I’m Isaac Saul, and this is Tangle: an independent, nonpartisan, subscriber-supported politics newsletter that summarizes the best arguments from across the political spectrum on the news of the day — then “my take.”

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A note about today...

Dear readers,

Today is Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year.

Like millions of other Jews, today I'll be abstaining from eating and drinking, among other prohibitions (like bathing, sexual relations, or wearing leather shoes). That means no food and no coffee.

It also means no work.

Among many other traditions that lead up to Yom Kippur, Jews are supposed to spend the eve of Yom Kippur (which began at sundown last night) and the entire day today in prayer and meditation. It is a time of atonement, not just with G-d, but among friends and family. Tonight, prayers will close with the ritual blowing of the shofar (the ram's horn), which is a tradition you may be familiar with.

If this is your first Tangle newsletter, I apologize. It is pretty unusual for me to take a day off in the middle of the week. You can read yesterday's newsletter here, or a preview of one of our most popular recent Friday editions here (if you're not subscribed, you'll run into a paywall). In years past, I've gotten ahead of the holidays so I could take the day off without readers noticing, but this year the work has been too demanding. In today’s newsletter (below), we’re still including some “quick hits” so you don’t miss anything — and you can always dig into our archives here.

Tomorrow, we'll be back in your inbox with our regular newsletter. We’ll be covering the voting rights case that was argued before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

If you are observing Yom Kippur, I wish you an easy fast. If you'd like to read more about this holiday, you can visit this link.

You can also use today's brief intermission to help us out…

Since you are on our free mailing list, the best thing you can do is subscribe. Paid subscribers get exclusive Friday editions, where we cover reader-requested content, share personal essays, or transcribe interviews with people in the political world. Memberships are cheap: Just $4.16/month when you subscribe for the year. But they make up 95% of all of our revenue. Become a Tangle member by clicking here.

This month, we are also running a charity drive for Tangle. For every reader who signs up for Tangle under the link https://readtangle.com/give, we'll be donating $1 to Meals on Wheels or No King Hungry. All you have to do is email that link to friends or post it on social media.

Thanks for your understanding. And see you tomorrow.

Best,

Isaac

Quick hits.

  1. Twitter says it plans to close the deal to sell the company to Elon Musk after receiving an offer, avoiding a potential trial. (The deal)
  2. Former President Trump's lawyers asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the Mar-a-Lago search case, arguing an appeals court lacked the jurisdiction to remove them from the special master. (The appeal)
  3. North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan, the first such launch since 2017. The U.S., Japan and South Korea conducted their own military drills in response. (The missile)
  4. The United States committed an additional $625 million to Ukraine, bringing the total aid provided close to $17 billion so far. (The funding)
  5. The United States' national debt surpassed $21 trillion for the first time. (The debt)

Our 'Quick Hits' section is created in partnership with Ground News, a website and app that rates the bias of news coverage and news outlets.

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