Wars are easy to start, harder to end. Are the US and Iran any closer to a full peace agreement, much less a settlement — or is a return to all-out war inevitable? On the one hand, President Donald Trump has told multiple reporters in recent days that Iran has effectively agreed to all US conditions and that talks are going well, with Vice President JD Vance set to head out to Pakistan for more talks. On the other hand, after briefly declaring it reopened last week, Iran once

There have been 24 Canadian prime ministers with 13 of them leading coveted majority governments. Mark Carney just became the 14th, but in a singularly unprecedented way: he built it, like some sort of Lego construct. One year after rescuing Canada’s Liberal Party from electoral disaster, Carney has strengthened his hold on power. A year ago this month, Canadians delivered a result that seemed impossible just a few weeks earlier: another Liberal minority government, this time

We interrupt our normal programming. For the next few minutes there will be no words about the Iran War, the Ukraine War, privation, inequity, injustice, natural disasters, social/racial, religious conflict, natural disasters, or any other source of division or stress. Imagine for a moment the following. On the evening of April Fools’ Day, while taking his daily walk, a citizen listened to the live Artemis II countdown on his phone and chatted with neighbors as they all strai

As far as announcements go, this one was pretty earth shattering, but to observers of Middle Eastern politics, it was not entirely unexpected. After all, Israel had a tradition of decapitation attacks. “After a lifetime of struggle,” a state newsreader declared, “Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei drank the sweet, pure draft of martyrdom and joined the Supreme Heavenly Kingdom.” The broadcaster praised Khamenei for being “unceasing and untiring” and for his “lofty and celest

It may be hard to believe but one day Donald Trump will no longer be President of the United States. Whether or not his Republican party crown passes to J.D. Vance or Marco Rubio, his successor will have to contend with an opposition Democratic Party likely to see resurgence in this coming November’s congressional elections. Which means that come November 4th, 2026 the day after this contest, the proverbial pistol fires for the 2028 presidential election cycle. The Democrats

Seventeen years ago, Mahmood Ahmadinejad, then the Iranian president was dominating western headlines. But even then, concentrating on his vitriolic statements was a mistake. One needed to concentrate on the pronouncements and actions of the one person who really counted in that regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was then 69 and widely believed to have cancer. As we know, Khamenei did not die then. Not until two weeks ago, when U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Pri

It's no secret that U.S. President Donald Trump is a competitive man and the world has grown used to his constant employment of hyperbole in describing his (real or perceived) achievements. This is especially true whenever he compares himself (always favorably) to his predecessors in the role. In this vein, perhaps over eager to show that he can do what no American leader has done before, Trump has chosen conflict over diplomacy and essentially gone to war with Iran. The word

No matter what they may otherwise profess, American presidents find it almost impossible not to go to war. In 1992, Bill Clinton won the presidency by famously declaring “it’s the economy, stupid,” and pontificating that the era of power politics was over. Once in office, however, he found himself ordering missile strikes in several countries, maintaining no-fly zones over Iraq (and sometimes bombing it), as well as waging a long aerial campaign against Serbia in 1999. In 200

Like a proverbial sword of Damocles the specter of conflict once more hangs over the Middle East. The Trump administration is closer to a major war in the perpetually volatile region than most Americans (and for that matter most everyone else) realize. In fact, it could begin very soon. Why should anyone care? A U.S. military operation in Iran would likely be a massive, weeks-long campaign that would look more like full-fledged war than last month's pinpoint operation in Vene

In the year after Trump began his second term with an inaugural address assertion that he was “saved by God to make America great again,” one way to measure his influence is to cast the mind forward two years from now. In January 2028, Democrats will be in the thick of their contest not simply to be the presidential nominee but to carry out what they believe is an assignment from history: ending the Trump Moment. It’s been a long journey. Assuming he serves out his full term

