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Immigrants seeking US citizenship targeted in Trump administration’s illegal voting crackdown Most of the immigrants targeted by federal authorities in California this week for alleged voter fraud had applied for U.S. citizenship and now face charges related to lying on forms or during interviews. Those charges could lead to years in prison and thwart their efforts to naturalize. Read more. What to know: Federal authorities on Monday charged more than two dozen legal permanent residents in California in a crackdown on people accused of illegally voting or registering to do so. As of Thursday morning, the government had filed charging documents in 10 of the 28 cases, offering additional details about how authorities relied on voter registration data to pursue broader criminal charges around immigration status. Most of the immigrants charged in California have lived in the country for at least five years, and some of them for decades. They could face deportation if they lied on their citizenship application. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Supreme Court allows New Hampshire to fully ban student IDs for voting in midterms Trump backs Ramaswamy on ad featuring Amy Acton’s estranged mother Powerful Democratic Virginia state Sen. Lucas is accused of leading a marijuana criminal conspiracy Trump says he ‘heard something about’ Justice Department probe into longtime ally Corey Lewandowski Judge orders Trump to sit for a deposition in his defamation lawsuit against the BBC by Dec. 11

Trump administration offers mixed messages on limits to Ukraine’s Starshield access Recent efforts to throttle Ukraine’s access to satellite systems have created a blame game of sorts among Trump administration officials and their allies, who have offered mixed messages about what led to the sudden restrictions on Kyiv’s ability to intercept Russian strikes. Read more. What to know: Questions have percolated since last week about who ordered the interruptions to the Elon Musk-made satellite internet system that Ukraine has relied on for years to counter Moscow’s attacks. Trump, as recently as Thursday, has maintained that he didn’t make the call. Vice President JD Vance has hinted at White House coordination with Musk, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have denied any administration involvement. Musk indicated that because Ukraine was using the military-grade version of his technology, questions about the service should be directed to the Pentagon. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Russian missiles pound Kyiv as Moscow says over 800 Ukrainian drones downed A Ukrainian soldier blinded in war hopes to see his children again, in photos

Israel orders closure of the West Bank after soldiers kill 2 suspected gunmen Israeli soldiers shot and killed two men who the military said had launched an attack near the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank on Friday morning. At least five people were injured, including some critically. Read more. What to know: The army said it prevented a “terror attack against Israeli civilians” and that the gunmen carried an M16 rifle and a handgun. It did not elaborate on the target of the alleged attack. There was also no word on the identities of the two dead and those injured. A few hours later, Israel ordered the army to prepare for a full closure of the West Bank. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it instructed security forces to immediately cordon off the city of Hebron and prepare to fully close all of the West Bank, starting Friday. The deadly shooting comes as Israeli voters will decide Tuesday whether to grant Netanyahu yet another term as prime minister. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Israeli forces detain and then release US congressional candidate at West Bank harvest Photos show a Palestinian woman’s olive harvest interrupted by approaching Israeli settlers In Netanyahu stronghold, signs of fraying loyalty emerge on eve of election A look at the major candidates in Israel’s election PHOTO ESSAY: Inside an elite ultra-Orthodox school as Israel’s draft dispute looms over election

What is Shamonda? (Jérôme Chabanne/Hans Lucas/AFP/Getty Images/File) France reported the first known human case of Shamonda virus on Thursday, and the patient has since died. The World Health Organization says the case appears isolated and poses no broader risk to the public. The rare virus typically affects livestock, including cattle, sheep and goats, and spreads through insect bites. French authorities suspect the patient was bitten by an infected insect. + Read more: Shamonda found for the first time in a person in France

Deadly magnitude 7 earthquake hits Tibet At least 16 people have died and dozens more injured after a magnitude 7 earthquake struck Tibet on Thursday, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua. More than 300 houses have collapsed and the extent of the damage is still being assessed, according to Xinhua. + Video: Earthquake rattles Tibet + Latest: Rescue team dispatched to the epicenter

AI cracks a 22-year-old security puzzle in two days For more than two decades, a major security flaw in software powering much of the internet went unfixed because it was too difficult for hackers to take advantage of. Now, researchers have used AI to figure out how to exploit the flaw in just two days, potentially allowing attackers to steal sensitive information or take control of websites. The vulnerability has since been patched, but cybersecurity experts warn the discovery shows how AI could make dangerous cyberattacks easier than ever. + Analysis: AI quickly exposes a decades-old internet vulnerability + Just wondering: What happens if AI agents start speaking their own language?

