“We do not believe any group of men adequate enough or wise enough to operate without scrutiny or without criticism. We know that the only way to avoid error is to detect it, that the only way to detect it is to be free to inquire. We know that in secrecy error undetected will flourish and subvert.” –J. Robert Oppenheimer
We’ve developed quite a taste for the bodacious seafood in Louisiana and need to go back at least once a week with the President. While we’re there, we can have a MAGA RALLY!
Nothing in the world better than a fresh “dressed” Shrimp Po-Boy
Today we’re going to Shreveport/Bossier City, Louisiana. They’re twin cities which straddle the Red River, kind of like Minneapolis/St. Paul do up north. The area is “up and coming” more influenced by Dallas than New Orleans, and sits in a tri-state area of Arkansas-Texas-Louisiana. Shreveport Bossier has cyber corridors, large facilities for AT&T, Chase, Capitol One, SWEPCO, GE, and used to be the headquarters for Standard Oil, until it was absorbed by Exxon. City itself has a population of about 200K with the metro at just under a half million. Younger population, more families, more restaurants, museums, art, theatre, with a lot of BBQ and Seafood.
Just outside the cities, is the location of Barksdale Air Force Base… which completely kicks a$$ and where President Bush flew into on 9/11 to organize our government while we were under attack. It was a tense day for all Americans, but for those on the ground in Shreveport, we were defending our very government amid the fog of war.
Great story about the base and the power of locals/state/Feds working together – The federal gov’t was looking for a major interior air base and NE Texas was chosen as the spot. Town forefathers in Shreveport wanted the base on the LA side, so they bought land from 800 private citizens, including a 20K acre cotton plantation with a 1.5 million dollar bond. Then, they gifted the land to the Feds. Barksdale AFB was born, continues to grow and dominate, and we are so proud.
I don’t know if you guys know this or not, but Louisiana has “Blue Laws” which stem from old Napoleonic Code, quite different from other states, which is why lawyers from out of state have a hard time licensing in LA. Additionally, Governor Huey Long was the next thing to a socialist in the 1930’s, enormously popular, and almost won nomination for Dem President. Therefore, many of the tax laws and procedural contracts in LA are contrary to effective business.
If Louisiana had a businessman as Governor, Eddie Rispone, a Republican, backed up by a President like Trump, the area of Shreveport/Bossier City would take off like a rocket. Which is why we’re here to RALLY for Rispone! The latest poll showed a 49.2% for John Bel Edwards and 48.6% for Rispone. With the race this tight, we need turnout. Therefore, we need President Trump to drive turnout!
Eddie Rispone Rips Leftist Democrat John Bel Edwards. Looks like Louisiana has a chance to elect a great fighter for governor. #LA#Louisianahttps://t.co/yufnbCGB7z
The Dems are worried and pouring MILLIONS into Louisiana at the last minute.
National radical Democrats are pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into this race to save liberal @JohnBelforLA. It’s time to send a message to the radical left – Louisiana stands with @realdonaldtrump. Go vote Saturday! #LAGovhttps://t.co/BkdoVfld7r
Shreveport is the 113th largest city in the country. The land price, labor pool, access to inexpensive utility/energy, new shale and LNG discovery, lifestyle, local breweries, great food, a Sci-Port, universities, cyber corridor, mild weather, low home cost, gorgeous new boardwalk, film industry, and proximity to a major AFB puts Shreveport in a perfect position for MASSIVE economic expansion. Just takes the right leadership to light the fire and a few tweaks to the tax code.
John McCain, Glen Simpson, Mary Jacoby, Oleg Deripaska, Stefan Halper, The FBI (same guys), State Dept (same guys), Paul Manafort, Rick Davis, Putin, Viktor Yanukovych, ….. a Rothschild from London, and all the same players from Russia/Ukraine. Does it sound like we’re talking about “Muh Russia” or “Biden’s Ukraine”? Nope, we’re talking about the 1990’s, 2000’s and the election of 2008.
Every crime must have the elements “means, motive, and opportunity”. The crime in Ukraine which is in our headlines today, is impossible to understand without knowing the “motives” from a few decades ago.
Ever wonder why we are seeing so many long serving bureaucrats come out of the woodwork to disagree/disparage President Trump’s policy on Ukraine? It’s because their precious “institutions” have a LOT to hide. The same bureaucrats were there, complicit, and remember what happened. If the entire story of Ukraine was unwound, it would discredit their life’s work. Bureaucrats today are acting in pure self-interest. And make no mistake, this is a policy argument – as in good versus evil, justice versus corruption, fairness versus oppression…. and on which side the USA stands.
Notice the ages of the various players. It’s important. McCain, now dead, was in his 80’s, some are in their seventies, many in their 60’s, and only a few in their 50’s, those who are at the height of their careers. Remember where they all were 30 years ago and what roles they’ve played for the past 30 years. Dismiss the young bit players but note who has influenced them, they’re merely pawns. It’s no coincidence we just celebrated the 30th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall.
1983: International Republican Institute (IRI) is formed to push democratization efforts and roll back the influence of the Soviet Union. In 1993, John McCain sits on the Board and remains until he dies. IRI helps activists in various countries, largely responsible for the overthrow of Jean Baptiste in Haiti and other countries. Yeah, coups and overthrows don’t seem to happen on their own. ( Philip Agee, “Former CIA Agent Tells How U.S. Infiltrates Civil Society to Overthrow Governments,” Information Clearing House, August 3, 2003. “Tentacles of the InternationalRepublicanInstitute,” People’s Weekly World, March 13, 2004.) They’re on Twitter today, poking around in Tunisia and celebrating. The Atlantic Council has nothing on IRI – it’s the freely functioning wing of the State Dept.
June 12, 1987: It started here. Our generational enemy was Russia. Standing at the Brandenburg Gate, President Reagan called on Gorbachev to “Tear down this wall”.
November 10, 1989: Then, 30yrs ago yesterday, the Berlin Wall fell. We won the Cold War and Peace was supposed to be the prize.
August of 1990 – February of 1991: Operation Desert Storm began and ended. As the Russians were withdrawing from former Soviet Bloc countries, the Desert War served as a punctuation mark to the military leaders in Russia. America was formidable and their equipment worked. Gorbachev faded from power in Russia and Boris Yeltsin rose.
July 10, 1991: Boris Yeltsin becomes the first “President of the Russian Federation”. He remained in power until December 31, 1999. His term in power almost perfectly coincided with that of the American President Bill Clinton, January 20, 1993-January 20, 2001. It was a perfect storm. Yeltsin was popular with the Russian people and notoriously anti-establishment. He had to unwind Russian control over vast territories. Former State run enterprises were up for grabs. Ruthless oligarchs stepped in to fight for control of vast wealth, natural resources, now abandoned by “Mother Russia” which were supposed to be left to naive leadership in former Soviet countries. Clinton’s foreign policy, and the interests of friends to Clinton, helped.
Interesting to note, Russia/Yeltsin signed multiple Arms Control Agreements, START1, START2, Open Skies, Chemical Weapons Treaty, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Ottawa Treaty, all during Yeltsin’s reign, as he pivoted more towards Europe, and turned a socialist country into a capitalist economy. The indications were all there. Russia wanted to cooperate and open up. If NATO was the answer to a prior Russian threat, why wasn’t NATO disbanded or turned into a “Defense of Europe” and turned over to control and FUNDING by European Nations during the 1990’s? Could it be because the bureaucrats were “trained to guard against an enemy, Russia”? Did having Russia, as the neverending boogeyman serve the bureaucracy, despite the will of the people?
