标签： North America

In a policy announcement that sent ripples through global pharmaceutical and trade circles, former U.S. President Donald Trump enacted a sweeping new executive order Thursday that imposes a full 100 percent ad valorem tariff on imports of specific patented pharmaceutical products and their associated active ingredients. The order frames the incoming imported medications as a potential threat to U.S. national security, a justification that echoes the Trump administration’s longstanding approach to trade policy centered on domestic industrial protection. The new tariffs are scheduled to go into effect starting at 1:01 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on July 31, 2026, with a tiered structure that adjusts rates based on companies’ domestic manufacturing plans and existing U.S. trade relationships with partner nations.

Under the terms of the order, pharmaceutical companies that secure U.S. Secretary of Commerce approval for plans to shift production of the targeted products to onshore U.S. facilities – or those expected to finalize such plans imminently – will face a reduced 20 percent tariff in the initial phase. However, that preferential rate is temporary: the order mandates that the tariff will rise to the full 100 percent for these firms starting April 2, 2030. The policy also carves out differential rates for U.S. trade allies that have existing bilateral or regional trade agreements with the U.S. in place. Partners including Japan, the European Union, the Republic of Korea, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein will face a 15 percent tariff on the targeted imports, while the United Kingdom will see a lower 10 percent rate, reflecting its separate trade arrangement with Washington.

Notably, a range of critical pharmaceutical products have been granted full exemption from the new tariffs at this stage. Generic drugs, biosimilars, and their related manufacturing ingredients are excluded from the measure, alongside specialized niche treatments that include nuclear medicines, plasma-derived therapies, fertility treatments, and cutting-edge cell and gene therapies. This exemption carve-out suggests the policy is primarily targeted at branded patented products, rather than disrupting access to lower-cost generic or life-saving specialized care for U.S. patients. The announcement marks a significant shift in U.S. trade policy for the pharmaceutical sector, tying import access directly to domestic production commitments and leveraging national security framing to justify steep trade barriers.

In a Thursday shakeup of the U.S. president’s cabinet, former President Donald Trump has removed Pam Bondi from her post as Attorney General, ending a tenure marked by growing friction between the two over her handling of high-profile cases and perceived lack of aggression against Trump’s political rivals.

Trump made the announcement official via a post on his Truth Social platform, confirming Bondi’s departure and noting she would transition to a new role in the private sector, which he framed as an “important new job.” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will step into the role on an interim basis while the White House weighs candidates for a permanent appointment. Among the top contenders currently under discussion is Lee Zeldin, a staunch Trump loyalist who currently leads the Environmental Protection Agency.

The ouster follows months of mounting public and private discontent from Trump over Bondi’s performance. Trump publicly raised complaints as early as September last year, arguing Bondi had failed to move aggressively enough to prosecute leading political opponents, including former FBI Director James Comey, U.S. Representative Adam Schiff, and New York Attorney General Letitia James. After Trump’s public rebuke, the Department of Justice did move forward with charges against Comey and James, but a federal judge ultimately dismissed both cases in November.

A core point of contention that predated the complaints about political prosecutions was Bondi’s management of public disclosures related to the Jeffrey Epstein files. Dating back to last summer, Bondi has faced sustained criticism for the mishandling of the document release, with even close Trump ally Susie Wiles acknowledging that Bondi “completely whiffed” her response to the controversy, according to a prior Politico report. Congressional Democrats have gone further, accusing Bondi of leading a deliberate cover-up that protected powerful figures connected to the case—including Trump—while endangering Epstein survivors by exposing their identifying information during the redaction process.

In an additional unconfirmed allegation from The Daily Mail, which cited an anonymous senior Trump administration source, Trump’s decision to remove Bondi was also fueled by a belief that she tipped off Congressman Eric Swalwell, a California Democrat and vocal Trump critic who is currently running for governor of his home state, to impending FBI document releases related to a decade-old investigation into Swalwell’s past connection to Christine Fang, an alleged Chinese spy. The source claimed Bondi intervened to block the document release due to a personal friendship with Swalwell, a development that left White House leadership deeply dissatisfied.