Trump defends ad criticized by other Republicans President Donald Trump campaigned in Iowa Thursday night, where he defended Ohio Republican Vivek Ramaswamy’s controversial ad featuring rival Amy Acton’s estranged mother — and urged him to keep running it. Trump also thought that Republicans who criticized the ad were “weak,” a person familiar with the matter told CNN, despite growing backlash within the party. + Analysis: Trump turns the GOP’s Ramaswamy ad headache into a migraine + Explainer: Why is the ad controversial? ps:Of course he would! Any vile person he has no problem defending or backing, etc.!!!!!

20 million+ ballots already cast ahead of midterms Voters wait in line to cast their ballots early in Ravenna, Ohio, on October 12. (David Maxwell/AFP via Getty Images) More than 20 million Americans have already cast their ballots in the midterm elections, and that number is expected to grow considerably in the coming days. Early in-person voting begins or expands in four major states this weekend: Florida, Michigan, New Jersey and New York. By Election Day on November 3, experts say as many as two-thirds of all votes could already be cast, either by mail or through early voting. And those early numbers appear to reinforce a trend we’ve been watching all week: growing enthusiasm among Democratic voters. In several key states, Democrats account for a larger share of early voters than they did at this point two years ago, according to a CNN analysis. But the picture is far from complete. Republicans have historically favored voting on Election Day, leaving plenty of time for the balance to shift. + For subscribers: What early voting data is showing ahead of the 2026 midterms + Meanwhile: Elon Musk is the largest disclosed donor in the race, contributing at least $445 million + Stay informed: Sign up for CNN’s midterms newsletter ps:Well I did my duty about 2 weeks ago or so!!

