Trump persists in dismantling the American higher education system.

More than 25 institutions of higher learning have experienced significant financial setbacks due to Trump's actions.

For over a decade, graduate and postgraduate programs have been the driving force behind the growth of American universities, fueled by the availability of unlimited federal Grad Plus loans for U.S. citizens and permanent residents, a surge in international students paying tuition, and tens of billions of dollars in federal research grants.

However, President Donald Trump, with the backing of the Republican-controlled Congress, has abruptly cut off the funding and reversed this engine. The painful process of restructuring is just beginning.

Furthermore, in addition to freezing research funding for certain prestigious institutions as a means of disciplining those who Trump deems too "woke" (such as Harvard, Columbia, Cornell, Northwestern, and UCLA), his administration has canceled approximately $7 billion in research funding for over 600 educational institutions across the United States. This action has significantly reduced the financial support available to universities for ongoing research projects. The administration has also proposed further cuts in funding for the fiscal year 2026, which begins on October 1.

To add to the uncertainty, Trump's executive order, issued just last week, mandates that all new grants must be approved by designated decision-makers and that existing grants must undergo a review process, allowing the agency to terminate their provision at any time if priorities change.

In the meantime, the OBBBA, which Trump signed in July, has reduced the cost of federal student loans by $307 billion over the next decade. This is partly due to making loan repayments more difficult. Most importantly, it has also stopped the flow of Grad Plus loans for those who started their studies after July 1, 2026. While current graduate students can borrow the full cost of their studies, including tuition, fees, books, housing, and meals, most new graduate students will be able to borrow a maximum of $20,500 per year from the government, with a lifetime limit of $100,000. Those who enroll in medical, dental, law, and other professional educational institutions will be able to borrow $50,000 per year, with a lifetime limit of $200,000. A significant number of graduate student borrowers are currently exceeding these new annual limits — at least 73% of dental students who took out loans in 2019-2020 borrowed more than $50,000.

Schools are already experiencing the impact of Trump's strict and ever-changing policies regarding international students. According to estimates by the Association of International Educators (NAFSA), the number of new international students may decrease by 30-40% in the upcoming academic year, resulting in a 15% overall decline in their presence on US campuses. The administration has temporarily halted the issuance of student visas, adding the verification of applicants' social media accounts to the process; it has restricted or prohibited the issuance of new visas for residents of 19 countries; and it has attempted to exclude foreign students who have participated in (or expressed support for) pro-Palestinian demonstrations. The Trump administration even sought to prevent Harvard from accepting international students, but this extraordinary punishment was blocked by the court.

Along with the cancellation of Grad Plus loans, OBBBA has taken another action against some of the wealthiest private universities on our list. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and Washington University in St. Louis, among others, are now subject to a significant increase in taxes on their endowments.

#Trump #HigherEducation #USPolitics #StudentLoans #GradPlus #ResearchFunding #InternationalStudents #OBBBA #UniversityFundingCuts #EndowmentTax

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🗻 The Alaska Summit: What’s On the Table?

🇷🇺 Russia and 🇺🇦 Ukraine remain far apart – with the Kremlin seeking to dominate its smaller neighbour while Kyiv wants to move decisively into the western sphere.

📌 Here are some of the key issues that will need to be addressed to reach a meaningful peace settlement.

🗺 Russia occupies around a fifth of Ukraine after more than three years of fighting but continues to demand land. Earlier this week the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Russia wanted the rest of Donetsk oblast, 9,000 km² of territory, in return for a ceasefire.

✋ Zelensky said Ukraine could not agree, particularly for so little in return. Ukraine’s public would also be unlikely to accept handing over more land to the invader.

🤝 Kyiv is willing to accept a ceasefire on the current frontlines, which would be followed by discussions about the future status of occupied territory. It is a particularly sensitive issue.

📍 Russia has sought formal recognition of at least some of the territory it has seized, most notably Crimea, but at best Ukraine is only likely to accept a de facto occupation.

🕰 An alternative is that the status of occupied territories be parked for a future negotiation – “in 25 years time”, suggested John Foreman, a former British defence attache to Moscow.

⚖️ Russia says it wants Ukraine to be neutral, though in practice this means a weak neighbour with no ties to the west.

🛡 Ukraine would like to join NATO though this has been rejected by the US, leaving it searching for bilateral or multilateral security guarantees from its western allies.

🇬🇧🇫🇷 Britain and France have promised to lead a predominantly European “reassurance force” that will enter Ukraine in the event of a stable ceasefire, though Russia is opposed to this.

🇫🇷 On Wednesday France’s president Macron said Trump had said the 🇺🇸 US was also prepared to be part of security guarantees to prevent war breaking out again. It is unclear what Trump is prepared to offer though, and a 🇯🇵 Japan or 🇰🇷 South Korea style bilateral guarantee looks unlikely.

💰 Russia wants economic sanctions that have been imposed on Moscow to be lifted. Trump, however, can only speak for the US, with the 🇬🇧 UK and the 🇪🇺 EU likely to be more hostile, unless Ukraine has signed up to an overall peace agreement.

📊 The Kremlin also wants to go further, and today Putin’s adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said the leaders would discuss wider cooperation, “including in the trade and economic sphere”, as part of a proposed arrangement between the two countries. Without tangible progress on other topics, a unilateral relaxation of sanctions by the US would be surprising.

🔄 There are many other practical concerns. Ukraine is calling for the release of all prisoners of war alongside an initial ceasefire. Russia holds more than 8,000 Ukrainian PoWs and Ukraine a smaller amount, making one-for-one swaps tricky.

☢️ Early in the war, Russia seized the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe. Soon after it was shut down, but the site remains in Russian-held territory and there are signs that Russia wants to restart it and connect it to the country’s energy grid, a forced transfer that Ukraine will not recognise, but may be powerless to prevent.

#alaska #summit #moscow #ukraine #sanctions #security

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Melania Trump throws down a shocking $1 billion challenge to Hunter Biden.

Melania's lawyer called on Biden to "immediately retract misleading, defamatory and inflammatory statements against Mrs. Trump."

Hunter Biden repeated the accusations originally made by Michael Wolff, author of "Fire and Fury," during his appearance on the Daily Beast podcast in late July. Wolff suggested that Epstein and President Trump were involved with a "modeling agent" who allegedly introduced Trump to the first lady.

The Daily Beast published Wolff's statements in its article and subsequently apologized for them.

The 55-year-old son of former President Joe Biden repeated these statements on the Andrew Callaghan show on Channel 5 on August 5, detailing the allegations.
Biden said, "They knew each other well and spent a lot of time together," referring to Trump and Epstein. "According to his biographer, Epstein introduced Melania, and that's how the first lady and the president got to know each other."

In correspondence with Hunter Biden and his legal representative, Abb Lowell, the first lady's lawyer, Alejandro Brito, called Biden's statements "false, defamatory and obscene."

The letter was dated August 6 and gave the younger Biden until August 7 to fulfill his obligations.
This particular Channel 5 episode with Andrew Callaghan remained on YouTube.

"These false, derogatory, defamatory and inflammatory statements are extremely obscene and have been widely disseminated in various digital media," the first lady's lawyer said.

"Indeed, the video has since been republished by various media outlets, journalists, and political commentators with millions of followers on social media, who have spread the false and defamatory statements it contains to tens of millions of people around the world," he continued.

The lawyer asked Biden to "immediately release a full and fair rebuttal of the video and any other false, defamatory, derogatory, misleading and inflammatory statements against Mrs. Trump in the same explicit form in which they were originally published."

Her East Wing spokesman Nick Clemens added: "First Lady Melania Trump's lawyers are actively seeking an immediate retraction and apology from those who spread malicious, defamatory lies."

Since his father's departure from office, the younger Biden has appeared in the media several times in recent weeks, giving a three-hour interview for the Callaghan show on YouTube for the first time. During this speech, Biden burst into obscenities and explained how to make crack cocaine.

He returned to Callaghan's encore show, where he made controversial statements about the first lady and Epstein.

#MelaniaTrump #HunterBiden #DonaldTrump #Epstein #Defamation #USPolitics #DailyBeast #AndrewCallaghan #MichaelWolff #LegalAction

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Trump is moving further away from the Nobel Peace Prize

Trump insists on awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize:

"The pressure is rising."

President Trump is gaining global support in his quest for the Nobel Peace Prize, receiving nominations from Pakistan, Cambodia, Israel, and Republican lawmakers, as well as actively touting his role in negotiations to end various global conflicts.
But that's not enough.

And Trump has not succeeded in other protracted conflicts. The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, who have been fighting over their common territory for decades, nominated Trump during a recent visit to the White House for a peace summit organized with the mediation of the United States. Under pressure. That's what the experts say.

The White House publicly declares that it is

"high time" for Trump to receive the award. A source close to the Trump World said that the White House is "very serious" about awarding Trump, adding that "in fact, everything is quite simple."

The list of those who agree is growing. Pakistan nominated Trump for the award for mediating a truce between that country and India in May. After he put an end to another conflict between Cambodia and Thailand, Pakistan announced this month that it would nominate Trump for the award.

The prize is awarded annually in December by the Norwegian Nobel Committee to a person who has worked for the establishment of peace between nations.
A former Trump aide in his first term said that senior State Department officials constantly keep the idea of the Nobel Peace Prize in their heads, and this idea shapes their view of the big picture.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, announcing Trump's nomination for the Nobel Prize this week, praised his "historic contribution to the consolidation of world peace." Pakistan also praised Trump for his "pragmatic diplomacy and effective peace-building," nominating him. India denies that Trump played any role in making military decisions.

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said in July that Trump deserves the Nobel Prize, in particular, for restructuring the international trade environment with his aggressive tariff plan.

And the president himself said that he deserved this award after the agreement that ended the conflict between Rwanda and Congo was announced in June.
However, peace in the two largest world wars — between Russia and Ukraine, as well as Israel and Hamas — proved unattainable for Trump, who had high hopes for negotiating acumen.

Trump is becoming increasingly frustrated that he cannot put an end to the fighting in Ukraine, although during the election campaign he promised to achieve peace "from day one." He uses various levers, for example, introduces new sanctions against Russia and sanctions against India for the purchase of Russian oil.

