U.S. | The Atlantic

Can Democrats Salvage Their Chances in Maine?

2026-07-11T10:38:52-04:00

After Graham Platner officially withdrew from the Maine Senate race this week, Democrats are now in the process of naming his replacement. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss how the party is trying to salvage their chances in the state, and more.

Democrats have been looking to win races in states such as Maine, Michigan, Ohio, and Alaska in the hopes of flipping at least four seats in the Senate during the upcoming midterm elections, Adam Harris, host of Radio Atlantic, explained last night. But the party’s scrambling over Platner suggests that Democrats may have learned the “wrong lesson from 2020 and 2024,” he argues. They were “looking for the prototypical candidate who can win back the isolated white male voters who they may have thought they lost to President Trump.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Leigh Ann Caldwell, the chief Washington correspondent at Puck; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker; Harris.

Watch the full episode here.

What Trump’s Efforts to Change D.C. Reveal

2026-06-27T10:45:12-04:00

Editor’s Note: Washington Week With The Atlantic is a partnership between NewsHour Productions, WETA, and The Atlantic airing every Friday on PBS stations nationwide. Check your local listings, watch full episodes here, or listen to the weekly podcast here.

Donald Trump’s efforts to change the architecture of Washington, D.C. have included projects such as repainting the Reflecting Pool, tearing down the East Wing of the White House, and proposing the construction of a triumphal arch. Last night on Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss what this may reveal about the president’s governing style, and more.

Trump’s ongoing discussions about these projects often focus on interior design and his desire to rebuild structures in his own vision. Trump is “a hobbyist who happens to be president,” Michael Scherer, a staff writer at The Atlantic, argued last night. “He’s getting to do his hobby with public taxpayer dollars to whatever extent he wants.”

The president “conflates national greatness with what he can do, and that’s part of his identity; it’s part of his politic,” Scherer said. D.C. will see “project after project, because it really is the thing that captures his imagination.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Leigh Ann Caldwell, a chief Washington correspondent at Puck; Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Scherer; Nancy Youssef, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

What Comes Next for Iran

2026-06-20T11:31:25-04:00

Last night on Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the signing of an agreement between the United States and Iran, and what Donald Trump’s deal with the regime may mean for other countries.

“The international community is looking at what happened not only in Iran but in Ukraine, and seeing that this idea of large powers coming in and definitively defeating other weaker nations is not necessarily the case anymore,” Nancy Youssef, a staff writer at The Atlantic argued last night.

What this may mean going forward is that militaries across the world, including the U.S., will look at their technological, drone, and AI capabilities to “figure out what advances they need to make given this rapid moving and changing battlefield dynamic,” she said.

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Jonathan Karl, a chief Washington correspondent at ABC News; Karim Sadjadpour, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; David Sanger, a White House and national-security correspondent at The New York Times; and Youssef.

Watch the full episode here.

American Democracy, 250 Years Later

2026-06-13T13:09:10-04:00

Last night, panelists joined a special edition of Washington Week With The Atlantic to discuss the state of democracy 250 years after the Declaration of Independence, and the successes and challenges of the American experiment.

Compared with the nation founded 250 years ago, the United States of today appears to be in an “epistemological crisis,” Tim Alberta, a staff writer at The Atlantic, argued.“You have people who no longer share a lived reality, or no longer operate from a common baseline of fact and information.” What’s so striking, Alberta continued, is how people have “reached the conclusion that no one is looking out for them, that no one has their best interest in mind, that no one can be trusted.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, in this discussion about the nation’s 250th anniversary: Alberta; Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Idrees Kahloon a staff writer at The Atlantic; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker; Ashley Parker a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode, “America: The Next 250,” here.

The Republicans Defying Trump

2026-06-06T11:21:10-04:00

President Trump could be facing Republican pushback from soon-to-be former senators. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined last night to discuss the group known as the YOLO caucus, and more.

