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ACROSS
1 Nonetheless, bring back Congressman Hoyer to worry about large devices for capturing flashes of color? (9,4)
9 Exhaust our team before a defeat (4,3)
10 An urge for every moan (7)
11 and 24 Compensated agent with help (6)
12 Healthy beauties in Paradise, head to toe in brief romance (11)
13 Summons editor inside to dress up (6)
14 Sell James a blood feud (8)
17 Fashionable dice for parts of a joint support group? (3,5)
19 Living symbol seen in mother’s bed (6)
Even before February 28, the reasons for Donald Trump’s imploding approval rating were abundantly clear: untrammeled corruption and personal enrichment to the tune of billions of dollars during an affordability crisis, a foreign policy guided only by his own derelict sense of morality, and the deployment of a murderous campaign of occupation, detention, and deportation on American streets.
Now an undeclared, unauthorized, unpopular, and unconstitutional war of aggression against Iran has spread like wildfire through the region and into Europe. A new “forever war”—with an ever-increasing likelihood of American troops on the ground—may very well be upon us.
As we’ve seen over and over, this administration uses lies, misdirection, and attempts to flood the zone to justify its abuses of power at home and abroad. Just as Trump, Marco Rubio, and Pete Hegseth offer erratic and contradictory rationales for the attacks on Iran, the administration is also spreading the lie that the upcoming midterm elections are under threat from noncitizens on voter rolls. When these lies go unchecked, they become the basis for further authoritarian encroachment and war.
In these dark times, independent journalism is uniquely able to uncover the falsehoods that threaten our republic—and civilians around the world—and shine a bright light on the truth.
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22 Sweet song associated with Frank Sinatra, except involving class (5,3,3)
24 See 11
26 Island smuggled in giant iguana (7)
27 After transport of uranium to the front, one kind of power is incomprehensible (7)
28 Ha—clues became cryptic, which is what you get by stirring together elements from three Across entries (8,5)
DOWN
1 White South African protects woman in arbor (5)
2 At first, Tupac MC’d in a corner (7)
3 What comes across heroic, if Fox Entertainment backs away by virtue of one’s position (2,7)
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4 Understand corpulent Spanish man halfway (6)
5 Some evergreen growth definitely has to be in France, bearing weight (3,5)
6 Discharges, second time around (5)
7 Colleagues ultimately choose to accept the man’s a specious reasoner (7)
8 Loud newspaper tirade that comes out smelling like a rose (8)
13 Eastern European snake eats half-slice of nectarine (8)
15 Doctor Oakland squad, maintaining elegance in driving contests (4,5)
16 What the NSA collects from you and me (fanfare imitation): thanks (8)
18 In bar, order tall part of a beer can (4,3)
20 Mansion caretaker’s beginning to despise gold (7)
21 Thick hose doesn’t begin to hold a bit of heat (6)
23 Meditative soldier in playful upset (5)
25 For example, do away with uplifting and sad musical work (5)
SOLUTION TO PUZZLE NO. 3468
ACROSS 1 JEANS + I + BELIUS (anag.) 9 T + RUER 10 PHOENI (anag.) + CIA 11 MAN’S + PLAIN 12 hidden 13 “sticks” 14 FL(U + ID)OUNCE 17 L + AMPS + HADES 19 IRO (anag.) + N 22 hidden 23 HOT + SPRING 26 anag. 27 [d]ICING 28 TRI(PLED + E)CKER
DOWN 1 JO(URN)EY 2 A(BRUP)T (burp anag.) 3 SE(PI)A 4 pun 5 L + AN + [o]CELOT 6 UNCLE + A + N 7 anag. 8 P(ANT)HEON (phone anag.) 13 [h]SELF + MADE (rev.) 15 L(OATHS)OME (mole anag.) 16 PSY (anag.) + C + HSUP (rev.) 18 anag. 20 2 defs. 21 U(P(T)IC)K 24 THE + ME 25 2 defs.
Joshua Kosman and Henri PicciottoJoshua Kosman and Henri Picciotto are The Nation’s puzzlers. To read more about Kosman, click here. To read more about Picciotto, click here. Kosman and Picciotto explain what they’re up to in “Solving The Nation’s Cryptic Crosswords” (also available as a PDF).