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Texas authorities armed with ‘thousands’ of pepperballs instructed to go full force against migrants arriving by ‘The Beast’ train to El Paso border
"It's on like Donkey Kong right now."
nypost.com
Hal Hershfelt, used to a life in motion, finds a foothold with the Spirit
Raised in a military family, the standout rookie has proven adept at acclimating to new environments.
washingtonpost.com
The Capitals, down but not out, hope for a more disciplined Game 3
“A seven-game series isn’t won or lost in the first two,” T.J. Oshie said. “It obviously helps when you go up two, but I like where our game is trending right now.”
washingtonpost.com
News Quiz: April 26, 2024
Border rancher George Alan Kelly's murder trial, a viral green puppy and more are featured in this week's News Quiz from Fox News Digital. Try to get a perfect score!
foxnews.com
Henry Cervantes, Mexican American farmworker turned WWII fighter pilot, dies at 100
Cervantes persisted against racism to join the military as a fighter pilot, surviving a tour with the 'Bloody 100th' Bomb Group during World War II.
latimes.com
The Happiness Trinity
Why it’s so hard to answer the question What makes us happiest?
theatlantic.com
No One Has a Right to Protest in My Home
The difference between a private yard and a public forum
theatlantic.com
Is planting trees on Arbor Day one way we can all fight climate change? Not so much
In California and beyond, responsibly managing and conserving mature forests is far more important to reducing atmospheric levels of carbon.
latimes.com
The rise of managerial cities, flushing stink bugs and your favorite season!
This week, we ask the immortal question: Just how much water does it take to flush a stink bug? Among other pressing queries.
washingtonpost.com
USC's Caleb Williams, UCLA's Laiatu Latu are top pick and top defender taken in draft
USC produced the top pick of the NFL draft in Caleb Williams, and UCLA produced the first defensive player selected in Laiatu Latu, taken 15th.
latimes.com
You're gonna need a bigger number: Scientists consider a Category 6 for mega-hurricane era
As climate change intensifies hurricanes, some scientists want a Category 6 for the biggest storms
latimes.com
Darvin Ham is on the hot seat as the Lakers are on the brink of elimination
The Lakers may struggle to contend for a title if they keep making quick coaching changes, but that might not be enough to save Darvin Ham's job.
latimes.com
‘We Grown Now’: Nothing shy in this Chi-Town
A sentimental drama about two boys in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green housing project hammers home its unsubtle themes in Minhal Baig’s “We Grown Now.”
washingtonpost.com
Art Deco and dignity inspire multi-hyphenate comedian Katie Cazorla’s new club, the Kookaburra Lounge
Opening at the Ovation Hollywood complex on May 2 as part of the Netflix Is a Joke festival, Kookaburra aims to give its comedians the respect they deserve
latimes.com
How a migrant farmworker built generational wealth, penny by penny
My grandfather kept ledgers logging every day he worked in the U.S. The dry entries — "18 boxes of cherries, $4 per box" — tell a story of success against the odds.
latimes.com
Is social media rewiring kids' brains? Here's what the science really says
Jonathan Haidt's "The Anxious Generation" feeds the latest technology panic. But the research says something different.
latimes.com
Six California House races that could help determine control of Congress
From the farm towns of the Central Valley to the beaches of Orange County, California is a battleground for control of the House of Representatives.
latimes.com
Senate pursues action against AI deepfakes in election campaigns
A Senate hearing highlights the dangers of bogus, artificial intelligence materials in elections. A bill was introduced in 2023, but the urgency is now.
washingtonpost.com
Food recalls reach highest level since the pandemic. Undeclared allergens are the biggest reason for the rise
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recorded a total of 313 food recalls and public health alerts in 2023, according to a report by Public Interest Research Group.
latimes.com
More migrant families with children sleeping in tents on Skid Row test official response
Just over a month after several migrant families living with their children on the streets of Skid Row were moved into a motel, a more extensive encampment has formed with at least seven new families living in an array of large tents, pup tents and tarp shelters.
latimes.com
Sending armed troops to quash peaceful campus protests is a dangerous idea
The U.S. military shouldn't squash antiwar protests on college campuses, no matter what House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republican politicians say.
