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What Harris showing up for El-Sayed says about political loyalty

Kamala Harris returns to Detroit to campaign for Abdul El-Sayed amid ongoing tensions in the Democratic coalition.

Sep 27 • 8:21 PM EDT • Politics • detroitnews.com

CenterPointe Hospital to host Naloxone education and distribution event

The Boone County Overdose Response Coalition and Boone County Public Health and Human Services will host a naloxone education and distribution event at noon on Wednesday at CenterPointe Hospital.

Sep 26 • 6:26 AM EDT • Health • komu.com

Boston-led business groups press for science research funding in DC

A growing coalition of chambers of commerce across the country has a key goal: making the case in Washington to support science.

Sep 25 • 5:11 PM EDT • Science • bostonglobe.com

Public invited to Lifestyle Medicine at Work

The South Carolina Healthy Business Coalition’s Fall Seminar Series will explore how Lifestyle Medicine can support prevention, workforce wellbeing, and healthier workplace cultures.

Sep 25 • 3:40 PM EDT • Business • foxcarolina.com

Health Care Costs Part 1

The Minnesota Health Care Coalition pushes for Universal Health Care as the cost of medical care increases.

Sep 25 • 1:16 PM EDT • Health • kttc.com

Hung parliament: who could form a coalition after the next general election?

A ‘mega poll’ from YouGov suggests parties could be scrambling to forge an alliance

Sep 25 • 7:32 AM EDT • Politics • theweek.com

Wisconsin joins multistate push for federal AI safety rules

MADISON (WKOW) — A bipartisan coalition of 28 state attorneys general, including Wisconsin AG Josh Kaul, is urging Congress to immediately establish federal regulation and safety protocols for artificial intelligence.

Sep 24 • 8:30 PM EDT • Politics • wqow.com

Black Lung Disease Remains a Threat, but Federal Officials Delay Effort To Address It

The disease has long been a risk of coal mining, an industry the Trump administration is trying to reinvigorate.

Sep 24 • 5:00 AM EDT • Health • kffhealthnews.org

NJ Business Council for Childcare Launches to Strengthen NJ’s Workforce and Economy

ATLANTIC CITY — Today, the New Jersey Business Council for Childcare officially launched, bringing together some of the state’s most influential business organizations and employers to address childcare as a critical workforce and economic issue. Advised by Moms First, the statewide, business-led coalition includes the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA), New Jersey Chamber of[...]

Sep 23 • 1:41 PM EDT • Business • insidernj.com

Lawsuit seeks to block new NC mail-in ballot processes

A coalition of left-leaning groups is suing to block new absentee ballot guidelines approved by the State Board of Elections, arguing that mail-in voters could be disenfranchised.

Sep 23 • 11:48 AM EDT • Politics • wunc.org

Malaysia’s Anwar faces political reckoning in Melaka as state calls for poll

The Melaka state election is Malaysia’s third this year. Anwar’s coalition performed badly at previous polls in Johor and Negeri Sembilan.

Sep 22 • 10:30 PM EDT • Politics • scmp.com

Community Mental Health and Wellness Coalition to host recovery fair at IX Park

The Community Mental Health and Wellness Coalition is hosting its recovery fair Wednesday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Sep 22 • 5:53 PM EDT • Health • 29news.com

Gears of War: E-Day Story Director Laid Off Just Four Days After Celebrating The Game Going Gold

The Gears dev had been at the Coalition since 2022 and was excited for people to play the game

Sep 22 • 2:15 PM EDT • Technology • kotaku.com

Commissioners hear community health updates at regular meeting

The Board of County Commissioners met with the Gunnison County Community Health Coalition for a Board of Health update and a West Central Public Health Partnership Board progress report at their …

Sep 22 • 12:30 PM EDT • Health • gunnisontimes.com

Gateway Business Health Coalition Partners with Rezilient Health to Bring Tech-Enabled, More Affordable Primary Care to Its Members

/PRNewswire/ -- The Gateway Business Health Coalition (Gateway BHC), representing approximately 70 employers nationwide, including Fortune 500 companies and...

Sep 22 • 10:48 AM EDT • Health • prnewswire.com

Gateway Business Health Coalition Partners with Rezilient Health to Bring Tech-Enabled, More Affordable Primary Care to Its Members

/PRNewswire/ -- The Gateway Business Health Coalition (Gateway BHC), representing approximately 70 employers nationwide, including Fortune 500 companies and...

