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Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick warned top executives that the United States was taking steps to respond to China's state-backed robotics industry, something viewed as a potential national security threat, Politico reported on Tuesday.During the closed-door meeting on Monday, he told the business leaders that the Trump administration was studying state-subsidized robotics imports, three people who attended the meeting told Politico. The move comes amid concerns that "subsidized Chinese robots could dominate global markets before U.S. manufacturers have the scale to compete."Dozens of executives from companies such as Boston Dynamics, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Siemens, SpaceX and Rockwell Automation were at the roundtable discussion, Politico reported. Some of the discussion included how the American industry could "reverse decades of manufacturing offshoring and rebuild the industrial base needed to build everything from semiconductors to robots."It's a sign of the escalating robotics import race between China and the United States."Lutnick’s comments reflect a growing view inside the Trump administration that robotics — not just AI chips — is becoming the next battleground in the technological competition," according to Politico. "We don’t want state-subsidized robotics attacking us in America; this is the arms [race] that is coming — robotic arms are coming," Lutnick said in the meeting, according to notes provided to Politico. "We need to make sure they’re produced in America so we’re going to study those right now."

Four Republican senators broke ranks with President Donald Trump and voted to limit his Iran war powers on Tuesday, according to CNN. The "major rebuke" from lawmakers, including GOP leaders, has directed the Trump administration to begin removing military forces in Iran, CNN reported.Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) all voted for the resolution. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) voted against it. The final vote tally was 50-48."The measure passed the House earlier this month. But because it is what’s known as a concurrent resolution, it does not require the president’s signature and, by definition, does not carry the force of law," CNN reported.A House Democratic aide involved in the effort to pass the war powers resolution told CNN earlier this month "that they believe the measure would be binding and it would be a legal matter to work out.""This is a major rebuke of President Trump," CNN anchor Boris Sanchez said.Republicans have had increasing concerns over Iran war negotiations, said CNN anchor and chief political correspondent Manu Raju."This is the first time that this has happened," Raju explained. "The Senate and the House have passed an identical measure to limit President Trump's powers with Iran, essentially to stop the war altogether, unless Congress has a say, and if the president wanted to escalate things in Iran, he'd have to come back to Congress to get approval." The White House has not yet responded to the vote."Democrats effectively pushed this bill through the House with the support of some Republicans," Raju said. "And now we are seeing the same thing happening today on the Senate side. A sign of some concern within the GOP ranks over the way this war is being waged and a message being sent to the White House, now that both chambers of Congress are calling to limit the President's war powers with Iran."

Trump saw his power to continue waging war in Iran checked by a Senate vote on Tuesday, per reporting by the New York Times.The Senate resolution tells Trump to end the war in Iran or seek congressional authorization to resume it, according to the Times, which described the 50-48 Senate vote as "the most significant bipartisan rebuke yet of the conflict."GOP senators Rand Paul from Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, Susan Collins from Maine and Bill Cassidy from Louisiana crossed over and joined with Democrats to check Trump's Iran war powers. However, the Times noted that the resolution does not have the force of law and is unlikely to lead to an immediate change in policy. The Senate resolution marks the second time that Republicans have rebuked Trump over the war in Iran. The House of Representatives recently passed a similar resolution. Trump can veto the resolution.

President Donald Trump has become desperate to "erase the sting of defeat," an analyst argued on Tuesday.Salon's Heather Digby Parton described how the Iran negotiations and failed foreign policy maneuvers have left Trump in a position where he needs a "big win." And now, he has turned his attention to Cuba and Greenland in an attempt to restore his MAGA base after a "profound defeat.""For his part, Trump has already declared victory," Digby Parton wrote. "He is clearly eager to move on from what is undoubtedly the worst foreign policy failure of his presidency — and one of the worst in U.S. history. But since his psyche is so fragile, he will not be able to admit that to himself. Trump will need to bag himself a 'win' as soon as possible to erase his defeat in the minds of the MAGA faithful — and to quiet the voices in his head screaming that he has screwed up once again."Trump has been influenced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, "whose politics were fermented in that anti-communist petri dish — and who tells him that this one will be easy," Digby Parton explained.And since "Trump is a Florida man now," there's another reason he could be eyeing Cuba."And let’s talk about beachfront property: Nothing would thrill Trump more than to fulfill the Mafia dream of a gambling resort on the island 90 miles off the coast of Florida without all those pesky laws and regulations," Digby Parton wrote. "He saw 'The Godfather Part II,' and he knows he could pull it off, unlike those losers JFK and Michael Corleone.""If he does, it’s pretty clear that he’ll anoint Rubio as his successor, even over his own vice president. (Vance made the mistake of being right about Iran, which Trump will find unforgivable.) According to 'Regime Change,' the new book by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, when Trump was asked if he thought his successor would keep all the gilt trappings in the Oval Office, he replied, 'Cubans like gold.' Rubio, it appears, is already on track," Digby Parton added.

