The first time I met Cory Pesaturo, he had just hijacked the stage at a wedding in Boston with an accordion strapped to his chest. Little did I know he would do the impossible: make me a fan of the accordion.
Cory is — and I’m not exaggerating — the world’s best accordion player. He’s won the accordion World Championship three times. He holds the Guinness World Record for playing the accordion for the longest continuous time. He brings his accordion with him <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DPY132wkTkt/?hl=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">everywhere</a>, and can play just about anything, including the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CknQsS8uqcW/?hl=en&amp;img_index=4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accordion tracks</a> in the feature film “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.”
Most recently, he took his talents to Saudi Arabia, which is now <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-officially-designates-saudi-arabia-a-major-ally-of-united-states?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Officially+Designates+Saudi+Arabia+A+%E2%80%98Major%E2%80%99+Ally+Of+United+States" target="_blank" rel="noopener">officially</a> a “major ally” of the United States. The Saudi Arabia he presents is much different from the Saudi Arabia most Americans probably imagine. — Brent Scher
***
Earlier this month, I arrived in Saudi Arabia for my second visit to a country which has always seemed like a forbidden land to the West. I’d been invited again as a guest star to play accordion in the “Riyadh Season” concert series — this time with Egypt’s biggest singing sensation, Angham.
What struck me, on both trips, was how aggressively the Saudis are betting on capitalism.
Everywhere you go, the top Western brands are visible: Dunkin’ Donuts, Texas Roadhouse, Bath &amp; Body Works, Chuck E. Cheese, and yes, Randy’s Donuts, with the giant donut on the roof are there for you in Riyadh. There is even a Disney castle and theme park.
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On every corner there seem to be concerts, tourist attractions, and massive development projects. The music you hear playing through the speakers of high-end locations? Jazz, Lady Gaga, or Burt Bacharach. The style of filming for major concerts?  Straight out of CBS’s Grammys playbook.
Could a country truly hate America if this is what I was seeing?
When I first traveled to Saudi Arabia two years ago, I didn’t even tell my father. You can’t lie to an Italian mother, of course, but my father? If he had known I was flying to a country he associated with the worst terror attack in American history, he would have tied me to my bed. Many of my friends felt the same, judging by their reactions when I returned: “Saudi Arabia? Are you insane? Are you trying to get arrested or killed?”
But over the past decade, the Kingdom, under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has charted a different course. One built on peace, prosperity, and a surprisingly familiar engine: Western-style capitalism.
It is true that in Saudi Arabia, you have no real rights against the state — no First Amendment protections, no guarantee of a fair trial, a mandatory dress code, and laws that make smoking pot or ordering a margarita about as plausible as Cardi B performing Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto on the accordion — a stunt I once pulled to win a national title.
Yet, regardless of this different universe of ideas from the United States, I wasn’t afraid.
The free market being unleashed in Saudi Arabia, even if still in a more state-run manner, is the greatest modern example of how a country thought to be an untrustworthy foe can turn into an important ally.
What struck me most, though, was that while I was in Saudi Arabia, a Muslim socialist won the mayor’s seat in the financial capital of the world, New York City. Three different Saudis during the trip (including a Syrian security worker at the venue who had fled Bashar al-Assad&#8217;s regime) asked me some version of the same question: “What on earth are you Americans doing electing Mamdani? He’s crazy.” This, again, from inside the very center of Islam. And even they aren’t at all sold on the politics that Zohran Mamdani represents.
My insight is anecdotal, but the friendships I’ve formed in Saudi Arabia reveal a people not so different from my own friends back home. They want peace. They want prosperity. They want their families to be happy. They want to travel. They want to have fun.
I asked them everything — about Israel, Islamic extremism, terrorism, drinking, drugs, dating, hating their boss, weekend plans, and which video games keep them up until 4:00 a.m.
Watching a group of young men in Riyadh blast pop music at 1:30 a.m. as they inched through a Dunkin’ Donuts drive-through, talking about girls and killing time, looked the same as you’d see in America. Different faiths, different cultures, same very human scene.
A handful of companies profit from global conflict. But 99.9% of businesses in a free-market economy — from Nike and Coca-Cola to Apple and Tesla — depend on global stability and rising disposable income. Peace is profitable.
In just a decade, Saudi Arabia has gone from a place many Americans fear to visit to a place I can’t recommend enough to go see. If that’s the result of “greedy capitalism,” then count me in.
Cory Pesaturo is a three-time World Champion accordionist and Guinness World Record holder who has performed on six continents and at the White House four times. In addition to giving five TEDx Talks, he is also active in the motorsports world, bringing his signature blend of innovation and artistry to audiences around the globe.
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The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
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President Trump Makes First Middle East Trip Of His Second Term

Is Saudi Arabian Capitalism Bringing Peace To The Middle East?

Capitalism

Islam

Israel

Saudi Arabia

The legacy media went nuts on Tuesday because the President of the United States hosted the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), at the White House. 
They went nuts because back in 2018, there was a Washington Post journalist (we say journalist, but he really was more of an op-ed writer) named Jamal Khashoggi, who was linked to the Muslim-Brotherhood. Khashoggi was murdered in grisly fashion, apparently at the Saudi consulate in Turkey, according to intelligence estimates, on the orders of Mohammed bin Salman. 
The Biden administration decided to make this incident front and center in their campaign against Saudi Arabia in an attempt to create distance with the Saudi government in order to make overtures to the Iranian government. The Saudis and the Iranians are enemies, of course, because the Iranians wish to destroy the Saudis; that&#8217;s been true for a very long time. 
No one is making the case that Khashoggi should have been murdered by the Saudis. It also happens to be the case that the United States has relations with a wide variety of despotic regimes around the globe. Some are better for the American people. Some are worse for the American people. That&#8217;s just the way global politics works. 
The vast majority of places on planet Earth are not nice places, and terrible things happen there, and their leaders do terrible things. That is reality.
In fact, the realpolitik of the situation forced Joe Biden to go on bended knee to the Saudis to try and lower oil prices before the midterm elections in 2022. He started his administration by yelling at the Saudis about Jamal Khashoggi, and ended by bending the knee to the Saudis. 
The legacy media, however, have now decided to put tremendous focus on the Khashoggi murder. For some reason, they seem to have no such objections to Qatari ties to Hamas, or Qatari ties to Iran, which is responsible for the death and wounding of hundreds of Americans during the Iraq War. They seem to have no such complaints whenever President Erdogan visits from Turkey. Erdogan has participated in an extraordinary variety of human rights abuses.
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But when MBS shows up, then it&#8217;s time to ask him endlessly about Jamal Khashoggi.  
He can answer those questions. That&#8217;s his problem. But I will note the outsized interest in Jamal Khashoggi — as opposed to all the other various human rights violations that are happening around the region — has more to do with the legacy media’s geopolitics.  
They don&#8217;t like Saudi Arabia because they believe that there ought to be some sort of Obama-esque “balance of power” benefiting the Turks and Iran at the expense of the Saudis and the Israelis, presumably. 
That&#8217;s why they focus on Jamal Khashoggi. But if you look at the history of Jamal Khashoggi, the attempt to paint him as some sort of liberal reformer should be counterposed by being accurate about who Jamal Khashoggi was. 
As The Jerusalem Post <a href="https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-819834">reported</a> on Khashoggi in a 2024 article: 
<blockquote>In the months leading up to his death, he was in the process of launching an organization later known as DAWN – Democracy for the Arab World Now, working in close collaboration with Palestinian-American Nihad Awad, executive director and co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), and currently a board member of DAWN.
CAIR is a powerful U.S. Muslim advocacy group long known for its sympathies – and the denial of them – for Global Muslim Brotherhood (GMB) organizations in the West and in Muslim countries, including murky links to terrorists and terror funding that garnered public attention during the 2007 Holy Land Foundation trials and the conviction of CAIR affiliate Ghassan Elashi.</blockquote>
CAIR is deeply associated with the Muslim Brotherhood. They have close personal ties in the form of some of their leadership with people who are associated with Hamas. 
Khashoggi had a lot of those connections. You can say two things at once: He should not have been murdered, and he was not a liberal reformer in the Arab world. 
The media decided that they were going to ask the president about Mohammed bin Salman, and the proper answer from the president probably could have been something like, “The murder of Jamal Khashoggi was a tragic problem; also, we are in the business of geopolitics and pursuing America&#8217;s interests.” 
“He&#8217;s done a phenomenal job,” Trump stated. “You’re mentioning somebody that was extremely controversial. A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you&#8217;re talking about, whether you like him or didn&#8217;t like him. Things happen, but he knew nothing about it. And we can leave it at that. You don&#8217;t have to embarrass our guest by asking a question like that.”
I think that was a more aggressive response than was warranted, because it is true that the Saudi royal government has engaged in some pretty extraordinary brutality.
But what Trump was saying — that MBS is a transformative leader in the region and that the United States needs to work with the people who are there, that we don&#8217;t get to choose the leadership class in all of these countries — is accurate.
The media attention with regard to all of this is quite purposeful. I do not think that it is a coincidence that they are virtue-signaling about Jamal Khashoggi rather than dealing with the reality of actual geopolitics.
* * *
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Saudi Prince To Meet With Trump In US After Weeks Of Tense Talks

