It’s Wednesday, October 29. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Bill Gates abandons climate alarmism. The Silicon Valley start-up that says it’s changed the chip game. A CAIR director joins a Hamas leader at an online event. And much more.
But first: Zohran Mamdani and the future of the left.
In six days’ time, barring a major upset, America’s biggest city—and the capital of capitalism—will elect a socialist as its mayor. Whatever you think of Zohran Mamdani, the 34-year-old state assemblymember dismissed as an also-ran just months ago, his victory will be an extraordinary moment for both America’s biggest city and the country’s opposition party.
Today, as Mamdani, former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, and Republican Curtis Sliwa turn the final bend of the race, we’re bringing you the most important stories on the election and its far-reaching implications.
First, Olivia Reingold reports from New York’s streets—or a bus in the Bronx, to be more specific. Olivia spoke to passengers on one of the five bus lines Mamdani helped make free under a pilot program last year. Hear what the voters told Olivia in the borough that one New York politico says will “make it or break it” come polling day.
Up next, Nicole Gelinas tackles what she sees as a dangerous misconception about this mayoral contest: that the rich will be hardest hit by Mamdani’s policies. “New York’s business executives and wealthy residents are scrambling to convince likely mayor Zohran Mamdani to be just a little nice to them next year,” writes Nicole. “But if elected, Mamdani won’t carry out most of his government experiments on them.” Read Nicole’s argument in full, on why it’s ordinary New Yorkers who have the most to lose from Mayor Mamdani:
According to Eli Lake, a victory for Mamdani would be the biggest win in the history of American socialism. How did the Democratic Socialists of America—the radical group to which Mamdani belongs—achieve victory? Not by moderating, writes Eli. In fact, the group is more extreme than ever. Now the question is whether, with Mamdani in Gracie Mansion, they temper their radicalism or double down. If you want to understand how the DSA went from “beautiful losers” to the kings of New York, listen to the latest episode of Breaking History, and read Eli’s accompanying op-ed on the group’s past, present, and future.
With the DSA ascendant, pity the moderate Democrat. Less than a year ago, after Donald Trump’s shellacking of Kamala Harris, it looked like the party might be ready to learn from defeat and swing back toward the center. One encouraging early sign Peter Savodnik spotted were comments by Seth Moulton, a Democratic congressman who cautioned that his party had “worked so hard at becoming tolerant that we’ve become intolerant.” When Peter profiled the lawmaker last November, he thought he had found someone who might lead the Democrats out of the wilderness. Today, Peter checks back in on Moulton—who is now running for Senate—and discovers a worrying new Democratic Party purity test.
With the progressives winning the Democratic Party’s internal tug-of-war, some moderates have developed a new theory with which to reassure themselves. They call it “the big tent,” and the idea is that the Democrats’ problems stem not from the party’s dominant views, but from its intolerance toward dissent. In other words: Let’s just agree to disagree, and focus. It’s a nice bedtime story but it’s plain wrong, says Ruy Teixeira, and a way to ignore the problems staring the party in the face. Read Ruy on why big-tent politics won’t save the Democrats:
Until yesterday, James Proud’s tech start-up Substrate was a closely guarded secret. Now, the firm has gone public with an innovation they say will transform the all-important semiconductor industry—and with it, global economics and politics. Sean Fischer talks to the founder about why he thinks he can make cutting-edge chips faster and more cheaply than anyone else—and do so here in America.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has long been scrutinized for links to terrorist groups. If you want to know why, consider events last week, where the Ohio director of CAIR, Khalid Turaani, appeared alongside senior Hamas representative Majed al-Zeer at an online event to discuss “strategic transformations in the light of Al-Aqsa Flood,” which is Hamas’s name for the October 7, 2023 attacks. Maya Sulkin reports that Turaani’s participation could bring greater legislative scrutiny of CAIR and its funding source.
For years, Bill Gates has been sounding the alarm on climate change. Now, the billionaire has acknowledged that global warming is not an existential threat. Lucy Biggers breaks down this sign of an environmental vibe shift, and the triumph of the “climate realists” in her latest video. Watch Lucy on Gates’s welcome shift in perspective.
Three weeks after the October 7, 2023 attacks, Samantha Woll, a prominent Jewish community leader in Detroit, was found murdered in her home. Spiral is our new podcast series by Frannie Block and Poppy Damon that seeks to get to the bottom of Woll’s brutal killing. Today Rafaela Siewert goes behind the scenes with Frannie and Poppy, to look at the year they spent unraveling a violent case where nothing was as it seemed.
And if you haven’t started this must-listen true crime series yet, start now with episode one:
A U.S. agent attempted to convince Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro’s chief pilot to divert his plane so that the U.S. could arrest Maduro, the Associated Press reported. The efforts began in April 2024 under the Biden administration and continued for 16 months. The revelation comes after President Donald Trump authorized the CIA to conduct covert lethal operations against Maduro’s regime inside Venezuela.
Some Senate Democrats have signaled a willingness to support a Republican proposal to pay all federal workers during the shutdown, The Hill reported. Meanwhile, they voted for the 13th time yesterday to block the Republican House bill to reopen the government.
Twenty-five Democratic attorneys general and governors are suing the Department of Agriculture (USDA) over the expected November 1 expiration of federal food stamp funding. Up to 42 million people rely on the program, and the plaintiffs argue that USDA must use contingency funds to extend benefits.
After Israel said Hamas violated the ceasefire agreement by attacking Israeli forces and delaying the return of hostage remains, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered “forceful strikes” on Gaza on Tuesday. Vice President J.D. Vance downplayed the escalation. “I think the president’s peace is going to hold despite that,” he said.
Texas filed a lawsuit against the makers of Tylenol, alleging that they deceptively marketed it as safe for pregnant women. Although the links between acetaminophen use and childhood autism are disputed, the suit argues that the company has long been aware of potential risks.
Hurricane Melissa made landfall in western Jamaica Tuesday afternoon, producing winds up to 165 miles per hour. A Category 5 hurricane, Melissa is one of the strongest on record, the most powerful since Hurricane Dorian in 2019.
More than 40 Democratic, Republican, and independent mayors from around the country signed a letter in late September condemning political violence, dubbed the Oklahoma City Declaration. “We are humans first, Americans second, and partisans last,” they wrote.
Fidel Castro lunchbox with a Che Guevara thermos?
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Sorry. Is what it is.