Supreme Court loosens campaign finance laws, opening up flood of midterm cash

The change is likely to benefit Republicans, who brought the case and rely more on large donors

By Jessica Piper and Josh Gerstein

06/30/2026 10:27 AM EDT

Updated: 06/30/2026 11:39 AM EDT

The Supreme Court struck down limits on coordinated spending between candidates and political parties on Tuesday, a win for Republicans that will fundamentally change how tens of millions of dollars are spent in congressional elections.

Supreme Court upholds birthright citizenship, rejecting Trump’s proposed limits

WASHINGTON (AP) — A divided Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a broad conception of birthright citizenship, rejecting President Donald Trump’s executive order declaring that children born to people who are in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens.

How SCOTUS Handed Donald Trump The Powers of a King

June 30, 2026

Despite a tactical setback in influencing the mechanics of the upcoming midterms, the Supreme Court's decisions provided Trump with a powerful tool to purge any independent voice and install his loyalists across the federal government. 

In two of its most political rulings, the Supreme Court on Monday delivered a split decision for the Trump administration, handing the president a historic expansion of executive authority over the federal bureaucracy while simultaneously rejecting a Republican-led effort to restrict mail-in ballot deadlines. Although these dual rulings represent a "win-some, lose-some" day for President Trump’s immediate political agenda, legal experts say the long-term implications of the court’s actions could fundamentally reshape the relationship between the White House, independent agencies, and the American voter. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a rare oral dissent, warned that the ruling "reshapes our Government," shifting "tremendous power over broad swaths of American life into the President's hands."

Harvard’s housing report has a darker message than affordability—the middle-class home was always a historical accident

Nick Lichtenberg
Mon, June 29, 2026 at 12:09 AM PDT 9 min read

A new Harvard study documents a housing market in crisis. But its real argument is more unsettling: the era when an ordinary American could expect to own a home may have been the exception—not the rule.

For half a century, Harvard has been writing versions of the same warning. In 1977, researchers at what was then the Harvard-MIT Joint Center for Urban Studies observed that only the most affluent families in the United States would be able to own their houses if housing trends from the time continued. In 1970, nearly half of all families could afford a median-priced home. By 1975, only 27% could. The study's authors warned that an average home could cost $78,000 by the 1980s—a number they offered as a sign of alarm. The median price of a new single-family home in 2025 was $417,400.

Why SCOTUS Spared Cook, Cooked Trump but "Slaughtered" Slaughter

Source: NBC News

June 29, 2026

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that President Donald Trump cannot fire Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook while simultaneously granting him the power to remove a Democratic appointee from the Federal Trade Commission, Rebecca Slaughter. But that was not all...

Περί Στωικισμού και Λήθαργου

Σκεπτόμενος... Τους Πολέμους του Μάρκου Αυρήλιου και του Ντόναλντ Τραμπ

Τίμοθι Σνάιντερ / Substack / 27 Ιουνίου 2026
Μετάφραση, Επιμέλεια: Γιάννης Δαμέλλος

Καθώς ο Ντόναλντ Τραμπ ανακοίνωνε τον αλαζονικό του πόλεμο ενάντια στο Ιράν, εγώ διάβαζα για μια άλλη αυτοκρατορική εκστρατεία, πολύ πιο παλιά, εναντίον ενός αρχαίου ιρανικού φύλου.

Στα τέλη του δεύτερου αιώνα μ.Χ., η Ρωμαϊκή Αυτοκρατορία αντιμετώπισε εισβολείς που είχαν διασχίσει τα σύνορα της στον ποταμό Δούναβη και είχαν φτάσει ακόμη και στις Άλπεις στη βόρεια Ιταλία. Μεταξύ αυτών ήταν οι Ιάζυγες, ομιλητές μιας ιρανικής γλώσσας, που κατάγονταν από την ουκρανική στέπα.

Of Stoicism and Stupor

Thinking about...
The Wars of Marcus Aurelius and Donald Trump
Timothy Snyder
Jun 27, 2026

As Donald Trump announced his whimsy war in Iran, I was reading about another imperial campaign, long ago, against an Iranian people.

In the late second century AD, the Roman Empire confronted armies that had crossed the border at the Danube River and even broached the Alps in northern Italy. Among them were the Iazyges, speakers of an Iranian language, who hailed from the Ukrainian steppe.

