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👋 Good morning! Welcome back. Postseason picture: The Red Sox and Braves clinched playoff spots over the weekend, joining the Brewers, Dodgers, Yankees and Rays as the final week of the regular season begins today. In today's edition: Favorites fall on Sunday, Kane makes Bundesliga history, Rebels exact revenge on Kiffin, Waterdogs win second PLL title, Music City Miracle 2.0, and more. Yahoo Sports AM is written by Kendall Baker and Jeff Tracy. Let's sports...   🏈 WEEK 2 NFL SUNDAY: UNDERDOGS MAKE WAVES (Patrick Smith/Getty Images) While some of the biggest potential upsets were ultimately snuffed out, the second Sunday of the NFL season was defined by a trio of pretty sizable favorites falling at home. Saints 24, Ravens 17: New Orleans (+8.5) scored 15 unanswered points on the road in the fourth quarter, showing that Tyler Shough and the Saints are legit… and that late collapses still haunt Baltimore even under a new coaching regime. Browns 23, Buccaneers 19: Deshaun Watson (24/30, 238 yards, 2 TD) likely saved his job for at least another week with perhaps the most unexpected result of the day, as Cleveland (+8.5) weathered the literal storm and sent the Bucs to their first 0-2 start since 2014. Raiders 26, Chargers 14: Los Angeles fumbled six times in its second straight upset loss to open the season, while Las Vegas (+6.5) improved to 2-0 for the first time since 2021, which just so happens to be the last time the Raiders made the playoffs. Plus: They might not have been quite the same level of underdog, but Ja'Marr Chase and the Bengals shut down the Texans, 20-6, and the Vikings held the Bears' offense nearly scoreless in a rain-soaked 9-3 victory. The silver lining for Chicago fans is that Caleb Williams' hamstring injury appears to be significantly less serious than it looked at first. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images) More from Sunday: Mahomes magic: Patrick Mahomes (32/47, 382 yards, 3 TD) erupted for his most yards since 2023 as the Chiefs outlasted the Colts, 33-30 (OT), on Sunday night. The two-time MVP engineered his 31st game-winning drive in the 4th quarter/OT (most in the NFL since 2018), and improved to 8-0 in regular-season overtime games in his career. Only the Jets: The Packers beat the Jets, 20-17 (OT), while becoming the first team on record (since 1941) to win a game with fewer than 200 total yards, more than 100 penalty yards and a negative turnover margin. Before today, such teams were 0-44. Sorry, Gang Green. Streak snapped: The Panthers blew out the Falcons, 34-3, to earn their first win as a favorite since 2021 after 12 such losses in a row. Believe it or not, Carolina has scored more points this season (71) than every team besides the Bills (77). CMC joins exclusive club: Christian McCaffrey scored twice in the 49ers 35-13 rout of the Dolphins, becoming just the third player in NFL history to score at least 50 touchdowns for multiple franchises (Panthers). The others? Hall of Famers Marshall Faulk (Colts, Rams) and Randy Moss (Vikings, Patriots). Dak passes Romo: Dak Prescott broke Tony Romo's franchise record with his 249th career touchdown pass in the Cowboys' 37-20 win over the Commanders. Washington, meanwhile, lost more than the game after Jayden Daniels left with a dislocated elbow. The rest: The Eagles avoided disaster with a last-second, 24-20 win over the Titans … the Broncos' offense finally came alive in a 20-13 win over the Jaguars … Jaxon Smith-Njigba (9 catches, 155 yards, 3 TD) and the Seahawks crushed the Cardinals, 31-7 … the Patriots smothered Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers in a 20-3 victory.   💯 STAT SHEET BIG NUMBERS (Christian Petersen/Getty Images) ⚾️ 1.16 ERA Yankees ace Cam Schlittler pitched another gem on Saturday in Arizona (6 IP, 1 ER), ending his season with a sparkling 1.16 ERA away from home. That's the fifth-best road ERA in a single season since ER became official in 1913 (min. 100 IP), and the best since Greg Maddux in 1995 (1.12). MVP? With one home start left, winning Cy Young should be a foregone conclusion for the righty who leads the AL in ERA (1.94), WHIP (0.91) and WAR (7.0), is second in innings (190.2) and third in strikeouts (234). The bigger question is whether he can beat out Yordan Alvarez and Junior Caminero to join Clayton Kershaw (2014) and Justin Verlander (2011) as the only full-time pitchers to win MVP this century. (Alexandra Beier/AFP via Getty Images) ⚽️ 100 goals Harry Kane's brace in Bayern Munich's rout of Union Berlin on Saturday gave him 101 goals in just 98 career games since arriving in Germany, absolutely smashing the record for fastest to the century mark in Bundesliga history. The previous record, set 49 years ago, belonged to Cologne's Dieter Müller (129 games). Zoom out: Kane's Bundesliga record ranks second among Europe's Big Five leagues, trailing only Cristiano Ronaldo's La Liga record set with Real Madrid (92 games). The Ligue 1 record belongs to Marseille's Josip Skoblar (100), the Premier League record belongs to Sunderland's Johnny Campbell (102) and the Serie A record belongs to AC Milan's Gunnar Nordahl (110). (Mark Blinch/Getty Images) 🏀 1,056 points Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell broke A'ja Wilson's WNBA single-season scoring record over the weekend, pouring in 1,056 points so far this year to eclipse Wilson's mark set in 2024 (1,021 points). Mitchell still has two games left to add to her tally, though it's worth noting she has the benefit of a 44-game schedule (up from 40 in 2024). More records fall: Minnesota's Olivia Miles, the presumptive ROY, broke Caitlin Clark's record for most points ever scored by a rookie (790); Atlanta's Rhyne Howard broke Sabrina Ionescu's record for most 3-pointers made in a season (132), and Mitchell is right on her tail (131); Atlanta's Angel Reese, who'd already broken Wilson's single-season rebounding record, has now created the 500-rebound club.   