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As global crises multiply, scores of American diplomats say they have been forced out

As global crises multiply, scores of American diplomats say they have been forced out

CNN reports: Amid ongoing foreign policy crises around the globe and as the Trump administration struggles to reach a deal to end the war with Iran, the State Department last week finalized the firings of nearly 250 foreign service officers in a brief, impersonal email. “Your reduction in force separation will be effective today,” part of it read. “Thank you again for your service to the Department.” Those reductions in force (RIFs), which were initiated last July, also impacted more…

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Pentagon quietly shut legally required program to prevent civilian deaths by military, watchdog finds

Pentagon quietly shut legally required program to prevent civilian deaths by military, watchdog finds

The Guardian reports: The Pentagon has quietly dismantled a program it is legally required to operate to prevent and respond to civilian deaths in US military operations, according to its internal watchdog. A report released by the department’s inspector general concluded the US military no longer has the people, tools or infrastructure needed to comply with two federal statutes requiring it to maintain a functioning civilian casualty policy, and operate a Civilian Protection Center of Excellence (CP CoE). Donald Trump’s…

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Political money is flowing to influencers. But who’s paying?

Political money is flowing to influencers. But who’s paying?

The New York Times reports: Last month, Carlos Eduardo Espina, a progressive influencer, revealed a surprising endorsement to his 14.5 million followers on TikTok: He would support Tom Steyer, the billionaire running for California governor as a Democrat. “I really believe Tom Steyer is different,” Mr. Espina said in a speech that he posted on social media. “He could be traveling around the world or doing whatever he wants, but he wants to serve the people of this state.” Unmentioned…

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Rising diesel costs from Iran war strain U.S. school budgets

Rising diesel costs from Iran war strain U.S. school budgets

Reuters reports: Soaring diesel prices since the onset of the Iran war are draining already tight U.S. school district budgets, making it more expensive to bus students and run generators in a shock officials say they will not be ​able to afford for long. School districts from Yakima, Washington, to Waco, Texas, are tapping emergency funding reserves to keep buses running. In remote Alaska, officials are scrambling to secure enough ‌fuel to keep the lights on, according to Reuters interviews….

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How a new Israeli policy cuts off humanitarian aid in Gaza

How a new Israeli policy cuts off humanitarian aid in Gaza

Clayton Dalton writes: On a hazy morning in November, a group of aid workers with Médecins Sans Frontières (M.S.F.), known in English as Doctors Without Borders, crossed into Gaza for a two-month mission. Jennifer Hulse, an emergency physician from the U.K., led a medical team. “We all had as many bags as we could physically carry,” Hulse said. Inside were essential supplies such as surgical tools and engine oil for generators. Her assignment was to help the Gaza Health Ministry…

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China’s ‘industrial policy of everything’ leaves rest of the world in the dust

China’s ‘industrial policy of everything’ leaves rest of the world in the dust

Greg Ip writes: In the decades since China joined the world economy, U.S. presidents have traveled to Beijing with a predictable list of demands: stop stealing American intellectual property, don’t force technology transfer, open your markets. Donald Trump followed the script on his previous visit in 2017. Whether he does so again this week, it would be pointless. Those demands reflect a view of Chinese industrial policy (broadly, government support for favored sectors) that is woefully out of date. Xi…

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Trump administration considers creating $1.7 billion slush fund for allies investigated under Biden

Trump administration considers creating $1.7 billion slush fund for allies investigated under Biden

The New York Times reports: The Trump administration is considering the establishment of a $1.7 billion fund to compensate allies investigated by the Justice Department under President Biden, creating an ethical, legal and political minefield for Republicans and the department’s leadership. The unusual plan, which Democrats and former government officials criticized as a vast political slush fund financed by taxpayers, has yet to be finalized or approved, according to three people familiar with the situation who spoke on the condition…

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Investigation indicates U.S. boat strikes were never a serious counter-drug operation

Investigation indicates U.S. boat strikes were never a serious counter-drug operation

The Guardian reports: A five-month investigation has named 13 previously unidentified victims of US attacks on boats allegedly carrying narcotics in a campaign that has killed nearly 200 people in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. It is unclear if the US has ever identified any of its 194 victims before attacking them, and the names of just three had previously emerged, after their families launched legal cases against the White House. The Trump administration has consistently sought to justify…

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‘Slap in the face’: Republicans skewer Pentagon over Poland move