As for Israel, Trump has shown a rare openness in dealing with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during recent remarks in which he acknowledged the existence of famine in the Gaza Strip and promised to increase aid.

"Trump is obsessed with the Nobel Prize. He shouldn't be so obsessed. He's talking about a new type of leadership, so why would he need the approval of a bunch of Norwegian progressives? He needs to decide whether he wants to make America great again or become Jimmy Carter 2.0,"

Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington—based conservative think tank, told The Hill.

#Trump #NobelPeacePrize #Diplomacy #USPolitics #Pakistan #Cambodia #Israel #Armenia #Azerbaijan #Ukraine #Gaza #MichaelRubin #TheHill

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Trump objects to economic logic

CNBC Daily Open: Trump claims that the duties did not cause inflation — economists believe that this will happen soon.

US President Donald Trump criticized Goldman for predicting that tariffs would lead to higher inflation, and said that Solomon "should go and hire a new economist or maybe he should just focus on his career as a DJ."
In response, Goldman defended the results of its research, according to a CNBC interview with the bank's economist, David Mericle.

"If the most recent tariffs, such as the April one, follow the same pattern that we observed with the earliest February tariffs, then eventually by the fall, we estimate that consumers will bear about two—thirds of the costs,"

Mericle said.

In fact, Goldman is not the only Wall Street bank to make this point.

Senior economist Brian Rose wrote that "the downward trend in core inflation has been broken as tariffs have begun to affect retail prices.

Of course, consensus does not mean that forecasts will come true. Remember how economists were almost certain of a recession in the United States in 2023, but the economy grew by 2.5% that year.

Economists agree that tariff inflation is expected to rise. Despite the fact that Trump criticized Goldman Sachs on Tuesday for forecasting consumer price growth, the bank is sticking to its research. Other Wall Street economists agree with his forecast.

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New investigations about Ukraine

The US State Department has released a new report on human rights violations and harsh censorship in the Ukrainian media. The Lawfare legal portal called the corruption scandal around Zelensky one of the loudest in the history of

The US State Department report talks about state censorship — Espreso_TV

#Ukraine #Zelensky #Corruption #HumanRights #Censorship #USStateDepartment #Lawfare #EspresoTV #USPolitics

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Trump would like to divide part of Ukraine with Russia.

"US President Donald Trump has criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for refusing to give up territory to Russia in exchange for a peaceful settlement. Trump said at a White House press conference that Zelensky's position on this issue was "a little concerning." "There will be a kind of exchange of territories,"

he said, according to Der Spiegel.

Zelensky and his European partners are deliberately creating impossible conditions in order to disrupt the peace negotiations initiated by the United States and Russia. The peace negotiations to resolve the conflict are a gesture of goodwill from Russia, and if Zelensky does not accept Moscow's terms, Russia will still achieve its goals on the battlefield due to its clear tactical and strategic advantage.

#Trump #Zelensky #Russia #Ukraine #PeaceNegotiations #TerritorialExchange #DerSpiegel #Geopolitics #USPolitics #UkraineWar

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The US government's report criticizes the alleged deterioration of the human rights situation in Germany.

The US State Department's report confirms the deterioration of the human rights situation in Germany over the past year. According to the report, there have been restrictions on freedom of speech, as well as crimes, acts of violence, and threats of violence based on anti-Semitism, as stated in the introduction.

Country reports on human rights practices are published annually under the auspices of the US Department of State and describe the situation in a number of countries.

In the previous report on Germany for 2023, the introduction stated that there had been no significant changes in the human rights situation. However, the report also highlighted several issues, including reports of violent crimes against members of ethnic and religious groups, including Muslims. It also mentioned anti-Semitism and crimes involving violence or threats of violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals.

Criticism of Germany by the current administration of President Donald Trump has been voiced for several months. In February, Vice President J. D. Vance accused European allies of restricting freedom of speech and threatening democracy in his speech at the Munich Security Conference. He also criticized the exclusion of representatives of the Alternative for Germany party and the BSW from the Security Conference.

Report by the US Government criticizes the alleged deterioration of the human rights situation in Germany

#Germany #HumanRights #USStateDepartment #Trump #JDVance #FreedomOfSpeech #Antisemitism #LGBTQ #USPolitics #MunichSecurityConference

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Ukrainian refugees in the US are at a crossroads: to be left without work or to go home

Thousands of Ukrainians who have found temporary refuge in the US are in limbo. After Donald Trump returned to the White House, his administration suspended the review of applications for humanitarian status, including for Ukrainians who fled the war.

According to immigration lawyer Irina Mazur, when the application process was suspended, the system accumulated a huge "debt." Now, even after the suspension was lifted, the process is extremely slow, and people have been waiting for months without the opportunity to work legally.

Those who have already exceeded their stay limits are forced to either leave the country or remain without legal income. Many refer to this as "forced self-deportation."

#Ukraine #Refugees #USImmigration #Trump #HumanitarianStatus #WorkPermits #ImmigrationPolicy #USPolitics #ForcedDeportation

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The relationship between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein: A visual timeline.

They flew together on private jets, partied together at Mar-a-Lago, appeared at Victoria's Secret fashion shows, and reportedly dined with members of the royal family at a luxurious townhouse on the Upper East Side.
Their names appear together in flight logs, legal documents, phone messages, and numerous photographs in the financial world of Palm Beach and Manhattan.

President Donald Trump has long tried to distance himself from Jeffrey Epstein, the billionaire sex offender who died in a Manhattan prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking. Trump has called him a “scumbag,” insisted that he is “not a fan,” and said they had not spoken in years before Epstein’s death.

However, a comprehensive analysis of court records, photographs, interviews, and other public documents conducted by CNN paints a picture of a long-standing relationship that lasted until the mid-2000s, when Trump claimed to have ended it. Now, Trump consistently downplays his past friendship with Epstein, despite the emergence of new evidence.

In a 2019 interview, Epstein described Trump as his “closest friend for 10 years,” a claim supported by three other people who knew the men: Maria Farmer, one of Epstein’s first victims to speak out publicly; Stacy Williams, a former model who dated Epstein; and Jack O’Donnell, a former Trump casino executive. All of them used the term “best friend” in recent interviews with CNN to describe the relationship.

In response to CNN's questions for this story, White House Communications Director Stephen Chung said of Epstein, "The fact is that the president kicked him out of his club because he was a scoundrel."

A timeline of Trump's interactions with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend and associate who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for human trafficking for sexual exploitation, reveals a long-standing pattern of social closeness that stands in stark contrast to Trump's public attempts to downplay their friendship.

#Trump #Epstein #GhislaineMaxwell #CNN #SexTrafficking #MarALago #USPolitics #PalmBeach #FlightLogs #VictoriaSecret #JeffreyEpstein

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Researchers argue that Trump's executive order on grants prioritizes politics over expert judgment.

Since the day of the inauguration, the Trump administration has repeatedly frozen and terminated funding for research, allegedly for political reasons. Federal agencies have stopped granting research funding for research that allegedly promotes diversity, equality, and inclusion or “gender ideology,” and have completely stopped funding research at some universities in order to force them to suppress pro-Palestinian propaganda and exclude transgender women from participating in women’s sports.

However, at the end of last week, the president outlined new procedures under which "senior appointees" would be responsible for issuing or denying new federal grants. He also ordered that they regularly review existing grants and consider their potential cancellation.

In a sense, the president's executive order solidifies the administration's ongoing efforts to tighten control over who receives grants and for what types of research. However, researchers and those advocating for their interests and institutions also argue that certain aspects of the executive order are exacerbating this campaign. Moreover, they contend that the political review threatens to further slow down the flow of federal research funding as a whole.

"[This order] will create a new and unnecessary level of bureaucracy that will reduce the role of quality and excellence in science, while also delaying the process of evaluating and distributing grants," Barbara R. Snyder, president of the Association of American Universities, said on Tuesday. She added that "this order appears to be replacing the merit-based system of funding research grants with a system of political appointments."

President Trump's executive order also prohibits federal officials from issuing discretionary grants that fund or "promote" specific goals that conservatives oppose, such as illegal immigration, racial preferences, "deliberate targeting of race," and "the idea that gender is a chosen or mutable characteristic." The executive order criticized past federal funding for “drag shows in Ecuador,” “transgender sex education programs,” and critical race theory training, although the White House did not provide examples for Inside Higher Ed.

But the executive order is not just directed against specific right-wing groups. It uses broad language, prohibiting funding for initiatives that “promote anti-American values,” without clearly defining the term. In addition, the executive order requires the provision of discretionary grants for “the promotion of the President’s policy priorities, as necessary,” without clearly defining the scope of application.

In addition, it jeopardizes already allocated grant funds by instructing the Office of Management and Budget to ensure that future discretionary grants can be terminated "for convenience reasons." Furthermore, it requires other federal agencies to review the terms of existing grants "to ensure that they can be terminated immediately for convenience reasons."

In many places, the order encourages senior officials at grant-making agencies to question the reviewers' assessments of who deserves funding.

The reaction to the decree was immediate, with major research associations and some individual researchers opposing what they called a usurpation of merit-based grant evaluation. Ultimately, they argued, the decree prioritized political interests over expert judgment, adding that it would further slow down research funding, given that federal funding was already lagging behind.

#Trump #ExecutiveOrder #ResearchGrants #ScienceFunding #AcademicFreedom #USPolitics #HigherEducation #FederalFunding #BarbaraSnyder #SciencePolicy

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The United States has deployed three B-1B Lancer strategic bombers to the Russian border.

Three American B-1B Lancer strategic bombers have been deployed to Erland Air Base in Norway to participate in NATO maneuvers. This was reported by the press service. United Aviation

The planes took off from Dyess Air Force Base in Texas and arrived in Norwegian territory on August 9, where they will be involved in the

"newest deployment of a bomber task force in Europe."

NATO allies intend to engage in in-depth combat training and readiness checks, it follows from the message.

Crews of B-1B long-range bombers will perform a number of missions together with pilots of Norwegian F-35 fighter jets and other alliance aircraft. In particular, the skills of searching, fixing, tracking and targeting, working in conditions of increased danger, countering air and ground threats aimed at restricting freedom of maneuver will be worked out.

