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The Kremlin confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Thursday and reassured him of Moscow's support, at a moment he's facing likely regime change action at the hands of US military might.

Putin expressed support for Maduro's rule "in the face of growing external pressure," but they also discussed their advancing a strategic partnership and the areas of ongoing economic and energy projects. Moscow has long stood by Caracas' side throughout years of growing isolation and sanctions.

The Kremlin statement added that "Putin expressed solidarity with the Venezuelan people and reaffirmed his support for the Maduro government's policy of safeguarding national interests and sovereignty amid mounting external pressure."

Wednesday saw elite American special forces operators board and seize a Venezuelan oil tanker. They were filmed rappelling onto the ship's deck from a helicopter, with rifles at the ready.

This has serious repercussions for Russia too, given Moscow has been a longtime trading partner with Caracas, and it raises the potential that Russian tankers in the Caribbean could be intercepted.

Perhaps even more notably, Reuters reports that Washington is preparing to intercept more ships transporting Venezuelan oil following the seizure of a tanker this week, as it increases pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, six sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Further direct interventions by the U.S. are expected in the coming weeks targeting ships carrying Venezuelan oil that may also have transported oil from other countries targeted by U.S. sanctions, such as Iran, according to the sources familiar with the matter who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.

Last weekend Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that his country would stand "shoulder to shoulder" with Venezuela in this time of crisis, but didn't offer anything concrete.

"This is primarily due to the desire to assert the unquestioning dominance of the United States in the region, this is a trademark of the Trump administration," Ryabkov explained.

According to some more of the latest developments via Newsweek:

• Initial reports on Wednesday cited U.S. officials saying the Coast Guard carried out the tanker seizure under international maritime law, targeting vessels tied to alleged illicit PDVSA-linked crude shipments.
• U.S President Donald Trump later confirmed the seizure, hinting that “other things are happening,” but offered no further details.
• A senior Trump administration official described the move as a “judicial enforcement action on a stateless vessel” last docked in Venezuela.
• Oil prices jumped on the news: Brent crude rose 0.8 percent to $62.35 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate climbed to $58.46.
• Analysts warn the seizure may further strain U.S.–Venezuela relations and deter shippers already wary of handling sanctioned Venezuelan crude.
• Maduro has long accused Washington of seeking to overthrow him and seize Venezuela’s vast oil reserves; the nation’s production has fallen from over 2 million barrels a day to roughly 1 million.
• The seizure comes after Trump renewed threats of intervention by land, air, or sea, including a recent U.S. fighter jet flyover near Venezuelan airspace.
• Caracas condemned the action as “international piracy” and “brazen theft,” accusing the U.S. of trying to control its natural resources.
• Trump called the tanker the “largest ever” seized by the U.S.

Some hawks have long viewed Venezuela as a Latin American satellite state of Russian influence...

According to this column, "In Venezuela, the Department of War is indeed playing offense, as Trump promised, but the opponent isn’t really Maduro, it's Putin" pic.twitter.com/1W0ros2WvM

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) December 7, 2025

While Russia has been a longtime ally of President Maduro, it is unlikely to come to his defense in any direct way, also given the delicate and sensitive efforts to improve bilateral ties with Washington amid talks to de-escalate the Ukraine war. This despite Caracas having formally pleaded for more help from Moscow of late, including arms deliveries.

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

I recently wrote about the absurdity of the Democratic effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. I have also opposed Republican calls to impeach judges. Impeachment mania has returned for the midterm elections. However, on the scale of utter lunacy, the call to impeach Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. takes the cake.

This effort is being led by Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), who is running for Senate and has decided that the best way to achieve that distinction is to turn the constitutional process into a mockery.In academic writings, testimony (including at the impeachment hearings of Clinton, Trump, and Biden), and litigation (as the lead counsel in the last judicial impeachment trial), I have long argued against such ill-defined articles for impeachment.Stevens is seeking to impeach Kennedy for turning “his back on science”:

“Today, I formally introduced articles of impeachment against Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. RFK Jr. has turned his back on science and the safety of the American people. Michiganders cannot take another day of his chaos.”

Many Americans welcome Kennedy’s efforts to make food healthier and to challenge the status quo at HHS. Others, like Stevens, have strong objections to those policies. This is a good-faith and worthy debate for us to have. For years, there was little debate on such questions.

