Tag Archives: December 2025

THE NEW YORK TIMES – SATURDAY, DEC. 27, 2025

Trump Promised Radical Change in His Second Term. Here’s What He’s Done So Far.

President Trump has driven illegal crossings at the border to record lows, helped bring about an uneasy cease-fire in Gaza and upended global trade.

Kennedy Center Chief Threatens Legal Action Over Canceled Christmas Concert

The event’s host, the musician Chuck Redd, called off the annual Christmas Eve performances in protest of the site’s new name, the Trump-Kennedy Center.

Russia Pummels Kyiv Before Trump-Zelensky Meeting

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said that the assault, which continued for nearly 10 hours, showed that Moscow was not serious about peace.

New York Receives Its Heaviest Snowfall in Nearly 4 Years

Central Park saw more than four inches of snow for the first time since January 2022, with higher totals outside of New York City.

THE NEW YORK TIMES – FRIDAY, DECEMBER 26, 2025

U.S. Strikes ISIS in Nigeria After Trump Warned of Attacks on Christians

The attack came after President Trump had ordered the Defense Department to prepare to intervene in Nigeria to protect Christians from Islamic militants.

Zelensky Says He Will Meet President Soon

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said on Friday that he would meet soon with President Trump, as Ukraine and the United States try to keep momentum going in American-led efforts to end the war with Russia.

As A.I. Companies Borrow Billions, Debt Investors Grow Wary

Artificial intelligence companies looking to raise funds are being made to pay lofty interest rates, as debt investors become cautious.

Data Center Surge Reaches India as American Tech Giants Invest Billions

Megacities in southern India are attracting enormous investments to help build artificial intelligence infrastructure.

THE NEW YORK TIMES – THURSDAY, DEC. 25, 2025

Can Democrats Reinvent Themselves as Washington Disrupters?

Since President Trump’s rise, Democrats have defended a political system many Americans believe is broken. Now the party is trying a new approach.

Why Russia Is Likely to Reject the New U.S.-Ukrainian Peace Plan

The first draft essentially called for Ukraine’s surrender. This version includes the security guarantees Kyiv wants to prevent future Russian aggression.

Trump Says ‘Housing First’ Failed the Homeless. Here’s What the Evidence Says.

The Trump administration has sought to move away from the model, which supporters call “evidence based” but opponents consider overly permissive.

A Million More Epstein Documents Have Been Found, Justice Dept. Says

Democratic lawmakers accused the Trump administration of violating the law mandating that the files be released by last Friday.

COUNTRY LIFE MAGAZINE – DECEMBER 24, 2025

An image of a young boy and girl waving at the flying scotsman as it steams past

COUNTRY LIFE MAGAZINE: The latest issue features ‘Just The Ticket’ – The Golden Age of the Railway

Full steam ahead

Jonathan Self recalls the ‘railway mania’ that gripped the nation after the inaugural 26-mile run of Stephenson’s Locomotion No.1 from Shildon to Stockton

Mind the (hungry) gap!

Starched tablecloths and wood panelling have Emma Hughes dreaming of a return to the golden age of railway dining

Spread from Country Life 24 December 2025

Nature on track

The 20,000 miles of railway lines criss-crossing the country are welcome ‘green corridors’ for wildlife, finds Vicky Liddell

Small, but mighty

Octavia Pollock marvels at the magic of miniature railways tracing small-gauge tracks across the British countryside

Rhythm of the night

There is a wonderful sense of romance and adventure in over-night rail travel. Mary Miers revels in the sleeper-train experience

All signals green

From Suffolk to Scotland, via the Settle-Carlisle line, blooming station gardens are a sight to behold for Andrew Martin

Spread from Country Life 24 December 2025

Picking up steam

All aboard! Octavia Pollock hails the heroes of heritage railways who ensure our fascination with the age of steam rolls on and on

Drawing tracks

Carla Passino explores art’s love affair with the railway, seen in the bustle of Earl’s platforms and the serenity of a Ravilious carriage

Why don’t we ask the next train to take our love to Daddy?

The much-loved locomotives of literature reveal the softening of our attitudes to steam travel, suggests Deborah Nicholls-Lee

Spread from Country Life 24 December 2025

Rail travel

Emma Love lets the train take the strain as she rounds up the latest in luxury journeys, calling at stations from Rome to Rajasthan

The missing lynx in the food chain?

Roger Morgan-Grenville weighs up the pros and cons of calls to reintroduce an apex predator — the lynx — to the British Isles

Spread from Country Life 24 December 2025

Properties of the week

Julie Harding gets the party started with a quintet of homes boasting entertaining spaces

Sacred grounds

Tim Richardson applauds Paulo Pejrone’s revival of the 16th-century monastic gardens of Il Redentore in Venice, Italy

THE NEW YORK TIMES – WEDNESDAY, DEC. 24, 2025

Chasing an Economic Boom, White House Dismisses Risks of A.I.

