President Ahmed al-Sharaa ordered over 100 officials and business leaders arriving in Cadillac Escalades, Range Rovers, and Chevrolet Tahoes to surrender keys for illicitly obtained luxury vehicles while simultaneously sealing brother Jamal’s Damascus import-export/tourism office with red wax after he exploited family ties for elite Mercedes meetings. He later warned against nepotism in a post-closure gathering, issued a state memo mandating that officials disclose investments and shun new private ventures or businessman ties to dismantle the Assad-era model, and probed May’s illicit-gains committee for bribes alongside arresting two sovereign wealth fund lawyers holding seized factories and buildings. Corruption is insidious and must be rooted out of governments at the behest of leadership, so it is somewhat inspiring to see a president meaningfully engage in an anti-corruption campaign.

Houthi authorities announced full judicial trials under public prosecution oversight for 43 local UN staff who are accused of forming a cell that directly aided an Israeli airstrike that killed the prime minister, military chief, and top ministers in Yemen. The UN has deemed many of these detentions arbitrary and demands immediate release while blasting aid blockages, though the acting foreign minister vows support for principled humanitarian groups. It is hard to imagine that this trial can be conducted fairly, but the accusations are quite serious, making it necessary for these allegations to be adjudicated.

At South Korea’s Gyeongju APEC summit, President Xi vowed to defend the multilateral trading system, WTO principles, supply chain stability, and green energy cooperation amid turbulent times, urging nations to “work together” and declaring “investing in China is investing in the future.” Following their “roaring success” bilateral talks, China paused rare earth export curbs on its 90% global supply dominance, resumed U.S. soybean purchases, while the U.S. slashed tariffs, suspended port fees, and eased tech export controls to de-escalate tensions as APEC eyes AI and demographics amid rivalry. While we are somewhat convinced China has been somewhat misleading in its displays of power, it is important to note that power rests with those whom others believe to have it.

Out-of-pocket premiums will be up 114% nationally with states like New Jersey (175%) and Colorado (101%) getting the worst of it. The rapid increases in pricing risks 3.8 million Americans dropping coverage annually which in turn could create sicker risk pools, and future hikes. The battle to create a desirable and sustainable healthcare system rages on as the Affordable Care Act appears insufficient.

The Joint Task Force deployed a tremendous amount of military equipment and troops meant to be able to conduct precision hits on military drug labs, airstrips, and vessels. These interventions have already resulted in the killing of 61 alleged traffickers in coastal boat intercepts. President Trump denies that the US has plans for inland strikes but has doubled the bounty on Maduro’s head to $50 million. Increasingly lawmakers are becoming furious over these targeted strikes noting that these are occurring with inadequate oversight, a shaky legal basis, and obscure strategy details. The current military force being used in these strikes is completely out of control and must be condemned.

Operation Midway Blitz commander Gregory Bovino faces a Thursday five-hour deposition after allegedly hurling a tear gas canister without warning into protesters outside the Broadview ICE facility. Previously, Judge Sara Ellis banned its use absent “immediate threat” or warnings, and mandated daily briefings, body cams, ID badges, and full force footage turnover with a hearing next week. The Seventh Circuit stayed the “extraordinarily disruptive” briefings hours before the first as DHS decries “judicial overreach” and cites agent threats, with Bovino vowing to show the judge violence faced. It will be interesting to see how the evidence plays out in court as the battle seems to be chiefly about the threat agents faced and whether or not that was cause to use tear gas in response.

Colorado’s AG sued to halt Trump’s order to move a space base from Colorado Springs to Huntsville which would result in the loss of 1,400 jobs and a $1 billion economic hit, claiming it flips Biden’s 2023 permanence decision. The governor suggested the decision was made as punishment for maintaining a mail-in voting system that President Trump has described as “crooked.” The lawsuit asserts the federal government is violating the Tenth Amendment, sovereign election rights, and due process. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in court as it appears to us that the president does have the authority to make these types of decisions.

Starting next week in New Mexico, zero-cost childcare for all New Mexico families will become available. These childcare services, funded by oil & gas revenues, will save households $12,000 annually on average and boost workforce participation. There has been increasing demand for childcare services that are affordable for most families, and here we see a state attempting to intervene by ensuring all residents will have access to childcare services.

Mayor Bruce Harrell proposed an ordinance banning law enforcement officers including SPD, state, and federal ICE from wearing masks while on duty in Seattle. The ordinance would make it a requirement for officers to make visible their agency badges/emblems and include $5,000 civil penalties for willful violations and provide exceptions only for medical disease-prevention masks or toxin respirators. The ordinance is clearly in response to the federal masked agents engaging in deportations and is meant to boost transparency/accountability, curb community fear and civilian impersonations, and build on two other orders meant to protect undocumented immigrants. We see this as a possibility for escalation as this is putting the city at direct odds with the police directives of the federal government.