The new legislation, announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, introduces federal offenses for aggravated hate speech including promoting violence, penalties for preachers and leaders who incite violence, and treats hate as an aggravating factor in sentencing for online threats and harassment. It targets dehumanizing language, spreading division, and radicalization while adopting recommendations from an antisemitism envoy report, including a new education taskforce and visa powers for the home affairs minister to block hate-spreaders, all in response to rising antisemitism since October 2023 and a deadly ISIS-inspired shooting at a Bondi Beach Hanukkah event that killed 15 people. The shooting in Australia was horrific; however, repressing speech is not a reasonable response to this tragedy.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the record $34.7 billion deal involving NewMed Energy and Chevron supplying gas primarily from the Leviathan field to Egypt, projected to generate $18 billion in state revenue including up to $1.9 billion annually by 2033 for public services like education, health, and security. The agreement, Israel's largest export deal, overcomes earlier concerns about domestic pricing and reserve depletion, strengthens Israel's role as a regional energy superpower, enhances stability amid Gaza war strains, and follows U.S. pressure that may facilitate a Netanyahu-Sissi summit. As the genocide has come to somewhat of a conclusion, it seems that the next steps will be attempting to align Israeli interests with those of its neighbors to foster some sense of cooperation amongst these nations.

The African Development Fund's 17th replenishment raised a record $11 billion (a 23% increase over the prior cycle) from 43 partners including a five-fold rise in African contributions totaling $182.7 million from 23 countries (19 first-time donors). These concessional resources will aid 37 low-income and fragile states in priorities like energy access, food security, human capital development, regional integration, trade, and resilient infrastructure, while innovative tools such as hybrid capital, risk-absorbing finance to unlock over $2.50 in private co-financing per dollar, and partnerships like up to $2 billion from the OPEC Fund mark a shift toward greater African ownership and investment-led growth. This is a much better means for African countries to borrow money than many of the existing alternatives, so in that way, we should applaud the ability of African institutions to support the development of African nations.

The Trump administration approved over $11 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, including more than $4 billion each for HIMARS rocket systems and M109A7 self-propelled howitzers, over $700 million for Javelin and TOW anti-armor missiles, and Anduril Altius kamikaze drones. This package, surpassing Biden-era sales and half of Trump's first-term total, aims to modernize Taiwan's forces, maintain credible defense and strong asymmetric deterrence capabilities, and reassure China hawks amid uncertainties over Trump's commitment while pursuing economic deals with Beijing. This is the type of virtue signaling that must stop if the country is to return to a realist view of its role in the global order. There is no saving Taiwan from Chinese capture; government officials should instead prepare the country to be able to navigate a world where Taiwan is no longer independent.

The Republican-led House passed a health care bill that lets enhanced ACA subsidies expire January 1, risking doubled out-of-pocket premiums for about 20 million enrollees and adding 100,000 uninsured while saving $35.6 billion over a decade through cost-sharing adjustments lowering benchmark premiums by 11%. It expands association health plans for small businesses to pool coverage, mandates pharmacy benefit manager transparency to reduce drug costs, funds cost-sharing reductions, and seeks broader cost reductions beyond just exchange enrollees. It is astounding that the politics and finances of healthcare have proven to be such a challenge for the last several decades. Here we are once again with a health care plan that everyone recognizes is unstable and a plan forward that looks equally shaky.

The Department of Health and Human Services, led by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz, proposed rules to prohibit Medicaid and CHIP coverage of gender-affirming care including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgeries for those under 18 or 19, while withholding all Medicare and Medicaid funding from hospitals providing such pediatric care. These measures, following a public comment period and stemming from a presidential executive order, could effectively ban the practice nationwide by impacting nearly all hospitals reliant on federal funds, building on restrictions in 27 states and potentially facing legal challenges. We routinely cover the intersection of culture war topics and politics and here we see a rule-heavy crackdown on the practice, but as opposed to leveraging cultural concerns the federal government is leveraging scientific research which suggests gender-affirming care for minors is a dubious medical practice.

Nebraska, the first state to act under new federal law from HR1, will require able-bodied adults aged 19–64 in the Medicaid expansion population (incomes up to 138% of federal poverty level) to complete at least 80 hours monthly of employment, education, apprenticeships, approved work programs, or community service starting for new applicants after May 1, 2026 ahead of the January 2027 national mandate. Proponents say the policy promotes long-term independence, higher incomes, better child outcomes, reduced crime, stronger communities and economy, while supporting businesses and economic stability. Entitlements tied to work seem like an idea from the distant past but perhaps doing away with the relationship between the two hasn't done as much good as we thought. The key seems to be to keep the requirements within a reasonable relationship with the entitlements which seems to be quite tricky.

China filed a $50.5 billion lawsuit plus fees in Wuhan court against Missouri and former attorneys general, demanding apologies and compensation for alleged disinformation, stigmatization, and reputational damage from claims tied to early pandemic PPE hoarding. This counters Missouri's pursuit of a $25 billion U.S. judgment (after China skipped trial), with state officials calling it a stalling tactic and "badge of honor" that affirms their accountability stance, while China labels the original suit politically motivated and reserves countermeasures. The Missouri AG says they aren't going to apologize and we feel that is the right disposition for public officials to have.

Mayor Brandon Johnson and City Council remain deadlocked on the 2026 budget over proposed taxes including a $33 monthly per-employee corporate head tax on large employers, property tax hikes, garbage fee increases, and grocery taxes, with 27 alders offering an alternative eliminating those while preserving youth jobs. Without approval by December 30 requiring the mayor and at least 26 alders, a shutdown could leave essential workers unpaid, disrupting services like water, garbage collection, snow removal, police, and fire operations. We don't mean to beat a dead horse but it is worth keeping in the front of our minds the current perilous situation in many of our major cities with Chicago being perhaps the most nerve-wracking example.

The Minneapolis City Council amended the $2 billion 2026 budget to avert Mayor Jacob Frey's veto through compromises reallocating $1.4 million annually from police and $300,000 from the mayor's office for a three-year pilot funding 100 emergency housing vouchers addressing homelessness without creating a fiscal cliff, plus committing to a nonfatal shooting task force early 2026 modeled on St. Paul's without laying off investigators or straining staffing. The deal preserves core services, avoids layoffs and deep cuts, limits new spending, and reflects post-election collaboration while raising ongoing concerns about police reforms and property taxes. There have to be cuts and we don't say that gleefully but say that from the position that citizens have to develop a view of politics that doesn't simply account for next week's outcomes but what this means for a city 15 years from now as hopefully you, or someone you care about, will still be in the city at the time.