latimes.com
A new play about Jesus comes to the O.C. It could provoke 'intense' reactions
World premiere 'Galilee, 34,' at South Coast Repertory through May 12, turns Biblical figures into flawed humans — in a way that some believers may take issue with.
latimes.com
‘Boy Kills World’ offers bare-knuckle yuks
A manic dystopian fight comedy overstays its welcome in “Boy Kills World.”
washingtonpost.com
How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to Laufey
The singer-songwriter's perfect day involves picking up fresh Icelandic fish, relaxing with a good book and practicing Frederic Chopin’s children’s tunes as a form of meditation
latimes.com
The death of Participant Media is ‘grim news for serious movies’
For 20 years, Participant pursued a dual path of making good films and having a social impact.
washingtonpost.com
Oldest living MLB player turns 100, vividly recalls facing Dodgers in 1953 World Series
Signed by the Dodgers, Art Schallock won three World Series titles with the Yankees. The oldest living MLB player, now 100, counted Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra as friends.
latimes.com
Secret meetings, social chatter: How the Columbia protest sparked a student revolt
The student protests over the war in Gaza are the culmination of months of activism and covert planning. Social media and smartphones have supercharged the growing revolt.
washingtonpost.com
Biden touts labor endorsements, but members worry about Trump's "cultish" support
President Biden finds familiar and active allies for his reelection bid with labor union endorsements.
cbsnews.com
Pummeled by airstrikes, Ukrainians in Kharkiv defy Russia by getting on with daily life
Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, is facing intense Russian airstrikes, but its residents are defiant. "We can stand up, no matter what they do,” one said.
latimes.com
Trump is having a bad week. Will it matter in the election?
Former President Trump ping-ponged among a dizzying array of court appearances, judicial rulings, competing allegations and subsequent grievances.
latimes.com
After a years-long pause, the FCC resurrects 'network neutrality,' a boon for consumers
Trump's FCC killed network neutrality, giving internet providers a green light to abuse consumers. Biden's FCC has corrected that error.
latimes.com
Trump trial moves to cross-examination of first witness
Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker will field questions from former President Donald Trump's defense team.
cbsnews.com
16 essential brunch favorites from the 101 Best Restaurants guide
Make your next weekend brunch memorable with these picks from the 101 Best Restaurants guide, including a Levantine option in Long Beach, soul food in Mid-City, modern Mexican in the Arts District and more.
latimes.com
After scandal, movie producer Randall Emmett is flying under the radar with a new name
Whether he’s going by Emmett or Ives, the controversial producer and former 'Vanderpump Rules' star continues to confront allegations of not paying his bills on time and presiding over chaotic film sets.
latimes.com
Giant cargo ships were Baltimore port’s financial salvation and its curse
The ambitious makeover of the Baltimore port enabled the port last year to process record numbers of cargo, but also tied the city’s fortunes to giant oceangoing vessels that some warned were prone to accidents.
washingtonpost.com
Riverside County deputy, 14 others arrested in drug trafficking bust
The Drug Enforcement Administration in collaboration with local law enforcement agencies busted a cartel-related drug trafficking network, arresting a Riverside County Sheriff's deputy and 14 others.
