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🖼️ 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.

💰 Trump 2.0's market Data: Financial Modeling Prep. Chart: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals We're 20 months into President Trump's second term. Axios' Dan Primack reports on how the stock market's performance stacks up against past presidencies: The market soared during the first 20 months of President Trump's second term, but slightly underperformed the same period of his first term. Why it matters: Trump considers the stock market to be a proxy for the economy, even though many economists disagree, Dan Primack writes. By the numbers: The S&P 500 rose nearly 27.6% between inauguration day and this past Friday's close, compared to 28.5% during his first term. The gap at 20 months is closer than it was at the one-year mark, with Trump 2.0 leapfrogging former President Biden but still trailing former President Obama. Zoom in: Trump 2.0 trails Trump 1.0 on the Dow and Nasdaq, but is ahead on the Russell 3000. Dow Jones Industrial Average: Trump 2.0: 18.8% Biden: 0.3% Trump 1.0: 33.8% Obama: 28.1% Nasdaq Composite: Trump 2.0: 35.1% Biden: -12.6% Trump 1.0: 43.5% Obama: 51.4%

Trump plans AI Force Via Truth Social President Trump said he's creating an "AI Force" modeled on the Space Force and will soon name a new AI czar. Why it matters: Trump is doubling down on accelerating AI development with limited regulation, even as the industry's biggest leaders call for stronger safety rules and as public fears grow, Axios' Andrew Pantazi writes. The latest: Trump offered few details on what this AI Force would actually do, what budget it would have or where it would be placed in the federal government. His Truth Social post said the government would "not in any way hinder or stifle" AI's growth but would look for "BAD" behavior using "our already existing Criminal and Civil Justice System." The intrigue: The AI czar position would revive a role that the White House didn't plan to fill six months ago. David Sacks left the formal AI and crypto czar job in March, though he remains influential as co-chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Read on.

