Far-right German party was labeled a ‘confirmed rightwing extremist group’ by country’s domestic intelligence service Germany’s foreign ministry has hit back at the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, following his criticism of Germany’s decision to label the far-right Alternative für Deutschland party as a “confirmed rightwing extremist group” On Thursday, Rubio took to X and wrote: “Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That’s not democracy – it’s tyranny in disguise. What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD – which took second in the recent election – but rather the establishment’s deadly open border immigration policies that the AfD opposes.” Rubio went on to say: “Germany should reverse course.” Read moreIn a response on X the German foreign ministry pushed back against the US secretary of state This decision is the result of a thorough & independent investigation to protect our Constitution & the rule of law It is independent courts that will have the final say We have learnt from our history that rightwing extremism needs to be stopped.” Germany’s response to Rubio comes after its domestic intelligence service, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), designated the AfD as a “confirmed rightwing extremist” force on Friday The BfV’s decision marks a step up from its previous designation of the country’s anti-immigrant, pro-Kremlin and largest opposition party as a “suspected” threat to Germany’s democratic order. According to the BfV the AfD’s xenophobic stances based on an “ethnic-ancestry-based understanding” of German identity are “incompatible with the free democratic basic order” as indicated by the country’s constitution The spy agency added that the AfD “aims to exclude certain population groups from equal participation in society to subject them to unconstitutional unequal treatment and thus to assign them a legally devalued status” It also said: “This exclusionary understanding of the people is the starting point and ideological basis for ongoing agitation against certain individuals or groups of people through which they are defamed and despised indiscriminately and irrational fears and rejection are stirred up.” The far-right party’s rise to popularity in Germany has come as a result of a broader wave of growing rightwing extremism across Europe Free newsletterA deep dive into the policies controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration Musk, who had been given the designation of a “special government employee” by the Trump administration, made back-to-back apparent fascist salutes during the president’s inauguration rally earlier this year during a Capitol Hill hearing that sought to explore supposed government censorship under Joe Biden Republican representative Keith Self quoted Joseph Goebbels the Nazi propaganda minister under Adolf Hitler “A direct quote from Joseph Goebbels: ‘It is the absolute right of the state to supervise the formation of public opinion,’ and I think that may be what we’re discussing here,” he said. It is a priority for CBC to create products that are accessible to all in Canada including people with visual Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered on CBC Gem. The feud deepened late last week to embroil the foreign office, Rubio, Vice President JD Vance and Trump administration billionaire advisor Elon Musk. It also occurred at a complicated time for Germany — just days before the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and Nazi Germany’s unconditional capitulation. Plus, a coalition deal between the center-right and center-left parties was just approved, and now Parliament is set to vote this week to elect conservative leader Friedrich Merz as the country’s new chancellor. Merz has not commented publicly on the intelligence service’s decision. Oleksii Makeiev, Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, told German news agency DPA that he’s concerned about Alternative for Germany’s ties to Russia in light of the classification. The far-right party, known as AfD, has long faced criticism for Russia-friendly positions, and it opposes Germany’s stance toward the war in Ukraine. Berlin is Ukraine’s second-biggest weapons supplier after the United States. Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution described AfD as a threat to the country’s democratic order, saying it “disregards human dignity” — in particular by what the agency called “ongoing agitation” against refugees and migrants. The agency said in its decision that the “ethnicity- and ancestry-based conception of the people that predominates within the party is not compatible with the free democratic order.” It cited the “xenophobic, anti-minority, Islamophobic and anti-Muslim statements made by leading party officials.” The party “aims to exclude certain population groups from equal participation in society, to subject them to treatment that violates the constitution, and thereby assign them a legally subordinate status,” the agency said. The move to classify the AfD, which placed second in national elections in February, as a right-wing extremist group means intelligence officials can now use informants and other tools such as audio and video recordings to monitor its activities nationwide. But it also risks fueling the party’s claims of political persecution. Far-right parties have been gaining ground across Europe, and AfD attracts international attention, including high-profile support from Musk and Vance. Party leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla on Friday condemned the move as “a severe blow to German democracy,” noting that the party has grown into one of the country’s most popular political forces. They alleged that it was politically motivated, a claim the government denies. “The AfD will continue to legally defend itself against these democracy-endangering defamations,” they said. AfD’s second-place finish during the elections cemented the party’s status as a factor that other politicians can’t ignore, but the so-called firewall, which mainstream German political parties have against working with far-right parties, has held. In his post Friday, Rubio called on Germany to undo the classification. “Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That’s not democracy — it’s tyranny in disguise,” he wrote. “What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD — which took second in the recent election — but rather the establishment’s deadly open border immigration policies that the AfD opposes. Germany should reverse course.” The Foreign Ministry wrote that “this is democracy” in a post that replied directly to Rubio. “This decision is the result of a thorough & independent investigation to protect our Constitution & the rule of law,” the ministry wrote late Friday. “It is independent courts that will have the final say. We have learnt from our history that rightwing extremism needs to be stopped.” Vance, meanwhile, referenced the Cold War in his post on X. “The AfD is the most popular party in Germany, and by far the most representative of [the former] East Germany. Now the bureaucrats try to destroy it,” Vance wrote. “The West tore down the Berlin Wall together. And it has been rebuilt — not by the Soviets or the Russians, but by the German establishment.” Musk, who owns X, reposted Vance’s comments and added, “fate loves irony.” Vance met with Weidel in February, nine days before the national election, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. He assailed the firewall in a speech to the conference. “To many of us on the other side of the Atlantic, it looks more and more like old entrenched interests hiding behind ugly Soviet-era words like ‘misinformation’ and ‘disinformation,’ who simply don’t like the idea that somebody with an alternative viewpoint might express a different opinion or, God forbid, vote a different way, or even worse, win an election,” he told the audience. Musk has supported AfD for months, including a chat with Weidel that he livestreamed on X this year to amplify the party’s message. Musk told Weidel that he was “strongly recommending that people vote for AfD.” The audience for the livestream peaked at more than 200,000 X accounts. World & Nation Hollywood Inc. Subscribe for unlimited accessSite Map Countries & Areas Bureaus & Offices About Marco Rubio, Secretary of State QUESTION:  And welcome to Hannity.  We start tonight with a Fox News alert.  At this hour President Trump delivering a spirited commencement address at the University of Alabama.  We will check in with that live in just a few moments.  But first a major announcement from the White House.  Mike Waltz has been nominated now to serve as the next U.S ambassador to the United Nations.  Secretary of State Marco Rubio will now fill in as Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor while continuing to lead the State Department.  this means that Secretary of State Rubio is now the Secretary of State “I think he could take on a bit more.  If only there was a job opening for a devout Catholic…”  When does conclave start?  I think the 7th Here now with more is Secretary of State Marco Rubio.  Mr you’ve got to admit that was pretty funny.  I like that but you have to – it’s an unmarried Catholic male.  You don’t have to be a priest.  Any – people don’t know that.  Any unmarried Catholic male can be pope QUESTION:  I know.  And by the way you have a great – you’ve got a great family and your son’s a great football player and I know you’re very proud we’ve been friends a long time.  Really – and I’m happy for Mike Waltz by the way.  I think he’ll be a great UN ambassador and we need one.  And you – your wheelhouse has always been foreign policy.  I’ve known you forever.  This is your passion.  Your heart is here.  These are consequential times.  We’ve got Europe and then we have this – our number one geopolitical foe Let’s start in Europe.  Let’s start with Putin.  You said this week may be the deciding week for him.  Clearly the minerals deal yesterday was a big win for the President and the White House.  Where do we stand with Putin let’s remind everybody this is not our war.  I mean this is a war that started under Joe Biden.  For three years it went on.  They made no effort to sort of bring it to a conclusion.  And it’s a war that has no military solution:  in essence Putin can’t take all of Ukraine; Ukraine can’t push the Russians all the way back to where they were in 2014.  who is the only leader in the world that can talk to both sides and hopefully bring them to a deal and that’s President Trump.  And that’s what he’s tried to do.  For a hundred days he has done efforts to bring about peace to end the destruction.  You know that Ukraine – it’s going to cost hundreds of billions of dollars to rebuild that country And so the President has tried.  Look we’ve gotten closer.  We – for the first time – we haven’t known this for three years – we kind of can see what it would take for Ukraine to stop.  We can see what it would take for the Russians to stop.  