Today's Liberal News

How Lindsey Graham Miscalculated on Iran

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Days before the United States launched its war on Iran in late February, a senior official from an Arab nation was being escorted through the West Wing when the Oval Office door swung open to present three familiar faces: Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
“What are you doing here?” the official asked Graham, half in jest.

The Last of the Three Amigos

More than 20 years ago, Senator Lindsey Graham visited Ukraine for the first time. An election was looming, one that would be reversed and run again, and that would ultimately produce victory for the pro-Western Orange coalition. In the summer of 2004, however, all of that lay in the future. Graham, then in his first Senate term, joined his friend John McCain on a congressional delegation. At the time I was serving as McCain’s foreign-policy adviser, and tagged along.

The Atlantic Introduces Whodunit Game: Lemony Snicket’s Suspicious Incident in Dubious Park

As part of its ongoing expansion into Games, today The Atlantic is launching its first immersive-narrative game: Lemony Snicket’s Suspicious Incident in Dubious Park. The game transports characters to the center of a fictional scene––written by the author Lemony Snicket––to solve a murder mystery.
The Atlantic is launching the game exclusively for subscribers in its first week, before opening it up to wider audiences on July 20.

U.S. Plans “Illegal Embassy” in Jerusalem on Land Stolen from Palestinian Families: Rashid Khalidi

The United States and Israel earlier this month signed a deal allocating land for a permanent U.S. Embassy in West Jerusalem — years after a temporary embassy was established during Trump’s first term in office. Palestinian families have pleaded with the U.S. government to reconsider the embassy’s planned location, saying the site in the area known as the Allenby compound was unlawfully taken from them decades ago.

Lindsey Graham “Never Met a War of Aggression He Didn’t Passionately Back”: Jeremy Scahill

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, one of the most prominent supporters of war in Washington, has died at the age of 71 after what his office called a “brief and sudden illness.” He was a vocal supporter of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, a leading backer of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran and a proponent of more U.S. military support for Ukraine. He also pushed for a permanent occupation of Afghanistan and once called for a preemptive attack on North Korea.

“Exposing Instagram’s Darkest Secret”: BBC’s Divya Arya on Ads for Child Sex Abuse Material in India

A new investigation from the BBC is accusing Instagram of running paid ads in India promoting child sexual abuse material. BBC senior correspondent Divya Arya explains how Instagram’s AI-powered review process frequently fails to flag content suggesting illegal and abusive activity, and how the platform’s profit-driven algorithms boost accounts paying to advertise this content.

“Now or Never”: DSA & Justice Democrats on Changing the Democratic Party, Mamdani, Gaza & More

As a rose-tinted wave of progressives and democratic socialists win Democratic primaries across the United States, we take a look at two of the organizations behind this recent slate of successful electoral campaigns: the Democratic Socialists of America and Justice Democrats.
From Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier in New York to Melat Kiros in Colorado to Janeese Lewis George in Washington, D.C.

Albania’s Flamingo Revolution: Protests Against Kushner-Trump Luxury Resort Could Bring Down Gov’t

Plans for a luxury resort in an ecologically sensitive area have set off more than a month of protests in Albania, where thousands have taken to the streets to oppose the megaproject backed by Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. The Flamingo Revolution — named for its feared impact on migratory birds — began as an environmental protest but has now turned into anger at the entire political system, threatening to bring down the government of Prime Minister Edi Rama.

The Honorable Gentleman for Ukraine

Ukraine had few, if any, friends in Washington more devoted than Senator Lindsey Graham, who visited Kyiv at the end of last week. His sudden death over the weekend left the Ukrainian leadership wondering who might fill the role he played: someone who had the rare ability to talk tough with Volodymyr Zelensky, to reason with Donald Trump, and to show both presidents how their interests could align.

What Lindsey Graham Wanted

Senator Lindsey Graham, who died unexpectedly last night, was a pivotal citizen of the Washington conversation. He loved being in the mix, slapping bipartisan backs off camera, and then, when the lights came on, cracking wise, weighing in, and, yes, currying favor with a certain Audience of One.
What could be more fitting, then, for Graham—unable to be a participant on this fateful Sunday morning—to actually become the only thing better: the main topic of the news. He died as he lived.

Trump Loses His Wingman

Lindsey Graham had just returned from a trip to Ukraine last night when he called President Trump to talk with him—about the trip, about one of the president’s key legislative priorities, about the days ahead. The two spoke often on their cellphones, a reminder of how their relationship had warmed in the decade since Trump, in a fit of pique after Graham called him a “jackass,” read the South Carolina senator’s personal cellphone number aloud at a campaign event.

The Quintessential Politician of This Era

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In his way, the late Lindsey Graham, who unexpectedly died Saturday evening, was the consummate politician of our time. The Republican senator from South Carolina was the epitome, the poster child, the quintessence of our era.