🏈 WEEK 3 REBELS GET REVENGE (Justin Ford/Getty Images) No one had a better weekend than Ole Miss, which moved up to No. 4 in the AP poll after winning Saturday's thrilling grudge match over LSU in Lane Kiffin's return to Oxford. Rebels 32, Tigers 24: Ole Miss started hot and held on late behind the brilliant play of QB Trinidad Chambliss, who's now the Heisman favorite after gashing LSU's defense to the tune of 363 yards and 3 total touchdowns. Kiffin, meanwhile, fell to 1-9 on the road against top-10 opponents as the Rebels got revenge on their former coach in the most satisfying way possible, writes Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger: On Wednesday night here, in this college town's famous entertainment district, the Square, Ole Miss fans filled the historic Lyric Theater for a special occasion. A roast of Lane Kiffin. Participants threw darts at cardboard cutouts of his effigy, unveiled a less-than-flattering bust of the coach and, from a mic'd podium, ridiculed the man who fled this place in a blaze of ever-loving glory for rival LSU. Three days later, the football-playing Rebels roasted Lane. Whose offensive line backpedaled all night in a trench beatdown? Lane Kiffin's. Whose defensive secondary failed to cover receivers in a collapse? Lane Kiffin's. Whose offense didn't score until the final two minutes of the first half? Lane Kiffin's. Whose team fell behind 24-7, stormed back with a third-quarter rally and then lost against the very school he left nine months ago? Lane Kiffin's. Amid a hate-charged, booze-fueled sea of the angriest dang Southern folk you'd ever see, the party who was rejected in this star-crossed relationship, the one left in pieces, the lover abandoned at the altar, the Ole Miss Rebels, exacted their revenge on the one who got (flew) away. In the most satisfying roast imaginable, the final joke landed with quite the punchline: Ole Miss 32, Lane 24. For the Oxford crowd, for those madder'n hell, as they might say here, for those angrier than heck, ticked off, p'ed off and just plain unhappy, this one felt good. More from Saturday: Texas A&M tumbled 14 spots to No. 23 after a stunning 31-21 home loss to unranked Kentucky … Florida climbed into the poll at No. 21 after a 44-39 road win over Auburn … Louisville jumped seven spots to No. 16 after a 41-31 win over SMU that featured seven lead changes … Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith became the Buckeyes' all-time receiving yards leader in their rout of Kent State … and more.   📸 SNAPSHOTS THROUGH THE LENS (Premier Lacrosse League) 🇺🇸 Harrison, New Jersey The Philadelphia Waterdogs destroyed the Denver Outlaws, 14-4, on Sunday to win their second Premier Lacrosse League title. Second-year superstar CJ Kirst, named league MVP on Friday, also took home championship MVP honors after erupting for five goals and two assists. Tierney adds another: Bill Tierney retired from college coaching in 2023 after winning a Division I-record seven national titles at Princeton (6) and Denver (1). Now, three years into his tenure with the Waterdogs, the most decorated men's lacrosse coach of all time has added a professional title to his overflowing trophy case. Not the best day for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. (Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Brighton, England Brighton's hot start continued with Saturday's 3-0 thrashing of Arsenal, which snapped the Gunners' nine-game Premier League winning streak and handed them their biggest loss in a league fixture since May 2023… when they fell 3-0 to Brighton. City on top: Brighton (10 points) are in third and Arsenal (12) are now in second while Manchester City, which beat Sunderland 5-3, are the only side with a perfect 15 points through five matches. And City superstar Erling Haaland's 81st-minute goal means he's now scored against all 25 Premier League clubs he's faced. (Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC) 🇺🇸 Los Angeles, California Retired U.S. Marine Sean Sharaf stunned Gable Steveson on Saturday night at UFC 331, knocking out the Olympic gold medalist in just 12 seconds for the third-fastest finish in UFC heavyweight history. Giant, slayed: Steveson has been on the losing end of some shocking upsets lately, with this weekend's bout — where he was listed as high as a -1800 favorite — coming just 18 months after he was defeated by Oklahoma State's Wyatt Hendrickson in the 2025 NCAA wrestling championship.   📺 VIEWING GUIDE WATCHLIST: MONDAY, SEPT. 21 Aaron Donald before the Rams' playoff game in January 2024, the last time he played in an NFL game. (Ryan Kang/Getty Images) 🏈 Giants at Rams Week 2 ends tonight in Los Angeles (8:15pm ET, ABC/ESPN), where the surprisingly 0-1 Rams host the surprisingly 1-0 Giants, who seek their first 2-0 start since 2022. He's back: Aaron Donald is expected to make his season debut tonight, marking the three-time DPOY's first game since January 2024. And with fellow pass-rushing menace Myles Garrett (knee) missing at least the next four weeks, Donald's role on the Rams — and how he looks in his return from retirement — is of even greater importance. More to watch: ⚾️ MLB: Blue Jays at Orioles (6:35pm, ESPN+) … The final week of the regular season begins with two teams on the fringes of the AL Wild Card race, with Toronto (77-79) three games back of the final spot and Baltimore (75-81) five games back. 🏀 WNBA: Dream at Liberty (8pm, Peacock/NBCSN); Wings at Mercury (10pm, USA) … The battle for playoff seeding takes center stage with just four days left in the regular season.   🏀 LET'S PLAY TRIVIA TIME The 1992 U.S. Men's Olympic Basketball Team. (Andrew D. Bernstein/ NBAE/ Getty Images) 35 years ago today, the first 10 players on the "Dream Team" roster were announced ahead of the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Question: Who was the head coach of that team, pictured above? Hint: He coached the Pistons at the time. Answer at the bottom.   🏈 HOW?! MUSIC CITY MIRACLE 2.0 (Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images) Entering Saturday, college football teams were 1,046-1* in the past 20 seasons when they had the ball and the lead in the final 10 seconds. Now? Make that 1,046-2. The (new) Music City Miracle: NC State led Vanderbilt, 31-28, with six seconds left and the ball on their own 5-yard line when CJ Bailey scrambled into the end zone to take what would be a game-ending safety. Instead, he lost control of the ball and Vanderbilt recovered the fumble for a walk-off, 35-31 victory. Sports! *The other one? When Michigan's punter had "trouble with the snap" against Michigan State on Oct. 17, 2015, leading to a walk-off scoop-and-score by the Spartans and an all-time great meme.   Trivia answer: Chuck Daly

