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Trump wants to deploy a “next-generation missile defense shield for the United States against ballistic, hypersonic, advanced cruise missiles, and other next-generation aerial attacks,” adding it “will be made all in the USA.”
The post Pinkerton: Trump’s Iron Dome Is About Defending the Homeland appeared first on Breitbart.
President Donald Trump expressed that he wants the Department of Education to be "closed immediately," describing it as a "big con job."
The post Trump Calls for Department of Education to Be ‘Closed Immediately’ appeared first on Breitbart.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned Europeans this week that "realities" prevent the U.S. from being its security guarantor, and to expect a drawdown of U.S. forces in the region.
"We are focusing on security of our own borders. We also face a peer competitor in the Communist Chinese with the capability and intent to threaten our homeland and core national interests in the Indo-Pacific," Hegseth told a meeting of a Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Belgium on Wednesday.
"The U.S. is prioritizing deterring war with China in the Pacific. Recognizing the reality of scarcity and making the resourcing trade-offs to ensure deterrence does not fail. Deterrence cannot fail."
This was Hegseth’s first trip to the headquarters of the NATO alliance.
HEGSETH BANS FUTURE TRANS SOLDIERS, MAKES SWEEPING CHANGES FOR CURRENT ONES
The U.S. defense secretary called on Europe to "take ownership of conventional security on the continent."
"European allies must lead from the front," he went on. "Together, we can establish a division of labor that maximize our comparative advantages in Europe and Pacific, respectively."
Hegseth said on Tuesday the U.S. has no active plans to draw down forces in Europe but remains committed to analyzing U.S. troop postures across the globe. Speaking at U.S. Africa Command headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany, he said the U.S. is committed to having a presence in Europe while emphasizing the continent should not rely on that presence for security.
UKRAINE REGAINING PRE-2014 BORDERS IS ‘UNREALISTIC OBJECTIVE,’ HEGSETH SAYS IN FIRST NATO VISIT
"The European continent deserves to be free from any aggression, but it ought be those in the neighborhood investing the most in that defense," he said. "That’s common sense. You defend your neighborhood, and the Americans will come alongside you in helping in that defense."
Roughly 100,000 U.S. troops are deployed across Europe, about a third of which are in Germany, according to Defense Department figures. Some 375,000 U.S. forces are assigned to the Indo-Pacific Command.
During his first term, President Donald Trump began pulling thousands of troops out of Europe.
Under the Trump administration, the U.S. has begun to bolster its troop presence on the southern border. Some 1,500 more U.S. troops deployed to the southern border last week, bringing the total up to 3,600.
HEGSETH SAYS DOGE WELCOME AT PENTAGON AS DEFENSE DEPARTMENT REVIEWS MILITARY POSTURE GLOBALLY
Hegseth also said that any European peacekeeping forces sent to help Ukraine win the war against Russia must not be from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and would not be protected under Article 5, a provision that states an attack on one NATO country is an attack on all.
The defense secretary said the U.S. does not believe allowing Ukraine into NATO is a "realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement."
Hegseth also called on NATO countries to step up after Trump recently called on them to boost defense spending to 5%.
"The United States will no longer tolerate an imbalanced relationship which encourages dependency."
Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelenskyy suggested that security guarantees for Ukraine without the U.S. are "not real security guarantees."
"There are voices which say that Europe could offer security guarantees without the Americans, and I always say no," he told The Guardian. "Security guarantees without America are not real security guarantees."
Canada’s Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections (SITE) task force on Friday said it has detected “coordinated and malicious activity” from accounts linked to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), directed against former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, a leading candidate from the Liberal Party of Canada to replace outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The post Canada Says Chinese ‘Malicious Activity’ Meddling in Prime Minister Race appeared first on Breitbart.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) said on Monday it has advised other government agencies to take precautions against China’s DeepSeek artificial intelligence (A.I.) because it “excessively” harvests personal data from users.
The post South Korea: China’s DeepSeek ‘Excessively’ Harvests Personal Data appeared first on Breitbart.
China’s retaliation against President Donald Trump’s tariffs went into effect on Monday, imposing levies of 10% to 15% on a range of key American goods, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), coal, agricultural equipment, and automotive products.
The post China’s Retaliatory Tariffs Take Effect on $14 Billion in U.S. Goods appeared first on Breitbart.
China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs released data on Monday that showed marriage applications declined by 20 percent last year.
The post China Posts Record Decline in Marriages in 2024 appeared first on Breitbart.
On February 1, President Donald Trump announced a 10% tariff on Chinese goods to help stop "the flow of contraband drugs like fentanyl to the United States, through illicit distribution networks," which "has created a national emergency, including a public health crisis."