The 1990’s beget the Oligarch Wars, often led by former military leaders skilled in “the arts”, sought to gain control of ports, airports, natural resources, banks, etc. It was a scramble for power and wealth. None was more bloody than The Aluminum Wars, involving Oleg Deripaska, among other key players. We’re only beginning to learn more about what went on in Russia during the 1990’s as various players die, and their estates are settled in western courts. Seems as the years went by, Russian oligarchs sought safe haven for their funds in western nations in an attempt to legitimize. https://www.europeanceo.com/profiles/oleg-deripaska-and-the-russian-aluminium-wars/
Boris Berezovsky was in charge of selling state-owned assets for Yeltsin in the 90’s. He profited handsomely.
Roman Abramovich bought state owned assets in Russia, concentrating on Aluminum and nickel. Abramovitch was born in 1966, slightly older than Deripaska, now owns the world’s largest yacht 533′, and the Chelsea Soccer Team. Abramovich paid an estimate 500 Million USD to Badri Patarkacishvili for protection during The Aluminum Wars. While in exile, Abramovitch lived in…… you guessed it……. MONACO. Abramovich has dual Israeli citizenship.
Badri Patarkatsishvili, received money from Abramovitch and offered protection in The Aluminum Wars. Badri was a well known Georgian businessman and ran for President in 2008. He died suddenly setting off the largest estate battle in history. In October 2018 the government of Georgia officially accused the former president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili of ordering assassination of Badri Patarkatsishvili.
Oleg Deripaska and Nastya Rybka, who was arrested in Thailand for recruiting sex slaves for Russian Billionaires. In order to evade prosecution and jail in Thailand, Nastya claimed to have recordings of Donald Trump…. never produced.
Deripaska, born in 1968, was 1yrs old when his father died. His mother worked round the clock to support him, and he ended up living with his grandparents. To help the family, he took a job as an electrical tech in a local plant… he was 11yrs old. He excelled in math, physics, and chemistry, but won four Russian medals in literature. Deripaska studied theoretical physics at the Moscow State University, did his military service beginning in 1986 under old KGB rule, and later earned an economics degree from the Plekhanov Russian Academy of Economics…. Deripaska, in association with his econ degree, took MANY classes at the London School of Economics…… where he learned about………. money. https://24celebs.com/celebrity/34986-oleg-deripaska.html
Again close to starvation, working for food and lodging, Deripaska took a chance befriending Abramovich, who was buying up Aluminum. As a mid-level manager, Deripaska started buying contracts for a Siberian Aluminum company in 1993. By 1996, he controlled 20%.
As the state began to sell off its resource assets, the size and value of the global market for aluminium, along with the potential for moving money around the globe, attracted such fierce competition that it is estimated 100 people were killed. In the words of Roman Abramovich, who testified recently in his suit over events of that period, “Every three days, someone was being murdered.”
As major systems were breaking down within Russia, Deripaska kept buying assets, airports, airlines, construction companies, agribusiness, mining, industry. By 1999, Deripaska became the general director of the company “Russian Aluminum”, which included Sibneft and Siberian Aluminum. A year later, he started “Basic Element”, which today is the leader in the Russian capital management market. “Basic Element” of Oleg Deripaska is represented in all key industries in Russia and abroad, with over 200K employees. Highlight assets of the industrial group are:
• The largest Russian producer of products “Group GAZ”
• The leader of the Russian insurance market “Ingosstrakh”
Boris Yeltsin had two daughters, one named Tatyana, who married the former head of the presidential administration, Valentin Yumasheva, whose business partner was Roman Abramovich (who controlled most of the aluminum in Russia), who introduced Deripaska to, the daughter of Tatyana and Valentin, whose name was Polina…. and who married Oleg Deripaska in 2001.
Oleg Deripaska, second from left, the tall one.
You see, as Yeltsin left the government, a decree was signed to hold harmless any member of the Yeltsin family ——- ensuring no retribution. So, Oleg Deripaska married Yeltsin’s granddaughter in 2001. Deripaska operates with virtual immunity in Russia, but he has enormous problems as soon as he sets foot outside Russia.
Personally, I could never understand why Deripaska kept trying to get a VISA into the USA. Why was it so important? Well, to list an IPO on the London Exchange, “due diligence” must be done on a company. With the Americans blacklisting Deripaska, he could never bring his company to IPO launch. The problem has haunted Deripaska and “not listing” has cost Deripaska an estimated 10 billion dollars and a way to cash out of his companies. Deripaska’s efforts to ingratiate himself with the USA brings many players into focus.
Deripaska also reached out to a Washington-based intelligence firm, Diligence, chaired by GOP foreign policy hand Richard Burt, McCain’s top foreign policy adviser in 2000 and an adviser in ’08.
The upheaval in the former Soviet Bloc was extraordinary. A few weeks ago, I watched a movie starring Nicholas Cage called “Lord of War“. Fascinating tale of arms dealing, after the fall of the Soviet Empire, based on a true story. I learned over 33 BILLION in arms went missing from Ukraine during the decade after 1991. POOF!
There are two simultaneous conspiracies/corruption/asset grabs going on during the early-mid 2000’s. One involved Montenegro and another involved Ukraine. It’s all the same people. Let’s take Montenegro, first.
2000 – 2001: After the fall of Slobodan Milosevic, Montenegro (one of the 6 republics of Serbia) began to reach out for independence. They hire Bob Dole, former Presidential Candidate, as a lobbyist, paying him over 1.3 million dollars to act on their behalf. (The Nation)
2002: Under pressure from the EU and the USA, referendum for independence was put off for 3 yrs. (The Nation)
Late 2005 until Spring 2006: Referendum on Montenegro independence is coming due in Spring of 2006. Rick Davis lobbies for the campaign work from Djukanovic. Davis hires 3 guys suggested by Manafort, who were then vetted by Montenegro’s Ambassador to Russia. Djukanovic never listed an expense for the firm of Davis/Manafort, which makes people still think the Russians paid for their work.
According to two former senior US diplomats who served in the Balkans, Davis and his lobbying firm, Davis Manafort, received several million dollars to help run Montenegro’s independence referendum campaign of 2006. The terms of the agreement were never disclosed to the public, but top Montenegrin officials told the US diplomats that Davis’s work was underwritten by powerful Russian business interests connected to the Kremlin and operating in Montenegro. Neither Davis nor the McCain campaign responded to repeated requests for comment. (Davis’s extensive lobbying work, especially on behalf of collapsed mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has already attracted critical media scrutiny.)
And guess who was reporting extensively on it for the WSJ in the USA……. None other than Mary Jacoby and Glen Simpson.
Throughout the campaign for independence, Rick Davis called on help from Deripaska’s contacts. As the election grew near, Serbia announced they would not allow Montenegro children to attend their university for free. At the last minute, Davis called Deripaska for help. Deripaska called the young son of Baron Nathaniel Rothschild who flew in to publicly offer 1 million dollars for students who needed to attend university.
Deripaska called the son for help in Montenegro, youngest of the four children of Baron Nathaniel Rothschild and wealthiest of all the Rothschilds. His dad is pictured on the right. For his assistance, Nat Rothschild was rewarded with a stake in the renovated Soviet Navy base into a luxury mega yacht deep water port.
