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Oct 27, 2026 - World

A stunning electoral upset just lost President Donald Trump the "biggest prize" — as his allies abroad topple, a political expert told Raw Story on Monday. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's runoff victory Sunday against Flávio Bolsonaro, the far-right son of a former president imprisoned for staging a coup, delivered a stinging blow to Trump's plans, Berea College Professor Carlos G. Poggio told Raw Story. "Lula’s victory represents a significant defeat for Donald Trump and [Secretary of State] Marco Rubio," Poggio, a Brazilian political scientist, said in an email. "Brazil was the biggest prize in the conservative tide sweeping Latin America." The defeats for Trump are numerous and multifaceted — they span from the U.S. to Latin America and China and hit his power, and his wallet, Poggio argued. Bolsonaro, 45, had aligned himself with Trump by pledging to mine the Amazon rainforest for critical mineral deposits, which would ease U.S. dependence on Chinese rare earth exports, limited in 2025 in response to Trump's tariffs. Trump would also have had the support of Latin America's largest economy with a GDP of $2.65 trillion, according to data collected by independent statisticians at Worldometer, and the power such money can access. "A Flávio Bolsonaro government would likely have become Trump’s most important regional ally, supporting the Trump administration’s security agenda and closer U.S. access to Brazil’s critical minerals," Poggio said. That may be why the Bolsonaro family have had help from two officials from within Trump's State department since 2025, as a Reuters report revealed earlier this month. The officials, Darren Beattie and Ricardo Pita, first tried to reinstate former President Jair Bolsonaro, ousted in 2022 and charged after attempting a coup that reportedly involved plans to assassinate Lula. Then in September 2025, when Jair Bolsonaro received a 27-year sentence for leading the coup attempt, the pair pivoted to his son, according to the report. Both men advocated for punitive measures to weaken Lula, including the designation of Brazilian gangs as terrorist groups and the imposition of sanctions against the Brazilian Supreme Court Justice who led investigations into Jair Bolsonaro, Reuters reported.Meanwhile, Flávio Bolsonaro promised to seek amnesty for his father and the rioters who supported him, as well as impeachments for the Supreme Court justices who jailed them, according to the New York Times.But Lula stood up to Trump, refusing to drop coup charges against the elder Bolsonaro. While this act of resistance garnered Lula some support, it was not strong enough to win his initial contest against Bolsonaro earlier this month. The Brazilian incumbent won only 45 percent of the vote to Bolsonaro's 47 percent, triggering a runoff as neither met the nation's 50 percent requirement for victory. Poggio believes this initial defeat worked in the favor of the Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT)or Workers Party, and Lula, who won on Sunday by 4 million votes."Flávio Bolsonaro’s lead encouraged some complacency among supporters who believed the election was largely won," Poggio said. "Lula’s defeat instead generated urgency: the PT reactivated its grassroots organization, while unions, social movements, artists, intellectuals and civil-society figures turned the runoff into a broader mobilization against the return of bolsonarismo."That grassroots organization moved fast to deliver what Poggio described as "a concrete economic message" from Lula.Brazilians were promised a "pacote de bondades” or “goodies package” that included a 15 percent increase in Bolsa Família, a financial aid program for Brazil's lower income citizens, as well as fuel-tax reductions, debt relief and education and transportation initiatives, Poggio said.All the while, Bolsonaro struggled to present an equally strong counterpoint, said Poggio."He promised to maintain or expand Bolsa Família and other popular programs associated with Lula, while retreating from some unpopular positions," said Poggio. "This allowed Lula to argue that voters could preserve social protections without accepting the political and institutional risks associated with the Bolsonaro family’s return."Brazilian voters were not alone last week in rejecting the risks involved with a Trump ally's leadership. In Serbia, President Aleksandar Vučić lost control of his government to a group of academics, professionals and public figures who call themselves the Student List and protested their government's increasingly authoritarian measures. And in April, Hungary's leader Viktor Orbán — an autocrat and staunch Trump supporter — was thrown from power in a popular vote.On Tuesday, Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu faces the possibility of joining Bolsonaro, Vučić and Orban's ranks as he bids for reelection amid wars in Gaza and Iran that Trump is also involved in.Left-leaning leaders across the world were celebrating Lula's victory Monday.Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum called it a win for democracy and the people of Brazil. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez replied to the news, "The global progressive resurgence has just begun."Poggio concurs the Brazilian vote will serve as a vital check. "Lula’s victory interrupts that rightward momentum and preserves Brazil as a counterweight to Washington," he said, "committed to multilateralism, regional autonomy and relations with the Global South."

Oct 27, 2026 - World

Rubio’s decision not to meet Narendra Modi last week was seen by some as a snub – but by focusing on business leaders and oil, the secretary of state made American priorities clear. Plus: the artist bringing a female perspective to men’s clothing• Don’t get This is India delivered to your inbox? Sign up hereWhen the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, visited India for the second time this year, headlines concentrated on who he met and where he went.The fact that Rubio bypassed New Delhi and did not meet the prime minister, Narendra Modi, during his trip last week, and instead traveled to the financial capital, Mumbai, where he met India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (pictured top with Rubio), and business leaders, did not go unnoticed. Nor did his decision to travel to Jamnagar, the small Gujarati town that is home to Reliance Industries’ colossal oil refinery complex. Continue reading...

