Gates Calls For Patience On Afghanistan As 'war-weary' Republicans Get Fidgety

Earlier this month, the Commonwealth Fund published the results of its biannual survey on the state of health insurance coverage in the United States. Good timing, given the recent uproar over the business conglomerates that dominate the sector and seem to be more concerned with maximizing investment returns than ensuring the health and wellbeing of their customers. Despite the Commonwealth Fund’s mission—to “promote a high-performing, equitable health care system that achieves better access, improved quality, and greater efficiency, particularly for society’s most vulnerable”—its agenda is decidedly nonpartisan.

This story was originally published by Inside Climate News and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. As the holidays quickly approach, the last-minute scramble to get presents for everyone on your list can be a bit of a guessing game. Will your mom like the blue or green mug?

This story was originally published by Guardian and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Conservation experts have criticized a decision by London fashion week to ban exotic animal skins from its 2025 shows as “ridiculous,” warning that it is ill-informed and could harm the protection of many snakes, crocodiles, and reptile species. Last month, the British Fashion Council’s deputy director for policy and engagement, David Leigh-Pemberton, told parliament that next year’s fashion shows would prohibit the use of skins from alligators, snakes, and other animals.

The incoming president’s pick to run the Air Force does not inspire confidence.

“House Republican leaders planned to work through the night and into Friday on a Plan C for funding the government, after abandoning their deal with Democrats and failing to pass an alternative backed by President-elect Donald Trump,” Politico reports. “Facing a government shutdown deadline at midnight Friday, Speaker Mike Johnson is under pressure to patch together a third proposal to avert a shutdown — while enacting other priorities that include more than $100 billion in disaster aid, retaining support from Trump along with a majority of House Republicans and enough Democrats to secure passage.”

New York Times: “It was a remarkable moment for Mr. Musk, who has never been elected to public office but now appears to be the largest megaphone for the man about to retake the Oval Office. Larger, in fact, than Mr. Trump himself, whose own vaunted social media presence is dwarfed by that of Mr.