The Most Surprising Part of Stephen Colbert’s Late-Night Run

The Late Show host has been a calming counterbalance to his peers.

The Atlantic

The Trump Administration’s War in Iran Is Raising Costs for Rural Communities, Farmers, and Food Production

Rural households are paying, on average, at least $26 per week more at the pump, and an oil-dependent food supply chain means we should expect more expensive grocery prices for months to come.

American Progress

Destroying the Voting Rights Act wasn’t just a legal ruling. It was a moral statement

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was once described as the crown jewel of the Civil Rights Movement. But it was not ornamental. It was functional. It was the answer to blood in the streets, to bodies on bridges, to names etched into memory because the nation refused to allow them to do the most basic of our civic duties, voting. 

On April 29, the Supreme Court did not simply reinterpret that jewel. It desecrated it. And in doing so, it handed something far more dangerous to state legislatures across this country: permission. Permission to redraw lines with surgical precision. Permission to dilute voices without saying so aloud. Permission to cloak racial disenfranchisement in the language of procedure. This is how erosion happens in America. Not always with a bang, but with a ruling from six unelected judges and a shrug. 

Democracy Docket

Restricting Gender-Affirming Care for Transgender Youth

Public opinion remains divided. In a recent study, the Pew Research Center found that 56 percent of Americans support banning gender transitions for minors. But 56 percent of Americans also support policies aimed at protecting transgender individuals from discrimination in areas such as employment and housing.

The Regulatory Review

As a Woman Without a Country, I Was Afraid to Become a Mother. If SCOTUS Limits Birthright Citizenship, Millions More Will Share That Fear.

As the Supreme Court weighs whether to narrow birthright citizenship, one formerly stateless woman warns that stripping children of automatic citizenship would turn her lifelong fear and uncertainty into a reality for countless more families.

Ms. Magazine

Why Have Immigration Agents Detained This American Citizen Three Times?

Leonardo Garcia Venegas, a U.S. citizen whose prior detentions went viral and were detailed by ProPublica, was recently detained for a third time — and shackled. “I just want to live in peace,” he says.

ProPublica

Community grieves Juniper Blessing, trans student with ‘heart of gold’ who loved meteorology and Pokémon

Blessing’s friends at the University of Washington are sharing an outpouring of remembrances.

Advocate

Subpoena of NYU Langone trans youth health records pierces ‘bubble’ of safety for patients & families

The Handbasket spoke to some of the people impacted.

The Handbasket

Suspicious Betting in Washington Is on the Rise—and Authorities Are Playing Catch-Up

Regulators are seeking information from Kalshi and Polymarket over wagers tied to political events and military operations

The Wall Street Journal

Putin’s War Comes Home to Moscow

He can no longer hide the consequences from the Russian public.

The Atlantic

The Secretive Conglomerate That Controls Cuba’s Economy

GAESA was born out of desperation following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, but its roots trace back to the 1980s. Raúl Castro, then the defense minister, convinced his older brother, President Fidel Castro, to allow him to make changes to the military’s business interests, according to Frank Mora, who served as a deputy assistant secretary of defense in the Obama administration.

The New York Times

Bulgarian banger ‘Bangaranga’ bags country its 1st Eurovision win

The achievement surprised many because Bulgaria wasn’t among the favorites to win in 2026. But with its catchy “Welcome to the riot!” refrain and bouncy vibe, performer Dara’s banging anthem “Bangaranga” bested 24 other nations for the glittery global musical crown at the finals on Saturday in Vienna, Austria.

NPR

Palestinian man shot dead while climbing West Bank barrier into Israel in search of work

An increasing number of Palestinians from the occupied West Bank have attempted to enter Israel illegally to work in recent years.

Religion News Service

Anigua homeless shelter nears completion after 4 years

An 18-unit homeless shelter in Anigua could open by this August, four years after GovGuam acquired the building, while a newly purchased 32-unit apartment in Tamuning could see renovations done by the end of the fiscal year.

A January count of the island’s homeless population had 849 people living in shelters, out on the street, or in substandard housing, Department of Public Health and Services Director Theresa Arriola told lawmakers at a Thursday budget request hearing.

Pacific Daily News

Would You Want This Guy As Your Dentist?

Around 59,000 years ago, somewhere in the Altai Mountains of southwestern Siberia, in lands prowling with woolly rhinos and cave hyenas, a Neanderthal had a toothache. The tooth was a molar, rooted in the lower left corner of the Neanderthal’s mouth, and it had begun to rot. Such a dilemma is diabolically familiar to us modern humans, but at least we are fortunate to have dentists, who inflict upon us mild pain and terror in exchange for lasting relief.

Defector

A new Ebola outbreak has already killed 87 people in Democratic Republic of Congo

There are already hundreds of suspected cases, including one that crossed the border into Uganda. The latest strain of the virus has no vaccine either, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

NPR