Metro Detroit’s Arab and Muslim leaders condemn U.S.–Israeli unjustifiable attack on Iran, warn of wider regional war
March 6th, 20260 The U.S.–Israeli military assault on Iran and its dangerous repercussions across the Middle East sparked a wave of condemnation among Arab and Muslim Americans across the Detroit area. Local leaders called for an immediate halt to the wide-scale military operations to prevent the region from sliding into a broader war that could...
Who decides what is legitimate? Power, democracy and the war on Iran
March 6th, 20260 Democracy is invoked as moral legitimacy in war, while Iran’s authority rests on layered political, religious and historical foundations. Democracy, however, is not the enemy. Its manipulation is. For decades, Western political discourse has equated legitimacy with elections — numbers counted on a single day, certified by...
Polls show growing Democratic shift away from unconditional support for Israel
March 6th, 20260 A mini-brouhaha has erupted over whether or not the Democratic National Committee has buried an “autopsy” report on its party loss in the 2024 presidential election. Some fear that the report isn’t being released because it suggests the defeat was the Harris campaign’s failure to break with the Biden administration’s...
House rejects bid to halt Trump’s war on Iran as Congress confronts growing conflict
March 6th, 20260 WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly rejected a resolution Thursday that would have forced President Trump to halt military operations against Iran without congressional authorization, highlighting deep divisions in Washington as the conflict threatens to expand across the Middle East. The measure failed...
“Is the president working for you?” Spanberger asks in State of the Union response
February 27th, 20260 “Tonight, as we watched our nations lawmakers gather for a join session of Congress, we did not hear the truth from our president,” said Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, who gave a 13-minute Democratic response to the State of the Union from Colonial Williamsburg. “So, let’s speak plainly and honestly. And let me ask you, the...
Trump’s record-length combative State of the Union highlights economy, Iran, immigration enforcement and polarizing attacks on Democratic lawmakers
February 27th, 20260 President Trump said in his State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress that his administration inherited a “very bad” economic and security situation from the previous administration, asserting that in just one year it had achieved what he described as an “unprecedented transformation.” Trump said in his...
The other “lizard people”: Why the Epstein files are shattering global theory
February 27th, 20260 When British author David Icke wrote his seminal work, The Biggest Secret: The Book That Will Change the World, published in 1999, he was not speaking metaphorically. When he detailed the “reptilian genetic streams” of “elite” families — human-reptile hybrids allegedly engineering global events — he meant it literally. To...
“State of the Swamp” will provide live rebuttal to the State of the Union
February 24th, 20260 On February 24, while President Trump delivers his State of the Union address, DEFIANCE.org, the Portland Frog Brigade and COURIER will host State of the Swamp: The Rebuttal to the State of the Union from 7 –11 p.m. EST at the National Press Club. The event will bring together elected officials, cultural figures, journalists,...
ICE expands footprint in Metro Detroit with Romulus detention facility purchase and Southfield office lease
February 20th, 20260 ROMULUS / SOUTHFIELD — Federal preparations in the Detroit area signal a major expansion of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Southeast Michigan, including the purchase of a large detention facility near Detroit Metropolitan Airport and the leasing of administrative office space in Southfield. The...
Detroit Yemenis face deportation as Syrian TPS fight continues in federal court
February 20th, 20260 DETROIT — Thousands of Yemeni and Syrian nationals who have built their lives in the United States under Temporary Protected Status (TPS) now face legal uncertainty after the Trump administration moved to terminate their protections, citing improved conditions in their home countries. For Yemeni TPS holders, the deadline is fast...
“Regime cleavage”: How the “language of humiliation” is engineering a second American civil war
February 20th, 20260 A January 2026 Gallup poll showed that 89 percent of all Americans expect high levels of political conflict this year, as the country heads toward one of its most decisive midterm elections ever. Gallup, however, was stating the obvious. It is a surprise that not all Americans feel this way, judging by the coarse, often outright racist...
Rev. Jesse Jackson, civil rights icon and two-time presidential contender, dies at 84
February 17th, 20260 CHICAGO — The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr., the fiery preacher-turned-power broker who carried the civil rights movement into the post–Martin Luther King Jr. era and reshaped modern Democratic politics with two groundbreaking presidential campaigns, died Tuesday, February 17, at 84, according to multiple news reports citing family and...