Sep 22 • 10:48 AM EDT • Business • prnewswire.com

Jiang Feng: The Unravelling of German & European Politics

A state election in eastern Germany has become a revealing test of the changing political landscapes of Germany and Europe, writes Jiang Feng, Professor and Chairman of the Council of the Shanghai Academy of Global Governance and Area Studies (SAGGAS) at Shanghai International Studies University. His analysis follows the decisive victory of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) (which has been classified as right-wing extremist by German authorities)in the state of Saxony-Anhalt on 6 September, in which it finished far ahead of its mainstream rivals. Jiang previously served as Minister-Counsellor at the Chinese Embassy in Berlin. The following article was published on 8 September 2026 on huanqiu.com, the online platform of the Global Times. On 6 September, the results of the state election in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, were announced. The Alternative for Germany (AfD), classified as far-right by German authorities, made history by becoming the largest party in the state parliament, winning 43.8 per cent of the vote — twice its share in the previous election. The Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which had governed the state continuously for 24 years, won just 17.2 per cent, its worst result ever in Saxony-Anhalt. On the night the results were announced, the atmosphere at the CDU gathering was unusually calm. There was neither shock nor argument, as if the defeat had long been expected. Several veteran party members who had spent years working in the state government said: “Defeat is not a bad thing. It is time to make changes.” This state election has not only upended Saxony-Anhalt’s political landscape, but also laid bare the deep tensions between Germany’s traditional party structure and model of governance, on the one hand, and an increasingly polarised society on the other. Its repercussions are already being felt at the federal level, making Saxony-Anhalt a useful case study of the broader trend towards political polarisation and realignment in Europe. Governing Difficulties after Electoral Victory The most immediate consequence of the election is a historic setback for the mainstream party order that took shape in post-war Germany. In Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD has leapt from a peripheral party to the largest political force in the state. Its electoral base has expanded beyond the traditional category of “marginal protest voters” to take on the characteristics of a cross-class coalition. The party has not only consolidated its support in rural areas, but also attracted many middle-class voters and even members of the social elite with stable jobs, their own homes, and substantial incomes. It has thus evolved from a “protest party” into one with the potential to govern. Despite its commanding lead in the vote, however, the AfD faces an institutional obstacle to governing the state: the mainstream parties’ long-standing “firewall” against it. Neither of the two potential routes to forming a government appears likely to break the current political deadlock. The first would be a coalition of establishment parties, led by the CDU and bringing together the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens, the Left Party (Die Linke) and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) in a cross-camp government. In terms of parliamentary arithmetic, such a coalition could prevent the AfD from forming a government and preserve the outward stability of the traditional political order. Yet these parties are fundamentally divided over key issues including immigration, the energy transition, economic management, and cultural and education policy. Coalition negotiations would therefore be extremely difficult, and even if a government could be formed, it would most likely prove short-lived. More importantly, an alliance of establishment parties aimed at keeping the largest party out of government would play directly into the AfD’s narrative that “political elites are suppressing public opinion”. It could deepen perceptions of political unfairness, further strengthening the AfD’s political capital, and creating a dynamic in which “the more it is suppressed, the more people vote for it”. Ulrich Siegmund, the AfD’s candidate for state premier, has said that if efforts to form a government fail because other parties refuse to cooperate, the AfD will push for a fresh election, which he believes could deliver the party an absolute majority of seats. This points to more intense political battles ahead. The second option would be a coalition between the AfD and the BSW. Together, the two parties would command a simple majority in parliament, making this, on paper, the quickest route to forming a government. The BSW is the only elected party that has not ruled out cooperation with the AfD, and the two parties share some common ground, including on policy towards Russia. There is therefore a degree of political basis for cooperation. Were such a coalition to materialise, Germany would see its first state government jointly formed by a party defined as far-right and one with a far-left background, creating what might be called a “bipolar anti-establishment alliance”. Such an outcome would fundamentally break with the ideological boundaries of post-war German party politics. It is worth noting that even if the AfD ultimately fails to enter the state government, its roughly 47 per cent share of parliamentary seats would give it a powerful blocking minority. Without its consent, major decisions requiring a two-thirds majority — including constitutional amendments, significant budgetary adjustments, and state-level institutional reforms — would be extremely difficult to pass. Therefore, whoever ultimately forms the government, the AfD will be an unavoidable force in Saxony-Anhalt politics, with a direct influence on the state’s legislative process. Systemic Failures in Germany’s Governance Model The Saxony-Anhalt election result reflects a systemic failure of Germany’s post-war mainstream-party model of governance to adapt to rapidly changing socioeconomic conditions. It stems from multiple, mutually reinforcing structural tensions and highlights the existing political system’s difficulty in adapting to “an increasingly polarised society First, collective anxiety has replaced individual material hardship as a central driver of political mobilisation. The rise of the AfD can no longer be explained simply by poverty or social marginalisation. Its increasingly cross-class electoral base suggests that what is driving voters towards the party is, above all, concern about the broader direction of society. This anxiety about the future of the political community goes beyond individual gains and losses. In political discourse, economic anxiety has become closely intertwined with immigration, while immigration and refugee issues are, in essence, questions of social fairness. This perception turns conflicts over the distribution of social resources into negative assessments of governing parties, providing a broad social basis for far-right political narratives. Second, regional disparities and East German identity have undermined the strategy of addressing eastern Germany’s structural challenges at the regional level. More than three decades after German reunification, eastern states such as Saxony-Anhalt have experienced periods of economic growth, but their underlying economic structures remain weak, and household incomes and wealth remain significantly below those in western Germany. At the same time, they continue to face population outflow, an ageing population, labour shortages, and other structural challenges. At a deeper level, historical experiences — including the collapse of the former East German economic system, mass unemployment during the transition, and the westward shift of decision-making power over major issues — have left some residents with a sense of being “second-class citizens” and of being excluded. For years, the German government treated the “syndrome” of reunification as a regional problem to be gradually addressed at the local level. That approach is becoming increasingly unsustainable, as regional development disparities emerge as a core structural factor shaping national politics. Third, the erosion of institutional trust is perhaps the most decisive factor. AfD supporters tend to distrust establishment institutions, including parliament, government, and the mainstream media. Their concerns about economic security, pensions, and social fairness are significantly greater than the social average. Increasingly, their support for the AfD reflects not an expectation that the existing system can be improved, but a search for an alternative to the current political order. Such a systemic deficit of trust will be extremely difficult for the traditional parties to repair in the short term. Fourth, a generational shift in political mobilisation has amplified political polarisation. Unlike traditional parties, which rely heavily on offline rallies and mainstream media coverage, the AfD has developed a social-media mobilisation strategy built around “raising an issue — identifying who is responsible — offering a simplified solution — building a shared identity”. It turns complex social tensions into concise political narratives, rapidly channelling public sentiment into political support. The contrast on the eve of the election was particularly telling. The establishment parties, together with trade unions and churches, organised an offline march attended by more than 10,000 people, but its reach was largely confined to those present and to traditional media coverage. The AfD held a much smaller indoor event, yet livestreaming on TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms, combined with the involvement of online influencers, gave it a reach and mobilising capacity far beyond that of the march. The contrast illustrates how the traditional parties’ methods of political mobilisation are increasingly struggling to keep pace with a political environment transformed by changes in media technology. A Microcosm of Structural Political Change in Europe The shockwaves from the Saxony-Anhalt election quickly travelled beyond the state to the federal level. Calls for political accountability followed immediately after the results were announced. The governing CDU and SPD are now under enormous pressure, while Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil face an unprecedented test. Political polarisation in Germany is no longer simply a regional phenomenon. The post-war model of multiparty government by establishment parties is breaking down and being reshaped. Viewed in a broader European context, the Saxony-Anhalt election is part of a continent-wide wave of party polarisation, mainstream-party decline, and rising right-wing forces. Far from an isolated phenomenon, it is a microcosm of the structural political changes unfolding across Europe. Weak economic growth, cultural tensions over immigration, and declining trust in institutions are fuelling the rise of right-wing forces in several countries, challenging the liberal internationalist order established in post-war Europe. As a core member state of the European Union, Germany’s ability to adapt its political system and the direction of its politics will have profound implications for both European integration and the evolution of the international order. Subscribe [ Pekingnology China’s Germany watchers take stock of Berlin’s uneasy turn On 7 December 2025, nearly 50 Chinese scholars and policy researchers gathered in Beijing for the 2025年德国形势年终研讨会 “2025 Year-End Seminar on the Situation in Germany… Read more 9 months ago · 31 likes · 1 comment · YIRUI LI and Yuxuan JIA ](https://www.pekingnology.com/p/chinas-germany-watchers-take-stock?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=post_embed&utm_medium=web&embedding_publication_id=1151841) [ Jiang Feng on Germany's 2025 and beyond: no easy exit ](https://www.eastisread.com/p/jiang-feng-on-germanys-2025-and-beyond) Yirui LI and Yuxuan JIA · Jan 24 The following is an op-ed by Jiang Feng, published on 29 December 2025 at Shanghai Observer 上观新闻, the digital platform of Jiefang Daily, the official newspaper of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC). [ Read full story ](https://www.eastisread.com/p/jiang-feng-on-germanys-2025-and-beyond)

Sep 22 • 3:04 AM EDT • Politics • eastisread.com

Friedrich Merz fights for political survival after CDU debacle: 'Federal politics played a major role, and so did I'

Refusing to take sole responsibility for his party's defeats in the regional elections of September 6 and 20, the German chancellor has insisted he will not step down and has promised to reopen talks on reforms with his coalition partner, the Social Democratic Party (SPD).

Sep 21 • 6:05 PM EDT • Politics • lemonde.fr

Paramount, attorneys general settle lawsuit, clearing a path for Warner Bros. merger

With the agreement, California Atty. General Rob Bonta and his coalition plan to withdraw historic lawsuit that aimed to derail the $111-billion deal.

Sep 21 • 11:33 AM EDT • Entertainment • latimes.com

This Week: Phone Bank for Transit, SF Politics, Transit Tales

Here is a list of events this week. Monday/today! Phone bank with SFBike to Save Transit. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is phone banking and connecting with voters, explaining how vital it is to pass the Regional Transit Measure this November. Join them to help make sure our regional transit survives and thrives. Monday/today, September 21, 5-7 p.m. San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Office, 1720 Market Street, S.F. Tuesday Historic Photo Exhibit Tour. Moving San Francisco is a collaboration between the SFMTA and San Francisco Arts Commission and is on view at City Hall through November 25. During this informal tour, they will take an in-depth look at selected photos from San Francisco transit history and learn more about the stories and people behind them. Tuesday, September 22, 5-7:45 p.m. North Light Court inside City Hall, One Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, S.F. Tuesday San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Board Meeting. SF Bicycle Coalition members are invited to attend all board meetings. Tuesday, September 22, 6-8 p.m. Register for Zoom link. Tuesday SF Politics 101 with Joel Engardio. ​SF Politics 101 is a look at how local politics work and the history that shaped San Francisco—brought to life with visuals and narrative storytelling. Tuesday, September 22, 6-7:15 p.m. SPUR Urban Center, 654 Mission Street, S.F. Register to attend. Wednesday Transit Tales: A Storytelling Night. Join SPUR and Muni Diaries at Local Economy for an evening of true stories inspired by riding transit. From unexpected encounters and meet-cutes to funny mishaps and heartfelt moments, Transit Tales celebrates the experiences that make public transportation unforgettable. Wednesday, 5:30-7 p.m. Local Economy, 6028 College Ave, Oakland. Saturday Group Ride: Richmond BART to Point Pinole. Join Bike East Bay for a family-friendly, no-drop group ride to Point Pinole Regional Shoreline. Saturday, September 26, 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Starts at Richmond BART Plaza, 1600 Nevin Plaza, Richmond. Saturday Shipwreck Cove Opening. Come see Sunset Dunes’s newest playground. Saturday, September 26, 3 p.m., Sunset Dunes and Kirkham, S.F. Saturday 55 Wine Line Progressive. Ride between Horsies Market & Saloon, Bar Part Time and Ruby Wine on the 55 Dogpatch bus. Saturday, September 26. Three locations in Dogpatch. See SFMTA site for more details on locations and times. Got an event we should know about? Drop us a line.

Sep 21 • 11:14 AM EDT • Politics • sf.streetsblog.org

Rice County Public Health Urges Motorists to Buckle Up During Statewide Safety Campaign

By Rich Larson Rice County Public Health and the Rice County Safe Roads Coalition are reminding motorists that seat belts and properly installed child safety seats save lives, as Minnesota begins a statewide seat belt and child passenger safety campaign. The campaign runs from September 20th t

Sep 21 • 7:00 AM EDT • Health • kymnradio.net

Will Anwar’s coalition in Malaysia implode amid Loke exit, Najib house arrest?

Observers say the numbers in cabinet remain in Anwar’s favour for now, but warn that a DAP walkout could embolden rival Umno.

Sep 21 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • scmp.com

Bringing science plus art to truth-seeking drama

The drama 2026 Attitude Ti62A, jointly produced by the China Science and Technology Museum and the China Coal Mine Art Troupe, will hold 10 performances at the museum from Sept 29. It is another theatrical work created through the deep integration of "science plus art" by the two parties, following the earlier stage play The Glory of China.

