Miles Bryan
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Articles by Miles Bryan
Can Trump deport Ilhan Omar?
President Donald Trump has been attacking Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) since she first entered Congress in 2019. At various points, he's called for Omar — a progressive lawmaker who came to the United States as a child refugee from Somalia and who is one of Trump's most vociferous critics — to be investigated, arrested, and deported. Now, Trump's Justice Department is seemingly trying to make good on his threats.
Florida’s uniquely horrifying death penalty system
Late last month, the state of Tennessee attempted to execute Christa Pike, a woman who has been on death row for decades after killing a classmate as a teenager. The execution failed: Pike survived two doses of the lethal injection drug pentobarbital, making her the first person ever to do so. The botched execution comes at a strange moment for capital punishment in America. Support for the death penalty has been declining for decades. And for a long time, the number of executions was falling, too.
Why the right turned on Indian Americans Original
In early October, Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, went for a classic “politician on the stump” move: He picked up a kid. Or at least he tried to. Ramaswamy fumbled the boy a bit, producing a clip that quickly went viral on social media. The next day, Ramaswamy posted a picture of himself with his son in his arms on social media. It was a cute retort. But many of the responses were ugly — racist attacks against Ramaswamy that drew on anti-Indian stereotypes.
Why the right turned on Indian Americans
There are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions today. The moon is in Scorpio. Tread carefully today because it’s easy to get into an …
Why diesel prices are an economic time bomb
Everyone knows how much gasoline prices matter. The recent spike in gas prices triggered by the war with Iran has fueled deep pessimism about the economy and weighed heavily on President Donald Trump's approval ratings But diesel fuel — the lifeblood of shipping, agriculture, and heavy industry — usually flies under the radar. Its price has surged too, and while truckers and farmers are feeling the initial blow, the rest of the country won't be far behind.
Scientists are finally starting to figure out Alzheimer’s
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Scientists are finally starting to figure out Alzheimer’s Original
For decades, research into Alzheimer’s disease has made painfully little progress. More than 7 million Americans are living with the disease, which is the most common cause of dementia. It’s incurable, and treatments have been hampered by groupthink, as well as by systemic fraud from some of the field’s most famous researchers. But there are finally signs that the field is turning a corner, including two new drugs, rolled out in the last few years, that can treat Alzheimer’s directly.
California’s audacious plan to tax its billionaires Original
If there is one thing Democratic politicians can agree on right now it’s this: Rich people should pay more in taxes. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has made it a centerpiece of his agenda. Texas Senate candidate James Talarico is bringing it up on the stump. And Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff’s riff on the “Epstein class” of rich guys staffing the Trump administration is one of his signature applause lines. But only in California is a billionaire tax actually on the ballot.
How public opinion is turning against AI Original
AI was supposed to make our lives better. Instead, it’s made many of us scared and angry. Communities are protesting against the building of new data centers — the warehouses of IT equipment powering the AI buildout — across the country, and increasingly they’re winning. And polling shows most Americans think AI is moving too fast. So how did public opinion on AI curdle so quickly?
How the UK became ungovernable Original
In 2024 the United Kingdom’s Labour Party, led by Sir Keir Starmer, won back the prime minister’s office after more than a decade out of power. He told a jubilant crowd: “Change begins right here!” Starmer was right that British voters wanted change; unfortunately for him, they pretty quickly wanted him out too. Starmer is stepping down on Monday — making him Britain’s sixth prime minister in less than a decade.
How Trump’s redistricting could backfire
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How Trump’s redistricting could backfire Original
The dust from the first round of the “redistricting wars” — the unusual mid-decade redrawing of congressional maps in search of a partisan edge in the 2026 midterms — is settling, and Republicans have a clear advantage: about 10 congressional seats, give or take. But that clear-cut number obscures something else. While the GOP may have won a momentary victory, there’s potential for redistricting to backfire on Donald Trump and his party, in 2026 and beyond.
Putin’s plan to live forever
Miles Bryan, Noel King Tue, June 16, 2026 at 11:15 AM UTC 7 min read Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Russian President Vladimir Putin walks through the Kremlin in Moscow on June 3, 2026. | Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/AFP via Getty Images "Longevity" — a buzzy catchall for the quest for a longer life — is having a moment. Tech titans like Peter Thiel, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos are spending billions to fund research into how to slow aging.
Putin’s plan to live forever
“Longevity” — a buzzy catchall for the quest for a longer life — is having a moment. Tech titans like Peter Thiel, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos are spending billions to fund research into how to slow aging. Celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Hailey Bieber are touting peptide use. And the world’s most powerful authoritarian leaders are jumping on the bandwagon too.
