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- 🔵 Trump-Zelensky Clash
🔵 Trump-Zelensky Clash
Citizen Frank
February 19, 2025
Good morning. It’s Wednesday, February 19.
President Donald Trump called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator without elections” in social media post, citing Ukraine’s indefinite postponement of presidential elections amid its ongoing war with Russia.
The verbal clash followed U.S.-Russia peace talks in Riyadh that excluded Ukrainian officials, prompting Zelensky to accuse Trump of spreading Russian disinformation.
The United States officially designated eight Mexican drug cartels and transnational criminal groups as “foreign terrorist organizations” (FTOs) on February 19, 2025, under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump.
The move, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, targets groups including the Sinaloa Cartel, Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), MS-13, and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua for their roles in drug trafficking, migrant smuggling, and cross-border violence.
This classification allows the U.S. to freeze assets, impose sanctions, and potentially deploy military force against these organizations. The decision fulfills a key Trump campaign promise to escalate pressure on cartels he accuses of fueling an “invasion” of drugs and crime across the U.S.-Mexico border.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Pentagon on February 19, 2025, to draft plans for 8% annual budget cuts ($50 billion per year) over the next five years, redirecting funds toward President Donald Trump’s military priorities.
The directive targets climate initiatives, diversity programs, and non-exempt commands like European Command (overseeing Ukraine aid), while protecting border security, nuclear modernization, and Indo-Pacific operations.
This marks the largest proposed Pentagon spending reduction since 2013.
Two individuals died on February 19, 2025, following a midair collision between two small planes at Marana Regional Airport in Arizona, marking the latest incident in a troubling series of aviation accidents across North America.
The crash involved a Cessna 172S and a Lancair 360 MK II, both single-engine aircraft, which collided near an uncontrolled runway. The Lancair crashed and ignited a post-impact fire, killing its two occupants, while the Cessna landed safely without injuries.
The airport, located 21 miles northwest of Tucson, operates without an air traffic control tower, relying on pilots to self-report positions via a shared frequency. A long-delayed project to construct a control tower, initially slated for 2024, has been postponed to 2029 due to pandemic-related disruptions.
A federal judge delayed ruling on the Justice Department’s motion to dismiss corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams after a contentious hearing on February 19, 2025.
Judge Dale Ho questioned the DOJ’s rationale for abruptly abandoning the case, which alleges bribery, fraud, and illegal campaign contributions tied to Turkish interests.
The Trump-appointed DOJ leadership sought dismissal, claiming the prosecution hindered Adams’ ability to address “illegal immigration and violent crime”—a move that sparked mass resignations of federal prosecutors.
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