President Donald Trump intensified his warnings
about communism Thursday night, declaring on Truth Social that "[t]he
game is on" after spending much of the week criticizing what he
describes as a growing communist movement within the Democratic Party.
"The Communists are finally making their move. I've been waiting and preparing for this for a long time," Trump wrote.
"It's easy to be a Communist, All you have to do is say, 'I'll give
you everything,' but that means you're taking it away from others that
have earned it. Over thousands of years, that Ideology has not worked
once," he continued.
"The game is on. Enjoy watching!"
The post continued a series of messages Trump has published this week
highlighting what he calls the rise of communist candidates in
Democratic politics.
On Tuesday night, Trump wrote: "Many Communists running in badly failing Blue States. The votes seem to have them doing quite well against each other.
"The bad news is that history has conclusively shown that the
downtrodden States that they will soon be running will ONLY GET WORSE.
MAGA!"
He followed that Wednesday with a shorter declaration: "America the Beautiful will NEVER be a Communist Country!!!"
Trump's latest comments come after candidates backed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani scored victories
in New York's Democratic House primaries Tuesday, strengthening the
influence of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) within the
state's Democratic Party.
The results prompted renewed debate over the party's ideological
direction, with progressives celebrating the victories while some
Democratic leaders expressed concern about their political implications.
Mamdani, who identifies as a democratic socialist and is a member of
the DSA, has become one of the nation's highest-profile progressive
elected officials. His allies' primary victories this week, including
two over incumbent representatives, further expanded the influence of
candidates aligned with his political movement.
Trump has repeatedly labeled Mamdani and his political allies as
communists while arguing that left-wing economic policies would
undermine prosperity through wealth redistribution.
It can be safely said that pretty much every Democrat in the House
and Senate is obnoxious to some degree, but if I had to rank the top
five most obnoxious, one who would easily make that list would be Rep.
Ro Khanna (CA-17).
There are a lot of reasons why, but one big one stems from his
farcical defenses of Maine Democrat Senate nominee Graham Platner
against allegations of physical abuse and controlling behavior from a
former girlfriend, proclaiming that voters should believe his accusers
and not attack them... but that they should also believe Platner,
because the man who reportedly "explicitly" sexted up to a dozen women after his November 2023 marriage had supposedly "redeemed" himself. Make it make sense.
With that in mind, we turn to a hearing
held on Thursday by the House Select Committee on China. The topic
under discussion was "China’s Economic Espionage and Subnational
Influence in the United States."
One of the Republican witnesses, State Armor
founder and CEO Michael Lucci,
was there to share his thoughts on,
among other things, the dangers of birth tourism as it relates to the
Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Khanna is the ranking member on
this committee, and when it was his turn to question Lucci, he
predictably trotted out the race card, digging up tweets on Lucci and
pretending that the one below made him an anti-Chinese racist.
One of the problems with Khanna's accusation, as Lucci pointed out,
was that not only is he married to a Chinese woman, but his four
children are half Chinese, and his in-laws are both Chinese:
Ro Khanna massively embarrassed himself today. Instead of discussing policy, he accused me of anti-Chinese racism.
My wife is Chinese. My 4 children are half Chinese.
Lucci
further expounded on his thoughts beyond what he said to Khanna during
the hearing in an absolutely blistering tweet, fully explaining why his
opposition to birth tourism wasn't grounded in racism but instead
national security interests:
My response to @RepRoKhanna's self-immolation in committee today:
Ro Khanna owes the American people an apology.
I've testified in 20 state capitols across the country. I've never seen a lawmaker embarrass himself like Ro Khanna did today.
Ro
is a leader of the most important committee for countering the Chinese
Communist Party. Instead of dealing in substance and policy, he pulled
out the race card in the most self-embarrassing way today while also
peddling ridiculous conspiracy theories.
The American people need real solutions to acute national security issues. Ro Khanna is burning up committee time on nonsense.
Here's
what happened: I testified today about how American state lawmakers are
being threatened, harassed and attacked by Chinese state-tied actors.
Our military installations are being closely surveilled.
Chinese-Americans are being hunted down by CCP government agents.
Critical infrastructure is being attacked.
