Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi on Saturday said U.S. military intervention in Iran could save lives and urged President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration not to spend too long negotiating with Tehran&#8217;s clerical rulers on a nuclear deal.
The exiled son of Iran&#8217;s toppled shah told Reuters in an interview that there were signs that the Iranian government was on the brink of collapse and that an attack could weaken it or accelerate its fall.
Pahlavi was speaking on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, where officials from the Iranian government are banned.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a matter of time. We are hoping that this attack will expedite the process and the people can be finally back in the streets and take it all the way to the ultimate regime&#8217;s downfall,&#8221; said Pahlavi, who is based in the United States and has lived outside Iran since before his father was toppled in the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
A campaign of mass arrests and intimidation has led to the arrests of thousands as Iranian authorities seek to deter further protests after last month&#8217;s crackdown on the bloodiest unrest since 1979. The protests began on December 28 as a modest demonstration in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar over economic hardship and quickly spread nationwide.
Iran&#8217;s opposition is fragmented among rival groups and ideological factions &#8211; including the monarchists who back Pahlavi &#8211; and appears to have little organized presence inside the Islamic Republic. In an interview with Reuters last month, Trump sounded skeptical about the level of Pahlavi&#8217;s support inside Iran.
The Trump administration has engaged with Iran to see if a nuclear deal can be struck as Washington amassed military forces in the region. U.S. and Iranian diplomats held talks in Oman last week and further talks in the coming week are expected.
&#8220;People are hoping that at some point the decision will be made that there&#8217;s no use, there&#8217;s no point, we&#8217;re not going to get anywhere with negotiations. Therefore, that&#8217;s time for the United States to intervene and do what President Trump promised he will do, to have the people&#8217;s back,&#8221; Pahlavi said.
&#8220;Intervention is a way to save lives,&#8221; he added.
On Friday, in a speech to U.S. troops in North Carolina, Trump said Iran has been difficult in nuclear negotiations and suggested that instilling fear in Tehran may be necessary to resolve the standoff peacefully.
Two U.S. officials speaking on the condition of anonymity told Reuters on Friday that the U.S. military was preparing for the possibility of a sustained, weeks-long operation against Iran if Trump ordered an attack.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; editing by Barbara Lewis)

FRANCE-IRAN-ISRAEL-CONFLICT

Son Of Iran’s Last Shah Urges U.S. Military Intervention In Iran

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Donald Trump

Global Politics

Iran

Military

World

Under Secretary of War Anthony J. Tata announced Thursday that a former U.S. Navy serviceman discharged for refusing the COVID vaccine has been reinstated.
Devin Berry has been reinstated to the U.S. Navy and promoted to Petty Officer Third Class, becoming a high-profile success story in the military’s efforts to reverse COVID vaccine mandate separations. Berry, an Aviation Boatswain’s Mate, was involuntarily discharged in July 2022 after refusing the vaccine.
The then-Department of Defense <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/soldiers-file-lawsuit-over-military-vaccine-mandate-seeking-exemption-for-natural-immunity">ordered all service members</a> to receive a COVID vaccine beginning August 24, 2021. More than 17,000 service members declined the shots, citing safety fears related to the vaccine’s rapid development, questions about messenger RNA technology, and objections tied to the use of fetal cell lines in testing, according to a 2023 <a href="https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-military/2023/03/27/the-fallout-of-the-militarys-covid-19-vaccine-mandate/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">report</a> from Air Force Times.
After President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14184 to offer reinstatement to service members involuntarily separated due to the vaccine requirement, Berry collaborated with the Navy’s reinstatement team to rejoin the fleet, receiving full back pay and three years of active-duty credit.  Tata lauded Berry’s return, quoting the sailor’s desire to finish his career in what he called &#8220;the best job in the Navy.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Pleased to share the story of another brave warrior impacted by the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, Devin Berry.
E3 Berry, an Aviation Boatswain’s Mate, was involuntarily separated in July 2022 after refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine. After <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> signed EO 14184, he contacted the… <a href="https://t.co/XYP2ETwo8k">pic.twitter.com/XYP2ETwo8k</a>
— Under Secretary of War Anthony J. Tata (@USW_PR_HONTata) <a href="https://twitter.com/USW_PR_HONTata/status/2021982043467292788?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Berry’s case is part of a broader federal initiative to restore the honor of thousands of service members impacted by the 2021 vaccine mandate. Between August 2021 and the mandate’s rescission in January 2023, an estimated <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/01/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-reinstates-service-members-discharged-for-refusing-the-covid-vaccine">8,000 service members</a> were involuntarily separated. The Marine Corps saw the highest number of discharges, at more than 3,700, followed by significant numbers in the Navy, Army, and Air Force. Thousands more in the Guard and Reserve faced suspensions, and some chose to resign or retire early rather than comply.
The controversy surrounding the mandate centered on the military&#8217;s low approval rates for religious and medical exemptions, prompting numerous lawsuits and claims of violations of religious freedom. While many service members were discharged &#8220;honorably,&#8221; roughly 4,000 received &#8220;General (Under Honorable Conditions)&#8221; discharges, a designation that can limit access to GI Bill education benefits and hinder their transition to civilian life.
The tide turned after President Trump returned to office in early 2025. Executive Order 14184 authorized the reinstatement of all service members separated under the mandate, and the War Department moved to restore rank, back pay, and lost service time. A December 2025 review began automatically upgrading &#8220;General&#8221; discharges to &#8220;Honorable,&#8221; restoring GI Bill benefits for nearly 900 veterans.
While the return rate was initially low — with only 43 individuals rejoining in the first year after the mandate ended — the new incentives and formal apologies from leadership have aimed to improve those numbers. Returning service members are generally required to commit to a new four-year service obligation.
For Berry and others like him, the policy shift marks a second chance to complete the military careers they once thought were over.