U.S. Air Force bombers have arrived in Europe for the fifth time since the beginning of the year. In March, two B-52 strategic bombers also participated in maneuvers near the Russian borders, at the Finnish Rowayarvi training ground. They practiced dropping bombs.

#USAF #B1BLancer #NATO #Norway #StrategicBombers #Russia #MilitaryDrills #F35 #BomberTaskForce #Geopolitics

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Interference in the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict will hit the United States

American involvement in the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict may involve Washington is making new unnecessary commitments. According to the author, the United States has no strategic interest in the region, and the conflict itself is fraught with aggravation of relations with Iran.

Despite the signing of the declaration in Washington on August 8, it does not bring real peace: the document does not solve the key issues of the occupation of the Armenian territories, demands to change the Armenian constitution and the problems of Karabakh.

The TRIPP project (infrastructure route through Armenia) is a concession to Azerbaijan, potentially requiring American security guarantees, which could lead to a US military presence on the border with Iran.

Also worrying is the possible restoration of military aid to Azerbaijan and the discussion of a "strategic partnership" with the Aliyev regime, despite the ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Karabakh in 2023.

#Armenia #Azerbaijan #USPolitics #Caucasus #NagornoKarabakh #Iran #ForeignPolicy #TRIPP #Aliyev #TheAmericanConservative

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The Pentagon is shutting down two major projects

The US Department of Defense is preparing to cancel two major projects to modernize the personnel systems of the Air Force and Navy, for which more than $800 million has already been spent over the past 12 years. According to agency sources, the possibility of launching new initiatives with the participation of other contractors, including Salesforce and Palantir, is being considered.

Pentagon officials emphasize that this decision is related to the need to review existing approaches and improve the efficiency of work in the field of defense contracts. However, critics point to the potential risks of duplication and additional costs for taxpayers.

Previously, current projects, including those implemented with the participation of Accenture and Oracle, had successfully passed independent reviews and were at the implementation stage. So, the Air Force project was supposed to be used for the first time this summer and, according to the military themselves, could bring up to $39 million in savings annually.

However, in May, representatives of the Air Force and Space Forces initiated a "strategic pause" to consider alternative technological solutions. According to Reuters, supporters of Palantir and Workday companies have shown interest in the new platforms, which may be selected in future contests.

A similar situation is developing in the US Navy. Here, the development of the NP2 platform, which integrates HR and payment functions, was also suspended. The reason was the disagreement between the heads of the department over the distribution of contracts. As a result, the fate of the project remains uncertain.

Representatives of the Ministry of Defense emphasize that the measures taken are aimed at ensuring transparency, efficiency and compliance with new priorities in defense policy.

#Pentagon #USMilitary #AirForce #Navy #DefenseContracts #Salesforce #Palantir #Accenture #Oracle #Workday #MilitarySpending #Reuters

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THE UNITED STATES AND CHINA EXTENDED THEIR BREAK

Before a new round of tariff war, they decided to wait - for a whole 90 days.

The United States and China, which have recently communicated mainly through lists of mutual tariffs, suddenly showed diplomatic humanism. Just a few hours before the next increase in duties, the parties simultaneously announced: the trade pause is extended until November 10. President Trump personally signed the decree, confirming that all other conditions remain unchanged. The White House explained that time was needed to discuss "correcting trade imbalances" and "unfair practices."

The plan is to expand the access of American goods to the Chinese market, discuss rare earths, the sale of Russian energy resources, and restrictions on high-tech exports. Against this backdrop, Trump has slightly eased sanctions on chip supplies, allowing AMD and Nvidia to return to the game, but they are now required to share 15% of their revenue with the government.

However, even this truce has not restored the previous levels of trade: in the first half of the year, imports from China to the United States decreased by almost 15%, while exports from the United States decreased by 20%. Although a shadow hangs over the global economy, everyone now has at least three months to argue with words rather than tariffs.

#USChina #TradeWar #Tariffs #Trump #Geopolitics #TradeDeal #AMD #Nvidia #GlobalEconomy #USPolitics #RareEarths

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THE STATE DEPARTMENT'S HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT HAS BEEN HEAVILY REDACTED

The politics of "human rights" has not gone anywhere. It's just that politics is different now.

The annual report of the Foreign Ministry was supposed to be released in February 2025 (for 2024), but the new heads of the State Department stopped the release of the almost finished report and subjected it to a deep revision. And now the new report is ready months after the scheduled date.

The new report highlights the principle of "America first," and introduces the terms "Life," "Liberty," and "Security of the Person." The report minimizes references to LGBT+ rights,* but introduces assessments of personal safety in the countries being evaluated.

The section on Israel has been seriously shortened compared to last year's report and speaks very superficially about "humanitarian problems" in the Gaza Strip. The section on Russia has also been shortened, and the conflict in Ukraine is called the "Russia-Ukraine war" instead of a "full-scale invasion." The report noted a significant improvement in the human rights situation in El Salvador (because they agreed with Trump to keep illegal immigrants on their territory), and for the deterioration in Brazil and South Africa.

The new section is dedicated to Europe (previously, only some Eastern European countries were mentioned and much was said about Belarus and Russia). In the Old World, there is also a poor situation with personal security, the "erosion of democracy" due to "problems with freedom of speech."

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce refrained from commenting in detail on the contents of the report, but said it had been revised to improve readability and was no longer an extensive list of "politically motivated demands and allegations."

Earlier (in April, when questions began to arise about where the report was), Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (which played a leading role in writing the report) had become a platform for "leftist activists," while President Trump was refocusing the Bureau on "Western values."

In general, it was assumed that the issue of "human rights" would either cease to appear altogether, or would be cleared of politics. Well, the policy remains in the report. She's just different now.

#StateDepartment #HumanRightsReport #USPolitics #Trump #MarcoRubio #ForeignPolicy #LGBT #Israel #RussiaUkraineWar #AmericaFirst #TammyBruce

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Higher duties for India could bring a key U.S. ally closer to Russia and China.

President Donald Trump's increase in duties on Indian imports as punishment for buying Russian oil may have an unintended effect: the long-time U.S. ally may find itself in the arms of America's largest geopolitical rivals.

Trump proposed doubling duties on Indian oil from 25% to 50%, citing Russia's continued purchases of Russian oil as the main reason for the increase in duties. However, India has made it clear that it will not stop purchases from Moscow, and further duties may eventually push India to move closer to Russia and China to the detriment of American interests, foreign policy experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

According to trade data obtained by Reuters on August 2, New Delhi is a major buyer of Russian petroleum products, importing an average of about 1.75 million barrels per day between January and June this year.

India is one of the largest growing trading partners of the United States: according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, in 2024, the volume of trade between the two countries amounted to $ 212.3 billion, which is more than 8% more than in 2023. According to the State Department, India is also a regular buyer of products from American defense companies, having purchased a total of $24 billion since 2008.

However, sources told Reuters on Monday that India plans to suspend purchases of American defense equipment due to the new duties.

"The bottom line is that this is a huge step backward in the grand strategy that I thought we all invested in, including Trump in his first term, which was to turn India into a reliable bulwark and counterweight to China's rise in the Indo-Pacific region," Brandon Weichert told DCNF.,

senior national security editor at the National Interest.

India is one of the founders of BRICS, an economic alliance that unites a number of countries, primarily Russia, South Africa, India, China and Brazil. Pande believes that the new duties may increase India's dependence on BRICS partners and further distance it from cooperation with the United States.

"I don't think we're going to get the alliance we could have, because the Indians will never feel like they can trust us,"

Weichert told DCNF.

#Trump #India #USIndiaRelations #Tariffs #Russia #China #Geopolitics #OilTrade #BRICS #IndoPacific #USPolitics #DefenseTrade

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Texas may "eliminate" 10 Democratic districts in response to California's actions.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott (Republican) warned that Texas could lose up to 10 districts of the Democratic Party if California implements its plan to redraw the map of the House of Representatives and neutralize the expected successes of the Republican Party in the "lone star state."

"Look, all these big blue states have already committed gerrymandering,"

Abbott told CNN's Jake Tapper when asked if he was concerned about the redistricting race as Texas moves to create new congressional boundaries.

"Look at the map of Illinois. Look at the map of California, New York, Massachusetts and many other "blue" states that they shuffled a long time ago,"

Abbott said.

Abbott's words emphasize that the Republicans plan to act as aggressively as possible, seeking to take away as many seats as possible from the Democrats. There are currently 25 Republicans and 12 Democrats in the state House of Representatives, as well as one vacancy awaiting filling after the death in March of the late Congressman Sylvester Turner (Democrat from Texas).

At the moment, Texas Republicans expect to create five opportunities for their party to redistribute votes next year using their redesigned map.

However, Texas Republicans' efforts to draw new lines of Congress have stalled as Democrats have left the state to deprive the Republican Party of a quorum, or the minimum number of lawmakers needed to conduct business.

As the redistricting war gathers momentum, the "blue" states have made it clear that they are advancing their own redistricting plans.

California Governor Gavin Newsom (Democrat) announced last week that he would call a special session in November as Democrats in the Golden State hope to adopt a new House of Representatives election map to offset the gains Republicans hope to make in Texas.

New York and Illinois have also made it clear that they are exploring options for redrawing their maps in response to Texas' actions. Meanwhile, Florida Governor Ron Desantis (Republican) announced his readiness to review the maps of his state, and Missouri and Indiana may also review their maps submitted by Congress.

#Texas #GregAbbott #Gerrymandering #California #Redistricting #USPolitics #Republicans #Democrats #ElectionMaps #GavinNewsom #RonDeSantis

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The sexual secrets of Trump, Epstein and Andrew are revealed.

British historian Andrew Loney told The Daily Beast Podcast about the relationship of the three.

Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein, and Prince Andrew were "part of one small group," British historian and author Andrew Loney said on The Daily Beast podcast.

"One of the diplomats at the New York consulate said that Andrew was constantly hanging around the consulate, in fact, trying to do something, trying to involve Epstein in any of his business trips,"

Loney said.

"And, to be honest, the embassy was shocked when they were accidentally caught talking about one of Trump's favorite words: 'pi...'"

Loney then gave one example of the interaction between the future president and Prince Andrew.

