Free Republic

Key Points and Summary – Western aspirations for regime change in Russia are a “dangerous delusion” that ignores the lessons of past interventions in Iraq and Libya. Such efforts are not only unrealistic, given Russia’s nationalist resilience, but also risk provoking greater instability and a more aggressive Kremlin.

So what does Trump do now? He may toy with all three approaches. He may ramp up covert attacks. He may float the idea of talks. But ultimately, if the past is any guide, the path he’s most likely to choose is the one that gives him maximum visibility, maximum leverage, and maximum control of the narrative. That means a strike—bigger than before, louder than before, unmistakable in its intent. Not because he’s bloodthirsty. Not because he wants regime change. But because he knows that in the high-stakes theater of international power, survival is a statement—and Iran has just made...

An Israeli strike on Iran’s hardened Fordow nuclear facility would not necessarily trigger an immediate, apocalyptic war but could instead be flipped to Iran’s strategic advantage. Rather than a suicidal retaliation, Tehran would likely respond with “retaliation in layers”: deniable proxy attacks, cyber-attacks, and maritime harassment.

The United States, under President Donald Trump, is perceptibly stepping back from its previous level of unconditional support for Ukraine, driven by a realist assessment that Kyiv’s maximalist war aims (like restoring 1991 borders) are unachievable against Russia’s grinding war of attrition.

Aprivate, off-the-record gathering of conservative leaders and wealthy donors will convene this week in Sea Island, Georgia, with appearances by a Biden White House official and several critics of former President Donald Trump. snip One of the key speakers at this week's gathering will be Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has been working behind the scenes to recruit candidates who come from a more traditional Republican mold, in terms of both policy positions and rhetoric, as he works to reclaim the Senate majority later this year in the midterm elections. Arizona Governor Doug Ducey, who Trump has harshly criticized...