US Plans to Challenge China on Multiple Fronts in Africa, Says Trump Official
WASHINGTON—The United States will focus on 'investment-led and trade-driven growth' to stifle China's malign influence in Africa and to fight Beijing's attempts at global hegemony, according to Washington's most senior official for African Affairs.
In testimony before the Senate Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy on Wednesday, Troy Fitrell said the U.S. government under President Donald Trump will counter Beijing's 'predatory and destabilizing' behavior with 'credible, reliable, and fair alternatives' aimed at benefiting Africans and Americans.
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CNBC
36 minutes ago
- CNBC
When it comes to saving, Gen Z asks: 'What's the point?' That's dangerous, expert says
Gen Z seems to have a case of economic malaise. Nearly half (49%) of its adult members — the oldest of whom are in their late 20s — say planning for the future feels "pointless," according to a recent Credit Karma poll. A freewheeling attitude toward summer spending has taken root among young adults who feel financial "despair" and "hopelessness," said Courtney Alev, a consumer financial advocate at Credit Karma. They think, "What's the point when it comes to saving for the future?" Alev said. That "YOLO mindset" among Generation Z — the cohort born from roughly 1997 through 2012 — can be dangerous: If unchecked, it might lead young adults to rack up high-interest debt they can't easily repay, perhaps leading to delayed milestones like moving out of their parents' home or saving for retirement, Alev said. But your late teens and early 20s is arguably the best time for young people to develop healthy financial habits: Starting to invest now, even a little bit, will yield ample benefits via decades of compound interest, experts said. "There are a lot of financial implications in the long term if these young people aren't planning for their financial future and [are] spending willy-nilly however they want," Alev said. That said, that many feel disillusioned is understandable in the current environment, experts said. The labor market has been tough lately for new entrants and those looking to switch jobs, experts said. The U.S. unemployment rate is relatively low, at 4.2%. However, it's much higher for Americans 22 to 27 years old: 5.8% for recent college grads and 6.9% for those without a bachelor's degree, according to Federal Reserve Bank of New York data as of March 2025. Here's a look at other stories affecting the financial advisor business. Young adults are also saddled with debt concerns, experts said. "They feel they don't have any money and many of them are in debt," said Winnie Sun, co-founder and managing director of Sun Group Wealth Partners, based in Irvine, California. "And they're wondering if the degree they have (or are working toward) will be of value if A.I. takes all their jobs anyway. So is it just pointless?" About 50% of bachelor's degree recipients in the 2022-23 class graduated with student debt, with an average debt of $29,300, according to College Board. The federal government restarted collections on student debt in default in May, after a five-year pause. The Biden administration's efforts to forgive large swaths of student debt, including plans to help reduce monthly payments for struggling borrowers, were largely stymied in court. "Some hoped some or more of it would be forgiven, and that didn't turn out to be the case," said Sun, a member of CNBC's Financial Advisor Council. Meanwhile, in a 2024 report, the New York Fed found credit card delinquency rates were rising faster for Gen Z than for other generations. About 15% had maxed out their cards, more than other cohorts, it said. It's also "never been easier to buy things," with the rise of buy now, pay later lending, for example, Alev said. BNPL has pushed the majority of Gen Z users — 77% — to say the service has encouraged them to spend more than they can afford, according to the Credit Karma survey. The firm polled 1,015 adults ages 18 and older, 182 of whom are from Gen Z. These financial challenges compound an environment of general political and financial uncertainty, amid on-again-off-again tariff policy and its potential impact on inflation and the U.S. economy, for example, experts said. "You start stacking all these things on top of each other and it can create a lack of optimism for young people looking to get started in their financial lives," Alev said. Young adults should try to rewire their financial mindset, experts said. "Most importantly, you don't want to bet against yourself," Sun said. "See it as an opportunity," she added. "If you're young and your expenses are low, this is the time to invest as much as you can right now." Time is working in their favor, due to the ability to compound investment growth over multiple decades, Alev said. While investing might "feel impossible," every little bit helps, even if it's just investing $10 a month right now into a tax-advantaged retirement account like a Roth IRA or 401(k). The latter is among the easiest ways to start, due to automatic payroll deduction and the possibility of earning a "match" from your employer, which is "probably the closest thing to free money any of us will get in our lifetime," Alev said. "This is actually the most exciting time to invest, because you're young," Sun said. Instituting mindful spending habits, such as putting a waiting period of at least 24 hours in place before buying a non-essential item, can help prevent unnecessary spending, she added. Sun advocates for paying down high-interest debt before focusing on investing, so interest payments don't quickly spiral out of control. Or, as an alternative, they can try to fund a 401(k) to get their full company match while also working to pay off high-interest debt, she said. "Instead of getting into the 'woe is me' mode, change that into taking action," Sun said. "Make a plan, take baby steps and get excited about opportunities to invest."