Sep 21 • 3:20 AM EDT • Science • chinadaily.com.cn

Dem strategist: ‘Iowa is a canary in a coal mine’

Sep 18 • 11:03 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com

Business Leaders Urge Congress to Maintain Workforce Funding

As federal lawmakers negotiate spending levels for fiscal 2027, a nationwide coalition of 96 businesses and business associations, including

Sep 18 • 2:02 PM EDT • Business • njbia.org

Your Weekly Michigan Political Brief

A coalition of 600 Michigan Jews have affirmed their support for Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed. The group, Michigan Jews for Democracy, includes former Congressman Sander Levin; former Congressman Andy Levin; Washtenaw County Prosecuting Attorney and Democratic nominee for Michigan Attorney General Eli Savit; and Jessica “Decky” Alexander, the Chair of the Michigan Democratic […]

Sep 18 • 1:21 PM EDT • Politics • michiganadvance.com

ATA Action forms coalition to advance interstate telehealth licensure

The Cross-State Care Coalition brings together health systems, academic medical centers, telehealth companies and virtual care advocates to champion federal legislation that eases licensing constraints while maintaining state regulatory authority.

Sep 18 • 12:47 PM EDT • Health • healthcareitnews.com

Business groups call for $2 billion in federal Colorado River spending

A coalition of chambers of commerce, including nearly a dozen from Arizona, have sent a letter to congress asking the federal government to send new money for water-saving work.

Sep 17 • 4:35 PM EDT • Business • wyomingpublicmedia.org

Environment, health groups sue over Trump move to wipe out climate rules for power plants

Environmental and public health-focused organizations are suing the Trump administration over its move to wipe out most climate regulations on coal and gas power plants. The Natural Resources Defen…

Sep 17 • 12:33 PM EDT • Health • thehill.com

Hannah Pingree touts bipartisan support

It’s part of a new coalition aimed at pushing Pingree over the finish line on Nov. 3 as she faces Republican Bobby Charles and former Republican and current independent Rick Bennett.

Sep 17 • 8:06 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

The Strange New Politics of AI. Plus. . .

It’s Thursday, September 17. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Douglas Murray asks, why do we allow terrorists to die of old age? The American nonprofits backing Hamas. A conversation with Dara Horn and Coleman Hughes. And much more. But first: inside the unlikely coalition warning that AI may kill us all. Last week, an AI researcher named Jacob Coxon made headlines around the world after saying that he had resigned from Anthropic because he believes AI might cause human extinction—and his co-workers do, too. Unlike the rest of us, potentially, the story just won’t die. The Pro-Human Assembly, a conference held Tuesday in Washington, D.C., about the existential dangers of artificial intelligence, couldn’t have come at a better time—or with a more eclectic coalition. The Archbishop of San Francisco was there. So was Steve Bannon, screaming about the Chinese. Bernie Sanders did a quasi-dramatic reading of messages posted to an online forum by rogue AI agents. Ashley Judd paraphrased a graphic Andrea Dworkin quote for reasons that remain a mystery to me still. It was odd. People in the AI industry have talked openly about the possibility of this technology causing human extinction for years, but it hits differently in the wake of the Hugging Face incident. If you don’t know what that is, all the more reason to read my dispatch today. As the doomers see it, the best-case scenario is a future in which humans are basically kept as pets: well cared for, but with zero autonomy. The worst-case scenario, obviously, is the everyone dies thing. What should be done? I heard lots of ideas but no easy answers. There are currently zero federal regulations on AI, which is sort of strange even to think about. After all, we regulate microwaves, and the people running the microwave industry have never once refused to rule out the possibility that their products will end all human life on Earth. What I saw in D.C. left me even more convinced that you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who believes nothing should be done. You know, except for President Trump. — River Page River Page • Tech and Business [ The AI Doomers Have a Plan to Save Us. I Went to Find Out What It Is. ](https://www.thefp.com/p/the-ai-doomers-have-plan-save-bernie-sanders-bannon) Read story How Robert Kraft Made Macklemore a Martyr—and How to Better Fight Antisemitism On Monday, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and a group of other NFL owners banned Macklemore from performing at their stadiums after the rapper delivered a “Free Palestine” speech while opening for Ed Sheeran. Kraft cited the rapper’s “broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery.” Once multiple venues refused to host shows with Macklemore on the lineup, the tour’s promoter officially dropped him. Today, Josh Kaplan says that the move was counterproductive, arguing that though well-intentioned, Kraft’s decision turned an irrelevant footnote into a martyr. “You cannot cancel people into liking you,” Josh writes. Read his column on what a better response to Macklemore would have looked like. Read [ Robert Kraft Made Macklemore a Martyr ](https://www.thefp.com/p/robert-kraft-made-macklemore-martyr-antisemitism-palestine) This raises the question: What actually works against antisemitism? On the latest episode of Conversations with Coleman, recorded in front of a live audience in New York, Dara Horn joins Coleman Hughes to talk about her new book The Final Solution to the Jewish Question. She argues that antisemitism is a script that has repeated itself across countries and ideologies, and that most people don’t understand that well enough to fight it. Don’t miss their conversation. Watch [ The Lie at the Center of Antisemitism, with Dara Horn ](https://www.thefp.com/p/the-lie-at-the-center-of-antisemitism-coleman-hughes-dana-horn) Listen now Douglas Murray • U.S. Politics [ Douglas Murray: The 9/11 Failure That Still Haunts America ](https://www.thefp.com/p/douglas-murray-911-failure-justice-terrorist-guantanamo-bay) Twenty-five years after the September 11 attacks, the men who planned them have still not faced trial. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and most of the accused have been locked up in Guantanamo Bay since 2002. Judges have retired, and plea deals have collapsed. Today, Douglas Murray examines how this happened and argues that a justice system that allows terrorists to die of old age in an interminable pretrial process is one that has failed. Read his latest column on what that failure says about our unpreparedness for the era we are now living in. Read story The Editors • U.S. Politics [ When Nonprofits Support Terrorists ](https://www.thefp.com/p/when-nonprofits-support-terrorists) A newly declassified CIA brief from 1998 found that Osama bin Laden used nonprofit shell organizations—including U.S.-based Islamic groups—to fund his terror plots. Today, a similar story is unfolding as multiple organizations on American soil present themselves as nonprofits, taking advantage of tax-exempt status while seeking to advance the ideological mission of terrorist groups like Hamas. Read our editorial on the latest evidence of this dangerous trend—and why there’s no excuse for making the same mistake the CIA revealed 28 years ago. Read story Simon Sebag Montefiore and Bari Weiss Live in New York For decades, the Middle East has shaped American foreign policy and loomed large in the public consciousness. Few understand its influence on our politics better than Simon Sebag Montefiore, who argues that America’s quagmires in the Middle East stem from a deep misunderstanding of the region—on both the left and the right. Join him October 1 as he sits down with Bari Weiss live in New York City to kick off his U.S. book tour for The Cauldron: The Making of the Modern Middle East. Get Tickets Now MORE FROM THE FREE PRESS [ Sydney Sweeney’s Naked Truth ](https://www.thefp.com/p/sydney-sweeneys-naked-truth-caitlin-flanagan) Caitlin Flanagan Read story [ I Thought Ukraine Was Losing. Then I Was Almost Hit by a Russian Drone. ](https://www.thefp.com/p/elliot-ackerman-ukraine-drone-gas-station-train) Elliot Ackerman Read story [ The Dangerous Ideology Behind the AI Warnings ](https://www.thefp.com/p/dangerous-ideology-effective-altruism-artificial-intelligence) Shyam Sankar Read story [ Amanda Knox: Patrick Clancy Can’t Win ](https://www.thefp.com/p/amanda-knox-patrick-clancy-grief-internet-crime) Amanda Knox Read story THE NEWS The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter point, its first hike since 2023, signaling that another increase could follow as the central bank tries to bring inflation under control. President Donald Trump fired back by demanding that rates be cut sharply, though he stopped short of criticizing Fed Chair Kevin Warsh by name. The Houthis fired drones and missiles at Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, including a major oil port on the Red Sea, and Saudi jets struck back with air strikes across Yemen in an escalating front of the Middle East war. (For more on the Houthis, read Zineb Riboua’s column from earlier this week.) A sweeping Russia and Iran sanctions bill passed the House in a 262–159 vote and is now heading to Trump for his signature. Named after the late senator Lindsey Graham, the legislation would hit countries that purchase large volumes of Russian oil and gas with tariffs of up to 100 percent, and is aimed at cutting off revenue that funds Russia’s war in Ukraine. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen proposed making Canada the European Union’s first-ever “associate member,” drawing a standing ovation from European lawmakers. The proposal, framed as a response to a world grown more hostile, faces an uncertain path as EU member states would have to approve it, and one diplomat said that “nobody really ​knows what it means.” The House voted unanimously to send billionaire Leon Black a criminal contempt referral after he defied a congressional subpoena to testify and hand over documents related to his connections to Jeffrey Epstein. Black chose to fight the subpoena in court rather than comply. Charlie Kirk’s family filed a wrongful death notice Wednesday against Utah Valley University, alleging that a series of security failures left him exposed to a rooftop sniper. The notice is a required legal step before the family can sue. Merriam-Webster added 1,400 words and definitions to its dictionary, including looksmaxxing, vibe coding, and cuffing season. The publisher said the new entries offer “a window into the world today.” The Free Press earns a commission from any purchases made through all book links in this article.