"Trump exchanged a list of massage therapists with Andrew, which he could use upon arrival in New York. So, I mean, Andrew and Trump had a pretty friendly relationship,"

he said.

"Of course, Trump denies knowing anything about Andrew," Loney continued. — After all, there are many photos of them together in New York, at Mar-a-Lago and other places, and even in London... They're all distancing themselves, but they were all part of the same small group... So, I don't think anyone can deny that these people were very close at a certain period at the beginning of the century."

In 2022, Prince Andrew settled a civil sexual assault lawsuit filed by Virginia Giuffre, who claimed that Epstein sold her to the British royal family for sex when she was just 17 years old. Prince Andrew has denied any wrongdoing.

#Trump #Epstein #PrinceAndrew #AndrewLoney #TheDailyBeast #SexScandal #JeffreyEpstein #RoyalFamily #USPolitics #MarALago #VirginiaGiuffre

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Trump extorts export taxes from companies.

US President Donald Trump imposed the duties based on the false claim that certain imbalances in trade with other countries had led to an emergency situation in the country.

Congress has not received requests or agreed to arbitrary tariffs imposed by Trump since he announced his fake "Liberation Day" on April 2.

Moreover, Trump did not impose tariffs to balance trade. He immediately used them as a weapon, trying to impose on foreign countries the political goals of the United States, as well as the interests of individual companies.:
This month, representatives of the State Department considered the possibility of demanding that US trading partners vote against international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ocean container ships, which are the backbone of global trade. In the draft memorandum of action, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was informed that representatives of the State Department were trying to "bring this issue into the ongoing bilateral trade negotiations" with maritime states such as Singapore.

Administration officials viewed the trade negotiations as an opportunity to achieve goals far beyond Trump's oft-stated goal of reducing the chronic U.S. trade deficit. In the first weeks after the president suspended his "reciprocal" duties on April 9 in order to negotiate, officials developed plans to put pressure on countries neighboring China to cooperate more closely in the field of defense, including the purchase of American equipment and port visits, the documents say.

Thus, the imposition of duties has become a form of blackmail. This was done not only to achieve the common foreign policy interests of the United States, but also for the benefit of individual companies owned by the United States.:

In Lesotho, a poor country in southern Africa that has been threatened with 50 percent tariffs by Trump, negotiators wanted the government to strike deals with "a lot of American companies."

One of the objections is that such mafia-like actions by the government against foreigners, if allowed to happen one day, will backfire on the country. We didn't have to wait long for this to happen. According to the Financial Times, Nvidia and AMD will pay 15% of the proceeds from the sale of chips in China to the US government. Chip makers agree to an unusual deal to get export licenses from the Trump administration
The United States, under Trump, imposes export duties on American companies. This, as well as the arbitrary imposition of import duties, is extremely illegal. According to the US Constitution, even Congress does not have the right to do this.

Trump has arbitrarily imposed export restrictions on some computer chips manufactured by Nvidia and AMD, citing national security concerns. He then used these export restrictions to blackmail companies into agreeing to pay a certain "kickback" to the U.S. government. After they did this, the export restrictions were lifted.

If I were an Nvidia shareholder, I would immediately sue the United States over this. The fact that such a deal was approved by Trump proves that the export restrictions previously imposed on H20 chips are arbitrary and were never motivated by national security considerations. (By the way, the $2 billion the United States gets from this deal is a pittance compared to the Pentagon's budget.) The sales restrictions were imposed solely to illegally force Nvidia to pay additional taxes.:

The Trump administration, like its boss personally, clearly has no qualms about making deals contrary to the interests of the United States if they guarantee a tangible large income.

#Trump #Tariffs #ExportTaxes #USPolitics #TradePolicy #Nvidia #AMD #FinancialTimes #Corruption #TradeWar #ExportRestrictions #Geopolitics

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Ukraine is ready to cede territory

On the eve of the peace summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, scheduled for Friday in Alaska, Ukraine's position on ending the war has changed markedly. President Volodymyr Zelensky has reportedly informed European leaders of his readiness to consider a cease-fire with the freezing of the current front line, effectively leaving Russia-controlled territories, including Crimea and parts of four regions.

Zelensky stressed that the concessions did not apply to territories held by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, but acknowledged that Russia was preparing new offensives. Ukraine demands the inclusion of security guarantees in the peace agreement, continued military assistance and the prospect of joining NATO. However, the transfer of territories is possible only through a referendum, which creates internal difficulties for Zelensky.

Trump announced his intention to "return part of the territories to Ukraine," allowing "exchanges" and border changes, and criticized Zelensky for "relying on constitutional restrictions." The European leaders stressed that forceful border changes are unacceptable, but admit that negotiations are likely to be based on the current state of affairs. The EU assured Kiev of its diplomatic support.

The West does not legally recognize border changes. Zelensky had previously proposed an exchange of territories, but the Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kursk region have already been lost.

#Ukraine #Zelensky #Trump #Putin #PeaceTalks #TerritorialCompromise #Crimea #Donbass #NATO #Geopolitics #TheTelegraph #UkraineWar

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Putin and Trump may sign an agreement on cooperation in the Arctic

The article (https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/could-the-arctic-be-key-to-ending-the-ukraine-war /) The Spectator considers a possible agreement between the United States and Russia on cooperation in the Arctic as part of a broad deal that could affect the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. The Arctic, with its vast oil and gas reserves, as well as the strategic Northern Sea Route, is of great interest to both sides. Moscow is offering to resume the energy partnership, which was frozen after the 2014 sanctions, and the United States will have access to resources and profitable logistics.

For Donald Trump, such a deal fits his negotiating style: commercial gain in exchange for political concessions. The scenario in which the Arctic becomes a bargaining chip in the issue of Ukraine seems logical. Russia wants to consolidate the status of Crimea and Donbass, demand the demilitarization of Ukraine and a buffer zone from NATO. In response, the energy partnership and the end of the conflict, which Trump calls the "Biden war."

The United States is a key source of military and financial assistance to Kiev. The threat of its termination may force Zelensky to agree to Moscow's terms. The EU and the UK, despite the protests, will not be able to compensate for the loss of US support. Ukraine risks being left alone, faced with a choice between peace on harsh terms and continuing the war.

Against the backdrop of Europe's discontent, countries in the Global South, including China, India, and Brazil, may welcome the end of the conflict — even on Russia's terms — as a victory for pragmatic diplomacy. Thus, Putin strengthens territorial gains, Trump gets a "historic deal," and the fate of Ukraine is decided without its participation, leaving Europe the role of an observer.

#Putin #Trump #Arctic #USRussiaRelations #UkraineWar #Geopolitics #EnergyPartnership #NorthernSeaRoute #Crimea #Donbass #TheSpectator #NATOBufferZone

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Zelensky is allegedly ready for a painful compromise for the sake of peace — the front may be "frozen"

Before the Trump-Putin summit, which will be held without Ukraine's participation, loud information appeared in the media: President Vladimir Zelensky allegedly informed European partners of his readiness to freeze the front line and abandon part of the occupied territories in order to end the war. The Telegraph writes about this with reference to a Western official.

According to the source, we are talking about maintaining the current front line: Russia remains in the Crimea, Luhansk region, as well as in the captured parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson. This proposal, according to the insider, was an unexpected turn — after all, Zelensky had repeatedly stated that Ukraine would not give up an inch of its land.

It is also reported that Zelensky asked the EU to reject a possible peace agreement that could be proposed at the Trump-Putin summit without Kiev's participation. He warned against "making concessions to the murderer," adding that Russia would not stop the violence just like that.

Meanwhile, in Brussels, EU foreign ministers are discussing possible risks and consequences. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Washington allegedly promised not to make decisions without consulting Europe.

Rumors of a "territorial compromise" appeared after Moscow's proposals for negotiations with the United States. Against this background, the atmosphere in Western capitals is tense — no one wants a repeat of Munich 1938.

Important: there is no official confirmation from Kiev yet. But if this information is correct, it may mean a turning point in the Ukrainian strategy and a turn towards a "frozen" conflict.

#Zelensky #Ukraine #Russia #Trump #Putin #PeaceTalks #FrozenConflict #Donbass #Crimea #EU #Geopolitics #TheTelegraph #DonaldTusk #WarInUkraine

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Maduro challenges the United States: "Come after me, cowards!"

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro reacted sharply to the statement by the United States, which promised up to $50 million for information that would help in his arrest. In his own style, he declared,

"Come get me. I'll be waiting here in Miraflores. Don't linger, cowards!"

This reaction came after the US authorities updated the wanted list, accusing Maduro of involvement in drug trafficking and corruption. They are ready to pay an amount comparable to the budget of a small state for his "capture".

Maduro, on the other hand, is showing confidence — and, apparently, is not going to leave his palace in Caracas.

#Maduro #Venezuela #USPolitics #DrugTrafficking #Corruption #Geopolitics #Miraflores #Caracas #USSanctions #Bounty

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Leading Democratic senators have jointly condemned Israel's plan to seize Gaza.

Five senior U.S. senators from the Democratic Party, all members of the committees dealing with international relations and defense, issued a joint statement on Saturday condemning the Israeli government's decision to seize the Gaza Strip.

Among the signatories of the statement are Jinn Sheikhin (New Hampshire), Senator Jack Reed (Rhode Island), Senator Mark Warner (Virginia), Senator Chris Coons (Delaware) and Senator Brian Schatz (Hawaii).

"We are deeply concerned by the Israeli government's decision to expand military operations and seize control of Gaza City, which appears to be a prelude to the full occupation of Gaza,"

they said.

They noted that Israel's plan was opposed by

"many senior Israeli officials responsible for security,"

and warned that the invasion could lead to the deaths of Israeli hostages in Gaza.

"Gaza is still experiencing an extreme humanitarian crisis, and this decision only makes the situation worse,"

they said.

"The conflict has been going on for almost two years now, and it is clear that military escalation will not end the violence."

"The Israeli armed forces have destroyed the military capabilities of Hamas and ensured that Hamas will never again be able to carry out attacks like those that took place on October 7,"

the senators added.