Indeed, in the prior Administration, to challenge prevailing expert opinion was to risk being labeled a wingnut or conspiracist. The very same people who are calling for Kennedy’s head were part of the mob denouncing dissenters in the scientific community, or those who remained silent as scientists were fired, censored, and cancelled.

The most anti-science position was to demand compliance with the orthodoxy of the pandemic years. Take Jay Bhattacharya, who co-authored the Great Barrington Declaration and was a vocal critic of COVID-19 policies.

Bhattacharya is now the 18th director of the National Institutes of Health and is working with Kennedy to change the culture of groupthink among health researchers and regulators in the government.

Bhattacharya was censored, blacklisted, and vilified due to his opposing views on health policy, including opposing wholesale shutdowns of schools and businesses. He was recently honored with the prestigious “Intellectual Freedom” award from the American Academy of Sciences and Letters.

He was one of many who were blacklisted for challenging pandemic policies. It did not matter that positions once denounced as “conspiracy theories” have been recognized or embraced by many.

Some argued that there was no need to shut down schools, which has led to a crisis in mental illness among the young and the loss of critical years of education. Other nations heeded such advice with more limited shutdowns (including keeping schools open) and did not experience our losses.

Others argued that the virus’s origin was likely the Chinese research lab in Wuhan. That position was denounced by the Washington Post as a “debunked” coronavirus “conspiracy theory.” The New York Times Science and Health reporter Apoorva Mandavilli called any mention of the lab theory “racist.”

Federal agencies now support the lab theory as the most likely based on the scientific evidence.

Likewise, many questioned the efficacy of those blue surgical masks and supported natural immunity to the virus — both positions were later recognized by the government.

Others questioned the six-foot rule, which shut down many businesses, as unsupported by science. In congressional testimony, Dr. Anthony Fauci recently admitted that the rule “sort of just appeared” and “wasn’t based on data.” Yet not only did it result in heavily enforced rules (and meltdowns) in public areas, but the media further ostracized dissenting critics.

Again, Fauci and other scientists did little to stand up for these scientists or call for free speech to be protected. As I discuss in my new book, “The Indispensable Right,” the result is that we never really had a national debate on many of these issues and the result was massive social and economic costs.

The point is that these attacks were “turning your back on science” by crushing dissent and stopping any meaningful debate on these issues. These same figures were wrong on the science, but now seek to lead another mob to impeach those seeking to change policies and practices at HHS and NIH.

Democrats clearly oppose Kennedy’s initiatives. Fine. Use legislation and the power of the purse to push back on those efforts if you have a majority in Congress. What you should not do is use impeachment to achieve what you could not achieve during the confirmation process.

Many on the left appear to have a particular hatred for Kennedy as a type of fallen angel, a progressive from an iconic Democratic family who rejected the party’s intolerance and direction. Hell hath no fury like a party scorned.

The pledges of new impeachments are ominous going into the midterm elections, where Democrats appear to be promising more of the same dysfunctional efforts to use this constitutional process for raw partisan advantage. Even with those who oppose Trump Administration policies, it is hard to believe that a majority of Americans want to return to the same chaos of the first term.

After two impressive coupon auctions ahead of yesterday's FOMC, moments ago we got the week's final auction, a sale of $22BN in 30Y paper. The auction was solid: it through, with a bounce in the bid to cover and solid buyside demand despite a modest dip in foreign bidders.

Here are the details.

The auction stopped at a high yield of 4.773%, up from 4.694% in November, although unlike the November auction, today's auction stopped through the 4.774% When Issued by 0.1bps. This was the first through since September, and only the second in the past 6 months.

The bid to cover rose to 2.365% from 2.295% in November, and was just fractionally above the 2.355% six auction average.

The internals showed continued solid buyside demand: Indirects were awarded 65.4%, down from 71.0% in November. but stripping away that one outlier auction, the foreign demand was the highest since January. And with Directs taking 23.5%, in line with the recent average of 23.9%, Dealers were left with 11.2%, down from 14.5% last month and below the six auction average of 12.5%.

Overall, this was another solid auction with impressive demand and refuting creeping concerns about rapidly rising long-end yields amid a global bond selloff, one which for now at least has avoided the US.

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In a fresh interview, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt exposed the left’s blatant hypocrisy on economic issues that have hammered everyday Americans for years.

