Top Items:
Barak Ravid / Axios:
U.S. fighter jet shot down in Iran, search underway for crew — Iran has shot down a U.S. fighter jet, per Iranian media and a source familiar with the incident, and a search and rescue effort is underway to locate two crew. … - The U.S. military and the White House didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
Discussion:
CBS News, BBC, Forbes, New Republic, New York Post, Straight Arrow News, TMZ.com, Raw Story, The National Pulse, HotAir, Military and Veteran …, The US Sun, Zeteo, RedState, Mediaite, The Floridian, The Daily Caller, Blaze Media, New York Magazine, NewsMax.com, Reuters, Middle East Monitor, Al Jazeera, NPR and WTOP News
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Agence France-Presse:
Iran War Live Updates: Drone Hits Kuwaiti Oil Refinery in New Attack on Gulf Energy Sites — The fate of the plane's crew was unclear, as American officials scrambled to mount a search and rescue operation before Iran could get to any survivors, officials said. Iranian state media also said a jet had been downed.
Washington Post:
Two U.S. warplanes shot down; search ongoing in Iran for 1 missing crew member — An F-15 fighter jet and an A-10 attack plane were lost to hostile fire. Two Black Hawk helicopters also were hit, injuring the crews, before safely returning to their base, officials said.
Discussion:
NBC News, The War Zone, New York Times, New York Sun, HuffPost, Associated Press, Al Jazeera, WAGA-TV, Metro.co.uk, Raw Story, The Intercept, WTOP News, Mediaite and KSTP-TV
The Guardian:
US F-15E jet confirmed shot down over Iran as Tehran releases wreckage images — Downing of fighter plane - the first shot down over Iran since start of war - prompts frantic US rescue effort — A US F-15E fighter has been shot down over Iran, prompting a frantic US search and rescue effort …
Discussion:
Air & Space Forces Magazine, Washington Examiner, Breitbart, Daily Mail and CBS News
Tasnim News Agency:
US Effort to Recover Downed Fighter Pilot Fails
Discussion:
The Hill, Ace of Spades HQ and The American Conservative
NBC News:
U.S. fighter jet downed over Iran, one pilot rescued, official says
U.S. fighter jet downed over Iran, one pilot rescued, official says
Discussion:
Mediaite, American Greatness, WAGA-TV, One America News Network and Bangor Daily News
Eleanor Watson / CBS News:
American fighter jet downed over Iran, 1 crew member rescued, U.S. officials say
American fighter jet downed over Iran, 1 crew member rescued, U.S. officials say
Discussion:
New York Times, Ace of Spades HQ, Wall Street Journal, France 24, NewsMax.com, The Preamble, FDD's Long War Journal, El País, Mediaite, ABC News, Gizmodo, Associated Press, Mercury News, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, One America News Network, Breaking Defense, The Independent, Fox News, Los Angeles Times, Bloomberg, New York Post, CNBC, The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, WTOP News, KSTP-TV and Mississippi Free Press
Ken Dilanian / MS NOW:
Pam Bondi's portrait already taken down at Justice Department — It did not take long for the pictures to come off the wall. — Within hours of the news that President Donald Trump had fired Pam Bondi as attorney general, images began circulating of her framed portrait …
Discussion:
HuffPost, New York Post, Newsweek, TMZ.com, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story and Mediaite
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M.D. Kittle / The Federalist:
Trump Needs A ‘Vicious Operator’ To Bring Justice Back To The Justice Department — Government investigator Mike Howell says Pam Bondi, out as attorney general, wasn't the right fit to take on the weaponizers. — Pam Bondi was President Donald Trump's second choice for attorney general, and she never quite fit.
Discussion:
The Hill, The Independent, Axios, LGBTQ Nation, Advocate, CBS News, MS NOW, Raw Story, Fox News, New York Post, New York Magazine, One America News Network, Bloomberg, The US Sun and twitchy.com
Eric Tucker / Associated Press:
Bondi struggled to prosecute Trump foes. But will a new attorney general make a difference? — Pam Bondi is out of her job after failing to deliver criminal cases against President Donald Trump's political enemies. But there's no guarantee her successor will have any better success at placating the president.
