đ¨ Breaking: Israel reportedly intercepted nearly a dozen boats part of the latest Gaza aid flotilla and abducted participants in international waters off the coast of Crete â more than 600 miles from Gaza. According to the Global Sumud Flotilla tracker, at least 22 of the more than 50 boats in the flotilla had been intercepted by early Thursday. Francesca Albanese called Israelâs illegal actions âapartheid without borders.â
Good morning, all; itâs Swin and Prem again. This week, President Donald Trump, an elderly wannabe king who serves as the head of state of a shockingly nativist Western government, and whose administration has been rocked by the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, met at the White House with King Charles III, an elderly king who serves as the head of state of a shockingly nativist Western government, and whose family has been rocked by the Epstein scandal.
The two were chummy, smirking, and poking fun. But gurgling just beneath the surface of his attempts to charm the monarch of a close ally, Trump was hiding one of the worst-kept secrets in all geopolitics: That he thinks a lot of these transatlantic alliances are a whole bunch of feckless bullshit and he wants US intelligence to spy on allies like theyâre China or North Korea.
More on that in a moment⌠But hereâs some good news! Todayâs edition of âFirst Draftâ has NO paywall, thanks to our sponsor, Ground News. đď¸ đ đ
Now letâs get to itâŚ
With Friends Like These
In late January, the so-called âDepartment of Warâ publicly released its new National Defense Strategy (NDS), the Pentagonâs companion document to Donald Trumpâs latest National Security Strategy, which outlines a breathlessly far-right vision for the world and Americaâs place in it.
There is, however, a classified version of the Trump-Vance administrationâs NDS, one that was not released online. Two sources familiar with the matter tell us the classified NDS includes a section left out of the public document â paragraphs that call for an aggressive reprioritization of US âintelligence assets,â in the context of international burden-sharing, and having our allies do what the Americans tell them to do.
In recent months, including during the drafting process for the NDS, some US officials were alarmed by some of the more hyper-pugnacious lines in this section, interpreting them as Team Trumpâs call for the US to ramp up spying operations on longtime allies.
You mightâve been able to argue that these internal fears were overblown, if they were happening in a vacuum. But they arenât.
For weeks, weâve been following up on leads on this very topic, and hereâs one thing we found: Since last year, according to two US officials and another source close to the White House, President Trump has repeatedly told multiple senior administration officials that the American intelligence community should spy more on our allies, including on governments that are part of NATO and Western Europe.
The US has, of course, spied and gathered top-secret intel on allies in the past, in one form or another. But Trump, the sources add, has privately insisted that supposed guardrails the American government does have â that limit the extent of our spying on allied nations â are, in the presidentâs succinct phrasing, âstupid.â
Over the past year-plus, Trump has blurted out that those restrictions and norms make no sense when it comes to how US intelligence operations abroad should work, particularly towards allies and international partners that Trump often feels act too much like âenemiesâ instead of pliant friends. As is the case with his approach to virtually all domestic and foreign affairs, he wants any semblance of guardrails obliterated.
It is unclear how much of Trumpâs rantings on this matter have been put into actual, covert practice by the US intelligence community. However, as Trumpâs war on Iran threatens to tear down his administration and the GOP with it, he has routinely insulted or tried to bully or punish allies he deems insufficiently enthused about his disastrous and illegal bloodbath in the Middle East. Over the years, heâs again and again accused US allies of being âworseâ than foreign adversaries. And last year, according to the Wall Street Journal, senior officials working for Trumpâs director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, ordered American intel agencies to escalate their spying on Greenland, as Trump (in full-on Mad King mode) sought to annex the semiautonomous territory of Denmark, a fellow NATO country. (He hasnât given up on this dream project, by the way.)
Reached for comment on this story, the press shop for the Pete Hegseth-era Pentagon told Prem: âWe have nothing to offer on this,â adding that they were saying this, âVery Respectfully.â Hours later, Trump White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told us: âThis is totally false â but that is typical for Zeteo, whose nutjob founder is such a terrible âjournalistâ that he was fired by MSNBC.â
That is a less respectful but honestly much, much more entertaining statement than what the âWar Departmentâ was willing to cough up. Team Trump can respond however they wish. We stand by our reporting. Cheers.
We used Ground News to analyze the big story this week on Trumpâs fresh calls for ABC to fire Jimmy Kimmel.
Ground News is a news app and website that scans 50,000+ articles while offering built-in bias comparisons, fact checks, and funding transparency for every source.
For this story, we see that there is a split in the coverage with 27% left, 22% right, and 51% center. The headlines are the same, but the coverage couldnât be more different. Ground News makes it easy to see the difference in how both sides are covering the same story.
The built-in factuality and ownership features also highlight the hidden angles behind every article. With Ground Newsâ Vantage Plan, information becomes your superpower. Learn more at ground.news/zeteox and get 40% off the unlimited Vantage Plan.
(This portion of the post was sponsored content)
đŽđˇ Iran War Updates
Death tolls:
Iran: Iranian state media on Sunday reported, citing officials, that US-Israeli attacks have killed 3,468 people.
Lebanon: Israel has killed more than 2,576 people, including at least 177 children, in Lebanon, according to the countryâs Health Ministry.
US troops: At least 13 US troops have died in incidents related to the war.
Israel: At least 35 people, including 12 Israeli soldiers, have been killed, according to officials.
And in more war newsâŚ
Iranâs vow: Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said in a statement carried by state media today that Tehran will protect its ânuclear and missile capabilitiesâ as a ânational asset.â
Strait talk: At the White House, Donald Trump talked to US oil companies about how to mitigate the effects of a lengthy blockade of Iranian shipping.