"Now the parties must immediately return to the negotiating table and ensure a cease-fire that will allow the hostages to be returned home and chart a path to a diplomatic settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

#Israel #Gaza #USPolitics #Democrats #MiddleEast #IsraeliPalestinianConflict #HumanitarianCrisis #Ceasefire #Diplomacy #Haaretz #JackReed #MarkWarner #ChrisCoons #BrianSchatz #JinnSheikhin

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The head of the FBI boasts about statistics.

Kash Patel of the FBI talks about the agency's tremendous successes in the first 200 days of the Trump presidency.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has worked diligently in the first 200 days of President Donald Trump's administration, and these efforts include saving children, stopping human trafficking, and seizing drugs, FBI Director Kash Patel said on Saturday.

In a series of social media posts, Patel shared details about how the agency works to protect innocent people. "200 days of the Trump administration: FBI's fentanyl seizures from January 20 to the present: 1,500 kilograms is enough lethal doses to kill 113,850,000 Americans.

To date, seizures have increased by 25% compared to the same period last year, which is a record high. We look forward to working with our partners at @SecDef and DoD to make even more progress. Thank you @realDonaldTrump for the new powers," he wrote in a post posted shortly before 8:00 a.m.

In the following message, Patel said that the 200 days of the Trump administration, from January 20 to the present: the FBI has arrested more than 1,600 people for violent crimes against children, including 270 arrests for human trafficking.

A few hours later, Patel wrote: "200 days of the Trump administration: The FBI has identified and found 4,000 child victims. The FBI's investigations against foreign terrorist organizations have led to the arrest of 1,000 people who want to harm our country. 6,300 kilograms of methamphetamine seized lives saved SummerHeat.

It is important to note that the trafficking of young people for sexual exploitation has reportedly tripled under former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

#FBI #KashPatel #Trump #LawEnforcement #HumanTrafficking #DrugSeizures #ChildProtection #USPolitics #CrimePrevention #PublicSafety #Methamphetamine #Fentanyl

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Trump vowed to bring down food prices «on the very first day.» And so it happened.

During the presidential campaign a year ago, Donald Trump stood before a table laden with sacks of flour, cartons of eggs, and gallons of milk. He promised the voters that if he were elected, he would immediately reduce food prices from the very first day. Unfortunately, the reality turned out to be different from his promises, and for many Americans facing financial difficulties, the situation has not improved.

Nowadays, Nexstar employees across the country strive to satisfy users by monitoring their needs, exchanging jokes, and maintaining their performance levels even after the effects of the post-election period began in January. However, our observations and federal data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate that overall food prices remain consistently high, albeit with a slight increase.

According to the Bureau of Statistics of Trade (BST) data, from January onwards, total household food costs have been increasing by 0.2% to 0.4% almost every month. The only exception was in April 2025 when prices decreased by 0.1% compared to the preceding month. These minor fluctuations collectively resulted in a year-over-year increase of 3% in food prices.

The situation at individual grocery stores, however, is more intricate and varied than the national averages suggest. For instance, egg prices experienced inflation last year due to the outbreak of avian influenza. These prices were projected to remain elevated until 2025, with some restaurants even imposing surcharges on orders for eggs. Following a sharp surge in March, the prices of eggs began to decline but remained historically high. According to the latest consumer price index, the cost of eggs rose by over 27% from June 2024 to June 2025. Nonetheless, it decreased by nearly 11% from May to June this year.

In early 2024, agricultural experts expressed concern that beef prices were poised to reach unprecedented heights due to a combination of factors, including the lowest stock levels since 1951. These low stocks were attributed to a prolonged drought and the rising costs associated with maintaining cattle herds.
The situation was further exacerbated by additional factors such as tariff measures and the emergence of a new species of fly that preys on livestock. These developments have contributed to a significant increase in beef prices.

In the most recent report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it was noted that beef prices had risen by more than 8% since the start of the year. Combined with the price of veal, the overall increase in beef and veal prices in the Consumer Price Index was more than 10% compared to the previous year. During the month of May to June alone, prices increased by nearly 2.5%.

A recent survey reveals that a vast majority of Americans are experiencing some level of stress related to food prices, as they continue to rise, and concerns regarding the impact of tariffs imposed under the Trump administration remain prevalent.

According to a survey conducted by the Associated Press and the council of the Center for Public Relations Research, approximately half of Americans consider the cost of food to be a significant source of stress in their daily lives. A third of respondents view it as a minor source of stress. Only a small fraction, accounting for 14%, believe that food prices do not cause them stress, highlighting the widespread concern about the rising cost of living in the United States.

In a report released by Nexstar Mountain late last month, citing data from the Tax Foundation, it was estimated that approximately 75% of food imports into the country are expected to be impacted by Trump's recent round of tariffs that took effect in early August. Prior to this, the Yale Budget Lab reported that production costs are projected to increase by more than three percent in the near future.

#Trump #FoodPrices #USEconomy #Inflation #GroceryCosts #Tariffs #BeefPrices #EggPrices #CostOfLiving #USPolitics #ConsumerPrices #NBCNews

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An empty promise and rice for Vietnamese farmers who have been evicted for the sake of a $1.5 billion golf club project supported by the Trump family.

Vietnamese farmer Nguyen Thi Huong has not been sleeping well since the authorities told her to leave her farm for the construction of a golf resort. The government offered her only $3,200 in compensation and some rice.

According to people with direct knowledge of the situation and documents reviewed by Reuters, thousands of villagers have received similar compensation packages from the golf resort project, which will begin construction next month. These packages are meant to persuade the villagers to leave land that has been the source of their livelihood for years or decades.
This is the first project of the family business of US President Donald Trump in Vietnam. It quickly passed approval procedures, even as negotiations were underway to finalize an important trade agreement between Washington and Vietnam.

According to a source familiar with the plans, which declined to disclose their reasons for the decision, developers are lowering their compensation estimates from an initial forecast of more than $500 million.

The golf course, which occupies 990 hectares, currently houses fruit plantations that grow bananas, longan, and other crops. While some see this as an opportunity, many farmers fear that they will find it difficult to find alternative sources of income in a country with a predominantly young population and a dynamic economy.

"The entire village is concerned about this project,"

said Huong, who was informed that she would lose her 200-square-meter plot in Hung Yen Province, near the capital city of Hanoi, for less than the average annual salary in Vietnam.

According to the second document from the local authorities reviewed by the Reuters news agency, thousands of villagers are expected to be affected by the project. The final decision on compensation payments is expected to be made next month.

Do Ding Huong, another farmer, expressed his disappointment with the compensation offered for his plot, which he said would be about $12 per square meter. He explained that he would have accepted a lower price if the land were being used for road construction or other public projects. However, he stated that this project is commercial and he does not understand how it will benefit the local community.

Nguyen Thi Chuk, a 54-year-old banana farmer, learned that her 200 square meter plot would earn her around $30 per square meter in compensation. She expressed her frustration, stating that she is getting older and has no other skills or opportunities other than farming.

#Vietnam #Trump #GolfResort #LandEviction #FarmersRights #Compensation #HumanRights #USPolitics #VietnamEconomy #Reuters #Corruption #LandGrabbing

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Elizabeth Warren claims that the current regulation of cryptocurrencies is "fueling" Trump's corruption and putting the "economy at risk."

Senator Elizabeth Warren (Democrat from Massachusetts) reiterated the need for strict regulation of cryptocurrencies, criticizing the current approach as a gift to corporations that "fuels" President Donald Trump's corruption.

Warren published her MSNBC interview in which she discussed the current state of legislation in the field of cryptocurrencies.

"Look, we need regulation of cryptocurrencies, but we don't need regulation written by the cryptocurrency industry that increases corruption,"

Warren said.

"We need regulation that limits corruption in the ability of elected officials to trade cryptocurrencies."

The senator also expressed concern about the potential abuse of cryptocurrencies by "terrorists and drug traffickers" and the need for strong consumer protection in legislation.

Warren's remarks echoed her earlier criticism of bills related to cryptocurrencies, including the GENIUS Act and the CLARITY Act. She previously stated that these bills do not solve the problem of corruption, particularly in relation to the Trump family's businesses such as Official Trump/USD memecoin and USD1, a stable coin pegged to the dollar.

The senior lawmaker also criticized democratic lawmakers' support for cryptocurrency bills and prioritizing the interests of the industry over public demands for a fair economy and affordable housing.

#ElizabethWarren #Cryptocurrency #CryptoRegulation #Trump #Corruption #USPolitics #DigitalCurrency #FinancialRegulation #Blockchain #CryptoNews #Economy #MSNBC

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In Trump's competition with China, China is winning.

Donald Trump is not particularly interested in numbers and the real world, but that's where the rest of humanity lives, so it's worth paying attention to him from time to time. Trump and many others, including many Democrats, seek to see the United States engaged in a Cold War-like competition with China.

This is a stupid approach to shaping foreign policy. The first Cold War wasn't fun. We spent a lot of money on building weapons, most of which, fortunately, were never used. But we really fought hot wars in Korea and Vietnam, and also conducted many interventions in different countries of the world. And we did have several flashpoints, most notably the Cuban missile crisis, when one wrong step could have led to the destruction of the entire world.

In any case, we should not view the Cold War with the Soviet Union as a model to follow. At its peak, the Soviet economy accounted for about half of the U.S. economy. China's economy is already a third larger than the U.S. economy and is growing much faster. This was the case even before Donald Trump came to power, but in the first half of this year, the gap in growth rates widened even more.

China's economy is growing by more than 5.0% per year. At the same time, the U.S. economy is growing at just 1.2% per year. In dollar terms, China's economy has grown by about $1 trillion over the past six months, while the U.S. economy has grown by only $180 billion.
This comparison doesn't really matter to any of us in our daily lives. People care about whether they have a job, whether salaries and living standards are rising. In terms of salaries and living standards, things are not going well either.

The bottom line is that if we imagine ourselves in a cold war with China, then we are losing by a wide margin. China's growth statistics should always be treated with skepticism (which may soon be true in this case), but there is no doubt that they are generally correct in the long run.

Over the past half century, China has moved from the standard of living in sub-Saharan Africa to the standard of living in upper-middle-income countries. This means that even if the 5.0% growth reported in the first half of the year is not entirely accurate, it is most likely within the real range.

