Stephen Miran is Trump’s pick to lead Council of Economic Advisers
Miran has called for a sweeping overhaul of the Fed to ensure greater political control over the central bank, including giving the president the power to fire board members at will.
Today's Liberal News
Martin Short Deserved Better
If you weren’t aware that Martin Short was hosting Saturday Night Live last night, you might have had a difficult time figuring that out. It’s not that Short wasn’t in sketches—he was, using his natural flair for showmanship as he sang about getting medicated for the holidays. It’s just that a lot of other celebrities were also there. Lots and lots of them: Melissa McCarthy, Tom Hanks, Kristen Wiig, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Rudd.
The Edge of a Spiral
ESA / Hubble & NASA, R. Windhorst, W. Keel
Day 22 of the 2024 Space Telescope Advent Calendar: the edge of a spiral. Located roughly 150 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Serpens, UGC 10043 is one of the somewhat rare spiral galaxies that are seen edge-on. From this point of view, we see the galaxy’s disk as a sharp line through space, overlaid with a prominent dust lane. One can see the lights of some active star-forming regions in the arms, shining out from behind the dust.
The California Job-Killer That Wasn’t
California’s new minimum-wage law hadn’t even gone into effect before it was declared a disaster. Business groups and Republican politicians have argued for decades that minimum-wage increases harm the very workers they are supposed to help, and this one—passed in September 2023 and setting a salary floor of $20 an hour for fast-food workers—appeared to be no different.
Bogotá’s Open Streets Program Is the Most Successful in the World. I Went to Find Out Why.
If you ask a Bogotáno where they learned to ride a bike, they all have the same answer.
The Most Obvious Thing That Would Make Sports Gambling Safer
Credit cards make sports betting dangerously easy—but they also come with hidden fees and risks that sportsbooks won’t tell you about.
Netflix Employee Salad Days are Over
The streaming giant is scaling back on its generous parental leave policy…and employee swag.
The World Is Spiraling. Why Not Invest in a Dinosaur Skeleton?
If you’re reading this and thinking, “I wish I were rich enough to own a stegosaurus,” then there’s an online platform for you.
The contortions GOP senators are making for RFK Jr.
Republican lawmakers are looking past Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s views as they consider his nomination to lead HHS.
The ‘really sticky’ situation facing the public health establishment: RFK Jr.
Public health officials see promise in some of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s plans to prevent chronic disease but despair at his vaccine conspiracy theories.
Kennedy to meet with Republicans on key committees
Trump’s pick to lead HHS heads to the Hill this week.
Police arrest suspect in UnitedHealthcare CEO’s killing
A witness recognized the alleged killer at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s.
How Trump’s transition could end up hamstringing his agenda
The president-elect’s advisers haven’t yet begun meeting with federal agencies, despite signing an agreement late last month allowing them to do so.
Is Aziz Ansari Sorry?
The Waves also discusses the Riverside Church controversy and the case of Sarah Milov.
Your Opinions on Her Wardrobe Are Probably Unwelcome
What we say matters, especially depending on whom we say it to.
What Role Does HR Play in the #MeToo Era?
The Waves also discusses the case against Jeffrey Epstein and Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s Fleishman Is in Trouble.
Biden: Trump’s tax and tariffs plans are a ‘major mistake’
Five weeks after the election, the president took his sharpest swing at Trump’s policy plans.
Trump voters feel very differently about things now that he’s won, our new poll shows
A pair of POLITICO|Morning Consult polls, one conducted in the final days of the election and the other conducted after Trump won, show how public opinion has changed.
It’s still the economy: What TV ads tell us about each campaign’s closing message
The final paid messages: Economy, culture wars and character.
Harris is pounding Trump on fascism. Some Dems think that’s a mistake.
Harris has ratcheted up her warnings about the dangers of a second Trump term in recent weeks.
“Do Not Obey in Advance”: Timothy Snyder on How Corporate America Is Bending to Trump
We speak with Yale historian and author Timothy Snyder, an expert on authoritarianism, about how corporate America has responded to Donald Trump’s reelection. Snyder’s 2017 book On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century came out just a month after Trump began his first term, and opened with the warning: “Do Not Obey in Advance.
How to Appeal Insurance Denials, Abolish Medical Debt, and Fight for Medicare for All
We continue to look at the U.S. health insurance industry and how patients can fight back against their providers with advocate Elisabeth Benjamin, vice president of health initiatives at the Community Service Society of New York and co-founder of the Health Care for All New York campaign. She says her advice for patients is to always appeal denials and to seek outside help when possible, including advocacy groups like hers and external review boards.
UnitedHealth vs. Patients: NYC Man’s Battle to Get Lifesaving Drug Highlights Broken Health System
Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the shooting death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, has been charged with first-degree murder and second-degree murder as an act of terrorism. Thompson’s assassination has brought renewed attention to the practices of the health industry and especially UnitedHealth Group, which reported $22 billion in profits last year.
Amazon Workers Launch Historic Strike to Demand New Contracts & End Unsafe Labor Practices
Thousands of Amazon workers on Thursday launched the largest strike against the retail giant in U.S. history, pressuring the company at the height of the holiday period to follow the law and bargain with those who have organized with the Teamsters union. The strike includes warehouse workers and drivers at seven distribution centers in some of Amazon’s largest markets, including New York, Atlanta and San Francisco; Teamsters have also set up picket lines at many other warehouses nationwide.
Elon Musk’s Determining Role in Washington
Editor’s Note: Washington Week With The Atlantic is a partnership between NewsHour Productions, WETA, and The Atlantic airing every Friday on PBS stations nationwide. Check your local listings or watch full episodes here.
Joe Biden has faded from national leadership as Donald Trump and his allies, including Elon Musk, act as though they’re already in charge. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined last night to discuss this and how a government shutdown came to be on the table.
Inside a Chaotic Nebula
NASA, ESA, STScI / AURA
Day 21 of the 2024 Space Telescope Advent Calendar: inside a chaotic nebula. Sharpless 2-106 is a nebula several light-years across, seen here by Hubble in 2011. It lies 2,000 light-years away, in a relatively isolated region of the Milky Way galaxy. A massive young star is responsible for the furious activity we see inside the nebula. Twin lobes of super-hot gas, glowing blue in this image, stretch outward from the central star.
The Strange Challenge of Small Talk
This is an edition of The Wonder Reader, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a set of stories to spark your curiosity and fill you with delight. Sign up here to get it every Saturday morning.
Small talk, in my experience, is one of those life skills that doesn’t get easier the more you practice.