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Trump Buys Himself Time, and Opens Up Some New Options — While President Trump appears to be offering one more off ramp to the Iranians, he also is bolstering his own military options. — President Trump's sudden announcement that he could take up to two weeks to decide whether to plunge …
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New York Post, Financial Times, Reason, CNN, NPR, Bloomberg, VINnews, The Hill, Semafor, Reuters, Associated Press and Daily Mail
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U.S. Spy Agencies Assess Iran Remains Undecided on Building a Bomb — U.S. intelligence officials said Iran was likely to pivot toward producing a nuclear weapon if the U.S. attacked a main uranium enrichment site, or if Israel killed its supreme leader. — U.S. intelligence agencies continue …
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RedState, The Forward, NewsMax.com, NewsNation, WTOP News, Breitbart, CBS News, NBC News, The Economist and Jewish Insider

Schumer and Jeffries Need to Step Up and Challenge Trump on War Powers — On many issues, Americans are deeply polarized. War with Iran isn't one of them. An Economist/YouGov poll of U.S. adults taken in the days after Israel's attack last Friday found that Democrats opposed entering …
Discussion:
New York Sun, The Intercept and Reuters

‘America First’ Is Dead — Worth keeping an eye on the strains growing between GOP appropriators …
Discussion:
Politico and Alternet.org
Jennifer Jacobs / CBS News:
Trump administration boosts monitoring of possible Iran-backed cells in U.S. — as Trump weighs strikes, sources say
Trump administration boosts monitoring of possible Iran-backed cells in U.S. — as Trump weighs strikes, sources say
Discussion:
NBC News and NewsMax.com
Ron Filipkowski / Meidas+:
Today in Politics, Bulletin 154. 6/19/25

Appeals Court Lets Trump Keep Control of California National Guard in L.A. — A panel rejected a lower court's finding that it was likely illegal for President Trump to use state troops to protect immigration agents from protests. — A federal appeals court on Thursday cleared …
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Appeals court lets Trump keep control National Guard troops deployed to Los Angeles during protests
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Politico:
Appeals court blocks Newsom's bid to reclaim control of National Guard from Trump
Appeals court blocks Newsom's bid to reclaim control of National Guard from Trump
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Talking Points Memo, Wall Street Journal, The Daily Caller and Townhall
Melissa Quinn / CBS News:
Appeals court extends order allowing Trump to deploy National Guard to L.A.
Appeals court extends order allowing Trump to deploy National Guard to L.A.
Christina Shaw / Fox News:
Trump scores major win against Newsom in battle for National Guard control
Trump scores major win against Newsom in battle for National Guard control
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Civil Discourse …, PJ Media, The Hill, American Greatness, NPR, IJR, [your]NEWS and Newsweek

Parliamentarian nixes key pieces of Tim Scott's megabill proposal — The Senate parliamentarian ruled Thursday that several key provisions in Banking Chair Tim Scott's proposed contribution to the GOP's “big beautiful bill” violate the upper chamber's rules for the budget reconciliation process …
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Erik Wasson / Bloomberg:
Cuts to Fed Salaries, CFPB Funds Blocked From Trump Tax Bill
Cuts to Fed Salaries, CFPB Funds Blocked From Trump Tax Bill
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American Prospect
Hailey Fuchs / Politico:
Rand Paul broke his own party on border security funding. Then his party broke with him.
Rand Paul broke his own party on border security funding. Then his party broke with him.
Discussion:
NewsMax.com
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Senate parliamentarian knocks pieces out of Trump's megabill

Clyburn Endorses Cuomo, Helping Him Broaden His Appeal to Black Voters — Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina is endorsing former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in the New York City mayor's race as the June 24 primary nears. — Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina …
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The Hill, Semafor and Daily Caller News Foundation
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‘Two Weeks’ Is Trump's Favorite Unit of Time — “Two weeks” is one of President Trump's favorite units of time. It can mean something, or nothing at all. — “Within the next two weeks.” — That is when President Trump now says he will be ready to make his decision about bombing Iran or not.
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The Hill, Raw Story, Associated Press, Politico, CBS News, The American Conservative, Breitbart, The Washington Free Beacon, Alternet.org, One America News Network, The Daily Signal, New York Sun, The Daily Caller, New Republic, [your]NEWS, The National Pulse, Fox News, Washington Examiner, The Independent, New York Post, Washington Times, Al Jazeera, The Post Millennial, The Gateway Pundit, Reuters, ABC News, USA Today, IJR, Washington Post and RealClearPolitics
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Trump says U.S. has ‘too many non-working holidays’ on Juneteenth — Meanwhile, former President Joe Biden celebrated the federal holiday he signed into law at a celebration at a historic Black church in Galveston, Texas. — President Donald Trump did not formally mark Juneteenth on Thursday …
Aishvarya Kavi / New York Times:
Juneteenth Goes Uncelebrated at White House as Trump Complains About ‘Too Many’ Holidays
Juneteenth Goes Uncelebrated at White House as Trump Complains About ‘Too Many’ Holidays
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USA Today, Associated Press, Business Insider, CNN, Newsweek, Lawyers, Guns & Money, IJR, The Independent, Washington Examiner, RedState, Alternet.org, KFTC-TV, Raw Story, The Left Hook with Wajahat Ali, TheGrio, CBS News, Governor of California, MSNBC, BlackPressUSA, Orlando Sentinel and Rolling Stone

