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Sep 24, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump personally greeted Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews — a display of deference that observers say wasn't returned when Trump visited Beijing in May.HuffPost senior reporter S.V. Dáte was among the first to flag the historic nature of the gesture, noting "going out to the airport to greet a foreign leader has not been done in 60 years," and that "presidents in recent decades have done that only for papal visits." His verdict: "Trump is doing it to honor a ruthless dictator."Multiple accounts noted Trump and first lady Melania Trump stood at the bottom of the stairs as six F-16s and six F-22s sat parked behind them and a red carpet rolled across the concrete, kicking off a three-day state visit including a formal dinner. It was, several pointed out, the first time an American president has greeted a visiting head of state that way since John F. Kennedy welcomed British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in 1962.Xi did not extend Trump the same courtesy in May.Social media users were quick to note the hypocrisy. One user going by Covie wrote: "Notice that President Xi didn't even go to the airport to meet trump when trump visited China but trump is at the airport putting on a whole show to greet Xi when Xi visits US. Republicans' daddy has a daddy." Tech commentator O.C. Omar added: "You know who is Boss."An account tracking Chinese news, Dailylifenews, resurfaced an old Trump tweet mocking Barack Obama for hosting a visit from then-Vice President Xi Jinping in 2012, when Trump called the honors "so wrong."Uppsala University peace and conflict researcher Ashok Swain contrasted the treatment with Trump's chillier reception of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who "didn't even come to White House front door."Commentator Mario Nawfal noted the stakes: Beijing remains the top source of fentanyl precursor chemicals blamed for roughly 35,000 American deaths in the past year, with tariffs, chips and rare earths also on the table. "If he walks away from three days of pageantry without a single commitment," Nawfal wrote, "Beijing got the photographs for free."The last President who went to the tarmac to receive a visiting head of state was John F Kennedy in 60s. Trump is rolling out the red carpet for Xi in the hope that America and China can manage the Great Reset. https://t.co/Ce76vytzk8— Zakka Jacob (@Zakka_Jacob) September 24, 2026

Sep 24, 2026 - World

Role for Anant Ambani, son of India’s richest person, who also runs a controversial mega-zoo, met with incredulityNewcastle University is facing a backlash from conservationists over the appointment of the heir to an Indian oil and gas fortune who runs a controversial mega-zoo as a professor of sustainability.The university announced that Anant Ambani had been given a professorship of practice for “his work in conservation, biodiversity protection, animal welfare and environmental stewardship” and “significant contributions to advancing a more sustainable future”. Continue reading...

Sep 23, 2026 - World

Suicide attempts in the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group climbed to eight during its combat deployment, far above what carriers usually see, an official said.Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao disclosed the figure in a letter dated Tuesday to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), according to CNN, which obtained the letter.The outlet said the number had not been previously reported. No sailor died by suicide during the deployment, Cao insisted."Since the beginning of Lincoln's deployment, there have been a total of eight suicide attempts across the strike group," Cao wrote to Gillibrand, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "This number includes the Lincoln crew and sailors from the carrier air wing, strike group and destroyer squadron staff, escorting destroyers and all embarked aviation squadrons.""Eight attempted suicides is incredibly high," a U.S. military official told CNN. "The strain of combat ops is much higher than normal deployments. No port calls, constant alerts, etc."The official said recent carrier strike group deployments have seen one or two attempts a year.CNN reported that between 6,000 and 7,000 sailors served in the strike group across about a half dozen ships. The carrier stayed out of port for more than six months while carrying out combat operations against Iran.The strike group's rate of attempts was roughly in line with the rate for the entire active-duty Navy in 2024, when the service recorded 356 attempts among about 337,000 sailors, according to CNN. The official was comparing the Lincoln with other carrier deployments, not the Navy as a whole."We have not observed an increase in suicidal ideations or attempts aboard the ship," the Navy said in an earlier statement to CNN."A small number of mental health cases were treated with no loss of life," Cao said in an August statement, according to the Washington Examiner.CNN had previously reported that two sailors from the strike group jumped overboard in recent months. Both were rescued, U.S. officials said. Cao's count of eight is higher than the two incidents reported earlier in the summer.Cao confirmed in the letter that an air wing sailor went overboard in early August. The CNN report said that the sailor was recovered and treated aboard the carrier."Additionally, one sailor attempted to go overboard in March and was stopped by his shipmates," Cao wrote.At Joint Base Andrews on Aug. 14, a reporter told President Donald Trump that families of Lincoln sailors were concerned about conditions aboard the ship."No, they're not," Trump said. Asked whether the deployment had gone on too long, he answered, "No, no, not nearly long enough.""The Fake News media should STOP exploiting military families!" Pentagon deputy press secretary Jacob Bliss wrote on X that day."It was fake news reporting from CNN," Trump later said of the reports of distress by the families.Gillibrand responded to Cao's letter in a statement to Newsweek."What Trump and Secretary [of Defense Pete] Hegseth dismissed as 'fake news' turned out to be serious and deteriorating conditions for our service members," Gillibrand said.The Lincoln left the Middle East in August and is expected back in San Diego in the coming weeks.

