Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou cut through the bias, deprogramming you from corporate media narratives.

• Government Shutdown Escalates: Congress adjourns without resolving the funding deadlock. The White House ratchets up the pressure by freezing $26 billion in funds for Democratic-leaning states, while Trump's budget chief warns of imminent mass layoffs. Democratic leaders, including Hakeem Jeffries, stand firm, demand Obamacare subsidies restored. This impasse will last.

• Political Violence: An NPR/PBS News/Marist poll shows that 30% of Americans view violence as potentially necessary to fix the country, up 11 points since April 2024 and driven by Democrats jumping from 12% to 28%. Republicans edge higher at 31%, up 3 points, and independents rising to 25%, following last month's assassination of Charlie Kirk. 77% say political violence a major worry.

• SCOTUS Backs the Fed: Justices reject Trump's immediate removal of Federal Reserve Board member Lisa Cook. This decision averts economic turmoil, preserving Fed autonomy. The ruling signals limits on presidential power, as the court gears up for broader challenges to Trump's tariffs and FTC firings.

• Why Women Live Longer: Researchers publish the largest analysis across 1,000+ mammal and bird species, bolstering evidence that women's dual X chromosomes buffer harmful mutations, explaining persistent female longevity. In mammals, females outlive males globally; in birds, ZZ males endure longer under reversed systems, supporting the heterogametic sex vulnerability hypothesis. Evolutionary demographers hail the findings as remarkable, saying genetic redundancy is a core protector.