Today's Liberal News

Report from Gaza: Palestinian Journalist Akram al-Satarri on “The Struggle to Survive, Stay Sane”

We go to Rafah to speak with Palestinian journalist Akram al-Satarri in Gaza as the death toll continues to climb amid Israel’s relentless assault on the territory. The Health Ministry says at least 20 people were killed Thursday as they lined up to receive humanitarian aid, and at least 12 others were killed a day earlier at a U.N. shelter hit by tank shells.

Marianne Williamson on Running for President, Challenging Biden & Calling for a Gaza Ceasefire

It’s primary day in New Hampshire. As Donald Trump and Nikki Haley square off in the Republican race, we speak to 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson on her longshot campaign against President Biden. In an unusual twist, Williamson’s name is on today’s ballot, but Biden’s is not. Biden opted out of running in New Hampshire after the state refused to move its primary until after South Carolina’s.

The Daily Show Is Better Than This

What a bummer. When Roy Wood Jr. stood behind Trevor Noah two weeks ago while Noah was accepting an Emmy for The Daily Show—the show that Noah no longer hosted, the show that hasn’t had a permanent host since he left at the end of 2022—and silently mouthed, for all the world to see, “Please … hire … a … host,” Jon Stewart was probably not … who … he … meant.

Can Netanyahu Outlast This War?

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.
“It’s hard to remember at this point, but before the Hamas slaughter on October 7, Israel was embroiled in the worst civic unrest since its founding,” my colleague Yair Rosenberg wrote earlier this month.

Why the Oscars Overlooked Greta Gerwig

A woman directs a commercially successful and critically acclaimed film that is nominated for a slew of Academy Awards, but none for Best Director. Sound familiar? Back in 1992, this is what happened to Barbra Streisand, whose Oscar snub for directing The Prince of Tides prompted the ceremony’s host, Billy Crystal, to sing “Did this movie direct itself?” to the tune of “Don’t Rain on My Parade” in his opening monologue.

Were the Saudis Right About the Houthis After All?

Informed Americans finally seem to understand that the macabre slogan of Yemen’s Houthi militia group—“God is the greatest, death to America, death to Israel, a curse upon the Jews, victory to Islam”—is more than empty rhetoric.
The Houthis are a potent Iranian proxy group, and their slogan, adapted from Iranian revolutionary propaganda, is being made manifest in action.

The Plan to Incapacitate the Federal Government

Last Wednesday, over the course of three and a half hours of arguments, the conservative and liberal justices on the U.S. Supreme Court jousted over whether to overrule a 40-year-old case called Chevron v. National Resources Defense Council.
The Chevron case is famous among lawyers—it’s among the most cited cases of all time—because it established the principle that the courts should defer to federal agencies when they interpret the law in the course of carrying out their duties.

“Trump Is the Nominee. Fascism Is on the Ballot.” Author Jeff Sharlet on New Hampshire & Beyond

Former President Donald Trump trounced runner-up Nikki Haley in Tuesday’s Republican primary, in what Jeff Sharlet, expert on the far right, says is another landmark in the acceleration of fascism in the United States. “Trump is the nominee. Fascism is on the ballot,” says Sharlet, who describes how Trump is appealing to broader groups of Americans, why the political press is failing to capture the fascist movement, and the importance of resisting its growth. “It’s popular front time.

“MAGA vs. MAGA Polite”: Trump Beats Haley in New Hampshire, Haley Vows to Fight On

Former President Donald Trump won New Hampshire’s primary on Tuesday with 54% of the vote to 43% for former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, the last major challenger to Trump’s Republican bid. “If there was a state she could win in, in the entire United States, it was this state, and she still lost by 11 points,” says Arnie Arnesen, longtime New Hampshire radio and TV host and former politician. “She doesn’t have a future.

This Is Really Happening

Well, here it is.
With Donald Trump’s victory in tonight’s New Hampshire primary, the die is cast. Or rather, the public can no longer ignore that the die is cast. Really, it was cast months, even years, ago and it has landed on what most Americans consider a bad roll: a rematch of the 2020 election between Trump and President Joe Biden.
Dread of this outcome is perhaps the most unifying issue in an otherwise polarized political moment.

The Biden Campaign’s New Abortion Messaging

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 an eye toward taking on Donald Trump in a general election, President Joe Biden has started hammering home the message that he will protect reproductive freedoms in a second term.

Readers on the Morality of Pornography

Welcome to Up for Debate. Each week, Conor Friedersdorf rounds up timely conversations and solicits reader responses to one thought-provoking question. Later, he publishes some thoughtful replies. Sign up for the newsletter here.
Last week I asked readers, “Is pornography immoral?”
H. regards most pornography as unhealthy, but not immoral:
I found my life to be significantly improved after I stopped masturbating to pornography.

The Youths Really Like Anyone but You

The film Anyone but You’s paltry $6 million opening over Christmas weekend seemingly confirmed a persistent assumption in Hollywood: Theatrical romantic comedies are a thing of the past. Once a pillar of the release calendar, rom-coms have largely been consigned to the smaller-scale world of streaming. They are seen as more difficult to sell overseas and distinguish at the box office (during that first weekend, Anyone but You lagged behind Wonka and Aquaman 2).

Biden’s Democracy-Defense Credo Does Not Serve U.S. Interests

“We’ve got to prove democracy works,” Joe Biden declared in his first press conference as president. He has dedicated his administration to this task. Biden took office weeks after his predecessor tried to overturn an election and sparked an insurrection. The violent transition of power confirmed America’s spot in the “democratic recession” that has beset dozens of countries since the mid-2000s.