The administration has downplayed concerns, including mass job losses, as President Trump cheers soaring stock prices and faster growth.

Pro-Trump Influencers Stay Conspicuously Quiet About the Epstein Files

Zelensky Opens Way to Demilitarized Zone in Eastern Ukraine to Reach Peace

The offer was the closest President Volodymyr Zelensky has come to addressing the territorial disputes in Donetsk that have repeatedly derailed peace talks.

A Father, a Son and Their $108 Billion Push for Media Moguldom

Larry and David Ellison didn’t always have a close relationship. Now they’re one of the most intriguing partnerships in business.

A ‘60 Minutes’ Report Was Pulled Off the Air. Now It’s on the Internet.

At the last minute, CBS News held a segment about Venezuelan men who were deported by the Trump administration to a prison in El Salvador. It surfaced anyway.

THE NEW YORK TIMES – TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2025

More Epstein Files Are Released and Include Some References to Trump

The Justice Department released another batch of documents from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation — a wide mix of emails, tips and records from his death.

The Pentagon and A.I. Giants Have a Weakness. Both Need China’s Batteries, Badly.

As warfare is reinvented in Ukraine and Silicon Valley races to maintain its A.I. lead, China’s battery dominance is raising alarms beyond the auto industry.8 min read

Why the A.I. Rally (and the Bubble Talk) Could Continue Next Year

Administration Orders Nearly 30 U.S. Ambassadors to Leave Their Posts

A union representing career diplomats said such a mass recall had never happened in the history of the U.S. Foreign Service.

THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE – DECEMBER 29, 2025

A group of people with party hats on the dance floor.

THE NEW YORKER MAGAZINE: The latest cover features “Goodbye to All That,” by Lorenzo Mattotti.

What Zohran Mamdani Is Up Against

When the thirty-four-year-old socialist is sworn in as mayor, he will have to navigate ICE raids, intransigent city power players, and twists of fate and nature. By Eric Lach

Why Millennials Love Prenups

Long the province of the ultra-wealthy, prenuptial agreements are being embraced by young people—including many who don’t have all that much to divvy up. By Jennifer Wilson

Peter Navarro, Trump’s Ultimate Yes-Man

The tariff cheerleader established the template of sycophancy for Trump Administration officials. By Ian Parker

THE NEW YORK TIMES – MONDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2025

Hundreds of Big Post-Election Donors Have Benefited From Trump’s Return

The Times analyzed more than $500 million in donations from 346 donors. Some have received pardons, jobs, access to President Trump and other valuable gains.

As Conservatives Fight Over Bigotry, Vance Criticizes ‘Purity Tests’

Vice President JD Vance’s plea for a big-tent coalition at a conservative gathering belied the cracks in his party over racism and conspiracy theories.

Trump Halts Five Wind Farms Off the East Coast

The Interior Department said the projects posed national security risks, without providing details. The decision imperils billions of dollars of investments.

What We Know About U.S. Interceptions of Oil Tankers in Venezuela

A Venezuela-bound vessel fled after rebuffing an attempt by the Coast Guard to seize it, the latest in the U.S. pressure campaign against Nicolás Maduro’s leadership.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW – DECEMBER 21, 2025

THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW: The latest issue features ‘Fight The Power’

John Darnielle: ‘Polish Literature Is a Whole Wondrous World!’

The novelist and musician is a voracious reader of books in translation. In “This Year,” he annotates the literary lyrics to 365 of his own songs.

Joan Didion and Kurt Vonnegut Had Something to Say. We Have It on Tape.

Rare recordings of E.E. Cummings, Mary Oliver and more offer a tour through literary history led by authors in their own words — and voices. Take a listen.

Once a Year the French Literary Scene Goes to the Dogs (Cats, Too)

It’s the day the “Animal Goncourt” is awarded. “Who better,” a judge says, “to talk about the fabulous relationship between animals and men than writers and philosophers?”

THE NEW YORK TIMES – SUNDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2025

U.S. Coast Guard Boards Tanker Carrying Venezuelan Oil

Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, said a vessel had been “apprehended.” It was the second action this month against a tanker carrying Venezuelan oil.

Land Grab: Israel’s Escalating Campaign for Control of the West Bank

Israeli seizure of Palestinian lands, often brutally, has accelerated, raising doubts about the prospects of a peaceful solution to the conflict.

Epstein Files Photos Disappear From Website, Including One of Trump

Sixteen photos were taken down from the website the Justice Department created, including one containing an image of the president.

Bill Clinton, a Main Character in the Epstein Drop, Just Can’t Escape Scandal

How the Supreme Court’s Mail-In Ballot Ruling Could Affect Voters

Hundreds of thousands of Americans could see their votes rejected if the court decides that ballots must arrive by Election Day.