Breaks between the GOP and the president could have a particular effect on the ongoing Iran war, Nancy Youssef, a staff writer at The Atlantic, said last night. “The idea that we’re starting to see fissures within [Trump’s] own party, I think, potentially gives Iran some leverage in terms of pushing for a deal that is more favorable to them,” she argued. “We’ve seen the president really toggle between trying to end this war as quickly as possible and also get some wide- reaching, headline-grabbing outcome out of it.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Annie Linskey, a White House reporter at The Wall Street Journal; Michael Scherer, a staff writer at The Atlantic; and Youssef.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Approach to Global Leadership

2026-05-30T10:58:17-04:00

On a special edition of Washington Week With The Atlantic, David Ignatius, a foreign-affairs columnist at The Washington Post, joined the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss the state of negotiations with Iran, what the future could hold for the war between Russia and Ukraine, and how Trump may view the U.S.’s relationship with Cuba.

A fear is spreading that America’s commitment to upholding the promises that underlie NATO and other global alliances is faltering, Ignatius argued last night. “The NATO umbrella is getting pretty tattered, and I don’t think Americans appreciate just how dangerous that is,” he said. “Other countries will go their own way.”

Watch the full episode here.

Hegseth’s Leadership of the U.S. Military

2026-05-23T11:20:48-04:00

Last night on Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to examine Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s role and influence in the Trump administration, and what his leadership may reveal about how he’s trying to reshape the U.S. military.

Over time, there has been “a tradition where defense secretaries attempt to minimize their overtly partisan behavior,” Missy Ryan, a staff writer at The Atlantic, said last night. “Because they are the safeguards of America’s sons and daughters, they try to, in the name of national security, act more as a nonpartisan actor.” But Hegseth, she argued, “has totally discarded that tradition, and we’re seeing him lean into his role as a partisan fighter.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Helene Cooper, a national-security correspondent at The New York Times; Jonathan Karl, the chief Washington correspondent at ABC News; Ryan; Vivian Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Visit to China

2026-05-16T11:59:37-04:00

Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping for a high-stakes summit in Beijing this week. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss potential takeaways from the visit, and more.

“There was an enormous amount of trepidation looking in advance of the summit on the part of America’s allies,” Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker argued last night. “What Donald Trump has made very clear is that no matter what’s written on paper, no matter what laws are passed by Congress, there’s no permanent commitments or alliances, as far as he’s concerned.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Glasser; Mark Mazzetti, a Washington correspondent for The New York Times; Nancy Youssef, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Struggle to Find an Off-Ramp From the Iran War

2026-05-09T10:48:00-04:00

Is the United States still at war with Iran? If the war is over, who won and who actually controls the Strait of Hormuz now? Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined last night to discuss these questions and whether Trump has an exit strategy from the fighting he initiated.

As the conflict enters its third month, Washington and Tehran are in a standoff over the terms that would enable peace talks to begin. As President Trump ramps up pressure on Iran to accept his conditions, the prolonged crisis in the Strait of Hormuz continues to threaten the global economy.

U.S. forces struck Iranian targets Thursday after two U.S. destroyers were attacked in the strait, but Trump called this response a “love tap” and said that the exchange of fire did not represent a break in the cease-fire. The war remains in a state of “suspended animation,” Jeffrey Goldberg, moderator and editor in chief of The Atlantic, said last night.

Meanwhile, Trump has grown “bored” with the war, an outside adviser told the Atlantic staff writer Jonathan Lemire. But Iran appears comfortable with keeping the conflict going, possibly for many more months, Lemire has reported. He noted last night that Iran has more control over the strait now than it did at the start of the conflict.

Joining Goldberg to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Lemire; Amna Nawaz, a co-anchor at PBS News Hour; and Vivian Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

How the Iran War May Play a Role in the Midterms

2026-05-02T13:09:26-04:00

Fallout from the war in Iran may play a role in the midterm elections, particularly when it comes to the economy. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined last night to discuss this, and more.