Rep. Khanna ignored all
those threats, *including threats to fellow Democrats who are currently
sitting state lawmakers.* Honestly, I'm shocked that it did not
register with him that a Chinese company threatened a Democrat state
official. Instead, Ro dug up a tweet where I criticized CCP birth
tourism and tried to call me racist.
Of course, he completely failed.
I
oppose birth tourism schemes through which CCP military and political
leaders get U.S. citizenship for their children by giving birth in
Saipan and then raising their children loyal to the CCP in China. It's
completely crazy that we allow this. @peterschweizer has documented this
scandal in his recent book. This shouldn't be a partisan issue.
Lucci continued:
And here's the context: Ro was
angry that I criticized birth tourism as a part of my criticism of two
Chinese-Americans who attempted to bomb MacDill Air Force Base earlier
this year. According to Rep. Khanna, the bombers Alen Zheng (20) and his
sister Ann Mary Zheng (27) achieved American citizenship through some
sort of birthright program. It's unclear whether they were just born and
raised here, or if they were a part of the Saipan scheme I criticized.
But
either way, Ro Khanna was lifting up and defending people who were
basically terrorists who tried to bomb CENTCOM March 10th of this year.
Then he turned around and claimed the real problem is racists who think
birth tourism is a bad idea.
Guess who thinks birth tourism is a
bad idea? 75% of the American people according to a YouGov poll from
last year: "The group Americans are least likely to say should
automatically receive U.S. citizenship — of the nine asked about in the
survey — is children born in the U.S. to parents who are tourists
visiting the country. 25% of Americans, including 11% of Republicans and
41% of Democrats, think children born to tourists on American soil
should automatically receive U.S. citizenship."
Sorry 75% of Americans who have common sense. @RepRoKhanna thinks you're all racists!
Furthermore,
with the CCP, we are talking about cases where a child in simply born
on a U.S. pacific island and then returns to China within days, never to
see the USA again. Ro Khanna apparently thinks giving citizenship to
all of these people is a great idea, even if they are completely loyal
to the CCP, absolutely hate the USA, and have never stepped foot in our
country.
To me and to practically anyone with common sense who
analyzes the CCP, this is an obvious vector for CCP grey-zone political
warfare. For example, imagine 1,500,000 CCP loyalists raised entirely in
China voting across swing states in our elections.
Nonetheless,
Ro Khanna went on a rant to claim that I'm an anti-Chinese racist
because I oppose this obviously ridiculous birth tourism scheme.
He wrote more about his family as well:
Now here's
where Ro really jumped the shark. In his rush to conjure up a triple
bank-shot conspiracy theory to try to claim I'm a racist, he apparently
didn't do any homework to find out anything about me.
I'm married
to an immigrant from China who became an American citizen in 2019. We
have 4 wonderful children who are, of course, half Chinese by ethnicity.
Ro was ranting at the dais claiming I'm racist against my own family
simply because I oppose all the various schemes of the genocidal Chinese
Communist Party, and I hold a position on birth tourism shared by 75%
of the American people. And I bet it would be way higher than 75% if the
question was focused on the CCP Saipan scheme.
As I told Ro in
committee, calling someone an anti-Chinese racist for opposing the CCP
is like calling someone an anti-Italian racist for opposing the mafia.
Both examples are absurd. Embarrassingly so.
The American people
need real leaders and real national security solutions from both federal
and state governments. That's what we work on every day at
@StateArmor.
We don't need @RepRoKhanna wasting time be-clowning himself in committee when there is so much real work that needs to be done.
Ro
insulted me and my family today. But honestly, I don't know anyone who
puts any value in what Ro says. So that doesn't really matter. Today's
self-embarrassment was just one more part of Ro's ongoing
self-immolation that includes endorsing Nazi-sympathetic candidates,
claiming @elonmusk killed millions of kids, and being one of the most
prolific stock traders in Congress. And that's just in the last few
weeks.
But here's what matters: Ro Khanna is an elected official
who is tasked with dealing with our most urgent national security
issues, like those I brought before him and the
@ChinaSelect
committee today. And instead of engaging in a real policy discussion, he
destroyed our ability to work together on real solutions to counter the
attacks by the Chinese Communist Party.
For that, he owes the American people an apology.
My response to @RepRoKhanna's self-immolation in committee today:
Ro Khanna owes the American people an apology.
I've testified in 20 state capitols across the country. I've never seen a lawmaker embarrass himself like Ro Khanna did today.
