Our mission, as God-fearing and God-loving patriots, is to defend this Constitutional Republic and to increase its greatness, in all good things and ways, by using our voices in free but courteous speech, by discussing the happenings of the world and coming to a profound understanding of those things, and by sharing and promulgating these Truths on both this platform and others.
Accumulation of activity in the Congress. Note the contrast between Nancy’s pressers versus President Trump pressers. Nancy signing ceremony on impeachment, passing out pens, versus Trump signing an historic China Trade Deal.
Compare and Contrast:
Nancy’s signing ceremony will be placed here when available:
Never forget what we saw today. One side building, another bent on destruction:
It’s a big deal. Here we go. We will update with clips as we go through the day, trying to keep everything organized, including the 86 page deal and transcripts when released.
No tariffs will be lifted until Phase Two.
The econ and biz sector folks are celebrating like it’s Christmas.
Here is the link to the actual text of the deal. https://ustr.gov/about-us/policy-offices/press-office/press-releases/2020/january/economic-and-trade-agreement-between-government-united-states-and-government-peoples-republic-china
Fact Sheets: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/US_China_Agreement_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Intellectual Property Protection: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/Phase_One_Agreement-IP_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Technology Transfers: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/Phase_One_Agreement-Technology_Transfer_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Agriculture and Seafood: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/Phase_One_Agreement-Ag_Summary_Long_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Financial Services: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/Phase_One_Agreement-Financial_Services_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Macro Econ and Currency: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/Phase_One_Agreement-Macroeconomic_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Expanding Trade: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/agreements/phase%20one%20agreement/Phase_One_Agreement-Expanding_Trade_Fact_Sheet.pdf
Transcript from the ceremony:
**East Room of the White House
11:51 A.M. EST
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much. Please. We greatly appreciate your joining us at this White House event. This is a very important and remarkable occasion.
Today, we take a momentous step — one that has never been taken before with China — toward a future of fair and reciprocal trade, as we sign phase one of the historic trade deal between the United States and China. Together, we are righting the wrongs of the past and delivering a future of economic justice and security for American workers, farmers, and families.
I want to thank President Xi, who is watching as we speak — and I’ll be going over to China in the not-too-distant future to reciprocate — but I want to thank President Xi, a very, very good friend of mine. We’ve — we’re representing different countries. He’s representing China. I’m representing the U.S. But we’ve developed an incredible relationship. But I want to thank him for his cooperation and partnership throughout this very complex process. Our negotiations were tough, honest, open, and respectful — leading us to this really incredible breakthrough. Most people thought this could never happen. It should have happened 25 years ago, by the way. But that’s okay.
A man who also has become a good friend of mine and somebody who’s very, very talented and very capable, we’re delighted to be joined by Vice Premier Liu He, Ambassador Cui, and many other representatives from the People’s Republic of China.
We are especially proud of the efforts of Vice President Mike Pence, who is with us. And, Mike, I’d like to have you say a few words, please.
VICE PRESIDENT PENCE: Thank you, Mr. President. It’s an honor to be here with you, with Vice Premier Liu He, with our Treasury Secretary, with Ambassador Lighthizer, and with so many distinguished guests, members of Congress, and governors from around the country. This is a good day for America, China, and the world. And it’s an honor to be with you.
Mr. President, we gather here today, thanks to your leadership, at a time that the American economy is booming. With the strong support of members of Congress who are gathered here, we are now experiencing an economy that’s created more than 7 million jobs. The unemployment rate is at a 50-year low. The average American’s household income has risen by more than $5,000. That’s all a result of your commitment to cut taxes, roll back regulation, unleash American energy. But it also reflects your commitment to free, fair, and reciprocal trade.
Early in this administration, you made it clear that the era of economic surrender was over. And you took a strong stand for American jobs and American workers. You said to our friends in China that things had to change. And thanks to your leadership, today the change begins. (Applause.)
Thanks to your efforts, Mr. President, we announced today great progress on protecting intellectual property, on preventing forced technology transfer and currency manipulation. And I know it means so much to you — the greatest impact may well be on American agriculture. Some $40- to $50 billion in purchases secured in this deal that will result in greater prosperity for farmers all across the land.
And, Mr. President, your commitment to a growing and prosperous America has been the centerpiece of your leadership. And today, with the signing of phase one, it’s one more example of your commitment to put American jobs and American workers first. And we recognize, as you do, Mr. President, that differences will remain between our two nations. But today is the start of a new chapter in trade relation between the two largest economies in the world.
But I can assure the American people that this President will continue to stand firm and put America first, even as we forge a more productive relationship with China and with the world.
Mr. President, you know there’s an ancient Chinese proverb that says, “Men see only the present, but Heaven sees the future.” So let today be the beginning of a brighter future, more prosperous for the American people, the Chinese people, and the world. Thank you, Mr. President. (Applause.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you, Mike. An incredible job. Incredible guy.
