Oppenheimer, Epstein and other nuclear bombs
You know a fictionalized version of the story from the blockbuster hit Oppenheimer. But in this week's Friday Read, journalist and historian Garrett Graff offers us an intimate new vantage point on this pivotal moment in political history, by letting the people who were there tell the tale — in their own words.
'In my upcoming book, The Devil Reached Toward the Sky: An Oral History of the Making and Unleashing of the Atomic Bomb, I assembled an oral history of the Manhattan Project, the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the end of World War II in the Pacific, told through the voices of around 500 participants and witnesses of the events — including luminaries like Albert Einstein and Oppenheimer and political figures like President Harry Truman,' Graff writes.
In this excerpt, we share the story of testing the bomb, a project codenamed Trinity. 'With the nuclear age reaching its hottest point since the Cold War, a look back at its origins provides a stark reminder of just what's at stake,' Graff writes.
Read the story.
'Blondi is literally blowing up the Trump admin by concealing information, spending time on Fox News lying to MAGA base and by releasing contradictory statements.'
Can you guess who said this about Attorney General Pam Bondi? Scroll to the bottom for the answer.**
Trump, Epstein and the Media ... The DOJ's refusal to release files related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein roiled major segments of the MAGA base and conservative media. For a moment, it seemed as though a president with a talent for controlling narrative was losing his grip on the story. But after the bombshell report from The Wall Street Journal revealed new details about Trump's relationship with Epstein, which Trump denies, a familiar pattern emerged as certain influencers fell in line: MAGA vs. the 'fake news.' To make sense of how this is all impacting Trump's most important relationship — his relationship with the media — we sat down with Michael Kruse, our resident Trumpologist, for a conversation about where the Epstein story goes from here.
Did you somehow miss The Wall Street Journal story about The Letter Trump denies writing? It's all anyone will be talking about at drinks tonight, but not to worry. Just brush up on these details from POLITICO's reporting, and you can fake your way through the conversation. (From Associate Editor Dylon Jones)
— Of course you know how much money Trump wants from the Journal in his new lawsuit: 'The president filed suit in Miami, seeking $20 billion.'
— Drop in an observation about the second-order political effects to prove you read more than just the One Big Story: 'Did you see Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna are teaming up again to push for a vote on releasing the 'Epstein files?' You might have thought bipartisanship was impossible these days, but as Trump once said at Liberty University, 'The more people tell you it's not possible, that it can't be done, the more you should be absolutely determined to prove them wrong.''
— If Trump's call to release grand jury records comes up, show off some legal details about just how complicated that would be: 'The grand jury records aren't anywhere close to the total records-dump people want. Plus, they need permission from the court that decided the criminal case — which could take months — and the DOJ is already getting ready to redact info from them.'
— If you want to prove that you know what's going on with the MAGA base, bring up the latest development: 'Some MAGA figures seemed to be turning on Trump over this, but the WSJ scoop has once again united them in opposition to a favorite old villain — the 'fake news.''
D.C. Is Hemorrhaging Visitors ... Washington has lost millions of dollars in events since Trump started his second term, with conventioneers and tourists dropping plans in a region already reeling from federal job cuts. 'What had been a place of monuments and history is now increasingly viewed from afar as a place where your event could be suddenly canceled by authorities or your keynote speaker could be detained at the airport,' writes Capital City columnist Michael Schaffer.
Rogan's New Guest Wants a Blue Texas ... James Talarico, a Democratic state representative in Texas, may not be a household name across the country. But as of yesterday, that could be changing. Talarico, an aspiring preacher with a massive TikTok following who is weighing a run for U.S. Senate, sat down for a long interview with Joe Rogan, perhaps the most coveted interview for a rising star in politics today. Could it help him win over some Trump 2024 voters? 'I just got the overwhelming impression that Joe Rogan is not loyal to either political party, and is deeply skeptical of our political system as a whole,' he tells Adam Wren. 'I think that skepticism also applies to Donald Trump, just like it did to Joe Biden last year.'
Trump's Serious Superpower ... Trump has a particular way of speaking that's something of a rhetorical Rorschach test. When he talks about a 'Gaza riviera,' some people hear it as a promise, others as a distasteful joke. When he suggests an invasion of Greenland, some call it a threat, others call it bluster. Whether he actually means what he says? Often, it's anyone's guess. According to Dan Brooks, that's exactly how Trump likes it. 'It's impossible to know when Trump is joking, when he's off on a rant and when he might actually mean what he says,' he writes. 'Trump's commitment to loose talk has given him unprecedented leeway to act on his words without criticism or debate, before people have even decided whether he's serious.'
From the drafting table of editorial cartoonist Matt Wuerker.
**Who Dissed? answer: It was ultra-conservative influencer Laura Loomer.
politicoweekend@politico.com
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