March 20, 2026 Insider Report

Argentina Officially Withdraws From WHO

Argentina, under the direction of President Javier Milei, has officially pulled out of the World Health Organization (WHO).

On March 17, Argentine Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno announced that his country had completed its withdrawal from the WHO, exactly one year after it formally announced its intent to leave the global body.

In a statement on X, Quirno wrote:

Today, Argentina’s withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) takes effect, marking one year since the formal notification made by our country.

Argentina communicated this decision through a note addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, in his capacity as depositary of the WHO Constitution, on March 17, 2025. In accordance with the provisions of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, the withdrawal takes effect one year after that notification was made.

Our country will continue to promote international cooperation in health through bilateral agreements and regional forums, fully safeguarding its sovereignty and its decision-making capacity in health policy matters.

In a statement posted on Instagram on February 5, 2025, when he announced Argentina’s planned withdrawal, Milei labeled the WHO “a nefarious organization” that “served as the enforcing arm of what was the greatest experiment in social control in history.” Unfortunately, in that same statement, he cited the Rome Statute, the treaty that created the sovereignty-eroding International Criminal Court, as a justification for leaving.

Argentina is the second nation to withdraw from the WHO, following the United States’ withdrawal under President Donald Trump, who has also announced U.S. withdrawal from dozens of other international organizations. To restore the freedom and independence of both countries, these actions must be only the beginning. — Peter Rykowski

Iran’s Ultimatum Amid Escalating Oil Crisis

On March 9, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) offered unrestricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz to any Arab or European nation that expels U.S. and Israeli ambassadors from its territory. This conditional “free pass” through the vital waterway — which handles about 20 percent of global oil supplies — comes as the strait remains largely blocked during the ongoing U.S.-Iran war, causing oil prices to surge above $100 per barrel. The IRGC’s move frames the offer as diplomatic leverage, pressuring U.S. allies to sever ties in exchange for economic relief during a conflict that has already disrupted global energy flows more severely than they were during the Covid-19 era.

Pundits describe it as “geopolitical chess,” forcing Gulf states and European powers to weigh energy security against alliances with Washington and Tel Aviv. Countries such as Turkey, France, Russia, and China have reportedly reached out to Tehran for clarification, while U.S. officials dismissed it as blackmail. The strait’s closure since late February has exacerbated inflation fears and supply chain woes, with Brent crude briefly hitting a high of $119. The tactic mimics Iran’s past threats but marks a shift from military posturing to explicit diplomatic demands amid mounting U.S.-Israeli airstrikes, including reported hits on civilian sites such as schools.

President Donald Trump counter-offered. On March 9, following a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump announced the U.S. would temporarily waive certain oil-related sanctions on select countries to ensure supply and curb prices until the strait “straightens out.” Sources indicate this includes easing restrictions on Russian oil, potentially flooding the market to offset Hormuz disruptions. Trump framed it as a pragmatic step to protect American consumers from skyrocketing gas prices, but critics argue it undermines efforts to isolate Russia over Ukraine, where Moscow could gain billions in revenue. Oil prices dipped on the news, signaling market relief, though the strait still holds sway.

Either Iran’s ultimatum or Trump’s sanctions relief could fracture the West — one by causing outright divisions and the other by boosting Russia and China (a key buyer of Russian oil). It’s an ironic paradox of U.S. foreign policy; the same neocons who wanted to double down in Ukraine and alienate Russia (while at the same time agitating for the United States to attack Iran) are finding that they may have to sacrifice one goal to serve another. — Rebecca Terrell

Polish Prime Minister Warns of “Polexit” as EU Leaders Float New Members

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk is warning that his country could exit the European Union in coming years. Politico reports:

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned on Sunday [March 15] that a potential Polish exit from the European Union is now a “real threat,” accusing nationalist President Karol Nawrocki and right-wing opposition parties of steering the country toward leaving the bloc.

In a post on X, Tusk said both factions of the far-right Confederation alliance and most lawmakers from the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party wanted to push Poland out of the EU. He called such a scenario “a catastrophe” and vowed to “do everything” to stop it.

Tusk also linked the risk of “Polexit” to forces seeking to “break up the EU,” which he said included Russia, the American MAGA movement and European far-right leaders led by Hungary’s Viktor Orbán.

Tusk, a staunch supporter of EU integration, served as president of the European Council from 2014 to 2019. He made his comments in response to Nawrocki’s March 12 announcement that he would not sign a bill passed by the Polish Parliament to allow the country to access €43.7 billion in EU defense loans. According to The Associated Press, Nawrocki and PiS “argue the money comes with EU conditions, making Poland more dependent on Germany, and encourages purchases from European manufacturers at the expense of U.S. producers.”

