n August 3, 2005, FBI agents raided the New Orleans home of nine-term U.S. Representative William J. Jefferson of the 2nd District of Louisiana. What they found became instant fodder for talk-show hosts, late-night comedians, and pundits: $90,000 in cash, sheathed in tinfoil and stored in Jefferson’s freezer. Despite Jefferson’s insistence that he had “an […]
The Iran War’s Biggest Loser? Definitely Netanyahu
The American president’s “Art of the Deal” reputation is in tatters. But the Israeli prime minister’s attempt to impose a military solution on the region makes him the war’s biggest loser—and Israel isolated and vulnerable.
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How Local News Reduces Loneliness
One more reason rebuilding local news is vital. Academic research suggests that whether it’s an obituary, a puff piece, or news of a sale on tuna at the grocery, local news makes us feel less alone.
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Trump’s Dangerous Litmus Test for NIH Grants
An absurd politicization of scientific research that will weaken America.
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The 2026 Kukula Award Winners
The Washington Monthly’s annual award celebrates the best in nonfiction book reviewing and honors the memory of Kukula Kapoor Glastris, the magazine’s beloved books editor.
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Are the Elderly Holding America Back?
A new book treats old age, or ‘gerontocracy,’ as the central crisis of modern politics. The framing obscures more than it explains.
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Remember When We Used to Take World War III Seriously?
In the 1980s, serious people feared World War III and acted to prevent it. Today, our slouch toward World War III is being orchestrated by egotistical sociopaths.
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The Return of the Native
Nicholas Lemann’s family history illuminates what it means to be Jewish in America and explains how we choose our religious and ethnic identities.
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