The US military is feeling the strain

This is the Weekend Edition of Bloomberg Opinion Today, a roundup of the most popular stories Bloomberg Opinion publishes each week based on web readership. New subscribers can sign up here; follow us on Bluesky, TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn and Threads.

Iran Strike Was a Triumph That Showed American Weakness — Hal Brands

It's useful to be reminded, occasionally, that there's only one superpower. Operation Midnight Hammer, the globe-spanning strike against Iran's nuclear program, was a demonstration of power projection that America's rivals can only envy. Unfortunately, the operation is also testament to how badly US military power is being strained, and how unserious the nation's debate on defense strategy has become.
That debate has featured, in recent years, two warring camps. In the first are those who warn that the threat of war with China is rising and that interventions elsewhere make it harder to prepare for that fight. In the second are those who argue that the US has vital stakes outside the western Pacific and that a global power can't simply quit crucial regions such as the Middle East and eastern Europe. Oddly, recent events show that both groups have a point.

Read the whole thing.

We've Never Seen a President This Unconstrained — Ron Brownstein

Why Mamdani Would Never Be Mayor — in Gujarat — Andy Mukherjee

Shell May Still Need M&A After Ruling Out Buying BP — Javier Blas

Jony Ive's First AI Gadget? Clues Point to a Pen — Parmy Olson

Xiaomi Made a Cheap Ferrari EV. Who Needs Porsche? — Chris Bryant

Supreme Court's Porn Ruling Continues the Conservative Revolution — Noah Feldman

The Stocks Will Be Tokenized — Matt Levine

Ignoring a $7 Trillion Financial Disaster Won't Make It Go Away — Mark Gongloff

Thom Tillis Knew What the GOP Refused to Hear — Mary Ellen Klas