December 1, 2005: Oleg Deripaska snaps up KAP Aluminum plant in Montenegro, for about 100 million Euros total investment. The plant had an enormous capacity, 120K tons of liquid aluminum/yr and their own bauxite mines. During the EU sanctions on Yugoslavia 1997-1999, the KAP plant was limited to 13% capacity, but still responsible for 65% of Montenegro’s exports, during trying times. At full tilt, the plant was responsible for 40% of Montenegro’s GDP. The deal was conducted directly between Oleg Deripaska and the then Prime Minister of Montenegro, Milo Đukanović and it was A STEAL.
December 2005: Deripaska was issued a multi entry US visa, according to the State Department. During his brief stay he signed his World Bank loan, spoke at a Carnegie Endowment meeting and attended a dinner for Harvard University’s Belfer Center, where, thanks to a generous donation, he became a member of its international council.
However, Deripaska’s trip did not end well. Under the visa’s terms, he was forced to endure lengthy FBI questioning. According to the mining-industry newsletter Mineweb, the list of his enemies had grown from jilted former business partners to the heads of powerful US metals companies and government officials unhappy with RusAl’s control of key Third World bauxite mines, which threatened beleaguered US aluminum giants. The interview went badly—according to people who know him, Deripaska had little patience for prying bureaucrats. When he left the country, the visa ban was reinstated. (The Nation)
January 2006:Rick Davis (the partner of Paul Manafort) arranged a private meeting between Oleg Deripaska and John McCain at Davos in Switzerland. The meeting was hosted by Peter Munk, the Canadian Billionaire who showed up in Montenegro to help secure the student vote for Montenegro Independence Referendum. Peter Munk is the CEO of Barrick Gold, the world’s largest gold-mining corporation. He spent “zillions” on his part of the converted Soviet Navy Base into a lux marina to rival that of Cannes, France. He sold his interest in 2016, died in 2018 at the age of 90.
Peter Monk, founder of Barrick Gold Mining, Canadian Billionaire.
The McCain campaign later claimed that “any contact between Mr. Deripaska and the senator was social and incidental,” but notice this part…..
…..afterward Deripaska thanked Davis for arranging “such an intimate setting.” TheWashington Post reported that Davis was “seeking to do business with the billionaire.” Indeed, Deripaska’s subsequent thank-you letter mentioned his possible investment in a metals company Davis represented through a hedge-fund client.
So we have Rick Davis pimping Senator McCain to Oleg Deripaska, so Deripaska will invest in a metals company where Davis represents the Hedge fund = money for Davis. The introduction may help Deripaska = money for Deripaska. And the whole thing is hosted by Peter Munk of Canada, who ends up with the marina in Montenegro? Help to McCain….. where is the McCain m0ney? We’ll see it later…… we need a middleman named Rothschild, first.
If you’re wondering how Deripaska came to know Davis & Co., the answer lies in Russia’s next-door neighbor Ukraine.
Now, let’s look at what was going on in Ukraine at the same time.
2004: The Orange Revolution starts, it’s peaceful, in reaction to the election of Yanukovych, pro-Russia. The people think he stole the election.
In 2004, Viktor Yanukovych was the leader of Ukraine. He was backed by Putin, friendly to Russia.
Yanukovych beat this guy, Viktor Yushchenko, who was pro-western, and who was seriously poisoned along the way and almost died. The people blamed Russia.
Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko, with his face disfigured by illness, during an interview with the Associated Press in Kiev, Ukraine, Thursday, Dec. 16, 2004. Yushchenko said Thursday that he is sure he was poisoned by the Ukrainian government, and for the first time pinpointed the time and place of his dioxin poisoning: a Sept. 5 lunch with the head of the Ukrainian security service and his deputy. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
TOKYO, JAPAN: Visiting Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko (R) chats with Japanese Emperor Akihito (foreground) before leaving the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, 22 July 2005. Yushchenko is on a four-day trip to Japan. AFP PHOTO/Kazuhiro NOGI (Photo credit should read KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images)
2005: In the re-vote, Yushchenko won 54% for a majority and governed Ukraine January 23, 2005 – February 25, 2010 …………. He was succeeded again, by Yanukovych… same guy as above. After the “poisoning”, the government opened an investigation, and the big Ukraine oligarch involved, Akhmetov, fled the country to….. where do they all go(?)…… to Monaco.
Rinat Akhmetov he’s important. Remember him for later on.
Rinat Leonidovych Akhmetov is a Ukrainian billionaire businessman, and oligarch. He is the founder and president of System Capital Management, and ranked among the wealthiest men in Ukraine., he was listed as the 272nd richest man in the world with an estimated net worth of US 6.4 billion. He is an ethnic Volga Tatar and a practicing Sunni Muslim born in Donetsk, which is the most eastern part of Ukraine, and in the midst of the Russian skirmishes, invasion into Crimea (2013) where 8000 people died. (Wiki) He made his money in coal and steel.
While Akhmetov was exiled and bored in Monaco, he hired Paul Manafort to rehab the pubic image of his company. One friendship turned into another and soon, Manafort was helping Yanukovych resume power in Ukraine. Akhmetov was the prime donor to the Party of Regions, the party of Yanukovych.
Paul Manafort worked for Dole in 1996 and helped clients win elections all over the world.
Grasp the hypocrisy. McCain nominated Yushchenko (allegedly pro-western) for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2005, from the offices of the International Republican Institute (which specializes in overthrowing governments), while his Campaign Manager’s firm (Davis Manafort) was campaigning against Yushchenko.
By 2006, same year as the January meeting of McCain and Deripaska at Davos in Switzerland, AND while Davis was working in Montenegro, Manafort helped the Party of Regions sweep the Parliamentary elections in Ukraine, allowing Akhmetov to return to Ukraine…. sans investigation.
The same Spring 2006, Davis wins the Montenegro Independence Referendum.
In April 2006 McCain announced that Montenegro’s independence was the “greatest European democracy project since the end of the cold war.”
By summer of 2006, Nat Rothschild was negotiating for the valuable coastline property and “Porto Montenegro” project, which aims to become the world’s top mega-yacht marina, complete with luxury hotels, shopping and the country’s first eighteen-hole golf course. The property was handed to the Munk-Rothschild-fronted offshore consortium for a pittance, …… Oleg Deripaska’s secretive ownership interest was eventually revealed.
Porto Montenegro became home to the Mega-Yacht.
Summer of 2006: McCain and several Senators make a trip to visit Milo Djukanovic in Montenegro. Come to find out, the day before McCain’s arrival, Djukanovic went to visit Putin at his private daccha on the Black Sea, then returned to warmly welcome McCain.
Djukanovic and Putin
John McCain and Milo Djukanovic in later years.
August of 2006, McCain boards Oleg Deripaska’s yacht to celebrate his 70th birthday in Montenegro.
………two years later, in March of this year (2008), Rothschild hosted a high-dollar fundraiser for McCain at London’s posh eighteenth-century Spencer House, which Rothschild donated for the occasion. Given the close relationship between Rothschild and Deripaska, some speculated that Deripaska was the hidden hand behind the event. The conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, alleging that the fundraiser amounted to an illegal contribution by foreign nationals to McCain’s campaign.
While we forget the details in the campaign of 2008, dozens and dozens of articles were written about Davis and Manafort tying their involvement in former Soviet countries to the McCain campaign. The language is eerily similar to Trump’s “Muh Russia” conspiracy theory peddled by the media. Even the accusations from McCain, against Russia, while his people worked with Russian interests in the background. NOTHING stopped the money and the duplicity, the public pronouncements, and private dealings are laid bare for the world to see in the age of internet.