“People have been feeling glum about the economy for a really long time,” Idrees Kahloon, a staff writer at The Atlantic, argued last night. But the conditions created by the war in Iran, such as the effects on the global oil market, he added, are “not the set of economic priorities you want to be sending before you go to the midterms.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker; Kahloon; Ashley Parker, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

How Trump Voters Are Reacting to the Economy

2026-04-25T11:07:09-04:00

President Trump’s approval rating on his handling of the economy seems to be dropping, according to a recent poll from The New York Times. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to examine how voters’ perception of the president may be shifting, and more.

Amid rising costs, some Trump voters have begun cutting back on spending, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, a staff writer at The Atlantic, said last night, referencing the voters she has spoken with while reporting in Arizona. “It is the sacrifices that they are having to make within their homes and within their own households to be able to afford this environment,” she added. To these voters, “psychologically, they feel like they are in a really bad spot.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Annie Linskey, a White House reporter at The Wall Street Journal; Seung Min Kim, a White House reporter at the Associated Press; Tyler Pager, a White House correspondent at The New York Times; and Sanchez.

Watch the full episode here.

The President and the Pope

2026-04-18T11:19:33-04:00

Editor’s Note: Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss growing opposition to President Trump’s attacks on Iran and what winning a war with unclear objectives could like.

Donald Trump attacked Pope Leo XIV earlier this week for his comments about the war in Iran. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss the president’s remarks, and what they may signal about Trump’s messaging on the conflict.

Pope Leo has become more vocal about his concerns over what’s happening in Iran, Michael Scherer, a staff writer at The Atlantic, explained last night. But in response to Trump’s backlash, Leo has “talked in even more aggressive terms … about how military leaders should not use religion to justify their actions,” Scherer said.

“Catholic voters are a real swing group in this country,” Scherer continued—and yet, “Trump has not backed down; he says he won’t apologize.” The president, Scherer argued, is not “operating from a position of strength.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Leigh Ann Caldwell, the chief Washington correspondent at Puck; Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Jonathan Lemire, a staff writer at The Atlantic and a co-host of Morning Joe on MS NOW; and Scherer.

Watch the full episode here.

The Iran War Is Putting Pressure on Europe

2026-04-11T11:00:23-04:00

President Trump’s war in Iran is putting economic pressure on many European countries. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the effects of the conflict on America’s allies, and more.

“It’s a very strange moment because, on the one hand, actually, U.S. and NATO allies are cooperating an enormous amount,”Anne Applebaum, a staff writer at The Atlantic, said last night, referencing the logistical and intelligence support that some European countries have provided the United States since Trump launched the war in Iran. The president, however, is also “looking for scapegoats, and he’s landed on Europeans,” Applebaum added.

Throughout Trump’s second term, America’s European allies have “been insulted, they’ve been tariffed, they’ve been attacked,” Applebaum argued. “And there does come a moment when people do start to say, What are we getting out of this relationship?”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Applebaum; Gillian Tett, a columnist at the Financial Times; Karim Sadjadpour, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; Nancy Youssef, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

What Trump’s Address to the Nation Revealed

2026-04-04T10:11:14-04:00

Earlier this week, Donald Trump delivered his first national address since the war with Iran began more than a month ago. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the president’s remarks, and more.

“It’s always better for a president in a time of war to go to the public and explain what he’s trying to do, to explain the goals, to explain why it’s worth American treasure and lives,” Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times said last night. But Trump’s address on Wednesday “did not feel like a speech a month into the war saying where we’re going to go from here, and I think it left a lot of people confused.”

Joining guest moderator Vivan Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic, to discuss this, and more: Idrees Ali, a national-security correspondent at Reuters; Baker; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker; Michelle Price, a White House reporter at the Associated Press.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Mixed Messages About Iran

2026-03-28T12:38:39-04:00

President Trump continues to offer different answers to what victory in Iran may look like. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined last night to discuss this, and more.

“In a tactical sense, there’s no question that overwhelming military power is brought to bear and Iran is being degraded,” David Ignatius, a foreign-affairs columnist at The Washington Post, said last night. But “the more I watch this process of a weak enemy being pounded and pounded, I’m reminded of the Gaza war.” After two years of fighting, “Hamas still controls most of the Palestinians in Gaza,” Ignatius argued. “Even with all that power, Israel wasn’t able to win—and I think that’s what we’re all worrying about.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker; Ignatius; and Missy Ryan, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

How Does Trump Define Victory in Iran?

