A selection of recent and most read stories from The Atlantic to start your day

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The Epstein Letter Is Real, and It’s Bad

The president’s initial strategy of denying that the document exists leaves him with few options now that it has been made public.

The Intellectual Vacuity of the National Conservatives

The post-liberal American right set out to destroy the guardrails that restrained anti-Semitism, without giving any thought to what might happen next.

The Metaphysics of Panic

A new novel keenly describes the symptoms—and more important, the existential stakes—of extreme anxiety.

New York NIMBYs Turn Against Democracy

Local lawmakers want to preserve their power to block housing. Does what voters think matter at all?

John Cheever’s Secrets

In a new memoir, Susan Cheever searches for the wellspring of her father’s genius.

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