‘Slap in the face’: Republicans skewer Pentagon over Poland move

Politico reports: Top Republicans on Friday condemned the Pentagon for canceling a U.S. troop deployment to Poland, an abrupt move that also appeared to catch Army leaders by surprise. The decision, House Armed Service Committee members said, amounted to a gut punch to the NATO ally and to a Congress that has sought to beef up the U.S. presence in Europe. They made those frustrations clear at a hearing with Army officials, where the service’s top civilian and uniform leaders…

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Thucydides Trap: How two words from China’s president finally silenced Trump

Thucydides Trap: How two words from China’s president finally silenced Trump

David Gardner writes: Donald Trump will leave China a chastened man. If he didn’t know what Xi Jinping meant by raising the specter of the Thucydides Trap when he arrived in Beijing, you can be sure that he does now. Because it was a warning issued by a leader who is very much Trump’s equal in power and way more experienced at using it. Amid the pomp of Trump’s arrival on Thursday, Xi invoked a classical Greek reference suggesting that…

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As Trump meets Xi, Iran lets Chinese ships through Strait of Hormuz

As Trump meets Xi, Iran lets Chinese ships through Strait of Hormuz

The New York Times reports: Iran has allowed some Chinese vessels to pass through the Strait of Hormuz following diplomatic overtures from China’s government, semiofficial Iranian news agencies reported on Thursday. The reports coincided with a visit to Beijing by President Trump, who held talks with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, on Thursday that were expected to focus heavily on the crisis over the strategic waterway. Dueling Iranian and U.S. attempts to control traffic in the strait have rattled global energy…

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Saudi Arabia floats non-aggression pact with Iran and regional states, FT

Saudi Arabia floats non-aggression pact with Iran and regional states, FT

Middle East Eye reports: Saudi Arabia has floated a non-aggression pact between Iran and Middle Eastern states based on a 1970s agreement that eased tensions in Europe during the Cold War, The Financial Times reported on Thursday. The Saudi Arabian efforts have gained the support of European capitals and EU institutions, but it’s unclear if Israel and the US would support it. The UAE has taken a hawkish position on Iran and moved substantially closer to Israel since the US-Israeli…

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‘No idea it was coming’: Pentagon officials stunned by Hegseth decision on troops in Poland

‘No idea it was coming’: Pentagon officials stunned by Hegseth decision on troops in Poland

Politico reports: Pete Hegseth’s last-minute decision to cancel the deployment of 4,000 troops to Poland caught Pentagon staff and European allies by surprise — the latest example of an abrupt personnel move from the Defense secretary that blindsided both sides of the Atlantic. It wasn’t clear exactly why Hegseth issued the order, according to three defense officials familiar with the matter. President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed anger and frustration with European allies for their failure to help with the…

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Acting AG Todd Blanche was told last year to recuse from DOJ matters involving Trump

Acting AG Todd Blanche was told last year to recuse from DOJ matters involving Trump

CNN reports: It was less than two weeks after Todd Blanche took on his role of deputy attorney general in March 2025 when the Justice Department’s top ethics lawyer delivered some straightforward yet inconvenient news: His recusal from legal cases that involved President Donald Trump in his personal capacity was necessary. The official conducting the briefing, Joseph Tirrell, handed Blanche and his then-top deputy Emil Bove, who was also in the conference room, a printed PowerPoint presentation on ethics, according…

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10,000 rulings: The federal courts’ overwhelming rebuke of Trump’s ICE policies

10,000 rulings: The federal courts’ overwhelming rebuke of Trump’s ICE policies

Politico reports: Ten thousand losses. That’s the Trump administration’s track record in court as federal judges grapple with the way ICE agents have swept through major U.S. cities and detained thousands of people in support of President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation agenda. More than 10,000 times, judges have said those detentions, typically carried out with no opportunity for detainees to plead their case, were illegal. That’s roughly 90 percent of all cases — a staggering rejection of a core piece…

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U.S. intelligence indicates Iran retains substantial missile capabilities

U.S. intelligence indicates Iran retains substantial missile capabilities

The New York Times reports: The Trump administration’s public portrayal of a shattered Iranian military is sharply at odds with what U.S. intelligence agencies are telling policymakers behind closed doors, according to classified assessments from early this month that show Iran has regained access to most of its missile sites, launchers and underground facilities. Most alarming to some senior officials is evidence that Iran has restored operational access to 30 of the 33 missile sites it maintains along the Strait…

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