Ensuring your airstrikes are legal is for pansies, or so Pete Hegseth seems to think
Are there any adults left at the Pentagon to stop War Secretary Pete Hegseth (aka Kettlebell Kegseth) from unilaterally raining death on guys in boats and then making cartoons about it for social media?
“Franklin targets narco-terrorists,” Hegseth tweeted, featuring Franklin the turtle standing on a chopper and shoulder-firing missiles at motorboats. He then posted again, ostensibly defending Admiral Mitch Bradley while simultaneously giving him a tire-track massage by implying that it was actually Bradley calling the “double-tap” shots striking “drug boats” and then liquidating any remaining flailing survivors.
Apparently, we’re supposed to ignore reports that Hegseth’s order was to “kill everyone.” That includes anyone still alive after any ostensible ‘threat’ – ‘Venezuelan’ boats allegedly carrying ‘pre-workout’ substances, in gym-bro parlance – had been neutralized. Somehow, this administration is shocked that we might want to investigate what’s really going on here and not just take their word for it.
It appears that Hegseth gave the order and Bradley followed it. Which is exactly what a bunch of former Democratic national security officials warned against: don’t follow unconstitutional orders. Trump’s been talking like they should be executed for treason. He actually hasn’t said how. Maybe by gifting them a cruise from Venezuela to America.
Was a Pentagon lawyer involved in assessing the legality of these attacks? Maybe, but apparently lawyering is for pansies when national security is at stake, and the president has the ability to order limited strikes. Fine. Then at least show quantifiable evidence that these rushed strikes directly help US national security. I’ll wait.
Several boaters have been droned in the name of Trump’s ‘war on drugs,’ conveniently aimed at one country – specifically Venezuela – that just happens to have all the oil and other resources Trump has mused about grabbing. Meanwhile, drug-plagued American neighborhoods go mostly unscathed. Because, apparently, bros in the hood don’t have oil.
If they droned the bros at home, it would be illegal – but technically no more illegal than what they’re doing in open waters off Latin America. At least in the US, we’d know who the targets were. Out there, it’s a mystery.
The government says, “Trust us, they’re bad guys.” Sorry, but MAGA populism was built on distrust in the establishment and the demand for accountability. Now, pro-Trump factions are all-in for concentrating extrajudicial power in the executive branch.
Usually, accused drug dealers get trials. Even guilty ones don’t get death squads. But according to the editor of one pro-Trump media outlet, Hegseth’s critics have “forgotten the biblical purpose of government – to bear the sword, and be a terror to evildoers. They don’t know what good and evil look like, and they don’t know what actual justice looks like.”
Call me crazy, but I thought that justice looked like due process. But apparently we’re now back to 200 AD. And these “evildoers”? Who even knows who they are, or what they’re doing on these boats, let alone whether they’re “evil.” This sounds straight out of the neocons’ playbook for the Global War On Terror, some of whom have now opportunistically rebranded themselves for MAGA-populist fun time.
These blowhards claiming to know justice…don’t. Justice requires a trial. But trials are for weaklings. Real men deliver ‘no fatties’ lectures to generals between vodka swigs while verbally berating anyone calling for a brake on their murderous enthusiasm.
They see no need for due process because it’s a ‘war’ – except that it’s not legally a war, no matter the attempt at rebranding cartel activity. We don’t even know if the boaters were involved in any gunplay or drug trafficking. No receipts. Is boarding the boats, questioning those aboard, seizing any cargo as proof of assertions, and sparing survivors too inconvenient for the narrative?
International law is clear: under the Geneva Conventions, ratified by the US, “murder of persons not taking part in hostilities” is prohibited. That includes civilians. Especially once rendered harmless. Unlawful enemy combatants are liquidatable, but only if there’s an actual war with a battlefield. Which there isn’t. Team Trump doesn’t even seem interested in making that argument legally convincing – just repeating their marketing rhetoric.