A former GOP operative argued President Donald Trump "is drowning in his own failure" in a video on Monday.Anti-Trump conservative Steve Schmidt described how Trump's failed Iran war, struggling economy and blunders around the algae-ridden reflecting pool have further damaged the United States. He suggested the next move would be the Trump cabinet meeting inside the Situation Room, and how future generations would view this "as a portal into understanding the insanity of this moment.""The economy is wrecked. The nation dishonored, the people divided," Schmidt said. "Ghislaine Maxwell sitting in minimum security. All of it a function of our national raft ride down the sewer river of Donald Trump's creation." "It may not seem like we are all of us, on a boat, together, upon that fetid pool. But trust me. We are," Schmidt said.

Fox News host Brian Kilmeade lost it, calling for President Donald Trump to replace JD Vance as Iran negotiator — blasting his Israel criticism as "ridiculous."On Fox & Friends, Kilmeade unloaded on Vice President JD Vance after Vance warned Israeli cabinet members Thursday that Trump is "the only powerful ally" they have "anywhere left in the entire world." The remarks came as U.S. and Iranian negotiators were deep into a 60-day sprint to flesh out the memorandum of understanding the two countries signed last week."The president's gotta go on the inside," Kilmeade said, "because then the negotiators are wasting their time. No one's happy with this document. The president doesn't seem to be happy.""The fact that he hopped on Friday and started ripping Israel and said they have no friends — that is ridiculous!" Kilmeade continued. "Have you heard of the Abraham Accords? Do you understand that the Gulf States are tighter with Israel than ever before?"He then demanded Trump take over directly — and called Vance out by name."I think JD Vance, who's late to this party, doesn't understand the depth of the disagreement," Kilmeade said.MS NOW reported this week that Vance has compounded his inexperience with a series of false claims — including insisting that the deal's terms for destroying Iran's enriched uranium stockpile are "spelled out very clearly," when the memorandum of understanding includes no such provisions. Vance repeated the claim even after it was discredited.The vice president arrived Sunday at the Lake Lucerne Summit in Switzerland — where U.S. negotiators sat across from Iran's foreign minister and parliamentary speaker — but PBS reported Trump threatened to "hit Iran very hard again" on social media while talks were underway.Fox & Friends contributor Lawrence Jones, who spoke with Trump over the weekend, said the president told him privately the memorandum of understanding "was a starting point" — and that if Iran kept pushing him, "I gotta strike them."

Directive aimed at government workers, but reports of wider implementation spark warnings of future Afghanistan-wide prohibitionThe Taliban have ordered a sweeping ban on the use of smartphones by government officials – in what some analysts say could foreshadow broader, population-level restrictions.In a directive issued by the Taliban’s military courts and reviewed by the Guardian, the ban was to take effect this week and prohibits “high rank, low rank, general mujahideen, or service staff” from using mobile phones. Continue reading...

Campaigners welcome announcement cutting levies on menstrual health items, but say their work to end period poverty is ‘far from over’Pakistan plans to abolish “period tax”, in a victory for young campaigners who had taken the government to court over the charges.Finance minister Muhammad Aurangzeb announced that sanitary towels and related items were “daily necessities that are indispensable for women’s health, dignity and full participation in social activities”, and said he intended to remove the sales tax. Continue reading...