Extra, Extra
Through Thick and Win: Both Bibi and Zelensky are in town for Lindsey Graham’s funeral. They also met separately with Trump, who has basically reversed his opinions on both of them. “It is a remarkable change of fortunes for Zelensky, whose relationship with Trump once seemed irredeemably damaged. Last year, Trump called Zelensky a dictator, criticized his leadership and berated him during a tense Oval Office meeting. Days after the meeting, Trump paused all military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine, and he subsequently balked at sending more assistance to the beleaguered country.” WSJ (Gift Article): Impressed by Ukraine’s Battlefield Gains, Trump Warms to Zelensky. “Trump, a senior administration official said, likes winners—and Zelensky, in the U.S. president’s estimation, is increasingly looking like one.” (Great to have an ally you can trust to be there through thick and thicker.) Here’s the latest.
+ Talk Balk: “The rhetoric coming from Iran indicates that its leaders are comfortable with the state of limbo with the United States — something between peace and full-fledged war — believing that they can handle renewed conflict and that they have leverage over President Trump.” Why Iran Is in No Rush to Return to Talks With United States.
+ Mail Pattern Boldness: “Mr. Trump has repeatedly criticized mail-in voting and sought restrictions on it. For years, he has made unfounded claims sowing doubt about voting by mail and claiming that it allows widespread fraud.” The question is whether or not the Supreme Court majority will back him up. And the fact that that is a question at all is a problem. Trump Asks Supreme Court to Allow Order Restricting Mail Voting.
+ Flub Med: “Kennedy was taken aback. Even though he has long been known to be skeptical of vaccinations, he had been asked by White House political advisers to tone down his vaccine efforts ahead of the midterms, the people said. Now, it was the commander in chief who was pushing to make the study of vaccines and autism more of a priority. The president steers nearly every conversation with his health secretary back to the issue.” You might imagine RFK Jr pushing Trump to implement more of his quack ideas and Trump telling him to pipe down. That’s not how it’s going. Trump is doing the quacking. Trump Turns Up the Heat on RFK Jr. to Cut Back Childhood Vaccines.
+ Above and Beyond: “This climate emergency is exceeding every threshold and scale that scientists have long warned all of Spain and Europe about.” NYT (Gift Article): ‘A Wake-Up Call’: Massive Wildfires Pierce Madrid’s Bubble. (For some leaders, it’s a wake-up call. Others keep hitting the snooze button.)
+ That’s What Kalshi Said: “‘You can’t be a felon on active supervision and vote. If you’re 17, you can’t vote, and betting on an election where you vote, it’s the same thing, it’s not allowed,’ she said. Jump ahead to 2026, and Kalshi, the company leading the prediction market craze, is criticizing the law, calling it ‘bananas,’ ‘illegal’ and a type of ‘voter suppression.'” Kalshi attacks a Wisconsin law banning election bets as voter suppression. This is less about voter suppression and more about suppressing the right of states to regulate gambling. Meanwhile, Betting on Drug Trials and Approvals Prompts Concerns About Undermining Research.
+ Fraternal Disorder: “In the case involving the Secret Service agent, the two victims were each made to sit in a half squat with one arm pointed forward, and they were repeatedly struck with paddles if they incorrectly answered questions about the fraternity and its history, according to the warrant. The beatings stopped on the final day only after one of the victims bled through his underwear and pants.” Secret Service Agent and 2 Others Charged in Near-Fatal Fraternity Hazing.
