Judge rebukes US defence secretary over bid to silence retired veteran
A federal judge has blocked an attempt by the US defence secretary to punish a retired naval officer and senator for speaking out, delivering a sharp rebuke to efforts to narrow constitutional protections for veterans.
Recent articles in USA
10 February 2026
Cruelty as policy only works until the public recoils
Trump’s immigration crackdown reveals how governments test public tolerance for cruelty exercised in the name of order – a lesson with clear echoes in Australia’s own recent history.
10 February 2026
Taiwan has misplaced confidence in Trump’s National Security Strategy
Taiwan has welcomed the United States’ latest National Security Strategy, but beneath the reassurance lie strategic and economic risks that Taipei should not ignore.
9 February 2026
Why sanctions have entrenched conflict with North Korea, not resolved it
Sanctions on North Korea have neither halted its nuclear program nor produced stability, while imposing heavy costs on civilians and regional security.
8 February 2026
From Les Misérables to Trump – what happens when moral certainty hardens
Polarisation is often described as ideological. But its deeper cause may be moral – a loss of the capacity to recognise goodness in those who disagree with us, and the consequences that follow.
6 February 2026
America’s bad emperor problem
History offers a warning about unchecked power. As Donald Trump reshapes US foreign policy, the risks of personal rule and predatory hegemony are becoming harder to ignore.
5 February 2026
The pivot to Asia within the transitional rules-based order
As US leadership becomes increasingly erratic, claims grow that the rules-based international order is breaking down. But China and India may yet help guide its transition rather than preside over its collapse.
4 February 2026
Trump, Afghanistan and the songs that tell a different story
Donald Trump should have listened to Australian songwriter Fred Smith before he spoke ignorantly about the sacrifices of soldiers in Afghanistan.
3 February 2026
Trump’s tariffs and threats are pushing the world to look elsewhere
The EU–India trade deal marks more than a commercial agreement. It signals a growing willingness among major economies to reduce their exposure to US coercion and to build new trade frameworks beyond Washington’s reach.
3 February 2026
Mexico’s political transformation: the revolution isn’t being televised
Mexico’s government has delivered falling violence, rising wages and broad social reform. Yet its record has attracted remarkably little attention in the English-language media, even as external pressure from the United States intensifies.
2 February 2026
Australia’s Trump reprieve masks a deeper strategic dilemma
Australia may have escaped the worst of Donald Trump’s return to power so far. But beneath the surface, Washington’s shift towards spheres of influence is exposing serious weaknesses in Australia’s strategic posture.
2 February 2026
Mass layoffs continue to punish working class under Trump
Major US companies including Amazon, UPS and Dow are announcing large job cuts as employment growth slows, raising questions about the strength of the US labour market under Donald Trump.
2 February 2026
When public opinion breaks: ICE, Trump and a political tipping point
Political opinion usually shifts slowly, but history shows that certain events can force sudden, irreversible change. The killings linked to ICE enforcement may mark such a moment in the United States.
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