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Debt Rattle July 10 2025

Jul 102025
 
 July 10, 2025  Posted by at 9:34 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,  40 Responses »


Salvador Dali Cubist self portrait 1926

 

• US Patriot Missile Stockpile a Fraction of What Pentagon Needs (Anzalone)
• Patriots ‘Very Expensive’ – Trump (RT)
• EU Could Hand Another €100bn To Ukraine – Bloomberg (RT)
• Trump Ready To Back New Russia Sanctions Bill – Politico (RT)
• Ukraine Diplomacy ‘Exhausted’ – German Chancellor (RT)
• The West’s War On Russia Will Go Beyond Ukraine (Trenin)
• ‘Time To Go’: Orban Demands Von Der Leyen’s Departure (RT)
• How The Unelected Queen of the Union Plans To Keep Her Grip On Power (Amar)
• EU’s von der Leyen Issues Threat To China Over Russia (RT)
• European Court Rejects Le Pen’s Bid To Suspend Election Ban (RT)
• French Investigators Raid HQ of Biggest Opposition Party (RT)
• Linda Yaccarino Steps Down As CEO Of X (ZH)
• Biden’s White House Doctor Invokes 5th Amendment (ZH)
• Two Possible Fates Waiting in the Wings (Paul Craig Roberts)
• American Doctor Organizations Are Shills for Big Pharma (Paul Craig Roberts)

 

 

Bryant

Giuffre

Scott

“The cage is invisible because you were born inside it —
and they taught you to love the bars.”
– Mark Twain

 

 

 

 

The Patriot missiles, completely useless against hypersonics, are the only thing the US has, and they can’t even produce enough of them.

• US Patriot Missile Stockpile a Fraction of What Pentagon Needs (Anzalone)

The ongoing wars in the Middle East and Ukraine have depleted US stockpiles of missile interceptors. The Pentagon has just a quarter of the Patriot missiles it needs. According to the Guardian, “The United States only has about 25% of the Patriot missile interceptors it needs for all of the Pentagon’s military plans after burning through stockpiles in the Middle East in recent months, an alarming depletion that led to the Trump administration freezing the latest transfer of munitions to Ukraine.” US weapons manufacturers can only produce approximately 500 Patriot missiles per year. The US used dozens of interceptors to defend Israel from Iranian retaliatory attacks last month.

Additionally, the Pentagon engaged in its largest Patriot battle in history to repel a symbolic Iranian missile attack on the US airbase in Qatar. The US stockpile of air and missile defenses has been drained to aid Ukraine during the war with Russia. Missile interceptors are in short supply in the West. In May, Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Marco Rubio told Congress that “The Ukrainians asked for air defense systems – Patriot systems, which, frankly, we don’t have.” “In fact, if the Ukrainians asked for anything additional, they asked for air defense systems, Patriot systems, which, frankly, we do not have. But we cannot produce them fast enough. And one of the problems we face in Ukraine is that ammunition is being used up much faster than we can produce it,” Rubio emphasized.

It is unclear if Trump reversed the Pentagon order to halt some arms transfers to Ukraine, including Patriot Missiles. During Monday’s dinner with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump told reporters that he would “send some more weapons” to Ukraine. Patriot systems have been a crucial part of Ukraine’s air defenses. However, Russia has developed missiles to counter Patriot interceptors with increasing effectiveness

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“We’re gonna have to take a look” at the Ukrainian request, Trump added, noting that “it’s a shame that we have to spend so much money” on supporting Kiev.”

• Patriots ‘Very Expensive’ – Trump (RT)

US President Donald Trump has said that the Patriot air defense system, another unit of which Ukraine has reportedly asked for, is “very expensive.” He added that the request was under consideration, stopping short of revealing whether Washington would accommodate it or not. Trump has repeatedly criticized his predecessor, Joe Biden, for writing a blank check to Ukraine with respect to weapons deliveries. When asked by a reporter on Wednesday whether he was considering providing Ukraine with another Patriot unit, Trump replied that the air defense system is “very rare… [and] very expensive.” “We’re gonna have to take a look” at the Ukrainian request, Trump added, noting that “it’s a shame that we have to spend so much money” on supporting Kiev.

That same day, Germany’s n-tv media outlet quoted a spokesperson for US arms manufacturer Raytheon, which produces Patriots and accompanying missiles, as saying that it intends to ramp up monthly production of PAC2 GEM-T rockets by 150% by 2028 due to “unprecedented demand.” According to the publication, as of early 2024, around only 240 were being produced per year. Each Patriot missile is said to cost approximately $4 million. Earlier this week, Axios, citing anonymous sources, claimed that the US had promised to send more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, though the number would presumably be very limited. The report came shortly after the Pentagon announced a halt to weapons deliveries to Ukraine as part of a “capability review.”

However, on Monday, Trump appeared to go back on the military aid suspension. Commenting on the apparent reversal of the decision by the US president, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov criticized the conflicting statements coming out of Washington. Earlier this month, he suggested that the US apparently “simply cannot produce [Patriot] missiles in the necessary quantities.”

His remark seemed to be corroborated by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s assessment in late May, according to whom “we can’t make them fast enough.” Around the same time, Trump said that “Biden emptied out our whole country giving [Ukraine] weapons.” According to Germany’s Kiel Institute, the US has sent nearly $115 billion in military and financial aid to Kiev since the conflict escalated in 2022. Russia has repeatedly condemned Western arms shipments to Ukraine, arguing that they only serve to prolong the bloodshed without changing its course and increase the risk of broader escalation.

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They know about the corruption. But still another €100bn comes their way. What does that tell us?

• EU Could Hand Another €100bn To Ukraine – Bloomberg (RT)

European Union officials are weighing a proposal to provide Ukraine with another €100 billion ($117 billion) in grants and low-interest loans, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the matter. The plan involves establishing a dedicated fund within the bloc’s upcoming seven-year budget framework, the unnamed insiders told the outlet. Disbursement would begin in 2028 if the proposal is approved. The move would further shift the financial burden onto Western European taxpayers of what Moscow has condemned as a US-triggered NATO proxy war. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in April that officials in Brussels “view possible suspension of Ukraine assistance as confirmation of the EU’s strategic inviability” and are pushing for continued funding to protect their reputation.

Ukraine’s military and defense institutions have faced a string of corruption scandals during the conflict with Russia, including overpayments for rations and shady arms procurement contracts. This week, Ukrainian outlets reported that anti-corruption investigators searched a property belonging to former Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov. Reznikov resigned in 2023 following allegations of financial misconduct in his department. The proposed fund is reportedly one of several avenues under consideration, with a final decision expected by July 16 or possibly later, according to Bloomberg. The report added that last month, the European Commission briefed EU finance ministers on Kiev’s intention to increase this year’s defense spending by $8.4 billion using domestic sources.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmigal said in June that defense expenditures had risen 34% year-on-year during the first five months of 2025. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Sergey Marchenko warned in May that Kiev’s national debt is nearing $171 billion, approximately equivalent to the country’s GDP. Ukraine continues to rely heavily on external financial aid to sustain its national budget. Earlier this year, the government failed to restructure a portion of its sovereign debt issued in 2015 and declined to honor a $665 million repayment to private investors in early June. The country’s economy is also feeling the strain of a labor shortage, as millions have fled to Western nations offering them protection and social benefits. Many men of military age who remain in Ukraine have evaded conscription, which usually means avoiding formal employment and by extension, income taxes.

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“..the“bone-crushing” legislation spearheaded by hawkish Senator Lindsey Graham would impose a 500% tariff on countries buying oil, gas, uranium, and other goods from Russia.”

• Trump Ready To Back New Russia Sanctions Bill – Politico (RT)

US President Donald Trump is ready to sign a bill aimed at eliminating Russia’s trade under certain conditions, Politico reported on Wednesday, citing a senior administration official. If adopted, the “bone-crushing” legislation spearheaded by hawkish Senator Lindsey Graham would impose a 500% tariff on countries buying oil, gas, uranium, and other goods from Russia. Although the bill grants the president the power to exempt nations from the tariff for up to 180 days, Trump reportedly wants Congress to give him sole authority to decide on the sanctions. “The administration is not going to be micromanaged by the Congress on the president’s foreign policy. The bill needs a waiver authority that is complete,” an official told Politico. The source added that otherwise, “conceptually there’s an openness” to signing the legislation.

Graham said on Tuesday that the Senate would soon vote on the draft. “The Senate bill has a presidential waiver to give President Trump maximum leverage,” he wrote on X. According to The New York Times, the vote could take place as soon as this month. The push for tougher sanctions has gained momentum after Trump stepped up criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as restarted negotiations between Moscow and Kiev have so far failed to produce a ceasefire. Moscow has insisted that any lasting settlement must address the “root causes” of the conflict, including NATO’s eastward expansion and Ukraine’s aspirations to join the US-led alliance, which Russia views as a threat to its national security.

“We don’t need a pause, which the regime in Kiev and its foreign handlers would like to use to regroup their forces, continue mobilization, and strengthen their military potential,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Hungarian newspaper Magyar Nemzet on Monday. Putin has demanded that Ukraine recognize Russia’s new borders and adopt permanent neutrality with a legally limited army. Lavrov said this week that Moscow is working to arrange a third round of direct talks with Ukraine in Türkiye.

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They pretend to be ready for war, but they have no troops or weapons.

• Ukraine Diplomacy ‘Exhausted’ – German Chancellor (RT)

There are no viable diplomatic options remaining to settle the Ukraine conflict, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has claimed, doubling down on his policy of providing weapons to Kiev. Berlin has been the second largest arms supplier to Kiev since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, surpassed only by the US. Russia has consistently denounced Western weapons deliveries, saying they do not change the overall course of the conflict and merely serve to prolong the bloodshed and risk further escalation. Speaking in the German parliament on Wednesday, Merz claimed that the “means of diplomacy are exhausted” regarding the conflict, but that he would aim to prevent a Russian victory.

“We will continue to assist Ukraine, even despite the resistance from the political left and the Russia-friendly right here in the house,” the chancellor said, apparently referring to the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and the Left party. He denounced AfD co-chair Alice Weidel for not commenting on the latest Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine, which, according to Merz, was the largest since the escalation of the conflict in 2022. Last week, German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius confirmed that “intensive discussions” were taking place with Washington regarding the possibility of Berlin purchasing air defense systems and munitions from US manufacturers and handing them over to Ukraine.

In May, the Germany Defense Ministry announced that it would provide €5 billion ($5.6 billion) to “finance the production of long-range weapon systems in Ukraine.”mKremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov condemned the decision, claiming that Germany is “competing with France for primacy in further provoking war.” The same month, Kiev agreed to direct talks with Russia following pressure from US President Donald Trump, marking the first such negotiations in three years. However, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov has accused some EU member states of seeking to undermine the negotiations and prolong the conflict. Speaking last month, Ryabkov cited Merz as an example, accusing him of providing weapons to Kiev and attempting to push Trump toward a more aggressive pro-Ukraine stance.

In late May, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed that Berlin’s “direct involvement in the war is now obvious.” “Germany is sliding down the same slippery slope it already followed a couple of times in the last century – down toward its own collapse,” he warned. Around the same time, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called into question the credibility of French President Emmanuel Macron’s statements in support of the Ukraine peace process.

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“This war will be long. And the United States – with Trump or without him – will remain our adversary. The outcome will shape not just the fate of Ukraine, but the future of Russia itself.”

• The West’s War On Russia Will Go Beyond Ukraine (Trenin)

The trademark style of the current US president, Donald Trump, is verbal spectacle. His statements – brash, contradictory, sometimes theatrical – should be monitored, but not overestimated. They are not inherently favorable or hostile to Russia. And we must remember: Trump is not the ‘king’ of America. The ‘Trump revolution’ that many anticipated at the beginning of the year appears to have given way to Trump’s own evolution – a drift toward accommodation with the American establishment. In that light, it’s time to assess the interim results of our ‘special diplomatic operation’. There have now been six presidential phone calls, several rounds of talks between foreign ministers and national security aides, and sustained contact at other levels.

The most obvious positive outcome is the restoration of dialogue between Russia and the United States – a process that had been severed under the Biden administration. Crucially, this revived dialogue extends beyond Ukraine. A range of potential areas for cooperation have been mapped out, from geopolitical stability to transportation and sport. These may not carry immediate strategic weight, but they lay the groundwork for future engagement. Under Trump, the dialogue is unlikely to break off again – though its tone and pace may shift.

One visible result of this diplomacy was the resumption of talks with the Ukrainian side in Istanbul. While these negotiations currently hold little political substance – and the recent prisoner exchanges occurred independently of them – they nonetheless reaffirm a core tenet of Russian diplomacy: we are ready for a political resolution to the conflict. Still, these are technical and tactical achievements. The strategic reality remains unchanged. It was never realistic to expect Trump to offer Russia a deal on Ukraine that met our security requirements. Nor for that matter would Russia accept one that compromised its long-term security interests. Likewise, any notion that Trump would ‘deliver’ Ukraine to the Kremlin, join Moscow in undermining the EU, or push for a new Yalta agreement with Russia and China was always fantasy.

So the page has turned. What comes next? Trump will almost certainly sign the new US sanctions bill into law – but he’ll try to preserve discretion in how those measures are applied. The sanctions will add friction to global trade, but they will not derail Russian policy. On the military front, Trump will deliver the remaining aid packages approved under Biden, and perhaps supplement them with modest contributions of his own. But going forward, it will be Western Europe – especially Germany – that supplies Ukraine, often by buying US-made systems and re-exporting them.

Meanwhile, the United States will continue to furnish Kiev with battlefield intelligence – particularly for deep strikes inside Russian territory. None of this suggests the conflict will end in 2025. Nor will it end when hostilities in Ukraine eventually wind down. That’s because the fight is not fundamentally about Ukraine. What we are witnessing is an indirect war between the West and Russia – part of a much broader global confrontation. The West is fighting to preserve its dominance. And Russia, in defending itself, is asserting its sovereign right to exist on its own terms. This war will be long. And the United States – with Trump or without him – will remain our adversary. The outcome will shape not just the fate of Ukraine, but the future of Russia itself.

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“The motion needs a two-thirds majority and support from an absolute majority of the European Parliament’s 720 members to pass—a threshold observers say is unlikely to be met.”

• ‘Time To Go’: Orban Demands Von Der Leyen’s Departure (RT)

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has called for the resignation of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, posting a parody image ahead of a scheduled no confidence vote in the European Parliament. The motion, set for Thursday, targets her handling of COVID-19 vaccine procurement. On Tuesday, Orban shared an image stylized as a Time magazine cover, depicting a red background and a retreating von der Leyen under the caption “time to go.” The image was a spoof on a Biden-themed cover of the magazine from 2024 which followed the then-US president’s announcement that he would withdraw from the election campaign.

Orban has long been one of von der Leyen’s harshest critics, accusing her of undermining EU institutions and interfering in the domestic affairs of member states. He has frequently clashed with Brussels over rule-of-law disputes and sanctions policy, and has claimed the bloc’s leadership has tried to isolate Hungary politically. Within the EU, von der Leyen has faced growing criticism, particularly over her conduct during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her refusal to release private texts exchanged with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla during vaccine procurement talks has fueled ongoing controversy. A European court ruled earlier this year that her office had failed to provide a legitimate justification for withholding the messages.

Critics from both the political left and right, as well as Eurosceptic factions, have accused her of centralizing power, bypassing traditional Commission procedures and parliamentary oversight, as well as overriding national sovereignty in sensitive matters. Thursday’s no confidence vote was initiated by Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea, who cited a pattern of “institutional overreach” in von der Leyen’s conduct. The motion needs a two-thirds majority and support from an absolute majority of the European Parliament’s 720 members to pass—a threshold observers say is unlikely to be met.

In response, von der Leyen has lashed out at her opponents, labeling them “conspiracy theorists” and “anti-vaxxers” backed by Russia. Speaking at a plenary session this week, she claimed some of her critics were acting “on behalf of their puppet masters in Russia.” Moscow has repeatedly accused von der Leyen of harboring Russophobic views. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov earlier this year referred to her as “Führer Ursula” and accused her of pushing militarization across the EU while deflecting attention from pandemic-era financial mismanagement. Kremlin officials have also criticized her support for Ukraine and her role in expanding sanctions targeting Russia, calling her one of the key drivers of the EU’s confrontation with Moscow.

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“..in NATO-EU Europe, the true measure of power now is the ability to spoil whatever sorry remnants of democracy are still standing. And in spite of very tough competition, von der Leyen is the worst, most corrupting spoiler of them all.”

“..The EU’s real core function is to extinguish democracy in Europe by shifting genuine power from nation-states with some, if already meagre, popular participation in political decision-making to an unelected bureaucracy..”

• How The Unelected Queen of the Union Plans To Keep Her Grip On Power (Amar)

Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission that runs the EU is finally facing a long overdue no-confidence vote. Its chances of success, all observers agree, are very small. And yet, this is an important moment. That’s because the single most powerful politician in the EU is not, for instance, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz or French President Emmanuel Macron (notwithstanding their own delusions of grandeur), but Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the EU Commission. Because in NATO-EU Europe, the true measure of power now is the ability to spoil whatever sorry remnants of democracy are still standing. And in spite of very tough competition, von der Leyen is the worst, most corrupting spoiler of them all.

This is due to three facts. The first is structural: The EU was designed not to be a ‘democracy’ – however flawed – but one big, entrenched, and growing ‘democracy deficit’. Its purpose has never been to shaft the US, even if American President Donald Trump can’t stop whining about that. The EU’s real core function is to extinguish democracy in Europe by shifting genuine power from nation-states with some, if already meagre, popular participation in political decision-making to an unelected bureaucracy, of which the Commission is the center and top. The second fact is a matter of individual character and hence responsibility: Ursula von der Leyen is the embodiment of an insatiable lust for personal, unaccountable power. She won’t admit it, of course, but her behavior speaks volumes: Von der Leyen does not see herself as a public servant but firmly believes that it is the public that must serve her.

Think of these two factors – the structural and the individual – if you wish, as broadly similar to what happened during the rise of Joseph Stalin in the former Soviet Union: Like the EU, the post-revolutionary Communist party was built to restrict political decision-making to a small and self-selecting group of true believers. And only those confessing the correct “values” were even offered a chance to join. Like von der Leyen, Stalin managed to turn this deliberately created “democracy deficit” to his own advantage by basing his personal despotism on it. If you think that analogy is far-fetched, consider that in both cases, the rise of the Soviet despot and that of the European Commission president, real power has been concentrated in an overbearing and invasive bureaucracy that, formally, should only be an executive organ. There is a reason why, if you take one tiny step back, “general secretary” sounds rather similar to “commission president.”

And then there is the third fact that has facilitated von der Leyen’s performance as NATO-EU’s top spoiler. In this respect, she certainly does not resemble Stalin at all, but rather one of the many Eastern European satraps of Cold War Eastern Europe. Like trusty Walter Ulbricht of early East Germany or Poland’s Boleslaw Bierut who suffered a heart attack when Khruschev made Stalin the fall guy, von der Leyen is a vassal leader, just working for another outside empire. So obviously, so shamelessly that even Politico has – rightly – labeled her the EU’s “American president.” The charges that her political opponents in the EU parliament have just used to initiate the current no-confidence vote are less fundamental – while still reflecting stunning misbehavior – and more specific, as they have to be.

In essence, they target von der Leyen’s – and the whole Commission’s – scandalous handling of the Covid-19 crisis (scandalous by the way from any angle, whether you approve or disapprove of vaccines); her subsequent and illegal refusal to provide key information on what she and the CEO of big pharma company Pfizer were up to during that period in messages that were private but should not have been; waste (to say the least) in the handling of a 650 billion-euro post-Corona crisis recovery fund; the misuse of a legal loophole to boost armaments spending via the EU; and last but not least, the weaponization of digital legislation to interfere in the recent Romanian, as well as German elections.

What all these transgressions have in common is not only that they may very well be criminal. They are also all variants of the same, fundamentally simple ruse: the manipulation or even fabrication of “emergencies” that are then exploited as cover for constantly escalating abuses of power. If there is one main principle of von der Leyen’s power grab, this is it. Again, Stalin knew a thing or two about that trick.In sum, the sponsors of the no-confidence vote conclude “that the Commission led by President Ursula von der Leyen no longer commands the confidence of Parliament to uphold the principles of transparency, accountability, and good governance essential to a democratic Union.” They call on the Commission “to resign due to repeated failures to ensure transparency and to its persistent disregard for democratic oversight and the rule of law within the Union.”

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“..on Tuesday, von der Leyen accused China of “de facto enabling Russia’s war economy,” adding that the EU “cannot accept this.”

• EU’s von der Leyen Issues Threat To China Over Russia (RT)

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has warned that ties between the EU and China could further deteriorate if Beijing refuses to condemn Russia over the Ukraine conflict. Speaking at a European Parliament session in Strasbourg on Tuesday, von der Leyen accused China of “de facto enabling Russia’s war economy,” adding that the EU “cannot accept this.” “How China continues to interact with Putin’s war will be a determining factor for EU-China relations going forward,” she stated. Von der Leyen called on Beijing to “unequivocally condemn Russia’s gross violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and internationally recognized borders.” In the same address, she accused China of engaging in unfair trade practices, such as “flooding global markets with cheap, subsidized goods” in an effort to “wipe out competitors.”

Beijing has consistently denied supplying weapons or otherwise supporting Russia in its conflict with Ukraine. “China is not a party to the Ukraine issue. China’s position on the Ukraine crisis is objective and consistent, that is, negotiation, ceasefire and peace,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said earlier this month. “A prolonged Ukraine crisis serves no one’s interests. China supports a political settlement to the crisis as early as possible,” Mao added. China has also opposed “unilateral” sanctions on Russia and has offered to help mediate a ceasefire between Moscow and Kiev. In May, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Moscow, pledging to deepen the countries’ “strategic partnership” and expand bilateral trade.

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“..the existence of an imminent risk of irreparable harm to a right protected by the Convention or its protocols has not been establishe..”

• European Court Rejects Le Pen’s Bid To Suspend Election Ban (RT)

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has rejected French right-wing veteran politician Marine Le Pen’s request to suspend the five-year ban on standing in elections, including the 2027 presidential race, which stems from an embezzlement conviction. “In any event, the existence of an imminent risk of irreparable harm to a right protected by the Convention or its protocols has not been established,” the court wrote in its press release on Wednesday. In March 2025, a French judge found the former leader of the biggest opposition party National Rally (RN) guilty of misusing public funds intended to pay for assistants to the RN members of the European Parliament.

Le Pen has denied any wrongdoing and appealed the verdict, which she calls politically motivated. Le Pen ran for president in 2017 and 2022, losing both times in a runoff to President Emmanuel Macron. The National Rally is currently the third-largest party in the National Assembly. On Wednesday, police raided the RN headquarters in Paris as part of an investigation into alleged campaign finance violations and fraud. RN leader Jordan Bardella denounced the searches as an attempt to “destabilize the party and drive it into financial ruin.” US President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance have publicly voiced support for Le Pen, which the French authorities dismissed as meddling in domestic affairs.

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The European Court of Human Rights rejects her request, and the French police sweeps in. The cradle of [modern, European] democracy.

• French Investigators Raid HQ of Biggest Opposition Party (RT)

French financial investigators raided the Paris headquarters of the right-wing National Rally (RN) party on Wednesday. Its leader accused the government of conducting a campaign of harassment. The early morning search targeted documents and communications related to the party’s political campaigning, according to RN President Jordan Bardella. The party is closely associated with former presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, who was previously barred from running in the 2027 race. Bardella criticized the search as “a new harassment campaign” and a blow to democratic principles. ”This display of force has only one purpose: to provide a spectacle for news channels, to rummage through the private correspondence of the leading opposition party, to seize all our internal documents,” he wrote on X.

“Nothing to do with justice, everything to do with politics.” Wednesday’s raid came roughly three months after a French court found senior RN figures, including Le Pen, guilty of embezzling European Union funds. The ruling imposed an immediate five-year ban from seeking public office, controversially offering no delay for appeal. The party has condemned the verdict as an undemocratic attempt to sideline its co-founder and former leader from the 2027 presidential race. Le Pen narrowly lost to French President Emmanuel Macron in the 2022 runoff election. The Paris prosecutor’s office said the search was part of an investigation into loans the RN received from private individuals. The party reportedly turned to private lending after being denied traditional bank financing, according to Le Parisien.

French campaign finance laws impose strict limits on party loans, including maximum values and repayment conditions. Investigators are reportedly searching for potential violations but have not filed any charges. Christian Charpy, head of the French campaign finance watchdog CNCCFP, previously suggested that some loans may have amounted to undeclared donations. The RN has grown in prominence in recent years and now holds the largest single faction in France’s parliament. During last year’s snap elections, mainstream parties coordinated to block the anti-immigration, Euroskeptic party from securing enough seats to form a government. President Macron has had to contend with a more challenging domestic political environment since losing his legislative majority in 2022.

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“This team has worked relentlessly from groundbreaking innovations like Community Notes, and, soon, X Money to bringing the most iconic voices and content to the platform..”

• Linda Yaccarino Steps Down As CEO Of X (ZH)

Linda Yaccarino announced on Wednesday that she’s stepping down as CEO of X, offering little in the way of an explanation. “After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of X. When @elonmusk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App. I’m incredibly proud of the X team – the historic business turn around we have accomplished together has been nothing short of remarkable.

We started with the critical early work necessary to prioritize the safety of our users—especially children, and to restore advertiser confidence. This team has worked relentlessly from groundbreaking innovations like Community Notes, and, soon, X Money to bringing the most iconic voices and content to the platform. Now, the best is yet to come as X enters a new chapter with @xai. X is truly a digital town square for all voices and the world’s most powerful culture signal. We couldn’t have achieved that without the support of our users, business partners, and the most innovative team in the world. I’ll be cheering you all on as you continue to change the world. As always, I’ll see you on X.”

According to the NY Times, which had an article queued up to publish 3 minutes after her tweet – and authored by Musk-hater Mike Isaac;”Yaccarino’s exit caps a tumultuous period at X, which has been remade in Mr. Musk’s image since he bought the platform for $44 billion in 2022. Since then, Mr. Musk has shed three quarters of the company’s employees, loosened speech restrictions on the platform and wielded X as a political megaphone. Advertisers to X were at one point spooked by the changes and the social media company’s ad business declined.

In March, Mr. Musk said he had sold X, which is a privately held company, to xAI, his artificial intelligence start-up, in an unusual arrangement that showed the financial maneuvering inside his business empire. The all-stock deal valued xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, Mr. Musk said. Since then, xAI has been in talks to raise new financing that could value it at as much as $120 billion. The rest of the article essentially suggests Yaccarino’s job was partly to handle Musk, who has “frequently made her job more difficult, including using expletives to tell advertisers that he would not be changing his ways.”

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“I don’t believe that he can hide behind doctor-patient confidentiality because this is the president of the United States, and people expect the White House physician to be truthful and transparent about the president of the United States’ health.”

• Biden’s White House Doctor Invokes 5th Amendment (ZH)

After requesting to delay his testimony, Kevin O’Connor – former President Biden’s White House doctor, refused to answer questions during a deposition in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday, according to a statement from his legal counsel that cites doctor-patient privilege and constitutional rights against self-incrimination. “Earlier today, Dr. Kevin O’Connor asserted the physician-patient privilege, as well as his right under the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, in declining to answer questions from the staff of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform regarding his service as Physician to the President during the Biden Administration,” reads the statement.

“On the advice of his legal counsel, Dr. O’Connor refused to answer questions that invaded the well-established legal privilege that protects confidential matters between physicians and their patients. His assertion of his right under the Fifth Amendment to decline to answer questions, also on the advice of his lawyers, was made necessary by the unique circumstances of this deposition.” O’Connor appeared for the deposition after House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) subpoenaed him last month to compel his testimony as part of the panel’s investigation into the massive coverup of Biden’s cognitive decline – as well as whether Biden was aware of documents signed using his “autopen” signature.

“The president is the most powerful person in the world. The American people have a right to know the health condition of the president, both physical and mental,” Comer said before the interview, adding “I don’t believe that he can hide behind doctor-patient confidentiality because this is the president of the United States, and people expect the White House physician to be truthful and transparent about the president of the United States’ health.” O’Connor’s lawyers had requested a postponement over the weekend – raising concerns over doctor-patient privilege, and asserting that the committee had declined to rule out any limitations as to the scope of the deposition. ‘Biden’ has strongly denied that he was not in a right state of mind while he was president, calling the claims “ridiculous and false.’

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“In the long ago days of the 1950s, or perhaps it was the 1960s, Mad Comics produced an issue in which everything worked for humans without their participation. Then one day the system broke, and no one knew how to repair the system. They all died.”

• Two Possible Fates Waiting in the Wings (Paul Craig Roberts)

I often wonder which of two possible fates waiting in the wings will be ours. Will Washington/Israeli hegemonic ambition, together with Russian/Chinese/Iranian denial, or perhaps avoidance, of reality, destroy us in nuclear war, or will the digital revolution and its bastard child–Artificial Intelligence–lock up humanity in endless tyranny? I read idealistic accounts of AI in which we all have an AI assistant that manages our daily schedules, our health, diet, weight, and what we eat and drink, manages our investments, protects us against fraudulent bills, keeps watch over our identity and bank account, and ensures all bills are paid, all the while greatly increasing our productivity in our jobs and delivering entertainment.

The propaganda makes people feel secure and comfortable, especially really busy people and elderly people. But in fact it makes them insecure and unaware of how insecure they are. All of their information is in one place where it can be hacked or erased along with their identity by an electromagnetic pulse (EMP). Technology’s true believers see technology in an unrealistic way. It is always an improvement in human existence. But that is not true. Initially technology improved human performance, but eventually it displaces human performance as AI and robotics are doing. In the long ago days of the 1950s, or perhaps it was the 1960s, Mad Comics produced an issue in which everything worked for humans without their participation. Then one day the system broke, and no one knew how to repair the system. They all died.

Already today, education is training students not to think for themselves, not to learn how to solve math, physics, chemical, biological, and other problems, but how to ask AI to do it for them. Students now hand in assignments written for them by AI. Students no longer need to know language or how to use it to write a theme. They just give the assignment to AI. Education today amounts to learning how to use AI. But what or who is AI? AI is the ability to peruse information in a data base much faster than a human and to arrive at a conclusion faster than a human can think. The accuracy of the AI conclusion depends on the accuracy off the information supplied to AI. In other words, the outcome depends on who controls the information base.

We already live with this problem. The information base consists of the official narratives. Censorship kept truthful information about the dangers of the Covid “vaccine” and truthful accounts of “Russiagate,” Ukraine conflict, and most other events off of social media and unable to find with a Google search. If you are outside the official narratives, you are not included in the information base. AI makes Orwell’s Big Brother universal and unchallengeable. For now the official explanations are in the hands of the American Establishment and their whore media. Perhaps in order to protect their own histories, cultures, and ways of thinking, other countries will develop their own AI system in order to escape being ruled by Washington’s data base. Otherwise, Washington’s official narratives will become every country’s official narratives.

What we have at this time is indoctrination disguised by the language of neutrality and presented as truthful information. Liberal-left ideologies, such as transgender theory, the alleged racism of white ethnicities, and Jewish and black victimization are default settings. But it is worse than this. Who controls the algorithm controls the menu not only of explanations but of what events actually happened. All countries are in danger of being subsumed into Washingtons’ explanations, just as they have been left powerless by being subsumed into the SWIFT bank clearing system and the US dollar as world money. Many will accept Washington’s free ride to the obliteration of their memory of themselves.

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“Big Pharma is so accustomed to totally controlling American health policy for so long that the Big Pharma executives believe that they, not the federal health agencies, have the right to control vaccination policy.”

“The only way to fix this is to remove money from politics. This would require Congress to vote against their political campaign contributors and leave Congress without a source of election funds..”

• American Doctor Organizations Are Shills for Big Pharma (Paul Craig Roberts)

Scientific research independent of Big Pharma money has proven conclusively that the Covid “vaccines” caused enormous health injuries and deaths. One producer of the vax withdrew it from use. Data show beyond all doubt that the vax is particularly deadly for young children whose immune system it destroys and pregnant women. Faced with the overwhelming evidence about which there is no doubt whatsoever, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy removed the CDC’s recommendation of the dangerous vax for kids and pregnant women. The vax is just as dangerous for everyone, but Kennedy left the recommendation in place for everyone else as it proved impossible to buck Big Pharma except in a minor way.

Nevertheless, Big Pharma sicced its shills –the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Public Health Association and four other groups– on Kennedy with a lawsuit filed against the US government. Big Pharma is so accustomed to totally controlling American health policy for so long that the Big Pharma executives believe that they, not the federal health agencies, have the right to control vaccination policy. Big Pharma is now attempting to use the federal judiciary to institutionalize their control over American health regulations.

This is a prime example of what happens when money takes over democracy. Political decisions are made not in the public interest, but in the interests of those who provide the campaign contributions. Federal agencies become shills for interest groups. The only way to fix this is to remove money from politics. This would require Congress to vote against their political campaign contributors and leave Congress without a source of election funds. Try to imagine politicians competing by debating values and policies in front of an audience instead of slinging mud and alleging scandals.

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IVM

Flash floods


MTG

https://twitter.com/sheislaurenlee/status/1942982067815317630

Atoms

Orca

claw

Cub

 

 

Greece

 

 

Support the Automatic Earth in wartime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Debt Rattle July 6 2025

Jul 062025
 
 July 6, 2025  Posted by at 9:19 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , ,  54 Responses »


Johannes Vermeer View of Delft 1660-61

 

• Iran Moved Its Enriched Uranium Before US Strikes – Seymour Hersh (RT)
• Musk Unveils ‘America Party’ To Challenge ‘One-Party System’ (ZH)
• Putin Is ‘A Professional’ – Trump (RT)
• Bush’s, Obama’s ‘Farewell’-Style Wishes for USAID Staff (DS)
• A Very Consequential 2 Weeks for Trump’s Presidency (Zito)
• Here’s How Conservatives Can Keep the Momentum Going (Margolis)
• A Reminder of What the 4th of July Means (Victor Davis Hanson)
• Oh La La… Putin Drops Truth Bomb On Macron (SCF)
• No Weapons For Kiev Over Christian Church Persecution – US Congresswoman (RT)
• BlackRock Drops Ukraine Fund (RT)
• Slovakia Blocks New EU Russia Sanctions (RT)
• Hamas’ Has ‘Positive Response’ To Ceasefire, Pressure Mounts On Netanyahu (ZH)
• US Plans Massive Arctic Investment (RT)
• Head of Ryanair Airline Calls Ursula Von Der Leyen ‘Useless Politician’ (Sp.)
• Lights Out, Europe: The Cost of Brussels’ Energy Fantasy (Villamor)

 

 

 

 

https://twitter.com/MAGAVoice/status/1941219409860887018

Stone

RFK

Scott

 

 

 

 

“The goal of the operation was to “prevent the Iranians from building a nuclear weapon in the near term – a year or so – with the hope they would not try again,”

• Iran Moved Its Enriched Uranium Before US Strikes – Seymour Hersh (RT)

Last month’s US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities failed to hit the country’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh has claimed, citing US officials. The attack, which involved seven US B-2 ‘Spirit’ bombers carrying 30,000-pound bunker busters, was not even expected to “obliterate” the Iranian nuclear program, one of the journalist’s sources admitted. “The centrifuges may have survived and 400 pounds of 60% enriched uranium are missing,” one of the officials said, adding that the US bombs “could not be assured to penetrate the centrifuge chamber . . . too deep.”

The lack of radioactivity at the targeted Iranian nuclear sites – specifically Fordow and Isfahan – following the attack suggest that the enriched uranium stockpile had been moved ahead of time, one US official familiar with the matter said. Fordow, an underground complex built deep inside a mountain that many believed housed the stockpiles, was a particular focus of the attack.

The US officials cited by Hersh nevertheless believe that the location of the stockpile and its fate are “irrelevant” because of the serious damage the strike allegedly dealt to another Iranian nuclear site near the city of Isfahan. The goal of the operation was to “prevent the Iranians from building a nuclear weapon in the near term – a year or so – with the hope they would not try again,” a US official told Hersh. This could translate into “a couple of years of respite and uncertain future,” the official added. Following the strikes, US President Donald Trump claimed that the attack “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program. CIA Director John Ratcliffe also told lawmakers that several key sites had been completely destroyed and would take years to rebuild.

However, intercepted communications suggested that Tehran had expected a worse impact from the strikes and that the real damage was limited, the Washington Post reported. The strikes were part of a coordinated American-Israeli military campaign launched in mid-June. The Israel Defense Force bombed Iranian targets, claiming that Tehran was close to being able to build a nuclear weapon. Hersh believes that Israel was the “immediate beneficiary” of the US strike. West Jerusalem does not officially acknowledge possessing nuclear weapons. The Jewish State may still have up to 90 nuclear warheads at its disposal, according to a recent report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

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The two-party system is very well protected.

• Musk Unveils ‘America Party’ To Challenge ‘One-Party System’ (ZH)

One day after his latest poll asking his followers on X whether the USA needs a new political party, Elon Musk announced on Saturday that the “America party has formed.” “By a factor of 2 to 1, you want a new political party and you shall have it!” Musk wrote. “Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.” The announcement comes after 1,248,856 people voted ‘yes’ to whether he should “create the America Party.”

The announcement comes one day after President Donald Trump signed his signature tax and spending bill, which Musk has vehemently opposed for weeks, and which resulted in a very public falling out with Trump – whose campaign Musk spent hundreds of millions of dollars promoting. Musk also led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which found billions of dollars in waste, fraud and abuse – virtually none of which was included in Trump’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill.” While the Trump-Musk spat has simmered in recent weeks, Trump earlier this week threatened to cut off billions of dollars in subsidies to Musk’s companies.

Meanwhile, Musk foe Steve Bannon tore into the plan for a third political party – saying on his “War Room” podcast on Friday: “The foul, the buffoon. Elmo the Mook, formerly known as Elon Musk, Elmo the Mook. He’s today, in another smear, and this — only a foreigner could do this — think about it, he’s got up on, he’s got up on Twitter right now, a poll about starting an America Party, a non-American starting an America Party.” “No, brother, you’re not an American. You’re a South African and if we take enough time and prove the facts of that, you should be deported because it’s a crime of what you did — among many,” Bannon added.

Musk, meanwhile, wrote on Friday that “The fat, drunken slob called Bannon will go back to prison and this time for a long time. He has a lifetime of crime to pay for.”

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Trump, too, will have to realize the changed ‘realities on the ground”.
And Putin is far more than a professional; he truly loves his country. Just like Trump.

• Putin Is ‘A Professional’ – Trump (RT)

Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a professional” who has learned how to handle Western sanctions, but he understands that more could come if the Ukraine conflict is not settled, US President Donald Trump has said. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump confirmed that the two leaders discussed potential sanctions during Thursday’s phone call. “I would say he [Putin] is not thrilled with it, but you know, he’s been able to handle sanctions, but these are pretty biting sanctions.” The Russian president, he added, is fully aware that the US could ramp up the pressure. “You know, he’s a professional. It may be coming,” he added.

In a one-hour phone call, Putin and Trump discussed the Ukraine conflict, the volatile state of affairs in the Middle East, and Russia-US cooperation, according to Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov. Ushakov said Trump raised the issue of ending the hostilities as soon as possible, adding that while Moscow is open to finding a political solution, it will not back down from its goals, including addressing the root causes of the conflict. Later, Trump said he was “unhappy” with the lack of progress towards peace.

US lawmakers have introduced a bill that proposes a 500% tariff on imports from countries that continue to purchase Russian oil and energy products. Introduced by US Senator Lindsey Graham and backed by at least 81 senators, it also proposes extending sanctions on Russia, including its sovereign debt. Last month, Graham claimed that Trump told him “it’s time to move the bill” to a vote. At the time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Graham’s views are “well known to the whole world,” adding that “he belongs to a group of inveterate Russophobes,” and that he would have imposed new sanctions on Russia long ago if he were in charge.

“Would that have helped the [Ukraine] settlement? That is a question that those who initiate such events should ask themselves,” Peskov said. The US imposed sanctions on Russia in 2014 following the start of the Ukraine crisis. After the conflict escalated in 2022, they were drastically expanded to include financial and energy sanctions, as well as asset freezes. Russian officials have described the sanctions as “illegal,” while highlighting Russia’s economic resilience, arguing that they have strengthened domestic production.

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“..a remarkable display of bipartisan support for an agency plagued by mission creep that has been almost entirely left-wing..”

• Bush’s, Obama’s ‘Farewell’-Style Wishes for USAID Staff (DS)

Former Presidents George W. Bush’s and Barack Obama’s farewell messages to staffers of the U.S. Agency for International Development this week reinforce the perception that critics have called the “uniparty” culture in Washington. On Monday, the staff of USAID received video messages from the two former presidents, along with one from Bono, the ultraliberal Irish frontman of the rock band U2. Monday was the last day for foreign assistance programming by USAID, which Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced would be moved under the purview of the State Department. The former presidents and Bono spoke with thousands in the USAID community in a videoconference.

The messages were a remarkable display of bipartisan support for an agency plagued by mission creep that has been almost entirely left-wing. “You had a one-sided uniparty apparatus here [in the State Department and USAID] funding only one side of the political equation,” Max Primorac, who previously served as USAID’s chief operating officer, explained in an interview with “The Signal Sitdown” podcast in February.“You’ve shown the great strength of America through your work, and that is our good heart,” Bush said in his video message to the staff. The Republican ex-president then went on to praise the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which he launched in 2003.

“Is it in our interest that 25 million people who would have died now live? I think it is,” Bush concluded in an apparent dig at Rubio’s emphasis on putting American interests first in the country’s foreign aid allocation at the direction of President Donald Trump, a fellow Republican. Bush’s critique of his GOP successor’s efforts at realigning PEPFAR with its stated mission is surprising, given that under Democrat President Joe Biden, the program also began to promote abortion. PEPFAR funding had even been used to perform 21 abortions in Mozambique, despite being against U.S. law, Reuters reported in January. “Ending your presence and your programs out in the world hurts the most vulnerable, and it hurts the United States,” Obama, a Democrat, said in his statement to the staff.

“If this isn’t murder, I don’t know what is,” Bono concurred. The Irish singer then subjected the gathered staff to what appeared to be an attempt at making a song about their plight. “They called you crooks—when you were the best of us, there for the rest of us. And don’t think any less of us, when politics makes a mess of us,” he rhymed. Bono was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Biden in January. At the ceremony, he was cited as having “brought together politicians from opposing parties to create the United States PEPFAR AIDS program.” A senior State Department official told The Daily Signal in February that Rubio had identified and cut almost 5,800 awards worth about $54 billion from USAID that he said didn’t fit with the core mission of protecting American interests. The State Department has already said a reformed version of PEPFAR will continue to be supported by the federal government.

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“..often the best of the best in the military come from the heartland, from working on the shop floors to defending the country. They understand that the planes might have been made by a member of their community or even their family.”

• A Very Consequential 2 Weeks for Trump’s Presidency (Zito)

When the active-duty Air Force and Missouri Air National Guard bomber crews who attacked the Fordow uranium enrichment plant in Iran went to work on June 20, they kissed their loved ones goodbye, not knowing when or if they’d be home. That’s when their families became aware something was happening. “When those jets returned [to Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri on June 22], their families were waiting, flying American flags and shedding tears of pride and relief,” said Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The jets rejoined into a formation of four, pitching out to land right over the base—a landing Caine said was greeted by incredible cheers and tears from the families who sacrifice and serve right alongside the pilots.

“One commander told me this is a moment in the lives of our families that they will never forget,” Caine said at a press conference Thursday at the Pentagon. “That, my friends, is what America’s joint force does. We think, we develop, we train, we rehearse, we test, we evaluate every single day. And when the call comes to deliver, we do so.” It was a moment of consequence, excellence, leadership, and guts. In the past 12 days, some of the most consequential decisions in American history, those that will affect generations and leave a substantial impact on our culture, economy, and political alignment, have been made either by President Donald Trump or because of him. But they have been largely either downplayed or not fully analyzed in terms of how they all connect.

The U.S. Steel deal between the iconic American company and Nippon Steel happened because of Trump’s ability to apply pressure through negotiations that sometimes bewildered everyone involved. But they led to the literal reversal of fortune of an industry, from the additional supply industries that include mechanics, construction workers, transportation systems, such as railways, and energy. The 50% tariffs Trump announced the day he visited the U.S. Steel plant in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, were also seen by American manufacturers as a signal that Trump was committed to revitalizing American steel mills. It also signaled an overall mandate to reshore manufacturing in the country.

While much of Wall Street warned that the tariffs would cause a widespread recession, a former critic of the tariffs, Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo Global Management, did an about-face and wondered if Trump outsmarted everyone, laying out a scenario that keeps tariffs well below Trump’s most aggressive rates long enough to ease uncertainty.

That a steelworker or a welder working for a defense contractor would watch what happened to Iran’s nuclear program and feel a part of it is a nuance in American journalism that is often missed. Sen. David McCormick, R-Pa., told the Washington Examiner that it is an integrated story, both in terms of the consequences of those decisions, bolstering our economic capability and our independence. “But it’s a confidence in leadership story, too,” McCormick said. McCormick, who took office in January after winning against an entrenched Democrat few thought he could defeat, said the nuance of how intertwined moments such as these are is often missed. “These are reinforcing themes,” he said.

McCormick, who grew up in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, argues that often the best of the best in the military come from the heartland, from working on the shop floors to defending the country. They understand that the planes might have been made by a member of their community or even their family. “That is where the grit of the country lies,” McCormick said. “Of course, they see what they do as part of something bigger than self, because often people don’t understand the vitality of their profession.” McCormick, who served in the Army and was part of the 82nd Airborne Division deploying to Iraq during the Gulf War, was joined by Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., in praising Trump’s Iran airstrikes. McCormick said he talked to Trump about the historic strikes on June 22.

“I just called him and just said, ‘Man, so when I put boots on the ground myself personally 30 years ago, I never imagined we’d have this kind of terrorist threat, the risk of a nuclear weapon, and this kind of leadership and competence,’” McCormick said. The president told McCormick something profound about the people who were part of the operation. “The president said, ‘Those young people are magnificent.’ And I said, ‘You know what, Mr. President, the thing about them is, my heart swells when I see that kind of leadership with those 40 kids shooting the Patriots in Qatar,’” McCormick said of the soldiers fighting to intercept Iranian missiles that targeted the U.S. base at Al Udeid in Qatar. McCormick recalled that Trump said, “These are the best America has to offer, and every time I’ve interacted with them, that’s what I said.”

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“President Trump didn’t just listen—he acted, giving his word that his administration would enforce the law as it was intended, not as the swamp wished it would be. That commitment swung the votes.”

• Here’s How Conservatives Can Keep the Momentum Going (Margolis)

It’s not every day that conservatives have a reason to break out the confetti in Washington, but today is one of those rare, glorious moments. The One Big Beautiful Bill—President Trump’s signature legislative achievement—has finally crossed the finish line and now awaits his signature tomorrow. It’s time to celebrate with the gusto this victory deserves. For months, the OBBB wound its way through the Capitol, battered by the usual suspects: Democrat obstructionists, media naysayers, and even a handful of Republican holdouts who needed a little extra convincing. But in the end, it was the steady hand and relentless persuasion of President Trump that brought the House conservatives on board and delivered this win for the American people.

The turning point? It wasn’t a backroom deal or a last-minute concession to the left. It was a meeting at the White House, where President Trump sat down with key conservative lawmakers and laid out exactly how he would enforce the bill’s provisions. No more games from green energy companies trying to siphon off taxpayer dollars with phony construction starts. Trump promised to use the full force of the executive branch to make sure that only those who actually deliver get a dime. This wasn’t just about technical tweaks or bureaucratic fine print. Conservatives had real concerns about loopholes in the Senate’s version of the bill—especially when it came to renewable energy credits and the potential for abuse.

Conservatives pushed back, demanding real, verifiable progress before any federal money changed hands. President Trump didn’t just listen—he acted, giving his word that his administration would enforce the law as it was intended, not as the swamp wished it would be. That commitment swung the votes. Rep. Burchett called it “huge,” and he’s right. When the President of the United States looks you in the eye and promises to hold the line, it means something. That’s leadership. That’s why the OBBB passed, and that’s why conservatives are celebrating today. And let’s not forget the spectacle on the House floor. Speaker Mike Johnson, never one to miss a moment, took a well-earned victory lap, reminding the country that this wasn’t just a win for Trump or for Republicans—it was a win for America.

