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77 Years Ago Today, NATO Was Created to Defend the West—But Is It?

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Image of a political conference featuring Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and former U.S. President Donald Trump discussing NATO at a podium.

Image of a political conference featuring Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and former U.S. President Donald Trump discussing NATO at a podium.

WATCH: 77 Years Ago Today, NATO Was Created to Defend the West—But Is It?

77 years ago, on April 4, 1949, the NATO treaty was signed. The alliance, known as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was created to deter Soviet expansion and ensure collective security among Western nations.

For decades, it succeeded in that mission. However, today’s geopolitical landscape raises a more complicated question: not whether the United States should leave NATO, but whether the alliance, in its current form, still serves American interests fairly.

Recent tensions surrounding Iran have exposed a persistent imbalance. While the United States continues to provide the backbone of NATO’s military power, many European allies remain reluctant to fully support American-led operations that fall outside a narrow interpretation of Article 5.

That hesitation is not entirely surprising. NATO’s collective defense clause applies when a member is attacked, not necessarily when the United States engages in offensive or preemptive actions.

Still, the broader issue is reciprocity. The United States maintains extensive military infrastructure across Europe, provides advanced defense capabilities, and has historically underwritten the alliance’s security umbrella. In return, Washington expects more consistent strategic alignment.

As previously reported by The Gateway Pundit, President Donald Trump is reportedly considering withdrawing from NATO, reflecting growing frustration within parts of the American political establishment.

However, leaving the alliance is neither simple nor likely. Legislation passed in 2024 requires a two-thirds vote in the Senate to approve any withdrawal, making unilateral action effectively impossible. 

This legal reality underscores an important point: the debate is not truly about exit, but about leverage and reform.

It is also important to acknowledge that NATO has not always been a one-sided arrangement. The alliance invoked Article 5 for the first and only time after the September 11 attacks, leading European allies to support U.S. operations in Afghanistan. 

Thousands of allied troops were deployed, and many lost their lives alongside American forces. That history matters. It demonstrates that NATO can function as intended when the threat is clearly defined within its framework.

At the same time, structural imbalances have persisted. For years, many NATO members failed to meet the agreed-upon benchmark of spending 2% of GDP on defense. While recent pressure—particularly during the Trump administration—has pushed more countries toward that target, disparities remain. 

The United States continues to account for a disproportionate share of total NATO defense spending, raising legitimate concerns about burden-sharing.

Reform, therefore, should focus on three key areas. First, enforceable defense spending commitments must become the norm rather than the exception. While this has largely been the case under Trump, it remains unclear how NATO allies will respond under future administrations. 

NATO should also clarify expectations for allied support in operations that, while not strictly defensive, still serve broader Western interests. 

Finally, the alliance must adapt to modern threats, including cyber warfare, economic coercion, and strategic competition with powers such as China, rather than remaining overly focused on its Cold War structure.

Leaving NATO would create a vacuum that adversaries such as Russia and China would quickly exploit. The alliance provides the United States with forward operating bases, intelligence coordination, and strategic depth that cannot be easily replicated.

Of course, European nations would likely bear the greatest immediate consequences if the United States were to leave NATO. However, that does not mean withdrawal would be the right decision. 

Trump is known for following through on his positions, but that does not preclude negotiation. The same principle applies to NATO: the goal should not be abandonment, but a recalibration of the alliance to better reflect mutual responsibility and shared interests.

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The post 77 Years Ago Today, NATO Was Created to Defend the West—But Is It? appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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President Trump Fires 6 More Immigration Judges For Blocking Deportations

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April 13, 2026

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President Trump fired six more immigration judges for blocking deportations.

On Friday, the president fired four immigration judges and continued his spree of firings on Saturday and fired two more.

According to The New York Times, Trump fired two of the immigration judges on Saturday for blocking the deportations of two pro-Palestinian activists.

In December, President Trump fired eight immigration judges in New York City.

A fired immigration judge described the firings as a “Monday afternoon massacre.”

“The court has been eviscerated,” Olivia Cassin, another immigration judge who was fired in November told The New York Times. “It feels like a Monday afternoon massacre.”

More than 100 immigration judges have been fired or resigned since President Trump took office this year.

In July, 20 immigration judges were fired.

A few of the federal immigration judges recently fired by the Trump Administration over e-mail lashed out at Trump in an interview with CBS Evening News.

Three of the fired judges – George Pappas, Jennifer Peyton and Carla Espinoza – spoke to CBS about their terminations. The disgruntled judges claimed they were politically pressured by the Trump Administration to grant motions to dismiss cases.

“It was arbitrary, unfair,” George Pappas told CBS News of his abrupt firing. “And it’s an attack on the rule of law. It’s an attack on judges.”

“My email was three sentences,” Jennifer Peyton whined. “I had no cause. I had no explanation.”