Price jump: Climate Power said US oil companies were raking in $30 million an hour while ordinary Americans pay over $4 a gallon at the pump. Oil prices spiked to wartime highs, as investors worried about the absence of meaningful talks.
Actual diplomacy: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, the Associated Press said, conducted âcalls with the foreign ministers of India, Kenya and Poland⌠the president of the International Committee of the Red Crossâ and the Lebanese speaker.
Panel beating: In nearly five hours of questioning by the House Armed Services Committee, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth clashed angrily with Democrats, criticized some Republicans, and revealed the war has cost $25 billion.
Hunger crisis: An analysis by a global poverty monitor estimates that around 1.2 million people in Lebanon will soon face food insecurity arising from Israeli strikes.
Much Ado About Tweeting
According to CNN, Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Mallory McMorrow deleted thousands of old tweets, including claims she still voted in California while living in Michigan, disparaging remarks about Michigan, and messages comparing Donald Trump and his supporters to Nazis.
McMorrow also tweeted about a dream of the US âamicablyâ breaking up, Middle America going one way and the coasts, Canada, Mexico, and parts of Michigan and Texas another, the latter entity nominating Barack Obama âas Prime Ministerâ while âeveryone was given $1,000 and six months to pick a side.â After initially refusing to say if McMorrow had been expressing âa literal dream or a hypothetical situation she hoped for,â CNN said, her campaign said it was literally a dream.
McMorrowâs communications director said the deleted tweets were ânormal tweets by a normal person.â But lest McMorrowâs rivals in the tight Democratic Senate primary take too much pleasure in her embarrassment, CNN pointed out that last year one of them, progressive Abdul El-Sayed, also scrubbed lots of potentially damaging tweets.
đď¸ What You Need to Know
Court blow: In a 6-3 decision, Supreme Court conservatives gutted the Voting Rights Act provision guarding against racial discrimination. Dissenting, the liberal justices warned of âfar-reaching and graveâ consequences for US democracy.
Florida follows: In Tallahassee, the Republican-controlled legislature passed a new map that could net four more US House seats for the GOP.
Tin ear: In the Oval Office, Donald Trump âhumorouslyâ told NASA administrator Jared Isaacman: âYou heard that question with those beautiful ears of yours ... Heâs got super hearing.â Isaacman managed to laugh it off.
Dystopia watch: Amazon is reportedly considering bringing back âThe Apprentice,â the 2000s reality show that rescued Donald Trump from business oblivion before his move into politics⌠but with Donald Trump Jr. now as the host. Amazon previously spent $75 million on Melania Trumpâs propaganda film.
Epstein time: Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will give an interview to the House Oversight Committee about the Jeffrey Epstein affair on May 29. Democrats said their threat to hold Bondi in contempt prompted the GOP move.
Centrist fads: Democrat Josh Gottheimer and Republican Mike Lawler introduced a resolution condemning âantisemitic, hate-filled rhetoric,â naming progressive streamer Hasan Piker and far-right conspiracist Candace Owens and suggesting they are somehow comparable.
Pure cruelty: A Colombian woman who fled torture was deported by the Trump administration to the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Bulwark reported. Adriana Quiroz Zapataâs lawyer lamented a âcomplete lack of due process of law.â
đ§ Pop Quiz!
As evidenced by Trumpâs Oval Office encounter with Jared Isaacman of NASA, the president seems to have a thing about big ears. In 2016, a rival now turned close aide was on the receiving end of such mockery. Who?
Keep your eyes out for the answer below!
đ Anywhere But America
đľđ¸ Donât forget Gaza: Major media companies from around the world are demanding Israel allow foreign journalists to enter Gaza. âBeing on the ground is essential. It allows journalists to question official accounts on all sides, to speak directly with civilians and report back what they witness firsthand,â the executives of several news orgs, including AP, Reuters, and CNN, said in a statement.
đ Press freedom plummets: The freedom of the press is at a 25-year low, Reporters Without Borders said in its annual press freedom index. The US, considered âproblematic,â is now ranked 64th, falling seven places since Trump retook the White House. Over half of the worldâs countries fall into the âdifficultâ or âvery seriousâ categories.
đ˛đŹ Destabilization investigation: Madagascar Deputy Prosecutor Nomenarinera Mihamintsoa Ramanantsoa announced the detention of former French serviceman Guy Baretl, on charges alluding to a plot to destabilize the country.
đŽđŠ Acid charges: Four Indonesian soldiers went to trial for allegedly carrying out an acid attack on a protester opposing the militarization of the government.
đ˛đ˝ Drug charges: Several Mexican officials were charged with drug trafficking and weapons offenses by US officials. Mexico did not immediately respond.
WTF?!
At his congressional hearing, Pete Hegseth basically admitted that Trumpâs illegal war on Iran has achieved nothing. Time and time again, this administration reveals it has no clue what itâs doing in Iran, as they burn through billions of taxpayer dollars.
đ§ Trivia answer: Marco Rubio.
ICYMI From Zeteo
Zeteoâs Martin Pengelly and Akshay Gokul contributed to this newsletter.
Still want to get Zeteo content, but not this newsletter? You can unsubscribe directly from âFirst Draftâ by going to âmanage subscriptionâ in Substack, scrolling down, and toggling the button for âFirst Draftâ off.
Thanks Swin and Prem and the Zeteo team⌠the news this week is already exhausting.
I wonder if it's more accurate to say NATO countries are allies of the US people but enemies of the Trump regime. It's sad to see the intelligence community betraying their oaths.