Good afternoon. This is the Final NOTUS newsletter for June 18, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!
THE LATEST
Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to a ceasefire, pausing the escalation that halted the U.S.-Iran talks that were supposed to happen today but didn’t.
- Donald Trump dismissed criticism of his Iran deal as whining from “Dumocrats,” but the vibes among Senate Republicans are also hovering somewhere between “somber” and “dismay.”
- JD Vance was supposed to be flying to Switzerland for the talks. Now he’s stuck in Washington, taking heat from Republicans over his comments about Israel.
- Sixty-five percent of American adults disapprove of how Trump is handling Iran, per a new AP-NORC poll out today.
The U.S. and Italy are arguing over Trump’s claim that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni “begged” to take a picture with him. Italy canceled Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani’s trip to the U.S., and Meloni said on camera: “Neither I nor Italy ever beg.”