The problem is those two positions are still a little far apart.  we’re not going to give up on it in the sense that we’re not going to be ready to help if we can but there does come a point where the President has to decide how much more time at the highest levels of our government do you dedicate it when maybe one of the two sides or both aren’t really close enough when we’ve got so many – I would argue even more important – issues going on around the world.  Not that a war in Ukraine is not important but I would say what’s happening with China is more important in the long term for the future of the world.  Obviously all these other things that we have going on it either has to be something that can happen or we all need to move on.  That’ll be a decision the President will have to make.  I will say this:  The consequences are really dire in every situation that you’re referring to.  Let me go back to Putin for one more second.  I mean the mineral deal – I don’t think we can under – I don’t think we can overstate how important that’s going to be for Ukraine’s security the relationship they will have now moving forward with the United States.  That’s a big part of the puzzle for people to understand in the four years when Donald Trump was president from 2017 till he left office in 2021 no problems with Vladimir Putin.  But in 2014 that’s when Crimea was annexed.  When Joe Biden was president and Putin was amassing troops on the border and military equipment on the border well what happens if he invades?  Of course he was going to invade.  He said well it depends if it’s a minor incursion.  And it makes you wonder – nobody ever dared to pick up a phone and even attempt or try to stop it from happening.  That to me is unconscionable do you feel like – are you close?  I mean I’m glad you gave everybody that lesson because that’s – not only did it happen in 2014 under President Obama but during that time the Obama administration refused to provide the Ukrainians any military weapons.  They would provide them blankets and sheets and towels and – but they wouldn’t give them weapons provided them the weapons that actually helped stop the Russian tanks from taking Kyiv even when he was no longer in the White House a few years later.  This invasion would have never happened if Donald Trump were in the White House but it did.  It happened under Joe Biden.  It happened just a few months after the fiasco in Afghanistan.  And I think everyone realizes Putin saw that and said now is my time to go and he went.  And this war dragged on for three years you asked how close we are.  I think we know where Ukraine is and we know where Russia is right now and where Putin is.  They’re still far apart.  They’re closer but they’re still far apart.  And it’s going to take a real breakthrough here very soon to make this possible or I think the President is going to have to make a decision about how much more time we’re going to dedicate to this And you’re right about the minerals deal.  It’s good for America because we’ve invested a lot of money in this war.  It’s also good for Ukraine because it’s going to help them be able to develop their economy and rebuild when this war ends.  they’re going to need a lot of money to rebuild.  let’s move to the Middle East and let’s move to what happens in Gaza.  It can no longer remain a launching pad for their missiles to be fired into Israel.  That we agree on.  I know the President has said and you have said and Steve Witkoff has said – everybody has said – the Iranians cannot have a nuclear weapon.  The only reason they’re close is because Joe Biden put a blind eye towards the sanctions that were bankrupting Iran they are closer than they have ever been.  To me a deal with Iran would have to include the following: Their enrichment would have to be stopped their facilities shut down by Americans; we would need anywhere anyplace anytime American inspectors not international inspectors.  Why in my heart of hearts do I not believe that the mullahs of Iran would ever agree to that and do you agree that those should be the conditions SECRETARY RUBIO:  If Iran wants a peaceful civil nuclear program meaning they want nuclear power plants like other countries in the world have there’s a way to do it.  And that is you build the reactors and you import enriched uranium to fuel those reactors.  That’s how dozens of countries around the world do it The only countries in the world that enrich uranium are the ones that have nuclear weapons.  Iran is at – they’re claiming they don’t want a weapon but they would be – what they’re basically asking is to be the only non-weapon country in the world that’s enriching uranium.  And the level at which they enrich it is really not relevant per se because if you have the ability to enrich at 3.67 percent it only takes a few weeks to get to 20 percent and then 60 percent and then the 80 and 90 percent that you need for a weapon.  And so that really is the path forward here.  Iran simply needs to say we’ve agreed to no longer enrich we’re going to have reactors because we want nuclear energy and we’re going to import enriched uranium.  This is an opportunity for them if they take it.  This is – and this is the best opportunity they’re going to have.  President Trump is a president of peace.  He doesn’t want a war.  He doesn’t want conflict.  None of us do.  And there’s a path forward here.  But what cannot happen is to live in a world where Iran has a nuclear weapon QUESTION:  There’s a path forward.  The path forward has been given to them QUESTION:  And now it’s a matter of whether or not they’re going to take it.  And the President was very very clear he would lead the effort to stop them from ever achieving that nuclear weapon.  And that would mean – that statement was obvious in terms of that he would use military force to destroy those facilities.  We have the capacity But back to this question:  Would we need American inspectors and American scientists to shut it down and would that have to be part of the deal and anywhere anyplace anytime American inspectors?  Would they have to agree to that in your mind SECRETARY RUBIO:  I think you would have to allow Americans as part of – you can send – maybe there’ll be French inspectors whoever.  But I think you cannot basically say we will not allow any Americans You also have to make sure – if you really want to prevent a nuclear program then you should open all your facilities.  One of the failures of the Biden – I’m sorry – of the Obama nuclear deal with Iran is that you could not inspect military sites.  Well you would probably make them on a military site.  And by the way it’s been known and discovered that in the past Iran has had a secret nuclear program that it did not disclose to the world So I think if in fact – Iran likes to say they’re not interested in nuclear weapons.  They like to say all they want is peaceful nuclear energy.  Then they should not be afraid of inspections by inspectors of any kind okay?  They can actually have real economic development but they have to walk away from sponsoring terrorists they have to walk away from helping the Houthis they have to walk away from building long-range missiles that have no purpose to exist other than having nuclear weapons and they have to walk away from enrichment.  These are not unreasonable requests.  There are countries all over the world that have nuclear energy and don’t enrich and don’t have long-range missiles and don’t sponsor terrorism.  That path is there for them.  It’s the path of peace.  And frankly and we’ll do everything we can to help convince them that they should take it.  QUESTION:  I have the same prayer that you do.  And they know what the consequences will be and they will probably lose their nuclear sites they’ll lose their refineries.  And if that’s the case that would probably result in poverty and regime change.  China.  You’re right.  I view them as our top geopolitical foe.  Things seem to be heated in public.  Are there any things going on behind the scenes that give you some hope that hopefully on trade and tariffs we can come to some type of agreement?  Because they put tariffs on basically every American product and it’s just – they’ve been ripping us off forever SECRETARY RUBIO:  They have.  They’ve been ripping off the world.  And look this is hurting the Chinese economy.  People forget that the factories where all these shoes and shirts and clothing and all that stuff that comes from China those are all Chinese jobs.  When they say that the containers that the factories are not going to be sending things to America that means they’re out of a job.  This is hurting the Chinese economy badly I think there’s two questions.  Can we reach some sort of short-term accommodation with them?  That’s what they want.  I mean the Chinese are reaching out.  They want to meet.  They want to talk.  We’ve got people involved in that.  Obviously our Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is involved in those efforts and their talks will come up soon.  and that is whether we shouldn’t – this is a wakeup call that we truly need to become a country that can make more things in America and not be as dependent on China.  We were far too dependent on China.  We allowed them through unfair trade practices to de-industrialize us and to use not just tariffs but non-tariff barriers dumping.  We’ve allowed them to use all of those things to — QUESTION:  Intellectual property theft SECRETARY RUBIO:  And stealing intellectual property and really left us de-industrialized as a country and heavily dependent on them.  That’s a very dangerous place to be and he’s doing it now because it needs to be done now.  It cannot wait any longer.  Two more years in this direction and we are going to be in a lot of trouble really dependent on China.  So I do think there’s this broader question about how much we should buy from them at all moving forward Secretary.  These are consequential and transformational times and you’re right in the middle of all of it.  And we wish you the best for the sake of the world and I hope some of these people understand the seriousness of the President.  