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| Occupy Democrats |
April 13, 2026
Polls
2024 Presidential Estimates:
Ages 18–22: R+2
Ages 23–29: D+6
2026 Generic Ballot ():
Ages 18–22: D+23
Ages 23–29: D+30
Ages 18–22: R+2
Ages 23–29: D+6
2026 Generic Ballot ():
Ages 18–22: D+23
Ages 23–29: D+30
Transgender in the military
NY Times -Some doctors in the military are being told to not see patients. Pilots are grounded. A police investigator was forced to abandon her cases. An aircraft carrier headed to war without a critical nuclear reactor supervisor. Those professionals and thousands of others have been pulled from military jobs for one reason: They are transgender.
President Trump ordered a ban on trans service members days after taking office, saying it was necessary to improve operations and cut costs in the military. Instead trans troops say, highly trained professionals have been removed from positions with little planning, leaving their teams short-handed. When they disappeared from their jobs, they stayed on Defense Department books for months unable to be replaced and being paid to do nothing.
“It is the biggest waste I’ve ever seen,” said Capt. Katie Benn, a decorated air defense officer who was has served in the Army for 13 years. “I’ve proven I’m good at my job. They just won’t let me do it.”
An oligarchy of old people
The Atlantic - Although political gerontocracy has operated overtly, the rising economic power of the elderly has escaped much notice. Over the past 40 or so years, American wealth has grown ever more concentrated among the oldest generations. In 1989, Americans over age 55 held 56 percent of it; today they hold 74 percent. During that same period, the share of wealth held by Americans under 40 has shrunk by nearly half, from 12 to 6.6 percent. The color of money is now gray.
Much of this shift is the result of demographic change: 18 percent of Americans are senior citizens today, up from 13 percent in 1990. But even at the household level, Americans over 55 have accrued wealth more rapidly than those who are younger. Among those 75 and older, the numbers are particularly striking. In 1983, their household net worth was only slightly above the national average; by 2022, it was 55 percent higher.
For nearly a century, some of the central debates in American politics have been over inequalities—between rich and poor, male and female, Black and white. When the Baby Boomers were children, older Americans were widely viewed as vulnerable. “Fifty percent of the elderly exist below minimum standards of decency, and this is a figure much higher than that for any other age group,” Michael Harrington wrote in his 1962 book The Other America.
Federal judge blocks Trump lawsuit against Wall Street Journal
Newsweek - A federal judge on Monday dismissed President Donald Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and its publisher, Rupert Murdoch, over an article examining Trump’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein, while allowing the president an opportunity to amend his complaint...
U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles, nominated to his post by former Democratic President Barack Obama, writing in an order issued in Florida, said Trump had failed to plausibly argue that the newspaper published the article with actual malice, a required standard for defamation claims brought by public figures. Gayles said Trump may file an amended complaint addressing the deficiencies.
Trump deletes photo of a Jesus-like figure after conservative complaints
Earlier story
The New Republic - MAGA treated Donald Trump like a messiah. Now they’re mad he’s comparing himself to Jesus Christ. Trump leapt into hot water with his Christian fans Sunday, when he posted an AI-generated image of himself as literal Jesus on Truth Social. In the image, Trump appeared dressed as a biblical figure, healing a sick man in a hospital bed, surrounded by bald eagles, soldiers, fighter jets, and whatever this winged creature is floating in the background behind him.
Iran
Axios - Pakistani, Egyptian and Turkish mediators will continue talks with the U.S. and Iran in the coming days in an effort to bridge the remaining gaps and reach a deal to end the war, Axios' Barak Ravid reports. All parties still believe a deal is possible. The mediators hope that narrowing the gaps could enable another round of negotiations before the ceasefire expires on April 21.
A regional source told us: "We are not in a complete deadlock. The door is not closed yet. Both sides are bargaining. It's a bazaar."
- A U.S. official added that a deal could be reached if Iran shows more flexibility and recognizes that the Islamabad proposal is the best it will get.
President Trump is considering resuming strikes if a U.S. naval blockade doesn't make Iran change course, sources said.
- Targets could include infrastructure he threatened to attack before the ceasefire was announced.