Discussion:
Reason, The Nation, Wall Street Journal, Mother Jones, CNN, National Review, Bloomberg, New York Times, New York Magazine, The Atlantic and The Hill, more at Mediagazer »
New York Times:
Pam Bondi Wanted a Graceful Exit. But Trump Wanted Her Gone.
Discussion:
The Guardian, HuffPost, alicublog, The Hill, Salon, Salt Lake Tribune, Raw Story, No More Mister Nice Blog, America, America, The Free Press, MS NOW, Democrats, CBS News, Washington Examiner, France 24, Reuters, NewsMax.com, NOTUS, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, The Federalist, Al Jazeera, Honolulu Star-Advertiser and Newsweek
Moira Donegan / The Guardian:
Pam Bondi's firing won't have the effect Trump desires
Pam Bondi's firing won't have the effect Trump desires
Discussion:
Washington Post, Politico, MS NOW, The Spectator, MeidasTouch News, Fox News, Robert Reich, The Independent, Poynter, Mediaite, Associated Press, Raw Story, New York Times, Washington Examiner, MercoPress, The Daily Caller, CNBC, Newsweek, The Hill, HuffPost, NBC News, Palm Beach Post, TheGrio and The Daily Wire, more at Mediagazer »
Wall Street Journal:
'I Think It's Time': The Inside Story of Pam Bondi's Ouster
'I Think It's Time': The Inside Story of Pam Bondi's Ouster
Discussion:
New Republic, Politico, Washington Examiner, Blaze Media, The Daily Caller, The Independent, New York Post, Just Jared, Wonkette, Mediaite, National Review, The Hill, HuffPost, Raw Story, Washington Post and NPR
Tony Romm / New York Times:
White House Seeks $1.5 Trillion for Defense in New Budget Request — The massive, proposed increase would be offset in part by steep cuts to domestic programs, some of which the administration describes as wasteful. — With the United States at war with Iran and embroiled in conflicts around the world …
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Politico:
The White House has a war-funding sales pitch the GOP might not buy … “I'm very wary of voting for excessive spending in defense,” Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) said in an interview Friday morning. — The president's budget asks Republicans to pass a large chunk of his defense proposal …
Joan Biskupic / CNN:
Exclusive: Justice Samuel Alito was taken to a hospital last month in previously undisclosed incident — Supreme Court justices Supreme Court Donald Trump — Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito was taken to a hospital after becoming ill last month at a Federalist Society dinner in Philadelphia …
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Steven Nelson / New York Post:
Hegseth's ‘paranoia’ of being replaced explains purge of top general — as ally emerges for Army secretary's role — WASHINGTON — Secretary of War Pete Hegseth's “paranoia” about Army Secretary Dan Driscoll taking his job fueled the firing of the Army's top general, current …
Discussion:
The Atlantic, Raw Story, The Hill, MS NOW, Fox News and Wall Street Journal
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Steven Nelson / New York Post:
The bizarre reason Hegseth's right-hand man is spreading damaging rumors about the Secretary of War
Discussion:
Wonkette, NewsMax.com, Raw Story and Mediaite
Colin Demarest / Axios:
Hegseth's wartime firing of top generals stuns officials: “It's insane”
Hegseth's wartime firing of top generals stuns officials: “It's insane”
Discussion:
ABC News, The Hill, CBS News, New York Sun, RedState, France 24, The Nation, NBC News, Mediaite, Military Times, Washington Examiner, The Atlantic, Reuters, The American Conservative, Straight Arrow News, Military and Veteran …, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Raw Story, WUSA, Los Angeles Times, The Japan Times, Task & Purpose, Newsweek, Eschaton and Federal News Network
Lawfare:
Three Hundred Habeas Cases in Which the Government Has Defied Court Orders — A database of non-compliance with court orders around the country. — katherinepomps — katherinepomps.bsky.social — benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org — Meet The Authors
Discussion:
Docket updates … and Columbian
Nate Raymond / Reuters:
Trump seeks $152 million to reopen Alcatraz as active prison — The White House on Friday sought $152 million to return the former Alcatraz prison island to active duty, following up on President Donald Trump's call last year to transform the popular San Francisco Bay tourist destination.
