THE HILL - Evening Report - Tuesday, May 13, 2025 by Jonathan Easley - Trump reshapes US policy in Middle East

 

View Online Evening Report Tuesday, May 13 | By Jonathan Easley ©  AP Photo/Alex Brandon Trump reshapes US policy in Middle East  PRESIDENT TRUMP on Tuesday pushed for a realignment between the U.S. and strategic partners in the Middle East on the first major foreign trip of his second term, underscored by the opulent, lavender carpet rollout he received from Saudi Arabia.   The welcome party from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) got underway before Trump even touched down in Riyadh, with a half-dozen Saudi F-15 fighter jets escorting Air Force One for the final leg of the journey.   “I really believe we like each other a lot,” Trump said of MBS.   “Today we take the next steps to make our relationship closer, stronger and more powerful than ever before,” he added.   Trump announced a $600 billion commitment from Saudi Arabia to invest in the United States, with a focus on energy security, defense, technology and access to global infrastructure and critical minerals. Several Saudi companies committed to building new plants in the U.S.   In addition, the deal includes a multibillion-dollar defense partnership in which the Saudis will purchase state-of-the-art military equipment from the U.S.   Trump’s trip to the Middle East, which will take him to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the following days, is ostensibly about his hunt for new investment partnerships with the U.S.   But Trump also made headlines for his political moves.   Speaking in the cavernous King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in front of Saudi royalty and prominent U.S. businessmen, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Trump gave a blistering speech about how Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries had prospered despite past American interference.   "The gleaming marvels of Riyadh and Abu Dhabi were not created by the so-called 'nation builders,' neocons, or liberal non-profits like those who spent trillions and trillions of dollars failing to develop Baghdad and so many other cities," Trump said.   "Instead, the birth of a modern Middle East has been brought by the people of the region themselves, the people that are right here, the people that have lived here all their lives, developing your own sovereign countries, pursuing your own unique visions and charting your own destinies in your own way,” he added.   Later, nodding directly to MBS, Trump announced he would roll back U.S. sanctions on Syria in an effort to boost the new government there. The sanctions had been in place against the former regime led by Bashar al-Assad, who had been carrying out a brutal civil war. Experts believe lifting the sanctions will help the new government in Damascus to get on its feet.   Trump also extended an “olive branch” to Iran amid stalled negotiations over their nuclear program, although it came with a warning that if his outreach is rejected “we will have no choice but to inflict massive, maximum pressure.”   And the U.S. announced the sale of more than $1.4 billion in helicopters and F-16 fighter jet parts to the UAE ahead of Trump’s visit this week. QATAR NEXT AMID AF1 CONTROVERSY Trump will visit Qatar on Wednesday amid controversy over his acceptance of a luxury jet that he says will serve as the new Air Force One for the remainder of his second term.   The president says he’d be a “fool” to turn down a $400 million gift, as Boeing struggles through a yearslong delay in replacing the current presidential aircraft, which is 40 years old.   But Republicans have begun speaking out about their national security concerns and ethical problems with the U.S. government accepting a pricey foreign gift.   Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said the Qatari-provided jet “poses significant espionage” concerns.   Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) worried the gift could cloud the administration's ability “to judge [Qatar’s] human rights record.”   Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley posted on X:   “Accepting gifts from foreign nations is never a good practice. It threatens intelligence and national security. Especially when that nation supports a terrorist organization and allows those terrorist regimes to live on its soil. Regardless of how beautiful the plane may be, it opens a door and implies the President and US can be bought. If this were Biden, we would be furious.”   Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is placing a hold on all political nominees for the Justice Department as Democrats seek an investigation. FOCUS ON TRADE JP Morgan dropped its call of a U.S. recession Tuesday following the 90-day tariffs truce between the U.S. and China.   Inflation rose in April at its slowest pace since February 2021, and the S&P 500 has wiped out all of its losses since Trump first implemented his “Liberation Day” tariffs.   Still, hurdles remain.   China’s President Xi Jinping warned Trump’s trade policy would backfire.   “There are no winners in tariff wars or trade wars,” he said in a Tuesday speech. “Bullying or hegemonism only leads to self-isolation.”   And Trump’s tariffs faced new legal scrutiny, as a group of small businesses argued before a three-judge panel that Trump had exceeded his authority. The latest NFIB survey found fewer small business owners are planning to increase investments amid the tariffs uncertainty. Perspectives: • The Hill: Trump tries transparency defense for selling access. • MSNBC: The hidden cost of Qatar’s $400 million gift. • American Thinker: The move to consolidate conservative media. • New York: White House has become a playground for MAGA influencers. • Washington Examiner: Resistance media can’t handle the truth. Read more:  • Senate GOP weighs safety, legal concerns over Trump Qatar jet gift. • Trump surprised and sidelined Israel ahead of Middle East trip. • Trump makes pivot on tariffs, seeking firmer political ground. • Trump’s Middle East trip: 5 things to watch. CATCH UP QUICK The Trump administration is cutting another $450 million in grants for Harvard University, alleging the school has failed to combat “pervasive race discrimination and anti-Semitic harassment” on campus.   Conservatives and traditionalist Catholics are cautiously optimistic over the election of Pope Leo XIV, even as progressives believe he’ll continue Francis’ reform agenda.