David Jolly: A complete ban on data centers in Florida should be ‘on the table’ CLEARWATER — David Jolly has already made it clear he’s a critic of large-scale data centers, for which Floridians continue to express disapproval up and down the state. https://floridaphoenix.com/2026/09/18/david-jolly-a-complete-ban-on-data-centers-in-florida-should-be-on-the-table/? Bryan Avila avoids comment on claim Trump’s ‘gone too far’ on deportations TAMPA — The Tampa Tiger Bay Club had hoped to hold a forum this month between the two major party candidates for governor, Republican Byron Donalds and Democrat David Jolly. After the Donalds campaign cited a scheduling conflict, aides offered his running mate, former Miami-Dade County state Sen. Bryan Avila, to speak in his stead. https://floridaphoenix.com/2026/09/18/bryan-avila-avoids-comment-on-claim-trumps-gone-too-far-on-deportations/? Film explores the sack of New College Ron DeSantis and his over-paid, under-qualified, anti-education Visigoths have been on a mission to ruin every college and university in Florida. https://floridaphoenix.com/2026/09/21/film-explores-the-sack-of-new-college/?

Man critically injured, police officer wounded in gunfire near Ontario synagogue on Yom Kippur TORONTO (AP) — A police officer and a man were wounded in an exchange of gunfire Sunday near a synagogue in Ontario as members of the Jewish community marked Yom Kippur, authorities said. The man was hospitalized in life-threatening condition. https://apnews.com/article/police-officer-shot-synagogue-belleville-ontario-7cba23616c7ceeebe76ae54656537202?

The Iran war is driving clean energy development. It’s not enough to help the planet, yet The Associated Press talked to a dozen experts who said that while the Iran war appears to be helping the adoption of clean energy, the world is still heavily dependent on fossil fuels. They said it will take more time for new policies to show results. Read more. What to know: So far, more than 30 governments have enacted policies to move away from fossil fuels or improve energy efficiency in response to the Middle East conflict. Yet at the same time, global emissions of greenhouse gases increased slightly and investments in clean energy fell compared to the same period last year. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Iran-backed Houthi rebels warn against joining Saudi Arabia in Yemen’s growing civil war Climate change made deadly Nepal glacier and rock collapse more likely, according to analysis How Africa’s biggest cities are grappling with mounting waste and shrinking space Scientists hope deeper-rooted soybeans can withstand climate extremes and store more carbon

Main Kremlin party keeps control of Russia’s parliament after a carefully orchestrated vote Results from over 95% of the polling stations gave the Kremlin’s United Russia party just under 58% of the vote, according to the Central Election Commission. Most opposition candidates were excluded from the election. Read more. Why this matters: It was the first parliamentary election since President Vladimir Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and the first to include residents of four regions of that country that were seized and illegally annexed by Moscow later that year. Voting also was held in Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014. Kyiv denounced the voting in those regions as illegal. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Russia’s wartime economy faces long-term erosion from debt and military spending As Russian strikes destroy millions of books, Ukraine’s literary future hangs in the balance A personal account of daily life in Kyiv amid intensified Russian attacks, in photos WATCH: Ukrainian children learn 17th century Cossack survival skills