Sep 17 • 6:03 AM EDT • Politics • thefp.com

Orlando Health grant assists Early Learning Coalition Brevard

The Early Learning Coalition of Brevard County (ELCB) recently announced it has been awarded more than $250,000 from the Space Coast Health Foundation to expand evidence-based social-emotional learning supports for preschool children across Brevard County.

Sep 17 • 5:06 AM EDT • Health • floridatoday.com

Sidewalk construction uncovered a coal chute, leading to a dispute over repair costs

Sidewalk construction uncovered a coal chute, leading to a dispute over repair costs

Sep 16 • 10:58 PM EDT • Business • kcrg.com

What Does the Science of Climate Change Really Look Like?

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a three-part series on how the Right should think about environmental and climate policy. Read Chris Barnard on Reclaiming Environmental Policy from the Left. More than a decade ago, the world’s governments negotiated and signed the Paris Climate Agreement, committing to hold global warming well below 2 degrees Celsius. In the following years, climate had immense cultural power. Greta Thunberg emerged. Fortune 500 companies established net-zero plans. The U.S. got the Inflation Reduction Act. Then the pendulum swung back. President Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office, speaking of green energy as a “scam” and carbon footprints as a “hoax” and on all matters of international policy emphasizing bilateral engagement and power over globalism and cooperation. The technology companies that had been at the forefront of net-zero pledges and green leadership discovered the importance of all-of-the-above power to their visions for artificial intelligence and began quietly postponing or removing their targets. On the left side of the political spectrum, rising concerns about inflation and cost pushed climate lower down in the stated priorities of voters and stump speeches of politicians. The moment is ripe for a reset on the politics of climate change and for conservatives especially to chart a course that acknowledges and addresses the real challenges in plausible ways. So what should we think about climate change as we enter a post-peak climate era? If it is neither an apocalypse nor a hoax, what will hold up as a durable view of climate change? And how does it project onto the concerns and priorities of the right-of-center’s emerging coalition? New to Commonplace_? Subscribe below to get the magazine in your inbox._ Subscribe A Solid Foundation As the politics and economics of climate careened over the past ten years, the physics carried on regardless. In 2015, the year the Paris Climate Agreement was adopted, the world emitted 41.2 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide. By 2025, emissions had risen only 2.4%, to 42.2 gigatonnes, because falling emissions from land use offset increasing emissions from fossil fuels. But slow growth in annual emissions is not rapid decline, let alone net-zero, so carbon dioxide kept accumulating in the atmosphere, going from 399 to 426 parts per million. Global temperature kept rising too, from about 1.1 degrees Celsius above the 1850–1900 average in 2015, to 1.4 degrees above it in 2025. None of this should surprise anyone. Even most prominent skeptics, like the authors of the 2025 report commissioned by the Trump administration’s Department of Energy, accept the basic physics. Carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere at industrial volumes accumulates and traps heat that would otherwise escape to space. That heat warms the upper ocean and increases temperatures at the surface. Increased ocean heat and melting of land ice cause sea levels to rise. Changes in the climate become noticeable to us as subtle shifts in temperature and precipitation, seasons arriving early or late, changes in the surrounding ecosystem, and weather extremes. The much more meaningful debate is not about whether these things are happening, but about what it all means for human societies. (While it is a proxy measure of overall risk, no one experiences global surface temperature.) This debate invokes at least three interesting questions: how much today’s warming is showing up in regional climate trends, how much more warming we should anticipate, and how extreme weather events can be understood in the context of climate change. Recent scientific advances give us new insights into each of these, but there is still much to learn. This is the context in which the next generation of conservative leaders will be the first to deal with significant climate change as a fact, not a forecast. It will be with them for their entire careers. Our evolving scientific picture of climate change will come from weather and climate records stretching further into the past, new kinds of observations in the present, better modeling tools for the future, and simply more time to observe the emergence of climate signals and their tangible effects on ecosystems and communities in the United States and around the world. The policy landscape will be shaped by not only the impacts of changes in the climate, but also by the ways in which societies respond and by the emergence of new technologies for both altering the trajectory of emissions and adapting to new climate realities. Global climate records now show the fingerprints of warming in different phenomena around much of the world. The IPCC, in its most recent assessment report, documents warming trends over all land regions, even as natural variability adds substantial variance to local trends. And the highest temperature extremes have become more intense and frequent, almost everywhere, since the 1950s. Scientists are highly confident that these changes are attributable to human influence. But confidence in detecting trends and attributing them to human influence degrades across heavy precipitation events; drought trends are heterogeneous and not attributable to human activity with great confidence. For hurricanes, tornadoes, and other severe storms there is even less confidence in trends or their relationship to climate change. In general, a fair summary of the evidence is that for well-observed phenomena, like surface temperature or heavy rainfall, with a clear relationship to warming, our multidecadal observations are consistent with human influence overcoming natural variability over long time periods and extremes increasing. For regions that are sampled more sparsely, or phenomena with a higher noise-to-signal ratio, we will need to observe them longer to understand the magnitude of the climate signal or improve dynamical understanding using models and observations together. But for Climate For those who can’t wait, we also have new techniques that attempt to understand the role climate change has in influencing particular extreme events. When the climate is changing and disaster strikes, it is natural to ask whether that disaster was somehow “caused” by climate change. For scientists and policymakers acting in good faith, answering that question helps develop a more accurate picture of the problem, how it may be getting worse, and what preparations we should be making to respond to it. It may, at some point, give some weight to how liability is assigned by courts or adaptation funding is distributed by society. But how we ask this question is extremely important. It is easy to get the analysis wrong by discounting the role that meteorology plays. As meteorologist Theodore Shepherd explained in a clear 2016 review of climate attribution methods, “if a weather or climate event is truly extreme in the present climate, then perforce it requires unusual meteorological conditions, which means that climate change is at most a contributing factor.” Share Scientists have two ways to probe climate as a contributing factor, both of which have entered media coverage of extreme weather events. One asks a probabilistic question: How much more likely is a particular event (e.g., a temperature record over a particular area) amid global warming? The answer involves using historical records and computer simulations to estimate the likelihood of such an event in both a changed and a preindustrial climate. The findings are less about the specific event, and more about events of that nature. The other question is: How has the changed climate affected the specific event in question? Here, scientists try to understand what a similar event would have looked like in the preindustrial climate. This is sometimes called the storyline approach, where the story is the specific meteorological details of the event. These methods offer ways to test the intuition of scientists about real weather extremes. In late June and early July of 2021, a persistent high-pressure ridge, or heat dome, set up over the Pacific Northwest and an extraordinary heat wave affected the area from Oregon to British Columbia. For six days, it shattered temperature records across the region and hundreds died from heat-related causes, in an area where such high, and persistently high, temperatures were well outside of experience and many live without air conditioning. Scientists have studied its connection to climate change using multiple approaches. This specific event was created by a rare combination of meteorological factors, a strong high-pressure ridge created the conditions for extreme heat, which occurred on top of higher average temperatures in the region from global warming. Probabilistic analyses showed that climate change increased the likelihood of such an event by at least 8-fold to more than 100-fold. One standout example found that such an event had effectively zero probability of occurring in the preindustrial climate. The enormous range in these assessments reflects how hard it is to estimate probabilities of events at the tail of the historical record. Estimates of the effect on the temperature of the event are more clustered. A recent review paper documents how multiple methodologies have found a positive influence, roughly 1-2 degrees Celsius of an anomaly that exceeded 15 degrees, of climate change on the temperature magnitude of the event. Multiple studies have investigated and found some positive influence of climate change in other extreme events. Attribution studies found climate likely increased the heavy rainfall that accompanied Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and surrounding regions in 2024. The extensive fires that struck Los Angeles in 2025 illustrate how the causal chain can become messy, though. Studies do detect a positive influence of climate on the event’s likelihood, but while climate change likely contributed to underlying aridity, it would not have played a role in the heavy winds or land practices that preceded disaster. These event attribution studies will become more common for extreme, or damaging, weather events. They can be produced quickly, and often are reported before peer review. As the Pacific Northwest heatwave example shows, when multiple methods converge on a positive attribution, the finding should probably carry some weight even if you have to be careful about accepting the results from a single study. I expect that as climate change proceeds and the climate thus departs further from a preindustrial counterfactual, the influence will become more detectable across a variety of extreme events and more easily identified. This will be used to cast blame, but can also be used to inform how communities and society adapt to ongoing change. We May Still Be Surprised One positive development, insofar as less climate change is better, has been that our central estimates for future climate change should probably be revised downward. Mostly, that is because the high-end warmings that scientists regularly analyzed about ten to 20 years ago, driven by high emissions throughout the twenty-first century, now appear to be somewhere between unlikely and impossible. At one time, the upper end of mainstream climate projections extended well into 4 to 6 degrees Celsius of warming by the end of this century, which, models suggest, would have wrought enormous real-world damage. Current energy and policy trends now point toward 2.5 or 3 degrees. Damages and risks are commonly modeled as increasing steeply with more warming, so this is already a better-than-previously-expected outcome for the climate (which is independent of the physical response to emissions). But we should maintain a wide range for plausible outcomes and prepare for the possibility of being surprised. Emissions trajectories are subject to deep uncertainty, the physical climate response is still developing, and whatever change occurs in the climate will then be mediated through unpredictable economic, social, and political institutions. Over the past decade, the pace of warming surprised some keen observers and appeared to accelerate, though not yet outside the range of expectation provided by climate models. The reasons for that apparent acceleration are being actively studied (as was the apparent pause in warming from 1998 to 2012), but no single driver has emerged. Some blame it on the El Niño, variability which would have no bearing on climate. Some think it is a result of factories in East Asia and global shipping fleets cutting aerosol emissions, which in the strongest version of the argument would indicate higher climate sensitivity to carbon-dioxide emissions. Others are more measured, not yet ready to draw solid conclusions as to whether climate projections require revision. We will have to see. Long-Term Thinking Climate change asks us to think over long time scales. But the pace of human-driven warming is compressing a large global change into a century. Changing weather patterns and extreme events are already causing adjustment costs and damages and will do more. Adaptation will help, but it is not free. For some communities, these costs will erode livelihoods and well-being, and may force migration. Are we prepared for large-scale managed retreats in the United States? Thankfully, American wealth, geographical diversity, and moderate climates may leave us better prepared than many around the world. But wealthy countries can still suffer serious disruption from narrowly concentrated costs, even if they appear entirely manageable in aggregate. Readers of Commonplace are familiar with the challenges of rapidly adapting to economic forces. The displacement that came from the China Shock is barely perceptible in aggregate GDP and employment data, but it affected millions of people and those people were far less mobile than economic models tended to assume. Deindustrialization rippled through the nation with enormous effects for not only our economic vitality, but also our national security. The forces surrounding climate change may not be so different; the world gets richer and must accept some diffuse costs. Those may be modest overall, but cause all manner of unpredictable effects with which policymakers must cope. In the case of the China Shock, our faith in a growing pie served us poorly. We’ll need to do better on climate. Leave a comment

