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The EU Migration Pact

The EU Migration Pact

Irregular migration into the EU has become the political football of the 21st century. Irregular migration into Europe is a complex and urgent issue driven by conflicts, economic struggles and human rights abuses in migrants’ home countries. To help things run more smoothly, the EU introduced the Pact on Migration and Asylum. However, it’s faced some political pushback, highlighting the ongoing challenge of balancing member states’ compliance with domestic pressures. Adblock test (Why?)

Here are the top 5 Democrats who could lead the party after Kamala’s fall

Here are the top 5 Democrats who could lead the party after Kamala’s fall

Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss to President-elect Donald Trump places the Democratic Party in an awkward position of having no clear leader in the months to come. Once President Biden and Harris leave office in January, Democrats will be without a figurehead, proving an opportunity for some of the party’s top personalities to fill the void. Here are the most likely candidates: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer could play a major role in shepherding the Democratic Party through the next four years. He has led Democrats in the Senate for decades, and with Rep. Nancy Pelosi stepping back from leadership in Congress, he is the most senior Democrat left in the branch. He will now have to contend once again with a Republican majority in the Senate, however. SHUTDOWN STANDOFF LOOMS IN CONGRESS’ FINAL WEEKS BEFORE TRUMP’S RETURN TO WHITE HOUSE House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., presents a younger alternative to Schumer as Pelosi’s successor in the House of Representatives. Jeffries is sure to play a central role in Democrats’ efforts to hamper the Trump administration and congressional Republicans over the next four years. ALL EYES ON CALIFORNIA AS HOUSE MAJORITY STILL HINGES ON TIGHT RACES California Gov. Gavin Newsom is widely thought to have national ambitions, and the void left by Biden and Harris could be the opportunity he’s been looking for. Newsom loudly ruled himself out from contesting Biden’s re-election campaign early in the 2024 cycle, and he is already making plays to position himself as a standout leader against Trump. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro could also position himself as a Democratic leader. Spurned by Harris as a VP pick, he is now free from the political fallout from her loss that has also disqualified Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Shapiro enjoys an over-60% approval rating in Pennsylvania, arguably the most important state for winning the presidency. While “Mayor Pete” has played a relatively quiet role under the Biden administration as transportation secretary, the Biden-Harris departure could give him an opportunity to resume his meteoric rise within the Democratic Party. Buttigieg secured a position in the party’s top tier with his performance in the 2019 Democratic primary, but it remains unclear what role he will play after the Biden administration comes to a close.

Would the US defend Taiwan under Trump if China invades? Fox News investigates

Would the US defend Taiwan under Trump if China invades? Fox News investigates

The year 2027 has become a fixation for Washington. It’s the year that U.S. intelligence projects China will be ready and capable for an invasion of Taiwan.  It could happen sooner, as evidenced by military drills in the South China Sea. Or, it could not happen at all.  But President-elect Donald Trump’s victory on Tuesday leaves the Taiwanese wondering whether the U.S. would come to their defense under a new, non-interventionist-minded administration.  Trump’s public comments might suggest that he would not be willing to put boots on the ground to face another global superpower in defense of a tiny island democracy.  “I think Taiwan should pay us for defense,” Trump told Bloomberg Businessweek in June.  “You know, we’re no different than an insurance company. Taiwan doesn’t give us anything,” he added. In October, he once again complained about U.S. aid to Taiwan and accused the nation of “stealing” the U.S. microchip industry. “You know, Taiwan, they stole our chip business,” Trump said during his appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast. “They want us to protect, and they want protection. They don’t pay us money for the protection, you know. The mob makes you pay money, right? But with these countries that we protect, I got hundreds of billions of dollars from NATO countries that were never paying us.” Trump’s close advisors are far more hawkish on the Taiwan matter than the president-elect’s comments would suggest he is, according to Lyle Goldstein, director for Asia engagement at Defense Priorities.  “During Trump’s last four years there was quite a robust stance in favor of defending Taiwan through various measures taken chiefly, I think, through his advisors,” said Goldstein.  XI JINPING WARNS TRUMP US WOULD ‘LOSE FROM CONFRONTATION’ WITH CHINA AS RENEWED TRADE WAR LOOMS Asked in October if he would defend Taiwan in a China invasion, Trump told the Wall Street Journal: “I wouldn’t have to, because he respects me and he knows I’m f––– crazy.” Asked how he would convince Xi to avoid such an invasion, Trump responded: “I would say: If you go into Taiwan, I’m sorry to do this, I’m going to tax you” — meaning impose tariffs — “at 150% to 200%.”  He may even ban trade between the two nations.  He spoke highly of his relationship with Xi. “I had a very strong relationship with him. He was actually a really good, I don’t want to say friend — I don’t want to act foolish, ‘He was my friend’ — but I got along with him great. He stayed at Mar-a-Lago with me, so we got to know each other great. He’s a very fierce person.” The U.S. routinely sends military equipment to Taiwan, and that is expected to continue through the next administration. In October, the Biden administration approved $2 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, including radar systems and three National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems.  With rapidly improving drone capabilities, the U.S. could come to Taiwan’s aid in an invasion without deploying troops to the region. “I want to turn the Taiwan Strait into an unmanned hellscape using a number of classified capabilities,” Adm. Samuel Paparo, the commander of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, told The Washington Post at the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Shangri-La Dialogue Summit. In doing so, he said, “I can make their lives utterly miserable for a month, which buys me the time for the rest of everything.”  But there is hope among restraint groups that Trump will be focused on economic warfare with China – rather than military. Trump has threatened a blanket 60% tariff on Chinese goods.  BIDEN FINALIZES CRACKDOWN ON US MILITARY TECH INVESTMENTS IN CHINA WITH ONE WEEK TO LAME DUCK SESSION “I think his approach on China will be very tough on the economic side,” said Goldstein. “But — I’m hoping anyway — easing tensions on the diplomatic and military side.” “We don’t have that alliance with Taiwan,” Goldstein went on. “We have an alliance with Japan. And with the Philippines. We may want to double down on guarding our allies . . . the Taiwan issue is a powder keg — it’s exceedingly dangerous. And we should play very cautiously here.” The U.S. has long recognized a One China policy and pursued a policy of strategic ambiguity, refusing to reveal whether it would come to Taiwan’s defense in an all-out war.  Biden seemed to want to declare his intention to defend Taiwan from China. His staff was forced to walk back a series of off-the-cuff statements that seemed to undermine strategic ambiguity.  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “The U.S. is standing up for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait,” the president said at West Point in May. He added pointedly: “I’ve always been willing to use force when required to protect our nation, our allies, our core interests.” 