That should bring us up to the year 2008 and the Presidential election.
Yanukovych was re-elected in 2010, with help from Paul Manafort. The State Dept and Obama Admin took exception to his leadership and began the effort to overthrow Yanukovych. Recall Victoria Nuland passing out cookies to the protesters, McCain speaking to the protesters, along with Chris Murphy, current Senator from Connecticut.
In November of 2013, Viktor Yanukovych rejected the “EU Association Agreement” and instead favored a loan bailout and closer ties to Moscow. Remember when Victoria Nuland said “Fuck the EU!!!!!!!!!” That sparked the second Orange Revolution/EuroMaidan where many people died, and our State Dept and “agencies” were definitely involved. Yanukovych was overthrown, the Parliament was threatening to impeach him and he fled to …… (not Monaco) ………. Russia. The Prime Minister stepped in and was LOVED by our State Dept., “Julia” Yulia Tymoshenko
Within days of Yanukovych leaving for safety in Russia, the Crimea incursion started.
…… it was confronted with a crisis in the autonomous republic of Crimea. Unidentified gunmen, later confirmed to be Russian troops, occupied key sites throughout the peninsula. Over the next two weeks, pro-Russian paramilitary groups solidified their hold on the peninsula and organized a widely criticized independence referendum. On March 18 Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin formally annexed Crimea, a move that precipitated the largest breach between Russia and the West since the end of the Cold War. The following month, unidentified troops carrying Russian weapons and equipment seized government buildings in the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, sparking a conflict that would claim thousands of lives.
Remember who was from Donetsk? Akhmetov, the wealthiest of all the Ukraine oligarchs – close to Manafort. And Poroshenko was from Donetsk, and he was a popular member of Parliament, a wealthy billionaire in his own right, and had been in Cabinet level positions. Poroshenko also helped form the Party of Regions.
But Hottie Julia was convicted of “Abuse of Power”, back when she was Prime Minister in 2009, along with tax evasion and embezzlement. She went on a hunger strike for 19 days – from prison. https://www.ibtimes.com/imprisoned-ukranian-yulia-tymoshenko-end-hunger-strike-697404 Julia was succeeded by Oleksandr Turchynov who was an Economist and Baptist Minister, also a former head Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council —- the ones accused of poisoning former President Yushchenko, which disfigured him so badly. That’s who he had lunch with!
June 7, 2014:Petro Poroshenko was sworn in as Ukrainian President on 7 June 2014 and Turchynov became Chairman of the Ukraine Parliament.
Petro Poroshenko was President of Ukraine and founder of Roshen, the well known confectioner which made him a billionaire, but no one wanted to buy his chocolate company.
Of course, the years passed, Hunter Biden joined Burisma, billions of dollars IMF money disappeared. Milo Zlochevsky, the billionaire owner of Burisma was exiled to where……. where do they go……. Monaco!!!!
But John McCain, once he laid down with the fleas, stayed with the fleas. In 2016, he accused Putin of trying to overthrow Montenegro and for the attempted assassination Milo Djukanovic. McCain desperately pushed for Montenegro to become an EU/NATO member. When Rand Paul objected, McCain became enraged:
“I note the senator from Kentucky leaving the floor without justification or any rationale for the action he has just taken. That is really remarkable, that a senator blocking a treaty that is supported by the overwhelming number, perhaps 98 – at least – of his colleagues would come to the floor and object and walk away. The only conclusion you can draw when he walks away is he has no justification for his objection to having a small nation be part of NATO that is under assault from the Russians. So I repeat again, the senator from Kentucky is now working for Vladimir Putin.”
Of course, we already know all the details of Obama Admin/Clinton/DNC involvement in the Ukraine during 2016 US Presidential Election cycle. We know about Ambassador Yovanovitch, the Cruella De Ville of Ukraine. We know about Sytnyk, his work with Soros, who we “think” fabricated the black ledger document to frame Manafort and was convicted in Ukraine of election interference (although overturned on technicality). We know about the audio tape of Sytnyk admitting to helping Hillary in 2016. We know about Chalupa and the whole dirty cabal. Here’s the audio in case you missed it.
We know Deripaska was approached by McCabe for dirt on Trump and laughed and we know Deripaska had contact with Senator Mark Warner via his attorney Adam Waldman. Same people, over and over again. And don’t forget Mary Jacoby at the White House and Glenn Simpson with Fusion GPS.
Jan 25, 2019: And as is typical in Ukraine, another leader in Ukraine was found guilty of………….. something. Imagine that one. Protesters imported from other countries and regions, attacking his police station and government buildings, and Yanukovych tried to maintain order. There is MUCH controversy around the uprising in Maidan as to who was responsible for the protests and deaths. And yet……….. A Ukrainian court has found the former president Viktor Yanukovych guilty of treason for his efforts to crush the 2014 pro-western demonstrations that eventually toppled his government. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/25/ukraine-ex-president-viktor-yanukovych-found-guilty-of-treason
It’s just another day in Ukraine!
Can you imagine someone like Elizabeth Warren dealing with these wise guys? How about Pete Boot edge-edge? Should we send in AOC?
No
Thank GOD we have this guy.
Please see our previous posts for more info on Ukraine here:
Thought it might help us all to have the links and testimony in one place for reference.
I’m laughing. HPSCI Chairman Adam Schiff has released the testimony of Lt Colonel Alexander Vindman and Dr. Fiona Hill, today. Conveniently for the knee-jerk media, the HPSCI Lawfare bad actors also release “key highlights” for each “interview”, as in – this is our joint narrative we want you to push to the people. Let’s go to an original source, read it over the weekend if we have time, and make up our own minds.
FILE – In this Oct. 11, 2019, file photo, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington. The House impeachment panels are starting to release transcripts from their investigation. And in one of them, Yovanovitch says that Ukrainian officials warned her in advance that Rudy Giuliani and his allies were planning to “do things, including to me.” (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
It’s gonna be a helluva game. These two teams have hated each other for generations. It’s normally a big game, but with the President going to Tuscaloosa, it’s going to be wild. Can’t wait.
Head right up Interstate 20 and hang a left.
This weekend, Saturday at 2:30pm on CBS, you have to be a fan. Bathe in testosterone. Whirl around and revel in it. Smell the sweat. Have a beer. Love every minute of it.
As an Ole Miss Alum, we were born and bred to detest BOTH teams. To cheer for either side would be like Ben Rhodes, as a trusted member of the TRUMP admin (unthinkable), having sex with a Russian in the Oval Office (all of it is unthinkable) . It will be a tough choice in our house this Saturday. The loyalty is like a religion. In fact, Big T and his buddies went to a LSU spring training, baseball workout. They sat out in right field and had done research on the outfielders. They dogged the poor kid so badly he was pulled from the game. Sports is like war. All is fair.
Of course, my girlfriends are just as bad, probably worse. This is what we think of LSU Cheerleaders.
Alabama has won so many championships lately, almost everyone in the country is green with envy and resentful. But those boys from Alabama were kind to our President when they won the Championship and visited the WH.
One of the players even asked the President if he could pray for him, and the whole team joined in. Well bred southern gentlemen. Their mommas were proud.
In order to understand the backstory, you have to understand the corn dog “thing”. Bottom line, no one eats a corn dog when we have such an abundance of great food in the south. Yet, for some reason, we think a “Tiger”, the mascot of LSU, loves corn dogs.