Republican Rep. Randy Fine faces resignation calls after post suggesting he’d choose dogs over Muslims
February 17th, 20260 Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) prompted calls for his resignation from Democrats and a major Islamic civil rights group after suggesting in a social media post that he'd choose dogs over Muslims. "If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one," Fine posted to the social media platform X on...
Trump plans to announce Gaza funding plan, troops at first Board of Peace meeting, U.S. officials say
February 13th, 20260 WASHINGTON — President Trump will announce a multi-billion dollar reconstruction plan for Gaza and detail plans for a U.N.-authorized stabilization force for the Palestinian enclave at the first formal meeting of his Board of Peace next week, two senior U.S. officials said on Thursday. Delegations from at least 20 countries,...
Netanyahu says Trump may be creating conditions for Iran deal
February 13th, 20260 on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he hoped that President Trump was creating the conditions to reach a deal with Iran that would avoid military action. Netanyahu, who met Trump for talks in Washington on Wednesday, said he had expressed "general skepticism" and said that if an agreement was reached, "it must......
Understanding Donald Trump
February 13th, 20260 To understand how President Donald Trump promotes his presidency and policies, especially when challenged, one must understand the impact of Roy Cohn, the late New York attorney, on his approach to politics and power. Cohn was a behind-the-scenes player, a ruthless practitioner of “dirty tricks” and power politics who attached...
“Paying more, getting less” — America’s flailing health system
February 6th, 20260 By Sunita Sohrabji Millions of Americans are facing soaring health insurance premiums and rising out-of-pocket costs. Advocates warn large numbers of people will be priced out of coverage as a result, straining the broader health care system. More than 20 million people enrolled in Affordable Care Act marketplace plans are seeing......
Former U.S. Rep. Lee H. Hamilton, a respected foreign policy maker, dies at 94
February 4th, 20260 Former U.S. Representative Lee H. Hamilton, a former Democratic member of Congress from Indiana and a widely respected authority on U.S. foreign policy whose column appeared regularly in The Arab American News for more than a decade, passed away peacefully late Tuesday night at his home in Bloomington, Indiana. He was 94. Over a 34-year...
Trump’s “Board of Peace” and the reinvention of American power in Gaza and beyond
January 30th, 20260 The history of American power is, in many ways, the history of reinventing rules, or designing new ones, to fit U.S. strategic interests. This may sound harsh, but it is a necessary realization, particularly in light of President Trump’s latest political invention: the so-called Board of Peace. Some have hastily concluded that...
Trump’s Board of Peace is dividing countries in Europe and the Middle East
January 23rd, 20260 Divisions emerged Wednesday over U.S. President Trump’s Board of Peace as its ambitions have grown beyond Gaza, with some Western European countries declining to join, others remaining noncommittal and a group of Muslim countries agreeing to sign on. The developments underscored European concerns over the expanded and divisive scope...
Trump’s authoritarian dream is crumbling and America is paying the price
January 23rd, 20260 By Mohamad Ozeir This week marked the first anniversary of President Trump’s return to the White House for a second term, after a forced four-year interruption. That comeback was loaded — during those loud and turbulent years — with authoritarian promises, racist delusions, totalitarian programs, distorted ideas and hotheaded......
Trump’s military assault on Venezuela may not end well
January 23rd, 20260 President Trump might be popping corks, toasting “one of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history.” Celebrations, however, are premature. In reality, the assault on Venezuela and kidnapping and transfer of President Maduro to stand trial in U.S. court are by no...
Five takeaways from the Reuters interview with President Trump
January 16th, 20260 In a Reuters Oval Office interview, President Trump dismissed concerns about Greenland, the economy and a probe into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, offered limited clarity on Iran, acknowledged obstacles in the Gaza and Ukraine peace efforts, defended ICE operations and warned Republicans could lose seats in the midterms. Here are some......
Let’s resolve to strengthen Congress
January 16th, 20261 The start of a new year is traditionally a time to reflect on past failures and make resolutions for doing better. Here’s a suggestion for members of Congress: They should resolve to start asserting their rightful role as a separate and coequal branch of government. Such a resolution will need to extend well past 2026. Congress has...
U.S. tells U.N. Security Council all options on table, Iran warns it will respond to any aggression
January 16th, 20260 The United States stands by the “brave people of Iran” and President Trump "has made it clear all options are on the table to stop the slaughter," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday. Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene in support of protesters in Iran, where......
