Off Leash update 25 August 2026
IRAN
•U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a package of new punitive measures against Iran as part of what he dubbed Operation Economic Outcast, but Bessent himself acknowledged that the new penalties were more of a "warning shot" than the "economic D-Day" he'd threatened to unleash on Iran.
•The measures Bessent announced are indeed minor. His Treasury Department expanded its ability to punish foreign companies helping five specific sectors of Iran's economy: digital assets, technology, gold, aviation and shipping. It also imposed sanctions on over 60 individuals and entities linked to Iran's missile and nuclear programs who were somehow not already blacklisted. And it plans to sanction more entities - including an unspecified large financial institution - by the end of this week.
•But the new package stopped far short of imposing secondary sanctions on Iran's trading partners. Instead of penalizing other countries for trading with Iran, Bessent said the Trump administration plans to adopt a gentler approach of simply asking world leaders to kindly "cease their interactions with Iran."
•That soft pressure will work with some nations - like the UAE, which announced a total trade embargo on Iran last week. But Iran's largest trading partner, China, has already signalled that it has no interest in helping the U.S. cripple Iran's economy.
•Some question whether any level of economic pain will force the Iranian regime's hardliners to negotiate after decades of sanctions failed to change them. Many of them probably still agree with what their founding Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomenei, said back in Sep. 1979: "No wise person can imagine that we sacrificed our blood so that melons would become cheap! [That] we gave our youth so that housing would become affordable … It is for Islam that a person can give up his life. Our saints also gave up their lives for Islam, not for economics. Economics is not worthy of this."
•Meanwhile, Pakistani officials said Field Marshal Munir's recent trip to Tehran had made "significant progress" towards ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
UKRAINE
•UK Prime Minister Burnham is using his first foreign trip since taking office to offer bold support for Ukraine. He announced that the UK has delivered technical blueprints for Ukraine to use to build Scalp missile components, and is reportedly planning to visit the U.S. next month to rally Washington's support for Kyiv.
•Russia isn't happy. A Kremlin spokesman accused Burnham and Britain of being "hell bent on pouring oil on a fire and plotting to prevent any kind of peace process,"
HAITI
•Gang members attacked a church in the Port-au-Prince suburb of Kenscoff late Sunday, killing at least 47 of the displaced people who had taken refuge from exactly this kind of gang violence.
•Survivors largely blamed the UN run Gang Suppression Force for failing to adequately protect civilians or even build a base in the area despite warning signs. The government belatedly pledged to reinforce security.
SUDAN
•During a UN Security Council meeting, U.S. envoy Massoud Boulos proposed expanding the arms embargo on Sudan's Darfur region to cover the entire country, with the aim of forcing the government and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to negotiate an end to the civil war they've been fighting for four years.
•The current embargo on Darfur has been in effect since July 2004, but both the army and the RSF continue to import weapons from abroad to devastate Darfur. Boulos seems to think that a nationwide embargo would be easier to enforce, and he's probably right.
•However, an expanded embargo must first pass a UN Security Council (UNSC) vote, and Russia - which has veto power over UNSC votes - has already signalled it has misgivings about a nationwide embargo. [Specifically, the Kremlin voiced concern that an expanded ban would hurt the army more than the RSF.]
ANOTHER AMERICAN BROUGHT HOME. 🇺🇸
"Kevin Rideout, a brave Christian missionary, was held hostage by ISIS Jihadists for ten months! We never leave Americans behind, unlike Sleepy Joe and Obama, because we are America First. Today I invited Kevin, his lovely wife, father and beautiful children, to the White House to see the Oval Office, and meet our dedicated hostage recovery team. Welcome back home Kevin — It was an Honor to help you!" - President Donald J. Trump
Peter Thiel on how to ensure your startup survives:
"The best thing I did as a manager at PayPal was to make every person in the company responsible for doing just one thing. Every employee’s one thing was unique, and everyone knew I would evaluate him only on that one thing. I had started doing this just to simplify the task of managing people.
But then I noticed a deeper result: defining roles reduced conflict. Most fights inside a company happen when colleagues compete for the same responsibilities. Startups face an especially high risk of this since job roles are fluid at the early stages.
Eliminating competition makes it easier for everyone to build the kinds of long-term relationships that transcend mere professionalism. More than that, internal peace is what enables a startup to survive at all. "
Another place where AI (and yes, data centers) deployed well will save millions of middle class families over 100K.
This is all incoming with bold, competent leadership in the coming years.
@InstituteCicero will make sure it happens, at least in the liberty-loving states!
Trae nails it.
We let an app controlled by Beijing convince us that building in America is evil, and now we protest the AI plants and data centers that will decide if the West stays sovereign.
China builds. We are taught to feel guilty for building. That is not activism. That is propaganda working.
If you are Pro Western, you want the plant in your town.
That’s weird…it’s almost like not banning TikTok has had real world consequences as the US population continues being poisoned by CCP propaganda. Who woulda guessed?!
Today @POTUS signed a new National Space Transportation Policy, one that meets this moment of explosive growth and positions America to lead the next era of space.
In the 13 years since the last update to the Policy, U.S. launches have surged 10x: from 19 successful orbital launches in 2013 to 178 in 2025. This policy builds on that momentum to enable 1,000 launches and reentries on American soil by 2030.
Most of our launch infrastructure dates back to the 1960s. This Policy catalyzes commercial co-investment to build next-generation launch and reentry sites and designates an additional federal land reentry site to bring operations home.
It expands space transportation to include reentry and in-space operations. This unlocks reverse logistics and new orbital markets. The policy also delivers priority airspace corridors, transparent range allocation, a commercial-first approach enabling Americans on the Moon by 2028 and initial Moon Base elements by 2030, and rapid, resilient launch capabilities for national security.
This is how America leads.🚀🇺🇸
https://t.co/IwXRwFALJ8
The Western tradition is built on Jerusalem, Athens and Rome. Revelation, reason and law.
Marxism is built on resentment. It has no Jerusalem, no Athens, no Rome. Only a permanent accusation.
One gave us cathedrals, constitutions and spaceflight. The other gives you a list of people to blame.
We are officially launching the DIU Bridge Program – a dedicated business unit designed to eliminate the most critical bottlenecks inhibiting technology adoption.
For a deeper look at how the Bridge Program is revolutionizing military capability delivery, check out the latest feature from @DeptofWar.
https://t.co/d3H6wIGIg5