Wsj Opinion: Potomac Watch

Donald Trump’s approach to foreign policy has shaken up international relations with his focus on bargaining and engaging adversaries. But will he succeed against China, Russia and Iran? Paul Gigot speaks with Wall Street Journal columnist Walter Russell Mead about how the United States can work alongside allies like Israel and what led to the collapse of the old world order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Attorney General Pam Bondi pledges to go after "hate speech," saying there's no place for it after Charlie Kirk’s assassination. But that isn't U.S. law under the First Amendment, and Kirk himself argued a crackdown on "hate speech" would give dangerous authority to whomever is in power. Plus, Utah prosecutors reveal more details about Tyler Robinson and his motive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After at least 19 Russian drones enter Polish airspace, with some shot down by allied fighter jets, President Trump says it could have been a "mistake." But is this more likely a calculated provocation by Vladimir Putin, perhaps his way of testing the West? Meantime, Trump suggests big sanctions on Russian energy might be coming, though his terms look like a way to delay. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump continues prodding the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, as the Fed meets amid persistent inflation and a stalled labor market. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two days after Kirk's assassination in Utah, law enforcement has arrested 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. Gov. Spencer Cox explains some of the evidence, including messages on the bullet casings found at the scene. Cox also appeals to young Americans to change the country's politics, calling social media "a cancer on our society," as students hold campus vigils for Kirk. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can Democrats and Republicans rise to the occasion after the murder of Charlie Kirk and tone down the rising vitriol of political discourse? Kirk leaves behind a legacy of civil debate with those he disagreed with, but can President Trump and others encourage a more positive way forward without resorting to violence? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New figures show hiring slowed in August, the U.S. economy was worse than reported in 2024, and real wages for the median American barely went up last year. Do the data revisions help explain why voters were so unhappy with Joe Biden? And is Donald Trump losing track of his economic mandate, amid a raid on a Hyundai site and an expanding loophole for tax free tips? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Senate Democrats holding up Donald Trump’s picks even for relatively minor jobs, Majority Leader John Thune proposes to speed confirmation by changing the chamber's rules to allow approval of blocks of uncontroversial nominees. Is this a good idea to restore a historical norm, or could it backfire if Democrats demand further rule rewrites when they return to power? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The values of the Western tradition have come under attack for unleashing a variety of sins, but is there a revival on the horizon? Paul Gigot speaks with historian Allen Guelzo about how “self-hatred” of Western civilization’s achievements has replaced thoughtful self-criticism, how much of this can be contributed to an ignorance of history, and the goals of Guelzo’s newest project, 'The Golden Thread: A History of the Western Tradition.' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gets grilled on Capitol Hill, including by Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Barrasso, both of them physicians, about his agenda on vaccines, views of Operation Warp Speed, and staff changes at his department. Meantime, Florida officials say they will push to end all state immunization mandates, including in schools. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump orders an airstrike on a speed boat in the Caribbean that he says was carrying narcotics, but should Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro also be worried, as the U.S. orders serious naval assets to the region? Meantime, Xi Jinping has a friendly photo-op with Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, amid a military parade in Beijing that showcases an axis of American adversaries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Democrats move to eject 22 of Gov. Glenn Youngkin's board appointees at three colleges, which they say is to protect the schools from Trump Administration meddling. But the Education Department accuses George Mason University of “illegally using race” in hiring, and Republicans are going to the state Supreme Court, arguing that Youngkin's appointees aren't fired at all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump has imposed global tariffs by citing a 1977 emergency law known as IEEPA, but a federal appeals court says 7-4 that this is outside of his legal authority. Otherwise, what would stop the next Democrat in the office from declaring a climate "emergency" to declare a carbon tariff? The White House plans to appeal, but will it have any better luck at the Supreme Court? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The pressure on Iran is rising again, as U.S. allies in Europe trigger "snap-back" sanctions, citing Tehran's uranium stockpiles and nuclear enrichment. Meantime, two weeks after President Trump's peace summit in Alaska with Vladimir Putin, Russia hits Ukraine hard with new airstrikes. Plus, Taiwan wants to raise its defense budget to 5% of GDP to deter a Chinese invasion.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump considers sending federal forces, including National Guard troops, to clean up Chicago's streets, but Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker says he doesn't want the help. Could Trump do it over the objections of state and local leaders? And is this a winning political issue for the GOP, as Mayor Muriel Bowser announces that carjackings in Washington, D.C., have dropped 87%? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump argues the Smithsonian Institution has lost sight of America's ideals and become too focused on the country's historical failures, as his staff launches a review of selected museums and exhibitions. Does he have a point, and what might result from this audit, or does the outcome depend on whether it's done in a thoughtful way that Americans can support?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump dismisses the Fed Governor for "cause," citing allegations aired on social media that she claimed two primary residences while applying for mortgages. Cook says she'll refuse to go, setting up a serious legal and constitutional fight. But is this really about Trump's demand for lower interest rates, and do Americans want Fed monetary policy to follow political orders? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump pushes the Senate to give confirmation hearings to his nominees, after a federal judge rules that Alina Habba has been unlawfully acting as a federal prosecutor since July, and that Trump's maneuvers to retain her don't follow the law. The White House will appeal, but the Senate seems reluctant to end its "blue slip" tradition for vetting home-state appointees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Socialist Zohran Mamdani now leads the polls by a wide margin. Andrew Cuomo attacks Mamdani by calling him "very rich" and demanding he immediately move out of his rent-stabilized apartment. And two former aides to Mayor Eric Adams face separate scandals, after one is indicted for bribery and another hands a reporter a potato-chip bag containing at least $140. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bill Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, takes to social media to accuse Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook of mortgage fraud. Pulte has also made similar criminal referrals for Sen. Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Aren't investigations supposed to happen before announcements, and didn't Donald Trump promise to end lawfare? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices