Opinion Today: Anthropic vs. the Pentagon, a Washington secret, Trump’s cabinet
Here’s what we’re focusing on.
Opinion Today
February 27, 2026
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Notable

What both Anthropic and the Pentagon get wrong. “We regulate most of the products we buy, from automobiles to airplanes to appliances. Existing and emerging A.I. models entail far more risk and scope of potential harm than these products.”

— Frank Kendall, a former secretary of the Air Force

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The best-kept secret in Washington. “Most of what the secret Congress does is readily visible, but most of us do not look.”

— Kevin R. Kosar, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, in conversation with John Guida, an editor in Times Opinion

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Trump’s shields are down. “Why does Trump seem less willing to dismiss top officials and advisers this time around?”

— Carlos Lozada, Opinion columnist

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Spotlight

President Trump — portrayed with a short, cropped, black jacket, a blue tie worn far too short, a white shirt with barrel cuffs and gray formal trousers — stands clutching a charcoal-colored tote bag over his head by its straps, his pink colored nails seeming to gloat as he obscures his senses.
Sara Priorelli

Trump Is Confusing Hatred With Strength. Voters Aren’t Buying It.

The State of the Union was full of fearmongering. Our contributing writer E.J. Dionne Jr. writes that strategy isn’t working with voters anymore — and President Trump is handing Democrats a gift.

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ICYMI

These Iranian doctors risked their lives so you could see these images. The Iranian regime massacred thousands of citizens when protests swept the country last month. In this video, journalists show the evidence of that brutality, smuggled out by medical workers.

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More in Opinion

A view of burned-out cars on a highway with range of mountains in the distance.

Guest Essay

Mexico’s Cartel Fight Is a Terrifying High-Wire Act

As drug gangs have become more deeply embedded in Mexico, narco blockades have become a way for them to visibly assert their power.

By Ioan Grillo

A photograph of three students at a table in a classroom with papers in front of them and a woman opposite them. One of the students, a girl, raises her hand high into the air.

letters

How to Measure Real Progress in Education

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, and others respond to a Nicholas Kristof column. Also: Reagan’s warning about nuclear weapons; aging doctors.

An black-and-white illustration of a hand on top of stomach.

Guest Essay

I’m an Immunologist. I Grew Up Unvaccinated.

For a long time, I was angry at my mom for not vaccinating me.

By Elisabeth Marnik

A van displaying a photo of Mayor Zohran Mamdani driving down a residential street.

Guest Essay

Mamdani Can End the Homelessness Crisis. Here’s How.

Our aim should be to make permanent housing, not shelters, the default.

By Mark Hurwitz

In Your Words

Re: “Trump Has Lost Touch With Reality

What really surprised me is that Donald Trump didn’t ask the Olympic athletes for their gold medals so they could sit next to his Nobel Peace Prize. — A comment by Aurace Rengifo from Miami Beach

Read more comments on the story here and check out our Letters to the Editor.

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