Freshman Democrat Puts Rep. Jim Jordan On Blast Over Whistleblower Claims
Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) asked Jordan if he had any notes from the “dozens” of whistleblowers he claimed have approached his office about corruption.
Today's Liberal News
Sen. John Fetterman Remains In Hospital; MRI Rules Out Stroke
The Pennsylvania Democrat was hospitalized Wednesday after feeling lightheaded at the Senate Democratic retreat.
Trump Declares There’s Only One Good Thing About Super Bowl Halftime Queen Rihanna
The ex-president and his former doctor, Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas, have a tantrum over Trump-critic Rihanna’s upcoming starring role.
Beware the Lidless Toilet
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.Don’t be fooled by the unsettling elegance of the phrase toilet plume. It describes the invisible cloud of particles heaved by a toilet when flushed, and was once feared to be a vector for COVID-19.
The Films Steven Soderbergh Watches on a Loop
Steven Soderbergh is the rare filmmaker who views a sequel as a chance to do something different. In a moviemaking era suffused with safe and predictable follow-ups, Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Twelve remains a sterling example of a strange, surprising left turn from its predecessor’s formula.
Is This The Week AI Changed Everything?
Welcome to the week of AI one-upmanship. On Tuesday, in a surprise announcement, Microsoft unveiled its plans to bring the technology behind OpenAI’s ChatGPT bot to its search engine, Bing. (Remember Bing? Because Bing remembers your jokes.) According to the company, the new tool will be a paradigm shift in the way that humans search the internet.
A ‘Distinctly Human’ Trait That Might Actually Be Universal
Eleven years ago, on the remote Japanese island of Kojima, a female macaque walked backwards into a stray heap of primate poop, glanced down at her foot, and completely flipped her lid.
Dem governors pledge to protect abortion as neighbors add restrictions
Abortion access has come to the center of the national political stage since last June.
CDC adds Covid-19 vaccinations to immunization schedules for children, adults
The guidance formalizes current recommendations, and does not mandate vaccines.
Banned by Putin: Editor at Russian Outlet Meduza on Censorship, Eroding Freedoms & Ending Ukraine War
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Brussels today to address the European Union Parliament. The visit comes after he made surprise trips to Paris and London where he urged European nations to begin providing Ukraine with fighter jets and long-range weapons. Meanwhile, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has repeated his call for the war to end.
“Continuous Insanity”: Syrian Dissident Yassin al-Haj Saleh on 12 Years of War & Earthquake Relief
As the death toll tops 17,000 in Turkey and Syria from Monday’s twin earthquakes, we look at the situation in Syria, where 12 years of brutal war have left the country’s institutions in tatters, further complicating aid efforts. Syrian writer, dissident and former political prisoner Yassin al-Haj Saleh describes how the war has killed about 2% of Syrians and displaced 7 million more, or about a third of the population.
Syrian Doctor Warns War-Torn NW Syria Faces Humanitarian Catastrophe as Earthquakes Kill 19,000+
The death toll in Turkey and Syria has passed 19,300 and continues to rise following Monday’s devastating earthquakes. Many survivors are without shelter, heat, food, water or medical care, and the first United Nations aid only reached northwest Syria three days after the quakes. Rescue efforts in Syria have been further complicated by damage and displacement from 12 years of war and harsh sanctions. Prior to the earthquake, the U.N.
Biden administration braces for ruling that could ban abortion pills
District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk could strike down the FDA’s decades-old decision to approve mifepristone.
Pot is making people sick. Congress is playing catch-up.
Now that a growing body of evidence says marijuana is bad for you, more regulation is in the offing.
FTC cracking down on companies that share customers’ health data
The latest action, against telehealth firm GoodRx, could have far-reaching implications for online business models.
House votes to end Covid public health emergency
The symbolic vote comes a day after President Joe Biden said he’d end the emergency on May 11.
Covid emergency’s end will mean new costs, hassles
Some Americans will have to pay for Covid vaccines and treatments, but the changes don’t end there.
Biden’s 2022 State of the Union report card: Where he delivered — and fell flat
The president promised a lot last year. Here’s how we graded him on some of those pledges.
Biden on robust jobs numbers: The ‘critics and cynics are wrong’
Noting the 3.4 percent jobless rate, the lowest since May 1969, the president said “the Biden economic play is working.
Wall Street’s biggest bear: Fed’s Jerome Powell
Fed officials are signaling that they’re determined to keep their vise-like grip on the economy through the end of 2023.
Yellen to stay on as Biden’s Treasury chief as debt fight looms
People close to Yellen said she had considered leaving for family reasons and because the Treasury job is highly political — and would become more so with Republicans in control of the House.
Washington Post Columnists Point Out GOP’s Sarah Huckabee Sanders Problem
The Trump White House press secretary’s State of the Union rebuttal “vividly demonstrates a problem for the GOP,” said Paul Waldman and Greg Sargent.
Sen. John Fetterman Hospitalized Overnight
His staff says he has no signs of another stroke, but will have more tests.
Republicans Push Bill That Would Let Montana Students Misgender Classmates
GOP lawmakers in Montana are co-sponsoring a bill that would allow students to deadname their transgender peers without punishment.
Tucker Carlson Goes To A Dark Place In Weird New Attack On Democrats
“You are promoting an ancient religious rite called human sacrifice,” the Fox News host said during an anti-abortion rant.
Twitter Explodes Over Lauren Boebert’s Clueless State Of The Union Tweet
The Colorado Republican appeared to forget who was president in 2020.
The Legal Decision That Could Rewrite the Abortion Battle—Again
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.At last night’s State of the Union address, the first one since the fall of Roe v. Wade, President Joe Biden pledged to continue working to protect access to reproductive health care amid more than a dozen extreme state-level bans.
George Santos, the GOP’s Useful Liar
After President Joe Biden delivered his State of the Union address last night, George Santos offered his appraisal of the proceedings. “SOTU category is: GASLIGHTING!” the representative pronounced in a tweet.The review was curious, coming as it did from a man who has fabricated much of his own biography.
Republicans Keep Underestimating Joe Biden
Joe Biden knows how to handle a tough crowd. This was evident last night at the State of the Union, and it was apparent to me seven years ago, on March 20, 2016. On that day, President Barack Obama sent Biden to sell the recently struck Iran nuclear deal to the national conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). This was the political equivalent of asking the vice president to push New York Times subscriptions at a Donald Trump rally.
The Challenges of Disaster Planning
Updated at 4:56 pm ET on February 8, 2023This is an edition of Up for Debate, a newsletter by Conor Friedersdorf. On Wednesdays, he 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.