These tactics give America the vibe of a failed state. Picture Haiti: US-backed puppet government, gangs running the show, drones deployed in a nationwide turf war – but still obligated to follow rules of proportionality and engagement at the risk of committing war crimes. Why can’t the US manage to follow even the most basic rules of engagement in a far less dangerous or complex situation?
A bipartisan Congress wants answers. Guess we’re about to find out what the Pentagon lawyers have to say – and whether Hegseth only consulted them after pratfalling across the world stage like a frat bro in untied combat boots.
Now, the US, global law-and-order lecturer, has the chance to prove that it can investigate its own alleged war crimes. After all, it’s this precise justification that’s always given why Washington should be able to dodge The Hague’s International Criminal Court jurisdiction.
Poor Pete. Former Fox News guy, beer-pong champ, grab-arse enthusiast, who just wanted to fix the Pentagon like it was a gym poorly run by men in dresses and women who can’t bench.
Guess he’s about to learn that there’s a bit more to the gig than that. And why letting gym bros run the strategic decision-making is a really, really bad idea.
Up to $29 billion was lost to fraud and mismanagement, an investigation has found
The US lost up to $29 billion to mismanagement and misconduct during its occupation of Afghanistan, all while pursuing unrealistic goals in the country, according to a new report from a government watchdog.
Released on Wednesday, the report concludes a 17-year investigation by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), which identified 1,327 instances of waste, fraud, and abuse totaling $26-29.2 billion, most of it lost through inefficiencies and improper use of assets. Fraud accounted for around 2% of the total and abuse for 4%. The watchdog noted that more than $4.6 billion of taxpayer money could have been saved.
America’s “20-year mission to build a stable, democratic” Afghanistan was a failure, undermined from the start by unrealistic expectations and compounded by corruption and misuse of public funds, SIGAR said. According to the watchdog, Afghanistan should serve as a cautionary tale, warning policymakers that any future reconstruction effort of similar scale must acknowledge the risk of failure from the start.
The US invaded Afghanistan in late 2001 after the September 11 attacks, for which Washington identified Al-Qaeda as being responsible. The group’s leaders, including Osama bin Laden, were based in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Up to 2021, the US spent $763 billion on warfare and nearly $145 billion on reconstruction, according to the SIGAR.
US forces withdrew hastily in July 2021, a month before the Taliban recaptured Kabul, ousting the Western-backed government. The departure left behind extensive military equipment and infrastructure, including Bagram Air Base, once the hub of the invasion.
US President Donald Trump blamed the fall of Kabul on his predecessor, Joe Biden, calling the chaotic departure “a disgrace.” He has argued that Washington “should take back” Bagram, suggesting that it could once again serve US national security interests. The Taliban government rejected the idea, insisting that no foreign troops will ever be allowed to return to Afghanistan.
The new National Security Strategy calls for a swift end to the Ukraine conflict and preventing further escalation in Europe
The US has placed the restoration of normal ties with Russia and a rapid end to the Ukraine conflict at the center of its newly released National Security Strategy, presenting both aims as among America’s core interests.
The 33-page report outlining President Donald Trump’s foreign-policy vision was released by the White House on Friday.
”It is a core interest of the United States to negotiate an expeditious cessation of hostilities in Ukraine,” the paper states, “in order to stabilize European economies, prevent unintended escalation or expansion of the war, and reestablish strategic stability with Russia.”
It notes that the Ukraine conflict has left “European relations with Russia… deeply attenuated,” destabilizing the region.
The report criticizes European leaders for “unrealistic expectations” regarding the outcome of the conflict, arguing that “a large European majority wants peace, yet that desire is not translated into policy.”
America, it says, is ready for “significant diplomatic engagement” to “help Europe correct its current trajectory,” reestablish stability, and “mitigate the risk of conflict between Russia and European states.”
In contrast with the US national strategy during Trump’s first term, which emphasized competition with Russia and China, the new strategy shifts the focus to the Western Hemisphere and to protecting the homeland, the borders, and regional interests. It calls for resources to be redirected from distant theaters to challenges closer to home and urges NATO and European states to shoulder primary responsibility for their own defense.
