Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.
Republicans are being forced to fight for red states and districtsIn a rare display of intraparty dissent, a House Republican from Florida, María Elvira Salazar, released a television advertisement today directly assaulting President Trump’s aggressive crackdown on immigrants. “Mr. President,” Salazar said, “some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far.” Salazar’s district had not been considered particularly competitive, but her comments reflected the eroding support for Trump and other Republicans among Hispanics. A recent Times poll found that Hispanic voters favored Democrats by 43 points, an enormous shift since 2024, when the difference in support was in the single digits. (Take a look at the latest polls.) More broadly, the unfavorable political environment for Republicans has forced the party to put up costly defenses in seemingly safe races. In Nebraska, a Republican super PAC sprang up to defend a billionaire incumbent. In Kansas, Vice President JD Vance campaigned for a Senate Republican, even though a Democrat has not been elected to the chamber there since 1932. And in Georgia, Republican strategists wonder if it’s too late to save their Senate nominee. In other immigration news:
The Houthis advance on oil-rich regionsFighting has intensified near two strategic provinces in Yemen, in what appears to be an effort by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia to push into resource-rich eastern regions. Analysts said that sustained fighting in the region could threaten the economic lifeline of Yemen’s internationally recognized government. In other news from the Middle East: U.N. investigators said today that two U.S. airstrikes on Iran in February, in which at least 178 civilians died, may have amounted to war crimes.
Kennedy tells anti-vax group they have a friend in TrumpIn a speech this afternoon to the anti-vaccine nonprofit that he founded, health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that he was willing to “die with my boots on” to investigate the risks of vaccines. He also said that Trump was a strong supporter of his efforts. Kennedy received applause when he vowed to look at the effects of electromagnetic radiation and chemtrails, which the E.P.A. has deemed a conspiracy theory. The speaker before him called the success of the polio vaccine a “fraud.” Related: Kennedy appointed eight new members to a federal task force whose decisions affect health care access for most Americans. He had previously blocked the panel’s work.
Scientists discover a powerful gene-editing technologyGene editing entered the mainstream thanks to a tool known as CRISPR, which has been used to create lifesaving cures and more productive crops. Today, scientists announced that they had found a technology that may be even more powerful. The new system, called VIPR, actually appears to be more than four billion years old, and the ancestor of CRISPR. It was discovered in viruses, and it appears to be able to target a wider variety of genetic sequences. It is not yet clear, however, if VIPR can be turned into a useful tool. In other science news:
More top newsArtificial Intelligence
Other Big Stories
The New York Philharmonic already sounds differentWhen I wrote last week about Gustavo Dudamel’s first day as the leader of New York City’s premier orchestra, we knew he would make waves. What we didn’t know was how immediately his presence would be felt. But the change was obvious during the Philharmonic’s first few Dudamel-led programs. “Its members haven’t looked this happy onstage in years,” our classical music critic Joshua Barone wrote. “Either he inspires them, or his starry arrival has lifted their morale. Or both. Whatever is going on, it works.”
Meet the new faces at ‘S.N.L.’“Saturday Night Live” announced this week that it was adding two cast members, Saidah Belo-Osagie and Grace Reiter, for Season 52, which begins in just over a week. Belo-Osagie is a Nigerian American comedian from New York City who, in 2020, wrote and directed the romantic dramedy short “Tinge.” Reiter, who at 25 will be the first “S.N.L.” cast member born in the 21st century, has a huge following on social media. She also starred in the HBO comedy thriller “The Chair Company.” Here’s what else to know about them. For more: The first episode will be hosted by New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson.
Dinner table topics
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