This is only the latest disagreement between the pro-EU Tusk and the conservative Nawrocki. The two have disagreed on a wide range of issues, including EU regulations and judicial and ambassadorial appointments.

Tusk’s statement comes as other EU leaders float further expansion of the supranational bloc. For example, during remarks at a Chatham House event in London on March 17, Finnish President Alexander Stubb urged the United Kingdom to rejoin the EU, claiming that “Brexit was a colossal mistake,” and implying that he had a low opinion of “those who promoted Brexit during the campaign, and those who still say that Brexit is a good thing.” Additionally, EU officials have increasingly floated the idea of allowing Canada to join the bloc, while Iceland will hold a referendum on August 29 to restart membership negotiations with the EU.

The EU is a prime example of the Insider strategy of implementing world government via regional governments. Americans must be aware of this, and work to prevent a similar union from being established in the United States. — Peter Rykowski

Virginia Lawmakers Remove Self-exemption From Gun-storage Bill Following Public Backlash

In mid-March, citizen journalists drew widespread attention to firearm-related language in a draft version of Virginia House Bill 110 (HB 110). Social-media posts highlighted a provision in a conference committee substitute that appeared to create a limited exception for members of the Virginia General Assembly regarding the storage of handguns in unattended vehicles.

Democratic Delegate Amy Laufer says she introduced HB 110 to focus on firearm safety in vehicles. The bill would prohibit leaving a visible handgun in an unattended motor vehicle on public property. Violations would be subject to a civil penalty in order to reduce firearm thefts from cars — an issue that has received increasing attention.

During the legislative process, the bill moved through both chambers of the General Assembly, with each adopting versions that were later reconciled through a conference committee. It was in one such conference substitute that the controversial language reportedly appeared. According to widely shared excerpts, the provision would have exempted members of the General Assembly from the restriction under specific circumstances, such as when parking in designated legislative parking facilities.

Critics argue that the verbiage suggests unequal treatment. Some Republican lawmakers also voiced concerns about creating exemptions for elected officials, emphasizing that members of Virginia’s part-time “citizen legislature” should be subject to the same rules as the general public. However, legislative records indicate that the final version of HB 110 approved by both chambers did not include any exemption for General Assembly members. The conference report ultimately adopted by the House of Delegates and the Senate applied the vehicle-storage restrictions uniformly, without carve-outs for legislators.

Drawing attention to the perceived hypocrisy may have helped Republicans, who subsequently showed surprising resilience and overperformance in a March 17 House of Delegates District 98 contest. It was called after the death of longtime Republican Delegate Barry Knight. GOP candidate C. Andrew Rice (a Virginia Beach deputy commonwealth’s attorney) defeated Democrat Cheryl B. Smith with 7,316 votes (62.46 percent) to her 4,392 (37.50 percent). A total of 11,713 ballots were cast, a turnout of roughly 18 percent. This improved on Knight’s 2025 margin of 56.6 percent in the same district, bucking a broader trend of Democratic gains since the 2025 statewide sweep. Election analysts noted the strong GOP showing, which has been viewed as a morale boost for Republicans and a counter to recent Democratic special-election momentum in the state. — Rebecca Terrell

Chilean President Kast Starts Border-barrier Project

Just five days after assuming office, Chilean President José Antonio Kast has begun construction of a border barrier along Chile’s northern border with Peru.

On March 16, Kast visited the border town of Chacalluta to review the construction, part of his Border Shield Plan to combat illegal migration. He previously signed emergency decrees to strengthen anti-illegal-migration measures.

During his visit, Kast stated that “we have taken clear and concrete decisions to close our border to illegal immigration, drug trafficking and organized crime.” He also declared his desire to “build a sovereign Chile.”

Chile’s new border barrier comes as the country has seen a significant increase in illegal migration. BBC News reports:

Chile’s foreign population has risen sharply in the past decade, jumping from less than 600,000 in 2015 to more than 1.5 million in 2024, according to World Bank data.

Its government estimates that about 336,000 of these are undocumented migrants, many from Venezuela….

Trenches and fences will compose the barrier, patrolled by military personnel. The Chilean government said surveillance systems and obstacles would also be installed to deter crossings.

Once complete, the barrier is expected to cover about half of Chile’s border with Peru and Bolivia.