- The blockade, like the U.S. decision to walk away from the talks in Pakistan, is part of the ongoing negotiations, a U.S. official said.
... The main gaps during the 21-hour negotiations between the U.S. and Iran in Pakistan focused on the nuclear issue.
- One was U.S. demands that Iran freeze uranium enrichment and surrender its stockpile.
- The amount of frozen money Iran wants the U.S. to release in return for its nuclear concessions, sources said.
NPR - Iran is using the Strait of Hormuz's closure to its advantage, frustrating Trump and pushing global oil prices higher, NPR’s Greg Myre tells Up First. While some oil still flows from Iran, the country charges foreign ships up to $2 million to pass through the crucial waterway. The Trump administration's blockade doesn't improve prospects for potential peace talks. Myre says Trump appears to hope the increased pressure will force Iran to make concessions, while Iran seems to feel it is in a pretty strong negotiating position, as it has withstood weeks of heavy U.S. and Israeli bombing.
The Guardian - More than 32 million people worldwide could be plunged into poverty by the economic fallout from the Iran war, with developing countries expected to be hit hardest. In a report issued amid doubts over a fragile ceasefire, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said the world was facing a “triple shock” involving energy, food and weaker economic growth.
....“Any vessel entering or departing the blockaded area without authorization is subject to interception, diversion, and capture,” the note said. “The blockade will not impede neutral transit passage through the strait of Hormuz to or from non-Iranian destinations.”
Best small cities to start a new business
WalletHub - With National Small Business Week approaching and 20% of new businesses failing within the first year, the personal-finance company WalletHub released its report on 2026’s Best Small Cities to Start a Business, as well as expert commentary, to help entrepreneurs find a place where their startup can not only survive but thrive.
To determine the most business-friendly small markets in the U.S., WalletHub compared more than 1,300 cities with fewer than 100,000 residents across 18 key metrics. The data set ranges from small business growth rates and the accessibility of financing to investor access and labor costs.
Key Stats
To determine the most business-friendly small markets in the U.S., WalletHub compared more than 1,300 cities with fewer than 100,000 residents across 18 key metrics. The data set ranges from small business growth rates and the accessibility of financing to investor access and labor costs.
| Top 20 Small Cities to Start a Business | |
| 1. St. George, UT | 11. South Bradenton, FL |
| 2. Fort Myers, FL | 12. Lake Worth Beach, FL |
| 3. Washington, UT | 13. Post Falls, ID |
| 4. Bozeman, MT | 14. Midvale, UT |
| 5. Greenville, SC | 15. Palm Beach Gardens, FL |
| 6. Cedar City, UT | 16. Horizon West, FL |
| 7. Boca Raton, FL | 17. East Lake-Orient Park, FL |
| 8. Cheyenne, WY | 18. Salisbury, NC |
| 9. Ocala, FL | 19. Springville, UT |
| 10. Dover, DE | 20. Rapid City, SD |
Key Stats
- Bozeman, Montana, has the highest number of startups per 100,000 residents, which is 8.7 times higher than in Austin, Minnesota, the city with the lowest.
- Wellesley, Massachusetts, has the highest share of the population with at least a bachelor’s degree, which is 14.8 times higher than in Immokalee, Florida, the city with the lowest.
- Kentwood, Michigan, has the most affordable office spaces, which is 6.8 times lower than in Mountain View, California, the city with the least affordable.
- Isla Vista, California, has the lowest labor costs (median annual income), which is 9.6 times lower than in Los Altos, California, among the cities with the highest.
- West Odessa, Texas, has the longest work week, which is 1.8 times longer than in Isla Vista, California, the city with the shortest.
Health
Health.com - New research suggests two to three cups of coffee daily may be linked to a lower risk of mood disorders. Drinking too much or too little coffee was tied to higher risk, showing moderation may matter for mental health. Coffee affects everyone differently, and some people may feel calmer and focused while others experience jitters or worsened anxiety.
Pooping
NPR - Forty percent of Americans experience uncomfortable bowel symptoms that interrupt their daily lives, according to the American Gastroenterological Association. But Dr. Trisha Pasricha says people on the other end of the spectrum experience what she calls "poophoria"—her term for a state of being in which doing your business is worry-free and painless. In her book You've Been Pooping All Wrong, Pasricha shares practices and habits that can smooth your relationship with your solid waste.
