Top Items:
New York Times:
The Art of Letting Trump Claim a Win, While Walking Away Stronger — By withholding soybean purchases and rare-earth exports, China extracted relief from U.S. tariffs and delayed export controls, without conceding much in return. — When Xi Jinping walked out of his meeting with President Trump …
Discussion:
France 24, Raw Story, Al Jazeera, Bloomberg, Fox Business, Washington Times and Colorado Politics
RELATED:
Paul Krugman:
How We Lost the Trade War
Discussion:
New York Times, Newsweek, New Jersey Online and Senator Patty Murray, more at Techmeme »
Politico:
‘Amazing meeting’: Trump touts progress on multiple fronts with China after meeting Xi
‘Amazing meeting’: Trump touts progress on multiple fronts with China after meeting Xi
Discussion:
BBC, The Hill, NPR, Associated Press, NewsMax.com, France 24, El País, The Korea Herald, RTÉ, Washington Examiner, New York Post, The Sun, The Guardian, Fox News, CBS News, NBC News, Reuters and Washington Post
Sam Meredith / CNBC:
Rare earth stocks rally as China delays export controls after Trump-Xi meeting
Rare earth stocks rally as China delays export controls after Trump-Xi meeting
Discussion:
Reuters, Washington Examiner and KRDO
Axios:
Trump-Xi meeting wraps up in less than two hours
Trump-Xi meeting wraps up in less than two hours
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Post, New York Sun, The Guardian, Politico, CBS News, KRDO, Bloomberg, Euractiv, The Korea Herald, France 24, The Week, NewsMax.com, CNBC, Breitbart, Deseret News, Al Jazeera, Bangor Daily News, CFACT, Carolina Journal, Associated Press, New York Post, The Independent, New York Times and Fox News, more at Techmeme »
Katherine Doyle / NBC News:
Trump orders Pentagon to begin testing nuclear weapons ‘immediately’ — The U.S. voluntarily halted nuclear explosive testing in 1992, though it has the ability to resume tests at a site in Nevada. — GYEONGJU, South Korea — President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he had instructed the Pentagon to …
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Washington Post:
Trump directs Pentagon to test nuclear weapons for first time since 1992 — The president said he wanted testing to occur “on an equal basis” with Russia and China, just before he met his Chinese counterpart for high-stakes trade talks. — just now — GYEONGJU, South Korea …
Discussion:
NBC News, New York Times, HuffPost, The American Conservative, NewsMax.com, Reuters, Al Jazeera, Washington Times, France 24, The Japan Times, Sputnik News, The Sun, Raw Story, New York Post, WUSA, KRDO, Bloomberg, Mediaite, NewsNation, Scripps News and NPR
USA Today:
Republicans' refusal to fund SNAP will hurt their own voters most. They don't care. — Do Republicans not care enough about the people who voted them into office to feed them next month? — We're 30 days into the government shutdown, and congressional Republicans don't seem to care enough …
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Mariana Alfaro / Washington Post:
Food banks brace as people face federal aid stoppage: ‘We cannot meet the gap’ — Already hit by federal funding cuts earlier in the year and a surge in demand from furloughed federal workers, food banks face a fresh wave of need as people are poised to lose SNAP benefits Saturday because of the shutdown.
Heather Cox Richardson / Letters from an American:
Today is the twenty-ninth day of the government shutdown, and the House of Representatives …
Today is the twenty-ninth day of the government shutdown, and the House of Representatives …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, Punchbowl News, The Contrarian, IJR and PoliticusUSA
Wall Street Journal:
Pentagon Orders National Guard to Establish Quick Reaction Forces for Civil Unrest, Riots — Move comes after Trump ordered expansion of military units for responding to domestic disorder — WASHINGTON—The Pentagon has ordered the National Guard to create “quick reaction” …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com
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Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling / New Republic:
It Sure Looks Like Kash Patel Used the FBI's Jet to Go on a Date … FBI Director Kash Patel met his girlfriend at Penn State this past weekend to watch a wrestling match—but his travel to the university stadium appears to have been on the American public's dime.