Damn Few

Restoring Honor: Navy Reinstates Sailor Discharged Over Vaccine Refusal

COVID-19 Vaccine

Politics

U.S. Navy

Vaccine Mandate

War Secretary Pete Hegseth <a href="https://x.com/rebekazeljko/status/2020998100072964167">gave a characteristically blunt answer</a> Monday when asked about the “choke points” in the defense production pipeline.
“You identified several policy changes the department was implementing to actually speed up and expedite some of the production,” a reporter said to Hegseth. “I was wondering, what are the specific choke points that you guys have encountered when it comes to regulations? What are the issues, what&#8217;s the hang-up at some of these production facilities, why have we seen delays on certain projects?”
“A lot of the hang-up has been us,” Hegseth acknowledged. “If we don&#8217;t look at ourselves first, the way we do business, we&#8217;ve been impossible to deal with. A bad customer who year after year changes our mind about what we want or what we don&#8217;t want, and then we make little, small technological changes, which makes it more difficult for them to produce what they need to produce on time.”
“So we have to fix our own house first,” he declared, “provide clarity, simplify the system, allow more people to access it, give that steady demand signal, which is what we&#8217;re doing with munitions. I encourage folks to look at the deals we&#8217;ve cut recently with Raytheon, with Boeing, with other companies, Lockheed, on Patriot missiles, on THAADs [Terminal High Altitude Area Defense systems], on other exquisite munitions. That&#8217;s groundbreaking stuff.&#8221;
“Our department&#8217;s never done that,” he continued. “The Deputy Secretary, Steve Feinberg, is a whiz kid on these things, putting these deals together. The companies are investing because they know we&#8217;re going to be buying into the future. That&#8217;s just good business. We haven&#8217;t operated that well that way before. And then things like requirements, there&#8217;s mazes of requirements that this department has traditionally put on different systems and platforms that are impossible to navigate and by the time you navigate them, you&#8217;re five years behind the actual technology.”
“So we&#8217;re going to companies and say, ‘Tell us what you can do based on the parameters of what kind of capabilities we&#8217;re looking for, say, in Indopaycom or Southcom or out in Europe, and let&#8217;s tailor it accordingly,’” he concluded.
The U.S. Army recently finalized a <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/land/2025/09/03/us-army-awards-lockheed-record-98-billion-missile-contract/">multibillion-dollar</a> deal with Lockheed Martin for the production of PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) interceptors. This month, Raytheon <a href="https://www.rtx.com/news/news-center/2026/02/04/rtxs-raytheon-partners-with-department-of-war-on-five-landmark-agreements-to-exp">signed</a> five framework agreements with the U.S. Department of War to significantly increase production capacity and accelerate deliveries of several high-demand systems.

US-POLITICS-TRUMP

‘We’ve Been Impossible To Deal With’: Hegseth Vows To Fix Pentagon’s ‘Bad Customer’ Behavior