Discussion:
New York Times, One America News Network, NewsMax.com and The US Sun
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Sophie Brams / The Hill:
Trump seeks $152M to rebuild Alcatraz as ‘state-of-the-art secure prison’
Trump seeks $152M to rebuild Alcatraz as ‘state-of-the-art secure prison’
Discussion:
CNN, The San Francisco Standard and New Republic
Jim Saksa / Democracy Docket:
Trump's anti-voting order may backfire, damaging DOJ's voter roll campaign — President Donald Trump's executive order on mail voting is highly likely to be declared unconstitutional and blocked by courts. But it might also screw up the Department of Justice's (DOJ) 30 ongoing lawsuits for state voter rolls.
Discussion:
The Guardian, WisPolitics, Raw Story, Salon, NPR, NewsMax.com, New Republic and Washington Post
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Melissa Quinn / CBS News:
23 states sue Trump over new executive order targeting mail voting
23 states sue Trump over new executive order targeting mail voting
Discussion:
Votebeat, WisPolitics, New Republic and Spotlight PA
Ryan J. Reilly / NBC News:
Pam Bondi failed to prosecute Trump's foes. Todd Blanche probably will, too. — Several former federal prosecutors said in discussions with NBC News that incoming acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will not likely be able to satiate Trump. — It wasn't for lack of effort. Subscribe to read this story ad-free
Discussion:
The Contrarian
NOTUS:
The White House App Is Riddled With Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities — Cybersecurity experts' reviews of the app have turned up concerns about the undisclosed data it collects. — Copy — Cybersecurity researchers warn that the White House's new app regularly shares users' IP addresses …
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Liliana Segura / The Intercept:
Grandmother Faces Trial in Alabama for Wearing Penis Costume to No Kings Protest — In the body camera footage, a police officer parks his black SUV on the grass, a rosary swinging from the rearview mirror. He exits his car, moves briskly past a pair of protesters, and points an accusatory finger …
Motoko Rich / New York Times:
Hegseth Says U.S. Troops Are Fighting for Jesus. The Pope Disagrees. — In sharp contrast to the Trump administration's calls for Christian prayers for the war effort, Pope Leo XIV says military domination is “entirely foreign to the way of Jesus Christ.”
Discussion:
Israpundit
Alice Miranda Ollstein / Politico:
Trump admin moves Title X family planning program away from contraception, towards conception … The guidance instead promotes “natural family planning methods,” such as period tracking apps and other forms of fertility awareness that have higher failure rates than hormonal birth control.
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, Washington Examiner, Abortion, Every Day and The Daily Signal
Politico:
Judge bats down DOJ bid to revive subpoenas to Fed … “No matter whom the subpoenas were addressed to, then, it was clear whom they sought dirt on: Powell,” Boasberg wrote. — U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, who is overseeing the investigation, has already promised to appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Al Jazeera, New York Post, Washington Examiner, Axios, Bloomberg, MS NOW, CBS News, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit and NewsMax.com
Richard Fausset / New York Times:
No One at Waffle House Remembers FEMA Official Who Says He Teleported In — Gregg Phillips, who is in charge of responding to fires and floods, says the hand of God suddenly and mysteriously moved him to a 24-hour breakfast spot in Rome, Ga. — Shastoni Burge has worked for a decade …
Discussion:
kottke.org
G. Elliott Morris / Strength In Numbers:
The six big events that have dragged down Donald Trump's approval rating — Note: This article is free to read, but it was not free to produce. To help grow this newsletter business (doing so incurs costs like paying for polling data and modeling infrastructure, experimenting on biz dev …
Discussion:
HuffPost, Digby's Hullabaloo and Raw Story
CNN:
A new CNN poll reveals how people mad at both parties see the midterms — Americans' views of both the Democratic and Republican parties remain deeply negative, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. And in an election year that may turn on which party voters see as the lesser of two evils …
Discussion:
The Hill, NewsMax.com, Blaze Media, Jezebel, Newsweek, Council on Foreign Relations, Washington Examiner and Grabien
Kelsey Piper / The Argument:
Can a liberal society do affirmative action right? — The quota trap. — In 1996, Californians voted 55 to 45 for Proposition 209, which, among other things, barred public colleges and universities from considering race or ethnicity in admissions. — Twenty-four years later …