Sometimes they might underestimate him We use cookies to make our website work better and improve your experience nonprofit news organization that produces award-winning journalism Trump boasts that when he faces a challenge he simply calls his Secretary of State: “He gets it solved.” has adopted Trumpist positions wholeheartedly he took to social media to criticize Germany for designating the political party Alternative for Germany (AfD) as a far-right extremist group Rubio has been provisionally appointed to lead the National Security Council (NSC) — the White House body that oversees U.S But the two-year dual-role experiment proved disastrous not even the master diplomat could handle both “[It’s] an exciting moment here [...] As I think you all know [Rubio] has worn several hats from day one.” The fact that Rubio holds these positions — and that he is expanding their powers even if only temporarily — highlights the trust Trump places in him today The president prefers to surround himself with a relatively small circle of advisers and it’s not uncommon for those he trusts most to be assigned an ever-growing number of responsibilities the final word always belongs to Trump — and his is the only one that counts a friend of Trump’s with no prior diplomatic experience has been steadily expanding his role since January as special envoy for sensitive negotiations Initially focused solely on the war in Gaza he has now added talks with Russia and Iran to his portfolio the deputy chief of staff for political affairs and the architect of the administration’s current immigration policy is rumored to be a likely candidate to permanently take over as national security adviser should Rubio leave the post Unlike Stephen Miller — who was already one of Trump’s top advisers during his first term — Rubio was not initially part of the inner sanctum of the White House In the early days of the new administration the president even joked that he had to be cautious with his Secretary of State because he enjoyed support from Democrats The most pro-Trump circles hadn’t fully warmed to the former senator — a traditional-style politician who had once supported aid to Ukraine and foreign intervention Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would shut the door on Ukraine’s entry into NATO in a speech in Brussels would all but demand that Europeans listen to their far-right parties But that same tour of Latin America began to earn him points with Trump and his inner circle His talks in El Salvador with Nayib Bukele opened the door for the Salvadoran president to agree to hold third-country migrants deported from the United States in his country’s prisons — a move Trump sees as a major success and a cornerstone of his mass deportation policy The former senator and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has also taken great care to cultivate relationships with those right-wing circles that initially viewed him with suspicion It was no coincidence that on the night of the traditional White House Correspondents’ Association dinner he was spotted at the gathering organized by far-right ideologue Steve Bannon at Butterworth’s the favorite restaurant of Trump loyalists in Washington He has also significantly increased his appearances on the president’s favorite network and on new ultra-conservative media outlets — always lavishing praise on Trump and consistently repeating and defending the president’s positions even when they contradict views he championed during his time as a senator Rubio once again lavished praise on Trump during a televised Cabinet meeting “This president inherited 30 years of foreign policy that was built around what was good for the world,” he said we’re making a foreign policy now that’s — was it good for America Rubio has thus chosen to remain as close as possible to Trump — even physically Trump’s style of governance means that instead of reading long memos or sitting through lengthy briefings he prefers to get up from the Oval Office and summon someone in person for a quick consultation That conversation may well determine the president’s stance on an issue and become official policy Other national security advisers or secretaries of state spent their time in office on overseas tours attending meetings or trying to defuse crises in global hotspots He has opted to limit his travel to just a few days at most staying in Washington as much as possible — often not even at the State Department where he uses an unoccupied office to make his calls as the nation’s top diplomat Even when it’s not planned: two weeks ago, he was scheduled to meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte — and with Waltz then still heading the NSC — in the executive floor of the State Department the meeting was moved to the West Wing of the presidential residence To the surprise of White House reporters — who thought the day’s official schedule had ended — they were suddenly summoned to cover an unexpected statement by the head of the Atlantic Alliance The former “Little Marco” had stayed behind Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAÍS USA Edition ¿Quieres añadir otro usuario a tu suscripción ¿Por qué estás viendo esto? cambia tu suscripción a la modalidad Premium Cada uno accederá con su propia cuenta de email lo que os permitirá personalizar vuestra experiencia en EL PAÍS ¿Tienes una suscripción de empresa? 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Puedes consultar aquí los términos y condiciones de la suscripción digital. we can't find the page that you are looking for Don't let that stop you from visiting some of our other great related content protected by reCAPTCHA.css-trhdh3::after{background-color:#fa9000;}EXPLORE MOREblinking-dotLive updatesLive updates, ‘Blackmail tool’: Hamas rejects Israeli plan to bypass Gaza aid agenciesUN and humanitarian aid groups say Israel proposed ‘dangerous’ ration ‘scheme’ after nine-week siege Francis-era reforms that saw a diverse group of cardinals join the mix make his successor nearly impossible to call the California federal penitentiary has been shut for more than six decades The attack comes as Moscow prepares to welcome foreign leaders from China and Brazil Reports say Israel now eyeing occupation of entire enclave control of aid and possible expulsion of Palestinians A study gives clues to cosmic origin of gold and heavy elements and they were created earlier than we thought Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe says the ‘ongoing’ discussions are ‘still in the early stages’ Attack claimed by Houthis temporarily halts air traffic at Israel’s busiest airport and triggers air raid sirens US president makes claim after Mexican leader says her country’s sovereignty ‘not for sale.’ Things you buy through our links may earn Vox Media a commission Donald Trump himself dropped this bombshell on Truth Social: I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations From his time in uniform on the battlefield Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our Nation’s Interests first I know he will do the same in his new role Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as National Security Advisor while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department we will continue to fight tirelessly to Make America Waltz had already made his escape from the House as a first-day White House appointee Now Trump was giving Waltz her dream job as a consolation prize after he got fired That must have been really humiliating to the very ambitious New Yorker he spent multiple decades as the ultimate eminence grise of American foreign-policy thinking To put it bluntly, Marco Rubio is not about to ascend to Kissingerian levels of influence and fame, as Edward Luce of the Financial Times noted: Please people resist writing about Rubio’s growing power Holding NSA and Sec State is not Kissingerian Rubio’s just been a more pliable toady than Waltz It’s also reasonably clear that the whole shuffle wasn’t some sort of carefully thought-out gambit premeditated by the stable genius in the White House or his staff. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce had to be informed by reporters of Trump’s moves during a briefing she was allegedly holding it’s just another day of chaos in the court of the Chaos King By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice and to receive email correspondence from us Password must be at least 8 characters and contain: you’ll receive occasional updates and offers from New York Acting archivist for the National Archives and Records Administration And now interim national security adviser to President Donald Trump Like a Christmas tree bedecked with shiny ornaments of every shape and size has accumulated four titles starting with his confirmation as secretary of state on Jan the same day that Trump took his oath of office It very well could be a record in the modern history of the U.S And it adds to the immigrant success story that is core to the narrative of Rubio a former senator from Florida whose father worked as a bartender and mother toiled as a housekeeper after they left Cuba for the United States But the proliferation of titles raises questions about whether Rubio can play any substantial role in the administration if he is juggling all these positions especially under a president who eschews the traditional workings of government and who has appointed a businessman friend as a special envoy handling the most sensitive diplomacy Trump announced Rubio’s newest position in a social media post Thursday afternoon a surprise twist in the first big personnel shake-up of this administration The president had just ousted Michael Waltz from the White House national security adviser job as well as Waltz’s deputy Trump said Waltz would now be his nominee to be ambassador to the United Nations Rubio’s appointment to yet another job — as if he were cloned in a B-grade sci-fi movie — was so sudden that Tammy Bruce learned about it when a reporter read Trump’s social media post to her during a regular televised news conference so that is the miracle of modern technology and social media,” Bruce said Scrambling to try to explain the events unfolding in real time Bruce said: “We’ve seen him be at the White House several times a week his close working relationship day to day with the president They clearly have been in an environment where they’ve gotten to know each other very well.” The fact that Rubio now leads four bodies is a sign not only of the trust placed in him by Trump but also of the close relationship he has with Susie Wiles the veteran political operative who is Trump’s chief of staff having four jobs also raises more practical issues: Does Rubio get a pay bump Will he have time to hop around the globe to do diplomacy secretary of state and national security adviser in an experiment that was considered a failure have both been interim head of the Bureau of Alcohol Firearms and Explosives while also serving in their more prominent posts But it might be more relevant to look outside the United States for examples is general secretary of the Communist Party president of China and chair of the Central Military Commission — still one job short of Rubio’s tally when counting his top titles (Xi is also the head of several party groups) The Senate unanimously confirmed Rubio to be secretary of state But he entered the other jobs under controversial circumstances in early February in an apparent act of retribution against the National Archives and Records Administration Leaders of the agency had raised concerns about Trump’s holding onto boxes of classified documents at his home in Florida after he left office in 2021 though Shogan was not involved in that episode Rubio announced he was the acting administrator for USAID a political appointee in the State Department Marocco and members of Musk’s government-slashing task force did the daily work of reducing the agency to a husk cutting contracts and firing thousands of employees Rubio is moving the remnants