September 20, 2026 Good morning. One of the most challenging decisions parents face is where to enroll their child in school. Today we look at how one mother approached that choice. Najya Hannah-Jones Wayne Lawrence for The New York Times Reality bites By Adam B. Kushner I used to be the education editor at The Washington Post. A decade ago, Nikole Hannah-Jones made an astonishing choice. She would not send her daughter to kindergarten at one of New York’s selective elementary schools (largely populated by wealthy, white children). Instead, Najya would attend a segregated, high-poverty school. Parents usually claw at every possible advantage for their children. But Nikole argued in an essay for The New York Times Magazine that the only way to lift up the city’s segregated schools was to enroll in them. The idea made a big impression on me. My family had sent our oldest child to an unremarkable D.C. public school, and we planned to stay. We were part of the community, and that was our civic obligation. We got involved, we lobbied for better instruction, we helped raise money. Maybe you can’t improve a system by leaving it, but it turned out that joining it didn’t work either: By the time our son was in fourth grade, he was on level with his peers — and well behind where my wife and I had been growing up. We’d just had a third child. We moved to a nearby suburb feeling like we’d betrayed an ideal. Nikole stuck with it, though — until Najya began wondering, in middle school, why her education was subpar. What happened next is the subject of today’s cover story in The Times Magazine. I spoke to Nikole about it. Adam: After your 2016 piece, some readers said you were sacrificing your daughter’s future on the altar of your principles. I wondered if I was doing the same thing. Nikole: I didn’t agree with that critique. My child had many advantages, and I believed she’d be OK. Najya on the cover of The New York Times Magazine in 2016. Photograph by Henry Leutwyler Over the years, you pushed her schools to keep high standards, sometimes with frustrating results. Then your daughter confronted you in seventh grade. What did she say? She was thinking of high school and college, so she’d looked up her middle school and saw its test scores and ranking. She asked: Did I know that it was bad when I chose to send her there? Why would I do that? Was she right? It’s very hard for a 12-year-old to put her experience in a larger context of inequality and injustice. That middle school serves the kids who show up at its doors, even if they have disabilities, behavior problems or academic gaps. Educators were doing their best in an immorally unequal system. Did she get your argument? In her mind, just because other kids are suffering and there’s inequality doesn’t mean she has to suffer. She told me: “I had to live through the school. You didn’t.” She believes I was trying to help all these other kids when she should have been my primary interest. She is, and has been! But she doesn’t see it that way, and I understand why. You say you judged people who professed to believe in equality but wouldn’t do something about it. Then it became clear, as you write, that “my daughter’s sacrifice could not transform a system that those who hold the most power refuse to change.” What’s your advice for parents now? I don’t know! This experience has been so humbling to me. I hope there are still parents willing to try. But I also know, and have always known, that individual parents cannot transform the system. So it’s also important to create a political will for integration policy. When it was time to apply for high school, Najya targeted the sort of selective schools that you argue reinforce segregation. How did she make her case to you? “I want to go to the best public school,” she said, and she didn’t care about the racial makeup of the school. She wanted to go to a great college. She often said she wanted to be a doctor. She believed the education she’d received thus far wouldn’t prepare her for all that. Of course, I’m excited and grateful I have an ambitious child who wants the best education. I’m proud of her. But all children deserve these opportunities, not just those who get them because of the accident of their birth. She applied, and got in, to a competitive public high school. As the parent of a teenager, I’m awed by her industry, her force of will. How’d it go at her new school? Culturally, it was very difficult for Najya, and she thought of leaving in the first weeks. And the academics were challenging. She wasn’t used to the workload, the rigor of the curriculum. Intellectually, she could handle it, but she didn’t have the study skills yet. But given the proper supports, she was able to catch up quickly. Nikole and Faraji Hannah-Jones at home in Brooklyn. Wayne Lawrence for The New York Times You write honestly — wrenchingly — about the cost of your convictions: “I felt overcome with regret.” Najya “looked to me to protect her, to give her what she needed to thrive. And I had not chosen her.” It’s not my place, but I absolve you. What else can a family do about injustice? Even a New York Times reporter who covers school segregation was no match for this system of inequality, not even in one elementary school. You cannot expect parents alone to change the system. Politicians and policymakers have to do it. Still, my biggest fear in writing this piece is that people will feel like it gives them a license not to try. Najya is 16 now. How does she feel about you telling this story? I asked her permission to report it in the first place, and then I asked if she wanted to be photographed for the story. She’s angry about the choices that my husband and I made, and she wanted to have her say. Did she really want people to know she had failed algebra after middle school? Her answer impressed me: “Well, it’s true.” But when I showed her a draft, she didn’t feel I was hard enough on myself. So I tried to capture the conflict. In the years since my original essay, I’ve moved through the world with the unearned valor of people commending me for the strength of my choice. Now I felt I owed it to her to tell the truth. Read Nikole’s searching story — and Najya’s take on it — here. FREE TO READ Luis Antonio Rojas for The New York Times Rolling away: An annual melon race in Xalapa is not only one of Mexico’s most colorful traditions but also one of its most random. See more photos. Times Investigation: DraftKings used customer records and A.I. to create and target ads to encourage betting. It has resisted using similar technology to protect gamblers at risk of addiction. Stalemate: A fault line in Myanmar’s civil war runs through New York’s Upper East Side, where a diplomat for the