Top Items:
Washington Post:
ICE plans $100 million ‘wartime recruitment’ push targeting gun shows, military fans for hires … U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are planning to spend $100 million over a one-year period to recruit gun-rights supporters and military enthusiasts through online influencers …
Discussion:
The Independent, NewsMax.com and Mediaite
Politico:
The plot to redraw America … Donald Trump was confused. — His top political aide, James Blair, arrived in the Oval Office one afternoon this April to pitch a novel gambit: Republicans could begin padding their narrow U.S. House majority well before voters went to the polls in November 2026.
Discussion:
Raw Story, Talking Points Memo and Scripps News
RELATED:
Heather Cox Richardson / Letters from an American:
The hallmark of the first year of President Donald J. Trump's second term has been the attempt …
The hallmark of the first year of President Donald J. Trump's second term has been the attempt …
Discussion:
The Federalist and The Hill
New York Times:
Trump Is the Jan. 6 President
Trump Is the Jan. 6 President
Discussion:
Congressman Hakeem Jeffries and The Western Journal
Daniella Diaz / NOTUS:
Political Violence Tore Through 2025. Will 2026 Be Any Better?
Political Violence Tore Through 2025. Will 2026 Be Any Better?
Discussion:
Raw Story
KUSA-TV:
Trump vetoes bill to fund Arkansas Valley Conduit in Colorado — President Trump vetoed a bill to fund a pipeline project to bring clean drinking water to communities on the Eastern Plains between Pueblo and Lamar. … DENVER — President Donald Trump is using his first veto of his current term …
Discussion:
The White House, The Hill, The Wrap, The Parnas Perspective, CBS News, Raw Story, Newsweek and KREM-TV
RELATED:
Avery Lotz / Axios:
Trump's first second-term vetoes reject bipartisan bills — President Trump issued his first two vetoes of his second term, rejecting bills with bipartisan support that would have aided a Colorado water project and expanded tribal land in Florida. … While he said his vetoes protected taxpayer dollars …
Discussion:
Roll Call, Fox News, Associated Press, Colorado Public Radio, NBC News, Washington Times, The Hill, Denver Post, UPI, New Jersey Online and The Independent
Spencer Kristensen / NewsNation:
Trump vetoes unanimously approved, Boebert-sponsored water bill
Trump vetoes unanimously approved, Boebert-sponsored water bill
Discussion:
CNBC, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, Washington Examiner, New Republic, Raw Story, The Western Journal, NewsMax.com, Mock Paper Scissors, Newsweek and Mediaite
Wall Street Journal:
The Incident That Prompted Trump to Ban Epstein From Mar-a-Lago's Spa — Mar-a-Lago sent an 18-year-old spa worker on a house call to Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. She complained to her bosses that Epstein pressured her for sex. — Jeffrey Epstein wasn't just a frequent visitor to Donald Trump's Mar …
Discussion:
Salon, Daily Mail, IJR, New Republic, HotAir, The Independent, The Parnas Perspective, Mediaite, Raw Story, Newsweek and NewsMax.com
Aaron Pellish / Politico:
Comer wants Walz to appear before Congress amid Minnesota fraud allegations … “Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison have either been asleep at the wheel or complicit in a massive fraud involving taxpayer dollars in Minnesota's social services programs,” Comer said in a statement.
Discussion:
Townhall, Breitbart, NewsMax.com and The Gateway Pundit
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Kennedy Center changed board rules months before vote to add Trump's name — The new rules say only trustees appointed by the president can vote, barring other members, including Democrats who hold seats, from decisions. The center said the change reflects “longstanding precedent.”
Discussion:
The Wrap, The Guardian, The Independent, Rolling Stone, Mediaite, Raw Story and MS NOW
Sophia Cai / Politico:
Trump says construction of the ‘Triumphal Arch’ to begin in ‘2 months’ … The proposed structure — modeled loosely on European victory monuments — is one of several high-profile projects Trump has personally championed as part of the semiquincentennial celebrations, a sprawling effort expected …
Discussion:
Fox News
President Donald J. Trump / The White House:
Congressional Bill H.R. 504 Vetoed — I am returning herewith without my approval H.R. 504, the Miccosukee Reserved Area Amendments Act. — The subject of this bill is a specific area in the Everglades National Park known as the “Osceola Camp.” In 1998, the Congress passed …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Associated Press, Florida Politics, Dallas Express, RedState and The Daily Wire
RELATED:
Tyler Pager / New York Times:
Trump Vetoes 2 Bills, Drawing Accusations of Retaliation
Trump Vetoes 2 Bills, Drawing Accusations of Retaliation
Discussion:
MS NOW, New York Post, New Republic and Newsweek
Associated Press:
Department of Justice is reviewing more than 5.2 million documents related to Jeffrey Epstein — The Department of Justice has expanded its review of documents related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to 5.2 million as it also increases the number of attorneys trying to comply …
Discussion:
New York Post, Fox News and Washington Times
RELATED:
Devlin Barrett / New York Times:
Justice Dept. Is Now Said to Be Reviewing 5.2 Million Pages of Epstein Files
Justice Dept. Is Now Said to Be Reviewing 5.2 Million Pages of Epstein Files
Discussion:
NBC News, The Guardian, CNBC, Salon, Reuters, The Independent, Raw Story, Mock Paper Scissors, New York Post, MS NOW and Washingtonian
Julia Mueller / The Hill:
Democrat wins Iowa state Senate race, blocking GOP from regaining supermajority — Democrat Renee Hardman won a special election for state Senate in Iowa on Tuesday, preventing Republicans from regaining a supermajority in the chamber, Decision Desk HQ projects.