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Musk has billions, but Trump has the presidency. In their feud, that counts for more.
There will be no true winners in the spectacular breakup between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, two alpha males with enormous egos and a penchant for rhetorical combat — and for excess. To many Americans watching it all, the two deserve each other. But in the end, Musk should know who truly holds the cards, and it's not him. The implosion that occurred Thursday was an irresistible spectacle pitting the most powerful person in the world against the richest person in the world. It was made for cable news and social media, and neither could get enough of it. Many Republicans who couldn't look away were nonetheless alarmed at the potential fallout. The marriage of convenience between Trump and Musk took root last year with Musk's endorsement and an infusion of an estimated $288 million into the effort to elect Trump president. It carried on into this year, with Musk given broad powers to cut down the executive branch through his U.S. DOGE Service, and he was sometimes described almost as a co-president rather than a volunteer. Musk may have confused the difference. The relationship between the two was one that many who knew them both believed would inevitably end in divorce. That the breakup was as swift and as acrimonious as it was reflected the personalities of the two. The split has implications both substantive and political — and for Musk there are monetary issues to consider, given the size of the government contracts with his businesses and the risk of a decline in the value of Tesla stock. At heart, however, this is a personality clash — pitting a volatile business talent, though a political novice, against a president with shrewd political instincts who has long displayed an appetite for street fights when attacked. Trump also has something Musk does not have, which is the votes of 77 million people and a MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement behind him, including some like Stephen K. Bannon who have been openly hostile to Musk. It's difficult at this moment to expect that Trump and Musk will return to their earlier relationship, however fraught it always was despite the public bonhomie at Cabinet meetings and in the Oval Office. But it's also in the interest of both not to perpetuate this very long. For Trump and the Republicans in Congress, the most pressing concern is Musk's ability to torpedo the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' that is the summation of the president's legislative ambitions for this year and perhaps his entire second term. The measure passed the House by a single vote. It cannot pass the Senate without some rewriting, though how much is up in the air. Musk's declaration that the bill is a 'disgusting abomination' helped trigger the conflict between the two men and adds ammunition for those who want more spending cuts. The question is how much Musk's opposition adds to the difficulties of finding a compromise among the competing GOP factions. It's easy to see why GOP leaders are unsettled by Musk's initial attacks on the bill and now his feud with the president. Trump already was facing a sizable job in lobbying lawmakers to win passage of the bill. Any loss of focus on the legislation by the president could be costly, as defeat would deal a devastating blow to Trump and congressional Republicans. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said on CNBC Friday that failure to pass the bill ultimately would cost Republicans control of the House in next year's midterm elections. That's stating the obvious, but then again, passage of the controversial measure also could imperil the House majority. No one can say whether Musk has the focus or the staying power to engage in a constructive debate about the bill beyond the broad claim that it's just too expensive. Absent something more substantive and targeted in his critique, members of Congress could dismiss him as just another billionaire who knows less than he thinks he knows — and a rich guy angry because federal subsidies for the purchase of electric vehicles would be eliminated (though Musk claims he doesn't really care about that). Though there are worries about Musk's role, some Republicans downplay his influence. 'As a practical matter, he'll have almost no impact on the legislative process,' former House speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Georgia) said. Gingrich went on to praise Musk as a business genius and someone whose SpaceX rocket company is vital to the United States winning the space battle against China. But as he noted, many business titans, from automaker Henry Ford to inventor Thomas Edison to IBM founder Thomas Watson, were never president. His argument was that Musk, like many business executives, knows almost nothing about politics. 'These are two dramatically different cultures,' he said. But for Republicans there is another concern about Musk, which is the possibility that he will use his vast wealth to try to defeat GOP lawmakers who support the bill. Could he intercede in Republican primary elections? Could he recruit challengers to punish those he sees on the wrong side of the fiscal debate? All that is possible, but there are other factors to consider about Musk's ability to play successfully in future political campaigns. Some strategists who have watched him in action believe the odds are low that his impact would be as great as his bank account might suggest. Musk claimed on Thursday that without his efforts Trump would not have won the 2024 election. That's questionable, though one can see why he might think so. But there are doubts in Republican circles about how effectively Musk's money was spent last year. In politics, he has been undisciplined and is seen as surrounded by mostly tech people who also are not skilled at politics. One of his more recent forays into politics came earlier this year, when he decided to get involved in