Kast, who won election as Chile’s president in December and replaced Marxist Gabriel Boric, campaigned on deterring illegal migration and crime. His position as president was bolstered earlier this month, when a conservative ally was unexpectedly elected to lead Chile’s Chamber of Deputies (lower house). Kast’s election and inauguration reflect a broader, ongoing conservative shift in Latin America.

Hopefully, this is only the first step toward restoring national sovereignty in Chile. — Peter Rykowski

Weingarten Calls for WEF Involvement in U.S. Curriculum

A March 9 video clip of American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten speaking at a World Economic Forum (WEF) panel showcased her advocating for the organization’s role in shaping educational curricula in America. In the footage, Weingarten discusses partnerships between education, labor, government, and industry to create “pathways” for students post-high school or college, emphasizing the need for integrated curricula. She specifically asks, “How do [we] use the WEF to create this kind of integrated network so that we’re all working together” to ensure opportunities for living-wage jobs in sectors such as advanced manufacturing?

In July 2025, she announced the American Federation of Teachers’ partnership with the WEF to develop a manufacturing curriculum aimed at preparing one million young people for supply-chain roles by 2035. The “SmartStart USA” program, launched in collaboration with governors, industry leaders, and educators, focuses on industry-aligned skills, hands-on experience, and certifications. Weingarten has framed this as essential for bridging education and workforce needs, but critics argue it invites international bodies to standardize U.S. schooling, prioritizing globalism over national interests.

Weingarten’s comments are right out of the textbook for homogenized global education, reminiscent of efforts such as the controversial Common Core State Standards (CCSS), initiated in the United States in 2008. Funded heavily by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation — with more than $200 million invested — Common Core aimed to establish uniform benchmarks in math and English. It had been adopted by 45 states and the District of Columbia by 2012. Gates championed it under the pretext of ensuring “college- and career-ready” standards, arguing it would facilitate innovation and mobility. However, it insults national histories and cultural values as “parochial,” and instead fosters the “global citizen” mindset of Agenda 2030’s Sustainable Development Goal 4.7. The aim also aligns with international assessments such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).

Gates’ foundation has supported global education initiatives through the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and OECD, blatantly promoting fabricated “competency” standards in areas such as sustainability and equity. (Whatever happened to the 3 Rs?) The overarching goal was to have all students of the world learning standardized content — e.g., shared narratives on climate change or globalization — designed to erode cultural distinctions via a uniform planetary curriculum. Weingarten, who endorsed Common Core early on, shares this bias; the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) supported its implementation. Her recent WEF advocacy continues this trajectory, as seen in AFT’s “National Academy for AI Instruction” with tech giants such as Microsoft and OpenAI.

While proponents argue such standardization prepares youth for an interconnected world, the real goal is the formation of “global citizens” and the “world republic,” which Francis Bacon articulated in his book The New Atlantis in 1627. This utopian vision of a borderless, one-world government has had surprising tenacity throughout the centuries, first emerging in the Rosicrucian circles that Bacon trafficked in, then passing to the Fabian socialists of England in the 19th century, and on to the architects of the United Nations in the 20th century. H.G. Wells (himself a Fabian socialist) openly wrote about this “world republic,” and would doubtless be pleased that Randi Weingarten and the World Economic Forum are intent on realizing Bacon’s dream of a borderless, knowledge-driven technocracy. — Rebecca Terrell

Federal K-12 Programs Shift From Department of Education to Labor

An apocryphal quote, often attributed to John D. Rockefeller, goes like this: “I don’t want a nation of thinkers, I want a nation of workers.” Though there’s little evidence that Rockefeller actually said this, the maxim has taken on a life of its own due to the truth that it conveys. Critics of the educational system, as established by the Rockefeller Foundation and others more than a century ago, are sounding an alarm regarding the impulse to view schools not as educational, but as vocational — a fear that deepened recently as the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor signed interagency agreements transferring substantial administrative responsibility for federal K-12 programs to the Department of Labor.

This restructuring is part of the Trump administration’s broader plan to shrink the federal education bureaucracy. Officials describe it as efficiency-driven: reducing duplication while preparing students for “today and tomorrow’s workforce demands.”

Starting last November, the move revives a centuries-old philosophy of schooling as workforce preparation rather than intellectual cultivation. Prussia’s 19th-century system, shaped by German philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte and later expanded under German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, was explicitly designed to produce not philosophers or independent thinkers but disciplined factory workers. Obedience, punctuality, and basic skills for industry took precedence over critical thinking.

American industrialists meticulously copied this model. The Rockefeller-backed General Education Board in the early 1900s consciously imitated Prussian structures to create a reliable labor force for rapidly industrializing America.