Putin’s plan to live forever
Miles Bryan, Noel King Tue, June 16, 2026 at 11:15 AM UTC 7 min read Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Russian President Vladimir Putin walks through the Kremlin in Moscow on June 3, 2026. | Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/AFP via Getty Images "Longevity" — a buzzy catchall for the quest for a longer life — is having a moment. Tech titans like Peter Thiel, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos are spending billions to fund research into how to slow aging.
The fall of Ben Shapiro Original
Just a few years ago, Ben Shapiro was the defining voice of right-wing media. His podcast sat near the top of the charts. Posts from the Daily Wire, his media company, routinely dominated the competition on Facebook. His team was even coming for Hollywood, putting out “anti-woke” comedies and an epic fantasy series that cost millions per episode. All that feels like a distant memory now.
The fall of Ben Shapiro
Antisemitism ate the MAGA media star. Just a few years ago, Ben Shapiro was the defining voice of right-wing media. His podcast sat near the top of the charts. Posts from the Daily Wire, his media company, routinely dominated the competition on Facebook. His team was even coming for Hollywood, …
What China is learning from the US war in Iran
Two months into the US-Iran war, the fighting has hardened into a standoff, with no end in sight. Both countries claim to have the upper hand, but there is only one clear winner so far — and it isn’t either of them. “China’s watching this war very closely,” James Palmer, deputy editor of Foreign Policy and author of its China Brief newsletter, tells Today, Explained co-host Noel King.
A cautionary tale about tax cuts Original
Americans are getting crankier about paying taxes. Most people don’t enjoy paying Uncle Sam, but for much of the 2000s and 2010s, a sizable percentage of Americans thought that the amount of federal taxes they paid was “about right,” according to Gallup. But recently, the share saying their taxes were “too high” has been climbing; last year, nearly 60 percent of Americans said they pay too much. Call it the Great American Tax Revolt, or maybe the Third American Revolution.
Is the Iran war turning into Trump’s Iraq? Original
How closely does President Donald Trump’s war in Iran compare with America’s last conflict in the Middle East? Both the Iran war and the 2003 US invasion of Iraq have paired conventional American military dominance with shifting, ambiguous objectives. And both feature an American president desperate to declare the mission accomplished.
The ragebait candidate who wants to govern Florida
A photo illustration depicts Florida gubernatorial candidate James Fishback. It can be hard to make sense of James Fishback. The longshot Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate is the son of an immigrant and fiercely nativist, a self-proclaimed finance success story turned economic populist, and both pro-Trump and running against President Donald Trump’s chosen candidate. He’s also openly racist and antisemitic. But one thing is for sure: He’s getting a lot of attention.
The ragebait candidate who wants to govern Florida
It can be hard to make sense of James Fishback. The longshot Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate is the son of an immigrant and fiercely nativist, a self-proclaimed finance success story turned economic populist, and both pro-Trump and running against President Donald Trump’s chosen candidate. He’s also openly racist and antisemitic. But one thing is for sure: He’s getting a lot of attention. Fishback is “someone who I think typically couldn’t be elected for dog catcher.
ICE in Minneapolis: How Alex Pretti’s death has changed Democrats and Republicans in Congress. Original
Federal agents’ killing of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday has strengthened Senate Democrats’ resolve to force changes to Trump’s immigration forces — even at the risk of shutting down the government.
China’s soft power: Why Labubus, movies, and video games went global. Original
To say that China had a successful 2025 would be an understatement. According to President Donald Trump’s campaign agenda and early months of his second administration, the United States was going to be tough on China. Trump went heavy on tariffs, limited chip exports, and tried to assert dominance over the country. A year later, you’d have trouble finding evidence of it. Instead, China has prospered by exercising hard economic power over the US — by wielding its newfound soft power.
7 predictions for how MAHA will change how Americans eat
Uncle Sam thinks you’re probably eating wrong, and he’s got some advice. Out: processed carbohydrates and added sugar. In: fat and protein, especially the animal-flesh kind. Those are some of the biggest takeaways from the new — and newly inverted — food pyramid announced by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. earlier this month. While the Make America Healthy Again movement is one of the biggest drivers of change in how we eat now, it’s not the only one.
How Trump changed immigration and asylum at the border Original
When he first emerged on the political stage more than a decade ago, Donald Trump made closing America’s borders and remaking our immigration system a central plank of his agenda. A year into his second administration — and as this week’s events in Minneapolis underscore — the issue has defined his presidency and changed America’s trajectory.