Byron Donalds has clearly had enough. The Florida Republican didn’t
hold back speaking to reporters earlier this week, bluntly stating that
“the Senate sucks” while ripping into both parties for dragging their
feet on the SAVE America Act.
Donalds (FL-19) slammed Senate leaders for stalling the Trump-backed
bill that would require voters to prove they’re American citizens —
common-sense legislation that enjoys a massive 80 percent support from voters across the country.
Donalds torched the chamber for refusing to move on the legislation.
"Man, the Senate
sucks. I'm just going to come out and say it: They suck," he began.
"This is not hard. Eighty percent of the American people want the SAVE
America Act to pass. Not 80 percent of Republicans — 80 percent of the
American people. And the only organization that refuses to act is the United States Senate."
Donalds'
criticism touched on both parties. Democrats, for trying to gain power
and allow illegal immigrants to vote. Republicans for refusing to debate
the matter, stuck in outdated procedures that their political
opposition will have no qualms discarding for their own political means.
"What is happening in the U.S. Senate
is laziness, and quite frankly, it's disgusting," he continued. "What,
the Senate Democrats don't want to have voter ID in America? Why?
Because they want to maintain their power."
"Senate Republicans
don't want to do the right thing and actually have a true filibuster on
the floor and debate the matter on the floor because it would take them
away from their precious meetings that they have to conduct."
Donalds
really dropped a bomb when he dared Republicans to open up the debate
and force Democrats like Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Elizabeth Warren
(D-MA) to explain their opposition as to why voters shouldn't need a photo ID. He pointed out that ID was required for the recent opening of Barack Obama's hideous presidential library.
"I
want to hear what Chuck Schumer has to say on the floor in full debate
about why he opposes this measure. I want to hear what Elizabeth Warren
has to say about why she would oppose this measure," he fumed. "I want
her to tell the people of Massachusetts why she believes that the people
of Massachusetts should not have to show a photo ID in order to vote in
a federal election in the United States of America."
Letting the
Democrats tell the American people exactly what they stand for would
turn off most voters. But you've gotta let them talk.
"The United States Senate has a responsibility to open up that floor,
use Senate procedure, actually have a debate," Donalds insisted. "You
have a filibustering debate."
"If Bernie Sanders wants to hold the
floor of the U.S. Senate for six months, let him go ahead. Swap out the
Depends, get some body armor, somebody slip you some whatever you need,
keep it going, because it demonstrates the stupidity of your arguments.
And that is what the American people want to see."
"The Democrats
are true radicals," the lawmaker explained. "They don't want to
negotiate. They don't want to debate. They want to obstruct. They want
to obstruct common sense."
No lies detected.
The SAVE America Act is President Trump's top priority. It should
be the top priority for anyone trying to save our elections from
blatantly anomalous results, such as the 81-million-vote tally for Joe
Biden.
Trump canceled the signing ceremony
for a bipartisan housing affordability bill and threatened to hold it
(and potentially other legislation) hostage until Congress gets off
their asses and drags the SAVE America Act across the finish line.
Trump has previously torched Democrats as "human garbage" for fighting tooth and nail to ensure elections are open to fraud.
"They’re
(Democrats) no good for our Country, they almost destroyed it, and we
don’t want to let that happen again!" he said. "These are highly
dishonest people who are, in many ways, treasonous, in that they are
trying to destabilize the United States of America in what, some would
call, a War."
"Republicans must TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER, and approve all of the
necessary Safeguards we need for Elections to protect the American
Public during the upcoming Midterms."
Donalds, though, pointed out that even his own colleagues simply refuse to work for 80 percent of the American people.
"We
send it over to the Senate, and what do they do? They go to lunch. They
don't work. They don't debate. They go to lunch," he concluded. "Maybe
one or two of them will sit there and deliberate and come up with
something and say, 'Oh, well, this is the only way it's going to pass,'
in the cover of darkness, no transparency. They just send it back."
"It's sick. It's disgusting. I'm over it. I think everybody up here is over it as well."
A broken clock is right twice a day. Honestly, I’m
surprised The View had a sensible take on the socialist takeover in New
York on Tuesday: all three of Zohran Mamdani’s endorsed candidates won
their primaries. Of course, Sunny Hostin was open to this nonsense. It
was co-host Sara Haines
who called out Darializa Avila Chevalier.
