International Appeal

Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Mark Nayler

“Although it’s the world’s second most-visited country, Spain hasn’t been sending out a welcoming message recently. Its Socialist-led government has proposed or passed several measures aimed at deterring foreign property investors, such as a 100% tax on non-EU citizens buying houses (so far just an idea) and a ban on Golden Visas, which awarded residency to non-Spanish citizens who purchased real estate worth at least €500,000 (effective from last April). Over the last few years, there have also been protests against what residents see as over-tourism in hotspots such as Valencia, Málaga, Catalonia, and the Balearic Islands. One might have expected all this negative publicity to have dented Spain’s reputation as one of the best places in the world to take a vacation or buy a second home. But the opposite seems to be true: Spain set a new tourism record in 2025 with 97 million visitors, a 3.2% increase on 2024’s 94 million.” (04/15/26)

https://fee.org/articles/international-appeal/

Thomas L. Knapp

Autocrats Don’t Fare Well Against Faith Leaders

Source: The Contrarian
by Jennifer Rubin

“Donald Trump was not playing five-dimensional chess when he attacked Pope Leo for being ‘weak on crime’ or when he posted a picture portraying himself as Jesus (subsequently taken down). Assuming a clever strategy behind objectively demented conduct is the equivalent of sane washing, that is, straining to attribute rational motives to someone behaving irrationally. Trump is deeply unwell, becoming more so as he experiences serial failures and finds his bully routine no longer works (on Iran, Europe, or the Pope). … Pope Leo is as much a problem for Trump as Pope John Paul II was for communist Poland.” (04/15/26)

https://www.contrariannews.org/p/autocrats-dont-fare-well-against

Thomas L. Knapp

Australia’s richest person must share part of her mining fortunes, court rules

Source: BBC News [UK State Media]

“Australia’s wealthiest person Gina Rinehart must part with some of her riches, a court has ruled in a high-profile dispute over her mining empire. Worth an estimated A$38bn (£20bn; $27bn), Rinehart inherited the iron ore ventures of her father in 1992, before going on to develop mines in the mineral-rich Pilbara region of Western Australia (WA). Two of her children and the heirs of her late father’s business partners argued they were entitled to a significant share of royalties and mining rights. On Wednesday, more than 13 years after the legal battle began, a Supreme Court judge ruled that Rinehart must pay past and future royalties to her rival heirs but that the mining rights remain hers. The legal battle centres around Hope Downs, one of Australia’s largest and most lucrative iron ore projects.” (04/15/26)

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq5990nqjg2o

Steve Trinward

Another Trump Flip Flop: From “Kill FISA” to “Clean Renewal”

Source: Libertarian Institute
by Alan Mosley

“Recently, President Donald Trump asked Republicans to unify to extend the [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] with no changes in oversight or accountability. Trump posted on Truth Social, ‘When used properly, FISA is an effective tool to keep Americans safe. For these reasons, I have called for a clean 18-month extension.’ … In May 2020, Trump urged Republicans to vote ‘NO’ on FISA, explicitly tying the law to fears of abuse, including against his own re-election campaign. Four years later, he told lawmakers to ‘KILL FISA,’ claiming it had been ‘illegally used’ against him and that officials had ‘spied on my campaign.'” (04/15/26)

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/another-trump-flip-flop-from-kill-fisa-to-clean-renewal

Thomas L. Knapp

Autocracy = Corruption

Source: Paul Krugman
by Paul Krugman

“There will be many post-mortems on the demise of the Orbán regime. The stunning victory of Hungary’s opposition was delivered by an electoral surge so large that it swamped the anti-democratic breakwaters the regime had erected to maintain its grip on power. A full analysis of why Hungarians repudiated Orbán will surely contain many details unique to Hungary. However, it’s also clear that there were three main factors that led to Orbán’s overthrow. And understanding these factors is important if Americans are to defeat Trump’s MAGA regime.” (04/15/26)

https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/autocracy-corruption

Thomas L. Knapp

Better #MeToo scrutiny on Capitol Hill

Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff

“Bipartisan agreement on Capitol Hill is rare these days. But it has been in evidence in recent weeks among a handful of congresswomen concerned about allegations of sexual misconduct by a few House members. They have called for Congress to expel three representatives and to publicly release records of its recent investigations (a motion voted down in early March). ‘Women deserve to be safe,’ Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina said last month. ‘And the American people deserve to know’ when elected officials are ‘abusing power instead of serving their constituent.’ On Monday, two House members announced they would step down – Democrat Eric Swalwell of California, who denies allegations of sexual assault by a former staff member and three other women, and Republican Tony Gonzales of Texas, who has admitted to an affair with an aide.” (04/14/26)

https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/0414/Better-MeToo-scrutiny-on-Capitol-Hill

Steve Trinward

Prosecutors seek access to Federal Reserve building as Trump threatens to fire Powell

Source: SFGate

“Federal prosecutors made an unannounced visit this week to a construction site at Federal Reserve headquarters that is the focus of an investigation into a $2.5 billion renovation project, according to two people familiar with the visit. Two prosecutors and an investigator from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office were turned away on Tuesday by a building contractor and referred to Fed attorneys, one of the people said. The two people familiar with the visit spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation. The visit indicates that the Trump administration is not backing down in its investigation of the Fed and its chair, Jerome Powell, even though the probe has delayed the confirmation of a new chair nominated by President Donald Trump.” (04/15/26)

https://www.sfgate.com/news/politics/article/trump-threatens-to-fire-powell-if-the-fed-chair-22207703.php

Steve Trinward