It’s Monday, October 27. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: River Page has the blue-state blues, Chris Christie reviews the Springsteen biopic, lobbyists advise their clients to pay for Trump’s ballroom, the sex traffickers hiding in plain sight, Amit Segal on what’s next in Gaza, and much more.
But first: Are we invading Venezuela?
On Sunday afternoon, the USS Gravely, a guided missile destroyer, docked just off the coast of Venezuela in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago’s capital. Two days earlier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier, was dispatched to the Caribbean. The buildup of troops comes as Donald Trump ratchets up his threats against Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. “We are certainly looking at land now,” said Trump two weeks ago. Maduro has accused Trump of “fabricating a new war.” And many of Trump’s own allies and supporters—who trust him to avoid foreign misadventures—are worried the president is about to make a serious mistake.
What’s the president’s plan? Is Trump, the mocker of neoconservatism and democracy promotion, on the verge of a potentially disastrous war? Christopher Caldwell offers an answer in his essay for The Free Press today.
The U.S. deployments in the Caribbean are just the most recent in a stream of confounding headlines about Washington’s relationship with the rest of the Americas. What is the thread that connects everything from drone strikes on alleged narco boats to Washington’s bailout of Argentina’s Javier Milei (whose party won big in yesterday’s midterms) to talk of buying Greenland? Writing in The Free Press, Tyler Cowen presents a unified theory of Trump’s policy in the region—and why Trump wants to rule the Americas.
And for a third perspective on Latin America, tune in to the latest episode of Conversations with Coleman. This week Coleman Hughes is joined by Gelet Martínez Fragela, a Cuban journalist and political refugee whose outlet is banned on the island. Coleman and Gelet trace Cuba’s path from independence to dictatorship and separate myth from the reality of life under the Cuban regime.
—Oliver Wiseman
River Page is a Bernie-backing social democrat. So you might think he’d be thrilled to have moved from Florida to New York recently. Well, he’s not. In fact, he hates it—and wants to go back. Today he explains why life in a blue state is so unbearable.
Trump’s $300 million “White House ballroom” is being bankrolled by corporate America—Amazon, Apple, Google, and more. But is this just patriotic giving or is there more to the story? Gabe Kaminsky reports that MAGA lobbyists are urging clients to give. As one GOP consultant put it: “Everybody wants to get in the door.” Read Gabe on whether the White House is conducting a pay-to-play renovation.
Chances are that you have walked or driven by an illicit massage parlor near where you live. Now, several states are taking action, cracking down on what campaigners say they are hubs of sex trafficking hiding in plain sight. Madeleine Rowley talks to the victims, law enforcement officials, and activists helping root out the exploitation of migrant women across the country.
We don’t generally turn to politicians for our cultural coverage at The Free Press, but we made an exception last week for the release of Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere, the new Bruce biopic starring Jeremy Allen White. Why? Because one of the most knowledgeable, passionate, and obsessive Springsteen fans in the country also happens to have served as the 55th Governor of New Jersey. So here’s Chris Christie on why Deliver Me From Nowhere resembles the Boss’s best work.
Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, claimed over the weekend that Russia has successfully tested a powerful new missile that supposedly has “unlimited range,” is powered by a nuclear engine, and is invincible against defense systems. Skeptics have dubbed it the “Flying Chernobyl,” noting its history of failed tests and delays.
Two suspects have been arrested over the brazen jewel heist at Paris’s Louvre Museum, with DNA evidence reportedly linking one of them to the bold daytime robbery. The thieves, who used power tools and a vehicle-mounted lift to steal crown jewels in under eight minutes, exposed major security lapses at the world’s most-visited museum.
At a rally in Bogotá, Colombia, President Gustavo Petro lashed out at sanctions imposed by the Trump administration targeting him, his wife, his eldest son, and Interior Minister Armando Benedetti. “We do not kneel,” he said defiantly. The sanctions, which freeze any U.S. assets they might have and ban them from traveling to the U.S., follow escalating tensions with President Trump over deportations and U.S. strikes on suspected drug boats.
Independent socialist Catherine Connolly won Ireland’s presidency in a landslide, taking 63 percent of the vote and delivering a crushing blow to the ruling centrist parties. Her victory, fueled by anti-government sentiment, came amid a surge of spoiled ballots from right-wing voters protesting immigration and social change.
SpaceX launched the latest batch of Starlink satellites on Sunday morning, its 89th mission of the year from Cape Canaveral and part of a push to break last year’s record of 93 launches. A second Starlink flight is slated for Tuesday, weather permitting, as crews monitor sea conditions and Hurricane Melissa’s path.
Speaking of which, Hurricane Melissa is rapidly intensifying in the Caribbean and could reach Category 5 strength, threatening catastrophic flooding, storm surges, and winds up to 165 mph across Jamaica, Cuba, and Haiti. AccuWeather warns of “life-threatening” impacts, with up to 50 inches of rain and widespread destruction possible early next week.
Two House Republicans are urging the Justice Department to investigate New York City mayoral front-runner Zohran Mamdani’s path to U.S. citizenship, claiming he lied during the naturalization process and has ties to “communist” groups. Mamdani has denied the accusations, calling them politically motivated attacks.
For the first time in two decades, the U.S. passport has dropped out of the world’s top 10 most powerful passports globally. According to the Henley Passport Index, it is now tied for 12th with. . .Malaysia. Time magazine attributes the decline to Trump-era immigration policies, lack of visa reciprocity, and rising travel restrictions that signal America’s waning global mobility and soft power.
All hail the New York Jets, who will not have a winless season after all! On Sunday, down 15 points against the Cincinnati Bengals going into the fourth quarter, the normally hapless Jets won it on a trick play, with running back Breece Hall throwing a touchdown pass with 1:54 to go in the game.
It’s called the “Monroe Doctrine “ ya really do need to go back to MSM media like you ex owner. David Jisha, Beaumont Texas.
Oliver Wiseman is moronic beyond belief. "Free Press" rhymes nicely with "BS".