2026-03-21T12:19:00-04:00

Opposition to President Trump’s continued attacks on Iran is growing—not only from resentful European allies and Democratic Party leaders, but also from parts of his MAGA base. This week, a top counterterrorism official resigned from his role in protest. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss this and more.

What does winning a war with unclear objectives look like? Panelists examined what it would take for Trump to declare victory in the war with Iran.

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, this week: Idrees Ali, a national-security correspondent at Reuters; Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Vivian Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic; David Sanger, a White House and national-security correspondent at The New York Times.

Watch the full episode here.

How the Conflict in Iran Is Impacting the Global Energy Market

2026-03-14T10:51:18-04:00

The conflict in Iran has begun to impact the global energy market. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss rising oil prices, potential shortages, and more.

As the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran continues, oil shortages will likely result in rising prices, Steve Inskeep, the host of NPR’s Morning Edition, explained last night. Americans tend to “support their country in times of urgency and war, and I’m sure that Americans would put up with a degree of sacrifice,” Inskeep continued. “But nobody has asked them to do so.” The president “has yet to address the nation in a formal way,” Inskeep argued—and, as a result, “the public is being asked to pay a higher and higher price, and they were not given a reason” for why the U.S. is at war.

Joining guest moderator Vivian Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic, to discuss this and more: Inskeep; Nancy A. Youseff, a staff writer at The Atlantic; Mark Mazzetti, a Washington correspondent at The New York Times; and Felicia Schwartz, a diplomatic correspondent for Politico.

Watch the full episode here.

A Dating-App Nightmare

2026-03-09T13:02:04-04:00

This article was featured in the One Story to Read Today newsletter. Sign up for it here.

Timothy Valentin found his dates the way so many people find each other nowadays: Hinge. Plenty of Fish. Bumble. Match.com. He had a profile you might swipe right on some dull Tuesday night—well groomed, fit, and happy to meet in a reassuringly public place, like the neighborhood bar. Nothing heavy, nothing untoward. In person, he told tales of his work with the FBI. He was professional, even reassuring, and gentlemanly, insistent on buying the drinks.

Except Valentin would then offer just one more drink and drug his dates senseless, officials familiar with a widening investigation into his behavior claim. As the women drifted into oblivion, they have alleged to cops, he would help them into his car with an offer to grab a nightcap, then film himself raping them. He left little trace: His victims rarely had any recollection of what had happened, officials claim. They simply thought that they had met a nice man in a crowded, public place and drank more than they should have.

Last April, one of Valentin’s alleged victims awoke with the conviction that something was wrong, according to court documents. The night before felt blurred and disorienting. She had left the bar with Valentin and recalled getting in his car—the place that officials claim was the locus of his crimes. Believing that she had been violated, she went to Washington, D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department. There she learned that Valentin was no FBI agent. He was a former decorated officer of the very department now tasked with investigating him.

In December, authorities in Alexandria, Virginia, arrested Valentin on charges including rape, sodomy, and altering food or beverages. As investigators pursued the case, they uncovered a huge amount of evidence—digital records, personal effects, and testimony—that suggests that Valentin may have carried out similar crimes across the mid-Atlantic, people familiar with the case told me. Today, Valentin was charged or indicted in multiple additional cases in Virginia and Maryland, and investigators asked for more potential victims to contact law enforcement. Authorities believe that they have identified more than a dozen victims to date, the people familiar with the case said. Based on the evidence gathered so far, authorities project that the ultimate number of victims could exceed 50—which would make the case one of the most extensive drugging and sexual-assault investigations in U.S. history.

“I want to acknowledge the enormity of this moment,” Tarrick McGuire, Alexandria police chief, told reporters this afternoon, offering sympathy and support to the alleged victims. He said Valentin could be described as a serial offender.