Selective Outrage: Why Jamal Khashoggi Matters To The Media

Selective Outrage: Why Khāshoggi Matters To The Media

Ben Shapiro

Jamal Khashoggi

Opinion

The Trump administration is designating Saudi Arabia a major non-NATO ally, strengthening economic and military ties between Washington and Riyadh, the president announced on Tuesday.
President Donald Trump announced the designation while Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visited the White House this week. Salman’s visit was received with many of the trappings of a state visit, though the event lacked the official status as Salman’s father is the actual head of the Saudi state.
“We&#8217;re taking our military cooperation to even greater heights by formally designating Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally, which is something that is very important to them,” <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1990948885271842899">said</a> Trump, before adding that Washington and Riyadh will enter into “a historic strategic defense agreement, which we just signed a little while ago.”
The announcement comes a day after the president said that he intends to allow Saudi Arabia to purchase F-35 stealth fighter planes from the United States.
“I am planning on doing that,” the president said. “They want to buy them. They’ve been a great ally.”
Salman offered promises to Trump, as well. Earlier on Tuesday, the crown prince said that Saudi Arabia <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1990838255311356094">intends</a> to increase its pledge to invest in the United States from $600 billion to “almost $1 trillion.” The investment would be nearly equal to the entirety of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, according to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/11/18/world/trump-saudi-crown-prince-visit/trump-saudi-crown-prince?smid=url-share">The New York Times</a>.
Trump has moved to strengthen ties between Washington and Riyadh after the Biden administration’s effort to distance itself from the Saudis over the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and other controversies. The Trump administration has prioritized the relationship with Riyadh, seeking its cooperation on issues such as gas <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gas-prices-plummet-after-trump-rebuilds-ties-with-saudis-biden-snubbed">production</a> and the Abraham Accords.
The Saudis have signaled interest in joining the landmark foreign policy achievement of Trump’s tenure in office, the Abraham Accords, and normalizing relations with Israel. Riyadh has made it firmly understood, though, that it cannot normalize relations with Jerusalem until a pathway to a two-state solution with the Palestinian people is secure.
Saudi Arabia was one of a coalition of Arab states that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/arab-states-line-up-behind-trumps-middle-east-peace-plan">backed</a> the Trump-brokered peace and ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. The ceasefire agreement, if it holds, provides a pathway to end the war in Gaza and sets goals and parameters for a Palestinian state to eventually be built. Some experts have expressed concern over Washington’s growing ties with Riyadh, especially over the Trump administration’s decision to share highly-prized military assets such as the F-35 with the Saudis. Saudi Arabia has a defense agreement with China, and some experts have said that the Saudi government may share the technology with Beijing, according to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/17/trump-f-35-saudi-arabia-00654771">Politico</a>.

Mohammed bin Salman, Donald Trump

Trump Officially Designates Saudi Arabia A ‘Major’ Ally Of United States

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

Donald Trump

Global Politics

United States

World

Gas prices have finally fallen into territory drivers have long hoped for but rarely seen in recent years. The national average <a href="https://www.gilmermirror.com/2025/10/20/texas-weekly-gas-price-update-192/?">now sits</a> at $2.98 per gallon, down 4.1 cents in a week and about 15 cents lower than a year ago. Just last month, prices were nearly 20 cents higher, and many Americans had resigned themselves to paying “$3 or more forever” under the current economic status quo.
One major factor? The global oil picture has shifted: crude recently hit <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-drops-investors-weigh-supply-surplus-outlook-us-china-trade-tensions-2025-10-15/#:~:text=NEW%20YORK%2C%20Oct%2015%20(Reuters,settle%20at%20%2461.91%20a%20barrel.">five‑month lows</a>, excess supply is forcing price discipline, and that means relief for American motorists. Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, <a href="https://www.gasbuddy.com/go/national-average-falls-below-3-refinery-outage-in-midwest-may-hike-regional-gas-prices">stated</a> that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) &#8220;deserves much of the credit for this trend, having steadily raised oil production for much of 2025.&#8221;
But the “why” behind the supply‑side motion connects directly to how the United States engages major producers—especially OPEC members like Saudi Arabia. President Donald Trump’s dealings with the Saudis have re‑energized the U.S.–Saudi partnership. In May 2025, his administration <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-secures-historic-600-billion-investment-commitment-in-saudi-arabia/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">announced</a> a Saudi investment commitment of $600 billion in U.S. industry, energy, infrastructure, and tech. On the energy front, Saudi’s national oil champion, Saudi Aramco, <a href="https://www.investing.com/news/commodities-news/saudi-aramco-signs-deals-worth-up-to-90-billion-with-us-companies-4045710?utm_source=chatgpt.com">announced</a> preliminary U.S. corporate ties worth up to $90 billion on the back of Trump’s Gulf tour. That kind of alignment means Saudis have skin in U.S. production and supply reliability, which gives the U.S. far more leverage in global markets and less reliance on adversarial supply shocks.
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Contrast that with former President Joe Biden’s rhetoric.
“President Biden said he would make the kingdom of Saudi Arabia a pariah state. That was an enormous mistake,” former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/pompeo-biden-calling-saudi-arabia-pariah-state-enormous-mistake">said</a> in July 2022. “But let&#8217;s look at the facts. They are an important security partner for the United States. There&#8217;s only one country in that whole region that wants to threaten the United States of America and Israel and wipe us from the face of the earth. That&#8217;s the leadership in Iran and the kingdom of Saudi Arabia&#8217;s been an important partner in helping protect us from that threat.”
In early April 2023, Saudi Arabia, whose relationship with the United States had taken a nosedive during Biden’s tenure, announced it would lead the members of OPEC, including Russia, to cut more than one million barrels of output a day starting next month, which could cause higher U.S. inflation.
And Biden was reticent about raiding the United States’ Strategic Petroleum Reserve in order to keep customers happy. In March 2022, Biden announced that he would release 1 million barrels a day to cut the cost American consumers were paying for gas. That was the biggest withdrawal in the reserve’s 46-year-history.
Trump’s Saudi pivot has helped pay off for Americans at the pump.

