Extra, Extra
Ballot Boxing: “The first major elections of President Donald Trump’s second term will take place Tuesday as voters head to the polls in Wisconsin, a perennial battleground, and in Trump-friendly territory in Florida.” What to watch as Wisconsin and Florida host the first major elections of Trump’s second term.
+ Going Hungary: “Hungary is now one of the poorest countries, and possibly the poorest, in the European Union. Industrial production is falling year-over-year. Productivity is close to the lowest in the region. Unemployment is creeping upward. Despite the ruling party’s loud talk about traditional values, the population is shrinking. Perhaps that’s because young people don’t want to have children in a place where two-thirds of the citizens describe the national education system as “bad,” and where hospital departments are closing because so many doctors have moved abroad. Maybe talented people don’t want to stay in a country perceived as the most corrupt in the EU for three years in a row. Even the Index of Economic Freedom—which is published by the Heritage Foundation, the MAGA-affiliated think tank that produced Project 2025—puts Hungary at the bottom of the EU in its rankings of government integrity.” Hungary is also the model being followed in America these days. Anne Applebaum in The Atlantic (Gift Article): America’s Future Is Hungary.
+ Luigi’s Death Penalty Charge: Attorney General Pam Bondi said Tuesday the Justice Department will seek the death penalty for accused CEO killer Luigi Mangione. “The first-degree murder charge alleges he killed the executive ‘in furtherance of an act of terrorism.'”
+ Rumor Mill: “‘The only way I could describe it is it’s like you’re walking with your daughter on the street, holding her hand, and a car mirror snags her shirt and starts dragging her down the road. And all you can do is watch,’ Cornett’s father, Justin, said. ‘You can’t catch the car. You can’t stop it from happening. You just have to sit there and watch your kid be destroyed.'” The Athletic: ESPN’s Pat McAfee and others amplified a false rumor. A teenager’s life was ‘destroyed.’ (We live in such a hateful moment.)
+ Healthcareless: Layoffs begin at US health agencies responsible for research, tracking disease and regulating food. (Oh, just that stuff…) And from Wired: The CDC Has Been Gutted.
+ Chips on the Table: The combination of the coming tariffs, a recent visit Asia by Pete Hegseth, and America’s lack of support for Ukraine all make this is a very tense moment for Taiwan. Taiwan sees China’s military drills as a ‘signal’ to the US. WaPo: China targets Taiwan’s president with military drills and personal attacks. “One analyst called China’s large-scale drills a ‘pre-invasion operation.'”
+ Going After The Mouse’s Rabbit Ears: FCC chair threatens ABC’s broadcast license over Disney DEI practices.