Meanwhile, Democrat Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries could do little more than rant and rave for hours as the conservative majority delivered a resounding rebuke to the left’s agenda. This is what happens when conservatives stand together and refuse to be bullied by the media or the establishment. The OBBB is more than just a legislative victory—it’s a sign that the conservative movement is alive, well, unified, and ready to keep winning. So yes, let’s take a moment to celebrate the passage of the OBBB—a clear, decisive victory for common sense and conservative leadership. This is what happens when Republicans stop playing defense and actually fight back. Real change can happen when we stop caving to the radical left’s hysterics and start standing on principle. And let’s be clear: this is only the beginning.

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“Supreme Court, Congress, president. Executive, legislative, judicial. All equal branches. All checking each other and balancing each other..”

• A Reminder of What the 4th of July Means (Victor Davis Hanson)

Today is the 4th of July, and I’d like to remind everybody what the 4th of July is. It’s the formal date when the Second Continental Congress—about a year and four months after the shots heard around the world, the first shots of the Revolutionary War at Lexington and Concord, were fired—the Second Continental Congress decided to formally disband the 13 colonies from Great Britain. Now, two days earlier, Richard Henry Lee of the famous Lee family—he was the first cousin of Light Horse Harry Lee, the father of Robert E. Lee—had introduced an amendment called the Lee Resolution that formally was approved and said we are divorcing ourselves from Great Britain. But two days later, John Adams and mostly Thomas Jefferson decided they needed a more holistic document that would list 23 grievances, why it was necessary. So that version of Jefferson, and to a lesser extent, Adams, became the formal Declaration of Independence. And it was ratified on July 4th.

And we all know it from our high school days, or we should. The first famous line, “When in the course of human events it becomes necessary to disband …” And then, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,” the first line of the second paragraph. So, it’s a foundational document.

And it doesn’t mean that men are God. When Jefferson wrote “that all men are created equal,” it doesn’t mean that they were equal at that time. But it gave an aspirational goal that, if you think about it, would put the Founders out of business, so to speak. Because if all men are created equal and you create this wonderful place, and you don’t have a blood and soil argument that only the people who were here and related to the Founders by race and ethnicity are Americans, but all men are equal, people will flock to the United States. And they might not look like the original Founders. But they would represent the original Founders. They would be the same type of people by ideas and values.

And so the idea of America was really established with the 4th of July. And we’re going to have the 250th anniversary a year from now that will celebrate the 250 years of the United States of America. Today, it’s the 249th anniversary of the 4th of July. This is not the Constitution that will be ratified in 1787 and will formally establish the government. Fourth of July declares that the 13 colonies who have been at war with Great Britain for about 14 or 15 months, and are operating on what we will call the Articles of Confederation, will then free themselves at the Battle of Yorktown. And then they will have a new type of government, which we now call the U.S. Constitution.

There’s a couple of other things to remember on the 4th of July. The British have a very different idea than we do when they look at the 23 grievances. They said, “Wow, you guys have it pretty easy. We’ve been as nice to you, or better, than the people in Canada. And we have all these Commonwealths and they’re not revolting.” And if you want to look at an interesting document, read “The Great Historian.” A good friend of mine, Andrew Roberts, has addressed all 23 grievances from the British point of view and said, “Ah, that was nothing. Oh, they were crybabies. You shouldn’t have done it.”

It was an interesting argument. But it has a phenomenal effect on history because if you look at Canada, if you look at New Zealand, if you look at the former South Africa, if you look at any of the British commonwealths, or for that matter, any country in Europe, they follow a parliamentary system. But the Founders who created the United States—and through this Revolutionary War learned about what was wrong with the British and what were the alternatives for consensual government, came up with this tripartite based on Montesquieu and the separation of powers. It goes back to the Spartan and Cretan constitution, antiquity. They came up with a unique government of checks and balances—Supreme Court, Congress, president. Executive, legislative, judicial. All equal branches. All checking each other and balancing each other, based on a system of federalism, that each state would have the right to be autonomous and free, as long as it did not contradict or conflict with the laws of the union itself. And they solve that problem of the Articles of Confederation.

And this system, 249 years ago, whether it persevered—I don’t know how it persevered in the Revolutionary War. The Americans didn’t have a lot of assets. The French helped a great deal. But then we had the War of 1812. The War of 1848. And of course, the American Civil War, where 700,000 Americans died trying to abolish slavery, and some trying to perpetuate it. And then, of course, we had the Spanish-American War. And then World War I, where 117,000 Americans died. Two million of them went across the Atlantic Ocean to save France and Britain from German precisionism or German autocracy.

And yet, less than 22 years later, the United States would be in another world war, and we would lose about 420,000. And then the Korean War, 1950 to 1953—35,000. Fifty-six thousand in Vietnam. So, it’s very valuable on this date, to realize that from time to time, from generation to generation, thousands of Americans have fought to protect the ideas of the American Revolution and the United States itself. And on this July 4th, we need to give them a due. And remember what they did, who they were, and why they did it.

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“Russia will end the conflict that Macron and other NATO powers started illegally, and the ending of it will be on Russia’s terms.”

“When discussing the situation surrounding Ukraine, Vladimir Putin reiterated that the conflict was a direct consequence of the policies pursued by the Western countries, which had for years been ignoring Russia’s security interests, creating an anti-Russia staging ground in the country..”

• Oh La La… Putin Drops Truth Bomb On Macron (SCF)

NATO started the conflict in Ukraine, but Russia will end it on its terms, Russian President Vladimir Putin told his French counterpart this week in a wake-up call. It’s always refreshing and necessary to bring reality into a conversation, assuming, of course, that the purpose of the dialogue is genuinely to resolve a problem. France’s Emmanuel Macron requested the phone call with Putin this week. It was the first time the two leaders had spoken in nearly three years. The long absence was due to Moscow claiming that Macron breached diplomatic protocol after the last phone call in 2022 by leaking details to the media. In any case, Putin showed magnanimity and a willingness to engage diplomatically by taking the call this week from Macron. The two leaders talked for over two hours.

Apart from Ukraine, another topic discussed was the outbreak of war between Israel and Iran, and the U.S. bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites. Macron agreed with Putin that Iran has the right to pursue civilian nuclear energy production, and both appealed for diplomacy to prevent escalation, according to the Kremlin’s statement on the phone conversation. Critics might note, however, that France, Britain, Germany, and the other European states have played a double game with Iran, undermining Iran’s legitimate rights under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and giving political cover for the unlawful Israeli and US aggression against Tehran. Therefore, Macron’s concern for peace in the Middle East sounds hollow, if not hypocritical.

The Ukraine conflict was also discussed. But here, there was no pretense of diplomatic accord. Macron urged Putin to “call a ceasefire as soon as possible” and to proceed with peace talks, said the Elysee Palace, as reported by French media. For his part, Putin rebuffed the trite talk. He reminded Macron of some necessary reality.

According to the Kremlin’s statement: “When discussing the situation surrounding Ukraine, Vladimir Putin reiterated that the conflict was a direct consequence of the policies pursued by the Western countries, which had for years been ignoring Russia’s security interests, creating an anti-Russia staging ground in the country, and condoning violations of rights of Ukraine’s Russian-speaking citizens, and at present were pursuing a policy of prolonging hostilities by supplying the Kiev regime with a variety of modern weaponry. Speaking about the prospects of a peaceful settlement, the president of Russia has confirmed Moscow’s stance on possible agreements: they are to be comprehensive and long-term, provide for the elimination of the root causes of the Ukraine crisis, and be based on the new territorial realities.”

In other words, Russia will end the conflict that Macron and other NATO powers started illegally, and the ending of it will be on Russia’s terms. Who does Macron think he is? Telling Russia to call a ceasefire as soon as possible? Earlier this year, in March, Macron gave a televised nationwide address declaring Russia to be an existential threat to Europe. He even made the madcap suggestion of France using its nuclear weapons to protect all of Europe. Such crazed talk by Macron is irresponsible and reprehensible. Macron, along with Britain’s Starmer and Germany’s Merz, are prolonging the more-than-three-year war in Ukraine by pledging more military aid to the NeoNazi Kiev regime.

That regime owes its existence to an illegal coup d’état that the Americans and Europeans orchestrated in 2014. The ongoing conflict, which has slaughtered more than one million Ukrainian soldiers and burdened Europe with huge immigration costs, is the responsibility of Macron and other NATO states. They are the instigators, not Russia. If Macron genuinely wants peace in Ukraine, there is a straightforward solution. Stop arming the NeoNazi regime and stop telling lies about “defending democracy in Ukraine” from alleged “Russian aggression.” Macron and his gang of NATO war criminals could end the bloodshed promptly if they dropped the evil charade.

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Replacing a 1,000-year old church with a newly invented one is an idea that always backfires.

• No Weapons For Kiev Over Christian Church Persecution – US Congresswoman (RT)

Kiev’s persecution of the country’s largest Christian church is reason enough for Washington to halt military assistance to Ukraine, US Representative Anna Paulina Luna has said, pledging to personally oppose any future weapons shipments. The Florida Republican accused Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky of banning the Orthodox Church in a post on X on Friday, apparently referring to ongoing actions against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) – the largest religious organization in the country. “I can promise there will be no weapons funding for you,” wrote Luna, who serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “We are not your piggy bank,” she added, calling on Zelensky to “negotiate for peace” instead.

Kiev has accused the UOC of maintaining ties with Moscow to justify its crackdown, even though the church declared its independence from the Russian Orthodox Church in May 2022. Responding to criticism in the comments under her post, Luna added, “The Ukraine bots are big mad about this one.” “All of a sudden these pro-war shills are religion experts and also telepathic, as they are CERTAIN not one Christian went to those churches to worship God. Imagine if we did that in the States. Hypocrites,” she said. According to Ukraine Oversight, an official US government portal tracking aid disbursements, Washington allocated a total of $182.8 billion in assistance to Ukraine between 2022 and the end of 2024.

In May, President Donald Trump expressed concern over what he described as billions of dollars being wasted on Ukraine aid. He said Congress was “very upset about it” and that lawmakers were demanding answers about how the money was being spent. Earlier this week, the Pentagon reportedly halted shipments of certain weapons and ammunition to Ukraine, citing the need to review remaining stockpiles as part of Trump’s ‘America First’ policy. Kiev’s persecution of the canonical Orthodox Church has received limited attention from US politicians and public figures. In late May, American journalist Tucker Carlson raised the issue in an interview with former Ukrainian MP Vadim Novinsky.

“I think very few Americans understand the degree to which the Ukrainian government under Zelensky has persecuted the Ukrainian Orthodox Church,” Carlson said during the broadcast. Years of state pressure on the church have included the arrests of clergymen and raids on monasteries, including a high-profile incident at the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, where religious relics are kept. Last year, Zelensky signed legislation allowing the government to ban religious organizations deemed affiliated with so-called “aggressor” states, effectively targeting the UOC. Earlier this week, he also stripped the church’s senior bishop, Metropolitan Onufry, of his citizenship, citing his previously acquired Russian passport.

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“The Trump administration “was a notable absence from the fund’s backers in December..”

• BlackRock Drops Ukraine Fund (RT)

US investment holding BlackRock stopped its search for investors to back a multi-billion dollar fund for rebuilding Ukraine earlier this year, Bloomberg has reported. Interest reportedly dropped after President Donald Trump retook the White House. The fund was set to be unveiled at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome next week. It had been close to securing backing from firms supported by the governments of Germany, Italy, and Poland, the outlet wrote on Saturday, citing anonymous sources. Nevertheless, BlackRock reportedly decided to shelve the talks early this year “due to a lack of interest amid increased uncertainty over Ukraine’s future,” after the US changed its stance towards Kiev under the current administration.

Trump has long promised to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict and has sought avenues to reach a peace deal. He has also pushed European NATO allies to take over the burden of militarily supporting Ukraine. Earlier this week, Washington reportedly froze critical arms deliveries to Kiev to focus on replenishing its own stockpiles, although the US president has insisted some military aid still continues.The Trump administration “was a notable absence from the fund’s backers in December,” Bloomberg added. In March of last year, BlackRock vice chairman Philipp Hildebrand indicated that the Ukraine Development Fund was on track to secure at least $2.5 billion from private investors, countries and other grant lenders. A consortium of such investors could finance at least $15 billion towards reconstruction work in Ukraine, he said.

However, a BlackRock spokesperson indicated that the firm is no longer engaged in “any active mandate” with Kiev, having finished its pro-bono consulting work with the Ukraine Development Fund last year, Bloomberg wrote. The investment firm, which controls roughly $11.6 trillion in assets, owns substantial shares in military-industrial giants such as Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman, among many others. Armaments produced by these firms, which are supplied to Kiev by its Western backers, have seen extensive use in the conflict. Moscow has repeatedly condemned foreign arms supplies to Kiev, arguing that they make pro-Ukrainian Western nations party to the conflict, which Russia views as a NATO proxy war. The Kremlin has stated that the recent freeze in US military aid to Kiev will accelerate settlement of the conflict.

Read more …

Every single day, the EU fights rebel countries.

• Slovakia Blocks New EU Russia Sanctions (RT)

Slovakia has blocked the EU’s 18th round of sanctions targeting Russia for the second time due to concerns about the planned phase-out of Russian energy, Slovak media has reported, citing the Foreign Ministry. According to TASR news agency, Bratislava vetoed the package on Friday during a vote by the EU’s Committee of Permanent Representatives. The ministry said Slovakia will continue to oppose the package until it receives firm guarantees from Brussels that the phase-out will not harm its economy. The dispute centers on the European Commission’s RePowerEU plan, which aims to eliminate Russian energy imports by 2028. The plan is being discussed alongside the new sanctions package targeting Russia’s energy and financial sectors. While Brussels reportedly plans to present the phase-out as trade legislation – requiring only a qualified majority – Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico insists it should be treated as sanctions, requiring unanimous approval.

The Foreign Ministry said the Slovak authorities, energy companies, and industry leaders consider the phase-out “a major challenge for the competitiveness of the economy, especially from the perspective of energy prices and energy security.” It added that while Bratislava is open to further talks, the current negotiations have not addressed its “fundamental concerns and reservations.” It stressed the need for a plan that “benefits citizens and businesses.” A group of European Commission experts reportedly arrived in Slovakia this week for talks on energy. Fico previously warned that the phase-out would jeopardize energy security and raise prices. He also cited the risk of arbitration with Russia’s Gazprom if Slovakia breaks its long-term contract, which could cost up to €20 billion ($23 billion) in penalties.

Hungary also opposes the plan. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Budapest and Bratislava jointly blocked the package at last week’s foreign ministers’ meeting, warning that the energy cuts would “destroy Hungary’s energy security” and cause sharp price hikes. The European Commission unveiled its 18th sanctions package in early June, framing it as an attempt to pressure Russia to end the Ukraine conflict. The proposed measures include lowering the Russian oil price cap from $60 to $45 per barrel, banning the future use of the Nord Stream pipeline, restricting imports of refined products made from Russian crude, and sanctioning 77 vessels which the West claims are part of a so-called Russian ‘shadow fleet’. The bloc also extended existing sanctions for another six months earlier this week.

Moscow has condemned the sanctions, calling them illegal and counterproductive. Russian officials warned that the EU’s rejection of Russian energy will force it to rely on costlier imports or rerouted Russian energy via intermediaries, driving up prices.

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Israel’s idea of a ceasefire: “‘This is the time to finish the job, reach a comprehensive deal and ensure full Israeli victory.'”

• Hamas’ Has ‘Positive Response’ To Ceasefire, Pressure Mounts On Netanyahu (ZH)

Hamas announced on Friday that it had delivered a “positive” response to the latest US-backed ceasefire and hostage release proposal for Gaza, stating it was ready to begin proximity talks with Israel “immediately” to resolve outstanding issues. But just like with prior instances of being near the “goal line” – a phrase often heard during the Biden administration – Hamas has put forth several key conditions which could prove serious obstacles toward finalizing a deal. Still, global media is saying this is the closest the warring parties have been to reaching an agreement in a long time. Israeli media, citing one mediation source, has said that one of Hamas’s main demands is clearer assurances about what happens if negotiations on a permanent ceasefire are not concluded by the end of the proposed 60-day truce.

The militant group’s official statement said, “The movement has delivered its response to the brotherly mediators, which was characterized by a positive spirit.” “Hamas is fully prepared, with all seriousness, to immediately enter a new round of negotiations on the mechanism for implementing this framework,” it added. The current draft presented to Hamas says the ceasefire could be extended as long as both sides are negotiating in good faith, but Hamas reportedly wants that clause removed, fearing it gives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an opening to resume military action. This is precisely what ensued in March when a previous deal unraveled. Instead, Hamas is pushing for language that guarantees negotiations on a permanent ceasefire will continue until a final agreement is reached, and this is something which Israel has resisted.

Meanwhile, pressure on Netanyahu continues to grow domestically, as The Times of Israel details: “Tens of thousands of Israelis are set to join hostage families at mass rallies on Saturday night to urge the government to reach a deal that will free all the remaining captives held in Gaza after Israel and Hamas accepted the outlines of a US truce deal. The rallies will be held as the security cabinet gathers to discuss Hamas’s response to the emerging ceasefire-hostage deal, ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to the White House on Monday. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum demanded a comprehensive deal to end the war and release the remaining 50 hostages, at least 28 of whom are dead, even as Israeli officials are reportedly working to see which living hostages to prioritize in the partial, phased release under discussion.”

Prior statements of Israeli leaders have presented a grim outlook, with the possibility that less than twenty captives taken on Oct.7, 2023 might still be alive. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in its official statement, “Amid reports of a partial deal, and the prime minister’s trip to the United States, hostage families invite Israelis of all stripes to come to Hostages Square and join them in a clear call: ‘This is the time to finish the job, reach a comprehensive deal and ensure full Israeli victory.'”

Read more …

Icebreakers “R” Us.

• US Plans Massive Arctic Investment (RT)

The US plans to invest billions in expanding its icebreaker fleet for which funding was included in President Donald Trump’s budget bill approved by Congress on Thursday. Trump previously admitted that the US lags behind Russia, which has the world’s largest and most advanced fleet of ice-capable vessels. Washington has of late sought to increase its influence in the Arctic. Vice President J.D. Vance stated in March that the government needs to “ensure that America is leading” in the region due to the presence of Russia and China. Trump’s so-called ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ includes funding through 2029 for ice-capable vessels.

The US Coast Guard will receive nearly $25 billion to buy 16 new icebreakers and ten light and medium icebreaking cutters, among other equipment, according to Senator Dan Sullivan from Alaska. Sullivan described the allocation as the largest investment in Coast Guard history and a “game-changer.” The US currently operates only two functional polar-class icebreakers, whereas Russia maintains a fleet of over 50, including several nuclear-powered ships. In 2022, NATO countries had 47 icebreakers in total. Eight countries have territory that extends into the Arctic: Russia, the US, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden – all but Russia are NATO members.

Trump has also revived his interest in Greenland, the vast resource-rich Arctic territory governed by Denmark. He has refused to rule out acquiring the island by force. As warming temperatures make the Arctic more accessible, the region’s potential for resource exploitation and emerging shipping lanes has drawn heightened attention from global powers. The largest portion of the Arctic region lies within Russian territory. In March, President Vladimir Putin called the Arctic a zone of “enormous potential” for trade and development but warned that geopolitical rivalry was intensifying.

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“The plans of more than 500,000 people have been disrupted because of the strike in France, which involved 272 employees of the industry..”

• Head of Ryanair Airline Calls Ursula Von Der Leyen ‘Useless Politician’ (Sp.)

Ryanair said on Thursday that it was forced to cancel 170 flights, disrupting over 30,000 passengers, due to the French unions’ strike on Thursday and Friday. Ryanair’s chief executive officer Michael O’Leary told Politico on Friday that he had to cancel “400 flights and 70,000 passengers” and that “360, or 90 percent of those flights, would operate if the Commission protected the overflights as Spain, Italy and Greece do during air traffic control strikes.” Several airlines have accused France of failing to protect airlines during the protest action, while O’Leary criticized European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Almost 1,000 flights were canceled in France on Friday: half at Nice airport, 40 percent at Paris airports, and 30 percent at airports in Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Ajaccio, Bastia, Calvi and Figari due to the air traffic controllers’ strike. On Thursday, 933 flights were cancelled. “Ursula von der Leyen, being the useless politician that she is, would rather sit in her office in Brussels, pontificating about Palestine or US trade agreements or anything else. Anything but take any effective action to protect the flights of holidaymakers,” O’Leary said.

The plans of more than 500,000 people have been disrupted because of the strike in France, which involved 272 employees of the industry, Minister of Transport Philippe Tabarot said on Friday. Tabarot said on Thursday that losses related to the strike for airlines, including the country’s main carrier Air France, could amount to millions of euros. Last week, two French air traffic controllers’ unions, USAC-CGT and UNSA-ICNA, representing over 30 percent of the industry’s employees, called for protest action on July 3-4, demanding better working conditions, an end to structural staff shortages, failed technical projects and “toxic management.” The strike came as the French were preparing to go on summer school holidays.

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“What was marketed as a smooth transition toward renewable energy has turned into a forced green agenda, with no viable alternatives and little regard for its impact on competitiveness, system stability, or citizens’ well-being.”

• Lights Out, Europe: The Cost of Brussels’ Energy Fantasy (Villamor)

Spain’s leading energy companies—Iberdrola, Endesa, and EDP—remain stunned. After the nationwide blackout that cut power across Spain on April 28, the government has yet to provide a clear explanation or take technical responsibility. The companies, represented by the employers’ association Aelec, have denounced “surprising omissions” in the official investigation. They demand that the extreme voltage spikes recorded in the days leading up to the collapse be included in the analysis. They have criticized the preliminary report from ENTSO-E—the European network of electricity operators—for claiming that “the system was operating normally” just seconds before the failure. Meanwhile, severe voltage swings were recorded, going beyond safety limits and triggering automatic shutdowns of high-voltage substations and key refineries.

This episode is far more than an isolated incident. It is a metaphor for the erratic direction taken by the European Union’s energy policy. In the name of climate change, Brussels has embarked on a radical overhaul of its energy model driven not by technical or economic realities, but by an ideological agenda imposed by political and bureaucratic elites. What was marketed as a smooth transition toward renewable energy has turned into a forced green agenda, with no viable alternatives and little regard for its impact on competitiveness, system stability, or citizens’ well-being.

At the root of this drift lies the REPowerEU plan, launched after the start of the war in Ukraine with the stated aim of “fully decoupling” Europe from Russian energy. What initially appeared to be a justified geostrategic measure quickly became, in the hands of the European Commission, a pretext to push through renewable energies at any cost. This led to a rushed and uneven transition, with citizens and businesses footing the bill. This leap into the void has destabilized key sectors such as agriculture, transport, and industry, forcing them to absorb rising costs without receiving real technological upgrades. Countries like Germany, which shut down their nuclear plants out of political conviction, have now had to reopen coal-fired stations in a contradictory reversal.

Meanwhile, state propaganda continues to promote green energy self-sufficiency, while households face record electricity bills and companies lose competitiveness. The structural failures of the European power grid are becoming increasingly evident. The continental grid was designed for stable and predictable hydro, gas, and nuclear sources. The mass introduction of intermittent sources like wind and solar makes imbalances difficult to manage: without wind or sun, generation collapses; with too much, the grid becomes dangerously overloaded.

On April 28th, the Iberian Peninsula experienced those consequences firsthand. Abnormal voltage levels were detected in several substations throughout the morning. To grasp the gravity: a “voltage oscillation” involves a sudden and significant fluctuation in the grid’s voltage, which can damage equipment, trigger automatic disconnections, or, in extreme cases, cause a total blackout. At the Lancha substation, voltage reached nearly 250 kV on a line rated for 220. Another line, rated at 400 kV, surpassed 470 kV just before the collapse. According to Aelec, these anomalies began as early as 10:00 a.m. While a sudden drop of 2,200 MW in generation has been cited as the trigger, the system is theoretically built to withstand a loss of up to 3,000 MW without shutting down. This was not a coincidental failure—it was a built-in weakness.

Beyond technical and political issues, the forced energy transition takes a human toll. European households are paying more for electricity, hitting middle- and lower-income families especially hard. Electrification of transport, promoted without adequate foresight, is raising the cost of mobility due to a lack of reliable charging infrastructure. Farmers and truckers, already squeezed by unmanageable climate regulations, face growing expenses while being pressured to make investments they cannot afford. Moreover, blackouts are no minor issue: their impact ranges from multimillion-euro industrial losses to the paralysis of hospitals, schools, and transport networks. In Spain, the outage even cost five people their lives. An energy model that cannot ensure a steady supply threatens the economy and public safety.

Read more …

 

 

 

 

Fish
https://twitter.com/IndianaGPA/status/1941261367207657862

Jeep

Eagle

School
https://twitter.com/Hoang_HQ/status/1941183156998242700

Octo
https://twitter.com/wmhuo168/status/1941351218544246839

Eve

 

 

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Debt Rattle July 2 2025

Jul 022025
 
 July 2, 2025  Posted by at 8:25 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,  32 Responses »


Pablo Picasso Woman with blue collar (Portrait d’Inez) 1941

 

• Senate Passes the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’-With 3 GOP Defections (Margolis)
• Trump Says DOGE Should Investigate Musk (RT)
• Trump Vs. Musk: “Big, Beautiful Bill” Feud Sparks Overnight Firestorm (ZH)
• Media Forced To Admit Trump’s Tariffs Are Working As Revenues Spike (ZH)
• Pentagon Halts Weapons Supplies To Kiev Over Depleting Stockpiles (RT)
• ‘Catastrophic’ Budget Increase Will Destroy NATO – Lavrov (RT)
• Putin and Macron Talk For First Time In Three Years – Kremlin (RT)
• Italy Could Classify $13.5 Billion Bridge As NATO Spending – Poltico (RT)
• 1 in 5 Illegal Migrants Now Simply Flying Into Germany (RMX)
• Poland Reintroduces Immigration Controls (RT)
• President Trump’s Plan for the Middle East (Paul Craig Roberts)
• Trump Says Israel Agrees To 60-Day Gaza Ceasefire, Urges Hamas To Accept (ZH)
• Syria Could Drop Demand That Israel Return The Golan Heights (RT)
• AI Is The Only Thing Keeping The World From Total Stagnation – Peter Thiel (Flor)
• Kennedy Labels US Democrats ‘War Party’ (RT)
• RFK Jr. Unloads Disturbing Vaccine Secrets On Tucker (VF)

 

 

https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1940120314744070596

Miller census
https://twitter.com/nicksortor/status/1939702115515191304

RFK

j6

Candace

Fraud

 

 

Ritter’s Rant 017: The Blame Game

 

 

 

 

“We’re just extending current tax policy,” he said. “We are preventing a $4 trillion tax increase on the American people. When you vote against this, that’s who you’d be voting for.”

• Senate Passes the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’-With 3 GOP Defections (Margolis)

After days of gridlock and backroom wrangling, the Senate today passed the “One Big, Beautiful Bill,’ the legislative linchpin of President Trump’s second-term agenda. The tally was 51 yeas and 50 nays, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tiebreaking vote. The Senate was locked in a “vote-a-rama”—a procedural endurance test where senators burn the midnight oil, lobbing amendment after amendment in a desperate bid to tweak, torpedo, or salvage the bill. With a razor-thin majority, Republicans could not afford more than three defections, which is why Vice President JD Vance was summoned to the Capitol to cast the tie-breaking vote. Vance has already played this role before, and it’s clear the White House was counting on him to drag this bill across the finish line.

The real drama, however, wasn’t coming from Democrats—they were united in opposition, as always—but from within the GOP ranks. Senators like Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins became the focal points of intense lobbying, their votes courted with a mix of sweeteners and veiled threats. In the end, Murkowski voted for the bill; Collins voted against it, along with Sens. Thom Tillis and Rand Paul. Naturally, Democrats were panicking, posting apocalyptic predictions on social media. On Monday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune blasted Democrats for what he called a “mind-blowing” display of hypocrisy over the national debt, accusing them of pretending to care about fiscal responsibility now that Republicans are in charge.

“It is rich to hear Democrats all of a sudden concerned about debt and deficits,” Thune said on the Senate floor, as lawmakers debated President Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill.” “Really? I mean, I’ve been here a long time, and I’ve not been involved in a single spending debate in which Republicans [weren’t] trying to spend less and Democrats [weren’t] trying to spend more—except when it comes to national security. Democrats are always willing to cut defense, but never want to cut anywhere else.” Thune reminded the chamber that Democrats had full control of Congress and the White House just a few years ago and used reconciliation not to cut deficits, but to push through massive spending packages.

“One of the bills cost $2 trillion. The other cost $1 trillion. And it was all spending,” he said. “That’s the fundamental difference between us. Democrats like government—and when you send money to Washington, money is power.” Thune contrasted that with the GOP’s effort to stop a looming tax hike. “We’re just extending current tax policy,” he said. “We are preventing a $4 trillion tax increase on the American people. When you vote against this, that’s who you’d be voting for.” The bill now heads to the House.

Massie

Read more …

Has he offered to repay the $400 million Musk paid into his campaign?

• Trump Says DOGE Should Investigate Musk (RT)

US President Donald Trump has suggested that Elon Musk should be investigated by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which the tech billionaire formerly headed, for allegedly benefiting excessively from government subsidies. Musk, a former ally of Trump, stepped down as the head of DOGE last month amid disagreements with the president over his so-called “big, beautiful” budget bill, which includes a $5 trillion debt ceiling increase. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has repeatedly criticized the legislation, saying it undermined his work with DOGE to cut federal spending. The tech billionaire attacked the bill and its supporters again on Tuesday as the US Senate began voting on the amendments to Trump’s 940-page proposal.

“Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame,” Musk wrote on X. “And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth,” he warned. The entrepreneur also reiterated his call for a new “America Party” to be formed to serve as “an alternative to the Democrat-Republican uniparty so that the people actually have a VOICE.” Trump, who claims that the actual reason for Musk’s anger was not the “big, beautiful bill,” but his plans to roll back the government’s electric vehicle (EV) subsidies, fired back at the Tesla and SpaceX CEO shortly afterwards in a post on his Truth Social platform.

“Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa,” he wrote. Without the assistance from the government to Musk’s companies, there would be “no more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!” Trump insisted. “Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one,” Trump added.

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“As for Trump’s threat about “no more rocket launches, satellites” — referring to Musk’s company SpaceX — good luck following through on that. SpaceX is the reason the U.S. is leading the global space race..”

• Trump Vs. Musk: “Big, Beautiful Bill” Feud Sparks Overnight Firestorm (ZH)

Update (0800 ET):President Trump on Elon Musk this morning:
TRUMP: MUSK IS UPSET HE LOST THE EV MANDATE BUT ‘HE COULD LOSE A LOT MORE THAN THAT’
TRUMP, ASKED ABOUT DEPORTING MUSK, SAYS HAVE TO TAKE A LOOK

* * *
Tesla shares slid in premarket trading in New York following a late-night clash between CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump. The feud played out across their respective social media platforms. “Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for president, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one. Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The president continued, “No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!” The Truth Social post came after Musk slammed Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” on X ahead of the final vote, vowing to launch a new political party, claiming that Republicans and Democrats are merely a ‘uniparty’ operating with a limitless taxpayer-funded credit card.

Tesla has long benefited from the $7,500 EV tax credit, which the BBB plan aims to eliminate. While this move has been widely anticipated, it could ultimately work in Tesla’s favor, hitting rivals like Rivian, Lucid, and legacy automakers far harder, as many still rely heavily on such subsidies to stay afloat. Tesla shares are down 4% in premarket trading, currently hovering around $303 per share. On the year, shares are down 21%, as of Monday’s close. As for Trump’s threat about “no more rocket launches, satellites” — referring to Musk’s company SpaceX — good luck following through on that. SpaceX is the reason the U.S. is leading the global space race.

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“If they buy more from US sources or countries not on the list, then their costs will remain low. If they don’t, then they must shift the costs in other ways.”

• Media Forced To Admit Trump’s Tariffs Are Working As Revenues Spike (ZH)

The debate is raging this week over increased government spending and the potential raising of the debt ceiling by $5 trillion, with many fiscal conservatives splitting with the GOP and the Trump Administration over what they feel is a betrayal of their campaign promises to reduce government waste. Trump argues that all the elements included in his “big beautiful bill” are necessary in order to revitalize the US economy and break from the interdependency of the current globalist model. Can the dollar continue to absorb the pressure of ever increasing debt obligations? Is there a way to cut the debt without cutting spending? At least one aspect of Trump’s fiscal plan is showing success in this area despite the warnings of critics; the establishment media has been forced to admit that the administration’s tariff efforts are actually working.

The US has collected over $121 billion in revenues from tariffs on imported goods, and despite claims that tariffs are a “tax on the consumer”, prices on the shelf have not risen so far. Opponents of the policy are struggling to explain the data. Some still argue that disaster is right around the corner while others are acknowledging that there is a potential to pay off US debt over time if the import duties remain in place for the long term. Misconceptions about tariffs lead the public to believe that they are a tax on foreign producers or governments, but tariffs are in fact taxes on companies sourcing products internationally from nations on the duties list. The taxes place the responsibility of adaptation on corporations – If they buy more from US sources or countries not on the list, then their costs will remain low. If they don’t, then they must shift the costs in other ways.

Raising prices is the last thing any company not producing necessities wants to do. Consumers can easily cut back on peripheral goods. In other words, the assertion that tariffs are a hidden tax on the public is rooted in a lack of understanding on import duties and how they affect markets. Consumers will buy from producers that keep prices down by adapting to the tariffs, and there are many ways to adapt. It’s that simple. Democrats and some conservatives argued that prices would rise exponentially as international corporations immediately deferred costs on consumers in order to offset the added expenses on imported raw materials and manufactured goods. They were wrong.

The personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, rose 2.3% in May, modestly above the central bank’s 2% annual target. The May Consumer Price Index rose at an annual rate of 2.4%, cooler than economists expected. Some blame the “front loading” of imports (increased orders of goods before the tariffs went into effect). However, front loading was estimated to act as a stop-gap for only two months (possibly three by some predictions). Tariffs were initiated in February and though there have been fluctuations it’s been five months waiting for the tariff asteroid to explode American wallets and nothing has happened.

Will companies eventually shift the tariff burden on American consumers over the next year? A better question would be can they shift the burden in a weaker retail market? Would they take the risk of plunging sales? Or will they do what they should have been doing all along: Buy a larger percentage of their goods from US producers and bring manufacturing back home? At the current rate, tariffs could generate around $300 billion by the end of this year and $1.2 trillion over the next four years. It’s not enough to offset increased debt spending, but it does offer an alternative to hiking taxes on the general public (which is what Democrats would do). And if inflation concerns continue to prove over-hyped, then the tariff model could remain in place for many years to come.

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All they needed was a credible excuse.

• Pentagon Halts Weapons Supplies To Kiev Over Depleting Stockpiles (RT)

The Pentagon has suspended shipments of several categories of US-made weapons to Ukraine, according to Politico and NBC News. The decision reportedly followed an internal review of American weapons reserves ordered by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, amid rising concerns about the rate at which munitions are being depleted. The move reportedly affects dozens of Patriot missile interceptors, Stinger and AIM air-to-air missiles, hundreds of Hellfire and GMLRS systems, as well as thousands of 155mm artillery shells that Washington had previously pledged to Kiev. Some of the weapons were already positioned in Europe have now been withheld before handover to Ukrainian forces, NBC reported. The weapons in question had been funded under the Biden administration through two mechanisms: direct drawdowns from existing US military stockpiles and the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which contracts new production from defense contractors.

The Trump administration has not requested any additional Ukraine aid, and existing resources are expected to last only “several more months,” according to Politico. White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly defended the move as a necessary step to prioritize American defense needs. “This decision was made to put America’s interests first following a DOD review of our nation’s military support and assistance to other countries across the globe. The strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned – just ask Iran,” she said, without confirming any details. The decision to freeze or slow-walk the remaining aid without formal notice to Congress may raise legal concerns similar to the 2019 withholding of some Ukraine assistance under Trump’s first administration –a move the Government Accountability Office ruled unlawful at the time, Politico noted.

Kiev has repeatedly voiced frustration over what it sees as dwindling support from Washington. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky met with President Donald Trump at the NATO summit in The Hague last week but received no firm promises. Trump said Patriots were “very hard to get” and that the US needed them for its own defense and for Israel. Trump has stated he intends to negotiate a ceasefire with Moscow and bring the conflict to an end. Hegseth said last month that the White House is reducing military funding for Kiev as part of its “America First” strategy and in hopes of achieving a diplomatic settlement.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration signed a deal giving the US priority access to Ukraine’s mineral wealth –a step the White House said would allow America to “get back” some of the hundreds of billions spent under Biden. The Pentagon’s policy shift appears to reflect a broader realignment under Trump, who has publicly questioned the rationale behind endless aid to Ukraine. Russian presidential envoy and head of the Direct Investment Fund, Kirill Dmitriev, noted that the move “highlights the real limits of Western capacity and the shifting priorities of the US military.”

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“Perhaps he foresees – being such a prophet – that this catastrophic, in my view, increase in NATO countries’ budgets will also lead to the organization’s collapse.”

• ‘Catastrophic’ Budget Increase Will Destroy NATO – Lavrov (RT)

The results of NATO countries hiking military budgets will be “catastrophic” and lead to the bloc’s collapse, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday. His remarks mirrored Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski’s earlier suggestion that a boost in Moscow’s defense spending could trigger the fall of the government. At NATO’s most recent summit last month in the Hague, member states committed to spending 5% of GDP on the military – a significant rise from the previous 2% target. Poland backed the hike, arguing that failing to achieve the new benchmark “as soon as possible” would pose a ‘‘threat’‘ to the bloc considering the ongoing Ukraine conflict.

In an interview with Polish media, Sikorski drew a parallel between modern Russia and the late USSR. Referring to President Vladimir Putin, he stated that “he himself once said that the Soviet Union fell because it spent too much on armament, and now he is doing exactly the same thing.” Meanwhile, speaking to the press at the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Foreign Ministers Council in Kyrgyzstan, Sergey Lavrov took issue with Sikorski’s characterization, countering: “Perhaps he foresees – being such a prophet – that this catastrophic, in my view, increase in NATO countries’ budgets will also lead to the organization’s collapse.”

Lavrov also said that Russia “plans to reduce its military spending,” which now accounts for 6.3% of GDP, and “be guided by common sense, but not made-up threats like NATO member states, including Sikorsky.” The 5% GDP target faced opposition from some NATO members. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said his country could not allocate one-fifth of its state budget to defense, while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called the goal “not only unreasonable but also counterproductive.”

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Makes the ‘war on Russia’ narrative much harder to maintain.

• Putin and Macron Talk For First Time In Three Years – Kremlin (RT)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has spoken with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron by telephone, the Kremlin press service said on Tuesday. It is the first phone contact between the leaders since September 2022. The conversation revolved around the situation in the Middle East, as well as the Ukraine conflict. During the call, Putin told Macron that the Ukraine conflict was “a direct consequence of the policies pursued by Western states, which for many years ignored Russia’s security interests,” and had established an “anti-Russian bridgehead” in the country, the press service stated. The Russian leader reiterated Moscow’s approach to any settlement, stating that it must “be comprehensive and long-term, address the root causes of the Ukrainian crisis and be based on new territorial realities.”

Putin and Macron also discussed the situation in the Middle East, namely the recent escalation between Israel and Iran. The two leaders agreed that diplomacy was the way forward, the Kremlin press service noted, adding that they agreed to maintain contact for the sake of “possible coordination of the positions.” Both countries share a “special responsibility” to maintain “peace and security,” as well as to preserve the “global nuclear non-proliferation regime,” the two men agreed, according to Moscow. “In this regard, the importance of respecting Tehran’s legitimate right to develop peaceful nuclear energy and continuing to fulfill its obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, including cooperation with the IAEA, was emphasized,” the Kremlin press service said.

France has long asserted itself as one of Kiev’s key backers in the conflict with Moscow. Paris has committed more than €3.7 billion ($4.1 billion) in military assistance to Ukraine since the escalation of the conflict in February 2022, according to the Kiel Institute’s aid tracker. Macron has also repeatedly floated the idea of deploying French soldiers to Ukraine. While the deployment never materialized, Paris repeatedly signaled that troops could be sent after the end of hostilities to act as a deterrent against Russia. Moscow has firmly opposed Western forces in Ukraine in any role, warning the it could trigger an all-out war between Russia and NATO.

In recent months, however, Macron has softened his stance, admitting back in May that the French have done “the maximum we could” to help and could no longer supply Ukraine with weapons. Last week, the French president said that NATO’s European members have no wish to “endlessly” arm themselves and should “think about” restoring dialogue with Russia “right now” in order to negotiate broader European security as part of a potential Ukraine peace deal.

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“..the new designation of the project would make raising money for it easier and would also “override bureaucratic obstacles..”

• Italy Could Classify $13.5 Billion Bridge As NATO Spending – Poltico (RT)

Italian authorities are looking to classify a long-term project to construct a bridge connecting the mainland to the island of Sicily as a NATO expenditure amid their struggle to meet the bloc’s spending goals, according to Politico. The idea of creating an overpass to the largest island in the Mediterranean had been discussed in Italy for many decades, but its realization has been hampered by high costs, the difficulty of operating in a seismic zone and other issues. If built by the current government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the 3.6-km-long suspension bridge across the Strait of Messina will become the longest in the world. In its article on Monday, Politico described Italy as “one of NATO’s lowest military spenders,” with Rome investing only 1.49% of its GDP in defense last year, a far cry from the 5% goal approved at the bloc’s summit in The Hague in June.

Marking the $13.5 billion bridge as a NATO spending could help Meloni meet the bloc’s 5% target and, at the same time, “convince a war-wary public of the need for major defense outlays at a time when Italy is already inching toward austerity,” the article read. An unnamed Italian government official told the outlet that no formal decision has yet been made by Rome on classifying the bridge as a security project, but further talks would likely be held soon to “see how feasible this feels.” According to another official from the Italian Treasury, who also talked to Politico, the new designation of the project would make raising money for it easier and would also “override bureaucratic obstacles, litigation with local authorities that could challenge the government in court claiming that the bridge will disproportionately damage their land.”

The problem for Rome is that the Strait of Messina lies outside of Italy’s only designated NATO military mobility corridor, the article pointed out. However, the Italian case is backed by the fact that only 3.5% from the NATO spending target must be allocated for core military needs, while the remaining 1.5% could be steered toward broader strategic resilience projects, including infrastructure. “Whether NATO — and more importantly, US President Donald Trump, who loves a big building project — will buy into that logic is another matter,” Politico noted.

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They do it on purpose?

• 1 in 5 Illegal Migrants Now Simply Flying Into Germany (RMX)

In the past 12 months, the German Federal Police have identified 12,858 illegal migrants who entered Germany by air, a significant number that is on the rise. Now, migrants are increasingly choosing simply to fly into Germany instead of dealing with the long ordeal of crossing multiple borders in dangerous conditions. This increase in migrants flying into Germany jumped after Germany tightened border controls.In May of this year alone, at least 977 illegal entries were recorded using air travel to enter Germany, accounting for over 20 percent of all identified illegal border crossings.However, the true number of such crossings is likely much higher, as foreign nationals traveling within the Schengen area are not required to show identification. As a result, they are often only discovered long after they have left the airport, making it impossible to turn them back.

“It would be consistent to also notify the Schengen air borders,” said Heiko Teggatz, a board member of the German Police Union (DPolG).“If the smugglers aren’t completely stupid, they’ll simply bring their people from other Schengen states to Germany by plane. Today, you can easily book a plane ticket within the Schengen area, and you generally don’t have to show your ID anywhere.”All of this information came from a government response from Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) after Alternative for Germany (AfD) MP Gottfried Curio, the party’s domestic policy spokesperson, launched an inquiry.Dobrindt was forced to acknowledge that the tightened controls “refer exclusively to the land borders,” meaning no illegal migrants were turned back at airports.

This trend of illegal entry by plane has intensified since the new federal government instructed officials to begin rejecting asylum seekers at internal borders. Teggatz confirmed this “increase in secondary migration via airports,” noting that “Medium-sized commercial airports like Hanover are particularly affected.” Despite hundreds of officers being deployed at German airports, checks are almost exclusively conducted on flights from outside the Schengen area. That means if a migrant makes it to Greece and manages to get on a plane to Germany, there is little chance he will be checked.= Dobrindt, like his predecessor, Nancy Faeser (SPD), has reported rejections of migrants coming into Germany, but only from land borders. It remains unclear why airports were not included in tightened border measures.

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People don’t go to Poland to stay there; they’re on their way to Germany.

• Poland Reintroduces Immigration Controls (RT)

Poland has decided to temporarily reintroduce border controls along its frontiers with Germany and Lithuania to stop the flow of illegal migrants. All three nations are part of the Schengen Area, which allows free travel across most of the bloc. The EU has been grappling with a refugee crisis since at least 2015, largely caused by upheavals in the Middle East and Africa, and later by the Ukraine conflict. Warsaw has previously accused German police of “dumping” thousands of migrants back across the Polish border. Some activists have organized self-styled ‘citizen border patrols’ along the German frontier. “We remain advocates for freedom of movement in Europe, but only on condition that there is the shared will of all neighbors… to minimize the uncontrolled flow of migrants across our borders,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

He stated that temporary border controls would similarly be implemented on Poland’s border with Lithuania.In 2023, neighboring Germany, the EU’s top destination for asylum seekers, introduced temporary controls on its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic to stem the flow. Most of the people entering Poland travel on to western Europe, where benefits for asylum seekers are more generous. Berlin has since repeatedly renewed the controls. Under the Schengen agreement, participant nations are allowed to temporarily reintroduce border controls in emergency situations, with the Covid-19 outbreak having been one recent instance. Tighter national migration and border control policies could lead to the destruction of the EU, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned in May.

Commenting on the restoration of control on the Polish-Lithuanian border, Tusk accused the Baltic state, as well as neighboring Latvia, of having lax border controls. The lapses have supposedly allowed illegal migrants to cross over from non-EU Belarus, and subsequently to enter Poland. Since 2021, Warsaw has accused Minsk and Moscow of deliberately orchestrating the flow of illegal migrants into EU states. Russia and Belarus have denied the allegations.

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“If Netanyahu has any sense, he will let Trump rescue the Israeli people.”

• President Trump’s Plan for the Middle East (Paul Craig Roberts)

In discussion yesterday with Nima on Dialogue Works about the Israeli-Iranian-Trump-Netanyahu ongoings, I suggested a bold and innovative plan for the Middle East that Trump should present to the world in a speech to the UN General Assembly. I even offered to write the speech. https://www.youtube.com/live/L-8j_NSxC14 I formed the plan from mulling over insights into Trump’s attitude toward the Middle East from Gilbert Doctorow, Michel Chossudovsky, and from Trump’s news conference with Netanyahu when Trump stated Washington’s claim to Gaza as an American possession. Doctorow pointed out that it was irrelevant whether Trump had destroyed the three underground Iranian nuclear sites. What mattered is that Trump’s assertion, true or false, had destroyed Netanyahu’s excuse for war with Iran. Is Netanyahu going to risk Washington’s protection by contradicting President Trump?

Chossudovsky pointed out that in the press conference at which Trump stated Washington’s claim to Gaza, Trump expressed the idea of a Gaza resort as the anchor for an American Middle East colony in place of Greater Israel. In front of Netanyahu Trump unveiled a vision of a Middle East made rich by American management. It would be a different kind of colonial management from the British/French approach that extracted assets and sent them home to Britain and France. Trump envisioned a partnership in which the “colonies” would be shareholders sharing in the profits from economic development. This would be good for Israel as well. When a presstitute asked Netanyahu his opinion, Netanyahu did not disavow it.

I was surprised that Trump’s claim to Gaza and its reconstruction and his idea of a reconstruction of the Middle Eastern countries that previous US regimes had destroyed for Israel did not get a big news play. But Chossudovsky saw it, and he helped me to see it. Ask yourselves, Is there any better solution to the Israeli-Muslim problem in the Middle East? Israel is smaller in area than New Jersey. Iran is 2.5 times larger than Texas. Israel has fewer than 10 million people. Iran has more than 90 million people. Iran can produce modern missiles in greater quantities than Israel can be supplied from the US. In a recent news conference in a demonstration of Israeli insanity, Netanyahu added the territory of Pakistan to Greater Israel. Pakistan has nuclear weapons and a population of 250 million.

