21+ min ago (915+ words) Since Donald Trump has been back in office, energy prices have increased at more than double the rate of inflation. The Consumer Price Index from the end of October reported an "all items price index" increase for food, shelter, and transportation of 3.0 percent over a 12-month period, while energy services for the same period rose by 6.4 percent. After promising to slash energy prices, Trump has done the opposite. His energy policies reflect the same ethos driving everything else in his retribution playbook: reward donors and inflict pain on Democrats, even when the economic consequences are nationwide. In early October, Trump announced the claw-back of billions of dollars in federal funding for utilities, money that had been appropriated to reinforce power grids and reduce electricity prices. Targeting blue states exclusively, Budget Director Russ Vought announced the cancellation of "nearly $8 billion in…...

21+ min ago (915+ words) Since Donald Trump has been back in office, energy prices have increased at more than double the rate of inflation. The Consumer Price Index from the end of October reported an "all items price index" increase for food, shelter, and transportation of 3.0 percent over a 12-month period, while energy services for the same period rose by 6.4 percent. After promising to slash energy prices, Trump has done the opposite. His energy policies reflect the same ethos driving everything else in his retribution playbook: reward donors and inflict pain on Democrats, even when the economic consequences are nationwide. In early October, Trump announced the claw-back of billions of dollars in federal funding for utilities, money that had been appropriated to reinforce power grids and reduce electricity prices. Targeting blue states exclusively, Budget Director Russ Vought announced the cancellation of "nearly $8 billion in…...

34+ min ago (915+ words) Foreign Affairs writer Jonathan A. Czin writes that Chinese leader Xi Jinping has played President Donald Trump and is now reaping the rewards. Although "Trump promised to unleash an economic fusillade on China after his return to the presidency, Beijing has enjoyed a remarkably strong year of diplomacy," Czin writes. Trump escalated the trade war with China, imposing broad tariffs that were met with swift retaliation from Beijing. Negotiations in November resulted in a temporary truce, including some tariff reductions, but the overall trade conflict continues. China, Czin notes, has not yielded in the face of Trump's threats. In fact, they have seemingly benefited from them instead. "After spending much of the year simply reacting to U.S. policies, Beijing went on the offensive, imposing an expansive export control regime on the supply chains for rare-earth elements just weeks before the meeting with…...

43+ min ago (321+ words) U.S. President Donald Trump holds a signed executive order on tariffs, in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Leah Millis President Donald Trump talked like an economic populist, promising to protect consumers, small business owners and workers against rampaging corporations, but it was all talk, says the NY Times, just like it was in his first term. When the Trump administration required Paramount to hire a "bias monitor" for its CBS News division and to forswear diversity, equity and inclusion programs before it could merge with Skydance this was not regulation in the public interest. Nor was it in the public interest for the company's decision to fire a late-night comedian who frequently poked Trump. "It was a mixture of the Republican campaign against diversity initiatives and Mr. Trump's campaign to pressure media companies to cover…...

1+ hour, 28+ min ago (874+ words) The richest man on earth owns X. The family of the second-richest man owns Paramount, which owns CBS " and could soon own Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns CNN. The third-richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The fourth-richest man owns The Washington Post and Amazon MGM Studios. Another billionaire owns Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post. Why are the ultra-rich buying up so much of the media? Vanity may play a part, but there's a more pragmatic " some might say sinister " reason. As vast wealth concentrates in the hands of a few, this small group of the ultra-wealthy may rationally fear that a majority of voters could try to confiscate their wealth " through, for example, a wealth tax. But rather than rely on Republicans, a more reliable means of stopping majorities from targeting your riches might…...

1+ hour, 41+ min ago (460+ words) In recent days, five U.S. senators and two representatives requested documents from the Department of Homeland Security and a formal investigation into how a firm closely tied to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem ended up receiving money from a $220 million, taxpayer-funded ad campaign. The demands came in response to a ProPublica story this month that revealed that the Republican consulting firm had been secretly working on the ads, which star Noem. The company, called the Strategy Group, has long-standing personal and business ties to Noem and her senior aides at DHS. Its CEO is married to Noem's chief spokesperson at DHS. Under Noem, DHS bypassed the normal competitive bidding process when awarding the contracts " allocating the majority of the money to a mysterious Delaware LLC that was created days before the deal was finalized. The Strategy Group does not appear on public…...

2+ hour, 9+ min ago (473+ words) Mark Kelly aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour prior to a simulated launch countdown in November 2001. The US Department of Defense on Monday announced it was launching an investigation into a Democratic senator who had participating in a video warning active-duty troops to not follow illegal orders given by President Donald Trump. In a social media post, the DoD said it had "received serious allegations of misconduct" against Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), a retired US Navy captain who was one of several Democrats with backgrounds in national defense to speak out against the president potentially giving unlawful orders that pit the US military against American civilians. As a result of the investigation, the DoD said that Kelly could be recalled to active duty to face potential court-martial proceedings for violating the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). "All servicemembers are reminded that…...

2+ hour, 23+ min ago (1132+ words) U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) speaks at a campaign event of Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH) in Lindale, Georgia, U.S., October 4, 2024. REUTERS/Megan Varner Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene surprised me Friday by announcing her resignation from the Congress effective January 5. I was surprised, because just a few days prior she flexed her muscle when she got the president to step off. She had been demanding the release of the Epstein files. Donald Trump called her a traitor. Though she got death threats, she didn't budge. Then, last Monday, he caved. CNN's Dana Bash said their feud was the breakup heard around the world. That seemed confirmed by Greene's resignation. Trump called her a RINO (Republican in Name Only). He pledged support for a primary challenger. Indeed, it appeared she is similar to many moderate Republicans, a casualty…...

9+ hour, 20+ min ago (276+ words) U.S. President Donald Trump makes a sports announcement at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 5, 2025. REUTERS/Leah Millis President Donald Trump was recently handed another loss in court, after failing to convince a Florida judge that he was owed money by the Guardian newspaper for reporting on a federal investigation involving his company. Additionally, Lowell reported that Judge Carroll found that reporting critical of Trump and his businesses could not be used by Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), which is the parent company of his Truth Social platform, to demonstrate actual malice in litigation. The Guardian reported at the time that one of the trustees of E.S. Family Trust was a director of Paxum Bank. And one of the bank's part-owners had ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. SDNY prosecutors were probing whether the loans violated federal money laundering laws. According to…...

10+ hour, 27+ min ago (255+ words) The peace plan that President Donald Trump's administration offered to end the ongoing war in Ukraine has been widely criticized for being overly accommodating to Russia. Now, a new report shows that Russia may have been even more intricately involved in its composition than previously known. The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that the proposal " which Trump administration special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner (who is also the president's son-in-law) " relied heavily on input from a "Kremlin insider." Kushner, Witkoff and the Kremlin advisor huddled behind closed doors in multiple "secret meetings" in Miami, Florida, according to the Journal. Dmitriev also specifically called on the Trump administration to engage in multiple economic agreements in the areas of artificial intelligence, energy and other industries. The Journal also reported that the bulk of the plan was written by both Kushner and…...