"Historic": Notable Figures React To Cardinal Prevost Becoming Pope Leo XIV

05/09/25 12:14 AM

Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected in a surprise choice to be the new leader of the Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the name Leo XIV, becoming the first U.S. pontiff.

"JD Vance Is Wrong": New Pope Criticised Trump, Vice President Just Weeks Ago

05/09/25 4:56 AM

Pope Leo XIV shared articles criticizing US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance on social media months before his election as America's first pontiff, particularly on issues of migration.

"Mark Those Words": India's Sharp Response To Pak On Indus Treaty Suspension

05/08/25 9:34 PM

India on Thursday asserted its right to put the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan in "abeyance" following the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, in which 26 civilians were killed by terrorists linked to Pakistan.

"None Of Our Business": JD Vance Says US To Stay Out Of India-Pak Conflict

05/09/25 3:50 AM

US Vice-President J.D. Vance has said that the conflict between India and Pakistan is "fundamentally none of our business," though he and President Donald Trump are encouraging both the countries to de-escalate.

"Pahalgam Attack Was Original Escalation": India On 'Op Sindoor' Response

05/09/25 12:36 AM

The attack in Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22 was the "original escalation", Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Thursday as he gave details about India's 'Operation Sindoor'.

"Peace Be With All Of You": Full Text Of New Pope's First Public Address

05/09/25 5:16 AM

The following is the full first speech of Pope Leo XIV, given from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica shortly after his election as the new pope and leader of the Catholic Church.

"Playbook Of Failed State": Ex-US Official Slams Pakistan Amid Op Sindoor

05/09/25 7:54 AM

India on Tuesday night carried out 24 missile strikes in 25 minutes across nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.

'50 times worse!' Economist sounds alarm over Trump 2.0 as 'everything we buy is at risk'

05/07/25 9:42 PM

University of Michigan Economics Professor Justin Wolfers warned that things are going to be a lot worse than Americans understand as a result of President Donald Trump's tariffs. Speaking to MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace on Wednesday, Wolfers said the best thing that could happen is that Trump would "back off" his trade war. Trump ran on tariffs in 2024, but he also ran on them in 2016, he recalled. "And when he ran on them last time, he used them a little bit more carefully. There were tariffs on steel and aluminum and washing machines. They were all quite destructive, but they're actually small parts of the economy," said Wolfers. "The thing he's done differently this time is he's ratcheted up American tariffs. So, we are easily the highest tariff nation among any leading industrialized country."ALSO READ: Trump is doing it all in broad daylight because he thinks no one will stop himNow, he explained, U.S. tariff rates are roughly 10 times those of trading partners. "You may have heard of the Depression era Smoot-Hawley tariffs, and there's a funny fact — you have to be an economist to really geek out on this — which is the pain that a tariff causes rises in the square of the tariff rate," Wolfers said. "So what that means is not just that things are bad or worse, they're worse squared. In fact, I did a calculation that suggested the pain that this set of tariffs is going to cause is going to be roughly 50 times larger than the tariffs that Trump imposed in his first term."When it happened in 2018, "mostly life went on." The only real change was if someone wanted to buy a washing machine. But for Americans going to the grocery store, things were normal. "But now, realize that everything we buy is at risk. So, next time you go to the grocery store, pick things up off the shelf and have a look at where they're made. Many of them will be made in China. Many of the things that aren't made in China, though, are made maybe in the U.S. using inputs from China. Think about things like, yes, the president makes fun of plastic dolls, but actually, it turns out American Girl dolls also come from China. But more than that, it's strollers. It's toasters, it's equipment."So, with the 145% tariff Trump imposed on China, family budgets and planning "depend entirely on what happens in the White House."See his full comments below or at the link here. - YouTube youtu.be

'Completely unaware': MAGA's glee for American pope mocked as anti-Trump posts revealed