Democratic lawmakers have already made clear that Bondi’s ouster will not end their oversight efforts. House Oversight Committee top Democrat Robert Garcia of California announced Thursday that Bondi remains legally compelled to testify under oath before the panel, in compliance with a subpoena the committee approved last month. Garcia reiterated Democratic accusations that Bondi weaponized the Department of Justice to shield Trump and harmed Epstein survivors, adding that investigations into Bondi and other Trump administration officials will continue regardless of their departure from cabinet roles.

Other leading congressional Democrats echoed sharp criticism of Bondi’s tenure. Washington Representative Pramila Jayapal called out Bondi’s refusal to apologize to Epstein survivors for the exposure of their identities, noting Bondi had previously dismissed calls for an apology as “getting into the gutter,” and responded to the firing with “Good riddance.” Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren similarly criticized Bondi’s leadership, accusing the former attorney general of doling out corporate merger approvals as political favors and writing on social media that “Under AG Pam Bondi, the DOJ became a cesspool of corruption. Good riddance.”

Watchdog groups have also condemned Bondi’s time at the Department of Justice. Public Citizen co-president Lisa Gilbert argued Thursday that Bondi pulled the department in a lawless, unindependent direction that damaged the integrity of the U.S. justice system. “No one can be loyal enough. No one can punish Trump’s enemies fast enough,” Gilbert said, adding that Bondi had trivialized both the Department of Justice and the sanctity of the rule of law itself.

In a surprise shake-up to his cabinet, former and current U.S. President Donald Trump announced on his social media platform Truth Social on Thursday that he has removed Pam Bondi from her position as United States Attorney General. Bondi had held the role for just 14 months before the termination.

Trump publicly acknowledged Bondi’s loyalty to his administration in the announcement, confirming that she will transition to a new role in the private sector. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has been tapped to step into the role of acting attorney general on an interim basis, while the White House has not yet announced a nominee for a permanent replacement.

The leadership change comes after weeks of growing frustration within the Trump White House over the Department of Justice’s management of two high-profile priorities: the processing of public records related to the Jeffrey Epstein case and delayed investigative proceedings into Trump’s political opponents, multiple sources familiar with internal discussions confirm.

This dismissal marks the second high-profile cabinet shake-up from Trump in just over a month. In March, the president terminated his Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, continuing a pattern of rapid turnover among senior leadership in his second administration.

WASHINGTON — In a highly anticipated primetime national address Wednesday, former President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. military’s month-long military campaign in Iran is approaching a swift conclusion, framing the operation as an unprecedented success in degrading the Islamic Republic’s military capabilities.

During the 18-minute televised speech, Trump defended the ongoing conflict, claiming U.S. forces had systematically dismantled Iran’s ability to project power across the Middle East and threaten American interests. “We are systematically dismantling the regime’s ability to threaten America or project power outside of their borders. That means eliminating Iran’s navy, which is now absolutely destroyed, hurting their air force and their missile program at levels never seen before, and annihilating their defense industrial base. We’ve done all of it,” Trump told the nation. He added that the scale of military damage inflicted on Iran is unmatched in modern military history, noting that core strategic goals of the campaign are nearly complete.

The White House’s advance announcement of the address Tuesday had sparked widespread speculation that the president would share major new developments about the costly, deadly conflict, now entering its fourth week. However, analysts and observers quickly noted that most of Trump’s remarks recycled aggressive rhetoric and claims he and his Cabinet have repeated for weeks, including his threat to pummel Iran into what he called the “stone ages” over the next two to three weeks. This echoed prior comments he has shared on social media and with press outlets in recent weeks.

