It wasn't long ago when Barack Obama's young aides were the darlings of D.C. media. The "Obama 20-somethings," the New York Times wrote in 2010, had "grown more comfortable and confident, reshaping the city around them in their image—idealistic, earnest, geeky, understated, wise-cracking." Fifteen years later, Donald Trump is leading a youth revolution of his own—and the Left isn't so happy.
Some of Elon Musk's DOGE staffers, the Washington Post wrote in a panicky Thursday piece, "are in their early 20s." Hillary Clinton—who catapulted her political career in a student college commencement speech that took aim at Edward Brooke, a moderate Republican and the first black senator elected by popular vote—complained that the staffers "have no relevant experience" and "aren't old enough to rent a car."
The outrage reveals an amusing double standard, writes Free Beacon founding editor Matthew Continetti, but there's more to the story. "Trump may be the oldest man elected president," Continetti writes, "but he leads a youth movement that will shape politics for decades to come."
In 2020, Trump lost 18- to 29-year-olds to Joe Biden by 24 points. He cut that gap to 11 four years later. He did so, Continetti notes, by capitalizing on "young people's frustrations with inflation and interest rates by recalling his presidential record and opposing the woke agenda of anti-American cultural transformation. His particular focus: lower-propensity young male voters."
Over the past decade, young men have had trouble finding their place in the economy, culture, and society. Politics offered disappointment. George W. Bush's conservatism receded before they came of age. Many young people have found purpose and meaning in a return to traditional religion and male pursuits. They looked beyond Barack Obama and Joe Biden's liberalism and found Donald Trump.
That was why Trump took in so many UFC matches, visited college football games and NASCAR races, and made Joe Rogan's endorsement a priority. He wanted to demonstrate solidarity with the rising generation.
The full column is here.
Bibi is in D.C. until Saturday, and Donald Trump has signed a flurry of executive orders likely to please the Israeli prime minister while he is in town.
On Thursday morning, Trump's Treasury and State departments began executing the "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran, unveiling "sweeping new sanctions on an international network of entities feeding Iran's illicit oil enterprise," our Adam Kredo reports.
The sanctioned entities include "a constellation of companies and ships ferrying oil on behalf of Iran's Armed Forces General Staff," Tehran's most senior military body, which leads a smuggling operation that generates billions of dollars annually for the malign regime.
Hours later, Trump signed another order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court, a measure Senate Democrats tanked last week. The order "places financial and visa sanctions" on all ICC personnel and their families, according to a White House fact sheet, which accuses the court of creating a "shameful moral equivalency" by "issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials and Hamas officials at the same time." The measures effectively bar ICC officials and their families from entering the United States and accessing some financial networks.
The orders—and Trump's decision to sign them while Netanyahu is around—"reflect the White House's drive to strengthen the U.S.-Israel alliance after four years of tension under Joe Biden." Bibi will fly back to Israel on Saturday, and it will presumably be a happy voyage.
The Trump administration is also weighing measures that would counter another U.S. foe: China.
Trump's Department of Homeland Security, for example, is reportedly in talks to add Chinese retail giant Shein to an import blacklist over its ties to slave labor in Xinjiang. Shein, in turn, is counting on its man in D.C. to deliver relief: Republican Brian Darling.
Darling served as Rand Paul's counsel and senior communications director until 2015. He then launched a boutique lobbying shop, Liberty Government Affairs. As top firms in Washington dropped their Chinese clients last year, Darling ran to them, taking on contracts with both Shein and drone maker DJI Technologies, another target of CCP hawks on Capitol Hill, who warn that the drones could be used to spy on Americans and gather data for Beijing.
"The connection to Paul gives DJI and Shein a key alliance in Washington as the firms come under increased scrutiny from Congress and national security agencies," the Free Beacon's Chuck Ross reports. "Paul, who chairs the powerful Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, has provided a sympathetic ear for China. Paul strongly opposes banning TikTok, the Chinese-controlled social media app. Last year, he accused his fellow Republicans of 'beating the drums' for war with Beijing."
Darling told us he's had "numerous meetings discussing both client's issues" with House and Senate Republicans and their staffers. He also defended Shein and DJI, calling them "amazing companies that should be embraced by American consumers and studied by American companies to find ways to better compete." We hope Xi sees this, bro.
Away from the Beacon:
- UPenn, which is facing a lawsuit from its former swimmers and an investigation from Trump's Education Department, took down a DEI statement that includes a "Transgender Inclusion Policy."
- Ayanna Pressley took aim at Iowa's Republican governor, Kim Reynolds, noting that "Iowa is 90 percent white … so that is drastically different from the national population." And?
- Cook Political Report is out with its 2026 House race ratings. It’s a competitive map for Republicans, with 39 competitive Dem-held seats compared with 29 for the GOP.
- Bibi Netanyahu's office released the photo we've all been waiting for: one that shows the golden beeper gifted to Donald Trump, complete with the message "PRESS WITH BOTH HANDS."