Stephen Kruiser
The Morning Briefing
September 17, 2026
Secretary of State Marco Rubio notified Congress on Tuesday that the State Department will be redirecting $52 million in Foreign Military Financing (FMF) away from Europe and the Middle East and redistributing it here in the Western Hemisphere to some of the nations most closely aligned with the United States in Central and South America.In Other News
The money will go from Slovakia, North Macedonia, Tunisia, and Iraq to Panama, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia.
The move should come as no surprise. Both Rubio and Donald Trump have been clear from the beginning of the president's term that it's time for Europe and various NATO allies to step up and spend more of their own money on their defense. They also released the Trump administration's National Security Plan last December, which made it clear that the United States would prioritize the Western Hemisphere over other regions of the world, including going after the cartels and organized crime that plague the region with drug trafficking and violence.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) accused legacy media Friday of launching a smear operation against the lone holdout juror in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial and offered the Massachusetts man sanctuary in the Sunshine State should he be harassed.
DeSantis included the blurb from NBC10 Boston on X. It promoted and provided a link to the “full investigation” — as the the outlet named it — of the holdout juror.
The governor said the juror was welcome in Florida.
“If the juror is being harassed, Florida will provide asylum — I’m sure he’d be welcomed and appreciated,” DeSantis wrote.
NBC10 Boston reported Friday that the juror faced a criminal charge in 2021 for allegedly assaulting his then-wife. Citing a police report, the affiliate reported his 13-year-old nephew told police he saw the man grab her by the throat and throw her into the dresser.
The charge was later dismissed, and the couple divorced.
“Last year, that same teenage nephew referenced in the 2021 incident took out a restraining order after he said the juror pushed him to the ground and repeatedly punched him in the face,” the outlet reported.
The order apparently was still active when the man was selected as a juror for the high-profile televised Clancy trial.