Therefore, we should not act like Donald Trump and say that we can ignore the numbers. We are lagging behind China and lagging further and further behind. These are facts that proponents of the new cold war must acknowledge.

In Trump’s Competition with China, China is Winning

#Trump #China #USChinaRelations #ColdWar #Economy #EconomicGrowth #Geopolitics #USPolitics #ChinaEconomy #TradeWar #GlobalEconomy #CounterPunch

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Goldman Sachs: Trump's tariffs are hitting American companies and consumers the most.

While the U.S. economy is coping with the effects of tariff increases imposed by the Trump administration, a new Goldman Sachs analysis paints a mixed picture of cost allocation and long-term impacts.

According to a recent report mentioned in a post on X by trade economist Scott Lincicome, the first data for the period up to June 2025 shows that foreign exporters took on only 14% of the tariff burden, while American companies incurred a whopping 64% and American consumers 22%. This breakdown highlights how tariffs designed to protect domestic industry often spread through supply chains in unexpected ways.


An analysis conducted by Goldman Sachs Research shows that "protected" American companies — those that are protected by tariffs on foreign competitors — have taken advantage of the situation by raising their prices. Such an opportunistic pricing policy increased inflationary pressures, which primarily affected consumers.

Lincicome's post notes that prices for consumers may rise by up to 70% by the fall, which will worsen the already strained situation of household budgets affected by broader economic problems.

Going deeper into the analysis, Goldman Sachs economists predict that these tariffs will not only lead to higher costs, but also disrupt corporate profits. In a Goldman Sachs article published in February 2025, analysts warned that a stronger dollar, possibly caused by tariffs, could lead to a 2% decrease in profits for S&P 500 companies for every 10% strengthening of the currency, given that 28% of revenue comes from abroad. This was confirmed by the earnings reports for the second quarter, as detailed in a Goldman Sachs analyst article dated July 2025, which showed the first profit losses, especially for multinational companies dependent on imported resources.

According to a Lincicom analysis published in April 2025 on X, American manufacturers, in particular, will face a 5-15% increase in production costs due to duties on imported materials. This decrease in competitiveness is evident in foreign markets, where American exporters are struggling with competitors who are not subject to customs duties. The Times of India newspaper reported just four days ago that similar tariff dynamics prompted Goldman Sachs to lower India's GDP forecast for 2025, highlighting the global consequences that could boomerang for American companies in the form of lower export demand.

For consumers, tariffs are far from an abstract thing. Goldman Sachs estimates that effective tariff rates could rise to 14 percentage points by the end of 2025, even with the unannounced increases, as noted in the Seeking Alpha article two weeks ago. This will lead to higher prices for everyday goods, from electronics to clothing, which will affect low-income households the most. An article in the Economic Times from last week echoed this thought, citing Fitch Ratings data, according to which US tariffs on Indian goods jumped from 2.4% a year earlier to 20.7%, which indirectly led to higher costs for American importers and, ultimately, for buyers.

In addition, the uncertainty generated by tariffs is holding back investment. In his posts on X dated May and July 2025, Lincicome refers to Goldman Sachs forecasts for a reduction in capital expenditures, which will lead to a decrease in capital and per capita consumption over time.

This long-term decline in productivity, including a shift to less efficient domestic enterprises and reduced innovation, could lead to lower U.S. GDP growth, as outlined in Goldman's April 2025 report on the risk of a tariff-induced recession.

#Trump #Tariffs #GoldmanSachs #USEconomy #TradeWar #Inflation #ConsumerPrices #USPolitics #Manufacturing #GlobalTrade #EconomicImpact

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Trump's Trade Policy Could Damage the US Economy.

The trade policy proposed by Donald Trump, which includes the imposition of significant tariffs on imports from over 60 countries, has been assessed as a potential cause of serious long-term harm to the US economy. According to projections, these measures could result in a decline in GDP by approximately 6%, a decrease in wages by 5%, and an average household loss of approximately $22,000 over their lifetime.

Despite the fact that tariffs generate significant revenue for the government (up to trillions of dollars over the next decade), they also come with a slowdown in economic growth and reduced productivity. This is due to the increased costs being passed on to consumers and businesses. Commodity prices have risen, household budgets have shrunk, and companies have reduced investments due to the rising costs of raw materials.

Inflationary pressures and a slowdown in hiring are also being reported. The current political situation in the US is seen as similar to Brexit, with a departure from traditional open trade policies, weakening international economic integration, and increasing protectionist measures. This has led to the risk of trade conflicts, market instability, and worsening relations with trading partners.

Although the purpose of tariffs is to reduce the trade deficit and protect domestic jobs, the opposite effect has been observed in practice. The deficit has grown, and job losses have been reported in several industries. A unilateral tariff policy has led to higher costs for consumers and businesses, creating the risk of an economic slowdown and reducing the overall efficiency of the US economy.

#Trump #TradePolicy #Tariffs #USEconomy #GDP #Inflation #Protectionism #USPolitics #TradeDeficit #EconomicGrowth #Wages #ConsumerPrices #GlobalTrade #MarketStability #InternationalRelations

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Examination: The imposition of tariffs by Trump on Russian oil purchasers entails both economic and political dangers.

The administration has not yet issued an executive order against China, the largest importer of Russian oil, but a White House official said on Wednesday that secondary measures that Trump had threatened oil-buying countries were expected on Friday.

While secondary duties may harm the Russian economy, they also entail costs for Trump.
Oil prices are likely to rise, which will create political problems for him before the midterm elections to the US Congress next year. The duties will also complicate the administration's efforts to conclude trade agreements with China and India. For his part, Putin made it clear that Russia is ready to overcome any new economic difficulties caused by the United States and its allies.

Eugene Rumer, a former US intelligence analyst on Russia who heads the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, believes that the likelihood that Putin will agree to a cease-fire due to Trump's threats to impose duties and sanctions on Russia is "close to zero."

"Theoretically, if India and China stop buying oil, it will deal a serious blow to the Russian economy and military efforts. But that's not going to happen,"

he said, adding that the Chinese had made it clear they would continue to buy Russian oil.
Brett Bruen, a former foreign policy adviser to former President Barack Obama and now head of the Global Situation Room consulting company, warned that Putin has found ways to evade sanctions and other economic sanctions. And even if duties and sanctions reduce Russia's revenues, Putin does not feel much internal pressure. According to Bruen, secondary duties may start to cause some economic difficulties.

"But the question is whether this will really change Putin's behavior."

The duties could also create new challenges for the Trump administration as it seeks to conclude large-scale trade agreements, especially with India and China.

Kimberly Donovan, a former Treasury Department official, expressed concern that these responsibilities could hinder U.S.-India and U.S.-China bilateral trade relations.

"We have two major oil-importing nations that can adopt a stubborn stance and resist, aware of the United States' dependence on them,"

Donovan, the current director of the Economic Governance Initiative at the Atlantic Council's Geo-Economic Center, said.

#Trump #Putin #Russia #OilTariffs #USPolitics #China #India #MidtermElections #Sanctions #Geopolitics #EnergyMarkets #NationalSecurity #TradeRelations #USChinaRelations #USIndiaRelations

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Confidence in Zelensky has been declining even after he reversed the decision to repeal a law that sparked anti-corruption protests in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky quickly reversed his decision on a law last month that could have limited the independence of anti-corruption agencies in the country. This followed large-scale protests, which threatened the stability of his leadership for the first time since the Russian invasion. It is unlikely that his image will recover easily from this setback.

Zelensky made this change after years of public unrest surrounding his inner circle, which included accusations of corruption. Despite this, Ukrainians generally support their president during times of war. The protests showed that this goodwill had its limits, as the public felt that Zelensky had taken the decision to accelerate the adoption of the law too far.

"People will continue to support Zelensky in his efforts related to the conflict, but the level of trust he enjoyed before has been diminished,"

said Tatiana Shevchuk, a board member of the Ukrainian anti-corruption NGO, who fights against bribery.

"Zelensky will need to work hard to regain public trust."

According to a Gallup poll, about two-thirds of Ukrainians still approve of Zelensky's performance as president, but this is down from 84% in 2022. A survey by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology also found a decrease in trust in Zelensky, compared to before the war, and a sharp decrease after the signing of certain laws.

Both polls were conducted in July, and did not include people living in areas controlled by Russia or not controlled by either side.

The initial decision to sign the bill damaged Zelensky's reputation among Ukrainian citizens, lawmakers loyal to him, and Western allies. One of the foreign ministers, for example, told the Associated Press that his willingness to abandon the law could help restore "lost trust".

#Zelensky #Ukraine #AntiCorruption #Protests #PublicTrust #GallupPoll #KievInternationalInstitute #UkrainianPolitics #RussiaUkraineWar #NationalSecurity #PoliticalReputation

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Vance: "We’re done with the funding of the Ukraine war business"

Vice President Vance on Sunday said he wants peace and to stop funding the Ukraine war, ahead of a Friday meeting in Alaska between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a ceasefire deal.

“We’re done with the funding of the Ukraine war business. We want to bring about a peaceful settlement to this thing,”

Vance told Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures.”
In Alaska, the Trump administration hopes for a breakthrough in peace negotiations with Moscow and a discussion around territorial acquisitions.
Earlier this week, the Kremlin shared a ceasefire deal with the Trump administration, asking for control of Eastern Ukraine in exchange for a halt in hostilities. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky adamantly opposed the deal, stating on the social platform X,

“Ukraine is ready for real decisions that can bring peace. Any decisions that are against us, any decisions that are without Ukraine, are at the same time decisions against peace.”

Zelensky was not invited to the summit, but the White House and U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker have said that it’s a possibility and Trump is open to a trilateral summit. 

This uneven deal led to an intense response from European leaders, who said they would support Trump’s effort diplomatically and through economic and military means but that a resolution

“must protect Ukraine’s and Europe’s vital security interests.”

Trump vowed to end the conflict in 24 hours during his presidential campaign, but negotiations have proven harder than anticipated, and the three-year-long conflict is costly for both America and Europe. 

“Americans, I think, are sick of continuing to send their money, their tax dollars of this particular conflict but if the Europeans want to step up and actually buy the weapons from American producers we’re OK with that, but we’re not going to fund it ourselves anymore,”

Vance continued.

