Good morning, it’s Tuesday.
My college sweetheart was a Navy ROTC. When we met, I was struck by the austerity of his room. His bed had hospital corners; his clothes were neatly folded, ironed, and puts away in his drawers (even his underwear and his PT kit); his school books were neatly stacked on his desk: nothing adorned his walls, save for a lone American flag.
His entire life was regimented, and he was, to me, the epitome of discipline, with the exception of his roomie, who was a Marine ROTC. This guy ate, breathed, and slept on a schedule. I think he slept on top of the covers to avoid having to make the bed. He worked out every morning and ate for fuel, not enjoyment. His shoes were spit polished and his jeans had perfectly ironed creases.
He was hands down one of the most hardcore people I had ever met.
I don’t know what happened to this guy, but he left an impression on me. And whenever I think of the Marines I think of him, and also my stepfather, Larry Winters, who enlisted before the age of 20 and went off to fight in Vietnam – a war that changed him indelibly forever.
(Shameless plug moment: If you are interested in going deep on the moral injury inflected on soldiers by war, consider checking out my stepdad’s book; he’s an amazing human and I love him).
The U.S. Marine Corps celebrates its 251st birthday today, marking its founding in 1775, at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, PA.
The Marines is actually the third-oldest U.S. military branch, though the Army and the Navy were founded that same year – on June 14, and October 13, respectively. The Air Force, which wasn’t established until 1947, is downright young by comparison, and, of course, the spring chicken of the bunch is the Space Force, which seems too far-fetched to be true, but actually does exist.
This year’s celebration might include slightly less pomp and circumstance as last year’s “Sestercentennial,” which marked 250 years for the Marines. But there are some annual traditions that will undoubtedly be observed, including a formal dress birthday ball and an elaborate cake cutting ceremony.
This ritual, which was standardized in 1925, requires cutting the cake with a ceremonial Mameluke sword to honor the Corps’ warrior heritage. The first slice goes tot he guest of honor, while the second goes to the oldest Marine in the room, who then promptly hands it to the youngest Marine present, symbolizing the passing of history, experience, and knowledge from one generation to the next.
Other traditions include the reading aloud of Marine Corps Order No. 27, which was issued in 1921 by Major General John A. Lejeune and officially established Nov. 10 as the big birthday holiday, a live or recorded message from the current Commandant and Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, and the singing of the Marine Hymn.
Of course, Marines being Marines, the whole day kicks off with a little PT – because nothing says “Happy Birthday!” like a motivational run with a few of your nearest and dearest.
“Oorah!”
It will be slightly warmer today, with high temperatures flirting with 60 degrees, and skies will again be overcast. Nothing much to look forward to, but nothing much to complain about either – not compared to what’s coming down the pike, anyway, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
In the headlines…
Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who is leading an impeachment effort against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, said Monday that Hegseth will not be in his role by the new year.
Massie, who lost his primary in May to a challenger backed by President Trump, has introduced eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth, three of them focused on his conduct of the war with Iran.
In his first post-midterm news briefing, Trump talked about Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s affair with an alleged Chinese spy, the effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the massive Republican losses at the ballot box last week.
Trump said he would stand by Hegseth if he’s impeached, saying Massie, who introduced articles of impeachment, is “a stone cold loser.”
The president said Huang told him that he was not aware that a Chinese businesswoman with whom he was having a romantic relationship was an intelligence operative for Beijing.
Investigators at the Commerce Department were deep into a monthslong investigation of a Singaporean company that they suspected of smuggling Nvidia’s artificial intelligence chips into China when their work came to a sudden halt late last year.
Top Republican lawmakers are demanding that Huang appear before Congress to answer questions about his relationship with a Chinese honeypot and are pushing the administration to withdraw its approval of Nvidia chip sales to China.
Trump is now questioning the results of the 2026 midterms elections nearly a week after brutal Republican losses, posting on Truth Social: “Does anybody really believe that this ‘Election’ was honest. How could the Polls be so wrong???”
The president surprised journalists with a last-minute press briefing Monday featuring UFC CEO Dana White — warning them “he’s going to beat the hell out of you.”
The Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Trump administration to continue construction of a wall along the southern border in the Big Bend region of southwest Texas, including within a national park.
California voters rejected a billionaire tax, The AP determined on Monday, rebuking a measure that would have created the nation’s first wealth tax by targeting the assets of residents with a net worth beyond $1 billion.
Prop 40 would have been the nation’s first enactment of a billionaire tax. But many progressives who support increasing taxes on the wealthy opposed it because it was a one-time tax, rather than a permanent one, and it primarily benefited one policy area, healthcare.
Progressive Democrats won Senate seats in Michigan and Maine, a host of battleground House contests and the mayor’s race in Los Angeles. Yet the movement’s triumphant midterm results last week did not put an end to questions about the left’s electability.
It’s clear that Democrats won sweeping victories nationwide. But some key races remain too close to call, including Senate brawls in deep-red Mississippi and Alaska; Rep. Lauren Boebert’s reelection battle in Colorado; and other House contests across the South.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul scored the type of political victory on Election Day that typically comes with a mandate — but what message voters were trying to send depends on who you ask.
