Peter Baker
@peterbakernyt · North America
Peter Baker is followed by The State of Israel for journalism and current affairs coverage connected to United States in the North America chapter.
60 posts in 10 hours: The rat-a-tat of ever wilder, ever more outrageous social media images each weekend has become a fixture of Trump's second term, seen more and more as a barometer of his mental state. https://t.co/VtBs8TK77H
Lonnie Bunch to step down as the Smithsonian's chief amid pressure from the White House over the museum's presentation of history. Bunch says the pressure is not why he is resigning but acknowledges that "it has been stressful." @rpogrebin @Graham_Bowley https://t.co/oROYYdfEdw
Senator Marshall filed lawsuits against more than 700 patients with outstanding bills during his decades-long career as an obstetrician-gynecologist. Patients were arrested in 81 of those cases for missing court dates. @sarahkliff https://t.co/VP3WscYHNs
"The one thing he likes to do during the week is construction": With the US mired in an intractable Middle East war, Trump is basking in the momentum on a half-dozen makeover projects he has set in motion throughout the capital. @lukebroadwater @maggieNYT https://t.co/8AdJgIEgVk
While "shadow secretary" at DHS, Lewandowski approached Qatari and UAE officials to hire him to deal with any issues that fell under the department’s purview, such as visas, sources tell @tparti @jdawsey1 @MHackman @summer_said (Lewandowski disputes this.) https://t.co/jrP3O8JPGu
Leopold Aschenbrenner was dubbed the “Nostradamus of AI." His spectacular $35 billion loss "reveals how eager Silicon Valley is to invest its billions in the dubious hands of a kid who confidently proclaims what he doesn’t actually know" writes @tab_delete https://t.co/O3oHGDRfL7
AfD dominates a crucial state election in Germany, but falls short of the absolute majority that would have made it the first far-right party to govern part of the country since the Nazi era. @jimtankersley @CFSchuetze https://t.co/WOGC4ln91L
Yet even as he tried to return to Trump's fold, Cohen kept a foot in the other camp. George Conway says Cohen called to offer to help his campaign for Congress. “I’m like, what? He’s trying to suck up to Trump and literally my entire campaign was about sending this guy to jail.”
A look at Cohen's tortured path from "rat" to reconciliation. "Everything is transactional. It’s the weirdest example yet of the transactional nature of the president of the United States and those around him."
Trump claims that Michael Cohen "has just fully RECANTED his testimony" against the president, who was convicted of 34 felonies and held liable for bank fraud. Except that he hasn't. Cohen hasn't taken back any of it. https://t.co/f48oZcGyus
How a conspiracy-minded podcaster installed at the FBI by Trump helped instigate a sprawling investigation targeting Fauci and other government scientists in connection with the COVID pandemic based on unproven theories. @benjmueller @GlennThrush https://t.co/GEUXRDwWdj
Trump asks Supreme Court to allow him to enact his plan to restrict mail-in voting in time for this fall's midterm elections as Republicans face an uphill political environment unless the rules can be changed. @AbbieVanSickle https://t.co/59z4bxsmLf
In her long battle to get society to adopt "Ms." as a universal honorific for women regardless of whether they were married, Gloria Steinem's toughest obstacle may have been the @nytimes. But eventually she convinced Abe Rosenthal, writes @adamnagourney https://t.co/rtxUSkGHnB
Fully 49% of Americans now identify as Democrats or Democratic-leaning compared with 39% Republican, the party's largest advantage since 2008 and a big flip in 2 years, per @Gallup. As late as 2024, the GOP had a slight edge. @RuthIgielnik @carolinelsoler https://t.co/CwbyKldhmp
Behind closed doors, Fetterman shows little interest in the job, keeping a light daily schedule, often refusing to meet with constituents and fellow lawmakers, or canceling at the last minute, report @TheWillHobson @siobhanehughes https://t.co/bKVmzNeLts
Iran's gamble that time is on its side may not be paying off, reports @yarotrof. Oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz and via ports in Gulf of Oman have reached 40% of prewar flow, almost none of it Iranian. https://t.co/aGCfZWBq6m
Hegseth's Pentagon straps about 50 officers from the Joint Staff to lie detector machines to investigate leaks and intimidate senior military in what appears to be an unprecedented mass polygraph blitz. @jonathanvswan @Adamentous @maggieNYT @EricSchmittNYT https://t.co/zE7PM4I3vA
Hiring improved in August as employers pushed past uncertainty related the war in Iran, tariffs and artificial intelligence to expand their payrolls by 162,000 jobs. @melbournecoal https://t.co/GjHkBG5yWq
Trump is breaking ground on his 250-foot-tall triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery even before a federal review panel has approved the project. @lukebroadwater @emilymbadger https://t.co/sFFmNIR8Xp
Gloria Steinem, the feminist crusader who galvanized the modern women’s movement, helping millions of women develop a sense of self-worth and gain a measure of equality at home, at work and in society at large, dies at 92. @kseelye https://t.co/N1VWZhH3bW
Russia's shadow war against Europe; Germany concludes that explosive-laden drone discovered at a German airport was controlled by agents who were working “on behalf of Russian state entities.” Berlin orders Russian diplomatic mission closed. @CFSchuetze https://t.co/P5wBnvoqXU
Markey, who at 80 is the oldest senator in Massachusetts history, holds off a generational challenge to win the Democratic nomination to extend his half century in Congress. @TimBalk https://t.co/Bh67EaTBo0
Roberts's dissent in the ballroom case stands out in part because he so rarely is on the losing side. Over the course of his tenure, he has voted with the majority in split decisions 83% of the time, the highest of any chief justice since 1953. @amarimow https://t.co/0piIKVsG9Y
In 5-4 decision, Supreme Court allows construction to continue on Trump’s ballroom, ruling that plaintiffs do not have standing to sue. Roberts joins liberals in dissent, saying that Trump's project is "likely unlawful." @amarimow https://t.co/9XgPivLaoJ
Trump makes clear that he thinks it's the government's role to go after journalists who anger him as he declares that NBC's Kristen Welker "will be reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment."
Connected stories
- Supreme Court Grants 5–4 Stay for White House Ballroom Construction
- Saxony-Anhalt Votes as AfD Seeks First Far-Right State Government
- Iran’s Crude Loadings Fall to 260,000 Barrels a Day Under U.S. Pressure
- U.S. Employers Added 162,000 Jobs in August as Unemployment Held at 4.1%
- Germany Blames Russia for Leipzig Airport Drone Attack and Will Close Bonn Consulate