Leavitt hammered Democrats for posing as saviors on affordability while ignoring their own role in fueling runaway inflation during the Biden era.

Appearing on Fox News, Leavitt labeled Democrats “the greatest CON ARTISTS in American politics!” She zeroed in on their empty rhetoric, stating, “They are pretending to champion the issue of affordability when they themselves created the worst inflation crisis in a generation.”

? BREAKING: Karoline Leavitt NUKES Democrats as "the greatest CON ARTISTS in American politics!"

"They are pretending to champion the issue of affordability when they themselves created the worst inflation crisis in a generation."

"You can't create a problem and then turn… pic.twitter.com/qBjEr1jQoV

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 9, 2025

She drove the point home, noting “You can’t create a problem and then turn around and say, I’m the best person to fix it!”

Leavitt emphasized that voters see through the charade, adding, “that’s why President Trump was reelected to fix it. And that’s exactly what he’s doing.”

The press secretary urged Republicans to step up their game, noting, “So as President Trump has been screaming from the rooftops, Republicans need to remain tough and smart, and they need to be more vocal about touting the accomplishments of this administration.”

She wrapped up by dismantling the Democrats’ claims to represent ordinary folks: “You can’t say you’re for the working man and woman when you vote to raise their taxes. Republicans and President Trump have a proven economic formula and agenda that’s working. It’s focused on bigger paychecks and lower prices, and that’s what President Trump will talk about tonight.”

Leavitt’s comments come against the backdrop of the Biden administration’s dismal economic track record, where inflation soared to levels not seen in decades. Under Biden, the average year-over-year inflation rate hit nearly 5%, with a peak of 9.1% in mid-2022 – a far cry from the stable, low-inflation environment of Trump’s first term. 

Cumulative price increases reached a staggering 21.5% over Biden’s four years, squeezing family budgets on everything from groceries to housing.

This wasn’t some unavoidable global hiccup; it stemmed from reckless spending sprees and anti-energy policies that crippled domestic production.

Democrats flooded the economy with trillions in unchecked stimulus, igniting price hikes that disproportionately burdened working-class Americans. Meanwhile, their war on fossil fuels drove up energy costs, amplifying the pain at every turn.

Contrast that with Trump’s approach, which prioritizes unleashing U.S. energy independence and cutting red tape to boost growth. The results are already showing, proving Leavitt’s point that Republicans hold the winning formula for prosperity.

Nowhere is the Trump turnaround more evident than at the gas pump, where prices have tumbled to levels unseen in decades. Americans are stunned by the rapid drop, crediting President Trump’s pro-drilling policies and focus on energy dominance.

In Colorado, one driver captured the widespread disbelief: “I ain’t seen the gas $1.83 since the F-ing early 2000s! What the F goin’ on? What the hell goin’ on?!”

? WOW! Americans can't BELIEVE how cheap President Trump got gas

Colorado: "I ain't seen the gas $1.83 since the F-ing early 2000s!"

"What the F goin' on? What the hell goin' on?!" ??pic.twitter.com/rZfhFt9HxX

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 9, 2025

This sentiment echoes across the nation as Trump’s agenda slashes costs that skyrocketed under Biden. During Biden’s tenure, average gas prices hovered around $3.50 per gallon nationally, with spikes above $5 in some states – a direct hit from policies that hampered drilling and pipelines.

 Under Trump, Americans are seeing multi-year lows, with Colorado’s current averages dipping below $2.50 and trending even lower in spots.

These plummeting prices aren’t magic – they’re the fruit of Trump’s drill-baby-drill strategy, reopening federal lands for exploration and fast-tracking infrastructure projects. 

It’s a stark rebuke to the green zealots who prioritized climate virtue-signaling over affordable energy for families.

The facts are clear: When America produces its own energy, prices fall, and independence grows. Trump’s policies are restoring that edge, putting more money back in pockets and easing the affordability crunch Democrats exacerbated.

Leavitt’s call for Republicans to get louder about these successes couldn’t be timelier. With Democrats scrambling to rewrite history and claim credit for fixes they obstructed, the GOP needs to own the narrative. Trump’s playbook – tax cuts, deregulation, and energy freedom – is delivering bigger paychecks and lower costs, just as promised.

As inflation cools and gas flows cheaply, Americans are experiencing the tangible benefits of ditching globalist agendas for pro-worker priorities. The contrast exposes the left’s con game: They broke it, but Trump is fixing it.