of the agency into the State Department he issued a chart on his planned department reorganization that shows him keeping the title of USAID administrator diplomat/archivist/aid agency administrator to be interim national security adviser some analysts were pointing out the problems with Rubio holding all these positions three) roles at once is never ideal — directing government agencies and programs is a significant task that demands attention and focus,” said a post on the site of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington “But Rubio’s current positions are uniquely concerning.” pointed out the obvious conflict of interest: The archivist is supposed to ensure that other federal agencies with the addition of the White House National Security Council As for the question of Rubio’s salary (or salaries) the State Department did not reply when asked Thursday afternoon Vice President JD Vance threw out an idea on social media for how Rubio could go even further as a one-stop shop for assuming new authorities “I think he could take on a bit more,” Vance wrote “If only there was a job opening for a devout Catholic…” Vance had visited Pope Francis in the Vatican last month just hours before the pope died Rubio laughed about the suggestion in an interview on Fox News Stay secure and make sure you have the best reading experience possible by upgrading your browser The Minnesota Wild’s 2024-25 season is officially over Maybe it’s because they jumped out to a 2-1 series lead before losing three-straight… but the Wild’s latest exit out of the postseason still has a shock factor that I’m not sure the entire fanbase has come to grips with yet and before long we’ll be thinking about 2025-26 and what the MN Wild will look like once they (hopefully) redo Kirill Kaprizov’s contract and spend some of the remaining cap space to acquire new talent Cap space that won’t be impeded by Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyout penalties No doubt, it should be an exciting offseason, and one that — according to Michael Russo (The Athletic) — will almost certainly include a trade of Marco Rossi who was relegated to the fourth line and played less than 12 minutes per game during the NHL Playoffs In a fiery interview with KFAN Radio Sunday morning, the longtime Minnesota Wild insider told KFAN host Dan Barreiro that he’s more convinced than ever that the 23-year-old former No 9 overall pick will be dealt at some point this offseason Russo puts the odds at “way higher than 75-80%” I’ve thought all year long that they’re going to trade him this summer and I think we’re talking probably way more than 75-80% [chance] now Part of that is because I don’t know if he’s going to be willing to [take] even what [the Wild] would be willing to offer him right now I don’t even know if that 5 year x $5 million contract they offered Marco Rossi was an incredibly important player for the Wild especially once Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek went down with injuries that cost them much of the second half Related: New Minnesota Wild Arena Name and Sponsor Revealed…? In fact, Rossi finished behind only Matt Boldy in assists (36) and points (60) Only Boldy and Kaprizov scored more goals than Rossi’s 24 He was also one of the only top-line regular season forwards who played in all 82 games where he centered mostly the first or second line and was on the ice for 18:15 per game MARCO ROSSI IN OVERTIME. WILD WIN pic.twitter.com/28cqDJbqmj the playoffs started and president of hockey ops Bill Guerin and his head coach John Hynes stuffed Marco Rossi down on the fourth line presumably deciding his smaller frame and finesse-style game isn’t fit for the NHL postseason Even with Gustav Nyquist and Freddy Goudreau playing poorly above him, Rossi never got off the fourth line. And while he did get run on the Minnesota Wild’s playoff power play, he still averaged just 11:08 total TOI behind only Yakov Trenin and Justin Brazeau Yet, Marco still potted 2 goals in six games and assisted on another We still aren’t sure how Marco Rossi feels about his fourth line relegation those surrounding the young Austrian are not happy with what they believe was mistreatment of Rossi Minnesota Wild mistreated him during the 2024-25 playoffs “I can tell you his camp is not happy with the way that he was deployed down the stretch It just felt like there was a double standard there was never elevated even though guys like Goudreau and Nyquist were absolutely awful in this series ‘well his fingerprints were on the winning goals in games five and six’ but I just think that [Rossi’s camp] feels like he was mistreated throughout this postseason.” You can’t blame those around Marco Rossi for being upset with how he was utilized during the Minnesota Wild’s latest attempt at a playoff run he made mistakes in the minutes he did get on the ice But as Russo pointed out during his KFAN interview Sunday Gustav Nyquist went offsides in the third period of game five and may have cost Minnesota the entire series there Rossi sat at the bottom of the Wild’s depth chart all series long “I think that ship has sailed on a short term deal I don’t think the Wild want to invest in him on seven or eight year deals and that 5×5 I don’t even know is on the table anymore…I don’t think he’s going to spell out publicly that maybe he wasn’t happy during these playoffs But I can tell from talking to people in his camp that they’re not happy and I think that now affects things because I don’t think where they feel he deserves to make money and term I don’t think the Wild are going to go that route and the usually spells out the beginning of of a player on a team.” More About: Marco Rubio becomes the first person since Henry Kissinger to hold the national security adviser and secretary of state positions at the same time – key US politics stories from Thursday 1 May Secretary of state Marco Rubio – ridiculed as “Little Marco” by Donald Trump during the 2016 Republican primaries – has become one of the most powerful players in the president’s cabinet. Trump appointed Rubio interim national security adviser on Thursday after Mike Waltz was forced to leave the post as sources said officials had lost confidence in their leadership Waltz has been under intense pressure since the Signal scandal in which he inadvertently added a journalist to a chat that included real-time operational details on US strikes in Yemen It’s an enormous rise for Rubio, the son of undocumented Cuban migrants, who now holds four titles in the Trump administration Rubio is also the acting administrator for USAID and acting archivist for the National Archives and Records Administration Read the full story The Trump administration will approve its first sale of military equipment to Ukraine since Donald Trump took office, in an indication that the minerals deal signed by the two countries this week may open a path to renewed weapons shipments Read the full story Trump appointed Rodriguez to the federal bench in 2018 Read the full story More than 250 attorneys in the justice department’s civil rights division have either left or accepted a deferred resignation offer since January according to an estimate provided to the Guardian by people familiar with the matter The significant decrease in personnel underscores how Donald Trump is gutting the arm of the federal government responsible for enforcing federal civil rights laws Read the full story Read the full story The British government’s attempts to curry favor with Donald Trump by nudging golf executives to host one of the world’s most prestigious golf tournaments at a Scottish venue owned by the US president could ultimately lead to a violation of the US constitution Read the full story The Trump administration has unveiled a news-style website that publishes exclusively positive coverage of the president on official White House servers and is styled like the rightwing website the Drudge Report Read the full story Health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr and his department have made a series of misleading statements that alarmed vaccine experts and advocates in recent days – including that the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine includes “aborted fetus debris” Read the full story Trump has launched an unprecedented environmental assault, pushing 145 rollbacks of clean air, water, and climate protections in his first 100 days, more than in his entire first term The US approached China for talks on Trump’s tariffs, according to a state-linked Chinese account, suggesting Beijing may be open to negotiations Trump officials have asked the supreme court to help strip temporary protected status from more than 300,000 Venezuelans, a move that would clear the way for their deportation. Catching up? Here’s what happened on 30 April 2025 The former Florida senator landed the most coveted Cabinet seat in Trump's administration Secretary of state will take on dual role as national security adviser – and just like half a century ago Marco Rubio the child of undocumented Cuban immigrants will be the first person since Kissinger to hold the national security adviser and secretary of state positions at the same time Kissinger – who himself arrived on America’s shores as an immigrant – achieved that feat in September 1973 after being tapped to take over the state department following four tumultuous and high-profile years as Richard Nixon’s national security adviser during which he helped pave a historic opening to communist China and was – contentiously – awarded the Nobel peace prize for ending US involvement in the Vietnam war a scandal just gaining momentum at the time but which was ultimately destined to consume Nixon’s presidency But it left Kissinger free to conduct American foreign policy virtually single-handed at least until Nixon was forced from office Trump has just completed perhaps the most extreme first 100 days of US presidential history, producing a sea of uncertainty, upending the country’s international alliances, shattering democratic and legal norms at home, and leaving even its future status as the world’s leading democracy unsure. Read moreThis unpredictable landscape is what confronts Rubio in his new position An orthodox Republican in foreign policy matters has frequently appeared uncomfortable – occasionally miserable even – during the first three months at the state department under Trump never more so than during the disastrous clash with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in February when the Ukrainian president subjected to a public browbeating by the president and JD Vance in the Oval Office he had been one of Ukraine’s staunchest supporters against Russia’s invasion He then saw that principled position so openly and brutally overturned and was forced to justify the volte face in public as Trump has conspicuously sympathised with Vladimir Putin Equally galling has been Elon Musk’s gleeful gutting of USAID America’s main foreign assistance agency – which Rubio has previously championed and which fell within his purview as