US proposes AI incident alert system in talks with China, Bessent says Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday the U.S. has proposed a new “notification mechanism” for artificial intelligence incidents that could affect national security. Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the groundwork had been laid for talks between President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping at the White House this Thursday. Read more. Why this matters: Trump has resisted calls to slow down AI development, saying that would help China catch up to U.S. companies. “We think that just like any cross-border activity, that moving from opaque to more transparency between the No. 1 and the No. 2 AI powers in the world is very important,” Bessent told reporters after talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York. Bessent and Greer also said the two sides had agreed to operationalize a new “Board of Trade” that the two leaders had discussed when they met in Beijing in May. Greer said the countries were still discussing what “nonsensitive” items could be considered for lower tariffs, but that the list could potentially include consumer and agricultural goods, energy products and medical devices. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Oil prices are high but could be much worse. Trump has China’s Xi to thank for that CNN, MS NOW, Politico say they’ve notified Trump they’re suing over denied White House access Trump decries Democrats as ‘communists,’ even as he looks to impress China’s communist leader Trump and Mamdani plan to meet in New York during the president’s upcoming UN visit ICE agent shoots and wounds man in Austin, Texas, officials say Trump administration begins building border wall in Texas’ Big Bend region Federal Reserve rate hike reflects new world of sticky inflation and faster growth Redistricting arms race reshaped House districts for 1 in 10 Americans Alaskans will decide fate of ranked choice voting system after chaotic end to state’s primary Trump pushes his $5,000 ‘dividend’ pledge if GOP wins midterms. Republican candidates, not as much

CNN, MS NOW, Politico sue over denied White House access, citing First Amendment NEW YORK (AP) — CNN, MS NOW and Politico on Monday sued President Donald Trump’s administration days after they were barred from White House grounds, calling the selective ban — based on the content of their coverage — illegal and a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment. Trump said in a post that he ”cherished” a free press but not “FAKE NEWS.” https://apnews.com/article/trump-ban-ms-now-media-cnn-politico-72f9acf68244ca70e9078d9d3661c722?