October 23, 2026 By Sam Sifton Good morning. Happy Friday. Let’s start on our southern border. Bora Erden/The New York Times You’re being watched You think Americans don’t like Flock cameras reading their license plates? The federal government has installed hundreds of powerful new A.I.-enabled cameras on tall towers all across the southern border of the United States, with plans to cover the nation’s perimeter, according to new reporting from Bora Erden and Nicholas Nehamas in The Times. President Trump’s 2024 campaign soared partly on the popularity of his argument that too many immigrants had crossed the border illegally. Large majorities back tough enforcement there. And for decades, Republicans and Democrats have agreed that a high-tech “smart wall” would be a good and cost-effective way to stop people sneaking in. That wall is rising now during an outcry about A.I. in general and mass surveillance in particular. It’s a stark illustration of a political axiom: Every policy choice comes with trade-offs. This one brings a potential loss of privacy. The new technology can see for miles in all directions, tracking people and vehicles for 24 hours a day, without a human at the controls. A tireless A.I. algorithm does the work. Many of the cameras are in remote locations deep in the desert. But others are in more populated areas, where they can see into bedrooms, watch over public beaches, track children on playgrounds and transmit footage back to the authorities. At least one million people in the United States and Mexico live in areas along the border where they can be seen by the surveillance towers, the Times analysis found. And at least four million more live under the gaze of an older generation of cameras that the government plans to retrofit with A.I. technology. There are many more to come. The Trump administration wants them in Florida, Puerto Rico and the nation’s northern border. America has Ring cameras on its entryways now — and they can pick up a lot. A security blanket The New York Times In the late 18th century, the philosopher Jeremy Bentham came up with the idea of the panopticon, a prison design that put guards in an all-seeing tower at its center. Panopticons have always made people uneasy. Modern thinkers came to view them as a metaphor for an omniscient watchfulness that would turn people docile and obedient. And some leaders are already wondering if the loss of privacy brought by these cameras is worth the gain in security. “We don’t want to be surveilled by our government,” a Republican former city councilman in Texas told The Times. He urged members of the G.O.P. to imagine the towers under the control of Democrats. To get a sense of what the cameras do, Times reporters went to two dozen A.I.-enabled camera towers in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas and launched a drone with a camera aboard it to approximate what the tower can see. And it’s a lot. The cameras can detect people coming in and out of houses. They can identify and track vehicles. They can follow people and cars from camera to camera as they move from one vantage point to another. And they can alert agents of the Border Patrol, who can view the footage and decide whether to dispatch agents to intercept the targets. Those agents can also share the footage with local, state and federal law enforcement authorities, and even foreign governments. “Any capability that improves an agent’s awareness and ability to assess potential risks helps protect agents, migrants and the public,” an official with U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement. The official from C.B.P. said the agency “employs technology while respecting civil liberties and privacy interests.” But there’s a catch. Its privacy guidelines say that people near the border can’t “opt out” of surveillance and affirm that the cameras could record people engaging “in First Amendment protected activities” or “complying with the law.” The watched public Bora Erden/The New York Times And what if people don’t know that the cameras are there, watching them? Most of the people The Times spoke to who live or work near the surveillance towers did not know their purpose, or their power. “Most thought they were cell towers or radar equipment,” my colleagues write. Others shrugged. Surveillance is a way of life now. “This is the world we live in,” said a councilman in San Clemente, California, who supports the towers. “There are cameras everywhere. You walk down the street here, you’re being recorded. You can’t put the genie back in the bottle.” Read and see much more — including how the cameras work and how much of the border they can see. The link is free. FREE TO READ Nariman El-Mofty for The New York Times World Nomad Games: Horseback archery is making a comeback. In Israel: Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief, is challenging Benjamin Netanyahu in upcoming elections. Can he beat him? Your pick: The most clicked link in The Morning was about an Australian zoo playing matchmaker for giant birds. Take our news quiz. THE LATEST NEWS Around the World Trump called Elon Musk and asked him to restore Ukraine’s full access to the Starshield satellite communications network. Ukrainian officials said limited bandwidth had affected the country’s ability to fight. The United States told some of its government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia as attacks by the Houthis continue. The authorities in France have banned gatherings in some cities this weekend after last week’s violent protests. A typhoon battered Taiwan with high winds and heavy waves, shutting down schools and businesses and killing at least one person. It could affect an upcoming election. A 7.0-magnitude earthquake in Tibet killed at least 16 people and destroyed hundreds of homes in a remote, high-altitude region. Climate Change Severe heat killed an estimated 50,000 people in European cities this summer, a likely record. Global warming is projected to reach 2.6 degrees Celsius by 2100, according to a U.N. report, after the United States abandoned its climate pledge. Almost all of the world’s shallow-water coral reefs are now critically endangered because of climate change. Midterm Elections The Michigan Senate race just keeps getting nastier. Most voters believe the election results will be accurate, a poll found. A highly personal attack ad by the Ohio Republican Vivek Ramaswamy has split his party, drawing local Republican condemnation but praise from Trump. Trump’s policies could cost Republicans in Iowa, where farmers face higher prices for diesel and fertilizer, and lower sales to China, Canada and Mexico. A federal judge in California blocked the Homeland Security Department from carrying out most field operations focused on uncovering voter fraud. Tech Google announced a deal that will pay homes and businesses to use less electricity to free up power for data centers. The courts, not Congress, are forcing tech giants like Google and Meta to behave differently. For one thing, they now have to pay real money for past abuses. Other Big Stories Could the shape of our heads increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease? Some scientists think it might. The former director of Florida’s gambling addiction hotline was sentenced to prison for stealing to feed his own gambling habit. The New York City Council voted to ban horse-drawn carriages starting in 2028. SHOT BY ICE Daniele Volpe for The New York Times The ICE officer shot José García-Sorto in the chest. His lung collapsed, and the bullet lodged in his spine. That was about a year ago. He still does not know why the officer did it. García-Sorto crossed the border illegally in 2023 but had no criminal record. And he was never charged with a crime as a result of the ICE encounter, suggesting that the authorities did not find evidence he had put anyone in danger. He is one of at least 25 people whom federal immigration agents have fired upon since Trump returned to office. Many of them are quickly forgotten. But García-Sorto let The Times document the aftermath of his shooting over several months. Here’s what he went through. OPINIONS No matter who wins in Israel’s elections, the United States needs to rethink its foreign policies there, writes a former national security adviser under President Joe Biden. Threatening to revoke Representative Ilhan Omar’s citizenship is an authoritarian move, the editorial board writes. Subscribe to New York Times Games. Get Super Duolingo for free. For a limited time, annual Games subscribers can enjoy 6 months of language learning with Super Duolingo. Subscribe now TODAY’S NUMBER Jamie Squire/Getty Images 0 — That is the number of World Series championships won by either the Milwaukee Brewers or the Tampa Bay Rays, who are set to face off in Game 1 of the best-of-seven Fall Classic tonight. Whatever happens at the end, we’ll have a first-time champion. SPORTS N.B.A.: Many longtime employees at Madison Square Garden got an email from the New York Knicks saying they would get championship rings. It turned out to be a phishing test. N.B.A.: LeBron James posted the biggest rally of his career as the Philadelphia 76ers stormed back from a 29-point deficit to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 114-106. Scottie Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked golfer, is leaving millions of sponsorship dollars on the table. He has his reasons. RECIPE OF THE DAY Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Yossy Arefi. It is not too soon to start auditioning recipes you might want to cook for Thanksgiving. Start with Melissa Clark’s for apple bourbon Bundt cake, which absolutely could follow a roasted turkey. (Thanksgiving pie is so 2024.) It’ll last you a few days: The whiskey syrup that soaks the cake helps keep it from going stale. Toast slices for breakfast, and spread with cream cheese. SYNCOPATION AND SURPRISE Isabella Cotier In his latest close read of a poem, A.O. Scott turns his attention to Emily Dickinson’s “I dwell in Possibility —” just 50 words long — a single, elaborate metaphor about art and the artist’s home. Won’t you take a minute and read the poem with him? You’ll think about it all day. More on culture The new film “A Talent for Murder” follows a mysterious young man from a New York publisher who goes to Switzerland to persuade the renowned writer Patricia Highsmith to write a final installment of her series about the fictional con man Tom Ripley. It stars Helen Mirren and Alden Ehrenreich. “Watching it,” Alissa Wilkinson writes in her review, “gives a sensation akin to curling up under a cozy crocheted blanket with a novel and a hot toddy nearby.” Meet the Brooklyn woman who cracked up Conan O’Brien on a recent episode of “Subway Takes,” spontaneously telling the host that she had two kids with the comedian. “One’s in medical school,” she said. “One’s in jail.” They riffed from there. The New York City subway remains a magical place. THE MORNING RECOMMENDS Watch Billy Corgan, who sat for an interview with “Popcast.” “I maybe had one of the most unusual careers in the history of pop and rock, and I don’t think that’s an oversell,” he told Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli. Keep your anger in check. We’ve got tools for that. Dry your dank basement — or any room that leaves you feeling clammy — with this whisper-quiet dehumidifier tested by the home health aides at Wirecutter. GAMES Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangrams were attachable, catchable and teachable. 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

