Free Republic

Following a month where the trade deficit hit its lowest level since early 2009, it shot up to $56.8 billion, an increase of 94.6% from October...On a year-over-year basis, the deficit through November stood at $839.5 billion, or about 4% higher than the same period in 2024.

Top business leaders this week delivered an expletive-laden plea in defense of climate action, describing the backlash to Europe’s green transition as an “aberration.” In an interview with CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Allianz CEO Oliver Bäte said he disagreed with the suggestion that it may just be a matter of time before net zero is dismissed in Europe, saying short-term thinking on this issue is “bulls---.” Asked about political leaders backtracking on their much-vaunted European Green New Deal and Norway’s oil fund reportedly defending a push from companies to water down their climate goals, Bäte...

The video is a reaction/commentary piece analyzing a recent CNBC interview clip featuring Joe Kernen interviewing Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). Key points covered: Warren criticizes Donald Trump for allegedly trying to exert political control over the Federal Reserve (e.g., threatening to fire Chair Jerome Powell and demanding influence over interest rates). She argues the Fed must remain independent and base decisions purely on economic data like inflation and unemployment, rather than political pressure, to avoid short-term boosts that harm long-term stability. The CNBC host (Kernen) and the video's narrator push back, accusing Warren of hypocrisy. They point out that during...

It’s always great TV when the business journos over at CNBC take a wrecking ball to the media’s never-ending croaking against the Trump administration for an affordability issue they pretended wasn’t such a big deal under its predecessor. CNBC co-anchor Joe Kernen didn’t mince any words during the January 10 edition of Squawk Box. “[T]he affordability issue is from the 22% increase in prices and inflation under Biden. There's just — full stop. right there. That's the affordability issue. And you ought to be able to explain that,” Kernen rebuked. Gas prices alone had also spiked at least 31 percent...

CNBC (MS NOW) host Joe Kernen confronted Democratic Virginia Sen. Mark Warner on Monday as the senator criticized the surge in arrests of illegal immigrants made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The panelists on “Squawk Box” discussed the response to the death of Renee Good in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Wednesday, who was shot by an ICE officer while allegedly accelerating her vehicle forward during a confrontation with agents. Warner claimed that ICE agents are detaining illegal immigrants who have not committed any crimes, but rather are arresting mothers dropping off their kids at school and people heading to work....

Federal prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, The New York Times reported on Sunday evening, citing officials briefed on the matter. The probe is eyeing “the central bank’s renovation of its Washington headquarters and whether Mr. Powell lied to Congress about the scope of the project,” the Times reported, citing those officials. The investigation is being overseen by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, according to the newspaper. That office is led by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, a former New York state prosecutor and Fox News host, who was appointed to...

More than 100 people were killed during the U.S. military operation in Venezuela that captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife, the country's Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said Wednesday...Cuba revealed on Monday that 32 of its citizens were killed during the operation...Seven U.S. service members were injured

Daniel Osorio, Andean Capital Advisors president and founder, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, what's next for the country, impact on the global oil industry and cryptocurrency, and more. Every Venezuelan with the exception of a few thousand people are ecstatic:Andean's Daniel Osorio | 9:27CNBC Television | 3.31M subscribers | 2,019 views | January 6, 2026

Key Points * Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said he is “deeply upset” over Trump’s appointment of a U.S. special envoy to Greenland. * Trump has repeatedly said that the U.S. needs the resource-rich Greenland for security reasons. * Danish Prime Minister Mette Fredriksen said: “Greenland belong to Greenlanders, and the U.S. should not take over Greenland.” ************************************************************************************ Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said Monday he will summon the U.S. ambassador to Denmark for a conversation about President Donald Trump’s appointment of a special envoy to Greenland. “I’m deeply upset about the appointment and the statement, which I...

"Mic-drop" truth bomb. Israeli Ambassador Claps back at NBC Host: "Quoting Gaza Health Ministry is Like Quoting MS-13's Welfare Stats" | WATCH. An on-air clash goes viral as Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter slams NBC’s Kristen Welker for citing Gaza casualty figures, igniting a fierce debate over media bias, wartime propaganda, and the battle to control the narrative. Welker referenced the ministry's reported death toll while grilling Leiter on civilian casualties during Israel's operations in Gaza and Lebanon. Leiter fired back: "Kristen, you just quoted the Gaza Health Ministry. That’s like quoting MS-13 Social Welfare Ministry." The analogy, equating the ministry...