Sep 16 • 4:30 PM EDT • Science • commonplace.org

IATSE Joins Special Ambassador, Lawmakers, and Coalition for Press Conference Unveiling Film & TV Incentive Study

At a September 15 press conference hosted by the newly formalized U.S. Film & TV Production Coalition, IATSE joined a broad alliance of labor organizations, studios, guilds, industry advocates, and […]

Sep 16 • 2:36 PM EDT • Entertainment • iatse.net

Business groups call for $2 billion in federal Colorado River spending

A coalition of chambers of commerce, including nearly a dozen from Arizona, have sent a letter to congress asking the federal government to send new money for water-saving work.

Sep 16 • 9:30 AM EDT • Business • kjzz.org

Video Lowe's CEO talks new business coalition

Lowe's CEO Marvin Ellison discusses a new coalition he helped launch to expand opportunities across corporate America.

Sep 16 • 8:00 AM EDT • Business • abcnews.com

JUST IN: Health care coalition leader charged with illegally filming teens in Tysons stores

The recently removed leader of a national coalition of health care purchasers is facing an assortment of criminal charges after allegedly taking obscene videos of teens at Tysons stores. Officers were called to the 1900 block of Chain Bridge Road at around 12:30 p.m. on both Aug. 16 and 17 for reports of unlawful filming,

Sep 15 • 11:45 AM EDT • Health • ffxnow.com

Entertainment Industry Unites Behind U.S. Film Production Incentive

Entertainment industry groups launched the U.S. Film & TV Production Coalition to back a federal film production incentive. A new study predicts a big boost in jobs.

Sep 15 • 10:30 AM EDT • Entertainment • deadline.com

States, cities sue over Trump rule seeking to deny green cards to immigrants

New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is leading a coalition of 21 other states in one of the suits, said the rule would force needy immigrant families to choose between seeking assistance and seeking legal status in the country.

Sep 15 • 7:14 AM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Sweden’s political parties launch coalition talks as both blocs try to secure power

Centre-left bloc led by Social Democrats has narrow lead with 95% of vote counted, but faces internal policy battle

Sep 14 • 12:47 PM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com

Russia continues to divide Italian politics: Why defending Ukraine matters

M5S leader Giuseppe Conte’s call to stop sending weapons to Ukraine has reopened the clash with Elly Schlein’s Democratic Party over an issue that has long cut across Italian politics. Giorgia Meloni, meanwhile, is maintaining a tough line on Moscow despite resistance within the governing coalition and pressure from the far right. With less than [...]

Sep 14 • 10:36 AM EDT • Politics • decode39.com

Swedish election leaves government up for grabs

Andersson failed to seize the momentum but holds a narrow edge over the ruling right-wing coalition

Sep 14 • 9:23 AM EDT • Politics • euractiv.com

Sweden faces ‘very messy’ political situation after election, expert says

Sweden faces ‘very messy’ political situation after election, expert says. Lars Trägårdh, Professor of History at Ersta Sköndal University College in Stockholm, said Sweden’s election-winning Social Democrats would have to rely on “a very unwieldy coalition”, warning that the country faces a “very messy” political situation.

Sep 14 • 6:33 AM EDT • Politics • pubaffairsbruxelles.eu

Iranian Kurdistan Political Coalition Calls for Strike on September 16

The Coalition of Iranian Kurdistan Political Forces has called on the public to participate in a general strike on Wednesday, September ...

Sep 14 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • iranwire.com

Video. Sweden faces ‘very messy’ politics after election, expert says

Video. Lars Trägårdh, Professor of History at Ersta Sköndal University College in Stockholm, said Sweden’s election-winning Social Democrats would have to rely on “a very unwieldy coalition”, warning that the country faces a “very messy” political situation.

Sep 14 • 3:26 AM EDT • Politics • euronews.com

Grassroots initiative bringing candidates' stances on science issues

Salisbury, Md. – With election season underway, a nationwide grassroots initiative is working to put candidates’ stances on certain science policy issues in front of voters. Scientist Network for Advancing Policy (SNAP) is a non-partisan, grassroots coalition of early-career scientists and researchers. As midterm elections get closer, they’re working to make sure voters know their candidates’ positions on science and...

Sep 13 • 5:16 PM EDT • Science • wmdt.com

Why Democrats will turn out even if they dislike their party’s leaders

At a rest stop off Interstate 95, Democratic voters said they are starting to set aside their frustrations to coalesce around the party's midterm candidates.

Sep 13 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com

Major investments, changes coming to central Illinois business

As the state works to phase out coal-fired power plants, a gas-fired facility will be built in central Illinois.

Sep 13 • 4:23 AM EDT • Business • yahoo.com

Immigration reporting measure fuels debate over Colorado’s role with ICE

A coalition of advocacy groups and several district attorneys rallied outside the Colorado Capitol on Thursday to oppose a ballot measure that, if approved by voters in November, would require state and local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. Backed by Advance Colorado, Proposition 81 would require local law enforcement agencies to notify […]

Sep 12 • 1:09 PM EDT • Politics • coloradopolitics.com

Community takes steps to raise awareness of mental health, suicide prevention

The Shawnee Co. Suicide Prevention Coalition held its 14th annual 5K run/walk.

Sep 12 • 12:43 PM EDT • Health • wibw.com

Community takes steps to raise awareness of mental health, suicide prevention

The Shawnee Co. Suicide Prevention Coalition held its 14th annual 5K run/walk.

Sep 12 • 12:43 PM EDT • Health • wibw.com

Health care coalition says climate change is a public health crisis

Major medical associations and hundreds of health care professionals called for legislators to treat climate change as a public health crisis.

Sep 12 • 6:04 AM EDT • Health • jsonline.com

Climate change is a public health crisis, health care coalition says

Sep 12 • 6:04 AM EDT • Health • jsonline.com

Federal court rejects Trump administration order keeping Michigan coal plant open

In a defeat for the Trump administration, a federal court on Friday ruled that the Energy Department exceeded its authority when it forced a Michigan coal-fired power plant to stay open past its scheduled retirement date last year.

Sep 11 • 7:02 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org

Court rejects government's energy "emergency" that kept coal plant open

The Department of Energy declared an "emergency" when none existed.

