A+ for not-deranged: Many who watched Trump’s address to Congress described it as a shift toward a less divisive, more presidential Trump. But by the end of the speech, Michelle Goldberg writes, Trump had slipped back into familiar territory, and his appeals to unity shouldn’t be read as outreach but as an assertion of dominance.
The hottest place in politics: GOP town halls have become viral spectacles of late. Henry Grabar visited two, in Iowa and New Jersey, and saw how they’re invigorating the resistance movement.
Oval Office etiquette: Kellyanne Conway’s couch incident angered many Trump opponents—but did the photo really warrant the outrage? Katy Waldman analyzes the online response and the way decorum can serve as a metaphor for greater anxieties.
Sex offenders have rights, too: The Supreme Court is hearing the case of a registered sex offender convicted of a felony for using Facebook—a social networking site he’s barred from using. A civil rights attorney urges the court to support the First Amendment rights of those “on the fringes of society,” particularly in the age of Trump.
For fun: Will Oremus paid $20 to ask venture capitalist Marc Andreessen why he blocked him on Twitter.
Money well spent,
Molly