Department of Defense

Pentagon

Pete Hegseth

While Super Bowl LX will feature a sweeping display of U.S. airpower over Levi’s Stadium, Air Force officials confirmed Friday that F-22 Raptor fighters originally slated to participate were reassigned to operational missions as military demands intensified. The Raptors’ removal underscores the reality that the military aircraft showcased during major national events remain on active standby, even during the most-watched sporting event of the year.
The flyover will now include Air Force B-1 Lancer bombers and F-15C Eagle fighters alongside Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets and F-35C Lightning II jets. But careful observers noticed something unusual on the commemorative flight suit patch released ahead of the event: a silhouette of the F-22 still appears.
According to the Department of the Air Force, that inclusion reflects earlier planning, not a last-minute error. Katie Spencer, the Air Force’s Sports Outreach Program manager, said planners initially sought to showcase fifth-generation fighters from both the Air Force and Navy, pairing the F-22 with the Navy’s F-35C. That plan changed as real-world requirements intervened.
“Operational tempo has increased,” Spencer said, explaining that the Raptors were reassigned to active missions before final approval of the flyover.
While officials declined to provide specifics, the decision comes amid heightened U.S. military activity across multiple theaters. American aircraft have conducted recent strikes against ISIS targets in Syria, and F-22s played a critical role last year in Operation Midnight Hammer, the B-2 bomber-led campaign against Iranian nuclear facilities. The F-22 also participated in Operation Absolute Resolve in Venezuela, establishing U.S. dominance in the airspace over Caracas.
Even without the Raptors, Sunday’s flyover is designed to project both scale and symbolism. The B-1 Lancer, a long-range bomber capable of delivering massive conventional firepower, will lead the formation, flanked by fighters representing multiple generations of U.S. air dominance.
F-15C Eagles from California’s Fresno Air National Guard Base were added late in the planning process to complete the formation, filling the gap left by the F-22s. Planners said the choice reflects the broader theme of the event: marking the nation’s upcoming 250th anniversary with a display that blends heritage, readiness, and modern capability.
Officials also emphasized that Super Bowl flyovers do not require additional taxpayer funding. The flights are conducted as part of scheduled training, allowing aircrews to practice precise timing, coordination, and maintenance recovery under real-world conditions.
“These flyovers serve as time-over-target training,” Spencer said, noting that the same proficiency displayed during major combat operations is built through exercises like Sunday’s formation flight.
On the field, a joint color guard from the Military District of Washington, drawing members from every branch of the armed forces, will render ceremonial honors before kickoff. With Levi’s Stadium’s open-air design allowing for a larger-than-normal formation, officials said fans can expect a visceral experience, despite the omission of the fifth-generation fighter.
 “They’re going to hear something special,” Spencer said. “They’re going to feel it.”
The Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots face off Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

F-22

F-22s Pulled From Super Bowl Flyover, Rerouted At the Last Moment For ‘Operational Assignments’

Air Force

General

Super Bowl

U.S.

U.S. Military

The Justice Department announced Wednesday that multiple Chinese nationals and American citizens had been charged with carrying out a marriage fraud scheme targeting members of the U.S. military. 
The scheme involved recruiters paying Americans tens of thousands of dollars to enter into “sham” marriages with Chinese nationals for immigration purposes, according to the Justice Department. In one instance, investigators said that a female member of the Navy married and met a Chinese national on the same day at a wedding service in Las Vegas. 
The charged individuals were Anny Chen, Sha Xie (China), Linlin Wang (China), Jiawei Chen (China), Yafeng Deng, Hailing Feng, Kiah Holly, Xionghu Fang (China), Tao Fan (China), Jaden Bullion, and Kin Man Cheok (China). None of the defendants, except Bullion, had lawyers listed to represent them. They could not immediately be reached for comment. 
The indictment was unsealed on Tuesday and said that conspirators “preferred to recruit U.S. citizens who were members of the U.S. armed forces to join the conspiracy and marry Chinese nationals.” 
The entire conspiracy stretched from March 2024 to February 2025 and took place in Florida, New York, and Nevada, according to the indictment. In general, a recruiter would promise to pay an American $10,000 to marry a Chinese national, $20,000 after a valid ID was issued to the Chinese national, and another $5,000 after they divorced. 
The eleven named in the indictment are alleged to have worked with Raymond Zumba (former Navy reservist), Brinio Urena (former Navy recruiter), Jacinth Bailey (Navy), and Morgan Chambers (Navy). Lawyers for Bailey and Chambers declined to comment. 
In July, Zumba <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/naval-reservist-pleads-guilty-paying-bribe-obtain-department-defense-identification">pleaded guilty</a> to attempting to bribe the spouse of an individual working in the personnel office of the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, Florida. Zumba hoped to obtain ID cards in exchange for cash. 
In March 2024, investigators said that Anny Chen and another conspirator recruited Zumba to marry Sha Xie, a Chinese national. The marriage took place in Brooklyn in April of that year, and wedding photos were taken to perpetuate the scheme, according to the indictment. Zumba allegedly received $10,000 from Chen for the marriage. 
Zumba was then accused of recruiting Urena in May 2024 to “enter into a sham marriage with a Chinese national in exchange for a cash payment.” 
In another example of the conspiracy, the Justice Department said that Chambers met and married Jiawei Chen in Las Vegas on October 4, 2024, according to the indictment. She was allegedly paid $10,000 in a restaurant restroom by Chen for the marriage.
The others were alleged to have engaged in similar activities and messaged about plans to participate in the scheme.

