Brian Finucane
@bcfinucane.bsky.social
Senior Adviser, US Program, International Crisis Group. Editor at Just Security. Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Reiss Center on Law and Security at NYU Law. Ex State Dept Lawyer. War Powers| Use of Force| Counterterrorism| Law of War| War Crimes| Arms Sales
Pinned
Upending the International Order
Through both word and deed, President Trump has been aggressively undermining the rule of law internationally.
www.justsecurity.org
As I wrote last spring:
"In short, the United States behaving as a predatory hegemon unconstrained by the UN Charter and threatening other states with territorial conquest...may spur more countries to acquire their own atomic insurance policies."
www.justsecurity.org/109537/upend...
"In short, the United States behaving as a predatory hegemon unconstrained by the UN Charter and threatening other states with territorial conquest...may spur more countries to acquire their own atomic insurance policies."
www.justsecurity.org/109537/upend...
“Read my lips: lots of new (illegal) taxes.”
Has any president celebrated raising taxes on Americans the way Trump has?
February 12, 2026 at 1:47 AM
“Read my lips: lots of new (illegal) taxes.”
Back when I first saw them in 1998, the Dropkick Murphys had a solid following of SHARPs (anti-racist skinheads) who had a strict stomp-on-sight policy towards Nazis.
Commentary: Boston Irish punk band the Dropkick Murphys could pass for Proud Boys. But look again.
Commentary: Boston Irish punk band the Dropkick Murphys could pass for Proud Boys. But look again.
Dropkick Murphys singer Ken Casey keeps up the resistance.
www.latimes.com
February 12, 2026 at 1:35 AM
Back when I first saw them in 1998, the Dropkick Murphys had a solid following of SHARPs (anti-racist skinheads) who had a strict stomp-on-sight policy towards Nazis.
Biden administration: We’re going to engage in some ridiculous balloon shoot down shenanigans.
Trump 2.0: Hold my beer.
Trump 2.0: Hold my beer.
February 12, 2026 at 1:27 AM
Biden administration: We’re going to engage in some ridiculous balloon shoot down shenanigans.
Trump 2.0: Hold my beer.
Trump 2.0: Hold my beer.
Such a shame she’s not in a position to have informed views on the subject which she could share with the people’s elected representatives.
“The news is reporting”
February 12, 2026 at 1:12 AM
Such a shame she’s not in a position to have informed views on the subject which she could share with the people’s elected representatives.
TFW you might have broken a digit ice climbing and are considering the advisability of the middle finger splint.
February 12, 2026 at 1:10 AM
TFW you might have broken a digit ice climbing and are considering the advisability of the middle finger splint.
The administration was hoping for the theater of its paramilitaries squaring off against black bloc street fighters.
And instead it got this.
Hard to label the lady in a bathrobe as a “terrorist.”
And instead it got this.
Hard to label the lady in a bathrobe as a “terrorist.”
Every photo from Minneapolis looks like this. Cops decked out with guns and full tac gear facing off against people in bathrobes, parkas, and sweatpants armed only with whistles and cell phones.
Yet every verified MAGA chode on X dutifully calls it a riot or violent insurrection.
Yet every verified MAGA chode on X dutifully calls it a riot or violent insurrection.
February 12, 2026 at 12:43 AM
The administration was hoping for the theater of its paramilitaries squaring off against black bloc street fighters.
And instead it got this.
Hard to label the lady in a bathrobe as a “terrorist.”
And instead it got this.
Hard to label the lady in a bathrobe as a “terrorist.”
Government running like a well-oiled machine
Man, I didn’t think there was a way for this story to get dumber but…
“DoD loaned the high-energy laser weapon to DHS, who promptly shot down some mylar balloons with it without telling anyone, resulting in the FAA closing airspace and disrupting air travel nationwide”
…sure did the trick
“DoD loaned the high-energy laser weapon to DHS, who promptly shot down some mylar balloons with it without telling anyone, resulting in the FAA closing airspace and disrupting air travel nationwide”
…sure did the trick
What is going on???
February 12, 2026 at 12:11 AM
Government running like a well-oiled machine
The Biden administration's legacy
Mahmoud Hammad sifts through the rubble of his Gaza home, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike over two years ago.
A father in Gaza searches for his family's bones in the rubble of their home
Mahmoud Hammad sifts through the rubble of his Gaza home, destroyed by an Israeli airstrike over two years ago.
bit.ly
February 11, 2026 at 10:02 PM
The Biden administration's legacy
Follow up questions for the Speaker:
Does he think service members should follow orders regardless of whether the orders are lawful?
If he is uncomfortable with service members making these calls, what is the Article I branch going to do to shutdown illegal operations like the boat strikes?
Does he think service members should follow orders regardless of whether the orders are lawful?
If he is uncomfortable with service members making these calls, what is the Article I branch going to do to shutdown illegal operations like the boat strikes?
Mike Johnson: "A line is crossed and it's very serious when you have leaders here in the Senate and House effectively telling members of the military to defy orders. It's a very dangerous gambit they were playing. Should they be sent to jail? Probably not."
February 11, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Follow up questions for the Speaker:
Does he think service members should follow orders regardless of whether the orders are lawful?
If he is uncomfortable with service members making these calls, what is the Article I branch going to do to shutdown illegal operations like the boat strikes?
Does he think service members should follow orders regardless of whether the orders are lawful?
If he is uncomfortable with service members making these calls, what is the Article I branch going to do to shutdown illegal operations like the boat strikes?
Lethality
February 11, 2026 at 8:40 PM
Lethality
Fun fact:
With 4WD you can make your own parking spot atop the snowbank.
With 4WD you can make your own parking spot atop the snowbank.