Therefore, when any team in the SEC plays against LSU, we set corndog traps as tailgating decoration………. just to piss off the LSU fans. And we think the LSU fans smell like corn dogs, which are nasty. Here’s the story of the corndog.
Cajuns are not like us. Don’t you see that, yet? They are really sensitive about being sniffed and about their corn dog aroma. They know they smell like corn dogs and it is no laughing matter to them at all.
I know, I know. We sniff the Bammers and the UGA Dawgs and the Ole Messes, and we keep a straight face with each of them, but don’t press your luck with the Cajun tiger fans. Don’t refer to Death Valley as corn dog valley either. I mean that’s just wrong. Even if you’ve been drinking, they’ll beat you up and curse out your kids.
Problem is, Nick Sabin, Coach for Alabama can be an arrogant jerk
LSU and Bama are ranked #2 and #3 in the country. It’s a championship game in late season and a rare treat before Thanksgiving. It’s going to be a tough game, and wild.
Welcome to the open thread! Dive on in! This ACTION November open thread is VERY OPEN – a place for everybody to post whatever they feel they would like to tell the White Hats, and the rest of the MAGA / KAG! / KMAG world (KMAG being a bit of both MAGA and KAG!).
Have to get all the chores done, leaves raked, gumbo in the crockpot. We’re going to Alabama tomorrow with the President for the Bama v. LSU game. Start packin’!!
You can say what you want, comment on what other people said, and so on. Free Speech is practiced here. ENJOY IT. Use it or lose it. Keep it SOMEWHAT civil. They tried to FORCE fake Orwellian civility on us. In response, we CHOOSE true civility to defend our precious FREEDOM from THEM.
Our rules began with the civility of the Old Treehouse, later to become the Wolverinian Empire, and one might say that we have RESTORED THE OLD REPUBLIC – the early high-interaction model of the Treehouse – except of course that Q discussion is not only allowed but encouraged, and speech is considerably freer in other ways. Please feel free to argue and disagree with the board owner, as nicely as possible.
Please also consider the Important Guidelines, outlined here in the January 1st open thread. Let’s not give the odious Internet Censors a reason to shut down this precious haven.
SPEAK THE FIVE WORDS BOLDLY TO OUR PRESIDENT! “I AM PRAYING FOR YOU!“ Remember, the Alabama players actually did pray for the President.
Also remember Wheatie’s Rules:
No food fights.
No running with scissors.
If you bring snacks, bring enough for everyone.
Have a wonderful weekend, wherever you are. We’re all excited about tomorrow and we may be a little unruly. It’s a big game.
Final tidbit: You know why all the pine trees in Mississippi lean to the east? Because Alabama SUCKS!!!!!!!!
Say it with me….. “MUN-row”. Okay, now say it faster, “MUN-row”. That’s how you properly say, Monroe. Now, say “LWEEZ-i-ana”, with a soft “L” – almost ignoring the “L”. Very good, very good. Now, string it all together, “MUN-row…… LWEEZ-i-ana” and you’ve got it. In New Orleans, the accent is more like Brooklyn or Boston, but in Monroe, the accent has a southern lilt ….. but faster. Excellent, now you’re ready for Sunday dinner with Aunt Bette after church. Welcome to Monroe!
Monroe is the halfway point between Vicksburg, Mississippi, and Shreveport, Louisiana, and so is their culture. Monroe is a cross between the ruggedness made famous by the Duck Dynasty guys in Shreveport – with a healthy dose of southern gentility from Vicksburg. If we widened our view, Monroe would be the halfway point between Atlanta, Georgia, and Dallas Texas, if we stayed on I-20.
Monroe is located in the NE part of Louisiana, and as we should know by now,………. a brilliant campaign stop for the Trump Team, to turn out the vote and get rid of incumbent Democrat Governor John Bel Edwards. This part of the country never receives any attention. A Presidential trip to Monroe is mind-numbing, people will bring their children to see this. Yet, if these voters turn out……. we could easily tip an election. Whoever is planning these Presidential stops deserves a LOT of credit. Expect to see a big turnout from southern Arkansas and Mississippi as well, but we’re here to elect Eddie Rispone the new Governor of Louisiana.
BREAKING: President Donald Trump is coming to Monroe next week to campaign with us. Get your tickets here —> https://t.co/ZhxD7oj5Vx#LAGov
The MAGA/KAG Rally will be held at the Monroe Civic Center which seats about 7600, + more on the floor. Although it was built in 1965, it’s state-of-the-art now, and home to the Bayou Beast Indoor Football team and the Monroe Moccasins Hockey Team.
Monroe, Louisiana has a population of about 48,000, split by the Ouachita River (pronounced “WATCH-i-taw”) with West Monroe (about 13,000) on the other bank of the river. Population is declining, after reaching a peak of 57000 in 1980. The Monroe METRO area has a population of about 200K. When the factories leave for China, the youngest generation leaves for larger cities in search of opportunity. Any wonder they voted for Donald Trump?
As for the population demo breakdown, in 2010, the city was 63.9% black and 33.4% white, with about 1% of Latino or Asian. There is no Bloomingdales, Saks, or Tiffany’s, in Monroe, Louisiana, although they have a large University and a terrific hospital system. Don’t expect too much Twitter activity either. At this time of the year, the cotton crop is in, maintenance is being performed on machinery, and we’re all watching the annual migration of fowl down the Mississippi River (a wondrous site). We’re ready for cooler rainy days and getting prepared for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Fascinating History of Monroe and how regular Americans built America:
In 1894, Joseph A. Biedenharn moved from Monroe to Vicksburg to start a Candy Company. He figured out how to bottle a popular local sweet drink called Coca Cola. Until Biedenharn, the drink was only available at a soda fountain. Here’s the original machine.
Biedenharn was smart, however, he delivered bottled drinks to other stores, begetting distributorships, a bottling system which changed the world, and vast wealth for those who invested. For a while, in my youth, I dated a young scion of one of the families…. whose name was…. TAB. Sound familiar?
But that’s not the end of the story. Biedenharn’s son was named Malcolm. While dad prospered with Coca Cola, and the invention of the automobile made delivery and expansion easier, Malcolm was home managing the family farm. The entire region faced devastating losses from the Boll Weevil which wiped out the cotton crop…… and beget the migration of 1.5 MILLION Black Americans to northern cities.
One day, Malcolm ran into the local Ouachita AG Agent named Collett Woolman, who was testing insecticides at a local Agriculture Experimental Station. Probably with a little money from dad, the two men, Woolman and Malcolm Biedenharn came up with the idea of “crop dusting” from small planes ……. “Crop dusting” was born and the idea spread quickly, saving the fields, farms, and families.
Malcolm Biedenharn and Collett Woolman called their young company Delta Dusters
A few decades later, Delta Dusters, the guys who invented crop dusting, was so successful, it grew into Delta Airlines.
For YEARS Delta Airlines headquarters were in Monroe, Louisiana
Which is probably why you’ll never see a Pepsi product on a Delta flight.
Thus, the Biedenharn family changed the world as we know it. It started simply, “How do I enjoy this sweet drink at home or on a picnic?”, and led to a system of bottling and distribution which made the world healthier, saved lives. The son, Malcolm, had the same innovative spirit, “How do we stop the boll weevil?” With a little help from other like-minded fellows, he figured out a way to conquer the problem.
Doing nothing was easy…. but “doing nothing” isn’t ….. American, is it?