U.S. Secretary Of State Antony Blinken Visits Shanghai

Marriage Scam Exposed: DOJ Busts Chinese Scheme Targeting U.S. Military

China

Department of Justice

Fraud

Hollywood rarely gets veterans right, portraying returning soldiers as caricatures or perfect heroes.
“Sheepdog,” which opened nationwide on January 16, doesn’t have that problem. The film is intent on showing the reality of the veteran experience from all sides — something the film’s writer, director, producer, and star, Steven Grayhm, says came at a cost.
“It was hard. It was really hard,” Grayhm told The Daily Wire in an interview reflecting on the film’s 14-year journey to the screen. “We could have cut corners early on that would have made our lives easier. And we would never have been able to live with ourselves. We never bent the knee, and we never kissed the ring.”
“Sheepdog” is about Army combat veteran Calvin Cole, who is court-ordered into treatment and into the care of a VA trauma therapist in training. 
“Things become even more complicated when Calvin&#8217;s father-in-law, a retired Vietnam Veteran, shows up on his doorstep having just been released from prison,” a description of the film reads. “As Calvin’s plan to run from his past becomes even more challenging, he learns through the support of his community, tough love and compassion, that he must put himself back together again for his family and for himself.”
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The film is personal for Grayhm, whose grandfather was a Polish farmer captured by the Nazis during World War II and held as a prisoner of war for five years. After being widowed, he moved in with Grayhm’s family.
“I had bunk beds in my room,” Grayhm recalled. “So I slept on the top, but I would fall asleep to his stories at night. Some of them were hard … but he did share his being liberated by the American and Allied troops. As a young boy, that’s ingrained in you. That goes into the DNA of who you are.”
His grandfather’s influence laid the foundation until a chance encounter planted the seed that would lead to “Sheepdog’s” creation. In 2011, Grayhm’s car broke down three hours north of Los Angeles. He said his conversation with a tow truck driver is a major source of inspiration for the film. 
“He opened up about his life, the challenges in his marriage, being a father of three, financial hardship,” Grayhm said. “Then he began to share all the different medications that he was on … tethered to his post-traumatic stress from multiple military deployments.”
Grayhm recalls listening without speaking.
“He kept saying, ‘I can’t believe I’m telling you this. I’ve never told my wife. I’ve never told a therapist,’” Grayhm said. “And that lit the spark. The teachable moment was to sit and listen without prejudice.”
The idea that it was easier for a veteran to speak to a stranger than to his own family stuck with the filmmaker.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about him weeks after,” he said. “I thought there had to be more men and women like him suffering in silence.”
That summer, Grayhm and co-star Matt Dallas, who plays Calvin’s best friend in the film, embarked on a nationwide road trip to interview veterans and families. Along the journey, they found many similarities in the stories.
The result is not a traditional war movie, Grayhm said. “‘Sheepdog’ is not a post-traumatic stress movie,” he said. “It is a movie about post-traumatic growth.” He went on to say that too many films in this genre portray veterans as broken beyond repair.
“My character has been to hell and back, but he’s not broken,” Grayhm said of Calvin. “He doesn’t feel sorry for himself.”
He said Hollywood wasn’t biting, at least not without totally changing the vision.
“I cannot tell you how many rooms we were laughed out of,” Grayhm told The Daily Wire. “They said, ‘These movies don’t make money. Nobody cares about these stories.’”
When someone did show interest, it always had stipulations. “We started getting script notes to sanitize the story,” he said. “They wanted to turn my character into some paranoid guy having visions … almost a thriller. That’s not the truth.”
Instead, Grayhm made the project independent, raising private equity out of Texas and filming on a tight budget. After making the rounds on the festival circuit, the film just opened in 500 theaters nationwide.
The authenticity extends to the cast. Academy Award nominee Virginia Madsen (“Sideways”), who plays trauma therapist Dr. Elecia Knox, is a Gold Star family member. “She knew the stakes were very high,” Grayhm said. “She bared her heart and soul.”
“She has this speech where she says, ‘You were willing to give your life for your country. Now maybe you should try living for it,’” Grayhm recalled. “You could hear a pin drop. She did it in one take.”
Grayhm says he has just one goal for “Sheepdog.” 
“If we can save a single life with this film, it will be the greatest Hollywood success story,” he said. “There are currently five million veterans not accessing their VA care,” Grayhm added. “Sometimes walking through that front door can be the longest we’ve traveled.”
For civilians, the film serves two purposes. First, it’s a glimpse into what a veteran is going through. And second, it’s a chance to appreciate the freedom they’ve been given.
“The one percent is defending and protecting the other ninety-nine percent,” Grayhm said. “Just being aware of that matters.”
“Sheepdog” is currently showing in theaters.

Sheepdog

Hollywood Told This Filmmaker ‘Nobody Cares’ About Veterans’ Stories. He Told Them Anyway.

