Mexico’s Senate voted 76-32 to impose tariffs of up to 50% on more than 1,400 product categories (ranging from steel, aluminum, textiles, electronics, and auto parts to plastics and toys), primarily targeting imports from China and other Asian nations without free-trade agreements with Mexico. The measures are projected to raise $3.76 billion in new revenue, protect over 300,000 domestic manufacturing jobs, narrow the fiscal deficit, and respond to U.S. demands that Mexico curb transshipment of Chinese goods ahead of the USMCA review. We continue to support tariffs as an essential step governments must take to protect their own markets, labor, and national interests.

The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela released a 180-page report concluding that the Bolivarian National Guard (GNB) has committed crimes against humanity, including murder, torture, sexual violence, enforced disappearances, and arbitrary detention, since 2014 under direct orders from the highest levels of government, with President Nicolás Maduro personally overseeing the chain of command. The report documents hundreds of cases during protests and post-election repression, notes total impunity due to a captured judiciary, and calls for ICC referral. Standing armies should never serve the arbitrary interests of public officials; if proven true, this is a stark reminder of why institutions must be adequately designed to prevent this type of corruption.

The IMF Executive Board approved the immediate release of $1 billion under the Extended Fund Facility and $200 million under the climate-focused Resilience and Sustainability Facility, bringing total disbursements under the current $7 billion program to $3.3 billion; this marks Pakistan’s 24th IMF bailout since 1958. The funds will shore up critically low foreign-exchange reserves, finance a widening current-account deficit, and support reforms including energy-sector privatization, tax-base broadening, and climate-resilience projects after the 2022 floods caused more than $29 billion in damage. If you ever wonder why much of the “developing world” remains trapped in debt and never truly develops, look no further than the schemes run by the global banking cartel.

The House approved the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act 312-112, authorizing $901 billion. Key provisions include a 3.8% troop pay raise, $146 billion for a “Golden Dome” missile-defense shield, codification of Trump border troop deployments, bans on DEI training and transgender women in military-academy sports, $400 million annual Ukraine aid through 2027, repeal of Iraq AUMFs, and new transparency rules for U.S. strikes that have killed at least 86 civilians in anti-drug operations since September. We live in a country with greater capacity for violent force than any other in history. This is a paradox that should be both a source of national pride and national shame, especially given the chronic underfunding of infrastructure and other domestic priorities.

The Federal Reserve cut the federal-funds rate by 25 basis points to 3.50%-3.75%. This third reduction of the year (the most divided FOMC decision since 2019, with three governors dissenting over persistent tariff-driven inflation) leaves rates at the lowest level since 2023 while Chair Powell called the current level “neutral” and signaled no January cut. The Fed needed to cut rates and should continue cutting, but more importantly it needs to be abolished because, as an institution, it causes far more harm than good.

The Trump administration opened applications for the new $1 million “Gold Card” program, which grants expedited EB-5-style permanent residency and a fast-track to citizenship without the traditional 10-job-creation requirement. Applicants pay $1 million directly to the Treasury (or $2 million via corporate sponsorship) plus a $15,000 processing fee; the program, launched by executive order and marketed to high-net-worth entrepreneurs, has already drawn thousands of inquiries from India, China, and the Middle East despite criticism that it effectively sells American citizenship. Paradoxically, placing a price tag on American citizenship cheapens its value. Citizenship should not be understood merely as integration into a jurisdiction but as the formation of a quasi-spiritual bond with a political community. We might reframe the question: how much would it cost for someone to become a member of your family?

U.S. Navy and Coast Guard forces boarded and seized the 1.9-million-barrel Venezuelan oil tanker Skipper after it attempted to deliver sanctioned crude to Iran while spoofing its location. Trump announced the seizure from the White House, declared the oil “ours now,” and in the same remarks threatened Colombian President Gustavo Petro as “next” for allegedly failing to curb cocaine production, escalating a feud that already includes U.S. decertification of Colombia’s anti-drug efforts, visa revocations for officials, and aid cuts. We are clearly heading toward intense conflict in the Americas; the Venezuela issue is not just a bilateral dispute but the flashpoint of a growing confrontation between the United States and much of the region.

The Justice Department sued Minneapolis Public Schools alleging that a 2022 union contract illegally discriminates against white teachers by exempting teachers of color from seniority-based layoffs, mandating their preferential rehiring, and giving hiring preferences to Black male candidates in violation of Title VII, despite the district’s stated goal of increasing BIPOC staff from 37.6% to over 50% by 2027. The district was likely well-intentioned in trying to increase participation by teachers from underrepresented groups whose presence could benefit students; nevertheless, public institutions simply cannot discriminate in this manner, and any attempt to do so will not withstand legal scrutiny. We will have to find other ways to achieve those goals.

Governor JB Pritzker signed HB 1312 banning ICE civil immigration arrests within 1,000 feet of courthouses, schools, hospitals, and places of worship; prohibiting state and local agencies from sharing immigration-status data; and creating a private right of action allowing $10,000 lawsuits against federal agents who violate the restrictions. This is a direct challenge to Trump’s mass-deportation campaign. We continue to advocate for cooperation within the federal system to keep our constitutional order intact. Governor Pritzker has shown he is not committed to that system, and we hope voters in Illinois (and across the country) soon recognize that this behavior is unacceptable.

Standard & Poor’s warned that it will downgrade Chicago’s general-obligation rating to one notch above junk (BBB-) because Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 2026 budget relies on $1 billion in one-time TIF surplus, rejected $300 million property-tax hikes, and massive new borrowing to cover police and firefighter settlements, leaving the city facing a potential government shutdown and $35.8 billion in unfunded pension liabilities. Many of our fellow citizens lack financial literacy, but at some point common sense must prevail: voters have to stop empowering progressive leaders who pretend their political vision is not constrained by balance sheets and basic math. These bad decisions won’t just harm today’s Chicago residents; it will take decades to clean up the mess.

Michigan House Republicans used a rarely invoked administrative rule (the first time in 40 years) to unilaterally cancel $645 million in previously approved work-project spending, including maternal-health grants, economic-development incentives, sexual-assault kits, human-trafficking programs, and veterans services, returning the money to the general fund and prompting Democratic outrage over “Grinch-like” cuts just before the holidays. This represents the tough cutbacks that must happen across the board as the entire world readjusts to economic realities that no longer permit excessive spending.