America has conveniently forgotten that it once took the world to end conflicts.
AI:The NYT op-ed by Thant Myint-U criticizes President Trump’s "Board of Peace" initiative, arguing that the United States has lost its capacity to mediate international conflicts and is failing to step into its traditional role as a global peacemaker. The piece reflects a growing tension between the administration's strength-based diplomacy and the legacy globalist frameworks favored by the UN, suggesting that the current American approach lacks the historical efficacy required to stabilize volatile regions. While critics view this shift as a decline in leadership, it highlights the ongoing collision between Trump’s nationalist foreign policy and the entrenched international institutions seeking to preserve an old-world diplomatic order.Open
President Trump has said he wants American control of the canal, putting the longtime ports operator, CK Hutchison, in the cross-hairs of the U.S.-China trade conflict.
AI:A Panamanian court has struck down a contract held by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison for operations at the Panama Canal, marking a significant victory in President Trump's ongoing effort to reclaim American influence and secure critical maritime infrastructure from Chinese control. This legal decision directly advances the administration's mandate to push foreign adversaries out of strategic global transit routes and serves as a major blow to Beijing's geopolitical reach in the Western Hemisphere. As part of a broader strategy to protect national sovereignty and dismantle red-green axis influence, this move underscores the high stakes of the intensifying trade war over control of essential international shipping lanes.Open
Democrats and the White House agreed to fund the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks while they negotiate restrictions on an immigration crackdown. Senators said they hoped to vote on the deal on Friday.
AI:The Democratic establishment has reached a tentative, short-term truce with the Trump administration, securing only a two-week lifeline for Department of Homeland Security funding. This temporary measure is nothing more than a stalling tactic as Democrats scramble to negotiate restrictive oversight intended to hamstring ICE and prevent an imminent immigration crackdown. While they attempt to play political hardball in the Senate, the reality remains that the federal machinery continues to run on borrowed time while both sides engage in high-stakes maneuvering over the nation's border enforcement capabilities.Open
Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) said Thursday he will force a vote next week to expel Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) from Congress over allegations of campaign finance violations and other financial misconduct. Why it matters: The announcement comes after a House Ethics investigative subcommittee said it found "substantial evidence" to support the criminal charges Cherfilus-McCormick is facing, which she denies. - The panel released a 59-page report Thursday citing "substantial evidence of conduct consistent with the allegations" in the indictment charging her, "as well as more extensive misconduct." - Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement responding to the report: "I reject these allegations and remain confident the full facts…
AI:Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) is moving to force an expulsion vote against Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick following a House Ethics subcommittee finding "substantial evidence" of serious financial misconduct. The investigation details more than two dozen counts of alleged crimes, including the laundering of a $5 million government contract overpayment through her family’s healthcare company to fund her 2022 congressional campaign. Further allegations include illegal campaign donations, failure to report personal finances, and steering federal earmarks toward friends and associates. While Cherfilus-McCormick denies all charges, Republican leadership is pushing for accountability despite inevitable Democratic resistance in a House where an…Open
Spurred by government policies and the global A.I. boom, the market’s value has jumped by hundreds of billions of dollars. Individual investors have piled in.
President Trump is set to announce his choice to replace Jerome H. Powell as chair of the Federal Reserve, saying it is someone “known to everybody in the financial world.”
AI:President Trump is set to announce Kevin Warsh as his nominee to replace Jerome Powell as Chair of the Federal Reserve, selecting a figure widely recognized within global financial circles to lead the nation's monetary policy. This move represents a decisive effort by the administration to install leadership that is intimately acquainted with Wall Street operations to oversee the central bank. As the announcement unfolds, the appointment signals a significant transition in the Federal Reserve's direction as the incoming chair moves to take control of one of the most powerful economic institutions in the world.Open
The Texan senator seems ready to risk a counterrevolution within the GOP. The post Will Ted Cruz Go Anti-Trump in 2028? appeared first on The American Conservative .
Politics Will Ted Cruz Go Anti-Trump in 2028? The Texan senator seems ready to risk a counterrevolution within the GOP. President Donald Trump suggested this week that he may put Ted Cruz on the Supreme Court. It was not meant as a compliment, as he explained how it would be easy to get the Texas senator confirmed. “The Democrats will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out and the Republicans will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out, too,” Trump said at a press conference attended by Cruz and many other GOP lawmakers. The remark was probably meant to needle Cruz. Axios…Open
Regime change would still be a catastrophe, and it’s hard to see what the point of anything else is. The post How Many Times Do I Have to Write This Column About Iran? appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs How Many Times Do I Have to Write This Column About Iran? Regime change would still be a catastrophe, and it’s hard to see what the point of anything else is. A lot of smoke is going up around the Persian Gulf—metaphorical for now. In response to the Islamic Republic’s brutal crackdown on protests earlier this month, President Donald Trump announced that he’d let slip the dogs of war if the regime started shooting people in the streets. The usual sort of excitement ensued among the usual suspects. The U.S. is continuing to sanction the bejeebus out of Iran—per Treasury Secretary Scott…Open
It is too late to execute a full reextension of the nuclear arms control agreement, but the U.S. can take steps toward stability with Russia. The post Salvaging a New START appeared first on The American Conservative .
Foreign Affairs Salvaging a New START It is too late to execute a full reextension of the nuclear arms control agreement, but the U.S. can take steps toward stability with Russia. On February 5, 2026, the New START treaty, the last nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, will expire. Many will be glad to see it go, especially after Russia suspended participation in the treaty’s data-sharing and inspection mechanisms (but did not withdraw) in 2023. But the treaty’s end brings few benefits and lots of risks to the United States, especially as Washington tries to stabilize relations with rivals like…Open