September 21, 2026 By Sam Sifton Good morning. It’s Yom Kippur. If you’re observing, I hope you have an easy fast. Here are some ways American Jews are finding meaning in their observance this year. There’s a great deal of news below. But first, you had questions about the midterm elections. We took them to our colleagues. Chase Castor for The New York Times, Saul Martinez for The New York Times, Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Associated Press, Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times Your politics questions By Adam B. Kushner I edit this newsletter. The primaries are over and the midterms are 43 days away. The final story lines have begun to take shape. The polls look grim for Republicans, and the party out of power generally fares well in midterms. Inflation, the Iran war and low approval ratings stalk President Trump. Republicans are playing defense in what would normally be safe races. Even the MAGA faithful in Congress are distancing themselves from the president. (Read these dispatches from Iowa and Florida about G.O.P. members there who’ve had enough.) But the Democrats would need an extraordinary run of victories to retake the Senate — including “at least two seats where Mr. Trump won by at least 11 points in the last election,” as Nate Cohn, our chief political analyst, put it. “That’s really tough, even in a wave year.” Meanwhile, Democrats may get control of the House, but fewer districts than ever are competitive. Today we’re answering your questions about the election and looking at the pickle in Missouri. Your questions Trump said every American will get $5,000 if Republicans sweep in the midterms. He’s offering a big check in exchange for my vote. Is that legal? — Jane Bergwin-Rand | College Park, Maryland Federal law prohibits paying individuals to vote or not vote. But because this (very) hypothetical $5,000 check would ostensibly go to every American adult, experts said it did not seem too different from a candidate’s promise to cut taxes. The U.S. Supreme Court also ruled in 1982 that such payments generally constitute protected political speech “so long as the hoped-for personal benefit is to be achieved through the normal processes of government, and not through some private arrangement.” — Bayliss Wagner, who covers politics Does donating to candidates really make a difference in the outcome? In the Florida Senate primary, Angie Nixon beat Alex Vindman even though he’d out-raised her 16-to-1. What kind of spending really moves the needle for a candidate? — Nancy Moeller | Roswell, Georgia History is full of examples of candidates being badly outspent and still winning. Just look at 2024, when former Vice President Kamala Harris spent roughly twice as much as President Donald Trump — and still lost. One way to think about money in campaigns is that while a sizable war chest is necessary to win, it’s not always sufficient. A campaign does not need to match the other side’s spending to win. It just needs enough money for viability (paying staff members and traveling to events) and getting out the message in ads. — Lisa Lerer, who has covered four previous midterm elections Not all that long ago, QAnon seemed so influential. Now I hear little about the group. Is it still active? What is it up to? Who are its leaders and adherents? — Glenn Steckler | Telluride, Colorado The QAnon movement is dead. But its conspiratorial approach to politics lives on. The movement’s figurehead, known only as Q, stopped posting, and much of his movement has been absorbed by the Republican Party, according to experts. Some of Q’s supporters stopped discussing the arrest of Democrats and pedophiles and now speak about the MAGA movement. Many QAnon followers became active in the anti-vaccine communities. Claims about sex trafficking morphed into a focus on transgender Americans and Jeffrey Epstein. Trump’s administration winks and nods at QAnon on social media. — Stuart Thompson, who covers online influence Missouri’s new map Source: Associated Press (election results). Leanne Abraham/The New York Times It’s a chaotic cycle all around: The Supreme Court has already rejected the administration’s plan to restrict certain mail-in ballots, and several states are dealing with new congressional maps. One of them is Missouri, which redrew its boundaries last year at Trump’s urging and had voters pick congressional nominees based on the new lines. Then the state’s Supreme Court said the new map was void unless Missouri residents voted for it in a referendum. (They have not.) So although they nominated their representatives to Washington on one map, they’re set to elect them on another. My colleague Mitch Smith reported this colorful story from Columbia and Jefferson City about all the confusion. More on the elections Tucker Carlson is promoting Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan. The cryptocurrency industry is mounting an aggressive ad campaign against Sherrod Brown, the Democrats’ Senate candidate in Ohio. A surprising number of pastors are running as Democrats this year. Can the party reclaim the Christian moral high ground? South Dakota’s Republican secretary of state, who oversees elections, backed a Democrat to replace her. Who’s winning? Here’s how we’re assessing the state of play. FREE TO READ Near Richardson, Texas. Jordan Vonderhaar for The New York Times Drone invasion: Residents of a Dallas suburb can get Amazon packages in as little as 30 minutes. Some say it’s not worth it. Champagne, caviar, Sinatra: The Iranian Embassy in Washington was once known for glamorous parties. Could it ever reopen? Metropolitan diary: A tight spot. Holy infestation, Batman!: Bats have taken over a 19th-century estate that served as Wayne Manor in “Batman Begins.” Your pick: The most clicked link in The Morning yesterday was about a mother’s decision to send her child to a low-performing public school — and what happened next. THE LATEST NEWS Trump Administration Models of Trump’s arch from last year. Doug Mills/The New York Times Trump said his triumphal arch would house drones and snipers, as the administration seemed prepared to justify building it on national security grounds. Times exclusive: Trump said the United States would not join Saudi Arabia, for now, in strikes against the Houthis, the Iran-backed militia in Yemen. The administration is drafting an executive order to allow Trump greater control over government grants for biomedical research. Immigration An ICE agent shot and wounded a Venezuelan immigrant during a pursuit in Austin. It’s the latest incident involving federal agents and people in cars. Sikh truckers are on edge after one driver was ambushed and repeatedly stabbed at a Wyoming rest stop. Around the World Germany’s far-right AfD did well in more state elections, coming in first in a small eastern state and third in Berlin. An exchange of gunfire injured a police officer outside a synagogue near Ontario, Canada, as congregants gathered to mark Yom Kippur. An Israeli man was shot and killed in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli authorities said they had detained a Palestinian suspect. For decades, Mexico City has dumped waste in a reservoir known as the Endhó Dam. In the video below, our reporter Emiliano Rodríguez Mega describes what it’s like to live near a place that locals call the world’s largest cesspool. Click to watch. The New York Times Other Big Stories Patrick Clancy said he dreams about his children “all the time” in his first interview since his ex-wife Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial ended in a mistrial. Times exclusive: “Hacker house” mansions can be a place for young tech workers to make connections. One of the most prominent has also racked up an extensive police record. OPINIONS Times Opinion asked seven people, including Senator Bernie Sanders, Susan Rice, a former national security adviser, and Jack Dorsey, a co-founder of Twitter, about what role the government should take in A.I. regulation. Political neutrality for celebrities is a misguided notion, Roxane Gay writes: Just look at the way Macklemore got dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour. Introducing the Shows tab. A new place to find and follow podcasts in audio and video. Explore Shows in The Times app. TODAY’S NUMBER 30,000 — That is how many square feet for amenities developers put into an office-to-residential conversion in the Financial District of Manhattan, including a “creator’s room” for making art, a cafe, a co-working space, a bowling alley and a lab where you can analyze your golf swing. They have their reasons. SPORTS W.N.B.A.: The Minnesota Lynx phenom Olivia Miles passed Caitlin Clark on the league’s list for most points scored in a rookie season. M.L.B.: Duane Kuiper, whose smooth voice and wit have been hallmarks of San Francisco Giants broadcasts for more than four decades, is being treated for throat cancer. RECIPE OF THE DAY Nico Schinco for The New York Times My daughter came home with a 44-ounce box of dates from Costco, and it’s going to be a week of date shakes and studded bran muffins for us. I’ll also use a bunch for this marvelous recipe for brown-butter dates with ras el hanout that Ligaya Mishan prized from the chef Michael Rafidi at Albi in Washington, D.C., a perfect accompaniment for roast lamb and couscous. Date night! WHO’S THE CLOWN? Audrey Hobert Caroline Tompkins for The New York Times Is Audrey Hobert the most honest voice in pop music right now? That’s the question Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli take up with the singer-songwriter on the latest edition of “Popcast,” The Times’s pop culture show. Hobert has a theory about why she seems so forthcoming: “The nature of this job is such that it’s rooted in an obsession with yourself,” she told them. “It’s the most self-obsessed job I’ve ever had.” More on culture The writer Emily St. John Mandel has a novel out this month, “Exit Party,” set in a near-future Los Angeles after a civil war breaks up the United States. (Our critic loved it.) T Magazine asked a former forensic artist for the New York Police Department to sketch the book’s protagonist, based on a description from the author. Meet Ari. Do you want to know the 10 things the actor Rob Lowe can’t live without? I do. “The Social Network” ushered in a stream of tech founder movies. This fall, the genre took a dark turn that reflects rising anger toward tech companies. THE MORNING RECOMMENDS Matt Chase Take a “novelty audit” and it might help you stop buying new stuff. Read “County Highway,” a periodical that its founders, the writer-editors David Samuels and Walter Kirn, call “America’s Only Newspaper.” It takes a subscription — but then the paper comes in the mail every two months, tactile and dense and filled with interesting sentences, and brings joy. Keep your feet dry with the best rain boots tested by the pluviophiles at Wirecutter. (Xtratuf 4 eva.) Test yourself on this quiz. The Times is celebrating its 175th birthday. How much do you know about our history? Take our news quiz. GAMES Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangrams were athletic and ethical. And here are today’s Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections, Crossplay and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times and me. See you tomorrow. — Sam Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at themorning@nytimes.com. Host: Sam Sifton Editor: Adam B. Kushner News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti News Staff: Evan Gorelick, Brent Lewis, Lara McCoy, Karl Russell Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch Editorial Director, Newsletters: Jodi Rudoren Deputy Editorial Director: Lauren Jackson