The conflict has already sent shockwaves across the Middle East and the U.S. domestic economy, leaving a trail of death and destruction that has eroded public support for Trump’s decision to launch the war. The campaign has killed 13 U.S. service members and wounded 350 more, according to Pentagon data. On the Iranian side, a U.S.-based Iran human rights group HRANA reports that 1,598 Iranian civilians, including 244 children, have been killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes as of Tuesday. The humanitarian crisis extends far beyond Iran’s borders: concurrent Israeli operations in southern Lebanon have killed 1,240 people, wounded 3,680, and displaced more than 1.1 million Lebanese people as of Monday, according to Lebanese government data. Across the broader Middle East, Al Jazeera English has recorded more than 185 additional deaths in nations including Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, and the Palestinian territories.

The disruption of global energy markets has also hit American consumers directly. After Iran seized control of the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s global petroleum supplies flow, international crude prices spiked, pushing average U.S. gasoline prices above $4 per gallon. This economic pressure has translated to plummeting public support for the war: a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted within the last week found that roughly two-thirds of Americans want the Biden administration – now the Trump second-term administration – to move quickly to end the conflict.

Trump’s public statements on exit strategy and war aims have shifted repeatedly, sometimes even on a daily basis. On Tuesday, he told reporters that the Iranian regime had already been successfully changed, and that he planned to wrap up military operations within two to three weeks. But the new Iranian Supreme Leader, Majtaba Khamenei, who succeeded his father Ali Khamenei – killed by U.S. and Israeli forces at the start of the war – is reportedly no less hardline, and may hold even more radical views than his predecessor.

In comments to Reuters Wednesday, Trump also downplayed concerns about Iran’s nuclear program, saying he “doesn’t care” about near-weapons-grade enriched uranium buried under rubble at a nuclear site bombed by the U.S. and Israel in June, per International Atomic Energy Agency data. This marks a notable shift from Trump’s original justification for launching the war: in his February 28 video announcement of the initial attack, the president explicitly stated that the core goal of the operation was to ensure Iran “can never have a nuclear weapon.”

Earlier Wednesday, Trump made an unsubstantiated claim on his social media platform Truth Social that Iran’s new radicalized president had requested a ceasefire. He wrote, “We will consider when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!! President DJT.” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei quickly rejected the claim as “false and baseless,” according to Iranian state-run English broadcaster PressTV.

Hours before Trump’s primetime address, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian – who took office in 2024 – released an open letter directly to the American public, pushing back against the Trump administration’s framing of the conflict. Pezeshkian argued that the White House has lied to Americans about Iranian aggression, framing Iran’s military actions as “a measured response grounded in legitimate self-defense, and by no means an initiation of war or aggression.” He questioned the moral and strategic value of the campaign, writing, “Does the massacre of innocent children, the destruction of cancer-treatment pharmaceutical facilities, or boasting about bombing a country ‘back to the stone ages’ serve any purpose other than further damaging the United States’ global standing?” The reference was to an early U.S. missile strike that killed 168 elementary school children on the first day of the invasion. Pezeshkian also blamed Trump for his 2018 decision to withdraw the U.S. from the multinational Iran nuclear deal, noting that the Iranian people hold no inherent enmity toward the American public. Footage of Iranian lawmakers burning American flag prints and chanting anti-U.S. slogans in parliament following the 2018 withdrawal has circulated widely online.

Longstanding tensions between the U.S. and Iran predate the 2026 conflict: the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. intelligence agencies have linked Iran to dozens of attacks on American military bases across the Middle East over decades. Most notably, a 2020 Iranian strike on Iraq’s Ain al-Asad airbase, launched in retaliation for a U.S. drone strike that killed top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani, caused traumatic brain injuries for more than 100 U.S. service members. During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump dismissed these injuries as nothing more than “headaches.” Earlier this year, a federal jury convicted an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps operative of plotting to assassinate Trump and other high-profile U.S. political figures during the 2024 election cycle, confirming Iran’s long-standing efforts to carry out attacks on U.S. soil.