🥐 1 fun thing: Bakery next door Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios Your neighborhood's next hot bakery — or coffee shop, pizza joint or BBQ spot — might be inside someone's house. Why it matters: More people are turning baking into a business, as online platforms and looser state regulations make it easier for home cooks to reach customers, Axios' Sami Sparber writes. 🧑‍🍳 By the numbers: Seller signups on home chef platform Hotplate doubled in July, co-founders Tenaya McCoy and Rishi Talati tell Axios. Over 1,000 sellers across 48 states joined Potluck, an "Airbnb for homemade food," within two months of launching this summer, says founder Ken Barton. Case in point: Fort Lauderdale baker Brooke Chambers turned her sourdough hobby into a micro-bakery after sharing loaves with family, friends and co-workers. She mixes dough on Wednesdays and bakes on Fridays for customer pickups, fitting 12-15 hours of bakery work around a full-time corporate job.

⚖️ DOJ probes Lewandowski The Justice Department is investigating longtime Trump ally Corey Lewandowski over allegations that he profited personally while advising the Department of Homeland Security, The Wall Street Journal and N.Y. Times report. Why it matters: Lewandowski was President Trump's first campaign manager in 2016 and top aide to former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who was fired in March. It's a rare instance of a Trump ally being investigated during his second term. Trump told reporters yesterday when asked about the reported probe: "I don't know exactly what it is ... All I know is, I want my people to be honest. And if they're not going to be honest, they have to be prosecuted." A lawyer for Lewandowski, Adam Trigg, said Lewandowski "has not been contacted by the Justice Department regarding any investigation, and he denies any wrongdoing when he was proudly serving his country in a voluntary capacity." Keep reading (NYT gift link).

2000 isn't very many. Are these folks who have taken a vow of poverty?

Is this the future of Videos? It gets so many things wrong, yet still is amazing.

The manufacturing is doing very well and will continue to do well. Sadly, weapon systems will be the big boom era. America is the leader in AI. I am not sure that is a good thing. Things will be very different in this 4th turning.

