Weed, wages and same-sex marriage: The most intriguing ballot measures that voters will decide in November
Across the U.S. in November, voters will weigh proposals on election policies, minimum wage increases and marijuana legalization.
Today's Liberal News
Trump’s Wall Street pitch: Punishing tariffs, low taxes, ‘explosive’ growth
Trump arrived in New York amid growing concerns among some investors about his economic plans as Harris casts his agenda as a financially calamitous wishlist.
“Netanyahu Wants Open-Ended War”: Palestinian Journalist & Fmr. Israeli Negotiator on Gaza Ceasefire
As Israeli forces launch repeated attacks on civilian areas in Gaza, expand their deadly incursion into the West Bank and threaten retaliation for strikes by Hezbollah and Houthis, we discuss ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas with Palestinian writer Amjad Iraqi and former Israeli peace negotiator Daniel Levy.
The Exploding Pagers of Lebanon
It felt like a science-fiction film, one Lebanese friend told me. At almost exactly the same moment—3:30 p.m. today—pagers exploded all over Lebanon, leaving hideous gashes and wounds on the heads, hands, and hips of their owners.
The significance of the attack quickly became clear: The pagers were being used by members of Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant movement that has been fighting an undeclared war with Israel since October.
Seven Senate Races to Watch
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.
With Kamala Harris and Tim Walz at the top of their ticket, the Democrats are feeling much more optimistic than they were earlier this summer about holding on to the White House. But lower down on the ticket, Democrats are struggling to keep their 51–49 lead in the Senate.
The Trump Sons Really Love Crypto
“I’m a proud crypto bro. You’re starting to become one of us, if not already,” Farokh Sarmad, a social-media influencer, said to former President Donald Trump during a livestream on X last night. According to the platform’s listener counter, more than 1 million people tuned in for the launch of World Liberty Financial, a new crypto project promoted by Trump and his family. The former president has been posting about it on social media for several weeks.
Republicans block Democratic bill on IVF protections
As Trump pitches himself as a “leader on IVF,” GOP senators dismiss the legislation as a Democratic stunt.
Smartphones Are So Over
Today, Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, one of the most popular social-media apps for teenage users, is announcing a new computer that you wear directly on your face. The latest in its Spectacles line of smart glasses, which the company has been working on for about a decade, shows you interactive imagery through its lenses, placing plants or imaginary pets or even a golf-putting range into the real world around you.
“Borderland: The Line Within”: New Film on Who Profits from Deportations & Border-Industrial Complex
We speak with filmmaker Pamala Yates about her new documentary, Borderland: The Line Within, which explores the human impact of restrictive U.S. immigration policies and border militarization.
“Erasing History”: Yale Prof. Jason Stanley on Why Fascists Attack Education & Critical Inquiry
We speak with Yale philosophy professor Jason Stanley, author of the new book Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, which examines the global rise of authoritarianism in the United States, Russia, Israel and beyond. He says attacks on education are a key part of the fascist toolkit to undermine democracy and pluralism.
U.N. Experts Accuse Israel of “Starvation Campaign” in Gaza & Demand End to Western Complicity
Top United Nations human rights experts have condemned Western nations for supporting Israel’s devastating war on Gaza, urging the world to stop an unfolding genocide in Palestine. This comes as the U.N. special rapporteur on the right to food, Michael Fakhri, is accusing Israel in a new report of carrying out a deliberate starvation campaign in Gaza. “What we are witnessing in Gaza is the starvation of 2.3 million Palestinians.
Money Talks: Can Wealth be Vicarious?
Rumaan Alam’s novel, Entitlement, explores what happens when we enter the lives of the mega-rich.
A Bold New Experiment in Sports Coverage Just Might Work
Betches CEO Aleen Dreksler explains why it’s time to take women sports fans seriously.
If You Want to Know Who Won the Debate, Watch Fox News the Moment It Ended
Even host Jesse Watters seemed a little lost.
ABC’s Debate Pulled Off a Trick No One Else Has Managed in the Trump Era
David Muir and Linsey Davis were ready.
A ‘miracle molecule’ could cut fentanyl deaths in half — or lead more into addiction
A plan to expand access to the drug treatment is hung up on fears of a black market, despite bipartisan support.
Supreme Court declines to block Biden family planning rules in Oklahoma
The state lost millions in federal funding because it refused to offer patients a national hotline number for information about abortion.
‘Most people are confused’: What to know about the latest Covid shot
While the risk of hospitalization and death is nowhere near what it was in 2021, there is still a danger, particularly for the elderly or those with compromised immune systems.
Parents can’t function they’re so stressed, surgeon general warns
Kamala Harris and Donald Trump want to provide relief, though they disagree on the details.
Dr. Fauci was hospitalized with West Nile virus and is now recovering at home
The former top U.S. infectious disease expert is expected to make a full recovery.
Joe Biden preps to sell the economy — to boost his legacy and help Harris
Biden is determined to convince a skeptical public that he strengthened the economy.
Vance’s media strategy takes a turn
He was Trump’s policy whisperer to key voting blocs. Now, he’s fueling rumors that Haitian immigrants in Ohio are eating cats and dogs.
Weed, wages and same-sex marriage: The most intriguing ballot measures that voters will decide in November
Across the U.S. in November, voters will weigh proposals on election policies, minimum wage increases and marijuana legalization.
Trump’s Wall Street pitch: Punishing tariffs, low taxes, ‘explosive’ growth
Trump arrived in New York amid growing concerns among some investors about his economic plans as Harris casts his agenda as a financially calamitous wishlist.
“How We Do Freedom”: V (Eve Ensler) on Fighting Fascism Through Community
We speak with V, the playwright formerly known as Eve Ensler, about “How We Do Freedom: Rising Against Fascism,” a daylong educational event to be held at New York City’s Judson Memorial Church on Saturday. V is the founder of the global activist movements V-Day and One Billion Rising that is organizing the event. “The rise of fascism, from India to Italy, from Afghanistan to U.S., [is] the most pressing concern everywhere,” says V, who ties the crisis to growing loneliness and isolation.
Uhuru 3 Found Guilty of Conspiracy, Acquitted of Foreign Agents Charge in Landmark Trial
A federal jury in Florida has found members of the pan-Africanist group African People’s Socialist Party guilty of conspiring with the Russian government to “sow discord” and “interfere” in U.S. elections. They face up to five years in federal prison. In a major victory for the activists, however, the jury acquitted them of the more serious charge of acting as foreign agents.
Trump Is No Gerald Ford
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.
Every American has the right to participate in public life without violence, and that includes Donald Trump. Personally, I think he probably belongs in jail, but that is a matter for the justice system.
A $700 Kitchen Tool That’s Meant to Be Seen, Not Used
Wood, I don’t think I need to work too hard to convince you, is a fairly amazing substance. It grows out of the ground and then becomes some of the most important things in the world: pencils, baseball bats, clogs, porch swings, campfires, crucifixes, tall shelves filled with books (which are also wood, if you squint a little). Solomon’s temple was wood; so was the Mayflower. So were Kane’s Rosebud and Prince’s guitar.
Look What She Made Him Do
The post was sandwiched between a screed about capital-gains taxes and a video clip from a Donald Trump rally. Four words, all-caps: “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!”
Haters gonna hate (hate, hate, hate, hate), Taylor Swift has observed, and the claim has been validated, now, by an expert. Yesterday morning, Trump made his current feelings about Swift known on Truth Social—an extremely belated reaction, it would seem, to the pop star’s endorsement of Kamala Harris, issued last Tuesday evening.