New York City's struggling small businesses are dealing with one of the worst spikes in retail theft rates in recent memory. And owners aren't sure whether s' decision to roll back certain COVID restrictions will improve the situation, or make it worse.

Must Watch: Kamala Defines Biden's Speech As 'Spectacular'

On Wednesday, Kamala Harris condemned Republican criticism of Joe Biden's State of the Union address, claiming he did a spectacular job in delivering a warning to Russia and a unified message despite needing to fix his blunder mixing up Iran with Ukraine.

The President also, I thought, did a spectacular job of trying to appeal to American leaders, regardless of party affiliation, to come together in a unified way around these issues that impact people regardless who have they voted for in the last election., Harris told Good Morning America host George Stephanopoulos

Weapons-Makers Fueled NATO Expansion from 16 to 30 Members

When the Soviet Union disappeared in 1991, U.S. weapons makers saw their Cold War gravy train grind to a halt. By 1993, the big weaponeers like Boeing, Raytheon, Northrup and Lockheed stemmed the bleeding by gobbling up the smaller players, acquiring new economic muscle in a dwindling domestic market.

To keep profits booming they turned eastward, all the way to the former Soviet republics. Their brilliant scheme was to bring these nations into NATO so they could sell them endless billions in weaponry. Weapons hawkers flooded these new markets while their lobbyists flooded Congress, making defense contractors among the most prominent supporters of NATO expansion. They had plenty of help from NATO expansionists in Congress, the military and the pundit class.

Foreign Volunteer Fighters Arrive in Ukraine to Repel Russian Invasion

At least 16,000 foreign nationals have volunteered to join an international legion created to resist Russia's invasion of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed, after Kiev lifted visa requirements for anyone willing to fight.

Every friend of Ukraine who wants to join Ukraine in defending the country, please come over, Zelensky pleaded at a recent press conference, adding We will give you weapons.

Though the president offered no details on the international fighting force, including the origin of the volunteers, the request comes as Kiev appears to grow more desperate for help in pushing back Russian troops having already declared martial law and a general mobilization of its populace. Those policies include conscription for men aged 18-60 and the commandeering of civilian vehicles and structures, while Ukrainian convicts with military experience are being released from prison to back up the war effort.

Russian Invasion, US Sanctions Leave Global Trade in Tatters

Russia's attack on Ukraine and the Western sanctions that followed are having a massive impact on global trade as shipping companies are abandoning Russia, and the fighting is causing uncertainty over Russian and Ukrainian wheat exports.

According to AP, the US has only sanctioned a handful of Russia's 2,000 cargo and tanker ships, but sanctions on Russian banks mean the business of importing and exporting from Russia will take a major hit. The sanctions have already caused an exodus of Western companies from doing business in Russia.

Shipping giants Maersk and the Mediterranean Shipping Company have announced they are cutting service to Russia, and the fighting has caused hundreds of ships to be diverted from the Black Sea. Both Ukraine and Russia are major wheat exporters, and the war and sanctions threaten the food supply of some countries.

Guantanamo: US Supreme Court rules CIA black sites are state secrets

The US Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the location of a CIA black site is a state secret, shutting out efforts by a Guantanamo detainee to obtain information from two former CIA contractors involved in torturing him.