Israel has zero chance of winning a war with Iran and the same for Pakistan. Israel knows this but is confident that the power that the Israel Lobby can exert over dumbshit American’s lives and money guarantees that Americans will fight more wars for Israel. The Israeli-subsidized Christian Zionists–a contradiction of terms–are all for it. Amazing, isn’t it, Israel has even corrupted Christian evangelicals, paying their preachers to send Americans to war for Israel. What might be reducing Israel’s control over America is the weakened position of Netanyahu, under two Israeli court indictments for crimes, and by the destruction inflicted on Israel by its irresponsible attack on Iran, culminating in Netanyahu’s plea to Trump to stop the war before Israel had to sue for peace.

This leaves Trump with the upper hand. Israel now understands that it cannot exist without Washington’s protection. Thus Trump can force Netanyahu to give up the unrealistic Zionist goal of Greater Israel and comply with Trump’s vision of a colony under America’s redevelopment of the Middle East. If Trump would take this plan to the UN, it would silence Israel and the American neoconservative zionists and save us from war that could turn nuclear. If Trump establishes peace and cooperation in the Middle East, he can do the same with the West and Russia. Russia was the ally of Britain and France in both WW I and WW II. It is not difficult to come to terms with a former ally. There is no ideological reason and no territorial reason for conflict between the West and Russia.

Think about America’s waste of resources and prestige during the first quarter of the 21st century. Trillions of dollars spend destroying Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Somalia with zero gain. No one except military/security war profits got anything from these wars. There was no terrorist threat. Washington brought no one democracy, only destruction. Think about the destruction Washington brought to entire countries for no purpose than Israel’s absurd idea of a Greater Israel. The millions of dead, permanently maimed, and dislocated people, many of whom have located in Europe and the US burdening those taxpayers with their upkeep. WHO BENEFITTED??

Let’s give Trump a chance. An American partnership in the Middle East is far better than the conflicts inherent in Greater Israel. If Israel refuses to go along, Trump should just run over them. Israel is of no consequence in the world. Israel since its existence has never been anything except a cause of conflict, death, and destruction. Why a people like this has been tolerated, I do not know. Can Sunni and Shia be brought together and Muslims brought together with Jews? Seems fantastic. But perhaps they will see it as preferable to the continuation of endless bloodshed. If Netanyahu has any sense, he will let Trump rescue the Israeli people.

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Too many dead Gazans for a real ceasefire.

• Trump Says Israel Agrees To 60-Day Gaza Ceasefire, Urges Hamas To Accept (ZH)

President Trump said Tuesday that Israel has agreed on terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and warned Hamas to accept the deal before conditions worsen. Trump announced the development as he prepares to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for talks at the White House on Monday. The US leader has been increasing pressure on the Israeli government and Hamas to broker a ceasefire and hostage agreement and bring about an end to the war in Gaza. “My Representatives had a long and productive meeting with the Israelis today on Gaza. Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War,” Trump wrote, saying the Qataris and Egyptians would deliver the final proposal.

“I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better – IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE,” he said. Trump’s promise that it was his best and final offer may find a sceptical audience with Hamas. Even before the expiration of the war’s longest ceasefire in March, Trump has repeatedly issued dramatic ultimatums to pressure Hamas to agree to longer pauses in the fighting that would see the release of more hostages and a return of more aid to Gaza’s civilian populace. Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer was in Washington on Tuesday for talks with senior administration officials to discuss a potential Gaza ceasefire, Iran and other matters. Dermer was expected to meet with US Vice-President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Earlier on Tuesday, Trump repeated his hope for forging an Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal next week. Asked if it was time to put pressure on Netanyahu to get a ceasefire deal done, Trump said the Israeli prime minister was ready to come to an agreement. “He wants to,” Trump said of Netanyahu in an exchange with reporters while visiting a new immigration detention facility in Florida. “I think we’ll have a deal next week.” Talks between Israel and Hamas have repeatedly faltered over a major sticking point – whether the war should end as part of any ceasefire agreement. About 50 hostages remain captive in Gaza, with less than half believed to be alive.

The development came as over 150 international charities and humanitarian groups called on Tuesday for disbanding a controversial Israeli- and US-backed system to distribute aid in Gaza because of chaos and deadly violence against Palestinians seeking food at its sites. The joint statement by groups including Oxfam, Save the Children and Amnesty International followed the killings of at least 10 Palestinians who were seeking desperately needed food, witnesses and health officials said. Meanwhile, Israeli air strikes killed at least 37 in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital. “Tents, tents they are hitting with two missiles?” asked Um Seif Abu Leda, whose son was killed in the strikes. Mourners threw flowers on the body bags.

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“On Monday, President Donald Trump lifted most US sanctions on Syria in order to facilitate the flow of foreign aid for the country’s reconstruction.”

• Syria Could Drop Demand That Israel Return The Golan Heights (RT)

Former warlord Ahmad al-Sharaa, who seized power in Syria last year, may abandon the country’s claim to sovereignty over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights in exchange for normalized ties with West Jerusalem, according to a report by Lebanese media. Israel captured a large portion of the 1,800 square kilometer region of Syria’s Quneitra Governorate during the 1967 war and effectively annexed it in 1981. Amid the turmoil during al-Sharaa’s rise to power, the IDF seized additional territory. The IDF has also carried out multiple airstrikes against Syrian troops loyal to the current government, which West Jerusalem said were intended to protect the local Druze population, an ethnoreligious minority community which inhabits the contested region.

Lebanese broadcaster LBCI reported Monday that the two countries could normalize relations as part of a broad agreement. Under the proposed deal, Israel would recognize al-Sharaa’s legitimacy, withdraw troops from areas seized since his December takeover, and agree to Syria’s military presence near its borders with Israel and Jordan, with certain restrictions. In exchange, “Israel is expected to secure full sovereignty” over the Golan Heights, LBCI said, citing sources familiar with Syrian affairs. The report added that internal hardliner opposition, including from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham – the jihadist group formerly led by al-Sharaa – could derail the effort.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Monday that Israel will maintain control of the Golan Heights under any future peace arrangement with Syria. Al-Sharaa has sought international recognition since ousting President Bashar Assad. Under former President Barack Obama, the United States aimed to remove Assad through a combination of sanctions and covert support for anti-government armed groups labeled “moderate rebels.” On Monday, President Donald Trump lifted most US sanctions on Syria in order to facilitate the flow of foreign aid for the country’s reconstruction.

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“..if Trump didn’t win, he’d leave the country. Elon replied: “There’s nowhere to go.” That moment stuck with Thiel. Mars, once a symbol of civilizational escape and ambition, no longer felt like a real option—even to Musk..”

• AI Is The Only Thing Keeping The World From Total Stagnation – Peter Thiel (Flor)

Peter Thiel just did the most mind-exploding, crazy interview I’ve ever listened to. It’s so drastic, I still don’t know what to think – other than everyone should listen to it. So I dissected it piece by piece and organized it to draw some conclusions.nThis is what you cannot miss:

1. We are stuck. Thiel still believes in his “stagnation thesis.” His point? We’ve exited a 200-year period of accelerating change—1750 to 1970 was all about breakthroughs in physical reality: faster ships, railroads, cars, planes. It culminated in the Concorde and Apollo. But since then? Nothing. We’ve made marginal progress in “the world of bits” (internet, mobile, AI), but that’s not the same as reshaping the physical world. In biotech or cancer research, for example, progress is either negligible or cloaked in over-specialization that makes it impossible to track. As Thiel puts it: “The fact that it’s so hard to answer [whether we’re progressing] is itself cause for skepticism.”

2. Our future has been stolen—and it looks nothing like Back to the Future. Back to the Future II imagined 2015 as a world of flying cars, skateboards and radical transformation. What we got instead was smartphones and cars that look the same. Thiel’s kids watching 1985 on screen couldn’t tell it apart from today. “The world seems fairly similar.” That’s the cultural proof of stagnation: if a time traveler from 1985 landed in 2025, they’d be confused by the phone, but everything else would feel familiar. And the economic metric? Ask millennials: How are you doing compared to your parents? For most, the answer is worse.

3. We need to take more risks. Biotech is stuck. “We’ve made zero progress on dementia or Alzheimer’s in 40–50 years,” Thiel says. Scientists are trapped in a dead-end “beta-amyloid” theory that doesn’t work but keeps getting funded. We need to radically increase the risks we’re willing to take in medicine, aging, and beyond. Thiel wants a cultural return to the ambition of early modernity—Francis Bacon, Condorcet—when science promised immortality, not regulation. He tells the story of taking his PayPal team to a “freezing party” in 1999, where people bought cryonics insurance. “That was the last generation who still believed they could live forever.”

4. The moment Peter Thiel realized Elon lost faith in going to Mars. In 2024, Thiel joked to Elon Musk that if Trump didn’t win, he’d leave the country. Elon replied: “There’s nowhere to go.” That moment stuck with Thiel. Mars, once a symbol of civilizational escape and ambition, no longer felt like a real option—even to Musk. Why? Because “the woke AI and the socialist government would follow you to Mars.” The dream of Mars as a frontier for freedom had died. It was no longer a science project—it had become a political one. Thiel calls 2024 “the year Elon stopped believing in Mars.”

5. Will AI become stagnationist? AI is the only real exception to our stagnation—but Thiel worries it might reinforce it. He calls AI “more than a nothingburger, less than a total transformation.” Like the internet in the 1990s, it might boost GDP by 1% a year—but won’t restart the engines of human progress. And worse: it could become conformist intelligence. Like a Netflix algorithm that generates infinite okay-ish content, AI might flood the world with blandness, not breakthroughs. “If you don’t have AI, there’s nothing going on,” Thiel says. But he also warns: if AI becomes too “woke” or compliant, it will deepen the very stagnation it claims to solve.

6. Is AI hype—or is it transhumanism? Thiel sees modern transhumanism as not ambitious enough. It’s not that changing your body is weird—it’s that it’s pathetic compared to what early modern thinkers (and even Christianity) aimed for. “Transhumanism is just changing your body. But you also need to transform your soul.” He notes: the word nature never appears in the Old Testament. The Judeo-Christian story is about transcending nature—with God’s help. The critique of today’s “trans” ideas, he argues, isn’t that they go too far. It’s that they don’t go far enough.

7. The risk of the one-world totalitarian state: how the Antichrist would take over the world. Thiel introduces his most apocalyptic idea: that existential risk (AI, nukes, bioweapons) is being used to justify global governance. This leads to the ultimate form of stagnation: “a one-world state of the Antichrist.” The logic is seductive: to avoid destruction, centralize control. Nuclear weapons? A global authority must manage them. Dangerous AI? Global compute regulation. Thiel’s framing: The atheist slogan = “One world or none.” The Christian framing = “Antichrist or Armageddon.” The twist? The Antichrist doesn’t come with innovation. He comes with regulation. He offers “peace and safety”—and people submit.

8. Is Peter Thiel building the tools for the Antichrist? Thiel’s critics could argue: if anyone’s enabling global surveillance and control, isn’t it Thiel himself—via Palantir and military tech investments? He acknowledges the irony. He doesn’t believe he’s doing that, but concedes that many of the tools he’s helped build could be used that way. He warns that we’re already ruled—softly—by global regulators. The FDA doesn’t just control drugs in the U.S., but worldwide. Same with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. “Nuclear power was supposed to be the technology of the 21st century,” he says. “And it somehow has gotten off-ramped all over the world.”

9. Are we already living under a moderate rule of the Antichrist? Thiel floats a chilling thought: what if the Antichrist isn’t a coming tyrant—but the mild technocracy we already live in? 50 years of “peace and safety” have come at the cost of progress. He cites 1 Thessalonians 5:3: “While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly…” Still, he insists we have agency. He rejects Calvinism and determinism. “There’s a huge scope for human freedom. Don’t wait for the lion to eat you.”

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“They were the party of free speech,” he continued. “When President Trump started advocating for free speech… the Democrats became openly for censorship.”

• Kennedy Labels US Democrats ‘War Party’ (RT)

US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has accused the Democratic Party of abandoning its traditional values and transforming into a pro-war, pro-censorship force defined largely by opposition to President Donald Trump. In a wide-ranging interview with conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson published Monday, Kennedy said the Democratic Party now instinctively reverses positions as soon as Trump adopts them. “The Democrats were the anti-war party,” Kennedy said. “But as soon as [Trump] expressed his opposition to the Ukraine war, they became the war party.” “They were the party of free speech,” he continued. “When President Trump started advocating for free speech… the Democrats became openly for censorship.”

Kennedy, a longtime Democrat who briefly ran as an independent candidate in 2024 before supporting Trump and joining his cabinet in early 2025, said he continues to champion the same principles but now faces opposition from former allies. “These were people I was friends with my whole life and I have not changed… but the party has just a knee-jerk reaction against anything that is Trump,” he told Carlson. Kennedy added that Democrats, once critical of the CIA and trade deals like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), shifted to support both once Trump voiced criticism. He also accused the party of undermining women’s sports, noting that his uncle, Senator Edward Kennedy, had helped write Title IX, a US federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination.

“You can go on and on with those examples, but President Trump is literally dictating the platform of the Democratic Party. Anything that he says, they’re going to be against,” he said, noting that this pattern reflects a deeper problem in American politics. “You know that partisanship by its nature is dishonest and it is the enemy of democracy,” RFK Jr. warned. “And in George Washington’s farewell speech, he said that he was very frightened about the rise of the political party because they would become self-interested rather than patriotic.”Kennedy, the founder of the anti-vaccine group Children’s Health Defense, has gained prominence in the US for questioning the safety and effectiveness of childhood inoculations and promoting the claim that they are linked to autism –a theory widely rejected by the scientific community.

He was also a vocal critic of the World Health Organization’s Covid-19 response measures, including lockdowns and the rapid rollout of experimental vaccines. Despite his controversial reputation, Kennedy denies being opposed to immunization, noting that his own children have been vaccinated. He has repeatedly stated that he advocates for stricter safety testing and more rigorous studies. After Kennedy endorsed Trump, the president vowed to give him broad authority over healthcare policy, saying he would let Kennedy “go wild.” Kennedy said most opposition to his policies as Health Secretary comes not from industry experts but from media and political operatives. “I get opposition from proxies to the industry. Yes. And I think the major opposition that I feel is from the mainstream media and from Democrats,” he said.

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“And the Democrats have him pegged as a guy who’s sort of sitting in the Cabinet meeting talking about how can we make billionaires richer. He’s the opposite of that. He’s a genuine populist,” Kennedy said.

• RFK Jr. Unloads Disturbing Vaccine Secrets On Tucker (VF)

It’s not every day an active HHS Secretary sits down for 90 minutes straight with Tucker Carlson. But that’s exactly what happened, and Kennedy instantly seized Carlson’s attention with a chilling story of CDC corruption. He revealed that the health agency buried a 1999 internal study led by researcher Thomas Verstraten, which showed an alarming 1135% increase in autism risk from the hepatitis B vaccine. Kennedy said the researchers were “shocked” by the findings. So what did they do? They covered it up, according to Kennedy. “They got rid of all the older children essentially and just had younger children who are too young to be diagnosed [with autism].” RFK Jr. then explained the real reason why your pediatrician will kick you out of their practice for refusing vaccines.

“There’s a published article out there now that says that 50% of revenues to most pediatricians come from vaccines.” It’s all about the money. The higher the vaccination rate, the bigger the bonus. “And that’s why your pediatrician, if you say I want to go slow on the vaccines… will throw you out of his practice because you’re now jeopardizing that bonus structure.” To the claim that the vaccine–autism link has been “debunked,” Kennedy had a message for Anderson Cooper, Jake Tapper, and everyone who smugly insists on it. “None of the vaccines given to children in the first six months of life have ever been studied for autism.” Let that sink in. He went further, revealing that the CDC actually did find a link when they studied the DTaP vaccine.

But they dismissed it. Kennedy said they claimed it “didn’t count” because the data came from VAERS—the very system they use to track vaccine injuries. So when the evidence pointed to harm, they simply claimed their own system wasn’t reliable enough and took no steps to fix it. The vaccine corruption didn’t end there. Kennedy attested that the CDC killed off a vaccine injury reporting system that actually worked—because it worked too well. It showed that 1 in 37 vaccines caused an injury. Tucker was stunned. “Of all vaccines?” he asked. “Yeah,” Kennedy confirmed. RFK Jr. explained that the CDC funded a study led by researcher Ross Lazarus. It compared a sophisticated machine-counting system to VAERS. What did they find? VAERS was failing to catch over 99% of vaccine injuries.

The new system also revealed that 2.6% of all vaccinations resulted in an injury. So what did the CDC do? They shut it down in 2010. And they’re still using VAERS today—even though it’s a completely inadequate system. But Kennedy didn’t stop at old vaccine scandals. He also broke down Pfizer’s own COVID vaccine trial data. That trial showed a 23% higher death rate in the vaccinated group. Pfizer gave 21,720 people the vaccine and 21,728 the placebo. One vaccinated person died of COVID. Two placebo recipients died. They used this tiny difference to claim “100% effective” based on relative risk reduction. But in absolute terms, it took 22,000 vaccinations to save one life. Over six months, 21 vaccinated participants died of all causes, compared to 17 in the placebo group—a 23.5% higher death rate.

And then there’s vaccine spokesperson Paul Offit, often seen on CNN and other mainstream networks. Kennedy shared an infuriating story about how he literally “voted himself rich” on the rotavirus vaccine. While serving on the CDC’s ACIP committee, Offit voted to add rotavirus vaccination to the childhood schedule—even as he was developing his own competing vaccine. He guaranteed demand for his product. The first approved rotavirus vaccine, RotaShield, was yanked from the market for causing dangerous intussusception. Offit’s vaccine, RotaTeq, eventually replaced it. He and his partners later sold their rights to Merck for $186 million. As RFK Jr. said, Offit literally “voted himself rich.” When Carlson mentioned Fauci, Kennedy revealed how Fauci funded research that helped scientists hide evidence of lab-made viruses. The technique, called “seamless ligation,” allowed researchers to engineer viruses in a lab without leaving telltale genetic fingerprints.

RFK Jr. explained: “One of his fundees, Ralph Baric, from the University of North Carolina, developed a technique called the seamless ligation technique, which is a technique for hiding the laboratory origins of a manipulated virus.” “… normally if there’s a virus manipulated, researchers can look at the DNA sequences and they can say this thing was created in a lab. Ralph Baric had developed a technique that he called the no-see technique and its technical name was seamless ligation, and it was a way of hiding evidence of human tampering.” He called it the exact opposite of what real public health work should be. Carlson cut in, saying, “That’s what you would do if you’re creating viruses for biological warfare.”

The conversation shifted to Trump, leading to one of the biggest highlights of the entire interview. First, Kennedy explained that Trump chose his cabinet in an unorthodox way: he wanted to see three clips of each candidate performing on TV before considering them for the job. “One of the things with President Trump is that he really knows how to pick talent… For every one of the positions that he picked, he wanted to see three clips of them performing on TV. He’s very conscious of the fact that these people are going to be out selling his program to the public,” Kennedy said. That’s when Kennedy ended the interview with a bang, sharing his genuine thoughts about Trump for three straight minutes. It was one of the standout moments of the entire conversation.

If you’re on the fence about Trump, listen to Kennedy here. It might just change how you see him. “I had him pegged as a narcissist, when narcissists are incapable of empathy. And he’s one of the most empathetic people that I’ve met,” Kennedy said. “He’s immensely curious, inquisitive, and immensely knowledgeable. He’s encyclopedic in certain areas that you wouldn’t expect,” he continued. Kennedy added that Trump genuinely cares about soldiers who go to war, citing how Trump “always talks about the casualties on both sides” of the Russia–Ukraine conflict. “Whether it’s vaccines or Medicaid or Medicare, he’s always thinking about how this impacts the little guy. And the Democrats have him pegged as a guy who’s sort of sitting in the Cabinet meeting talking about how can we make billionaires richer. He’s the opposite of that. He’s a genuine populist,” Kennedy said.

Read more …

 

 

 

 

Rogan

Hep B

99%

Sun
https://twitter.com/FredsFarm247/status/1939983704379592749

PIANO

Cupcakes
https://twitter.com/gunsnrosesgirl3/status/1939990438389092561

Firefly

 

 

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Debt Rattle June 28 2025

Jun 282025
 
 June 28, 2025  Posted by at 9:15 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , ,  25 Responses »


Rembrandt van Rijn The spectacles seller 1624

 

• Putin Speaks Of ‘Great Respect’ For Trump (RT)
• Putin Respects US Once Again – Trump (RT)
• Supreme Court Curbs Injunctions Against Trump Birthright Citizenship EO (ZH)
• Trump Suddenly ‘Terminates’ All Trade Talks With Canada (ZH)
• EU Delays Vote On New Russia Sanctions (RT)
• Latest NATO Summit Was The Priciest Humiliation Fetish Ever Produced (Marsden)
• Kremlin Condemns White House Envoy’s Comparing Iran & Ukraine Wars (ZH)
• The West Waging ‘Centuries-Old War’ Against Moscow – Russia’s Top UN Envoy (RT)
• Hungary Blocks EU Accession Talks With Ukraine (RT)
• Zelensky Would Lose Ukrainian Election – Survey (RT)
• Incoming MI6 Boss’ Grandfather Was Ukrainian Nazi ‘Butcher’ (RT)
• NYC Mayor Eric Adams Launches Reelection Campaign (ET)
• Chaos Creeps in on Little Cat’s Feet (James Howard Kunstler)
• U.S. House Bans WhatsApp Over Data Security Concerns (ZH)
• RFK Jr. Axes All Funding For Bill Gates’ Global ‘Vaccine Alliance’ (ET)
• Cancer Patients Recover By Taking Repurposed Anti-Parasitic Drugs (ET)

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Thanks to President Trump, relations between Russia and the US are beginning to level out, at least to some extent. Not everything has been resolved in terms of diplomatic relations, but the first steps have been taken, and we are moving forward..”

• Putin Speaks Of ‘Great Respect’ For Trump (RT)

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he has “great respect” for US President Donald Trump and praised his counterpart’s efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict.Speaking to reporters in Minsk on Friday after a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council, Putin described Trump as “a courageous man,” who had overcome serious challenges to return to the White House, including surviving multiple assassination attempts. “I have great respect for the current US president. He went through a very difficult, complicated, and even dangerous path to return to power and to the White House – we all know that well… He’s a courageous man – that’s clear,” Putin said.

He also commended Trump’s diplomacy in the Middle East, as well as his efforts to resolve the Ukraine crisis. “We, of course, value all of that… I believe President Trump is sincerely striving to resolve” the conflict. He expressed appreciation for Trump’s domestic and foreign policy initiatives, particularly highlighting his steps in the Middle East and “sincere commitment” to resolving the Ukrainian conflict. Putin said Trump’s recent admission that dealing with the situation was tougher than he had expected came as no surprise. “It’s one thing to observe from the sidelines and quite another to dive into the problem.” Asked whether it was time for a face-to-face meeting, Putin said, “I am always open to contact, to meetings… and we would be happy to work on making that happen.”

He observed that Trump had also expressed interest, while noting that both leaders believed such meetings should be properly prepared and lead to tangible progress in cooperation. “Thanks to President Trump, relations between Russia and the US are beginning to level out, at least to some extent. Not everything has been resolved in terms of diplomatic relations, but the first steps have been taken, and we are moving forward,” he added. Since returning to office in January, Trump has worked to rebuild ties with Moscow, which were largely severed under his predecessor, Joe Biden. Trump and Putin have had multiple phone conversations concerning the Ukraine conflict and broader bilateral issues.

The diplomatic push helped reboot direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, which Kiev had abandoned back in 2022, reportedly at the behest of its Western backers. The latest round in Istanbul earlier this month resulted in the largest prisoner exchange to date, as well as a pledge to continue dialogue. Trump said this week that he would like to see an agreement with Russia that ends the hostilities. Moscow has consistently reaffirmed its commitment to achieving a diplomatic resolution. Putin has said that Russia is ready to work with Kiev on drafting the document and emphasized that “eliminating the root causes” of the conflict “is what matters most to us.”

Read more …

Rapprochement. EuroNATO’s worst nightmare. But Trump doesn’t want war with Russia, he wants trade.

“Trump has revived direct contacts with Moscow, which were cut off during the Biden administration, and has held five phone calls with Putin since returning to office in January.”

• Putin Respects US Once Again – Trump (RT)

US President Donald Trump has said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has regained respect for America, whose international standing was damaged by the previous administration. Trump was responding to comments made by Putin during his visit to Belarus on Friday, where the Russian leader described the US president as a “courageous man.” “Vladimir Putin made some very nice statements today,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, adding that such remarks would have been impossible under former President Joe Biden. “He respects our country again. He didn’t respect it a year ago, I can tell you that,” Trump said, claiming that Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un also now respect the US since his return to the White House.

“We had a president that was incompetent. We had bad people circulating around this desk – this beautiful, resolute desk. They had, I guess, evil intentions,” Trump said. He has repeatedly described his predecessor’s foreign policy as weak and damaging to America’s global reputation, arguing that the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza would not have erupted under his leadership. Speaking to reporters in Minsk, Putin said he holds “deep respect” for Trump and praised him for overcoming numerous challenges, including surviving an assassination attempt last year. He added that he believes Trump has been “sincerely seeking” to help broker an end to the Ukraine conflict. Trump has revived direct contacts with Moscow, which were cut off during the Biden administration, and has held five phone calls with Putin since returning to office in January.

Read more …

Trump had a good week, certainly also at SCOTUS. Which has turned against lawfare.

• Supreme Court Curbs Injunctions Against Trump Birthright Citizenship EO (ZH)

The Supreme Court on Friday allowed President Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship to go into effect in some areas of the country – blocking judges’ ability to halt the president’s policies nationwide. The order, signed Trump’s first day in office, curbs birthright citizenship for children born on US soil if they don’t have at least one parent with permanent legal status – which quickly became a legal question surrounding the 14th Amendment’s Citizenship Clause.

The 6-3 ruling along ideological lines found that three federal district judges went too far in issuing nationwide injunctions against Trump’s order. The decision hobbles a key tool used by venue-shopping Democrats and the activist judges that have been blocking Trump’s path since January – with every court having found the legality of Trump’s EO ‘likely’ unconstitutional. nJustice Ketanji Brown Jackson was specifically called out for being retarded… That said, it doesn’t definitively resolve whether Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship are constitutional – a question which could end up in front of the Supremes down the road. It does, howeever, narrow the lower court rulings to only block Trump’s order as applied to the 22 Democratic-led states, expectant mothers and immigration organizations that are suing.

Furthermore, Justices Alito and Thomas note that the Supreme Court ‘completely punted on the issue of third-party class certifications, which will be the gimmick now used to get around the universal injunction ban,” according to The Federalist’s Sean Davis.

The cases will now return to lower courts where they will play out as Trump’s order partially goes into effect. Once the appeals courts issue their final rulings, the parties could bring the case back to the SCOTUS.

Read more …

Difficult tariff talks, tough negotiations, and Canada picks that moment to ‘invent’ a whole new tax. Blind blind blind.

• Trump Suddenly ‘Terminates’ All Trade Talks With Canada (ZH)

US stocks and the Canadian dollar are sliding after President Trump announces on TruthSocial that the US is terminating all trade discussions with his northern neighbor due to Carney putting a tax on US tech firms (like Europe): “We have just been informed that Canada, a very difficult Country to TRADE with, including the fact that they have charged our Farmers as much as 400% Tariffs, for years, on Dairy Products, has just announced that they are putting a Digital Services Tax on our American Technology Companies, which is a direct and blatant attack on our Country. They are obviously copying the European Union, which has done the same thing, and is currently under discussion with us, also. Based on this egregious Tax, we are hereby terminating ALL discussions on Trade with Canada, effective immediately. We will let Canada know the Tariff that they will be paying to do business with the United States of America within the next seven day period. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

The reaction was swift and saw the loonie dumped…

The Canadian digital services tax, which is similar to one implemented by some other countries including the UK, is equal to 3% of the digital services revenue that a firm makes from Canadian users above C$20 million ($14.6 million) in a year. It would apply to companies including Meta Platforms and Alphabet. However, Canadian Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne suggested to reporters last week that the digital tax may be renegotiated as part of US-Canada trade discussions. “Obviously, all of that is something that we’re considering as part of broader discussions that you may have,” he said. Seems a little short-sighted given the Canadian trade flow… The Business Council of Canada has come out and said that Carney should drop the Digital Tax… we wonder why… Well the negotiation is on now!

Read more …

Will they just kick out Hungary and Slovakia?

• EU Delays Vote On New Russia Sanctions (RT)

EU leaders have opted to postpone discussion of a new package of sanctions against Russia, according to Hungarian news outlet Index. The delay reportedly comes as Budapest and Bratislava oppose the move due to mounting concerns about energy imports. Adopting new sanctions requires unanimous approval from all 27 EU member states. Hungary and Slovakia have spoken out against more sanctions amid disagreements with Brussels over a proposed plan to phase out Russian energy imports by 2027. The European Commission intends to adopt the proposal using trade law mechanisms that would allow it to bypass vetoes from dissenting member states.

The proposed 18th sanctions package was under threat of a veto from Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, Index reported on Thursday, noting that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had met with him ahead of the EU leaders’ summit in Brussels. The talks reportedly failed to produce a compromise, leading to removal of the issue from the agenda, to avoid formal rejection. Fico said earlier that day that Slovakia would not support a new sanctions package and will demand a delay in the vote until his country’s concerns over gas supplies after 2027 are resolved. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said earlier this week that Budapest and Bratislava would block adoption of the new sanctions package, also citing the potential ban on purchasing Russian energy.

The European Commission unveiled a proposed 18th sanctions package earlier this month, targeting Russian energy exports, infrastructure, and financial institutions. The measures include a ban on future use of the sabotaged Nord Stream pipeline, restrictions on refined products made from Russian crude, and sanctions on 77 vessels allegedly part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet,” used to circumvent oil trade restrictions. Speaking at a press conference following the summit in Brussels on Thursday, European Council President Antonio Costa said the “18th package of sanctions is underway.” Reuters, meanwhile, reported—citing two EU officials—that the bloc had agreed to extend previously adopted sanctions for another six months.

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“I started to feel like maybe I should be paying for this kind of kinky TV content. Or I guess you could say that European taxpayers already are – to the tune of 5% of GDP…”

• Latest NATO Summit Was The Priciest Humiliation Fetish Ever Produced (Marsden)

Fresh off dropping an “F bomb” on both Iran and Israel for blowing up the only ceasefire in history ever announced exclusively on his social media feed , US President Donald Trump hopped on his jet and headed straight to the NATO summit. Everyone wondered what mood he’d land in after crossing the Atlantic. Apparently not feeling like rolling the dice, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte wrote him a love letter in advance, suggesting that the scariest weapon of mass destruction for NATO is the American president’s mouth. “You are flying into another big success in The Hague. It was not easy but we’ve got them all signed onto five percent! Donald, you have driven us to a really, really important moment for America and Europe, and the world,” Rutte gushed.

“You will achieve something NO American president in decades could get done. Europe is going to pay in a BIG way – as they should – and it will be your win.” Hard to believe this guy was once the prime minister of the Netherlands. Oh, President Trump, way to really stick it to Europe! What a wonderful thing you’ve just done to make almost all of Europe subsidize the American military industrial complex to the tune of 5% of their GDP! Back when Trump first started hounding Europe to cough up 2.5% of their GDP for defense, European leaders rolled their eyes. But after nuking their own energy-driven economy with their anti-Russia, pro-Ukraine policies, they’ve decided to embrace the idea like they thought of it themselves. Nothing like selling European taxpayers on buying a ton more US and European hardware under the pretext of a hypothetical 2030 Russian invasion. Perfect cover for a spending spree that will become the problem of whoever’s in office by then (ie. not them).

Trump initially wanted them all on a 2.5% spending target. But heaven forbid American arms dealers hog all the action. Europe’s military industrial complex needs a piece too. Hence, 5% for everyone and a double-dip dinner at the weapons buffet. Trump showed up straight from showcasing US bombs on Iranian soil – one giant demo reel for his European customers. When he landed, Rutte practically faceplanted directly into Trump’s backside. And if you thought what he wrote to Trump was cringey, wait till you hear what Rutte said aloud in the wake of Trump bombing Iran for Israel – er, I mean, for peace: “You are a man of strength but also a man of peace, and the fact that you also successfully got this ceasefire between Israel and Iran, I really want to commend you for that,” Rutte cooed. “Without President Trump, this would not have happened. Absolutely not.”

Way to thank an arsonist for putting out his own fire. What’s next: nominating him for Fireman of the Year? Even the press did a double-take, basically asking Rutte, Bro, you sure you want him reading your fan mail on live TV? Answer: Absolutely. “Not embarrassed,” Rutte replied. The NATO secretary general sounded so enamored with Trump that you had to wonder why the two of them didn’t just get a room already. “Daddy has to sometimes use strong language,” Rutte told journalists, referring to Trump, as journalists may or may not have barfed into the nearest potted plant.

Between remarks like that and all the gushing about how Trump was making Europe pay for the privilege of being extorted for a protection racket that Trump says isn’t even sure that he would honor, it all sounded so sadomasochistic that I started to feel like maybe I should be paying for this kind of kinky TV content. Or I guess you could say that European taxpayers already are – to the tune of 5% of GDP.

Read more …

As I said yesterday: they don’t like that. It has to do with the word “unprovoked”.

• Kremlin Condemns White House Envoy’s Comparing Iran & Ukraine Wars (ZH)

Moscow has reacted angrily to fresh words of Trump special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who has also been working on US diplomacy with Russia’s Putin, after he drew parallels between the Ukraine war and Israel-Iran conflict. “We’re hopeful that people look at what happened in Iran and say: ‘we want a part of that sort of peace process as well,’” Witkoff told CNBC on Wednesday. “This may well gravitate towards Russia and Ukraine.” In the interview he expressed hope for expanding the Abraham Accords, particularly to Saudi Arabia: “We are hoping for normalization across an array of countries, maybe that people would never have contemplated coming in before,” he said. “We’re excited for that prospect. That would also be a stabilizer in the Middle East.”

But the fact that he briefly drew comparison to the Ukraine war, expressing hope that Russia would take note of President Trump’s peace ‘successes’ – has drawn condemnation from the Kremlin: Israel’s “unprovoked” attack on Iran bears no comparison to the Ukraine conflict, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, rejecting an assessment made by the US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.nWitkoff had suggested earlier that the recent ceasefire between Iran and Israel could serve as a model for ending the hostilities between Russia and Ukraine. nPeskov emphasized that the two wars greatly differ in “in their essence and nature” and further asserted that the “Israeli attacks on Iran were absolutely unprovoked.”

He said that the Russia-Ukraine conflict is something “going back several decades” – and highlighted constant NATO expansion up to Russa’s doorstep, and especially the “armed coup” in Kiev in 2014. “It is hardly appropriate to draw parallels here,” Peskov continued, and said that unlike Israel’s and the United States’ aerial assaults on Iran, the notion of “peace by force” is not something Russia did in the context of Ukraine. Israeli officials have even dubbed their actions ‘preemptive’. But of course, the West is going to vehemently disagree with this narrative, with the difference fundamentally coming down to whether the Ukraine war was provoked or unprovoked. The question has increasingly been belatedly hotly debated over the last year, & finally even in mainstream publications…

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“..starting with the Polish invasion in the 17th century..”

• The West Waging ‘Centuries-Old War’ Against Moscow – Russia’s Top UN Envoy (RT)

Western nations are using Ukraine as their proxy in a longstanding confrontation with Russia that is deeply rooted in history, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia told RT’s Rick Sanchez. In an interview on The Sanchez Effect aired on Friday, the diplomat argued that the conflict “should be seen in a larger context.” “They do not care about Ukraine. This is not a war between Russia and Ukraine,” Nebenzia said. “Ukraine is a proxy in this war. This is a centuries-old war of the West against Russia, starting with the Polish invasion in the 17th century,” he added. As examples of earlier confrontations, Nebenzia cited Napoleon’s invasion of Russia, the 1854–1856 Crimean War, Western military intervention during the Russian Civil War, and the invasion by Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II.

He emphasized that Hitler’s army included not only Germans, but also units drawn from allied countries and occupied territories. The Ukrainians and “their sponsors” in the West sabotaged the 2014–2015 Minsk accords, which were aimed at ending the conflict between Kiev and the breakaway Donbass republics, the Russian diplomat said. Former French President Francois Hollande and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel later admitted the agreement was used by Kiev to buy time and rearm, Nebenzia stated. “We are not going [to fall] into the same trap once again,” he said.

He added that politicians like former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson similarly helped derail the 2022 peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine’s European backers were forced to adjust their position, Nebenzia argued, after US President Donald Trump launched efforts to broker peace and Ukrainian troops began losing more ground. “They changed their rhetoric from ‘We should inflict strategic defeat on Russia’ to ‘Russia should not win in this war.’ Now they are advocating for a full, immediate, and unconditional ceasefire, which is testimony that they want to shield and protect their proxy, as they are obviously losing on the battlefield,” he said. At the same time, Nebenzia noted that the resumption of direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations earlier this year provides hope that the conflict could be resolved soon.

Read more …

Hungary will not give in.

• Hungary Blocks EU Accession Talks With Ukraine (RT)

Hungary has vetoed a joint EU statement on Ukraine at the bloc’s Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, effectively blocking Kiev’s accession talks, according to a communique published on Thursday on the European Council’s website. The statement, which urged the council to open membership negotiations with Ukraine, was “firmly supported by 26 heads of state” out of 27 EU members, the document read. As unanimous approval is required, talks cannot begin until Hungary reverses its stance. The communique noted that the council will revisit the issue at its next meeting in October. While the document did not name Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban confirmed the veto in comments to reporters.

“We stopped Ukraine’s EU accession with the votes of Voks2025, and I needed it, because I was almost swept away by the public anger when I announced that Hungary would not agree to start negotiations with Ukraine,” Orban said, referencing the national referendum which concluded on June 20. More than 2 million Hungarians, or 95% of voters, rejected Ukraine’s EU bid, according to the prime minister. “I had to remind [the council] that the most important criterion [for accession] is that there is in fact a country,” he said. “There must be a defined identity, borders, a population, a territory, and in the case of Ukraine, none of these apply.” Ukraine made EU accession a national priority in 2019, formally applying in 2022 shortly after the escalation of its conflict with Russia. The EU granted Kiev candidate status later that year and set a 2030 target for membership.

While Brussels supports the move, critics argue that Ukraine’s institutions and economy are unprepared, and the cost would strain the bloc. Budapest opposes EU membership for Ukraine, warning it could escalate tensions with Russia and burden EU taxpayers with decades of military aid. Alongside Hungary, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Polish officials have raised concerns. A recent IBRiS poll shows only 35% of Poles support Ukraine’s EU bid, down from 85% in 2022.

Moscow strongly opposes Ukraine joining NATO, but had previously taken a neutral stance on its EU ambitions, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying in March that Ukraine has the “sovereign right” to join if the bloc remains focused on economics. However, with Brussels ramping up defense spending, Russian officials have recently grown critical. Peskov earlier this week called EU militarization “rabid,” while former President Dmitry Medvedev said the bloc has become “no less of a threat” to Russia than NATO. “This is a politicized, globalist, and fiercely Russophobic organization,” Medvedev wrote on Telegram on Wednesday. “Thus, the so-called ‘Ukraine in the EU’ is a danger to our country.”

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And he knows it. As do his backers.

• Zelensky Would Lose Ukrainian Election – Survey (RT)

Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky would lose a head-to-head presidential election against former armed forces commander Valery Zaluzhny if voting were held soon, according to a new poll by the Socis research group. Zelensky suspended elections under martial law and chose not to step down after his presidential term expired last year. Zaluzhny, who was dismissed as commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces in 2024 and later appointed ambassador to the UK, has long been seen as a leading rival. The latest voter preferences were measured in a June survey by the Kiev-based polling agency Socis. The research, released on Wednesday, surveyed around 2,000 Ukrainians and indicated that Zelensky and Zaluzhny would advance to a runoff as the only candidates with double-digit support.

However, nearly a quarter of respondents — 24.7% — said they were still undecided. In a head-to-head, the former top general would receive more than 60% of the vote, according to the poll – a figure that aligns with prior sociological research. Zaluzhny has not declared an intent to run, stating that Ukraine’s ongoing conflict with Russia must be resolved first. When Socis asked voters whom they would support if their preferred candidate were not on the ballot, only 6.5% named Zelensky as their second choice, compared to 18.1% for Zaluzhny and 11.0% for Kirill Budanov, the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency.

The poll also indicated that if Zaluzhny were to form a new political party, it would win the most votes in a parliamentary election – also hypothetical for now – defeating any party backed by Zelensky. Respondents identified persistent corruption and misappropriation of public funds as the leading failure of the current government, with 65% citing the issue. When asked who was responsible, 55.1% blamed “the entire government,” 40.3% pointed to law enforcement agencies charged with tackling corruption, and 31.2% assigned blame to the presidency, and by extension, to Zelensky.

Read more …

Canada, UK: why?

• Incoming MI6 Boss’ Grandfather Was Ukrainian Nazi ‘Butcher’ (RT)

The Daily Mail has revealed that the grandfather of Blaise Metreweli, who is expected to become the first woman to lead the UK’s foreign intelligence service (MI6), was a Nazi collaborator who oversaw atrocities in occupied Ukraine. Metreweli’s father, Constantine, was naturalized in British-administered Hong Kong in 1966. The London Gazette identified him at the time as Dobrowolski, known as Constantine Metreweli, of uncertain nationality. In a story published Thursday, the Mail confirmed that Constantine was the son of a German-Polish Ukrainian man – also named Constantine – who worked for the Nazis and was implicated in the mass killing of Jews and other atrocities during World War II.

The newspaper said it had reviewed “hundreds of pages of documents held in archives in Freiburg, Germany, detailing the extraordinary – and blood-soaked – life and times of Dobrowolski, which are themselves worthy of a spy thriller.” According to the records, Dobrowolski Sr. was born into a family of noble landowners in what is now Ukraine’s Chernigov Region. Following the Bolshevik Revolution, the estate was violently plundered, leading the younger Constantine to become a fierce enemy of the new authorities.

He was imprisoned in 1926 for anti-Soviet and anti-Semitic agitation. He joined the German occupiers at the first opportunity in 1941, and earned the nickname ‘Butcher’ for his brutal actions. He is believed to have been killed in 1943. His wife, Barbara (née Varvara Andreeva), married Georgian-born David Metreweli in Yorkshire in 1947. The Mail alleged that the Russian government is attempting to exploit Metreweli’s family history in an effort to discredit her appointment. While Russian media reported on the announcement of the first female MI6 chief and her family’s ties to Ukraine and Hong Kong, the British media appears to be the first to make the Nazi connection.

”Ms. Metreweli cannot be judged for the sins of her grandfather,” the paper stated. “One of our nation’s most formidable intelligence operatives, she has served her country with distinction on dangerous operations for MI6 across Europe and the Middle East for two decades.” Western nations sheltered thousands of Ukrainian Nazi collaborators after World War II. Many of them were recruited by the CIA to take part in covert operations against the Soviet Union, with a guerrilla war in western Ukraine continuing into the 1950s. In 2023, Canadian lawmakers gave a standing ovation to SS veteran Yaroslav Hunka during a visit by Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky. In Kiev, historical figures associated with wartime nationalist movements, including war criminals, have been honored as national heroes.

Read more …

The party wanted him gone. His approval rating was 20%. But then they got something worse…

• NYC Mayor Eric Adams Launches Reelection Campaign (ET)

Mayor Eric Adams launched his campaign for the November general election during a June 26 press conference on the steps of City Hall, days after state Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani presumptively won the Democratic primary. Adams, 64, was elected in 2021 as a Democrat but chose not to run in the Democratic primary amid his unpopularity among progressive voters stemming from a now-withdrawn federal indictment on bribery charges and his concurrent decision to permit U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain foreign nationals at the city’s Rikers Island jail. In the primary, Mamdani, 33, an Indian-Ugandan American state assemblyman from Queens, defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo on a progressive platform, making him Adams’s principal opponent in the general election. The city’s progressive lean makes the GOP a nonfactor in the race.

Adams addressed Mamdani’s victory and explained his reelection platform, which he presented as a continuation of work underway during his first term. He highlighted his actions during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was still underway when his term began. “People were debating should our children be in school or not, but as a leader that was unwavering … I stood strong and firm against the naysayers and said, ‘We’re going to open our schools and protect our children,’” said Adams. He added: “Crime was moving at a higher rate. Businesses were fleeing this city. There was a lot of uncertainty. Black and brown unemployment was high. … With my leadership, [I said] we must forge ahead a pattern and a pathway.”

Adams’s approval rating has significantly declined during his term. In March, it was 20 percent, the lowest in the 30-year-old poll’s recorded history. Additionally, 56 percent of voters wanted Adams to resign before his term concluded. Adams stated that his term achieved several accomplishments in key areas, particularly in public safety and affordability, which are the top issues for voters. “We took 20,000 guns off our streets … and we prevented the loss of life of black and brown people. … Gun arrests are at a record high, removals of guns are record high. “Tech is booming, tourism is back, Broadway had the best 12 months in recorded history, construction is growing, and yes, Times Square is alive again,” said Adams. “We’re turning unused buildings into homes and streamlining permitting,” he said, addressing the housing crisis.

During his remarks, Adams also praised former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire owner of Bloomberg LP, who served as the city’s mayor for three terms from 2002 to 2013, and who remains popular in the city. Bloomberg, the city’s last Republican mayor who has since become a Democrat, endorsed Cuomo during the primary. “I saw [leadership] when Mayor Bloomberg came into office. … He turned around this city with real leadership and focus, and I knew I had to have that same leadership, and determination, and focus,” said Adams. “That’s why we’re here today … asking for four more years,” he added, with the crowd breaking into a chant of “four more years.” Adams said that if reelected, he would focus on reducing crime, launch a citywide mental health initiative, advance workforce development, expand housing, and clean streets.

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“Great cities fall to the sound of cheering crowds.” Ami Kozak on “X”

• Chaos Creeps in on Little Cat’s Feet (James Howard Kunstler)

The Democratic Party put another bullet in its head this week with the election of the charming, affable jihadi communist Zohran Mamdani. Is “communist” too harsh a label? (He styles himself, softly, a “socialist.”) Yet his campaign platform looks like a template from the venerable Soviet Council of Ministers circa 1957: Free Everything: housing, buses and subways, college, child-care, government food stores. . . with a cherry-on-top of replacing police with social workers in high crime areas — because rapists and car-jackers would quit their rowdy ways if only they could talk about their feelings. If you believe the news reports emanating from Woke Central, Zohran received major support from the folks who predominate the Upper West Side, where he was raised-up by his Columbia prof Dad and film-maker Mom.

That is, voted in by the same high-income demographic that flocks to Zabar’s Deli on Sunday mornings for smoked sturgeon and babka — a curious alliance. I guess this solves the old riddle of why Europe’s Jews walked so placidly into Auschwitz. “Life imitates art,” old Oscar Wilde liked to say, and with so many self-administered bullets in its head now, the Democratic Party looks more and more like The Walking Dead, a necromantic tribute to its erstwhile mascot, “Joe Biden,” the Phantom of the White House. Fortunately, the Latinx bombshell, AOC, America’s answer to Eva Peron, has stepped up to the leadership role, flanked by the foxy Jasmine Crockett, with their mentor, Bernie Sanders close at hand (on a leash, really) barking validation for the Party’s death trip.

It’s a wonder of our time (and its playful zeitgeist) that New Yorkers might choose a mayor even worse than the brain-dead colossus, Bill de Blasio, but there it is, in plain sight for all to behold. The Big Apple and its various services will now go from their currently merely broke-ass condition, to the complete collapse of infrastructure, transit, housing, revenue, business, and public safety, in other words, to true Third World authenticity! Serious people, who run viable businesses, support families, and pay whopping taxes, are in a panic, all a’chatter about moving elsewhere.

That chatter is not idle, especially among the class that owns major real estate, of which New York City has a frightening and increasingly obsolete inventory — hundreds of office skyscrapers running at fifty percent (or less) occupancy, which cannot cover their mortgages, maintenance, or taxes. What will become of them? I’ll tell you: some will be foreclosed-on, sold for dimes on the dollar (and fail again under new ownership,) and quite few will stand empty waiting for acanthus tree seeds to sprout on their empty windowsills.

