The New York Times-The Evening Newsletter

"Consumer prices rise, Russia attacks U.S. companies, Hacky Sack's surprising resurgence." 

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May 12, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Consumer prices rise Russia attacks U.S. companies Plus, hacky sack’s surprising resurgence

The New York Times

U.S. inflation jumps as the Iran war drives up energy costs

Daily life in America is getting more expensive, according to the latest inflation report from the Labor Department. Consumer prices rose 3.8 percent last month from a year earlier, their fastest rate in nearly three years, outpacing U.S. wage growth. Productivity is rising at a brisk pace, but the share of national income that goes to workers has sunk to its lowest point on record.

The price increases were driven largely by energy costs, which have shot up sharply since the U.S. went to war with Iran. Airline fares are also up significantly. And the price of tomatoes surged nearly 40 percent over the last year because of bad weather, high tariffs and climbing transportation costs.

President Trump said today that he does not worry about the economic hardship Americans feel as a result of the war, and it did not factor “even a little bit" into his negotiations with Iran. “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation,” Trump said. “I think about one thing: We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon.”

For more:

Classified U.S. intelligence assessments show that Iran has operational access to 30 of its 33 missile sites along the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting that its military remains far stronger than Trump has asserted. A top Pentagon official testified that the cost of the war had risen to around $29 billion. Kuwait accused Iran of trying to infiltrate one of its islands.

Al Drago for The New York Times

The F.D.A. commissioner resigns under pressure

Marty Makary, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, resigned today after the president signed off on a plan to fire him. “He’s a great doctor, and he was having some difficulty,” Trump said.

Makary ultimately resigned over the administration’s decision to authorize fruit-flavored e-cigarettes, telling people close to him that he could not in good conscience approve flavored vapes.

In other health news:

An “impossible” idea led to a breakthrough in the treatment of pancreatic cancer, long considered among the most dire diagnoses. Here’s how scientists discovered it. Prescriptions for ivermectin spiked after Mel Gibson told Joe Rogan that it cured his friends of cancer, despite no high-quality evidence of its benefits.

A Philip Morris factory in Kharkiv, which was hit in a Russian missile strike in January. Viktoriia Yakymenko/Global Images Ukraine, via Getty Images

Russia keeps attacking U.S. companies in Ukraine

The eerie whine of a drone, then the overwhelming blast of an explosion: A truck driver recorded a strike on warehouses in Ukraine owned by the U.S. farming giant Cargill. It was the latest in a series of recent Russian attacks on major American companies, including Coca-Cola, Boeing, the snacks maker Mondelez and the tobacco giant Philip Morris.

My colleague Constant Méheut was the first to report on some of the strikes, which the companies have largely avoided publicizing. The reason for the attacks isn’t clear; some see it as an effort to deter U.S. investment. So far, the White House has been muted in its response.

Walker Pickering for The New York Times

Nebraskans vote in a very, very strange primary election

One Nebraska Democrat running in today’s Senate primary race is accused of being a Republican in disguise. Another Democrat plans to eventually drop out to boost an independent who Republicans argue is really just a Democrat. It’s all a bit bizarre, but my colleague Kellen Browning explains why it matters.

The Senate primary is one of two in the state that we’ll be closely watching tonight. The other, over a battleground district, is a key target for Democrats hoping to flip the House. Follow along with the results here.

In other politics news:

Alabama set a special election for four House races after the Supreme Court cleared a path for a new map with one majority-Black district instead of the current two. A new super PAC with ties to Republicans is intervening in Democratic primaries, in one instance helping a sex therapist in Texas accused of antisemitism. The former congressman Barney Frank, in hospice, has advice for Democrats.

More top news

Trump Administration

The president left for a summit with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, in Beijing. The Iran war has so consumed the White House that, beyond economic issues, very little has been prepared in advance. The Times found that officials have raised concerns about the quality and speed of the repair work on the Lincoln Memorial’s reflecting pool.

Other Big Stories

Court: Sam Altman, OpenAI’s chief executive, took the stand in Elon Musk’s lawsuit against the company and testified that Musk wanted control of it. Britain: A rising number of Labour Party lawmakers have demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Keir Starmer. These are his top challengers. Virus: Fifteen Americans who may have been exposed to the hantavirus on a cruise ship are now in the National Quarantine Unit in Nebraska. Here’s what it’s like. Texas: The state banned rainbow crosswalks. So San Antonio made rainbow sidewalks instead. Hollywood: Conan O’Brien will return to host next year’s Oscars. N.B.A.: The Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke died at 29. Buffalo: Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a disabled 56-year-old grandfather and Rohingya refugee, was left in a parking lot by Border Patrol agents and died days later. Our reporter retraced his path.

TIME TO UNWIND

Sara Krulwich/The New York Times

Our favorite moments from this year’s Tony-nominated shows

The best Broadway shows do more than just entertain you. They leave theatergoers with memories of excellent performances or design choices — the kinds of things you tell your friends about.

This year’s Tony-nominated shows are full of such scene-stealing features: Nicholas Christopher’s powerful baritone in “Chess”; the feathered mullet wigs in “The Lost Boys”; Lesley Manville’s spellbinding monologue in “Oedipus”; and the bank set in “Dog Day Afternoon.” Here’s the full list of moments that our theater writers can’t forget.

Click to watch the video.  The New York Times

Visiting the mecca of distance running

Kenya’s Great Rift Valley produces most of the world’s greatest long-distance runners. It’s in the air: The region’s 2,400-meter altitude is a sweet spot where the oxygen is thin enough to help your lungs without breaking down your body.

My colleague John Eligon, who is a recreational marathoner, went to the Rift Valley to train and try to better understand what makes it so special. He found a running community unlike any other, where the sport was embedded in the fabric of everyday life. Watch his video.

Calbee

Dinner table topics

Japan’s biggest snack-food brand was forced to adopt black-and-white packaging because of the Iran war. Missy Mazzoli and Ellen Reid didn’t have women as mentors. So they opened a lab for the next generation of female composers. We stayed at two of London’s newest and most acclaimed luxury hotels. Here’s how they compared. Smokers helped keep Cleveland’s arts scene alive. Now what?

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Christopher Testani for The New York Times

Cook: You really can’t go wrong with this crispy tomato-oregano chicken.

Read “Look What You Made Me Do.” It’s a well-knit dark domestic fiction, our critic writes.

Get inspired by our fashion photographer’s mother-inspired look of the week.

Gather some fresh-cut flowers for a bouquet with tips from an expert.

Take our quiz to see how well you know popular crime novels.

Play: Here are today’s Connections, Wordle and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

Hacky sack is making a comeback

At high schools across the country, kids are kicking around hacky sacks during lunchtime. Stores are selling crocheted bean bags like hot cakes. And teachers are shocked to see such a craze about a game that hasn’t been popular since the ’90s. “We have never seen a moment like this,” said Greyson Herdman, who runs a hacky sack museum.

No one seems to know exactly what started the hacky sack resurgence. But it seems to have taken off in the Northeast and spread through social media videos. Parents and teachers mostly seem glad to see teens get entranced by something other than their phones.

Have a spirited evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen Editor: Whet Moser

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