Newsbusters' Nicholas Fondacaro clipped the exchange.
HAINES:
One thing I would say. I just read a fascinating article this morning
and it was talking how one party is ousting anti-Semites, one is
electing them. And I would say that this article raised great points.
Avila Chevalie - how ever you say her name.
FARAH GRIFFIN: Chevalier
HAINES: She was at a pro-Palestine rally prompting Hamas and celebrating that on October 8 of 2023.
FARAH GRIFFIN: The day after.
HAINES:
These people are not afraid to -- They don't only not denounce, they
actually espouse these beliefs that everything Israel does has
influenced our world.
BEHAR: That not going to fly in New York City!
HAINES: No, it is right now, actually.
HOSTIN: You’re not implying that being pro-Palestinian and --
FARAH GRIFFIN: There were pro-Hamas chants taking place at this rally.
HAINES:
On October 8th, the only thing that happened is Israel had been
attacked and people had been brutally murdered and raped. And so, on
October 8th I don't think there needed to be rallies cheering on Hamas.
HOSTIN: You’re calling her an anti-Semite?
FARAH GRIFFIN: Oh, yes.
HAINES: I’m full-blown going to call her an anti-Semite. She would proudly call herself that, trust me.
HOSTIN: Okay.
HAINES:
Dan Goldman who we just spoke about was refused coffee at a coffee shop
because they said we don't want money from this individual American
human showing up at a coffee shop, because they think it comes from
AIPAC and Israel. When we start normalizing crazy conspiracy -
HOSTIN: Is Brad Lander an anti-Semite?
HAINES: I’m not - Just listen who I'm talking about. He was refused coffee over someone saying.
FARAH GRIFFIN: His office was also vandalized with anti-Jewish slurs.
HAINES: Yes.
BEHAR: So, wait a minute. Wait a minute. One coffee shop is normalizing it?
HAINES: No. No.
FARAH GRIFFIN: His office was vandalized with anti-Semitic slurs in New York. Like, this is happening.
HAINES:
So, one thing I would say the right is doing right, right now, the
extreme right and extreme left are meeting about anti-Semitism. They
hide under the cloak of ‘we’re criticizing Israel;’ which some people
criticizing Israel are not anti-Semites, all anti-Semites criticize
Israel and use it as cover.
As you always say [gestures to
Hostin], a racist doesn't say, ‘Hey, I'm a racist.’ They also don't say,
‘Hey, I'm an anti-Semite.’ Unless you’re this candidate.
BEHAR: All of that does not bring down the cost of bread, which is what people are focused on!
HAINES:
My point here is though, that's the mistake the Democrats are making.
Affordability and the separation between the haves and have-nots, that
is fair. All Americans want to be able to afford groceries and
healthcare and have good education and all those things. That is not
what these people are running on.
FARAH GRIFFIN: These same
Democratic Socialists last night were literally chanting “you're next”
at Hakeem Jeffries. They want to take Hakeem Jeffries out of the House
of Representatives.
Some good points, but I couldn’t care less; this is a Democratic problem. Let them handle it.
We all know why Democrats oppose the SAVE America
Act: it would ensure they lose every election going forward. No more
shoddy election business that’s kept a party with minority policies from
being competitive in our elections. On C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, a
caller from North Carolina asked why Democrats are so against it when
the core of the bill is supported by everyone. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ)
delivered the DNC’s pre-packaged answer:
CALLER: The great majority of Democrats, blacks, whites, hispanics, all want voter ID.
FRANK PALLONE: I don‘t want people to be limited by saying you have to bring your ID with you to the polls.
Democrats
got stuck here, and it’s funny to watch. For over a decade, they
claimed voter ID laws were Jim Crow 2.0. Black Americans overwhelmingly
support the measure, along with nearly everyone else, by large margins.
They can’t turn back, so they double down on old talking points that
don’t match the polling or reality. And yes, Frank, voting should be limited to American citizens.
Illegal aliens have been busted casting ballots. It happens when it
shouldn’t. Even if it’s a single ballot, our elections are worthy of
federal overhauls to protect their integrity.
But we know your party is unpopular. We know your policies are
flawed. And we know you’re headed for electoral trouble when the 2030
census arrives, and so do voters.
