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Trump may claim he won the fight with Iran, but there’s a bigger war already underway

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The Iran conflict appears to be winding down. If the fragile ceasefire holds, President Donald Trump may stand before the American people in coming days and declare victory — shipping lanes reopened, deterrence restored, the ayatollahs humbled. On its face, that would be a genuine achievement.

The Iran campaign wasn’t wrong. Confronting a nuclear-threshold regime that funded terrorism across three continents and threatened international shipping lanes was a legitimate strategic necessity. Trump acted where others hesitated.

But every consequential action carries second- and third-order effects — and those now unfolding extend well beyond what any victory headline can contain.

While Washington has been grinding down Iran’s military infrastructure, something far more consequential has been hardening in the background: a China-Russia-Iran strategic alignment accelerating the fracture of the post-Cold War world order — and that fracture now runs directly through the transatlantic alliance itself.

AMB GORDON SONDLAND: NATO BLINKED ON IRAN, AND TRUMP HAS EVERY RIGHT TO BE FURIOUS

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Xi’s signal cannot be dismissed

That is not diplomatic boilerplate. That is a geopolitical declaration.

OPERATION EPIC FURY SHATTERED IRAN’S POWER, BUT EXPOSED RISKS AMERICA CAN’T IGNORE

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov sharpened the message at that same Beijing meeting, declaring that Iran holds an “inalienable” right to enrich uranium — a direct, public rebuke of Trump’s core demand for zero enrichment, and proof that Moscow is not merely watching this conflict but actively shielding Tehran’s nuclear position.

Xi and Putin spent the Iran war watching from the sidelines — but not standing still. According to a Ukrainian intelligence assessment reviewed by Reuters, Russia provided Iran with satellite imagery and cyber support — unconfirmed, but consistent with Moscow’s pattern of proxy warfare.

Russia also publicly called on Washington to abandon “the language of ultimatums” on Tehran, proposed taking custody of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, and reaped a windfall as Brent crude surged toward $120 a barrel — a price surge that directly bankrolled Putin’s war of choice in Ukraine at the precise moment American forces were tied down in the Gulf.

REP RO KHANNA: TRUMP NEEDS TO STOP HURTING AMERICAN WORKERS AND STAND UP TO CHINA

China’s support stopped short of confirmed combat involvement, but its strategic weight was substantial. Beijing purchased over 80% of Iran’s exported oil at discounted prices, keeping Tehran financially viable through the bombardment. Chinese-linked tankers remained active in Iranian oil transit even amid blockade conditions.

Trump acknowledged the concern directly: he exchanged letters with Xi Jinping after hearing reports that Beijing was supplying shoulder-fired and anti-aircraft missiles to Tehran. Xi’s response, in Trump’s own words, said “essentially, he’s not doing that” — and Trump threatened a 50% additional tariff if proven otherwise.

In January 2026, Iran, China, and Russia formalized a comprehensive trilateral strategic pact — not a mutual defense treaty, but a framework for nuclear, economic and military alignment. The Center for Strategic and International Studies has tracked this emerging “CRINK” alignment — China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea — and the data shows it hardening, not softening, under American military pressure.

MORNING GLORY: THE US-IRAN NEGOTIATIONS IN ISLAMABAD BECAME REYKJAVÍK 2.0

This is the strategic trap Washington has walked into. Pressure on Iran did not isolate Tehran — it drove the axis tighter.

NATO is fracturing on Washington’s watch

The Iran war has done more damage to the Western alliance than any Russian influence operation in decades.

NO RETREAT AT HORMUZ — IRAN MUST NOT CONTROL THE WORLD’S ENERGY LIFELINE

Former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg reminded the world from the official NATO lectern that NATO “is a defensive Alliance …  not threatening anyone” — an alliance built in 1949 to defend Western Europe against Soviet aggression, not to launch discretionary wars of choice in the Middle East.

When Trump demanded warships from NATO allies France, Germany, Italy, and Britain — and separately from non-NATO partners Australia and Japan — to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, France, Germany, Italy, Britain, Australia, and Japan all refused.

