July 22, 2026 · The war reaches for Iran's nuclear mountain, the government reaches for a reporter's mother, and a robot runs a marathon on Mars

The war with Iran reached for the one target that changes everything — Iran's nuclear mountain. President Trump said the US will hit the secret Pickaxe Mountain enrichment site "pretty soon, and very heavily," on a tenth straight night, while Iran set Kuwait's power and water on fire and the Houthis moved to blockade Saudi Arabia. Defense Secretary Hegseth told the Senate the war has cost $37.5 billion and asked for $87.6 billion more — with no end in sight. Then: the government sought the phone records of New York Times journalists and their relatives, including one reporter's mother. Plus a reportedly un-boxable AI, China's free super-model, Europe cracking open Google — and a robot that just ran a marathon on Mars. Sourced; the analysis is Anna Dudley's.