Iran has sentenced a prominent singer and seven of her bandmates and
colleagues to 74 lashes after the group livestreamed a music performance
on YouTube in December 2024, according to her videographer and local
media.
The concert featured 29-year-old Parastoo Ahmadi singing powerful folk songs
on a dimly lit stage to an empty audience in a historic caravanserai
complex. The artist left her head, arms and shoulders uncovered, in a
clear defiance of Iranian Islamic law.
The video went viral on YouTube immediately and just two days later
the artists were detained by Iranian authorities. Widespread public
outrage over the arrests immediately followed and Ahmadi was temporarily
released the next day, before the case proceeded to court.
At a closed trial in June, Ahmadi and eight fellow band members and
collaborators were each sentenced to receive 74 lashes and barred from
performing or leaving the country for two years, according to a source
close to the family who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing fear of
retaliation, told The New York Times.
“Besides being an inhumane and humiliating punishment, the 74-lash
sentence against Parastoo Ahmadi simply for singing without compulsory
hijab is a dangerous signal that the regime, emboldened by the peace
deal with the U.S., may intensify its crackdown on women,” said Mahmood
Amiry-Moghaddam, director of the Norway-based Iran Human Rights.
“Two years banned from artistic activities, banned from leaving the
country, and 74 lashes for all of us,” wrote videographer Tahmineh
Monzavi in a post on Instagram on Thursday.
In 2022, hope for change was sparked when massive protests ignited
after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini who died in Iranian modesty
police custody after being detained over hijab laws. In response to the
protests, a violent regime crackdown resulted in the deaths of roughly
500 people, many of which were bystanders, including 68 children. During
the subsequent “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, an increasing number of
Iranians chose to defy the hijab laws. According to a U.N. report
documenting the aftermath, this widespread defiance coincided with a
slight easing of the state’s violent crackdowns.
Nonetheless, following the movement, numerous instances have been
recorded of authorities whipping women accused of violating hijab rules
or speaking out against them, according to The New York Times.
It was against this backdrop that Ahmadi performed the “Caravanserai
Concert,” donning a simple black dress and singing patriotic and folk
songs.
The caption of the video read: “I am Parastoo, a girl who wants to
sing for the people I love. This is a right I could not ignore; singing
for the land I love passionately.”
As of today, it remains uncertain when officials will carry out the
lashing sentences for Ahmadi and the co-defendants, according to the New York Times.
Watching two young Brits gush that America is “one of the greatest
countries I’ve ever been to” should make every patriot swell with pride —
and it ought to shame the coastal elites who spend their lives
denigrating our people and our values. Taylor Brett and Oliver Henry’s
World Cup odyssey, as described on a recent Finnerty segment, celebrated
honest American hospitality, bold regional flavors, and the electric
spirit that greets visitors from around the world. This kind of
grassroots admiration isn’t manufactured by PR firms; it’s the real
thing, and it exposes how out of touch the mainstream narrative has
become.
What struck me was how these tourists experienced the
country on its own terms: late-night diners, friendly pickup soccer
banter, and the kind of common-sense, salt-of-the-earth hospitality that
you won’t find on a gated Manhattan estate. Conservatives have long
said America’s best sales pitch is everyday decency and self-reliance,
and seeing foreigners acknowledge that validates what we already know —
our culture still draws the world because we build, produce, and
welcome. If the left truly cared about the nation’s image, they’d stop
sneering and start celebrating the strengths that actually attract the
world’s admiration.
Oliver’s reported encounter with President
Trump, mentioned on the show, is the kind of moment that makes politics
human again instead of a relentless screamfest engineered by cable
networks. Trump’s ability to connect with supporters and chance
encounters alike is something the establishment press pretends not to
understand, but millions of Americans see it firsthand. Whether you love
his policy or not, that rapport with everyday people — and even
tourists — speaks to a leadership style that respects the American
patriots who built this country.
Let’s be blunt: outlets like
Newsmax are filling a void left by legacy media, giving airtime to
stories that reveal America’s real face instead of the caricature the
left prefers. The segment on Finnerty showed two visitors enjoying what
real Americans offer: hard work, great food, and unapologetic pride in
their country. For hardworking Americans who’ve felt ignored by coastal
elites for years, seeing foreign praise is vindication — and a reminder
to keep defending the nation that still inspires the world.
