What to Know About the U.S. Lasers That Could Be Used to Counter Iranian Attacks
High‑energy lasers are being promoted as a low‑cost alternative to traditional missile interceptors for defending U.S. bases and oil facilities from Iranian drones and missiles. A single laser shot can cost as little as $3.50, compared with the $3 million price tag of a Patriot missile. President Trump announced that laser systems will soon match Patriot capabilities at a fraction of the expense, though experts warn large‑scale deployment remains years away. Other nations such as Israel and China already operate operational laser weapons.
How the Iran War Threatens the Global Food, Energy and Other Supplies
The Iran‑Iran war has turned the Suez‑Oman shipping corridor into a high‑risk, high‑cost route, pushing container freight from $2,000 to $10,000. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is driving volatile oil and gas prices, while broader supply‑chain bottlenecks are...
Trump Targets Forced Labor in Global Tariff Scheme
The Trump administration launched a sweeping trade investigation into forced‑labor policies across 60 economies, aiming to revive a global tariff system previously blocked by the Supreme Court. The probe targets the legal frameworks governing forced labor in exported goods, not...
With Disputed Legal Maneuver, Trump Tries to Set Policy Without Legislation
The Trump administration is leveraging lawsuits against Republican‑led states to overturn existing statutes, exemplified by a six‑hour settlement with Texas that nullified a law allowing undocumented students to pay in‑state tuition. By reaching rapid settlements, the White House sidesteps legislative...
Banking Regulators Plan to Ease Some Capital Requirements
U.S. regulators will propose easing Basel III endgame capital rules. Fed Vice Chair Michelle Bowman said duplicative capital‑calculation requirements will be removed and adjustments made for trading and mortgage exposures. The changes aim to shrink banks’ reserve buffers, freeing funds for...
Trump Administration to Announce New Trade Investigations
The Trump administration is set to announce new trade investigations under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, targeting practices such as excess manufacturing capacity, forced labor, digital service taxes, and currency manipulation. The inquiries, led by the Office of the...
What’s Better Than One Top Oscar Nominee? How About Two?
Warner Bros. Discovery is promoting two Oscar frontrunners, Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another” and Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners.” The former swept the BAFTAs and won DGA and PGA awards, while the latter set a record with 16 nominations and...
World Leaders Will Release 400 Million Barrels of Oil to Stabilize Prices
World leaders agreed to release 400 million barrels from strategic reserves, the largest coordinated IEA drawdown ever, to counter a sharp Brent price surge after the Iran war began. Despite the announcement, Brent crude rose to about $91 per barrel, indicating...
Trump’s Actions in Iran and Venezuela Show Limits of U.S. Sanctions
The Trump administration abandoned its long‑standing maximum‑pressure sanctions campaigns against Iran and Venezuela, turning to direct military operations to achieve regime change. Repeated sanctions over the past years failed to topple Tehran’s leadership or remove Nicolás Maduro, partly due to...
Since February, Rising Gas Prices Have Added to Inflation.
U.S. gasoline prices have surged 20% since the Feb. 28 strikes by the United States and Israel drove oil higher. The increase will not appear in the February CPI, which is released later this week, but it will feed into overall...
A Trump-Xi Summit Nears, but China Doesn’t Know What Trump Wants
President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet from March 31 to April 2 in a summit that could extend their year‑long trade truce. Chinese officials say the White House has provided no clear agenda, leaving Beijing unsure...
Fed Up With High Costs, American Theater Takes a Trip to London
Rising production costs and shrinking profit margins are prompting U.S. theater producers to stage new shows in London rather than domestically. Musicals such as "Beautiful Little Fool" and Disney’s "The Greatest Showman" have debuted in modest UK venues to leverage...
U.S. Solar Installations Fell in 2025 as Trump Attacked Clean Energy
U.S. solar installations fell 14% in 2025, though solar remained the largest source of new electricity generation, contributing just over half of added capacity. The decline follows aggressive policy shifts by the Trump administration, including cuts to federal renewable programs...
Karen Petrou, Influential Fiscal Policy Analyst and Critic, Dies at 72
Karen Petrou, a renowned fiscal policy analyst and founder of Federal Financial Analytics, died on Feb. 21 at age 72 after battling metastatic breast cancer. For four decades she advised the world’s largest banks and trade groups on banking regulation, especially the...
U.S. Reaches Tentative Deal Ending Prosecution of Turkish Bank
The Trump administration has reached a tentative agreement to dismiss criminal charges against Turkey’s state‑run Halkbank, which prosecutors accused of moving roughly $20 billion in sanctioned Iranian funds. The deal links the dismissal to Turkey’s instrumental role in negotiating the release...
Talent Agent Ari Emanuel Launches His Own Podcast, ‘Rushmore’
Ari Emanuel, longtime Hollywood talent agent, debuted a new video podcast called “Rushmore.” Co‑hosted with music‑manager Ben Persky, the show invites two high‑profile guests to debate which figures, products or moments belong on a “Mount Rushmore” of various categories. The...
Uber Moves to Enact Stricter Background Checks for Drivers
Uber announced it will tighten driver background checks by permanently barring anyone convicted of violent felonies, sexual offenses, and child or elder abuse, regardless of how long ago the crime occurred. The move follows a New York Times investigation that...
The Quiet Architect of Trump’s Global Trade War
Jamieson Greer, a low‑key lawyer turned U.S. Trade Representative, has become the chief architect of President Trump’s renewed global trade war. Since his appointment in early 2025, Greer has designed aggressive tariff structures and led negotiations with major trading partners,...
How a Trump Tax Break Rescued Horse Racing
Owners poured nearly $1.5 billion into racehorses last year, a 21 percent jump from 2024, while the Keeneland September Yearling Sale set a record $531.5 million in sales, up 24 percent. A Trump‑era bonus depreciation provision now lets owners immediately deduct the full purchase...
Trump Administration Ends Credit for Start-Stop Feature in Cars
The EPA announced that the credit automakers receive for installing start‑stop systems is being eliminated, reversing a policy that helped meet vehicle emissions standards. The Trump administration rejected the scientific endangerment finding that justified the credit, arguing the feature damages...
Crises Everywhere, but the Markets Don’t Seem to Mind
Despite a cascade of wars, pandemics, social unrest and economic strain, global equity markets are soaring, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average breaking the 50,000 mark. The article argues that this disconnect is not a glitch but a structural feature:...