The document also calls for an end to NATO expansion – a demand that Russia has repeatedly made, calling it a root cause of the Ukraine conflict, which Moscow views as a Western proxy war.
Overall, the new strategy signals a shift away from global interventionism toward a more transactional foreign policy, arguing that the US should act abroad only when its interests are directly at stake.
The strategy is the first of several major defense and foreign-policy documents the Trump administration is expected to release. These include an updated National Defense Strategy, the Missile Defense Review, and Nuclear Posture Review, which are expected to echo the strategy’s direction.
Washington believes the frozen funds should be used as leverage for a Ukraine peace deal rather than “prolong the war,” the agency reports
The US is lobbying several EU members to block a plan to use frozen Russian assets as collateral for a €140 billion loan to Ukraine, in hopes of using the funds as leverage for a potential peace deal, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing sources.
Under the EU Commission’s latest proposal, the bloc would use €210 billion ($245 billion) in frozen Russian assets to issue a ‘reparations loan’ for Ukraine.
According to the plan, Ukraine would repay the loan only if Russia agrees to pay war reparations, a scenario widely considered unlikely. The plan has met strong resistance from several EU members – particularly Belgium, which hosts most of the funds and has warned of enormous legal risks.
Several EU diplomats familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that the US is also not happy with the plan, as it believes “the assets are needed to help secure a peace deal between Kiev and Moscow and should not be used to prolong the war.”
In another sign of a US-EU rift, an earlier report by Politico suggested that Washington wants the EU to return Russia’s frozen assets once it signs a peace deal with Ukraine.
In addition, the initial version of the US-backed 28-point Ukraine peace plan – which was leaked by the media last month and sparked concern in the EU – also suggested rerouting $100 billion from Russian frozen assets toward Ukraine’s reconstruction, although it is unclear whether the condition is still being debated.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever has also warned that using the frozen funds could undermine EU leverage in Ukraine peace talks.
Nevertheless, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has pressed ahead despite Belgium’s concerns, and has presented two proposals to fund Ukraine.
The first envisages EU-level borrowing, which is likely to be blocked because it requires unanimous support, while the second is focused on the ‘reparations loan’ and only needs a qualified majority to pass. Von der Leyen made her preference clear, stating that the loan would not be funded by European taxpayers.
Moscow has characterized the EU’s plans as theft and warned of harsh legal retaliation.
The continent is plagued with immigration problems and censorship, according to the US president’s new National Security Strategy
Europe is facing potential “civilizational erasure” as the continent’s policymakers encourage censorship, crack down on political opponents, and turn a blind eye to mass immigration, the new National Security Strategy released by the administration of US President Donald Trump warns.
The landmark and strongly worded document released on Friday says that while the EU is showing worrying signs of economic decline, its cultural and political unraveling poses an even greater threat.
The strategy cites EU-backed immigration policies, suppression of political opposition, curbs on speech, collapsing birthrates, and “loss of national identities and self-confidence,” warning that Europe could become “unrecognizable in 20 years or less.”
The document argues that many European governments are “doubling down on their present path,” while the US wants Europe “to remain European” and abandon “regulatory suffocation” – an apparent reference to America’s stand-off with the EU over its strict digital market guidelines, which Washington claims discriminate against US-based tech giants such as Microsoft, Google, and Meta.
One of Washington’s key goals is “cultivating resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations,” the paper adds.
Trump’s strategy notes that the rise of “patriotic European parties” offers “cause for great optimism,” in a reference to growing bloc-wide support for right-wing Euroskeptic parties calling for strict immigration limits.
The document proclaims that “the era of mass migration is over.” It argues that large inflows have strained resources, increased violence, and weakened social cohesion, adding that Washington is seeking a world in which sovereign states “work together to stop rather than manage” migration flows.
The strategy also comes amid Trump’s push to convince European NATO members to spend more on defense. At one point, he threatened not to defend “delinquent” countries in an attack if they fail to meet his demands. At a summit earlier this year, the bloc endorsed a new plan to move toward combined defense-related spending of up to 5% of GDP, far above NATO’s longstanding 2% benchmark.