National Weather Service Warns of 'Extreme' 115-Degree Heat Through July 4 Weekend for 18 U.S. States - See the Map

Jessica McBride

Sun, June 28, 2026 at 11:52 AM PDT

3 min read

Key takeaways

• The National Weather Service is warning at least 18 states in the eastern U.S. of an extreme heat wave with temperatures soaring over 100 degrees.
• The heat wave is expected to start on Sunday, June 28, 2026, and linger through the July 4 weekend, with heat indices potentially reaching 115 degrees.
• The NWS advises staying hydrated, limiting outdoor activities, and checking on vulnerable individuals to stay safe during the extreme heat wave

A new report finds few sunscreens meet safety standards

Updated: 12:04 PM PDT Jun 27, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ
Sandee LaMotte, CNN

It’s time to stock up on sunscreen, but few choices on store shelves today are both safe and effective, according to an annual report by the Environmental Working Group, or EWG, a nonprofit health and environmental advocacy organization.

NASA races to save Swift telescope from falling back to Earth

The $30 million salvage operation gets underway as soon as this week.
By MARCIA DUNN 

AP Aerospace writer
June 28, 2026, 5:20 AM

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA is racing to save an aging telescope from falling back to Earth with a daring rescue mission. The $30 million salvage operation gets underway as soon as this week with the planned launch of a robotic lifesaver.

U.S.-Iran ceasefire could go up in flames

8 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Barak Ravid

This is more fire than cease:

• Over the past few days, tension between the U.S. and Iran has been escalating with another exchange of strikes on Saturday. President Trump threatened on Truth Social to resume the war and "complete the job."

Canada advances to World Cup Round of 16 for first time after beating South Africa 1-0 in extra time (photos)

Vancouver, BC

June 28, 2026 - 2:22 pm PT

Los Angeles, CA - It may not have been the most exhilarating football game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but it nevertheless marked a significant moment in Canadian history! Canada, having already made waves by advancing past the group stage for the first time ever, pushed into uncharted territory by defeating South Africa 1-0 in this tense knockout round!

Explained: Why America’s car market is shrinking

A Bain & Company analysis warns the US auto market could lose more than 2,000,000 units by 2040 as falling birth rates, soaring vehicle prices, changing consumer habits and robotaxis reshape the future of car ownership.

By CNBCTV18.com
June 28, 2026, 8:55:29 PM IST (Updated)
3 Min Read

The US automobile market could be headed for a prolonged period of decline as falling birth rates, rising vehicle prices and changing consumer preferences erode demand over the next 15 years, according to a report by consulting firm Bain & Company, CNBC reported.

One Name at a Time: How Die Zeit Built a Searchable Database of Nazi Party Members

by Hanna Duggal, June 26, 2026

In the final days of World War II, as the German Reich collapsed, Nazi officials ordered the destruction of millions of party membership cards. The vast card index documenting membership across Germany survived largely because a paper mill operator, Hanns Huber, chose to hand the records over to the advancing US forces rather than pulp them.

“It Was Completely Shocking to Me”: Archaeologists Discover the Earliest Monumental Egyptian Hieroglyphs Written 1,000 Years Before the Pyramids

Christopher Plain·June 22, 2026
A joint expedition to the ancient Egyptian city of Elkab has unearthed several previously unknown ancient rock art inscriptions, including what the team believes are the earliest known monumental Egyptian hieroglyphs.

Written over 1,000 years before the Great Pyramid of Giza was constructed, these ancient Egyptian writings, discovered by archaeologists from Yale University and the Royal Museums of Art and History (Brussels), laid the foundation for the later, better-known hieroglyphic writing system.

Billionaire Leon Black Subpoenaed After Dodging Epstein Questions

Edith Olmsted  June 26, 2026/2:54 p.m. ET

The House Oversight Committee is going after Leon Black after he refused to answer questions or properly explain his $158 million in payments to Jeffrey Epstein

Billionaire investor Leon Black received two subpoenas Friday after he refused to answer questions about NDAs he’d allegedly signed with women in Jeffrey Epstein’s orbit.

Trump Is Clearly Rattled by What Mamdani Just Did in New York

President Trump seems agitated after Zohran Mamdani’s big wins in New York this week—from DSA election victories to the rent freeze

Edith Olmsted

June 26, 2026/2:54 p.m. ET

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

President Donald Trump spoke at the Faith & Freedom Coalition policy conference in Washington, D.C. on Friday, but seemed hyperfixated on something that has nothing to do with neither faith nor freedom: New York City’s rent freeze.

The Supreme Court’s Era of Meaningless Rights

The Supreme Court is not saying people don’t have certain rights, just that no courts can help them when those rights are violated.

The six Republican appointees on the Supreme Court have made one thing clear: People may have rights, but in many cases they have no way to enforce them. Four decisions released this week have that paradox at their core.