Trump was correct when he stated that "Chinese officials have failed to take the actions necessary to stem the flow of precursor chemicals to known criminal cartels and shut down money laundering by transnational criminal organizations." This is consistent with what I advised him when I served as secretary of Health and Human Services in his first term.
Among the most significant health crises confronting the nation is the continued manufacturing, shipping and distribution of fentanyl from Chinese companies. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid more potent than morphine, has been a major contributor to the opioid overdose crisis in the United States.
FENTANYL'S FINANCIAL GRIP ON US SKYROCKETED TO $2.7T AT HEIGHT OF BIDEN ADMIN: STUDY
It is estimated that over 80,000 people are killed every year in the United States by fentanyl. Nationally, fentanyl has emerged as the leading cause of death for individuals aged 18 to 45. The Drug Enforcement Administration has identified China as the primary source of fentanyl and its related substances trafficked into the U.S., often through international mail and express consignment channels.
We’re all hopeful that new tariffs, which include provisions that suspend the duty-free exemption for low-value shipments under $800 — a loophole that has been exploited to smuggle fentanyl and its precursor chemicals into the United States, will go a long way toward stopping the problem at hand.
Unfortunately, however, fentanyl is no longer the only product being smuggled in from China that is threatening Americans’ health and safety.
China also has a state-owned corporation with chartered monopoly status to sell nicotine products. This monopoly provides the communist regime with a significant amount of annual funding. In 2023, its receipts clocked in at $210 billion, $10 billion shy of funding the entire People’s Liberation Army.
One of China’s most important nicotine products is its flavored vapes, which the country continues illegally smuggling into the United States.
In 2023, over 60% of disposable vapes sold in the U.S. were illicit, with the majority originating from China. This is concerning because there is increasing evidence that some of these products contain harmful contaminants, such as heavy metals, pesticides and other toxins, due to lax manufacturing standards in Chinese factories.
This raises the question: now that the U.S. has taken significant action to squelch the prevalence of Chinese fentanyl within our borders, what can it do to stop the scourge of these dangerous Chinese nicotine products?
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First, the administration must crack down on illicit Chinese vape imports through targeted customs enforcement and stricter penalties for distributors of illegal e-cigarettes. A concerted effort to increase inspections at ports of entry, penalize bad actors in the supply chain as needed and will significantly reduce their presence.
Second, the administration, including incoming Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and incoming Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, should override former President Joe Biden’s appointees at the International Trade Commission’s decision to ban the only legal, U.S.-produced flavored vaping products from the marketplace within the 60-day window that they have to do so. If it goes into effect, this prohibition will allow China’s illicit marketplace to grow stronger.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the administration should work with Congress to reintroduce and pass legislation that holds Chinese companies accountable for violating U.S. safety and trade laws. The halt of illegal fentanyl imports through the Phase One tariffs in 2020 showed that trade measures can pressure China into compliance. Extending these policies to cover unsafe vape products would protect American consumers from dangerous, unregulated imports.
From the devastating fentanyl crisis that precipitated the imposition of tariffs on China to the resurgence of youth vaping driven by illegal flavored e-cigarettes, the pattern is clear — China does not follow the rules.
Protecting our families, especially our children, from these dangers must remain a top national priority.
FIRST ON FOX: The Protecting America Initiative (PAI), a Trump-aligned anti-CCP group, has launched a five-figure ad encouraging states to crack down against what they call illicit Chinese vapes in order to counter the communist country’s growing influence in the United States.
"It's hip, it’s cool, but look closely on the box," the new ad from PAI, which describes itself as a coalition of concerned public policy experts dedicated to combating China’s influence, starts out.
"It says, right there, made in China. New data shows the market is being flooded with unregulated e-cigarettes. Most vape products are made in China, and they're not always regulated. They're getting these products from China, where they can be tainted with God knows what. It's been a struggle to keep illegal e-cigarettes from reaching young people."
PAI says the ad is meant to remind viewers that "Trump in 2019 was right about the dangers of illicit Chinese vapes and of Biden’s failure to protect Americans from these unregulated illicit products."
"You watch prohibition, you look at, you know, with the alcohol, if you don't give it to them, it's going to come here illegally. But instead of legitimate companies, good companies, making something that's safe, they're going to be selling stuff on a street corner that could be horrible," Trump is quoted as saying in the ad.
The ad will run on digital platforms in targeted markets across the country.
TRUMP ADMIN'S FDA WITHDRAWS PROPOSED FEDERAL RULE TO BAN MENTHOL CIGARETTES
"Despite the warnings, Biden failed and China won," the ad states. "Trump predicted this."