The top priority of progressive politics may be slipping out of reach forever — Four years ago, America was on the cusp of the largest expansion of its welfare state since the 1960s. — Under Joe Biden in 2021, House Democrats passed legislation that would have established a monthly child allowance …
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Josh Hawley warns Senate leaders: Medicaid crackdown won't fly in the House
Discussion:
Axios, PoliticusUSA and NewsMax.com
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Trump's megabill hits more trouble as Senate conservatives demand changes
Trump's megabill hits more trouble as Senate conservatives demand changes
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and NewsMax.com

French Lawmaker Says He Was Denied Entry Into the United States — Pouria Amirshahi, a leftist member of Parliament, hopes that the decision will be reversed so that he can travel to meet lawmakers to understand life under President Trump. — A French member of Parliament …
Discussion:
Politico

Where is the outrage over Skrmetti? — The response to Wednesday's U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding Tennessee's law barring transgender minors from obtaining gender-affirming medical care has been muted at best. — In its U.S. v. Skrmetti ruling, the Supreme Court's Republican appointees shaved off …
Discussion:
The Big Picture, HotAir, New York Times, Washington Examiner and Reason

Man charged with attempted kidnapping of Democratic Memphis mayor — A man was arrested and charged on Wednesday for stalking and attempted kidnapping of the mayor of Memphis, Tennessee. — The big picture: Recent political violence and threats against Democrats has unnerved lawmakers in a heightened partisan environment.

Mark Cuban: Harris Camp Asked For VP Vetting Papers — The former Dallas Mavericks owner declined, saying he wouldn't make a particularly good Number Two. — Transcript — Last summer, during the height of the presidential campaign—not the Biden v. Trump one, the Harris v. Trump one …
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The Hill, New York Post, Raw Story, Business Insider, The Independent and Mediaite

Washington cherry growers struggle to find pickers — The threat of federal immigration agents raiding orchards in central Washington is causing a labor shortage that has compelled some Washington producers to leave cherries unpicked or delay their harvests until the fruit overripens and is worth less money.
Discussion:
Raw Story

Six former CDC vaccine advisory committee chairs warn: U.S. risks losing access to life-saving immunizations — Vaccine development, licensure, recommendations, and monitoring are all under attack — As former chairs of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (

Trump's DOJ Goes ‘Judge Shopping’ in Texas — Prof. Stephen Vladeck replies to ‘A Legal Ambush Against Dreamers.’ — Your otherwise fine editorial “A Legal Ambush Against Dreamers” (June 17) neglects to mention a key feature of the lawsuit the Justice Department filed against Texas to obtain …

Tuition Increases and Layoffs Are Coming to a Broad Set of Universities — Schools say the Trump administration's cuts to higher education are forcing them to consider extreme cost-cutting measures, even as more students than ever are heading to college this year.
Discussion:
World Socialist Web Site

Cybercriminals breach Aflac as part of hacking spree against US insurance industry — Cybercriminals have breached insurance giant Aflac, potentially stealing Social Security numbers, insurance claims and health information, the company said Friday, the latest in a spree of hacks against the insurance industry.
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CBS News, The Hill, Associated Press and UPI

Axios-Ipsos poll: Americans want to force presidents to share health records — Eight in 10 Americans want legally required and publicly released cognitive tests and disease screenings for U.S. presidents — and age limits on the presidency, according to the latest Axios-Ipsos American Health Index.
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New Jersey Online, Daily Caller News Foundation and The Daily Caller

‘We are heartbroken’: Hoffmans release public statement after shooting — Yvette Hoffman has been released from the hospital as John remains in critical but stable condition. … CHAMPLIN, Minn. — State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette have released a statement to the public five days …
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The Hill, Washington Examiner, Townhall, MPR News and The Gateway Pundit

GOP Senator Mike Lee Hit With Community Note Over Land Bill Claim — Fact-checkers warn the legislation gives broad discretion — Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) attempted to downplay the scope of a controversial Senate bill that allows for the disposal of certain federal lands, insisting on that the bill …
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Washington Examiner and Deseret News