Gas Prices Dip Lower Ahead Of July 4th Holiday Weekend

Gas Prices Plummet After Trump Rebuilds Ties With Saudis Biden Snubbed

Gas Prices

Joe Biden

Oil and Gas

OPEC

Comedian Dave Chappelle is getting ripped for telling an audience in Saudi Arabia, where mocking the royal family, Islam, or the government can land you in prison, “It’s easier to talk here than in America.”
“Right now in America, they say that if you talk about Charlie Kirk, that you’ll get canceled,” Chappelle, a practicing Muslim,  <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/world/middleeast/saudi-comedy-festival-riyadh-free-speech.html">declared</a> at the Riyadh Comedy Festival before a crowd of 6,000 people. “I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m gonna find out.”
Chappelle has been viciously critical of Israel, <a href="applewebdata://A52DFCE2-01FF-40DE-85E7-E5F7A517E32C/v">saying</a> in May 2024 in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, “If you are in America, the best thing you can do is to make American Jews feel safe, feel loved and supported so they can know they don’t have to support a country that is committing genocide just to feel safe.” He continued his anti-Israel rhetoric in Riyadh, saying he feared returning to America, because, “They’re going to do something to me so that I can’t say what I want to say,” then adding he would alert his fans by using a code phrase: “It’s got to be something I would never say in practice, so if I actually say it, you’ll know never to listen to anything else I say after that. Here’s the phrase: I stand with Israel.”
Critics didn’t hold back. Author Dumisani Washington slammed Chappelle for his apparent hypocrisy: “A Black, multimillionaire comedian goes to Saudi Arabia, where there are African slaves, and complains about his lack of civil rights in America. Only a Westerner could be so privileged yet so deluded.”
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
So, Dave Chappelle, a Black, multimillionaire comedian goes to Saudi Arabia where there are African slaves and complains about his lack of civil rights (freedom of speech) in America. 
Only a Westerner could be so privileged yet so deluded to think that an Islamic regime is…
&mdash; Dumisani Washington (@DumisaniTemsgen) <a href="https://twitter.com/DumisaniTemsgen/status/1974629061059019116?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Comedian Tim Young was equally scathing: “If Chappelle believes there’s freer speech in Saudi Arabia than in the U.S., he should do an entire set mocking Muhammad there and see how it goes.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
If Dave Chappelle believes there’s freer speech in Saudi Arabia than the US… 
he should do an entire set mocking Muhammad there and see how it goes.
&mdash; Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) <a href="https://twitter.com/TimRunsHisMouth/status/1974668040265470305?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Others, like commentator Jesús Enrique Rosas, pointed to the life-or-death stakes of dissent in the Kingdom: “Does Chappelle know you can get literally EXECUTED in Saudi Arabia for saying the ‘wrong things’? That oil money must have been SWEET.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Does Chapelle know you can get literally EXECUTED in Saudi Arabia for saying the &#39;wrong things&#39;?
That oil money must have been SWEET 🤌 <a href="https://t.co/nrb9NduFsr">https://t.co/nrb9NduFsr</a>
&mdash; Jesús Enrique Rosas &#8211; The Body Language Guy (@Knesix) <a href="https://twitter.com/Knesix/status/1974579681207959676?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2025</a></blockquote>
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And conservative journalist Carmine Sabia nailed the heart of the matter: “I find it interesting that Chappelle, who was paid a fortune to perform in Saudi Arabia… would say there is more free speech there than in the U.S. — a nation that actually gave him a list of things he was not allowed to joke about.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I find it interesting that Dave Chappelle, who was paid a fortune to perform in Saudi Arabia, and good for him, would say that there is more free speech there than in the United States.
A nation that actually gave him a list of things he was not allowed to make quips about. <a href="https://t.co/rZT5pd096V">pic.twitter.com/rZT5pd096V</a>
&mdash; Carmine Sabia (@CarmineSabia) <a href="https://twitter.com/CarmineSabia/status/1974833298078667155?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Even Bill Maher, not exactly a bastion of right-wing thinking, ridiculed Chappelle on HBO’s “Real Time,” saying,
“It’s not true. Do your hunk on Muhammad, Dave.”
This isn’t Chappelle “punching up.” This is Chappelle indulging in moral relativism at its worst — throwing stones at a country that made him rich, while cozying up to a regime that jails dissidents and executes critics.
RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dave-chappelle-attacks-israel-during-performance-in-middle-east?utm_source=chatgpt.com">Dave Chappelle Attacks Israel During Performance In Middle East</a>

Canelo v Crawford

‘That Oil Money Must Have Been Sweet’: Chappelle Under Fire For Anti-US Remarks Made In Saudi Arabia

