Good morning!
Welcome to MSNBC's Sunday Spotlight, where you can find a selection of the week's most interesting and important stories.
First some breaking news, after a Democratic Minnesota state lawmaker and her husband were tragically shot and killed, and another lawmaker and his wife were critically injured on Saturday, in what officials are calling "politically motivated" attacks. The violence cast a dark shadow over Saturday's "No Kings" protests, especially in Minnesota, where police urged people to stay home. Follow MSNBC for the latest updates.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump faces an unexpected adversary, a senator was betrayed by a Trump appointee, and Victor Hugo is rolling in his grave. Plus, the funk musician who took us higher just by singing a simple song.
And don't forget to check out more top columns and videos from the week below. |
A New(some) man: California Gov. Gavin Newsom is a weathervane politician who has recently been a bit of a scold to fellow Democrats, but Trump's decision to send National Guard troops to Los Angeles over his objections has galvanized him, writes Zeeshan Aleem. In standing up boldly and clearly to the president, Newsom has demonstrated the kind of spine that Democrats have been searching for since January. In interviews, speeches and lawsuits, Newsom has sent an unambiguous message of solidarity with his state's immigrant population and support for traditional lower-case-d democratic values. Read more.
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Hop along, Cassidy: Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy was in a position to stop the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary earlier this year. That put him in a quandary: as a physician himself, he didn't want to put a prominent anti-vaxxer in charge of the nation's health policy, but he also wanted to win re-election, writes Jarvis DeBerry. Cassidy voted to confirm Kennedy after extracting a pinkie promise not to change vaccination policies, but Kennedy's latest move showed that was a hollow promise. Read more.
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Does he hear the people sing? Trump went to the newly MAGA-ified Kennedy Center Wednesday for the opening night of the musical "Les Misérables." He's long cited the classic musical from 1980 as one of his favorites and even took the stage to announce his third presidential run to its anthem, "Do You Hear the People Sing?" But it's unclear that he's ever listened to the lyrics or pondered the show's meaning, writes Hayes Brown. The show calls for a revolutionary uprising against the upper classes and sympathy for the incarcerated, after all. Read more.
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Dance to the music: Sly Stone wasn't just a hit-making musician in the 1970s. The multi-instrumentalist, who died Monday, was a true innovator whose stunning fusion of soul and psychedelic rock had a major influence on hip hop and even on jazz great Miles Davis, writes Jeff Slate. His album "There's a Riot Goin' On" is one of the greatest albums of the last century, and his songs have been sampled more than almost any other artist of the last 60 years, while his interracial band of men and women pointed the way toward a more inclusive future in music. Read more.
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Amid the bombing and devastation in Gaza, Palestinian journalist Mohammed R. Mhawish was surprised to find that his 3-year-old son took comfort in the YouTube videos of Ms. Rachel, the social media star known for songs and nursery rhymes aimed at helping kids learn to speak. But the video of her asking the world to consider the effects of the war on the children of Gaza was also a "crack of light breaking through an impenetrable silence" for parents in the region. This Father's Day, take a minute to read Mhawish's heartfelt column about his conversation with Ms. Rachel and why she felt compelled to speak up. Read the column here.
— Ryan Teague Beckwith, newsletter editor |
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