secretary of state – under the auspices of the tech billionaire’s unofficial “department of government efficiency” project The tensions led to a shouting match between the two men in front of Trump with Rubio reportedly responding aggressively to Musk’s accusation that he had failed in the mission of firing enough state department staff Rubio – who was once tipped as a future president – now suddenly finds himself in addition to being in charge of a still mighty department having direct access to the inner workings of the White House and to the president himself Even if it has come about thanks to the default of the less-than-surefooted Waltz – whose credibility never recovered from inadvertently inviting one of Trump’s least favourite journalists on to to a Signal chat about strikes on Yemeni Houthis – it is quite the turnaround It puts Rubio in the same vantage point from which Kissinger the renowned exponent of realpolitik and great power balances carved out a role as arguably the US’s most influential – if highly controversial – foreign policy strategist of the 20th century With Trump just as consumed with domestic political enemies as Nixon ever was it raises the unexpected question of whether Rubio can achieve the same level of prominence who would have guessed that the once-derided “Little Marco” would hold the levers of power of two separate institutions in his hands Log in to comment on videos and join in on the fun Watch the live stream of Fox News and full episodes Reduce eye strain and focus on the content that matters Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInSAVANNAH (WTOC) - A customer at Waffle House will spend some time behind bars for attacking another customer the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office announced the conviction of Marco Sharpe for aggravated battery The Chatham County DA also said Sharpe was a line cook at the Waffle House the Chatham County District Attorney’s Office released a correction stating that Sharpe was a customer when he got into an argument with a 57-year-old customer that ended with Sharpe beating and choking the man despite employees trying to deescalate the situation Details in the conviction say the man was beaten to the point he stopped breathing The victim spent nearly a month in the hospital with three brain bleeds Sharpe could face a sentence of up to 20 years behind bars Donald Trump’s announcement Thursday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would replace Mike Waltz to serve as the interim national security adviser appears to have taken the State Department completely by surprise When a reporter asked State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce during a press briefing about Rubio’s new role “It is clear that I just heard this from you,” Bruce said A flustered Bruce couldn’t answer questions about the announcement I have some insights as to the potential of certain things that might happen,” she vamped “You can have a general sense of what’s possible but I think that one thing certainly that I have learned is that things don’t happen until the president says they’re going to happen,” she added Bruce admitted she’d been caught off guard incredulously attributing Trump’s sudden announcement to “the miracle of modern technology.” If the State Department’s spokesperson wasn’t made aware of the announcement it’s likely that Trump’s decision was not given much time to marinate at the State Department raising questions about whether Rubio had any advance notice at all that he’d be taking on yet another government job Bruce’s apparent shock also raised even more questions about the circumstances surrounding Waltz’s sudden departure earlier Thursday who was responsible for precipitating the Signalgate scandal that rocked the White House will now serve as Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations the Trump adviser who accidentally invited a journalist to a war plans group chat on Signal was caught casually scrolling through his Signal messages during a Cabinet meeting Thursday Calls and messages to or from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Vice President JD Vance could be seen on his phone which appeared to have no privacy screen and the brightness raised to the max who was White House national security adviser at the time the photos were taken seemed to think it was a good idea to use Signal in a room full of reporters Trump announced Thursday that Waltz will be leaving his post as national security adviser Maybe he’ll find a privacy screen by the time he starts his new job The Trump family’s cryptocurrency business just got a $2 billion investment from a firm backed by the United Arab Emirates government The deal is rife with conflicts of interest Zach Witkoff—son of Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and founder of the Trump family’s crypto firm, World Liberty Financial—announced the deal at a conference in Dubai on Thursday will be using World Liberty Financial’s so-called stablecoin “We thank MGX and Binance for their trust in us,” Witkoff said This is a massive donation from a foreign government to the Trump family that will ultimately go toward a crypto exchange that has been monitored by the U.S government for two years for money laundering has not so coincidentally been pushing for a Trump pardon after he pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating anti-money-laundering laws the Trump family will be enriched beyond most people’s comprehension and they have the UAE government to thank for it One can predict that Trump is likely to treat the country very favorably from here on out again demonstrating that his power does have a price Trump changed his tune on cryptocurrency and used it to raise millions of dollars for his last campaign His firm has been incredibly lucrative since This current venture is an instance of Trump further thumbing his nose at our flimsy conflict of interest laws and selling his influence to the highest bidder Looks like Mike Waltz will land on his feet after being pushed out as national security adviser but evidently not enough to push him out of the administration entirely Waltz’s new job seems to indicate that there are limits to accountability in the Trump administration he arguably got one that comes with less scrutiny for now it appears that the only consequences for the White House will be some chairs being shuffled In the infamous meeting where she presented her so-called evidence to support the firing of several more traditionally neoconservative foreign policy hawks Loomer had wanted to present a supposedly damning video of Waltz to the president too Loomer claimed she’d been unable to show the video to Trump because Waltz had entered the room but she shared the video on Palmeri’s podcast.  Loomer played a 2016 advertisement for an anti-Trump PAC featuring Waltz in which he criticized Trump’s statement mocking service members who’d been captured in combat “It’s something that I just personally can’t stomach,” Waltz said in the video “So if you can’t stomach it, why do you want to work for President Trump? If you can’t stomach it, why do you want to work for the administration?” asked Loomer, who evidently has a strong stomach for moral bankruptcy, as she has described herself as “pro-white nationalist” and a “proud Islamophobe.”  The far-right activist clarified that she hadn’t been gunning for Waltz during the meeting if Michael Waltz is telling the president of the United States that these people are good people given the fact that he himself has made anti-Trump comments in the past?” she said.  he’s not exactly a Trump loyalist,” Loomer said.  Loomer was adamant she hadn’t been trying to get Waltz sacked and claimed she was simply doing her due diligence while stressing her own enduring loyalty to the commander in chief Laura Loomer tried to get Michael Waltz fired!’ I didn’t go in there trying to get him fired I was just making the point that I’m a Trump loyalist I never said—I never campaigned against Trump Michael Waltz was working with a PAC that was trying to actively campaign against Donald Trump in 2016 Michael Waltz is not going to have the same standard of loyalty that I have because he himself was a Trump hater So I was trying to explain that,” she insisted “But how would that not make Trump want to fire him?” Palmeri asked.  “I think it’s important that President Trump see these things,” Loomer replied She said that she didn’t know if Trump had been made aware of the video before tapping Waltz.  When Palmeri asked the White House whether Waltz had ever spoken to Trump about his critical comments a Trump administration official responded with the following statement: “Mike has supported President Trump since after the primaries of 2016 He is a steadfast supporter of the president’s America First agenda Waltz and his deputy, Alex Wong, are expected to leave their posts by the end of the day Thursday, but Trump announced that afternoon that he was nominating Waltz to serve as the ambassador to the United Nations.  Crucially, it’s not clear that Waltz was removed from his post over concerns about loyalty. The hapless national security adviser had been the subject of multiple scandals during his brief time in the Trump administration, including mistakenly inviting a reporter to join a Signal group chat about plans to bomb Yemen Donald Trump’s pick to head the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, D.C., is running into roadblocks in the Senate Ed Martin’s confirmation vote won’t be taking place Thursday the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee saying “[i]t’s my understanding that we are not going to move forward on the Martin nomination.” The committee chair, Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, said in a hearing that Republicans need more time to vet Martin Clare Slattery told The New Republic that the “committee is still reviewing Martin’s responses to questions for the record and waiting for Martin to return a few routine background materials.” “Martin’s nomination could only be listed on the [committee] agenda once that process is complete,” Slattery said adding that a vote on Martin would take place at a future date Martin has has long been an election denialist and apologist for the Capitol insurrection, but Senate Republicans have other concerns about him too: He’s made several attacks against some of them standing against Republican priorities and insufficiently supporting the president with a long history of antisemitic comments who has posted pictures of himself dressed as Hitler attorney nominees don’t come with this much controversy or negative news coverage Will all of this be enough to sink Martin’s nomination Trump has ignored media criticism in his appointments before so he may very well force his Senate allies to ram Martin through regardless of how they feel A federal judge has barred the Trump administration from deporting immigrants on the basis of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 ruling Thursday that the use of the World War II-era policy