I also want to give special thanks to our U.S. Trade Representative, who’s been kept very busy. (Laughter.) He’s doing a lot of deals. We’ll have another big one next week. It should get approved very shortly, and that’ll be tremendous, with Canada and Mexico. But we’ll talk about that next week.
But Robert Lighthizer — are we keeping you busy enough? Huh? Poor guy can’t sleep. He tosses and turns. What happened to him?
AMBASSADOR LIGHTHIZER: Here. I’m sorry. That was dropped. And —
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Oh, okay. Thanks.
AMBASSADOR LIGHTHIZER: I’m all purpose. (Laughter.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Mike. Mike. Mike said — that’s right, you are all-purpose, come to think. (Laughter.)
But Bob Lighthizer is really an outstanding guy. He gets along with people. He’s smart, he’s sharp. And he understands trade better than anybody. When I first took this, I said, “I got to get the best guy.” And all signs pointed to Robert Lighthizer. So thank you very much, Bob. Thank you very much. (Applause.)
I have one question: Was this an easier job or a tougher job than you thought?
AMBASSADOR LIGHTHIZER: It was tougher than I thought. (Laughter.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I had a feeling you might say that. Also, our great Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, has worked with Bob hand in hand. And thank you very much, Steve. Great job. (Applause.)
So this really is a landmark agreement. But along with them, we had the exceptional efforts of Jared Kushner. Where is Jared? Where is Jared? (Applause.) Our brilliant Jared. Great job, Jared. He worked hard. He left a beautiful, nice, very prosperous real estate business, and came here. And, I can tell you, that was harder. This is harder than real estate in New York, isn’t it, Jared? Right?
MR. KUSHNER: A lot harder.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: But you’ve done a fantastic job. You don’t get people like that. So thank you very much. And, Ivanka, nice to have you here. Thank you, honey.
Also somebody that I’ve heard for 35 years. His voice is just — a great gentleman, a friend of mine, but a great gentleman. We brought him in and he has been outstanding. The only problem is he doesn’t like going on television very much. He’s a little bit shy about that. Larry Kudlow. Where’s Larry? (Applause.) Where is Larry?
We had a day where the market went down $1 trillion. Think of that. In other words, it was one of those few days, because we’ve had 141 days where we hit all-time highs. And we just broke — as you know, we just broke the 29,000 mark on the Dow, just now, as we were walking in. The market is up substantially today. (Applause.) We have all these business leaders. I’m sure they don’t care.
But Larry Kudlow went out into the beautiful lawns of the White House. Actually, he was standing in the middle of the Rose Garden. He had a beautiful scarf waving in the wind. He was everything perfect, right out of Greenwich, Connecticut. (Laughter.) And he started talking. And by the time he finished, I said, “You just made a trillion dollars. A trillion.” (Laughter.) Because the market went up like 250 points. I said, “Larry, what the hell did you say?” (Laughter.) And it didn’t matter. But we were even. We went from being a trillion down to even, and that was pretty good.
Larry, you’ve been fantastic. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. (Applause.)
And, by the way, I just see in the audience our great Ambassador to China, right? Governor. So we had the governor of Iowa, and he loves China. And he’s the long- — you’re the longest-serving governor in the history of our country. Like 24 years. And I called him. I said, “Governor, you have to do me a favor.” Because I remember one conversation I had with him. I was going in to make a speech, before the election, and he said, “Sir, please don’t say anything bad about China.” It’s the first time anyone ever said that to me. (Laughter.) And I said, “Who is this guy?” He’s the governor of Iowa. He just said, “Don’t say bad about China.” So I had to rip up about half of my speech, right? (Laughter.)
And I said, “Why?” And he said, “Well, we do a lot of business. I’ve been dealing with China for 35 years, with corn and all of the different things.” And he told me a story that was amazing. He said, “You know, 35 years ago, when I started, I met a man named Xi. He wasn’t President then; he was a young man.” And the governor came back. He told his wife, he said — this is 35 years ago. And it’s documented. He said, “I just met the future President of China.”
And nobody thought much about it. And you know what? Twenty-eight years later, you turned out to be right. And you have been an incredible ambassador. And they like each other so much. So when it came time to picking the important position of ambassador, I said, “Haven’t you had enough after 24 years being governor of Iowa?” He said, “If you want me to do that.” And it’s been a great — you’ve been a great help. Thank you very much, Ambassador. (Applause.) I appreciate it. Done a great job. Nobody could have done that job better.
A man — I think I can go on the opposite side of the spectrum, perhaps, from the governor. His attitude is a little different. Our trade advisor, Peter Navarro. (Laughter.) Right, Peter? He’s a little different. We have all types. We have all types.
A Deputy Chief of Staff, Chris Liddell, who’s been with us for a long time, and he’s done a fantastic job and had a great business career.
Commerce Secretary — a legend on Wall Street — Wilbur Ross. (Applause.) Where’s Wilbur? Thank you. Wilbur, thank you.
