Our readers weigh in on Project 2025
Our by Paul Dans, who led Project 2025, the presidential transition plan for Donald Trump, sparked a lively response from readers. Here is an edited selection of some of their letters.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Taiwan central bank says US debt rising too fast may impact trust in Treasuries
TAIPEI, June 21 (Reuters) - Taiwan's central bank governor warned on Saturday that rapidly rising U.S. debt could be "unfavourable" to the outlook for U.S. Treasuries and that U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies have made investors cautious. Taiwan's $593 billion in foreign exchange reserves are more than 80% made up of U.S. Treasury bonds, according to the central bank, which said earlier this month that Treasuries were "sound" and still favoured by investors. It added there were no worries about the dollar's position as the leading international reserve currency. Governor Yang Chin-long, in a speech posted on the central bank's website, said Trump's repeated criticisms of the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy have caused concerns about its independence. "In addition, Trump 2.0's trade policy has made investors hesitant about holding U.S. Treasury bonds; Trump's budget, the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act,' may cause U.S. debt to expand too quickly, which is unfavourable to the outlook for U.S. sovereign debt," he said. "All of these have had a significant impact on the international monetary system centred on the U.S. dollar and based on U.S. creditworthiness." Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending bill is the centerpiece of his domestic agenda. The bill would lead to a larger-than-expected $2.8 trillion increase in the federal deficit over the decade, despite a boost to U.S. economic output, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projected on Tuesday. Trump, in his first few weeks in office, also announced sweeping tariffs on a broad swathe of countries and trading partners, including Taiwan, only to pause them for 90 days in April to allow for talks to take place. Yang said Trump had been hoping the tariffs could resolve the U.S. trade deficit. "However, the tariff policy not only fails to solve the structural problems, it will also impact the U.S. economy, and threaten to further affect the outlook for global trade and the economy."
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Trump's top spy confirms worst fears about Iran after public rebuke from president as US prepares military strike
Tulsi Gabbard finally responded to claims that she said Iran did not have nuclear capabilities after Donald Trump called her 'wrong' on the issue. Trump's Director of National Intelligence had testified in March that the U.S. intelligence community 'continues to assess Iran is not building a nuclear weapon.' She posted to X Friday that 'The dishonest media is intentionally taking my testimony out of context and spreading fake news as a way to manufacture division. America has intelligence that Iran is at the point that it can produce a nuclear weapon within weeks to months, if they decide to finalize the assembly. President Trump has been clear that can't happen, and I agree.' Gabbard included video of her testimony from March that while the intelligence community suggests that, the Iranians appear clearly to have 'enriched uranium stockpiles at its highest levels and is unprecedented for a state without nuclear weapons.' She also noted that Iran 'contains a wide range of threats' to the United States and Israel. Gabbard said that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had 'not authorized a nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003.' Trump said earlier Friday that Gabbard was wrong when she said that Iran wasn't building a nuclear weapon. 'Well, then my intelligence community is wrong,' he said Friday at Joint Base Andrews, to a question about what evidence he had that Iran was building a nuclear bomb. But Trump said Friday as he was departing for his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club 'it looked like I'm right about the material that they've gathered already.' 'It is a tremendous amount of material and I think within a matter of weeks or certainly within a matter of months they will be able to have a nuclear weapon and we can't let that happen,' Trump said. After landing in New Jersey for an evening fundraiser for his super political action committee, Trump was asked about Gabbard's comments to Congress in March that U.S. spy agencies believed that Iran wasn't working on nuclear warheads. The president responded, 'Well then, my intelligence community is wrong. Who in the intelligence community said that?' Informed that it had been Gabbard, Trump said, 'She's wrong.' Still, disavowing Gabbard´s previous assessment came a day after the White House said Trump would decide within two weeks whether the U.S. military would get directly involved in the conflict between Israel and Iran. It said seeking additional time was 'based on the fact that there´s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future.' But on Friday, Trump himself seemed to cast doubts on the possibility of talks leading to a pause in fighting between Israel and Iran. He said that, while he might support a ceasefire, Israel's strikes on Iran could be 'very hard to stop.' Asked about Iran suggesting that, if the U.S. was serious about furthering negotiations, it could call on Israel to stop its strikes, Trump responded, 'I think it´s very hard to make that request right now.' 'If somebody is winning, it´s a little bit harder to do than if somebody is losing,' Trump said. 'But we´re ready, willing and able, and we´ve been speaking to Iran, and we´ll see what happens.' The president later added, 'It´s very hard to stop when you look at it.' 