⚙️ Manufacturing's lopsided comeback Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios American manufacturing is showing signs of revival. But the recovery is being powered by industries at the forefront of the AI and energy boom while the traditional factory sector gets left behind, Axios' Courtenay Brown reports. Why it matters: The White House is touting a revival in American manufacturing as evidence that its economic agenda is working, but a lopsided recovery raises questions about how much of the sector stands to benefit. ⚡ The split is evident in the hard employment data, according to an analysis by Gad Levanon, chief economist at the Burning Glass Institute. U.S. manufacturers added a net 40,000 jobs over the 12 months ending in September. But the gains came entirely from advanced manufacturing — even though the subset accounts for just 38% of factory employment, Levanon wrote. Those industries — including chemicals, machinery, computers and electronics and transportation equipment — added 56,000 jobs over that period. Every other manufacturing industry combined lost 16,000 jobs, offsetting part of those gains. Employment outside advanced manufacturing is barely above its 2016 level. Read on.

🚛 Can't quit diesel Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Stock: Getty Images The quickest and cheapest response to historically high diesel prices is also the simplest: Use less of it. Why it matters: That's easier said than done. Diesel is so entrenched in farming, trucking and other industries that even soaring prices aren't enough — at least not yet — to prompt a wholesale shift to alternatives like electric semi-trucks and manure-powered tractors, Axios' national energy correspondent Amy Harder reports. 🛢️ Catch up quick: Diesel averages $6.32 a gallon today, up 74% from a year ago, according to AAA. Regular gasoline averages $4.29, up 39%. The big picture: Gasoline gets the attention, but diesel is the workhorse of the American economy. It powers grocery trucks, tractors, freight trains, construction equipment, hospital backup generators and even school buses. 🍎 The price spike is hitting farmers during the fall harvest. "Farmers buy diesel by the truckload," says Curt Blades, senior vice president at the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. "So we're talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars in diesel, and when it goes up the way it has spiked, that's the difference between profit and loss in a year." President Trump announced $8 billion in one-time aid for farmers at a campaign rally in Kansas on Monday, where Republicans face a competitive Senate race. Keep reading.

Analyst Notes: Answering your questions about data centers and water How to think about these questions when there’s little data available. https://usafacts.org/articles/analyst-notes/answering-your-questions-about-data-centers-and-water/?

Gordon Pifher, former vice president for media ministries for the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists (NAD), passed to his rest early Friday morning, October 9, 2026, after a brief illness. He was 79. Pifher spent more than 50 years in ministry in the Adventist Church, serving as a pastor, youth director, and administrator before retiring in October 2021 after seven years at the NAD. “Gordon was a tremendous colleague in ministry. He was a trailblazer for the NAD in that he was the first vice president for media after closing the Adventist Media Center in Thousand Oaks, California,” said G. Alexander Bryant, NAD president. “He was not only a colleague but a friend and a true Christian leader. We will miss him and look forward to seeing him again in the heaven and earth made new.” “Gordon was an amazing person and an extraordinary leader who was passionate about his Savior Jesus and able to make his faith in God attractive to others,” said David Jamieson, president of Upper Columbia Conference. Pifher was born and raised in Paris, Ontario, Canada, and began his denominational service in 1969 as a conference-sponsored seminary student in the Maritime Conference, where he later served as a pastor and assisted with evangelism. In December 1975, he moved to Ontario Conference, where his assignments included serving as associate pastor at Oshawa College Park Church in Ontario, chaplain for Kingsway College, and lead pastor at Bowmanville Church. Pifher then worked at Ontario Conference as youth director, helping develop Pathfinder and Adventurer youth and camp ministries until 1985. From 1979 to 1985, Pifher also directed Camp Frenda, where campers knew him as “GP.” His campfire stories, sometimes unfolding over several evenings, were a memorable part of camp life. He encouraged campers and staff to dedicate their lives to serving God and others. Pifher’s connection with the camp continued into retirement: In 2025, he returned for its staff alumni weekend, sharing a Sabbath message and offering a prayer of dedication for Pifher Point, a planned lookout tower and climbing wall named in his honor. He left the Ontario Conference in October 1985, moving to the Upper Columbia Conference (UCC), headquartered in Spokane, Washington, where he served as director of youth and Camp MiVoden for the conference before moving, in 1994, to what was then Walla Walla College Church as associate pastor for youth. From 1996 to 2005, Pifher served as the vice president for administration for UCC. In 2005, he was elected president of British Columbia Conference. Under his leadership, British Columbia became one of the fastest-growing conferences in North America. In 2011, Pifher accepted an invitation from the North Pacific Union Conference to serve as director of stewardship, leadership, and innovation. He began that assignment in January 2011. In October 2014, he was elected vice president for media ministries at the North American Division. There, Pifher was responsible for developing and implementing a media ministry strategy for all such ministries across a territory that included the United States, Canada, Bermuda, Guam, and Micronesia. As part of his work as NAD vice president, he served as president of Breath of Life, Faith for Today, It Is Written, Voice of Prophecy, La Voz de la Esperanza, Jesus 101, and LifeTalk Radio. Pifher joined the division during a significant transition for its media ministries as they relocated from the Adventist Media Center in Simi Valley, California, to different locations across the division. At his retirement celebration in May 2021, colleagues recalled his optimism, willingness to listen, and ability to encourage creative thinking through the changes. “Your passion for Jesus is infectious. It makes walking with Jesus attractive,” said Richard Parker, then human resources director for the media center, during the retirement tribute. After his retirement in 2021, Pifher and his wife, Marie, returned to the Northwest to be closer to their daughter Ginger. Pifher served on several boards in Upper Columbia Conference, including Renew Spokane and Shine 104.9 FM. He was an active member at Spokane South Hill Seventh-day Adventist Church before his passing. Pifher is survived by wife Marie and daughter Ginger. A celebration of life service has been scheduled for 2 p.m. PT on November 15, 2026, at Spokane Valley Seventh-day Adventist Church in Spokane Valley, Washington. The service will be live-streamed on the church’s YouTube channel. —Article by Dustin R. Jones for the Upper Columbia Conference, with additional reporting from Ontario Conference and the North American Division Office of Communication.