Ezra Klein on Abundance: Zohran Mamdani, Katie Wilson, and more. Original
The abundance agenda means figuring out how Democratic governments can follow through on their promises to voters. Runaway housing costs and housing shortages are key issue for Democratic-led areas. “Abundance” doesn’t align with any particular lane of the Democratic Party. Both California Gov. Gavin Newsom and New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani have talked abundance — but the real test is whether they can deliver. Do you remember where you were when you first heard about “abundance”?
Seattle mayor-elect Katie Wilson on what Democrats should learn from her win. Original
The election was divisive, pitting an established moderate against an upstart progressive in the large, Democratic city. For a while it seemed like it would be close, but in the end the progressive won definitively, powered by a relentless focus on affordability and adept use of short-form video. Mamdani? New York? You must be confused — I’m talking about Seattle mayor-elect Katie Wilson.
AI data center backlash: Public opposition to new projects is growing Original
For more than a century, the Conshohocken steel mill in suburban Philadelphia employed thousands of people and anchored a booming industrial economy. But the original owner went bankrupt in the 1970s, after which the facility limped on with a succession of new owners. Last summer it was idled indefinitely, and put up for sale. It’s a familiar story of decline. The Trump administration talked a big game about reviving American manufacturing; its efforts so far have been a failure.
Republicans Nazi problem: Tucker Carlson, Nick Fuentes, the Heritage Foundation, and JD Vance. Original
Over the past few weeks, the American right has been fiercely debating a drama that begins with Tucker Carlson hosting an antisemitic young influencer on his podcast, and ends with a very public breakdown at the Republican Party’s premier think tank. Is it a bit inside baseball? Yes. But it’s worth understanding. The details tell us a lot about where the conservative movement is, and where it’s going.
Should I take testosterone? Why women are embracing the hormone
If you are a woman of a certain age, there’s a new wonder drug that is flooding your feeds: testosterone. The hormone — which both men and women naturally have, but produce less of as they grow older — is being touted as a cure to low libido, low energy, and other symptoms. The Real Housewives are on it. Halle Berry is too. TikTok is obsessed with it. Testosterone’s role in the body helps with bone and muscle development, as well as sexual function.
Trump wants to give TikTok to his friends
Miles Bryan, Noel King Thu, September 25, 2025 at 12:00 PM UTC 6 min read Years of uncertainty around a possible TikTok ban in the United States may finally be coming to an end. The Trump administration is reportedly very close to finalizing a deal with China to transfer US operations of the app to American control.
Trump TikTok deal: Oracle, Fox, and other potential investors
Years of uncertainty around a possible TikTok ban in the United States may finally be coming to an end. The Trump administration is reportedly very close to finalizing a deal with China to transfer US operations of the app to American control.
AI job market: Careers are being upturned by artificial intelligence. Original
Colton Masi checked off every box in his quest to land a good job in the computer science industry after college. The 23-year-old attended Drexel University, a Philadelphia school distinguished by its focus on real-life job experience. And he majored in software engineering, a discipline he had been hearing his whole life was synonymous with stable, high-paying work. It was all part of his plan to avoid the fate that befell so many millennials after the Great Recession.
Trump’s kinda-socialist plan for the economy Original
For decades, a core part of the Republican Party’s identity was the whole-hearted embrace of free-market capitalism. Adam Smith’s “invisible hand” of the market was understood to be infinitely preferable to government meddling. Lately, though, President Donald Trump has been having second thoughts. Forget the invisible hand — what about, uh, Trump’s hand?
What’s behind the decline in US gun violence?
Over the last two years, a quiet miracle has been playing out across the United States: People are killing each other far less often. Murder and other types of violent crime spiked across the country in 2020, when the pandemic closed down schools and recreation centers and the police murder of George Floyd fueled a collapse in community trust in policing. Violent crime stayed high for the next two years.
Animal research shows how much we really understand our dogs…or don’t Original
Dog people tend to be pretty confident they know what’s going on with their animals. When we put out a call on the Explain It to Me podcast for dog owners to tell us about their connection to their furry friends, the responses ranged from “soul dog” to “love of my life” to “I believe I can read my dog’s mind.” But how well can we see inside a dog’s mind, really? That’s a question Alexandra Horowitz has been investigating for decades.
