the friday brief — 9.18.26
3 things that matter
trump banned CNN, MS NOW, and politico from the white house today
this afternoon, trump posted on truth social that he was banning CNN, MS NOW — the network formerly known as MSNBC — and politico from the white house, effective immediately, citing their "constant reporting of fake news." in remarks to reporters in the oval office, he said the ban was not triggered by any specific story but by the "cumulative" tone of coverage over the years. as of this evening, reporters from all three outlets were still at the white house, and it remained unclear how or whether the ban would be enforced. trump warned other outlets would "follow." the first amendment challenge is straightforward: the white house is a public building, and using access as a lever against editorial content the executive dislikes is a textbook prior restraint argument. this follows a pattern — the AP was barred from the oval office in february 2025. but the scale is different. banning three major outlets simultaneously, including one that is part of the television pool that travels with the president, is a different order of action.
the supreme court blocked trump's mail-in ballot restrictions for november
on monday, the supreme court refused to let new USPS rules governing mail-in ballots take effect ahead of the november midterms, dealing a significant blow to trump's effort to exercise federal control over the election. the court ruled 7-2, with justices thomas and alito dissenting, that the government "is unlikely to succeed on the merits." the USPS rule would have required states to redesign ballot envelopes with barcodes, scanning capability, and voter details submitted to a federal portal before ballots could ship — changes states said were impossible to implement in six weeks. justice kavanaugh agreed with the outcome but wrote separately to signal the door is open for these requirements to return in future elections. for november, mail-in voting will function largely as it has in previous cycles. the fight over what 2028 looks like starts now.
the houthis seized two islands in the red sea — and the strait of hormuz just got more complicated
yemen's houthi forces seized two islands in the southern red sea monday as saudi arabia launched 54 airstrikes in the prior 24 hours. iran's revolutionary guard claimed it shot down two u.s. MQ-1 drones over the strait of hormuz this week, and an oil tanker exploded after striking mines. saudi crown prince MBS met with the CENTCOM commander days after trump dismissed the kingdom's requests for direct u.s. support against the houthis. the strategic picture: the houthis are consolidating control over the western coast of yemen and key maritime chokepoints simultaneously — threatening saudi oil exports from two directions at once. trump's dismissal of the saudi request is the detail worth noting. the mecca defense pact signed in august was designed precisely for this scenario.
1 thing to know
the world is at the UN this week
unga high-level week opened today in new york, with 193 member states convening under the theme "restoring trust, managing transformation: a united nations that delivers for all." the theme is doing a lot of work. the sdg moment this morning revealed that progress on half of all sustainable development goals is weak or insufficient, with the 2030 deadline now four years away. separately, a climate summit is centered on the reality that overshoot is now considered inevitable — the conversation has shifted from preventing 1.5 degrees of warming to managing what comes after. a high-level meeting on sea level rise is on the agenda for later this week, as is a session on pandemic preparedness.
the gap between what's being discussed inside the general assembly hall and what's driving the news outside it is almost total. the three stories dominating the american news cycle this week — press access, mail ballots, the red sea — don't appear on the sdg agenda. meanwhile, the countries most exposed to sea level rise, food insecurity, and debt distress are making speeches to a room that is, at best, half-listening.
unga has always been as much theater as diplomacy. what's different in 2026 is that the fracture between the global south's priorities and the preoccupations of the major powers has rarely been more visible. the world came to new york this week and brought very different sets of problems.
1 thing to try
visit your local farmers market
go to your local farmers market this weekend with no recipes in mind – pick something that is in season and build the rest of the meal around it.
some ideas of what’s coming around for fall —
winter squash — butternut, delicata, acorn just starting
sweet potatoes
apples — honeycrisp and early varieties are out now
pears
brussels sprouts
cauliflower
broccoli
fennel
leeks