RELATED:
Joseph Dye / Public Notice:
How Dems can win the Senate in 2026
How Dems can win the Senate in 2026
Discussion:
Cardinal News, Signal Ohio and Washington Examiner
Nora Benavidez / New York Times:
I Counted Trump's Censorship Attempts. Here's What I Found. — “We took the freedom of speech away.” — That was part of President Trump's explanation in October of his executive order that purports to criminalize burning the American flag. Though his words fail as a constitutional rationale …
Joyce Vance / Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance:
Unsealed: Abrego Garcia — The sealed order in the Abrego Garcia case that I wrote about in Sunday night's “The Week Ahead” column was unsealed today. This is in the government's hastily manufactured criminal case against him, which seemed, at the time, to be some sort of face-saving gesture …
RELATED:
Adam Entous / New York Times:
The Separation: Inside the Unraveling U.S.-Ukraine Partnership — As President Trump sought a peace deal and Vladimir V. Putin sought victory, factions in the White House and Pentagon bled the Ukrainian war effort.
Discussion:
Daily Mail, 19FortyFive, Mediaite and emptywheel
Gabe Castro-Root / New York Times:
Phone Searches at U.S. Borders: What Travelers Need to Know — Customs agents have broad authority to search the electronic devices of travelers entering and leaving the U.S. Here are tips for keeping your data safe. — When U.S. border agents turned away a French scientist in March …
Michael Acton / Financial Times:
Trump Mobile delays plan to launch gold-coloured smartphone this year — Move marks latest setback for project that originally promised to sell a US-made device — Trump Mobile, the phone company launched by the Trump Organization, has delayed plans to ship its gold-coloured smartphone by the end of this year.
Discussion:
The Guardian, Business Insider, Fortune and CBS News, more at Techmeme »
New York Times:
Venezuela Detains Americans Amid Growing U.S. Pressure — The number of American citizens held in Venezuela has grown since the start of the U.S. military and economic campaign against President Nicolás Maduro. — Venezuelan security forces have detained several Americans …
Discussion:
The Independent
Sarah Jeong / The Verge:
Killing in the name of... nothing … In a good and just society, it would have been possible to bury Charlie Kirk without either threatening mass violence toward his enemies or making light of his death with a furry sex meme. But America in 2025 did not remotely resemble a working society …
Greg Sargent / New Republic:
Stephen Miller Is The New Republic's 2025 Scoundrel of the Year — Is Stephen Miller failing? — True, Miller has amassed unprecedented power for a deputy White House chief of staff. He exerts extraordinary influence over an unusually large swath of the government …
Washington Post:
U.S. vaccination rates are plunging. Look up where your school stands. — Rocked by pandemic politics, the nation's shield against infectious disease is shrinking. — Before the pandemic, roughly half of counties had kindergarten vaccination rates high enough to prevent measles outbreaks.
Discussion:
Axios, Straight Arrow News and Los Angeles Times
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Netanyahu raised possible “round 2” strikes on Iran with Trump — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the possibility of attacking Iran again in 2026 during his meeting with President Trump on Monday, according to a U.S. official and two additional U.S. sources familiar with the details of the meeting.
Discussion:
The Guardian, The Times of Israel, Mondoweiss, NewsMax.com, Matzav.com, Washington Times, CBS News, Al Jazeera and Grabien
Ted Hesson / Reuters:
US judge blocks Trump move to end protected status for thousands from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua — A U.S. federal judge on Wednesday blocked the Trump administration from ending deportation protections for thousands of migrants from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua after opponents argued …
Discussion:
Townhall and NewsMax.com
Tim Reid / Reuters:
From battleships to buildings: Trump's name is everywhere — As a New York businessman, President Donald Trump put his name on real estate, golf courses, vodka, steaks, bottled water and his own university. — As president in his second term, he is merging his personal brand …
Politico:
The many ways Zohran Mamdani's mayoralty could go wrong — fast … “Just like with FDR, it's the first 100 days that people remember,” said George Arzt, a lobbyist and public relations doyen who was the longtime spokesperson for the late Mayor Ed Koch. “Everyday, I walked into City Hall and wondered what's going to happen.”
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, New York Times and The Nation