Sep 23, 2026 - World

An economist warned that President Donald Trump is aiming the same weapon the U.S. used against Iran at America's own economy.University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers, founder of the Platypus Economics newsletter and podcast, sounded the alarm during a Wednesday episode of "The Trump Report" with host Maddie Hale. The pair were discussing Trump's claim that he is open to banning diesel exports as U.S. diesel prices hit record highs.Wolfers pointed out that the Trump administration had waged what he called an "economic D-Day" against Tehran by choking off its energy sales."The U.S. hates Iran. So, in order to destroy the Iranian economy, they had economic D-Day in which they've tried to prevent Iran from exporting energy to get money," Wolfers explained. "The president has just voluntarily said he wants to get the U.S. to stop exporting energy to get money. He's applying the same economic policy to the United States as to Iran. That's kind of bonkers, right?"Hale admitted she "didn't actually think of it like that."Wolfers said the idea runs "upside down" and "back to front" from Trump's own trade agenda."The president came to power, and he's imposed tariffs on imports because he's worried about the balance of payments or he's worried about the trade deficit," Wolfers said. "So he wants America to be exporting more and importing less. What is he suggesting? There's not even a word in my textbook for a tariff on exports."Wolfers added, "It's the opposite of what the president thinks and what the president thinks was mixed up to start with."He said a ban "would solve a narrow problem and be an absolutely absurd economic solution." Consumers would get cheaper diesel, Wolfers said, but "anyone whose 401(k) owns stock in an energy company, that energy company's now losing a lot of revenue."The refining and drilling regions in Texas "are going to be somewhat depressed," Wolfers warned.Wolfers also noted there is little to stop such a move because "it's so widely understood it's a dumb move that no one ever bothered signing anything to say don't do it."He also questioned the timing. High gas prices angered "moms and dads and regular voters," he said, yet "the president never once thought about restricting exports of gasoline." Diesel, by contrast, is used by "farmers and truckers" and by "corporations, big agriculture, transportation companies."Wolfers said the proposal signals to allies that the U.S. can't be trusted on basic commerce."The point is we are so unreliable we're not even pursuing our self-interest," he said.

Sep 23, 2026 - World

A CNN analyst pointed out a startling contrast ahead of the meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.On Thursday, CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter mentioned that Xi will be arriving in Washington, D.C., amid Trump's media ban. The conversation came up as a panel discussed a hearing that took place on Wednesday to decide on a temporary restraining order to block Trump's media ban."In the next couple of hours, the Chinese leader lands in the United States, and there will not be a TV pool camera there," Stelter explained. "Normally, NBC would be the pool crew today. They'd be set up already at [Joint Base] Andrews waiting for the arrival ceremony."However, "NBC is not there because none of the major TV networks are providing pool coverage in solidarity with CNN," Stelter explained. "So that is going to be remarkable. Well, we're not going to see it, but it's a contrast."Networks like ABC, CBS and even Fox News joined NBC in withdrawing pool coverage in solidarity with the banned media outlets, CNN, MS NOW and Politico. That means none of them will cover Xi's arrival as Trump is there to greet him."You're going to have Chinese state-run media there, but you're not going to have the free democratic media because we are trying to send a message, trying to make a statement about making sure that our rights are protected," Stelter explained. "And my goodness, the contrast could not be more stark."CNN White House correspondent Kristen Holmes said the contrast will create a "fascinating moment" because Trump has been planning his meeting with Xi for months and has a special welcome in mind."He is going to Joint Base Andrews; this is not done. He has not done this with any other leader," Holmes explained. "He wants the pictures of this out there. He wants the photos. He wants the video of this elaborate welcome of President Xi that they have been planning now for months, and instead, he is not going to get that."