Connor Freeman | The Libertarian Institute

NATO To Take ‘Quantum Leap’ in Military Spending, Pledging 5% of GDP Baseline

by Connor Freeman | Jun 24, 2025 | News

Each member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is expected to ink a pledge to raise military spending to 5% of GDP over the next ten years. This is more than double the current 2% goal. Responding to President Donald Trump’s demands for greater spending, member states will agree to the new baseline in the Netherlands during an alliance summit this week. On Monday, the eve before the summit, this proposal was referred to as a “quantum leap” by Secretary General Mark Rutte. Under the compromise deal, by 2035, each member state will commit a minimum of 3.5% of their GDP to “core...

GOP Rep Introduces Resolution Labeling ‘Free Palestine’ Slogan as ‘Anti-Semitism’

by Connor Freeman | Jun 8, 2025 | News

Colorado GOP Congressman Gabe Evans introduced a non-binding resolution on Friday that labels ‘Free Palestine’ as “an antisemitic slogan.” The bill seeks to limit immigration of people who oppose Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine and Tel Aviv’s genocidal onslaught in the besieged Gaza Strip. The bill is expected to be voted on some time next week. The bill reads, “Whereas, while shouting ‘Free Palestine,’ an antisemitic slogan that calls for the destruction of the state of Israel and Jewish people, Mohammed Sabry Soliman attacked the peaceful demonstrators with homemade Molotov...

Israel Threatens Aid Flotilla Will Not Be Allowed to Dock in Gaza

by Connor Freeman | Jun 5, 2025 | Foreign Policy, News

Tel Aviv has threatened that the Gaza Freedom Flotilla will not be allowed to approach the besieged coastal enclave, according to The Jerusalem Post. A civilian activist group is sailing a ship to Gaza as Israel continues its genocidal starvation campaign against the Palestinians there. For 80 days, Israel has imposed a mostly total blockade, only allowing a small trickle of humanitarian aid into the Strip last month. Since March, international aid organizations have been almost entirely prevented from providing desperately needed food, water, fuel, and medicine as Gaza's remaining...

Former Israeli PM Says Tel Aviv Is Committing War Crimes in Gaza

by Connor Freeman | May 27, 2025 | News

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert penned an op-ed in Haaretz on Tuesday that, among other things, accused Tel Aviv of systematically carrying out war crimes in the Gaza Strip. He called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “crime boss” fighting a “private political war.” He also warned of the risks of escalation in the occupied West Bank where some illegal settlers are calling for “genocide.” Olmert was the prime minister of Israel between 2006-2009. At the end of his term, he launched a brutal war on Gaza dubbed Operation Cast Lead. Olmert opens by declaring “The government of Israel...

Israel’s Top Diplomat Threatens to Illegally Annex Large Swathes of the West Bank

by Connor Freeman | May 26, 2025 | News

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer have threatened to annex illegal Jewish-only settlements in the occupied West Bank along with the Jordan Valley. These statements come amid growing international support for recognizing a Palestinian state. According to Haaretz, “Dermer, who was also appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu in February to head the Gaza cease-fire negotiation team, spoke with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot and warned that Israel might take unilateral steps in response to a potential international recognition of a...

DHS Revokes Visas of Over 1,500 Students, None Charged With Any Crimes

by Connor Freeman | Apr 21, 2025 | Foreign Policy, News

In recent weeks, more than 1,500 international undergraduate and graduate students from over 240 colleges have had their J-1 or F-1 visas revoked by Washington without notifying students or their respective universities. The revocations mean the students will not be permitted to finish their studies in person and will have to return to their home countries. A J-1 visa is a non-immigrant visa issued to professors, research scholars and cultural exchange visitors intended for people doing business or medical training. A F-1 visa, on the other hand, is a non-immigrant visa for students from...

US B-52 Bombers Fly Over Nine Countries in the Middle East

by Connor Freeman | Feb 18, 2025 | Foreign Policy, News

The US conducted a major flyover of bombers and fighter jets over nine countries across the Middle East, in a show of force against Iran and its allies. The Central Command (CENTCOM) mission, included aerial refueling drills and live munitions drops. CENTCOM chief Gen. Erik Kurilla declared, “Bomber Task Force missions demonstrate US power projection capability, commitment to regional security, and ability to respond to any state or non-state actor seeking to broaden or escalate conflict in the CENTCOM region.” The Air Force’s B-52 Stratrofortress bombers which led the mission are based in...

State Dept. Plans New $7 Billion Arms Sale to Israel

by Connor Freeman | Feb 10, 2025 | Foreign Policy, News

The State Department has formally notified Congress of its plans for a massive arms sale to Israel worth over $7 billion, including thousands of missiles and bombs, the Associated Press reported on Friday. This follows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington DC this week and Donald Trump’s announcement that the US will “own” Gaza after it is ethnically cleansed of its indigenous Palestinian population. Per the State Department, Congress was notified of two separate sales, one is worth $6.75 billion. This first sale includes 2,800 500-pound bombs and 166 small-diameter bombs,...