Trump Is Said to Be in Talks to Send Afghans Who Aided U.S. Forces to Congo

This is so heinous, I do not know what to say. This shit devastates me.

Trump Is Said to Be in Talks to Send Afghans Who Aided U.S. Forces to Congo www.nytimes.com/2026/04/21/w...

NEWS: A federal judge has saved the 15th Street protected bike lane (for now), saying the decision to remove the lane running from Constitution Avenue to the Tidal Basin was "arbitrary and capricious and not the result of reasoned decision-making." It was to be removed this week.

“I Have Lost Everything”: The Toll of Cities’ Homeless Sweeps Cities often take belongings — including important documents and irreplaceable mementos — when they conduct sweeps of homeless encampments. ProPublica gave notecards to people across the country so th...

We asked people who lived in homeless encampments that were cleared out in city “sweeps” to write about what object was the hardest for them to lose.

“They took my baby pictures and my moms obituaries,” a man in California wrote.

(Published Dec. 2024)

FDA Vaccine Chief Front-Runner Called mRNA Vaccines “Experimental Genetic Technology,” Compared Pandemic Response to Iranian Rule Dr. Houman David Hemmati is closely aligned with the MAHA movement.

In case you missed it: The front-runner to become the nation’s next top vaccine official is a Trump-supporting ophthalmologist with a record of promoting anti-vax talking points and COVID infection.

Welcome to Trump’s America.

www.importantcontext.news/p/fda-vaccin...

It’s shameful the way we are treating young people in DC. I went to HS football games every Friday; DC kids can't go without a chaperone. I went the mall to hang out; DC kids can't go to DCUSA without an adult. They can't enter Navy Yard wihout a military interview. It’s just wrong.

Bhattacharya killing one of the most promising technologies in a generation for improving health, treating disease, & preventing mass death from pandemics was unforgivable; this will be his legacy

I was interviewed about his lies about mRNA vaccines here: www.bioxconomy.com/modalities/e...

For U.S. medical researchers, shrinking labs and bare budgets are the new reality The Trump administration has slashed the number of grants from the National Institutes of Health, with far fewer focused on women, cancer and mental health.

Bhattacharya, Letai & other politicals at NIH keep trying to to say all at NIH is fine, because they spent the full budget last year. This well researched article from @carolynyjohnson.bsky.social explains exactly why many scientists are still struggling. www.washingtonpost.com/science/2026...

Can’t wait for more from “Two Corinthians.”

I fear that we'll get yet another muted media and public response, because this is a domestic violence situation.

When murder, even mass murder, is about domestic violence, it's not taken as seriously as violence at the hands of a stranger.

What will it take for us to realize it's just as bad?

I wrote a whole book about AI but I agree with this completely — and also the implication that there are countless other areas of research more important than AI.

Cover of Mother Jones with an image of fingers pointing at John Roberts and the coverline "Blame John Roberts for Everything"

The NYT big expose on SCOTUS today pairs well with @ariberman.bsky.social and @pemalevy.bsky.social's cover story on how ~everything wrong with this country today can be laid at the feet of John Roberts: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

It's crucial to remember that RFK Jr isn't just doing all he can to roll back vaccination & drive up childhood infectious diseases in the US but also WORLWIDE & he's especially targeting children in the lowest income countries

He has suspended US funding to Gavi, which supports global vaccination
🧵

What he fails to mention is it’s HIS fault. It’s HIS fault the public (may or may not) trust mRNA tech. He’s been actively stoking flames against it with fellow blue Jean buddy Kennedy.

Federal judge unloads on ‘unserious’ RFK Jr., says anti-trans policy showed his ‘cruelty’ Judge Mustafa T. Kasubhai vacated the “Kennedy Declaration,” finding it unlawfully attempted to override medical standards and restrict care for transgender youth.

Breaking: HHS’s ban on gender-affirming care is struck down. Rarely have I read a ruling this sharply worded.

“This case is one of a long list of examples of how a leader’s wanton disregard for the rule of law causes very real harm to very real people.”

www.advocate.com/politics/nat...

Also note: it would require changing the Home Rule Act to do so! That’s certainly a can of worms in this political environment.

And if zoning is such a big issue for her, why isn’t she weighing in more as CM on the FLUM or OP’s proposed text amendments?

Text: Tackling the Housing Crisis Systemic racism and outdated zoning laws have pushed the housing crisis to a fever pitch. Brooke Pinto will tackle historic inequities head-on, lower costs, and help families build generational wealth.

Her mailer is vague about something she’s quite clear about on her website — what she’s talking about is changing the Height Act to allow taller buildings in DC.