05/08/25 6:45 PM

The new leader of the Catholic Church hails from the United States — and MAGA is elated. This detail is not lost on those familiar with Pope Leo XIV when he was still Robert Francis Prevost. While the new pope, known for supporting science and giving communion to divorced people, questioned Vice President JD Vance after a statement that people who care for others only after their own family is taken care of.Prevost responded, saying that Jesus "doesn't ask us to rank our love for others."Writing an op-ed for the National Catholic Reporter, he said, "The point wasn't about setting limits on love. It was about breaking them down — taking the gospel beyond familiar spaces and into contested ones. If anything, those of us in the United States are the ends of the earth, unimaginable to the earliest Christians. And yet, the gospel has already reached us. The real question is not whether love begins at home. It's what we do with it — how far we are willing to change ourselves and the world around us."Prevost also retweeted an April 14 post by Philadelphia-based Catholic writer Rocco Palmo, who castigated Trump and El Salvador President Nayib Bukele after their White House meeting to discuss migrant deportations, including the plight of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a legal U.S. resident mistakenly sent to the notorious CECOT prison.Former Ambassador to the Holy See, Miguel Diaz, described the new Pope Leo XIV as being a "moderate voice." He told MSNBC that he anticipates the pope will "create the spaces" for debate on issues like elevating women in the church and same-sex marriage. ALSO READ: Trump is a troll – but his 'ugly' pope selfie demands a damning responseMany pro-Trump and MAGA members seemed more focused on the fact that the pope is an American, ignoring his support of a more Pope Francis-style agenda. Republican Steve Cortes posted a photo of the new pope, calling on others, "Pray for our new Pope! An American."After not saying anything on X since May 3, former Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) posted just after the announcement, "We've entered the Golden Age of America." "Pope Leo XIV — the first American pope in history!" cheered Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX).Conservative former Arkansas governor, Mike Huckabee, similarly said, "Praying for my Catholic friends & extending high hopes for their new leader. God's blessing on Pope Leo XIV!"Such responses led to some mockery of those celebrating conservatives. Former official Chris D. Jackson saw the celebration and commented, "It’s hilarious watching MAGA cheer the new Pope—completely unaware he’s on record trashing both Trump and J.D. Vance. Peak 'we didn’t read the article, we just liked the headline' energy."Other MAGA acolytes appeared to read beyond the headline. Laura Loomer was one of few in the MAGA world who saw that Pope Leo XIV was supportive of immigrants. She called it "gross." She also called him a "MARXIST POPE!" finding a tweet from the now-pope showing his support of praying for George Floyd. Conservative Charlie Kirk said that he found voting records showing that the new pope was a registered Republican and voted in GOP primaries.However, a fact-check quickly came from Henry Olsen of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, saying, "Illinois has no party registration. This merely means he cast a Republican ballot in the last party primary."

'He knows!' Trump ripped for feigning ignorance on plans to send migrants to 'hellscape'

05/07/25 8:09 PM

President Donald Trump pleaded ignorance on Wednesday when asked about reports his administration was looking to deport prisoners to Libya, in addition to El Salvador. Last week, CNN's Priscilla Alvarez reported on X, "The Trump admin has discussed with Libya and Rwanda the possibility of sending migrants who have criminal records to those two countries." Wednesday, CNN's Natasha Bertrand posted, "The Trump admin is moving forward with plans to transport a group of undocumented immigrants to Libya on a US military plane, an admin official says. Flight trackers show that a US Air Force C-17 has filed a plan to fly on Wednesday from Kelly Field in San Antonio to Misrata Airport in Libya." In the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump responded, "Uh, I don't know. You'll have to ask Homeland Security, please," when asked about the report. Attorney John Jackson posted to X, "Transparent attempt to evade U.S. court review in one of the most remote, disconnected, and hellish places on earth as far from America as humanly possible. That's what this is. They might as well be transporting them to Mars." ALSO READ: ‘Pain. Grief. Anger’: Families heartbroken as Trump backlash smashes adoption dreams Immigration attorney Aaron Reichlin-Melnick wrote, "Yet another in a long line of examples of Trump openly saying he has no idea what his government is doing. In this case, it's about a reported plan to send migrants to Libya, a country whose migrant detention facilities were described as a 'hellscape' by Amnesty Int'l." In a second post, Reichlin-Melnick included a photo of a Lybian migrant detention facility. "Don’t look away. This is what Libya’s migrant detention facilities look like," Reichlin-Melnick wrote. "This is what Trump is doing. Amnesty International called these places a' 'hellscape' where beatings are common and sexual violence are rampant. There are reports of human trafficking and even slavery." In response, former federal prosecutor Elizabeth de la Vega posted, "He knows it's happening. He just says he doesn't know because he doesn't want to answer the question. It's his standard modus operandi." Attorney George Conway wrote, "Oh yes by all means please throw more gasoline on the six-alarm fire that used to be our Constitution."