Deterrence and leverage: Iran tries to call the shots with strikes on Israel  —  Severe escalation complicates advanced peace talks as Tehran signals willingness to risk return to full-scale war, 100 days into the conflict  —  Monday's escalation suggests Tehran, confident in its ability …

Ken Paxton's Impeachment Defense Lawyer Endorses James Talarico  —  A Texas lawyer who helped lead Republican Ken Paxton's defense during a 2023 impeachment trial said Paxton “has lost sight of his core mission.”  — Copy  —  A Texas lawyer who helped lead Republican Ken Paxton's defense during …

Trump says Netanyahu will have ‘no choice’ but to accept a deal with Iran  —  US president tells FT that he ‘calls the shots’ after urging the Israeli leader not to retaliate against Tehran

Nithya Raman surges past Spencer Pratt in L.A. mayor's race, closing in on runoff with Karen Bass  —  Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman surged past reality television personality Spencer Pratt in the city's mayoral primary election Sunday, capping off a five-day turnaround after she fell behind to Pratt on election night.

All the Ways Europe Is Ditching American Technology  —  A WIRED timeline shows how dozens of governments, companies, and other organizations across Europe are moving, or planning to shift, away from US Big Tech.  —  Europe is done with American Big Tech.  Well, sort of.

Pam Bondi was the worst AG in history.  Until now.  —  This edition of PN is made possible by paid subscribers.  Become one ⬇️  —  ☀️ Subscribe to PN ☀️  —  Pam Bondi has a strong claim to being the most corrupt and subservient attorney general in US history.

231. The Death of Purcell's “Principle”  —  There is no coherent defense of the “Purcell principle” that can be rationalized with the Supreme Court's behavior over the past six weeks in the Alabama and Louisiana redistricting cases.  —  Welcome back to “One First,” a newsletter that aims …

Spy-powers deal is latest Hill casualty of Trump's impetuous decisionmaking … But Democrats are withdrawing their support in protest of the Pulte appointment, with nearly every Democratic senator joining a handful of Republicans in tanking a procedural vote early Friday morning …

Deep in Rural Virginia, a MAGA Pro-Gun Push Takes an Unnerving Turn  —  When Governor Abigail Spanberger signed a new assault weapons ban in Virginia last month, it got almost zero national news coverage.  Yet it amounted to an important milestone: It marked the first time in U.S. history …

Andrew Tate's Empire of Abuse  —  How the defining figure of the manosphere built a fortune—and became a political force—by systematically exploiting women.  —  “I've done this with over 100 girls,” Tate said, about compelling women into sex work.  “I almost sound evil.  But I'm not.”

How America Gave Up on Its Own History  —  Unable to agree on how to interpret the American story, the country's schools, universities, and political institutions have stopped trying to tell it at all.  —  Seek  —  on a july afternoon in 2019, I found myself in a large, sun-dappled room within one of America's great estates.

Why centrists can't win the Democratic presidential primary  —  The liberal wing of the party is now the majority wing  —  On Wednesday, I went to WelcomeFest, the annual gathering of centrist Democratic operatives and D.C. types.1 The purpose of the conference is to advocate for moderation …

The New York Primary That Is All About Israel  —  From lower Manhattan into brownstone Brooklyn, events 6,000 miles away are dividing neighbors and consuming a Democratic congressional race.  'It's crazy.'  —  NEW YORK—Not long ago, Dan Goldman was a hero of the resistance.

Lawsuit Aims to Stop U.F.C. Fights at White House on Trump's Birthday  —  A federal lawsuit said the event, set for June 14, was unlawfully planned and designed to benefit Mr. Trump and his allies.  —  A political activist and a Vietnam veteran represented by an anti-corruption organization filed …

The Justice Department Hasn't Taken Its Usual Steps to Protect the 2026 Election  —  The DOJ appears to be quietly scrapping its typical “command center” that would monitor Election Day emergencies.  — Copy  —  President Donald Trump says “if you don't have honest voting, you can't really have a nation.”

The Hidden Figure With Close Ties to Bill Gates and Jeffrey Epstein  —  Melanie Walker was a confidante to Gates and Epstein.  Her lawyer says she was in a ‘coercive relationship’ with Epstein.  —  It was September 2017, and Dr. Melanie Walker's work with Bill Gates was coming to an end.