to banish alleged Tren de Aragua gang members from the country without due process is illegal In a 36-page opinion District Judge Fernando Rodriguez ruled that Tren de Aragua’s presence did not constitute an “invasion,” as Donald Trump had previously claimed wrote that the administration had inappropriately invoked the law which only applies when the nation is facing an armed “The Proclamation exceeds the scope of the statute and “[Administration officials] do not possess the lawful authority under the AEA the White House made a spontaneous decision to defy a court order by deporting more than 200 alleged members of the Venezuelan gang to El Salvador under the cover of the wartime policy Even after a U.S. district court judge ordered that the immigrants should remain in the U.S. as they await trial, Trump officials thwarted the law and sent the men sky bound regardless Trump justified the infraction by claiming Venezuelan immigration into the country constituted an “invasion,” and described the current era as a “time of war.” The men were taken to a notorious prison in El Salvador known as CECOT government is paying El Salvador more than $20,000 per deportee to imprison the men In April, a U.S. circuit judge stated that the Trump administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to force immigrants out of the country had treated asylum-seekers worse than prior presidents treated actual German Nazis during World War II Mike Waltz spent his last moments as national security adviser publicly singing the praises of the man who decided to fire him Waltz and his deputy, Alex Wong, will both be leaving the Trump administration after a short tenure marked by blunders and controversy particularly the first Signalgate group chat Waltz’s first outpouring of flattery for the man expected to fire him came at the 100 Days Cabinet meeting on Wednesday in which each Trump Cabinet member went around the table and shared one thing they loved about their fearless leader “Mr. President, the last four years the world experienced a total lack of zero leadership under Biden. And then we’ve had 100 days of your leadership,” Waltz fawned starting with ‘There’ll be all hell to pay.’” Waltz kept this song and dance up into the next day “This is exactly what our modern force needs.” While it’s unclear when Waltz became aware of his firing it’s obvious that the compliments didn’t save him Waltz and Wong are expected to be out by the end of the day The White House’s closest link to the white nationalist agenda had a full-blown meltdown Thursday over reports that the administration had been spurned by El Salvador over the requested release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from a Salvadoran gulag During a White House press briefing White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller claimed that Abrego Garcia had “extensively documented membership in MS-13” and was a “clear and present danger to the safety of the American people.” Trump himself appears confused about Abrego Garcia’s connection to Latin American gangs. The president entered into a terse exchange with ABC News Tuesday night when he insisted that a doctored photo of supposed gang tattoos on Abrego Garcia’s knuckles was real Experts say the photo is apparently photoshopped Trump administration officials acknowledged in court filings last month that Abrego Garcia’s forced exit from the country was an “administrative error.” The Supreme Court has ordered the executive branch to “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S “It is a sad reflection on the state of our media and many of the outlets represented in this room that you obsessively try to shill for this MS-13 terrorist,” Miller ranted Thursday chastising American news outlets for allegedly failing to cover the supposed rape and murder of American citizens at the hands of “the illegals that Biden was importing into our country.” Miller then scolded the Biden administration for abiding by the Constitution in providing due process to individuals that the deputy chief of staff derided as “Tren de Aragua terrorists,” referring to the Venezuelan gang Meanwhile, the U.S. government is paying El Salvador some $20,000 per deportee to imprison the men. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has also insinuated he intends to make more money off the uncharged men: in March, Bukele posted plans to force the immigrants into labor camps under the country’s “Zero Idleness program.” Miller previously served as the senior adviser for policy and White House director of speechwriting during Trump’s first term. The far-right politico has made a name for himself for his vicious anti-immigrant policies which include proposals to build mass deportation camps and deploy the military and the National Guard to seal the border promising a forthcoming reality of “large-scale raids” and “throughput facilities.” leaked emails revealed that Miller promoted white nationalist articles and books especially on the idea that nonwhite people are replacing white people Donald Trump gave a completely incoherent response to a question about his crackdown on Harvard University and ended up ranting about fictional riots Smith asked Trump what he would say to those who view his attacks against the Ivy League school as “an attack on academic freedom and frankly if you look at what’s gone on—and people from Harlem went up and they protested and they protested very strongly against Harvard They happened to be on my side,” Trump said It was a very great compliment to me,” Trump continued The president appeared confused about the subject of the question, ranting about Harlem instead of Harvard and inventing a fictional riot in support of his war on higher education asked by Stephen A. Smith about his Harvard shakedown, Trump starts ranting about Harlem and says "I got a very high Black vote" pic.twitter.com/ZoKFaAx7xs Trump’s stumped response is particularly disturbing because Smith repeated the word “Harvard” three times in asking his question and was responding directly to something Trump had just mentioned but then felt it necessary to comment on the support of Black voters which was at that point entirely off topic There have been concerns over Trump’s cognitive decline since he first started to deliver weaving nonsensical stump speeches on the presidential campaign trail Now his divorce from reality manifests mostly in his disastrous economic policy as the president is more or less kept away from making lengthy addresses During an interview on ABC News Tuesday, Trump appeared to suggest that Kilmar Abrego Garcia literally had “MS-13” tattooed on his hand Trump had seen an image with these letters and numbers digitally added as a visual aid to the tattoos the government claimed proved his gang affiliation Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s star is rising inside President Donald Trump’s administration In addition to running the State Department the onetime Trump critic-turned-ally is also serving as acting administrator for USAID and now also Trump’s interim national security adviser That last title was added Thursday after Mike Waltz was ousted and came as a surprise even to some of Rubio’s staff It’s unclear how Rubio plans to juggle four jobs (“insomnia is helpful,” one Trump ally joked) but it is a sign of Trump’s confidence in the former Florida senator He’s widely liked internally and is seen as being in lockstep with Trump on foreign policy — Trump even shifted responsibility for Venezuela talks to him in March Rubio is one of the president’s most trusted Cabinet members Sign up for Semafor .css-w8sqnb{text-transform:capitalize;}principals UN Watch continues to lead the campaign against Francesca Albanese—the UN’s Special Rapporteur who has repeatedly spread antisemitism and whitewashed Hamas atrocities In March, UN Watch formally invoked UNHRC Procedure 8/PRST/2 to UNHRC President Jürg Lauber documenting Albanese’s persistent noncompliance with the UN Code of Conduct Following our lead, the governments of Israel, the Netherlands, Argentina, Hungary and the United States publicly declared their opposition to Albanese’s reappointment President Lauber violated UN rules by failing to convey our information to Council members—a required step that would have triggered a vote on Albanese’s renewal Albanese’s mandate was improperly extended through procedural fraud UN Watch has now written to Secretary-General António Guterres to declare that Albanese’s purported reappointment was illegally carried out As such, we have also written to Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling on the U.S and to affirm that she no longer benefits from any form of diplomatic immunity View the letter to Secretary Rubio here Francesca Albanese’s record is marked by persistent incitement of antisemitism and material support for terrorist organizations, as documented in our report, “Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing.” Given her abhorrent actions individuals who endorse or abet terrorist organizations must face consequences Francesca Albanese’s abuse of a global platform to spread hatred and legitimize terrorism demands an unequivocal response We stand ready to provide any further support that may assist your efforts UN Watch is a non-profit organization dedicated to holding the United Nations accountable to its founding principles UN Watch is funded entirely by charitable donations we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information may adversely affect certain features and functions The TALK-LINE interview for May 2 featured the President and CEO of the Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce discussing the recent annual dinner and awards celebration held earlier this year the “Mother’s Day Shop Hop” promotion running until Mother’s Day and the annual Spring Garage Sales weekend May 16-18 in Sterling and Rock Falls Like what you hear? Be sure to visit WIXN We’re also available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify John SahlyJohn Sahly is the digital editor for the Shaw Local News Network. He has been with Shaw Media since 2008, previously serving as the Northwest Herald's digital editor, and the Daily Chronicle sports editor and sports reporter. Copyright © 2023 Shaw Local News Network 1 h 4 minsMay 4Featured ShowsDeath Becomes HerAboutJust as DEATH BECOMES HER celebrates 10 Tony nominations we're thrilled to celebrate our new episode dedicated to this brand-new Broadway hit and one of hard-working cast members keeping the show going 8 performances a week "book," and you'll love his insider look at how this musical came to be Kaleigh is not only in the show every night but also understudies both leading lady roles and has wonderful insights on those fabulous divas Don't miss DEATH BECOMES HER at the Lunt-Fontaine Theatre in NYC! To learn more, visit deathbecomesher.com. Be sure to follow Kaleigh on Instagram at @kaleigh_cronin If you enjoyed this episode, check out our recent episode with the writers of WATER FOR ELEPHANTS: Rick Elice and PigPen Theatre Co. More