Ben Terris

My first piece for @NYMag nymag.com/intelligencer/…

Now that the much-beleaguered Pam Bondi has been fired, people who know Jeanine Pirro say she wants the job of attorney general. “The judge is very close to the president, talks to him all the time,” a source familiar says. Trump tells Ben Terris, “Jeanine Pirro’s fantastic.” nymag.visitlink.me/Fw556b

A White House official sounds glum about the fallout of the Powell probe in this NY Mag profile of Pirro

This didn’t make the story but once Jeanine Pirro met Cesar Millan, the dog whisperer. Pirro asked him why her dogs were so crazy. “Because you are,” she says he told her.

What it’s like to live with Judge Jeanine nymag.com/intelligencer/…

If Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, is famous for anything these days, it’s her willingness to obey Donald Trump. “She’ll do what Trump wants,” a former prosecutor who worked for her says. “She’s an opportunist who likes the limelight.” Now that the much-beleaguered Bondi has been fired, people who know Pirro say she wants the job of attorney general. “The judge is very close to the president, talks to him all the time,” a source familiar says. Trump tells @bterris, “Jeanine Pirro’s fantastic.” But so far, Pirro has struggled to get her biggest new projects off the ground. After six Democratic lawmakers enraged Trump by filming a video reminding active-duty members of the military that they were obligated to refuse illegal orders, it was Pirro who tried to indict the politicians. Her team failed to get even one member of the grand jury to go for it. And in March, a judge blocked Pirro’s attempts to subpoena Federal Reserve records as part of her investigation into Jerome Powell. Trump has seemingly forgiven her these setbacks, telling Terris, “She was put into an area that was very tough and unfair. Judges who are haters. Almost impossible to win a case.” An administration official says that Pirro calls the president regularly. But Pirro bristles at the implication that she lacks independence from Trump. “I have 32 years in this business; I’m not some fly-by-night dilettante who decided that she’s going to be a prosecutor because she’s good-looking or because she speaks well.” Could Pirro be the next attorney general? Read Terris’s full profile: nymag.visitlink.me/8mcj_J

Judge Jeanine rising? nymag.com/intelligencer/…

Will Lewis arrived at the Washington Post with a lot of swagger and much goodwill. Two years later, the paper is in tatters. Charlotte Klein reports on how it all went so wrong. nymag.com/intelligencer/…

Today on The Gist, Mike breaks down Judge Richard Leon’s ruling that Pete Hegseth’s attempt to strip Senator Mark Kelly of his rank was absolute "horse feathers." Then, Ben Terris (@bterris) of New York Magazine joins to discuss his feature on the health of the President in 2026. They discuss the "talking points" held by Walter Reed doctors, the vanity behind the hand bruises, and the difficulty of assessing Trump's mental acuity when his inner circle has committed to the bit. #Politics #Trumphealth #newyorkermagazine #Media #WashingtonDC #markkelly #hegseth

An all-time great hire

.@jesusrodriguezb isn't only my work husband, he's a best friend. We began this job together. This loss shatters me. He writes brilliantly in two languages and expertly renders subjects few capture well. I know he'll outshine me, wherever he goes next. x.com/jesusrodriguez…

Let me venture into Contrarian Land and say I've always preferred the writing style of the @washingtonpost to the Times. More conversational, less stuff. Always read it first. The only newspaper job I ever dreamed of getting was to write for the Style section. This sucks.

Two timely episodes of @today_explained! Bruised hands. Asleep in meetings. And forgetting "Alzheimers" in interviews. I talked to @bterris about his investigation into President Trump's health, and how it's reflective of a WH increasingly telling the public to disbelieve its eyes podmust.com/ep/?podcast=to…

For nearly a century, @washingtonpost foreign correspondents have been on the frontlines of wars, pandemics, economic crises, civil uprisings and so much more. Washington needs us. The world needs us. If you read us and need us, please watch and share. @JeffBezos #SaveThePost

Only in the Washington Post: Newly 18 and unemployed, Vika felt like her life was going nowhere fast. So when a stranger on Telegram offered her cash to make a delivery, she agreed. Then, she found out it was a bomb. washingtonpost.com/world/2026/01/…

Chatted with THE @Timodc about Trump’s health. youtu.be/FR1BMD1HPkU?si…

Had a fun chat with @realaxelfoley of @intelligencer about what it’s like trying to write about the President’s health: nymag.com/intelligencer/…

Donald Trump wandering Air Force One in search of a missing Marco Rubio, believing he and his secretary of state have found themselves in a FLIGHTPLAN (2005) scenario

Marco Rubio says he covers his head with a blanket when taking naps on Air Force One so Trump won't think his secretary of state is weak for needing sleep on overseas flights. An outstanding @bterris read, on Trump's health: nymag.com/intelligencer/…

“[My father] had one problem,” Trump said. “…He started getting, what do they call it?” He pointed to his forehead and looked to his press secretary for the word that escaped him. “Alzheimer’s,” Leavitt said. “Like an Alzheimer’s thing,” Trump said. “Well, I don’t have it.”

I went to the Oval Office to interview Trump and his doctors about his health nymag.com/intelligencer/…

There has never, EVER, been a physical specimen like President Donald J Trump