Democrats’ affordability charade crumbles under scrutiny, while Trump’s results speak for themselves. 

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

A left-wing federal judge in Maryland has ordered the immediate release of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran migrant, directing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to free him by 5 p.m. EST today.

U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled that the federal government lacked lawful authority to continue detaining Garcia, accused of smuggling migrants within the U.S. 

He has also been accused of being a member of the foreign terrorist organization MS-13. 

Kilmar Abrego Garcia is not a “Maryland Man”—he is an MS-13 gang member involved in human trafficking who entered the United States illegally. His deportation to El Salvador was always going to be the end result.@TriciaOhio pic.twitter.com/bd3s8wHM2T

— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) April 15, 2025

Xinis noted that his confinement appeared "constitutionally infirm" because there was no final deportation order on record and officials had failed to take reasonable steps to secure a lawful destination for removal.

The Trump administration previously admitted it mistakenly deported Garcia to El Salvador earlier this year, where he was jailed in the CECOT maximum-security prison before being flown back to the U.S. to face human smuggling charges in Tennessee.

Left-wing corporate media and Democrats routinely identified the accused migrant smuggler as a "Maryland Father" ...

Notice how the "Maryland Father" corporate media stories suddenly erupted earlier this year - there is an information war underway by the Democratic Party and their MSM cheerleaders. Time for this term to surge once again... 

The Justice Department could still appeal the ruling, and Trump officials may attempt to initiate new immigration proceedings against the migrant. Separately, Garcia still faces federal smuggling charges in Nashville.

On Wednesday we detailed that Japanese and South Korean fighter jets quickly answered a joint Russian-Chinese long-range bomber flight over the Western Pacific. Chinese J-16 fighter jets, two Russian Su-30 fighters and an A-50 early-warning aircraft were part of the provocative flight, which also passed close to South Korea. Russia's Defense Ministry (MoD) had confirmed its Tu-95MS strategic bombers and China’s H-9 strategic bombers conducted the eight hour flight over the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea and the Western Pacific - but that at no time was any country's airspace violated.

Washington has quickly injected itself into the ratcheting situation, coming amid a diplomatic and economic standoff between Japan and China, by sending US nuclear capable bombers on patrol over the Sea of Japan.

Japan's government confirmed its fighter planes joined the US bomber patrol, which was clearly a show of force signaling China and Russia.

"We confirmed the strong resolve of Japan and the United States not to allow any unilateral change of the status quo by force, as well as the readiness of the Self-Defense Forces and the US military," Japan's Defense Ministry said in a statement.

The fresh exercise with the US Air Force was conducted in "an increasingly severe security environment surrounding our country" - it said.

The flight included a pair of US B-52 bombers, escorted by Japanese F-35 stealth fighters and three F-15 jets. Beijing had presented the prior, longer flight as routine and in accord with international law.

"We consider it a grave concern from the standpoint of Japan's security," Japan's Chief of Staff, Joint Staff General Hiroaki Uchikura, commented of the prior Chinese-Russian aerial patrol.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun responded dismissively, saying "The Japanese side has no need to make a fuss about nothing or to take this personally."

All of this is taking place as a carrier strike group is sailing close to Japan, and after weekend PLA drills saw monitoring Japanese planes come under radar lock. The US State Department has condemned this, saying "China's actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability."

Much of these tensions hearken back to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's words to parliament last month wherein she left open the possibility of Japan sending its military to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion.

This refers to this NYT story (https://t.co/rdFRYttqF9) in which they reveal there now exists an "overmatch brief" at the Pentagon that details China vs US military power. The name says it all...

Apparently when a senior US official read the brief he “turned pale” as he realized… https://t.co/fJBKMKzR08

— Arnaud Bertrand (@RnaudBertrand) December 11, 2025

Amid economic and diplomatic retaliation, including on the tourism sector, Japan was hoping for more vocal help from the Trump administration while feeling Beijing's wrath, but alas it hasn't come in a political form. However, the US sending bombers for an 'exercise' does seem fairly muscular.

An overnight drone assault on Russia by Ukraine was particularly large, including dozens of drones sent on Moscow. The Russian defense ministry said it down 287 drones across the country, one of the highest single-night totals ever recorded in the war.