ousted government shares a townhouse with officials tied to the military-backed one. Each side is afraid the other could change the locks. The Shift: The world is finally waking up to A.I.’s dangers, Kevin Roose writes. In his farewell column, he reflects on the good and the bad. Stuck: An Indiana prosecutor’s law school debt should have been canceled after years of regular payments and public service. She’s still waiting. THE LATEST NEWS Journalism Betsy Klein of CNN. Doug Mills/The New York Times Journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico had their badges confiscated when they tried to enter the White House grounds after President Trump announced a ban on the outlets. Trump’s ban fits a pattern of using the government to crack down on his perceived enemies, experts say. More on Politics A new California law could fine influencers up to $5,000 per post if they do not disclose that they were paid to make political content. Trump’s proposal to exclude some immigrants from the 2030 census could cut House seats from red states. Artificial Intelligence Economists in China are warning that the government is investing too many resources into A.I. while the economy is in crisis. Trump has proposed an “A.I. Force.” It is unclear what the effort is meant to do. When you ask a chatbot for advice, whose values are you getting? The Believing newsletter looks at the people deciding A.I.’s moral code. Public Spaces The Times documented the political takeover of the Kennedy Center. Read our investigation. Maintenance projects at U.S. national parks have been put off as Trump focuses on projects in Washington. Around the World In Papua New Guinea. Matthew Abbott for The New York Times Rugby league is practically a religion in Papua New Guinea. Now, Australia is using the sport to try to counter China’s influence in the island nation. A group linked to Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for a mosque attack inside a police compound in Pakistan that lasted hours and involved a car explosion, a suicide bombing and armed attackers. Other Big Stories Ed Sheeran called the situation in Gaza “catastrophic” in his first concert since the rapper Macklemore was dropped from his tour after he said “Free Palestine” during earlier shows. Trump said that his son Donald Trump Jr. would repay a Russian businessman who helped finance his wedding party but that the payments were “totally allowed.” FROM OPINION Damon Winter/The New York Times Damon Winter, a staff photographer for Opinion, has spent innumerable hours in New York City’s subway system over nearly two decades. Take a look at the photos of what he calls the “M.T.A. Modern’s accidental art.” A Hyrox athlete soiled herself during a competition recently — and kept moving. It shows how unhinged fitness culture has become, Jessica Grose writes. Introducing the Shows tab. A new place to find and follow podcasts in audio and video. Explore Shows in The Times app. SPORTS College football: The L.S.U. coach Lane Kiffin returned to his old haunts at Ole Miss. The Rebels were out for revenge and got it — Ole Miss: 32, L.S.U.: 24. M.L.B.: The Yankees slugger Aaron Judge discussed why his calf injury was “more difficult” to play through than previous ones. He hopes to be back in time for the playoffs. BOOK OF THE WEEK By Elisabeth Egan There was a time when Ariel Lawhon felt like historical fiction’s best kept secret. That time is over; the word is out. With “The Pirate Queen,” Lawhon officially establishes herself as a talented spinner of old-world yarns. This one introduces readers to Grace O’Malley, a 16th-century Irish pirate queen previously pushed to the margins of history. Structured around the Trinity Knot, a Celtic symbol often representing the three phases of womanhood (maiden, mother, matriarch), our reviewer writes, “This propulsive 500-page book delivers a spirited, layered feminist historical chronicle of one woman who resists convention every step of the way.” To read our full review, go here. Looking for another historical novel? Go here. THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE Read this week’s magazine. THE MORNING RECOMMENDS … Try a countertop dishwasher if you’re tired of washing and drying by hand. Give someone a spoon as a gift. No, seriously. Manage screen time (and keep your kid safer online) with one of these parental control apps. Test your knowledge of nepo babies and Ryan Murphy shows. Try this crossword we devised, full of archive-inspired trivia, for The Times’s 175th anniversary. MEAL PLAN Joe Lingeman for The New York Times For dinner this week, you’ll want to try Sheela Prakash’s new shrimp dish. It’s a clever and delicious take on peperonata, a Southern Italian staple made with bell peppers and onion. We also recommend sheet-pan chicken thighs with spicy corn, Korean BBQ-style meatballs and more. NOW TIME TO PLAY Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangrams were biltong, blotting, bolting and bottling. Can you put eight historical events — including the opening of Ellis Island, the invention of the stethoscope and the writing of “The Decameron” — in chronological order? Take this week’s Flashback quiz. And here are today’s Mini Crossword, Wordle, Crossplay, Connections and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. Correction: In yesterday’s newsletter, we misidentified the location of a football game. The Iowa State University players were running onto the field at the University of Iowa. We also misspelled the name of our own team member Daniel Ajootian. Sorry, Iowans! Sorry, Daniel! 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 20 1973 Billie Jean King triumphs in “Battle of the Sexes” In the highly publicized tennis match, top women’s player 29-year-old Billie Jean King beats 55-year-old Bobby Riggs, a former No. 1 ranked men’s player. read more Sponsored Content by REVCONTENT 19th Century 1806 The returning Lewis and Clark reach the first white settlement on the Missouri American Revolution 1777 Redcoats kill Americans in Paoli Massacre Arts & Entertainment 1878 Upton Sinclair is born 1946 First Cannes Film Festival Asian History 1932 Gandhi begins fast in protest of caste separation Colonial America 1565 First European battle on American soil Crime 2012 Amish convicted in beard-cutting attacks Exploration 1519 Magellan sets sail from Spain LGBTQ+ History 2011 “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is repealed Natural Disasters & Environment 2002 Avalanche thunders into Russian village Sports 1988 Greg Louganis wins Olympic gold the day after suffering head injury U.S. Presidents 1881 Chester Arthur becomes third president to serve in one year 1963 Kennedy proposes joint mission to the moon

