Seven Must-read Stories About the Chuck Hagel Meltdown, Hitler’s Favorite Dictator and the Continued Failure of Health Insurance
What happened with Chuck Hagel? Who was Hitler’s Favorite Dictator? And How did Health Republic Insurance utterly fail one of its customers? Here’s our best work from this week.
The Baptism of Michael Brown Sr. and Ferguson’s Baptism by Fire
By Justin Glawe
Exclusive photos of Michael Brown’s father renewing his faith on the day before a grand jury decision broke his community’s faith in justice—and the two pastor brothers who guided both parents.
The 20th-Century Dictator Most Idolized by Hitler
Historians may credit Mussolini with inspiring Hitler’s rise to power, but the despot called a different contemporary his ‘shining star.’
My Insurance Company Killed Me, Despite Obamacare
Malcolm MacDougall, a prominent speechwriter and creative director, was diagnosed with prostate cancer earlier this year. Even after the passage of the Affordable Care Act, his insurance company delayed and denied cancer treatments despite MacDougall paying his premiums. This is his story, in his own words, written five days before he died.
Exclusive: Michael Phelps’s Intersex Self-Proclaimed Girlfriend, Taylor Lianne Chandler, Tells All
By Aurora Snow
The 41-year-old claims she met the Olympic champion on Tinder, and they fell in love. Then she came out as intersex and the media went nuts. Now she tells her side of the story.
Hagel Takes a Bullet for Obama: Inside the Defense Secretary’s Sudden Firing
By Shane Harris and Tim Ma
The Secretary of Defense is stepping down after less than two lackluster years inside the Pentagon walls and disastrous developments around the world.
Rand Paul Declares War on ISIS—and Allows Boots on the Ground
By Olivia Nuzzi
The Kentucky senator, seeking to define himself as a foreign-policy heavyweight ahead of 2016, will introduce a measure in the Senate next month declaring war on the terror group.
Bill Cosby’s Long List of Accusers (So Far): 18 Alleged Sexual Assault Victims Between 1965-2004
By Marlow Stern
Here are the disturbing stories from all the people who have accused comedian Bill Cosby of sexual misconduct thus far.