Trump's ‘promising start,' a GOP win on Medicaid reform and other commentary
Mideast journal: Trump's 'Promising Start'
President Trump 'would have made a good sheikh,' quips Daniel McCarthy at The Spectator. 'He doesn't drink, he loves developing flashy properties to show off his power and wealth, and he's brutally realistic about the role of oil (and other commodities) in world politics.' In Riyadh, 'he declared 'a land of peace, safety, harmony, opportunity, innovation, and achievement' ' in the Middle East. It's a 'rosy' vision, but not 'ideological': New Middle East leaders, like Prince Mohammad bin Salman, prioritize 'commerce, not chaos' (as Trump put it). The prez sees that view aligning 'with his approach to the Abraham Accords.' It will take all of Trump's skill and luck 'to make peace in the Middle East,' but 'he's made a promising start.'
From the right: A GOP Win on Medicaid Reform
'The recently released House Energy and Commerce Committee draft proposals' for Medicaid reform 'avoid the classic Republican mistake' of 'appearing to care more about saving money than saving lives,' cheers Henry Olsen at the Washington Examiner. 'The classic GOP method' for reforming entitlements has always been 'politically unpopular' because Republicans don't make clear 'who will bear the brunt of the reduced spending.' The House plan makes 'targeted changes that are politically defensible,' including requiring working-age, able-bodied Medicaid recipients without dependents 'to work, go to school, or engage in community service for at least 80 hours a month.' This is a far more popular approach, as Americans 'want the government to be generous to those who need it, but to cut off those who don't.'
Libertarian: 'Eminent Domain' Gone Wild in NJ
Honey Meerzon's parents are Jews from the Soviet Union; Luis Romero's parents fled communist Cuba. The two fear their New Jersey city is about to take their businesses from them via 'the all-too-American process of eminent domain,' fumes Reason's Christian Britschgi. Perth Amboy deemed their buildings 'blighted' — based on an incorrect and flimsy report, they credibly say — allowing it to confiscate their properties. State law gives municipalities powers that create 'a lot of incentive to see blight that isn't there,' and Perth Amboy is moving ahead with a redevelopment project nearby. 'The reason [my parents] left Cuba' is that there 'they just come to your home, say 'we want this property. You have to get out,' ' says Romero. 'Here it's done legally.'
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Campus watch: Free Speech Double Standard
'Our country's most esteemed institutions of higher learning — the Ivy League schools — should have figured out how to ensure free speech rights on campus long ago,' laments USA Today's Ingrid Jacques. But 'Brown University student Alex Shieh learned that the hard way' as school administrators didn't care for the DOGE-like emails the student journalist sent 'asking them basic questions about what their jobs entail.' They 'launched a weekslong review into his reporting,' and began disciplinary hearings for Shieh and others at the student paper. Meanwhile, students at Columbia and Harvard get away with 'violent anti-Israel protests' and harassment. 'The twisted view of free speech at these Ivy League schools can't be ignored.'
Trade desk: Just Say No to Chinese Cars
One goal of President Trump's trade policy is that 'not only Japanese but Chinese automakers should build cars here,' observes City Journal's Jordan McGillis. No: 'On purely national security grounds, Chinese cars and auto-tech need to stay off American roads.' Why? 'The operation of virtually all new cars, whether electric or internal combustion, is inextricable from computing elements' — and these 'have at least some Chinese-authored code embedded within them.' That 'underscores the need for more transparency.' China is 'fond of shashoujian— 'assassin's mace' weapons' — like, say, malicious code allowing cars to be 'suddenly bricked like old smartphones' or have their navigation systems 'scrambled.' 'China's auto industry is not just a competitor in global markets; it is a vector of national security vulnerability.'
— Compiled by The Post Editorial Board
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Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. NATO, together, has an "ironclad commitment" to its collective defense. Or, at least, that's what a long-awaited, if brief, communique published by the alliance on Wednesday said, as it rounded off its biggest summit of the year. Article 5 — perhaps the ultimate sign of unity — is fully intact, the alliance said. Trump, a notorious NATO skeptic, has at several points heaped doubt on just how seriously he takes Article 5, including as he set off on his journey to The Hague. Article 5 is part of NATO's founding treaty, meaning if one country is attacked, all other nations must see it as an attack on the whole alliance and respond as they see fit. Trump has not been shy or reserved in his criticism of European allies and Canada, whom he deemed were not pulling their weight in NATO. The U.S.'s allies agreed, trying to present a united front for months by pledging to raise defense spending, partly to keep the Americans on side. But it was not Trump who cast doubt on NATO solidarity this week in The Hague and what he termed a "highly productive" summit in a "beautiful" country. It was Spain, whose prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, announced in the run-up to the summit that Madrid would not be raising its defense spending to 5 percent of GDP. This is the figure Trump and his senior officials have demanded. It is also the number that was considered completely unrealistic even a few months ago. Even during the Munich Security Conference in February, when Vice President JD Vance eviscerated European politicians from the stage in front of them, there was little indication that 5 percent could be deemed feasible in the near future. But NATO rubberstamped a commitment on Wednesday to dedicate 3.5 percent of GDP to the military, plus another 1.5 percent to defense-related areas like cyber or infrastructure. President Donald Trump meets NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. President Donald Trump meets NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, June 25, 2025. AP Photo/Alex Brandon "It was not easy but we've got them all signed onto 5 percent!" NATO chief Mark Rutte said in screenshots of texts to Trump, posted by the president to social media on Tuesday. All but Spain. Madrid said again on Wednesday that it will be able to fulfil the new targets each country has been set without reaching 3.5 percent of GDP on core defense spending. Rutte told journalists on Monday the alliance was "absolutely convinced" it could not. 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"It doesn't really matter if Spain misses a target," one prominent attendee remarked. "It's a minor dent on an unimportant part of the vehicle." But the PR value does matter, at least to the U.S. Spain recusing itself from the 5 percent pledge is a "big problem," Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Politico. "I don't think that the agreement that Spain has reached is sustainable, and frankly it puts them in a very tough spot with regards to their other allies and partners," he added. One of these allies could be Estonia, a country staring down Russia that committed to spending 5.4 percent on defense on average for the next four years — or an extra $3.2 billion. Tallinn would try to meet NATO's new capability targets "as quickly as possible," the government said as it announced the decision in April. Exact NATO capability targets, assigned to each country and decided in early June, are classified and separate from the spending goals. 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This year's concise communique, homing in on defense and tossing other topics to the wayside, "highlights that Europe's need to spend more on defense is one thing all Allies can agree on," said Rachel Rizzo, a non-resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council's Europe Center. But now the hard work begins, Rizzo said. "It's a long road ahead."
