The head of the World Trade Organization said on Thursday the multilateral system has fundamentally changed and that countries must look to the future to consider how to reform the global trade system. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told delegates at the opening of the 14th WTO ministerial conference in Yaounde, Cameroon, that the world order and multilateral system we used to know has irrevocably changed. The old order has died which means a new world order is emerging and the real question seems to be what are the new rules of the road and who's in charge of creating and enforcing said rules.

The European Parliament approved the 'Return Regulation' on Thursday with a vote of 389-206 and 32 abstentions. The vote will allow for the creation of offshore "return hubs" outside the 27-nation EU bloc to deport irregular migrants whose asylum applications were rejected. The measure paves the way for member states to build controversial detention centers abroad and impose harsher penalties on rejected asylum seekers. We obviously can't create a global order which requires people to be shuffled around and possibly removed. Perhaps we should focus more on creating a world in which people are able to stay where they are as that is the desire of the vast majority of the global population.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked Russia's oligarchs to donate to the country's dwindling defence budget to continue its invasion of Ukraine, it has been reported. At least two businessmen have told Putin they would be willing to make contributions to the defence budget after talks on Thursday, with billionaire Suleiman Kerimov pledging 100 billion roubles (£922m) and Oleg Deripaska also agreeing. Russian society is so interesting to me as an American as I can't imagine living in a country in which the oligarchs are so compliant with the requests of the federal government.

U.S. paper currency will bear President Donald Trump's signature starting this summer. This is the first time a sitting president has signed American money, the Treasury Department said on Thursday. The redesigned notes, planned to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence, will also for the first time in 165 years drop the signature of the U.S. treasurer. This is perhaps the opulence we would associate with a falling empire, hopefully I'm just being dramatic and this is simply a branding exercise for our president amidst the historic achievement of managing to maintain a republic for several centuries.

The Senate agreed early Friday to reopen most of the Department of Homeland Security after a 42-day shutdown standoff, funding TSA, FEMA and other critical functions but excluding ICE enforcement and parts of Customs and Border Protection. Senate Republicans accepted the Democratic counteroffer after weeks of negotiations as TSA lines lengthened and agents went unpaid. This was the right move, any more of this nonsense and the government could have provoked bad reactions from people on the ground. Our elected officials have got to do better if we are to regain trust in our public institutions.

Costa Rica has agreed to accept 25 migrants deported from the United States per week as part of an agreement to help the Trump administration's latest policy of deporting immigrants to “third countries.” Costa Rica’s government signed the pact earlier this week during a visit by U.S. special envoy Kristi Noem to Costa Rica. Similar to the situation in Europe, it is clear that there needs to be significant changes which ensure people need not travel across the world to have meaningful economic opportunities.

California and the European Commission discussed cooperation to accelerate the global transition to a carbon-neutral, resilient, and equitable future. Newsom’s office reaffirmed the state’s commitment to climate action with the EU, highlighting a coalition of states meeting Paris Agreement targets after the Trump administration withdrew from the pact. I think this is hubris on the part of Newsom and also a troubling sign of disjuncture between states and the federal government.

Federal tax cuts approved by Republicans coupled with new requirements for Medicaid and SNAP have caused Arizona to shoulder up to $381 million in added costs and lost revenue. Arizona Republican Senate Appropriations Chair John Kavanagh plans to cover the gap by pulling surplus funding and reducing agency budgets by as much as 5 percent. The money has got to come from somewhere and here we see the money coming out of expenses.

Colorado’s Joint Budget Committee is reviewing a list of suggestions to cut as much as $1.5 billion in general fund spending next year, including over $500 million in targeted general fund reductions. The list includes more than $293,000 in cuts to the governor’s office for travel, advertising and marketing expenses. While cutting into things on the margins like marketing are useful, the real cutting is going to require lawmakers to make uncomfortable calls about what government functions are essential. Again, while we all have ambitions for what a state government can and should do, balance sheets are real and running at a deficit is not sustainable.

North Las Vegas Mayor Pamela Goynes-Brown delivered her final State of the City address, outlining plans to overhaul the city’s comprehensive master plan into a job creation hub featuring nearly 30 million square feet of industrial development at Apex, the Tule Springs East Area Plan for 32,000 new homes and 73,000 jobs, and over $1 billion in annual private investments. The speech also spotlighted public safety gains with 81 new police officers hired last year and more recruits in 2026, plus a new fire training center breaking ground, alongside the Nevada State University campus groundbreaking set for April.