June 8, 2026
Politics, Ongoing War, and Today's History
Good morning, everyone!
A programming note: Like last week, Everything Briefing will be out through Thursday and return on Friday as I tend to several personal matters.
As always, stay up to date on my Notes page, where you will find the day’s history presented through the lens of photos, archival footage, and notable quotes.
Today, we will look at U.S. politics, the unfolding situation in the Middle East, and a series of historical snapshots.
Let’s get to it.
The Week Ahead
-The U.S. House of Representatives will take up a Senate-passed budget reconciliation package this week.
-Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, and South Carolina will hold statewide primary elections on Tuesday.
View a full list of the elections here.
-France will host Israeli and Palestinian civil society groups in Paris for a conference on Friday.
Major Developments
-Fighting resumed yesterday in the Middle East after weeks of relative calm, with Iran launching missiles at Israel. Iran’s attack came after Israel launched a deadly strike in Beirut, Lebanon, which killed at least two people and injured 20 others.
Late last night, Israel launched strikes on Iranian targets after President Donald Trump reportedly urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to order a retaliatory attack.
The strikes targeted Iran’s central and western regions.
Israel’s attack on Lebanon came just days after the two countries agreed to extend a ceasefire agreement, although Hezbollah was not party to the pact.
At the same time, Tehran accused the United States of violating their volatile ceasefire agreement reached in early April after the U.S. military said it shot down several Iranian one-way attack drones headed toward the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has kept the strategic waterway closed since the conflict in the region commenced on February 28, which surpassed its 100th day yesterday.
The closure has kept global oil and gas prices elevated.
The average U.S. gas price stood at $4.17 yesterday amid the ongoing conflict, according to AAA.
-The U.S. economy added 172,000 jobs in May, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, according to data released by the Commerce Department on Friday.
-Democrat Xavier Becerra overtook Republican Steve Hilton in the California governor’s race and will advance to the general election as vote tallying continues.
In the Los Angeles mayoral race, Democratic Councilwoman Nithya Raman overtook Republican Spencer Pratt for second place and will likely face off against incumbent Karen Bass in November.
-Trump cut an interview short after clashing with NBC’s Kristen Welker.
View the full interview here:
-Americans view inflation and the cost of living as some of “the most important issues facing the U.S.,” according to new polling.
-Scott Pelley sat for his first interview since being fired from CBS’ 60 Minutes last week after clashing with the network’s executives.
View it here:
-Hunter Biden has been active on X since creating an account last month.
View his posts here.
-White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles denied a Daily Mail report that she planned to soon leave her post amid frustration with Trump.
-Anthropic called for a global pause in frontier artificial intelligence development, warning that the technology is on the verge of “recursive self-improvement,” representing a point at which it can perpetually upgrade itself without human intervention.
The level Anthropic warns of, which came in a report titled When AI builds itself, is what researchers have long called “superintelligence.”
Read the report here.
-Lawmakers in New York passed a measure to impose a one-year statewide moratorium on the construction of data centers.
-On this day in 1949, George Orwell’s 1984 was published.
In 1968, Robert F. Kennedy was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
In 2018, Anthony Bourdain, best known for his Parts Unknown show, died by suicide.
Other Links:
Trump pardons former Republican Rep. Stephen Buyer who was convicted of insider trading - ABC
Hegseth invokes immigration and ‘invasion’ in D-Day speech in France - AP
Pentagon Cuts 180 Religious Identities From Military Personnel Records - The New York Times
Police search for suspects in Ohio shooting that wounded 12 near a street festival - AP
Rob Sand to rally in Iowa governor bid with Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear as Democrats eye a flip - AP
GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan is raising alarms about an eleventh-hour challenger: Dan J. Sullivan - CNN
Missing congressman and his staff paint a picture of business as usual - NBC
The Bidens Return With New Book and South Dakota Speech Targeting Trump - The New York Times
Maverick Republican Sen. Bob Packwood of Oregon, who resigned after sexual harassment scandal, dies - AP
Tunisians protest against undocumented sub-Saharan African migrants - Africa News
Ghana’s president offers insights on life after USAID - Semafor
The Nigerian army frees 360 abducted people in northeastern Borno state - AP
Ipsos quick count shows statistical tie in Peru’s presidential race - Reuters
US-China Rivalry Is Laid Bare by a Contract to Deepen an Argentine River - Bloomberg
Cuba’s Raul Castro, wanted by US, appears at event in Havana - Reuters
China’s Xi Jinping arrives in North Korea for summit with Kim - CNN
US journalist pleads guilty to working as China’s agent - BBC
Asia tech stocks extend sell-off with SoftBank down over 7% as investors sour on AI-linked names - CNBC
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the southern Philippines causes 4 deaths, damage and a tsunami - AP
Zelensky’s close European allies set out five conditions for peace talks - BBC
Ukraine Turns to Europe as U.S. Steps Back as Mediator in Peace Talks - The New York Times
Russia opens door to ‘new relationship’ with U.S. as Putin wrestles with Ukraine deadlock - NBC
Kosovo’s Vetevendosje party leads parliamentary vote, early official results show - Reuters
Trump dismisses idea that Iran betrays his ‘no new wars’ campaign message - AP
Palestinians suffer from lack of proper toilets across Gaza’s vast tent cities - AP
Saudis Cut July Oil Prices to Asia, Though Still at Decades High - Bloomberg
That’s all for today. See you on Friday.
Notes:
https://scowcroft.substack.com/p/tsg-weekly-calendar-june-8-14
No signs of of anything stopping. Let's hope they do before something catastrophic happens