September 15, 2025 at 10:37 AM EDT
Trump teases threat to defund NYC after governor's endorsement for mayor

Declaring that "he is not a kingmaker," ten days ago New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul warned President Donald Trump to stay out of the race for mayor of New York City. The President on Monday morning re-entered the fray with a statement that appeared to be a threat to defund the city after the governor overnight endorsed the Democratic Party's nominee for mayor, Zohran Mamdani. "President Trump threatened early Monday to withhold federal funds from New York after Gov. Kathy Hochul's 'shocking' endorsement of socialist Zohran Mamdani to be the Big Apple's mayor," The New York Post reported.

September 14, 2025 at 2:03 PM EDT
'So much uncertainty': Experts sound new alarm over Trump's 'shambolic' economy

In an article for The Bulwark published Sunday, journalist Jonathan Cohn argued that President Donald Trump's recent decisions, including halting work on a Rhode Island offshore wind project, contradict his own stated priorities: making America energy"'independent, lowering living costs, and helping working"'class Americans. Cohn focused on Revolution Wind, a large-scale clean energy project that was about 80 percent complete when the administration issued a stop"'work order. The official reason was a need for a new national security review, but Cohn pointed out the administration has not explained what those concerns are or why prior reviews weren't enough.

September 14, 2025 at 1:16 PM EDT
Outrage as Wisconsin Republican fans the flames following Kirk murder

Fruitless thoughts and prayers. Familiar calls for de-escalating toxic partisanship. Promises to do something about the teen mental health crisis, violent video games, the epidemic of alienation and hopelessness. By now we are all accustomed to the ritual reactions to routine incidents of horrific gun violence that plague our country like no other wealthy nation on Earth, where firearms are the leading cause of death for children.

September 14, 2025 at 1:11 PM EDT
MAGA enraged at UT governor for claiming Charlie Kirk 'said some very inflammatory things'

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) admitted Sunday that right"'wing activist Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot at a university in Utah on Wednesday, had "said some very inflammatory things, and some corners of the web that's all people have heard." During an appearance on CNN Sunday morning, Cox told host Dana Bash, "But he also said some other things about forgiveness. He said some amazing things about when things get dark, putting down our phones, reading scriptures, going to church, talking to our neighbors. He said that we have to engage and that's what I appreciate most about Charlie Kirk."

September 14, 2025 at 12:32 PM EDT
'Extremely callous': Fox host's stunning comments met with disgust as he attempts backtrack

Fox News host Brian Kilmeade is facing calls to resign after suggesting earlier this week that the state should execute homeless people who decline help during a live broadcast. Kilmeade made the comments during a Wednesday episode of Fox & Friends, during which the panel discussed the recent shocking video of the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska aboard a train in Charlotte, North Carolina, by a mentally ill homeless man, which has ignited a flurry of often racist vitriol on the right toward Black Americans and homeless people.

September 14, 2025 at 12:25 PM EDT
'They are hunting us': Childcare workers go underground in DC

From her home-based day care in Washington D.C., Alma peers out the door and down the sidewalks. If they're clear and there are no ICE agents out, she'll give her coworker, an undocumented Latina who lives nearby, a call letting her know it's safe to head in for work. This story was originally reported by Chabeli Carrazana of The 19th. Meet Chabeli and read more of her reporting on gender, politics and policy.

September 14, 2025 at 12:14 PM EDT
Lesbian Space Princess is a cheeky, intergalactic romp that turns the sci-fi genre on its head

In Emma Hough Hobbs and Leela Varghese's award-winning directorial debut, Lesbian Space Princess, outer space emerges as a new and inclusive habitat for a smart, funny story exploring the inner spaces of lesbian consciousness and self-affirmation. The film pushes hard against the gendered conventions of the sci-fi genre, re-pointing them to unexpected ends.

September 14, 2025 at 11:53 AM EDT
What looks like a harmless workout group could be a gateway to violence -- one pushup at a time

Small local organizations called Active Clubs have spread widely across the U.S. and internationally, using fitness as a cover for a much more alarming mission. These groups are a new and harder-to-detect form of white supremacist organizing that merges extremist ideology with fitness and combat sports culture. Active Clubs frame themselves as innocuous workout groups on digital platforms and decentralized networks to recruit, radicalize and prepare members for racist violence. The clubs commonly use encrypted messaging apps such as Telegram, Wire and Matrix to coordinate internally. For broader propaganda and outreach they rely on alternative social media platforms such as Gab, Odysee, VK and sometimes BitChute. They also selectively use mainstream sites such as Instagram, Facebook, X and TikTok, until those sites ban the clubs. Active Club members have been implicated in orchestrating and distributing neo-Nazi recruitment videos and manifestos. In late 2023, for instance, two Ontario men, Kristoffer Nippak and Matthew Althorpe, were arrested and charged with distributing materials for the neo-Nazi group Atomwaffen Division and the transnational terrorist group Terrorgram. Following their arrests, Active Club Canada's public network went dark, Telegram pages were deleted or rebranded, and the club went virtually silent. Nippak was granted bail under strict conditions, while Althorpe remains in custody.As a sociologist studying extremism and white supremacy since 1993, I have watched the movement shift from formal organizations to small, decentralized cells - a change embodied most clearly by Active Clubs.

September 14, 2025 at 11:40 AM EDT
'This will not end here': Scholar explains why Kirk's killing could embolden violence

The fatal shooting of prominent conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, 2025, has brought renewed attention to the climate of political violence in America. Kirk's death reflects a sizable increase in threats against officeholders and politicians at the local and federal level. Alfonso Serrano, a politics editor at The Conversation, spoke with University of Massachusetts Lowell scholar Arie Perliger after Kirk's shooting. Perliger studies political violence and assassinations and spoke bluntly about political polarization in the United States.

September 14, 2025 at 11:27 AM EDT
'Desensitization' to political violence takes America 'back to the pre-Civil War era': analysis

In an article for Politico published Sunday, reporters Jessica Piper and Aaron Pellish noted that while politically motivated violence in the United States is increasing -- targeting everything from state governors to Supreme Court justices -- each new attack is leaving less of an imprint on the public consciousness, as Americans grow quickly desensitized to such incidents. Piper and Pellish noted that though threats and violent acts continue to rise in frequency and severity, the attention they command, both in media coverage (newspaper front pages) and in public interest (as measured by Google searches), is waning rapidly.

September 14, 2025 at 11:21 AM EDT
Billions spent and miles to go: Inside California's big failure

Seventeen years ago, Californians bet on a grand vision of the future. They narrowly approved a $10 billion bond issue to build a high-speed rail line that would zip between San Francisco and Los Angeles in under three hours. This technological marvel would slash emissions, revitalize the state's Central Valley, and, with some financial help from the feds and private sector, provide the fast, efficient, and convenient travel Asia and Europe have long enjoyed.