Valentin’s defense attorney, Gretchen Taylor Pousson, said that Valentin is “presumed innocent, and we will vigorously defend his constitutional rights at trial.” She added that the first Virginia trial is set for August and that “we will take all appropriate steps to protect Mr. Valentin’s right to a fair and impartial jury.”

Valentin has pleaded not guilty and maintains his innocence, telling the court that he is eager to return to his job as an insurance-fraud investigator (the company says that he no longer works there). The alleged victims, he has maintained, consented to his advances.

About 80 million Americans use dating platforms, according to statistics from eHarmony, a dating company. Three in 10 Americans say they have used a dating site or app, according to a 2023 Pew Research Center study. That rises to half of adults aged 18 to 29. But online dating rests on a quiet faith that the person on the other side of the screen is who they claim to be.

The apps promise agency. Not interested? Just swipe left. Yet anyone can portray themselves any way they want, and predators have repeatedly used dating apps to find victims. “Who wants to start out on a date being suspicious and wary?” Mindy Mechanic, a clinical and forensic psychologist, asked me. Most violence against women is committed by people they know and trust, Mechanic added, because those are situations where women expect to be safe. But charming strangers can create that atmosphere too, leaving women potentially vulnerable, especially when partying is involved. “One thing to think about is not to drink alcohol,” Mechanic said.

Representatives for Match Group, the parent company of Hinge and Match.com, and a spokesperson for Bumble said that their companies maintain dedicated teams that work with law enforcement on investigations. Bumble said that it continues to enhance the app’s help center and has introduced new safety features such as ID verification and mandatory photo verification. Both stressed the element of trust as a feature paramount to their business models.

My reporting at The Atlantic usually focuses on national security and the White House. But earlier this year, as I was working on a story, I reached out to an old friend and colleague, Scott Weinberger. A former Florida deputy sheriff turned investigative journalist, Weinberger specializes in covering complex criminal cases; his investigative work on the podcast Cold Blooded helped solve a murder after more than four decades. Weinberger was looking for his next crime-documentary project and told me that he had caught wind of something unfolding in Washington: A former D.C. police officer had been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting women he met online and recording his attacks.

I felt a chill. Nearly everyone I know has swiped, matched with, or messaged a stranger. Several years ago, I met my husband on a dating app. Weinberger and I began to look into the case.

For some of the women, the first indication that something had gone wrong was the knock of detectives at their door. Investigators obtained surveillance video from a popular Irish pub in Alexandria where Valentin took the woman who first reported him to the police. The footage shows the two of them chatting, laughing, and drinking, investigators told us. But when the woman went to the bathroom, Valentin removed a small sandwich bag from his pocket and poured a powdered substance into his date’s drink, mixed it around, and either sipped or blew on it, according to court records describing the surveillance footage. Prosecutors allege that Valentin was ensuring that the taste of the drug was undetectable; his defense attorney says that he couldn’t possibly have put a drug in the drink if he was willing to taste it himself.

The victim, according to court documents, told investigators that she’d felt sleepy, “similar to being placed under anesthesia for a surgery.” She told investigators that she recalled waking up to find herself lying on her left side with her head toward the driver’s side of the vehicle, her underwear pulled down and her dress pulled up. Valentin, according to the court records, was allegedly in a kneeling position over her. She had hazy recollections of being raped and forced to perform oral sex.

Court records show that after the victim reported the events of that night to police, she had a toxicology screening. In her urine, medical examiners detected bromazolam—a sedative with no approved medical use, although it is among the dozens of drugs known to be used in rapes. Male DNA was also detected in the victim’s mouth and vaginal area, according to court records.

Illustration by Lucy Naland. Source: Getty.

After Valentin’s December arrest, investigators cracked open his phone, laptop, and online accounts, uncovering what they described as a trove of recordings. His phone alone allegedly contained dozens of video files, some depicting multiple recordings involving the same victim, according to people familiar with the investigation. The quality of the videos varied. Some were grainy. Some obscured the victims’ face, but the women could be heard trying to resist.