For years, we heard our leadership speak of the “managed decline” of the United States and the “inevitable rise” of China. Who thought that was a good idea? How did that happen? Why in the hell would Americans ever settle for a decline…… of anything? Yet, for decades, we did. We slept ….. and accepted our fate….. doing…. nothing.
Until this guy came along….. the son of Fred Trump.
Fred Trump was successful, like Joseph Biedenharn, and their sons could have basked in the wealth, married, had kids, and lived well. Yet, these sons didn’t rest on their parents’ successes. Something……. indeed, something sparked Malcolm Biedenharn and Donald Trump to go further, to surpass their father’s wildest expectations and change the world. What happened to these two sons?
As parents, we often wonder how to guide our children. We juggle our emotions between the love and comfort of our children or the decision to stop, let them fail, teach them how to rebound, excel, fight back, learn, and develop resiliency. It’s a tough call as a parent. Yet, how do we instill in our children that magical spark, spirit, determination, curiosity, and persistence, of someone like a Malcolm Biedenharn or a Donald Trump?
What would be THAT formula? If we could figure it out, and “bottle” it…… it would sell.
But …… maybe we didn’t need a magical formula after all. For a few decades, the globalists and media worked on us. They gutted the heartland, changed our school systems, sent our children to endless wars, added debt load, and made families unimportant. As President Trump said in Kentucky (thank you A Fort):
Before my election, our leaders used the great American middle class as a piggy bank to fund their delusional global projects. They decimated American manufacturing to promote economic growth in foreign countries.
President Trump, Lexington, KY, November 4, 2019
Little by little, we became sullen, even downtrodden. We saw America slipping away, which justified some to grab what they could while the getting was good. Cheaters never win…
It’s not too late for America. As hard as it’s been for President Trump, turning America around has been surprisingly easier than we thought…….. which means the “decline” was NOT INEVITABLE.
The solution has always been right in front of us. The answer…. is …… America. Look around you. It’s everything we believe in. We’re Americans. We’re don’t sit down and passively accept defeat. We just needed to be reminded of who we are.
We needed to regain our magical spark.
Well,America is back, and we’re picking up steam!
#1 Economy in the world
#1 Oil and LNG producer in the world
#1 Military in the world, rebuilt as never before, and we’ve removed the hamstrings from our soldiers.
Lowest unemployment in recorded history for Black/Asian/Hispanic/ the Disabled/ Those without a highschool degree/ and our YOUTH
Lowest unemployment for women in 65 years, Lowest overall unemployment in 50yrs.
Lowest CO2 emissions since 1969, over 40 Superfund sites cleaned up.
6.7 million jobs created. Number of job openings is higher than number of people looking for a job, 500K manufacturing jobs created
10.5 TRILLION in wealth added to the stock market
Wages up 9% in a few years after decades of stagnation
ISIS is dead.
ISIS leaders are dead
ISIS source of funding, the oil fields, are confiscated.
Our southern border, despite the Dems opposition, is being protected.
Our border wall is being built
Opioids deaths are down for the first time, saving thousands of lives
Costs for prescription drugs dropped, for the first time, ever
Indexes for manufacturing, biz confidence, and consumer confidence hit all time highs.
Over a TRILLION dollars repatriated to the USA from companies doing biz overseas.
Historic tax cuts, doubling the child tax credit, opportunity zones for cities, increased exemption for family farms and small biz, 9/10 workers saw increase in paychecks, 100 utilities lowered rates, 89% of companies raised wages.
BiPartisan Criminal Justice reform
After losing over 60K factories in 25yrs, we gained 10K factories in 3yrs.
Bottom of Page 288, Yovanovitch admits to asking State Dept to monitor certain US citizens.
Pages 224 and onward for several pages, fired Ambassador Yovanovitch claims she didn’t think the prosecution of Sytnyk and Leshchenko was worth a conversation to the State Dept. The trial was a HUGE DEAL in Ukraine. They were found guilty of meddling in our 2016 election by leaking 2 pages of a black box ledger from the Party of Regions. Docs suddenly appeared, mysteriously, and were thought to be forged. These two pages being released are the reason why Manafort resigned as head of Trump Campaign in August of 2016. The ledger claimed Manafort received between 9-27 million dollars in cash and carried it across 4 international borders… yet Mueller didn’t find it, and strangely Mueller dropped all reference to Ukraine. Gates, who handled the books for Manafort’s firm and admitted embezzling from Manafort, never shows an entry for the ADDITIONAL millions allegedly received from The Party of Regions.
Yovanovitch claims the prosecution was political and the courts in Ukraine “lack credibility” because they haven’t been reformed. No one asked her about the audio tape of Leshchenko bragging about helping Hillary Clinton. In the trial, 4 were indicted in Ukraine and two were found guilty, the Head of Anti-corruption bureau and a rabid Member of Parliament. A higher court acquitted the two on “statute of limitations” and “entity bringing the case didn’t have proper standing”.
Therefore, for the two years the case progressed through the court system in Ukraine, and with all the world wide media focused on Trump/Russia/Mueller, are we to believe Ambassador Yovanovitch merely ignored the whole thing?
Page 316: MR. ZELDIN: Are you aware of a policy where aid from the United States to Ukraine was linked to investigating the B’idens?
145. YOVAN0VITCH: No, I am not. An official policy. There’ s no off i c i al pol i cy . MR. ZELDIN: Are you aware of an unofficial policy? MS. YOVANOVITCH: We11, I mean, reading the texts and so forth, it made me wonder whether there was an unofficial po1 i cy.
OMG, Zeldin is completely effing with her. LOOK at this exchange, pages 316-317. Sure would have loved to have seen the look on her face.
MR. ZELDiN: Now, Ambassador Volker’s testimony when he was here, he was test’if yi ng that B j tl Taylor’s text was as a fo1low-up to a Politico story that he had read that he was concerned about. The texts that you reference also include responses to Ambassador Taylor where it says, the President has been absolutely crystal clear there’s no quid pro quo. So with regards to the texts, are you talking about some of the texts or all of the texts in saying that there was an unofficial policy? I’lS .
YOVAN0VITCH: I think that I probably should decl i ne to answer that question, because I was not in the policy world at that point. I’1R. ZELDIN: That’s a fantastic answer, and I ‘m glad you’re giving that answer, because I wouldn’t say that there would be an unofficial policy without having a1l of your information to be able to say there actually was an unofficial policy. So I think that I would have no further questions based off of that answer to the last question.
Pages 316-317
Ohhhhhh, looky here. The press has been lying to us. The press gives us the impression the Javelins were necessary to protect Ukraine. Remember Bill Taylor’s text message where he traveled to a forward position, could see Russians, and was worried Ukrainians MIGHT DIE? Well, as it turns out, this aid had nothing to do with the Javelins and are on a completely separate track/purchase timeline. The media misled the public.
MR. MEADOWS: A11 right. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Ambassador, there’s been, and Chairman Schiff kind of alluded to this, and when we start talking about Javelins and foreign aid, for the record, I want to make sure that we’re clear. The foreign aid that was has been reported as being held up, it doesn’t relate to Javelins, does it? l4S.
Y0VAN0VITCH: No. At least I’m not aware that it does.
MR. MEADOWS: Because foreign military sales, or FMS , as you would call it, js rea1ly a totally separate track, is it not? Foreign military sales get approved, but they’re actually a purchase that happens with, in this case, it would have been Ukraine. Is that correct?
