memeorandum: What to Know About the Homeland Security Shutdown (New York Times)

10:35 PM ET, February 15, 2026

Top Items:

Addy Bink / NewsNation:

Obama says aliens are ‘real,’ but aren't in Area 51 in new interview — (NEXSTAR) - In a wide-ranging interview published Saturday, former President Barack Obama confirmed what many have been waiting for: aliens are, in fact, real. They're aren't being kept in Nevada's Area 51, however.

Discussion: Daily Caller News Foundation, RADAR, twitchy.com, RedState, Tampa Free Press, Breitbart, The Post Millennial, Washington Examiner, Fox News, Mediaite, The Independent, New York Post and Just Jared

Alexandra Marquez / NBC News:
Obama derides social media ‘clown show’ in first comments since Trump's racist video post

Discussion: Straight Arrow News, NPR, The Hill, Al Jazeera, CNN, HuffPost, Agence France-Presse and NewsNation

Ali Watkins / New York Times:
In First Public Comments Since Trump's Racist Video, Obama Laments Lost Decorum

Discussion: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Washington Examiner, Salon, ABC News, Staten Island Advance, MS NOW, The Gateway Pundit, TMZ.com, The Hollywood Reporter, New York Daily News, CBS News, Forbes, Variety and Mediaite

Nick Timiraos / Wall Street Journal:

The Economy May Have Stuck the Soft Landing. Nobody Wants to Jinx It. — Inflation is easing, jobs are holding up, and growth is solid. But declarations of victory feel premature. — The vital signs of the American economy are pointing in the same, favorable direction more convincingly …

Discussion: Axios

Washington Post:
Trump claims victory on affordability as public anxieties persist

Discussion: Raw Story and Politico

Lauren Gardner / Politico:

RFK Jr.'s allies are trying to free anti-vaccine doctors to speak their minds … “This is a part of a judicial assault on science and public health that basically weaponizes the Covid-19 pandemic for political and ideological benefit,” said Lawrence Gostin, a public health lawyer at Georgetown University.

Jonathan Cohn / The Bulwark:

This Is What Destroying the Vaccine Market Looks Like — THE VACCINE MAKER MODERNA decided this past week to tell the world about bad news it had received from the federal government. — A potentially groundbreaking vaccine for seasonal flu that the Massachusetts-based company had developed …

Isabel Kershner / New York Times:

Trump's Stinging Attack on Israel's President Touches a Nerve — President Trump called President Isaac Herzog of Israel “disgraceful” because he has not yet pardoned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his corruption trial. — President Trump's public excoriation of Israel's president …

Discussion: NewsMax.com and Middle East Monitor

New York Times:

What to Know About the Homeland Security Shutdown — Funding for the Department of Homeland Security lapsed on Saturday amid a standoff over restrictions that Democrats have demanded for federal immigration agents. But much of its work continues. — The Department of Homeland Security's funding …

Discussion: Politico, Military and Veteran …, Straight Arrow News, NewsMax.com and The Independent

G. Elliott Morris / Strength In Numbers:

The backlash against Trump is showing up in hard data, not just polls — Here's your weekly roundup of new political data published over the last seven days. It is free to read. If you find it useful, the best way to support my work is to share it with a friend.

Ankush Khardori / Politico:

‘Stunning’: Jeanine Pirro's Failure to Indict Democrats Is a Big Deal … The administration's use of the Justice Department to intimidate President Donald Trump's political opponents and stifle dissent reached a remarkable new low last week, when federal prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney's Office …

Discussion: The Independent, DCReport.org, The Hill, Bloomberg and Breitbart

Cheyanne M. Daniels / Politico:

Democrats' struggles could be partly because they're just too old, says Obama … Former President Joe Biden, who was Obama's vice president, was the oldest man to assume the presidency at the age of 78 in 2021. His decision to seek reelection in 2024 repeatedly drew concerns from voters …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars and Mediaite

The Guardian:

The key to defeating Trump? Mass non-cooperation — Our studies in civil resistance offer insight into the level of popular organizing needed to repel assaults on democracy — In the wake of two horrifying killings of legal observers in Minnesota, on top of the abduction …

Max Rego / The Hill:

Here's how the DHS shutdown is impacting air travel, TSA — As the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) remains without funding, air travel nationwide has been impacted. — Employees of the Transportation Security Agency (TSA), which is housed within DHS, are working without pay …

Discussion: NewsMax.com, FOX 32 Chicago, The Maine Wire and Los Angeles Times

Politico:

RFK Jr.'s battle with the public health establishment has turned to trench warfare … Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spent the spring of 2025 repeating the campaign message he'd delivered over and over in 2024, before he dropped out of the presidential race and joined forces with Donald Trump …

Bloomberg:

Trump Sanctions Chief Poised to Leave After Bessent Tension — John Hurley, the Trump administration's top sanctions official, is set to leave his post after friction with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, according to people familiar with the matter. — Hurley's expected departure …

Discussion: Raw Story

Margaret Brennan / CBS News:

Trump told Netanyahu he would support Israeli strikes on Iran's ballistic missile program, sources say — Add CBS News on Google — President Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a meeting at Mar-a-Lago in December that the president would support Israeli strikes …