Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.
The El Paso airspace closed after the military tested new technologyThe federal government shut down El Paso’s airspace late last night after the U.S. military tried new anti-drone technology without giving aviation officials ample time to assess the risks to commercial airlines, according to four people briefed on the matter. The military has been developing high-energy laser technology to intercept and destroy drones, including those used by Mexican drug cartels. Military officials deployed it earlier this week against what they thought was a cartel drone, but which turned out to be a party balloon. The official explanation from the Trump administration for the shutdown was different. The transportation secretary, along with the White House, insisted that a sudden incursion of drones from Mexican cartels had forced the Federal Aviation Administration to halt all flights to and from El Paso. The airspace was reopened this morning. It was not clear if the balloon episode alone, or multiple incidents, prompted the F.A.A. to close El Paso’s airspace. But the aviation officials had determined that they did not have enough time to review whether the new technology could pose risks to other aircraft. They had warned the Pentagon, but their decision to halt all flights blindsided El Paso officials.
The labor market starts the year off strongU.S. employers added 130,000 jobs last month, more than half in health care, and the unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent, according to new federal data released today. The results were better than experts had expected, indicating that the job market might be emerging from a period of slow growth. Annual revisions had substantially reduced estimates of job growth in 2024 and 2025. Average hourly wages continued to rise at a consistent pace, but those on the high end have seen faster growth. More executives are acknowledging the growing income divide. In other economic news: The House is set to vote on a measure that would rescind tariffs President Trump imposed on Canada.
Bondi faces lawmakers’ anger over Epstein filesDuring an hourslong congressional hearing today, Attorney General Pam Bondi faced a barrage of sharp questions about the Trump administration’s handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein. One House Republican, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, criticized the Justice Department’s redaction errors that revealed the identities of multiple victims. Bondi refused to apologize to Epstein survivors who were present for her testimony and accused a House Democrat, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, of dragging her “into the gutter.”
A deadly mass shooting scars a remote Canadian townCanadian police spent today searching for a motive after a shooter killed eight people and injured several others at a school and a home in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, before killing herself. Officials identified the suspect as 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, and said she was biologically born male and began transitioning to female six years ago. The police said they had been to the suspect’s home “on a number of occasions over the last several years dealing with concerns of mental health.” The scale of the shooting — the third-deadliest in the country’s history — was devastating for the remote, close-knit community of just 2,400 people on the eastern flank of the Rockies. More top news
On Day 5 of the Winter Games, Team USA phenom Jordan Stolz won gold with an Olympic record in men’s 1,000-meter speedskating. Here’s the latest.
Dr. J wants you to know how good the A.B.A. wasThe history of American professional basketball is not just a history of the N.B.A. In the 1960s and ’70s, there was another high-flying, fast-paced league that was just as good, if not sometimes better. And Julius Erving, a.k.a. Dr. J, wants to tell you all about it. Erving is the executive producer of “Soul Power,” a new docuseries premiering tomorrow on Amazon Prime Video that follows the story of the A.B.A., the league that invented the 3-pointer and the slam-dunk contest. We talked to Erving about its legacy: “The A.B.A. lives in the N.B.A. today,” he said, “no question about it.”
Marc Jacobs turns back the clockWhen the pandemic disrupted fashion shows, Marc Jacobs’s clothes turned high-concept: exaggerated shapes and bizarro proportions, more like a thought experiment than something for women to wear. So it was something of a shock on Monday evening to go to the Marc Jacobs show and see … tweed pencil skirts and trouser suits. V-neck sweaters. A proper car coat. Throwback uniforms: In our Fashion Week newsletter, Jacob Gallagher remembers the movie “Clockwatchers,” which captures the era of corporate style before beige took over.
Dinner table topics
Cook: Fluffy toasted rice meets crunchy slaw in this gingery, tofu-topped salad. Read: Shelley Puhak’s new book dismantles the legend of history’s most prolific female killer. Listen: Our music critic dives into Zach Bryan’s redemptive new track. Cope: Olympians can teach us a thing or two about dealing with failure. Stock up: Wirecutter recommends eight cheap(ish) essentials for your medicine cabinet. Play: Here are today’s Connections, Wordle and |