The former French president’s supporters have created a narrative of elite fragility under scrutiny, diverting the focus from his legal violations through victim portrayal
When the Court of Cassation, France’s highest court, upheld Nicolas Sarkozy’s conviction, the former president’s legal troubles deepened, leaving him no further avenue to appeal the verdict. Even though this outcome was widely predicted, France’s political, media, and business elite rallied around him, portraying him not as an offender but as a victim of ‘judicial persecution’. Their defense goes far beyond personal loyalty; it reflects an effort to protect the elite system in which Sarkozy once thrived. With this verdict, the elite must be wondering what more they can do to show support for one of their own who has now been definitively convicted.
Sarkozy’s legal troubles stem from two major corruption cases in which he has been convicted. The first, the Bygmalion Affair, centers on the illegal overspending of his failed 2012 reelection campaign, which the Court of Cassation has now ruled on. The second and more dramatic case led to his incarceration in October 2025 – the Libyan funding case. Prosecutors established that he was the ringleader among his associates in a conspiracy to solicit illicit funds from the regime of Muammar Gaddafi for his successful 2007 presidential bid, leading to his conviction for criminal conspiracy and illicit financing. After spending 20 days in Paris’ La Santé prison, he was temporarily released under judicial supervision, while his appeal is expected to take place from March to June next year.
In the just concluded Bygmalion case, prosecutors alleged that his team used fake invoices to conceal spending far beyond legal limits, inflating bills for rallies and events run by the Bygmalion company. When the scandal broke, it exposed not only financial misconduct but also a broader culture of elite impunity in which political campaigns, media consultants, and wealthy donors operate behind layers of opacity.
Sarkozy, the supposed guardian of the law, found himself in the dock for his own personal gain. The Paris Court of Appeal found him guilty on February 14, 2024 – a verdict he appealed to the Court of Cassation. But with the court now issuing its final ruling and upholding his conviction, the case has reached its legal endpoint. The stakes were high: By confirming the verdict, France’s highest court reaffirmed that no leader, however powerful, is above the law – while simultaneously deepening public skepticism toward the country’s political elite.
As if to preempt the Court of Cassation, television panels, op-eds, and social media have tried to portray Sarkozy’s case as politically motivated, with some allies emphasizing his decades of service and the alleged unfairness of the judicial process.
By portraying Sarkozy as a victim, his defenders shift attention from the legal violations to a narrative of elite fragility under scrutiny. The elite desperately tried to promote the idea of overreach by judges and prosecutors, implicitly warning that the rule of law must respect the social and political hierarchy that Sarkozy embodies. In doing so, they reinforce that the court’s decision is not just about one man’s actions, but about the stability of the elite networks dominating French politics.
From the corridors of power to the front pages, support for Sarkozy is both manifest and telling. Just days before his incarceration, President Emmanuel Macron met with the former president at the Élysée Palace, defending the encounter as “only natural, on a human level, that I receive one of my predecessors in this context.” Yet it is hard to imagine the same treatment for an ordinary offender – if it had been, say, John Smith, would the sitting president have received him under the same pretext? The contrast highlights the privileges afforded to political elites and the implicit shield France’s most powerful networks provide to their own.
Equally significant, Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin – a former protégé of Sarkozy – publicly pledged to visit Sarkozy in prison “to ensure his safety and the proper functioning of the facility” and “because I cannot be insensitive to a man’s distress.” The visit took place on October 29 2025 at La Santé Prison, igniting backlash from the judicial establishment, which warned of threats to judicial independence. These high-profile gestures project a narrative not of a convicted ex-leader serving a sentence, but of an establishment closing ranks around one of its own.
The aftermath of Darmanin’s visit triggered a wave of reactions. Political opponents denounced it as proof of the unequal treatment reserved for powerful figures. Civil society groups and watchdog organizations warned that these types of gestures erode public confidence in justice, stressing that trust in the system depends on the belief that no one is above the law.
