The Atlantic
16 Magazines | 512.6k Followers | @TheAtlantic | Current affairs, politics, and culture.
The Atlantic Daily: Should Trump’s Aides Disobey His Orders?
The “resistance” described in an anonymous official’s New York Times op-ed. Plus the backlash to Nike’s new ad campaign, what technology means for democracy, and more<p>What We’re Following<p><b>Mutinous Message:</b> An anonymous op-ed published in <i>The New York Times</i> by “a senior official in the Trump …
Trump AdministrationCongressional Republicans Are the Real Authors of the Anonymous Op-Ed
The Constitution demands that the legislature serve as a check on the executive. In its absence, unelected bureaucrats are taking it on themselves to act.<p>We don’t yet know which senior administration official authored today’s astounding <i>New York Times</i> op-ed suggesting that President Donald Trump’s …
Donald TrumpThe Atlantic Politics & Policy Daily: The Calls Are Coming From Inside the House
The New York Times published an anonymous op-ed in which a senior official in the Trump administration claims that there is a “resistance” within the administration.<p><i>Written by Elaine Godfrey (@elainejgodfrey), Madeleine Carlisle (@maddiecarlisle2), and Olivia Paschal (@oliviacpaschal)</i><p>Today in 5 …
Donald TrumpWe're Watching an Antidemocratic Coup Unfold
Acts of sabotage against the president are perilous to the American system of government. They're also self-serving.<p>The title of Bob Woodward’s new book, <i>Fear</i>, contains a multitude of meanings. For one thing, it describes the attitude of many of President Trump’s own aides toward his judgment.<p>It’s …
Donald TrumpThis Is a Constitutional Crisis
A cowardly coup from within the administration threatens to enflame the president’s paranoia and further endanger American security.<p>Impeachment is a constitutional mechanism. The Twenty-Fifth Amendment is a constitutional mechanism. Mass resignations followed by voluntary testimony to congressional …
Donald TrumpA Plane Quarantine in New York Started Out Like a Sci-Fi Nightmare
100 supposedly sick passengers ended up only being 10. But the story tapped into potent fears about flying.<p><i>Updated on September 5, 2018 at 5:58 p.m. ET</i><p>It really did sound like the beginning of a zombie movie.<p>On Wednesday morning, a flight from Dubai landed in New York City, and passengers were not …
DiseaseA Plane Quarantine in New York Started Out Like a Sci-Fi Nightmare
100 supposedly sick passengers ended up only being 19. But the story tapped into potent fears about flying.<p>It really did sound like the beginning of a zombie movie.<p>On Wednesday morning, a flight from Dubai landed in New York City, and passengers were not allowed to leave. A hundred people on the …
DiseaseWill Juan Martín del Potro Usher In a New, Younger Generation of Tennis Greats?
In 2009, the Argentine player was primed to lead a youth movement in men’s tennis and shift the demographics of the game. It didn’t happen, but he may have a second chance this year.<p>Nine years ago 20-year-old Juan Martín del Potro vanquished Roger Federer, then 28, in the U.S. Open men’s singles …
TennisWoodward’s Account of Trump’s Mock Interview With Prosecutors Isn’t Pretty
In his new book, “Fear,” the legendary reporter writes that Trump stumbled over questions about Michael Flynn.<p>“I’m not sure.” “I don’t know.” “I can’t remember.” In a mock interview with President Trump to prepare him for a possible sit-down with the special counsel’s office, Trump’s lawyer …
Donald TrumpA Judge Who Can’t Be Vetted Shouldn’t Be Confirmed
If Brett Kavanaugh’s extensive paper trail can’t be fully and publicly disclosed, the simplest solution is to nominate someone else.<p>The Brett Kavanaugh hearings—such as they are—began on Wednesday to take on a shape that ordinary citizens can understand. When discussing the law, Judge Kavanaugh has …
The White HouseThe Absurdity of America’s Front Lawns
In the opening scene of David Lynch’s <i>Blue Velvet</i>, a man mows his front lawn. It’s a quintessentially American sight: freshly-hewn grass, blue skies, vibrant flowers, a white picket fence. Then, the man collapses. The camera follows him to the ground, where, just beneath the earth, a grotesque scene …
David LynchWhy Does the School Day End Two Hours Before the Workday?