“We as judges, were in fear, we were concerned,” Carla Espinoza said. “That makes it very difficult to be impartial. We were not succumbing to that pressure but it does feel like pressure.”

Payton whined that once the illegal alien left the courtroom, ICE would handcuff them and whisk them away.

WATCH:

The post President Trump Fires 6 More Immigration Judges For Blocking Deportations appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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JUST IN: Failing British PM Starmer Refuses To Help Enforce US Navy’s Strait of Hormuz Blockade

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April 13, 2026

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British PM and Labour Leader Keir Starmer

As Trump has said, Starmer ‘is no Winston Churchill’.

With the breakdown in peace negotiations between the US and Iran, President Donald J. Trump has determined that the US Navy will implement a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

And, to no one’s surprise, this announcement was followed by a reaction from failing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who refused to join the blockade.

Apart from being another instance in which the Labour party leader fails to live up to his duty to his main ally, the US, it is also a black eye on the British Royal Navy and its much-degraded capabilities.

Trump ordered tankers to be stopped from entering or leaving the key oil and gas shipping lane.

The Telegraph reported:

“However, The Telegraph understands that Britain will not play a role in enforcing the blockade.

[…] Downing Street said the UK was ‘urgently working with France and other partners to put together a wide coalition to protect freedom of navigation’.

Britain has mine-hunting systems in the region that could be used to help clear the strait of naval mines laid by Iran, Sir Keir said.”

Meanwhile, Trump continued his attacks on Starmer, comparing him to the infamous British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, who chose appeasement of the Nazi regime of Adolf Hitler in the 1930’s.

“Very disappointing – I mean, look at the United Kingdom. PM Starmer said ‘we’ll send the equipment after the war is over’. I said ‘you don’t need equipment when the war is over. You need the equipment before the war starts, or during the war’… He made a public statement that ‘we will send equipment after the war is over’, that’s a Neville Chamberlain statement.”

Read more:

‘U-Turn’ Starmer Pauses Plans To Hand Over Chagos Islands and the Diego Garcia Airbase Back to Mauritius After Trump Called It ‘An Act of Great Stupidity’

The post JUST IN: Failing British PM Starmer Refuses To Help Enforce US Navy’s Strait of Hormuz Blockade appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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Massive Protests Over Fuel Prices Are Ongoing in Ireland Among Police and Army Crackdown on Roadblocks (VIDEOS)

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April 13, 2026

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Traffic congestion with trucks on a highway alongside a crowd of protesters holding flags at a public rally in Dublin.Traffic congestion with trucks on a highway alongside a crowd of protesters holding flags at a public rally in Dublin.Between road blockages and popular demonstrations, the protests keep growing

Ireland has awakened.

The massive fuel price protests began on April 7, 2026, and are now today (12) in their sixth day.

While it’s fair to say that the fuel spike we are witnessing is caused by the military conflict in Iran and the closure of the vital waterways of the Strait of Hormuz, that is not the entire story.

What we are seeing is the action of ordinary Irish truckers, farmers, transporters, taxi and bus drivers that are pushing back against suicidal ‘green’ policies implemented by the Irish government.

These policies, as they are, align with international climate commitments, including the EU’s net-zero agenda and carbon pricing mechanisms.

Protesters explicitly demand the suspension or removal of the carbon tax on fuels — especially agricultural diesel.

Protesters are also calling for resuming domestic oil exploration off Ireland’s west coast, whereas current policies restrict fossil fuel development in favor of ‘rapid decarbonization’.

The protests involve drivers blocking major roadways, fuel depots, ports, and even Ireland’s only oil refinery in Whitegate, Cork.

Today (12), Ireland’ Garda used pepper spray and made arrests to clear protesters blockading the refinery.

Deutsche Welle reported:

“Authorities moved in to disperse the protesters to restore supplies after five days of nationwide demonstrations over soaring fuel prices.

Law enforcers, supported by armed forces personnel, moved in to reopen the Whitegate refinery in County Cork and escort fuel trucks on Saturday.

After Ireland’s Defense Forces joined the police in clearing the protests, Irish police chief Justin Kelly said on Saturday that the fuel protesters’ actions were ‘endangering the state’.”

But despite the police action, Seven Irish motorways remain BLOCKED.

The Sun reported:

IRISH commuters are being warned to expect significant delays today – as the fuel protests continue for the sixth day. Public transport is also facing delays on its major services amid the fuel protests, including blockades and limited fuel supplies.

Dublin’s M50, the biggest motorway in the country, was cleared in the early hours of this morning as part of Garda operations to remove blockage and restore access to the public.”

Read more:

The Irish Are Done with Globalists and the World Is Behind Them

The post Massive Protests Over Fuel Prices Are Ongoing in Ireland Among Police and Army Crackdown on Roadblocks (VIDEOS) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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