MS . YOVAN0VITCH: So, yes . President Zelensky was talking about a purchase. But separately, as I understand it, and, again, this is from news accounts, the security assistance that was being held up was security assistance, it wasn’t the FMS.
MR. l’IEAD0WS: But ‘i t was actually ai d that had been appropriated and it had nothing to do with Javelins. Would you agree with that?
MS. YOVANOVITCH: That’s my understanding.
MR. MEAD0WS: Yeah. Because it’s critically important in this context when he says, “We’re almost ready for the Javelins, ” that happens on cycles that are not necessarily just appropriation cycles. In your history as a foreign service diplomat, you’ve seen that, I assume, over and over again. Is that correct?
MS. YOVAN0VITCH: Yeah. I assumed that what it meant is that, you know, they were getting paperwork together, et cetera, and working with our military colleagues.
MR. MEAD0WS: And when the a’id ultimately came through, ‘it didn’t impact the purchase of those Javelins even when the aid ultimately was approved. Would you agree?
Have you ever been to Kentucky? It’s the land of college basketball, coal mining, gleaming modern cities combined with a dedicated effort for historical preservation, miles and miles of famous blue grass, the fastest horses in the world, the finest Bourbons, women who “shine with their own kind of light”, famous men (both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis), and in my opinion, the country’s finest interstate system (thank you, Mitch McConnell).
Tonight, we’re going to Rupp Arena in Lexington, home of the Kentucky Wildcats, which seats 23,000 people. It’s sacred soil for basketball fans, and normally a sea of blue (school colors) but tonight it will be a RED WAVE for President Trump and the reelection of Matt Bevin! …..Along with a whole slate of Republicans. Expect a big turnout tonight, the election is tomorrow!
Louisville, Kentucky is about 1 hour west, 70 miles, with the Capitol, Frankfort in the middle of two major cities.
Kentucky is 379 miles from east to west, 170 miles at its most broad from north to south. Kentucky is bordered by four rivers on three sides, and has more navigable waterway than any other state except Alaska. Population is 4.468 million, median income is $48,375 but an old stat from Wiki. Kentucky is home to the largest cave system in America, the Mammoth Caves (Where is Gail Combs?) and the largest manmade lake, Cumberland. The natural beauty of Kentucky is inescapable as Kentucky goes from an elevation of 250 ft on the west near the Mississippi River — to the Appalachians on the east, elevation of 4100ft+++.
Matt Bevin was elected with Tea Party support and has clashed with the GOPe on many occasions. Good for him but wow, it’s been a tough slog in Kentucky fighting establishment Repubs and the Dems. Bevin is the kind of guy who “walks the walk”. He’s staunchly pro-life and lives his convictions. The media hates him for it. He and his wife have 9 children, 4 of whom are adopted.
The Opioid Crisis is a big problem in Kentucky. The fight this time, however, is about who gets to pick the legal team. Are the retainers going to campaign donors or the best law firm to represent the state? Atty General Beshear, Dem candidate for Governor, chose his campaign donors to lead a lucrative fight against big pharma on behalf of Kentucky. The payoff would be enormous for Beshear’s buddies. Bevin is sticking up for the voters and took the payoff/contract all the way to the State Supreme Court, where Bevin won. It’s been a bitter fight and the long knives are out for Bevin. https://www.wdrb.com/news/bevin-beshear-clash-as-opioid-crisis-becomes-issue-in-ky/article_7cfde9f6-cb66-11e9-970e-1b6a36420285.html
The fierce contest between Republican Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin and Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear is being watched for early signs of how the partisan impeachment furor might impact Trump and other Republican incumbents in 2020. https://t.co/7hlMkhtXTp
Time to move the campaign gear to the front of the closet. We’re less than 365 days to election day and it’s time to step up, loud and proud, on behalf of our President. Rallies will be coming fast and furious from now until election day 2020.
It’s still early in the morning in Lexington but Trump Supporters are out in the cold before tonight’s rally. Here’s one of America’s finest.
We can’t leave Kentucky without a little music and a quick tour of the state.
If you’ve never been, ya’ gotta go. Churchill Downs, Run for the Roses, First Saturday in May.
Lake Cumberland is spectacular at any time of the year.
Mammoth Cave is indescribable, you have to see it to believe it.
The Kentucky Bourbon Trail has become a tourist hit! The trail takes visitors inside 10 distilleries with taste testing and fascinating history. Traveling from town to town takes in horse stables, old taverns, and historic sites like Abraham Lincoln’s birthplace. The scenery along the way is verdant and breathtaking. We might lose a few of our readers on this trip….. https://www.earthtrekkers.com/kentucky-bourbon-trail-ultimate-guide/
Of course, everyone from Kentucky knows the words to “My Old Kentucky Home”. The song was originally an anti-slavery ballad composed by Stephen Foster in 1852. When a Kentuckian sings this song, they get misty eyed, lock arms, and remember a simpler time. It’s about hardship and family. Very emotional, heartfelt, appreciative, enduring. Can’t sing it without a tear in the eye.
All of us are familiar with the legend of Secretariat. I was kid in 1973 but my grandparents raced and bred thoroughbreds. The Kentucky Derby was like the Super Bowl in our house. That year, Secretariat’s win at the Kentucky Derby, from deep in the pack, was nothing short of a miracle, breaking a track record, 1:59.2. He went on to win the Preakness, again rivaling Sham, in another track record. By the time Secretariat got to the Belmont, Secretariat was on the cover of Time, Newsweek, and Sports Illustrated. Halfway into the race, Sham and Secretariat opened a 10 length lead on the rest of the pack. By the end of the race, Secretariat won by 31 (it wasn’t 25) lengths. Watch…… this ……. horse…….. run………..
When Secretariat died in 1989, his autopsy revealed his heart was 2 1/2 times larger than a normal horse. He had a bigger engine. Secretariat became a super horse. Because of his God given talent, it enabled him to do things other horses couldn’t do, things we could have never imagined, things we only would see once in a generation…….. and when he was done running, we instantly felt as though we just witnessed history.
The President needs to tweet MORE, it’s clearly driving the media crazy.
This morning, The New York Times published long and slick article representing months of research by over a dozen editors and staff people. They categorized 11,000 tweets from the President, and interviewed Twitter employees along with current and former administration officials, lawmakers. The headline of the article notes the editors at NYTimes read the tweets “twice”. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/02/insider/trump-twitter-data.html
.@nytimes examined President Trump’s use of Twitter since taking office, reviewing all of his tweets, RTs and followers, & interviewing nearly 50 current & former administration officials, lawmakers & Twitter employees. The White House declined to comment. https://t.co/LrZRUEmryo
The article was done by the NYTimes, which has a well-known bias towards the President, thus we are conditioned to be cynical. In this case, however, let’s be as objective as possible. It COULD be the NYTimes has done us a great service. Let’s see what happens. Let’s watch for the obvious propaganda and subjective triggers to mislead the reader.
Let’s take the title of the article, first. “The Journalists Who Read All of President Trump’s Tweets. Twice.” The title leads the reader to believe the “journalists” have done an enormous amount of work, lending credibility. Obviously this is a task no normal person could ever accomplish. We need professionals to help us, and miraculously the NYTimes has appeared. We should be grateful. To drive the point home, in fact, the “journalists” even read the tweets………. TWICE.
The by-line ” For a special report, The Times sorted more than 11,000 Twitter posts to understand a new form of executive power. “, indicates this report is “special” and worthy of our attention, above and beyond normal stories. The report is massive in scale, over 11,000 tweets. And a foreshadowing of concern, “a new kind of executive power”. What does that mean? What has changed? Should we be alarmed?