'Israel´s doing well in terms of war. And, I think, you would say that Iran is doing less well. It´s a little bit hard to get somebody to stop,' Trump said. Earlier Friday, reported that Gabbard has been the target of a smear campaign from 'deep state' intelligence officials seeking to undermine her influence through strategic leaks as President Trump ponders whether to join Israel's war against Iran, those close to her tell the Daily Mail. Gabbard is in the room, helping the president and his team determine an informed path forward, these officials stressed, pushing back against multiple reports indicating that she's been sidelined. In fact, the president is calling on her, the sources claim. Multiple intelligence officials spoke with the Daily Mail about Trump's spy chief's schedule and work since Israel launched an attack on Iran last week, shedding light on a normally clandestine affair. 'All the National Security Council meetings she's in on, and then, I mean, there's lots of impromptu ones where he's calling her into the office,' one senior intelligence official shared. 'She's in there at all the key junctures,' the source added. 'She's been in every meeting,' a White House official told the Daily Mail, adding the DNI 'has not been sidelined whatsoever.' Reports have suggested that Trump has been advised by a smaller cohort, including VP J.D. Vance, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine. They say Gabbard and Pentagon Sec. Pete Hegseth are on the outside looking in. But these Gabbard allies told the Daily Mail the DNI has attended practically every crucial meeting at the White House and Situation Room since the conflict began. Vice President Vance also threw his weight behind Gabbard with a glowing social media post: 'She's an essential member of our national security team, and we're grateful for her tireless work to keep America safe from foreign threats.' The White House official added that Hegseth has also been an integral member of ongoing military discussions regarding the Middle East. Trump campaigned on decrying 'endless wars' and has vowed to be an international peacemaker. That's led some, even among conservatives, to point to Trump´s past criticism of the U.S. invasion of Iraq beginning in 2003 as being at odds with his more aggressive stance toward Iran now. Trump suggested the two situations were very different, though. 'There were no weapons of mass destruction. I never thought there were. And that was somewhat pre-nuclear. You know, it was, it was a nuclear age, but nothing like it is today,' Trump said of his past criticism of the administration of President George W. Bush. He added of Iran´s current nuclear program, 'It looked like I´m right about the material that they´ve gathered already. It´s a tremendous amount of material.' Trump also cast doubts on Iran's developing nuclear capabilities for civilian pursuits, like power generation. 'You´re sitting on one of the largest oil piles anywhere in the world,' he said. 'It´s a little bit hard to see why you´d need that.'
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
Trump whines he won't get a Nobel Peace Prize while weighing US strike on Iran
President Donald Trump has again complained he can't win a Nobel Peace Prize, this time, as he weighs whether to attack Iran. Trump took to Truth Social on Friday evening to highlight the peace deal he said his administration brokered between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda while lamenting he'll be denied the Nobel Peace Prize 'no matter what.' 'This is a Great Day for Africa and, quite frankly, a Great Day for the World,' Trump wrote. 'I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for this,' Trump added, before listing other negotiations he says his administration led, including 'stopping the War between Serbia and Kosovo' and 'keeping Peace between Egypt and Ethiopia.' 'No, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do, including Russia/Ukraine, and Israel/Iran, whatever those outcomes may be, but the people know, and that's all that matters to me,' the president wrote. The post comes a day after Trump said he'd decide whether to strike Iran within the next two weeks. Earlier Friday, the Pakistani government said it plans to nominate Trump for the prize, citing his 'decisive diplomatic intervention and pivotal leadership during the recent India-Pakistan crisis.' Last month, India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire, a deal in which Trump claims he played a significant role. But Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi disagrees. Modi 'clearly conveyed' to Trump that he did not play a role in the ceasefire during a recent phone call, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Tuesday. Instead, Modi says the ceasefire was achieved through direct talks with Pakistan. This isn't the first time Trump has pined over the Nobel Peace Prize, which is awarded to a 'person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.' Trump has appeared frustrated that his predecessor, former President Barack Obama, received the award in 2009, less than a year into his first term. Obama received the award for his 'extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,' and particularly his 'vision of and work for a world without nuclear weapons.' Last year, Trump claimed that if he 'were named Obama,' he would've 'had the Nobel Prize given to me in 10 seconds.' John Bolton, Trump's former national security adviser who has since become a vocal opponent of the Republican, once told The New York Times that the 'center of his public life is the greater glory of Donald Trump, and the Nobel Peace Prize would be a nice thing to hang on the wall.'