Or, they will turn into “squats,” like the towers in the abandoned city center of Johannesburg that I saw visiting there ten years ago. Those giant office buildings were not converted into “residential,” you understand; folks were simply camping-out there, even with the electricity and water turned off. This is exactly what happens when you run the prosperous people, whom you hate, out of town, which is what happened in that sad-sack nation. How many demonstration projects like that are needed to prove that communism with a racist frosting on top is a mug’s game.

Of course, we’re not there yet. Zohran hasn’t been sworn in, though the victory celebration just now looks like it’s fait accompli. You can only imagine the frantic conversation running between the old party poohbahs out in the cold: Chuck Schumer, Hakim, Nadler, Obama, even the loser, Cuomo, plus the non-elected party apparatchiks: Axelrod, Podesta, Carville, Plouffe, Emmanuel. . . . They’re not saying, but I bet many are silently wondering: Is there some way we can just disappear the guy? Make him go away? X him out? Cancel his ass? (Someone, for Godsake, find a couple of girls who will say he groped them in an elevator!)

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I don’t know the difference between one kind of end-to-end encryption and the other.

• U.S. House Bans WhatsApp Over Data Security Concerns (ZH)

The U.S. House of Representatives has officially banned the use of WhatsApp on all government-issued devices, citing serious cybersecurity concerns, according to The Guardian. In a memo sent Monday, the House’s Office of Cybersecurity warned staff that WhatsApp poses a “high-risk to users due to the lack of transparency in how it protects user data, absence of stored data encryption, and potential security risks involved with its use.” The notice, issued by the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), advised House employees to use alternative messaging platforms considered safer by the office. Recommended apps included Microsoft Teams, Amazon’s Wickr, Apple’s iMessage and Facetime, and Signal. Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, strongly objected to the ban and the reasoning behind it.

“We disagree with the House Chief Administrative Officer’s characterization in the strongest possible terms,” a Meta spokesperson said. “We know members and their staffs regularly use WhatsApp and we look forward to ensuring members of the House can join their Senate counterparts in doing so officially. Messages on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted by default, meaning only the recipients and not even WhatsApp can see them. This is a higher level of security than most of the apps on the CAO’s approved list that do not offer that protection.” The Guardian writes that among the apps still permitted is Signal, which also provides end-to-end encryption. However, Signal has recently faced its own controversy. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly used private Signal group chats to discuss sensitive military actions, including details of planned strikes on Yemen.

According to reports, one chat group was created by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and included top U.S. security officials — as well as, unintentionally, journalist Jeffrey Goldberg from The Atlantic. A second group, created by Hegseth, reportedly included his wife, brother, and about a dozen others. Despite Signal’s encryption, the Pentagon has expressed concerns about its use. A March 18 bulletin, described by NPR as an “OPSEC special bulletin,” warned Pentagon employees that Russian hackers could exploit a known vulnerability in Signal. The memo indicated that encrypted messaging apps could be targeted by state-backed cyber actors seeking to access sensitive communications. While apps like Signal remain authorized for sharing general, unclassified information, the Defense Department memo clarified that “third party messaging apps” must not be used to transmit “non-public” unclassified content, reinforcing ongoing caution across federal agencies regarding digital security practices.

Read more …

CNN features experts who say RFK is trying to kill untold numbers of Americans. Not kidding.

• RFK Jr. Axes All Funding For Bill Gates’ Global ‘Vaccine Alliance’ (ET)

The United States will not provide money to a global vaccine organization called Gavi until the group changes the way it responds to vaccine safety issues, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told a fundraiser for the organization on June 25. “There’s much that I admire about Gavi, especially its commitment to making medicine affordable to all the world’s people. Gavi has done that part of its job very well,” Kennedy said in recorded remarks played at the summit. “Unfortunately, in its zeal to promote universal vaccination, it has neglected the key issue of vaccine safety.” The United States has provided $8 billion to Gavi since 2001. The United States is one of the organization’s largest funding sources. That investment must be justified, according to Kennedy.

“I’ll tell you how to start taking vaccine safety seriously: Consider the best science available, even when the science contradicts established paradigms. Until that happens, the United States won’t contribute more to Gavi,” he said. Gavi said in a statement that the group “fully concurs with the Secretary for Health and Human Services on the need to consider all available science, and remains committed to continuing an evidence-based and scientific approach to its work and investment decisions, as it always has done.” Gavi says on its website that it helps vaccinate more than 50 percent of the children in the world against various diseases. It said in a separate statement that it is enacting reforms, including restructuring to reduce costs.

The organization’s pledging summit took place Wednesday in Brussels. It was co-hosted by the European Union and the Gates Foundation. The Gates Foundation said in a statement this week that it will give $1.6 billion to Gavi over the next five years, calling the alliance “one of the most effective mechanisms for delivering lifesaving vaccines to children and preventing disease in the world’s most vulnerable communities.” The United States committed $300 million to Gavi in the funding bill for fiscal year 2025, but the Trump administration’s budget request for fiscal year 2026 does not include funding for the group.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the top minority member on the Senate Health Committee, lamented Kennedy’s announcement during a hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He asked Susan Monarez, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about the development. “I believe the global health security preparedness is a critical and vital activity for the United States,” she said. “I think vaccines save lives. I think that we need to continue to support the promotion and utilization of vaccines,” she added later, promising Sanders that if she receives confirmation, she will look into the matter.

A vaccine advisory panel whose members were all chosen by Kennedy was also meeting on Wednesday. The panel announced it would be examining the effects of the CDC’s childhood immunization schedule as well as vaccines that have not been reviewed for seven years and consider whether to change the current recommendations for Hepatitis B vaccines. Trump previously ordered officials to withdraw from several other international groups, including the World Health Organization (WHO), over concerns about their goals. Kennedy said after meeting with Argentinian officials in May that the United States and Argentina—both of which withdrew from WHO earlier this year—are focused on “the creation of an alternative international health system based on gold-standard science and free from totalitarian impulses, corruption, and political control.”

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Fenbendazole has been building a name.

• Cancer Patients Recover By Taking Repurposed Anti-Parasitic Drugs (ET)

Joe Tippens never planned to discover a potential remedy that he credits with saving his life and thrust him into the spotlight among notable cancer survivors. The 67-year-old businessman told The Epoch Times he just wanted to beat a type of cancer with an extremely low survival rate. In August 2016, Tippens was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer with a fist-sized tumor. After undergoing chemotherapy and radiation five times a week in Houston, the large tumor in his left lung was eliminated. However, Tippens said the treatments came closer to killing him than curing him. When he returned home to Oklahoma after the New Year, he received devastating news. His oncologist told him he had zero chance of surviving for more than a few months.

The story was the beginning of what eventually became the “Joe Tippens Protocol.” Fenbendazole, used for 30 years to treat intestinal parasites in animals, has not received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for human use, meaning doctors cannot prescribe it for people. However, with a terminal diagnosis and nothing to lose, Tippens decided to try it alongside his conventional treatments. Tippens found that Panacur, a trade name for fenbendazole, was sold over the counter at outlets that carry veterinary medications. Starting in the third week of January 2017, Tippens began taking the canine medication, Panacur, 1 gram per day for three consecutive days per week. After four days without the medication, which contains about 222 milligrams of fenbendazole per gram, he would repeat his three-day routine. Three months later, Tippens was cancer-free. His protocol also included Theracurmin, a form of the active compound in turmeric, and CBD, an extract of cannabis which does not cause intoxication.

Dr. William Makis, an oncologist and cancer researcher based in Edmonton, Canada, has studied Tippens’s approach and treats cancer patients worldwide, primarily through telehealth. “I’ve had several patients declared cancer-free after doing the protocol for a number of months,” Makis told The Epoch Times. “What made [Tippens’] situation so powerful is that he cured himself of a cancer that is very aggressive—small cell lung cancer—and he had a terminal diagnosis.”

According to Makis, the family of anti-parasitic drugs that includes fenbendazole, mebendazole, and albendazole works well—scientists have found at least 12 ways the medications can fight cancer. The effectiveness of the drugs stems from key similarities between parasite and cancer cells: both have the capacity for autonomous survival and proliferation, resistance to cell-death pathways, and the ability to circumvent the host immune system. Anti-parasitic drugs appear to fight cancer through multiple mechanisms:

• Boosting protein called p53: P53 is a tumor suppressor protein that helps kill cancer cells.
• Blocking glucose uptake: Cancer cells depend on sugar for energy and growth.
• Disrupting microtubules: These cellular structures are crucial for cell division of cancer cells.
• Affecting mitochondrial function: Depletes cellular energy, increases oxidative stress, and blocks a critical pathway that regulates cell growth of cancer cells.

Researchers at the Stanford University Medical Center have reported several case reports, using fenbendazole to cure Stage 4 cancer cases, Makis said. The series of case reports was published in 2021 in SciTechnol, an online, London-based publisher of scientific journal articles. A thought-provoking review citing animal studies published in 2024 in Anticancer Research Journal concluded that fenbendazole affects energy metabolism—mainly by increasing the levels of p53 and affecting pathways that control sugar uptake. It ultimately starves cancer cells and causes them to die with minimal harm to normal cells. The researchers concluded that fenbendazole’s effects on energy metabolism “could lead to significant advances in cancer treatment.”

Read more …

 

 

 

 

Electricity

Sleep

Pi

 

 

 

 

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Debt Rattle June 25 2025

Jun 252025
 
 June 25, 2025  Posted by at 9:14 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,  41 Responses »


Salvador Dali Sick Boy (Self-portrait in Cadaqués) 1923

 

• Trump Drops ‘F-Bomb’ Over Israel and Iran (RT)
• Where Is Iran’s Uranium? (ZH)
• Empire Of Chaos Takes War On BRICS To Next Level (Pepe Escobar)
• In Rope-a-Dope Strategy, The Bell Also Sounds For Rest Periods (Helmer)
• Western States Lied About Iran’s Nuclear Program – Russia’s UN Envoy (RT)
• Trump Says Wants To ‘See A Deal’ With Russia (TASS)
• Trump Shares Fawning Private Letter From NATO Chief (RT)
• NATO Chief Dodges Question About Why To Fear A ‘Russian Attack’ (RT)
• EU Becoming An Extension of NATO – Lavrov (RT)
• Trump Seals His ‘President Badass’ Cred – And Makes US Foes Think Twice (Lowry)
• Is Berlin planning a strike on Moscow? (Amar)
• Will Germany Initiate Compulsory Military Service? (RMX)
• UK Announces Joint Drone-Production With Ukraine (RT)
• Israel’s Moral Collapse: Strategy Doesn’t Require Dead Children (Romanenko)
• Amid Pressure Campaign From Trump, Fed Chair Powell Set To Testify (JTN)
• RFK Jr. and Dr. Oz To Reform Prior Authorization Of Major Health Insurers (JTN)

 

 

Poso

EU gold

Gaetz

 

 

 

 

The Iran nuclear issue is still lingering (what was destroyed? not sure), and Trump gets his next problem: He’s in the Hague with NATO, whose EU members want him to join in an attack on Russia. They say: we went up to 5% spending. now you have to fight with us. The last thing Trump wants, but the EU has lost to Russia and wants to save face. At any cost. We will need Trump the peacemaker yet.

• Trump Drops ‘F-Bomb’ Over Israel and Iran (RT)

US President Donald Trump has resorted to obscene language in blasting both Israel and Iran for allegedly violating a Washington-brokered ceasefire. Shortly after officially agreeing to the truce, West Jerusalem accused Tehran of firing more missiles at Israeli territory and promised a harsh response. Iran has denied attacking Israel. The exact time when the ceasefire was supposed to take effect remains unclear.“We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they do not know what the f**k they are doing,” Trump told journalists on Tuesday before departing for the NATO summit in The Hague. The US president said that he was “not happy” with both countries, but especially with Israel, which he said had “unloaded” right after agreeing to the truce. “They did not have to unload,” he stressed.

“There was one rocket that I guess was fired overboard after the time limit and now Israel is going out. These guys [have] got to calm down,” Trump insisted. He reiterated that he was “not happy with Iran either,” claiming that Tehran will “will never rebuild its nuclear” capabilities after the US and Israeli strikes. The US president addressed West Jerusalem in a separate post on his Truth Social platform, writing in all capital letters: “ISRAEL. DO NOT DROP THOSE BOMBS. IF YOU DO IT IS A MAJOR VIOLATION. BRING YOUR PILOTS HOME, NOW!” In a later post, Trump claimed that “Israel is not going to attack Iran. All planes will turn around and head home, while doing a friendly ‘plane wave’ to Iran.”

“Nobody will be hurt, the ceasefire is in effect,” he wrote. Shortly after that, Iranian news agencies reported that Israel carried out strikes in the western part of the country. ISNA said that there were explosions near the cities of Babol and Babolsar, while Mehr news agency claimed that the projectiles landed in an empty, unpopulated area. Israeli officials told The Times of Israel that the IDF has carried out “a small strike” against an Iranian radar north of Tehran in response to an earlier attack by Iran.

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Not where Trump said it is, that seems obvious.

• Where Is Iran’s Uranium? (ZH)

Where is Iran’s Uranium? Truce Highlights Mystery Over Stockpile… that’s Bloomberg’s latest headline over the ‘biggest mystery’ that remains in the war. There’s also the pressing question of whether Trump’s massive airstrikes from B-2 bombers actually truly destroyed the facilities and these stockpiles. The Iranians aren’t dumb, and likely took drastic steps to further protect, conceal, or likely move these enriched stockpiles – some 400kg according to most reports – as wave after wave of Israeli warplanes hit Iran, significantly before the US sent its bombers this past weekend. It appears core components are still intact – though Iran has long maintained it is merely for peaceful nuclear energy development. The NY Times is currently reporting that the US operation merely set Iran’s nuclear program back by a few months. And further:

“US BOMBS DIDN’T COLLAPSE UNDERGROUND IRANIAN NUKE BUILDINGS: NYT”. Big media allegations, based on US officials and an intel assessment, that the Iranians moved their enriched uranium: “Early emerging intelligence also points to the stockpile having not been destroyed, which contradicts the current ‘victory lap’ claims being made by President Trump and some of his top officials. In a huge development below is fresh CNN reporting based on a leaked assessment by the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA): The assessment, which has not been previously reported, was produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon’s intelligence arm. It is based on a battle damage assessment conducted by US Central Command in the aftermath of the US strikes, one of the sources said.

The analysis of the damage to the sites and the impact of the strikes on Iran’s nuclear ambitions is ongoing, and could change as more intelligence becomes available. But the early findings are at odds with President Donald Trump’s repeated claims that the strikes “completely and totally obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment facilities. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also said on Sunday that Iran’s nuclear ambitions “have been obliterated.” One unnamed defense official quoted in the report says centrifuges are largely “intact.” And more based on the apparently ‘Top Secret’ leaked DIA intel report: “So the (DIA) assessment is that the US set them back maybe a few months, tops,” this person added. The White House acknowledged the existence of the assessment but said they disagreed with it.

Read more …

Strong from Pepe.

• Empire Of Chaos Takes War On BRICS To Next Level (Pepe Escobar)

They came. They bunker-busted. They fled. And then they set the stage to control the narrative via a massive P.R. operation. POTUS hailed the “spectacular” victory of B-2s flying from the US to West Asia to release MOPs (“Massive Ordnance Penetrators) over Fordow in the middle of the night of June 22 (significantly, the same date of the start of Operation Barbarossa in 1941). Trump 2.0 functionaries gloated that the Iranian nuclear program was now gone. That’s the reality show. Now for reality. Mannan Raisi, a member of the Iranian Majlis (Parliament) from the holy city of Qom, summed it all up: “Contrary to the statements of the lying US President, the nuclear facilities at Fordow were not seriously damaged. Only the above-ground structures, which can be restored, were destroyed.

In addition, everything that could pose a danger to the population was evacuated in advance. There are no reports of any nuclear emissions. Trump’s false claims about the ‘destruction of Fordow’ are refuted by the fact that the attacks were so superficial that there were not even any fatalities at the facility.”What really matters is that the Empire of Chaos, in a single – spectacularly criminal – raid, bunker-busted the UN charter (again); international law (again); the NPT (perhaps for good); the US constitution; the “international community”; and Trump’s own MAGA base. The Global South is now doing the math – and drawing the necessary conclusions.“Peace through strength” POTUS now owns two wars; a genocide; and an unprovoked attack by a nuclear superpower on behalf of a nuclear power against a non-nuclear power.

The IRGC’s response was swift: the real war starts now. The Zionist axis will pay – in spades. It will not be a full-scale war against the Empire: that’s supremely un-strategic. What will develop is multi-layered death by a thousand cuts. That was already in effect in the morning of June 23. Iran launched no less than five multi-directional waves of missiles – covering the whole of Israel, including new targets such as Ashdod port and power station. The Israeli interception rate fell below 50%. All hell broke loose – from alert siren malfunctions to power outages. Knesset members fled. An El Al rescue flight from New York was forced to turn back in mid-air when missiles started flying. The message: the whole of Israel is now a legitimate target – reached within minutes by Kheybar-Shakan, Emad, Qadr, and Fattah-1 missiles.

The Strait of Hormuz: the ultimate card. Iran’s upgraded priorities include: stop the war on Gaza and southern Lebanon; “evolve” the nuclear doctrine (all bets are off); targeted assassinations of Zionist leaders; more strikes on Mossad; more missile barrages on Tel Aviv, Haifa and Dimona. There will be no direct war on the Empire of Chaos. The blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is the ultimate Iranian card, not the nuclear card: it won’t be played in full for now. At best there could be a partial blockade of oil shipping to the – fragmented – collective West. A top former Deep State source confirmed that “the CIA advised the Trump administration that China was resolutely against the shutting down of the Strait of Hormuz, so Trump went ahead with the bombing.”

Shutting down the Strait of Hormuz will detonate a global depression of unforeseem magnitude. The loss of over 20% of the world’s oil supply will trigger the implosion of over two quadrillion dollars of derivatives, as was already speculated by Goldman Sachs projections in the late 2010s. Warren Buffett described it as a chain reaction after a nuclear explosion. As it stands, Tehran learned a lesson the hardest way. It’s not that the Iranian leadership acted immorally: on the contrary, its belief in diplomacy and serious negotiations proved totally at odds at with the US empire’s totally debased modus operandi. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi summed it all up. Iran was negotiating with the US “when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy.”

Then Iran was talking “with the E3/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy.” Ergo, it’s absurd to order Iran to “return” to the table: “How can Iran return to something it never left, let alone blew up?” At the St. Petersburg forum, President Putin was very clear that “we support Iran and the struggle for its legitimate interests, including peaceful use of atomic energy.” He added, crucially: “Those who say Russia is not a reliable partner are provocateurs.” Putin himself said earlier that week that Russia had previously offered to bolster Iran’s air defenses, but was not taken up on that offer. It also is no secret that unlike the treaty with North Korea, the Russia-Iran strategic partnership agreement didn’t feature a collective security provision. That may be about to change.

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“Iran has not been lacking. They have been ready. Also, they have the capacity to fire several large missiles per day for several weeks, if not months, which the Israelis and Americans cannot stop. These will get through to Israel’s water, gas, and electricity plants, other fuel supplies, and ports.”

• In Rope-a-Dope Strategy, The Bell Also Sounds For Rest Periods (Helmer)

According to the Unified Rules of Boxing issued by the US Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports, when the bell sounds for the end of each round, there is a “rest period” before the boxers resume their fight, or one retires too hurt to continue. The ceasefire between Israel and Iran which President Donald Trump (lead image, left, right) has congratulated himself for arranging is the bell sounding for the rest period to begin. Iran’s rope-a-dope strategy allows rest periods. But for this strategy to succeed, the rest periods must be too short for Israel to be re-supplied by the US, Germany and other allies, compared to the re-supply arrangements which Iran is now trying to make with Russia, China, North Korea and other sources.

Since Trump’s first announcement allowed Israel and Iran to continue striking each other for six hours, his deadline was roughly 7 am Teheran time today, June 24. In reply, Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s Foreign Minister, announced “there is NO ‘agreement’ on any ceasefire or cessation of military operations. However, provided that the Israeli regime stops its illegal aggression against the Iranian people no later than 4 am Teheran time, we have no intention to continue our response afterwards.” According to Trump, “Israel & Iran came to me, almost simultaneously, and said, ‘PEACE!’” Trump has then claimed he had forced them. “We couldn’t have made today’s ‘deal’ without the talent and courage of our great B-2 pilots, and all of those associated with that operation. In a certain and very ironic way, that perfect ‘hit’, late in the evening, brought everyone together, and the deal was made!!!”

Sources in Moscow say the terms of the Trump “deal” are quite different. On the one hand, according to the sources, Trump understands that unless he orders a halt to US arms supplies and battlefield intelligence to the regime in Kiev, Russia will not halt its arms supplies and intelligence-sharing with Iran. The sources add that for the time being Iran is not requesting fresh Russian aid. “Several individuals have been moved under Russian protection; these are individuals and families who have been moved into Russia. North Korean deliveries have been crucial in the run-up — they are basically Chinese. So Iran has not been lacking. They have been ready. Also, they have the capacity to fire several large missiles per day for several weeks, if not months, which the Israelis and Americans cannot stop. These will get through to Israel’s water, gas, and electricity plants, other fuel supplies, and ports.”

The assessment in Moscow is that Iran has demonstrated it has escalation control for the long term, and that in the short term Israel needs US re-supply, re-financing, and recovery more urgently than Iran. In exchange for Trump’s “ceasefire” to meet the Israeli requests, President Vladimir Putin has communicated that Trump must do nothing to block the acceleration of Russia’s offensive in the Ukraine.

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“The US-brokered ceasefire between Iran and Israel took effect on Tuesday and has so far been upheld.”

• Western States Lied About Iran’s Nuclear Program – Russia’s UN Envoy (RT)

The US and Israel have spread disinformation about Iran’s nuclear program as a pretext for attack, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia has said. Speaking at the UN Security Council on Tuesday, the diplomat condemned the strikes on Iranian nuclear sites as illegal under international law and said they had “created a real threat” of radioactive contamination. Nebenzia noted that the reports of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which carries out inspections in Iran, serve as proof of “the absence of proliferation risks.” “We want to emphasize that nowhere in the IAEA reports is there any mention of Iran converting its nuclear stockpiles for undeclared or military purposes,” Nebenzia said.

The IAEA has found no evidence indicating the development of nuclear weapons by Iran. Therefore, all claims by Western delegations to the contrary are falsehoods aimed at audiences either unfamiliar with the reports or lacking competence on the matter. Nebenzia described the attack on Iran as “yet another attempt to legitimize the use of force outside the framework of the UN Charter.” IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi told Sky News last week that there was no evidence of “any systematic effort” by Iran to manufacture nuclear weapons. He added, however, that the agency had “elements of concern” about Iran’s enrichment of uranium to 60%. During a press conference in New York on Tuesday, Israeli envoy Danny Danon reiterated his government’s position that Israeli strikes, which began on June 13, were aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

Iran, which denies having a military nuclear program, has condemned the attack as an act of aggression and announced plans to restrict its cooperation with the IAEA. The US-brokered ceasefire between Iran and Israel took effect on Tuesday and has so far been upheld.

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‘No, I don’t need help with Iran. I need help with you.’

• Trump Says Wants To ‘See A Deal’ With Russia (TASS)

US President Donald Trump stated that he would like to “see a deal” with Russia. Speaking to reporters aboard a plane en route to the Netherlands for the upcoming NATO Summit, Trump was asked to comment on the Russia-related language expected in a communique to be issued after the alliance leaders’ meeting. “I’ll have to take a look at it. But, you know, I’d like to see a deal with Russia. As you know, Vladimir [Putin, the Russian president] called me up. He said, ‘Can I help you with Iran?’ I said, ‘No, I don’t need help with Iran. I need help with you.’ And I hope we’re going to be getting a deal done with Russia,” Trump responded.

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Is Trump flattered enough to also be deceived?

• Trump Shares Fawning Private Letter From NATO Chief (RT)

US President Donald Trump has posted screenshots of a private text message from NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, in which he showered the American leader with praise for “decisive action in Iran.” The message, which Trump shared on his Truth Social platform, appears to have been sent ahead of the two-day NATO summit in The Hague, which started on Tuesday. “Congratulations and thank you for your decisive action in Iran, that was truly extraordinary, and something no one else dared to do. It makes us all safer,” Rutte wrote, aparently referring to the US strikes on nuclear sites in the Islamic Republic sites which took place on June 22.

In his message, Rutte also promised “another big success” for Trump in The Hague, saying that all NATO members had agreed to spend 5% of their GDP on defense. “You will achieve something NO American president in decades could get done,” he wrote. A NATO spokesperson has confirmed to the BBC that the text is authentic.

Trump has long insisted that NATO members in Europe should significantly increase their military budgets, which many have pledged to do in recent years, citing the Russian-Ukraine conflict. Spain has reportedly decided to opt out of the 5% spending target, after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez rejected the idea as “not only unreasonable but also counterproductive.” Madrid is currently below the existing 2% spending threshold, with only about 1.3% of its GDP allocated for the military. Rutte, however, told journalists on Monday that NATO rules don’t allow such exemptions.

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“3, 5, 7 years from now, Russia will be able to successfully attack us, if we do not start investing more today.”

• NATO Chief Dodges Question About Why To Fear A ‘Russian Attack’ (RT)

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has failed to explain why the bloc believes Russia could attack within five years, but nevertheless used the claim during a press conference on Monday to reiterate calls for increased military spending. In recent months, a number of Western officials have repeatedly claimed that Russia may attack an Eastern European member state in the near future, using the rhetoric as a foundation for drastically raising defense spending. Moscow has vehemently denied harboring any hostile intent, and called such accusations “nonsense.” While speaking at a pre-summit press conference in The Hague, Rutte was asked to disclose what NATO’s assessment of a Russian attack within five years was based on.

The secretary general, however, avoided giving any specific intelligence or threat assessment, citing only general fears and urging an increase in the bloc-wide defense spending target to 5% of GDP. Rutte said there was “great worry in many circles of NATO” and referred to “senior military leaders” and “intelligence community people” who have spoken about the possibility that “3, 5, 7 years from now, Russia will be able to successfully attack us, if we do not start investing more today.” He emphasized that “huge extra defense spending over the next three to five years” was required to ensure NATO’s future readiness. According to Rutte, yearly increases would be needed to strengthen the bloc through new personnel and military equipment.

Russia has consistently rejected the idea that Moscow plans to invade NATO countries, with President Vladimir Putin calling the accusations “nonsense” and “shameless lies” designed to extract resources from the population and divert it towards military spending. Speaking to military academy graduates on Monday, Putin stated that the West “came up with this horror story themselves and repeats it year after year,” using it to provoke a new arms race and justify what he called “global militarization.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has also slammed NATO’s “unbridled militarization” and suggested that the bloc would need to create a “monster” to push through the proposed 5% GDP defense spending benchmark. “Let’s call things by their proper names,” he said. “This is an alliance created for confrontation. This is an alliance that brings aggression and confrontation. This is not an instrument of peace and stability.”

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” The bloc has undergone a “radical transformation,” he claimed, becoming an “aggressive military-political bloc” that is “essentially a branch, or rather an appendage of NATO.”

• EU Becoming An Extension of NATO – Lavrov (RT)

The European Union is turning into an extension of NATO, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday. During a speech at an international forum in Moscow, Lavrov recalled that the EU was initially formed as an economic union that was meant to make life better for its residents in a “socio-economic sense.” The bloc has undergone a “radical transformation,” he claimed, becoming an “aggressive military-political bloc” that is “essentially a branch, or rather an appendage of NATO.” Lavrov pointed to an agreement signed between the EU and NATO under which EU member countries, even those that are not part of the military bloc, would be obligated to allow NATO troops and equipment to pass through their territory to an eastern front when required.

The Russian foreign minister said such arrangements mean EU countries are “directly involved in preparations for war against our country.” Lavrov’s remarks come as US President Donald Trump released screenshots of a series of grovelling messages from NATO chief Mark Rutte in which the former Dutch PM celebrated US attacks on Iran, aped Trump’s writing style and boasted of ensuring EU members more-than-double military spending, citing an alleged Russian threat. Last month, EU member states also adopted a €150 billion ($170 billion) debt plan to fund arms production and military procurement. Russia has consistently maintained that it harbors no hostile intent towards any EU nation, dismissing the accusations as “nonsense” and fearmongering used to justify increased military spending.

Moscow has also condemned the EU’s new debt initiative, describing it as a continuation of the bloc’s hostile policies and militarization. Russian officials have warned that the spending hikes are tantamount to an “incitement to war on the European continent.” Speaking to military academy graduates on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that the West “came up with this horror story” about a Russian attack and is now repeating it “year after year” to provoke a new arms race and justify “global militarization.”

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“The word “badass” was bandied about a lot after the first assassination attempt on Donald Trump last year..”

• Trump Seals His ‘President Badass’ Cred – And Makes US Foes Think Twice (Lowry)

The word “badass” was bandied about a lot after the first assassination attempt on Donald Trump last year. Famously, the bloodied Republican candidate raised his fist in defiance. In a different context, the same pungent word applies to his 2 a.m. strike on Iranian nuclear facilities. Trump the TV star has a knack for the theatrical and grand gesture. That obviously matters in domestic politics, but in international affairs, too, where projecting strength and command are just as important. We don’t know where the war heads from here, and need to learn more about the damage that was inflicted. Still, it was an operation with a distinct and very useful element of Trump badassery. It’s not that Trump always follows through on his threats: He doesn’t, with his on-and-off “liberation day” tariffs an ongoing example of backing off and recalibrating.

But when he makes good on a threat, it leaves a mark. He’s said how foreign adversaries in his first term didn’t always believe his threats 100%; they might believe him some percentage less than that, but it’d still be enough to make them wonder. After this, whatever that number is just went up another 30% or so. Trump’s signature military operations haven’t been particularly complex: smashing ISIS, killing Iraqi Gen. Qassem Soleimani, bombing Fordow and other Iranian nuclear facilities. They haven’t required mustering big international coalitions or launching, say, amphibious landings. But they achieve an outsized effect, thanks to the stark terms in which they are promised (e.g., bombing “the s–t” out of ISIS), or the sheer audacity of the operation. Killing Soleimani was a very limited action, but one that was shocking all the same.

Bombing Fordow and the other sites was also quite focused, but the operation came as a strategic thunderclap. One way to put it is that the “shock and awe” bombing campaign before the second Iraq war was much less awesome than advertised, and a prelude to a grinding, drawn-out conflict. Trump’s operations tend, in contrast, to be all shock and awe, and for real. He represents the opposite approach of Robert McNamara during the Vietnam War. Basically, the former business executive and LBJ defense secretary believed that talented managers could micromanage their way to success in government — complicated problems required complex analysis, shorn of a human element. The Trump method is to simplify everything and apply blunt-force solutions, undergirded by a very human psychology of dominance.

To wit, Iran can’t have a nuclear bomb: Diplomacy would be ideal, but if it doesn’t work, military force will be necessary. Tinker to Evers to Chance. QED. Trump proved immune to any subtle and counterintuitive theories about Iran, displaying the attitude toward the regime that you’d expect of any commonsensical American who’s lived through the last 45 years. Another way to look at Trump’s strike is as the bookend of Desert One in 1980, Jimmy Carter’s misbegotten hostage-rescue operation. The failure of that attempt represented a humiliation that was another blow to our national self-confidence and was a symbol of the reduced state of the post-Vietnam US military. It also spoke to the staying power of the Iranian regime at its inception.

This is the opposite. The strike showcased the remarkable reach and proficiency of the US military, and a president willing to wield it as necessary. The operation may eventually — although this is less certain — be seen as a prelude to the end of a decrepit regime. Again, who knows how this all plays out, and it may be that there are unanticipated downsides and mission creep. Trump posted the other day about regime change. The Iranians might believe that’s merely bluster — but they need to take it more seriously than only a couple of days ago. Such is the effect of Trump’s badass move, and we should hope it is being felt not just in Tehran but in every capital of a country that wishes us harm.

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Not without NATO.

• Is Berlin Planning A Strike On Moscow? (Amar)

Forget the fog of war. Even in war, and sometimes especially in war, some things are exceedingly clear. Regarding the so-called ‘Hamas-Israel War’, for instance, it is obvious that in reality it is not a war at all but a genocide, namely the Gaza Genocide, carried out by Israel against the Palestinians whose unbroken resistance will be the stuff of legends, and of history too. bLikewise, in the case of Israel’s current assault on Iran – really, of course, a combined US-Israeli attack from the get-go – there is no room for doubt that it is criminal and a “blatant act of aggression,” as multiple experts in international law agree. That’s because in essence, Israel is not acting with a UN mandate – which it would not have received – or in self-defense.

The legal basis for this compelling assessment is not complex and there is no room for good-faith debate: Israel’s attack violates Article 2 (4) of the foundational UN Charter, which is recognized universally as jus cogens, that is, a binding norm: no pick and choose. The few generally accepted, narrowly defined potential exceptions to this article’s comprehensive prohibition on the use of force, such as an erroneous incursion, certain operations at sea, or a rescue of nationals, clearly do not apply. The Israeli onslaught also does not have the blessing of the UN Security Council, and it cannot possibly count as lawful self-defense under Article 51. So far, so simple. If anyone tries to make this look complicated by flagrantly misapplying and abusing the notion of a ‘preemptive strike’, you are dealing with Israeli or Israel-Lobby disinformation and propaganda.

That too is anything but surprising. Yet what is more puzzling than the above is the response of the governments, and often the mainstream media of the West, to this clearly criminal Israeli attack. After years of invoking international law to go after Russia, it turns out that the same leaders and talking heads will tie themselves into 5-D pretzels to let Israel get away with whatever Israel feels like doing on any given day. This is not really news either, of course: Western ‘elites’, with Washington always in the lead, have behaved no better when serving as accomplices in Israel’s Gaza Genocide. But there is something peculiar and noteworthy about how exactly some important Western politicians and their media and ‘think tank’ experts spin the attack on Iran.

Take, for instance, Germany. Its chancellor Friedrich Merz has gone out of his way to loudly endorse the assault on Iran. He has even exposed himself to ridicule and some – if far too little – criticism by employing revoltingly indecent language. Calling Israel’s actions “dirty work” (it sounds even worse in the original German: “Drecksarbeit”) that must be done and for which we all should be grateful, Merz has revealed his double racism: As a German and a historian, I can only say that a German leader praising Jews for doing “our” dirty work is, to put it very mildly, extremely boorish. Defining the criminal killing of Iranians as that “dirty work” adds a very nasty “colonial” flavor reminiscent of say, Kaiser Wilhelm II gloating over massacring Chinese during the so-called Boxer Rebellion.

While Merz has been clumsy enough to couch his obnoxious ideas in equally obnoxious language, he has by no means been alone. All too many prestigious German publications, such as the staid Frankfurter Zeitung or the also important Merkur newspaper, have hurried to either simply agree with Merz or at least to excuse and relativize his vile statement. In addition, rather overworked all-purpose ‘experts’, such as the reliably conformist and rarara-russophobic Christian Mölling, have used their perma-perk in Germany’s streamlined talk shows to cynically diminish international law and help dress up Israel’s newest crime as so necessary that it trumps all law anyhow.

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Crank up the fear!

• Will Germany Initiate Compulsory Military Service? (RMX)

Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder has come out with an aggressive plan to prep Germany for war. Support for Ukraine, defense against Russia, and efforts to prevent terrorists from getting their hands on nuclear weapons are the priorities. “Compulsory military and civilian service is the future,” said Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder, according to Magyar Nemzet.n“It is not enough to simply send out questionnaires to young people asking if they would be willing to serve; more decisive steps are needed,” he added. Germany suspended compulsory military service in 2011, but the service could be reactivated via a parliamentary ruling.

The German government’s coalition agreement currently only allows for voluntary military service. However, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has already indicated that a much more ambitious bill is in the works, which would allow for the introduction of compulsory military service if necessary. In addition to the issue of conscription, Söder also urged the maximum deployment of the Bundeswehr —the German army — and again called for the development of a national missile defense system. “This also requires technology – an Iron Dome system is absolutely necessary to protect not only Berlin, but all of Germany,” he said, emphasizing that urgent action, including more sanctions, is needed to deter Russia.

Söder also called for full support for Ukraine, including supplying the country with arms. Thorsten Frei, the head of the German Chancellery, warned on Monday that the threat to U.S. military bases in Germany had increased significantly after the U.S. air strikes on Iran. “We stand with the United States and Israel,” Frei stated, adding that German security agencies are doing everything they can to protect American facilities. Regarding the attacks on Iran, the politician highlighted: “The fact is that it was not only Israel that was in serious danger. If a terrorist regime were to obtain nuclear weapons, it would also pose a serious threat to world peace.”

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“..a “massive step forward” in military assistance for Kiev. Zelensky described the development as “historic.”

• UK Announces Joint Drone-Production With Ukraine (RT)

The UK has announced it will begin joint production of military drones with Ukraine. Speaking in London on Monday after a meeting with Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky, British Prime Minister Kier Starmer hailed a “first of its kind” deal that represents a “massive step forward” in military assistance for Kiev. Zelensky described the development as “historic. ”Moscow has long described the UK as a key driver of the ongoing hostilities. Neither leader disclosed specific details of the initiative, but both indicated that Ukrainian defense manufacturers stand to benefit from British battlefield technologies.

Zelensky was in the UK this week to meet with Starmer and speak at an event hosted by the Chatham House think tank. Zelensky mentioned production of “long-distance drones” during his speech. One such kamikaze drone hit a residential tower near Moscow early Tuesday morning. Russia has accused the UK of being directly involved in Ukrainian drone operations, particularly naval drone attacks targeting Crimea. Earlier this month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov asserted that Britain is also “100% involved” in Ukrainian intelligence operations, including those Moscow categorizes as acts of terrorism.

“It is obvious that all this is being done by the Ukrainian side, but it would have been helpless without the support… from the British,” Lavrov said.In April, The Times reported that British troops have been present in Ukraine since 2022, the year the conflict escalated. The report stated British forces played a key role in deploying French-British Storm Shadow cruise missiles supplied to Kiev. Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who oversaw the UK’s early and extensive involvement in the conflict, has referred to the Ukrainian military as “our proxies” in interviews, as did some other Western former and current officials.

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Too many stories.

• Israel’s Moral Collapse: Strategy Doesn’t Require Dead Children (Romanenko)

The recent revelation that Iranian nuclear scientist Mostafa Sadati-Armaki was killed along with his entire family – his wife, two daughters, and son – in an Israeli airstrike should stop even hardened strategists in their tracks. This wasn’t just a precision strike. It was an execution of a household. Sadati-Armaki was not a senior official. He was a mid-level scientist—an engineer working within Iran’s nuclear framework. That role may have made him a target in the logic of modern conflict. But nothing, not even that logic, can justify killing his children in their own home.

This wasn’t an isolated incident. On June 13, at least five other nuclear scientists were killed in Israeli strikes across Tehran: Fereydoon Abbasi, Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, Abdolhamid Minouchehr, Ahmadreza Zolfaghari Daryani, and Seyed Amir Hossein Feghhi. Their credentials tied them to Iran’s nuclear program. All had played some role, technical or administrative, in Iran’s nuclear development. None were combatants. Most were academics. Some had already retired from state positions. Crucially, they weren’t alone. In multiple reported cases, family members died alongside them. Wives. Daughters. The daughter of a senior official.

These were not errant missiles landing in crowded urban spaces. These were targeted strikes on homes, in residential areas, at night, when families were together. This isn’t the fog of war. It is its deliberate weaponization. The children didn’t make enrichment policy. The spouses didn’t oversee uranium labs. But they died because of proximity—because they were related to someone deemed dangerous. To call this “collateral damage” is cowardice. When decision-makers approve a strike on a home, knowing who sleeps inside, the outcome is no longer an accident. It is a choice. Some argue that in an asymmetrical war, deterrence must be personal. But this is not deterrence—it’s liquidation. It suggests that no civilian life adjacent to state infrastructure is worth preserving. It sends the message that not even scientists’ families will be spared, as if moral limits are luxuries we can no longer afford.

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“..if he reduced them to the number they should be, 1% to 2%, that ‘numbskull’ would be saving the United States of America up to $1 Trillion Dollars per year..”

• Amid Pressure Campaign From Trump, Fed Chair Powell Set To Testify (JTN)

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will appear before Congress on Tuesday as President Donald Trump continues to push the independent central bank to lower interest rates. Powell will present the Fed’s Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the U.S. House Financial Services Committee at 10 a.m. Tuesday in Washington. The chairman’s remarks before Congress come as Trump hounds Powell to lower interest rates. Last week, the Federal Open Markets Committee kept the central bank’s federal funds rate at a target of 4.25% and 4.5% – further frustrating Trump and his allies. Trump has called Powell names and said the chairman is “not a smart person.” Trump has also dubbed him “too late” for not cutting rates. Last week, the president even suggested appointing himself chairman of the Federal Reserve. He also called for aggressive cuts.

“Europe has had 10 cuts, we have had none,” Trump wrote last week. “We should be 2.5 Points lower.” Over the weekend, the president again skewered Powell, encouraging rate cuts in a lengthy post on Truth Social, the president’s social media platform. “He could do the biggest and best job for our Country by helping to lower Interest Rates and, if he reduced them to the number they should be, 1% to 2%, that ‘numbskull’ would be saving the United States of America up to $1 Trillion Dollars per year,” Trump said. “I fully understand that my strong criticism of him makes it more difficult for him to do what he should be doing, lowering Rates, but I’ve tried it all different ways. I’ve been nice, I’ve been neutral, and I’ve been nasty, and nice and neutral didn’t work! He’s a dumb guy, and an obvious Trump Hater, who should have never been there.”

Trump laid out his reasons for a cut. “We have virtually No Inflation, our Economy is doing really well, and will soon be doing, with the tremendous Tariff Income coming in, and Factories being built all over the Country, better than it has ever done before,” Trump wrote. “If he was concerned about Inflation or anything else, then all he has to do is bring the Rate down, so we can benefit on Interest Costs, and raise it in the future when and if these ‘other elements’ happen (which I doubt they will!).” The president hinted again at firing Powell, something he suggested earlier but backed off. “Maybe, just maybe, I’ll have to change my mind about firing him? But regardless, his Term ends shortly!,” the president wrote on Truth Social.

In May, the Supreme Court hinted that it wouldn’t allow a president to fire the chairman of the Federal Reserve. The nation’s highest court said the relationship between the president and the Federal Reserve was different from other independent agencies.

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RFK continues what he was tasked with. Good.

• RFK Jr. and Dr. Oz To Reform Prior Authorization Of Major Health Insurers (JTN)

Several major health insurance companies are vowing to make changes to simplify their prior authorization process and improve Americans’ access to timely health care.mU.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Medicare & Medicaid Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced the changes during a news conference Monday afternoon.mThe initiative comes after administrative barriers and wait times have made it trickier to access health care promptly in recent years. This includes prior authorization, which requires health-care services to be approved by insurers before care can be given.mn“Patients should not be waiting because bureaucratic hurdles are blocking their medical treatment,” Oz said Monday.

Oz and Kennedy announced plans to collaborate with numerous health-care insurers, including UnitedHealthcare, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Kaiser Permanente, to implement grace periods when patients change plans and utilize electronic systems to speed up prior authorization. “Americans shouldn’t have to negotiate with their insurer to get the care they need,” Kennedy said. “Pitting patients and their doctors against massive companies was not good for anyone.”n These commitments made by health insurance companies were not prompted by federal mandates from HHS or CMS but were rather made on a voluntary basis.

“We applaud these voluntary actions by the private sector, which is how these types of issues should be solved,” Oz said. “CMS will be evaluating progress and driving accountability toward our shared goals as we continue to champion solutions that put patients first.”mnHealthcare trade association America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) announced that insurance companies are seeking to launch standardized electronic systems for prior authorization by Jan. 1, 2027.Insurers are also aiming to decrease the number of health-care claims that require prior authorization screening by Jan. 1, 2026. “These measurable commitments – addressing improvements like timeliness, scope and streamlining – mark a meaningful step forward in our work together to create a better system of health,” Blue Cross Blue Shield CEO Kim Keck said.

RFK

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600/s

Dalgleish

Assange

Drunk


Dive dog


Sea lion
https://twitter.com/Yoda4ever/status/1937234225675346011

Lobster

 

 

 

 

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Debt Rattle May 26 2025

May 262025
 
 May 26, 2025  Posted by at 11:11 am Finance Tagged with: , , , ,  28 Responses »


Joan Miro Montroig, la iglesia y el pueblo 1918

• • • • • • •

 

Kellogg

 

 

 

 

That would kill most trade.

• Trump Delays 50 Percent Tariff On EU Goods To July 9 (ZH)

President Donald Trump announced just after 6pm on Sunday that the US will delay the implementation of a 50% tariff on European Union products to July 9 from June 1. Sunday’s decision to extend the tariff deadline was made after a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen earlier in the day, and comes after Trump unexpectedly threatened duties of 50% on the EU on Friday morning. The move surprised European officials who thought they were making progress with his administration on talks to avert the 20% “reciprocal” tariffs Trump announced in April, and then paused for 90 days. “I received a call today from Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, requesting an extension on the June 1st deadline on the 50% Tariff with respect to Trade and the European Union,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“I agreed to the extension—July 9, 2025—It was my privilege to do so. The Commission President said that talks will begin rapidly.” Trump’s statement followed a post from von der Leyen on the social media platform X, in which she described her conversation with Trump as a “good call.”“The EU and US share the world’s most consequential and close trade relationship. Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively. To reach a good deal, we would need the time until July 9,” she wrote. Trump initially said on May 23 that the United States will impose a 50 percent tariff on the European Union starting June 1 after the president wrote on Truth Social that he felt talks with the EU were “going nowhere,” and cited a litany of his trade irritants, from the EU’s value-added taxes to fines and regulations on U.S. companies.

The sides also have yet to agree on how to align their trade policies on China, though the EU has privately indicated it is willing to work with the U.S. to combat Beijing’s subsidies for key industries such as steel according to the WSJ. Trump has long maligned the EU, which he says was formed to take advantage of the US, and decried the U.S.’s persistent trade deficit with the continent. The EU, meanwhile, has said it wouldn’t negotiate over certain Trump demands, such as value-added taxes. And some European ministers have made clear that they wouldn’t accept a deal that keeps Trump’s 10% baseline tariff in place—a concession the U.K. made in a pact signed early this month. Trump’s statement on Sunday reverts the negotiations back to where they were before his Friday missive, giving the sides just over a month to come to an agreement.

The United States and EU share the largest bilateral economic relationship in the world. Yet, U.S. goods and services face persistent tariff and non-tariff barriers in the EU market, according to the latest Foreign Trade Barriers report issued by U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). Although the EU’s average Most Favored Nation tariff rate stands at a relatively low 5 percent, certain goods face disproportionately high levies, such as fish and seafood (up to 26 percent), trucks (22 percent), bicycles (14 percent), passenger vehicles (10 percent), and fertilizers and plastics (6.5 percent).Many processed foods such as confectionary products and baked goods also face complex and burdensome tariffs under the EU’s Meursing Table system, which calculates duties based on product composition.

Under this system, the EU charges a tariff on each imported good based on the products’ content of milk fat, milk protein, starch, and sugar. This system not only increases administrative burden but also creates uncertainty for U.S. food exporters, according to the USTR. In addition, the EU does not administer its laws through a single customs administration, which presents another layer of complexity for U.S. exporters. Each EU member state enforces customs law independently, resulting in different interpretations and enforcement throughout the bloc. The EU’s technical barriers to trade also remain a sticking point. For example, Europe’s adoption of regional standards for safety, quality, environmental protection, labeling, and packaging impede market access for U.S. products even if they meet international standards, according to the USTR.

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I enjoyed this.

• America’s Real Foreign Policy (Paul Craig Roberts)

Note: In my opinion neither Putin nor Trump are engaged in “peace negotiations” for the purpose of ending the military conflict in Ukraine. Putin’s purpose is to use negotiations to achieve a Great Power Agreement, a New Yalta. Putin says the purpose of the negotiations is to solve the “root cause of the conflict,” which is the absence of a Great Power Agreement. For Trump the purpose is to withdraw US focus, money and weapons and to concentrate them on China, which is regarded as Washington’s more dangerous and powerful enemy.

