National Security

Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer and House majority leader Hakeem Jeffries share a lighter moment. Many voters fail to see the humor.

Trump Is Unpopular—and So Are the Do-Nothing Democrats Trump Is Unpopular—and So Are the Do-Nothing Democrats

The president is increasingly hated, but so is an opposition party that fails to oppose.

Feb 21, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Man waring a suit sits in a courtroom.

A Half Century of Failure to Reform the FBI Has Gifted Patel With Alarming Power A Half Century of Failure to Reform the FBI Has Gifted Patel With Alarming Power

Fifty years ago, lawmakers started lifting the lid on the shocking abuses of the new Bureau chief’s most famous predecessor. The trouble is, very little changed.

Feb 21, 2025 / Steve Howell

Trump’s Mafia Shakedown Might Destroy NATO—if We’re Lucky

Trump’s Mafia Shakedown Might Destroy NATO—if We’re Lucky Trump’s Mafia Shakedown Might Destroy NATO—if We’re Lucky

America’s greedy gangster president is forcing European elites to finally reckon with the high price of protection.

Feb 17, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Demonstrators protest federal layoffs and demand the termination of Elon Musk from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in Washington, DC, on February 7, 2025.

The Democrats’ Choice: Fight Trump’s Oligarchy or Keep Groveling to Billionaire Donors The Democrats’ Choice: Fight Trump’s Oligarchy or Keep Groveling to Billionaire Donors

Elon Musk’s power grab is finally energizing a resistance. But it’s already being undermined by the party elite’s dependency on Silicon Valley.

Feb 10, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Google office building in Cambridge, with view across Charles River to Boston, Massachusetts.

EU vs. US or People vs. Billionaires? EU vs. US or People vs. Billionaires?

Trump’s latest geopolitical moves are scary. But Americans and Europeans share a common foe.

Feb 6, 2025 / Nick Shaxson

A woman with a ponytail walks through a door.

Trump’s Phony Trade Wars Are Evidence of American Imperial Decline Trump’s Phony Trade Wars Are Evidence of American Imperial Decline

President’s bullying of allies yields symbolic results—but betrays substantive weakness.

Feb 5, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk gestures as he speaks during the inaugural parade in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025.

Who Will Stop Elon Musk’s Coup? Who Will Stop Elon Musk’s Coup?

The world’s richest man now has the power to override congressional spending decisions and access to private information about every US taxpayer.

Feb 3, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Still leaning left?: Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump’s nominee to be Director of National Intelligence, testifies during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Senate Democrats Are Attacking Tulsi Gabbard for the Wrong Reasons Senate Democrats Are Attacking Tulsi Gabbard for the Wrong Reasons

Preferring to defend spy agencies and line up behind the hawkish consensus, the bipartisan elite ignores the director of national intelligence nominee’s rampant Islamophobia.

Jan 31, 2025 / Jeet Heer

The US ambassador to Uganda, Natalie A. Brown, visits the PEPFAR-supported National Health Laboratory and Diagnostic Services facility in Kampala, Uganda.

Will Trump End the Most Successful Foreign-Aid Program in US History? Will Trump End the Most Successful Foreign-Aid Program in US History?

The President’s Emergency Program for AIDS Relief is in danger of being shuttered. The decision could kill hundreds of thousands of people and kickstart an epidemic.

Jan 30, 2025 / James North

Guantánamo Bay

The Uncertain Fate of Guantánamo Under Trump The Uncertain Fate of Guantánamo Under Trump

More than 23 years after the 9/11 attacks, here we are in the very same place we’ve been for endless years—on pause.

Jan 29, 2025 / Karen J. Greenberg

x