The African Union Peace and Security Council unanimously voted to suspend Guinea-Bissau’s membership with immediate effect, freeze the assets of junta leaders abroad, impose a travel ban on senior military officers, and demand the unconditional release of President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, the prime minister, and 27 other civilian officials detained since last Tuesday’s coup. The takeover, led by National Guard commander Colonel Amenhotep Gomes, dissolved parliament and suspended the constitution after disputed local election results sparked deadly clashes in the capital. We routinely condemn military governments because military protocol is not well-suited to govern the day-to-day workings of a nation. Hopefully Guinea-Bissau will be made better through this process, though right now, from a distance, it looks quite precarious.

More than 80,000 protesters, organized by labor unions, student groups, and church organizations, paralyzed central Manila for eight hours on Saturday, blocking major roads and gathering outside Malacañang Palace while chanting “Marcos resign” over evidence that at least $2.4 billion in flood-control contracts were awarded to companies owned by the president’s cousins and college classmates. Manila Archbishop José Advincula delivered a homily broadcast live nationwide urging Catholics to “defend the nation from thieves in high places,” marking the largest anti-government mobilization since the 2022 election. It feels like throughout the world there is intensifying pressure on elites to end their corruption schemes, and hopefully through these pressure campaigns, these countries can implement reforms that increase transparency and constrain corruption.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently filed a 12-page pardon petition with President Isaac Herzog, requesting full immunity from three ongoing criminal cases involving acceptance of $200,000 in cigars and champagne, trading regulatory favors for positive media coverage, and attempting to bribe a judge. President Trump phoned Herzog Saturday night to personally urge approval, warning that continued prosecution “weakens a vital U.S. ally,” while thousands of demonstrators gathered outside the president’s residence in Jerusalem waving signs reading “No Pardon for Corruption.” Not only does Netanyahu need to be arrested because he is a war criminal, he has also sent the Israeli government into turmoil and chaos as he has allowed for the deep entrenchment of corruption in the national government.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 31-year-old former Afghan army commando evacuated during Operation Allies Welcome and granted permanent residency, approached a National Guard recruiting table on L’Enfant Plaza at 10:12 a.m. Saturday, shouted “This is for my brothers in Panjshir,” then fired 27 rounds from a concealed AR-15, killing Sgt. First Class Michael Reynolds, 38, and Staff Sgt. Alicia Morales, 29, before being shot dead by D.C. police. In response, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem immediately suspended all asylum processing nationwide and directed USCIS to re-examine the files of 124,000 Afghans admitted since August 2021. Immigration reforms are necessary across the board; this decision, however, feels reactionary, and it is necessary that public officials approach policy making from a reasonable and future-oriented position.

During a 12-minute call recorded by both sides, President Trump told President Nicolás Maduro, “You have until Inauguration Day to get on a plane and leave forever, or we shut your skies, freeze every dollar, and take whatever action is necessary,” referencing Maduro’s refusal to recognize opposition leader Edmundo González as the legitimate winner of the July 2024 election. Maduro responded by declaring a “state of permanent alert,” mobilizing 180,000 troops and reservists to the Colombian and Brazilian borders, and banning all U.S.-registered aircraft from Venezuelan airspace effective midnight December 5. It looks like it’s all the way up and the two nations are headed for a collision course. It is of course disheartening to see the United States continue to go well beyond exerting regional influence and attempt to impose imperial dictates on a sovereign country on another continent.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced an emergency rulemaking that will bar anyone without a valid Social Security number from claiming the Child Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, or Premium Tax Credit starting with 2025 returns, while requiring money-transfer companies to report and block remittances exceeding $500 per month to 28 designated high-migration countries. The measures, projected to save $4.8 billion annually and disrupt $23 billion in yearly remittances, will be published in the Federal Register this week and take effect February 1. Although this maneuver seems harsh, it is a needed structural reform to redesign an incentive structure which encourages a type of economic extraction that does not serve the American economy well.

Building permits for new housing units in the Boston metro area dropped from 18,400 in 2024 to just 6,800 projected for 2025, freezing more than 40 major projects as 30-year mortgage rates hover above 7.5% and Mayor Wu’s administration imposes new affordable-housing requirements of up to 25% on every project over 100,000 square feet. The abrupt slowdown has triggered layoffs of 2,800 union carpenters and operating engineers since October. Wu has suggested that the city need not overreact to the decline in construction, but it does strike us as telling of the consequences for so many urban cities that planned as though there would permanently be exponential growth.

At least 600 demonstrators surrounded three unmarked ICE vans on Canal Street Friday evening after receiving real-time alerts that agents were attempting to arrest two undocumented restaurant workers, leading to a three-hour standoff in which protesters slashed tires, sprayed pepper foam, and physically pulled detainees from custody, injuring five officers and resulting in 21 arrests on felony charges. Immigrant advocacy groups have since established a citywide text-alert network and are conducting nightly training sessions on how to obstruct federal deportation operations. In order to avoid something like a martial-law crackdown, we must remind the public writ large that attacking federal agents is not a reasonable form of dissent; it gives the government no other mechanism than coercive physical force to restore order and the rule of law.

Flanked by Black lawmakers and hairstylists at a North Philadelphia barbershop, Governor Josh Shapiro signed Senate Bill 97, officially titled the Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act, prohibiting discrimination in employment, education, housing, and public accommodations based on hair texture and protective styles including braids, locs, twists, cornrows, Bantu knots, and afros. The law, effective immediately, imposes civil penalties up to $10,000 per violation and makes Pennsylvania the 21st state with comprehensive hair-discrimination protections. This is the type of well-intentioned legislation that we remained concerned is a recipe for creating an overly litigious economic and political environment.

The Parks Access Fund pilot, launched in partnership with the state Division of Parks and Recreation, distributed 31,472 free annual passes, valid for vehicle admission to all 93 state parks, beaches, and historic sites, to households earning less than 200% of the federal poverty level, resulting in a 285% increase in visits from qualifying families and adding more than 180,000 day-use visits during the 2025 season. Governor Kelly Ayotte announced yesterday that the program will become permanent in 2026 with a dedicated $2.1 million line item in the state budget. Public parks must be available to the public to serve their essential function, so this is a beautiful reminder that ensuring the public has access to the spaces we are entitled to is possible and actually happening in this case.