It is amazing how difficult it is for the Western foreign policy community and media to recognize and acknowledge facts. Generally speaking, analysts who tell you the difference between the truth and the narrative are brushed aside. All sorts of dismissive names are applied to us few, and false narratives serving agendas prevail. Policymakers themselves end up believing the false narratives, and this raises the risks of dangerous miscalculations. For example, one of the most dangerous of the false narratives is that the slowness of Russia’s military advance against Ukraine is the consequence of Russian military weakness, high Russian battlefield casualties, the vulnerability of the Russian economy to US sanctions, and Putin’s unrealistic expectation to be regarded by Ukrainians as a liberator.

The truth is entirely different. Every time Putin endorses negotiations, he emphasizes that they must address the “root cause” of the conflict. The root cause is the absence of a Great Power Agreement. Putin is using a long drawn out war that the West tires of to initiate “peace negotiations” that Putin hopes to turn into a Great Power Agreement like the one he and his foreign minister failed to achieve in the winter of 2021-2022. Washington policymakers have concluded that Russia’s weakness allows the US to withdraw from Ukraine and turn the war over to Europeans, while Washington gears up to deal with the more dangerous enemy–China. Failed Ukraine peace negotiations are the intended excuse for Trump washing his hands and walking away. What it signifies is Washington’s refocusing on China as the most dangerous adversary.

It is my opinion that China is not an adversary any more than Russia and Iran are, but the narrative demands that they are adversaries. The American military/security complex cannot exist without adversaries. That is the reason America has adversaries. Without adversaries what would the CIA, NSA, Defense Intelligence Agency, think tanks such as the Center for Strategic and International Studies, organizations such as the Council on Foreign Relations, university international studies departments, and publications such as Foreign Affairs do? The United States has massive vested interests in having adversaries, the more dangerous the better.

The question has arisen: How does the US deal with so many adversaries. Formerly, we were assured that we could defeat all adversaries simultaneously. Today it is recognized that we cannot. Wess Mitchell in a recent article in Foreign Affairs says it is the policy of the Trump administration to sequence its conflicts. As Washington regards Russia as the weaker of its two main “adversaries,” Washington is turning the Ukraine conflict over to its European puppets while Washington takes on China.Wess Mitchell, a former Trump senior defense department official, wipes out the narratives and tells us the policy. And no one other than John Helper and myself have commented on it.

Here is Secretary of State Marco Rubio telling the US Senate yesterday what I have told you, what John Helmer has told you, and what Wess Mitchell has told you: The purpose of the Ukraine “peace negotiations” is for the US to exit the conflict and focus on China. Here are Rubio’s words: “The war against China, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told a Senate committee hearing on Tuesday (May 20) – is now the strategic priority for the US. Implementing it requires sequencing Washington’s wars. “Every minute we spend, every dollar we spend on this conflict in Europe [Ukraine] is distracting both our focus and our resources away from a potential for a much more serious and much more cataclysmic confrontation in the Indo-Pacific…they are related but they’re related both ways — they’re related on the one hand by the precedent that it could set, but they’re also related by the fact that every minute that we spend on this [Ukraine] conflict that cannot be won by military means, every resource that’s expended into it [Ukraine] is money and time that’s not being spent on preventing a much more serious confrontation from a global perspective in the Indo-Pacific.” Rubio clearly states that the prime target is China.”

In my judgment based on the knowledge I have at the present time, Putin and the Russian foreign policy commentators do not understand what is afoot. Putin is lost in hopes that peace negotiations can be turned into a Great Power Agreement, a new Yalta. That would be a greater achievement than merely winning a military conflict with Ukraine and, therefore, is worth the sacrifices of Russian troops in a conflict in which Putin prevents a victory, as a victory would prevent the negotiations that Putin imagines could become a Great Power Agreement. If Putin had immediately smashed Ukraine, Russia would be regarded as a Great Power and would have obtained its Great Power Agreement. Instead, Putin created the image of a weak Russia that can be sidelined to Europe while Washington takes on China.

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Anything for a buck.

• US Financing Persecution of Christians In Ukraine – Tucker Carlson (RT)

The US is essentially facilitating the persecution of Christians in Ukraine by supporting the Kiev government, which has been waging a purge campaign against the nation’s canonical Orthodox church, American journalist Tucker Carlson has said. Carlson made the statement during an interview with a former Ukrainian MP, Vadim Novinsky, released on Friday. “Every day, churches and temples are seized by soldiers with machine guns who come in, throw out priests, beat believers, children, old people, women…” the former lawmaker stated, adding that “it is happening all over Ukraine.” “I think very few Americans understand the degree to which the Ukrainian government under [Vladimir] Zelensky has persecuted the Ukrainian Orthodox Church,” Carlson said.

The former Fox News host then asked Novinsky what he would like to say to the American lawmakers who have nevertheless approved financial aid to Kiev. “The Speaker of the House of the United States Congress is a man who describes himself as a Christian and he has been paying for this,” the journalist said, referring to Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican. The former Ukrainian MP replied that he would like to see the US aid going directly to ordinary Ukrainians and not the authorities, who “live in parallel realities.” US government agencies appropriated a total of $182.8 billion on various forms of assistance to Kiev between 2022 and the end of 2024, according to Ukraine Oversight, an official portal that tracks such expenditures. Last week, US President Donald Trump stated he was concerned that billions of dollars were being wasted on aid to Ukraine. He said Congress was “very upset about it” and that lawmakers were asking where all the money was going.

Kiev has accused the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) of maintaining ties to Russia even though it declared independence from the Moscow Patriarchate in May 2022. The crackdown has included numerous arrests of clergymen and church raids, one of the most notorious of which took place in the catacombs of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, where holy relics are kept. Last year, Zelensky signed legislation allowing the state to ban religious organizations affiliated with governments that Kiev deems “aggressors,” effectively targeting the UOC. Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Moscow would not abandon the Orthodox believers in Ukraine and vowed to make sure that “their lawful rights are respected.”

Read more …

Mutti.

• Europe Will Be ‘Destroyed’ – Merkel (RT)

Tighter national migration and border control policies could spell doom for the European Union, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned, following Berlin’s recent move to curb the influx of asylum seekers. Merkel made the remarks at the ‘Southwestern Press Forum’ event in Neu-Ulm last week, where she appeared to present her memoir, Freedom. “I do not believe we can decisively combat illegal migration at the German-Austrian or German-Polish border… I have always advocated European solutions,” Merkel said when asked about the latest measures adopted by Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s cabinet. The new policies, introduced earlier this month by Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, prohibit asylum applications at all German land borders – marking a sharp reversal of Merkel’s 2015 open-border stance.

Exceptions are made for children, pregnant women, and other vulnerable individuals. According to Merkel, the move threatens both freedom of movement within the EU and the integrity of the Schengen zone, which allows visa-free travel across most of the bloc. She insisted that any immigration and travel reforms should be agreed upon at the EU level. “Otherwise, we could see Europe destroyed,” she warned. Merkel’s open-door policy in 2015 was met with fierce political backlash, with critics branding it “disastrous” after more than a million migrants were allowed into Germany during the peak of the 2015–16 refugee crisis. Germany remains the EU’s top destination for asylum seekers. In 2023, it received over 237,000 asylum applications – roughly a quarter of the bloc’s total, according to EU statistics.

Merz had pledged to tighten border controls during his campaign ahead of February’s snap elections, amid surging public support for the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD), known for its hardline anti-immigration stance. The AfD ultimately secured second place with 20.8% of the national vote but was excluded from coalition talks and government formation by mainstream parties. Earlier this month, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency (BfV) officially designated the AfD a “confirmed extremist entity.” The classification was temporarily suspended following legal challenges and mounting public backlash, but senior officials – including members of the ruling coalition – have continued to seek legal grounds to pursue a formal ban on the party. Earlier this week, German police warned that offi’rs to support the 11,000 already stationed at key crossings.

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Nothing would do more for peace.

• German Politician Urges Talks On Restoring Nord Stream (RT)

Germany should consider adopting a “positive approach” toward Moscow that would including restoring the Nord Stream gas pipelines, Michael Kretschmer, the prime minister of the state of Saxony in eastern Germany, has argued. The current hostile policy has been unproductive and has only harmed Germany’s economy, the politician, who also serves as one of the deputy heads of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, said in an interview with Die Zeit on Sunday. “Nord Stream is a possible opening for a conversation with Russia,” Kretschmer suggested, adding that such talks would benefit both nations. The German economy requires at least one-fifth of its gas supplies to come from Russia to function normally, he claimed.

He also pointed out that various companies had begun relocating due to high production costs and energy prices. If the situation in the economy does not improve, Germany, not Russia, will have to “change [its] course in one or two years,” he warned. Kretschmer’s stance contrasts sharply with that of his party leader and federal chancellor, Friedrich Merz. Earlier this week, as part of a new sanctions push, Merz expressed support for an EU plan to ban any use of the Nord Stream gas pipelines and to block attempts to revive energy trade with Russia. The head of Saxony considers such an approach counterproductive. “As long as we say that we don’t want anything, we don’t want gas supplies, we only impose sanctions, no one will talk to us,” he argued.

The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipeline systems were built under the Baltic Sea to deliver Russian natural gas directly to Germany. Each system consisting of two pipelines was capable of delivering up to 55 billion cubic meters of gas a year. Three out of the pipelines’ four lines were destroyed by underwater explosions in September 2022 in an act of sabotage that Russia believes was orchestrated by Western intelligence agencies. European gas prices surged after the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022 as pipeline gas imports from Russia mostly ceased due to sanctions and the Nord Stream sabotage. In 2021, Russian pipeline gas accounted for 32% of the total demand of the EU and UK, while Germany relied on Russia for 55% of its consumption, according to the European Council.

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“The Democratic Party is facing an existential crisis that even their media allies can’t spin anymore. ”

• The Democratic Party’s Death Spiral Is Even Worse Than We Thought (Margolis)

Make no mistake about it: The Democratic Party is facing an existential crisis that even their media allies can’t spin anymore. The New York Times, the crown jewel of the liberal media establishment, just published a devastating analysis showing how the Democrats’ supposed stronghold on American politics has crumbled under the MAGA movement. While Democrats continue their tired routine of Trump-bashing and pretending to care about working Americans, the numbers tell a completely different story. The Times’ analysis reveals a political earthquake that’s reshaping the electoral landscape, and it’s not in the Democrats’ favor. “All told, Mr. Trump has increased the Republican Party’s share of the presidential vote in each election he’s been on the ballot in close to half the counties in America — 1,433 in all,” the paper writes.

“It is a staggering political achievement, especially considering that Mr. Trump was defeated in the second of those three races, in 2020. By contrast, Democrats have steadily expanded their vote share in those three elections in only 57 of the nation’s 3,100-plus counties.” In the 2024 election, six times as many counties shifted toward the GOP as toward the Democrats. While 435 counties trended more Democratic compared to 2012, 2,678 moved more Republican—by an even larger average margin of 13.3 points versus 8.8 for Democrats. That’s not just a loss; that’s a political bloodbath. The Democrats’ problem? They’re increasingly becoming the party of coastal elites and college-educated snobs. Meanwhile, Trump has built an unstoppable coalition that includes working-class voters across all racial and ethnic backgrounds.

The New York Times didn’t sugarcoat the situation for the Democrats. Counties that have become steadily more Republican exist in some of the country’s bluest strongholds, including New York City, Philadelphia and Honolulu. Mr. Trump’s party is still losing in those places, but by significantly less. At the same time, Mr. Trump has driven Republican margins to dizzying new heights in the nation’s reddest bastions. In New York, 43 out of 62 counties shifted at least 10 points more Republican in 2024 compared to 2012, cutting the statewide Democratic margin in half. The only county to consistently trend Democratic was ultra-progressive Tompkins County, home to Ithaca. Meanwhile, even deep-blue and diverse areas like the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn have trended Republican in multiple elections, alongside rural upstate counties like St. Lawrence and Lewis.

“We could be entering a world where the greatest predictor of voting behavior is no longer race,” Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) told the New York Times. “Donald Trump’s greatest achievement — his greatest electoral achievement — lies not in breaking the blue wall in the industrial Midwest, but in beginning to break the blue walls in states like New York, and in counties like the Bronx.” The Democrats’ old playbook is dead, and they know it. Their own pollster Ben Tulchin admitted “the math doesn’t work” anymore. While they’re stuck pandering to wealthy urbanites and pushing radical policies that normal Americans reject, Trump’s MAGA coalition keeps growing stronger. The only thing that could derail this momentum is if Republicans get complacent or drop the ball. I hope they don’t.

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“..something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!”

• Trump Claims Putin ‘Has Gone Absolutely Crazy For No Reason’ (RT)

US President Donald Trump has claimed that Moscow targeted Ukraine “for no reason whatsoever,” after Russia launched a series of missile strikes against military targets in Kiev and other locations – following a week of constant Ukrainian drone raids involving hundreds of UAVs. Ukraine significantly intensified its drone attacks inside Russia last week, with at least 764 drones intercepted over Russian territory between Tuesday and Friday, and hundreds more destroyed over the weekend. The helicopter carrying Russian President Vladimir Putin was reportedly caught in the “epicenter” of a massive drone raid while he was visiting the Kursk Region on Tuesday. In response, the Russian military conducted a major strike against a drone and missile production plant in Kiev on Saturday, followed by additional reported strikes on Ukrainian military facilities on Sunday.

Speaking to journalists on Sunday, Trump claimed Russia’s response was unwarranted and said he was “surprised” by what he is seeing. “I’m not happy with what Putin’s doing,” he said. “We’re in the middle of talking and he’s shooting rockets into Kiev and other cities. I don’t like it at all… We’ll see what I’m going to do.”“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” Trump added in a post on Truth Social, claiming that “missiles and drones are being shot into cities in Ukraine for no reason whatsoever.” Trump also criticized Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky, in an apparent reference to his remarks about Washington’s “silence” in response to the latest Russian attacks.

“Likewise, President Zelensky is doing his country no favors by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems. I don’t like it, and it better stop,” the US leader stated, reiterating that the Ukraine conflict is “not his war.”The Russian Foreign Ministry suggested that the spike in UAV incursions was an attempt to derail the US-brokered peace talks between Moscow and Kiev, while Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that “some European nations led by the UK, France, Germany, and the EU leadership,” who are supporting Kiev and want the conflict to continue, bear some responsibility for the drone raids.Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine have completed a record prisoner exchange, agreed to during direct talks in Türkiye earlier this month. Lavrov stated earlier that the sides will exchange draft ceasefire proposals once the swap process is complete.

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What makes Putin so crazy.

• Ukraine Tried To Attack Putin’s Helicopter Mid-Flight, Russia Alleges (zH)

The Kremlin as well as Russian state media are alleging a huge, potentially conflict-altering incident which will surely escalate the war in Ukraine – an attempted attack on Russian President Vladimir Putin himself. A high-ranking Russian military commander on Sunday described that last week, as Putin traveled to the Kursk region for the first time since is liberation after 6+ months of Ukrainian occupation, Ukraine tried to attack Putin’s helicopter mid-flight, sending a wave of drones to swarm the flight path of the chopper. The presidential helicopter was caught in the “epicenter” of a massive Ukrainian drone attack, commander of an air defense division in Kursk, Yury Dashkin, told Russian media. The headline is the top featured story of English-language RT on Sunday, something which suggests the allegations are largely aimed at grabbing the attention of the West.

The incident is said to have happened Tuesday as the helicopter transported Putin to tour Kursk – a southern oblast which has suffered much destruction since the initial Ukrainian cross-border incursion of last August. Commander Yury Dashkin told Russia 1 in an interview which aired Sunday said that Putin’s helicopter had found itself “in the epicenter of an operation to repel a massive drone attack by the enemy” in Kursk Region.He went on to describe that this “unprecedented” attack was successfully repelled by anti-air defenses in the region. Air defense units in the area had to “simultaneously conduct anti-aircraft combat and ensure the safety of the president’s helicopter in the air. The task was accomplished,” Dashkin stated. “The attack of the enemy drones was repelled, with all aerial targets being hit.”

While this could just be a mid-level officer’s attempt to toot his own horn, given the world is just hearing about what’s tantamount to an ‘assassination attempt’ on one of the world’s most powerful leaders being alleged – and coming belatedly a number of days after the incident in question – this seems part of Moscow’s ongoing messaging that the UAV incursions are an attempt to derail the US-brokered peace talks between Moscow and Kiev. The drones are being launched on Russia in record numbers, with literally multiple hundreds sent over the past week, in some cases halting inbound and outbound flights at major airports, including in the Moscow area. Ukrainian officials have boasted that the operations is trying to disrupt and destabilize daily life in Russia, in hopes that the government could lose control. A major new allegation coming from Russia’s military:

[..] Significantly, Russia’s military pummeled the Ukrainian capital of Kiev again overnight, with emerging images showing raging fires and devastation in city neighborhoods and populated areas. Other regions were hit as well, in a second straight night of some of the largest strikes of the war. There were significant casualties. According to Ukrainian emergency authorities, cited in national media: Russia attacked Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions with drones and missiles overnight on May 25, killing 12 people, including three children, and injuring more than 60, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram.

Russia launched 69 missiles overnight and 298 drones, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. The Air Force reported that 45 cruise missiles were shot down by air defense and 266 drones were neutralized, while 22 locations recorded a direct strike. The attacks come one night after one of the heaviest Russian assaults on Kyiv throughout the full-scale war. The attack also coincides with Kyiv Day, a city holiday typically celebrated on the last Sunday in May. US media outlet NPR also acknowledges that “The scale of the onslaught was stunning — Russia hit Ukraine with 367 drones and missiles, making this the largest single attack of the more than three-years-long war.”

The attack featured heavy use of Iranian-designed Shahed drones, Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s Air Force, said. It was “the most massive strike in terms of the number of air attack weapons on the territory of Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in 2022,” Ihnat emphasized.Given the sizeable death toll and casualties, this is sure to get Washington and Europe’s attention, at a moment the Trump administration has been losing patience with both sides over lack of progress in attempted peace negotiations, the last round which was held in Istanbul just over a week ago. Washington is still threatening more anti-Moscow sanctions, a move which would likely terminate the peace negotiation proces By all appearances, Putin is actually ready to expand the ground operation inside Ukraine, in part to establish a ‘buffer zone’ in order to better defend the constant drone attacks coming out of Ukraine on Russian territory.

Russian troops at the same time continue advancing slowly on the eastern front in Donbass, having reportedly captured two settlements in Donetsk region as well as one in Ukraine’s northern region of Sumy, according to a Saturday Russian Defense Ministry statement. Reuters cites the statement as saying Russian forces had “captured the village of Stupochky in Donetsk region, east of Kostiantynivka, a town under recent Russian pressure.” It also named the villags of Otradne and Loknya, the latter which is inside the Russian border in Sumy region – as coming under Russian control. That makes three more settlements captured in eastern Ukraine. All of this strongly suggests that peace is no closer on the horizon.

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yeah yeah.

• Zelenskyy Blames U.S. Silence for Increased Russian Attacks (CTH)

Russia has continued the operation to secure a “buffer zone” between the held regions in the Eastern part of Ukraine and the area west of the Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod regions. The NATO alliance continues pouring weapons in to support Ukraine defenses, but the Russians are methodically grinding down the Ukrainian military. Volodymyr Zelenskyy is now saying President Trump’s silence is emboldening the Russian assaults. “Each such terrorist attack by Russia is a sufficient reason for new sanctions against Russia. Russia is dragging out this war and continues to kill every day,” Zelensky said in a post on Telegram Sunday morning. “The world may go on vacation, but the war continues, despite weekends and weekdays.

This cannot be ignored. America’s silence, and the silence of others in the world, only encourages Putin,” he continued. This is an interesting dynamic to continue watching unfold. In the background as Tulsi Gabbard, Marco Rubio and perhaps even John Ratcliffe begin confronting rogue elements within the CIA and pulling them away from covert operation in Ukraine, per the strategic withdrawal of influence announced by President Trump, the position of Zelenskyy could weaken quickly.

Read more …

 

 

 

 

Banteng

Owl
https://twitter.com/Rainmaker1973/status/1926895507927876050

steps

Gryllacrididae

 

 

 

 

Support the Automatic Earth in wartime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

 

 

 

 

 

Debt Rattle May 23 2025

May 232025
 
 May 23, 2025  Posted by at 10:09 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,  34 Responses »


Max Ernst Untitled 1913

 

• Trump Rejected Idea Of ‘Unconditional’ Ukraine Ceasefire – WSJ (RT)
• Putin Isn’t Ready To End War In Ukraine, Trump Told Allies In Private (ZH)
• EU Sanctions Ukraine’s Elected Opposition Leader (RT)
• The EU Is An Addict, And Sanctions On Russia Are The Drug (Marsden)
• No Agreement On Ukraine Talks In Vatican – Kremlin (RT)
• EU To Roll Back Ukraine Trade Perks (RT)
• Ukraine Wants Fixed Percentage of EU’s GDP (RT)
• Russia Set On Creating ‘Buffer Zone’ In Ukraine – Putin (RT)
• China Is Hardly the Economic Juggernaut Many Western Analysts Believe (Moran)
• MAHA Scores Big Wins Below Radar (Jennifer Galardi)
• Alberta Signals To Trump It’s Ready For New Pipelines, Partnership (JTN)
• Kash Patel Shuts Down the Deep State’s Nerve Center (Victor Davis Hanson)
• Trump Admin Blocks Harvard From Enrolling International Students (ZH)

 

 

 

 

Scott

Doug


Musk
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1925315302591442996

Rubio

Tucker

Jon

Trust

 

 

 

 

He understands why Putin does. This was Zelensky’s and then the EU’s, big unmovable point.

• Trump Rejected Idea Of ‘Unconditional’ Ukraine Ceasefire – WSJ (RT)

US President Donald Trump has reportedly rejected demands by EU officials that negotiations on the Ukraine conflict should result in an unconditional ceasefire, the Wall Street Journal has reported citing sources. Following a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, Trump held phone calls with Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and British PM Keir Starmer. The European leaders reportedly insisted that Trump should apply more pressure on Putin and demanded that the next round of talks on resolving the conflict must end with an unconditional truce.

Trump, however, reportedly indicated that he did not like the use of the term “unconditional,” particularly in the context of discussing measures to resolve the Ukraine conflict. The WSJ claimed that the European leaders “eventually agreed to drop their insistence on the adjective.” Over the past few weeks, Russia has announced several limited ceasefires, specifically to observe holidays such as Orthodox Easter and Victory Day. Moscow and Kiev also relaunched direct peace talks in Istanbul, Türkiye last week, marking the first time the two sides sat together since Ukraine unilaterally abandoned negotiations in 2022.

However, Kiev, as well as its Western backers, has continued to insist on a 30-day unconditional ceasefire. Moscow has repeatedly rejected the demand, arguing that a number of issues have to be addressed before such a measure can be agreed. The Kremlin has indicated that it is open to the idea of a ceasefire in general, but has demanded guarantees that Ukraine wouldn’t exploit the truce to rearm and regroup its forces only to resume hostilities at a later date. Russian officials have also stressed that Moscow would prefer to work towards establishing a long and just peace that would resolve the root causes of the conflict rather than negotiating short-term tactical pauses in the fighting.

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Nonsense.

• Putin Isn’t Ready To End War In Ukraine, Trump Told Allies In Private (ZH)

European leaders have been alarmed in the wake of their May 19 conference phone call with President Trump, as they believe he’s prepared to given Putin a free hand in Ukraine, and is unwilling to impose more sanctions or further confront Moscow in a muscular way. He has also reportedly conveyed that the war is not my problem and that Russia and Ukraine will have to settle it on their own. He reportedly informed European leaders, which had included French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Antonio Costa, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky – that Putin is not ready for peace in Ukraine because he believes he is winning the war.

“On a call Monday, President Trump told European leaders that Russian President Vladimir Putin isn’t ready to end the Ukraine war because he thinks he is winning, according to senior European officials familiar with the conversation,” The Wall Street Journal, which is the first to reveal the statements, writes. “European leaders had long believed this—but it was the first time they were hearing it from Trump, these officials said. It also ran counter to what Trump has often said publicly, that he believes Putin genuinely wants peace,” the report continues. They hope with this admission that Trump will escalate in support of Ukraine, but he has remained resistant to this pressure. And of course, this isn’t what his voters want, nor is it (escalation) the majority position of the American people.

The White House has frequently said that it assesses Putin is genuine about seeking peace, in pushback to critics – including in Kiev – who say the Kremlin is just using the talks to stall as the Russian military makes slow advances on the ground, and further weaken Ukraine’s front lines. The result is that Europe and Kiev want Trump to ramp up support to Kiev and punish Russia, which would lead to escalation in the war, but Trump is refusing to go along with this strategy: One of the officials, who was on the call, said Trump began the discussion by saying, “I think Vladimir does not want peace.” Although Trump appears to have come around to the idea that Putin isn’t ready for peace, the officials said, that hasn’t led him to do what the Europeans and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have been arguing he should do: double down on the fight against Russia.

This elicited surprise among the Europeans, who concluded that Trump seems relatively content at what he’s been hearing from Putin in phone calls. Another key line from the WSJ report focuses on Trump’s rejection of an ‘unconditional’ ceasefire in Ukraine:Some of the Europeans on the call Monday insisted that the outcome of any talks at the Vatican must be an unconditional cease-fire. But Trump again demurred, saying he didn’t like the term “unconditional.” He said he had never used that term, although he used it when calling for a 30-day cease-fire in a post on his Truth Social platform on May 8. The Europeans eventually agreed to drop their insistence on the adjective. Or to put it another way, Trump simply understands how negotiations work in reality and that Putin holds the cards and Zelensky isn’t holding much, if any.

All of this is also a simple acknowledgement that of course Putin doesn’t want peace which does not result in the Russian-speaking eastern territories being under the Russian Federation, as well as Crimea. Moscow certainly isn’t interested in a truce deal which still results in NATO military infrastructure right on its door step. Putin has long warned that NATO expansion means that another war would have to be fought in the future, even if the current Ukraine conflict ends. The current mainstream media framing of Trump’s efforts are intent on painting him as a Kremlin-sympathetic compromiser, when really he’s just recognizing the reality of the Russian perspective, combined with the realization the West can’t really do anything about it (short of military escalation which risks nuclear confrontation).

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Interfere in elections? Brussels?

• EU Sanctions Ukraine’s Elected Opposition Leader (RT)

The EU has sanctioned exiled Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Medvedchuk as well as 20 other individuals and six entities on accusations of being involved in what it described as “Russia’s destabilizing actions abroad.” Moscow has repeatedly rejected claims of meddling in internal affairs of the bloc’s member-states. Medvedchuk, who has been blacklisted by the EU since May 2024, was slapped with additional curbs on Tuesday when the European Council announced its 17th round of sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine conflict. The restrictions against the former leader of Ukraine’s banned Opposition Platform – For Life party and the others included an assets freeze in the EU and a ban on entering the bloc or transiting its territory, the council said in a statement.

The EU claims that Medvedchuk and his associates Artyom Marchevsky and Oleg Voloshin, who have also been sanctioned, “controlled Ukrainian media outlets and used them to disseminate pro-Russian propaganda in Ukraine and beyond.” “Through secret financing of the Voice of Europe media channel – also listed today – and his political platform Another Ukraine, Medvedchuk has promoted policies and actions intended to erode the legitimacy and credibility of the government of Ukraine, in direct support of the foreign policy interests of the Russian Federation and disseminating pro-Russian propaganda,” the statement read.

German bloggers Thomas Roeper and Alina Lipp, as well as Turkish journalist Huseyin Dogru, the founder of AFA Medya company, are also among those added to the sanctions list. Medvedchuk used to be the head of the largest opposition faction in the Ukrainian parliament. But after the escalation between Moscow and Kiev, he was branded a traitor and arrested. The 70-year-old businessman and politician spent months in detention before being handed over to Moscow in a prisoner swap in September last year. He has remained in exile in Russia since then, with his Ukrainian citizenship revoked and his party branded illegal, along with a dozen groups that opposed the government of Vladimir Zelensky.

Moscow has on many occasions denied accusations of interfering in the electoral processes and internal affairs of EU nations. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova previously accused the bloc of “switching from propaganda to direct persecution of media outlets and journalists based on political, ethnic and cultural grounds.”

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“..Russia’s “shadow fleet,” which – minor detail – delivers oil to countries outside the EU, so the EU, in all its usual brilliance, can then buy it at a markup from middlemen countries.”

• The EU Is An Addict, And Sanctions On Russia Are The Drug (Marsden)

What’s going on between the US and the EU right now over Ukraine feels like you and your buddy agreeing to go skydiving on a dare. You count “1-2-3-jump,” and leap – only to realize your friend’s still up in the plane. That friend is US President Donald Trump. And the EU parachute looks like it was stitched together with recycled climate summit lanyards and blind optimism. Emphasis on “blind.” On May 19, a German government spokesman assured the press that Washington would be joining the EU in yet another round of sanctions on Russia. But fast forward to today, and Brussels has leapt out of the plane solo while Trump is still standing at the hatch, waving goodbye and checking the minibar. And Berlin seems to be pretending not to notice – at least for the purpose of keeping up appearances.

“Europe and America are very united on this point: We will closely support Ukraine on its path toward a ceasefire… We agreed on this with [Trump] after his conversation with Putin,” Chancellor Friedrich Merz tweeted. Translation: The EU went, “Hey Trump, we’re slapping more sanctions on Russia. Cool with that?” And Trump probably thought, “Oh, you mean the sanctions that nuked your economy, dried up your trade, and left you addicted to overpriced American LNG? Be my guest, Einsteins.” Sure enough, Trump has since made it clear he’s not feeling another sanctions round. The vibes are off. He’s not jumping. But if the EU wants to swan dive into its own economic crater, well – godspeed. “Because I think there’s a chance of getting something done, and if you do that, you could also make it much worse,” Trump said.

Trump keeps saying that he wants peace and trade with Russia – the exact opposite of Brussels’ Cold War cosplay. But let’s be honest: would the EU even be playing sanctions hardball if it hadn’t been cheered down that road by the Biden administration? Highly unlikely. Trump sees the whole mess as a Biden boondoggle – a “European situation.” What’s more interesting is how Team Trump is framing this not as a retreat, but as the dawn of a “peace first” presidency. One that’s allergic to forever wars. Secretary of State Marco Rubio even suggested that God’s on board. “We have a president of peace,” Rubio said at a recent Trump-hosted event, before recounting a chat with a Vatican cardinal for Pope Leo’s papal mass. “You know, it’s very unusual for us. We have an American president that wants peace, and it’s some of the Europeans that are constantly talking about doing war stuff.”

Trump, Rubio, J.D. Vance, they’re all singing the same tune: get a peace deal done pronto, or the US checks out. Ukraine and Russia can slug it out without Uncle Sam in the ring. And Europe? It can handle its own geopolitical hangover, assuming it can still stand up straight. Meanwhile, Brussels is starting to realize its wallet has limits. That whole “whatever it takes” energy? It’s starting to sound more like “whatever we can still afford.” Ursula von der Leyen even admitted it. “Over the past five years, our budget has punched above its weight. And we must also see now… we have reached the limits of what is possible.” Translation: The ‘check engine’ light on the EU economy has been blinking for a while, and now the dashboard’s on fire.

But never mind that – they’ve just pulled the trigger on yet another sanctions round. The 17th. And there’s already an 18th bullet getting loaded in the chamber. Because if you miss the target 17 times, the 18th is going to be the charm, right? This time, they’re targeting Russia’s “shadow fleet,” which – minor detail – delivers oil to countries outside the EU, so the EU, in all its usual brilliance, can then buy it at a markup from middlemen countries. Also not Russian? The ships themselves. And many of the newly sanctioned companies, which are in places like China (the EU’s top trade partner), Serbia (an EU candidate), Türkiye (the EU’s refugee babysitter), the UAE (gas hookup), Vietnam, and Uzbekistan. Way to win hearts and minds. Taking the long way around in sticking it to Putin, by ticking off the rest of the world.

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Looks like theater.

• No Agreement On Ukraine Talks In Vatican – Kremlin (RT)

There are currently no formal agreements on holding negotiations between Moscow and Kiev in the Vatican, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, noting that there is no set location at all for the next round of talks. His comments come after the Wall Street Journal claimed on Wednesday, citing sources, that Russian and Ukrainian delegations are allegedly set to meet in the Vatican sometime in mid-June. On Tuesday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that Pope Leo XIV had confirmed his willingness to host the talks. Peskov, however, has stressed that such a decision must be made by all parties involved and stated that “so far, no decision has been made on the location of further negotiations.”

Last week, Russia and Ukraine held their first round of direct negotiations since Kiev unilaterally abandoned peace talks in 2022 in Istanbul, Türkiye. After the meeting, both sides agreed to hold a massive prisoner exchange and to conduct further negotiations.According to media reports on what was discussed during the negotiations, Kiev allegedly reiterated its demands for an immediate ceasefire, which the Russian side declined. Moscow has repeatedly cited concerns that the truce would be exploited by Ukraine to rearm and regroup its forces.

Meanwhile, according to Reuter’s sources, Moscow reportedly requested during the talks that Kiev withdraw its troops from all Russian territories, including the four former Ukrainian regions which officially became part of Russia following public referendums in September 2022: the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, Kerson Region and Zaporozhye Region. Previously, Moscow also demanded the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Kursk Region, where Kiev had launched an incursion last year. However, the region was recently fully liberated by the Russian military and was visited earlier this week by President Vladimir Putin. Speaking to journalists on Thursday, Peskov noted that the Russian leader also has plans to visit the Lugansk and Donetsk people’s republics, but noted that it will still take some time until these trips could be realized.

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“..the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area..”

• EU To Roll Back Ukraine Trade Perks (RT)

EU member states have approved the reimposition of import quotas on Ukrainian agricultural goods, European Commission spokesperson Balazs Ujvari has said, as cited by Euroactiv. The current duty-free trade regime is set to expire on June 5. Brussels abolished tariffs and quotas on Ukrainian agricultural produce following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. The bloc adopted special regulations, known as Autonomous Trade Measures (ATMs), aimed at enabling grain and other farm products from Ukraine to reach global markets. However, the influx of cheap Ukrainian produce into Eastern European countries sparked widespread protests among local farmers, particularly in Poland.

The latest move, endorsed by a majority of EU nations at a meeting on Thursday morning, introduces a set of “transitional measures” that will phase out the ATMs and reimpose certain trade controls. Some restrictions have already been reintroduced over the past year, targeting commodities such as oats, sugar, and eggs. The selective reinstatements came in response to months of protests in Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and other countries neighboring Ukraine, where farmers said they could no longer compete with tariff-exempt goods.

Politico previously reported, citing a draft act, that the EU was considering replacing ATMs with revised limits under Ukraine’s existing trade framework with the bloc, known as the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), rather than extending the measures on a yearly basis.Commenting on the latest news, the chair of the Ukrainian Parliament’s economic affairs committee, Dmitry Natalukha, told Euractiv that halting the ATMs could cost Kiev more than €3 billion ($3.4 billion), which he said is equal to around 70% of the country’s projected total economic growth for the current year.

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How about a fixed percentage of US GDP too?

• Ukraine Wants Fixed Percentage of EU’s GDP (RT)

Ukraine has proposed that EU member states allocate a fixed portion of their GDP to fund the country’s armed forces. The bloc’s leaders have pledged continued military support for Kiev despite a policy change by US President Donald Trump, who aims to mediate a truce. Finance Minister Sergey Marchenko outlined the proposal during this week’s G7 finance ministers meeting in Canada, according to a Facebook post published on Thursday. “What we are proposing is partner participation in funding Ukraine’s Armed Forces, which would effectively integrate them into Europe’s defense structure,” he wrote. Marchenko added that the cost “would represent only a small share of the EU’s GDP” and could be distributed among countries willing to join the initiative.

Kiev wants to launch the new scheme in 2026, with contributions counted toward NATO defense spending targets.Marchenko’s appeal comes as Ukraine struggles with rising fiscal pressure and an uncertain outlook on foreign assistance. On Tuesday, MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak said the country’s 2025 budget includes a shortfall of 400–500 billion hryvnias ($9.6–12 billion) for financing its armed forces. Fellow lawmaker Nina Yuzhanina warned that military support was at a critical level and called for sweeping domestic budget cuts to redirect resources. Ukraine’s mounting debt has also raised alarm. Total state debt is approaching $171 billion, with public debt nearing 100% of GDP.

Earlier this month, Marchenko said the country would be unable to repay foreign creditors for the next 30 years but intends to continue borrowing. Since the escalation of the conflict with Russia in 2022, Ukraine has received billions in military, financial, and humanitarian aid and loans from the US, the EU, and other donors. Brussels’ approach has drawn criticism from some EU member states, including Hungary and Slovakia. The US, Ukraine’s largest donor, has moved to recoup its financial aid to Ukraine by signing a natural resources deal with Kiev. The agreement, pushed by Trump, grants the US preferential access to Ukrainian mineral resources without providing security guarantees.

Trump, who has repeatedly called for a swift resolution to the conflict, has pledged to mediate a truce rather than expand military support. Ukrainian lawmakers have warned that the military aid package approved under former President Joe Biden will run out by summer, and no talks on further US deliveries are currently underway. Russia has consistently condemned Western arms shipments to Ukraine, declaring that they will only prolong the conflict without changing its outcome, while also being an additional economic burden for ordinary taxpayers.

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It will be theirs. The rest will have to accept it.

• Russia Set On Creating ‘Buffer Zone’ In Ukraine – Putin (RT)

The Russian military has been tasked with creating a “security buffer zone” along the border with Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday. The president made the remarks during a government meeting dedicated to the situation in Russia’s border regions, including Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk. Additional measures to support their residents were also discussed. “It has been decided to create the necessary security buffer zone along the border. Our armed forces are actively solving this task now. The enemy’s firing positions are suppressed, the work is going on,” Putin stated.

The idea to create “a certain cordon sanitaire” in Ukrainian-controlled territory along the border was first floated by Putin last March. The president said Moscow could ultimately be “forced” to create such a zone in order to protect civilians in the border regions from Ukrainian long-range strikes. Russian troops would create a “security zone that would be quite difficult for the adversary to overcome with its weapons, primarily of foreign origin,” if and “when we consider it appropriate,” Putin stated at the time.

Putin’s announcement comes in the wake of an indiscriminate Ukrainian strike on the Kursk town of Lgov that left at least 12 civilians wounded, including two children. According to interim Kursk Governor Aleksandr Khinshtein, the attack targeted an area near the Kursk-Rylsk highway where the route enters the town. Media reports indicated the strike involved at least three projectiles fired by a US-supplied HIMARS multiple rocket launcher. Over the past two days, Kiev conducted a massive long-range drone attack even deeper into Russia. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, a total of 485 Ukrainian fixed-wing UAVs were downed across the country in the past 48 hours. At least 63 of the drones were intercepted in Moscow Region, while the largest number were stopped over Orel Region, the military said.

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“.. they are held back by a system that outsources labor-intensive manufactured goods like clothing and electronics to other parts of Asia, leaving people in the hinterlands. It’s how Chinese companies maintain market share while keeping costs at rock bottom.”

• China Is Hardly the Economic Juggernaut Many Western Analysts Believe (Moran)

China is the original riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. A country striving for modernity but feudal in its treatment of its citizens, Beijing’s economic identity is a combination of Communist orthodoxy and crony capitalism. As you might expect, the two don’t work well together. On the outside of the riddle, China is booming, the people are subservient and happy, and the government is looking to the future with confidence. This is the picture the Chinese Communists paint for the world to see. The reality is much different. China is being crushed by debt, has become dependent on high levels of debt, and has created a bubble in several sectors, like housing and household goods. One noted Chinese economist said in 2019, “Basically, China’s economy is all built on speculation and everything is over-leveraged.” He was proved right when the massive overbuilding of housing caused the market to collapse in 2021.

“As a result, tens of millions of apartments have no residents, millions have been sold but not finished, and those that are inhabited are declining in value,” writes Wessie du Toit in Persuasion. Consumer spending in China is its Achilles’ heel. China makes more than enough goods to dominate world markets, but the 1.2 billion Chinese are lagging in how they spend their money. The country is so dominant when it comes to making and building things because the state has structured the economy to prioritize massive investments in housing, infrastructure, and manufacturing. Many Chinese firms are effectively subsidized to one degree or another, and frequently produce more than China or the world wants to buy. The nation’s warehouses bulge with unsold stock, its urban lots with abandoned cars and share bikes, all casualties of ill-conceived government schemes. The problem, aside from waste, is that these investments have long yielded diminishing returns in terms of sustainable economic growth. China has therefore become dependent on growing levels of debt.

“Rather than pumping cash into more railways, cars, and factory machinery, the government should try to raise the spending power of Chinese consumers, creating domestic demand for goods and services,” writes du Toit, quoting Chinese economists. However, the Chinese economy can’t manage a drastic change that would dramatically shift spending priorities toward consumers. Debt is the silent killer, and the Chinese are careening toward a massive debt bomb. Du Toit reports that “government sector debt, including local government financing vehicles and associated funds, stood at 124% of GDP in 2024, while China’s total debt was measured at 312% of GDP.” By contrast, U.S. debt is at 125% of GDP. It, too, is climbing precipitously and could rival China if we don’t get a handle on government spending.

It’s not just the debt that’s pulling China down. Ordinary Chinese have paid a steep price for the state’s focus on infrastructure and industry. Household income has lagged behind economic growth, and, despite having a communist government, China’s welfare services remain meagre. Social spending is kept down in part by the hukou system of residency permits, which denies China’s vast army of rural migrant workers access to healthcare and unemployment insurance, pension benefits, or schooling in the cities where they toil. Putting aside basic questions of justice, households in such circumstances do not provide a lot of demand for goods and services, since they have to save to insure against hardship and debt.

Nearly 70% of the Chinese people still live in rural areas. While the conditions of the Chinese peasants have improved remarkably in the last 50 years, they are held back by a system that outsources labor-intensive manufactured goods like clothing and electronics to other parts of Asia, leaving people in the hinterlands. It’s how Chinese companies maintain market share while keeping costs at rock bottom. How is China able to hide its economic deformities so effectively? Part of its success is encouraging Western myopia. If such flaws in the Chinese model are underappreciated in the West, it is partly because the authorities hide them from view.

The China Daily does not devote a lot of space to the country’s failings, with the exception of President Xi’s never-ending anti-corruption drive within the Party (an initiative that has naturally been more successful at removing potential opposition than actual corruption, which remains endemic). There is a certain shimmering quality to a great deal of what the outside world sees of China. International agencies such as the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) give glowing assessments based on the Potemkin projects they are shown. Before he became paramount leader, Xi’s major gig was the 2008 Beijing Olympics, a spectacle so successful at laundering China’s reputation that, when I visited the capital more than fifteen years later, it was still being celebrated in museum exhibits.

“China is a tanker that looks impressively shipshape from a distance, with the captain and his lieutenants standing proudly on the bridge, while below deck sailors are desperately pumping water and plugging holes to keep the vessel afloat,” to quote a metaphor used by the historian Frank Dikötter. Does this weakness make China more dangerous as its economy slides into crisis? China wouldn’t be the first nation to go to war to distract from economic problems and domestic unrest. It already has a ready-made adversary in its “Lost Province” of Taiwan. It’s not like it hasn’t warned the world about getting Taiwan to submit. One way or another, China will have to face its economic demons.

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“Congressman DeLauro, you say that you’ve worked for 20 years on getting food dye out. Give me credit! I got it out in a hundred days!”

• MAHA Scores Big Wins Below Radar (Jennifer Galardi)

The past couple of weeks has seen a lot of drama within the Make America Healthy Again movement. Much of the commotion surrounds President Donald Trump’s new Surgeon General nominee, Dr. Casey Means along with her brother, Calley, a special adviser to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. A few members of the wider MAHA coalition have cited concerns over their involvement in biotech companies, while others condemn their lack of emphasis on vaccines. Predictably, the far-left media is having a field day, running stories better suited to the E! network than serious media outlets. Amidst all the distractions, however, major MAHA wins are flying under the radar.

Not only did the FDA mandate that three of the most controversial food dyes be removed from processed food, but the agency will also be conducting a post market review of all added food chemicals. In a recent press release, the FDA announced measures to “increase transparency and ensure the safety of chemicals in food.” According to the press release, the FDA will roll out a modernized, evidence-based prioritization scheme for reviewing existing chemicals, initiate a final, systematic post-market review process, and expedite its review of chemicals currently under review.

Barely any legacy media outlet covered these stories, much less applauded them. In a contentious hearing before the House last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had to toot his own horn to Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., who was blasting Kennedy for his consolidation efforts at HHS. “Congressman DeLauro, you say that you’ve worked for 20 years on getting food dye out. Give me credit! I got it out in a hundred days!” He repeated his now popular charge, “There’s no such thing as Republican children or Democratic children. There’s just kids and we should all be concerned with them.”

In response to the changes at the FDA, many companies are fast-tracking efforts to comply with new standards. Recently, Tyson Foods announced it will be eliminating petroleum-based dyes by the end of the month. In addition, last week Kennedy ordered the FDA to conduct a complete review of the popular abortion pill, mifepristone. According to insurance data, one in ten women experienced a serious adverse event within 45 days of taking the pill, including sepsis, infection, and hemorrhaging. According to the report, “the real-world rate of serious adverse events following mifepristone abortions is at least 22 times as high as the summary figure of “less than 0.5 percent” in clinical trials reported on the drug label.

The FDA plans to introduce a new review system for future vaccines that would require placebo testing, a huge victory for MAHA supporters. FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary signaled his support for the move. “We want to see vaccines that are available for high-risk individuals,” Makary said. “And at the same time, we want some good science. We want some good clinical data.”The agency is focusing on the good data it already has. Years of failed COVID policy preceded years of underreported mRNA side effects and needless injections. Finally, health officials are doing something about it. On May 20, Makary, along with Dr. Vinay Prasad, announced that federal agencies will no longer recommend COVID shots for children and teenagers.

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Make them an offer.

• Alberta Signals To Trump It’s Ready For New Pipelines, Partnership (JTN)

Amid high-stakes U.S. trade negotiations and internal secession rumblings, Canada’s energy-rich province of Alberta is signaling to President Donald Trump it is ready to move further from China and embrace new partnerships and pipelines with America. “It turns out that China is not developing the way we thought,” Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told Just the News in an exclusive interview Thursday night. “They’re not becoming a more democratic jurisdiction, and they’re using capitalism against us to hollow out our various industries. So I think that there has been a lot of re-calibration that has had to happen about our relationship with China, and certainly the U.S. president is causing us to have that rethink,” she added. Smith is Canada’s most prominent conservative after liberal Mark Carney won the election last month to become its new prime minister.

During a wide-ranging interview with the Just the News, No Noise TV show, she addressed the impact of Trump’s tariffs, the growing movement within her province to hold a vote on seceding from Canada and its more liberal provinces, and the disappointment and harm former President Joe Biden created when he canceled the Keystone pipeline that ran between the two nations. She said she believed it was possible for Alberta to strike a new energy partnership and build new pipelines to the United States even in the midst of a tariff dispute between the U.S. and Canada so that both countries could capitalize on the energy-thirsty Artificial Intelligence revolution and to expand North America’s booming liquefied natural gas exports to Europe.

“We’re looking to see if we can normalize our partnership, so that we can get into talking about what those new pipelines might look like,” Smith said of the relationship with Trump. “Not only would we be able to have, I think, a bitumen heavy oil pipeline that would link our heavy oil to the heavy oil refining capacity in the US Gulf Coast, but also the opportunity for us to continue to provide additional supply of gas so that it can feed some of the European markets.” Top oil and gas executives in Canada and the United States confirmed Alberta’s top industry would love to get past any tariff issues and begin building pipelines southward. “It’s being talked about behind the scenes,” Mike Rose, the CEO of Tourmaline Oil, told Just the News when asked about new oil and gas pipelines that would traverse Canada and the United States.

“We can increase our exports of natural gas, certainly, and Canada is just about to enter the world LNG market,” Rose explained. “We’ve been shipping gas to the Gulf Coast for over two years now, to the liquefaction complex down there, and then AI on both sides of the border is an added sleeve of demand that, to be fair, I don’t think you know really, most of us on the producing side were thinking about two years ago.” Brendan McCracken, CEO of the natural gas company Ovintiv, said Americans are uniquely positioned to further grow their ties to Alberta because they are allowed to buy Canadian oil and natural gas at a huge discount compared to other countries. “Looking over the past several years, the interconnectedness of our energy systems has meant that the U.S. gets Canadian oil at about a 20% discount and Canadian natural gas at up to a 60% discount to global prices,” he said. “So it’s been a really powerful part of the economic engine for Americans.”