"States are taking action against illicit Chinese vapes. More state leaders can act now to fight with Trump against illicit Chinese vapes."
Although the rate of youth smoking cigarettes is now at an all-time low, according to the CDC, youth usage of Chinese vapes has increased dramatically since 2020.
President Donald Trump's tariffs on China have raised significant concern over their potential impact on healthcare costs, but while the move could have a broad effect on the industry, it is likely they will not produce the devastating results that some may be expecting, health policy and trade experts say.
A survey by market research group Black Book Research found that 84% of the healthcare consumers they questioned said they expect to see higher costs due to increased pricing on medical treatments and drugs as a result of Trump's new tariffs. But health policy expert Chris Pope posited that healthcare is "not a very highly tradable sector" and that the sectors that do rely on trade relations, like pharmaceutical drugs or medical devices, will hinge on the magnitude of any Trump tariffs.
"There's not much international trade for most of healthcare. The biggest parts of healthcare – physician services, these are all provided domestically already, and hospitals are a domestic part of healthcare, so you take out those two things, and you've kind of ruled out almost three-quarters of all healthcare spending," Pope said in an interview with Fox News Digital. "So, for the most part, we're talking about drugs and devices, which are, at most, about a quarter of healthcare spending."
DEMS CLAIM TRUMP TARIFF COULD ‘DRIVE UP’ COSTS DESPITE DEFLECTING BLAME FROM BIDEN'S INFLATION
"In terms of prices for the industry, whether it's absorbed in their margins, or they do less research and development, or they pass it on to consumers … it's not completely devastating, but it's definitely annoying," said Christine McDaniel, a senior economist at George Mason University's Mercatus Institute.
Experts told Fox News that drug prices are among the most vulnerable aspects of the healthcare system, largely due to the U.S.' reliance on China for certain precursor chemicals and compounds that are essential for producing important medications. However, Pope said that the impact will likely only affect generic drugs and not branded drugs that are based on demand rather than supply. Generic drugs are already relatively cost-efficient, with many of them ranging under $10, he said.
Monica de Bolle is an immunologist and a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. She painted a bleaker picture of how many drugs could be impacted by the tariffs.
‘MAKING AMERICA EXPENSIVE AGAIN’: DEMOCRATS FIND A TAX THEY DON'T LIKE IN TRUMP TARIFFS
"If you go through a list of the kinds of things that we import from China when it comes to active drug ingredients, or anything else that goes into the making of over-the-counter drugs, everything is in there. If you look at the list, it basically spans the range of potential medications that anyone takes at any point in their lives," said de Bolle. "It includes things like over-the-counter NSAIDS, so non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs, things like Motrin, ibuprofen, even Tylenol, because Acetaminophen is on that list."
She added that drugs that are more dependent on China include medications for anxiety and other psychiatric disorders, such as antidepressants, and following Trump's tariffs, "those prices are going to go up, for sure," she said.
Experts say costs in healthcare could also rise due to disruptions in the supply chain for medical devices, but they noted that the impact will be a lot harder to generalize, compared to the impact on drug pricing.
"Maybe before [the supply chain] was broken up into five stages. Well, now maybe they've broken it up into six or seven stages. So there are certain things that they have to stay in China for, or they have to source from China, but then they do the next step in India or another nearby country . . . which is going to be more expensive," McDaniel said.
However, Pope argued that prices could change, depending on the device and the magnitude of Trump's tariffs.
"It's going to vary a lot, according to where the devices are manufactured, where the components are manufactured, what kind of subsidies are available from other countries and domestically, and the degree of retaliation," he said.
While Trump's tariffs might be new, the experts say that getting out of China is not. Reducing the U.S.' dependency on Chinese products tied to healthcare, particularly drugs like antibiotics, has been talked about among lawmakers for some time due to the potential national security risks. Parallel to these discussions, companies have been preparing for future tariffs in light of increased geopolitical tensions.
"There has been a lot of discussion coming from both the Democratic camp, as well as the Republican one, about the necessity to bring some of the production of certain types of drugs back to the U.S. to reduce dependency on China," said de Bolle. "This whole deal about drugs and medical equipment and all of that that was under discussion before Trump. So, it's not even Trump-related."
"In essence, you know what's happening now with the tariffs that Trump imposed isn't any different from the sorts of things that these people were thinking of doing anyway."
An aircraft contracted by the Department of Defense (DOD) crashed in the southern Philippine province of Maguindanao del Sur on Thursday, killing an American service member and three defense contractors.
The post U.S. Military Surveillance Flight Crashes in Philippines, Four Killed appeared first on Breitbart.
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