Weekly News Roundup - 6/12/26
World Cup kicks off big American summer // Trump says he "loves" inflation as it rises above 4%
This is the 22nd Weekly News Roundup of 2026. The archive for all weekly news roundups is here, which goes back to the beginning of 2024.
These weekly dispatches are designed for those who may not have time to do more than glance at the headlines, or those who want to stay informed without becoming obsessed by politics and news. These roundups are a targeted way to get a sense of the shape of the past week on the national level. Without such a map, we can be disoriented, not knowing where we have been over the past several days, or where we may be going.
But by spending concentrated, limited time thinking about the big picture, we can devote more of our time to where “agency and justice begin and end,” as Karen Swallow Prior put it: “on the ground, bodily, in community and real relationships, in flesh and blood.”
Quotes of the Week
We are made for the infinite. That is why every finite horizon, every step, every achievement — while satisfying us — also propels us forward and invites us to keep searching. - Pope Leo
I’m not against the critique that the left did not create space for a healthy vision of masculinity. I agree with that critique. But this is so [expletive] warped, where these people have ended up. - Ezra Klein
Week in Review
Friday, June 5
As California’s vote counting process moves slowly forward, Democrat Xavier Becerra becomes the first candidate for governor to advance to the top-two fall election.
Saturday, June 6
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth speaks at a D-Day ceremony near the beaches of Normandy, but uses the occasion to speak about an “invasion” of immigrants.
Sunday, June 7
Iran launches missile attacks against Israel for the first time since April.
Monday, June 8
U.S. border officials deny entry to the country to a soccer referee from Somalia who was scheduled to take part in the World Cup.
Tuesday, June 9
A U.S. Army helicopter collides with an Iranian drone off the coast of Oman and crashes. The two pilots are rescued by an autonomous boat.
Republican Steve Hilton finishes second in California’s primary election for governor, putting him through to the final fall election against Becerra.
Street violence erupts in Belfast, Ireland a day after a Sudanese man is arrested for attacking and stabbing an Irish man, leaving serious injuries to his eyes.
Wednesday, June 10
Inflation rises above 4% for the first time in three years. Trump makes head-scratching comments about the inflation report: “You know what I really love? I love the inflation.” He says that when fighting in Iran winds down, inflation will come down.
The U.S. launches air strikes on Iran, which retaliates by launching strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait.
Florida’s Supreme Court approves Republican efforts to redraw congressional maps in the state so that the GOP can control more seats in the House.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates testifies to Congress about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Thursday, June 11
In the morning, Trump threatens more strikes on Iran but pulls back in the afternoon, claiming progress in ceasefire talks.
Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican who lost his seat due to Trump’s endorsement of a Republican opponent, says that during his seven remaining months in office he will join a group of Republican senators who are increasingly independent from Trump. The president, Cornyn says in an interview, is “going to have the most miserable two years of his life in the last two years of his term, I think, because I think November is going to be a disaster.”
Friday, June 12
“Pakistan’s prime minister said Friday the United States and Iran have agreed to wording of an agreement aimed at ending their war in the Middle East and that mediators were working with both sides to finalize a deal,” the AP reports.
Elon Musk becomes the world’s first trillionaire when shares of SpaceX go public.
Workers begin building scaffolding to remove Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center, after a federal judge rejects an appeal of a lower court’s decision that Trump’s name was illegally added to the performing arts center.
Interesting Reads
Kennedy Shows Minimal Engagement With Vast Health Portfolio, by Sheryl Gay Stolberg for The New York Times
Why Trump Seems Confused By His Own War, by Sam Kahn for Persuasion
https://www.natesilver.net/p/why-isnt-the-us-better-at-soccer?publication_id=1198116&post_id=201034815&isFreemail=true&r=8xeg&triedRedirect=true by Nate Silver for Silver Bulletin
Red Mirage, Blue Shift, Online Cope by Renee DiResta for Agents of Influence
Taking a Week to Count Votes Is Doing It Wrong, by the New York Times editorial board
Scientists lose critical climate record as ocean observatory will go dark under Trump funding cuts, by Annika Hammerschlag for The Associated Press
Magnifica Humanitas: Reflecting on Pope Leo’s AI Encyclical, by Jim Stump for BioLogos
Brawls, Biting and Bliss in a City Craving a Knicks Championship, by Maria Cramer and Maia Coleman for The New York Times