Anti-American

Celebrities

Dave Chappelle

Free Speech

For years, we&#8217;ve been hearing about the power and magic of comedians who are not just telling jokes, they are speaking “truth to power.” They&#8217;re going for the &#8220;clapter,&#8221; meaning not just laughs, but approval and agreement from the audience on social and political issues. 
We’ve been told comedians are the only ones willing to say what no one else will say. They&#8217;re the ones who are breaking open the Overton Window, who are really saying the unsayable. And traditionally, comedians have done just that. Traditionally, comedians violate taboos because when you violate a taboo, it&#8217;s either inherently funny and transgressive. Even if it’s not funny, it might shatter or shock your sensibilities.
And the natural reaction when someone does something transgressive is to laugh. Comedians have always had this sort of role in society, and sometimes that role can be properly directed because the things they&#8217;re attacking are worthwhile to criticize or make fun of. But sometimes the transgressivism of these comedians is really just about the clicks and money. It&#8217;s about faux transgressivism because when it comes down to it, they are perfectly willing to take money from some of the world&#8217;s most repressive human beings and then crap on America in the process.
So Dave Chappelle, Bill Burr, Andrew Schulz, and a bunch of other top-shelf American comedians went over to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for the Riyadh Comedy Festival. Now that sounds like an Orwellian contradiction in terms. The Riyadh Comedy Festival sounds sort of like the North Korean Dance Festival.
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It&#8217;s ridiculous what the Saudi monarchy is attempting to do right now. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is attempting to create tourist traps in Saudi Arabia because, effectively, the country has no economic resources other than oil. Oil remains the massive driver of its economy. Salman is trying to diversify. He&#8217;s trying to get into tech. He&#8217;s trying to get into travel and tourism, all of which is fine and dandy.
But let&#8217;s be very clear. Saudi Arabia is an unbelievably repressive country. It remains an unbelievably repressive country today, except for certain touristy areas that are being opened to Westerners so they can come and spend their money. So now a bunch of comedians are apparently so brave when there are no consequences to their bravery, when the only consequences they face are money and applause.
They’re not so brave when they go over to Saudi Arabia and abide by every single rule set by the Saudi government for millions of dollars. 
So Dave Chappelle, a faux brave person, goes to Saudi Arabia and says, “Right now in America, they say that if you talk about Charlie Kirk, you&#8217;ll get canceled. I don&#8217;t know if that&#8217;s true, but I&#8217;m going to find out.”
Wow. Look at the bravery of that man. He&#8217;s going over to Saudi Arabia to rip on Charlie Kirk and make jokes about him. Just look at that bravery. Perfectly happy to take the money from the repressive Islamic dictatorship and rip on Charlie Kirk in the process.
What a brave man. What a truly brave man. 
According to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/world/middleeast/saudi-comedy-festival-riyadh-free-speech.html">The New York Times</a>:
<blockquote>[Chappelle] was performing in Riyadh at the same time as a divisive free speech debate was roiling the United States. … Mr. Chappelle has talked frequently about being canceled after an uproar caused by his jokes mocking trans people. But in Riyadh, he also took aim at the recent suspension of Mr. Kimmel.
Like other comedians at the event who said they felt muzzled by American political correctness, Mr. Chappelle reveled in making uncouth jokes in Saudi Arabia. Yet he overlooked an eight-year crackdown that has led to many of the country’s writers, businesspeople, activists, clerics and social media influencers being arrested.</blockquote>
So he goes to Saudi Arabia, of all places, to rip on the United States because Jimmy Kimmel was suspended from the air for five minutes.
That’s where he&#8217;s putting his ire. What a brave person. 
And speaking of brave people, Bill Burr is out there saying, “Free Luigi! Kill the rich!” The same very wealthy Bill Burr, who believes that the systems of the United States are deeply corrupt, so corrupt that he is a man speaking “truth to power” when he appears on every late-night television show to the hoots and hollers of a bunch of morons in Manhattan, and flies to Riyadh to pick up a giant check.
Burr talked about how he found out that Saudi Arabia is made up of people just like us because, you know, there&#8217;s a Starbucks over there.
Great job, Bill. You really are a warrior for truth. What a brave man. Truly an incredible person.
Here’s what he said after the festival:
<blockquote>And like my whole idea of Saudi Arabia is what I&#8217;ve seen, like on the news. I think I&#8217;m going to land, you know, and everybody&#8217;s going to be screaming, “Death to America!” And they&#8217;re gonna have like, machetes and want to, like, chop my head off.
Right? Because this is what I&#8217;ve been fed about that part of the world. Right. When they first went to set it up over there, the rules on what they had above what you could say and what you couldn&#8217;t say in Saudi Arabia, the people running the festivals were like, &#8220;All right. Well, man, that&#8217;s game, set, match. If this is like all you can talk about, and you want some good comedians, like this isn&#8217;t going to work.&#8221;
And then, to their credit, they said, “All right, what do we got to do?” And they just negotiated it all the way down to like, “You can talk about anything, you know, other than a couple things,” which was basically, you know … religion, don&#8217;t make fun of the royals. And other than that … everything was like open. The royals loved the show. Everyone was happy. The people who were doing the festival were thrilled. And, yeah, it was just this great, positive thing.</blockquote>
Wow. So much bravery.

Dave Chappelle Theatre Dedication Ceremony

Bill Burr, Dave Chappelle Kiss Ass In Saudi Arabia

Bill Burr

The New York Times

One of the primary reasons my campaign for Congress was successful was that I embraced President Trump’s Peace through Strength agenda and promised to hold Iran’s terror proxy, the Houthis, accountable. I meant it; it was not a throwaway line. It is a moral and strategic imperative, which is why one of my first legislative acts was <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1250">introducing H.R. 1250</a>. This bill requires the designation of Ansarallah, the Houthi movement, as a foreign terrorist organization and mandates sanctions on its leaders and affiliates.
The Houthis are not some faraway nuisance. Their campaign of terror, their alliance with Iran, and their direct threat to global shipping and stability make them a clear and present danger. To hesitate would only embolden them.
During my deployment to Saudi Arabia as a U.S. Army Reserve Intelligence Officer, I had a front-row seat to the Houthi threat. Under constant risk of Houthi strikes in Saudi Arabia, I worked to develop measures to prevent insider threats like the Pensacola base shooting.
Let me be clear: the Houthis are not a political faction looking for a seat at the table. They are violent extremists who seized territory in Yemen, trapping millions in misery. They threaten Red Sea shipping lanes, target civilian infrastructure, and fire rockets across borders into sovereign nations, and they operate with Iran’s full financial and military backing.
The Houthis are one part of a wider Iranian proxy network. These groups menace regional rivals and target Americans. Iran-backed militias killed three U.S. Army reservists in Jordan earlier this year. They struck at America’s energy interests in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, including HKN, a company tied to the family of Ross Perot.
The Houthis, Hezbollah, and the Iraqi militias are all part of the same web of terror. Ignoring one is ignoring all. President Trump gets that, and that’s why he was able to free Princeton student Elizabeth Tsurkov, whose siblings I hosted in my office, from Iraqi Hezbollah captivity last month – after two years of Biden-Harris inaction.
Within a month of taking office, Biden-Harris revoked President Trump’s terror designation of the Houthis and badgered our Saudi and Emirati allies to cease fighting the terrorists. By 2024, Biden, Harris, or the Autopen had buyer’s remorse and moved to partially redesignate the group.
That is why decisively codifying President Trump’s redesignation of the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization matters. It is not symbolic. It gives us sharper tools: sanctions, financial restrictions, visa bans, and the ability to choke off their networks. H.R. 1250 requires the President to act within 30 days and also forces determinations on senior figures, including Abdul Malik al-Houthi and Abdullah Yahya al-Hakim. Targeting leadership matters. Cutting money matters. Disrupting weapons pipelines matters.
<div id="attachment_979475" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-979475" class="size-large wp-image-979475" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/GettyImages-2228070084-864x576.jpg" alt="Huthi supporters and university students shout anti-Israeli slogans, calling for an end to the war in Gaza, during a demonstration in Sanaa on August 6, 2025. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/GettyImages-2228070084-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/GettyImages-2228070084-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/GettyImages-2228070084-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/GettyImages-2228070084.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images</div>
Some might ask, why act now? Why make this an early priority? Every moment of hesitation allows the Houthis to consolidate power, disrupt trade, and strike at allies. More than 90% of container shipping through the Suez Canal <a href="https://apnews.com/article/red-sea-yemen-houthis-attack-ships-f67d941c260528ac40315ecab4c34ca3">was halted by the Houthis</a>, which accounts for approximately 40% of the world’s container shipping and a route for over one billion barrels of oil per day. 
This disruption is a key driver of global inflation, cutting the buying power of American families.
Sanctions are one part of a larger strategy to end Yemen’s war. We must also work to block weapons flows from Iran, keep humanitarian channels open, and tighten oversight in Congress to make sure enforcement does not drift or get watered down.
Critics will say this risks escalation and hinders peace talks. However, pressure is not the enemy of peace; weakness is. That’s why the Houthis felt so emboldened, and why they were the only group to relentlessly attack Israel — regardless of Hezbollah’s and Iran’s pauses. Labeling the Houthis as terrorists does not declare war. It puts the law on our side. Negotiations only work when leverage is real. The Houthis will never come to the table if they believe America lacks resolve.
Failing to respond only invites more attacks.
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Just this week, the Houthis declared that they will start to target additional U.S. oil firms, such as Chevron and ExxonMobil. This is unacceptable, and it’s time for my colleagues in Congress to act.
Holding the Houthis accountable was one of my first promises, and H.R. 1250 is how that promise begins to take shape. Passing this legislation sends a message: the United States will not cede the Red Sea, will not normalize terrorism, and will not stand by while Iran’s proxies destabilize the region.
The Houthis think they can outlast our resolve. They are wrong. America has faced down far greater threats with determination and clarity. We will do so again. By standing firm, by acting decisively, and by keeping our word, we can ensure that no terrorist movement, whether in Yemen, Iraq, or anywhere else, believes it can threaten American lives and hinder prosperity without consequence.
* * *
Congressman Abe J. Hamadeh represents Arizona’s 8th Congressional District. 
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Demonstration Held After US Announcement Stopping Strikes On Houthis in Yemen