Philosopher Bertrand Russell captured the underlying intent in his 1952 book The Impact of Science on Society:

It is to be expected that advances in physiology and psychology will give governments much more control over individual mentality…. Fichte laid it down that education should aim at destroying free will, so that, after pupils have left school, they shall be incapable … of thinking or acting otherwise than as their schoolmasters would have wished.

Futurist Alvin Toffler made a parallel observation in his 1980 book The Third Wave. He described the industrial-era school as a “factory model” whose hidden curriculum taught three essential lessons: “one in punctuality, one in obedience, and one in rote, repetitive work.” These habits mirrored assembly-line demands far more than they fostered creativity or autonomy.

Likewise, today’s Department of Labor oversight explicitly links K-12 funding to workforce pipelines. Proponents see it as pragmatic alignment with economic reality; critics warn it accelerates the transformation of public schools into training centers that prioritize compliant employees over independent thinkers. It sets into plain relief the tension that exists between two basic philosophical governance models: creating the educated populace that is necessary for a republic, or stamping out obedient workers for a Managerial State that sees America not as our home, but as a corporation, where individuals are not regarded as human beings, but as human resources.

When Thomas Jefferson was confronted by the fact that the common run of man was not of a sufficient level to provide for his own self-governance, he countered with the assertion that they would just have to be educated up to that level. He warned, “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.” — Rebecca Terrell

EU Top Court Rules Member States Must Recognize “Transgender” Individuals

The European Union’s highest court has ruled that EU member states are legally obligated to recognize the “gender identity” of gender-confused individuals rather than their biological sex.

On March 12, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) issued its ruling on a case involving a gender-confused Bulgarian individual, now living in Italy, who wished to change his birth certificate to list him as a female. Bulgaria’s courts ruled against him, but the ECJ disagreed.

In a press release, the court claimed:

In its judgment, the Court holds that EU law precludes legislation of a Member State which does not permit the amendment of the gender data in the civil status registers of one of its nationals who has exercised his or her right to move and reside freely in another Member State.

The Court emphasises first of all that, while the issue of identity documents falls within the competence of the Member States, they must exercise that competence in compliance with EU law….

Furthermore, the Court holds that EU law precludes a court from being bound by its constitutional court’s interpretation where that interpretation impedes the application of EU law as interpreted by the Court. [Emphasis in original.]

In November, the ECJ ruled that EU member states must recognize same-sex “marriages” performed in other member states. And on March 17, it ruled that a Catholic organization could not fire an employee for a religious reason. Together, these rulings illustrate how the ECJ — and, by extension, the EU — is simultaneously centralizing power in a European superstate and pushing a far-left social agenda. Americans should take heed and prevent the establishment of a regional North American Union. — Peter Rykowski

Pokémon Go Players Unknowingly Created a Massive AI Training Dataset Now Powering Delivery Robots

On March 10, mobile-app developer Niantic announced that the augmented-reality (AR) scans collected from players of Pokémon Go (and its earlier title Ingress) have helped build one of the largest real-world visual datasets assembled from consumer devices. The company says the system is built from tens of billions of posed images gathered over nearly a decade from players who voluntarily completed in-app AR scanning tasks at locations such as PokéStops and gyms.

These scans form the foundation of Niantic’s Visual Positioning System (VPS), a technology that allows software to determine its precise position by comparing a live camera view with a previously mapped three-dimensional model of the same location. VPS can supplement or replace satellite navigation in dense urban areas or places where GPS signals are unreliable.

Niantic’s geospatial technology is now being developed through a separate division, Niantic Spatial. Earlier this year the company announced a collaboration with Coco Robotics to explore using this visual localization technology in small autonomous delivery robots. In such systems, robots compare the camera images they capture while moving with Niantic’s existing database of mapped environments — such as sidewalks, storefronts, parks, and public landmarks — to determine their location and orientation.

The dataset powering this system comes from millions of player-generated scans. When participating in AR mapping tasks, players move their phone cameras around a real-world object or landmark to capture images from multiple angles and lighting conditions. Over time, the resulting collection of images allows Niantic’s software to reconstruct detailed 3D models of locations and recognize them visually from new viewpoints.

Niantic has said these contributions were gathered through optional gameplay features and disclosed within the game interface and terms of service. The company describes the result as a continuously improving “living map” of real-world spaces that can support augmented reality experiences, mapping technologies, and other spatial-computing applications.