Fresh off her re-election victory, Hochul is not ruling out a spot on the 2028 Democratic presidential ticket as the party begins looking toward the next White House race.
New York state budget officials say it is too early to determine whether tax increases will be necessary in next year’s state budget, even as Hochul has signaled a willingness to consider new revenue sources to fund an expansion of childcare.
There are 388 bills that were passed by both houses of the state Legislature this session that still require action by Hochul in the last two months of the year.
Overwhelming opposition to data centers gave New York Democrats an influential talking point to counteract Republican attacks on rising utility costs, even though the facilities have little current impact on state energy prices.
New York’s plan to do away with Regents exams as a graduation requirement is running headlong into a federal rule that requires students to take standardized tests to assess the quality of their education.
Officials at the New York State Education Department proposed delaying new tests tied to an overhaul of high school graduation requirements to spring 2030.
State Sen. John Liu planned to introduce a bill that would strip Hochul and future New York governors of the power to opt into a Republican-backed federal tax credit scholarship program.
Syracuse Common Council unanimously passed a resolution urging the New York state government for greater financial support in replacing lead service lines.
AG Letitia James has tapped a former federal prosecutor experienced in sex crimes cases to lead a revived criminal investigation into allegations of a 2024 gang rape at a Cornell University frat party that brought new attention to sexual violence on college campuses.
In 2025, Zohran Mamdani united creative and service workers around their shared struggles to afford a decent life. The midterm results suggest that coalition has legs and is already reshaping American politics.
Mamdani confirmed Monday that he has been privately meeting with labor leaders ahead of the 2028 presidential election — as progressives across the nation look to capitalize on the momentum of Democrats’ blowout victory last week.
The mayor has spoken glowingly about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, but is working on an early Plan B in case she decides against running for president.
Mamdani has ordered a probe into how Sayed Mohassib, 27, the man charged with killing Brooklyn jogger Katie Suarez, got a job in the city’s public school system despite a documented history of psychiatric issues.
“I have directed my team to conduct a full review into this matter,” Mamdani said. “Nothing is more paramount than the safety of our students.” Mohassib was fired from his job as a school aide by the city’s Department of Education yesterday.
Suarez will be laid to rest in Brooklyn this week — as authorities continue to mount their case against her accused killer, including by having her parents testify before a grand jury Monday.
Mamdani’s plan to combat antisemitism glaringly omits tackling rampant, anti-Jewish hatred at local colleges and universities, Jewish faculty and staff at CUNY and NYU said.
Mamdani campaigned on a promise to end New York City’s practice of selling property owners’ municipal debts to investors, but his administration says it is bringing back what is known as the lien sale, one more time.
Since February, Mamdani and his staff have quietly provided Trump’s team with the names of about two dozen more immigrant New Yorkers in ICE custody — and have asked the president to order their release.
Councilman Phil Wong of Queens recently removed his name from the Mamdani-backed Delivery Protection Act aimed at cracking down on Amazon’s employment practices for “last-mile” delivery drivers — saying it would lead to thousands of lost jobs.
New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin wants local university presidents to testify under oath about what their schools are doing to protect students from sexual assault amid outcry over 2024 gang rape allegations at a Cornell University fraternity house.
The NYPD is telling officers to stop giving out tickets for spitting, except in the transit system, and vehicle idling, except in response to specific complaints, according to internal NYPD guidance issued Friday that was reviewed by Gothamist.
Shootings and murders have plummeted to record lows so far this year, the NYPD announced Monday — as the police department welcomed its latest class of officers in a ceremony at Madison Square Garden.
Fire deaths in New York City have nearly doubled this year, the FDNY says, as police identified three of the six people killed in a house fire on 58th Street in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, last week.
The widow of a Brooklyn NYCHA worker killed by a falling tree during September’s nor’easter has filed a $75 million notice of claim against the city, arguing it failed to properly maintain the tree even though it stood near a public parking lot and a playground.
The union representing editorial staff at the city’s biggest local newspaper chain says in a federal complaint that a reporter was fired in retaliation for union organizing, as the two sides head into their first bargaining session this week.
Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, 84, tied the knot with his longtime partner, Diana Taylor, 71, after more than 25 years together at a small private ceremony at their Upper East Side home alongside family, including his daughters, Emma and Georgina.
About a dozen close friends and family attended a lunch following the ceremony. A Bloomberg spokesman did not say why the couple had chosen to get married now. The groom was spotted later Monday afternoon at his company offices.
The U.S. Department of Justice and Suffolk County are seeking to end a 40-year-old consent decree related to hiring practices that resulted in a police force with too few people of color and women.
Two months after an Albany County sheriff’s investigator was arrested for allegedly conducting more than 4,000 unauthorized Flock database searches to track an ex-girlfriend, state lawmakers are mulling statewide regulations for automated license plate readers.
Ronald J. Canestrari, a former Cohoes mayor who became majority leader of the state Assembly during more than two decades in that chamber, died Monday after a brief illness. He was 83.
Troy city leaders are taking a closer look at next year’s budget with a focus on public safety.
A lack of “proper financial safeguards and protocols” in the Warren County Treasurer’s Office allowed a scammer to strip the county of $3.3 million last December, according to a report from the county sheriff’s office.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