I don't have a dog in this fight but can see Hanseng's point. The LCMS, in some areas, seem even more strict then what I'm used to. During the Liturgy women can and do read Sacred Scripture. The Gospel is always read by the Priest. Myself, I would be shocked & traumatized if a woman officiated as a Priest but that's just me looking at this from my faith Tradition. I have a feeling that if a woman officiated at Mass 2/3rds of the Church I attend would simply get up and walk out immediately. The notion is so completely out of the question I might vapor lock right there.

🛫 Higher fares, fewer flights Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images Soaring jet fuel prices are changing the airline industry — resulting in higher fares, more premium seats and fewer flight options, Axios' Nathan Bomey reports. Airfares rose 22% year over year in September, marking a 10th straight monthly increase in the government's airfare price index, which hit an all-time high. 👀 All the major players are feeling the pain: American Airlines reported yesterday that its fuel bill jumped nearly 70% in the third quarter from a year ago, adding $1.9 billion in costs and taking significant steam out of its strong revenue growth. Southwest and United both slashed their profit forecasts this week on higher fuel costs. Delta expects its fuel bill this year to come in $6 billion above last year's. What we're watching: To protect their bottom lines, airlines are raising fares and using premium seats to squeeze more revenue out of their flights. At Southwest, the average passenger fare rose 26.9% to $231.69 in the third quarter, compared with a year earlier — and that doesn't include fees. Delta's premium seating revenue jumped 18% in the third quarter, even though the number of premium seats rose only 6%. Keep reading.

🌊 Photo du jour Photo: Caroline Brehman/AFP via Getty Images Crews placed boulders along the coast to prevent further erosion and protect the road from collapsing into the ocean at Westward Beach Road in Malibu, Calif., yesterday. Coastal erosion from waves, storms and rising sea levels is accelerating the loss of Southern California's beaches and cliffs, threatening homes, roads and wildlife along the coast.