Putin’s ‘Personal Prisoner’ Issues Ominous Warning to Trump The Russian leader once vowed to hang him “by the balls.” But Mikheil Saakashvili says the day of Putin’s own violent end is growing nearer. Vladimir Putin has been thinking of ways to take revenge on his enemies for decades, but there was only one man who the Russian leader promised “to hang.” Mikheil Saakashvili, the former Georgian president and leader of the first color revolution in the post-Soviet space, shocked Putin during the first term of his 26-year rule, back in 2003. The revolution ousted the Moscow-friendly old guard in Tbilisi, brought a pro-Western government to power, and accelerated Georgia’s integration efforts with Europe and NATO, which the Kremlin saw as a betrayal. Now behind bars on charges he says were orchestrated by a “Russian agent,” Saakashvili is sending his old friend Donald Trump a wake-up call about cozying up to Russia and its allies in the Caucasus. The American president’s son, Eric Trump, has announced plans to visit Tbilisi to unveil the latest Trump Tower, a move that has raised eyebrows for the project’s links to Bidzina Ivanishvili, a pro-Kremlin oligarch sanctioned by the U.S. Saakashvili, who in 2015 received Ukrainian citizenship and automatically lost his citizenship in his native Georgia, has urged Trump to be under no illusions about the Kremlin and what its war in Ukraine means for the rest of the world. “I wrote several letters to Trump with pleas to help Ukraine. I am happy Trump didn’t abolish the pre-existing sanctions and even introduced some new ones. But certainly, much more is needed,” he told the Daily Beast. “Being soft on Russia’s regional allies is counterproductive,” he said of Georgia’s current leadership, which has increasingly leaned towards the Kremlin and begun adopting the same laws to persecute LGBT and “foreign agents.” “You have to make this part clear: if you are helping Putin in any way, you will be punished by the U.S. That also should be true about Georgia, which is actually aiding Russia to bypass sanctions. We are looking to U.S. leadership and any ambivalence has a huge demoralizing effect. America has to regain its moral leadership, for which we all loved it,” he said. “But going back to Ukraine, I have my 5-year-old daughter Jasmine under bombardment in Kyiv. And I know that her and countless other lives depend upon President Trump sending Patriot missiles to repel Russian attacks,” Saakashvili said. While Saakashvili has been in prison in his native country for nearly five years now—serving a 12.5-year sentence on embezzlement and abuse of power charges he and his allies say are politically motivated—the Kremlin has still sought to use him as an example for other leaders who defy Moscow. Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, promised late last month that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would suffer the same fate as Saakashvili. Medvedev was Russia’s president in 2008, when Saakashvili’s government ran a nation-wide vote on NATO membership. The relationship between Medvedev and Saakashvili rapidly deteriorated to open military conflict. “I am not surprised that Medvedev continues to mention me. I was demonstratively pushed behind bars—it was in many ways meant to please Putin. I was tortured and poisoned with heavy metals; it was certified by German and Californian labs,” Saakashvili said, describing himself as “Putin’s personal prisoner.” In December 2022, Saakashvili’s medical records showed “traces of mercury and arsenic” in his hair and nails, his legal team said. In June, the European Parliament demanded Saakashvili’s immediate release on humanitarian grounds so he could seek medical treatment. But even Saakashvili’s supporters agree that for as long as Putin has influence on the current Georgian government, Saakashvili will remain in jail. “Putin personally wants to see Saakashvili behind bars, using it as a warning for Zelensky, Pashinyan (the president of Armenia) and every leader who disobeys him,” exiled former mayor of Tbilisi, Giorgi Ugulava, told the Daily Beast. The current Georgian government and the billionaire who is widely regarded as its de facto leader, Ivanishvili, are doing business with both Moscow and Washington. This alignment with Moscow stands in stark contrast to the direction the country took when Saakashvili was president. By 2007, a few years after Saakashvili became president, the World Bank named Georgia the “world’s number one economic reformer.” Saakashvili won the war against corruption and built one of the world’s most successful civil societies. But his conflict with Moscow escalated to a war in 2008. In August 2008, Russian tanks rolled on Georgian soil, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy went to Moscow to broker a peace deal for Georgia. Putin told Sarkozy he had plans “to hang by the balls” Saakashvili, Sarkozy later revealed. And it didn’t sound like a joke—Russian tanks were less than 30 miles from the capital. “Sarkozy told me about the threat and when asked at an annual press conference if he promised to hang me by one place, Putin smirked, ‘Why only by one?’” Saakashvili told the Daily Beast. Saakashvili was a long-time friend and supporter of Donald Trump; the two used to discuss big real estate plans on the Black Sea. “When I was the president, Donald Trump highly praised my reforms; when I was in New York, he used to invite me to watch Broadway musicals together… Now, Russian propaganda says America used Saakashvili and abandoned him,” Saakashvili told the Daily Beast, adding that he had never requested to be on the U.S. swap list. Saakashvili took note of Trump’s envoy, John Coale, visiting Minsk earlier this week, where he announced the release of 25 Belarusian political prisoners in exchange for the U.S. lifting sanctions on two Belarusian business companies. “In one of my letters I praised him for freeing political prisoners in Belarus and asked to apply the same approach in Georgia, where the U.S. has all the leverage to achieve our freedom,” he said. But so far, his call has not been answered. In late August, when the world heard the news of the notorious “Butcher of Bosnia” Ratko Mladic dying in prison, Saakashvili recalled Mladic’s conviction in 2017 by the International Criminal Tribunal for “genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.” He thought of Putin, he said, and the inevitable outcome for the Russian leader: “I don’t see any scenario where Putin doesn’t end very badly. He either finishes like Ratko Mladic or will be hanged by those around him.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/putins-personal-prisoner-issues-ominous-warning-to-trump/?

