Trump promised that the State of the Union address 2026 would be 'long, because there's lots to talk about'. Some of that talk is likely to be peevish, complaining, even angry. After all, having started the year on a high, it's been pretty much a massive slog ever since. And especially with the huge setback on tariffs, that we have to pretend wasn't a setback at all, and the uncomfortable fact that having marched the US navy to Iran, he doesn't quite know what he wants them to do while they're there. And all his party wants him to talk about is the economy and the cost of living. Good luck with that.

In (yet another) moment of the truly surreal, President Trump announced this weekend that he is sending a hospital ship to Greenland to help with all the people getting sick there who are being left untreated. Which is odd, since that's not happening. It seems, on its face, to be the world's clumsiest attempt to curry favour with a people who you've literally just united against you by threatening to take them over by force. So what's going on? Let's discuss.

In this news roundup of the week for Friday February 20th 2026. The Supreme Court strikes down President Trump's emergency tariffs in the single biggest setback since he started his second term. We discover exactly why Trump flip-flopped yet again on the UK transferring ownership of the Chagos islands. And Trump makes a dramatic new announcement - about aliens.

Trump's Board of Peace had its first meeting today, and it was pretty much what you would have expected. Lots of praise for Trump, lots of big promises for the great future ahead of Gaza with all the development that will be coming - and relatively little attention to the tricky obstacle that none of it can happen until Hamas agrees to disarm, which they show little inclination to do. And while Trump and the assembled mostly-autocrats wax lyrical on peace, Trump is pondering the options for launching a military strike against Iran. Because that's what 'Peace Presidents' do in 2026. Let's discuss.

It would be entirely possible for President Trump, or A.N.Other autocrat, to seek to dismantle the guardrails of democracy in their country and all the rest of it, while still keeping a firm grasp of what is, or isn't reality, and dealing with it as needed. But that is not the current way, because Trump is determined to believe only his own version of reality, even when that is massively and easily contradicted by facts and events. The trouble is that if you insist on flying in the face of reality, it will often not end well. Let's look at the three biggest areas where the Trump operation is struggling and / or will inevitably struggle in the future, because that pesky reality thing just isn't going to do his bidding.

Trump's Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke this weekend at the Munich Security Conference, and he made probably the most cogent and professional speech on behalf of the MAGA world view we've heard. Unfortunately, the sentiments it expressed stood in stark contrast to the words of his boss and the actions of the administration - a fact that was not lost on his audience. But the quality of the speech, and the way he handled the occasion, has some chattering with renewed vigour about the possibility of a Rubio presidential candidacy for 2028. Let's discuss.

In this news round-up of the week for Friday February 13th 2026. As the Epstein Files revelations have continued to appear, the talk has turned to just how far-reaching the so-called Epstein Class has turned out to be - and it's feeding a real push for messaging around the midterm elections. The Trump administration abolishes the basis for most climate regulation in America. And Trump is staring Iran in the face, with his naval armada at his back, and yet it seems likely he will be the one to blink first.

As the Munich Security Conference kicks off this year - the same one that was made famous last year thank's to JD Vance's speech telling Europeans to shape up - NATO is conducting exercises in Greenland. The official story is that this is all about reassuring US President Trump that the country is defended against the nefarious Russians and Chinese. But it is obviously widely understood that it's not about REASSURING Trump, but more about deterring him. This comes as several scenario planning exercises suggest that NATO would crumble quickly in contact with a Russian incursion - thanks to Trump's unlikeliness to stand by America's Article 5 commitment. Let's discuss.

President Trump has attacked Canada again, and this time said that he will prevent the opening of a new bridge between the two countries. And this is ostensibly because of a long list of supposed grievances, up to and including something about China banning ice hockey. But the real story is more prosaic, and one that seems unlikely to go away any time soon. As much to do with the quiet but determined role prime minister Mark Carney has played in reflecting reality in his recent speeches, and the fact that Canada refused to bow down to Trump in order to get a supposed trade deal. Let's discuss.

Greenland was the pivotal moment. Before then, appeasement was the only game in town. But now, Europeans are increasingly joining Canadians in resisting Trump's America in the ways that are available to them, and governments are frantically seeking to reduce their exposure, and to "derisk" their integration, with the US economy. This is going to take time, but it's worth noting some of the ways that we can see this taking place. Let's discuss.