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The Front PageWednesday, 09.30.2026View in App
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Get the whole story. Join now.Has Trump Betrayed MAHA? Plus. . .
Aaron MacLean on who’s really winning in the war with Iran. Jed Rubenfeld on Trump’s taxpayer-funded ads. Why does everyone suddenly sound like a psychiatrist? And more.
Audrey Fahlberg reports on how the GOP struck back against MAHA. (Matrix Images/Gent Shkullaku)
By The Free Press
It’s Wednesday, September 30. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Jed Rubenfeld on whether President Trump’s recent moves violate the law. The problem with New York mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plans to fight antisemitism. Aaron MacLean on why time is running out for Iran. And much more.
But first: how the GOP struck back against MAHA.
The movement to Make America Healthy Again may soon go the way of punk rock. It was supposed to crash into Washington like a wrecking ball, toppling the corporate interests that its activists claim have poisoned our food and pushed dangerous chemicals and drugs.
Instead, it seems like the corporate crowd has taken over—at least by the looks of the MAHA Summit held on Tuesday. Our Washington correspondent Audrey Fahlberg dropped by to see it firsthand, and watched MAHA leader Robert F. Kennedy Jr. rubbing elbows with representatives of the business elite, from Walmart to Anthropic.
It’s the latest sign of the long struggle over MAHA within the Trump administration. Audrey also sat down with Lee Zeldin, head of the Environmental Protection Agency and a key player in deciding which MAHA demands will turn into policy. Zeldin, a traditional pro-business Republican, says there’s a divide within the MAHA movement—between the serious reformers and minor influencers who have jumped on board “for clicks or relevancy, to gain following or fortune.”
As big businesses and libertarian-minded Republicans strike back, is there any future for MAHA’s more radical proposals, such as stricter restrictions on possible toxins in a popular weed killer? Read Audrey’s report to see where things are heading. —Mene Ukueberuwa
MAHA Versus the MachineAudrey Fahlberg • U.S. Politics
MAHA Versus the Machine
Read story ›
Moshe Davis • New York
Mamdani Says He’ll Fight Antisemitism. His Plan Says Otherwise.
Mamdani Says He’ll Fight Antisemitism. His Plan Says Otherwise.
On Tuesday, Mayor Zohran Mamdani unveiled a $7.4 million strategy to combat antisemitism, calling it “a road map” for protecting Jewish New Yorkers. Moshe Davis, who wrote the city’s first such plan under Eric Adams before he was fired by Mamdani, says it leaves out the most important part: the violence against Jews that followed the October 7, 2023, attacks carried out by Hamas. Since then, Jewish New Yorkers have become the victims of more than half of the city’s hate crimes. Read his piece on what Mamdani should have said instead.
Read story ›
Aaron MacLean • International
The Strait of Hormuz Is Open
The Strait of Hormuz Is Open
Seven months into the war with Iran, it’s been hard to tell who’s actually winning. Aaron MacLean argues the answer is becoming clear, breaking down the strategy that he says has given America the upper hand: the blockade of Iranian ports, expanded sanctions, and escort operations in the Strait of Hormuz. Dive into his analysis of why the Iranian regime may soon have to choose between meaningful concessions and economic catastrophe.
Read story ›
Lucy Biggers • The Free Press Interviews
Is Social Media Making Us Crazy?
Is Social Media Making Us Crazy?
Why does it feel like everyone is suddenly talking like a therapist? Lucy Biggers sits down with psychotherapist Joe Nucci, who spends his time breaking down mental health myths, to talk about what phones are doing to our brains in 2026. Known for his commonsense videos cutting through therapy trends online, he breaks down what’s real and what’s hype, why terms like “gaslighting” have gone mainstream, and whether a culture that sees people as victims is making us less capable of getting better.
Watch now ›
SpotifyApple PodcastsRSS
Jed Rubenfeld • U.S. Politics
Are Trump’s Taxpayer-Funded Ads Legal?
Are Trump’s Taxpayer-Funded Ads Legal?
Is President Trump acting lawlessly, or have his critics decided that anything they disagree with violates the law? Jed Rubenfeld examines three recent Trump administration moves and whether the White House can justify them legally: talking about sending ICE agents to polling stations, running political ads paid for with taxpayer money, and trying to deport Columbia University rabble-rouser Mahmoud Khalil. Read his latest column on whether the law is on the president’s side.
Read story ›
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THE NEWS
In an emergency order Tuesday, the Supreme Court let the Trump administration restart quick deportations of illegal migrants to nations where they aren’t citizens. (AFP via Getty Images)
In an emergency order Tuesday, the Supreme Court let the Trump administration restart quick deportations of illegal migrants to nations where they aren’t citizens, overriding a lower court ruling that required deportees be given a chance to object first. The administration says it has already sent more than 25,000 people to these so-called third countries, and the justices will hear full arguments on the policy in December.
President Trump hosted close to 20 tech leaders at the White House on Tuesday and signed a nonbinding agreement to have their AI systems checked by in-house teams, external auditors, and their own boards. The president called the deal “morally binding,” and said that he plans to pick a new AI czar in the coming days. He said the group agreed AI firms should rely on “tremendous self-regulation,” despite growing calls for federal oversight.
Lindsay Clancy’s lawyer argued yesterday that there’s no proof she killed her three young children and asked a judge to acquit her. It’s a sharp departure from the argument made at her trial, which ended in a hung jury earlier this month, where the defense never disputed that Clancy caused the deaths and instead argued she was not criminally responsible because of her alleged mental illness.
ICE aims to hire 5,000 more people by the end of the year, to support Trump’s deportation campaign. The move would grow the agency’s workforce by about 17 percent on top of the roughly 8,000 employees it has added since the president took office.
Former Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem filed for divorce from her husband, Byron, after more than 30 years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences. The filing comes months after reports surfaced of his online exchanges with fetish models.
The FBI urged members of ShinyHunters, a global hacking and extortion group, to come forward, days after the group claimed it had breached an FBI website and stolen agents’ personal data. The warning followed an announcement by Dutch authorities that they had arrested one of the group’s suspected leaders earlier this month.
Former special counsel Jack Smith, who led the Justice Department’s two prosecutions of Trump during the Joe Biden administration, told the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday that partisanship played no part in the cases. Republicans argue Smith violated the Constitution in his far-reaching investigation. But GOP senator Eric Schmitt saw his accusations of perjury against Smith quickly fall apart after Schmitt appeared to confuse two different sports teams.
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