United States

When you're a government agency, asking for a tax increase is always a hassle. As Ryan McMaken notes, for the most part, taxpayers don't like taxes, and if asked if they want to pay more, they're likely to often say "no." Moreover, when public officials pass tax increases, they may face the wrath of taxpayers at the ballot box. For this reason, governments are always looking for ways to get revenue without having to use tax revenue.

In what may be one of the most significant foreign policy decisions of his first year in office, Trump is shutting down the CIA's covert program to arm rebels fighting the Syrian government. This would constitute a monumental shift in terms of US priorities in Syria which throughout most of the 6-year long war have focused on removing Bashar al-Assad. The Washington Post reports:

Via Disobedient Media

Authored by Darius Shatahmasebi via TheAntiMedia.org,

A new study conducted by members of the U.S. military establishment has concluded that the U.S.-led international global order established after World War II is “fraying” and may even be “collapsing” as the U.S. continues to lose its position of “primacy” in world affairs.

The Supreme Court has granted the Trump administration's request to more strictly enforce its ban on refugees, at least until a federal appeals court weighs in, however the justices are leaving in place a lower court order that allows entry by some people with family members already in the country, the AP reports. The 6-3 order by the justices who last month let the president start restricting entry by people from six mostly Muslim countries, means the government must accept people with grandparents, cousins and other relatives in the U.S.