💩 Eat more fiber. It feeds the microbes in your colon that produce short-chain fatty acids, which reduce gut inflammation.
💩 Avoid spending more than five minutes on the toilet. Sitting suspended over the toilet bowl for too long can increase the risk of hemorrhoids.
💩 Take a movement break if you find yourself perched in the bathroom for more than five minutes without results.
💩 Steer away from foods with artificial sweeteners because they are known to cause diarrhea and bloating.
US fertility rate drops again
NY Times - The U.S. fertility rate fell slightly in 2025, to another record low, extending two decades of declines, according to federal data released on Thursday. The fertility rate — the number of births per 1,000 women of childbearing age — dropped to 53.1, from 53.8 in 2024, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The number of births dropped too, falling by 1 percent from the previous year, to 3,606,400.
Millions of college students default on loans
NY Times - More than 40 million borrowers are saddled with federal student debt, and a record number — 7.7 million — have defaulted on their loans, according to recently released data from the Education Department. For some borrowers, moving abroad and out of reach of debt collectors can be tempting. In interviews, people who made this decision cited relieving the psychological burden of student debt as a motivator, as well as having a higher quality of life, even on a lower salary, outside the United States. Many who fled abroad... said they had no plans of ever returning.
Trump Regime
MS NOW - A recent New York Times report — citing interviews with current and former U.S. officials, officials in foreign governments and internal State Department documents — lays out how the Trump administration is lobbying countries around the world to join the U.S. in identifying far left “terrorism” as the preeminent threat to global stability and taking steps to crack down on it.
These efforts are not about focusing on threats based on data. Instead, they illustrate how the Trump administration is expanding its ongoing agenda to transform law enforcement into a political tool for the right. But while this particular effort is focused internationally, its most concrete effects may be felt at home in new ways of repressing dissent.
...The first steps were taken last November, when the State Department designated four far-left groups in Italy, Germany and Greece as terrorist organizations.
These efforts are not about focusing on threats based on data. Instead, they illustrate how the Trump administration is expanding its ongoing agenda to transform law enforcement into a political tool for the right. But while this particular effort is focused internationally, its most concrete effects may be felt at home in new ways of repressing dissent.
...The first steps were taken last November, when the State Department designated four far-left groups in Italy, Germany and Greece as terrorist organizations.
....The U.S. wants to convene multiple international summits over the coming months to coordinate efforts against the anti-fascist left with other countries. This includes a May workshop with foreign law enforcement officials in The Hague to “teach them about the dangers of far-left groups and how to counter them,” according to the Times. Invitees include officials from Canada, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Hungary, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, India and Indonesia.
April 12, 2026
Artificial Intelligence
The Hill - A recent poll shows AI’s increasing role in how students decide on college majors, creating a rapidly developing situation for universities that are still struggling to determine how the technology will shape higher education. The Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2026 State of Higher Education survey found 47 percent of currently enrolled college students have thought about switching majors “a great deal” or a “fair amount” over AI concerns.
Around 16 percent pointed to AI as the reason they changed their field of study. “We’re getting to a point where it’s almost unacceptable, right, that we’re having all of these conferences and all of these roundtable discussions, and we are failing to provide students with some just meaningful advice and helping them to feel like they’re prepared,” said Alex Kotran, CEO of the AI Education Project.
“If students were adequately prepared, you wouldn’t see as many of them change their major, or you would see that happening in a way that schools are driving, but they’re not doing that,” he added.
The survey found men and those going for associate degrees were more likely to consider a field change due to AI, along with those in technology, vocational and humanities majors. Those least likely to have considered switching majors include students in fields such as health care and natural sciences.
The fright of how AI will impact jobs students are looking for is not unfounded as messages of job declines due to the technology have only ramped up since its increased use in the past few years. In February, the AI chief for Microsoft told the Financial Times he believes AI will take over all white-collar work in the next 18 months.
The Guardian - When blue-collar Trump voters and Maga-friendly midwest states join the same cause as Bernie Sanders and liberal California teachers, something novel is afoot. Last month it was the turn of the Republican party in Texas to express forthright opposition to the construction of datacentres for artificial intelligence, pending adequate environmental safeguards for local communities. Across the United States, similar campaigns are being waged, as voters from across the political spectrum rail against the outsize influence and power of big tech.