Oct 26, 2026 - World

Critics have exposed a little-known flaw in President Donald Trump’s "unlawful" diesel deal with Russia that threatens to scare off the banks and ports needed to bring the fuel ashore.Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), five other Democrats and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) warned six major banks and four port authorities about that legal risk in an Oct. 24 letter, Axios reported Monday.The recipients include Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and port authorities in New York, New Jersey and Texas, Axios reported.“[A]ny importation of Russian diesel into the U.S. raises significant legal questions and may be subject to legal action, as well as congressional investigations,” the lawmakers wrote.Asked about the letter, the administration told The Hill that its move is legal.White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers accused Democrats of continuing their “decade-long obsession with investigating President Trump.”The first tanker carrying Russian diesel under the deal, the Agioi Fanendes, loaded 40,000 metric tons at Russia’s Primorsk port on Oct. 22 and is expected in New York on Nov. 7, Reuters reported. Axios noted that ships’ planned destinations often change.Trump announced the deal on Truth Social on Oct. 9, promising lower diesel prices.The Treasury Department issued a license the same day allowing Russian diesel transactions, including “importation into the United States,” through April 7, 2027. Critics say the license conflicts with the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act, a 2022 law that bans imports of Russian energy products, including diesel, Time reported.The lawmakers wrote that “criminal penalties may apply to any company that knowingly buys Russian diesel or facilitates its importation, and not simply the importer of record,” the company named on customs forms.Trump could pardon those crimes but not civil fines, which can equal the fuel’s value and include seizure of the ships that carried it, Scott R. Anderson, a senior editor at Lawfare and a former State Department lawyer, wrote on Oct. 15.The administration can pursue those fines for up to five years after the fuel arrives, giving the next administration a chance to bring them, Anderson wrote.As a result, he wrote, the license “seems unlikely to lead to an actual increase in U.S. imports” of Russian diesel.“Those enabling the administration’s unlawful acts should generally be on notice about the risks they are taking,” former Rep. Tom Malinowski, a New Jersey Democrat, wrote on X Monday.In March 2022, when Treasury issued a license letting Russian oil shipments already under contract enter the country, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it would hold the cargo and bar unloading until it verified the paperwork, according to a CBP bulletin.This time, Raw Story found no similar CBP notice.Treasury’s terrorism and financial intelligence office has said on X that the new license “is in compliance with all applicable laws.”The 2022 law lets a president lift the ban only after consulting Congress, certifying that Russia has agreed to leave Ukraine on terms Kyiv accepts and waiting 90 days so lawmakers can block it, Time reported.A bipartisan group of senators, including Tillis, said Oct. 11 that the administration “failed to consult with Congress or submit any explanation” for its decision.Rival fuel sellers would likely have grounds to sue, but only once the imports actually happen, Anderson wrote.Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) introduced a bill to nullify the license, and three House committees have referred it, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported.Investigating the deal will be a priority if Democrats win control of either chamber in next week’s midterm elections, Axios reported.The lawmakers asked the banks and ports to confirm by Wednesday that they are preserving contracts, shipping documents and payment records tied to Russian diesel.

Oct 26, 2026 - World

Commanders suspected of sexual violence during the largest and fastest slaughter of civilians in more than 30 years have been subjected to travel ban and asset freezeSenior Sudanese commanders implicated in a “campaign of rape” have been targeted by the UK on the first anniversary of a mass atrocity that saw tens of thousands of civilians killed over several days.A year after the fall of El Fasher, the British government said it had sanctioned military leaders from both sides in the country’s ongoing conflict whom it suspected of sexual violence during the siege of the city. Continue reading...

Oct 26, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump seems to be trying to stoke what one analyst described as "deliberate chaos" at the United Nations. The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, citing sources familiar with the matter, that the Trump administration is advocating for former Hungarian dictator Viktor Orbán, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, for the U.N. Secretary-General position. That would give Orbán power to settle conflicts between body members and would require him to be the public-facing head of the organization. Orbán did not officially state that he is running for the Secretary-General position, as he has reservations about a nationalist politician serving in such a role, according to the report. Current Secretary-General António Guterres' term ends on Dec. 31. The Journal's conservative editorial board was none too pleased about the report. "Maybe the best to say about the Orbán idea is that it would lift the veil by giving the U.N. a leader as low as Turtle Bay has already sunk," the editors wrote. The report also outraged several political analysts online. Jim Stewartson, a politics writer, described the move to support Orbán's hypothetical candidacy as "deliberate chaos.""It feels like we’re watching the end of a bad frat party where a bunch of chuds run out of beer so they just start breaking stuff and throwing furniture in the pool or whatever. It’s just deliberate chaos," Stewartson posted on X. Mike Nellis, a Democratic political strategist, was flabbergasted by the idea. "Holy s---, they're nuts," Nellis posted on X. Ruth Ben-Ghiat, an expert on authoritarianism, was not entertained by the report either. "What a joke," she posted on X.