Why Congress Must Back Trump And Make The Houthi Terrorist Designation Official

Arizona

Congress

Houthis

Iran

Middle East

Terrorism

U.S. House of Representatives

A group of Arab states on Monday publicly backed President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza and create a pathway for a Palestinian state.
The governments of Qatar, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt released a joint statement on Monday backing the plan after Trump rolled it out in a White House event alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The joint statement of the Arab states was signed by the foreign minister of each.
The Arab states “welcome President Donald J Trump&#8217;s leadership and his sincere efforts to end the war in Gaza, and assert their confidence in his ability to find a path to peace,” the joint statement said.
“The ministers welcome the announcement by President Trump regarding his proposal to end the war, rebuild Gaza, prevent the displacement of the Palestinian people and advance a comprehensive peace, as well as his announcement that he will not allow the annexation of the West Bank,” the statement continued.
“The ministers affirm their readiness to engage positively and constructively with the United States and the parties toward finalizing the agreement and ensuring its implementation, in a manner that ensures peace, security, and stability for the peoples of the region,” it said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Joint Statement by the Foreign Ministers of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Türkiye, Qatar, and Egypt. <a href="https://t.co/XDqgHxNkGd">pic.twitter.com/XDqgHxNkGd</a>
— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) <a href="https://twitter.com/KSAmofaEN/status/1972766033623814282?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
Trump announced the plan on Monday, celebrating “a historic day for peace.” The president said that, in addition to providing a pathway to peace between Israel and Gaza and laying the groundwork for a Palestinian state, the framework could create “eternal peace in the Middle East.”
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The wide support for the agreement among Arab states places additional pressure on Hamas to agree to the deal. Under the terms of the agreement, the terror group, and others like it, would be demilitarized, dismantled, and blocked from having administrative control over the Gaza Strip.
“If Hamas rejects the deal, which is always possible – they’re the only one left, everyone else has accepted it – but I have a feeling we’re going to have a positive answer. But if not, you know, Bibi, you’d have our full backing to do what you have to do,” said Trump.
Netanyahu echoed Trump’s threat in remarks following the U.S. president.
“If Hamas rejects your plan, Mr. President, or if they supposedly accept it, and then, basically, do everything to counter it, then Israel will finish the job by itself. This can be done the easy way, or it can be done the hard way. But it will be done,” the prime minister said.

Donald Trump, Mohammed bin Salman

Arab States Line Up Behind Trump’s Middle East Peace Plan

Egypt

Indonesia

Jordan

Pakistan

Qatar

Turkey

United Arab Emirates (UAE)

For Uber, it’s time to get either new lawyers or new executives, because its new “Women Preferences” policy is obvious sex discrimination that violates the law. If we owned stock in the company, we’d sell it to avoid a loss from the big-dollar lawsuits that are sure to ensue for this ham-fisted “equity” scheme.
Recently, Uber <a href="https://www.uber.com/newsroom/women-preferences/">announced</a> that in the interests of making its “platform better for women,” it is implementing a “Women Preferences” pilot program that will give women riders &#8220;more ways to choose rides with women drivers&#8221; and women drivers the option “to request trips with women riders, including during peak earning hours like evenings.” In other words, Uber will be empowering its drivers to ignore, that is, discriminate against, male riders. Kind of reminds one of a time when taxi drivers all too often sped up and drove past black residents trying to hail them for a ride. Now, such conduct is prohibited by law.
The only difference between the racist taxi drivers of old and the sexist Uber drivers of new is that the digital “drive-by” discrimination is based on sex instead of race. But both are prohibited under the law.
Uber’s announcement claims this new policy is “designed to give women riders and drivers more choice, more confidence, and more flexibility.” However, “more choice, more confidence, and more flexibility” does not provide a company with a license to violate state and federal anti-discrimination laws.
Uber also brags in its announcement that it started this program in, of all places, Saudi Arabia. You know, one of the world’s most discriminatory countries, where women are treated as second-class citizens.
Yes, you read that right. Uber started its “Women Preferences” pilot program in the unenlightened Middle Eastern nation only after Saudi Arabia finally gave women the right to drive in 2019. That’s a remarkable delay, given that the first woman to be <a href="https://transportationhistory.org/2022/03/02/women-in-transportation-history-anne-rainsford-french-bush-automotive-pioneer/">issued</a> a driver’s license in the District of Columbia (Anne Rainsford French) received it in 1900. But what more would one expect from a nation that didn’t grant women the right to vote for the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35075702">first time</a> until 2015?
Uber’s lawyers seem to need a refresher on the law.
As a company incorporated in California, Uber is subject to the state’s <a href="https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&amp;sectionNum=51">Unruh Civil Rights Act</a>, which prohibits discrimination by all business establishments open to the public in California. Among others, it applies to hotels, restaurants, stores, theaters, taxis, and yes, rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft. California-based businesses that serve the public must treat everyone equally — regardless of their race, religion, sex, or disability, among other protected characteristics.
What’s more, federal law — the <a href="https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/civil-rights-act">Civil Rights Act of 1964</a> — prohibits discrimination in public accommodations as well. And while sex is not a protected category under Title II of the Civil Rights Act (like race is), Title VII of that same Act prohibits sex discrimination and harassment in employment contexts. That means that male Uber drivers who are not provided with the same sex-selective rider options as their female colleagues may have a claim for discriminatory treatment under that federal law, as well.
This isn’t the first time that the rideshare company has been accused of violating civil rights law. In 2017, Uber <a href="https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/uber-pay-44-million-resolve-eeoc-sexual-harassment-and-retaliation-charge#:~:text=The%20pre%2Dlitigation%20agreement%20was,retaliation%20after%20January%201%2C%202014.">agreed</a> to pay out $4.4 million in fees to settle a class-action lawsuit charging that the company had failed to adequately address sexual harassment by its drivers against female passengers. The same year, Uber software engineer Susan Fowler wrote a blog post that went viral in which she <a href="https://time.com/5784464/susan-fowler-book-uber-sexual-harassment/">accused</a> the Silicon Valley-based company of sex discrimination and harassment — both violations of Title VII.
And in 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Uber, alleging that the company had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by charging wait time fees to riders with disabilities who took longer to get in Uber vehicles. Uber eventually agreed to <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/uber-commits-changes-and-pays-millions-resolve-justice-department-lawsuit-overcharging-people#:~:text=(Uber)%20to%20resolve%20a%20lawsuit,discriminatory%20fees%20due%20to%20disability.">settle</a> the lawsuit, and paid millions in compensation to affected riders.
Uber’s new policy also allows riders to “select the ‘Women Drivers’ option when requesting a ride.”
If you want to avoid a taxi, bus, train, or airplane because you don’t like the race or sex of the driver or pilot, you can do that. While that might evidence questionable moral beliefs, it doesn’t violate state or federal law — after all, consumers exercise preference in the market all the time. But the private companies and local governments who own those taxis, buses, trains, and airplanes cannot engage in the same type of discriminatory “preferencing.”
Uber is rolling out this program in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit, and says it is doing so “after extensive testing and feedback from global markets like Saudi Arabia, Germany, and France, where women-only options have been well received.”
Uber’s conduct in “global markets like Saudi Arabia” is blatantly illegal in the United States, regardless of whether it’s “well received” or not.
* * *
Hans von Spakovsky is a Senior Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation and former Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Justice Department.
Sarah Parshall Perry is the Vice President and Legal Fellow of Defending Education and former counsel to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Crowdsourced taxi driver talking to a passenger in the back seat