Trump called their refusal a stain on the alliance that will “never disappear” and announced he is strongly considering withdrawing the United States from NATO — calling it a “paper tiger.” The administration has since discussed pulling American troops from European soil.

STOP CALLING THIS BRINKMANSHIP. TRUMP’S HORMUZ MOVE IS THE REAL PRESSURE

Jim Townsend, former deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Europe and NATO, put it plainly: “We are closer to a break than we have ever been.” Seventy-seven years of collective deterrence — the architecture that kept Soviet tanks out of Western Europe — is teetering, not because Putin outmaneuvered us, but because we fractured it ourselves in the middle of a Middle Eastern war.

Both understand that a United States estranged from its democratic allies is a United States strategically weakened — regardless of how many Iranian bunkers lie in rubble.

The real battlefield is bigger than Iran

TRUMP PUSHED IRAN TO THE BRINK — BUT DID WE WIN ANYTHING THAT LASTS?

Across three books — “Alliance of Evil” (2018), “Preparing for World War III” (2024), and “The New AI Cold War” (2026) — I have tracked the civilizational contest now underway. The Iran war is a chapter in it.

China and Russia have used this conflict as a live training exercise — studying American carrier operations, missile intercept patterns and logistics flows in real time. Every signature revealed in the Gulf feeds directly into Beijing’s Taiwan invasion planning.

Meanwhile, the December 2025 U.S. National Security Strategy still treats China and Russia as separate problems — a strategic blind spot that would have alarmed President Richard Nixon and his Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who spent careers preventing exactly that coalition.

Proverbs 11:14 states it plainly: “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.” A strategy that isolates its allies and misreads its adversaries is not strength. It is the architecture of eventual defeat.

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The real question is not whether Trump can declare victory over Iran. He likely can. The question is what that victory costs: a NATO alliance pushed to its breaking point and a Sino-Russian partnership hardened by American overextension.

Great-power competition is decided in the accumulation of alignments, relationships and credibility built or squandered over years. Winning in Tehran while losing in Brussels and Beijing is not a net victory. It is a strategic setback dressed in tactical success.

President Trump has the instincts of a dealmaker. The moment to make the critical deals — with NATO, against the axis — is right now, before the victory speech becomes the last act rather than the opening of the next strategic chapter.

Because Xi Jinping is not congratulating us. He is calculating.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM ROBERT MAGINNIS

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ALERT: Trump Set To Make ‘Special Announcement’ From Oval Office

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ALERT: Trump Set To Make ‘Special Announcement’ From Oval Office

President Donald Trump is set to make an Oval Office announcement Monday afternoon, but the White House is keeping the subject under wraps.

According to the official daily guidance and press schedule released Sunday night, Trump will make the announcement at 2 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, September 28.

The schedule provides just one tantalizing line: “THE PRESIDENT makes an Announcement.”

The event will take place in the Oval Office and will be open to the White House Press Pool. No additional details about what Trump plans to announce were provided.

Trump has a packed schedule leading up to the event.

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His calendar includes executive time at 8 a.m., followed by policy meetings at 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 1 p.m. The Oval Office announcement follows at 2 p.m., with a print interview scheduled for 3:30 p.m.

Trump spent Sunday at the President’s Cup in Medinah, Illinois, before returning to Washington.

After arriving, the president briefly spoke with reporters on the tarmac and revealed that his day still wasn’t over, noting that he had a 10 p.m. dinner meeting scheduled with Anthropic founder Dario Amodei.

“So that’s a long day, right?! We leave early in the morning, and now I have a dinner with Anthropic,” the president said.

Trump also noted that he had held lengthy discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping and several additional American technology leaders earlier in the week.

For now, exactly what Trump intends to reveal Monday remains unknown.

The White House had not released additional information about the announcement as of this report.

The 2 p.m. Oval Office time slot has previously been used by the administration for policy announcements, including healthcare-related events. In those instances, the White House similarly announced the time and location beforehand while withholding the substance of the announcement until the event.