Already, before even reading the article, the NYTimes has attempted to form our opinion. The “journalists” are professional, undertaken a massive effort, and we should be concerned.
Further into the article, we learn the NYTimes has:
3. Interviewed “nearly 50 current & former administration officials, lawmakers & Twitter employees.” This is a loaded statement. How many were interviewed? “Nearly” is a subjective term. In fact, “20 people” could be categorized as “nearly 50 people” when compared to 1,000 people or a million people. “Current and Former Administration officials” means the NYTimes is talking to political opponents… with at least one person who is working “in the administration”….. but that person COULD be a TSA worker in Detroit. No specifics. No breakdown. “Lawmakers” is also intentionally vague. Are the lawmakers members of a school board in the Bronx, or Aldermen in Mississippi, or are they Congressmen from the Republican or Dem Party? Again, no specifics. Finally, the NYTimes talked to “Twitter employees“. Was it the janitor? Was it @Jack? Was it the 24yr old female uber feminist who works the midnight shift? We have no idea. The number of “50” is designed to mislead the reader and make us think there is an overwhelming consensus for the results, AND that the NYTimes did adequate research……….. BUT, if the NYTimes did so much research, why didn’t they breakdown the numbers and name the sources?
4. We see the line, “The White House declined to comment.” Hmmmm, the implication is the WH is silent. Are they worried? What is the WH hiding? Who was asked to comment? Was it a gardener? A chef? Or, was it the WH Communications Director? When was the WH asked to comment? Did the NYTimes call the WH back in June and say, “Hey, we’re going to intentionally create a narrative of Trump tweets are bad (which is the goal here, make no mistake). Therefore we’re going to spend the next four months cherry-picking Trump tweets in big cover story to make our case…. We’re looking for a comment from the WH.” And the WH said, in essence, “Go to hell…..”?
5. As we get into the article, we see Karen Yourish and Larry Buchanan, graphics arts editors, were the ones who read every Presidential tweet – twice. Is the country supposed to rely solely on the opinion of two graphics arts editors? Does that seem reasonable? Does it strike us as great, massive, professional research, which would rise to the level of The New York Times? No, why don’t we just ask the guys who restock the vending machines for their opinion? It warrants the same merit and those guys might be better.
6. Karen and Larry created a “spreadsheet” (propaganda trigger word – more inference of authority and expert analysis…… with no science behind it) and they divided the all 11,000 tweets into 52 categories and subcategories. This is the first categorical, proof positive, indication we have of malintent and bias. How can two graphic editors decide on the subject of 11,000 tweets without being subjective? If Trump tweets, “The sky sure is a brilliant blue today”, then does the tweet go into the category of “color blue” or the category of “comment on sky”? What defines an “attack” tweet, according to the two graphic designers? Do the two graphic designers have the same sense of humor as the President? Gee, it would be hard to imagine.
Bottom line, if tweets were separated, for instance, by time… 7:00am-9:00am, then we could all look at the time of tweet and we could all agree on parameters on how to divide tweets into categories. For subjective interpretation, no two people, let alone 330 million people, would/could EVER agree on 52 categories and divvying up 11,000 tweets in the same way. The concept, the entire premise of what the NYTimes is doing, here, would be mathematically impossible. No science. Thus, it’s all opinion, yet framed to the reader to be deep analysis.
We’re supposed to trust the NYTimes, and THEIR opinion, which is really the opinion of two graphic designers, as a valid research project.
7. Note further, there is a category for “praise and conspiracy”. How do the two graphic designers define “conspiracy”? Should we assume any Presidential tweet or question about Ukraine, or Obama spying on Trump campaign is a “conspiracy” until it is proven? Wouldn’t’ that skew the final numbers?
8. Perhaps the most insulting, in-your-face indication of malintent, comes further in the same paragraph, “They (Karen and Larry) and Keith Collins, a visual storytelling editor, then analyzed the entire data set to find trends and outliers.” So, Keith is a storyteller, and a good one, because he is the storytelling “editor”. He’s a creative writer/drawer – because he paints pics for us!!! Does this sound like clear and hard analysis? Note the use of the words “analyzed the entire data set”, more propaganda trigger words to imply astute and scientific analysis…….. on an opinion from two graphic designers.
9. “The data set informed a collaborative project from Investigations, Washington, Politics and Digital and Print Design, “The Twitter Presidency” appears as a special section of Sunday’s paper.“, is the next sentence, a separate paragraph, and loaded with propaganda. Note the use of the phrase “data set” – yet……… it’s not like any data set in mathematics, ever. It was a “collaborative project” inferring a “bandwagon” classic propaganda technique (Bandwagon = All your neighbors are doing it so why don’t you?). The use of the word “Investigations” and note the capitalization, implying authority and legal legitimacy, vast resources were expended to find the truth…… no, it really was just the opinion of two graphic editors for the majority of the “investigation”. Note all the different divisions which took part in this “story”, which is probably how the Times got to a “dozen different journalists and editors”. Finally, “The Twitter Presidency“, the finished product, is wrapped in a pretty bow and presented to the public as the definitive work on the subject of Donald Trump and Twitter……. albeit highly suspect, yet presented as a PhD dissertation…. which is worthy of a “Special Section” in Sunday’s Paper.
The New York Times even went so far as to create a small video of their “Special Section” in Sunday’s edition, layered with more propaganda trigger words.
Wow, have we ever seen a video promoting a big spread article from the NYTimes? Gee, I guess it must be important. Intentionally designed and pushed on social media to attract attention and influence readers, the voting public.
The clear purpose of the NYTimes is for voters to begin to discount, view negatively, every subsequent tweet from the President.
Disregarding everything else from the NYTimes, the hundreds (if not thousands) of negative articles written about Donald Trump, this piece stands out above all others, confirming bias and malintent. This piece is pure propaganda and designed to degrade the reputation of the President’s words, maliciously misleading the reader with the opinion of two graphics editors dressed up as a serious research project. The President’s Twitter feed is an effective weapon against a negative press….. and the New York Times hates being irrelevant.
The real story? Here’s one person’s opinion who is not a graphic editor. I believe the NYTimes thinks Trump’s tweets are bad, harm them, defeat the narrative they attempt to present…. often in less than 240 characters. It frustrates the “journalists” at The NYTimes as they take daily swipes at the President and he shoots back. The Times wants the President to stand still, cooperate, so they can inflict pain. The New York Times desperately wants to silence the President of the United States.
Clearly, the President should tweet MORE!
Clearly, the NYTimes and their “nearly” 50 people and dozen editors and “journalists” would not spend MONTHS on such a vast project…….. if they were scared as hell by the President’s twitter feed. Oh yeah, the President’s Twitter feed is a Patriot Missile used on behalf of regular Americans.
Most of all, this piece from the NYTimes serves as a perfect propaganda lesson for us all. We’re not fooled and we can see clearly, now, once we identify the motivation and properly label the media’s bias.
Americans don’t “hate” people for no reason, especially not the President of the United States. We oppose those who tempt to seed hatred, pit us against each other with false “storytelling”, as The New York Times is doing today. We’re happy people, leaders in the world, who prefer to work together. We form our our opinions based on facts, not the feelings of two graphic designers. America is on the move!
Enough with the naysayers, America is rebuilding again.
We’re back.
We believe all things are possible.
The Debbie Downers need to get out of our way if they won’t help.