latimes.com
Canada’s polite Trumpism
Pierre Poilievre speaks at a protest against a Federal Carbon Tax increase on March 27, 2024. | Artur Widak/NurPhoto/Getty Images The rise of an unusually tame right-wing populist reveals how Canadian democracy stays strong — and why the world should take notes from Ottawa. “Are we a country that looks out for each other ... or do you go down a path of amplifying anger, division and fear?” That’s how Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the stakes in his country’s upcoming election in an interview with Vox’s Today, Explained this week — outlining the 2025 contest as no ordinary election but a referendum on the very soul of Canada. This existential framing is an unsubtle shot at Trudeau’s rival, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre, a populist firebrand who is currently outpolling the prime minister by a wide margin. Poilievre rose to party leadership as a champion of the extremist trucker convoy that occupied Ottawa in January 2022, and since then has regularly pandered to far-right voters. He has proposed defunding the CBC (Canada’s widely respected public broadcaster) and repeatedly promoted a conspiracy theory in which Trudeau is in league with the World Economic Forum. There’s a reason that Trudeau and many others have directly linked Poilievre to Trump: His political style practically invites it. But how accurate is the comparison? Is Canada really poised to be the next Western country to fall to the far-right populist global wave? The answer, as best as I can tell, is mixed. It’s true that, by Canadian standards, Poilievre is an especially hard-nosed figure, one far more willing to use extreme rhetoric and attack political opponents in harsh terms. But on policy substance, he’s actually considerably more moderate than Trump or European radicals. Mostly eschewing the demagogic focus on culture and immigration that defines the new global far right, Poilievre is primarily concerned with classic conservative themes of limited government. His biggest campaign promises at present aren’t slashing immigration rates or cracking down on crime, but building more housing and repealing Canada’s carbon tax. Poilievre is basically just a conventional Canadian conservative who wraps up his elite-friendly agenda in anti-elite language aimed at working-class voters. He’s the kind of politician that some Republicans wish Donald Trump was: a tame populist. Understanding Poilievre isn’t just of interest to Canadians. There are reasons that his brand of populism is less virulent than what’s cropped up in many other Atlantic democracies — ones that hold important lessons for safeguarding democracy around the world. Why Pierre Poilievre doesn’t fit the far-right script The University of Georgia’s Cas Mudde, one of the leading scholars of the European right, has developed what is (to my mind) the most useful definition of radical right politics today. In his account, this party family — factions like Hungary’s Fidesz, France’s National Rally, and the US GOP — share three essential qualities. First, they are nativist; they strongly oppose immigration and multiculturalism. Second, they are willing to use aggressive, even authoritarian measures to deal with social disorder like undocumented migration and crime. Finally, they are populist, meaning that they define politics as a struggle between a virtuous people and a corrupt elite. Poilievre is certainly a populist. A right-wing operative and politician since he was a teenager, he rocketed to the top of the Conservative Party hierarchy after emerging as the most vocal champion of the 2022 Ottawa occupation. The uprising, which began against pandemic restrictions but swiftly became a broader far-right movement, was quite unpopular nationally. But inside the Conservative Party, there was enough support for its “pro-freedom” message that Poilievre rode his pro-convoy stance to victory in the party’s subsequent leadership election. Steve Russell/Toronto Star/Getty Images A protester makes his stand as police remove the “Freedom Convoy” from Ottawa on February 18, 2022. Since then, his populism has focused relentlessly on attacking the media, “globalists,” and (above all) Trudeau. Casting the fight between his Conservatives and Trudeau’s Liberals as the “have-nots” versus the “have-yachts,” he has argued that the prime minister embodies a debased Ottawa establishment out of touch with the needs and values of ordinary Canadians. In a recent speech, Poilievre cast Trudeau as an “elitist” leader gunning for Canada’s freedoms. “If he had read Nineteen Eighty-Four, he would have thought it was an instruction manual,” Poilievre argued. Somewhat ironically, Poilievre also believes Canada’s criminal justice system should be harsher. Blaming Trudeau for a recent rise in car thefts, Poilievre has argued for a reimposition of mandatory minimum sentences and other tough-on-crime policies. This means there’s at least a case that he also fits the second prong of Mudde’s definition of radical right politics. But on the first prong, nativism, Poilievre clearly diverges from Trump and the European far right. He has publicly insisted that “the Conservative party is pro-immigration,” and he has made appealing directly to immigrants a central part of his campaign strategy. “It doesn’t matter if your name is Poilievre or Patel, Martin or Mohamed,” he said at a Diwali event in October 2022. “If you’re prepared to work hard, contribute, follow the rules, raise your family, you can achieve your dreams in this country.” While he has called for