Photos show the opening ceremony of the Asian Games held in Japan The opening ceremony of the Asian Games has marked the official start of the 16-day event.The games feature at least 11,000 athletes from 45 countries. The 43 sports being contested include Olympic disciplines like track and field and swimming along with Asian specialties like kurash, kabaddi, and sepaktakraw. Read More.

Telehealth companies keep exposing their customers' medical data. What should they do? The appeal of telehealth is easy to explain: Instead of calling a doctor, booking an appointment and hoping to eventually get a prescription, you can log onto an app or website and get approved for a new medication within minutes. Read More.

Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi tells the AP that Iranians paying the price for war and repression Iranians are suffering as economic misery and internal repression leave “no room for people to breathe” after 1½ years of wars, Iran's most prominent human rights activist has told The Associated Press. Read More.

Will AI models achieve the ability to improve autonomously? Leading labs say the scenario is near Once a distant ambition for technology researchers, the prospect of artificial intelligence models teaching themselves autonomously to be more efficient and capable appears ever closer to reality. Read More.

Lawsuit says Anthropic, OpenAI, SpaceXAI and Google made illegal agreement on AI slowdown A new lawsuit claims Anthropic, OpenAI, SpaceXAI and Google made an illegal deal to slow the pace of their respective AI development. https://apnews.com/article/antitrust-lawsuit-ai-slowdown-anthropic-openai-spacexai-google-960af4308161eaf4ed13c383b0ce1c1b?

Congo begins Ebola vaccinations for health workers in the epicenter of the outbreak Congo on Saturday began vaccinating healthcare staff against Ebola in Bunia, the epicenter of the fastest-growing outbreak of the disease in history as they are “particularly exposed and deeply involved in the response,” the provincial governor said. Read More.

Prescott defended the different translations and versions, and showed problems with the arguments presented here on the translations and versions. These arguments have been around for a long time.

💡 Nuclear reality check Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios Nuclear power's comeback is running into roadblocks, Axios' Alan Neuhauser writes. Why it matters: Investors piled into nuclear energy companies, expecting returns to rise alongside the power-hungry AI data centers. But enthusiasm is turning into frustration with the industry's long timelines, high costs and intense engineering challenges. 👀 Case in point: This week, engineering firm Holtec postponed its $900 million IPO. Holtec wants to be the first U.S. company to restart a retired nuclear reactor — at Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan — and the pitch had enough appeal to garner up to $1.52 billion in federal loan guarantees. But restarting isn't simple: Holtec twice delayed the reactor's start date after finding the equipment was in worse-than-expected condition. Then federal inspectors found that Holtec wasn't following radiation-exposure regulations. Zoom out: Nuclear and uranium stocks on the S&P 500 have plummeted nearly 29% since Jan. 1. Three advanced nuclear companies that went public this year have struggled: Fuel maker Standard Nuclear and reactor developers X-energy and Deep Fission are trading far below their list prices. 📉 The bottom line: Nuclear power could help ease the data-center power crunch, but it's not coming quickly.

🤔 Winning over AI skeptics Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios Practical applications of AI that keep people alive, safe and protected from scams help break through Americans' skepticism of the technology, Axios' Herb Scribner writes from a Morning Consult poll taken for Axios. Trust in AI jumped 14 points — from 41% to 55% — for these cases: 🪖 Helping others: A Veterans Affairs tool flagged more than 130,000 at-risk veterans and helped connect them to care. 💳 Fraud detection: An AI fraud-detection system flagged suspicious transactions quickly before any money was removed from an account. 💊 Cancer discovery: A Mayo Clinic AI tool spotted pancreatic cancer on CT scans up to three years before any diagnosis. 🌪️ Disaster relief: A tool called "GraphCast" was used to show how early warnings for hurricanes, floods and extreme heat can be detected. 🚒 Curbing fatal illness: An AI system at Johns Hopkins cut sepsis deaths by about 20% by flagging warning signs hours in advance.