February 11, 2026 at 8:16 PM
Fun fact:
With 4WD you can make your own parking spot atop the snowbank.
With 4WD you can make your own parking spot atop the snowbank.
If true, long overdue.
Reports indicating that all American forces have withdrawn from Al-Tanf base to Jordan. Al-Tanf is considered the flagship base of the Americans in the tri-border area between Syria, Iraq, and Jordan.-Kan News
February 11, 2026 at 3:52 PM
If true, long overdue.
Reposted by Brian Finucane
Sometimes tough to decipher the precise mix of mendacity, incompetence, and malevolence at play.
February 11, 2026 at 2:26 PM
Sometimes tough to decipher the precise mix of mendacity, incompetence, and malevolence at play.
Interagency process working so smoothly.
MS NOW: "A congressional official with knowledge of the matter is telling MS NOW the cause of the shutdown of El Paso airspace is a lack of communication between the Pentagon and FAA. The official told us the FAA and DOD are 'not in clear communications with each other.'"
February 11, 2026 at 2:28 PM
Interagency process working so smoothly.
Mexico seems the most likely location for any strikes on land.
The question is whether any such US direct action is coordinated with the Mexican government.
The question is whether any such US direct action is coordinated with the Mexican government.
Trump: "By knocking out those boats, we have dropped drugs, fentanyl, about 33%. Now we're gonna start on land. We had to do the boats first because they would go immediately to the boats. Now we're gonna him them on land. We're gonna hit them very hard on land."
February 11, 2026 at 2:00 PM
Mexico seems the most likely location for any strikes on land.
The question is whether any such US direct action is coordinated with the Mexican government.
The question is whether any such US direct action is coordinated with the Mexican government.
The former astronaut, former Army Ranger, and former CIA officer are all enemies of the people..
a woman in a red shirt is making a funny face and saying `` sure , jan '' .
ALT: a woman in a red shirt is making a funny face and saying `` sure , jan '' .
media.tenor.com
February 11, 2026 at 1:00 PM
The former astronaut, former Army Ranger, and former CIA officer are all enemies of the people..
Visitor to Epstein Island also reportedly involved in causing ridiculous and damaging international incident with a treaty ally.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/w...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/w...
Bridge Owner Lobbied Administration Before Trump Blasted Competing Span to Canada
www.nytimes.com
February 11, 2026 at 4:09 AM
Visitor to Epstein Island also reportedly involved in causing ridiculous and damaging international incident with a treaty ally.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/w...
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/w...
Reposted by Brian Finucane
Donald Trump’s DOJ just tried—and failed—to indict me in front of a grand jury.
We will continue to fight back against their rising tyranny.
Don’t Give Up the Ship.
We will continue to fight back against their rising tyranny.
Don’t Give Up the Ship.
February 11, 2026 at 3:15 AM
Donald Trump’s DOJ just tried—and failed—to indict me in front of a grand jury.
We will continue to fight back against their rising tyranny.
Don’t Give Up the Ship.
We will continue to fight back against their rising tyranny.
Don’t Give Up the Ship.
Not intimidated.
Some members of the Article I branch still have a spine.
Some members of the Article I branch still have a spine.
Helluva statement from Colorado Rep Crow (D) on the Trump administration's failure to indict him and others
February 11, 2026 at 3:49 AM
Not intimidated.
Some members of the Article I branch still have a spine.
Some members of the Article I branch still have a spine.
I suspect there’s still some coal under the farm where I grew up.
Maybe I could get in on this grift as well.
Gonna need it for all the new coaling stations for Trump class battleships…
Maybe I could get in on this grift as well.
Gonna need it for all the new coaling stations for Trump class battleships…
Trump to direct Pentagon to buy coal to revive industry, Bloomberg News says reut.rs/46vkQiO
Trump to direct Pentagon to buy coal to revive industry, Bloomberg News says
U.S. President Donald Trump is set to direct the Pentagon to use government funding and Pentagon contracts to sustain U.S. coal-fired power plants, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing a White House official.
reut.rs
February 11, 2026 at 3:30 AM
I suspect there’s still some coal under the farm where I grew up.
Maybe I could get in on this grift as well.
Gonna need it for all the new coaling stations for Trump class battleships…
Maybe I could get in on this grift as well.
Gonna need it for all the new coaling stations for Trump class battleships…
Notable.
This rule just FAILED 214-217. Republican leaders delayed the vote by hours and held it open for an extended time — to no avail. Don Bacon, Kevin Kiley and Thomas Massie voted no, with all Democrats.
The "rule" on the floor today contains this section. Essentially Speaker Johnson is asking the House to vote to prohibit itself from voting on revoking Trump's tariffs through at least July. An extension of what Republicans have previously acceded to. Unclear it'll pass again.
February 11, 2026 at 3:24 AM
Notable.
Admission to a capricious abuse of power based on petty grievance—a power usurped from Congress.
Trump: "So I put on a 30% tariff, which is very low. I got an emergency call from I believe the prime minister of Switzerland. She was very aggressive ... I didn't really like the way she talked to us, so instead of giving her a reduction, I raised it to 39%."
February 11, 2026 at 2:36 AM
Admission to a capricious abuse of power based on petty grievance—a power usurped from Congress.
DOJ trying to indict opposition lawmakers for accurately stating the law is an authoritarian weaponization of the justice system.
Grand jurors returning a no bill is patriotism in action.
Grand jurors returning a no bill is patriotism in action.
February 11, 2026 at 2:23 AM
DOJ trying to indict opposition lawmakers for accurately stating the law is an authoritarian weaponization of the justice system.
Grand jurors returning a no bill is patriotism in action.
Grand jurors returning a no bill is patriotism in action.