Hollywood Told Him ‘Nobody Cares’ About Veteran Movies, But This Filmmaker Made One Anyway

Entertainment

Hollywood

Movies

PTSD

Veterans

War Department Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson says a lot has changed in the United States military over the last year — and that at the end of the day, it all comes down to a shift in the culture.
Wilson sat down with The Daily Wire&#8217;s Mary Margaret Olohan to discuss some of the changes made at the Pentagon and within the ranks since President Donald Trump began his second term and put decorated Army veteran Pete Hegseth in charge of his War Department.
&#8220;The biggest changes have really been the culture,&#8221; she said, adding, &#8220;We&#8217;ve gotten away from the ideology in the military, the politics. No more climate change, no more dudes in dresses, as the Secretary likes to say. We&#8217;re getting back to actual war fighting and the Warrior Ethos — standards, fitness, eating right, merit-based programs.&#8221;
Wilson said that the cultural shift also included a move toward promoting those who earned it through merit rather than those who simply checked the right boxes in pursuit of an ideological agenda.
&#8220;That has refocused the Department on our core mission,&#8221; she said. &#8220;And what that&#8217;s allowed us to do is be more lethal.&#8221;
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Wilson touted several major operations, from the surgical strikes on narcoterrorists in the Caribbean to the more recent arrest and extraction of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, and said that effective leadership and a shift toward lethality were behind those successes and many others.
A shift in priorities, Wilson said, was also underway, from &#8220;nation-building&#8221; and toward &#8220;war-fighting.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re making sure that our missions aren&#8217;t just drawn out with no clear end state,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;We&#8217;re going in with what success looks like, we&#8217;re making sure we attain that, and then we&#8217;re getting out and protecting the homeland and always putting America first.&#8221;
Wilson also addressed the extreme number of attacks directed at War Secretary Pete Hegseth — attacks that began as soon as he was nominated to head the Pentagon.
&#8220;That&#8217;s because, in many ways, he&#8217;s over the target,&#8221; she explained. &#8220;And he&#8217;s somebody who&#8217;s going to be a true change agent at the Department of War, and he, from day one, has gotten to work implementing all of those changes. And I think he gets so much hate, especially from the mainstream media and from the leftwing politicians in D.C. because he is that change agent. He&#8217;s not your typical Secretary of Defense who has maybe contracted for the big defense companies &#8230; he&#8217;s a true soldier&#8217;s soldier.&#8221;
Wilson rounded out the interview with a few details about the recent mission to capture Maduro and the plan to revamp the long-standing military publication Stars and Stripes, along with a promise that the War Department would always continue to put the warfighters first.

Screenshot/The Daily Wire

How The Pentagon Went From ‘Dudes In Dresses’ To ‘Actual War Fighting’

The Culture Has Changed: War Dept. Spox Describes New Direction For U.S. Military

Department of War

The Canadian military recently modeled a hypothetical American invasion of the country and reviewed different responses to the United States deploying troops across the border, Canadian outlet The Globe and Mail <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-military-models-canadian-response-to-hypothetical-american-invasion/">reported</a> on Tuesday.
The Globe and Mail cited two senior government officials who said the Canadian military is working on a step-by-step plan to respond to a U.S. incursion. The officials reportedly stressed that the model is not a specific military plan, adding that it remains unlikely that the United States would actually launch an offensive operation against its neighbor to the north.
Canada&#8217;s reported preparations come as President Donald Trump ramps up his efforts to acquire Greenland and continues to float the idea of taking control of Canada. In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115925888562624963">shared</a> a photo of an Oval Office meeting with leaders of European nations, and in the background, the image was altered to show a map of the United States controlling Canada, Greenland, and Venezuela.
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Canada&#8217;s military pales in comparison to America&#8217;s fighting force in terms of numbers and firepower. Canada has an estimated 70,000 active-duty personnel and has spent just over 1% of the country&#8217;s GDP on the military in recent years. The United States, meanwhile, fields roughly 1.3 million active-duty troops and commands the world&#8217;s most sophisticated air power.
To fend off a hypothetical U.S. attack, Canada would rely on small militias of volunteer or civilian fighters, The Globe and Mail reported. The militias would focus on ambushing U.S. forces and using drone attacks. Some of the tactics would mirror how the Taliban fought American and Canadian troops in Afghanistan during the West&#8217;s 20-year occupation of the Middle East country, one of the government officials told the Canadian outlet.
Canada, a NATO member, could also rely on its European allies if its sovereignty is threatened.
“You know if you come after Canada, you are going to have the world coming after you, even more than Greenland. People do care about what happens to Canada, unlike Venezuela,” retired Canadian Major General David Fraser told The Globe and Mail. “You could actually see German ships and British planes in Canada to reinforce the country’s sovereignty.”
While Canada prepares a plan for how to fight back against a potential American invasion, the nation&#8217;s military maintains a working relationship with the U.S. military. Aircraft from NORAD, the joint U.S.-Canada aerospace defense alliance, are set to <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/article/norad-aircraft-to-arrive-in-greenland-for-long-planned-activities-canada-us-command/">arrive</a> in Greenland this week for &#8220;long-planned &#8230; activities&#8221; focused on the defense of North America.
Early into his second term, Trump frequently floated the idea of Canada becoming the &#8220;51st state.&#8221; Shortly after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney took over as the country&#8217;s leader, Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-tells-newly-elected-canadian-pm-never-say-never-to-canadian-statehood">said</a> “it would be much better for Canada” to become part of the United States, prompting Carney to shoot back and say that Canada “won’t be for sale, ever.”
In May, Trump said that the United States would protect Canada under the president&#8217;s proposed &#8220;Golden Dome&#8221; missile defense system for a $61 billion fee. Or, Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-says-canada-considering-offer-to-become-cherished-51st-state">offered</a> to provide missile defense for Canada for &#8220;ZERO DOLLARS if they become our cherished 51st State.&#8221;
Trump also enraged Canadian leaders and residents shortly after being sworn in for his second term when he imposed a 25% tariff on Canadian products.
As Trump focuses on acquiring Greenland, America&#8217;s NATO allies are scrambling to negotiate with the United States while also standing firm on red lines they have drawn for Greenland. Multiple NATO countries have sent troops to Greenland to conduct military exercises amid Trump&#8217;s threats to take over the territory. Canada is also considering sending a small contingent of soldiers to Greenland to take part in the exercises, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canada-could-send-small-contingent-troops-greenland-says-source-2026-01-19/">reported</a>.

