By Joshua Scheer I begin with an important quote, as calls for a general strike on January 30 emerge from this interview. One key takeaway comes from guest Peter Byrne, who observes: “People in Minnesota are affirming life. People around the world are affirming life. Unfortunately, the media is the enemy—it’s part of the war […]
Border czar Tom Homan seems to think that free speech is the reason federal agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis.“I begged for the last two months on TV … for the rhetoric to stop. I said in March: If the rhetoric didn’t stop, there’s gonna be bloodshed. And there has been,” Homan said at his introductory press conference in Minneapolis Thursday morning, as he takes over Operation Metro Surge from Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino.“I wish I wasn’t right. I don’t wanna see anybody die. Not officers, not members of the community, and not the targets of our operations,” Homan continued. “For the people out there who don’t like what ICE is doing—if you want certain laws reformed, then take it up with Congress.”Homan: "I begged for the last two months on TV for the rhetoric to stop. I said in March -- if the rhetoric doesn't stop, there is gonna be bloodshed. And there has been. I wish I wasn't right. I don't want to see anybody die." pic.twitter.com/l8R2lIMHa1— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 29, 2026The Trump administration’s framing of this situation is bizarre. It seems impossible for them to grasp that marching into Minneapolis with thousands of masked federal agents, doing door-to-door raids, and killing two people might elicit some resistance from the community. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and protesters being “mean” to agents is not the reason two people are dead. And if we’re so focused on rhetoric, what about the slanderous things that President Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, and Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino have said about Renee Good and Alex Pretti? That rhetoric is far more incendiary than the response from the community.
Senior Trump administration officials have held meetings with the Alberta Prosperity Project, a fringe separatist group that seeks to split the province away from Canada. The Financial Times reports that State Department officials have met representatives from the group in Washington, D.C., three times in the last nine months. The group’s counsel, Jeff Rath, told the publication, “We’re meeting very, very senior people leaving our meetings to go directly to the Oval Office. “The U.S. is extremely enthusiastic about a free and independent Alberta,” Rath said. The Times, citing unnamed sources, said that the group was hoping for another meeting in February to request $500 billion in credit to prop up the province if an independence referendum, which has not yet been called, were to pass. The State Department confirmed the meetings to the publication but said, “No commitments were made,” and a White House official added that “no such support, or any other commitments, was conveyed.”Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent played up Albertan independence, calling the oil-rich province “a natural partner for the U.S.”“They have great resources. The Albertans are very independent people. Rumor that they may have a referendum on whether they want to stay in Canada or not,” Bessent said to right-wing podcaster Jack Posobiec. Podcaster and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon discussed Alberta breaking away from Canada in an episode in November, saying that President Trump sees Canada like Ukraine. “The Chinese and the Russians are up there and they see the undefended northern territories of Canada, they’re going to take a bite,” Bannon said. His guest, right-wing commentator Brandon Weichert, expounded further. “I know a lot of the people in charge of the Alberta separatist movement,” Weichert said. “The Albertans are ready to vote in the next six months. They’re going to get out of the Canadian union. They’re going to become an independent country. We’re going to recognize them, and that’s going to put them on the pathway to becoming the fifty-first state.” In reality, polls show that the majority of Albertans would prefer to stay in Canada. Canadian leaders have denounced the APP’s meetings, with British Columbia Premier David Eby calling them “treason” and Ontario Premier Doug Ford saying that “going behind Canada’s back and negotiating is unacceptable.”The U.S. is growing increasingly unpopular in Canada, thanks to Trump’s threats to make them the “fifty-first state.” The idea that his team would try to engineer a breakup of the country will only worsen the relationship, especially considering that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is already seeking to make Canada financially independent from the U.S.
An FBI operation to capture former Olympian turned suspected cocaine trafficker Ryan Wedding in Mexico has shaken relations between the U.S. and its southern neighbor.Last week, the U.S. deployed the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team to Mexico to capture Wedding, who once was protected by the powerful Sinaloa cartel. But that was supposed to be kept secret, especially since Mexican law prohibits foreign law enforcement officers from being physically present in operations on Mexican soil, let alone take part in raids and arrests.On Friday, however, FBI Director Kash Patel announced the joint operation publicly on X. “Our FBI HRT teams executed with precision, discipline, and total professionalism alongside our Mexican partners to bring Ryan James Wedding back to face justice,” he wrote, sending shock waves through Mexico. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum scrambled to perform damage control, as foreign intervention in Mexico is politically toxic. She said that there was no U.S. involvement in the operation and that U.S. agents in Mexico are limited by law.“I’m not going to get into a debate with the FBI director, nor do I want there to be a conflict,” Sheinbaum said at a press conference Tuesday. “What they, the U.S. authorities, told the Mexican authorities is that it was a voluntary surrender.” She pointed to a picture Wedding posted to his Instagram account at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico announcing that he was turning himself in. Wedding’s lawyer Anthony Colombo disputes that account, saying that Wedding was handcuffed by FBI agents and transported to California.“He was arrested, he didn’t surrender,” Colombo told The Wall Street Journal, adding, “If the U.S. government is unilaterally going into a sovereign country and apprehending somebody, you can understand the concern that sovereign entity might have.”Tensions between Mexico and the U.S. are high, considering Trump’s threats to levy tariffs and take military actions against the country, ostensibly to combat drug trafficking. Mexico has sought to placate Trump in some ways, increasing border security, placing tariffs on Chinese goods, and sending drug lords on planes to U.S. custody without the normal extradition process, possibly breaking laws. Patel’s rash decision to post about Wedding’s arrest online doesn’t help the situation right now. It opens Sheinbaum up to political attacks in Mexico and makes the U.S.-Mexico relationship even shakier. Under Trump, though, American law enforcement is playing fast and loose with not just the law but diplomatic relations.
China was angered by Japan’s suggestion that Tokyo could get involved in a conflict over Taiwan, which Beijing claims as a renegade province.
Starmer hailed progress on lowering tariffs with China, arguing for a “more sophisticated” relationship after talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Scott Bessent’s remarks came after Mark Carney denounced Washington’s “rupture” of the global order.
The country’s foreign minister said that Tehran’s forces had their “fingers on the trigger.”