Conflict at home, ceasefire abroad

It's a tried-and-true method for many U.S. presidents: when things go poorly at home, seek success abroad. Donald Trump's announcement of a deal in the Middle East with a ceasefire in Gaza and the return of hostages represents a milestone breakthrough for the region and for a leader who has made no secret about his desire for a Nobel Peace Prize. But it comes against a backdrop of infighting at the U.S. Capitol, where Republicans and Democrats remain far apart on how to re-open government services that have been shuttered for more than a week – not a pretty picture domestically, even with a new day dawning overseas.

It's not unusual for Trump to take credit for accomplishments that aren't necessarily his to claim, but kudos for the Israel-Hamas deal announced this week almost certainly belongs to him. The president has, since coming into office, made stopping the war in Gaza a top priority, and this week the effort appears to have paid off. Israelis and Palestinians rejoiced on Thursday after the two sides endorsed a deal toward ending the bloodshed that has cost tens of thousands of lives in Gaza. Trump was presiding over a meeting about defeating the antifascist movement antifa and criticizing journalists at the White House when his secretary of state whispered to him that a deal was near. Trump promptly promised to travel to the Middle East for a visit. The president is not a time waster when a victory lap is in order. 

There are still many questions about what happens next after the Israeli hostages are back home and Israeli troops partially withdraw from Gaza. But what is clear is Trump and his team have notched a significant success in a conflict that seemed never ending.  

Can he apply that negotiating prowess to end the conflicts in Washington? Probably, but he hasn't shown any signs yet that he wants to. Trump has taken pains to place blame on Democrats for causing the government shutdown, just as Democrats, who control neither the House of Representatives nor the Senate, have put it squarely on the Republicans who do. So far, the public is blaming both sides for the mess, but that could change the longer it goes on, and the party in power is usually left holding the proverbial bag.

Trump has not wasted time making use of the shutdown to tackle other priorities, including advancing a crackdown on left-wing groups. Take a look at the in-depth reporting my colleagues and I did on that effort here. 

And across the Atlantic, Nobel Prize season is underway with the peace prize recipient set to be unveiled on Friday. You can bet the president will be watching closely, but his crackdown on immigration, free speech, universities, law firms and political opponents makes a win for him seem unlikely, regardless of the progress he makes toward peace in the Middle East or anywhere else around the globe.

Follow Reuters/Ipsos polling on the president's approval ratings here.

Pope Leo made an urgent plea for the world to help immigrants in a document released on Thursday that invoked one of the late Pope Francis' strongest criticisms of Trump's anti-immigration policies.  

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