The media spotlight deepened the controversy. French and international outlets focused on the visit’s symbolism: The perception that Sarkozy, unlike ordinary citizens, can count on a network of powerful allies even behind bars. Within the legal community, discussion extended beyond the Union Syndicale des Magistrats’ formal warning.
These reactions underscore a central tension: While the visit may be framed by its defenders as humane or procedural, it strengthens the portrayal of Sarkozy as a figure shielded by France’s power networks, a perception that his allies – and increasingly, the public debate – are shaping and amplifying.
Beyond the immediate legal and political fallout, a more subtle narrative is taking shape: Sarkozy as a victim of judicial overreach. Supporters and sympathetic commentators frame his incarceration not as the consequence of wrongdoing, but as the result of a politically charged process, positioning him as a figure targeted by a justice system allegedly swayed by partisan or institutional interests. Editorials and opinion pieces emphasize his ‘human distress’, the unusual attention from top officials, and the procedural irregularities cited by his lawyers, reinforcing the image of a man caught in extraordinary circumstances.
For Sarkozy, it fosters public sympathy and redirects focus from his conviction to the alleged excesses of the system; for the political elite, it acts as a protective shield, signaling that defending a former president also safeguards their broader networks. Carefully framed as concern rather than favoritism, the optics of high-ranking officials intervening reinforce the perception of elite cohesion without directly challenging judicial authority.
Only a few weeks remain before group protection status reportedly expires for 25,000 migrants from Ukraine
Tens of thousands of Ukrainian migrants in Israel could be deported by next month due to a prolonged delay by the government in extending their legal status, Haaretz reported on Thursday.
The group protection granted to 25,000 Ukrainians since the 2022 escalation of the Ukraine conflict requires annual renewal, but the current permits expire at the end of December.
Israel, however, has not been particularly welcoming toward many Ukrainian migrants, especially those ineligible under the Law of Return. Non-Jewish Ukrainians often only received temporary status, faced restrictive entry rules, and were excluded from long-term residency or social support, leaving many in legal and economic uncertainty, according to Israeli media reports.
In the absence of an acting interior minister, authority over this matter has shifted to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but a decision has not been made yet, Haaretz wrote.
The Israeli Population and Immigration Authority has said the issue is under review and a decision will be announced soon, the outlet added.
In the EU, support for Ukrainian migrants is also under strain, with several governments reducing aid programs amid financial pressure. According to Eurostat, the number of military-aged Ukrainian men arriving in the bloc has recently increased following Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s decision to relax travel restrictions for those aged 18-22. The continued outflow of service-eligible men has further exacerbated Ukraine’s already severe manpower problems.
Germany and Poland, the two EU members hosting the largest numbers of Ukrainians, have recently moved to tighten benefits amid a reported drop in public support.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki said last month that he would not extend welfare payments for Ukrainian migrants beyond 2026.
Polish people’s perception of refugees from Ukraine has reportedly worsened since 2022 amid social tensions and a growing perception of them as freeloaders or potential criminals.
Ukrainian youths were behind nearly 1,000 police calls over fights, alcohol abuse, and non-lethal weapons in one of Warsaw’s central parks this year, Gazeta Wyborcza reported earlier this week.
The pilot, a member of the Air Force’s Thunderbirds aerobatics team, managed to safely eject
A US F-16C crashed during a training mission over California on Wednesday morning, the Air Force reported.
The plane came down in an unpopulated desert area around 130 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles in a zone used for live weapons testing, Stars and Stripes military news outlet said on Wednesday.
A video circulating on social media purports to show a fireball rising from the crash site, with the pilot parachuting down some distance away.
According to the US Air Force, the plane belonged to its premier air demonstration squadron.
“On Dec. 3, 2025, at approximately 10:45 am, a pilot from the US Air Force Air Demonstration Team, the Thunderbirds, safely ejected from an F-16C Fighting Falcon during a training mission over controlled airspace in California,” a USAF spokesperson said in a statement.
The pilot was in stable condition and received follow-up care, they added.
