The act of destruction is precisely the point: a kind of performance piece meant to display Trump’s arbitrary power over the Presidency, including its physical seat. By Adam Gopnik
Trump and the Presidency That Wouldn’t Shut Up
His posts and rants are omnipresent, ugly, and unhinged. Don’t look to history to make it make sense. By Jill Lepore
Inside the Data Centers That Train A.I. and Drain the Electrical Grid
A data center, which can use as much electricity as Philadelphia, is the new American factory, creating the future and propping up the economy. How long can this last? By Stephen Witt
Madagascar rarely makes front page news but the toppling of its president by protesters led by Gen Z Madagascar is part of a phenomenon that stretches from Nepal to Indonesia and the Philippines to Morocco. Leaderless groups, formed online, have learned from one another as they take to the streets to vent their frustration against what they see as corrupt older elites and a lack of economic opportunity for their generation.
Our southern Africa correspondent, Rachel Savage, explains how a tumultuous month unfolded on the Indian Ocean island and explores the deep-seated discontent that led to the military siding with student demonstrators to force President Andry Rajoelina out of power.
Five essential reads in this week’s edition
Spotlight | A far-right fight club on their hands Ben Makuch reports on security service monitoring of ‘active clubs’ as they move across borders to spread extremism, mixing the behaviour of football hooligans with the ideology of the Third Reich
Benin bronzes at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Photograph: Art2010/Alamy
Spotlight | Nothing to see here? Due to open within weeks,Nigeria’s Museum of West African art is intended to showcase the Benin bronzes and other masterpieces stolen by 19th-century colonisers. But the project has been beset by political rows that mean, as Philip Oltermannand Eromo Egbejule report, visitors will see more replicas than original pieces
Science | Waiting for graphene to explode Two decades after the material was first produced and then much hyped, graphene has dropped from business and general discussion. Julia Kollewe reports on the successes and setbacks of taking it from lab to mainstream use
Opinion | An A-level in English won’t make integration work A government demand that immigrants get a qualification that most British citizens don’t have if they want to earn the right to stay is the latest absurd way to focus on ‘outsiders’ rather than address domestic problems, argues Nesrine Malik
Culture | The hardest part David Harewood reflects on returning to play Othello after almost 20 years and with fellow Black actors looks at how attitudes to Shakespeare’s most difficult tragedy have changed
What else we’ve been reading
The year’s Stirling prize has gone to a social housing complex for older people in south-east London. Catherine Slessor writes with great enthusiasm about how the award-winning architects Witherford Watson Mann have completely reimagined accommodation for later life. Out with disorientating corridors, in with bright, informal, nature filled spaces, described by the Stirling judges as “a provision of pure delight”. Emily El Nusairi, deputy production editor
Kathryn Lewek as the Queen Of The Night in The Magic Flute at the Royal Opera House. Photograph: Tristram Kenton/The Guardian
I saw The Magic Flute in Paris last year, and it was fascinating to see how different opera houses interpret the staging. This review of a London production made me reflect on the way different directors handle staging and sound to bring the story to life. It reminded me of listening to the Queen of the Night’s aria when I was growing up and the experience of seeing opera live. Hyunmu Lee, CRM executive
As a long-overdue ceasefire takes hold amid the ruins of Gaza, the President’s visit to Jerusalem is more about transactional politics than transformative peace. By David Remnick
With its standout deals and generous employment practices, the warehouse chain became a feel-good American institution. In a fraught time, it can be hard to remain beloved. By Molly Fischer
Donald Trump’s Deep-State Wrecking Ball
Russell Vought is using the White House budget office to lay waste to the federal bureaucracy—firing workers, decimating agencies, and testing the rule of law. By Andy Kroll
THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE: The 10.19.25 Issue features Astead W. Herndon on the mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani; Emily Bazelon on the state of the rule of law in the U.S. under Trump; Andrew Ross Sorkin on 1929 and the rise of crypto investing; Parul Sehgal on Thomas Pynchon’s latest novel; and more.
The conflict over compulsory service for the nation’s ultra-Orthodox has become a stand-in for a larger struggle over the country’s right-wing, religious turn — and could determine its future.
THE NEW REPUBLIC MAGAZINE: The latest issue features ‘How I Became A Populist’ – My time at the Federal Trade Commission – before Donald Trump fired me – totally changed the way I see our political divide.
Not All Old Candidates Are Joe Biden, and Not All Young Ones Are Great
All things being equal, sure, Democrats ought to lean toward younger candidates. But there are many times when all things aren’t equal.
How the Trump Oligarchy Works: The Case of Stephen Schwarzman
THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE: The latest cover features Harry Bliss’s “Cannonball” – The delights of fall.
The Real Problem Is How Trump Can Legally Use the Military
Congress wrote statutes with the apparent assumption that whoever held the office of the Presidency would use the powers they granted in good faith. By Jeannie Suk Gersen
How Long Will You Live?
Smoking a cig takes twenty minutes off your life. But thinking about Rudy Giuliani’s downfall might add some time back. By Greg Clarke
Inside the Trump Administration’s Assault on Higher Education
How conservatives learned to stop worrying and love federal power. By Emma Green
What Zohran Mamdani Knows About Power
The thirty-three-year-old socialist is rewriting the rules of New York politics. Can he transform the city as mayor? By Eric Lach
THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE: The 10.12.25 Issue features Amy X. Wang on “buy now, pay later”; Giles Harvey on the filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer; Bruce Schoenfeld on the L.A. Dodgers and its Latino fan base; and more.
Boomers Daily 