Canada Military

War Games: The Canadian Military Is Actually Preparing For Trump To Invade

Canada

Greenland

The Pentagon has ordered about 1,500 active-duty soldiers in Alaska to prepare for a possible deployment to Minnesota, the site of large protests against the government&#8217;s deportation drive, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Sunday.
The army placed the units on prepare-to-deploy orders in case violence in the midwestern state escalates, the officials said, though it is not clear whether any of them will be sent.
President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to use the Insurrection Act to deploy military forces if officials in the state do not stop protesters from targeting immigration officials after a surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
But if the troops are deployed, it is unclear whether the Trump administration would invoke the Insurrection Act. Even without invoking the act, a president can deploy active-duty forces for certain domestic purposes such as protecting federal property, which Trump cited as a justification for sending Marines to Los Angeles last year.
In addition to the active-duty forces, the Pentagon could also attempt to deploy newly created National Guard rapid-response forces for civil disturbances.
The Pentagon and the White House did not immediately respond to requests from Reuters for comment on the order, which was first reported by ABC News.
&#8220;If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT,&#8221; Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.
The soldiers subject to deployment specialize in cold-weather operations and are assigned to two U.S. Army infantry battalions under the 11th Airborne Division, which is based in Alaska, the officials said.
Confrontations between residents and federal officers have become increasingly tense in Minneapolis, Minnesota&#8217;s most-populous city, after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Good.
Trump, a Republican, has sent nearly 3,000 federal agents from ICE and Border Patrol to Minneapolis and neighboring St. Paul since early last week, as part of a wave of interventions, mostly to cities run by Democratic politicians.
He has said troop deployments in Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Memphis and Portland, Oregon, are necessary to fight crime and protect federal property and personnel from protesters. But this month he said he was removing the National Guard from Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, which have faced legal setbacks and challenges.
Local leaders have accused the president of federal overreach and of exaggerating isolated episodes of violence to justify sending in troops.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, against whom the Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation, has mobilized the state&#8217;s National Guard to support local law enforcement and emergency management agencies, the state Department of Public Safety posted on X on Saturday.
Trump has repeatedly invoked a scandal around the theft of federal funds intended for social-welfare programs in Minnesota as a rationale for sending in immigration agents. The president and administration officials have singled out the state&#8217;s community of Somali immigrants.
The Insurrection Act is a federal law that gives the president the power to deploy the military or federalize National Guard troops inside the U.S. to quell domestic uprisings.
(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart in Washington and Chandni Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom Hogue, William Mallard and Matthew Lewis)

Federal Agents Increase Immigration Enforcement In Minneapolis

Pentagon Readies 1,500 Troops For Potential Minnesota Deployment, U.S. Officials Say

