Politalking US 
Published August 21, 2026 Why This Race Is on Our List This is a special election, not a regular one. The winner serves only the final two years of the term Marco Rubio won in 2022, then must run again in 2028. It features a senator who has never won an election to the office … Read more
August 21, 2026. Why This Race Is on Our List Cook Political Report moved this race from Leans Republican to Toss-up on July 1. Alaska has not sent a Democrat to the Senate since 2015 and has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1964, which makes a toss-up rating unusual on its own. … Read more
U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns dismissed the Justice Department’s civil rights lawsuit against Harvard University on Thursday, August 13, ruling that the government had not adequately alleged an ongoing violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The government filed the suit on March 20, 2026, alleging that Harvard was deliberately … Read more
What Happened Senator Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican, died on the night of Saturday, July 11, 2026, at his home in Washington, DC. He was 71. His office announced that he died following a “brief and sudden illness.” The Washington, DC, medical examiner’s preliminary finding pointed to an aortic dissection, a rupture in the … Read more
This post reflects events as of July 11, 2026. The situation is changing rapidly, and some details below may be overtaken by events. Talks between US and Iranian officials are scheduled in Oman today. What Happened The ceasefire between the United States and Iran broke down this week after the most intense exchange of fire … Read more
This is a new format for PoliTalking: a comparison of how outlets across the political spectrum covered a single story. Category placements follow our curated guide to news sources across the spectrum. The goal is not to declare a winner, but to make framing differences visible so you can read any single outlet with better … Read more
On July 6, 2026, the Supreme Court denied two emergency applications, in dockets 25A1389 and 25A1390, asking it to block enforcement of Texas Senate Bill 2420, the App Store Accountability Act, while a legal challenge to the law continues. The applications came from Students Engaged in Advancing Texas (SEAT), a youth advocacy group, and the … Read more
Reading The United States Constitution divides authority over the military between two branches of government. Article I gives Congress the power to declare war and to control military funding through appropriations. Article II makes the president the commander in chief of the armed forces, responsible for directing operations once forces are committed. This split is … Read more
On July 3, 2026, retired Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff until he was dismissed by the Trump administration in February 2025, published an essay in Foreign Affairs warning against using the US military for domestic political missions. The piece, co-authored with Duke University political scientist … Read more
At the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7 to 8, 2026, President Trump said he would “certainly consider” selling F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, a NATO member that has been barred from the program since 2019. Speaking alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Trump also announced that the United States would lift sanctions imposed … Read more
What Happened On July 4, 2026, the White House Domestic Policy Council published a 162-page report titled “Saving America’s Story,” accusing the Smithsonian Institution, and particularly its National Museum of American History (NMAH), of “extreme political activism” and presenting what the report calls “a radical view of American history.” The report also criticizes exhibits at … Read more
What Happened In the final week of June 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice sent letters to officials in three Michigan cities, Detroit, Lansing, and East Lansing, notifying them that federal election monitors will be deployed to polling locations during the state’s August 4 primary. The letters also requested election-related documents from each city. All … Read more