What the rise of “buy now, pay later” services tells us about the economy
You’ve probably noticed it by now: You’re shopping online for some makeup or a new pair of running shoes or a water table for your toddler, and when you go to check out, you have a new option — why not break up the cost into four payments, made over time? US consumers, especially Gen Z and millennial ones, have been embracing “buy now, pay later” services like Klarna and Afterpay with gusto the last few years.
Donald Trump vs. the Federalist Society, explained
Late last month, approximately 1 billion news cycles ago, an obscure federal court made President Donald Trump very, very mad. The US Court of International Trade ruled unanimously on May 28 that the massive tariffs Trump imposed after taking office again are illegal. That ruling was suspended the next day by the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the tariffs will be allowed to remain in effect pending a ruling (arguments are scheduled for late July).
Why young men are so absent from the literary fiction scene, explained Original
Every generation has a small group of young fiction writers who make it: They top bestseller lists, win prizes, and become household names. And for decades — well, nearly every decade — they have all been straight white men. Philip Roth. Norman Mailer. John Updike. Jonathan Franzen. Jonathan Safran Foer. You get the picture. But in the last decade or so, that’s changed: The up-and-coming writers capturing buzz and dominating critics’ lists have largely been women.
What happened to the bestselling young white man?
4 hours ago The prolific fantasy author, best known for his Discworld series, infused his writing with empathy and humor. Here’s where to start. Terry Pratchett spent more than half of his six decades on Earth writing Discworld, a sprawling fantasy series where, among many other threads, Death begins as a …
Trump promised his tariffs would create jobs. They’re already destroying them. Original
Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley was once synonymous with America’s industrial might. The region was known for its booming manufacturing economy anchored by companies like Mack Trucks and Bethlehem Steel, the latter of which employed over 30,000 workers at its peak in the 1950s. But manufacturing began to struggle in the 1970s and collapsed by the turn of the century. Bethlehem Steel went bankrupt in 2001 (the site now houses a casino).
This senator met with Abrego Garcia in El Salvador. He tells us what he saw.
Since being deported to El Salvador last month, Kilmar Abrego Garcia has had very little contact with the outside world — something that Democratic Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen tried to change. Last week, Van Hollen flew to El Salvador to meet with Abrego Garcia, an undocumented immigrant who the Trump administration has admitted was deported from Maryland in error.
Why Trump’s tariffs don’t seem to have China Original
The United States and China are locked in an economic war. They’ve levied tit-for-tat tariffs on each other, and there’s little sign of detente. President Donald Trump said in a statement Tuesday that “The ball is in China’s court. China needs to make a deal with us.
Would you pay more for an American-made TV? This influential thinker thinks you will.
Most mainstream economists agree that the massive tariffs Donald Trump is imposing on most of the United States’s trading partners are a bad idea — that they will make the economy weaker and inflation worse. Not Oren Cass.
Hasan Piker has a plan to rescue young men from the right
The boys are alt-right. At least that’s what polling and voting data suggests. Men under 25 were nearly 20 percent more likely to vote for Donald Trump than women in that age group in the 2024 election, revealing a gender gap far larger than those in older generations. Democrats have been freaking out about their young men problem. They’re starting podcasts. They’re talking about sports. They’re cursing more.
Hasan Piker on why the boys are all right (wing)
3 hours ago The Trump administration is getting blowback for confirmed and potential errors in its rush to deport hundreds of men to El Salvador last month. On Monday night, immigration officials admitted to deporting a Maryland man to El Salvador due to an "administrative error." Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, …
The Trump economy is looking great - in Europe
Cast your mind far, far back, to November of 2024. Trump had just been elected. Americans were divided and unsteady. But the stock market wasn’t: It was thrilled. Stocks hit all-time highs on the news, and the value of the dollar surged. The vibes were very different across the Atlantic. European stocks fell, driven by fears of Trump’s tariffs, as did the value of the euro.
One big reason for fewer babies: the phones?
All across the world, people are having fewer children. The birth rate is declining quickly in countries ranging from the United States to Finland to Mexico and Turkey. Fertility data used to be a fairly esoteric concern. Not anymore. Vice President JD Vance talks about it regularly, Elon Musk calls it civilization’s greatest threat. There’s even a convention for “pronatalists,” Natalcon, taking place later this month in Texas.
Richard Hanania interview on DEI, MAGA, and Trump Original
Four years ago, Richard Hanania was a little-known right-wing intellectual, one of many posters building a brand with tweets and Substack posts attacking “wokeness” and other conservative bugbears. But in the middle of 2021, one of his ideas took off.
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