I
searched for independent coverage of this specific segment and the
details about Taylor Brett and Oliver Henry’s trip but did not find
corroborating reports in mainstream outlets during my review; the video
description provided to me appears to be the primary source for the
account. My searches returned unrelated pages and no direct mainstream
reporting on the Finnerty clip or the tourists’ encounter with President
Trump, so readers should judge the segment on its own merits while
noting independent verification was not found.
Pastor Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle Church was arrested on June 23,
2026 and booked on a second-degree battery charge after a physical
altercation that occurred near his church on Hooper Road in Central,
Louisiana. Authorities say the confrontation was captured on
surveillance video and the incident led to the other man being
hospitalized.
New
footage released by the family across the street shows Spell charging
across the roadway, confronting the young man, and a violent exchange
that quickly turned physical. Local reports indicate the victim
sustained injuries that required medical attention, and the video has
become a focal point for debate about what happened that day.
Spell
has publicly defended his actions, saying the young man threatened to
sexually assault his wife and grandchildren and even to kill family
members — allegations the neighbor’s family denies. Central’s police
chief has also pushed back on Spell’s claim that law enforcement failed
to keep the peace before the incident, underscoring how messy and
disputed the facts remain.
This latest episode is part of a
long-simmering feud between Spell and the Sherwin family who live across
the street, and it comes on the heels of past run-ins Spell has had
with authorities dating back to the COVID years when he defied public
health orders and faced legal consequences. That history explains why
both supporters and detractors are primed to see this incident through
very different lenses.
As conservatives, we recognize the primal
duty of a husband and father to defend his family when they are
threatened, and to many Americans the image of a pastor stepping in to
protect his household will feel honorable and instinctive. Political
elites and squeamish pundits will rush to criminalize that instinct, but
we should be honest that rising lawlessness and threat-filled
confrontations test the patience of every community that still values
family and faith.
All
that said, raw emotion can’t be a license to become judge, jury and
enforcer; crossing a busy highway to strike someone is a choice with
legal consequences, and the courts — not social media mobs — are where
claims of self-defense and provocation must be aired and decided. Spell
bonded out and has vowed the truth will come out in court, so
conservatives who admire his courage should also insist on due process
and a fair hearing rather than gleeful condemnation or hasty
exoneration.
Patriots should demand a thorough, impartial
investigation: hold the perpetrators of threats accountable, but also
hold accountable anyone who takes the law into their own hands. If we
care about safe neighborhoods, strong families, and the rule of law, we
must call for clarity from investigators, fair treatment in court, and
an honest media that reports facts instead of fueling tribal outrage.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte sought to calm tensions with
President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday, using a mix of
flattery and gentle pushback to argue that examples of allies'
reluctance to support the U.S. war with Iran were "isolated cases."
The NATO chief is visiting Washington to try to ease strains over the
Iran war and U.S. threats to draw down troops in Europe ahead of a
pivotal NATO leaders' summit in July in Ankara.
Trump, a longtime NATO critic who has called the alliance a "paper
tiger," has been angered by its reluctance to support the U.S. in the
Middle East conflict or help reopen the Strait of Hormuz after a
U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran on Feb. 28 disrupted the major oil shipping
route.
During the Oval Office meeting, Rutte used cardboard charts to show
how much NATO countries have stepped up their defense spending since
Trump first came into office in 2017.
He also said thousands of U.S. military planes had operated from
bases in Europe during the war, pointing to that cooperation as a sign
of the allies' support.
"I know there have been isolated cases about which you are really
disappointed, but generally speaking your European allies have been
there," Rutte said.
Trump appeared largely unconvinced, though he praised Rutte's efforts.
"You really have done a good job, and I think if anybody else were
in that position, we wouldn't even be meeting today, to be honest with
you, because we were let down. We didn't need help on this at all,"
Trump said.
One of Rutte's primary roles since Trump's second election victory in
November 2024 has been managing the president's hostility toward the
alliance and preventing tense moments, including Trump's push to acquire
Greenland, from spiraling into lasting crises.
Tensions between Washington and NATO have escalated in recent
months. After NATO allies refused to back Trump's Iran campaign, which
he began without prior consultation, Trump openly questioned whether the
U.S. should stand by NATO’s mutual defense pact and said he was
considering leaving the alliance.
