Extra, Extra

System Shutdown: “As the Senate marches ahead with a bipartisan approach to prevent a government shutdown, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is back to square one — asking his hard-right Republicans to do what they have said they would never do: approve their own temporary House measure to keep the government open.”

+ Soldier of Fortune: Remember the strange story of the Army private who seemingly strolled across the border into North Korea? Well, he’s been deported, or released, or something. American soldier Travis King is en route to the US after being freed by North Korea.

+ The Conspiracy Against America: Bloomberg: “McKinsey & Co. is poised to pay $230 million in its latest settlement of lawsuits blaming the company for its role advising opioid manufacturers in their sales of the painkillers.” You really can’t overstate the extent to which the opioid crisis destroyed Americans’ trust in institutions and companies. Even when the crisis got totally out of hand, no one said stop. Everyone wanted a piece of the action.

+ Expanding the Strike Zone: Bruce Springsteen postpones all 2023 tour dates until 2024 as he recovers from peptic ulcer disease. (This news is giving me an ulcer. Get well, Boss.)