by Daniel R. DePetris | Jul 8, 2026 | Opinion, White House, World
When NATO leaders adjourned the 2025 edition of their annual summit last summer, President Donald Trump emerged from the gathering with nothing but compliments for an alliance he frequently blasts as a charity case. He had reason to be gleeful. After significant pressure from the White House ahead of the summit, NATO members agreed to increase their defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, more than double the previous benchmark.
“When I came here, I came here because it was something I’m supposed to be doing, but I left here a little bit different, differently,” Trump told reporters at the concluding press conference. “I watched the heads of these countries get up, and the love and the passion that they showed for their country was unbelievable.”
Trump is an impatient man who wants immediate results — and to be seen as the one driving them.
Those heads of state and government will be lucky to survive this year’s summit with similar accolades. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, the organization’s bona-fide “Trump Whisperer,” hoped to make this year’s summit a success, but Trump is yet again souring on the alliance for all sorts of reasons. NATO is likely trending in one direction: an organization whose primary security guarantor is tired of the status quo and is leaving other members to pick up the slack.
Ahead of the summit, Rutte deployed an extensive game plan to keep the U.S. leader’s favor. His first step: tell everybody with eyes and ears that Trump, and Trump alone, is the big, strong man responsible for shaking NATO out of its peacetime slumber. Second, show the president that his pressure tactics are
by The Associated Press | Jun 26, 2026 | News, World
LA GUAIRA, Venezuela (AP) — In cities across northern Venezuela, neighbors helped each other dig through rubble to search for loved ones, after back-to-back earthquakes that officials say killed more than 230 people and left thousands injured.
The official death toll rose to around 235 late Thursday, with at least 4,300 people injured, Venezuela Health Minister Carlos Alvarado told state media. The number of casualties is expected to climb, with thousands reported missing and frantic rescue efforts continuing.
The 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes that struck Wednesday evening were among the strongest in Venezuela in more than a century and were felt throughout the region.
The International Organization for Migration said that up to 6.76 million people in Venezuela could be affected by the quakes, some 2 million of them in Caracas alone. Loyce Pace, the International Red Cross’ regional director for the Americas, said that “people are still terrified to reenter what were their homes.”
The injured were pulled out, covered in dust and blood, among them children. Venezuelan state TV showed dramatic images of rescues, including a woman who was trapped under a cement slab with only a bare foot poking out before rescuers slid her out alive. But few government search teams were initially seen outside Caracas.
The coastal region of La Guaira, north of the capital Caracas, suffered some of the heaviest damage and casualties. The country’s main airport is there and was closed due to damage, complicating aid efforts.
Venezuelans reeling from quakes
Many were stunned Thursday morning as they saw buildings reduced to skeletons, furniture hanging out of windows, and helicopters circling overhead. Buildings were flattened, and streets cracked open.
Families posted missing-person flyers with photos of
by Steve Benen | Jun 25, 2026 | Maddowblog, News, Politics, White House, World
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said relatively little about the Trump administration’s recent deal with Iran to end the war despite his role as the nation’s chief diplomat, though it would be an overstatement to suggest the Florida Republican has been disengaged.
On the contrary, Rubio has met this week with leaders of several Middle Eastern countries, ostensibly to extend some reassurances to U.S. partners in the region.
The New York Times, however, reported on a detail from one of those meetings that stood out. From the article:
Mr. Rubio began his travels on Wednesday by meeting with the Emirati leader, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, in Abu Dhabi. The two spoke about Iran and commerce between the United States and the Emirates, the State Department said in a summary. Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, Michael Boulos, a businessman with no official government position, sat beside Mr. Rubio at the meeting.
“He was just there to see me and catch up,” Mr. Rubio said. When asked whether Mr. Boulos was involved in policy discussions, the secretary said, “No, no.”
The secretary apparently wasn’t embarrassed by any of this: Rubio posted a photograph via social media showing him meeting with the United Arab Emirate’s president, with Donald Trump’s son-in-law seated just to Rubio’s right.
Met with UAE’s President @MohamedBinZayed in Abu Dhabi, where we discussed President Trump’s MOU with Iran, efforts to secure full and safe transit through the Strait of Hormuz, and regional stability. I thanked the UAE leadership for their unparalleled support, praised their… pic.twitter.com/J3u6bAKR2W— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) June 24, 2026
Ordinarily when we think about one of Trump’s sons-in-law having access and attending important meetings, the
by David Rohde | Apr 2, 2026 | News, World
Iran announced on Thursday that it was drafting a “protocol” that would allow it to “monitor transit” by oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway Tehran has shut down, sending oil and gas prices soaring in the U.S. and across the world.
Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, said tanker traffic through the narrow route “should be supervised and coordinated” between Iran and Oman, the two countries that border the strait, according to a translation of a report from Iran’s state news agency cited by CNBC.
“Of course, these requirements will not mean restrictions, but rather to facilitate and ensure safe passage and provide better services to ships that pass through this route,” Gharibabadi said according to the report.
President Donald Trump has suggested that the U.S. may leave it to other countries to end Iran’s de facto blockade of the strait, which it enforces by firing missiles at tankers. Trump has called on European nations to do so, but experts say Europe lacks the military resources to halt Iranian attacks on tankers for the long term.
Iranian and Omani officials did not respond to requests for comment from MS NOW.
For decades, the strait has been an international waterway, controlled by no country, that ships from all nations could transit.
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Trump calls on other countries to go and ‘take’ oil from Strait of Hormuz
March 31, 2026 / 05:18
Gregory Brew, a senior Iran and oil analyst at the Eurasia Group, said that if Iran manages to take control of the Strait of Hormuz permanently, it would be a “colossal win” for the country.
“It’s a massive strategic win, given
by David Rohde | Mar 14, 2026 | Business, News, World
The Trump administration’s failure to anticipate that Iran would close the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow channel, 21 miles wide at its narrowest, through which 20% of the world’s oil supply moves — is contributing to the largest oil supply disruption in history, according to former Navy officers and maritime experts.
Iran’s willingness to close the strait, in conjunction with an insufficient deployment of ships to the region, has resulted in the U.S. Navy’s reluctance to escort oil tankers through the strategic waterway for the past two weeks.
It’s a scenario that experts have warned of for decades, and one the administration ignored, said Sal Mercogliano, a maritime historian and professor at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and Campbell University.
“I’m kind of floored by the fact that the administration failed to plan or have any guidance in place for what to do with the commercial shipping,” said Mercogliano, who noted that multiple ships have requested Navy escorts. “It just appears that the U.S. does not have sufficient resources.”
“It’s just a lack of understanding fueled by Hegseth and Trump not having an understanding of how the military works.”Gen. Mark Hertling
The U.S. Navy has failed for years to prioritize its stock of ships to counter mines, despite decades of warnings that Iran could try to close the strait, said Jonathan Schroden, the chief research scientist at the Center for Naval Analysis.
The Navy recently decommissioned four aging mine sweepers based in the Persian Gulf in Bahrain, Schroden said, and these arrived back in the U.S. about a week ago. Three newer ships replaced them, but he said the Navy has underinvested in building more
by Rachel Simon | Feb 1, 2026 | culture, Opinion, World
In the days since 26-year-old Brooklyn Beckham posted a lengthy statement on his Instagram Stories criticizing his famous parents David and Victoria for their allegedly “controlling” behavior and “countless lies,” public reaction has ranged from shock to skepticism.
And as the fallout continues from this viral celebrity schism, family, friends and strangers alike have dissected Brooklyn’s claims, with predictably differing opinions. Some of the allegations are impossible (at least for the public) to confirm. Others, such as Victoria’s attention-grabbing dance at her son’s wedding to model Nicola Peltz, involve more potential witnesses. Notably, neither of Brooklyn’s parents have commented directly on the matter. But in a sign that the story has yet to cool down, the BBC has already released a new documentary tackling the biggest claims, asking whether “brand Beckham” can possibly survive the scandal.
Brooklyn Beckham has just torched his mum and dad. Absolute scenes. pic.twitter.com/gs96bCjM08— Alex Davies (@AlexDaviesEnts) January 19, 2026
There may indeed be truth behind some of Brooklyn’s many passionate accusations, but plenty of people appear to be struggling to feel significant pity for a highly privileged “nepo baby” whose fame and financial success stem, at least originally, from the family he now publicly condemns. Even the name of Brooklyn’s hot sauce business, Cloud 23, is a nod to one of his father’s jersey numbers. This lack of sympathy is likely due to a combination of factors. But there’s something deeper at play here than mere jealousy or pettiness.
Brooklyn clearly feels enough hurt and anger toward his family to cut them out of his life — at least for now. That’s a hugely difficult choice for anyone to make,