THIS DAY IN HISTORY September 21 1780 Benedict Arnold commits treason Arnold became synonymous with the word 'traitor.' read more Sponsored Content by REVCONTENT Arts & Entertainment 1985 George Clooney makes “Facts of Life” debut Asian History 1949 Mao Zedong outlines the new Chinese government Crime 1983 A 13-year-old newspaper delivery boy is found dead European History 1792 Monarchy abolished in France Landmarks 1915 Stonehenge is sold at auction LGBTQ+ History 1955 The Daughters of Bilitis become the first lesbian rights group in the U.S. Native American History 1904 The great Nez Perce leader Chief Joseph dies in Washington Natural Disasters & Environment 1999 Earthquake kills thousands in Taiwan 1938 The Great New England Hurricane Sports 2008 Last baseball game played at historic Yankee Stadium U.S. Presidents 1939 FDR urges repeal of Neutrality Act embargo provisions World War II 1942 The Superfortress bomber takes flight

🏛️ 1 ancient thing: All roads lead to ... A street in Ostia, the ancient seaport of Rome. Photo: Tom Brughmans via Reuters The Roman Empire's roads formed the backbone of the world's first continental-scale transportation system. Now, researchers have mapped the network — 190,000 miles of routes crisscrossing Europe, the Middle East and North Africa — in unprecedented detail. Many modern highways trace these ancient roads. 🕌 The study showed the old adage "all roads lead to Rome" was not exactly true. The empire's later imperial capital, Constantinople — now Istanbul — was a better fit for that maxim. Go deeper.

👀 Top names for AI czar Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Alex Grimm/Getty Images President Trump's announcement this weekend that he's forming an "AI Force," modeled on the Space Force he launched in his first term, caught advisers by surprise, Axios' Maria Curi reports. Officials and executives inside and outside the administration are now jockeying to be Trump's AI czar, which he said he'll name soon. The czar will likely be a seasoned surrogate with Silicon Valley ties who can spearhead an AI rebranding effort, sources tell us. 🦾 Among the names to watch: Scott Kupor, director of the Office of Personnel Management. Kupor has a degree in public policy and was Andreessen Horowitz's first employee. Sriram Krishnan, former senior White House AI policy adviser. Krishnan also worked at a16z and carried the torch for former AI czar David Sacks inside the White House after he left. Chamath Palihapitiya, Social Capital founder, CEO of 8090 and co-host of the All-In Podcast with Sacks and others. Sean Cairncross, White House national cyber director. Cairncross played a role in the administration's handling of the release of Anthropic's Mythos. Emil Michael, Pentagon CTO and under secretary for research and engineering. If the AI Force is housed in the Pentagon, Michael, who's also a former Uber executive, would be an easy fit. Keep reading.