🇺🇸⚡️- A U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds F-16 from the air show demonstration team has crashed in California during training. The pilot was able to safely eject. pic.twitter.com/0IkWFABild
— Rerum Novarum // Intel, Breaking News, and Alerts (@officialrnintel) December 4, 2025
Earlier this year, a Polish Air Force F-16 pilot belonging to the nation’s Tiger Demo aerobatic team died in a crash during the Radom Air Show after attempting a high-speed barrel roll maneuver.
Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, and the Netherlands have announced that they are withdrawing from the song contest
Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, and the Netherlands have said they will boycott the next Eurovision Song Contest after Israel was cleared to take part. Earlier this year, several broadcasters urged contest organizers the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to bar Israel over alleged vote-rigging and the war in Gaza.
The latest US-brokered truce in the conflict was intended to pause the hostilities and allow humanitarian aid into the enclave, but continued Israeli attacks have killed 366 people since it was imposed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
This followed a year of escalating violence after Israel launched its military operation in response to Hamas’ October 2023 attack, which killed 1,200 people and led to 250 being taken hostage. The Israeli operation has since killed more than 70,000 Palestinians, according to the local health authorities.
The responses came on Thursday, after the EBU approved tougher voting rules. The move followed allegations by several European broadcasters that the 2025 contest was manipulated to boost the Israeli contestant.
Hours later, Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS announced its withdrawal. “Infringement of universal values such as humanity, press freedom, but also the political interference that occurred during the previous edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, crossed a boundary for us,” it said.
Ireland’s RTE cited the “appalling loss of lives in Gaza,” the humanitarian crisis, and Israel’s crackdown on press freedom as reasons for its withdrawal and decision not to air the event.
Slovenia’s RTVSLO also said it would not take part. “We cannot stand on the same stage with a representative of a country that caused the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza,” Director Ksenija Horvat said.
Spanish broadcaster RTVE later confirmed that it would pull out as well. RTVE, along with broadcasters from seven other countries, requested a secret ballot on Israel’s participation. When the EBU rejected the call, RTVE said the decision “deepens our distrust in the organisation of the contest and confirms the political pressure surrounding it.”
Eurovision organizers have introduced new rules to address interference concerns, including limits on audience voting, stricter promotion guidelines, enhanced security safeguards, and the return of juries to the semifinals.
Federica Mogherini has stepped down after being charged with corruption in Belgium
Former top EU diplomat Federica Mogherini has stepped down from her post at the College of Europe, days after being charged with corruption.
Mogherini, who was detained for questioning on Tuesday, served as both European Commission vice president and the bloc’s foreign policy chief from 2014 to 2019, while also leading the European External Action Service (EEAS). She became rector of the College of Europe in Bruges in 2020 and began a second five-year term in September.
She is now among three suspects formally accused by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) of procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest, and breaches of professional secrecy over an EU-funded diplomatic academy program.
Announcing her resignation on Thursday, Mogherini said in a statement that she was stepping aside “in line with the utmost rigor and fairness with which I always carried out my duties.” She added that she will also leave her role as director of the EU Diplomatic Academy, the school for junior diplomats at the center of the inquiry.
Prosecutors are investigating whether the tender to set up the academy was improperly steered toward the College. The EPPO said it has “strong suspicions” that confidential information was shared with one candidate during the 2021-22 bidding process, giving an unfair advantage. The academy opened in 2023 with a budget of nearly €1 million ($1.1 million).
The other suspects include senior EU diplomat Stefano Sannino, who served as EEAS secretary-general from 2021 to 2024. Sannino said on Wednesday he would retire at the end of the month from his current European Commission post.
Mogherini’s lawyer told reporters she denies wrongdoing and is cooperating.
Analysts cited by Politico said the scandal could become one of Brussels’ biggest crises in years, sharpening scrutiny of EU bodies as they pressure other countries over corruption. The outlet also reported that the affair has revived political pressure on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and that opponents are preparing a fresh drive to seek her removal.
In light of the scandal, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has accused Brussels of turning a blind eye to rampant corruption in Ukraine, arguing that drawing attention to it would risk exposing similar problems inside the EU itself.