For the White House, which has made the rapid rollout of datacentres a priority in its AI action plan, the scale of the protests is an unwelcome surprise. One of Donald Trump’s first acts on returning to office was to authorise the deregulated “build, baby, build” approach demanded by the Silicon Valley backers who helped to fund his campaign. Industry giants such Amazon and Microsoft are driving an estimated $710bn worth of investment in datacentres this year, as they stake their future on staying ahead in the AI race.
The boom is also coming at a political price for states which have courted that capital through tax breaks and other subsidies. Local downsides come in the form of higher electricity bills for consumers and intense pressure on local water systems and grids, as a result of the centres’ voracious energy requirements. Alarmingly for Mr Trump, a sense that big tech’s needs are being prioritised over those of hard-pressed voters appears to be cutting through among the Maga rank and file ahead of midterm elections in November.
Donald Trump
People - Donald Trump wants to use “magic paint” to make the Eisenhower Executive Office Building bright white. Experts warn the paint could damage the historic granite exterior, and preservationist groups have filed a lawsuit to stop the renovation.
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the DOJ will pursue the probe amid growing discontent over the ever-rising cost of watching sports as the marketplace becomes more fragmented, requiring fans to pay for multiple subscriptions to different streaming services just to follow the league.
President Donald Trump has a long history of weighing in on the NFL and is said to hold a grudge over his exclusion from the league in the mid-1980s.
Millitary draft list to be automated
Deep State Tribunal - Federal bureaucrats will begin automatically enrolling American men into the military draft registry this December, bypassing individual consent through a new government database system that raises serious questions about privacy and expanding federal power.
Automatic draft registration starts December 2026, replacing the self-registration system that has existed since 1980. President Trump signed the mandate into law through the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act in December 2025. Federal agencies will share data to automatically register men aged 18-25 without their direct involvement. The Selective Service System claims the change streamlines compliance, but specific data sources remain undisclosed
Cost of cars
Headline USA - New vehicles now sell for an average of nearly $50,000, up 30% in six years, and average monthly payments — based on 10% down and a 6-year note — recently hit $775. Looking for something on the cheap end? The share of vehicles listing for less than $30,000 is about 13% — down from 40% five years ago, per the car review site CarGurus.
Polls
CBS POLL: Trump Approval
InteractivePolls
InteractivePolls
Approve: 39%Disapprove: 61%
Arts
Arts Journal - The biggest institutions are building like the future belongs to them. LACMA opened its $724 million reinvention (Los Angeles Times). London’s National Gallery chose Kengo Kuma to design a $464 million modern-art wing (The Guardian). The Dallas Symphony closed a $50 million endowment campaign (The Dallas Morning News). And Lyric Opera of Chicago expanded its season and signed Sondra Radvanovsky for five years (Chicago Tribune).
But the culture’s software looks a bit less permanent. The Hirshhorn’s director is the fourth to leave the Smithsonian in two years (The New York Times). The Salzburg Festival fired its artistic director and named a replacement in under two weeks (Moto Perpetuo). The U.S. Holocaust Museum softened its own content preemptively, before the administration even asked (Politico). And the Trump administration dropped its legal fight to dismantle IMLS — then zeroed out its funding in the next budget (Publishers Weekly). Why litigate when you can starve the beast?
The sector is investing in buildings at historic scale. The institutional infrastructure underneath — leadership stability, regulatory protection, the willingness to hold ground — is thinning fast. What could go wrong?
Women
NPR - Women in the U.S. are landing most of the new jobs being created. It's highlighting a growing need to support men in the workforce. It follows a decades-long push to get more women into male-dominated fields. Out of the 369,000 jobs created since the beginning of Trump's second term, 348,000 went to women, according to the Labor Department. That's nearly 17 times as many jobs filled by women as by men. Richard Reeves, president of the nonpartisan think tank American Institute for Boys and Men, says we are now seeing the consequences of not paying enough attention to the scarcity of men in certain professions.