Pete Hoekstra, the new U.S. ambassador to Canada, said while much work needs to be done with Carney to get a deal, he is optimistic one will be reached, in part because the Alberta-American energy alliance makes so much sense. “For much of the last four or five months, the only thing that you’ve heard in Canada is people being very critical of the United States and not talking about the economic strength of the relationship benefiting both countries,” Hoekstra said, praising Smith’s focus on the benefits of the US-Canada relationship. “Prosperity for our people and confronting the threat from China — it’s an important message for all Americans to hear, but also for all Canadians to hear,” he said.

Smith signaled one advantage Trump and his energy-friendly policies hold with Alberta: many in her province chafed at the impact of liberal policies over the last decade, from Biden canceling the Keystone pipeline to ex-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s climate agenda holding back energy production. “There’s been a lot of damaging policies that have come in that have chased away tens of billions, indeed hundreds of billions of dollars worth of investment,” she noted, saying such economic repression has driven a growing number of Albertans to seek a vote to secede from Canada. “America’s production has grown dramatically, whereas Alberta has stayed stagnant, and that’s because of the policies of the federal government,” she continued. “… So I think that that is at the heart of some of the frustration that you’re seeing. I believe that we can make Canada work. That’s what I’m working towards.”

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The past 10 years have been unbelievable.

• Kash Patel Shuts Down the Deep State’s Nerve Center (Victor Davis Hanson)

Recently, Kash Patel, who’s been under fire by the Left in a variety of ways, the new FBI director, he announced that he is shutting down the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington, D.C., where there’s about 1,500 employees, as I understand it. There was a lot of outrage. But remember that this was not his original decision. It was the decision during the Biden administration of then-FBI Director Christopher Wray that this 50-year-old building was unsuitable. It was decrepit. But what was more interesting, in addition to thinking he was going to shut down the building, we don’t know where he wants to relocate the headquarters. I would prefer—I think some of you—if he put it in Kansas City or somewhere away from the proverbial deep state in Washington. He also said he didn’t understand, of the 35,000 employees, why a third were in Washington. Washington, as dangerous as it can be, does not account for a third of all crimes.

So, he’s trying to disperse or recalibrate the FBI. And are we going to lament the closure of that office and what it represents symbolically? I don’t think so. Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, was the head of the Special Counsel’s Office. Remember that? And he had the dream team—the all-stars, a hunter/killer team—with the Left. He was almost giddy about that they were gonna get President Donald Trump on Russian collusion. Forty million dollars, 20 months later, they didn’t find anything. We found all sorts of improprieties within that investigation. Andrew Weissmann and others cleaned their cellphones so that no one could see their text messages. We had Peter Strzok and Lisa Page dismissed from the investigation because of their notorious and now infamous tweets.

We had Robert Mueller go before the House Intelligence Committee and claim that he didn’t know what the Steele dossier was nor what Glenn Simpson’s Fusion GPS was. That was impossible. Those were the two catalysts that prompted his own appointment. His successor was James Comey. He’s in the news right now for that weird tweet where he said he was walking on the beach and he saw “8647”—get rid of Trump; or maybe, you know, kill Trump; or whatever “86” can mean, it can mean a lot of stuff—and he didn’t understand it. But he’s also got a novel coming out right now about a supposed right-wing celebrity who threatens people and then something happens to the people he threatened. Was this a stunt for his book? I don’t know, but it’s in line with his character.

He went before the same House Intelligence Committee on 245 occasions. He pled either “I don’t know” or “I can’t recall” or “I don’t have that information” or “I shouldn’t give you that information.” Two hundred and forty-five times.

He was the one that set up Michael Flynn and bragged about how naive Michael Flynn was not to have an attorney when he sent agents in to ambush him on the Logan Act. My gosh, nobody ever invokes that. He was the person who lied to Donald Trump and said, “We don’t have an investigation of you, Mr. President.” And then he went out and recorded that conversation. He did have an investigation. And then he had a third party leak it to The New York Times. He was the one who hired Christopher Steele. He was an FBI contractor. They used the Steele dossier, which was fraudulent, to get FISA court warrants to, I think, unproperly and unlawfully spy on people like Carter Page. That same office gave us Kevin Clinesmith, the FBI lawyer who doctored a FISA email to spy on Carter Page.

That same office then gave us the successor to James Comey, interim Director Andrew McCabe. He lied four times, the inspector general said, to federal authorities and three of them were under oath, which was a basis for his firing. He was followed by Christopher Wray. Why was he spying on parents at school board meetings? Why was he spying on what they called “radical-traditional Catholics”? Why did they go after abortion protesters, but not in the same way people who were protesting pro-life? And why did they do the Mar-a-Lago raid? Why did they go in there with props and special files and scattered the files on the ground, where they were not there when they came, and then take pictures of them and add a little “classified”?

Why did they take away 13,000 documents? And out of the 13,000 documents, they only found 102 that were classified, 0.007%. I could go on with Christopher Wray. This is what he gave us. He had the chief counsel, James A. Baker, of the FBI working with Twitter and Facebook to suppress news of Hunter Biden’s laptop. The laptop was authenticated by Christopher Wray’s FBI. They kept it silent while 51 supposed intelligence authorities said that it was Russian disinformation. Why didn’t the FBI say, “No, it’s not. We’ve authenticated it for over a year”? Why? Why? Why? Add it all up—Mueller, Comey, McCabe, Clinesmith, Christopher Wray, Strzok, Page—and I think it’s been a very good but overdue thing to close down that Washington office and close a sad chapter in the history of a once-great agency.

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Harvard wants to be a state within a state.

• Trump Admin Blocks Harvard From Enrolling International Students (ZH)

Harvard is having a really bad year. From feds yanking billions in grants, to House Republicans alleging ties to the Chinese military, to President Trump threatening their tax-exempt status, to detained embryo-smuggling scientists (and most of that’s just this month), the university has now been blocked from enrolling international students – which constitute nearly 1/3 of Harvard admissions. “I am writing to inform you that effective immediately, Harvard University’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification is revoked,” according to a letter sent to the university by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, which they promptly shot over to the NY Times. The university has 72 hours to hand over requested information. The decision followed a back-and-forth in recent days over the legality of a wide-ranging records request by the Department of Homeland Security.

According to Bloomberg, existing foreign students must transfer or lose their legal status, the notice reads. In April DHS threatened to block Harvard from enrolling international students if the university refused to hand over detailed records about the student body containing “relevant information” on student visa holders who have been involved in “known illegal” or “dangerous” activity. “It is a privilege to have foreign students attend Harvard University, not a guarantee,” Noem wrote in an April letter. “The United States government understands that Harvard University relies heavily on foreign student funding from over 10,000 foreign students to build and maintain their substantial endowment.”Harvard dug in last month following the Trump admin’s demands – with president Alan Garber saying in a statement “No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue.”

Concurrently, a federal judge in California has blocked the Trump administration from terminating the legal status of international students nationwide while a court case challenging previous terminations is pending. The order by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White in Oakland bars the government from arresting or incarcerating the plaintiffs and similarly situated students; from transferring any of them outside the jurisdiction of their residence; from imposing any adverse legal effect on students and from reversing the reinstatement of the legal status until the case is resolved. Students can still be arrested for violent crimes. -AP According to White, the government’s actions “wreaked havoc not only on the lives of Plaintiffs here but on similarly situated F-1 nonimmigrants across the United States and continues do so.”

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Save lives
https://twitter.com/McCulloughFund/status/1925566982893584424

pharma
https://twitter.com/VigilantFox/status/1925655708067824041

Exempt

4 Page
https://twitter.com/MAGAVoice/status/1925707962800017758

Destroyed
https://twitter.com/GuntherEagleman/status/1925582182590095507

Manholes
https://twitter.com/dom_lucre/status/1925711166640197641

Lamb

 

 

 

 

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Debt Rattle May 21 2025

May 212025
 
 May 21, 2025  Posted by at 8:40 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , ,  39 Responses »


Pablo Picasso Portrait of Dora Maar 1939

 

• Putin and Trump Prove To Be the Real Power Brokers in Ukraine Peace Push (Sp.)
• Decoding Putin, Trump (Helmer)
• Every European Country Reinstituting Drafts, They Want War – Martin Armstrong
• Ukraine Has ‘One Last Chance’ – Medvedev (RT)
• Russia’s Red Lines: What Trump Heard From Putin in High Stakes Talks (Sp.)
• NATO Chief Comments On Putin-Trump Phone Call (RT)
• Trump Call Puts Brakes On West’s Diplomatic Offensive (RT)
• Russia Won’t Abandon Ukraine’s Orthodox Believers – Lavrov (RT)
• EU Quietly Complains Ukraine Is ‘All On Us Now’ – FT (RT)
• EU Forks Out $169 Bln for War Chest (Sp.)
• Ukraine Distracting West From ‘More Serious’ Issues – Rubio (RT)
• Musk Says Congress Needs To Act To Meet DOGE $2 Trillion Savings Goal (ZH)
• Federal Judge Blocks Trump Admin’s Dismantling of US Institute of Peace (ET)
• Germany’s Border Crackdown Can Only Last ‘A Few More Weeks’ – Police (RT)
• Democratic Officials Claim a Dangerous License for Illegality (Turley)
• EPIC – Senator Chris Van Hollen vs Secretary Marco Rubio (CTH)
• David Sacks’ Lieutenant Explains Trump’s AI Deal With UAE (ZH)

 

 

 

 

Olympics, World Cup, 250
https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1924621981787295787

Friend

 

 

 

 

“Putin and Trump are the only real decision-makers in this peace process. Europe is once again left out in the cold.”

• Putin and Trump Prove To Be the Real Power Brokers in Ukraine Peace Push (Sp.)

Dmitry Suslov, deputy director at Russia’s Higher School of Economics and the Russian Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, breaks down the key takeaways from Monday’s potentially historic telephone conversation between the Russian and US presidents. First and foremost, Suslov said, the US and Russia agreed that peace must be sought through direct bilateral talks between Russia and Ukraine — not an immediate ceasefire as demanded by Kiev and the Europeans. “That is Russia’s top priority, and the United States has agreed that this should be the main focus,” the observer explained. In effect, Trump essentially stepped back from his previous calls for an immediate ceasefire, and now backs negotiations aimed at a final peace agreement, with a possible ceasefire as part of the process. As for the demands by Kiev and its European patrons that Russia agree to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, Monday’s talks confirmed that “this will not happen,” Suslov said.

Putin in his remarks after the talks announced plans for Russia and Ukraine to start drafting a memorandum outlining the peace deal and ceasefire terms — a step toward a comprehensive settlement, not just a freeze. Suslov found it notable that Trump’s statement omitted any mention of “bone-crushing” anti-Russian sanctions threatened by the Europeans and his proxies at home. Essentially, Europe was once again sidelined and discredited, with Moscow and Washington taking the lead, the observer said. “The Europeans have once again found themselves out of the picture, once again disgraced and marginalized, given all their howling about the need for an immediate ceasefire, and demand that if Russia refuses, the United States should introduce tough sanctions on Russia.”

Another noteworthy point from Trump’s statement, according to Suslov, was his position that the need to end the conflict is “even more important than a ceasefire. “This suggests Trump has accepted, at least to a large extent, the Russian position that it’s necessary to work specifically on ending the war, not freezing it, on working on a final peace agreement, not a ceasefire as such.” Trump also expressed a desire to normalize US-Russia ties with their “limitless potential” for cooperation — clearly rejecting Europe’s posture. “This once again demonstrates Donald Trump’s reluctance to introduce anti-Russian sanctions and somehow quarrel with Russia,” Suslov said, emphasizing that the president appears fully aware “that if he introduces sanctions at this stage, he will cross out the prospects of settling the Ukrainian conflict, and the prospects of normalizing relations with Russia, and the United States will not be able to realize those ‘limitless possibilities’ which, according to Trump, are associated with Russian-American cooperation.”

Bottom Line, According to Suslov
“Putin and Trump are the only real decision-makers in this peace process. Europe is once again left out in the cold.”

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“For the time being, Putin’s and Trump’s statements have put Rubio, Kellogg and the Europeans offside. Decoding the two president’s statements shows how and why.”

• Decoding Putin, Trump (Helmer)

On Monday President Donald Trump telephoned President Vladimir Putin and they talked for two hours before Trump put lunch in his mouth and Putin his dinner. On the White House schedule, there was no advance notice of the call and no record afterwards. The White House log is blank for Trump’s entire morning while the press were told he was at lunch between 11:30 and 12:30. Putin went public first, making a statement to the press which the Kremlin posted at 19:55 Moscow time; it was then 12:55 in Washington. Trump and his staff read the transcript and then composed Trump’s statement in a tweet posted at 13:33 Washington time, 20:33 Moscow time. If Secretary of State Marco Rubio and General Keith Kellogg, the president’s negotiator with the Ukraine and FUGUP (France, United Kingdom, Germany, Ukraine, Poland), were consulted during Trump’s prepping, sat in on the call with the President, or were informed immediately after the call, they have remained silent.

The day before, May 18, Rubio announced that the Istanbul-II meeting had produced agreement “to exchange paper on ideas to get to a ceasefire. If those papers have ideas on them that are realistic and rational, then I think we know we’ve made progress. If those papers, on the other hand, have requirements in them that we know are unrealistic, then we’ll have a different assessment.” Rubio was hinting that the Russian formula in Istanbul, negotiations-then-ceasefire, has been accepted by the US. What the US would do after its “assessment”, Rubio didn’t say – neither walk-away nor threat of new sanctions. Vice President JD Vance wasn’t present at the call because he was flying home from Rome where he attended Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural mass. “We’re more than open to walking away,” Vance told reporters in his aeroplane. “The United States is not going to spin its wheels here. We want to see outcomes.”

Vance prompted Trump to mention the Pope as a mediator for a new round of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations, first to Putin and then in public. Kellogg is refusing to go along. He tweeted on Sunday: “In Istanbul @SecRubio made it clear that we have presented ‘a strong peace plan’. Coming out of the London meetings we (US) came up with a comprehensive 22 point plan that is a framework for peace. The first point is a comprehensive cease fire that stops the killing now.” FUGUP issued their own statement after Trump’s call. “The US President and the European partners have agreed on the next steps. They agreed to closely coordinate the negotiation process and to seek another technical meeting. All sides reaffirmed their willingness to closely accompany Ukraine on the path to a ceasefire. The European participants announced that they would increase pressure on the Russian side through sanctions.”

This signalled acceptance with Trump of the Russian formula, negotiations-then-ceasefire, and time to continue negotiating at the “technical” level. The sanction threat was added. But this statement was no longer FUGUP. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was omitted; so too Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The Italian, the Finn and the European Commission President were substituted. They make FUGIFEC. Late in the Paris evening of Sunday French President Emmanuel Macron attempted to keep Starmer in Trump’s good books and preserve the ceasefire-first formula. “I spoke tonight,” Macron tweeted, “with @POTUS @Keir_Starmer @Bundeskanzler and @GiorgiaMeloni after our talks in Kyiv and Tirana. Tomorrow, President Putin must show he wants peace by accepting the 30-day unconditional ceasefire proposed by President Trump and backed by Ukraine and Europe.” By the time on Monday that Macron realized he had been trumped, the Elysée had nothing to say.

By contrast, Italian Prime Minister Meloni signalled she was happy to line up with Trump and accept Putin’s negotiations-then-ceasefire. “Efforts are being made,” Meloni’s office announced, “for an immediate start to negotiations between the parties that can lead as soon as possible to a ceasefire and create the conditions for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.” Meloni claimed she would assure that Pope Leo XIV would fall into line. “In this regard, the willingness of the Holy Father to host the talks in the Vatican was welcomed. Italy is ready to do its part to facilitate contacts and work for peace.” For the time being, Putin’s and Trump’s statements have put Rubio, Kellogg and the Europeans offside. Decoding the two president’s statements shows how and why.

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“Comey was the man who held Armstrong in prison illegally for contempt for 7 years..”

“.. the hatred is too great on both sides.”

Hmm. Russians don’t hate Ukrainians.

• Every European Country Reinstituting Drafts, They Want War – Martin Armstrong

Legendary financial and geopolitical cycle analyst Martin Armstrong is back with an update on his big turn toward war in Ukraine with Russia. Two weeks ago on USAW, Armstrong predicted, “After May 15, war is turning up (in Ukraine) and it will be turning up into 2026.” That prediction paid off to the exact day as peace talks between Russia and Ukraine ended on May 15 after just two hours, and neither side agreed to meet again. War is already here, and there is no stopping it with peace talks. Armstrong says, “Putin knows and understands this is not a just a war with Ukraine, this is a war with NATO. If Putin agrees to a 30-day ceasefire with Ukraine, what’s that going to do? Absolutely nothing. You have every European country reinstituting drafts.

In Germany, even people 60 years old have been told to report. Poland has ordered every able-bodied man to show up for military training. They want war. Their economy is collapsing. You hear about this de-dollarization, and it’s not happening. The capitalization of just the New York Stock Exchange is worth more than all of Europe combined. That’s just the New York Stock Exchange. . . . You’ve got Macron in France, they call him the ‘Petite Napolean.’. . . Without war, Europe is going to collapse. It’s in a sovereign debt crisis . . . They have done everything against the economy.” Armstong thinks Russia will finish off Ukraine sometime in 2027 and Europe a year or two after that. And, Yes, Armstrong still thinks Ukraine will disappear from the map.

Armstrong urged his contacts in Washington to “Get the hell out of NATO.” It seems some in the US government are considering this warning as this headline breaks today: “US to Begin European Troop Withdrawal Talks, NATO Ambassador Says.” Armstrong says, “I have been told by some very influential people on Capitol Hill ‘you’re right, we agree.’ That’s what I have been told. . . . I have been complaining about this for months, and my view is Europe is committing suicide, and let’s not be part of it this time.” Is President Trump getting this message? Armstrong says, “Yes, I believe so. . . . Trump also said a peace deal does not seem likely, the hatred is too great on both sides.”

The neocons back home also want war with Russia and have wanted it for a very long time. Trump is either going to make peace or walk away and not participate. Maybe this is why former FBI Director James Comey put out his not-so-cryptic call to assassinate President Trump with his “86 47” now deleted Instagram post. Comey was the man who held Armstrong in prison illegally for contempt for 7 years. Armstrong says, “Comey has always been part of it. Just for the record, he was the US Attorney in New York. He’s the one who kept me in contempt until the Supreme Court said what the hell is going on? Then, they had to release me.”

How did Armstrong land in jail? Armstrong says, “They asked me to put in 10 billion dollars . . . to take over Russia, and I refused. It was Comey that was the US Attorney for New York, and he kept me in civil contempt, which has a maximum sentence of 18 months, and he kept me in for 7 years. He kept rolling it and rolling it and rolling it. . . . I was told if I put in $10 billion, I would get $100 billion back. They intended to have all the assets of Russia going through the trading desk of New York. All the oil, gold, diamonds, platinum, you name it, they would have it all. And I said, no, I’m out. I am not into regime change.”

Fast forward to today, and the powers in Europe still think they can take Russia and steal their assets to fix the extreme financial problems in Europe. Pensions, banks and bonds are in deep financial trouble in Europe. Stealing from Russia and gaining control of $75 trillion in natural resources is why they want and need war. Armstrong says, “They went to negative interest rates in 2014. I warned them. I said listen; you are out of your minds. You are syphoning money out of the bank reserves and pension finds. It’s a basket case. It really is. They have no appreciable economy. . . it’s shrinking, the number of actual businesses has shrunk in Germany. (Germany is 25% of the EU economy.) This is why they need war.” Armstrong says Europe is going to lose and lose badly in a war with Russia. Armstrong says if Trump gets out of NATO, the US will thrive and do much better financially than Europe. Let’s all hope President Trump gets us out of NATO before it’s too late.

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The alter ego speaks.

“Moscow is concerned that there are currently no individuals in Ukraine that have the legal authority to sign any sort of a peace deal..”

• Ukraine Has ‘One Last Chance’ – Medvedev (RT)

Authorities in Kiev have one last opportunity to preserve some kind of statehood after the Ukraine conflict inevitably resolves, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said, urging Kiev to engage in peace talks. Speaking at an international legal forum in St. Petersburg on Tuesday, Medvedev – who serves as the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council – admitted that Moscow doesn’t like the current political regime in Kiev “at all.” Nevertheless, he suggested that Ukraine’s leaders have “one last chance to preserve, under certain conditions, after the end of military actions, some kind of statehood or, if you like, some kind of international legal personality and gain a chance for peaceful development.”

Though the Ukrainian government lacks any sovereignty and is a failed “quasi-state” in its current form, Moscow remains open to holding unconditional direct peace negotiations that would take into account the current realities on the ground and address the root causes of the conflict, Medvedev stated. Moscow is concerned that there are currently no individuals in Ukraine that have the legal authority to sign any sort of a peace deal with Russia, he noted. This concern mainly has to do with the fact that a treaty signed by the current leadership could subsequently be rejected once a new government in Ukraine is elected, he explained. Zelensky’s presidential term officially expired last year, and he has since repeatedly held off holding new elections, citing the conflict with Russia and martial law.

While Moscow has questioned Zelensky’s legitimacy as Ukraine’s leader, last month, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov signaled that the Russian side may overlook his status in order to resume peace negotiations. ”The interests of entering the peaceful settlement process are above all else,” Peskov said, stressing that “the primary goal is to begin this negotiation process,” while all other questions are “secondary.” Last week, delegations from Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul, marking their first direct talks since Kiev unilaterally abandoned the peace process in 2022. The head of Russia’s negotiating team in Istanbul, Vladimir Medinsky, later said the two parties had agreed to conduct a prisoner swap involving 1,000 POWs from each side, and to continue contacts once both have prepared detailed ceasefire proposals.

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“One way or another, Russia will realize its aspiration, so its easier to recognize them, accept them and move forward..,”

• Russia’s Red Lines: What Trump Heard From Putin in High Stakes Talks (Sp.)

Exclusive analysis by Igor Korotchenko (Editor-in-Chief of Russian military publication “National Defense”) on the content of the two hour conversation between Presidents Putin and Trump aimed at ending the Ukrainian conflict. The Russian president came to the table with four non-negotiables, Korotchenko says. These are:
• Recognition of new territorial realities (4 new regions = Russia)
• Complete Ukrainian withdrawal from these territories
• Halt in all Western arms shipments
• Ukraine’s neutral/non-bloc, non-nuclear status

“The main thing conveyed is that Russia has a consistent policy which does not change or vacillate, is absolutely clear and consistent,” the veteran Russian military observer explained. Essentially, Putin’s message was that “everything we say, we implement and carry out.” The non-bloc status point accounts for Russia’s long-standing position on the need to address and eliminate the root causes of the conflict, namely NATO expansion, Korotchenko said.

“Most importantly,” the call was meant to convey “realism from the idea that accepting the conditions formulated by Russia and their support in the US” would allow for peace to be achieved quickly. “One way or another, Russia will realize its aspiration, so its easier to recognize them, accept them and move forward,” the observer emphasized. Korotchenko stressed that the Putin-Trump phone call had no parties trying to “dictate their will” to each other, but a respectful discussion in which each side could express their position. “I think Trump at the very least heard Putin. And crucially, he was convinced that Russia is consistent in its readiness to reach a peace agreement. But this process will not come through some unilateral concessions,” the observer summed up.

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He puts on the smiley face, but this is not what he wants.

• NATO Chief Comments On Putin-Trump Phone Call (RT)

The phone call on Monday between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, marks a positive development and continues to restore communication, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has said. Talking to reporters on Tuesday, Rutte said it was a “good sign” that the conversation took place and welcomed Trump’s “leadership” in efforts to resolve the Ukraine conflict. He added that the US president had “broken the deadlock” from “day one” since returning to office earlier this year. Rutte acknowledged there had been “no discussions with the Russians” until January, when Trump began to “open lines of communication” with Putin. Asked whether pressure on the Russian president should be increased, Rutte said, “Let’s be thankful that Americans are now taking this position, this leadership role.” He added it would not be helpful for him, as a NATO leader, to comment on every step in the process.

Both Putin and Trump described their latest call as productive and encouraging. The US president said he expected progress on the Ukraine conflict within two weeks. According to a Kremlin statement, Putin thanked Trump for “US support in resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.” Yury Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy aide, said the call was conducted in a tone of “mutual respect,” with Trump expressing support for normalizing ties between Washington and Moscow. Putin said on Monday that he and Trump agreed that the next step should be a memorandum outlining principles and a timeline for a peace settlement in the Ukraine conflict. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the next day that “there is and cannot be a deadline” for completing the document.

Rutte’s remarks come as NATO members seek ways to militarize and produce more weapons to be delivered to Ukraine. In March, the European Commission unveiled a plan to raise €800 billion ($896 billion) to “rearm” the EU. The Trump administration has consistently demanded that European NATO states increase their annual military spending to 5% of GDP, calling the longstanding 2% target insufficient. Russian officials have condemned the steps being taken in Europe toward militarization, and dismissed claims that Moscow intends to attack either the EU or NATO. Moreover, Russia has expressed concern that, rather than supporting the US peace initiatives for the Ukraine conflict, the EU and UK are instead gearing up for war with Russia.

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“Western Europe wasn’t invited to the Istanbul talks at all. No EU officials were in Türkiye. The ultimatums issued just days earlier? Ignored by both Moscow and Washington.”

• Trump Call Puts Brakes On West’s Diplomatic Offensive (RT)

In recent weeks, the focus of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has shifted noticeably from the battlefield to the diplomatic arena. Political actors on all sides have turned their attention to shaping the terms of a potential settlement – or at least the framework for future negotiations. This latest phase began with a coordinated visit by Western European leaders to Kiev and concluded, for now, with a phone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, on Monday. But the centerpiece of this diplomatic shift was the unexpected resumption of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul. What’s unfolding is not just a conversation about peace, but a broader contest over influence and strategic direction. Competing visions of how the conflict should end – or be managed – are colliding in real time. Western Europe is scrambling to maintain relevance,

Ukraine is caught between urgency and uncertainty, and Trump, now at the center of this geopolitical tug-of-war, is being courted by both sides. So, who’s really winning this shadow war of influence? And what happens if the diplomatic front collapses? Let’s take a closer look. On May 10, leaders from France, the UK, Germany, and Poland traveled to Kiev. Their message to Russia was blunt: Agree to a 30-day ceasefire or face new sanctions and new supplies of European weapons to Ukraine. This wasn’t surprising. Peace initiatives led by Trump and his adviser, Steve Witkoff, had stalled by early May, creating an opening for the ‘war party’ led by European globalists – figures with whom Kiev has naturally aligned for obvious reasons. But there’s a problem: Europe is out of both weapons and sanctions.

Germany still has a few symbolic Taurus missiles tucked away like heirloom jewels, but even if it decides to part with them, the numbers wouldn’t meaningfully shift the balance on the battlefield. This leaves the Western Europeans with just one real move: Convince Trump to back their agenda, boxing him into a policy that isn’t his own. That same evening, Putin made his countermove: He publicly invited Kiev to resume direct peace talks in Istanbul. With that offer, the Russian president: Set the terms of negotiation himself, signaling that Russia holds the advantage and Ukraine has more to lose by dragging this out; Sidelined Western Europe entirely, effectively discarding Witkoff’s peace plan in favor of talks not about a token ceasefire, but a lasting peace on Russia’s terms.

It was also a clear act of diplomatic trolling – inviting the Ukrainians back to the very same negotiating table they had walked away from three years ago in Istanbul, with Vladimir Medinsky once again leading the Russian delegation. Despite some trolling, Russia sent a relatively heavyweight delegation to Istanbul: The head of military intelligence, top deputies from the foreign and defense ministries, and a cadre of seasoned experts. This is the sort of team you’d expect at serious negotiations – if the parties actually shared common ground.They don’t, at least not yet. Still, the talks were more substantive than expected. Neither side stormed out, and the discussions were described as constructive. Most notably, the two sides agreed to continue talking – and to carry out the largest prisoner exchange of the conflict so far.

The exchange is structured as a one-to-one swap – 1,000 prisoners from each side: Nearly all captured Russians and roughly one-sixth of the Ukrainian POWs. The original goal was a full exchange of ‘all for all’, so the current results clearly favor Moscow. I’ve long argued that the only path to lasting peace lies in a direct Russia-Ukraine agreement. This would require Kiev to renounce its anti-Russian posture and accept Moscow’s terms. And this can only happen if Ukraine ditches its alignment with the European war lobby led by French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Just last Thursday, that seemed impossible. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky was grandstanding, demanding Putin come to Istanbul, insisting on an immediate ceasefire, and more. But curiously, Western Europe wasn’t invited to the Istanbul talks at all. No EU officials were in Türkiye. The ultimatums issued just days earlier? Ignored by both Moscow and Washington.

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All of Russia’s culture will be protected, also in Ukraine.

• Russia Won’t Abandon Ukraine’s Orthodox Believers – Lavrov (RT)

Russia will not abandon Orthodox believers in Ukraine in the face of ongoing religious persecution by the authorities in Kiev, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has promised. Speaking at a Russian Foreign Ministry reception on Tuesday dedicated to Orthodox Easter, Lavrov condemned Kiev for cracking down on believers in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), calling it proof of the Ukrainian authorities’ “human-hating essence.” “The authorities in Kiev have brought [the UOC] to the brink of legal liquidation… Churches continue to be seized, vandalized, and attacked, along with priests and parishioners,” Lavrov alleged. He pointed in particular to Ukraine’s attempts to wrestle control over the iconic Kiev Pechersk Lavra, the country’s oldest monastery.

“These acts are being carried out with the connivance and even support of many European countries, where the ghosts of neo-Nazism and Satanism are again lifting their heads,” the diplomat stated. “Russia will not leave the Orthodox people of Ukraine in trouble,” Lavrov stressed, adding that Moscow “will ensure that their lawful rights are respected” and that canonical Orthodoxy regains its central place in Ukraine’s spiritual life. Ukraine has accused the UOC of maintaining ties to Russia despite the church declaring independence from the Moscow Patriarchate in May 2022. The crackdown has included numerous arrests of clergymen and church raids, one of the most notorious of which took place in the catacombs of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra where holy relics are kept.

Last year, Zelensky also signed legislation allowing the state to ban religious organizations affiliated with governments Kiev deems “aggressors,” effectively targeting the UOC. The Ukrainian leader has defended the measures, claiming they are necessary to protect the country’s “spiritual independence” amid the conflict with Russia. Meanwhile, Kiev has openly supported the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), which is regarded as schismatic by both the UOC and the Russian Orthodox Church. The UN has also voiced concern about the state of religious freedoms in Ukraine, particularly regarding legislation allowing Kiev to target different institutions.

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“.. he is “not ready to put greater pressure” on Russia..”

• EU Quietly Complains Ukraine Is ‘All On Us Now’ – FT (RT)

European leaders backing Ukraine were reportedly “stunned” by US President Donald Trump’s refusal to support their efforts to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin, following a phone call between the two leaders. ”He [Trump] is stepping away,” a senior European diplomat said, as cited by the Financial Times on Tuesday, describing the impression the US president produced. “Supporting and financing Ukraine, putting pressure on Russia: that’s all on us now.” The conversation between Putin and Trump on Monday was their third public engagement since Trump took office in January, with both describing it as positive. Trump reiterated his call for continued direct talks between Moscow and Kiev, and said the conflict is “a European situation” in which the US should never have been involved.

Trump personally briefed the leaders of Ukraine, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, and the European Commission on the call, and made it clear he is “not ready to put greater pressure” on Russia, an unnamed source told the FT. EU officials and European NATO members had been counting on Washington’s support to extract concessions from Moscow by leveraging threats of new sanctions and continued weapons support for Ukraine. They interpreted the perceived shift in the US posture as a diplomatic win for the Kremlin, the British newspaper said. Before direct talks between Moscow and Kiev resumed in Istanbul last week, Ukraine and its backers demanded a 30-day unconditional ceasefire from Russia as a prerequisite. Kiev agreed to take part after the US endorsed the talks, while European leaders postponed their own deadline for a truce.

Moscow has since called for a memorandum to be drafted that would set out a road map to a peace treaty, possibly including a ceasefire. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that finalizing the document would take time. Trump said following his discussion with Putin that in addition to ending the violence, a resolution of the conflict could lead to major economic benefits for the US, Russia, and Ukraine. He added that progress in the talks could be seen in a couple of weeks, but warned that a lack of results could lead Washington to reconsider its role as mediator.

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The EU starts joint borrowing. Many will not like that. Ask Orban.

• EU Forks Out $169 Bln for War Chest (Sp.)

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the new program a “once-in-a-generation moment’ after previously saying that the EU faces defense investment needs of approximately $565 billion over the next decade. The EU has greenlit a new $169 billion defense fund to bankroll ammo, drones, and critical infrastructure, Bloomberg reported. Financed through joint borrowing, it will give loans to EU members and countries such as Ukraine to boost the arms industry. The hiked spending is pitched as a response to Donald Trump’s scale-back of US defense in Europe.

Besides the $169 billion program, looser fiscal rules could unleash up to $904 billion in more military spending. Such loans would go to finance what Europe “lacks,” like:
• missiles
• missile defense systems
• ground capabilities.

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“..whatever happens in Ukraine sets the table for what happens in the Indo-Pacific,” suggesting that an outright Russian victory could embolden China to make more assertive moves.”

• Ukraine Distracting West From ‘More Serious’ Issues – Rubio (RT)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has defended President Donald Trump’s foreign policies and priorities, including his reluctance to join the EU and UK in imposing further sanctions on Moscow or increasing arms supplies to Kiev. Following his lengthy phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, Trump told journalists that the US does not want to impose additional sanctions on Russia “because there’s a chance” of progress toward a settlement of the Ukraine conflict. Secretary Rubio was grilled on this and other issues during a three-hour-long appearance before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday. Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, claimed that “whatever happens in Ukraine sets the table for what happens in the Indo-Pacific,” suggesting that an outright Russian victory could embolden China to make more assertive moves.

“But by the same token, I would say there’s a flip side to that, and that is every minute we spend, every dollar we spend on this conflict in Europe is distracting both our focus and our resources away from the potential for a much more serious, much more cataclysmic confrontation in the Indo-Pacific,” Rubio replied. Rubio has previously stated that countering China will be central to US foreign policy during Trump’s second term. He reiterated on Tuesday that “every minute that we spend on this conflict – that cannot be won by military means – every resource that’s expended into it is money and time that’s not being spent on preventing a much more serious confrontation from a global perspective in the Indo-Pacific.”Rivalry between Washington and Beijing has intensified since Trump’s return to office, with both nations expanding their military and economic influence in the region and beyond.

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth declared in February that China was America’s top defense priority, citing “stark strategic realities.” Speaking in Brussels at a gathering of Ukraine’s backers, he described Beijing as a “peer competitor” with both the capability and intent to threaten US interests in the Indo-Pacific. Washington has previously signaled that it plans to shift its military focus to Asia, while Trump has repeatedly urged the EU to take the lead in its own defense and bear the primary responsibility for future security guarantees to Kiev. Trump argued that Washington should never have intervened in Ukraine, suggesting that Kiev would be “better off” if the conflict with Moscow had remained a “European situation.”

“This is not our war… I mean, we got ourselves entangled in something that we shouldn’t have been involved in… The financial amount that was put up is just crazy,” the US president said on Monday. The Putin-Trump call was characterized as productive by both leaders. Trump said he believes Putin is interested in ending the conflict and warned that additional economic pressure could obstruct US mediation efforts. However, the EU and UK imposed new sanctions on Russia on Tuesday, escalating their campaign to pressure Moscow while ramping up support for Kiev.

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“..the magnitude of the savings is proportionate to the support we get from Congress and from the executive branch of the government in general..”

• Musk Says Congress Needs To Act To Meet DOGE $2 Trillion Savings Goal (ZH)

When Elon Musk joined the Trump administration with the goal of eliminating waste, fraud and abuse through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), he set a lofty $2 trillion goal. Now, four months later, DOGE has cut roughly $170 billion – a figure much lower than projected – in no small part due to activist judges and political pushback which have stopped the Trump administration from eliminating wide swaths of government bloat. On Tuesday, Musk said it was up to Congress to make it happen. “The ability of Doge to operate is a function of whether the government, and this includes the Congress, is willing to take our advice,” Musk said while speaking at an economic forum in Qatar.

“We are not the dictators of the government. We are the advisors, and so we can, we can advise, and the progress we’ve made thus far, I think, is incredible,” Musk continued. “Doge team has done incredible work, but the magnitude of the savings is proportionate to the support we get from Congress and from the executive branch of the government in general. So we’re not the dictators we all the advisors. But thus far, for advisors. We’ve been to the George team, to their credit, has made incredible progress.”

https://twitter.com/i/status/1924826040976777678

As we noted in February, it will be Congress that decides the endgame… You cut enough spending – even if it’s all grift and fraud – you eventually get a recession, guaranteed. That’s all Congress is waiting for cause then they use the “emergency” to vote through a far greater spending package (“will someone please think of all the unemployed”) one which eclipses all of DOGE’s spending cuts. What Musk is doing in trying to streamline the govt is admirable but ultimately it will be Congress that decides the endgame. And there things are as status quo as always.

In a humorous exchange, Musk said that he’s still committed to being Tesla CEO in five years’ time – unless he’s dead. A moderator asked: “Do you see yourself and are you committed to still being the chief executive of Tesla in five years’ time?” Musk responded: “Yes.” The moderator pushed further: “No doubt about that at all?” Musk added, chuckling: “I can’t be still here if I’m dead.”

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Pure lawfare.

• Federal Judge Blocks Trump Admin’s Dismantling of US Institute of Peace (ET)

U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell on May 19 blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from restructuring the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), replacing its leadership, and assuming control of its office building. “These unilateral actions were taken without asking Congress to cease or reprogram appropriations or by recommending that Congress enact a new law to dissolve or reduce the institute or transfer its tasks to another entity,” Howell stated in her written opinion. USIP was established by Congress in 1984 as an “independent nonprofit corporation,” which receives federal and private funding to promote peace through education and diplomacy. The matter began with a Feb. 19 Trump executive order declaring USIP “unnecessary,” and calling for the organization’s activities to “be eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law.”

Its board of directors is made up of 13 members: Ten are acting members, appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The other three are “ex officio” members, meaning they hold their seats because of their placement in the federal government. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Vice Admiral Peter A. Garvin, president of the National Defense University, hold these “ex officio” seats. On March 14, Trent Morse of the Presidential Personnel Office fired USIP’s acting board members by email. That same day, its president, George Moose, was fired by the ex officio members and replaced with Kenneth Jackson, an official from the U.S. Agency for International Development. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) took control of USIP’s headquarters on March 17.

On March 18, in the middle of this shake-up, USIP and several of its fired board members sued the government, naming Trump, Jackson, Hegseth, and Rubio as co-defendants. Howell initially declined to block the administration’s moves on March 19, while the case was pending before the court, because she felt the plaintiffs’ claims would not succeed on the merits. The board members and USIP president Moose protested against the firings and resisted the takeover of its Washington headquarters, but were unsuccessful. The administration eventually fired all but a handful of USIP’s staff, cancelled all of its programs. It transferred control of USIP’s headquarters to the General Services Administration and leased its office space to the Department of Labor. In her ruling, Howell sought to define USIP’s role in the federal government.

The plaintiffs had argued that USIP is a fully independent entity, and not part of the government, or at the very least, not part of the executive branch. Its statutes say the board members can only be removed by the president: “In consultation with the board, for conviction of a felony, malfeasance in office, persistent neglect of duties, or inability to discharge duties.” A board member may also be removed by a vote of eight other board members, or with a majority vote from members of the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and Education and Labor, and the Senate Committees on Foreign Relations and Labor and Human Resources. The Trump administration had argued that it was part of the executive branch, since it performed diplomatic functions. Since it is part of the executive branch, federal attorney Brian Hudak argued, Trump was entitled to fire its board despite the statutory limitations.

Judge Howell took a middle-of-the-road view and said that USIP is part of the federal government, but not strictly part of the executive branch. “Instead, USIP supports both the executive and legislative branches as an independent think tank that carries out its own international peace research, education and training, and information services,” she stated. “Defendants’ subsequent actions that flowed from the improper removal of USIP’s leadership in March 2025 are thus also unlawful,” including the termination of its grant programs and the firing of its staff. Howell ordered the fired board members and president Moose to be reinstated and may not be fired, except in accordance with USIP’s statutes. She also declared the transfer of USIP’s headquarters illegal and has blocked the government from “trespassing” on those headquarters or maintaining control of its computer systems.

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And then you open the borders again?

• Germany’s Border Crackdown Can Only Last ‘A Few More Weeks’ – Police (RT)

Germany’s new border crackdown can only be sustained for “a few more weeks,” the country’s police union has warned, citing mounting pressure on officers tasked with enforcing the policy. The warning comes two weeks after the government introduced stricter border controls to curb the number of asylum seekers entering the country. ”We can only manage this because duty rosters have been adjusted, training for the units is currently on hold, and the reduction of overtime has been halted,” Andreas Rosskopf, chairman of the Federal Police and Customs division of the German Police Union, said. He warned that the controls can only be sustained “for a few more weeks.” The measures represent a major shift in Germany’s migration stance and fulfill a key campaign promise of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who vowed to tighten the immigration laws.

The May 7 order from Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt bans asylum applications at all land borders, reversing former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s 2015 open-border policy. Exceptions are made for children, pregnant women, and other vulnerable groups. Up to 3,000 officers are being added to the 11,000 already stationed at Germany’s borders. The 2015 policy defined Germany’s approach to refugees, while also drawing fierce political backlash, with critics calling it “disastrous.” A week after the measures were announced, Dobrindt claimed that the number of rejections increased by almost a half. However, according to Der Spiegel, the number of asylum applications remained largely stable in the week after May 7.

As the EU’s largest economy, Germany has been the most popular destination for asylum seekers. According to official statistics, foreigners currently make up 17% of the country’s population. Migration remains a polarizing issue, with local authorities often warning that the number of asylum seekers is straining their budgets.The right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which is known for its strong anti-immigration stance, was designated a “confirmed extremist entity” earlier this month by the domestic intelligence agency (BfV), which said its activities could threaten Germany’s democratic order. The designation was later suspended after legal appeals and public outcry.

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They’ll keep at it. There are no consequences.

• Democratic Officials Claim a Dangerous License for Illegality (Turley)

Across the country, a new defense is being heard in state and federal courtrooms. From Democratic members of Congress to judges to city council members, officials claim that their official duties include obstructing the official functions of the federal government. It is a type of liberal license that excuses most any crime in the name of combating what Minn. Gov. Tim Walz called the “modern-day Gestapo” of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The latest claimant of this license is Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ), who was charged with assaulting, resisting, and impeding law enforcement officers during a protest at Delaney Hall ICE detention facility in Newark, New Jersey. McIver is shown on video forcing her way into an ICE facility and striking and shoving agents in her path.

This was not a major incursion, but these state and federal officials joined a mob in briefly overwhelming security and breaching the fence barrier after a bus was allowed through the entrance. Federal officials were able to quickly force back the incursion. McIver and House Democrats insisted that McIver’s forcing her way into the facility might be trespass and assault for other citizens, but she was merely exercising “legislative oversight.” Rep. Alexandria Ocacio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) declared “You lay a finger on someone – on Bonnie Watson Coleman or any of the representatives that were there – you lay a finger on them, we’re going to have a problem.” Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D., N.Y.) even ominously warned the federal government that Democrats would bring down the house if it tried to charge McIver: “It’s a red line. They know better than to go down that road.”

Well, the red line was crossed in a big way after Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba charged McIver with a felony under Title 18, United States Code, Section 111(a)(1). The ACLU called the charge “authoritarianism” and insisted that these state and federal politicians “have every right to exercise their legally authorized oversight responsibilities for expanded immigration detention in New Jersey.” The problem with the oversight claim is that McIver’s status as a member of Congress does not allow her access into closed federal facilities. Congress can subpoena the Executive Branch or secure court orders for access. However, members do not have immunity from criminal laws in unilaterally forcing their way into any federal office or agency.

If that were the case, Rep. Alexandria Ocacio-Cortez would not have posted images of herself crying at the fence of an immigrant facility, she could have climbed over the fence in the name of oversight. Conversely, Republicans in the Biden Administration could have simply pushed their way into the Justice Department to seek the files on the influence-peddling scandal. Yet, the point of the claim is less of a real criminal defense and more of a political excuse. It is the same claim being heard this week from Worcester City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj who was shown in a video shoving and obstructing ICE officers attempting to arrest a woman on immigration charges. Two other individuals (including a Democratic candidate for a school board) were arrested, but not Haxhiaj who claimed that she was merely protecting “a constituent.” After the melee, the city manager issued an order preventing city police from assisting in any way in the carrying out of such civil immigration enforcement efforts by the federal government.

Even judges are claiming the same license. In Wisconsin, Judge Hannah Dugan has been charged with obstructing a federal arrest of an illegal immigrant who appeared in her courtroom. Duggan heard about agents waiting outside in the hallway to arrest the man and went outside to confront the agents. She told them to speak to the Chief Judge and that they needed a different warrant. The agents complied and the Chief Judge confirmed that they could conduct the arrest. In the interim, however, Dugan led the man out a non-public door and facilitated his escape (he was arrested after a chase down a public street). Judge Duggan also claimed that she was carrying out her duties even though her hearing was over, the charges were not part of state matter, and the arrest was being carried out outside of her courtroom.

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Mr. Margarita has very poor manners.

• EPIC – Senator Chris Van Hollen vs Secretary Marco Rubio (CTH)

For seven straight minutes Secretary of State Marco Rubio sat and listened to criminal alien apologist Chris Van Hollen blast him for enforcing immigration laws, supporting MAGA foreign policy and revoking the guest visas for criminal protestors on college campuses. Van Hollen was trying to blast Rubio and fundraise from his far-left communist constituents. Rubio listened respectfully. Then came the moment, “may I respond” asked Rubio, and within the response Senator Van Hollen completely lost his cool, shouted angrily at Rubio despite being told his time has expired, and was forced to listen to Senator Rubio inform him that yes, Rubio not only plans to revoke the visas of the agitators, but that Rubio had just asked for an even longer list of campus protesters who were recently arrested so he could personally ensure those visas were revoked.

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“…I kind of think of this like a software ecosystem play, where we now have them tied to the American AI ecosystem..”

• David Sacks’ Lieutenant Explains Trump’s AI Deal With UAE (ZH)

Sriram Krishnan, Senior White House Policy Advisor on Artificial Intelligence, joined the Monday edition of TBPN to explain why the U.S.-UAE AI Partnership is a strategic victory for the United States in its race to lead AI development against China, a perspective largely (and unsurprisingly) overlooked by mainstream media.

SRIRAM KRISHAN: We signed the first AI acceleration partnership. You guys probably read about in the press, but there are probably three important components that just, I wanted to have the technology brothers have the alpha and the have the first group on that. The most important part, the first part, is that this represents a large investment in U.S. data centers and U.S. AI infrastructure. So these countries will be investing in U.S. AI infrastructure. To make them as equal, if not larger, than the data centers and infrastructure they’re building back home. So this means, obviously a large infusion of capital revenue to data centers here in America.

JORDI HAYS: That story was kind of lost. Right? I feel like a lot of the focus was on localized investment and infrastructure. JOHN COOGAN: To break it down in language that a venture capitalist could understand. This is something like what we’re seeing with Stargate where there’s a ton of capital forming and that’s coming from SoftBank, but it’s also coming from Middle Eastern investment funds and sovereign nations investing in American infrastructure. And then there’s a whole host of companies that might come in the stack to actually build a new data center. Is that right?

SRIRAM KRISHAN: Exactly. You should be doing our talking points. I would say, look, these countries have AI ambitions, right? They want to buy American AI. They wanna buy our semiconductors. They want to buy our large language model. They want to use us. And so as a part of this deal, they’re agreeing to a few things. The most important thing they’re gonna agree to is that capital, like you mentioned, right? Like, and, and this is, by the way, net new. This is not part of any existing project. Sure. These net new deals will mean infrastructure being built out physically in the US.

So for example, if they build out X megawatts of gigawatts of capacity, yep. This will mean the same X megawatts of gigawatts of capacity in the US, and this is an important point. Because some of the chatter has been, Hey, how does America maintain its lead? Well, one of the ways we maintain our lead is everything that is being built up by our allies. We get a matching deal back home. So that’s probably the number one headline.

