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ACROSS
1 Heard location makes sense (5)
4 Vessels with a hint of serious trouble try to return filled with oxygen (9)
9 Escape from reef? (5,4)
10 Take too much in Asian politician’s home (5)
11 Discover logical argument that might go over your head (4)
12 Irregular Orange County electronics firm brought back small electronic grid (10)
14 Start of sexual relations, leading to thoughtless eruption on the body (4,4)
15, 18, 5D, and 21D Weak theater delivery person entered, shuffling six letters (6,6,6,4,2)
18 See 15
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.
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19 Possibly cold case lost in translation (8)
22 Weight means I’m left with broken cane (10)
24 Scandalous data provides cover for government agency (4)
26 Pronounce vegetable as measure of fineness (5)
27 Weaving rug behind place for tartan (9)
28 Shady, backward lair—it assumes an unpleasant look (4-5)
29 Cook in Silicon Valley: “I would be shy” (5)
DOWN
1 Rubs parts repeatedly in surrounding areas (7)
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2 Like many a calendar copy held up by colossus, for the most part (9)
3 Gate made of processed teak (4)
4 Grant’s boosted employment in New York city (8)
5 See 15
6 Raise surprise tailless reptile with second-rate snack food (6,4)
7 Fruit from a company health worker (5)
8 Varnish pouch outside bad spot (7)
13 Moreno appears amid soft Debussy work in recession before a ceremony (10)
16 Eddy Sahl’s in retreat, following West London’s leader (9)
17 Cinderella, for example, hid gold deviously around chimney’s opening (8)
18 Insect’s game (7)
20 Mom’s in the outhouse, drunk (7)
21 See 15
23 Bag of sheer stockings? (5)
25 Oddly ambient support (4)
SOLUTION TO PUZZLE NO. 3506
ACROSS 1 SA(ULBE)LLOW (blue anag.) 6 HAL + F 10 [h]EMP + TIER 11 T(AUNT)ED 12 K(V)ETCH 13 CON + JUROR 14 2 defs. 16 BAG + EL 18 HO + HUM 20 anag. 22 D(O)UB + LOON 24 AL(UM + N)I 26 VA + GUEST 27 EXCE(R)PT 28 2 defs. 29 STEP-LAD + DER
DOWN 1 S(PEAK)OFT + HE + DEVIL (rev.) 2 UMP + TEE(N)TH 3 BRIO + CHE 4 anag. 5 anag. 7 A + F + TER[m] 8 FEDER(ALREGIST)ER (liar gets anag.) 9 PUN + JAB 15 TIT + FORT + AT 17 GLI[b] + MME + RED 19 rev. hidden 21 FELI (anag.) + CIA 23 [s]-URGE-S 35 rev.
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).