Mobile homes
NPR - More than 22 million Americans live in mobile home parks and rely on these communities for affordable housing. But affordability isn't guaranteed. Residents typically own their homes but not the land underneath, leaving them vulnerable to displacement if the land is sold. One community in Colorado found a way to combat this issue: they mobilized to raise the money to match or even surpass a corporate sale offer.
Middle East
The Hill - President Trump on Sunday announced that the U.S. military will begin blockading ships seeking to enter the Strait of Hormuz after weekend talks with Iran did not bring about a deal. “Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump wrote in a Sunday morning Truth Social post, adding that he instructed the Navy to “seek and interdict every vessel in International Waters that has paid a toll to Iran.
The Guardian - The US vice-president, JD Vance, has blamed the failure of marathon negotiations with Iran on the country’s refusal to abandon its nuclear weapons programme, while Iranian sources have hit back at “excessive” demands from Washington.
Vance, who left Islamabad on Sunday morning after 21 hours of talks with Iranian officials in the Pakistani capital, said his team had been very clear on its red lines, as hopes faded of a quick end to the conflict that began on 28 February.
The vice-president said he spoke with Donald Trump at least half a dozen times during the talks, and one of the most significant points of difference between the two sides was on Iran’s nuclear programme.
“We need to see an affirmative commitment that [Iran] will not seek a nuclear weapon, and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” he said. “That is the core goal of the president of the United States, and that’s what we’ve tried to achieve through these negotiations.”...
Iran’s foreign ministry downplayed the apparent breakdown, saying no one had held any expectation that the talks with the US would reach an agreement within one session.
The Guardian - The Israeli military has demolished entire villages as part of its invasion of south Lebanon, rigging homes with explosives and razing them to the ground in massive remote detonations. The Guardian reviewed three videos posted by the Israeli military and on social media, which showed Israel carrying out mass detonations in the villages of Taybeh, Naqoura and Deir Seryan along the Israel-Lebanon border. Lebanese media has reported more mass detonations in other border villages, but satellite imagery was not readily available to verify these claims.
The demolitions came after Israel’s minister of defence, Israel Katz, called for the destruction of “all houses” in border villages “in accordance with the model used in Rafah and Beit Hanoun in Gaza” to stop threats to communities in northern Israel. The Israeli military destroyed 90% of homes in Rafah, in south Gaza.
Kanye West
MS NOW - Kanye West suffered a setback when the U.K.’s Home Office announced on Tuesday that it would block him from traveling to the country for a summer music festival. That’s not surprising, given that in the last few years he has said he loved Nazis, sold T-shirts with a swastika and released a song called “Heil Hitler,” argues author and culture writer Mychal Denzel Smith. And yet, his latest album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard charts and celebrity guests, such as CeeLo Green and Lauryn Hill, have appeared with him at sold-out shows in Los Angeles — a disappointing endorsement of his horrifying behavior. Read more.
Moon trip didn't save NASA
MS NOW - Friday’s splashdown of the Artemis II crew was a moment of celebration for the entire planet. But it comes as the Trump administration is proposing troubling budget cuts that would all but dismantle much of NASA, argues Bill Nye the Science Guy. These cuts would be an insult to our astronauts and the entire NASA workforce, even as there is a growing consensus in Washington that we are in a new space race, this time with the China National Space Administration, which is planning to have taikonauts walk on the moon in 2030. Read more.
More in Europe no longer regard US as a reliable ally
Washington Post - Amanda Sloat is a professor at IE University in Madrid.
More and more Europeans no longer view the United States as a reliable ally. ..... One recent survey found that one-quarter or more of respondents in some countries — including France, Germany and Spain — see the United States as a rival or adversary. Another found that an absolute majority view Trump as an “enemy” of Europe and U.S. foreign policy as “recolonization.” Polls also reflect a growing belief that China is a more dependable partner.
But the damage goes far beyond public opinion. Across multiple domains, the practical foundations of the transatlantic relationship are eroding.
The U.S. is losing access to European bases and intelligence....
The U.S. is also losing European business....
There is growing support for “Buy European” movements. In the Nordic countries, new apps scan a product’s barcode, view its origin and identify local alternatives....The E.U. is also expediting new trade deals with partners like India and Mercosur.
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