Afterward, these people said, Valentin often removed driver’s licenses from purses and photographed them, though investigators can’t say why: to know where to drive them home? To revisit them? To extort them? (Pousson, Valentin’s defense attorney, stressed to the court that he’d never attempted to contact the alleged victim after their date.)

In recent weeks, investigators seized at least a gigabyte of data, and more may still be pulled from Valentin’s Dropbox and Google Cloud accounts, the people familiar with the probe told us. The GPS metadata embedded in the videos have helped authorities track where the alleged crimes took place.

Police searching Valentin’s car also found a cache of condoms and lubricants, and several individually packed baggies of powder, which they believed to be the substance used in the drinks, the people familiar with the investigation told us. (The powder has been sent to a lab for testing, a process that can take several months.) Pousson told a court that the bags contained Adderall, a prescribed stimulant that the attorney said Valentin takes to treat ADHD.

Valentin joined D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department in 2017. He was a 22-year-old with a college degree and the earnestness of a young man who, his attorney told the court, believed in public service. During the coronavirus pandemic, crime rates in the District jumped—homicides rose almost 20 percent in 2020 from the previous year—straining the department. In 2021, Valentin was awarded the Ribbon of Valor, an internal commendation for those who serve with honor and distinction during special details. Valentin resigned from the force a year later. (The MPD referred questions about Valentin’s case to jurisdictions where he’s been charged. None of the charges date back to his time on the force, officials familiar with the investigation told us.)

Valentin has PTSD stemming from a shooting he was “involved in” while on duty, court records said (without providing any details), as well as ADHD. Last year, he joined the Maryland Insurance Administration, an independent state regulator, as a fraud investigator. The company told us that he’d stopped working there as of December 31, after his arrest.

On a recent afternoon, Weinberger and I drove to Fort Washington, Maryland, a quiet, middle-class D.C. suburb, where Valentin, now 30 years old, lives with his mother. A neighbor, Malinda Battle, describes Valentin as polite and reserved—the sort of neighbor who keeps to himself but shows up when needed. He and Battle share a love for cats; at least a dozen could be seen wandering back and forth between their adjacent properties. Battle told us that she would tease Valentin about his speedy driving, telling him that he’ll “miss the garage” one day. She mostly noticed him taking out the trash or pausing to pet the cats. “I’m surprised to hear that he’s gotten in trouble,” she said, with a look of disappointment. “He’s just the kind of guy you want as a neighbor.”

Serial offenders are rarely driven by impulse alone. Over time, their crimes tend to evolve into a ritual—one that serves not just their desires but also their ego. N. G. Berrill, a forensic psychologist who has studied the psyche of repeat offenders, told us that repeat predators often develop a sense of psychological elevation and an endorphinlike rush tied to their ability to manipulate others. Success breeds a kind of intoxicating confidence. “There’s usually a kind of grandiosity to serial criminals,” Berrill said. “There is arrogance, and there’s also a kind of a high. This is what excites them: the chase.”

Serial offenders tend to rely on small but consequential transitions during an encounter—a sinister choreography that moves a potential victim from relative safety to isolation. An invitation for one more drink, a suggestion to change locations, a casual proposal to continue the evening somewhere quieter: Each step is a calculated test of trust. Persuading someone to leave a public setting—for instance, to get in a car—can be the crucial threshold. The predator has effectively reshaped the environment and can dictate terms.

“These are often men who have the opportunity to have consensual sexual relationships with women,” Mechanic said. “But the excitement, the thrill, is taking something from somebody who’s not willing to give it, and using tools like drugs, alcohol, to get it.”

But pinpointing an exact drug used in an instance of date rape is seldom straightforward. Trinka Porrata, a former Los Angeles Police Department narcotics supervisor who now leads Project GHB (a nonprofit dedicated to sexual assault and date-rape awareness), told us that the public fixation on a single “date-rape drug” obscures a far broader and more troubling reality. “It’s a big myth that there’s one or two,” Porrata said, noting that more than 50 substances—from prescription medications to over-the-counter antihistamines—can be weaponized to diminish a victim’s control or awareness. “Any drug that impairs your ability to control yourself and your environment can be used,” she explained, adding that these are better understood as “predatory drugs,” often used not only for sexual assault but also for robberies.