the Wisconsin Supreme Court election. He and allied groups put about $20 million into the race to support Brad Schimel, the conservative judge running against Susan Crawford, the liberal judge. Musk held a rally the weekend before the election, elevating himself almost as the face of the contest. In the end, Crawford won by a margin of 10 percentage points. In May, apparently sobered by the embarrassing loss, Musk said at the Qatar Economic Forum that he would be spending 'a lot less' on campaigns unless he saw a good reason to do otherwise. He sounded disillusioned with politics at the time and eager to shift his focus back to his business interests. He did not sound like someone with an appetite to build an effective political machine capable of recruiting candidates, developing messages and turning out voters. Maybe this is the time, but there is reason for skepticism. One of Musk's postings on X on Thursday also caught the eye of veteran political strategists. It was when he asked, 'Is it time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80% in the middle?' For some Republicans, that might have been alarming, given the resources at his control and the general disillusionment among many voters with politics as usual. For others, however, it signaled that Musk fundamentally misunderstands the structure of America's two-party system. Over many years, various politicians and strategists have talked about organizing the 'sensible center' of the electorate, without success. The experience of the No Labels group in the 2024 cycle was the latest such effort, ending with an acknowledgment that the leaders could not attract a candidate with a credible path to victory. Musk's talk about a third party is little more than musing at this point. Musk's experience with DOGE is enough by itself to question his future role in legislative or campaign politics. His impatience, his break-first-worry-later approach and his lack of understanding of the government all doomed him to fall far short of his grand expectations. 'Had Elon been capable of listening and going slower, he would have had enormous impact. But it's not who he is,' Gingrich said. 'Had he matured into a serious commentator and implementer, then he would have had enormous influence.' Trump said Friday that he's not paying any attention to Musk. That's an overstatement, but the president has more important things to worry about in leading the country and dealing with a complicated set of issues globally. Just laying out the menu of challenges is a reminder of the powers of the presidency. Musk may have thought he was a peer to the president, but he now could learn more about what his real role was and will be.
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
How the Musk-Trump feud became an online battle like no other
What happens when the world's two most powerful men and accomplished attention-seekers clash on the internet? We're finding out in real time. This week, billionaire Elon Musk and President Donald Trump took to their respective social platforms to sling mud at the other after a fallout over federal spending. What started as a volley of barbs snowballed into a feud involving multiple social platforms and millions of onlookers, as everyone from big-name politicians to no-name meme accounts hurried to offer their takes and declare their allegiances. The split could have profound real-world consequences, as both men show their willingness to leverage financial and political power to hit back at the other. It also illustrates how quickly a conflict can escalate when it is fanned by algorithmic feeds and the demands of the attention economy, which prizes outrage and relishes a high-profile feud. While Trump and Musk circle their wagons, drumming up support and smearing the other through posts on X and Truth Social, millions of smaller content creators stand to capitalize on the attention it generates. On Thursday afternoon, the number of active users on the X and Truth Social mobile apps both reached 90-day highs, according to preliminary estimates by Sensor Tower, a market intelligence firm. Between 2 and 6 p.m. Eastern time that day, the firm estimates that X usage was up 54 percent compared with the previous seven days, while Truth Social was up more than 400 percent, albeit from a much lower baseline. 'Public feuds like this drive social media engagement like crazy,' said Casey Fiesler, a professor of information science at the University of Colorado at Boulder who studies social media ethics. 'It's high-octane content because it's easy to meme and very algorithmically rewarded.' Musk, whose business empire includes X as well as Tesla, rocket company SpaceX and artificial intelligence start-up xAI, kicked off the fight on Tuesday when he posted on X to criticize a congressional spending bill backed by the president: 'This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,' he wrote. The post was viewed more than 141 million times and sparked a flurry of commentary on X and elsewhere online. Gen Z internet personality Lil Tay, known for over-the-top posts flaunting luxury goods, got 2.8 million views on a reply clapping back at Musk for his former support of Trump, while far-right commentator Charlie Kirk referenced Musk's 'tweet heard around the world' in a post funneling viewers to Apple Podcasts to stream his talk show. Over the next two days, Musk continued to take shots at Trump on X, at one point posting a poll asking whether America needed a new centrist political party, while Trump told White House reporters that his and Musk's relationship was on the rocks. Then on Thursday, Musk escalated the back-and-forth by claiming in a post on X that Trump is implicated in the Epstein files, documents that allegedly contain the names of people who consorted with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually assault minors. The post exploded, drawing almost 200 million views in a day and stoking a second wave of content from politicians, creators and meme-makers. A post from an anonymous X user, liked by 192,300 people, mused: 'Who gets JD Vance in the divorce?' The vice president soon provided an answer, posting that Trump has 'earned the trust of the movement he leads.' On X, where Musk's changes to the platform's verification feature have blurred the lines between real public figures and paid subscribers, fake politicians joined the fray. 