Good evening. Here's the latest at the end of Thursday.
A judge ordered the U.S. to rehire thousands of workersA federal judge in California ordered six agencies to rehire thousands of workers who had been fired last month as part of President Trump's effort to sharply reduce the size of the federal work force. The judge, William Alsup, ruled that the government's human resources arm had unlawfully fired probationary workers en masse based on poor performance, regardless of their actual conduct on the job. He directed the Treasury and the Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defense, Energy and Interior Departments to reinstate any employees who had been terminated in such a manner. "It was a sham," Alsup said. The reprieve for fired workers may be only temporary. Alsup clarified that agencies can still legally conduct large-scale layoffs, which are known as a "reduction in force." The Office of Personnel Management had set a deadline of today for agencies to submit reduction in force plans.
Putin said he was not ready to agree to a cease-firePresident Vladimir Putin made it clear during a news conference today that he was in no hurry to agree to a truce with Ukraine. Two days after Kyiv said it would agree to a monthlong cease-fire, Putin said he was in favor of "the idea" of a short truce, but added that there were "questions we need to discuss." Those questions, Putin said, included whether Ukraine would be able to continue receiving arms shipments during the truce, and how the cease-fire would be enforced. He also said that he would not allow Ukrainian forces to peacefully withdraw from Russia's Kursk region, where Russian troops have recently made progress. He encouraged them to "simply surrender." The conditions that Putin laid out would most likely delay any truce, or potentially even make one impossible to achieve, our Moscow bureau chief Anton Troianovski wrote.
Trump threatened a 200% tariff on champagneTrump threatened today to escalate his trade war with the E.U. He said he would impose a 200 percent fee on all alcohol imported from the bloc in retaliation for Europe's new levies on U.S. whiskey and other products — which themselves were imposed in response to America's new metal tariffs. The new levies deepened anxiety on both sides of the Atlantic. The S&P 500 fell 1.4 percent, tumbling into a "correction" — a drop that suggests that the two-year-long bull market may be running out of steam. Some of Trump's allies consider the president's threats largely a negotiating tactic. But the White House insists that he is setting out to bring manufacturing jobs back to America. It's a significant gamble, as my colleague David Sanger wrote.
The moon will appear blood red tonightIn the middle of the night, Earth's shadow will appear to swallow the moon, transforming the pearly orb into a striking red circle in the sky. It's the first total lunar eclipse, also known as a blood moon, in more than two years, and it should be visible across the Americas. My colleague, Katrina Miller, explained why it happens and how to see it. More top news
John Mulaney is going liveLast night, the comic John Mulaney hosted the first episode of his new late night talk show on Netflix, "Everybody's Live." It's similar in structure and style to Mulaney's first stab at the format last year, "Everybody's in L.A." It's not quite as Los Angeles-centric, but it's no less weird (or enjoyable). The talk show, which features an assortment of celebrities and experts discussing a topic and taking calls from viewers, is Netflix's latest foray into live programming. The streaming service has had mixed success with a comedy special, a boxing match and an awards show.
The latest in an illustrious line of Blanches and StanleysThe Hollywood heartthrob Paul Mescal is starring alongside Patsy Ferran in a Brooklyn revival of the Tennessee Williams classic, "A Streetcar Named Desire." Mescal plays Stanley Kowalski, the character made famous by Marlon Brando; Ferran plays the heroine, Blanche DuBois. Ben Brantley, who was chief theater critic for The Times for two decades, considers the play to be the greatest of all American dramas. It is also, perhaps, the one most haunted by ghosts of actors past. Ben looked back at some of the most memorable Blanches and Stanleys, to see what each had to offer.
Dinner table topics
Cook: Serve spiced chicken breast in a puff pastry. It's simple and juicy. Sip: Our wine critic recommended 10 New York cabernet francs. Watch: In "Black Bag," Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender play a glamorous couple of spies. Read: Fernando A. Flores's new novel imagines a bleak world where books are illegal. It's a blast. Plan: Check out these six spectacular North American train trips. Hunt: Which Bay Area apartment would you buy with a $600,000 budget? Play: Here are today's Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. Find all of our games here.
The bone hunters of SiberiaIn Russia's Arctic north, the coldest inhabited place on the planet, mammoths and other ice-age creatures once roamed the land. Now, the permafrost has thawed enough for many long-hidden fossils to begin to wash into the rivers. A team of local explorers has made it their mission to recover the bones. They go out in minus-60 degree weather, cut through six feet of ice and dive down into rivers where no other humans have ventured. A photographer joined them on a recent adventure to see what it was like. Have an audacious evening. Thanks for reading. I'll be back tomorrow. — Matthew Philip Pacheco was our photo editor today. We welcome your feedback. Write to us at evening@nytimes.com. A correction: Yesterday's newsletter misstated how two astronauts are scheduled to travel from the International Space Station to Earth. They will take a spacecraft that is already docked there, not a new one.
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