This mismatch creates a child-care crisis between 3 and 5 p.m. that has parents scrambling for options.<p>This past March, on a Thursday morning before dawn, more than 70 bleary-eyed parents lined up in front of the Parks and Recreation building in South Windsor, Connecticut. Wrapped in heavy coats …
Child CareImages of the Destruction Left by Typhoon Jebi in Japan
On September 4, Typhoon Jebi, the most powerful typhoon to hit Japan in 25 years, tore through the western part of the country with heavy rain and violent winds. Ships and vehicles were tossed about, buildings were damaged, and the area’s main international airport was flooded. At least 11 deaths …
AirportsDemocrats Are Coming After Kavanaugh on Abortion
The Supreme Court hearings are a preview of the party’s midterm strategy, with lawmakers placing the issue front and center. But it’s far from clear that their apocalyptic rhetoric will actually work.<p>As the Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Brett Kavanaugh got underway on Tuesday, a group of …
FeminismThe Absurdist Spectacle of the Nike Boycotts
The viral responses to the company’s new campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick reinforce the stakes of his protests—and misunderstand what motivated the brand in the first place.<p>Monday afternoon, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick tweeted a tightly cropped grayscale photo of …
Donald TrumpA Republican Enlisted His Pregnant Daughter for an Abortion Attack Ad
The new spot criticizes North Dakota Democrat Heidi Heitkamp’s record in the Senate.<p>The North Dakota Senate Republican candidate Kevin Cramer has launched a television ad attacking the Democratic incumbent Heidi Heitkamp for her support of late-term abortion, according to a copy of the ad obtained …
North DakotaColin Kaepernick, Nike, and the Myth of Good and Bad Companies
The brand’s alignment with the embattled NFL star is nothing more than smart business.<p>After Phil Knight first launched the Nike brand in 1971, he claimed that he could persuade the whole world to buy his shoes if he could first get them on the feet of “five cool guys.” In truth, it took only two …
Ernst & YoungThe Worst May Be Yet to Come in Syria
As Bashar al-Assad and Russia prepare to assault Idlib, there are up to 3 million people with nowhere to go.<p>In the fall of 2016, Syrian troops loyal to Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russian airstrikes and Iran-backed militias, marched on Aleppo and ultimately captured the city of 200,000 people, …
Middle EastLetters: ‘The Orca Should Not Be Seen As a Vanity Project’
Readers reflect on the lessons of a grieving whale<p>What a Grieving Orca Tells Us<p><i>In August, Ed Yong wrote about Tahlequah—the Pacific Northwest orca that carried around her calf, who died shortly after birth, for 17 days—and how she exemplifies the larger plight of killer whales.</i><p>Thank you for Ed …
GrievingFighting the Far-Right and Neo-Nazi Resurgence in Germany
Violent anti-immigration protests in the city of Chemnitz were dwarfed in size by a counter-protest. But they still speak to a dark and growing trend in German politics.<p>The eastern German city of Chemnitz had, by <i>The New York Time</i><i>s’</i>s account, “never seen anything like” it: Thousands of protesters, …
EuropeThis Tiny Songbird Rolls Its Head to Break Its Victim’s Neck
The loggerhead shrike is a hawk trapped in the body of a finch.<p>There are places in the southern United States where the roadsides are fenced with barbed wire, and the wire is adorned with corpses. The carcasses belong to lizards, rodents, small birds, and even snakes, all impaled on the sharp …
BirdsThe Key Lesson of Ayanna Pressley’s Victory
Her triumph in a chunk of Massachusetts once represented by Tip O’Neill shows that the former House speaker’s maxim no longer applies.<p>Last night, in one of the most remarkable upsets of this remarkable political season, Boston City Councilwoman Ayanna Pressley clobbered longtime incumbent …
GovernmentTaking a Blowtorch to Debate
Steve Bannon and Colin Kaepernick share little in common, but the backlash each faces is rooted in a common rage.<p>On Tuesday, certain conservative activists spent much of the day enraged on Twitter, hashtagging boycotts, destroying sneakers, and otherwise defacing the Nike swoosh in protest of the …
Donald TrumpWhen Animals Take the Night Shift
They’d rather eat in the dark than risk coming across one of us.<p>Several years ago, Kaitlyn Gaynor and her colleagues noticed an intriguing pattern. It started with data from Tanzania, where motion-detecting cameras captured a trend: Antelope that had once roamed primarily in the day were now roving …
UC BerkeleyAyanna Pressley's Win Is the Biggest Upset Yet for Progressives
There wasn’t much daylight on policy matters between the Boston city councilor and 10-term incumbent Mike Capuano. But she still beat him by 18 points.<p>Representative Mike Capuano was hoping that Massachusetts voters would opt for his decades of experience over the tantalizing gleam of a fresh …
Ayanna PressleyA Once-Captive Dolphin Has Introduced Her Friends to a Silly Trend
“What we had here was an example of dolphin culture being established.”<p>In 1995, a bottlenose dolphin named Billie leaped from the water of Port River, Australia, and began “tail-walking” in circles around Mike Bossley’s boat. Her tail was pumping vigorously, her snout was pointed to the sky, and …
Bottlenose DolphinsA Daily Caller Editor Wrote for an ‘Alt-Right’ Website Using a Pseudonym
Scott Greer, an editor and columnist at the Caller, also wrote as “Michael McGregor” for Radix Journal, the publication associated with the “alt-right” figure Richard Spencer.<p><i>Updated at 5:29 p.m. ET</i><p>The former <i>Daily Caller</i> writer and editor Scott Greer has severed all ties with the conservative …
Rights & FreedomsA Major Boost for Young Veterans Running for Congress
A nonpartisan group backing candidates who served in recent wars hauls in some big donations.<p>The funeral orations for John McCain were widely received as a reminder of what politics should be, in some remembered and perhaps mainly imagined nobler age. The remembered part might include Senator …
U.S. MarinesDisinformation Is Spreading on WhatsApp in India—And It’s Getting Dangerous
The spread of hoaxes and doctored photos during massive floods in Kerala showed, yet again, how easily disinformation can spread on messaging platforms like WhatsApp—and how deadly it can be.<p>MUMBAI—Kerala was drowning. For over a week, rains had inundated the state, located in southwest India, …
JournalismThe Atlantic Daily: May Be Illuminating
A new book reveals extraordinary quotes from White House officials. Plus a devastating museum fire, our new Ideas section, and more<p>What We’re Following<p><b>White House Woes:</b> President Donald Trump bemoaned the indictments of “two very popular Republican Congressmen … just ahead of the Mid-Terms,” in a …
Donald Trump