Discussion:
The Independent, Raw Story and The Bulwark
Brendan Ruberry / Semafor:
British newspaper spoke to the wrong de Blasio, not an ‘imposter’ — The Scoop — The man at the heart of a high-stakes mix-up that rippled through global political journalism in the final days of the New York mayoral campaign was neither “falsely claiming” to be former Mayor Bill de Blasio …
Washington Post:
Most Americans oppose East Wing demolition for Trump ballroom, poll finds — Fifty-six percent say they oppose President Donald Trump's decision to tear down part of the White House to build a 90,000-square-foot ballroom building. — Just now — Americans oppose President Donald Trump's demolition …
Discussion:
ABC News, Straight Arrow News, Politico and CBS News
CNN:
Exclusive: Three-star general pushed out amid tensions with Hegseth — A three-star general serving on the Pentagon's Joint Staff has been pushed out of his position following months of sustained tensions with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, according to people familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
The Independent
CNN:
National Guard orders in DC extended through February 2026 — National Guard troops deployed in Washington, DC, will remain mobilized in the city at least through February 2026, according to people familiar with the guard's orders. — The troops' orders had been expected to lapse at the end …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, NewsMax.com and Raw Story
New York Times:
Geert Wilders's Party for Freedom Loses Seats in Dutch Election — A center-left party was poised to become the country's largest political party, according to exit polls. The anti-immigrant Party for Freedom, led by Mr. Wilders, was expected to lose 12 seats.
RELATED:
Paul Kirby / BBC:
Centrist liberals head for shock victory in Dutch election, exit poll says
Centrist liberals head for shock victory in Dutch election, exit poll says
Discussion:
The Guardian, Reuters, Bloomberg, Euractiv, The Kyiv Independent, France 24, Associated Press and Politico
Wall Street Journal:
Binance Boosted Trump Family's Crypto Company Ahead of Pardon for Its Billionaire Founder — Giant crypto exchange facilitated $2 billion purchase of World Liberty's stablecoin and built its technology; clemency for Changpeng Zhao surprised some in administration
Discussion:
Popular Information and New York Post, more at Techmeme »
Washington Post:
Trump nominee at U.S. export bank withdraws amid scrutiny of Russia ties — Bryce McFerran is a former senior executive at a steel-trading business co-owned by one of Russia's richest oligarchs and is married to a member of a Russian family with extensive ties to the Kremlin. — Just now
Discussion:
Patterico's Pontifications
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Meredith Lee Hill / Politico:
Farm-state Republicans finally reach their breaking point … So far, the burst of objections has not generated a U-turn from the administration, which is going ahead with a beef import plan that Trump officials argue will both lower steak and hamburger prices for American consumers …
The Guardian:
Revealed: ICE violates its own policy by holding people in secretive rooms for days or weeks — Guardian analysis finds ICE increasingly keeps people in holding rooms with little oversight, as some facilities see a 600% rise in detention length — Immigration officials …
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Ryan Grenoble / HuffPost:
Shock Video Shows ICE Agent Assaulting Woman Who Asked If He's A Good Christian
Shock Video Shows ICE Agent Assaulting Woman Who Asked If He's A Good Christian
Discussion:
The Colorado Sun and Denver Post
The Atlantic:
Top Trump Officials Are Moving Onto Military Bases — Stephen Miller, Marco Rubio, Kristi Noem, and others have taken over homes that until recently housed senior officers. — The former white house adviser Katie Miller—mother of three young children, and wife of the presidential right-hand man Stephen …
Wired:
Federal Workers Are Barely Making It Through the Government Shutdown — The US government shut down 30 days ago. WIRED spoke with more than a dozen federal workers who have struggled to pay bills, worked side gigs, and relied on free food programs to get by.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Guardian and Washington Blade
Joe Sommerlad / The Independent:
JD Vance says only ‘really terrible’ people mistreat dogs - apparently forgetting his cabinet colleague shot hers dead — Vice President overlooks Homeland Security Secretary Krisi Noem's notorious execution of her puppy, Cricket in a discussion on animal cruelty and personal morality
Discussion:
New York Post, The Independent, HuffPost and Raw Story
Petter Törnberg / arXiv.org:
Shifts in U.S. Social Media Use, 2020-2024: Decline, Fragmentation, and Enduring Polarization — View a PDF of the paper titled Shifts in U.S. Social Media Use, 2020-2024: Decline, Fragmentation, and Enduring Polarization, by Petter T\"ornberg — Using nationally representative data …
Zack Beauchamp / Vox:
Americans have a secret weapon against Trump — A new strategy to stop business elites from bending the knee. … President Donald Trump is clearly unpopular: Most Americans disapprove of his performance and millions recently turned out for “No Kings” protests.