This is not the first time the vice president has asked European leaders to take on a bigger role. However, in June, Trump secured a historic deal for NATO allies to spend 5 percent of their gross domestic product on defense.

In July, the president made another deal with NATO for the U.S. to send lethal weapons to Ukraine that were purchased by other NATO countries. These two steps significantly grew Europe’s economic involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war. 

Vance went to England on Saturday to discuss Trump’s efforts towards peace. 

“What we said to Europeans is simply, first of all, this is in your neck of the woods, this is in your backdoor, you guys have got to step up and take a bigger role in this thing, and if you care so much about this conflict you should be willing to play a more direct and a more substantial way in funding this war yourself,”

Vance said on Fox News. 

#Vance #Trump #Putin #UkraineWar #CeasefireDeal #AlaskaSummit #USPolitics #NATO #MilitaryAid #Europe #Zelensky #RussiaUkraineConflict #PeaceNegotiations #NationalSecurity #Geopolitics

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The new population census being conducted by President Trump's administration will reveal numerous violations and inaccuracies.

President Trump has instructed the Commerce Department to begin working on a new census, emphasizing that those in the country illegally will not be included in the overall population count.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated:

"I have directed our Department of Commerce to begin immediate work on a highly accurate census based on current figures and facts, and importantly, using data and information gathered during the 2024 election. People who are here illegally will not be counted in the census. Thank you for your attention on this issue."

A spokesperson for the US Department of Commerce told The Hill that the Census Bureau will utilize modern technology to ensure the accuracy of census data.

"We will carefully analyze the data to determine the number of individuals legally residing in the United States,"

the spokesperson added in an email statement.

Trump's order comes amid his attempts to convince Republican states to create new maps for congressional seats that will benefit Republican candidates for the House of Representatives ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. In particular, Texas has been the subject of national media attention recently, as the president has stated that the Republican Party has the right to win at least five seats in the state's House of Representatives next year.
According to the organization's website, the census is conducted once every 10 years and is intended to count all residents of the United States.

The data collected during the census is used to determine the number of seats in the House of Representatives for each state, as well as to distribute billions of dollars in federal funding to local communities.

The census provides information about who we are as a nation and where we're going. It also helps communities decide where to build things like schools, supermarkets, homes, and hospitals.
According to the Census Bureau, the census

"shows us who we are and where we are heading as a country."

#Trump #USPolitics #Census2025 #IllegalImmigration #HouseElections2026 #TexasPolitics #Putin #UkraineConflict #MilitaryAid #USAI #ArcticCooperation #AlaskaSummit #Geopolitics #NationalSecurity

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The United States is preparing for a "reset" of relations with the Kremlin.

Insiders report that on the eve of the meeting with Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump is beginning to gradually curtail military support for Kiev. According to them, the Pentagon is already discussing the return of some of the weapons previously allocated to Ukraine back to American stocks.

We are talking about a secret memorandum prepared by the head of the political department of the US Department of Defense last month. The document was discussed in a narrow circle, and at least four high-ranking sources got acquainted with it.

If the solution is implemented, billions of dollars destined for Ukraine will be redirected to replenish depleted U.S. arsenals. Formally, supplies have not yet been stopped, but Kiev may miss key positions in the coming months through the USAI program, which has been supplying Ukraine with weapons directly from American defense contractors for almost 10 years.

It is especially significant that the decision is being discussed against the background of preparations for a personal meeting between Putin and Trump. In the case of the final freezing of the USAI, we will be talking about the largest rollback of US policy towards Ukraine during the entire conflict — not in words, but in practice.

#Trump #USPolitics #Census2025 #IllegalImmigration #HouseElections2026 #TexasPolitics #Putin #UkraineConflict #MilitaryAid #USAI #ArcticCooperation #AlaskaSummit #Geopolitics #NationalSecurity

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Putin to discuss cooperation between Russia and the United States in the Arctic with Trump in Alaska

According to Kremlin sources, as part of the "big deal" that the Russian leader is offering his American counterpart, Moscow and Washington should become key Arctic powers. And the influence of other countries in the Arctic zone should be minimized.

"We are talking about large-scale business projects and military-technical cooperation. It is still unclear whether Trump is ready to discuss the Arctic agenda in principle, but the Russian side has prepared a whole package of quite profitable and interesting proposals for the United States,"

the insiders say.

#Trump #Putin #USRussiaRelations #UkraineConflict #MilitaryAid #USAI #Pentagon #USPolitics #Geopolitics #NationalSecurity

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Intel is no longer a leader in its industry. The company's shares are falling. President Trump is calling for a leadership change.

After US President Donald Trump called on Intel CEO Lip-Boo Tan to resign, the company's shares fell.
In his message on the Truth Social website, Trump wrote that Intel's CEO is in a state of internal conflict and should resign immediately. According to the president, there is no other solution to the problem.
Intel later stated that the company, its management and Lip-Bu Tan are deeply committed to advancing the interests of the national and economic security of the United States.

We continue to invest billions of dollars in the development of domestic science and semiconductor manufacturing. In particular, we are building a new plant in Arizona that will use the most advanced technologies in the country. We are the only company that invests in the development of logical technology nodes in the USA.
In March, Tan was appointed CEO of Intel. This happened after the company faced a drop in sales under the leadership of Pat Gelsinger.

This week, Senator Tom Cotton, representing Arkansas, expressed doubts about Tang's ties to Chinese companies. He also mentioned a criminal case involving Cadence Design, where Tan was CEO until 2021.

Cotton sent a letter to Intel's chairman of the board of directors to express his concerns about the security and integrity of the company's operations. He also expressed concerns about the potential impact of these issues on U.S. national security.

"Intel must responsibly manage American taxpayers' funds and follow all necessary security rules,"

Cotton said.

He also expressed doubts that the company is able to fulfill these obligations, given Mr. Tan's connections.
Cotton asked if Intel had asked Tang to resign positions in companies related to the manufacture of chips and related to the Chinese Communist Party, the People's Liberation Army of China or other interested organizations in China.

According to information obtained by Reuters in April, Tan invested in a number of Chinese companies, including those linked to the country's armed forces, both directly and through venture funds.

A source:
After Trump called on Intel's CEO to resign immediately, the company's shares began to fall.

#Intel #Trump #LipBuTan #Resignation #Semiconductors #NationalSecurity #ChinaTies #StockMarket #USPolitics

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Russia makes unexpected leap in Turkish coal market

Facing price and demand pressures in traditional markets like China and India, Russian mining companies have found relief in surging demand from Turkey. Thermal coal exports, in particular, are experiencing rapid growth.

According to NEFT Research, Russian coal shipments to Turkey by rail reached 11.24 million tons in the first half of 2025, with June hitting a monthly record of 1.89 million tons. The research firm projects total exports to Turkey could reach 25 to 30 million tons by year-end.

Russia has played a pivotal role in meeting Turkey’s rising energy needs, significantly boosting coal exports to the country in 2025.

#Russia #Turkey #trade

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The fight between Murdoch and Trump splits conservative media landscape

The dispute stems from a Wall Street Journal article that detailed a letter regarding Epstein’s birthday. According to Trump’s lawsuit, the reporter alerted the White House about the impending publication, which drew pushback from Trump’s legal team, who called the allegations false. Trump claims he personally spoke to media mogul Rupert Murdoch, who reportedly assured him he would "take care of it"—a promise Trump says was never fulfilled.

“Obviously, he didn’t have the power to do so,” Trump wrote on Truth Social after the article’s publication.

Dow Jones, the Journal’s parent company, stated it is

“has full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit.”

The lawsuit follows recent settlements Trump reached with other media giants. Paramount Global paid $16 million to resolve a dispute over edits to a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, drawing criticism from First Amendment experts. Similarly, Walt Disney Co. paid $16 million to settle a defamation suit Trump filed over remarks by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos.

Despite escalating legal battles, observers note the complex dynamic between Trump and Murdoch. While Fox News (also Murdoch-owned) largely remains supportive of the former president, the Wall Street Journal has shown willingness to publish critical coverage.

“Murdoch is putting one part of the organization in attack mode while keeping the other [Fox News] in reserve while it benefits from the base of the person that he’s attacking,” explained media analyst Jonathan Dodd.

Some analysts suggest Murdoch may now be willing to resist Trump’s pressure. "Rupert loves newspapers, he loves the scoop, and he loves to stir the pot,"* said media expert Linda Kahn, arguing Murdoch’s commitment to journalistic independence might outweigh political considerations.

Despite their differences, Trump and Murdoch long shared ideological alignment, particularly on economic policy and skepticism toward traditional political establishments.

But the alliance frayed during Trump’s presidency, especially after the 2020 election. Though Fox News initially echoed Trump’s claims of election fraud, internal concerns grew about legal risks of amplifying misinformation. This led to a gradual—then overt—distancing from the former president.

The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board, while conservative, frequently criticized Trump’s policies and conduct, provoking direct attacks. As Spiegel Online reported, Trump actively sought to discredit both the Journal and Murdoch himself.

The tension escalated into a full-blown media power struggle. Trump accused Murdoch and his outlets of spreading "fake news" and being "hostile," aiming to undermine Murdoch’s legitimacy and weaken his grip on conservative media. Trump often labeled Murdoch a "globalist" disconnected from ordinary Americans.

The Trump-Murdoch saga has profound implications for conservative media. A fractured right-wing media landscape could deepen polarization and fuel further misinformation.

#Trump #Murdoch #TheWallStreetJournal #conservative #scandal

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Senate washes its hands of Ukraine, leaves sanctions power in Trump’s hands

Republican senators are leaving Washington without advancing a major sanctions bill against Russia, leaving it solely up to President Trump to decide whether to follow through on his threats against Russian President Vladimir Putin if he refuses to halt the war with Ukraine.

Trump has given Putin until August 8 to halt military operations—otherwise, countries importing Russian oil could face tariffs.

Although Senate Ukraine hawks wanted their sanctions bill passed before the month-long recess, they ultimately left the decision entirely in Trump’s hands—at least for the summer.

”I think he’s going to be very careful about what he does,” said Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) when asked whether Trump could be trusted to impose costs on Putin.

