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.

Pam Bondi Wanted a Graceful Exit.  But Trump Wanted Her Gone.  —  Pam Bondi had a feeling her days as attorney general were numbered.  But she didn't expect President Trump to drop the curtain quite so soon.  —  Attorney General Pam Bondi had a pretty good idea her days were numbered.

Hegseth has intervened in military promotions for more than a dozen senior officers  —  The defense secretary's efforts to block or delay promotions to general or admiral for some officers has raised concerns that he may be targeting them because of race, gender or affiliation with the Biden administration, sources say.

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 …

Is It Legal to Bully the Supreme Court?  —  Emily Bazelon: Hi David.  I should start on a light and friendly note, I know, but I confess that the birthright citizenship case is making me feel trolled.  President Trump began his term with an executive order professing to end the right …

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 …

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 …

GOP governor candidate explodes at Black voter: ‘You should be lynched!’  —  A viral clip posted to X on Thursday showed Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback blowing up at a Black voter and telling him he should be “lynched” for asking about the allegations of inappropriate behavior with teenagers.

The bizarre reason Hegseth's right-hand man is spreading damaging rumors about the Secretary of War  —  WASHINGTON — Secretary of War Pete Hegseth's top aide Ricky Buria told colleagues last year that he and his boss donned disguises and went out drinking together — a juicy bit …

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 …

Trump wants the world to buy more US oil.  He might regret it. … U.S. crude prices jumped more than $11 on Thursday to land at $111.54 a barrel, their biggest gain in years.  Global crude oil benchmark Brent closed above $108.  The American Automobile Association said the average U.S …