Sep 11 • 4:32 PM EDT • Science • arstechnica.com

Immigration‑reporting measure fuels debate over Colorado’s role with ICE

A coalition of advocacy groups, community members, and several district attorneys rallied outside the Colorado Capitol on Thursday to oppose a ballot measure that, if approved by voters in November, would require state and local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. Backed by the interest group Advance Colorado, Proposition 81 would require law […]

Sep 11 • 2:11 PM EDT • Politics • coloradopolitics.com

Students encouraged to participate in Science Coalition’s video challenge; deadline is Oct. 30

The Science Coalition is hosting its seventh annual Alyse Gray Parker Memorial Student Video Challenge in which students are encouraged to create videos highlighting the importance of scientific research.

Sep 11 • 10:00 AM EDT • Science • today.marquette.edu

Chinese Scientists Propose Turning Abandoned Coal Mines Into Farming Laboratories

It makes more sense than you might think.

Sep 11 • 6:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencealert.com

Fact check: Trump, RFK Jr. and others make false claims on night 2 of GOP convention

(CNN) — President Donald Trump delivered another rapid-fire series of false claims on the second night of Republicans’ midterm convention on Thursday. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did his own barrage of wrongness. And various other speakers uttered statements that were untrue, misleading or missing critical context.Here is a fact check of some of the assertions from the final day of the convention. This is not intended as a comprehensive list of Thursday’s falsehoods.Trump’s many false claimsTrump made numerous false claims, some of which he also made in his longer speech Wednesday.Trump claimed that there were “no empty seats” in the Dallas arena as he spoke Thursday, which was visibly untrue. CNN White House correspondent Alayna Treene, who was there, wrote in a live chat right after Trump made the claim that “I’m looking at rows of empty seats” and that “the idea that there are ‘no empty seats’ is just laughably untrue,” though she also said the room was mostly full. Trump has for years made false claims about supposedly never having had an empty seat.Trump further inflated one of his favorite fictional figures, claiming Thursday that “$22 trillion” in investment has come into the US; on Wednesday, he had put it at “over $20 trillion,” and even that lower figure has no apparent basis in reality. As of the time he spoke Thursday, the White House’s own website claimed there had been “$11.2 trillion” in “major investment announcements” this term, not “over $20 trillion,” and the White House figure was itself a major exaggeration of actual investment.Trump, talking about elections, lied that “there’s never been bigger cheaters” than Democrats; there is no basis for broadly describing Democrats as election cheaters. For the second straight night, Trump falsely claimed that the Biden administration allowed “25 million people” to pour into the country, though that number is nowhere close to correct. Trump again falsely claimed that former President Joe Biden and other Democrats “created the worst inflation in American history,” though even peak Biden-era inflation, 9.1% in June 2022, was far from the all-time record of 23.7%; it was a 40-year high, but the rate then fell sharply before Trump returned to office.Trump also baselessly claimed that Democrats would “defund the police” and give “voting rights and welfare to 25 million illegal aliens” if they won the midterms. Republicans will still control the White House in 2027 and 2028 and the president would be in position to veto any such changes if a Democratic-controlled Congress sought to make them, but there is no indication that Democrats want to do so. Also, even groups favoring strict immigration policies estimate that the total undocumented population is far less than “25 million” or even 20 million.As he did Wednesday, Trump claimed the US now has the world’s lowest prescription drug prices. The assertion is so broad that it is unclear what exactly Trump is referencing. But experts told CNN they highly doubt that the prices for brand-name drugs in the US are generally less than they are in other countries, and the Trump administration has not provided details to prove the claim.“It’s tough to claim that you’re getting the lowest prices anywhere in the world and then also not have any evidence to support that,” said Andrew Mulcahy, a senior health economist at RAND, while Diederik Stadig, senior healthcare economist at financial institution ING, said, “To say that the US now has the lowest drug prices in the world is at this moment not true.”And as he did Wednesday, Trump said “more Americans are working today than ever before” – which is true but nearly meaningless, since the number of people working in the US generally rises over time simply because the population rises over time.“There are more Americans working because there are more Americans. That’s the entire analysis,” Justin Wolfers, a University of Michigan professor of public policy and economics, wrote in his newsletter in August.RFK Jr.’s false claims on the pandemic, Trump’s record and moreFalse claim about Democrats and the 2024 electionKennedy unsuccessfully ran for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination before withdrawing to run as an independent and then eventually endorsing Republican candidate Donald Trump. In Kennedy’s Thursday convention speech, he complained of how the Democrats handled the nomination race.At one point, he said, “For the first time in history, they cancelled their own convention. No voter ever cast a primary ballot for Kamala Harris, no elected delegate was ever consulted; the party of ‘No Kings’ simply anointed a queen.”Kennedy is entitled to express unhappiness about how quickly Democratic leaders coalesced around then-Vice President Harris after Biden unexpectedly dropped out of the race in July 2024, after the primaries were over and less than four months from Election Day. But it’s not true that the party canceled its convention or that delegates didn’t get any say.The convention was held; it was a four-day event in Chicago in August 2024. Democratic convention delegates officially nominated Harris in a virtual roll call vote in advance of the convention. It’s true that Harris was the only candidate on the roll call ballot, but that’s because she was the only candidate who gathered enough delegate signatures to appear on the ballot.It’s clear that party elites’ backing of Harris played a key role in the unusual nomination process. But Kennedy’s specific allegations that the convention was abandoned and delegates were cut out of the process are not true.False claim that Democrats closed ‘every church’ during the Covid-19 pandemicWhile attacking Democrats, Kennedy claimed that, during the Covid-19 pandemic, “They closed every church in our country for a year.”It’s not true that every church in the country was closed for a year, nor even that every church in a Democratic state was closed for a year.Every state issued some type of guidance or order about social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic, but many states – including some led by Democrats and some led by Republicans – incorporated religious exemptions into those limitations on social interactions.According to a Pew Research Center analysis from April 2020, 15 states allowed religious gatherings to continue without a limit on their size. That set of states included Colorado, Michigan and Pennsylvania, which all had Democratic governors. And at least two states with Republican governors, Alaska and Idaho, were among the states that prohibited religious gatherings at least briefly.False claim that Trump ‘ended nine wars’Trump has repeatedly claimed that he has ended “eight wars.” Kennedy went one higher on Thursday, declaring, “President Trump has ended nine wars.”That’s false. Trump hasn’t even ended eight wars.Trump’s list of eight includes two situations that were never actually wars during his tenure: a diplomatic dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia and a mysterious supposed situation between Serbia and Kosovo. The list also includes a war, involving Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, that hasn’t actually ended despite a peace agreement brokered by the Trump administration.In addition, the list includes the war between Israel and Hamas, but Israel continues to conduct frequent attacks in Gaza despite a US-brokered ceasefire agreement. And it includes the brief 2025 conflict between Israel and Iran, though Israel proceeded to join the US in starting another war against Iran in 2026.Claim about reversing a decline in longevityKennedy speaking of the Trump administration, claimed Thursday: “We have now reversed a 30-year decline in longevity. “Kennedy referenced preliminary data that he said he had received from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week, but it’s unclear what metric of longevity he’s referring to.CDC data shows that US life expectancy had been steadily increasing for decades before a sharp drop during the Covid-19 pandemic. Life expectancy had already started to rebound in 2022, under the Biden administration, and reached a new record high in 2024 before Trump’s second term began.Preliminary data shared by the CDC in July suggests that life expectancy probably hit another record high in 2025.CNN has reached out to HHS for clarification on Kennedy’s comments.Claim that Democrats ‘lost 360,000 children’Speaking about Democrats, Kennedy said: “They somehow lost 360,000 children and they turned our federal government into the biggest child trafficking operation in world history.”Trump and other Republicans have made similar claims. But there’s no basis for the assertion that Democrats “lost” so many children or that the federal government was engaged in human trafficking.A 2024 report from the inspector general for the Department of Homeland Security said Immigration and Customs Enforcement had reported that more than 32,000 unaccompanied migrant children failed to appear as scheduled for immigration court hearings after being released or transferred out of custody between fiscal years 2019 and 2023 – a period that, notably, includes two years and four months under the first Trump administration. The report also said that 291,000 unaccompanied migrant children during this period were not given notices to appear in court.The report said that ICE had “no assurances” these children “are safe from trafficking, exploitation, or forced labor.” But it did not say all the children were actually “lost” and did not definitively assert that any of them were trafficked – let alone that the government was somehow involved in a trafficking operation. And, again, the report spanned parts of both a Republican administration and a Democratic administration.Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, told CNN in 2024: “Long story short, no, there are not 320,000 kids missing. 32,000 kids missed court. That doesn’t mean they’re missing, it means they missed court (either because their sponsor didn’t bring them or they are teenagers who didn’t want to show up). The remaining 291,000 cases mentioned by the (Office of the Inspector General) are cases where ICE hasn’t filed the paperwork to start their immigration court cases.”Vance on inflation, crime and taxes on Social SecurityA false claim about the media and Biden-era inflationVice President JD Vance mocked the media during part of his speech on Thursday. But he made a false claim about Biden-era inflation while lampooning how the media supposedly challenged him over another false claim on that subject.Vance said: “The president and I would go during a campaign, we’d say, ‘You know, inflation is as high as it’s been in 100 years,’ and the fake news would say, ‘No, no, no, it’s as high as it’s been in 68 years.’ That ain’t good, ladies and gentlemen.”Mainstream journalists, at least, wouldn’t say that inflation under Biden was as high as it had been “in 68 years.” Rather, CNN and others noted that peak inflation under the Biden administration, 9.1% in June 2022, was the highest in about 40 years.Vance is entitled to make his general point that this correction still doesn’t make Biden-era inflation sound good, but his specific number was, again, wrong. And he didn’t acknowledge that inflation fell sharply under Biden after hitting the 40-year high, declining to 2.9% in Biden’s last full month in office, December 2024, and 3.0% in January 2025, when Trump and Vance were inaugurated.The rate was 3.4% in July 2026, the most recent month for which data is available.Trump didn’t end taxes on Social SecurityVance claimed, “We’ve ended taxes on Social Security.” Several other convention speakers, including Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan, Rep. Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania and Ohio House candidate Derek Merrin, similarly said the administration has achieved “no tax on Social Security.”It hasn’t. The big domestic policy bill Trump signed in 2025 did create an additional, temporary $6,000-per-year tax deduction for individuals age 65 and older (which phases out for individuals earning $75,000 per year or more), but as the White House has implicitly acknowledged, millions of Social Security recipients will continue to pay taxes on their benefits even before the temporary new deduction expires after 2028.The Social Security Administration said in 2025 that “the bill ensures that nearly 90% of Social Security beneficiaries will no longer pay federal income taxes on their benefits.Claim about violent crime rate under BidenWhile criticizing the Biden administration, Vice President JD Vance claimed Thursday that the US “became a country where violent crime exploded, unless, of course, you could afford private security.”But violent crime did not explode under Biden. In fact, as FactCheck.org reported last month, data collected and published by the FBI shows that the national violent crime rate was at a lower level in 2023 and 2024, the last two full calendar years of Biden’s term, than it was in 2020, the last full calendar year of Trump’s first term. The year 2020 was highly unusual in many ways – violent crime jumped amid the Covid-19 pandemic – but Biden nonetheless left office with violent crime lower than it was when he took over. In fact, the 2024 violent crime rate was even lower than the 2019 rate under Trump before the pandemic.There was an increase in violent crime during the earlier part of Biden’s term. But given the subsequent decline, it’s misleading at best to claim violent crime “exploded” with no further context.Asked earlier this month about Trump’s similar previous claims to have reversed a Biden-era upswing in violence, crime data expert Jeff Asher said in an email: “No, crime began dropping significantly in 2023 during the Biden administration. Murder fell at record rates in 2023, 2024 and 2025 and, while 2026 may not feature a record decline nationally, it is still on track to see a sizable double-digit decline this year. Violent crime similarly fell nationally in 2023 and 2024, though the drops were more muted than the decline that was recorded by the FBI in 2025.”Other GOP speakersMike Johnson’s false claim about the inflation Republicans inherited from BidenSome other speakers at the convention took aim at inflation under Biden. House Speaker Mike Johnson claimed that “Republicans inherited from the Biden administration record-high inflation.”That’s not true. The inflation rate was 2.9% in Biden’s last full month in office, December 2024, and 3.0% in January 2025, when Trump took over. That’s lower than the most recent rate, 3.4% in July 2026, and nowhere close to the all-time record of 23.7%, which was reached in 1920, or the highest point of Jimmy Carter’s presidency, 14.8%, which was reached in 1980.Johnson correctly said moments later that inflation reached “a 40-year high of 9.1% inflation” under Biden. But a 40-year high is not an all-time record. More importantly, Johnson didn’t explain that 9.1% was much higher than the rate Trump inherited or that the 9.1% rate occurred in June 2022, with roughly two-and-a-half years left in Biden’s term.The cumulative increase in prices from the beginning of the Biden administration to the end was also not the highest in US history. Federal figures show that beginning-to-end inflation under Biden was less than half of that during Carter’s term.What Johnson left out of his claim about a congressional resolutionWhile attacking Democrats as extreme, Johnson said: “Just last week, nearly every Democrat in the House of Representatives voted against condemning socialism and Marxism. They voted against it.”But the resolution didn’t use the word “Marxism.” And Johnson didn’t mention that the resolution wasn’t only about condemning socialism. Rather, it contained other language that Democratic leadership said was the focus of the party’s opposition to the resolution.The resolution’s first provision said it “condemns and denounces socialism in all its forms, including the Democratic Socialists of America, and opposes the implementation of socialist policies in the United States.” But its fifth provision said it “calls for enactment of the SAVE America Act,” Trump’s favored elections bill, which contains various provisions opposed by many Democrats.So while it’s very possible many Democrats would have opposed the resolution even without its expression of support for the SAVE America Act, the call to pass this elections bill served as a poison pill that ensured most Democrats wouldn’t support it.“House Resolution 1490 explicitly calls for enactment of the so-called SAVE America Act, which is the top legislative priority of far-right extremists,” Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement last week.A New Mexico candidate left out key context in an attack on his opponentGreg Cunningham, a Republican House candidate in New Mexico, used some of his Thursday speech to criticize his Democratic opponent, Rep. Gabe Vasquez. Cunningham said of Vasquez: “He even voted against a resolution honoring the sacrifices and service of the brave men and women in law enforcement who protect, every day, our communities.”But Cunningham left out important context about the resolution. While its focus was expressing support for law enforcement, its preamble contained statements praising the Trump administration and criticizing “leftist activists,” “progressive politicians” and “sanctuary city policies” for allegedly making law enforcement less safe.In other words, a House member might vote against such a resolution, as the vast majority of Democrats did, because they disagreed with conservative components of it, not the general expressions of support for law enforcement. (CNN has reached out to Vasquez’s campaign and House office for comment on his vote.) It’s common for parties to write resolutions in a way that would make it difficult for opponents to support but would open those opponents to campaign attacks if they voted “no.”An Ohio candidate’s misleading attack about Democrats and votingMerrin, the Republican candidate running against Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur for a House seat in Ohio, claimed in his speech, “While Democrats talk about letting illegal immigrants vote in our election, Republicans fight for proof of citizenship, photo ID and fair elections.”It’s a big country, so it’s possible some Democrat somewhere is talking about letting undocumented people vote in some election. But Merrin’s claim is misleading at best. There is no proposal from Democrats in Congress to let undocumented people vote in the 2026 midterms – the election Merrin appeared to be referring to when he said “our election” – or vote in future federal elections.CNN has reached out to Merrin’s campaign for an explanation of his claim.House Majority Leader Steve Scalise invoked a similar theme in his speech Wednesday, claiming that Democrats had voted last week “to allow illegals to vote in our federal elections.” But there was no congressional vote on letting undocumented immigrants vote in any elections.Rather, there was a vote on the non-binding Republican resolution that included multiple provisions, including one that “reiterates the notion that American elections are for American citizens only,” one supporting Trump’s favored elections bill and one denouncing socialism.Opposing that multi-clause resolution doesn’t necessarily mean someone supports voting by any non-citizens, let alone non-citizens in the country illegally.This article has been updated with additional items.CNN’s Deja Oliver contributed to this report.The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Sep 10 • 9:46 PM EDT • Politics • applevalleynewsnow.com

