Meet our new daily crossword puzzle. Plus a return to a Trump-ier Trump, disaster in Indonesia, and more
It’s My Party: Political tribalism seems to have arrived at the steps of the Supreme Court, which begins a new term on Monday without a ninth justice. If Brett Kavanaugh becomes Justice Kavanaugh, following an openly partisan defense last week, he’ll carry “a virus of illegitimacy” to the court’s decisions, Ronald Brownstein argues. Elsewhere in the GOP: Will Republican white women abandon their party when voting in the upcoming midterms?
Trading Jokes: “It’s one of my only good traits, I do not drink,” Donald Trump quipped to reporters on Monday, as he commented on Brett Kavanaugh’s assertions about drinking during a press conference initially intended to trumpet a revamped—rebranded—trade deal with Canada and Mexico. It’s a return to 2016-campaign-trail form for the president, who’s “funny, condescending, demagogic, and full of untruth.” Jokes aside, does he still support his nominee, whose seat on the Supreme Court hinges on an ongoing FBI inquiry?
A New Daily Crossword Puzzle:: Meet our new daily mini crossword, which we hope will offer a measure of delight and constancy in a chaotic time. Tackle Monday’s, and then puzzle your way through the past week. Today, the smartphone is singularly the focus of societal awe and anxiety. A century ago, that mantle belonged to crosswords, which first appeared in newspapers in the years leading up to World War I.
— Shan Wang
How the Kavanaugh confirmation process has played out is a reminder of another facet of privilege afforded to men like Kavanaugh, writes Megan Garber:
Read on here.
1. The U. S. Justice and Education departments are now reportedly suing Yale University for allegedly discriminating against _________________________ applicants. A court case that accuses Harvard of a similar bias in admissions is already under way.
Scroll down for the answer, or find it here.
2. In countries around the world, girls are outperforming boys in school. Girls are also more inclined than boys to _________________, a persistent gender difference that may be linked to these persistent educational outcomes.
Scroll down for the answer, or find it here.
3. No other country rewards a college degree as richly as the U. S., and few other countries punish people so relentlessly for not having one. Americans with college degrees earn ______ percent more than those who only completed high school.
Scroll down for the answer, or find it here.
Every week, the psychotherapist Lori Gottlieb answers readers’ questions in the Dear Therapist column. An anonymous reader writes in about her husband of thirty years, who no longer wants to have sex:
Read Lori’s advice, and write to her at dear.therapist@theatlantic.com.