Recent announcements, including the US$9.6 billion Japan chip plant, have fueled optimism but don’t materially change the current biggest short-term catalyst, tight global memory chip supply, or the main risk of continued heavy capital spending weighing on cash flow and margin stability.Micron’s investment in the Hiroshima facility may be the most relevant recent announcement, as it enhances the company's manufacturing capacity for advanced memory, positioning it to serve fast-growing AI and data center markets. While this addresses demand surges, it also reinforces the importance of prudent capital allocation given memory market volatility and ongoing competition impacting returns.

Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss concerns over an AI bubble, the history of economic bubbles, what investors can do in response to bubble fears, state of private credit market, problems around debt, his thoughts on bitcoin, and more. Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio: We are definitely in a bubble, but that doesn't mean you should sell | 9:10 CNBC Television | 3.29M subscribers | 88,329 views | November 20, 2025 on CNBC Television website

A drastic new message adorns the walls of the Iranian capital, usually reserved for war heroes and weapons. “There is a water shortage!” reads the government poster's slogan, inside a water container that is nearly empty. “It’s fall and there is still no rain.” That’s not news to Erfan Ensani, 39, who returned home from a long day working in the textile section of the city’s central bazaar last week to find his taps running dry. Iran is facing its worst water crisis in decades. With no end in sight and authorities warning they may even have to evacuate the...

Dave Rubin of "The Rubin Report" shares a DM clip of Russell Brand's appearance on "Real Time with Bill Maher," where he roasted MSNBC's John Heilemann for media bias. Bill Maher's Crowd Roars for Russell Brand's Relentless Truth Bombs | 4:40 The Rubin Report | 3.12M subscribers | 551,542 views | November 12, 2025

Tom Lee. Fundstrat Global Advisors head of research and Fundstrat Capital CIO, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the latest market trends, year-end S&P outlook, bitcoin price trends, and more. The S&P 500 could reach 7,500 by year-end, says Fundstrat's Tom Lee | 8:25 CNBC Television | 3.27M subscribers | 161,455 views | November 3, 2025

When I found Darshan Smaaladen earlier this month, she had joined several hundred of her neighbors at a “No Kings” demonstration in Orange County, California. Not that she was there to protest. “Rallies are great,” Smaaladen told me, “but they don’t get people out to vote.”A year ago, Smaaladen had helped lead a successful campaign to recall two ultraconservative members of Orange County’s school board. Now the 52-year-old mother of three was using the “No Kings” protest as a campaigning ground for Proposition 50, the ballot measure orchestrated by Governor Gavin Newsom that would redraw California’s district map to add...

The film dispels the comforting illusion that technology can shield us from a nuclear attack.Director Kathryn Bigelow’s new thriller, “A House of Dynamite,” is not simply a gripping film — it is a wake-up call. The movie dramatizes, in real time, the terrifying 30-minute window between the launch of a nuclear missile bound for the U.S. and its impact. In doing so, the film exposes a brutal truth that too many decision-makers and policy experts in Washington refuse to admit: Long-range missile defense will not protect us. Our only real path to escape nuclear catastrophe lies in reducing global arsenals.From...

Dan Niles, founder and portfolio manager at Niles Investment Management, joins CNBC's 'Money Movers' to discuss his outlook on this week's Big Tech earnings, the rise in Qualcomm stock, and more. You will see a 30 to 50% correction in many AI-related names next year, says Dan Niles | 6:01 CNBC Television | 3.26M subscribers | 41,414 views | October 27, 2025

It looks like CNBC Squawk Box co-anchor Becky Quick is fed up with the Democrats’ hypocritical nonsense over the ongoing government shutdown. Quick skewered House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) during the October 24 edition of Squawk Box. Quick scolded him over Obamacare subsidies: “What you’re asking the Republicans to do right now when they control the White House, the Senate and the House is effectively what the Democrats could not do when they controlled all three heads of government themselves,” The CNBC personality continued, with Jeffries just staring stone-faced: “The three-year set up for the expiration of these credits...

Furloughed federal workers in Maryland stood in a food bank line Tuesday as the government shutdown continues and families try to figure out how to put food on the table. The Capital Area Food Bank began free food distributions for federal workers and contractors this week in Hyattsville. With an hour to go before food was handed out, a long line of people waited for help.