than anything, thank you for being an important part of this podcasting community! © Broadway Podcast Network looks to eliminate 132 agency offices dedicated to efforts like advancing democracy and combating extremism On Tuesday, The Free Press had a major scoop: The State Department is launching its biggest shake-up in decades in an effort spearheaded by Secretary of State Marco Rubio It’s apparent that the Minnesota Wild coaching staff does not trust 23-year-old center Marco Rossi He averaged just over 11 minutes per game in the playoffs and was downgraded to the fourth line — and yet he still managed two goals and three points in six games Utah Hockey Club head coach André Tourigny and assistant coach Mario Duhamel Tourigny and Duhamel represented the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s from 2018-2020 during which time Rossi accomplished a 120-point season (despite only playing 56 games) and the team made a trip to the Ross Robertson Cup Final NHL insider Elliotte Friedman hinted on Monday’s episode of 32 Thoughts: The Podcast that Rossi Rossi makes sense in Utah for more reasons than just his connection to the coaching staff His age and position are exactly what they need Logan Cooley will undoubtedly be the franchise’s permanent No Barrett Hayton handled that role well this season Rossi is well on his way to proving himself as a second-line center despite his limited usage in these playoffs 60 this year and with three points in the playoffs he’s showing that he doesn’t shrink with the physicality of the postseason He’s only 5-foot-9, but you wouldn’t know it by the way he plays: His game revolves around proximity to the net, where he picks up a lot of rebounds. That’s a playing style that transcends age, speed and strength — look at what 39-year-old Corey Perry is doing right now the Marco Rossi effect pic.twitter.com/0AX5FL9Of5 Rossi can grow and develop with Utah’s similarly aged core He could be a core piece for years to come General manager Bill Armstrong hinted in his postseason press conference that he’s probably not going to sign any offer sheets this summer so the only way to land the Austrian would be via trade It’s hard to imagine any UHC deal that doesn’t involve Matias Maccelli going the other way — and he might fit the Wild’s systems well He played his best hockey on a line with big guys Nick Bjugstad and Lawson Crouse The Wild have a number of giants who can put the puck in the net — they just need an elite playmaker to get them the puck Maccelli’s 18 points and dozens of healthy scratches this season won’t be enough to land a player like Rossi in a one-for-one swap but it’s well-documented that Utah HC has too many young prospects to possibly be able to sign them all Shipping one of them out with Maccelli wouldn’t make a dent in their cupboards and it might be enough to get the deal done For the sake of the individuals involved, the gold standard in a trade should be the one that sent Darcy Kuemper to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Pierre-Luc Dubois Both players were thought to be buyout candidates but the change of scenery turned Kuemper into a Vezina Trophy finalist and allowed Dubois to set new career highs in a number of categories Maccelli is a proven top-tier playmaker who didn’t have a good fit this season Rossi is an excellent player who has struggled to gain trust A fresh start may be exactly what both players need the Marco Rossi effect pic.twitter.com/0AX5FL9Of5 SECRETARY RUBIO:  Thank you all for being here today.  It’s – I’m honored to be here with my counterparts, the foreign ministers of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, for the – to witness the Declaration of Principles for peace in the eastern DRC.  It’s a declaration that establishes a fundamental understanding of regional governance, security, economic frameworks, and to end the fighting and allow the region to reach its full potential. The eastern part of the Democratic Republic has seen 30 years of conflict.  Durable peace and long-lasting economic development is not going to be easy, but it is important.  And having both of my counterparts here, the foreign ministers of these respective countries, demonstrates the beginning of a strong commitment to having the conversations that we need to have in order to reach a resolution. The African Union and regional economic communities in Africa have done incredible work, and we need to recognize that in bringing parties together and laying the foundation for these talks.  Our government here is focused on energizing these efforts.  So we’re going to be in close contact with our African Union partners to make sure we can bring this to fruition and to see that this better future reaches everyone. I do want to especially thank our senior advisor, Mr. Boulos, and his counterparts in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, for their vision and for their hard work.  Today is a step to building a peaceful, prosperous Great Lakes region, and we look forward to working with everyone involved to achieve this goal.  Thank you. FOREIGN MINISTER WAGNER:  Perfect, thank you.  Mr. Secretary — SECRETARY RUBIO:  My apologies.  I should have turned to you rather than – I apologize. FOREIGN MINISTER WAGNER:  No worries.  (Laughter.) Once again, we stand at a crossroads with peace within reach.  And we, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, are determined to move forward, building on the lessons from the past.  We stand as a nation dedicated to achieving lasting peace.  We welcome the support of a strong partner by our side.  And I voice a solemn hope that all parties will seize this opportunity just as we, the DRC, have chosen to.  SECRETARY RUBIO:  Thank you, Madam Minister. FOREIGN MINISTER NDUHUNGIREHE:  Thank you.  Good afternoon.  On behalf of President Paul Kagame and the Government of Rwanda, I want to start by thanking President Donald Trump for enabling a real change in the conversation on how to resolve the situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, leading to the signing of the Declaration of Principles today. I thank Secretary Marco Rubio and the United States Government for hosting us, and I commend the positive role played by your Senior Advisor Massad Boulos and his team and other officials in the significant progress achieved thus far.  Today we are talking about the real issues, the root causes that must be addressed to achieve a lasting peace in our region.  Those include, first and foremost, security as well as the return of refugees.  In addition, and very importantly, we are discussing how to build new original economic value chains that link our countries, including with American private sector investment. Our common aim is to conclude a comprehensive peace agreement as soon as possible, but there are not shortcuts or quick fixes, and we have to do the hard work to get it done right once and for all.  Rwanda is committed and we are ready to continue working together with all the partners involved to ensure the success of this initiative.  SENIOR ADVISOR BOULOS:  Secretary Rubio is signing as a witness the Declaration of Principles between the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Government of the Republic of Rwanda. This declaration commits the parties to mutual recognition of sovereignty and territorial integrity, addressing security concerns, promoting regional economic integration, facilitating the return of displaced persons, supporting MONUSCO, and drafting a peace agreement.  These are serious commitments from each side.  The Secretary’s presence here today as a witness signifies the importance the United States places on resolving this conflict to ensure both countries and their people prosper.  We’re looking forward to working with both sides to further our existing partnerships and foster win-win outcomes for all.  (The Declaration of Principles is signed.) SENIOR ADVISOR BOULOS:  This concludes the ceremony.  Thank you.  We use cookies to make our website work better and improve your experience. By continuing to use the site, you agree to our privacy policy. During his first term in office, President Trump went through a great many cabinet appointees, especially national security advisers. A little more than a hundred days into his new term, the president's national security team is again in flux. NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre joins us. Greg, thanks so much for being with us. GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Good to be here, Scott. SIMON: Let's start with the latest. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz was removed - or should we say relocated? - from his role. What was the stated reason? Where did he go? MYRE: So Trump plans to nominate Waltz to become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Now, Vice President JD Vance tried to downplay any sense of turmoil. In an interview on Fox News, he said Waltz was being given a new position for which he seemed better suited. VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE: The media wants to frame this as a firing. Donald Trump has fired a lot of people. He doesn't give them Senate-confirmed appointments afterwards. MYRE: So still, Trump wouldn't be doing this if he wasn't unhappy with Waltz's performance in some way, and this U.N. job is seen as a bit of a consolation prize. Now, Waltz took responsibility for accidentally adding a journalist to that now infamous Signal group chat back in March, and that was probably one contributing factor to his move. SIMON: And, yet, did he make the same misstep this week? MYRE: At Tuesday's cabinet meeting, a Reuters photographer was there. He took a photo sort of over the shoulder of Waltz, and it showed Waltz using Signal on his phone. And in addition to this, Waltz has had some policy positions that seem a bit out of sync with Trump. Before he joined Trump's team, he was very tough on Russia and supportive of Ukraine, in contrast to Trump. So this was probably a factor as well. SIMON: The president is replacing Waltz, at least temporarily, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who will also keep his job as secretary of state. This is a lot of work, isn't it? SIMON: Before this shake-up, it seemed that the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, might be the cabinet member most likely to lose his job. Does Secretary Hegseth seem safer now? SIMON: Of course, all of this is occurring at a moment when there are a number of conflicts and challenges abroad. Bring us up to date. MYRE: Sure thing, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. 