Uber’s New ‘Women Preferences’ Program Violates Civil Rights Law

Uber’s New 'Women Preferences' Program Violates Civil Rights Law

Civil Rights

Discrimination

Heritage Foundation

Silicon Valley

Uber

Women

President Donald Trump said that he expects more countries will join the Abraham Accords that seek to normalize relations between Israel and Arab nations.
During an interview on &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures,&#8221; anchor Maria Bartiromo asked Trump if any other country had suggested to him that they wanted to sign up after the U.S. military bombed Iranian sites to prevent Tehran from achieving nuclear weapons.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/MariaBartiromo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MariaBartiromo</a>: “Has any other country suggested to you… that they want to join the Abraham Accords?”<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: “Yes. So, we have some really great countries in there right now and I think we’re going to start loading them up because Iran was the primary problem.” <a href="https://t.co/LD6AKsPqKU">pic.twitter.com/LD6AKsPqKU</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1939327573445447684?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Yes, so we have some really great countries in there right now, and I think we&#8217;re going to start loading them up because Iran was the primary problem. I actually thought Iran would, I actually, we had a period of time where I thought Iran would join the Abraham Accords along with everybody else, and frankly they would have been better off than where they are right now,&#8221; Trump said.
Bartiromo asked Trump if Syria in particular would enter the Abraham Accords.
&#8220;Well, I don&#8217;t know, but I did take off the sanctions at the request of some of the other countries in the area that are friends of ours,&#8221; Trump replied. &#8220;I took off the sanctions on Syria to give them a chance at, you know, the sanctions are biting. They&#8217;re very strong. And we have sanctions on Iran, too. And you know, you take them off when, I sort of gave the expression today, you get more sometimes with honey than you do with vinegar.&#8221;
The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-calls-on-saudi-arabia-to-join-abraham-accords-my-fervent-hope" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> last month that Trump called on Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords, a series of treaties that he put together during his first term that already includes the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.
&#8220;It’s been an amazing thing, the Abraham Accords, and it’s my fervent hope, wish, and even my dream that Saudi Arabia — a place I have such respect for, especially over the last fairly short period of time, what you’ve been able to do — but will soon be joining the Abraham Accords,&#8221; Trump said during a speech in Riyadh.
Last week, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1937975541748945222" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on CNBC, &#8220;One of the President&#8217;s key objectives is that the Abraham Accords be expanded &#8230; We think we&#8217;re going to have some pretty big announcements on countries that are now coming in to the Abraham Peace Accords.&#8221;

President Donald J. Trump

Trump Predicts More Nations Will Join Abraham Accords After Iran Strikes

Abraham Accords

U.S.

WASHINGTON — As President Donald Trump returns to the United States from his weeklong trip to the Middle East, leaders of almost 50 companies praised the president for securing over $2 trillion in deals.
The president&#8217;s trip to the Middle East resulted in a number of deals, including a $600 billion investment commitment from Saudi Arabia, $200 billion in commercial deals between the U.S. and United Arab Emirates, $1.2 trillion economic exchange agreement with Qatar, and $243.5 billion in U.S.-Qatar commercial and defense deals, according to the White House.
The administration is touting the trip as not only historic, but also one that strengthened safety and stability in the Middle East.
“The numbers don’t lie,&#8221; White House Assistant Press Secretary Taylor Rogers told The Daily Wire. &#8220;President Trump secured trillions of dollars in great deals, and his first foreign trip was a huge success. These historic investments and landmark agreements are a direct result of the economic climate President Trump has quickly developed.”
Business leaders who are benefitting from the deals were vociferous in their praise of the president&#8217;s efforts on Friday afternoon. That includes leaders from Lockheed Martin, Palantir, Qualcomm, Amazon, Google, and more.
“We appreciate President Trump and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman convening business leaders in Saudi Arabia to strengthen economic ties and drive innovation between our two countries,&#8221; Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said of the U.S. Saudi deals. &#8220;Amazon is excited to partner with HUMAIN, Saudi Arabia’s newly created AI innovation company, to collectively invest more than $5 billion to build a groundbreaking ‘AI Zone’ there, which will bring multiple innovative AWS AI capabilities to Saudi Arabia along with skills training for 100,000 citizens from the Kingdom.”
Ruth Porat, Alphabet and Google President and Chief Investment Officer, also expressed gratitude to Trump for the Saudi deals, praising the &#8220;engagement and policies of the Trump Administration and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who are enabling strong execution to accelerate AI innovation in both countries.&#8221;
&#8220;Together,&#8221; she said, &#8220;we will create highly-skilled jobs and deliver AI training programs to open new, rewarding career pathways.”
DataVolt CEO Rajit Nanda argued that the Saudi partnership was &#8220;made possible in large part due to the enabling technology and trade frameworks advanced during the Trump Administration—policies that championed high-tech exports, strengthened U.S.-Saudi strategic ties, which have empowered entrepreneurial collaboration in the digital era.”
<div id="attachment_921533" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/top-business-leaders-jubilant-over-trumps-economic-success-in-middle-east/president-trump-makes-first-middle-east-trip-of-his-second-term-7" rel="attachment wp-att-921533"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-921533" class="wp-image-921533 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2215290920.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES &#8211; MAY 15: U.S. President Donald J. Trump tours the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)</div>
And Oracle CEO Safra Catz thanked Trump for his leadership and &#8220;decisive actions,&#8221; actions that allow Oracle to provide &#8220;the world’s most advanced cloud and AI technology to Saudi Arabia.&#8221;
&#8220;Our expanded partnership with the Kingdom will create new opportunities for its economy, deliver better health outcomes for its people, and fortify its alliance with the United States, which will create a ripple effect of peace and prosperity across the Middle East and around the world,&#8221; Catz said.
As for the Quatar deals, Boeing President and CEO Kelly Ortberg touted a historic order, the &#8220;largest-ever for Boeing&#8217;s widebody planes.&#8221;
&#8220;Thank you to President Trump for supporting the agreement, which grows our longstanding partnership with the airline,&#8221; Ortberg said. &#8220;As one of America&#8217;s top exporters, Boeing is proud that our aircraft sales to global customers strengthen U.S. manufacturing and sustain jobs in our factories and at suppliers across the United States.”
Lockheed Martin President and CEO Jim Taiclet promised that &#8220;thanks to President Trump’s leadership, we will help accelerate Qatar’s next-generation air and missile defense capabilities, enabling a more secure and stable region, sustaining American manufacturing jobs, and reinforcing our defense industrial base.”
A spokesman for Northrop Grumman, celebrating Trump&#8217;s deals with the United Arab Emirates, promised: “Just as we have invested in the UAE, such as Northrop Grumman’s grant to the American Community School in Abu Dhabi, we welcome increased partnership and investment by the UAE in our world-class defense sector. This historic trip will increase U.S. jobs and economic strength.”
Parsons President Carey Smith said that his corporation is &#8220;proud to be a part of President Trump’s initiatives to strengthen strategic relations in the UAE,&#8221; and Baker Hughes CEO Lorenzo Simonelli congratulated the president, calling the trip to the United Arab Emirates, &#8220;A key moment that underscores the enduring partnership between two nations committed to innovation, progress, and shared prosperity.&#8221;
&#8220;As we look to the future, energy will remain central to economic growth and broader cooperation that supports stability and opportunity for both countries, and Baker Hughes remains steadfast in our dedication to help both nations meet their goals,&#8221; Simonelli promised.