Minneapolis

Minnesota

Protests

Riots

When Iranian airspace closed on Wednesday night, it seemed like an American attack was imminent.
Some military assets moved, American bases had degrees of evacuations, and tension spiked. But the attack never came.
Experts now warn that this is not an end to the standoff, but a strategic maneuver in what they call the “fog of Trump” — the president’s typical unpredictability, which leaves both allies and adversaries scrambling to guess his next move.
According to Jonathan Schanzer, the Executive Director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, it is clear that things were happening Wednesday night, but something changed.
“The bottom line is, it appears that Trump had made a decision, reversed his decision, and may yet reverse it again,” Schanzer told The Daily Wire, “This is the fog of Trump, not the fog of war. Everything appeared to be moving toward an operation, and then that operation was apparently called off. What happens next is a big question.”
Earlier on Wednesday, Trump <a href="https://x.com/KassyAkiva/status/2011535254729941113/video/1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shifted his tone</a> regarding the Iranian regime. He had previously threatened to strike if protesters were killed, but stated from the Oval Office that he believed the “killings in Iran have stopped.” Many observers saw this as part of Trump’s strategy to add confusion ahead of a potential strike. He reiterated this stance Thursday morning, while still leaving the possibility of action on the table.
“I’m not going to tell you that,” he said when <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/trump-leaves-us-military-action-unclear-iran-says-wont-execute-protest-rcna254153" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NBC News</a> asked if he had ruled out military intervention.
Some have suggested that Trump was testing Iran’s readiness by observing how they reacted to what appeared to be preparations for an American strike.
Al Jazeera reported that Trump communicated to Iran that he is not planning to strike, while Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said that the question isn’t whether the operation will happen, but whether it “should be bigger or smaller.”
There are mixed signals, and according to Jason Brodsky of United Against Nuclear Iran, that is precisely the point.
“I think what you have seen over the last few days has been a concerted psyop, or psychological operation, that has been meant to confuse the decision-making of the Islamic Republic of Iran while the U.S. prepares for a military strike and moves assets into place,” Brodsky told The Daily Wire.
Both Brodsky and Schanzer point to the importance of the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2026/01/15/us-navy-supercarrier-uss-abraham-lincoln-heading-to-the-middle-east/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly moving</a> from the South China Sea to the Middle East, a voyage that will take about a week.
“I think that the most important data point that we received over the last 24 hours has been the U.S. moving the USS Abraham Lincoln from the South China Sea into the CENTCOM theater,” Brodsky said. “I think President Trump likes to keep all options open, but I think that they’re laying the groundwork for the eventuality of potential military action.
During the 12-Day war between Israel and Iran over the summer, Trump was also mulling striking Iran and suggested he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-decide-on-iran-strike-before-july-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">would make</a> his decision “within the next two weeks” before striking Iranian nuclear sites just a few days later.
“I think we saw this kind of mixed messaging before the U.S. strikes on Iran&#8217;s nuclear program during the 12-Day War and it was part of a concerted effort, reportedly, to throw off the Iranians,” Brodsky said. “That kind of veering and mixed messaging is part of the strategy.”
There are reports that Arab nations and Israel urged Trump to exercise caution. The Arab states reportedly asked him not to attack Iran, while Israel requested a temporary delay on a strike.
According to the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/us/politics/trump-iran-israel-us.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">New York Times</a>, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested that Trump postpone plans to strike Iran. Some have suggested the request was driven by the need for Israel to ready itself in case the regime responded to American action by striking the Jewish state. On Wednesday, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin <a href="https://x.com/IDFSpokesperson/status/2011507729450348656" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed</a> that the IDF is on full alert and taking steps to strengthen its defensive readiness.
“The region is on high alert,” Schanzer said. “The Israelis are preparing for a potential onslaught of ballistic missiles from the Iranian regime. This has been the threat—that if the U.S. attacks, then the Israelis will take the brunt of it.”
So far, the Iranian regime has threatened to attack American bases in the Middle East if Trump decides to attack.
Schanzer emphasized that the situation is far from over. He noted that Trump is operating with “maximum flexibility” while weighing risks and seeking the best outcome from his advisors.
“I think something can very easily still happen,” he said. “The easiest thing to do would be to take out the tech that has halted the flow of information with the 8-day internet blackout. You could allow the Iranians to begin to communicate freely with themselves and with the rest of the world; that’s an important step.”
He added that cyber, economic, and diplomatic options are on the table.
On Thursday morning, the Treasury Department announced a new round of sanctions targeting the Iranian regime in response to its ongoing crackdown on protesters. The sanctions designate several senior Iranian security officials responsible for directing the regime’s bloody response to demonstrators, including: Ali Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme Council for National Security, Mohammad Reza Hashemifar, commander of the Law Enforcement Forces in Lorestan Province, and others.
Regardless of what move Trump decides to take, Brodsky says Trump showed unprecedented support to Iranians by speaking out against the regime and encouraging Iranians to keep protesting and take over their institutions, and that help is coming.
“The president has gone further than any American president in history by being on the side of the Iranian people,” he said. “I think that there is a need to demonstrate how help is coming, and I think that the president and his team know that. It’s just very important that we follow through.”