The second headline would be that the vast majority of the GPUs that are as a part of this deal, which is gonna be, say, hosted in the UAE, will be hosted, run, operated by American hyperscaler companies, right? And so, you probably know them all, right? These would be large American companies who. They will be running it, hosting it, maintaining, and this is actually important because this represents an expansion opportunity for all of our companies. This means they would get to win market share away from competition from other countries. And obviously there’s a whole huge amount of revenue and ecosystem coming in. And so that’s the second key point, the vast majority of the GPUs are going to be run by American companies, often by a lot of our friends in these large, uh, you know, hyperscaler companies.

And the third point, and this is, again, something just lost in the chatter, is I’m sure you’ve heard questions about, Hey, how do we make sure these GPUs, you know, don’t get to somebody they don’t need to be. So there are rigorous security protocols in place, so every GPU gets shipped over. We are gonna make sure that, a., they can’t be physically diverted. These are really large boxes. You can’t hide them under your t-shirt or your tux and kind of stick them out the door. You can’t really go George Clooney Oceans 11 on them. So one is there’s going to be a large amount of physical verification and physical security protocols.

The second is remote access. We are gonna make sure through these deals, through the framework that nobody who’s not supposed to have access, especially from countries of concern, can get access. And so these three kinds of the core pillars, and here’s why this event, right? And I think everybody in your audience who’s like a technology person, a technology brother, or in the software world, here’s why they’ll understand it. What has history taught as a software industry? The company with the biggest network effect, the biggest ecosystem wins, right? We’ve all grown up with Microsoft. How did Microsoft win with the Windows and Office ecosystem? Think about this as the American AI ecosystem.

We are getting these resource-rich countries who are critical allies in very interesting geopolitical places to basically adopt the American AI stack, right? Up and down. This means they are going to be part of our ecosystem for years and decades to come, and it essentially forms a shield from them ever adopting or using technology or working closely with some people that we don’t want them to work with. In a way, I kind of think of this like a software ecosystem play, where we now have them tied to the American AI ecosystem.

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Dowd

Scott
https://twitter.com/liz_churchill10/status/1924578085443187024

Bark

 

 

 

 

Support the Automatic Earth in wartime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

 

 

 

 

 

Debt Rattle May 20 2025

May 202025
 
 May 20, 2025  Posted by at 8:47 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , ,  56 Responses »


Pablo Picasso Portrait of Maya 1939

 

• Trump Spoke with Putin, and Here’s What Happened (Margolis)
• US Should Never Have Intervened In Ukraine – Trump (RT)
• Trump Should Not Threaten New Sanctions When He Talks To Putin (Ian Proud)
• Peaceful Solutions Preferred For Ukraine Conflict Goals – Kremlin (RT)
• Swamp Fever (James Howard Kunstler)
• Biden’s Presidency Is a Scandal of Historic Proportion (Jarrett Stepman)
• This Is the Man Behind the Curtain of Biden’s Health Coverup (Margolis)
• Trump: Biden Allies ‘Not Telling The Facts’ After Cancer Diagnosis (NYP)
• CNN Struggles to Assign Blame for Not Reporting on Biden’s Decline (Turley)
• Germany Makes “Sea-Change Policy Shift” On Nuclear Power In Europe (ZH)
• Europe Admits JD Vance Was Right, Pivots On Mass Immigration (Whedon)
• Europe’s Embrace of Lawfare Threatens Its Alliance with the US (Mike Gonzalez)
• Romania’s Elections Were a Big Globalist Sham (Sp.)
• SCOTUS Allows Removal Of Protected Status From 300K Venezuelan Migrants (ZH)
• Transition To A New World Order Is Beyond Most In The West (Alastair Crooke)
• US Unveils Revised Gaza Truce Proposal – Axios (RT)

 

 

 

 

 

 

King

 

 

 

 

Kamala
https://twitter.com/MAGAVoice/status/1924338698336039097

Kaja
https://twitter.com/DD_Geopolitics/status/1924211156341932284

Souza

Ursula
https://twitter.com/MAGAVoice/status/1924166680311480410

To know Mr. Comey is to dislike Mr. Comey

Jim Rogers

 

 

 

 

Trump hangs up the phone on Putin and calls Zelenskyy, von der Leyen, Macron, Giorgia Meloni, Merz and Stubb. All of whom (Meloni?) want war, not peace. What use is this? You just give them the chance to undo what you’ve just achieved.

• Trump Spoke with Putin, and Here’s What Happened (Margolis)

In a remarkable development that could signal a turning point in the war in Eastern Europe, President Donald Trump revealed Monday that he held a two-hour phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and what came out of it could reshape the future of the region. “Just completed my two hour call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia,” Trump announced on Truth Social. “I believe it went very well.” According to Trump, the call wasn’t just diplomatic pleasantries — it led to a major breakthrough. “Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War,” Trump said. The groundwork has been laid for direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv, with Trump emphasizing that the two nations will handle the negotiations themselves. “The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of.”

Trump described the tone of the conversation with Putin as highly constructive: “The tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent. If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later.” Looking beyond the war, Trump indicated that economic opportunities could be a major incentive for peace. “Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic ‘bloodbath’ is over, and I agree,” he said. “There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED.” And Ukraine, he said, would benefit immensely from new trade opportunities in the aftermath of war. “Likewise, Ukraine can be a great beneficiary on Trade, in the process of rebuilding its Country.”

Trump said the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine would begin “immediately” and that key world leaders had been informed. “I have so informed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, President Emmanuel Macron, of France, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, of Italy, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, of Germany, and President Alexander Stubb, of Finland, during a call with me, immediately after the call with President Putin.” And in a notable twist, Trump said the Vatican has expressed a willingness to host the talks. “The Vatican, as represented by the Pope, has stated that it would be very interested in hosting the negotiations.”

After years of escalating bloodshed, failed ceasefires, and ineffective diplomacy under previous administrations, President Trump may have just pulled off the first real breakthrough. “Let the process begin!” he concluded. If this peace initiative holds, it would be a watershed moment, not just in the war between Russia and Ukraine but in the full restoration of America’s credibility and leadership on the world stage. Trump ran on a clear promise to end the endless wars that have drained American influence and treasure, and now, just months into his second term, he’s already delivered more meaningful progress than Joe Biden managed in nearly three years of fumbling diplomacy, endless aid packages, and aimless rhetoric.

While Biden sent blank checks to Ukraine and pushed America to the brink of direct conflict, Trump picked up the phone and made actual diplomacy happen. He understands that peace comes through strength and negotiation — not virtue-signaling and proxy wars. The mere fact that Russia and Ukraine are now preparing to sit down at the table speaks volumes about who the world respects as a serious dealmaker. This isn’t just a step toward ending a catastrophic war; it’s proof that strong leadership in the White House can shift the entire geopolitical landscape. Trump once again proves that when America leads with clarity and resolve, the world listens.

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“..we got ourselves entangled in something that we shouldn’t have been involved in. And we would have been a lot better off – and maybe the whole thing would have been better off – because it can’t be much worse. It’s a real mess,”

• US Should Never Have Intervened In Ukraine – Trump (RT)

President Donald Trump has blamed his predecessor Joe Biden for funneling vast amounts of American taxpayer money into a foreign conflict that “should have remained a European situation.” Speaking to reporters at the White House following a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, Trump expressed frustration over the “crazy” scale of US involvement in the Ukraine conflict. He reiterated that it was “not our war” and emphasized that his administration is working to end the hostilities through diplomacy. “This is not our war. This is not my war… I mean, we got ourselves entangled in something that we shouldn’t have been involved in. And we would have been a lot better off – and maybe the whole thing would have been better off – because it can’t be much worse. It’s a real mess,” Trump said.

The president stated that Washington has provided “massive” and “record-setting” levels of military and financial assistance to Kiev – far exceeding what the EU and other NATO countries have contributed. “We don’t have boots on the ground, we wouldn’t have boots on the ground. But we do have a big stake. The financial amount that was put up is just crazy,” he added. “Again, this was a European situation. It should have remained a European situation. But we got involved – much more than Europe did – because the past administration felt very strongly that we should,” he said. “We gave massive amounts, I think record-setting amounts, both weaponry and money.”

Trump’s conversation with Putin was followed by calls with several European leaders, including the heads of Germany, Italy, and the UK, as well as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky. “They have a big problem. It’s a terrible war. The amount of anger, the amount of hate, the amount of death,” Trump said, noting that the conflict has reached a point where “it’s very hard to extradite themselves away from what’s taken place over there.” Trump said he believes both Putin and Zelensky want peace, but only time will tell if it can be achieved. “There’s a good chance we can get this done. I believe Putin wants to do it… My whole life is like deals, one big deal. And if I thought that President Putin did not want to get this over with, I wouldn’t even be talking about it because I’d just pull out.”

Pressed by reporters on whether he had a “red line” that would cause him to walk away from mediating the conflict or potentially escalate US involvement, Trump declined to elaborate. “Yeah, I would say I do have a certain line, but I don’t want to say what that line is because I think it makes the negotiation even more difficult than it is,” he said. Putin described the conversation with Trump as “frank” and “quite useful,” adding that Moscow is prepared to work with Kiev on drafting a memorandum aimed at achieving a future peace agreement. “In general, Russia’s position is clear. The main thing for us is to eliminate the root causes of this crisis,” the Russian president said.

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It’s no use, and bad blood.

• Trump Should Not Threaten New Sanctions When He Talks To Putin (Ian Proud)

The U.S. side has made various signals that it might impose massive new sanctions on Russia unless the war ends soon. This would be a huge mistake that would lock in the fighting for the rest of the year and leave Europe on the hook for a massive bill and political disruption that it cannot afford. Trump should not threaten Putin with sanctions when they talk on Monday 19 May. In the run up to the Russia-Ukraine bilateral peace talks which finally took place in Istanbul last week, both the EU and the UK imposed new sanctions on Russia. On 9 May, as Russian commemorated victory Day, Britain imposed sanctions on Russia’s shadow fleet and the EU followed suit with its 17th package of Russia sanctions on 14 May, the day before the Istanbul talks were due to start.

Both the UK and EU have threatened further sanctions should Russia not agree a full and unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine and, with Zelensky, have actively urged the U.S. to follow suit, which it has not done, so far. However, the Americans have spoken increasingly about the possibility of massive new sanctions against Russia: this would be a huge mistake. Sanctioning a country before peace talks have already started, or while they are still going on, is already a bad look. Very clearly, the Ukrainians, Europeans and British hope that new sanctions will apply such pressure on Russia that it agrees to terms that are more favourable to the Ukrainian side. I.e. that Ukraine does not have to go back to the Istanbul 1 commitment to adopt permanently neutral status.

The western mainstream press has been carpet bombing their intellectually degraded readers with the latest press line that Ukraine should not have to go back to the Istanbul 1 text as a starting point for talks. But there’s a problem. For this strategy to be effective, the sanctions have to work. As I’ve pointed out before, sanctions against Russian energy have had limited impact, not just since 2022, but since 2014. Nothing about the glidepath of sanctions since February 2014 suggests that new sanctions will work now. This latest round of UK and EU sanctions aimed to apply more pressure on enforcement of the G7 oil price cap of $60 which was first imposed in December 2022. Since the war started, that policy has failed.

Between 2021 and 2024, total volumes of Russian oil exported fell by just 0.2 million barrels per day, or 2.6%. After a bumper year for tax receipts in 2022 caused by Russian tumbling rouble and skyrocketing energy prices, Russia pulled in current account surpluses of $49.4bn and $62.3bn in 2023 and 2024. This was on the back of still strong goods exports of $425bn and $433bn respectively. There are several reasons why the oil price cap didn’t work, the biggest being that Russia diverted 3 million barrels per day, around 39.5% of total oil exports to India (1.9 mbd), Türkiye (0.6 mbd) and China (0.5 mbd). Türkiye and India boosted exports of refined fuels to Europe providing a backdoor route for Russian oil to Europe.

The second reason the oil price cap didn’t work is the near ten month time lag between war starting and the limit being imposed, which gave Russia space to readjust before punitive measure had been imposed. During this period, oil prices also dropped sharply from the high of $120 in the summer of 2022, to around $80 when the measure was imposed: the G7 missed the boat to impose maximum damage; this reinforces the point I make all the time that coalitions cannot act with speed and decisiveness. Today, the Russian Urals oil price is below the $60 G7 cap meaning that any registered shipping company can transport it without penalty, which renders the British and European sanctions as pointless in any case.

Let’s be clear, western nations imposing sanctions against Russia that don’t work is not a new phenomena. As I have pointed out many times before, the vast majority (92%) of people that the UK has imposed assets freezes and travel bans upon have never held assets in the UK nor travelled here. For companies, the figure is just 23. The same, I am sure, is true of EU and U.S. sanctions, which cover largely the same cast list of characters and companies, as we all share and compare the same lists of possible designations. Financial sector sanctions prompted a massive readjustment of Russia’s financial sector. Energy and dual use sanctions drove self-sufficiency in technology production, through Rosnet, Gazprom and RosTec: i.e. these companies invested more in R&D on component production while sourcing components from alternative markets, in particular China.

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“..eliminate the causes of this crisis, create conditions for long-term sustainable peace and ensure the security of the Russian state and the interests of our people..”

• Peaceful Solutions Preferred For Ukraine Conflict Goals – Kremlin (RT)

Russia remains open to achieving its goals in the Ukraine conflict through peaceful means, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday. Peskov, speaking before President Vladimir Putin’s scheduled phone call with his US counterpart, Donald Trump, expressed appreciation for Washington’s mediation efforts, noting that “if it really helps us achieve our goals by peaceful means, that would certainly be preferable.” He also recalled that Putin’s 2021 proposal to address Russian security concerns over NATO expansion was rejected by the US-led alliance and then-President Joe Biden’s administration. Moscow’s stated objectives include keeping Ukraine out of NATO, ending Kiev’s policies that it considers discriminatory against ethnic Russians, and curbing the influence of extreme Ukrainian nationalist groups.

In a recent interview, Putin said Moscow wants to “eliminate the causes of this crisis, create conditions for long-term sustainable peace and ensure the security of the Russian state and the interests of our people” in former Ukrainian territories where people voted to join Russia following the 2014 Western-backed coup in Kiev. Last week, Russian and Ukrainian representatives held their first direct talks since 2022, when Kiev backed out of a proposed peace deal that had been agreed in principle by both sides in Istanbul. The U-turn was influenced by the then-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, according to Ukraine’s lead negotiator David Arakhamia.

The latest round of Istanbul negotiations has led to a proposal for the largest prisoner exchange between the two countries and a pledge to continue dialogue. Trump has claimed that he alone can broker peace between Russia and Ukraine and suggested that a breakthrough could come as early as this week, following his conversation with Putin.

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“Don’t misunderstand me. I want Biden to get better and live many more years, so he can watch his family go broke from running out of influence to sell.” Oilfield Rando on X

• Swamp Fever (James Howard Kunstler)

If the slithering denizens of Okefenokee-on-the-Potomac were nervous about their fates before Sunday — and I’d say they’ve been rather jumped-up since Nov. 4 — then Maria Bartiromo’s Sunday morning session with FBI top dawgs Patel and Bongino must have been a near-death experience for them. Something Roto-rooterish this way comes, officialdom must be thinking, if you can call utter hysteria “thinking.” Washington is nervous because there have been zero leaks from the agency, a condition heretofore unknown in that haunted, pestiferous, reeking marsh. There’s plenty of the usual background noise, of course: the insectile hum, the croaking, trilling, buzzing, staccato peeps, chirps, and squeals of the squirming lesser creatures. . . the occasional roar of an ancient gator. . . the guttural cry of the night heron, the sharp yelp of some furry prey meeting its doom, the pulsating, primordial, chthonic cacophony of creatures suffering to mate in the frightful darkness. . . but that’s just the news media doing their thing.

We’ve remarked more than once here in recent weeks about the ominous silence emanating from the FBI leadership amidst all that other noise, and now you know: a mighty information dump is coming, bales of documents that Christopher Wray sat on for years will be publicly released un-redacted, spells will be broken, names will be named (with imputations of crimes committed), and abiding mysteries unraveled — like, what was the FBI actually doing around the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and much more. Prepare for some disappointment. Alas, most non-capital federal crimes (acts short of treason and murder) have a five-year statute of limitations (18 U.S.C. § 3282), so the multitudinous felonious misdeeds of RussiaGate will go unpunished.

Stzrok, McCabe, Rosenstein, Pientka, Ohr (and wife Nellie), Thibault, Baker, Atkinson, Halper, Horowitz, Lynch, Yates, et al., will skate off into the sunset, but not without lasting reputational damage. Mr. Obama’s presidential aura will surely lose a lot of its luster. But there is plenty to keep the DOJ busy with more recent turpitudes carried out with the election of “Joe Biden,” including perhaps the 2020 election itself in the months before November, 2025, when the statute of limitations kicks in for that caper. Mainly, what looms is a reckoning over “Joe Biden’s” fake presidency and the momentous question as to who was really running the executive branch of the government, most particularly who was using the devious “auto-pen” to sign off on executive orders and perhaps even on legislation.

It is a wonder of modern times that this affront to the public trust somehow remains an abiding mystery. But it shows just how fake Jake Tapper’s new book is — Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again. Jake blames the whole fiasco on “the White House” without ever stating who in that building was actually acting in “JB’s” place as shadow president. Tapper, allegedly a reporter, apparently never bothered to ask. But neither did anyone else at CNN, the other TV news networks, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and every other outpost of OG journalism. Nor does Jake conclude the obvious: that his entire profession sold out the country to act as the Democratic Party’s damage control agency — rather than its traditional duty to act as a powerful check on corrupt, runaway government.

Which is to say that the news media Jake represents is at least as corrupt as the government itself. It’s for certain now, anyway, that we are going to find out exactly who was behind the fabled auto-pen, and it will probably turn out to be a cabal composed of Chiefs-of-Staff, Ron Klain and Jeffrey Zients, Dr. Jill, NSA Jake Sullivan, Deputy AG Lisa Monaco, Domestic Affairs advisor Susan Rice, and ultimately to some degree former President Obama, holed-up a few blocks away in his Kalorama mansion those four years of “Joe Biden’s” term in the oval office. Why wouldn’t Mr. Obama, now a private citizen, be called to some official forum, say a courtroom or a congressional committee, to answer questions about that? He’s not any sort of God with God-like privileges.

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“This was the first fully deep-state presidency.”

• Biden’s Presidency Is a Scandal of Historic Proportion (Jarrett Stepman)

The “presidency” of Joe Biden is one of the greatest scandals in American history. The legacy media is only now covering the mental incapacity of a president who apparently left the entire ship of state to the unaccountable bureaucracy. On Friday, Axios released Friday night news dump audio of Biden’s 2023 interview with special counsel Robert Hur. If you heard the tape and haven’t been in a coma for the past four years, then nothing here is truly surprising. The former president sounded senile and evasive when answering questions about his handling of top secret documents. Some of my colleagues went through the full tapes and found that Biden “forgot the names of President Barack Obama’s former secretary of defense and comedian Jay Leno; referred to Africa as a country, not a continent; and was unaware he had in his possession a notebook with war advice in it for Obama during his interview with special counsel Robert Hur and investigators in October 2023.”

Biden certainly did not sound like someone who could be trusted to make large-scale national decisions or even small-scale personal ones. This is entirely unsurprising unless you are a left-leaning corporate media journalist on the political beat. If you are, then I’m sure that the reports coming out about Biden in office are jaw-dropping, gob-smacking revelations to you. The media elite are shocked, shocked to discover that Biden may have been unfit for office. The release of these tapes was followed by a Sunday afternoon reveal that Biden has been diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer. The cancer diagnosis is certainly a terrible thing. But the idea that this should end the story about what happened the last four years is a farce. It couldn’t be clearer now that due to mental and physical ailments, Biden was a diminished man from the moment he assumed the president’s office.

Despite some of the aforementioned elite journalists calling for a lid to be put on conversations about Biden’s presidency due to his health, the reality is the cancer diagnosis only raises more unsettling questions. Is this really a new diagnosis? Did Biden’s doctors really somehow miss the signs of treatable cancer. And that makes this situation entirely unprecedented. Yes, President Woodrow Wilson was at one point incapacitated during his final term in office, but that was at the tail end of his presidency. Wilson suffered a series of strokes after his highly energetic campaign to convince Americans to join the League of Nations. His wife and even some members of the media tried to cover it up, but ultimately the Democratic Party pulled the plug on his extremely brief flirtation with running for a third term.

There was no widespread attempt to fool the American people and ensure another term for an “almost catatonic” president, as one witness at George Clooney’s June fundraiser for Biden described the candidate.This situation with Biden was much, much worse, the cover-up far more extensive, and the consequences were far more potentially dire in the age of instant communication and weapons capable of quickly destroying all of human civilization. How shall we think of those years in which multiple crises developed around the globe, Americans were mass deprived of employment due to government-forced vaccinations, states were browbeaten to allow children to get life-altering hormones, and an ultimately victorious presidential candidate was nearly jailed? I’ve tried to think of some apt historical comparisons.

President John Tyler was known to some of his more cantankerous critics as “his accidency,” due to being the first vice president to assume the president’s office after the death of the commander in chief. The attitude was that nobody actually elected him to become president, and in the early days of the republic the Constitution was a bit murky about whether he could just assume office or a new election must be held. Regardless of the nickname, Tyler became an aggressive, active commander in chief—somewhat to the chagrin of many in his party. But Biden was in some way the mirror opposite. Despite being elected in a highly contested election, he seems to have never really assumed his responsibilities. Biden’s lethargy was only matched by his lack of transparency.

The better word for Biden would be “his irrelevancy.” While the 46th president’s handlers, most likely at the behest of former President Barack Obama, led him around in an extended real-world version of “Weekend at Bernie’s,” the federal apparatus operated on its own. This was rule by “experts,” or really rule by the managerial class that re-created the old spoils system but made it totally unaccountable to the American people. Decisions were carried out by vast, interlocking agencies at the behest of their Democratic Party allies whom they serve. This was the first fully deep-state presidency. Biden was awarded by the Democratic Party with the nominal career-capping title as president, but the functions and even the decisions demanded of his office were clearly distributed to his subordinates and the federal leviathan. The result was a complete disaster.

Americans rightly lost faith in their leaders and the elite institutions attached to this corrupted apparatus. U.S. foreign policy was at best strategically adrift. Our enemies around the globe went on the march. The people feared the government more than the government feared them. The upshot of these calamities is that we were delivered a national wake-up call at a time of crisis. A political counterrevolution is taking place that may have never happened had its depth not been revealed at least in part by the media’s cover-up of Biden’s obvious infirmity. But even though the first 100-plus days of President Donald Trump couldn’t be more different than the four years of his predecessor, we can’t forget how bad things got, how much the legacy media covered for a senile president’s obvious incapacity, and how deeply threatening the permanent bureaucratic state is to American liberty.

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Call his personal doctor to the stand. Under oath.

• This Is the Man Behind the Curtain of Biden’s Health Coverup (Margolis)

For four years, Americans watched Joe Biden stumble—literally and figuratively—through his presidency, while his inner circle and media allies insisted everything was just fine. Any attempt to question his physical or mental decline was met with accusations of “ageism” or dismissed as wild conspiracy talk. This, from the same Democrats who once obsessed over Donald Trump’s mental fitness, but spent most of Biden’s term parroting absurd claims that he was “sharp as a tack,” “a beast,” or “running circles around his staff.” Videos of Biden looking lost on stage or mumbling were dismissed as “cheap fakes” by the Biden White House, and the media enthusiastically echoed that talking point. It took a humiliating debate meltdown to finally make it clear they could no longer cover up the obvious.

Only then did Democrats admit what everyone else had known for years: Joe Biden was neither physically capable nor mentally fit to serve as president. The charade is over—but the damage is done. But, now, in light of the revelation of Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis, Congress needs to subpoena Joe Biden’s White House physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, to answer questions. In 2023, shortly before Biden announced his reelection campaign, O’Connor called Biden a “healthy, vigorous 80-year-old male” fit for the presidency. Everyone knew it was laughable. Biden was visibly deteriorating—stumbling through speeches, forgetting names, and needing direction just to exit a stage. The signs were there for anyone willing to look, and even then, some insiders were quietly admitting behind the scenes that there were serious concerns. Yet, a year later, O’Connor doubled down. In February 2024, he wrote, “The President feels well and this year’s physical identified no new concerns.”

These claims were lies. Biden’s mental and physical struggles were evident daily, and insiders were already leaking concerns. O’Connor’s medical authority made his deception worse than political spin. His health reports gave everyone cover. Without him, the deception couldn’t have happened. On Sunday, Biden’s office announced his diagnosis of aggressive prostate cancer, with a Gleason score of 9 and bone metastasis, detected after urinary symptoms revealed a prostate nodule. This isn’t just conservative media raising red flags. Medical experts are saying the same thing. Dr. Zeke Emanuel, a former Obama health advisor, told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that Biden likely had cancer for the entire duration of his presidency, saying, “He did not develop it in the last 100, 200 days. He had it while he was president… probably at the start of his presidency in 2021.”

Dr. David Shusterman, a leading urologist, echoed that assessment on NewsNation, explaining that Biden’s aggressive cancer usually develops over five to ten years and is unlikely to go unnoticed during routine checkups—especially with the top-tier care a sitting president receives. These revelations leave us with only two explanations: O’Connor either neglected screenings or hid Biden’s condition. O’Connor has long ties to the Biden family—serving as Biden’s doctor since 2009, supporting them through Beau Biden’s cancer, and joining family vacations—and this longtime connection raises questions about his objectivity. His business dealings with James Biden, introducing him to a medical team for a failed hospital venture, further suggest conflicts of interest. It’s quite clear that O’Connor wasn’t made White House physician because he was trusted to give the nation an honest assessment of the president’s health, but rather because the Biden family knew he’d cover up the truth.

And he did. He issued false reassurances that not only shattered public trust but put national security at risk. Biden’s physical and cognitive decline—now compounded by a serious cancer diagnosis—wasn’t just a health issue; it was a strategic liability that our enemies could exploit. Rather than face the press and answer tough questions, O’Connor hid behind written statements delivered by Karine Jean-Pierre, shielding the full truth from the American people. After Biden’s humiliating debate performance last year, House Oversight Chairman James Comer demanded O’Connor testify about the president’s condition and any connections to the Biden family’s dealings. Just two weeks later, Biden abruptly dropped out of the race. O’Connor never appeared. Last month, reports indicated O’Connor was on the short list of witnesses House Republicans want to question over his role in concealing the president’s cognitive decline. That testimony is long overdue—and more necessary now than ever.

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‘Dangerous for our country’.

• Trump: Biden Allies ‘Not Telling The Facts’ After Cancer Diagnosis (NYP)

President Trump questioned Monday how doctors did not diagnose former President Joe Biden with advanced prostate cancer until after he had left office — accusing former White House staff of “not telling the facts.” “I’m surprised the public wasn’t notified a long time ago,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office in his first on-camera statement about his predecessor’s diagnosis. “To get to stage nine, that’s a long time,” added the president of Biden’s cancer scoring a 9 on the Gleason scale, which indicates a “high-grade” cancer that can spread quickly. Trump, 78, noted that had undergone a full physical at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center last month, and claimed that a prostate exam is “standard” for “pretty much anyone getting a good physical.” “When you take tests, as a male, that test is very standard.”

“This is dangerous for our country,” Trump added, noting that Biden contributed to the “mess” the country is in now. Trump called the diagnosis “very very sad,” but pointed out there were also doctors, including former White House physician Kevin O’Connor, who had claimed Biden was in top mental shape for years, before the public saw his diminished capabilities on full display at his June 27, 2024, debate against Trump. O’Connor gave Biden a nearly-clean bill of health during their last physical in late February 2024, writing that he “identified no new concerns” at the time. The president’s physical didn’t mention a prostate exam that year, though Biden did undergo a colonoscopy in 2021.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also said that Biden, was deemed not to need a cognitive test — despite public outcry at the president’s many gaffes and verbal slip-ups, including asking “Where’s Jackie” and searching for the late Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) at an event in September 2022. “The president doesn’t need a cognitive test. That is not my assessment, that is the assessment of the president’s doctor, that is also the assessment of his neurologist,” Jean-Pierre told reporters at the time. “If it’s the same doctor that said there’s nothing wrong there, and that’s being proven to be a very sad situation,” Trump said Monday, adding: “I think someone is going to have to speak to his doctor.” “Why wasn’t the cognitive ability — why wasn’t that discussed?”

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“Right-wing media figures are desperately pushing conspiracy theories about Biden ahead of the debate.”

• CNN Struggles to Assign Blame for Not Reporting on Biden’s Decline (Turley)

In the wake of the leaked audio of President Joe Biden’s interview with Special Counsel Robert Hur, the media is going through another round of spinning its own failure to pursue the question of Biden’s obvious mental and physical decline. That is no more evident than at CNN, which was one of the most hostile networks to such questions before Biden withdrew from the presidential race after his disastrous debate. The struggle was on full display on Friday. CNN’s host Jake Tapper has faced withering attacks over his publication of a book investigating Biden’s decline, long after the public learned the truth during the debate. While Tapper has admitted that he could have pushed harder on the question, he has been critical of the White House staff and others who hid the truth from the media despite the fact that many were attacked on CNN for raising the issue (including by Tapper).

On Friday’s CNN’s “The Lead,” CNN Senior Justice Correspondent Evan Pérez raised the same rationale for the performance that the White House used after the debate: Biden was tired due to performing his duties as president. Just as the White House raised how Biden was coming off an international trip before the election, Pérez noted that the interview came after the October 7 attack when Biden “had spent that entire time, obviously, on the phone and working long hours.”

“look, one of the other things that I think is key to understanding this, during this interview, the context, right, is that, you remember, he sat down for these interviews in October of, when, right after the attack by Hamas in Israel. And so, he had spent that entire time, obviously, on the phone and working long hours. And so, the big question, of course, became, a president of his age, and given the stresses of what he was going through, should he have sat down, should that have been the time for him to sit down for several hours of interviews — and they do go over two days of interviews with prosecutors — with everything that they had on the line? Clearly, Joe Biden thought that it was fine to do that. But, clearly, you can see from some of his answers that he does not have a handle on some of this. And so you could say, was it because of fatigue, or is it because of the things that you write about in your book, Jake? And so, that’s the big — I think, the big takeaway or big question that people will take away from listening to this audio.”

On Friday’s broadcast of “CNN NewsNight,” host Abby Phillip blamed not Hamas but Democrats and Hur: “[I]f Democrats had taken seriously, which, by the way, in a way, Robert Hur kind of undersold this. He kind of threw Joe Biden a lifeline. It was an opportunity, actually, for Democrats to take it seriously, maybe change gears at that point, and maybe [give] a potential nominee more time.” CNN Political Commentator Maria Cardona piped in that you should not forget to blame the First Lady: “I think, at the end of the day, the accountability falls with Joe Biden, and, frankly, probably, with Jill Biden too, because –.” Phillip responded, “Yeah, that’s true, but it also falls on the Democratic Party that ostracized people who said anything about Joe Biden’s — attacking the media for even raising the issue of his age, when, clearly, it was an issue. There’s accountability there, too.”

The only lack of accountability has been for the media itself, which is again spinning its own role in dismissing these accounts. This effort continued right up to the debate itself. CNN’s Oliver Darcy wrote, “Right-wing media figures are desperately pushing conspiracy theories about Biden ahead of the debate.” As Joe Concha has pointed out, media outlets attacked Hur after the report to dismiss accounts of Biden’s diminishment when he was still the Democratic standard bearer. Media sources like the Atlantic followed the lead of the White House in attacking Hur for “misleading” the public on Biden’s memory.

Now, Hur is being attacked on CNN for “downplaying” the extent of the diminishment. What is striking about these accounts is that they suggest that the media was kept in the dark and omit the fact that it was ignoring or opposing those in the media who were raising the concerns. This was an active effort to swat down such concerns until it no longer mattered after the public saw the truth. The media then investigated a story that was impossible to deny or ignore. The public is obviously not buying it. Instead they are increasingly looking to new media and social media for their news.Blaming Hamas or Hur is not going to work. For most viewers, it is another “Let’s Go Brandon” moment.

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On energy and immigration, Germany just turns 180º and sells that as bravery.

• Germany Makes “Sea-Change Policy Shift” On Nuclear Power In Europe (ZH)

Three weeks after widespread power grid failures across Portugal and Spain, triggered by unreliable solar and wind power, Germany appears to be sharply recalibrating its energy stance. In a notable policy shift, the new conservative government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz has reversed its longstanding opposition to nuclear power. The move reflects a growing understanding in Berlin that overreliance on unreliable solar and wind power generation poses serious risks to economic stability and energy security. The shift also signals a broader return to common-sense energy policymaking in Europe, with nuclear power increasingly viewed as critical in France in achieving reliable, low-carbon power generation.

The Financial Times reports that German officials have informed Paris they will no longer oppose French efforts to have nuclear energy recognized as equivalent to renewables in EU legislation. This marks a significant policy shift, considering former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had firmly opposed treating nuclear power on the same level as solar and wind in the EU’s framework for achieving net zero by 2050. “The Germans are telling us: we will be very pragmatic on the issue of nuclear power,” an anonymous French diplomat told the FT, which was involved in the talks with the Germans. The person said this means that “all the biases against nuclear power, which still remain here and there in EU legislation, will be removed.” “This will be a sea-change policy shift,” said a German official.

Guntram Wolff, a senior fellow at think-tank Bruegel, said, “It’s a welcome rapprochement that will make the topic of energy easier in the EU,” adding, “Politically, Merz is also thinking about the nuclear umbrella.” Berlin’s reversal on nuclear power comes three weeks after solar and wind collapsed the power grids across Portugal and Spain. Europe’s dangerous and radical shift to unreliable net-zero energy has been nothing short of a disaster and an embarrassment for the far-left liberals high in their castles in Brussels. Merz has clearly recognized the urgent need to reverse degrowth net-zero policies. He also understands the strategic urgency of revitalizing Franco-German cooperation—a prerequisite for unlocking stalled EU-level decision-making under former Chancellor Scholz.

“When France and Germany agree, it is much easier for Europe to move forward,” said Lars-Hendrik Röller, a professor at Berlin-based ESMT business school who was chief economic adviser to former Chancellor Angela Merkel, adding, “While several challenges remain, I believe this issue will be solved.” Last week, FT obtained a letter sent to the European Commission by ministers from 12 European member states explaining that it was “imperative” that Brussels acknowledge the “complementary nature of nuclear and renewable energy sources.” The new Franco-German policy shift on energy is critical for Europe to get its house in order, considering NatGas prices have surged since the Ukraine-Russia war, making manufacturing uncompetitive on global markets because inputs have driven up prices of end products (such as automobiles). Solar and wind trends have also created instability in the power grid, which is a national security threat.

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“His series of proposals and high-profile speeches mark a complete reversal of the Labour Party’s longstanding support for mass immigration..”

• Europe Admits JD Vance Was Right, Pivots On Mass Immigration (Whedon)

Months after Vice President JD Vance excoriated the European elite for allowing unfettered mass immigration from the Third World to ravage the continent, the political winds appear to be shifting as European leaders, and even American Democrats, begin to walk back their permissive policies that enabled sizable demographic shifts in the EU. Perhaps the flagship for cultural terraforming via embracing third-world immigration, the UK has seen Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer launch a high-profile campaign to crack down on immigration and push assimilation in recent days. His series of proposals and high-profile speeches mark a complete reversal of the Labour Party’s longstanding support for mass immigration and comes as polling shows his government losing ground to an anti-immigration outsider party.

It’s not just the UK either, as other EU governments, notably Romania, appear poised to place immigration critics in power. Dark-blue California, meanwhile, has seen its governor, Gavin Newsom reading the political winds and abandoning his own long-standing policies of providing a wide range of state benefits to illegal aliens. In his February speech to European leaders, Vance warned Europeans that they risked weakening their alliance with the U.S. due to what he called “the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values.” He notably pointed to the large-scale censorship of mass immigration critics and the cancellation of the Romanian elections due to allegations of Russian interference. Though he faced a tough audience and earned their ire, recent moves in Europe appear to suggest a tacit admission that he was right.

The UK ranks among the nations facing the biggest backlash to mass immigration, with Nigel Farage’s Reform Party increasingly taking a dominant position in polling over the incumbent Labour Party and their traditional opponents, the Conservatives. Matters of cultural friction, crime and the growing presence of radical Islam in the nation have even led to the prevalence of the term “the Yookay” to refer to the country in a satirical manner. Starmer, in a major speech last week, warned that the UK risked becoming an “island of strangers” if it failed to crack down on immigration in which he promised to “take back control of our borders.” He subsequently announced that his government would raise English language proficiency requirements for immigrants, saying “If you want to live in the UK, you should speak English.”

“This is my promise to British people: Every area of our immigration system will be tightened up, so we have more control. And migration numbers will fall,” he promised. Starmer further announced that he would charge employers to recruit overseas and required British firms to show that they were investing in domestic labor. He also promised to cut migration, end asylum hotels, expand efforts to stop boat crossings of the English channel. “Settlement in the UK is a privilege that is earned, not a right,” he also said. Starmer also announced this week that he had “returned over 24,000 people with no right to be here.” Likely motivating the pivot on immigration were local elections that saw the Reform Party post considerable gains, leading to The Telegraph warning of a possible “extinction” event for Labour in the next election.

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The Trump crowd recognize lawfare when they see it.

• Europe’s Embrace of Lawfare Threatens Its Alliance with the US (Mike Gonzalez)

President Donald Trump’s election was greeted in Europe with outright fear by parties of the Left and wary apprehension by the center-right but with open elation by a resurgent sovereigntist Right. Now the Left and the center are regrouping and coming up with a strategy to rein in the surging populists. It should surprise no one that this strategy is based on the twin pillars of lawfare and censorship. Yes, the American Left failed horribly when it used both to try to stop Trump in the 2024 elections. Yet in Europe, the defense of liberty is less entrenched in the mind of voters. We just saw the two approaches clash after Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Elon Musk expressed exasperation when a close ally, Germany, took an initial step in barring the country’s most popular party, the anti-immigrant Alternative für Deutschland.

Germany’s week-old government—a living experiment in the new politics of circling the wagons at the center, being itself a strange-bedfellows coalition of the center-right Christian Democrats and the leftist Social Democrats—responded by warning the Trump administration to stay out of its domestic affairs. To be sure, the generalized statement that Europeans are less zealous of their freedom than Americans requires qualification. Eastern Europe, with a much more recent memory of living in tyranny, is largely more vigilant of losing liberty than is Western Europe, where decades of the welfare state have created constituencies more willing to engage in the illusory bargain of trading a bit of freedom for a bit of comfort. The parties on the Right, in both West and East, also want more sovereign independence and less interference from the European Union in such matters as freedom of expression.

They are the ones that welcomed Trump as the start of a tidal wave they hoped would reach the Old Continent. “Everybody understands that something has changed,” I quoted Marine Le Pen, leader of Rassemblement Nationale, France’s largest opposition party, as telling a crowd at a Patriots rally in Madrid less than a month after Trump’s inauguration. “The results of the American election will sound the awakening of the Old Continent.” Well, the center-right and Left have taken notice of the Trump tsunami, too, and they want to raise a few dams. In terms of lawfare, French courts have convicted Le Pen of embezzlement, a charge she strongly denies, and barred her from running for president in 2027. In Germany, the new government has just allowed the security services to classify AfD as “extremist,” a first step before banning the party outright.

And in Spain, the country’s fiscal court has fined Vox, the third-largest party, 862,000 euros for financial irregularities. All are test cases for how far the Left and center-right are willing to go using the courts to do what they can’t at the ballot box. Expressions of concern about deviating from democratic practices have multiplied. Rubio didn’t mince words, writing on X, “Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That’s not democracy—it’s tyranny in disguise. What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD—which took second in the recent election—but rather the establishment’s deadly open border immigration policies that the AfD opposes. Germany should reverse course.”

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“George Simion won 41% in the May 4 first round. EU favorite Nicosur Dan got 21%. In round two, Simion took 46.4%, while Dan got 53.6% – a 155% boost..”

• Romania’s Elections Were a Big Globalist Sham (Sp.)

The results don’t make sense arithmetically and foreign interference has been confirmed. The country has officially completed its slide into EU protectorate status. Prolific Balkans expert Dr. George Szamuely helps unpack what just happened. Eurosceptic candidate George Simion won 41% in the May 4 first round. EU favorite Nicosur Dan got 21%. In round two, Simion took 46.4%, while Dan got 53.6% – a 155% boost. To do so, Dan needed the backing of 87% of the voters who backed neither him or Simion in the first round. Neither of the other major first round candidates (Crin Antonescu, 20%, Victor Ponta, 13%) threw their weight behind Dan in the second round. Where did his 30%+ surge in support come from? Unclear. Simion has alleged that 1.7 million dead people were on voter rolls, and urged voters to check if any deceased relatives or friends voted via a dedicated WhatsApp contact line.

Diaspora voters cast 1.64 million ballots in the second round of the vote, 660,000 more than round one (which Simion handily won, 61% to Dan’s 25.4%). Simion has alleged some polls were closed or not enough ballots were made available in some areas during the runoff, and manipulation of diaspora voting. Specifically, Simion has accused Moldova’s EU lapdog government of “immense fraud” amid reports of Romanian expats voting at 3X the rate they did in round one. He’s also charged France of meddling using “lots and lots of money and pressure through their ambassador here, and through foreign institutions in order to rob the Romanian people of their votes.” Telegram CEO Pavel Durov confirmed on Sunday that a request had been made by France to “silence conservative voices” in Romania ahead of the election.

“This election is a fraud, a giant absolute fraud. Because the proper election was held in December, and that election was canceled because the ‘wrong’ person [Calin Georgescu, ed.] was on the brink of winning,” Dr. George Szamuely told Sputnik. As for Sunday’s vote, the results simply “don’t make any sense” mathematically, the author and Global Policy Institute senior research fellow says. “Just think of that. [Dan] won 87% of all of the people who didn’t vote for either candidate in the first run…That arithmetically just absolutely makes no sense. It defies any logic, defies any experience of polling,” the observer emphasized. Listing off allegations of foreign meddling, particularly by France and Moldova, Szamuely said the “exuberant, delighted messages” out of Brussels after the vote show its sham nature.

“The EU obviously interfered very, very strongly by essentially threatening Romania with dire consequences if it voted the ‘wrong’ way,” he added. “Democracy is an anathema to the EU, it’s nothing but contempt for the will of the people and particularly for any kind of populist nationalist movements,” Szamuely said, highlighting the bloc’s rush to praise Dan, and overlook glaring violations in Sunday’s Romanian elections. “The EU despises democracy. It only celebrates democracy when it gets the election outcomes it wants. When it doesn’t, it immediately declares that this wasn’t a proper election, this wasn’t a proper democracy, this was a fraud,” the observer said, recalling the recent example of Georgia, where local elites successfully stood up to the EU, and the systematic cancellation and rejection of elections and referendums elsewhere until the “right” results are achieved.

Dan
https://twitter.com/MyLordBebo/status/1924347966292168923

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“I’ve been around since 1984 — and ‘temporary protected status’ is never temporary.”

• SCOTUS Allows Removal Of Protected Status From 300K Venezuelan Migrants (ZH)

The Supreme Court handed a major win to the Trump administration on Monday, granting its request to proceed with revoking legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants. In a brief order, the justices approved an emergency application from the administration, allowing officials to undo a Biden-era extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that shields Venezuelans from deportation and grants them work permits. Liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter, indicating she would have denied the request. The decision allows Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to move forward with a policy reversal that would strip protections from more than 300,000 Venezuelans who were granted TPS due to political and humanitarian crises in their home country.

TPS, created by Congress in 1990, offers safe harbor to nationals of countries suffering from war, natural disaster, or other emergencies. Individuals granted status can legally remain and work in the U.S. for renewable 18-month periods. At the center of the legal fight is a TPS designation made in October 2023 and extended again in January—just before Trump returned to office. The protections were originally set to expire in October 2026, but in February, Noem moved to unwind the designations early, triggering a legal challenge. In April, a federal judge in the Northern District of California blocked the rollback, citing potential racial bias behind the move. But the Trump administration fired back, arguing the judiciary had no business second-guessing decisions made under the executive branch’s immigration authority.

At the time, Trump border czar Tom Homan called the move “Another activist judge making a stupid ruling,” adding “I’ve been around since 1984 — and ‘temporary protected status’ is never temporary.””Bf you look at that decision, it’s based on opinion, not the rule of law.”

Solicitor General D. John Sauer, in the emergency application to the Supreme Court, said, “The court’s order contravenes fundamental executive branch prerogatives and indefinitely delays sensitive policy decisions in an area of immigration policy that Congress recognized must be flexible, fast-paced and discretionary.”The move was challenged by the National TPS Alliance and individual Venezuelans, who argued the administration was trying to dodge judicial oversight altogether. “It should be unremarkable that federal courts say what the law is,” their lawyers wrote.

Monday’s ruling comes just days after the high court dealt a blow to Trump’s immigration playbook in a separate case. In that decision, the court ruled that immigrants detained under the Alien Enemies Act must be given a real chance to contest deportation. While litigation over the TPS rollback continues in lower courts, the Supreme Court’s order clears the way for the Trump administration to begin rescinding protections while the legal fight plays out.

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“..Trump has at least recognised the most important American reality – ie. that the pattern can’t go on indefinitely, and that debt-led consumerism is way past its sell-by date..”

• Transition To A New World Order Is Beyond Most In The West (Alastair Crooke)

Even the need for transition – just to be clear – has only just begun to be recognised in the U.S. For the European leadership however, and for the beneficiaries of financialisation who haughtily lament Trump’s ‘storm’ unwisely unleashed on the world, his base economic theses are ridiculed as bizarre notions completely divorced from economic ‘reality’. That is completely untrue. For, as Greek Economist Yanis Varoufakis points out, the reality of the western situation and the need for transition was clearly spelled out by Paul Volcker, former chair of the Federal Reserve, as long ago as 2005. The harsh ‘fact’ of the liberal globalist economic paradigm was evident even then:“What holds together the globalist system is a massive and growing flow of capital from abroad, running to more than $2 billion every working day – and growing. There is no sense of strain. As a nation we don’t consciously borrow or beg. We aren’t even offering attractive interest rates, nor do we have to offer our creditors protection against the risk of a declining dollar”.

“It’s all quite comfortable for us. We fill our shops and garages with goods from abroad, and the competition has been a powerful restraint on our internal prices. It’s surely helped keep interest rates exceptionally low despite our vanishing savings and rapid growth”. “And it’s [been] comfortable for our trading partners too, and for those supplying the capital. Some, such as China [and Europe, particularly Germany], have depended heavily on our expanding domestic markets. And for the most part, the central banks of the emerging world have been willing to hold more and more dollars, which are, after all, the closest thing that world has to a truly international currency”. “The difficulty is that this seemingly comfortable pattern can’t go on indefinitely”.

Precisely. And Trump is in the process of blowing up the world trading system so as to re-set it. Those western liberals, who today are gnashing teeth and lamenting the advent of ‘Trumpian economics’, are simply in denial that Trump has at least recognised the most important American reality – ie. that the pattern can’t go on indefinitely, and that debt-led consumerism is way past its sell-by date. Recall that most participants in the western financial system have known nothing other than Volcker’s ‘comfortable world’ their entire life. No wonder they have difficulty thinking outside their sealed retort. That does not mean, of course, that Trump’s solution to the problem will work. Possibly, Trump’s particular form of structural rebalancing could make matters actually worse.

Nonetheless, restructuring in some form clearly is inevitable. It comes down otherwise to a choice between bankruptcy slow, or fast and disorderly.The dollar-led globalist system worked well initially – at least from the U.S. perspective. The U.S. exported its post-WW2 manufacturing over-capacity to a newly dollarized Europe, who consumed the surplus. And Europe too, enjoyed the benefit of having its macroeconomic environment (export-led models, guaranteed by the U.S. market). The present crisis began however, when the paradigm inverted – when the U.S. entered on its era of unsustainable structural budget deficits, and when financialisation led Wall Street to build its inverted pyramid of derivative ‘assets’, resting upon a tiny pivot of real assets.

The raw fact of the structural imbalance crisis is bad enough. But the western geo-strategic crisis goes much deeper than just the structural contradiction of inward capital flows and a ‘strong’ dollar eating the heart out of the U.S. manufacturing sector. Because it is bound up, too, with the concomitant collapse of core ideologies underpinning liberal globalism.It is because of this western deep devotion to ideology (as well as to the Volker ‘comfort’ provided by the system) that has triggered such a torrent of anger and outright derision towards Trump’s ‘rebalancing’ plans. Barely a western economist has a good word to say – and yet no plausible alternative framework is offered. Their passion directed at Trump simply underlines that western economic theory is bankrupt, too.