Top Business Leaders Jubilant Over Trump’s Economic Success In Middle East

Economy

President Donald Trump concluded his four-day Gulf tour on Friday after securing more than $2 trillion in investment agreements.
“In total, President Trump secured over $2 TRILLION in investment agreements with these three Middle Eastern nations — paving the way for a more safe and prosperous future,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt <a href="https://x.com/PressSec/status/1923344314735718669" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced on X</a>.
After four days of traveling to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, where he was met with lavish ceremonies and generous hospitality, Trump is returning home to the United States, where he will meet his new grandson.
“Now it’s time to go back home,” Trump said in Abu Dhabi. “My daughter had a baby — I&#8217;m going to go back home and see that little baby.&#8221;
Here&#8217;s everything the president did on his Gulf tour.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> in Abu Dhabi: &quot;It&#39;s been a tremendous time and now it&#39;s time to go back home. My daughter had a baby — I&#39;m going to go back home and see that little baby.&quot; ❤️ <a href="https://t.co/ATwbJQPiRp">pic.twitter.com/ATwbJQPiRp</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1923286897561948476?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<h3>Saudi Arabia</h3>
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-arrives-in-saudi-arabia-to-kick-off-high-stakes-middle-east-trip?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Arrives+In+Saudi+Arabia+To+Kick+Off+High+Stakes+Middle+East+Trip" target="_blank" rel="noopener">kicked off his trip</a> Tuesday, landing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia with a Saudi F-15 fighter jet escort, where he was greeted by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. After being escorted to the Saudi Royal Court with an escort of Arabian horses, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-secures-historic-investment-deal-from-saudi-arabia-on-first-day-of-middle-east-trip?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=8&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Secures+%E2%80%98Historic%E2%80%99+Investment+Deal+From+Saudi+Arabia+On+First+Day+Of+Middle+East+Trip" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trump announced </a>that Saudi Arabia committed to investing $600 billion in the United States.
The investment will initially focus on deals that strengthen energy security, the defense industry, technology leadership, and access to global infrastructure and critical minerals. Deals include Saudi company DataVolt investing $20 billion in AI data centers and energy infrastructure, and Shamekh IV Solutions, LLC set to invest $5.8 billion, including in a Michigan high-capacity IV fluid facility.
Other multinational companies, including Google, Oracle, Salesforce, and Uber, have committed to investing $80 billion in “cutting-edge transformative technologies” in both the United States and Saudi Arabia.
“President Trump is the dealmaker in chief, and he has once again secured a historic deal that strengthens America’s economic dominance and global influence,” the White House said in a statement, adding that the investment will build “economic ties that will endure for generations to come.”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-calls-on-saudi-arabia-to-join-abraham-accords-my-fervent-hope?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Calls+On+Saudi+Arabia+To+Join+Abraham+Accords%3A+%E2%80%98My+Fervent+Hope%E2%80%99" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TRUMP CALLS ON SAUDI ARABIA TO JOIN ABRAHAM ACCORDS: ‘MY FERVENT HOPE’</a>
Trump also announced the two countries signed the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hours-into-middle-east-trip-trump-announces-largest-defense-sales-deal-in-u-s-history?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=7&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Hours+Into+Middle+East+Trip%2C+Trump+Announces+Largest+Defense+Sales+Deal+In+U.S.+History" target="_blank" rel="noopener">largest defense sales agreement</a> in history, totaling $142 billion, providing Saudi Arabia with air force advancement and space capabilities, air and missile defense, maritime and coastal security, border security and land forces modernization, and information and communication systems.
During a speech later that night, Trump urged Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords.
<div id="attachment_919597" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-919597" class="size-large wp-image-919597" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-864x576.jpg" alt="Trump Saudi" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214859454-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)</div>
“It’s been an amazing thing, the Abraham Accords, and it’s my fervent hope, wish, and even my dream that Saudi Arabia — a place I have such respect for, especially over the last fairly short period of time, what you’ve been able to do — but will soon be joining the Abraham Accords,” Trump said.
During his first term, Trump brokered the Abraham Accords, a groundbreaking agreement between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, that ended decades of formal hostilities. Shortly afterward, Sudan and Morocco also joined the agreement.
Trump has long sought to expand the agreement to include Saudi Arabia, but the ongoing war in Israel has complicated those efforts.
Trump also announced he would lift sanctions on Syria, arguing that removing penalties imposed on the former dictatorship would give the new leadership a chance — despite its leader’s terrorist history.
Trump said removing the sanctions would give Syria “a chance at greatness.”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-trump-lifting-syria-sanctions-could-transform-the-middle-east?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+Trump+Lifting+Syria+Sanctions+Could+Transform+The+Middle+East" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HOW TRUMP LIFTING SYRIA SANCTIONS COULD TRANSFORM THE MIDDLE EAST</a>
The next day, Trump met with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, whom he described as a “young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter.”
The meeting between Trump and Sharaa was the first meeting between an American president and a Syrian leader in 25 years.
<h3>Qatar</h3>
On Wednesday, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-welcomed-in-qatar-with-parade-of-camels-and-teslas-this-is-what-they-call-perfecto?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=5&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Welcomed+In+Qatar+With+Parade+Of+Camels+And+Teslas%3A+%E2%80%98This+Is+What+They+Call+Perfecto%E2%80%99" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trump arrived in Qatar</a> with a fighter jet escort, becoming the first American president to visit the oil-rich Gulf nation. He was greeted by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, and escorted by Qatari police in <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922619883935637726" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tesla Cybertrucks</a> to the Amiri Diwan, where he received an elaborate reception featuring Qataris on horses and camels.
Trump thanked the Qataris for the warm greeting, saying that he appreciated the camels and hadn’t “seen camels like that in a long time.”
“That was some greeting. We appreciate it very much.”
Before arriving in Qatar, Trump faced controversy over reports that he is preparing to accept a $400 million Boeing 747 jumbo jet from the Qatari government, intended as a replacement for the aging 40-year-old Air Force One. The plane is reportedly set to be transferred to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation shortly before he leaves office. However, during his visit to Qatar, the jet deal took a backseat as Trump announced more massive economic agreements.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-trump-and-rubio-put-america-first-in-100-days?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+Trump+And+Rubio+Put+America+First+In+100+Days" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HOW TRUMP AND RUBIO PUT AMERICA FIRST IN 100 DAYS</a>