Trump's future foretold President Trump feels and acts invincible: He acts on whims, however he pleases, precedent and restraints be damned, Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen write in a "Behind the Curtain" column. But Trump's vincibility is being exposed. Courts restrain him more. GOP candidates criticize him more. The public turns on him more. Why it matters: Time, power and support wane for all lame-duck presidents. But it's new for Trump and will only grow more true and more torturous, assuming Democrats win Capitol power in the midterms, 43 days from now. This is what the beginning of the end looks like, which is what scares Trump advisers and confidants most. Trump often retreats to his worst impulses when he feels most powerless. That helps explain Trump's decision to ban three news organizations from the White House for the sin of reporting what he doesn't like. Trump lashed out at the outlets (which vow court challenges) after a weeklong string of losses: The Fed raised interest rates against his will ... The Supreme Court rejected his plan to restrict mail-in ballots ... A federal judge blocked him from putting his name on the Kennedy Center ... A Florida Republican, Rep. María Elvira Salazar, bought a campaign ad saying ICE has gone too far and Hispanic voters "feel betrayed" ... A gallon of gas was up $1.24 from a year ago ... Diesel set a record. 🧠 How Trump's brain works: The skeleton key for unlocking Trump's mind is understanding that he thinks constantly about exercising power, and believes power is a zero-sum game — a winner and a loser. Exercising power is the explanation for banning the media, for unpopular tariffs, for bombing Iran, for demolishing the East Wing, for obsessing about a new ballroom and gilding D.C. Trump announced at 7:30 a.m. yesterday that he wants his planned golden arch to have G.I. Joe-style capabilities "to house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus Snipers, on both the roof and plaza areas, and additionally have and hold large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage." There's a method to it all: If the Arc de Trump is for national security, the courts and Congress will have a tougher time reining in the executive. Later yesterday morning, the president of the United States decided to engagement-farm on Truth Social by boosting a poll asking whether people think AI should be rebranded as either "Superior Intelligence" or "Extreme Intelligence." (You know he's gonna pick "superior," which of course will do nothing to calm Americans creeped out by the technology.) Expect more of this. Trump will act out to exert what control he can because he's lost the political argument — if not the military one — as his Iran war constantly puts the lie to his claims, raises fuel costs and, in tandem with his unpopular tariffs, saddles voters with inflation. The Fed's decision to hike interest rates can be read as a vote of no confidence in the president's economic agenda. The decision could raise mortgage rates, already at a 19-month high. 👀 Behind the scenes: Trump advisers and confidants describe him as generally in a good mood. But some privately confess he can get too cranky too quickly sometimes and that he's showing his 80 years on Earth. Senior administration officials, steeled by seasoned vets accustomed to the wild ride on the Trump crazy train, are officially acting as if it's just another day on the tracks. To them, Trump should ban more news organizations that agitate him; the Fed rate hikes aren't his fault (it's somehow Joe Biden's); the president will exert power as he sees fit; and his ballroom obsession is charming. "No Panicans Allowed," one official, using the Trumpworld version of Democrats' "bedwetters," told Axios' Marc Caputo. Between the lines: House Dems can practically taste the majority, and they're showing signs of just how much they'll investigate Trump's administration and family. As is customary, staff is leaving as Trump approaches his final midterm. It's unclear who'll come after and how experienced they'll be. You can bank on this: Trump will issue blanket pardons to those who stay and those he perceives as loyal. ⚖️ Podcaster Katie Miller, a Trump 1.0 vet and wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, wrote Saturday on X in response to a post about looming pardons: "After the first Trump administration, my family spent money we did not have on lawyers because of multiple partisan Democrat led investigations into President Trump." "I watched as many of my friends also had no idea how to pay expensive legal bills because they simply served their country," she added. "You can't convince me Democrats won't do this again." As the first president who was impeached twice, Trump began war-gaming last year for an impeachment fight in 2027-28. As long as the GOP maintains Senate control or as long as there isn't the threat of removal by a two-thirds Senate vote after an impeachment, Trump is signaling he's ready for battle. "The president can count to 67," a longtime adviser told Caputo. "And he has bigger balls than anyone in D.C." The bottom line: Yes, Trump commands loyalty or at least blind silence from most elected Republicans. They fear him. But with each passing day, Democrats, the courts, critics — even some congressional Republicans — feel more capable of restraining Trump and are starting to think about what comes after him.

The entire world population could fit in Texas, allotting 890 square feet per person. The area of Texas is about 262,000 square miles. James

Republican Mike Rogers courts Michigan Democrats and Trump voters as GOP hopes to hold the Senate Mike Rogers stood outside Cody High School on Detroit’s west side on a recent drizzly morning and decried Michigan's decline in reading achievement. Read More. Alaskans will decide fate of ranked choice voting system after chaotic end to state's primary Even after the last votes were counted from Alaska's primary election, the final slate of candidates was far from settled. Read More.

Tropical Storm Fay forms far out in the Atlantic as Odalys strengthens in the Pacific A new tropical storm formed Sunday in the northern Atlantic Ocean but does not appear to pose a threat to land. Read More. Tropical Storm Polo forms off southwestern Mexico MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Polo formed late Sunday off southwestern Mexico. https://apnews.com/article/tropical-weather-polo-mexico-d577337f3e70fbf4f0c7dac7902edb4e?

In Chile, even beloved hot dogs feel the economic squeeze It is lunchtime in downtown Santiago, and dozens of businesses around the Plaza de Armas are serving up one of Chile’s most democratic specialties: the “completo.” Read More.