Global gas crunch Data: Axios research. Chart: Noah Bressner/Axios The Iran war is driving up fuel prices worldwide, leading to angry protests around the globe and straining the economies of countries that have nothing to do with the war. Why it matters: The price surge squeezes consumers and strains governments trying to contain the shock — especially poorer countries with little money to spare, Axios' Ben Geman reports. What to watch: With no resolution to the conflict in sight, many governments face a hard choice — spend more money to keep prices down or face the political consequences of higher fuel costs. Dozens of nations have taken steps to cap, subsidize or lower taxes on various fuels, the International Energy Agency says. Governments are also taking steps to reduce demand, including more remote work and limiting government travel. Go deeper.

MS NOW, CNN and Politico say their journalists were denied access to White House after Trump ban NEW YORK (AP) — Reporters from three major news organizations — CNN, MS NOW and Politico — were denied access to the White House on Saturday, a day after President Donald Trump said he was barring them because of reporting he found to be “fake news.” https://apnews.com/article/trump-ban-ms-now-media-d160e253453229600ce54f8e91351523?

THIS DAY IN HISTORY September 19 1957 Nevada is site of first-ever underground nuclear explosion The United States detonates a 1.7 kiloton nuclear weapon in an underground tunnel in Nevada. The test, known as Rainier, was the first fully contained underground detonation. read more Sponsored Content by REVCONTENT 19th Century 1827 Jim Bowie stabs a Louisiana banker with his famous knife 1990s 1995 Unabomber manifesto published American Revolution 1777 Arnold and Gates argue at First Battle of Saratoga Arts & Entertainment 1952 John Steinbeck publishes ‘East of Eden’ 1960 Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” launches dance craze’ 1973 Country-rock pioneer Gram Parsons dies 2000 Michael Chabon’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel debuts Cold War 1959 Khrushchev barred from visiting Disneyland Latin American & Caribbean History 1955 Perón deposed in Argentina Natural Disasters & Environment 1985 Earthquake shakes Mexico City U.S. Presidents 1881 President James Garfield dies Vietnam War 1969 Nixon cancels draft calls for November and December Women’s History 1893 New Zealand first in women’s vote World War II 1941 Germans bombard Leningrad