Broad Payer & Consumer Coalition Urges Congress to Close Loopholes in No Surprises Act That Inflate Health Costs

Two new issue briefs highlight the abuse of the appeals process by private equity and corporations, and also successful solutions at the state level that suggest a federal fix WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, as Congress comes back into session next week, a broad range of 67 consumer, labor, and employer organizations, led by the patient […]

Sep 10 • 9:46 AM EDT • Health • familiesusa.org

How Hollywood Shapes Our Understanding of Health

A study sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) shows that chronic illness is historically underrepresented on screen, while a growing coalition of studios, researchers, and patient advocates work to change that reality.

Sep 9 • 1:59 PM EDT • Health • hollywoodreporter.com

As science comes under attack at UN talks, climate movement splits over how to respond

A rift over how IPCC messages are produced and turned into policy is creating tensions in the world's most influential coalition of climate NGOs

Sep 9 • 7:34 AM EDT • Science • climatechangenews.com

Roundup: Energy employment / Small business confidence / Maritime woes

Jobs in transition: Energy sector employment fell about 1% nationwide and in Louisiana from 2024 to 2025, with Louisiana losing 1,131 jobs to reach roughly 160,000 workers. The decline was driven largely by automation, policy changes affecting renewable energy, and shifting economics, while traditional energy industries such as coal and nuclear saw job growth. Despite […]

Sep 8 • 10:50 AM EDT • Business • businessreport.com

Read the “Nonnegotiable” petition

A coalition of Michigan rabbis and Jewish leaders is launching a petition drive aimed at Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee.

