Politics

Things got a little rocky last week when Iran seized 10 sailors and 2 US Navy boats near Farsi Island on the eve of Obama's final state-of-the-union address, but by Saturday ("Implementation Day") the crewmen and their vessels were back in American hands, four American hostages including Jason Rezaian were free, and John Kerry was in Vienna to put the finishing touches on the administration's crowing achievement. 

As expected, the IAEA ruled that Tehran had stuck to its commitments under last year’s nuclear accord.

On Saturday, Taiwan elected its first female President in what’s being billed as a “landmark” vote that returns the DPP to power for the first time in 8 years.

When all of the votes were in, it wasn’t even close. 59-year-old former law professor Tsai Ing-wen captured 56% of the vote while KMT’s Eric Chu managed just 31% in a humiliating defeat for the Nationalists.

DPP also won its first majority in the legislature, grabbing 68 of 113 seats. Previously, KMT held 64 seats.

Awaiting the lifting of international sanctions, Iran is to buy 114 passenger planes from the European aircraft maker Airbus, according to its transport minister. Yahoo News reports: “We have taken the first step in agreeing with Airbus to buy 114 planes,” Abbas Akhoondi was quoted as saying by the Tasnim news agency. Airbus said it was not engaging in commercial talks with Iran until sanctions had been lifted.

International sanctions against Iran have been lifted following news from the UN nuclear watchdog that the Islamic Republic has complied with its nuclear promises. The BBC reports: The EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, announced the lifting of sanctions in accordance with the deal “as Iran has fulfilled its commitment”. The international nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, said its inspectors had verified that Iran had taken the required steps. A deal between Iran and world powers was agreed last July.

The FBI’s Two-Pronged Investigation of Hillary Clinton

Paul Craig Roberts

Judge Napolitano in the article below explains the FBI’s investigation of Hillary Clinton. There are two aspects of the investigation. The original source of her trouble is the charge that she failed to safeguard national security secrets.