Wednesday, August 26, 2026
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TODAY'S TOP MADDOWBLOG POSTS
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Stronger Together: Past, Present and Future
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There are fresh reasons to believe putting a former Fox News host in charge of the Pentagon during a war really wasn’t a good idea.
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There are fresh reasons to believe putting a former Fox News host in charge of the Pentagon during a war really wasn’t a good idea.
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Nearly a week later, the president’s agriculture secretary said officials are still “finalizing” the policy as part of ongoing “conversations.”
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Nearly a week later, the president’s agriculture secretary said officials are still “finalizing” the policy as part of ongoing “conversations.”
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Since Watergate, IGs have rooted out corruption, ethical lapses and mismanagement. The White House, however, is rejecting the purpose of these offices.
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Since Watergate, IGs have rooted out corruption, ethical lapses and mismanagement. The White House, however, is rejecting the purpose of these offices.
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WHAT'S ON RACHEL'S BLUESKY RADAR?
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- "Shortly after taking office last year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth polled the nation’s top commanders about cutting a program designed to protect civilians during U.S. military operations.
Hegseth had bet senior officers would endorse his view that focusing on civilian security was “woke” and out of step with “maximum lethality,” current and former defense officials told ProPublica.
Instead, every commander rebuffed the idea."
(ProPublica)
- Before Hegseth fired him, top general was advised to drop Kid Rock probe — Gen. Randy George appeared troubled by the encounter with Gen. Chris LaNeve, the Army’s No. 2 officer now favored for the service’s top job, people familiar with the matter told The Post.
(Washington Post)
- "One service member is concerned the military blew up bridges in Iran that were not military targets. Another thinks Pentagon leaders are not doing enough to prevent civilian deaths during airstrikes inside Iran.
Yet another asked questions about how the military knew it was not killing civilians when launching missiles at boats it believed were trafficking drugs.
MS NOW spoke to five troops who want out of the military because what they saw in recent months challenged their moral beliefs."
(MS NOW)
- "Twenty-three percent fewer student visas were issued in 2025 compared to the previous year, according to newly released Department of State figures. Some countries, like Iran, Myanmar and Venezuela, saw declines over 70 percent from year to year. India, the second-largest supplier of international students to the U.S. in 2024, also experienced a precipitous 56.6 percent drop."
(Inside Higher Ed)
- First day of school...
"“There are kids who are going to come home today, whose parents are going to be missing. These folks need our help,” Alves said."
ICE detains dozens in Danbury for second straight day
(WFSB)
- Senator Chris Murphy:
"This morning in Danbury, ICE was arresting parents at school bus stops.
But it’s more sinister. ICE waited until the kids were on the bus so when they are dropped off at the end of the day, they are alone, scared to death they can’t find their parents.
I’m heading to Danbury."
- "Since Trump’s inauguration in 2024, border security had been the one issue on which his head was above water for most of the life of this tracker, as high as +11 in May 2025 and still positive at +1 in July.
But in August, Trump finally lost his last positive issue, falling to a new low of net −5 in our survey. That’s the worst number since Strength In Numbers began polling in May 2025."
(Strength In Numbers)
- "Defendants cannot contend that they misunderstood the scope of the court's order, " U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani wrote in a five-page filing Tuesday afternoon.
"Accordingly, despite the Defendants' protestations that '[t]he United States takes its obligation to comply with court orders very seriously,' the court finds that Defendants violated the preliminary injunction in this case."
Trump administration violated court order on mail-voting rules, judge says
(Axios)
- The Price of Diesel, the ‘Workhorse’ of Fuels, Nears a Record High — The cost of the fuel, used in farm machinery, trucks and other heavy equipment, has surged because of the war in Iran and Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries.
(New York Times)
Follow Rachel Maddow on Bluesky here.
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Rachel and the gang are getting out of the studio heading to Arlington, Texas on Saturday, September 26th to hang out with the MS NOW audience.
This forthcoming Membership experience will bring MS NOW fans closer to our hosts and to each other, with real-time connections and exclusive content you can't get on-air.
Each ticket, with prices starting as low as $30, includes a special offer for one year of free access to MS NOW's new membership experience.
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"Department of Fate: The Promise, the Power, and the Collapse of America’s Most Consequential Institution"
comes out November 10 but you can pre-order now.
See MS.NOW/DepartmentOfFate for links and options to pre-order.
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