Among these were 32 Ukrainian long-range kamikaze drone inbound on Moscow, reportedly intercepted. The disruption of airspace around Moscow was enough to briefly shut down area hubs and cause the delay of some 200 flights, impacting at least four airports.

In addition to the 32 drones "intercepted and shot down" which were directly targeting the capital city, at least 40 more were headed toward the broader Moscow region, the defense ministry noted.

Two fertilizer plants were also targeted in the western Novgorod and Smolensk regions. Fire resulted at one of these, the Acron mineral fertilizer plant, among Russia's largest chemical producers.

The drone assault was quite extended in time too, with authorities saying it lasted over a period of some eight hours. Large drone waves were reported in other regions as well:

• Bryansk region: 118 drones
• Moscow region: 40
• Kaluga region: 40

Russian media has presented the overnight operation as an act of desperation at a moment Zelensky is feeling the pressure from Washington, and as Ukraine forces are in retreat on the battlefield:

A senior Russian diplomat linked the surge in Ukrainian attacks to growing US pressure on Vladimir Zelensky to accept a peace deal with Russia that would require concessions that Kiev has so far refused to make. Several European NATO states, meanwhile, back Zelensky’s uncompromising stance. US President Donald Trump said this week that the Ukrainian leader “has to be realistic” about the situation and “start accepting things” his administration is offering.

Indeed Trump as a of a late Wednesday presser has not backed off his calls for Zelensky to quickly accept reality and sign a peace deal and prepare for elections.

Trump:

Zelensky has to be realistic.

I do wonder about how long is it gonna be until they have an election?

82% of the Ukrainian people demand a settlement be made. pic.twitter.com/spV5k2JZJY

— Clash Report (@clashreport) December 10, 2025

Zelensky has said that while he's "ready" to organize and hold elections, it has to be done under safety, and that the international community must step up and help ensure this happens. He said he's ready to within 60 days if his government and external backers can offer a viable plan. But is he just buying time and pacifying Trump?

There's a possibility his own parliament could, under pressure, come back and say that elections are not a practical reality at this point. Likely Kiev will demand that Russia observe a ceasefire in order for the elections to take place.

By Michael Every of Rabobank

The Fed delivered what was expected – a 25bps rate cut to 3.75% and a deep public split over whether it should cut further because the labor market is weakening or keep policy tight because inflation is too high. The Fed will also buy $40bn of T-Bills just after stopping QT, but this is not to be seen as QE, nor as having any impact on monetary policy - and QE was a neutral “asset swap”, not a balance sheet expansion that juiced asset prices. See here for the take of our US Strategist Philip Marey, who concludes that as Trump takes a firmer grip of the Fed ahead, rates are likely to fall more than some expect.

The ECB’s Lagarde spoke of “Europe's existential crisis” and didn’t think the level of ECB rates could do anything about it. She underlined estimates that internal trade barriers due to national regulations on top of the EU’s own amount to an effective tariff of 110% on services and 60% on goods traded between member states. “Everybody wants to sugarcoat, gold-plate and do just a bit more,” yet on reforms, “There will be pushback from multiple corners… from people who say: ‘We’re very happy in our corner of Europe, leave us alone.’” (As ‘Teresa Ribera is ‘not interested in competition,’ complains jilted Brussels bubble’ – but that didn’t stop the EU from just raiding China’s Temu over a foreign subsidy allegation.) Lagarde underlined the need for a transformative capital markets union and joint Eurobonds for defence funding, seeing this as opportunity.

The BoC left rates on hold at 2.25% and seems to think it’s done, yet admitted it‘s difficult to “assess the underlying momentum of the economy,” given US tariffs’ impact over time. See here for more from Molly Schwartz.

The RBA, hawkish on Tuesday, prompting market chatter of rate hikes in 2026, will look at the jobs numbers today (-21.3K vs +20K expected) and perhaps rethink. But what of asset prices as the AFR notes, ‘Why this mum bought her 11-year-old son a townhouse.’ Only one? Tsk!

Today, BoE Governor Bailey will testify to Parliament’s Covid Inquiry. Will we see questions about the Bank’s response, e.g., why didn’t it use macroprudential measures on mortgage lending at the same time as deep rate cuts and massive QE? There are key lessons to be learned for when the next, inevitable ‘nobody saw it coming’ crisis hits - will central banks have a clearer idea of what they are *for* by then?