Political careers can be made (or unmade) by a single speech. Think Barack Obama’s 2004 Democratic party convention address, Ronald Reagan’s at the Republican gathering forty years earlier, or Winston Churchill’s World War Two exhortations. At their best, such moments of oration can transcend the mundane, the ordinary, the workmanlike and sweep audiences following across all media to emotional places they never thought possible. Then, there are the singular speeches that span

Many Americans (and perhaps even more citizens of other countries) find themselves yearning for November 7th, 2028, the scheduled date of the next presidential election. That’s the day the Trump era effectively ends (the definitive date would be January 20th, 2027 – inauguration day for whomever the next president will be). Probably. That’s the day the Democrats will atone for Kamala Harris’s electoral 2024 failure. Possibly. That’s the day US democracy returns to greater pre

The contours of Donald Trump’s second term are now starkly clear. We are indeed seeing Trump Unleashed, but not for the democracy-threatening, dictatorial reasons Kamala Harris and the Democrats were trying to warn the American electorate about in last year’s presidential contest. Trump is moving fast, breaking things if he has to and making aggressive moves because he is trying to outrun the constitutional clock. Under the provisions of the 22 nd  Amendment he cannot run aga

For all the people who are hurting and broken. For those who feed the poor. And for all the children who should be loved always, but especially on this night, with our arms wrapped around them and a long goodnight kiss on the temple, a kiss more precious than anything that could ever be wrapped in a box. For every parent standing quietly in the darkened doorways of the bedrooms—or remembering how they stood there once many years past–watching those small, sleeping shapes tuck

It isn't much of a stretch to regard Mark Carney as a lucky man. He may indeed be one of the luckiest figures in recent political history. When Carney first started kicking the Liberal Party’s tires in late 2024, smart money was still on Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre to win the next election. After all Poilievre had held an expansive double-digit lead in the polls for months, and Ottawa was bracing for the coming Tory revolution. Then came Donald Trump 2.0 with his threa

History shows that small, seemingly inconsequential events are full of portent. The docking of Chinese cargo ship Istanbul Bridge  at the Felixstowe in the U.K. on October 13, 2025, might have appeared unremarkable. Britain is, after all, China’s third-largest export market, and vessels travel between the two countries all year round. What stood out about the Bridge  was the route it had taken—it was the first major Chinese cargo ship to travel directly to Europe via the Arct

Thanksgiving is a time when families thrive, and our human movement can learn key lessons from this uniquely American tradition as we move forward together. Let’s begin with what’s best about the day: a shared table, familiar laughter, and the quiet grace of gratitude. Gratitude is not the fruit of harmony; it is the seed. Traditions renew; children grow up knowing the laugh of a cousin; and an uncle regales with stories of where the family came from. The mystic chords of mem

Richard Bruce Cheney was arguably the most consequential vice president in American history. He was also one of the most successful defense secretaries, a respected congressional leader, a congressman for twelve years, the youngest-ever White House chief of staff, a corporate leader and a champion of conservative principles. In the wake of 9/11, when many feared and no one knew what might befall the U.S., he helped lead a shell-shocked nation through those dark days, harden t

Diplomacy, when stripped of ceremony and handshakes, is really all about leverage. And this last week in Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo and Busan, Donald Trump appears to have rediscovered the old craft of using pressure to invite cooperation. The U.S. President, now again playing the roles of negotiator/dealmaker-in-chief, began his week-long diplomacy tour with ASEAN, then APEC nations amid high expectations — and low trust. As is their wont, Trump’s advisers are eager to claim victor

After the euphoria and relief of Monday’s prisoner exchange and ceasefire, Tuesday has brought some ominous signs for the future of the Gaza peace deal wrought by president Donald Trump. Despite the ringing words of the leaders gathered at Sharm El-Sheikh the shooting didn’t entirely stop. Five Palestinians were killed in an Israeli drone strike on Tuesday morning in Gaza’s Shejaiya neighborhood. According to the (IDF) Israel Defense Forces, they had crossed the “yellow line”