Monday’s announcement will be available through official White House livestreams and available press pool coverage.

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CEO Charged In Scheme To Infiltrate Secret Service

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CEO Charged In Scheme To Infiltrate Secret Service

A U.S. tech CEO and a Russian national have been arrested in a federal case alleging they concealed Russian ownership and software development while securing U.S. government contracts — including work involving the Secret Service.

Federal prosecutors say Lee Reiber, 55, CEO of Virginia-based Oxygen Forensics Inc., and Oleg Sergeyevich Davydov, 52, of Moscow, hid the company’s Russian ties while selling digital forensics technology to federal agencies.

Reiber was arrested in Idaho on September 20 and later released on bond. Davydov was arrested the same day at London’s Heathrow Airport while preparing to board a flight to Istanbul. U.S. authorities intend to seek his extradition.

“The CEO of a Virginia-based software company and a Russian national have been arrested on a federal criminal complaint charging them with concealing from U.S. government agencies that their company was owned and controlled by Russian nationals and that its software was developed in Russia,” prosecutors said.

Authorities allege Reiber made representations to the federal government that directly contradicted the company’s actual ownership and development structure.

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They further stated that “Reiber allegedly represented to the government that the company had no foreign ownership or control and that its software was developed in the United States, when in fact five Russian nationals, including Davydov, owned and controlled the company and its software was developed in Russia.”

Importantly, the criminal complaint does not allege that Oxygen Forensics’ software contained malicious code or that it was used to obtain unauthorized access to customers’ systems or data.

But the alleged concealment becomes particularly significant because of who was buying the company’s technology.

According to an affidavit supporting the complaint, beginning in March 2022, Reiber, Davydov and others allegedly conspired to obtain federal contracts through Oxygen Forensics.

The company’s software is designed to recover, preserve and analyze information extracted from digital devices.

Federal agencies identified in the affidavit include the Department of War as well as Department of Homeland Security components, including the Secret Service and its National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI), Homeland Security Investigations and the DHS Office of Inspector General.

Prosecutors allege the company presented a dramatically different picture of itself to the U.S. government than what existed behind the scenes.

“According to the affidavit, Oxygen Forensics held itself out to the U.S. government as being an independent, U.S.-based company. In fact, Davydov and four other Russian nationals owned and controlled the company through a holding company based in Cyprus,” prosecutors said.

The Russian connections allegedly extended well beyond ownership.

According to the affidavit, the same five individuals owned a Russian company formerly known as Oxygen Software LLC and later renamed MKO Systems LLC. Davydov co-founded that company in 2000, and developers worked in Russia.

MKO reportedly sold similar software inside Russia to customers that included the FSB, the Russian Investigative Committee and the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Davydov served as the Russian company’s chief technology officer and helped establish the Virginia-based firm in 2013.

Then came Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and expanded U.S. sanctions.

According to federal investigators, that is when efforts to conceal the company’s Russian ownership and development structure intensified.

The affidavit alleges that the parties agreed to hide both Russian ownership and the role Russian developers played in producing the software.

Reiber was installed as Oxygen Forensics’ CEO, president and board chairman in March 2022.

Russian owners were removed from public corporate filings, according to the affidavit, but prosecutors allege their actual power over the company remained.

The Russian owners allegedly continued making significant corporate decisions, setting Reiber’s compensation, overruling him on payments and retaining signing authority over company bank accounts.

Federal investigators also pointed to certifications submitted directly to the government.

In December 2022 and again in October 2023, Reiber allegedly certified that Oxygen Forensics had no immediate or highest-level owner.

Then, in November 2023, a reporter began asking questions about the company’s ownership.

According to the affidavit, Reiber subsequently wrote to Davydov and two other owners that the resulting public reporting “could destroy this entire opportunity,” referring to a pending NCFI contract.

He also warned that the “current existence of this company hangs in the balance.”

The government’s allegations did not stop there.

In July 2024, prosecutors say that, at Reiber’s direction, the company certified to the Department of War that no foreign person controlled the appointment of directors or company decisions.