Meanwhile, as so often reiterated here, the backdrop against which all central banks pretend to know what they’re doing is getting increasingly unpredictable.

In geoeconomics, Mexico imposed 50% tariffs on China and other Asian economies –exactly the Trump Plan we predicted: next, Canada(?) Against that backdrop, the USTR said he seeks a “constructive” reset on trade with China, which launched a satellite super factory to rival Starlink and added domestic AI chips to its official procurement list for the first time. However, Ford suppliers received China's new streamlined rare-earth licenses - but German automakers were notably excluded so far. Indonesia is resisting US trade demands on critical minerals and energy it sees risking its relations with China and Russia. On the other hand, India reportedly offered the US its ‘best-ever’ deal, as D.C. pushes farm access in trade negotiations, as the US Soybean association president meanwhile stated that Trump’s farm aid plan for them is “A band-aid on an open wound.” The UK’s PM also told Parliament that a return to the EU customs union would “unravel” new UK trade deals: yes, some things are zero sum. Trade can be one of them.

In geopolitics, US Representative Massie has introduced a bill to pull America out of NATO, which speaks to the times if not its likelihood of passage. It’s nonetheless noted that Trump’s recent verbal attacks on Europe will force it to speed up post-America defence plans, with belated recognition that the era of America’s “security guarantee” for Europe is over. It seems Europe will have to pay much more than it has budgeted for the military by 2035, and a lot sooner. That’s as a report suggested a parallel US National Security Strategy to split up the EU and establish a new global “C5” of the US, China, Russia, India, and Japan, leaving Europe out of the power loop.

Germany’s Chancellor Merz nonetheless underlined he still wants the US as partner, and if Trump "can't make sense of this institution or the structure of the EU," the US can still cooperate with member states, and “Germany is, of course, first and foremost one of them.” Divide et impera.

Regardless, the EU is pressing harder for the passage of its €210bn Ukraine loan scheme, which Lagarde says is now the “closest” to being legal so far - is that something compliance officers like hearing? She added the new version should reassure investors it “does not amount to confiscation” - but as this money is clearly not going to be given back to Russia, it’s unclear how. Indeed, Belgium is demanding an extra cash buffer as wergild against expected Russian retaliation against it and Euroclear. And that’s presuming retaliation stays in that dimension – the FT reports on fears of a wider Russian campaign of sabotage to infrastructure and businesses ahead, which potentially comes with its own cost in terms of lower growth and higher inflation.

Muddying the waters for the EU in terms of its desire to adhere to global institutions, the International Court of Justice granted Russia’s counterclaim in a genocide case vs Kyiv. The potential implication, according to some, is that any warfare can be genocide if civilians are involved. Elsewhere, the US threatened to sanction the International Criminal Court unless it promises not to prosecute President Trump.

In Latin America, the US seized an Iranian oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela after smuggling Nobel peace prize laureate Machado out of the country: she called for democracies to “fight for freedom,” which may not be metaphorical. In Brazil, a bill that could reduce ex-President Bolsonaro’s prison time has advanced in Congress. In Bolivia, leftist ex-president Arce was just arrested for corruption a month after leaving office. And China pledged foreign aid to the region with no “political conditions” – it seems the Western Hemisphere may be ideologically, if not physically, contested.

In the Indo-Pacific, China says it seeks a “fair and just maritime order” in the South China Sea, which it claims; the ongoing Japan-China spat is seen as having no off-ramp; a Telegraph report claims China’s hypersonic missiles would destroy the US Navy in a fight over Taiwan - as the US Navy Secretary called for a “wartime footing” in US weapons production; and Thailand-Cambodia border fighting rages on as Trump signals he might try to intervene.

In the Middle East, there are reports of a build-up of US military jets heading towards the Middle East, as others say Iran has started mass production of ballistic missiles again. Trump will also delay unveiling his Gaza Board of Peace members until 2026, and it’s reported that the US is weighing hitting the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNWRA with terrorism-related sanctions.

If you think that’s too much information to fit into a Global Daily, try writing it(!) Moreover, consider this is just one day, in one week, in one month, in what has been a non-stop year for wild news headlines. 2026 doesn’t look like it’s going to get any easier. Quite the opposite, in fact.

You might not see it all as an existential crisis, just a ‘volatile trading backdrop’, but trying to keep up with just that part for readers can certainly prompt one for those who try!