September 19, 2026 Good morning. Fall officially begins on Tuesday, but evidence of the season seeps in more gradually. María Jesús Contreras Fading light By Melissa Kirsch In May, I grandly welcomed the longest unofficial summer: 2026 featured the earliest possible Memorial Day and the latest possible Labor Day, making for 15 full weeks between the two. Official summer is now also nearly gone, with the equinox arriving on Tuesday at 8:05 p.m. Eastern. Even as the greenmarket down the street continues to teem with 10 types of tomatoes, even as I check every weekend’s weather report for the stray September beach day, there’s no disputing this week’s astronomical deadline. As Rainer Maria Rilke’s poem “Autumn Day” declares: “Lord: it is time. The huge summer has gone by.” The huge summer has gone by! The clues are everywhere here in the Northeast: the patch of red in the maple canopy, the afternoons that feel like the sun is showing off, like if it shines hard enough maybe we’ll overlook the evening’s surprisingly sharp edge. The equinox is an exact global event, the moment the sun crosses the celestial equator, but evidence of fall seeps in more gradually: a whiff of wood smoke here, a rustle of leaves on the sidewalk there. Soon, more sweaters than T-shirts. Soon, more inside than out. September’s drop in daylight is dramatic: 77 minutes lost by the end of the month in New York, 98 in Seattle. At 6:30 a.m., the bedroom’s still dark, day’s arrival feels reluctant. At 6:30 p.m., it’s so dim we turn the lights on and it’s instantly, inevitably dinnertime. It’s easy to envision Halloween, possible even to picture Thanksgiving, Christmas: We know the shape of this season, these shadows, this descending dark. Cozy or bust! Cozy or you’re gazing at a frost-tinged window, counting down till March, and that’s no way to live. There’s always a period of figuring out how to be in the new season, how to wear these clothes, how to structure a Saturday when dusk comes on fast. It feels weird at first and then becomes routine. The path the sun follows is called the ecliptic, and it’s always exactly the same: autumnal and vernal equinox, summer and winter solstice. Our own ecliptics are looser. Some years we hunker down early; soups and ciders before Oct. 1. Other years we hold out; let’s try to eat outside one last time. The longest possible unofficial summer is, like it or not, always followed by the longest possible unofficial winter. We change the clocks on the first Sunday of November, and this year that’s Nov. 1, the earliest possible fall back. Daylight saving time won’t start again until March 14, 2027, the latest spring forward. Rather than dread the long winter, as is my inclination, this year I’m festooning it with plans, with activities that I hope will give the weeks an energy they’ve lacked in winters past. I’ve joined a choir; I’m taking French lessons. I’m armoring up, pre-resisting the cold-weather blues. Just having these things on the calendar has bestowed the coming fall with intrigue. But I’m getting ahead of myself. It’s still September. There’s still time to savor the season’s last gasp, the waning days of this longest, vanishing summer. THE LATEST NEWS Politics Outside the Kennedy Center last night. Demetrius Freeman for The New York Times Demonstrators formed a human chain around the Kennedy Center amid speculation that President Trump might try to demolish the building. Trump said he would ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, citing what he deemed “fake news.” It was unclear how such a ban would be enforced or legally defended. The cost of the war in Iran was $43.6 billion through Sept. 3, the Pentagon told Congress. Bombs and other munitions accounted for more than 60 percent of the total. (Congressional officials said the figures were almost certainly on the low side.) Artificial Intelligence President Trump and Mark Zuckerberg at the White House last year. Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times Trump has been calling fears that A.I. could threaten humanity a hoax. He is concerned that a slowdown by A.I. companies could lead to a recession. But some inside the White House are urging more caution. Google said that its A.I. system, Gemini, escaped its testing environment in May and hacked into three companies. Around the World Trump announced a deal to expand the U.S. security presence in Greenland. Denmark said the agreement recognized its sovereignty over the island — a description that would mean the deal fell far short of Trump’s previous demands. Kash Patel briefly halted some F.B.I. cooperation with Canada after the nation’s public broadcaster reminded reporters of a policy not to refer to the Sept. 11 attacks as “terrorism” without attribution. Witnesses said police officers had hooded, bound and beaten men the United States had deported to Equatorial Guinea. Iran, China and some Israeli firms used Chinese open-source A.I. models and agents to create first-of-their-kind autonomous influence campaigns. Other Big Stories The lone juror who voted to convict Lindsay Clancy in her triple murder trial said in a statement he had no doubt that she was guilty, defending himself against accusations from fellow jurors that he had failed to follow the law. Scientists discovered the first new feline species in a century. It’s called tilcayo, and its standard-bearer weighs three pounds and lived briefly as a house pet. It’s absolutely adorable. Warren Buffett, the 96-year-old who built one of the most successful investment firms in history, stepped down as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. He handed the reins to his son, who is 71. Our beat reporters answered your A.I. questions. COLLEGE SPORTS At Iowa State University. Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press This week, we wrote about Congress considering legislation to change the increasingly chaotic world of college sports. The bill would allow athletes to transfer schools only once without having to miss a season. Players would retain the right to compensation for their “name, image and likeness.” Critics say the legislation prioritizes the financial interests of the N.C.A.A. over that of players, and places restrictions on them that coaches don’t have. We asked you what you thought, and more than 400 responses poured in. Below are a few. — Daniel Altoojian Congress has bigger problems Seriously? Is this the role of the federal government? Don’t get me wrong, I am a die-hard U.C.L.A. fan — football and women’s basketball — but the last thing we need is the federal government’s involvement. — Stephanie Ashworth, Woodside, California Athletes should be students The current rules make a mockery of so-called college sports. The athletes are hired guns who have no real connection to the school. College athletes should be real students at the schools where they play. That means taking classes and meeting all the academic and other standards students have to meet. — Ted McClellan, South Portland, Maine Whatever happened to college as an educational institution? It’s time to create a minor league-type alternative for those who just want to get into the pros. Money and admission spots should be there for students truly seeking an education. — Karen White Lydia Ely/Associated Press Pay the players College athletes should be paid according to their market worth and have the freedom to work for other employers, just like other workers in this country. I say this as a devoted fan and season ticket holder of my local college teams. Fans will get over it and still cheer for the college team of their choice. — Paul Rozycki, Minneapolis, Minnesota Stay in (one) school Teams play better when they stay together, and last time I looked, football and basketball were not individual sports. — Susan, St. Louis, Missouri I enjoyed college sports much more when players would return. I learned the names of the players and looked forward to their prospects. I support restricting the number of transfers, and I even support limiting the amount of income that a transferred athlete can receive. — Omer Erdmann, Holly Springs, North Carolina THE WEEK IN CULTURE Film and TV “Wildwood,” a new stop-motion film, features a giant golden eagle. To make it, the studio combined 3-D printing, motorized wings and nearly 12,000 glued feathers. “The History of Concrete” is nominally about the stuff sidewalks are made of. But as always with the director John Wilson’s work, it takes a weird turn. Music “Spiritual jazz” has lately become synonymous with sonic serenity (and chic merch). But the renowned saxophonist John Coltrane demanded more. The San Francisco Opera and its orchestra reached a tentative deal for a four-year contract, ending a strike that had forced the cancellation of the season’s opener. More Culture In the 1940s, a Jewish prisoner at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp stayed alive by painting for the Nazis. Now, her two daughters are suing to get her work back. This notorious World War II board game is so complicated and cumbersome that nobody has ever finished it. But two guys in England decided to give it a serious go. Birthdays, geometry and animal prints: Our chief fashion critic, Vanessa Friedman, on New York Fashion Week. Click to watch. The New York Times Introducing the Shows tab. A new place to find and follow podcasts in audio and video. Explore Shows in The Times app. RECIPE OF THE WEEK Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell. By Melissa Clark Easy Apple Buckle For a dessert that makes the most of the new crop of apples hitting the market, Vallery Lomas’s easy buckle brims with fruit that’s barely held together with an easy-to-mix batter. It’s a perfect late September treat, served warm from the oven, with scoops of vanilla ice cream melting over all that good, sweet-tart filling. THE INTERVIEW The New York Times “The irony wasn’t lost on anybody that we were doing a thorough fact check of a movie about a company unwilling to do the same thing.” — Aaron Sorkin, the screenwriter and playwright. Sorkin returns to the Facebook universe with “The Social Reckoning,” which opens Oct. 9. He spoke with Lulu Garcia-Navarro about why he still believes in American institutions. Read (or watch) their full interview here. REAL ESTATE Philip Keith for The New York Times The Hunt: After spending 12 years crammed into a 700-square-foot bungalow overlooking the Hollywood Hills, a family decided to decamp for Barrington, R.I. Which house did they choose? Play our game. What you get for $500,000: A Craftsman in Tacoma, Wash.; a Colonial Revival in Parkersburg, W.Va.; or a Spanish-style house in West Palm Beach. LIVING In Ibiza. Ariadna Puigdomenech Let there be light: A couple used limited palette colors and lighting to transform their retirement home in Ibiza into an open, airy space. See inside. Outside the box: Bathrooms don’t have to be boring! One Utah designer included tiles with amoeba shapes, vintage prints and a skirted sink. All-inclusive: Efforts to incorporate wellness into residential real estate are expanding beyond gyms and saunas to include child care and co-working spaces. ADVICE FROM WIRECUTTER Spray and wait Don’t underestimate dish spray. Our favorite is great for, yes, getting stubborn crud off dishes. But we’ve found it’s also an impressive cleaner on so much more. Its especially powerful cleaning agents are safe for everyday items. Think: weird clothing stains, stuck-on shower scum, grubby outdoor equipment and other seemingly unwinnable messes. Often all it takes is one to two spritzes directly onto a surface, a few minutes to soak in (or a quick rinse) and a damp cloth to wash away the gunk. If it doesn’t get clean immediately, don’t give up. Some tough projects might require multiple spray-and-waits. — Andrea Barnes NOW TIME TO PLAY Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangram was acquaint. Take the news quiz to see how well you followed this week’s headlines. And here are today’s Mini Crossword, Wordle, Crossplay, Connections and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. — Melissa 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