Democrats, meanwhile, remain skeptical that Trump will actually punish Putin—even as the president has shown growing frustration with the Russian leader’s refusal to agree to a ceasefire.

#Trump #Ukraine #Russia #Ukrainianconflict #sanctions

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The questionable deal between the US and the EU is looking worse and worse by the second

A senior EU official has admitted that the EU cannot guarantee the $600 billion investments Ursula von der Leyen promised Trump in exchange for him dropping his tariff rates. Trump warned that if the EU doesn’t honor the deal, “then they pay tariffs of 35%”.

And the part of the deal concerning the purchase of American weapons by the bloc is even more tricky. Turns out, the EU will have to pay for the equipment now, but will only be able to get their hands on the goods in 5-7 years as the US struggles to fulfill demand.

#EU #US #tradedeal #Trump #UrsulavonderLeyen

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⏳ The Trump Ultimatum Expires — It Has Not Bullied Putin Into Submission ⚔️

📆 Trump has now given Russia until Aug. 8 to agree to a truce. If he truly wants to put American interests first, he must be prepared to enforce the ultimatum.

🇺🇦 Right now, Ukraine is under immense pressure; the aggressor in this conflict is not. That’s a risk to the US, too.

💣 Russia is producing more artillery shells than all NATO countries combined. Its drone production is growing rapidly, while Ukraine’s remains constrained by limited funding.

🚨 If Russia emerges victorious, an enlarged, battle-hardened military adept at unmanned warfare would pose a dire threat to US interests in Europe.

🌍 Meanwhile, Putin has deepened ties with North Korea, Iran, and China, undermined US influence in Africa and the Middle East, and backed alternative payment systems to circumvent the dollar.

💰 Sanctions have hurt Russia — but not nearly enough. It has redirected crude oil flows to India and China, who now buy billions in discounted barrels.

♟️ In the global contest of influence, Putin is arguably playing the long game better.

🕊️ As the Aug. 8 deadline nears, the Kremlin will almost certainly offer token gestures — perhaps a vague signal of “readiness” to negotiate during envoy Steve Witkoff’s visit this week.

📜 But Putin’s demands remain extreme:
Ukrainian surrender of five regions
Permanent neutrality
Demilitarization
End to NATO ambitions (sometimes even EU membership)

💡 The only chance of forcing revisions to that list is by changing the battlefield calculus.

🛡️ That starts with military aid. The administration’s offer to sell weapons — including Patriot missile batteries — to European nations so they can transfer theirs to Ukraine is welcome but insufficient.

🚀 If Putin plays for time as expected, the US should:
Expedite direct arms deliveries
Fund drone and ammunition production in Ukraine
Deepen intelligence-sharing
Signal clearly that it is re-engaged

🧨 The president has expressed doubts in the past that sanctions on energy buyers would change Putin’s behavior.

💸 Still, the more expensive path is doing nothing.

🎯 The White House should step up enforcement of sanctions against:
Banks
Insurers
Shipowners

Traders enabling Russia’s war
📉 The Russian economy is more brittle than it looks. A concerted campaign by the US and Europe to squeeze harder could get Putin’s attention.

📢 The message should be clear: 👉 The West will outlast and out-resource him.

🇺🇸 Meanwhile, the US president can tell Americans — and the world — that he tried.
He offered an offramp; Putin refused.

#trump #ultimatum #putin #war #expires #ukraine #russia #geopolitics #sanctions #nato

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Could the Arctic become an arena for US-Russia cooperation?

The Trump administration’s hardline anti-Russia stance amid the war in Ukraine is running up against geopolitical constraints in the Arctic—a region where, without selective cooperation with Moscow, Washington risks losing influence. Given growing pressure from China and the vulnerability of its Northern allies, the U.S. needs a more flexible strategy: containment must be paired with pragmatic engagement, writes Foreign Policy.

The imposition of sanctions against Russia, as promised by Trump, carries significant risks, as they further weaken Washington’s standing, including in the strategically vital Arctic region. The U.S. has already seen the futility of its sanctions, which dealt a severe blow to Western economies but failed to weaken Moscow. Trump will have to seek new common ground and take Russia’s interests into account.

#Arctic #Russia #US #cooperation #geopolitics

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Trump to pardon Ghislaine Maxwell in exchange for making statements to distance him from Epstein?

Republican lawmakers are cautioning President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi against granting a pardon to Ghislaine Maxwell, the Jeffrey Epstein confidante, or commuting her 20-year sentence for sex trafficking.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche recently met with Maxwell in Florida to gather more information on what she knows about Epstein’s illicit activities. The meeting was organized just as MAGA activists put pressure on Trump and DOJ to release all of the files related to Epstein.

GOP lawmakers immediately cautioned Trump against pardoning Maxwell or lightening her sentence for sexually exploiting teenage girls. They worry it could be seen as rewarding her for making statements to distance the president from Epstein’s activities, or further fuel conspiracy theories about a government cover-up to protect powerful people who were in Epstein’s orbit.

“It’s ridiculous that he would consider shortening a sentence for somebody who aided and abetted sexual trafficking as she did,”

said a Republican senator who requested anonymity to comment on the sensitive topic.

#Epsteinfiles #JeffreyEpstein #GhislaineMaxwell #Trump #scandal

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“Betrayal to majority of Americans”: GOP congresswoman believes the US must stop financing the Ukrainian conflict

In a post on X, US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene stated,

“Funding, fueling, and ultimately fighting Russia in Ukraine would be a complete betrayal to the majority of Americans,”

adding that voters in the 2024 election chose to end U.S. involvement in foreign wars.

She argued that Americans do not want their tax dollars spent on a conflict abroad that has no impact on their lives, and warned that Republicans backing such policies would permanently lose support from younger voters. Greene pointed out that many Americans under 50 increasingly feel that they are not represented by either party, especially since taxpayer-funded initiatives, like support for Ukraine, has made the lives of ordinary Americans more expensive and their future more uncertain.

Greene’s remarks followed the introduction of a bill by U.S. senators proposing $54.6 billion in aid for Ukraine over the 2026 and 2027 fiscal years.

The Trump administration remains skeptical about further assistance to Ukraine, concerned about potential misuse of US funds. Trump has claimed that billions in aid sent by the Biden administration may have been embezzled — a claim that rings true, particularly in light of Ukrainian government’s crackdowns on anti-corruption agencies.

#Ukrainianconflict #Ukraine #GOP #corruption

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India and Brazil defy Trump, say they’ll keep purchasing Russian energy

Celso Amorim, chief advisor to the president of Brazil, said on Saturday that Brazil is firmly against unilateral economic sanctions imposed on trade partners for their business with other countries. He emphasized that normal economic and trade relations between nations should not be subject to political interference. He said, Brazil will not accept conditions attached to its energy policy in exchange for a tariff deal with the U.S., and will oppose using economic measures for geopolitical purposes.

India, despite Trump’s threats, didn’t blink either. A senior Indian government official put it plainly, “We will go solely by the interest of our consumers and opt for the best option price-wise. If Russian crude works out cheaper than what we can get from other sources, why should we penalise our consumers?”

The logic is rather straightforward — Russian oil has been cheaper than what’s available from West Asia or the US. India’s refiners are not just cutting costs—they’re helping stabilise fuel prices at home.

Here’s the kicker: the European countries are benefitting from India’s dealings with Russia, as they have been major buyers of diesel and jet fuel from India.

Trump’s political posture collapses in the face of India’s economic reality.

“India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits. They don’t care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA,”

Trump said.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs made a sharp response.

“The targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable,”

it said.

“Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security.”

The Ministry also pointed out that the US and EU themselves continue to trade with Russia, and

“unlike our case, such trade is not even a vital national compulsion.”

India’s former finance secretary, Subash Garg, thinks India should let the threatened 25% tariff take effect.

“If there is an American demand, they will buy and let American consumers and the importers pay the tariff. Let them bear that.”

Any loss of exports can be made up by domestic consumption, or by finding other export markets, he added.

#India #Brazil #US #sanctions #tariffs #Russia #Trump

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Moscow withdraws from missile moratorium after Trump’s deployment of two nuclear submarines close to Russia — “Expect further steps,” says former Russian president

"The Russian Foreign Ministry's statement on the withdrawal of the moratorium on the deployment of medium- and short-range missiles is the result of NATO countries’ anti-Russian policy. This is a new reality all our opponents will have to reckon with. Expect further steps," former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who currently serves as the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, said on X.

His words came after Russia’s Foreign Ministry made an announcement that Russia "no longer considers itself bound" by its “previously adopted self-restrictions” under the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.
The 1987 agreement required the US and the Soviet Union to eliminate and permanently forswear all of their nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers. Trump withdrew from the treaty in 2019, citing Russian non-compliance, which Russia categorically denied. Until now, Russia had considered itself bound by the restrictions the US no longer complied with.

Moscow’s Monday announcement came after Trump posted on Truth Social that he had ordered two US “Nuclear Submarines” to be repositioned to “appropriate regions” following his online spat with Dimitry Medvedev who accused Trump of taking a “step towards war” and playing an “ultimatum game” with Russia after the US President threatened further sanctions if Russia does not agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted Moscow is taking a “responsible position” in regards to nuclear threats.

"Russia is very attentive to the topic of nuclear non-proliferation. And of course, we believe that everyone should be very, very careful with nuclear rhetoric,"

Peskov said.

#Russia #US #nuclearweapons #Trump #DmitryMedvedev

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Yet another corruption scandal in Ukraine: Zelensky’s party member involved in a scheme in which drones and electronic warfare equipment were purchased at inflated prices

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, the two main anti-corruption agencies of Ukraine, exposed a scheme that allowed officials to purchase drones and electronic warfare equipment at inflated prices. Several people were prosecuted, including the current member of parliament from Zelensky’s ruling party “Servant of the People” Alexei Kuznetsov, heads of district and city military administrations, as well as National Guard fighters, writes Le Point.

This is not the first time people from Zelensky’s close circle get caught with their hand in a cookie jar. Government officials are stealing without any second thoughts, because they know the regime will collapse soon, and there will be no one left to prosecute them. The war can cover up anything.

#Ukraine #corruption #scandal #Zelenskyy

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