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Rubio insists U.S. ‘authored’ the Ukraine peace plan, despite contradictory reporting

Rubio insists U.S. ‘authored’ the Ukraine peace plan, despite contradictory reporting

The New York Times reports: Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday that the United States “authored” a 28-point peace plan to end the war in Ukraine, after a Republican senator asserted that Mr. Rubio had distanced himself from the proposal and called it a Russian initiative. Mr. Rubio made the assertion on social media after Senator Mike Rounds, Republican of South Dakota, said Mr. Rubio had earlier on Saturday held a call with a bipartisan group of U.S….

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Trump officials’ meeting with sanctioned Russian in Miami spurs questions about Ukraine proposal

Trump officials’ meeting with sanctioned Russian in Miami spurs questions about Ukraine proposal

Reuters reports: U.S. officials and lawmakers are increasingly concerned about a meeting last month in which representatives of the Trump administration met with Kirill Dmitriev, a Russian envoy who is under U.S. sanctions, to draft a plan to end the war in Ukraine, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The meeting took place in Miami at the end of October and included special envoy Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and Dmitriev, who leads the Russian…

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As Trump’s inquisitors face scrutiny, Judge Aileen Cannon could play a new role

As Trump’s inquisitors face scrutiny, Judge Aileen Cannon could play a new role

Charlie Savage writes: The U.S. attorney in Miami, who is running a sprawling investigation into former officials who investigated President Trump, has been granted an unusual request to convene an extra grand jury at the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce, Fla. The location ensures that just one judge can oversee it: Aileen M. Cannon. That raises a question with intriguing political and legal overtones. Could Judge Cannon again end up as a key player in a Trump-centric case, this one…

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How Big Ag is crushing farmers

How Big Ag is crushing farmers

  Farm debt is expected to reach $560 billion this year—a record high. But it’s not just because of the trade war with China. Farmers told us it’s because a handful of corporations have taken control of their markets to ensure they always win, and farmers barely break even.

Musicians possess a superior internal map of their body in space

Musicians possess a superior internal map of their body in space

PsyPost reports: Research suggests that learning to play a musical instrument does far more than provide artistic satisfaction; it appears to fundamentally alter how the brain maps the physical body in space. A new analysis indicates that trained musicians possess a superior ability to maintain their physical orientation and balance, even in the absence of visual cues. These findings were recently published in the academic journal Cortex. Spatial cognition is the mental process that allows individuals to navigate the physical…

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The murky plan that ensures a future war in Ukraine

The murky plan that ensures a future war in Ukraine

Anne Applebaum writes: The 28-point peace plan that the United States and Russia want to impose on Ukraine and Europe is misnamed. It is not a peace plan. It is a proposal that weakens Ukraine and divides America from Europe, preparing the way for a larger war in the future. In the meantime, it benefits unnamed Russian and American investors, at the expense of everyone else. The plan was negotiated by Steve Witkoff, a real-estate developer with no historical, geographical,…

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The real reason Trump is fawning over Saudi Arabia’s ruler

The real reason Trump is fawning over Saudi Arabia’s ruler

Noah Shachtman writes: You remember the pictures. The images of tech oligarchs kissing the ring at President Trump’s inauguration were instantly iconic, markers of a new and rather unnerving era. But months earlier, Mr. Trump made a corrosive pact with another set of moguls, and that one is already remaking global politics, wiping out jobs at home and strangling what little hope was left of avoiding a climate disaster. This one happened behind closed doors. These moguls were leaders of…

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Marjorie Taylor Greene might run for president in 2028, allies say

Marjorie Taylor Greene might run for president in 2028, allies say

Time reports: Marjorie Taylor Greene is leaving Congress, but that may not be the end of her political ambitions. The Georgia lawmaker has privately told allies that she has considered running for president in 2028, according to two people who have spoken with her directly about the prospect and three others familiar with her thinking. The possibility comes amid the dramatic rupture in Greene’s relationship with President Donald Trump, which contributed to her decision to announce on Friday that she…

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What Trump’s Mamdani praise — and MTG’s ouster — says about MAGA’s future

What Trump’s Mamdani praise — and MTG’s ouster — says about MAGA’s future

Politico reports: [F]or Democrats, Friday’s friendly confab presented a possible path forward for handling the president. In a year when Democrats have struggled with how to engage Trump, in which at least one of them hid behind a folder in a White House meeting and left the base wondering about her 2028 sauce, Mamdani just put on a masterclass, [Rebecca] Katz and other Democratic strategists said. Their theory of the case: In his meeting, he offered a template for handling…

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Jair Bolsonaro arrested as he appeared to be poised to escape

Jair Bolsonaro arrested as he appeared to be poised to escape

The Guardian reports: Brazil’s former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro has claimed he tried to damage his electronic ankle monitor “out of curiosity” after he was arrested at his villa owing to suspicions he was poised to abscond. In a video released by the supreme court, Bolsonaro – who was recently sentenced to 27 years in prison for masterminding a military coup – can be heard admitting to a security official that he had used a soldering iron to tamper with…

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Emails reveal that Noam Chomsky regarded Jeffrey Epstein as a ‘highly valued friend’

Emails reveal that Noam Chomsky regarded Jeffrey Epstein as a ‘highly valued friend’

WBUR reports: Emails show convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had a tight friendship with MIT professor Noam Chomsky that spanned discussions about vacation, politics and included an apparent letter of support from Chomsky. The emails were part of a trove of documents released last week by the U.S. House Oversight Committee detailing communications between Epstein and powerful figures across politics, academia and business. A WBUR review of the emails shows despite Epstein’s 2008 conviction for procuring a child for prostitution…

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Cosmic paradox reveals the awful consequence of an observer-free universe

Cosmic paradox reveals the awful consequence of an observer-free universe

Matt von Hippel writes: Tinkering at their desks with the mathematics of quantum space and time, physicists have discovered a puzzling conundrum. The arcane rules of quantum theory and gravity let them imagine many different kinds of universes in precise detail, enabling powerful thought experiments that in recent years have addressed long-standing mysteries swirling around black holes. But when a group of researchers examined a universe intriguingly like our own in 2019, they found a paradox: The theoretical universe seemed…

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House votes to denounce ‘horrors’ of socialism while comrades Mamdani and Trump promote ‘affordability’

House votes to denounce ‘horrors’ of socialism while comrades Mamdani and Trump promote ‘affordability’

Politico reports: The House voted 285-98 to approve a resolution condemning the “horrors of socialism” Friday morning, just hours before President Donald Trump is set to meet with New York’s incoming democratic socialist mayor Zohran Mamdani. Eighty-six Democrats joined with Republicans to approve the measure. Two others voted present. No Republican voted to oppose it. Speaker Mike Johnson and House GOP leaders have decried Mamdani’s election as the next mayor of the country’s largest city, citing his far-left politics and…

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Zelensky says Trump plan forces Ukraine to choose between ‘dignity’ and a key partner

Zelensky says Trump plan forces Ukraine to choose between ‘dignity’ and a key partner

Axios reports: President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the Ukrainian people on Friday and said President Trump’s 28-point peace plan will force Ukraine to choose between “losing our dignity” or risking the loss of U.S. support. Why it matters: The plan would force Ukraine to accept harsh concessions, including the loss of even more territory than Russia currently controls. Zelensky has told the Trump administration he’s prepared to negotiate, but the White House is pushing him to sign within one week. What he’s saying: “This is one of the most…

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