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NEWS THIS AFTERNOON ©  Stephanie Scarbrough, Associated Press Biden revelations ignite new Democratic divisions A new book detailing President Biden’s decline and the efforts by his top advisers to keep a lid on his struggles has provoked another round of outbursts and divisions among Democrats, who are coming to terms with their sweeping election losses in 2024.   Details from the forthcoming book by journalists Alex Thompson and Jake Tapper, titled “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,” have begun to drip.   New revelations published by Thompson in Axios reveal that Biden’s aides considered the possibility of putting him in a wheelchair for his second term because his “physical deterioration” had become “severe.”   Biden’s physician Kevin O’Connor had publicly stated that Biden was “fit for duty and fully executes all of his responsibilities without any exemptions or accommodations.”   But privately, O’Connor pushed for more downtime to address Biden's “significant spinal arthritis,” which affected the way he walked.   The Axios report also says that Biden’s family and closest aides witnessed his mental decline.   Tapper was asked on CNN why the media didn’t report these developments in real time.   “The White House was lying, not only to the press, not only to the public, but they were lying to members of their own Cabinet,” Tapper said. “They were lying to White House staffers, they were lying to Democratic member in Congress, to donors, about how bad things had gotten.”   Tapper and Thompson have a new piece in The New Yorker, which includes an anecdote about how Biden didn’t recognize George Clooney, the famous movie star and a longtime friend, at a fundraiser Clooney hosted.   Biden has been making the media rounds refuting reports about his decline and insisting he only dropped out of the 2024 presidential race “because I didn’t want to have a divided Democratic Party.”   But those divisions remain, with former Vice President Harris’s top campaign adviser David Plouffe blaming Biden for dropping out too late and giving his successor a short runway against President Trump.   “He totally f‑‑‑ed us,” Plouffe is quoted as saying in the book, according to The Guardian.   Harris took over with just over 100 days to go. She was greeted with a record fundraising haul and enormous enthusiasm by the Democratic base, but that failed to translate into broader general election appeal and she went on to lose every battleground state to Trump. MEANWHILE... The 2028 shadow primary is underway, with the biggest and fastest rising stars in the Democratic Party make their first forays into the swing states.   The Hill’s Julia Manchester has the rundown on who is going where. Perspectives: • The Liberal Patriot: Democrats can’t rely on Trump’s struggles. • Sasha Stone: The Democrats can’t outrun the woke. • The Hill: How will Democrats go on without Trump? • The New Republic: The Democrats have an age-old problem. • The Nation: Is it time for unions to rethink everything? Read more:  • Small nodule discovered in Biden's prostate. • DNC moves toward nullifying election of David Hogg, Malcolm Kenyatta as vice chairs. IN OTHER NEWS ©  J. Scott Applewhite, Associated Press Key House panels begin work on Trump agenda bill Three House panels have begun their work of finalizing the bill containing President Trump’s legislative agenda, even as stark divisions on Medicaid cuts and taxes threaten to derail the process.   Capitol Police arrested more than two dozen activists protesting cuts to Medicaid as the House Energy and Commerce Committee began its mark-up. Here’s everything you need to know about how the GOP is approaching Medicaid cuts in the bill.   The state and local tax (SALT) tax deduction proposal in front of the Ways and Means Committee remains a deal-breaker for Republicans in high-tax states.   “Still a hell no,” Rep. Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) posted on X.   The bill being marked up in the House would also