The NYT on how opponents of the Iran deal tried to dig up dirt on an Obama aide: “For years, opponents of the nuclear deal with Iran have accused Benjamin J. Rhodes, a top national security aide to President Barack Obama, of scheming to sell the diplomatic agreement on false pretenses to the American people. Now, just as President Trump appears likely to announce his decision to withdraw from the deal, evidence has surfaced that the agreement’s opponents engaged in a sophisticated effort to dig up dirt on Mr. Rhodes and his family that continued well after the Obama administration left office.” (As you know, I judge the importance of news stories for a living. If tied to the Trump administration, this story of the Israeli firm hired to investigate Obama staffers involved in the Iran deal is absolutely massive. On its own, it’s big. Together with the Russia story, it establishes a clear and damning pattern of behavior.)

+ Here’s Ben Rhodes’ reaction to Trump’s withdrawal: “It took five years of diplomacy to build the sanctions regime and two years of diplomacy to reach a Deal. Trump is blowing that up with no understanding of what’s actually in the Deal, no plan for what comes next, and no support from our closest European allies, Russia or China.”