🗳️ Religious left's play for red-state conservatives Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images Democrats in a pair of deep-red states are testing the religious right's dominance by putting their Christian faith at the center of their campaigns — potentially creating a template for the party to compete in similar terrain, Axios' Avery Lotz and Russell Contreras write. Why it matters: Upsets by Texas' James Talarico and Kansas' Adam Hamilton would all but ensure that Democrats take the Senate. 📊 A Pew poll released last week shows both an opening and an obstacle: White evangelicals still strongly favor Republicans, while many other Christian groups lean Democratic or are more narrowly split. The big picture: Talarico, a Presbyterian seminary student, and Hamilton, a United Methodist pastor, are challenging conservatives' claim to speak for faith. Their bids come after Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), senior pastor of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, was elected in 2021. President Trump won both Texas and Kansas by double digits in 2024. Neither state has sent a Democrat to the Senate in the 21st century — the last time Kansas did was in 1932. Both races this year are considered toss-ups. ⛪ Talarico's "religiosity is a way to soften his liberalism" and potentially win over Christians turned off by his scandal-plagued opponent, says Brandon Rottinghaus, who co-hosts Houston Public Media's "Party Politics." Hamilton has presented himself as a bridge-builder, drawing on his experience leading the largest United Methodist church in the nation, says Alexandra Middlewood, the political science department chair at Wichita State University. His well-known religious background could appeal to less engaged, moderate Christians and center-right voters, she says. The other side: Ralph Reed, chair of the conservative Faith and Freedom Coalition, tells Axios he's doubtful the Democrats' effort to lean into religion will attract voters of faith. "Voters will not vote for a candidate who professes to hold to their faith, but doesn't share their values," he says. Read on.

Wall Street's "day after" Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Stock: Getty Images America's largest banks are working to prevent AI worst-case scenarios. But they're also preparing for the "day after" a catastrophe, Axios' Madison Mills reports. Why it matters: America's financial institutions have joined the largest AI companies in scenario-planning for disaster, a prudent but worrisome signal about the extent of the risk that major corporations see on the horizon. 👀 State of play: Banks are grappling with two distinct AI threats. They're seeing unvetted AI agent activity, primarily driven by customers providing login credentials to agents, which in some cases appear to have taken actions independent of user prompts, Axios reported yesterday. That's separate from the bigger threat — a devastating cybersecurity crisis fueled by rogue behavior like the kind involved in a summer attack on a startup called Hugging Face, where an AI agent swarm hacked a platform, triggering an industry security crisis. This fear is pushing banks to invest in prevention and to plan for the worst. Zoom in: Yesterday's Axios report on banks refers to the former — agentic AI, not frontier systems that carry broader cyber risks. The Axios report sparked calls for regulation from across the political spectrum, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.). Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff posted "Code red" on X yesterday, in response to an Anthropic security official, Jason Clinton, who wrote earlier in the day: "as bad as things have gotten in the past 4 days, they are going to get a lot worse before they get better." The other side: Former White House AI czar David Sacks said banks should support user-directed agents that allow users to "grant, limit, and revoke access," with read-only as an "interim step." Sacks said conflating "user-authorized agentic behavior and cyberattacks is irresponsible." 🦾 Flashback: The major banks were part of early testing of Anthropic's Mythos model, which unleashed unprecedented cyber capabilities. That was part of an effort from AI labs and major banks to use this technology to better understand and prepare for cyberattacks or other risks. Since then, banks have worked on plans not just to avoid AI-related issues, but also on how to protect accounts, reassure customers and keep operations running in case a large-scale attack hits. Reality check: Scenario planning is a requirement for critical infrastructure providers, including in the financial sector. Avoiding it would be malpractice. 💡 Between the lines: Banks want customers to know they haven't seen any rogue agent activity or evidence of a hack affecting customer funds or accounts. Banks strongly advise users not to provide their passwords to agents, especially since services exist or are being developed that can allow customers read-only access. The startup Plaid is one platform that can pull balances and transaction history, among other functions. "Under no circumstance should customers share passwords with any person or thing. Period," a JPMorgan spokesperson told Axios. "There exist secure open banking platforms that don't involve handing over the keys to your account. Customers are the first line of defense in protecting their accounts." JPMorgan, along with other banks, has taken steps to block agent access, although it's exploring secure ways to allow customers to connect with the services they choose.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY October 23 2002 Hostage crisis in Moscow theater Fifty Chechen rebels storm a Moscow theater, taking up to 700 people hostage during a sold-out performance of a popular musical. More than 120 ended up dying. read more 1980s 1989 Gas leak kills 23 at plastics factory Ancient Rome 42 B.C. Brutus dies by suicide Arts & Entertainment 1958 Boris Pasternak wins Nobel Prize for ‘Dr. Zhivago,’ later forced to refuse the honor Crime 1998 Doctor is killed by anti-abortion radical Inventions & Science 2001 Apple announces the first iPod Middle Eastern History 1983 Beirut barracks blown up Sports 1993 Toronto Blue Jay Joe Carter wins World Series with ninth-inning home run Women’s History 1850 The first National Women’s Rights Convention begins

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