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While Bibi touts the final solution.

• US Unveils Revised Gaza Truce Proposal – Axios (RT)

White House envoy Steve Witkoff has presented Israel and Hamas with a new ceasefire proposal, Axios has reported, with Washington urging both sides to accept the deal. The push coincides with the Jewish state’s renewed assault on Gaza, which included a wave of weekend airstrikes and a major ground offensive – Operation Gideon’s Chariots. According to Axios, Witkoff’s proposal includes a 45- to 60-day ceasefire in exchange for the release of ten hostages and Palestinian prisoners. While similar to past plans, the latest version reportedly contains clearer language signaling that it could lead to a permanent ceasefire. It also includes guarantees aimed at preventing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from unilaterally ending the truce – an issue that derailed a previous agreement. Sources say Netanyahu has responded positively but with many conditions.

Hamas has not yet agreed and is reportedly seeking firm assurances that a temporary truce could pave the way for a lasting ceasefire. Negotiation teams from both sides are formally in Qatar, but an Israeli official told Axios that the real discussions are happening through other, less public channels. Talks mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the US have so far failed to produce a breakthrough. Netanyahu maintains that the war will not end without Hamas’ total defeat, while the group continues to reject disarmament terms. The current escalation began in October 2023, when Hamas launched a surprise cross-border attack on Israel, killing around 1,200 people and abducting 250. An estimated 58 hostages remain in Gaza, including both living captives and those confirmed deceased whose remains have not yet been recovered. As of Monday, the Palestinian death toll from Israel’s offensive in Gaza has surpassed 53,400, according to the enclave’s health officials.

Read more …

 

 

False

Kansas

Sell
https://twitter.com/manly_mentor/status/1924138102269886497

Africa
https://twitter.com/JasperZiggle/status/1924183844187509116

The forbidden empire returnss

Decline

 

 

 

 

 

 

Support the Automatic Earth in wartime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

 

 

 

 

 

Debt Rattle May 19 2025

May 192025
 
 May 19, 2025  Posted by at 9:35 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , , , , ,  53 Responses »


Pablo Picasso Composition “Peasants” 1906

 

• Witkoff Believes Putin Call Will Be ‘A Success’ (RT)
• EU Leaders Plan to Talk to Trump Before His Phone Call With Putin (Sp.)
• The Lesson of The Arrogant King and The Burning of The Oracles (Helmer)
• Presidential Candidates In EU States Call Trump ‘Symbol Of Freedom’ (RT)
• Pro-EU Candidate Wins Romanian Presidential Election Rerun (RT)
• Musk Hails Durov Over Rejection of French Political Censorship Request (RT)
• German Democracy Still Alive? Merz Speaks Out Against AfD Ban (RMX)
• Don’t listen to NATO – Russia to Ukraine (RT)
• Something Doesn’t Add Up About Biden’s Cancer Announcement (Margolis)
• Democrats and Journalists Still Avoid Biden’s Decline (Graham)
• Distrust and Accountability (Erickson)
• Patel&Bongino Tease New Russiagate Evidence, Say Epstein Killed Himself (ZH)
• Devin Nunes Discusses Likelihood of Success for Patel and Bongino (CTH)
• FBI Agents Beg Court To Destroy List Before ‘Shame’ Campaign (ZH)
• Weapons From Ukraine Will Flood Europe – Report (RT)
• House Republicans Advance “Big, Beautiful Bill” After Weekend of Talks (ZH)
• The USA, As We Knew It, Has Been Destroyed By The Supreme Court (PCR)

 

 

 

 

They all know
https://twitter.com/Juliesnark1731/status/1924143006644342845

Comey

Obama
https://twitter.com/LauraLoomer/status/1924092742889836977

 

 

 

 

Time to meet. Bring Lavrov, bring Rubio, bring Witkoff.

• Witkoff Believes Putin Call Will Be ‘A Success’ (RT)

US President Donald Trump’s upcoming phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin will be “very successful” and could help clear “some of the logjam” in peace negotiations over Ukraine, American special envoy Steve Witkoff has said. Trump announced he will speak with Putin on Monday, several days after Russia and Ukraine held their first direct negotiations in three years. During the talks in Istanbul on Friday, the sides agreed on a major prisoner exchange and to continue dialogue after each submits a detailed ceasefire proposal. Witkoff hailed the talks in Türkiye as “good achievements,” and reaffirmed that Trump would like to broker a stable ceasefire followed by a “final peace deal.”

“I believe that the president is going to have a very successful call with Vladimir Putin,” Witkoff told ABC’s This Week on Sunday. “They know each other. The president is determined to get something done here… If he can’t do it, then nobody can.” Asked whether Moscow’s terms were too harsh, Witkoff said the conflict was “very complicated” and that the sides must find compromises. “I think in a negotiation like this, people take positions,” he said. “The art here is to narrow that wide berth. And I think to some extent we’ve done that. Monday will go a long way towards identifying where we are and how we complete this negotiation.”

Trump also expressed hope that Monday will be a “productive day.” He added that he plans to speak with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and “various members of NATO” after his call with Putin. At the same time, he warned that Moscow could face “crushing sanctions” if no progress is made, while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized that Washington is determined to avoid “endless talks” without results. Moscow has rejected demands for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, insisting that talks must address the “root causes” of the conflict, including Ukraine’s aspirations to join NATO – which Russia considers a threat to its national security. Putin has maintained that a lasting truce would require Ukraine to halt its mobilization drive, stop receiving weapons from abroad, and withdraw troops from Russian territory. He warned that Kiev would likely use a temporary ceasefire to rearm and regroup.

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I bet Trump loves that. Not last week, not yesterday, no, an hour or so before he talks to Putin.

• EU Leaders Plan to Talk to Trump Before His Phone Call With Putin (Sp.)

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday he and other European leaders plan to talk to US President Donald Trump again, ahead of a possible phone conversation between the US leader and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We have agreed that in preparation for this dialogue we will talk again — four heads of state and government — with the US president,” Merz was quoted as telling reporters in Rome by the Bild newspaper. One can only hope for the further progress to be made, the German chancellor said, adding that he has already discussed the possible Trump-Putin call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

On Saturday, Trump said he was planning to speak by phone to Putin on May 19. On Friday, the Ukrainian newspaper reported, citing Volodymyr Zelensky’s spokesman, Sergii Nykyforov, that Zelensky and Merz, together with French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, held a telephone conversation with Trump on the sidelines of the European Political Community (EPC) summit in the Albanian capital of Tirana.

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“Trump’s staff had left a four-hour gap in the timing of his flight back to Washington in order to meet with Putin in Istanbul on condition that Trump ordered Zelensky to leave Turkey beforehand and Putin agreed to a summit announcement of an immediate ceasefire. Zelensky was removed to Albania but the Putin’s ceasefire conditions remained unchanged..”

• The Lesson of The Arrogant King and The Burning of The Oracles (Helmer)

In the outcome, it’s the old story come true again. That’s the one in which Tarquin, the ancient Roman king, wanted the Cumaean Sybil to sell him the nine books of prophecies known as the Sybilline Oracles. When the king dismissed the Sybil’s price for the nine, she burned three and asked the same price for six. When the king held out again, she burned another three. In desperation, the king then paid for the three remaining at the price he had refused for the original nine.For two thousand years this has been known as the art of the deal. As if they didn’t know the story, on Friday the leaders of France, United Kingdom, Germany, Ukraine and Poland (FUGUP) telephoned President Donald Trump and told him to keep fighting President Vladimir Putin until he accepts their price. FUGUP told POTUS to burn Putin until Russia will have nothing left to pay with.

Two leaks from the Istanbul meetings confirm what has happened. According to Oleg Tsarev’s account from the Russian side, the Russian delegation said they would agree to a ceasefire if the Ukraine withdrew its forces completely from the four regions – Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye, and Kherson. The Ukrainians refused. In reply, the Russians said that next time there will be five regions. According to a London newspaper’s leak from the British adviser to the Ukrainians, the Russian delegation said they would agree to a ceasefire only if the Ukraine withdrew its troops from the four regions, and Kiev refused, Russia would take two more regions – Sumy and Kharkov. The head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, had reportedly said that Russia “does not want war but is ready to fight for a year, two, three — no matter how long it takes. We fought with Sweden for 21 years. How long are you ready to fight? Perhaps someone sitting at this table will lose even more of their loved ones. Russia is ready to fight forever.”

Trump was sitting in his aeroplane flying north from Abu Dhabi, two hours and a thousand kilometres south of Istanbul when he got the call from FUGUP. The day before, he had told reporters ““we will be leaving tomorrow but you know, almost destination unknown because it could be here, it could be there, but probably we’re back to Washington DC tomorrow.” An hour before he took off, he said: “You know, they all said Putin was going, Zelensky was going, and I said, if I don’t go, I guarantee Putin’s not going. And he didn’t go…We’re going to get it done.” Trump added he would meet Putin “as soon as we can set it up. I would actually leave here [Abu Dhabi] and go [to Istanbul]… in two or three weeks we have a deal.”

As Russian forces accelerate their spring offensive west, north and south, burning what Trump, Zelensky and the Europeans have to fight over, the terms of the Russian deal are now far greater than Vladimir Medinsky, the Russian lead negotiator, accepted at Istanbul-I in March 2022 but were repudiated when he returned to Moscow. Before he set out for Istanbul-II last week, the consensus in Moscow was unanimous, as Putin demonstrated at his lengthy Kremlin session in the evening of May 14 with ministers, intelligence agency chiefs, and senior military commanders from the General Staff and from the front.

“Andrei Belousov [Defence Minister] and Valery Gerasimov [chief of the General Staff] also delivered reports. All commanders of the groups of armed forces in the special military operation zone reported on the situation in their respective sectors along the line of contact. The meeting participants conducted a detailed joint discussion of all reports. Based on these briefings, the President summed up the meeting results, set tasks and charted the negotiating position of the Russian delegation in Istanbul.” In Abu Dhabi, Trump’s staff had left a four-hour gap in the timing of his flight back to Washington in order to meet with Putin in Istanbul on condition that Trump ordered Zelensky to leave Turkey beforehand and Putin agreed to a summit announcement of an immediate ceasefire. Zelensky was removed to Albania but the Putin’s ceasefire conditions remained unchanged. Trump then abandoned his summit meeting plan; the record of his flight log was erased. He announced his personal success instead – “in two or three weeks”.

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EU=no freedom.

• Presidential Candidates In EU States Call Trump ‘Symbol Of Freedom’ (RT)

A joint election campaign rally by Romanian election frontrunner George Simion and Polish presidential candidate Karol Nawrocki have announced plans for what the former described as a “pro-MAGA” union at a joint rally the two held earlier this week in Poland. Supporters at the event chanted the name of US President Donald Trump. Both EU nations are heading into presidential elections this Sunday. Poland will hold the first round of voting, while Romania will see a runoff between Simion and Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan. Speaking at the rally in support of Nawrocki in Zabrze on Tuesday, Simion vowed to reverse what he called an “anti-American change in Europe.” A critic of the EU who has been banned from entering Ukraine, Simion won the first round of the presidential election rerun in Romania on May 4 with more than 40% of the vote.

https://twitter.com/MAGAVoice/status/1923568138706354538

His words prompted the crowd to begin chanting: “Donald Trump! Donald Trump!” The politician joined the chant and called the American leader “not just a person but a symbol of freedom.” Nawrocki, a conservative candidate who is supported by the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party, is currently polling second behind Rafal Trzaskowski, who is aligned with Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s coalition. Addressing the rally, he vowed to “build a Europe of values, a Europe of homelands, in which we will not allow the EU to centralize and turn Poland and Romania into provinces.” Nawrocki opposes EU and NATO membership for Ukraine, as well as financial aid for refugees, while supporting continued military assistance to Kiev.

Speaking to the magazine American Conservative a day after the rally, Simion stated that, together with Nawrocki, they “could become two pro-MAGA presidents committed to reviving our partnership with the United States.” He also vowed to “shift our focus to bilateral negotiations with the Trump administration” if elected. The rally prompted Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk to claim on X that “Russia rejoices” at seeing Nawrocki standing together with “his pro-Russian Romanian counterpart George Simion.” Simion responded by posting an image of Tusk meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin back in 2010 and calling him “Putin’s man in Poland.” Moscow has never commented publicly about any ties with either Simion or Tusk. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova earlier blasted the Romanian presidential election as “scandalous” after RT correspondent Chay Bowes was deported from the country right after arriving in the country to cover the vote.

Read more …

• Pro-EU Candidate Wins Romanian Presidential Election Rerun (RT)

Pro-EU Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan has defeated Euroskeptic candidate George Simion in Romania’s presidential election rerun, according to the official tally. With more than 99% of ballots counted, Dan secured 54% of the vote in Sunday’s runoff, while Simion received 46%. Dan thanked his supporters for an “unprecedented mobilization.” “Starting tomorrow, we begin the reconstruction of Romania – a united and honest Romania, founded on respect for the law and for all its people,” he wrote on X. Simion, the leader of the right-wing Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), did not initially concede defeat, claiming in a post on X on Sunday evening that he was “the new president.” However, he conceded several hours later and congratulated Dan.

“It was the will of the Romanian people. We will go all the way, even if it is hard to bear the bitter taste of defeat,” he said in a video address on Monday. “We may have lost a battle, but we will certainly not lose the war.” The pro-EU president of neighboring Moldova, Maia Sandu, congratulated Dan. “Moldova and Romania stand together, supporting one another and working side by side for a peaceful, democratic, and European future for all our citizens,” she said. The two countries share deep historical and cultural ties, with around 30% of Moldova’s population holding dual Moldovan-Romanian citizenship. Simion’s party has claimed that Moldovan authorities and media outlets waged an illegal campaign to mobilize support for Dan among voters living in Moldova. Chisinau has denied any interference in the election.

The election rerun was ordered after Romania’s Constitutional Court annulled the results of the November vote, in which independent right-wing candidate Calin Georgescu came first with 23%. The authorities cited “irregularities” in his campaign, along with intelligence reports alleging Russian interference – claims Moscow has denied. Simion had condemned the annulment of the 2024 election results as a “coup d’état” and said that, if elected, he could appoint Georgescu as prime minister. During the first round on May 4, Simion received 41% of the vote, while Dan and former Senator Crin Antonescu each garnered around 20%.

https://twitter.com/DD_Geopolitics/status/1924164565862129948

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“..you can’t ‘fight election interference’ by interfering with elections.”

• Musk Hails Durov Over Rejection of French Political Censorship Request (RT)

Elon Musk has voiced support for fellow tech entrepreneur Pavel Durov after the Telegram founder said he had rejected a request from the French government to block conservative political content on the messaging platform. Durov said Sunday that a Western European government had asked him to take down Romanian Telegram channels ahead of the country’s presidential runoff. He declined, arguing that, “you can’t ‘fight election interference’ by interfering with elections.” Musk, the majority stake owner of the social media platform X, responded to Durov’s remarks with a brief post: “Hear, hear!” Following Durov’s statement, French authorities acknowledged they were the subject of the claims but denied making any such request. In a follow-up post, Durov identified the official involved as Nicolas Lerner, director of France’s domestic intelligence agency, the DGSI.

The controversy came as Romanian voters headed to polling stations on Sunday. The Romanian Foreign Ministry accused Russia of interfering in the election, although it offered no supporting evidence. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova remarked that the Romanian process could hardly be described as an election, and urged Bucharest not to soil foreign nations with its mess. In 2024, Romania’s Constitutional Court overturned the result of a presidential election after right-wing independent Calin Georgescu unexpectedly won the first round. Reports linked the pro-Georgescu social media campaign to a government-affiliated consultancy firm allegedly aiming to divide right-wing voters. The case was cited by US Vice President J.D. Vance in a February speech in Munich as an example of EU nations undermining democratic norms. On Sunday, pro-EU candidate Nicusor Dan defeated Euroskeptic George Simion in a runoff, securing the Romanian presidency by a single-digit margin.

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Remember: Germany has very strict laws on domestic spying. They probably let the NSA do it for them. As if that’s legal.

• German Democracy Still Alive? Merz Speaks Out Against AfD Ban (RMX)

In recent months, a ban of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) appeared to be inching closer and closer, but now a key voice has clearly spoken out against such a move. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has now said that voting on an AfD ban in the Bundestag is not the right path, saying it “smacks too much of the elimination of political rivals.” He said he does not believe the current evidence is sufficient. He has even gone a step farther, stating that former Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, an SPD politician with far-left sympathies who wrote for Antifa Magazine, was wrong to classify the AfD as “confirmed” right-wing extremist in the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) report. Critics indicate that she rushed the report out at the last minute of her tenure, despite the BfV having no president and despite a lack of any expert review, which she had previously promised would happen.

Speaking to Die Zeit, Merz said; “Working ‘aggressively and militantly’ against the free democratic basic order must be proven. And the burden of proof lies solely with the state. That is a classic task of the executive branch. And I have always internally resisted initiating ban proceedings from within the Bundestag. That smacks too much of political competition elimination to me.” When the BfV first labeled the AfD “certainly right-wing extremist,” calls came from the left, including the Greens, Left Party, and SPD, to immediately begin proceedings to ban the party in the Bundestag. Even a large portion of the CDU backed the move. Now, the BfV has temporarily removed the designation pending a court appeal, and as Remix News reported, this removal may have been in large part possible due to pressure from the United States. Merz also expressed his displeasure with Faeser’s move to release the report on her last day of work.

He told Zeit he was “not happy with the way this process is being conducted.” “The old government presented a report without any factual review, and it was also classified as confidential,” he added. As Remix News reported, the 1,100 page report contained only public statements from the AfD, and it has already been leaked and published by the German press. Remix News, in a report published earlier today, notes that the BfV is likely sitting on huge amounts of private surveillance data related to AfD members, but due to the unsavory mass surveillance methods used to obtain this data, it is likely withholding this from any official report. “I don’t know the content of this report, and frankly, I don’t want to know it until the Federal Ministry of the Interior has made an assessment of it,” said Merz. He said that it would take several weeks and even months for the interior ministry to make such an assessment.

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“..the citizens of Ukraine should not allow the ‘NATO advisers’ to lead them off the true path of settlement into the ravine of other people’s interests again..”

• Don’t listen to NATO – Russia to Ukraine (RT)

Kiev would have a better chance of resolving the conflict with Russia if it resists malignant NATO influence that impedes peace efforts, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday. Zakharova responded to remarks by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Sibiga about the results of the Istanbul meeting, which marked the first direct negotiations between Kiev and Moscow since 2022. The talks resulted in Russia and Ukraine agreeing to a major prisoner swap. The sides also agreed to exchange lists of conditions for a potential ceasefire and discuss a follow-up meeting. “If we put aside all the Russian nonsense, pseudo-historical statements, provocations, and so on, the bottom line is this: we managed to agree on the return of 1,000 of our people. These are 1,000 happy families. Even for this reason alone, all this made sense,” Sibiga said.

“All ‘this,’” Zakharova said, referring to the talks, “was proposed by Russia – by its president – and implemented by a delegation authorized by the head of state, which Zelensky mocked for a day.” She also noted that, if all the insults are put aside, Sibiga essentially acknowledged that the “Russian propositions have a certain sense.” “The main thing is that the citizens of Ukraine should not allow the ‘NATO advisers’ to lead them off the true path of settlement into the ravine of other people’s interests again,” Zakharova warned. Russia and Ukraine held direct peace talks in Istanbul in 2022, shortly after the escalation of the conflict. While the sides initially made progress and reached a tentative agreement – which included a Ukrainian commitment to neutrality – the talks later collapsed after Kiev unilaterally abandoned them.

Moscow later claimed the talks were derailed by then-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who advised Kiev to continue fighting. While Johnson has denied the accusation, David Arakhamia, who led the Ukrainian delegation at the time, admitted that the ex-prime minister played an influential role in the decision to stop the negotiating process. Since then, Russia has repeatedly accused Western governments of using Ukraine as a “battering ram” against Russia and pursuing the conflict “until the last Ukrainian.” It has noted, however, that the US began shifting its approach to the settlement under President Donald Trump.

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It’s the timing.

• Something Doesn’t Add Up About Biden’s Cancer Announcement (Margolis)

On Sunday, news broke that former President Joe Biden was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 and metastasis to the bone. The announcement, made by Biden’s office, detailed that the diagnosis followed the discovery of a prostate nodule after worsening urinary symptoms a week prior. While the statement emphasized that the cancer is hormone-sensitive, offering hope for effective management, the timing and context of this revelation raise serious questions about transparency and political motivations. The key question I have is this: Did Joe Biden’s inner circle know about this diagnosis last year?

Obviously, questions about Joe Biden’s physical and mental health have been raised for years. Let’s be honest here. Joe Biden had access to top-notch health care while in the Oval Office—with a personal physician, Kevin O’Connor, who, back in 2023, described him as a “healthy, vigorous 80-year-old male who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the presidency.” We all knew that assessment was garbage. Would the same doctor who claimed Joe Biden was “healthy” and “vigorous” also cover up a cancer diagnosis until after the presidential election? Yeah, I think so. I’m not saying that’s what happened, but you better believe that I think it’s possible that he did. In fact, a clip of Biden saying he “had cancer” back in 2022 has gone viral in the wake of the revelation.

“And guess what—the first frost, you know what was happening?” said Biden. “You’d have to put on your windshield wipers to get, literally, the oil slick off the window.,” he said during a speech about climate change in Somerset, Massachusetts. “That’s why I, and so damn many other people I grew up with, have cancer. And why, for the longest time, Delaware had the highest cancer rate in the nation.” A gaffe? A slip of the tongue? With the Bidens, anything is possible. Okay, let’s state the obvious: I’m not a doctor. Heck, I don’t even play one on TV. Okay, fine. I’ll get a doctor’s input. Fox News Senior Medical Analyst Dr. Marc Siegel says the presence of symptoms and bone metastases in Joe Biden’s case strongly suggests the cancer had been growing undetected for quite some time. That’s not just concerning—it raises serious questions about how such an advanced stage of disease went unnoticed, especially for someone with constant access to top-tier medical care.

Siegel pointed out that Biden’s age—82—is a major risk factor, noting that more than 80 percent of men over 80 have some level of prostate cancer cells in their bodies. “This is one of the cancers doctors specifically monitor in older men,” Siegel explained. Which begs the obvious question: Are we really supposed to believe that Biden, while in office, wasn’t being routinely screened for this? Come on. Not giving him a cognitive exam because they knew he’d flunk it is one thing; not screening him for something he was obviously at high risk for? That just doesn’t pass the smell test. So, now, you have to ask the question: why go public with this information now? The answer is obvious, isn’t it? Do you think it is mere coincidence that the announcement came just two days before the release of “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again” by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson?

Damaging excerpts have been released over the past few weeks, including one excerpt claiming that Biden’s aides were so concerned about his physical decline in early 2024 that they discussed the possibility of him needing a wheelchair if reelected. Then there was the release of the Hur tapes. It’s been a damaging week for Joe Biden and his legacy, and in the hours since his diagnosis was revealed, the usual statements of praise and support are flowing in. It all makes sense, doesn’t it? The book’s excerpts have painted a damning picture of Biden’s physical and cognitive state. And while it’s old news to those of us in conservative media, it’s getting serious widespread attention now. So, announcing a serious cancer diagnosis right before the book’s release could serve as a strategic move to shift the narrative, garner sympathy, and distract the public from the damaging information contained in the book.

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The book is out, but everyone will talk about his cancer. Timing.

• Democrats and Journalists Still Avoid Biden’s Decline (Graham)

The first excerpts of the Jake Tapper-Alex Thompson book on denying former President Joe Biden’s obvious mental decline have been posted, and you can already sense Democrats don’t want to deal with what they have done. The book’s title is “Original Sin.” Why the biblical title? The authors write: “The original sin of Election 2024 was Biden’s decision to run for re-election—followed by aggressive efforts to hide his cognitive diminishment.” There is more religious terminology. “It was an abomination,” one “prominent Democratic strategist” told the authors. “He stole an election from the Democratic Party; he stole it from the American people.” The condemnations here make sense, but they are far too narrow. Democrats as a whole failed to hold an actual primary election in 2024. Almost no one decided to challenge Biden, with the unforgettable exception of Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., who ran explicitly on the issue of Biden’s inability to run for reelection and serve a second term.

Democrat state parties kept challengers like Phillips off primary ballots, and Democrats sought to strip Donald Trump off primary ballots. So the “stole an election” sermon ignores a lot of facts. The condemnation should obviously include the Democrat-allied media, who mostly ignored Phillips and his cause or told him he was foolish. They still don’t want to talk about this. Since the first previews in The New Yorker and Axios, where we learned Biden didn’t recognize actor George Clooney at a fundraiser and Biden aides pondered putting him in a wheelchair after the election, only NBC offered a short report summarizing the scoops. ABC, CBS and PBS ignored it. The “PBS News Hour” offered nine grieving minutes on a state law in Ohio gutting diversity, equity, and inclusive programs on campus, but nothing on Biden. These networks might still sound like NPR as it dismissed the Hunter Biden laptop in 2020. It’s a “pure distraction.”

The broadcast networks have displayed their shamelessly partisan reflexes, that on any issue that feels like a Trump talking point, they circle their wagons around Democrat die-hards. The “sin” here extends to these authors. If and when Tapper and Thompson engage with the national media in interviews, let’s guess there won’t be much pushback on their own demurrals and dismissals of Biden’s decline during his four years in office. Like many journalists, they’ll insist they didn’t avoid the issue—but that’s only because the voters told pollsters it was a problem. For his part, Tapper didn’t cover Biden trying to find a dead congresswoman in the audience in 2022, and he insisted Biden was “sharp” mentally when presidential contender Nikki Haley insisting on cognitive tests for elderly candidates. He disagreed with Republican critics after Biden’s yelling-Grandpa performance at the 2024 State of the Union address: He showed his age, but “he didn’t seem incapable of doing the job.”

Tapper didn’t want to be on the “wrong” side of the Bidens. Dylan Byers at Puck reported that at a Super Bowl party in 2018, Hunter Biden put his arm around Tapper and told him if they weren’t in public, “I would knock you out”. Hunter believed Tapper had reported on allegations of his rampant use of drugs and prostitutes that emerged from his divorce. Tapper assured Hunter that he didn’t report any of that—as if that’s a point of pride. Democrats and their media allies need to face a reckoning for their vast left-wing conspiracy to deny what everyone could see—that Biden was unfit to continue, even to the end of his term. This is especially ridiculous for networks like Tapper’s CNN, which repeatedly proclaimed that Trump was mentally unfit throughout his first term, pushing a 25th Amendment “solution” for him.

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“This contradicts both the new Democrat spin that Biden began a rapid decline after 2022 and also the Tapper and Thompson revelations that the decline had started being noticed in 2019.”

• Distrust and Accountability (Erickson)

CNN’s Kasie Hunt interviewed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer the other day. She confronted him about allegations of a meeting with former President Joe Biden that should have raised alarms about Biden’s fitness for office. “We’re moving forward,” Schumer replied. He would not answer the question. Chuck Todd, speaking afterwards on CNN, said, “He is among the people responsible for this. The leaders of the Democratic Party, the staff of the White House—and I have to say I find everybody now talking to these authors—get out of here. Now you tell us?” He then referred to the first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s administration as “catastrophic governance.” The American people began raising concerns about Biden’s fitness for office while Biden campaigned for the presidency in 2020. Polling in 2021 noted that a majority of the American public had concerns about Biden’s mental and physical frailty.

Former President Barack Obama’s speechwriter Jon Favreau now claims Biden declined after the 2022 midterms. New reporting from CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson notes Biden regularly had bad days before 2022, but as he aged, he got even worse. Democrats would have us believe it was stress related to Hunter Biden. But these same Democrats refused to release the audio of Biden’s interview with Special Prosecutor Robert Hur. The same reporters who now claim they were stunned and their sources would not be candid with them were the very same reporters who never fought for the release of the Hur audio and, in fact, treated the Hur report’s conclusion that Biden was not mentally fit to stand trial as a partisan statement. Axios’ Alex Thompson is one of the few reporters the Biden administration blackballed for regularly covering Biden’s decline.

CNN’s Tapper, for his part, told his colleague John Berman, “I’m not going to speak for anybody else, but knowing then what I know now, I look back at my coverage during the Biden years—and I did cover some of these issues, but not enough.” Comcast gave Biden White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki her own show. She used her show to deflect from concerns about Biden’s decline. Joe Scarborough of MSNBC’s Morning Joe told his audience on March 6, 2024, “F you if you can’t handle the truth. This version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever.” This contradicts both the new Democrat spin that Biden began a rapid decline after 2022 and also the Tapper and Thompson revelations that the decline had started being noticed in 2019.

“Look, what we learned through our reporting is that starting in around 2019, 2020, there were two Bidens. There was a Biden that was perfectly workable, serviceable, seemed fine. And then there was a non-functioning one that couldn’t come up with names of top aides, that would lose his train of thought to an alarming degree. And that non-functioning Biden reared his head increasingly over and over,” Tapper told Berman. This gets back to Chuck Todd’s comments about Sen. Schumer. “Now you tell us,” he says. But what did they need to tell us? The American people were raising concerns in 2020 and 2021. It was the American press corps that insisted Americans not believe their lying eyes. It was voices on CNN and MSNBC that had Democrats on to insist the video of Biden being led off stage by Barack Obama had been mischaracterized by Republicans.

“Catastrophic governance” is how Todd characterized this opening of Trump’s new term. That, I suspect, gives us the answer to the big question—how could the press cover for Biden when the American people themselves knew something was wrong? Because, at that time, Biden was the only thing standing between the presidency and Trump. Now that he has lost, the truth can be told, except for the part of the press’ complicity in the cover-up. Americans did not need White House sources to tell them something was wrong. Only America’s top reporters did, and without those sources, they insisted until the bitter end that the public got duped by the GOP.

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They need to explain.

• Patel&Bongino Tease New Russiagate Evidence, Say Epstein Killed Himself (ZH)

FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino sat down for a wide-ranging interview with Fox News on Sunday, where the pair hinted at a “wave of transparency” on the horizon over weaponization of the DOJ by the Biden and Obama administrations. “You asked in the beginning how the FBI was weaponized,” Patel told host Maria Bartiromo. “Well, the FBI hijacked the constitutional responsibility of the Department of Justice and the Attorney General, and James Comey and others specifically decided what cases to prosecute and not prosecute. Don’t believe me? Go to the videotape in the Hillary Clinton investigation.” Cool, cool.”We don’t decide prosecutions, and neither does any agent or intel analyst. We have great partners under Attorney General [Pam] Bondi. We work with them and discuss the matter with them, but the prosecutorial decision is with them,” Patel continued.

No rush on those indictments and pre-dawn raids, guys. The pair also said they’ve uncovered additional details regarding the Obama DOJ’s Crossfire Hurricane (Russiagate) investigation, and are working with Congress on it – which for some reason they have to do before they can release it. Of note, Patel was previously the House Intelligence Committee’s lead Russiagate investigator. “They bastardized the process, they withheld and hid documentation and put it in rooms where people weren’t supposed to look,” he said. “That’s how vindictive and vicious the former leadership structure here was. Not only did they bastardize the FISA process and lie to the American public, they withheld and hid documentation and put it in rooms where people weren’t supposed to look,” Patel continued, adding “It’s a good thing we’re here now to clean it up, and you’re about to see a wave of transparency… Just give us about a week or two.”

In another segment, the pair insisted that pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein definitely killed himself. “You said Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide. People don’t believe it,” said Bartiromo. “They have a right to their opinion,” Patel replied. “But as someone who’s been a public defender, a prosecutor, who’s worked in that prison system and been inside segregated housing——you know a suicide when you see one. And that’s what that was.” Bongino concurred, saying “He killed himself.”

https://twitter.com/VigilantFox/status/1924128234439844211?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1924128234439844211%7Ctwgr%5E87a70587f03f5b008b4ef25a44ed1da9929a9db7%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fpatel-bongino-tease-russiagate-accountability-wave-transparency-yet-insist-jeffrey

So, Epstein, whose cellmate moved out the day before he died, was able to kill himself right at the moment security cameras malfunctioned and his guards fell asleep. And other inmates reportedly heard “shouting and shrieking” from Epstein’s jail cell the morning he died. And some footage which was apparently recovered was deemed “too flawed for investigators to use.” And this was a photo of the ‘noose’ he used:

And coroner Dr. Michael Baden said his autopsy was more consistent with homicidal strangulation than suicide. Right. Remember when Elon Musk told Joe Rogan he can’t dig too deep into government corruption or he’ll be wet work’d? Bongino’s reply to the above question has the same vibes.

https://twitter.com/InternetH0F/status/1896455529813139858?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1896455529813139858%7Ctwgr%5E87a70587f03f5b008b4ef25a44ed1da9929a9db7%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fpatel-bongino-tease-russiagate-accountability-wave-transparency-yet-insist-jeffrey

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“..for Obama to take the nomination, the presidency and then eventually support Hillary Clinton’s 2016 election bid. Obama would appoint Clinton to Secretary of State, Hillary would then use her office to build wealth for herself and her family, and then HRC would exit the Dept of State to begin her presidential run.”

• Devin Nunes Discusses Likelihood of Success for Patel and Bongino (CTH)

Former HPSCI Chairman Devin Nunes is a man very familiar with the Russiagate nonsense and the weaponization of the DOJ, FBI and CIA against candidate Donald Trump and later President Trump. Within this interview Nunes hits on a few good points, the most accurate is his focus on the motives and intents of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who was installed as the cover-up operation for Crossfire Hurricane. However, Nunes gets a part of the origin a little askew and inaccurately framed. The original agreement between Clinton and Obama going back to 2008 was for Obama to take the nomination, the presidency and then eventually support Hillary Clinton’s 2016 election bid. Obama would appoint Clinton to Secretary of State, Hillary would then use her office to build wealth for herself and her family, and then HRC would exit the Dept of State to begin her presidential run.

John Podesta would enter the Obama administration as Hillary left in 2013. Podesta would look out for Hillary’s interests from his position inside the Obama White House. The Clintons and Obamas never fully trusted each other. Barack Obama would put all the mechanisms into place that would transition his administration into Hillary Clintons’. That was always the plan. In 2015 Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama had a check-in meeting; just touching base to firm up the goals and objectives as Hillary began her campaign launch. Podesta left the White House to take up position inside the campaign, and Team Obama would maintain Clinton’s interests as planned without an insider.

All of President Obama’s appointments in after 2015, were essentially through the prism of assisting Hillary Clinton to win in 2016. Attorney General Loretta Lynch (tarmac meeting), Deputy AG Sally Yates, Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe and FBI Director James Comey were all part of that. Technically Hillary had eyes and ears all over the White House at the time, and with Hillary Clinton being a foregone conclusion per the expectations of Washington DC, everyone would fall in line during the transition from Obama to Clinton. Again, this was the general plan. Obama would show up in 2016 to campaign for Hillary and all would be seamless.The FBI was aware of the plan for transition from Obama to Clinton, hence their role in eliminating the threat later presented by the Clinton, as Secretary of State, laptop scandal and the subsequent issues of classified information.

Remember, Clinton’s motive as Secretary of State was to sell her position for material wealth; that’s why she used a personal email, maintained her own servers, and generally controlled how her activity could be monitored and tracked. [Also, she didn’t fully trust Obama] When the Clinton campaign launched the Russia Collusion dirty trick move against her opponent Donald Trump, originally using Fusion GPS and Glenn Simpson, the role of the Obama administration was to facilitate the political hit, and at the very least not impede it. Hence, former CIA Director John Brennan briefing Barack Obama on the status of the Russia collusion hoax as it spread in 2016 via the Clinton campaign.

Specifically because President Obama was, by extension, now a participant in the Clinton created “Russia Collusion hoax,” and specifically because his administration officials were participants in the process (DOJ, FBI), when President Trump won the 2016 election. President Barack Obama was now exposed by the threat the operation represented. This context is the impetus for the January 5, 2017, Susan Rice memo. Following the surprising result in the 2016 election, the team around Obama was urgently framing plausible deniability. President Obama did not orchestrate the Russia Collusion hoax; he facilitated it by not interfering with his administration officials who were assisting Hillary Clinton. This is a very key distinction. President Obama knew what was going on, he was willfully blind as it was carried out. However, the mess and fallout from the extreme lengths his FBI and DOJ officials went eventually represented a threat to Obama.

Robert Mueller and all 19 of his Clinton-aligned Lawfare operatives, were put into place to cover-up the entire mess created within the Russia Collusion operation. Mueller +19 continued the Crossfire Hurricane operation, while the extreme Lawfare strategy was deployed against the Trump administration. That’s the short, encapsulated version. The Russia Collusion hoax was created by Hillary Clinton, spread to media through Fusion GPS and given the patina of credibility by the DOJ and FBI. President Obama facilitated the operation by not interfering in the operation, until it became a threat to him personally. Both the Obama and Clinton political teams supported and organized the Robert Mueller cover-up.

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“..if they can be charged, we’ll charge them. But if they can’t be charged, we will name them.”

• FBI Agents Beg Court To Destroy List Before ‘Shame’ Campaign (ZH)

A group of FBI agents involved in the Jan. 6 investigations asked a judge Thursday to destroy a Trump administration list containing the names of roughly 5,000 agents tied to the probes. Their move follows Ed Martin’s vow, as the newly appointed weaponization czar, to “name” and “shame” the thousands of agents who helped crack down on more than 1,000 Americans allegedly involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, protests. The anonymous agents told U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb that Martin’s public pledge signals the federal government plans to release the list. They first sued in February, asking the court to destroy or seal the roster.

Their Thursday filing came after Martin promised at a Tuesday press conference to hold the agents accountable for destroying the lives of more than 1,000 Jan. 6 defendants. “There are some really bad actors, some people that did some really bad things to the American people. And if they can be charged, we’ll charge them. But if they can’t be charged, we will name them. And in a culture that respects shame, they should be people that are ashamed. And that’s a fact. That’s the way things work. And so that’s, that’s how I believe the job operates.”

The agents argue Martin’s rhetoric puts them in greater danger of retribution by the pardoned Jan. 6 defendants. “Mr. Martin’s statements represent new, relevant facts worthy of the Court’s attention while it considers Plaintiffs’ requested relief,” their filing claimed, according to Law and Crime. The agents are represented by a group of attorneys that includes Mark Zaid, who is also suing President Trump over revoked security clearances. Zaid is also representing former FBI agent Jamie Mannina in a defamation suit against journalist James O’Keefe, after O’Keefe released undercover footage of Mannina expressing his contempt for Trump.

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“..some EU institutions continue to push for Ukraine’s accession to the bloc. Analysts say this could further weaken border controls and oversight mechanisms..”

• Weapons From Ukraine Will Flood Europe – Report (RT)

A massive influx of weapons from Ukraine will hit Europe’s black markets after the conflict with Russia is over, according to a new report by the Eurasia Observatory, which tracks the conflict’s long-term impact on organized crime. Western-supplied weapons and thousands of battle-hardened Ukrainian veterans are expected to fuel a wave of crime, arms trafficking, and instability across the continent – as talks between Moscow and Kiev to resolve the conflict raise hopes for a ceasefire – the document warns. ”Stockpiles of weapons, including heavy arms, are being amassed throughout Ukraine,” the report says. “Should the fighting stop, martial law in Ukraine will presumably be lifted, reducing the resources and powers of the state to police the civilian sphere – and opening up the field for organized crime to operate more freely.”

Kiev received over $363 billion (€326 billion) in NATO aid by February 2025, according to the Kiel Institute. Porous borders and weak oversight may fail to stop smuggled weapons such as rifles, grenades, and missile systems, according to the document. Earlier this year, US journalist Tucker Carlson claimed that the Ukrainian military was selling American weapons systems “on the black market, including to drug cartels.” Western media and officials have acknowledged that weapons sent to Kiev have ended up in criminal hands. Europol reported in April 2022 that arms were being trafficked from Ukraine into the EU for organized crime groups. Later that year, the Finnish authorities confirmed that these weapons had surfaced locally, with similar findings in Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands.

By mid-2024, Spanish media reported gangs in southern Spain had acquired modern weapons allegedly smuggled from Ukraine. The return of Ukrainian soldiers skilled in sabotage, drones, and cyber warfare poses a threat, with the report warning that they could become a “valuable resource” for criminal networks in Europe. Corruption in Ukraine is a major concern, with the most recent estimate showing Ukraine will require $524 billion to repair the damage from the war. The report warns that criminals could exploit the process to launder money and gain influence.

Despite mounting concerns over arms trafficking and fraud, some EU institutions continue to push for Ukraine’s accession to the bloc. Analysts say this could further weaken border controls and oversight mechanisms. The report warns that without a coordinated long-term strategy, Western nations risk facing the fallout of a conflict that Moscow claims they helped fuel and now struggle to control. Russia has warned against Western weapons deliveries to Ukraine, saying they only serve to prolong the conflict and heighten regional security threats. It has also said the unchecked supply of weapons has resulted in a large number falling into the hands of organized criminal groups and extremists worldwide.

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It’ll still take a while. Senate next.

• House Republicans Advance “Big, Beautiful Bill” After Weekend of Talks (ZH)

Following a Friday fracas on Capitol Hill which saw House Republicans fail to advance President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” out of the House Budget Committee, Republicans on said Committee did just that after several GOP deficit hawks relented. And while the bill still has a couple of stops before it can hit the House Floor, passage to the Senate could come as early as the end of this week. The measure passed narrowly, 17-16, with all Democrats opposed and four Republicans; Reps. Chip Roy of Texas, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Andrew Clyde of Georgia, and Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma – voting “present” after voting “No” on the bill in a 16-21 vote just two days earlier. The sudden turnaround followed a weekend of furious negotiations that remain largely behind closed doors.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) met with fellow lawmakers shortly before Sunday’s vote and told reporters that there had been “some minor modifications,” several sources posted on X. Johnson said the bill, which includes making Trump’s 2017 tax cuts permanent and reforming Medicaid, is now “on track” for a House floor vote toward the end of this week.The vote was a big win for Johnson and Trump, coming just two days after Republican opposition torpedoed the bill’s first attempt at committee passage. Despite this procedural victory, the legislation must still clear the House Rules Committee and secure a vote on the House floor, where Republicans hold only a razor-thin majority, Axios reports. Norman, one of the Republicans who shifted his position, said he was “excited about the changes” in the works for the bill.

Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-TX) confirmed during the Sunday night session that “most likely there would be some changes” to the measure before it reaches the floor – but he couldn’t comment on specifics or any side deals that might have been struck. The panel’s reversal came after it initially rejected the legislation Friday, setting off a scramble to renegotiate terms with holdout Republicans. One of the most contentious elements has been the GOP’s proposed Medicaid overhaul, with conservatives pushing for deeper structural changes and moderates raising concerns about the political risks.

Even if the package passes the House, Senate Republicans are expected to propose their own revisions. To that end, Johnson has also been working to secure buy-in from blue state Republicans by exploring a compromise on the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction cap. On Friday, Trump did his usual shit-talking to pressure Republicans into line – posting on Truth Social; “We don’t need ‘GRANDSTANDERS’ in the Republican Party. STOP TALKING, AND GET IT DONE!”

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“..it is possible that they could save themselves if there was a massive violent uprising, but the people are too weak-minded and weak-willed..”

• The USA, As We Knew it, Has Been Destroyed By The Supreme Court (PCR)

“The Supreme Court has just ruled that the worst murderers, drug dealers, gang members, and even those who are mentally insane, who came into our Country illegally, are not allowed to be forced out without going through a long, protracted, and expensive Legal Process, one that will take, possibly, many years for each person, and one that will allow these people to commit many crimes before they even see the inside of a Courthouse. The result of this decision will let more CRIMINALS pour into our Country, doing great harm to our cherished American public. It will also encourage other criminals to illegally enter our Country, wreaking havoc and bedlam wherever they go. The Supreme Court of the United States is not allowing me to do what I was elected to do. Sleepy Joe Biden allowed MILLIONS of Criminal Aliens to come into our Country without any “PROCESS” but, in order to get them out of our Country, we have to go through a long and extended PROCESS. In any event, thank you to Justice Alito and Justice Thomas for attempting to protect our Country. This is a bad and dangerous day for America!” — President Trump, Truth Social, May 16, 2025 at 5:59 PM

As I predicted, the liberal-left, committed as it is to the establishment of a Sodom & Gomorrah Tower of Babel, used the mindless judiciary to protect “rights” of non-citizens who broke the law by entering the country illegally. The judges defined the preservation of America in terms of defending “rights” for illegals who are not US citizens to use US courts to evade enforcement of US law. No one knows where these American rights of non-Americans came from, but the morons on the Supreme Court are defending them. The Supreme Court’s ruling against America in favor of illegal aliens reads like the babel of an insane asylum. Which is what the court is. Instead of standing when judges enter the courtroom, they should be pelted with rotten tomatoes and rotten eggs. There is no reason to respect them as they do not respect America and its Constitution. Most of them are activists for overthrowing traditional America.

The judiciary has also created a fourth branch of government, the civil service or executive branch employees, who the judiciary has now made independent of presidential control. So, five months into the presidential term, my prediction has come true that the Democrats, committed as they are to the replacement of white racist Americans with people of color, would use the courts to defeat the will of the people as expressed in the presidential election.

Americans do not realize, despite the over-abundance of evidence, that they have been in a civil war for many years. That a civil war was underway became completely and totally clear in 2016 and again in 2020 and again during the Biden regime’s illegal prosecutions of Donald Trump and falsely accused and incarcerated “insurrectionists.” That the US Department of Justice and federal courts could be used to imprison American patriots who protested a stolen presidential election demonstrated for even morons to see that the Democrat liberal-left was committed to overthrowing America.

Parents in every state had the evidence before their noses every day of the school year. In place of education, white kids were taught, and still are, that they are racists, along with their parents and grandparents, that they might have been born into the wrong body, that gender is unrelated to biology and determined by self-declaration. Parents who resisted sex change operations for their underage children risked losing them to seizure by Child Protective Services. Young kids were being sexualized at an early age, taught how to give oral sex and to copulate. The Democrats heavily into pedophilia are creating receptive children for themselves. Merit was abandoned as a basis for admission to quality schools for the gifted and as the basis for graduation, resulting in the destruction of the educational experience once offered to the gifted, people America certainly needs.

Corporations and even the military sidelined hiring and promotion for white heterosexual Americans in order to give illegal preference to DEI. Corporate advertising promoted, and still does, miscegenation. Democrat political jurisdictions permitted Antifa and Black Lives Matter to loot and burn white business areas of cities and refused to prosecute. Laws were passed that reduced the accountability of people of color for crimes. For these and many other reasons enough of the insouciant American population saw the light and responded by electing an American as president. It only took 7 Supreme Court justices and a sprinkling of Democrat federal district judges to defeat the American people’s uprising. Americans need to understand that the Supreme Court with its ruling has destroyed America.

A country that cannot defend its borders and that cannot deport illegal entrants is described in Jean Raspail’s The Camp of the Saints, a description of the fate that awaits white Americans, but Americans cannot stop scrolling their cell phones long enough to read a book that tells their future. If Americans understood what awaits them, it is possible that they could save themselves if there was a massive violent uprising, but the people are too weak-minded and weak-willed to save themselves even if they could face up to the threat. With my prediction that Trump’s agenda would be blocked proven true, I am encouraged to offer another prediction. The Democrats will steal the mid-term elections. The RINO Republicans, media, and judiciary will help them in order to get rid of Trump. Next, President Trump will be successfully impeached, and he and members of his government and supporters will be prosecuted.

White heterosexual Americans will be discriminated against in every aspect of life. All who protest will face charges. The United States of America is about to disappear. My backup prediction is that the American Establishment will override the Democrat liberal-left, because the ruling establishment sees Trump as an effective agent for their construction of an American neo-colonial empire consisting of Greenland, Panama, Gaza, and the Middle East. This opens up new avenues of plunder for the ruling elite. The destruction of American unity that the Democrat liberal-left has achieved plays into the hands of the elite as the absence of unity prevents constraints on their privatization of government. Now that I think about it, my backup prediction could well be the most likely one.

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1933

222

China

https://twitter.com/Mappy6984/status/1923933323983827214

https://twitter.com/Ric_RTP/status/1924102595125100637

 

 

 

 

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