The Sunday — December 21

This is the Tangle Sunday Edition, a brief roundup of our independent politics coverage plus some extra features for your Sunday morning reading. 

What the left is doodling.

What the right is doodling.

Monday, December 15.

The mass shooting in Australia. On Sunday, two gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, killing 15 people and injuring dozens of others in the country’s deadliest mass shooting since 1996. According to authorities, the shooters were a father and son, and the father was shot and killed by the police while the son sustained “critical injuries.” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the shooting “an act of evil, antisemitism, terrorism”; investigators have said they are still working to understand the shooters’ motives but believe they were inspired by the Islamic State. 

Our take: “Bad information about the shooting is everywhere, but we can confidently say that this was a terror attack targeting Jews. These events are a rarity in Australia, and the attack is already prompting a national reckoning. The most challenging debate will center on the links between the suspects and Islamic extremism.”

Reader Survey:

Tuesday, December 16.

The Indiana redistricting vote. On Thursday, December 11, the Republican-controlled Indiana Senate voted 31–19 to reject a redrawn congressional map designed to increase the number of GOP seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. President Donald Trump and national Republicans pushed for the new map and lobbied the state’s Republican leadership to back the effort. In the end, 21 Republican senators joined all 10 Democratic senators in opposing the bill, leaving it short of the 26 votes required to pass. 

Our take: “I applaud the Indiana Republicans who resisted the push for gerrymandering. Rejecting Trump has been hard for many Republicans, and these state senators chose an important issue to stand up for. Hopefully more people join their side to beat back the scourge of gerrymandering.”

Reader Survey:

Wednesday, December 17.

The shooting at Brown University. On Saturday, December 13, a gunman killed two Brown University students and wounded at least nine others in an attack on the university campus in Providence, Rhode Island. According to authorities, the shooter entered a classroom where students were reviewing for a final exam and opened fire before fleeing. On Thursday, December 18, authorities announced the suspect had been located in New Hampshire and died of a self-inflicted gunshot.

Our take: “These shootings are so common that we’ve developed a ‘right way’ to react. Be frustrated, express empathy, don’t jump to conclusions (advice that applies to the FBI director, too). Depressingly, I doubt one more shooting is going to inspire a change.”

Reader Survey:

Thursday, December 18.

Trump’s national address. At 9 PM ET on Wednesday, December 17, President Donald Trump delivered an address from the White House highlighting what he views as the major accomplishments of the first year of his second term and criticizing his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, for the country’s ongoing issues. Trump mainly focused on his immigration and economic agendas over the course of the 18-minute address, and he announced a $1,776 “warrior dividend” for members of the military. Notably, he did not address the United States’s rising tensions with Venezuela. 

Our take: “Trump’s speech recycled talking points from his rallies and offered almost nothing new. His energy was flat, and the warrior dividend doesn’t strike me as a good idea. I am glad that we aren’t escalating with Venezuela, at least for now.”

Reader Survey:

Friday, December 19.

In 2021, Executive Editor Isaac Saul released a list of 19 predictions for the next four years in politics. Now, Isaac looks back on those predictions to see what he got right and wrong, then offers 19 new predictions for what will happen until 2029. You can read the piece here.

---

What just happened.

Here are a few stories that have broken since our last newsletter on Thursday.

• On Thursday, federal authorities announced that the suspect in the shooting at Brown University on Saturday, December 13, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot in a storage unit in New Hampshire. Investigators also said they believe the suspect shot and killed Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro on Tuesday after carrying out the shooting at Brown. (The latest) Separately, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the suspension of the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, through which the suspect in the shootings reportedly entered the United States. (The suspension)
• On Thursday, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced multiple proposed rules to restrict access to pharmaceutical or surgical procedures to provide transgender care to minors. The rules would exclude doctors and hospitals that offer these procedures from Medicare and Medicaid, in addition to barring Medicaid and children's health programs from paying for these treatments. (The proposals)
• On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to propose a rule to reclassify cannabis from a Schedule I to a Schedule III substance, which would define it as a drug “with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.” (The order)
• On Friday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a program to buy back hundreds of thousands of firearms in the wake of last weekend’s Bondi Beach mass shooting that killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration. Albanese also said the government is considering new restrictions on gun ownership that include a cap on the number of guns an individual can own. (The announcements)
• On Friday, the U.S. military conducted strikes against suspected Islamic State sites. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strikes were “a direct response to the attack on U.S. forces that occurred on December 13th in Palmyra, Syria,” killing two U.S. servicemembers and a civilian U.S. interpreter. (The strikes)
• On Friday, the Justice Department released new files from the government’s investigations into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including photos of politicians and other public figures, handwritten notes on Epstein’s stationery, and evidence seized at Epstein’s properties. However, some lawmakers, primarily Democrats, criticized the Justice Department’s handling of the release, saying it did not disclose all of the files it was required to by law. (The release)
• On Friday, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) announced she is ending her campaign for New York governor and will not seek reelection to the House in 2026. Stefanik cited Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s (R) entry into the race as part of her decision. (The announcement)

Reader essay.

Earlier this year, we published a fascinating essay from Karen Hill Anton, an American woman who has been living in Japan for decades. Karen is a fantastic writer with an eye for detail and a distinctive voice and perspective. We published an essay from her earlier this year about her experiences in Japan, and it was one of our favorite reader essays of the year. Today, following the news of yet another mass shooting in the United States, we’re publishing another piece from Karen on the cultural differences between the U.S. and Japan — this time, focusing on gun culture.