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All rights reserved Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he is streamlining what he's calling a 'bloated' bureaucracy He's cutting about 700 positions and 132 offices at the State Department In an Substack post explaining some of his changes Rubio takes aim at the Bureau of Democracy writing that it "became a platform for left-wing activists to wage vendettas against 'anti-woke' leaders in nations such as Poland and to transform their hatred of Israel into concrete policies such as arms embargoes." under the control of the Coordinator for Foreign Assistance and abolished the Under Secretary for Civilian Security which used to oversee several offices now being closed One example is the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations set up after the Bush administration's war in Iraq The Department is planning to cut about 15 percent of its personnel though State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce says "no one is going to be walking out of the building" today Reduction in Forces (RIF) notices will go out later according to State Department officials briefed on the plan The ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations committee, Senator Jeanne Shaheen says reforms must be done with care. She warns that when "America retreats – as it has under President Trump – China and Russia fill the void." The Trump administration has notified Congress about the reorganization plan Democratic lawmakers have been clamoring for a briefing by Rubio following the dismantlement of the US Agency for International Development The remnants of USAID will be folded into the State Department The plan does not address the State Department's overseas footprint though some proposals seen by NPR have suggested there could be cuts of two dozen consulates and embassies Become an NPR sponsor So much of the staffing pattern at the State Department is locked up in such functions as Diplomatic Security and Overseas Building Operations which the department could hardly do without.  Yet, the criticism from both the Left and Right is understandable, considering that the meaning of the new organization chart released on April 22 is rather hard to decipher The position of undersecretary for civilian security There are fewer special envoys and ambassadors-at-large and it appears that the real staff reductions will occur at a later date Two things are certain. The first is that Secretary Rubio is willing to place an incredible amount of trust and confidence in the bureaucracy. As he told Meet The Press “…we’re going to ask the bureau heads and the assistant secretaries many of whom are career foreign service officers to look at their bureaus and their operations and suggest to us 15% reductions.”  That is a remarkable show of cooperation. When Rex Tillerson assumed control of the State Department in 2017, he was far more skeptical of the career employees. He came out of the hiring freeze with plans to reduce the number of A100 classes for incoming foreign service officers from five down to two The building had no time or ability to react to such an Ockham’s razor approach The second conclusion we can draw from these initial moves is that Secretary Rubio is willing to overlook the role that some bureaus played in promoting the radical policies of the Biden administration The Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR) where I spent most of my former career in government service establishing a DEI committee and designing performance standards in line with DEI priorities before the rest of the department had sorted itself out.  Part of that was surely the initiative of then-Assistant Secretary Brett Holmgren, a Biden administration political appointee who later became the head of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) part of it was deeply embedded within the bureau itself as key individuals involved in DEI work for INR were promoted and helped develop an agenda for the entire department.  there is value in having dedicated experts who bring deep wells of institutional knowledge even if such true experts are few and far between Another approach would have been to return to first principles with INR and restore the original model under which it operated at its inception in the late 1940s and early 1950s The idea was to have merely an Office for Intelligence and Research (OIR) containing little more than a director and a small support staff who carried out essential functions of coordinating with the other intelligence agencies on critical affairs The other regional and functional experts were embedded within the policy bureaus where they could use their many years of expertise in the field and specialized technical knowledge to directly assist the desk officers and fill in rotational gaps at the embassies Anyone can see the high quality of the production that resulted by visiting the declassified files available to the public at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in College Park so too with other bureaus that drifted from their original purpose there are offices that duplicate the work of counterparts in other agencies There are Congressional mandates requiring the State Department to have dual-key authority over the delivery of military assistance or security training There is a clear administrative need for our diplomatic missions abroad to keep abreast of developments in the interagency process and the competing lines of effort the State Department was not designed to have large bureaus almost entirely staffed by civil servants sitting at desks in Washington who mostly provided commentary on the work of other federal government agencies.  he will not get sidetracked from his mission to improve government efficiency The opinions and characterizations in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the U.S Image: Daniel Hernandez-Salazar / Shutterstock.com Stay in the know with The National Interest newsletter © Copyright 2025 Center for the National Interest. 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Read Monday's full gossip column Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport Alexander-Arnold to leave Liverpool & 'expected to join' Real Madrid - reaction and updates Watch World Snooker Championship final: Zhao three frames away from victory Alexander-Arnold leaves as modern Liverpool great - but fans will feel hurt The final series of Man Like Mobeen has arrived John Simm stars in the provocative 90s drama Warm-hearted comedy with Ben Miller and Sally Phillips Follow two ambitious river restoration projects 'Scheffler and DeChambeau wins further raise US PGA excitement levels' Palmer's brilliance could be key moment in Chelsea's Champions League quest Europa League 'papering over cracks' for Man Utd - Rooney VideoEuropa League 'papering over cracks' for Man Utd - Rooney Ask Me Anything the new BBC Sport service designed to serve you Watch: Fan catches ball while daughter covers his eyes VideoWatch: Fan catches ball while daughter covers his eyes Bayern's 'James Bond' - how Kane clinched his first trophy Nine bolters with a shot of making the Lions squad How 'absolutely outstanding' Palmer 'destroyed' Liverpool VideoHow 'absolutely outstanding' Palmer 'destroyed' Liverpool Still number one & 'sparring' with Draper - return of Sinner Saints 'punch' favourites Leinster in game for the ages How Bournemouth turned tables on set-piece specialists Arsenal VideoHow Bournemouth turned tables on set-piece specialists Arsenal Vardy the best £1m ever spent - Shearer VideoVardy the best £1m ever spent - Shearer Match-fixing scandal to Crucible final - fall and rise of Zhao Elton John & Happy Gilmore - McIlroy on Jimmy Fallon show 'Painful but we'll be back' - Luton's rise and fall 'Balls all over the Crucible floor' as pocket breaks during semi-final Video'Balls all over the Crucible floor' as pocket breaks during semi-final Two opposing views on football's transgender ban Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content President Donald Trump has appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to temporarily serve as national security adviser following the removal of Mike Waltz and his deputy Alex Wong While Rubio has stepped in on an interim basis other names are being floated as permanent replacements The national security adviser is one of the most influential positions in the U.S serving as the president's top aide on global affairs and security threats The person selected for this role would shape high-level decisions on foreign policy The choice may also signal broader changes in Trump's national security agenda Read More: Photos Show Mike Waltz Using Signal in Trump Cabinet Meeting Announcing his decision in a post on social media, Trump said it was essential that Stefanik retain her seat in the House to protect Republicans' razor-thin majority "I don't want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise's seat," the president wrote on Truth Social on March 27 we have nothing to worry about come Election Day There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations." While her appointment to the national security role could risk narrowing the GOP's already tight House majority who remains close to Trump and aligned with his agenda A veteran of Trump's first administration, Richard Grenell served as U.S. ambassador to Germany and as the acting director of national intelligence. He serves the second administration as a special presidential envoy for special missions and as the interim executive director of the Kennedy Center In March, some conservatives floated Grenell as a potential candidate for U.S A Kremlin-released video showed Witkoff greeting Putin with a smile and saying, "It's so good to see you." He was accompanied by a translator, while Putin was joined by senior Russian officials. Witkoff, a former real estate developer, also helped secure the release of American teacher Marc Fogel from a Russian prison earlier this year No. The national security adviser is a presidential appointment and does not require Senate confirmation Unlike Cabinet-level positions or ambassadorships the role is part of the president's executive office and can be filled at the president's discretion This gives the White House flexibility to install or replace a national security adviser without going through a congressional vetting process Waltz left his role as national security adviser after Trump nominated him to serve as U.S The White House did not provide details about the transition Waltz's departure came after he added, without explanation, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic to a Signal chat used by Trump officials to coordinate national security discussions The chat included sensitive exchanges about military strategy and foreign policy The editor later published a detailed account of the incident including screenshots from the conversation While the White House has not confirmed any link between the incident and Waltz's reassignment the breach sparked internal scrutiny and concern Congress is set to vote on Waltz's nomination for U.S while Rubio oversees the White House's national security team in the interim Trump has not said whom he plans to appoint as Waltz's permanent successor Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground Newsweek is committed to journalism that's factual and fair Hold us accountable and submit your rating of this article on the meter. 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