Sep 8 • 4:59 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com

Chinese scientists propose turning abandoned coal mines into underground farms

Insulated from surface weather and natural disasters, mining tunnels could offer agricultural advantages amid climate change, scientists say.

Sep 8 • 2:09 AM EDT • Science • scmp.com

Germany's far-right surge rattles Europe's political foundations

AfD's landslide win in Saxony-Anhalt could be the prelude to far-right forces governing alone across Europe. Germany's 'grand coalition' model, and the centrist alliance underpinning EU politics, are starting to crack.

Sep 7 • 7:58 AM EDT • Politics • euronews.com

On Clean Air Day, the EU Healthy Air Coalition is leading a call, joined by over 30 health organisations, for a fossil fuel phase-out to protect health

European and global health organisations call on EU leaders to swiftly phase out fossil fuels.

Sep 7 • 6:18 AM EDT • Health • epha.org

Dr Rip’s Science of the Surf: Shark fear

Is 2026 going to be the summer of drones, shark sightings and shark fear?

Sep 6 • 10:19 AM EDT • Science • theillawarraflame.com.au

‘Costs and corruption’: Democrats hone midterm attacks on data centers

Democrats are coalescing around their top attack lines as public opinion of data centers turns rapidly negative.

Sep 6 • 10:00 AM EDT • Politics • politico.com

Mansour Abbas is betting on a Zionist to make Palestinian votes count

By allying with Segalovich in the Israeli vote, Abbas is hoping for greater acceptance in Israeli coalition politics.

Sep 5 • 4:40 AM EDT • Politics • aljazeera.com

Directors Council names Marvin DeJear interim executive director

The Directors Council has named board chair Marvin DeJear interim executive director as Jerrica Marshall has stepped down from the role after three years to pursue a new professional opportunity in Omaha. The Directors Council, formed in 2004, is a coalition of local diverse senior-level organizational leaders who collaborate to serve Central Iowa with an emphasis…

Sep 4 • 12:21 PM EDT • Business • businessrecord.com

Olmsted County public health advisors hear from tobacco industry rep

The presentation from U.S. Businesses of Phillip Morris International comes months after the launch of a countywide youth tobacco prevention coalition.

Sep 3 • 10:15 PM EDT • Health • postbulletin.com

Michigan Supreme Court clears ballot measure restricting business political giving

The court said it was not persuaded to grant injunctive relief sought by a coalition of business groups and companies and Jim Holcomb of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce.

Sep 3 • 8:36 PM EDT • Business • crainsdetroit.com

Michigan Supreme Court clears ballot measure restricting business political giving

The court said it was not persuaded to grant injunctive relief sought by a coalition of business groups and companies and Jim Holcomb of the Michigan Chamber of Commerce.

Sep 3 • 8:36 PM EDT • Politics • crainsdetroit.com

For Sustained Soil and Water Health, Farmers Are ‘Playing the Long Game’

With the help of farmers like Kristin Duncanson, the AGree Coalition is proving that regenerative farming is key to a more resilient U.S. agriculture system

Sep 2 • 12:48 PM EDT • Health • waltonfamilyfoundation.org

New investment into perinatal care could help Iowa mothers with mental health concerns

A Coalville mother recounts her experience with postpartum psychosis, as Iowa invests federal funding to improve access to perinatal mental health resources.

Sep 1 • 11:32 PM EDT • Health • kcci.com

Lowe's launches major effort to help close America's skilled trades gap

Lowe's Foundation launched a coalition with Nvidia, General Motors and over 75 partners to train and certify 1 million skilled tradespeople by 2035.

Sep 1 • 8:00 AM EDT • Business • foxbusiness.com

Some Jewish Republicans bashed JD Vance. Now he’ll speak to them in person.

The vice president is set to appear at a Republican Jewish Coalition summit at a time when many prominent donors and activists oppose his potential presidential bid.

Aug 31 • 4:44 PM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com

Democracy Works: Political status and the DSA summer

For our first episode of the fall season, we talk with a social movement scholar about whether the DSA's policies can win over enough votes to win in a general election and why political coalitions don't always align with the structure of America's two-party system.

Aug 31 • 11:33 AM EDT • Politics • radio.wpsu.org

Vance to privately address Republican Jewish Coalition during tension over Israel and antisemitism

Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to speak Monday at the annual gathering of the Republican Jewish Coalition.

Aug 31 • 12:07 AM EDT • Politics • news4jax.com

McCarty: State needs stricter approach to behavioral health factor of homelessness

(FOX40.COM) — This week on Inside California Politics, host Nikki Laurenzo spoke with Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty. McCarty is a part of the California Big City Mayors coalition, which is made up…

Aug 30 • 10:30 AM EDT • Health • kron4.com

McCarty: State needs stricter approach to behavioral health factor of homelessness

(FOX40.COM) — This week on Inside California Politics, host Nikki Laurenzo spoke with Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty. McCarty is a part of the California Big City Mayors coalition, which is made up…

Aug 30 • 10:30 AM EDT • Health • fox40.com

Integrated pollution and carbon mitigation delivers major health and economic cobenefits in China

Synergistic mitigation of air pollutants and greenhouse gases is crucial for achieving clean air and carbon neutrality, but quantitative evidence of sectoral and regional health co-benefits in China remains limited. Authors develop an integrated Energy-Economy-Air Quality-Health framework coupling CEEPA, GAINS, and a province-level health module to simulate fourteen policy scenarios from 2020 to 2050. Coordinated strategies reduce CO2 and pollutants (SO2, NOX, PM2.5) by 75% relative to 2020, avoiding more than 500,000 premature deaths by 2050 and yielding monetized gains of 1.07 trillion CNY. Health benefits concentrate in industrially dense and populous provinces, with near-term PM2.5 reductions driven by pollution control and long-term improvements reliant on decarbonization. The integrated approach achieves a benefit-to-cost ratio of 1.42, lowering abatement costs by 11% relative to pollution-only measures. These findings highlight the value of coordinated, sector- and region-specific strategies for simultaneous climate mitigation, air quality improvement, and public health protection.

Aug 29 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • ccacoalition.org

Federal judge blocks Trump mail-in voting rule challenged by WA

The coalition of 25 states now seeks a preliminary injunction to stop the rule from taking effect while the lawsuit proceeds and until a final court decision is made.

Aug 28 • 8:38 PM EDT • Politics • seattletimes.com

Meta settlement falls short on teen mental health protections, whistleblower says

A whistleblower whose testimony helped build a child safety case against Meta Platforms said on Wednesday that the firm's settlement with a coalition of U.S. states does not meaningfully address harms ​from social media that he described in court.

Aug 27 • 3:14 PM EDT • Health • reuters.com

Coalition drops Colorado transportation ballot measure after securing deal

The proposed constitutional amendment seeking to dedicate all transportation-related revenue to Colorado’s roads and bridges will no longer appear in this November’s ballot after its proponents reached an agreement with lawmakers following months of negotiations. Initiative No. 175, backed by the coalition Restore Our Roads, would have required that all transportation-related revenue be used exclusively […]

Aug 27 • 2:04 PM EDT • Politics • coloradopolitics.com

Mamdani's government grocery store plan ‘disastrous’ for business owners, chamber of commerce official says

Greater New York Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Mark Jaffe, who is legal counsel and a founder of the Multicultural Business Coalition, says New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's effort will be "disastrous" for business owners.

Aug 27 • 11:16 AM EDT • Business • foxbusiness.com

The Global Brain Care Coalition: A Model to Put Brain Science into Action

It takes an average of 17 years for a scientific discovery to travel from the lab to clinical practice. In brain health, that delay has a real cost as the globa

Aug 26 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • milkeninstitute.org

California, other states sue again to block new U.S. Postal Service rules for mail ballots

California and a coalition of other Democratic-led states sued again to block the U.S. Postal Service from implementing new nationwide rules for mail ballots.

Aug 26 • 12:37 PM EDT • Politics • latimes.com

Democratic states sue U.S. Postal Service over new mail ballot rule

It's the second lawsuit a coalition of Democratic states have filed against the Trump administration over proposed changes to voting by mail

Aug 26 • 12:03 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Democratic states sue U.S. Postal Service over new mail ballot rule

It's the second lawsuit a coalition of Democratic states have filed against the Trump administration over proposed changes to voting by mail

Aug 26 • 12:03 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Democratic states sue U.S. Postal Service over new mail ballot rule

It's the second lawsuit a coalition of Democratic states have filed against the Trump administration over proposed changes to voting by mail

Aug 26 • 12:03 PM EDT • Politics • spectrumlocalnews.com

Davis Webb wants more consistency in the running game

The first-year play caller is hoping for the Broncos’ offensive line blocking and run game to coalesce in 2026.

Aug 26 • 10:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com