Alcohol frequently intensifies the effects, Porrata said, including with bromazolam—the substance found in the urine of the first alleged victim. The size of the woman also makes a difference—a more petite woman might be harder-hit with a lower dose.

Modern social habits have, in some ways, made this process easier, Berrill and Mechanic said. The culture of digital introductions—dating apps, spontaneous meetups—means that people meet “under the most dubious circumstance” with someone they don’t know, Berrill said, creating an ambiguous space for individuals skilled in deception to exploit. Predators, he added, relish the ritual of identifying a target, deploying charm or persuasion, and carefully lowering the intended victim’s guard.

What makes Valentin’s case especially unnerving is that many of the women whom investigators allege he victimized likely still have no idea a crime occurred. Detectives are working to identify all of those they believe he may have targeted. Valentin’s filming and photographing of driver’s licenses has given investigators a place to start. They are also reconstructing identities from digital breadcrumbs: exchanges on a dating app, stray messages.

For many of the women who have been contacted by investigators, their fuzzy memory of the night carried a simpler explanation: They assumed that they’d simply had too much to drink. They woke up disoriented—sometimes ashamed—unsure of how they had gotten home. And despite the evidence that has accumulated, officials say that many potential victims remain reluctant to press charges: wary of police, skeptical of authorities, or stunned by the possibility that what they remember as an overindulgent night out was something much worse.

Had it not been for the hazy recollections of one alleged victim, investigators say, Valentin’s alleged crimes would not have come to light. But her account allowed detectives to retrace her steps to the Alexandria bar and the surveillance footage. There on the screen, the investigators told us, was a man stirring something into a drink, patient and methodical, in a crowded room where no one noticed a thing.

Marie-Rose Sheinerman and Isabel Ruehl contributed reporting for this story.

What Are the Trump Administration’s Objectives in Iran?

2026-03-07T13:18:16-05:00

After the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran, questions remain about the Trump administration’s objectives. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss this, and more.

“My view is there’s probably no country on Earth with a greater gap between its rulers and its citizens than Iran,” Karim Sadjadpour, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, argued last night. “If you’re able to change the leaders in Iran and empower the people into some kind of a representative government—or, at a minimum, a government which represents its own national interests rather than this revolutionary ideology of 1979—that would be a geopolitical game changer for the United States, and a huge victory for President Trump.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker; Sadjadpour; Nancy Youssef, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

The Fallout From the Epstein Files

2026-02-28T12:05:18-05:00

The Department of Justice is facing scrutiny this week after it was revealed that records involving President Trump were missing from the public release of the Epstein files. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the ensuing political fallout for the Trump administration, and more.

“The key thing to remember about the Epstein story is that it is a case that has been mishandled for decades. The reason that we’re hearing about this now and why it’s exploding into public view is because, for the first time, Republicans in Congress and Democrats in Congress were willing to openly defy their leadership and call for the release of these files,” Sarah Fitzpatrick, a staff writer at The Atlantic, said last night. “That has never been done before, and I think it really is changing the political landscape in ways that we’re still just starting to learn.”

“What’s been so striking is how many of those very same Republicans who were calling for the release of those files, who had promised to get to the bottom of them, are now saying things that are just the opposite,” Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch, argued.

Joining guest moderator Vivian Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic, to discuss this and more: Andrew Desiderio, a senior congressional reporter at Punchbowl News; Fitzpatrick; Hayes; and Tarini Parti, a White House reporter at The Wall Street Journal.

Watch the full episode here.

What to Expect from Trump’s State of the Union Address

2026-02-21T13:44:32-05:00

On Tuesday, President Trump will deliver the first State of the Union address of his second term. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to examine what to expect from the president’s speech as his poll numbers fall, and more.