There’s a few variations of this that could preserve DC’s skyline — but why the vagueness? Does it not poll well in certain parts DC?

Photo of Pinto with Gretchen Wharton (older Black woman in sunglasses) to the left, and Shawn Townsend (Black man in a black t-shirt with a pink flower on it) to the right of her. Text: Dear Neighbor, We need a leader who doesn't hesitate to take action when she sees a crisis. That's Brooke Pinto. We're proud to endorse her campaign because she will bring new energy to lower skyrocketing housing costs and keep our longtime neighbors from being priced out of their homes. We've seen Brooke's leadership in action up close during her time as a Councilmember. There is no one better to fight for us in DC. We hope you'll join us in supporting her, Gretchen Wharton and Shawn Townsend

Second, the big highlight is a letter from her co-chairs, one of whom is the man behind the effort to rollback paid family leave (and I-82) in the District, RAMW’s Shawn Townsend. The women who Pinto’s counting on really like #PFL, so she better hope they don’t find out about that association.

[Top left corner of back of mailer:] PAID FOR BY BROOKE PINTO FOR CONGRESS BPIN-2026-1001 | PLEASE RECYCLE AFTER READING [Union bug is to the right of this text] 1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVE, NW, SUITE 106 WASHINGTON, DC 20004 Join our campaign. BrookePintoForCongress.com [social media icons]

Some things that stood out to me in this Brooke Pinto mailer we just got at our W4 home.

First, this jaw dropper: the return address for this campaign mailer is her COUNCIL address! 😳

Housing Not Handcuffs - Louisiana advances bill to funnel homeless people into forced treatment and unpaid labor This bill requires homeless people to pay for the very treatment they are forced into. And if the person cannot pay the cost of treatment, this bill requires them to perform unpaid labor for the…

BREAKING: Louisiana has advanced one of the cruelest anti-homeless bills in the country. It would force homeless people to choose between jail and involuntary treatment, make them pay for it, and if they can't pay, force them to perform unpaid labor. buff.ly/d6rXj5h

i have seen many, many patient encounters where a low health literacy man is accompanied to clinic by a begrudging ex-wife who knows all his medications and medical problems, but i have yet to see a low health literacy woman show up with her ex-husband to help her navigate her own health problems

The RAGE that this fills me with. These caregivers — mostly women — have done it for free because they had no choice, and it often leads to economic instability.

Patients only qualify for a fraction of the care they need, and home care workers are still paid only a fraction of what they deserve.

More people are living with chronic diseases that decades ago were death sentences. RFK Jr. views this as a shame?

The US *does* lag behind our neighbors when it comes to health, and they won’t improve until we address the economic inequality and structural causes that lead to these gaps.

Robert F Kennedy Jr testifies to Congress over healthcare agenda and budget requests – US politics live Health secretary faces questions in packed House Ways and Means committee hearing

I'm covering the Kennedy hearing before House lawmakers today. www.theguardian.com/us-news/live...

I am on atomoxetine, but we haven’t found any non-stimulant option that does all that much for me. But it’s better than nothing!

On Tax Day, Mamdani Taxed the Rich - The American Prospect The mayor, his supporters, and public opinion convinced their previously reluctant governor to agree to a tax on the second (or third, fourth, fifth, etc.) homes of their city’s nonresident rich.

Zohran Mamdani getting Kathy Hochul to agree to a pied-a-terre tax breaks the stone wall against taxing the rich that Hochul had been building since Mamdani's election. It's a critical moment, writes @whitneycwimbish.bsky.social.
prospect.org/2026/04/16/m...

I would like to thank Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) for reminding everyone that he is a reckless legislator who messes up the local DC budget that DC has balanced for over 30 years in a row, while he also votes for another trillion-dollar federal deficit that lets billionaires plunder the USA

Mural of Iryna Zarutska at W 38th St & 8th Ave in NYC. It’s a painting of a young blonde woman, partially smiling with pursed lips. The mural begins on the 2nd story on the side of a 5 story building, above a busy city street.

I saw one of these murals in NYC two weeks ago near Penn Station. It’s disgusting to take the memory of a real person and use it for such a vile political purpose. Most of them don’t even look anything like her.

The unfortunate part of RFK Jr.'s lies is that Black children ARE misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed. Black ADHD kids are significantly underdiagnosed. They are more likely to get off ADHD medication.

www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/...

I was on Adderall for 3 days until it sent my blood pressure to dangerously high levels (apparently I can’t tolerate stimulants), but the productivity and quiet brain those 3 days gave me continue to be my white whale. 🥺