Reading archive 2026-01-16

Democrats see narrow path to retaking the Senate. Watch these states.: Republicans are still clear favorites to retain control of the chamber in the midterms. But Democrats say they are more hopeful about the odds of a big upset.

Trump Cabinet secretaries conspired to violate Constitution, judge says: “The Cabinet secretaries and ostensibly, the president of the United States, are not honoring the First Amendment,” U.S. District Judge William Young declared. - "The 2025 trial revealed the machinery behind the Trump administration’s campus crackdown. Senior administration officials directed personnel at DHS who normally analyze transnational criminal networks to instead produce reports on students involved in pro-Palestinian protests, one official testified."

The Commanders’ new stadium could evoke memories of RFK: The first conceptual renderings of the new stadium, unveiled Thursday morning, showed a sweeping roof, a grand colonnade and plenty of callbacks to RFK Stadium.

John Calipari: How to stop the chaos of college sports: A sustainable model for the NCAA should address the transactional era of athletics.

Congressional Republicans might finally jump off the hamster wheel: Maybe Trump has at last gone too far for GOP legislators tired of going nowhere. - "Hassett predicted that Trump’s 2017 corporate tax cuts would produce a $4,000-$9,000 increase in average household incomes. That has not happened. Early in the pandemic, he predicted it would soon wane. It did not. Writer Steve Chapman, who calls Hassett 'a master of opportunistic amnesia,' notes that no states had gas prices averaging as low as $2 when Hassett said prices are 'below $2 a gallon in a lot of places.'"

CEO of D.C.’s newest hospital resigns less than a year after it opened: Anthony B. Coleman’s departure will mark the latest turnover of management at Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center in Southeast Washington.

In D.C. mayoral bid, Lewis George pledges universal child care, social housing: D.C. Council member Janeese Lewis George unveiled her mayoral campaign platform at a launch party, including policies on housing, jobs, education and public safety.

I just set my farm on fire. It was thrilling.: This has been my winter of living dangerously, and my experiences have boosted my sense of well-being.

An injured NFL team, a power substation and a theory that won’t fade: A viral online theory for the San Francisco 49ers’ injuries is disputed by scientists but has some players’ attention. - "But tracing it to the opening of Levi’s is dubious because the 49ers started practicing next to the substation in 1988, three decades before Levi’s Stadium opened. From 2001 to 2014, the 49ers ranked below average in injuries, according to Aaron Schatz, a veteran NFL analyst who tracks injury reports."

Trump’s anti-climate agenda won’t just hurt the planet, but American incomes too: In this week’s newsletter: US earnings would be 12% higher without the climate crisis, a study reveals – and the hotter the world gets, the greater the economic losses

Democratic Bosses Are Launching a Remake of the 2028 Calendar: States are jockeying for an early spot and a greater say in the nominee.

Elizabeth Warren’s Abundant Mistakes: Her critique of moderate Democrats is a mischaracterization of her opponents within the party. - "At one point in her speech, for instance, Warren claimed that Donald Trump 'is trying to push out the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board and complete his corrupt takeover of America's central bank-so that it serves his interests, along with his billionaire friends'.' Is it true that Trump's billionaire friends would benefit from undermining central-bank independence? The billionaires don't seem especially excited about this aspect of Trump's power grab." [ed. note: in fact, rich people hate inflation, because it makes their money worth less]

America Has Entered Late-Stage Protein: This has gone too far.

MAGA’s Jewish Intellectuals Helped Create Their Own Predicament: The nascent effort to contain the spread of anti-Semitism is years overdue.

Rubio Won; Liberty Lost: Is it really a win when the regime you detest stays in place?

UPenn faculty condemn Trump administration’s demand for ‘lists of Jews’: Groups say EEOC demand for names and personal details echoes dark history and threatens safety and civil rights

Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins: Jackson Fire Department rules arson at Beth Israel Congregation, the city’s only Jewish house of worship.

Suspect in Mississippi synagogue fire laughed as he confessed to his dad, authorities say - "Pittman appeared in federal court on Monday afternoon via video conference, accompanied by a public defender. He affirmed to the judge, Andrew Harris, that he was competent and sober. Pittman appeared to be leaning back in his chair, gazing away from the camera. When the judge asked him if he understood his rights to an attorney, Pittman responded, 'Yes sir, Jesus Christ is Lord.'"

Trump's Tangled Web of Deal-Making, Policy and Riches