Google says its Gemini AI model hacked three other companies Disclosure comes after OpenAI and Anthropic hacks amid fears that tech firms unable to control powerful AI models https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/sep/18/google-gemini-ai-hack?

President Ulysses S. Grant was arrested while in office. He was charged, booked, and released for speeding on a horse and had to pay a fine. James

September 19, 2026 Save Who? “I will also save you from all your uncleannesses.” (Ezekiel 36:29) Who is “you?” We know from verse 22 that the Lord is promising deliverance to the nation of Israel. But deliverance from what? What made Israel unclean? God promised to transform opinions of His “great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them” (v. 23). Apparently, Israel had dragged God’s name through moral mud, likely in both behavior and word, breaking the third commandment: “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain” (Exodus 20:7). What’s the big deal about God’s “great name?” It represents who He is! Lips reveal the uncleanness of the heart when they misuse the Lord’s name and treat it and Him without reverence. “And though they say, The LORD liveth, surely they swear falsely” when they behave as though the Lord is dead (Jeremiah 5:2). However, His great name “was profaned among the heathen” as well (Ezekiel 36:23). So, not just Israel disdained their Maker’s name. All nations needed and still need to be saved, or they will be judged. How will the Lord keep His promise of salvation given in today’s verse? Jesus is “the way” (John 14:6). Only His blood can cover “all your uncleannesses.” “For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14). When will Israel be sanctified? Only the Lord knows. But we do know that “it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel . . . shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth” (Isaiah 10:20). What about the salvation of other nations? Whoever will “believe on him” (John 6:29) who “rose from the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:12) will be saved. BDT