The Evening: A storm is coming

January 23, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

A major winter storm is coming
Minnesotans protest against ICE
Plus, a search for an elusive Scotch

A runner with his dog on a leash moves along a path next to a snow-covered lake.

Colorado Springs, Colo., on Friday. Christian Murdock/The Gazette, via Associated Press

America prepares for a snowy shutdown

A major winter storm is expected to plow across the country this weekend, delivering a dangerous combination of freezing rain, heavy snow and bitter cold to more than 160 million Americans. Government officials and forecasters urged those in the storm’s path to stay home.

Use these tools to see how much snow you are in for, and how cold it will be in your area.

The storm took shape over the Rockies, and it is forecast to blanket the South tomorrow with freezing rain and ice, which can be far more dangerous than snow. By Sunday, the storm is expected to reach the East Coast, including New York City, which could see a foot or more of snow. Electricity providers warned people to be prepared for significant outages.

Frenzied preparations are underway. Many grocery stores have long lines or empty shelves. Airlines canceled hundreds of flights. Major cities have already canceled school for Monday. And even the Chicago Polar Bear Club called off its annual plunge into Lake Michigan.

Some things to keep in mind:

Try to avoid driving during the storm. For those who need to, here are a few tips.
Extreme cold can affect almost every part of your body.
Wirecutter put together a guide of the best tools to ride out a winter storm, and we’ve got advice for prepping your home.

Vincent Alban/The New York Times

Hundreds of Minn. businesses go on strike to protest ICE

Shops throughout the Twin Cities sat empty today, and businesses put up “closed” signs. Many students and workers stayed home, while thousands of protesters flooded the streets in subzero weather to demand that federal immigration agents leave the city.

The general strike was the most widespread protest since ICE arrived in Minneapolis weeks ago. Organizers said the pause on economic activity was intended to send a message about the lengths Minnesotans were willing to go to extinguish the immigration crackdown there.

Our newest poll shows that roughly half of voters support President Trump’s deportations, but a sizable majority believes that ICE has gone too far.

In related news:

An F.B.I. agent who sought to investigate the ICE officer who shot Renee Good resigned from the bureau.
After outrage erupted over the detention of a 5-year-old, a top Border Patrol official said his agents were “experts in dealing with children.”
ICE began a surge in Portland, Maine.

Dr. Kirk Milhoan wears a suit as he speaks from his seat at a table.

Dr. Kirk Milhoan in September. Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

Vaccine panel chair says shots should be optional

Kirk Milhoan, a doctor who leads the federal panel that recommends vaccines for Americans, said this week that shots protecting against polio and measles — and perhaps all diseases — should be optional. Speaking on a podcast, he argued that a person’s right to personal autonomy outweighed concerns about illness or death from infectious diseases.

The polio and measles vaccines are widely credited with preventing millions of deaths, and many public health experts strongly disagree with Milhoan. “He has no idea what he’s talking about,” one infectious disease expert said.

In related news: A Republican vaccine defender is now being criticized from both sides of the aisle.

A hand holds up a cellphone, seen from its side.

José A. Alvarado Jr. for The New York Times

There’s a new American TikTok

The popular video platform TikTok announced last night that its Chinese owners had struck a deal to create a new U.S. venture. It comes months after a 2024 law went into effect requiring TikTok to be sold, citing national security concerns, to continue operating. Our reporters got to work figuring out what that will mean for American users.

Here’s what we know: Non-Chinese investors, including Oracle and Silver Lake, will own 80 percent of the U.S. TikTok, and Oracle will oversee the security of Americans’ data and monitor changes to its powerful recommendation technology. ByteDance, the Chinese company that started TikTok, will own 20 percent and license its algorithm.

More top news

Drugs: Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder who has been accused of murder and of running an international drug-trafficking ring, was arrested.
Middle East: Trump said that a U.S. “armada” was heading to Iran, increasing the pressure on its leaders. In Tehran, videos showed disrespectful treatment of the bodies of those killed during the brutal government crackdown.
Ukraine: Russian, Ukrainian and American negotiators met today in the United Arab Emirates, the first trilateral talks since the start of the war.
Indiana: Police officials in Lafayette said they had arrested five people in the nonfatal shootings five days ago of a prominent local judge and his wife.
Immigration: Venezuela’s new government, in another sign of its willingness to placate Trump, is taking in more deportation flights.
Washington: A security guard to Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the labor secretary, was put on leave as an ethics scandal roils her department.
Organ donation: For years, the groups that coordinate transplants in the U.S. regularly ignored federal rules and skipped patients at the top of lists. That’s changing.
Russia: The biggest snowfall the Kamchatka Peninsula has seen in nearly 60 years buried towns under more than five feet of snow.

TIME TO UNWIND

The illustration shows a woman reading a book. The book’s cover is a window onto a wooded winter scene.

Marine Buffard

Bundle up this weekend with a big, immersive book

It’s starting to get cold out there. But inside — next to a steaming cup of tea, perhaps — there’s no better time to sink your teeth into a hefty book. If you need inspiration, we put together a list of 10 great books for these long winter nights.

For those of you with kids, there are so many great children’s books about snow.

And for anyone who has ever wished for a time machine, the author Janie Chang picked out some of her favorite historical fiction.

Alex Honnold in a blue jacket standing in front of a brown wall.

Alex Honnold. Mark Abramson for The New York Times

He’s climbed countless cliffs. Now, he’ll try a skyscraper.

The rock climber Alex Honnold is best known for his rope-free ascent of El Capitan, which was featured in the Oscar-winning film “Free Solo.” Today, he is trying another daring feat: Honnold plans to scale Taipei 101, a 101-story, 1,667-foot skyscraper in Taiwan — again, without any ropes or other safety equipment.

The climb, which is set to begin roughly two hours after this newsletter hits your inbox, will be streamed live on Netflix. We talked to him about what’s on his mind. Does he have a death wish? No. Does he have life insurance? No. Is Honnold worried about slipping? He plans to hold on tight.

A portrait of a man in a coat with wide velvet lapels and hood and a white ruffled shirt with a bow, holding a palette and brush.

Jacques-Louis David in a 1794 self-portrait. Alamy

Dinner table topics

History’s most dangerous painter: Jacques-Louis David, an artist of the French Revolution, has long enchanted our critic Jason Farago — and scared him. Let Jason show you why.
Make your pick: The Athletic asked N.F.L. coaches and executives to predict this weekend’s winners. (So far in the playoffs, they are 10-0.)
Uncommon thanks: Just before Ernest Hemingway died by suicide, he left a hopeful note to Sister Immaculata.
Wow: See how one show turns four miles of silk into a theatrical spectacle.