a decrease in current levels of immigration, he has refused to specify a target for said cuts. His most recent position is that immigration levels should be linked to housing supply — the more houses and apartments built, the more immigrants should be let in. And since he is solidly pro-construction, that doesn’t necessarily imply that immigration needs to be cut radically. This a far cry from Trump’s claim that Mexico is sending rapists and drug dealers, or Dutch radical Geert Wilders’ (recently withdrawn) proposal to ban mosques in the Netherlands. Poilievre may assail the media and champion right-wing hooliganism on the streets of Ottawa, but he’s unwilling to attack immigrants and ethnic minorities in the way that others in the global far right do. Rather, Poilievre’s politics seem more shaped by Canada’s longstanding populist tradition than anything new or global. Arising primarily in Western provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Poilievre’s native Alberta), Canadian “prairie populism” historically draws strength from the notion that the federal government cares more about the population centers in Quebec and Ontario than the rest of the country. Prairie populism, which comes in left- and right-wing varieties, focuses far more on regional and economic issues than the cultural obsessions of the modern far right. “We have had a long history of populism — particularly in the prairie provinces, the Western provinces — going back to the 1920s and 30s,” says Keith Banting, a professor at Queen’s University in Ontario. “Populism draws less extensively on anti-immigrant sentiment in Canada than it does almost anywhere else.” Indeed, Poilievre’s biggest focus is cost-of-living issues — blaming ordinary people’s economic pain on high taxes and big government. His signature proposals are repealing Trudeau’s carbon tax, cutting spending to fight inflation, and removing restrictions on housing construction. You can think whatever you want about the merits of these various views (personally, I’m against the first two and for the third), but they’re basically what you would expect from any Conservative Party leader in his position: the historic party of Canada’s wealthy calling for lowering taxes and shrinking government. While the global far right is unbendingly hostile to immigration and flexible on size-of-government questions, Poilievre is essentially the reverse. Poilievre’s “plutocratic populism” While Poilievre is a very Canadian figure, fitting solidly into the right-wing prairie populist tradition, his politics also have a lot in common with a concept developed for the United States: political scientists Jacob Hacker and Paul Pierson’s “plutocratic populism.” In their book Let Them Eat Tweets, Hacker and Pierson argue that the Republican Party uses culture war as a vehicle to attract popular support for a party that primarily caters to the interests of the rich. This strategy of “exploiting white identity to defend wealth inequality” allowed Trump’s GOP to attract downscale, non-college-educated voters without abandoning its core commitment to tax cuts and deregulation. But in the United States, the populists ate the plutocrats. Trump’s anti-democratic instability and economic heterodoxy on issues like trade led some GOP billionaires, like the Koch family, to try and unseat him in the 2024 primary. They failed miserably and now are slinking back. In the Republican Party, MAGA is calling the shots. Poilievre, by contrast, keeps his populism within plutocrat-acceptable bounds. His rhetorical gestures toward the working class are paired with solidly pro-rich policy views and a distinct absence of attacks on the democratic system itself. In 2013, he claimed to be “the first federal politician to make a dedicated push” toward imposing US-style right-to-work laws in Canada. He has endorsed tax cuts for the rich and cuts to social spending. His trade policy is far more free-market than Trump’s. There are no signs that he would challenge the legitimacy of Canadian elections, let alone stage a January 6-style insurrection. None of this should be surprising. Poilievre is a longtime creature of the Conservative Party, a cabinet minister in former Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government. He is not an anti-establishment figure like Trump but rather a member of the establishment. There’s no reason to believe his leadership would seriously diverge from the Conservative Party’s historic policy priorities to any major degree. He is the kind of “populist” that people like the Kochs wish Trump was. What the world can learn from Canada’s tame populism All that being said, Poilievre’s populist positioning is not harmless. There are genuine costs to villainizing your political rivals, mainstreaming conspiracy theories, and corroding public trust in the media. In the long run, this rhetoric can corrode the bonds of citizenship and raise polarization to dangerous levels. His proposal to defund the CBC’s English-language broadcasts is concerning; if implemented, it would be quite damaging to Canada’s civic health. Perhaps for this reason, many members of his own party oppose the idea. Yet in comparison to places with significant far-right problems —like the United States or even Germany — Canada’s democracy is still in relatively safe waters. Poilievre’s aggressive rhetoric is worrying, but it’s hardly a system-threatening danger akin to Trump’s election denialism. This speaks, more than anything else, to the durability of what’s been termed “Canadian exceptionalism:” an unusual level of resistance