Then, in March 2026, Reiber allegedly told DHS personnel that no Russian was involved in software development and that nobody in Russia had access to the company’s build environment.

Federal investigators allege the reality was very different.

According to the affidavit, the software was written and managed by a Russian development team operating under Davydov in a cloud environment administered by one of the Russian owners.

The allegations now place the company’s federal contracting history — and its representations about who actually owned, controlled and developed its technology — at the center of a major federal criminal case.

Reiber and Davydov have been charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The allegations contained in the complaint remain accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

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Trump Torches Supreme Court Over Controversial New Ruling

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Trump Torches Supreme Court Over Controversial New Ruling

President Donald Trump unloaded on the U.S. Supreme Court on Sunday after the justices blocked Missouri from using its controversial 2025 congressional map in the upcoming midterm elections — a decision with potentially significant consequences for control of the U.S. House.

The map, which Missouri used during this year’s primary elections, was designed in a way that could have given Republicans an opportunity to pick up another congressional seat. But after months of legal battles and conflicting court rulings, the Supreme Court put an end to its use in the November 3 general election.

Trump wasted little time responding.

“The Supreme Court of the United States will just not let Missouri have an Election Victory. They continuously, three times now, overrule Judges who came to the correct decisions,” Trump wrote in a social media post.

The president then praised Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe and those who fought to keep the new congressional districts in place.

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“Thank you to the Governor, and all of the Great People of Missouri, who are fighting so hard for Fairness and Election Security. Such tremendous Spirit and Love of our Country. I won Missouri BIG, all three times, and I couldn’t be more proud of doing so. A great place — I love you all,” the president continued.

The Supreme Court’s Friday order brought another dramatic turn in a redistricting fight that has bounced between state and federal courts.

The order, issued without noted dissents, halted a federal appeals court directive that would have required Missouri to use the 2025 congressional map.

Timing proved critical.

According to the Supreme Court, ballots based on Missouri’s 2022 congressional districts had already been printed and mailed, while absentee, military and overseas voting was already underway.

Changing maps at that point, the justices wrote, “would usher in electoral chaos.”

The court consequently directed lower courts not to prohibit Missouri from using the 2022 map or require the state to implement the 2025 map for the 2026 congressional election.

The dispute traces back to Missouri Republicans’ decision to enact a new congressional map, known as House Bill 1, during a special legislative session.

Governor Mike Kehoe signed the measure on September 28, 2025.

The map significantly reconfigured congressional districts, including the Kansas City-based 5th Congressional District represented by Democrat Emanuel Cleaver. The redraw was intended to create another Republican-leaning congressional district in a state where Republicans currently control six of eight U.S. House seats.

But opponents quickly launched an effort to stop it.

People Not Politicians gathered signatures seeking a statewide referendum on the new map, relying on a provision of the Missouri Constitution that allows voters to review certain acts passed by the legislature.

Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins declined to certify the petition, and the state’s August 4 primary elections proceeded using the 2025 congressional boundaries.

Then came another major reversal.

On September 3, the Missouri Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the referendum petition was legal, sufficient and timely.

That decision meant House Bill 1 had never taken effect and would remain suspended unless Missouri voters ultimately approved it.

What followed was an extraordinary series of conflicting court decisions.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh initially denied an emergency request seeking to block the Missouri Supreme Court ruling.

Minutes later, however, a federal district judge issued an order requiring Missouri to use the 2025 congressional map.

The U.S. Supreme Court subsequently stayed that order.

A federal appeals court then entered the fight, concluding that conducting the primary and general elections under different congressional maps would violate the Constitution. The appeals court directed Missouri to return to the 2025 map.

Once again, the Supreme Court intervened and blocked the ruling.

The result is now clear for November.

Missouri will conduct its November 3 general election using the state’s 2022 congressional districts, despite having conducted its August primary under the newer boundaries.

At the same time, Missouri voters will decide the referendum determining whether the 2025 congressional map should be approved for future use.

Governor Kehoe has said Missouri will comply with the Supreme Court’s order, bringing the immediate legal fight over which map will govern the upcoming general election to a close.

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