Rising gas prices frustrate voters. Trump says it's an 'inexpensive price to pay' for the Iran war Quinten Martinez, pumping gas under a hot South Texas sun, remembers a time when fueling up didn't require difficult decisions. Read More. ps:LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

ICE agent shoots and wounds man in Austin, Texas, officials say AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and wounded a man Sunday afternoon in Austin, Texas, local authorities said, and anti-ICE protesters quickly gathered at the scene. https://apnews.com/article/austin-texas-ice-shooting-immigration-37653feb8e2c5f5a85d64c5a6a38cba5?

Interpol has a new tool to track down loot that criminals are stashing away around the world LYON, France (AP) — Interpol is rolling out a new tool to help police track down hidden criminal assets and an Italian crime boss was one of the first to feel its effects. https://apnews.com/article/interpol-france-italy-brazil-crime-police-b2f7e1c985b737461b814fa7c5d8ac21?

Florida confirms a death from dengue as the state struggles with one of its worst recent outbreaks NEW YORK (AP) — Florida is experiencing one of its worst surges of dengue fever in decades, and the toll now includes a death. https://apnews.com/article/dengue-death-florida-mosquito-climate-57574815fdca4f8bc3336bb429a3d1fc?

Ukraine fires over 1,000 drones at Russia, including ‘largest ever’ attack on Moscow Ukrainian forces fired more than 1,000 drones at Russia overnight, including hundreds that were launched toward Moscow, officials said Sunday, as the Kremlin was wrapping up the third and last day of its parliamentary elections. https://apnews.com/article/ukraine-russia-war-drones-moscow-5f7889d027c0247ca2c2c64425b9ffa9? Ukraine Strikes Moscow Ukraine launched over 1,000 drones at Russia on Sunday, killing four people and injuring at least 20 others. Russian officials said its air defense forces shot down 450 drones approaching Moscow in what was the largest attack on the capital since the war began in 2022 (see video of aftermath). The drones struck a residential building and the Moscow oil refinery, which supplies roughly 40% of the city’s fuel. The attack came on the final day of Russia’s first parliamentary election since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The vote extended into four Ukrainian territories that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 and in Crimea, which Russia seized in 2014 (see map of controlled regions). Russian officials say the regions have over 3.5 million voters; Ukrainian authorities contend the process is illegal. Frontline movement in the war has slowed in recent months. Russian forces advanced just 15.7 square miles from December 2025 to May 2026—a 92% decline from the same period a year earlier (see graphs).

A humpback whale was spotted in a California river, 60 miles from its Pacific Ocean home ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Denny Glover was hoping for a big catch when he went fishing with buddies on the Sacramento River, but he wasn’t expecting a fully grown humpback whale. https://apnews.com/article/humpback-whale-california-river-7682fa0608fb5c66b22e035f3095a33a?

Denmark’s leaders are cautiously optimistic about Trump’s announcement of a Greenland deal Denmark’s government was cautiously optimistic on Saturday following Donald Trump’s announcement of a deal on Greenland to bolster U.S. military presence there but keep the island under Danish control, after months of threats by the U.S. president to seize the semiautonomous territory of a NATO ally. Denmark and the U.S. already have a long-standing security agreement that allows the U.S. to deploy forces in Greenland, and it was not immediately clear how this deal would be different from that. Read more. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ WATCH: Residents of Copenhagen welcome Greenland deal What the EU’s offer of ‘associate member’ to Canada might mean Preparing to leave office, with world beset by problems, UN chief talks of a way forward

🖼️ 1 for the road: L.A.'s new museum The new 300,000-square-foot Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in L.A.'s Exposition Park. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images "Star Wars" creator George Lucas called his Lucas Museum of Narrative Art a "temple to the people's art." Seventeen years after it was first envisioned, it'll open to the public on Tuesday in Los Angeles. The museum mixes popular and commercial art with fine art, drawn largely from the collections of Lucas and his wife and co-founder, businesswoman Mellody Hobson. What you'll see: 💫 The "Star Wars in Motion" exhibit shows vehicles used in the original trilogy and the Lucas-directed prequels. The outdoor paths feature statues of Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia, Natalie Portman's Padmé Amidala, Yoda and Grogu. 🎨 There are paintings by Norman Rockwell and Frida Kahlo and murals by Banksy and Diego Rivera. 🐶 "Poker Game," Cassius Marcellus Coolidge's kitschy 1894 painting of a group of dogs playing cards, hangs steps from a Kahlo self-portrait — a perfect merger of high and low art. Go deeper.

🇨🇳 AI state dinner Photos: AFP via Getty Images Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in D.C. this week for the first state visit by a Chinese leader in more than a decade: AI will be a focus of the Trump-Xi summit at the White House on Thursday, and top tech moguls have scored invitations to the hot-ticket state dinner in the East Room. On the guest list, per Axios' Maria Curi and Courtenay Brown: David Sacks, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Apple executive chair Tim Cook, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon, Citi CEO Jane Fraser, Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, plus Michael Dell, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. 🛬 When Xi's plane lands at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday, Trump will be there to greet him. Trump typically meets foreign leaders at the White House. More on the visit.