Donald Trump
Friend, Rival, Trap
In his recent summit with Donald Trump, Xi Jinping invoked the “Thucydides trap,” framing China’s rivalry with the United States in terms that serve Beijing — and laying an actual trap for the U.S. president.
Christian Zionism in Retreat
The rise of Christian nationalism and isolationism poses a direct challenge to Christian Zionism. As the Iran war alienates much of the MAGA-verse and pushes many young conservatives into more extreme orbits, a breaking point is coming in a GOP already fractured over the Trump administration’s “Israel-first” foreign policy.
The Last Temptation of Trump at the End of a Failed War
Trump has backed himself into a corner with Iran. Any deal risks appearing, in his eyes, like a humiliating failure, one his opponents will mock. He knows this. His opponents know this. The weight of that constraint presents a dangerous equation as the president threatens escalation.
The Iran War Is What ‘America First’ Actually Looks Like
Segments of the MAGA base, the Western left, Global South solidarity networks and the Iranian regime itself have converged, improbably, on the same talking point: This is not America First. They are all wrong. The Iran war is actually the purest expression of America First, its direct consequence.
The Uncanny Echoes of Iraq in Trump’s War With Iran
There are uncanny similarities in how Bush spun and justified the Iraq War and how Trump is spinning and justifying the war in Iran. Yet Trump administration officials are trying to combat the perception that the two wars are at all similar, no doubt to avoid any association with a generational U.S. foreign policy failure.
The Questions Facing Kristi Noem and ICE
Kristi Noem’s firing as secretary of homeland security came partly because her department bypassed competitive bidding for contracts. An ongoing joint investigation between the Center for Collaborative Investigative Journalism (CCIJ) and New Lines looks at how, under the Trump administration, ICE has used an “urgency stipulation” to privilege favored contractors.
Latin America’s Mixed Reactions to Trump’s Venezuela Intervention
Latin America is divided over the Trump administration’s military intervention in Venezuela. From strong condemnation to cheerful approval, the range of reactions reflects the region’s increasingly polarized political landscape.