to far-right populism when compared to its peers in the Atlantic world. Generally speaking, Canadian exceptionalism seems to stem from the country’s historically high levels of public support for immigration and multiculturalism. Unerringly, right-wing extremist parties around the world draw the core of their strength from majority-group voters concerned about ethnic and religious minorities. While such people certainly exist in Canada, they are a smaller percentage of the overall population than in peer democracies and, accordingly, less politically influential. This exceptionalism is rooted in Canada’s distinct national identity as one that elevates the ideas of tolerance and diversity into defining and distinctive national values. In fact, Canadians who express higher levels of patriotism tend to be more supportive of immigration (in the United States, the relationship unsurprisingly goes the other way). Steve Russell/Toronto Star/Getty Images Canadians Maryam and Nore Kasmeih wait for Syrian refugees at the airport on December 10, 2015. Between Poilievre’s rise to power and a recent poll showing concern about immigration driving up housing costs, some have worried that this may be ending. But a closer look suggests that these are actually testaments to the enduring power of Canadian exceptionalism. The Canadian Conservative Party has remained in bounds on issues of immigration and identity because going harder would be politically counterproductive (as the public disapproval of the trucker protest showed). Even amid the current concern about rising home prices, a majority of Canadians believe that immigration levels should be kept the same or increased. If Poilievre is a tame populist, the people responsible for taming him were not the Canadian rich but rather the Canadian majority. His populism is primarily rhetorical — rather than system-threatening — because the Canadian system for limiting extremism is still basically intact. The lesson for the rest of the world is that Canada is onto something. Several decades of official multiculturalism have helped it build up antibodies to the infection eating away at democracies as different as the United States, Hungary, India, and Israel. Liberals and democrats everywhere should be trying to think about how to build their own variants of this ideology at home. Realistically, this is a long-term project. Canada’s multiculturalism project began under Trudeau’s father, Pierre, in 1971. It took decades for it to build on itself and become an authentic part of Canadian identity, one strong enough to create barriers to far-right politics. This isn’t something that can be adopted overnight in response to an extremist challenge; in fact, the very existence of that challenge creates a significant barrier to moving in Canada’s direction. But at the same time, the crisis of global democracy may be the time to get started. Canada’s multiculturalism policy was in large part a response to internal conflict and crisis: violent Quebecois separatism rooted in French-Canadian desire for cultural autonomy. Perhaps the current crisis in global democracies will create a similar incentive to start thinking about long-term policy ambitions in their own countries. At the very least, the rise of Poilievre should not be seen as a failure of the Canadian model. If anything, his relatively neutered populism should be seen as a testament to its strength
vox.com
George Soros is paying student radicals who are fueling nationwide explosion of Israel-hating protests
A network of "fellows" for a Soros-funded group are at the heart of protests on college campuses nationwide.
nypost.com
‘DIVEST’: College endowments turn into flash point of student protests
Many student groups are pushing schools to exert financial pressure on Israel. Experts say that won’t be so easy.
washingtonpost.com
Los Angeles Times News Quiz this week: Tortured poets, inspired monks and Fonzie's cool
How much do you remember from our stories about Japanese cuisine, airport lawsuits and Scott Dixon's recent racing win?
latimes.com
Our 25 must-see shows at Netflix Is a Joke
From Ali Wong to Katt Williams and Puddles the Clown, here's our list of the 25 shows we definitely plan to check out at the Netflix is a Joke festival in LA next month.
latimes.com
Regulators launch review of whether Tesla did enough to fix Autopilot
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it had concerns about changes Tesla made to the driver assistance system as part of a December recall.
washingtonpost.com
Slate Crossword: Shooting Stars’ Org.? (Three Letters)
Ready for some wordplay? Sharpen your skills with Slate’s puzzle for April 26, 2024.
slate.com
Why So Many Universities Are Calling the Police on Student Protesters Now
The groundwork for these arrests was already in place.
slate.com
Prince Harry presents prestigious ‘Soldier of the Year’ award from his Montecito mansion yard
The Duke of Sussex, 39, stood in the backyard of his and Meghan Markle's $14 million Montecito mansion as he presented the award virtually.
nypost.com
How an Album From 1977 Became a Gen Z Touchstone
Why do young people keep rediscovering Rumours? It’s in part because of a song that’s not even on the album.
slate.com
I Found the Perfect Place to Watch People Humiliate Themselves Online. It Thrills and Haunts Me.
Reddit provides an endless well of entertainment.
slate.com
Stock Market Today: Investors Watching Inflation Data and Oil Earnings
U.S. stock futures were lifted Friday morning after Big Tech stocks spiked in after-hours trading late Thursday.
newsweek.com