.@RFERL is one of the most effective instruments for advancing US interests and values ever devised. It helped win the Cold War. It helps push back on Russian aggression & and subversion today.

Sad moment when the US National Security Advisor cannot give a straight answer to the question whether the US President plans an act of aggression against a friend and ally. And Mike Waltz really can’t.

@RichardGrenell @voa “Treasonous” to criticize an ill-considered dismantling of USAID? Degrading language is prelude to degrading policy.

Sustained pro-democracy protests in Georgia despite the threats. Impressive. Admirable. The US is distracted but Georgians have agency and are laying the basis for change in their country’s governance.

Solid first trip by ⁦@SecDef⁩: US military in Europe, NATO, & Poland.

@ChrisMurphyCT And did the first Trump Administration fix USAID? If so, they can go back to that model. If not, why not?

.@SecDef to visit Poland next week. Good sign of good priorities. @ACEurope @andrewmichta @IanBrzezinski

For those (especially in Poland) interested in the views of ⁦@TomRoseIndy⁩, ⁦@POTUS⁩’s pick to be US Ambo to Poland, his excellent piece re the Russo-Ukraine seems a solid place to start. ⁦@ACEurope⁩ ⁦@IanBrzezinski⁩

As he often does, ⁦@marcthiessen⁩ suggests a way to implement TrumpWorld ideas, in this case aligning USAID to Administration priorities, in ways that could work and are better than destruction.

USAID’s record includes mistakes and failures, mess ups and gaps. Along with lots of good that saved and bettered lives, advancing American interests & values. Government efficiency means fixing things fast. Destruction? Rubble helps rats.

Caprice, chaos, & cruelty do not add up to gov’t efficiency. Lots of noise about criminality & corruption in USAID but no evidence (subscriptions to Politico won’t cut it). Fix problems. Align programs to new policies. Don’t destroy.

@TomRoseIndy @POTUS As a former US Ambassador to Poland, congratulations! I (and I am confident) other former US Ambassadors to Poland will offer all the help and support we can!

New US sanctions against Iran just out. These seem like standard enforcement actions, not escalation. ⁦@ACGeoEcon⁩

@Gundisalvus @WillieGeist @elonmusk You are correct that Elon Musk is an American. His origins are not and should not be used as disqualifying. My point, however, stands.

@Gundisalvus P.S. Mike, I really did enjoy (and benefit) from working with you during the George W. Bush Administration!

Taking migrants to GTMO for unspecified detention may make a good sound bite at first, but using GTMO can prove...tricky, as the GWBush Administration found. And GTMO is big time expensive. Don't talk about cutting waste & using GTMO at the same time.

@Gundisalvus @WillieGeist @elonmusk @Morning_Joe That's true, Mike. But the Biden Administration didn't give George Soros access to core capabilities of the US government. Conservative principles teach us to beware of taking a wrecking ball to institutions, right?

@jsolomonReports Was this true during the first Trump Administration? If so, did he fix it then? Any breakdown of USAID funds to "terrorists"? Do "Soros-aligned causes" include anything to do with democracy and press freedom, objectives once championed by Republicans?