Extra, Extra
Ill Advised: “I was fired for holding the line on scientific integrity. I had refused to commit to approving vaccine recommendations without evidence, fire career officials without cause, or resign.” Ex-CDC director Susan Monarez tells senators that RFK Jr. required political sign-off on decisions, called for firings without cause. (That’s basically the cabinet M.O. these days. But this example is going to make us ill in addition to making us sick.) Here’s the latest on the Monarez hearings from NBC.
+ Gov Cuts Like a Knife: “The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point Wednesday, its first reduction of 2025, and projected two more cuts for the rest of this year.”
+ Kings Cross: Parades, banquets, protests, flyovers, and combovers are all on display during Trump’s visit with the royals. Here’s the latest from BBC and The Guardian.
+ Limitless: “At this tense juncture in Israel’s history, Mr. Netanyahu has one clear advantage: the largely uncritical support of President Trump. A world drifting under Mr. Trump’s impulsion in an authoritarian direction had helped birth a Bibi unbound. He is emboldened because, as never before, he is confident that, no matter what, this America will have his back.” Roger Cohen: Netanyahu and an Israel Without Restraint. (Those campaign season protests against Biden and then Harris are arguably the most counterproductive protests in American history.)
+ Stolen Youth: “Investigators have examined instances in which Ukrainian parents were killed by the Russian Army in its invasion and their children were subsequently educated in Russian language and culture. In other cases, Ukrainian children were put up for adoption or placed in foster care with Russian families. Children from Ukraine have been put in schools and cadet academies with military training oriented toward the fight against their own homeland.” NYT (Gift Article): Russia Indoctrinates Children From Occupied Ukraine at 210 Sites, Study Says.
+ Where Credit is Due: “For more than a decade, Americans watched their credit scores climb steadily upward, a reassuring sign of improving financial health following the Great Recession. However, it appears the streak has come to an abrupt end.” Credit scores are dropping rapidly. Here’s why.
+ Good Reception: “The numbers of Sunday further cement the NFL as being conspicuously immune to the ratings erosion affecting nearly every other major league and television property in the industry.” Eagles-Chiefs scores Fox 33.8 million viewers, most ever in NFL’s early season.