President Trump Spends Weekend At Mar-A-Lago Estate In Palm Beach

The Fog Of Trump: How Unpredictability Keeps Iran Guessing

Israel

War Secretary Pete Hegseth fired back — rhetorically speaking — at Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) over a lawsuit filed Monday, saying that the Arizona Democrat was only &#8220;worried and cranky&#8221; because he was facing consequences for his own actions.
&#8220;&#8216;Captain&#8217; Kelly knows exactly what he did, and that he will be held to account. Thats why he’s so worried and cranky,&#8221; Hegseth posted.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
“Captain” Kelly knows exactly what he did, and that he will be held to account.
Thats why he’s so worried and cranky. <a href="https://t.co/SSU9jccrx6">https://t.co/SSU9jccrx6</a>
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/2011151451381498107?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Hegseth’s comment comes one day after Kelly announced his lawsuit — in which he also named Navy Secretary John Phelan, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of War as co-defendants — claiming that Hegseth had stepped outside his Constitutional authority in censuring him and launching a review of his behavior.
“Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him—and this or any administration—accountable,” Kelly claimed. “His unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.”
Hegseth, one week earlier, announced the censure and a full review of Kelly’s conduct over the Arizona senator’s role in creating a video that encouraged active duty service members to question the legality of their orders in real time.
Referring to Kelly and the other Democratic lawmakers involved as “The Seditious Six,” Hegseth noted that the retired Navy captain was the only one who was still subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), and announced a review of his conduct that could ultimately result in a reduction in rank and pay, or even see Kelly recalled to active duty to face a Court Martial.

President Trump Holds Cabinet Meeting At The White House

Pete Hegseth Hits Back At ‘Captain’ Mark Kelly: He ‘Knows Exactly What He Did’

Pete Hegseth Hits Back At 'Captain' Mark Kelly: He 'Knows Exactly What He Did'

Mark Kelly

Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) announced on Monday that he&#8217;d filed a lawsuit jointly naming War Secretary Pete Hegseth, Navy Secretary John Phelan, the Department of the Navy, and the War Department as defendants.
In the lawsuit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., Kelly claimed that Hegseth had overstepped his constitutional boundaries by ordering a Uniform Code of Military Justice review following his participation in the &#8220;Seditious Six&#8221; video.
&#8220;Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him—and this or any administration—accountable,&#8221; Kelly claimed. &#8220;His unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military: if you speak out and say something that the President or Secretary of Defense doesn’t like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Pete Hegseth is coming after what I earned through my twenty-five years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American, as a retired veteran, and as a United States Senator whose job is to hold him—and this or any administration—accountable. His unconstitutional…
— Senator Mark Kelly (@SenMarkKelly) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenMarkKelly/status/2010787235549876286?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Kelly spent the rest of the lengthy post reminding his audience that &#8220;military rank is earned, not given&#8221; and listing his personal accomplishments — particularly those that showcased his willingness to risk his life for those he served.
&#8220;I gave everything I had to this country and I earned my rank of Captain, United States Navy,&#8221; Kelly said, adding, &#8220;Now, Pete Hegseth wants our longest-serving military veterans to live with the constant threat that they could be deprived of their rank and pay years or even decades after they leave the military just because he or another Secretary of Defense doesn’t like what they’ve said. That’s not the way things work in the United States of America, and I won’t stand for it.&#8221;
Kelly went on to recall his oath to defend the Constitution and claimed that his lawsuit was simply the next phase of that mission: &#8220;Our freedom of speech, the separation of powers, and due process are not just words on a page.&#8221;
&#8220;So today, I filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of Defense because there are few things as important as standing up for the rights of the very Americans who fought to defend our freedoms,&#8221; he said.
Hegseth moved to officially censure Kelly in early January, launching a review of Kelly based on his role in creating a video that encouraged active duty service members to question the legality of their orders in real time.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Six weeks ago, Senator Mark Kelly — and five other members of Congress — released a reckless and seditious video that was clearly intended to undermine good order and military discipline. As a retired Navy Captain who is still receiving a military pension, Captain Kelly knows he…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecWar/status/2008189258528665898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Captain Kelly’s status as a sitting United States Senator does not exempt him from accountability, and further violations could result in further action,&#8221; Hegseth said at the time. &#8220;These actions are based on Captain Kelly&#8217;s public statements from June through December 2025 in which he characterized lawful military operations as illegal and counseled members of the Armed Forces to refuse lawful orders. This conduct was seditious in nature and violated Articles 133 and 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, to which Captain Kelly remains subject as a retired officer receiving pay.&#8221;

Mark Kelly Files Lawsuit Against War Secretary Over Code Of Conduct Review

Mark Kelly Files Lawsuit Against War Secretary Over UCMJ Review

Justice

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