The geospatial focus of the company reflects its origins. Niantic was originally created within Google and later spun out as an independent company by its founder John Hanke. Before leading Niantic, Hanke helped run the 3D-mapping firm Keyhole Inc., whose technology became part of Google Earth. Keyhole had earlier received venture funding from In-Q-Tel, the venture-capital arm associated with the U.S. intelligence community.

In 2025, Niantic sold its game development division — including Pokémon Go and Monster Hunter Now — to Scopely in a deal reported to be worth about $3.5 billion. Scopely is owned by Savvy Games Group, a gaming investment company backed by Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia. Niantic retained control of its mapping, spatial-computing, and artificial-intelligence initiatives following the transaction.

While players contributed the scans voluntarily through game features, critics have noted that the resulting dataset may have significant impacts beyond gaming. Niantic, for its part, says the technology is intended to support a range of applications — from improved augmented-reality experiences to navigation systems for autonomous machines operating in complex real-world environments.

Nearly a decade after its 2016 launch, Pokémon Go remains one of the largest crowdsourced mapping experiments ever conducted. And their work continues; millions of players exploring parks, city streets, and public landmarks while searching for virtual creatures are daily refining a detailed visual map of the physical world. — Rebecca Terrell

A Warning From Sweden: Don’t Lose Your Christianity

Christianity and freedom are inseparable, and if you lose one, you will lose the other, warned former Church of Sweden Pastor Helena Edlund in a recent interview with The New American senior editor Alex Newman.

Edlund, a media commentator who was run out of her clerical post for standing up for persecuted Christians, describes a sad state of affairs in Sweden. Once a model of a wonderful society, the nation is rapidly losing its identity, its liberty, and its security as Christianity is replaced by Islam brought in by mass immigration and extreme left-wing policies.

The Church of Sweden has been at the center of this process, as the leftist Social Democrat party hijacked the Lutheran institution and drove it deeper and deeper into extremism and apostasy. Today, Edlund explained, it is not even a church. And real Christians who believe the Bible and worship Jesus Christ are no longer even welcome.

There are powerful lessons for American Christians in this tragic tale. And Edlund warns that much of what occurred in Sweden is now unfolding in the United States. But it is not too late to turn the tide, she said.

Listen to this important Conversations That Matter interview at TheNewAmerican.com. — Alex Newman

Our Worst Enemy

The greatest obstacle to liberty has never been the tyrant alone. It is the tragic tendency of the people themselves to reward those who deceive them and punish those who attempt to enlighten them.

History offers a cruel irony: Those who blind and enslave the public are often praised, while those who seek to defend liberty are mocked, hated, and persecuted. A man who would rescue a people from oppression frequently finds that the very people he is trying to save will deliver him to his persecutors. This is not because the public is incapable of understanding truth, but because it is so often misled before it has the chance to examine it.

Political factions exploit this weakness relentlessly. Under the spell of party loyalty, policies are no longer judged by whether they are right or wrong, beneficial or destructive. Instead, they are judged by who proposes them. If a measure comes from “our side,” it is hailed as wisdom. If it comes from the opposition, it is condemned as treachery. In such an atmosphere, truth is treated as falsehood and falsehood is dressed up as truth.

The result is intellectual chaos. At one moment, resistance to tyranny is denounced as rebellion. At another, rebellion against lawful authority is celebrated as heroism. Scripture itself is twisted and misused to justify whatever political cause happens to be fashionable that day. In this way, sacred authority is dragged into the service of partisan passion.

Party spirit also corrupts our judgment of men. When someone joins our faction, we suddenly see him as a model of virtue and wisdom. His faults disappear; his motives are assumed to be pure. But let a man belong to the opposing party and he is instantly treated as wicked, foolish, and malicious. His actions are interpreted in the worst possible light, and every accusation against him is eagerly believed.

When political life descends to this level, reconciliation becomes nearly impossible. Each faction imagines itself righteous and the other irredeemably evil. Reason gives way to anger, disagreement becomes hatred, and public debate turns into a contest of slander and revenge.

The consequences are devastating for any republic. The most capable and virtuous citizens are often driven from public service, while the most reckless and corrupt rise to power simply because they flatter the crowd and inflame partisan passions. Rome learned this lesson too late, when ambitious demagogues manipulated popular factions until the republic collapsed into tyranny.

A free society cannot survive long under such conditions. If public life is governed by blind party loyalty rather than morality and reason, the people themselves will elevate the very men who ultimately enslave them.

Liberty requires something better: citizens willing to judge principles instead of parties, truth instead of slogans, and character instead of factional loyalty.

Only then can a republic endure. — Joe Wolverton