June 27, 2026 - US Strikes Iran After Hormuz Attack

Here's James Carville on the Democratic Party's leftward surge:

"All of these people hate Democrats. Why do you want to run as a Democrat? Start your own movement. If it's such a powerful, sweeping movement that's got momentum everywhere, then go ahead and be at the head of it. Don't use the Democratic Party to advance it."

He was reacting to Tuesday - which may have been our first real look at the party's directional challenge heading toward 2028.

A year after winning the mayoral primary, Zohran Mamdani wanted to see whether his movement could travel. He endorsed three candidates for Congress. All three won - including two incumbents backed by House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries. The next morning, Mamdani said New Yorkers are "hungry for a new kind of politics that puts working people first."

This wasn't just a good night for a mayor. It was a show of force for a movement - the one Bernie Sanders has pushed for 40 years. And the Democratic Socialists of America aren't waiting. They've already begun surveying all 250 chapters about whom they want for president in 2028.

But Carville's challenge cuts to the real question. The left just proved it can win primaries. It hasn't proven it can win elections in swing states.

Winning a primary is about enthusiasm. Winning the White House is about coalition. Democrats have to figure out whether those are the same thing. 

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US Central Command said American aircraft hit Iranian missile and drone storage sites and coastal radar around the Strait of Hormuz on Friday after Tehran's drone strike on a commercial vessel, with Vice President JD Vance warning that "violence will be met with violence".

CNN

Hot, dry and windy conditions are fueling fast-growing wildfires across the West, prompting emergency declarations, fireworks restrictions and power shutoff warnings as firefighters battle extreme fire behavior and heightened wildfire risk ahead of the July Fourth holiday.

Associated Press

Two heat domes are expected to merge into one massive high-pressure system parked over the central US by the Fourth of July, bringing widespread 90s and 100s and heat indexes topping 105 from the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes.

The Hill

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said a false, anonymously filed report prompted authorities to briefly separate him from his four-year-old twins before investigators determined the allegations were unfounded.

Associated Press

Outgoing Senator John Cornyn broke with Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas GOP on Friday, warning that closing the state's Republican primaries would shrink turnout and risk "paving the way to minority party status" after his own runoff loss to Attorney General Ken Paxton.

The Texas Tribune

A new McLaughlin & Associates survey puts former Vice President Kamala Harris atop the Democratic field at 26% and Vice President JD Vance leading Republicans at 35%, though earlier AtlasIntel and Emerson polls showed a far more fragmented 2028 race.

USA Today

According to a new Epic Research analysis of electronic health records from nearly 200 million U.S. adults, diagnoses of gambling disorders have risen more than 60% since 2018 in states that legalized sports betting, with the steepest increase among men ages 18 to 29.

NBC News

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are reportedly set to celebrate their wedding at Madison Square Garden on July 2 and 3, with an intimate 100-guest event followed by a 1,000-person bash, though speculation persists that the real ceremony could happen off-site.

The Hollywood Reporter

The Wall Street Journal's "World Cup Fan Matrix" ranks supporters from all 48 nations based on their teams' performances and fan experiences, highlighting which countries are celebrating and which are enduring tournament misery.

The Wall Street Journal

A federal judge declared a mistrial in the arson case against Jonathan Rinderknecht, a former Uber driver accused of igniting the Lachman fire that grew into the deadly Palisades fire last year, after jurors deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquittal; prosecutors say they will retry the case in October.

Los Angeles Times