Experts predict Trump will tap his own appellate judges for Supreme Court in the event of a retirement

Experts predict Trump will tap his own appellate judges for Supreme Court in the event of a retirement

President-elect Trump can be expected to stick to his previous judicial philosophies when looking for a potential Supreme Court nominee if a justice retired from the high court, experts say.  Trump appointed three justices to the Supreme Court, all three of whom were under the age of 55 at the time of their appointments. Likewise, Trump appointed more than 50 federal appellate judges during his first term. Politicians and media personalities have called for the older justices on the court to step down, particularly justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, in anticipation of a Trump presidency. Such calls were also directed toward justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan prior to the general election. Politico recently reported Democrats are discussing whether Sotomayor should resign during their two remaining months in control of the Senate.  JUSTICE SONIA SOTOMAYOR FACES PRESSURE TO RETIRE AHEAD OF TRUMP TAKING OFFICE: REPORT “No one other than justices Thomas and Alito knows when or if they will retire, and talking about them like meat that has reached its expiration date is unwise, uninformed and, frankly, just crass,” conservative legal activist Leonard Leo told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Justices Thomas and Alito have given their lives to our country and our Constitution and should be treated with more dignity and respect than they are getting from some pundits.”  Trump may have the opportunity to further bolster the conservative majority by appointing younger justices if any justices retire. “I think you can start counting down the days until Thomas retires,” said Devon Ombres, senior director of courts and legal policy at CAPAction. When asked where Sotomayor and Kagan stand, Ombres said, “They’re not leaving now.” “We’re starting to already see conservative activists take the jump in favor of having justices Alito and Thomas retire so that President Trump can replace them with nominees in their 50s as a way of preserving conservative majorities for the next 15 to 20 years on the court,” John Yoo, the Emanuel Heller professor of law at the University of California at Berkeley, told Fox News Digital. Yoo noted, however, that even if such retirements were to take place, the balance of the court as it stands now would remain the same.  ‘IDEOLOGICAL BALANCE’: SUPREME COURT’S CONSERVATIVE MAJORITY TO STAY NO MATTER WHO WINS ELECTION, EXPERTS SAY “It’s not clear to me that they should retire,” Yoo said. “They’re in their mid-70s, and they both seem to be in good health. And they’re both at the top of their game.” Yoo added that if there was a retirment, Trump would likely look to the appellate judges he appointed during his first term as potential nominees.  “I think Trump, given his practices, would probably favor appointing people that he had appointed already to the circuit courts,” Yoo said. “And he has a lot to pick from because he picked a lot of young conservatives.” Ombres specifically noted judges James C. Ho and Stuart Kyle Duncan on the Fifth Circuit as potential Trump nominees to the Supreme Court. Of the 17 active judges on the court, six were Trump appointees. HERE ARE THE MOST TALKED-ABOUT CANDIDATES FOR TOP POSTS IN TRUMP’S ADMINISTRATION  While Yoo did not pick out particular names, he predict4ed Trump will continue to fall back on certain judges.  “Going by who Trump picked already, he picked people who seemed committed to originalism, people who had Justice Department backgrounds. He picked some people like that.” In anticipation of his first administration in 2016, Trump released a list of potential Supreme Court nominees. It was later expanded ahead of the general election that year and once again in 2017. The list proved to be a tactic to ease the minds of Republicans concerned about Trump’s capacity to appoint conservative justices to the court.  Yoo said he does not expect Trump will repeat himself this time around with an updated list.  “I think last time he did it, he was trying to win over the Republican Party, and he was an outsider. Nobody knew whether he was conservative or not. And, so, he put out that list,” Yoo said. “And, so, it’s actually quite clever of Trump at that time to release the names and stick to them as people he would appoint to the Supreme Court because it really committed him in the minds of conservatives.  “And he kept his word. And I think that he doesn’t need to now because people can see his track record.”