Qatar signed an agreement with Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, alongside President Trump, to purchase 210 American-made Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X aircraft powered by GE Aerospace engines, according to the White House. The purchase is the largest 787 order in the American company’s history.
“It’s the largest order of jets in the history of Boeing, that’s pretty good,” Trump said.  “It’s over $200 billion… Congratulations to Boeing. Get those planes out there!”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> in Qatar: &quot;We&#39;re with you all the way.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/coZWPkOnau">pic.twitter.com/coZWPkOnau</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1922656759765700981?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 14, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Qatar also signed a letter of intent to purchase $2 billion worth of MQ-9B Reaper drones and $1 billion in counter-drone technology, becoming the first international customer for Raytheon’s Fixed Site–Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aerial System Integrated Defeat System (FS-LIDS), designed to neutralize small unmanned aircraft.
Letters of intent were also signed between Qatar and the United States to “further strengthen our security partnership,” the White House said in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-secures-historic-1-2-trillion-economic-commitment-in-qatar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>, outlining up to $38 billion in potential defense and security-related investments.
“The United States is in a very strong position militarily,” Trump said, sitting next to Al-Thani. “We have the best equipment anywhere in the world and you’re buying a lot of that equipment actually.”
According to Leavitt, the total agreements with Qatar will generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion.
Trump’s warm reception in Qatar stands in contrast to the president’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/qatar-doesnt-give-things-away-for-free" target="_blank" rel="noopener">June 2017 statements</a> on the country, in which he had accused the nation of backing terrorism.
<div id="attachment_920159" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-920159" class="size-large wp-image-920159" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214411835-864x576.jpg" alt="Trump and Qatari leader" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214411835-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214411835-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214411835-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214411835.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Qatar&#8217;s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and Trump (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
“The nation of Qatar, unfortunately, has historically been a funder of terrorism at a very high level,” Trump said.
Qatar continues to fund terrorist groups, giving over $2 billion to the Hamas-run government in Gaza, according to the <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2023/12/19/10-things-to-know-about-hamas-and-qatar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Foundation for Defense of Democracies</a>. For several years, Hamas also hosted the leadership of Hamas, though many left Qatar last year.
Before leaving Qatar, Trump visited American troops at the Al Udeid Air Force Base in Qatar — the largest American military facility in the Middle East. Delivering a speech to the troops who he called “tip of the spear” in the fight against the “enemies of civilization” Trump spoke about his Middle East goals and promised to give them a raise.
“You are without a doubt the greatest fighting force in the history of the world,” Trump said. “That’s the way it is. I said it last night. I said it’s strong. We have the strongest military in the world. It’s not even a contest. We have the best equipment, nobody has equipment like us, nobody has the planes or the missiles or anything else.”
<h3>United Arab Emirates</h3>
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-welcomed-to-uae-with-fighter-jets-and-ceremonial-hair-dances-on-last-leg-of-gulf-tour?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Welcomed+To+UAE+With+Fighter+Jets+and+Ceremonial+Hair+Dances+On+Last+Leg+of+Gulf+Tour" target="_blank" rel="noopener">touched down</a> in the UAE on Thursday with his third fighter jet escort and was greeted by UAE leader Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, making him the second serving American president to visit the UAE, after former President George W. Bush in 2008.
Trump was welcomed with a ceremony that included dignitaries, music, an honor guard, and Emirati women doing a traditional dance with their hair.
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The welcome ceremony in UAE continues! 🇺🇸🇦🇪 <a href="https://t.co/sXqS1IboMN">pic.twitter.com/sXqS1IboMN</a>
&mdash; Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) <a href="https://twitter.com/MargoMartin47/status/1922995639455044017?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Trump toured the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque with Nahyan before announcing his third series of large economic deals.
The United States and the UAE agreed upon $200 billion in “transformative deals” including Boeing and GE Aerospace securing a $14.5 billion commitment from Etihad Airways for 28 Boeing 787 and 777X aircraft and a $4 billion investment by Emirates Global Aluminum to build one of the first new American aluminum smelters in 45 years. Other deals announced relate to the energy, technology, and mineral sectors.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/american-hostage-edan-alexander-reunites-family?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=American+Hostage+Edan+Alexander+Reunites+With+Parents+After+584+Days+In+Hamas+Captivity" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AMERICAN HOSTAGE EDAN ALEXANDER REUNITES WITH PARENTS AFTER 584 DAYS IN HAMAS CAPTIVITY</a>
“President Trump’s historic visit to the United Arab Emirates is another opportunity to welcome new partnerships in frontier technologies, health and life sciences, mobility, entertainment, and many other fields,” the White House <a href="https://x.com/WhiteHouse/status/1923097611063513298" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
<div id="attachment_920615" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-920615" class="size-large wp-image-920615" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214578262-864x576.jpg" alt="Trump in Abu Dhabi" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214578262-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214578262-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214578262-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/GettyImages-2214578262.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />The director-general of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and Trump in Abu Dhabi. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
All of the deals announced were on top of a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-secures-1-4-trillion-uae-investment-deal-for-american-industries" target="_blank" rel="noopener">March $1.4 trillion commitment</a> from the UAE to invest in the sectors of American energy, manufacturing, and technology over the next decade.
During the visit, Trump also visited the interfaith Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi, which includes the St. Francis Church, the <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1923312209339318671" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue</a>, and the Eminence Ahmed El-Tayeb Mosque.
Trump had a strong relationship with the UAE in his first term, most evident in the success of the Abraham Accords, which normalized the Gulf country’s relations with Israel and ushered in religious tolerance.
At the Abrahamic Family House, Trump signed its guest book with a message to the Emirati people.
“It&#8217;s just a message of unity when you look at what we&#8217;ve just seen — great unity, great faith, incredible people with a tremendous leader,” <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1923314106452382018" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trump said</a>, holding up the book.

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Deals And Diplomacy: Here’s Everything Trump Accomplished On His Gulf Tour

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