Discussion:
CBS News
Joe Perticone / The Bulwark:
SCOOP: Trump Swaps Decorated Admiral With 33-Year-Old DOGEr — The highly unorthodox personnel change affects a critical government research role. — ∙ Paid — THE EXPERIENCED HEAD OF A CRITICAL OFFICE that helps organize important technical research and disburse billions of dollars …
Ben Penn / Bloomberg Law:
Jury Acquits Man Accused of Soliciting Trump's Murder on Bluesky — A jury took about two hours Tuesday to acquit a man accused of soliciting President Donald Trump's assassination on social media, a setback for the Justice Department office led by Trump's newly-installed loyalist Lindsey Halligan.
Discussion:
Washington Post, NewsMax.com and Law & Crime
Mark Tyson / Tom's Hardware:
Grieving family uses AI chatbot to cut hospital bill from $195,000 to $33,000 — family says Claude highlighted duplicative charges, improper coding, and other violations — But the first step is getting the medical institution to properly break down all the items on the bill.
Matthew Cooper / Washington Monthly:
Mikie Sherrill Braces for Landing in New Jersey Governor's Race — During the Trump years, the Navy helicopter pilot soared. Next stop, Trenton? — Almost a year ago, I wrote “A Very Rough Day in Jersey” in these pages about Donald Trump's surprisingly strong showing in the Garden State in the 2024 presidential race.
Discussion:
New York Times
Nathaniel Weixel / The Hill:
Oz: Coming spike in ACA premium payments ‘not the big issue’ — Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz downplayed on Wednesday the likely substantial increase in the amount Americans will pay for health insurance on the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) federal marketplace.
Discussion:
CNN, Associated Press, The Daily Signal, Scripps News and KFF
Aaron Pellish / Politico:
Crockett inches toward Senate run … Crockett has raised her profile since first entering Congress in 2023 through memorable and divisive attacks on Republican opponents like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott and President Donald Trump — becoming a frequent target of Trump's attacks in the process.
Discussion:
NBC News
ProPublica:
Air Pollution From Industrial Facilities Is Far Worse Than Estimated. Trump Halted Efforts to Fix It. — ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they're published. — Reporting Highlights
Camille Mumford / Emerson Polling:
New York City Mayor and New Jersey Governor 2025 — New Jersey Voters Give Sherrill Slight Edge; Mamdani Holds 25-Point Lead over Cuomo in NYC — The final Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill surveys of the New Jersey election for Governor and the New York City election for Mayor find …
Discussion:
Marist Poll, Quinnipiac University Poll, Vanity Fair, The Hill, New York Post, New York Sun and New York Daily News
J.D. Wolf / MeidasTouch News:
Jack Ciattarelli Called for ‘New Constitution’ to Bypass Courts, Legislators — Ciattarelli: “I really don't believe we can afford to allow the courts to decide our public policy anymore” — In a pair of 2020 interviews, Jack Ciattarelli called for a New Jersey constitutional convention to …