The economy is one subject that is expected to feature heavily in Trump’s upcoming address. Many Americans are feeling a sense of anxiety, Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times, said last night, whether because of “the advent of AI” or “because prices haven’t gone down”—and both are exacerbated by the president’s “inability to stick to that disciplined message” of affordability.

Joining guest moderator Vivian Salama, a staff writer at The Atlantic, to discuss this and more: Baker; Eugene Daniels, a senior Washington correspondent and co-host of The Weekend on MSNOW; Lisa Desjardins, a congressional correspondent for PBS News Hour; Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker.

Watch the full episode here.

The Rise of Stephen Miller

2026-02-14T11:18:50-05:00

Since Donald Trump’s first term, Stephen Miller has risen into an architect and enforcer of some of the president’s most controversial policies. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the senior aide’s rise, and how he’s become one of the most powerful figures in the Trump administration.

Miller “has always believed that there is a role for provocation and performance in politics,” Atlantic staff writer McKay Coppins, who has previously written about how Miller’s childhood and college experience influenced his work, argued last night.

Between Trump’s first and second terms, Miller’s “ideology has been rather consistent. It’s that he’s more visible, more powerful, in this second term,” Zolan Kanno-Youngs, a White House correspondent at The New York Times, continued. But whereas Miller was once limited to “being the architect in overseeing immigration policy in the Department of Homeland Security,” Young said, he is now “trying to change the perception in the nation toward immigrants … and there’s more of a tolerance for the policies he’s trying to implement.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Leigh Ann Caldwell, the chief Washington correspondent at Puck; McKay Coppins, a staff writer at The Atlantic; Zolan Kanno-Youngs, a White House correspondent at The New York Times; and Ashley Parker, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Election Fixation

2026-02-07T10:49:04-05:00

This week, Donald Trump called for Republicans to “nationalize” the upcoming elections—even though state and local officials are charged with this role. Panelists on Washington Week With The Atlantic joined to discuss this and more.

When Trump came into his second term, he tried to “get rid of mail voting, he tried to change machine technology, he tried to impose voter ID—almost all of that has been thrown out by the courts,” Atlantic staff writer Michael Scherer said last night. “What we’ve seen in the last couple weeks, though, is something else: He’s using the full power of the federal government … to suck up information to try and confirm the debunked theories that he has about the 2020 elections.” The president, Scherer added, is acting “in the hope that he might find a spark in all the smoke that’s been created by his allies.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Jonathan Lemire, a staff writer at The Atlantic and a co-host of MSNBC’s Morning Joe; Jonathan Karl, the chief Washington correspondent for ABC News; Scherer, a staff writer at The Atlantic; Liz Landers, a White House correspondent at PBS News Hour.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Relationship With the Media

2026-01-31T12:10:27-05:00

The former CNN anchor Don Lemon was arrested yesterday for covering a protest inside a church in Minnesosta. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss what implications this may have, Donald Trump’s relationship with the media, and more.

“It’s true that Donald Trump has gone after the press” before, Susan Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker, said last night. But “this is the first time he’s ordered the arrest of a journalist—so I do think a line has been crossed here.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; Zolan Kanno-Youngs, a White House correspondent at The New York Times; Toluse Olorunnipa, a staff writer at The Atlantic; Glasser, a staff writer at The New Yorker.

Watch the full episode here.

Trump’s Rift With American Allies

2026-01-24T11:01:50-05:00

Earlier this week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered a speech in Davos in which he spoke about the end of the American-led, rules-based world order. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists joined to discuss the remarks, and what they may signal about Donald Trump’s rift with American allies.

“What Carney did is he took the mask off,” Atlantic staff writer Idrees Kahloon said last night. “There’s a new world order—and if Donald Trump wants to act like the hegemon in North America, China in Asia, Russia in Europe, then countries like [Canada] have to pivot, and they have to deal with the multipolar world as it exists.”

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this, and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Leigh Ann Caldwell, the chief Washington correspondent at Puck; Stephen Hayes, the editor of The Dispatch; and Kahloon, a staff writer at The Atlantic.

Watch the full episode here.