'Every time I smell a movement, I know you'll be next to it,' came a reply to Vance from an account for Rep. Jack Kimble — a fictitious congressman with more than 93,000 followers whose posts have often fooled social media users. Former Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon seized the moment to make headlines with his podcast, in which he called for Trump to seize SpaceX and perhaps even deport Musk. Politics creators such as Philip DeFranco took to TikTok with beat-by-beat breakdowns of the feud, while Musk's estranged daughter Vivian Wilson posted to her Instagram stories a clip of herself laughing, with the caption, 'I love being proven right,' possibly in reference to past comments criticizing her father and Trump. In the Reddit community r/politics, self-styled sleuths conducted deep dives into Epstein-related court filings, at times linking to books and YouTube series that claim to investigate Epstein's celebrity accomplices. Far-fetched conspiracy theories floated around X as users speculated whether Trump and Musk could be secretly working together toward some noble end. Critics of Musk and Trump delighted in the affair. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), who at 35 is a social media star in her own right, was stopped by a reporter outside the U.S. Capitol on Thursday and asked for her reaction to Trump and Musk's war of words. She was quick to spit an online catchphrase: 'Oh man, the girls are fighting, aren't they?' The clip spread quickly on TikTok, where it was boosted by left-leaning talking heads and news accounts. Academic research on online algorithms has shown that social feeds often prioritize content that elicits fear or rage. High-profile fights can boost the power and profiles of people involved, as with the infamous internet feuds between Kim Kardashian and Kanye West or influencers Trisha Paytas and Ethan Klein, said Fiesler. But trending conflicts are also a boon to the second-order creators, who jump to offer 'side takes,' playing off the argument of the day to drive traffic to their own products and profiles. A divisive court battle between actress Amber Heard and her ex-husband Johnny Depp, for instance, spawned its own media ecosystem, with creators and channels dedicated entirely to dissecting the feud — at times even falsifying or exaggerating information to keep viewers hooked. 'This [Musk-Trump feud] is half my TikTok feed right now,' Fiesler said. 'The more that people talk about it, the more people feel obligated to talk about it and take sides.' It's a dynamic the principles in this fight have long since mastered. Vance posted on X on Thursday a picture of himself with the popular podcaster and comedian Theo Von, with the tongue-in-cheek caption, 'Slow news day, what are we even going to talk about?' Musk reposted it, adding a 'laughter' emoji. Under Musk's ownership, X has lost advertisers and users turned off by his politics and lax approach to hate speech, with rivals such as Bluesky and Meta's Threads siphoning left-leaning users in particular. Now he risks alienating Trump loyalists. But in the meantime, even critics of his leadership of X acknowledged Thursday that it seemed to have 'the juice' — that is, it was driving the conversation — at least for the moment. 'A public blowup between the world's richest man and the president of the U.S. is hard for people to resist witnessing first-hand, even for those that may not regularly use X,' said Jasmine Enberg, vice president and principal analyst at eMarketer, a market research firm. 'That said, our media usage is so fragmented and we're being bombarded with the news from every channel that it's not likely to be significant or sustainable.' Truth Social, meanwhile, has become an increasingly important component of Trump's communication strategy, with the self-styled influencer-in-chief firing off a steady stream of posts — at times dozens a day — lauding his own actions or taking aim at rivals. White House employees and right-leaning creators then spread the posts to other platforms, broadening Truth Social's reach and influence even as the platform underperforms compared with X, Threads or Bluesky. (Sensor Tower estimates X has about 100 times more active users.) The Trump-Musk brouhaha exemplifies how online influencer culture has permeated politics, said Renée DiResta, a professor at Georgetown University's McCourt School of Public Policy and the author of 'Invisible Rulers.' 'Online beefing is not about winning — it's a kind of performance,' she said. The interactive nature of social media allows the audience to get in on the action. 'We pick sides, cheer for our champion and keep the fight going. We make memes — we can grab some attention for ourselves and help shape the fight if we make good ones.' But what might be harmless fun in the case of celebrity gossip, she said, has a darker side when the warring parties are among the world's most powerful people. In a striking example, a threat from Trump on Thursday to cancel government contracts with SpaceX prompted Musk to reply that the company 'will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately' — a move that would have severed NASA's only means of transporting astronauts to the International Space Station. A pseudonymous X user who had fewer than 100 followers at the time replied to Musk's post, urging him to 'take a step back' and reconsider. Within hours, Musk responded: 'Good advice. Okay, we won't decommission Dragon.' The online bedlam prompted sports commentator Darren Rovell to revisit a famous tweet he posted in 2016 that has since become a meme: 'I feel bad for our country. But this is tremendous content.'
