work aren't depressed but demoralised, and how mental health labels became a rival source of status and dignity.

Women Special Operations Veterans Remember Their Battles

The only fraternal organization for women special operations veterans held a gala to mark the wars that began 25 years ago. It came as the Pentagon questions women’s roles in the military.

Al Franken, other Jewish Americans endorse El-Sayed in Michigan Senate race

Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee in the Michigan Senate race, has faced a backlash from some Jewish Democrats for his intense criticism of Israel.

We're Still at War With Radical Islam

America and the Great Gift She Is

A book celebrating American stories.