A man who knows agriculture as well as anybody in the world. We were looking for an agricultural person, and we wanted to go political, and we were looking for somebody that would fit perfectly. And Sonny came in, and it was over. I learned more in that half hour about agriculture than I — Joni, right? — than I could ever have learned, possibly. Sonny Perdue has been incredible. And we’re taking care of our farmers — that, I can tell you. (Applause.) So, Sonny, thank you very much. Great job. Thank you. Thank you, Sonny.
And a woman — transportation is going very well. She’s done an incredible job. We’re getting approvals down now from 20 years — 21 years to 2 years. And it may get rejected for environmental or other reasons. But we have it, Lindsey, down to about two years. A highway which would have taken 19 to 20 years to get approval, we have it down to 2. And we want to get it down to one. And if it doesn’t work, we’re going to say, “You don’t build it.” But you’re not going to wait 22 years to find out you can’t build the highway.
And she has been fantastic: Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao. (Applause.) Thank you, Elaine. Thank you, Elaine.
So we have tremendous numbers of people here, and I’m saying, “Do I introduce them?” But I think I sort of should because what the hell. This is a big celebration. And, by the way, some of the congressmen may have a vote, and I don’t — it’s on the impeachment hoax. So, if you want, you go out and vote. (Laughter.) I’d rather have (inaudible) — it’s not going to matter, because it’s gone very well. (Laughter.) But I’d rather have you voting than sitting here, listening to me introduce you, okay? (Laughter.)
They have a hoax going on over there. Let’s take care of it. So, if any of you guys want to leave, we will not be — where is Kevin McCarthy? The great Kevin McCarthy.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Inaudible.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Okay, good. I’m glad. (Laughter.) Can I be honest? (Laughter.) I’m glad. I like it much better that way. And, by — the House folks, 195 to nothing. And we got three Democrats, and one of them actually left the Democratic Party, came over Republican. And what a job you’ve done. So I just want to thank you all. Really tough. I love that.
So we have some incredible people in the audience, and I’d just like to introduce a few — a very good friend of mine — two very good friends of mine: Sheldon Adelson, Miriam Adelson. Thank you very much, both, for coming. They’ve been tremendous supporters of us — (applause) — and the Republican Party. And they’re great people.
A man who always liked me — because he’s smart, so smart — (laughter) — the great Lou Dobbs. You know, at first, he said, “He’s the best since Reagan.” Then, he got to know me more and more, and he said, “He’s even better than Reagan.” (Laughter.) Then, a few weeks ago, somebody told me — and I watch all the time, but somebody has got a very important show, actually. Tremendous audience and very — everybody in this room watches.
But Lou Dobbs, he said, “He’s the greatest of them all.” I said, “Does that include Washington and Lincoln?” (Laughter.) And he said yes. Now, I don’t know if he was for real, but that’s okay. But the great — he is — the great Lou Dobbs. Thank you very much, Lou. (Applause.) Thank you. Great show, Lou.
And a man who everybody knows — he knows more than probably everybody in this room put together. He’s seen it all. And he made a statement to Jared. Jared came in and said, “You know, Henry Kissinger told me, ‘How did the President ever pull this off?'” I said, “Can I quote Henry on that?” Because Henry is outstanding. And when Henry is impressed with something, then I’m impressed. And, Henry, we’re impressed with you. Thank you very much for being here. (Applause.) Thank you, Henry. Thank you.
And, Michael Pillsbury, thank you very much. And, Susan Pillsbury, thank you very much. And you’ve been saying some fantastic things about China and about us. And we have a good partnership. This is going to be something that’s going to be very special. We’re going to talk about it in a second.
A friend of mine, Steve Schwarzman, is here. Steve, I know you have no interest in this deal at all. (Applause.) I’m surprised you’re not actually sitting over here on the ledge of the stage as opposed to — but Steve has done a great job and very good relationship with China and very good relationship with us.
Nelson Peltz is here, a friend of mine. Where’s Nelson? Nelson is around here someplace. Hi, Nelson. What are you doing sitting all the way back there, Nelson?
MR. PELTZ: (Inaudible.) (Laughter.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: How’s General Electric doing, Nels? He’ll straighten it out. You’ll straighten it out. He came in nice and late. (Laughs.) He didn’t get in too early, that’s for sure.
Hank Greenberg is here. Hank. If they took care of Hank, they wouldn’t have had the problems that they had. Where’s Hank? Hank Greenberg. (Applause.) Oh, Hank. If Hank stayed there like he should have, you wouldn’t have had the problem that you ended up having with our economy. But it’s great to have you, Hank. Thank you very much.
We have some tremendous senators here and some really incredible people. And I want to just say, the ones that are here, if I miss your name, stand up and I will promise to say it, because a lot of people wanted to be here.
A senator who has been new to the game, and he took it up so quickly and so easily, and he ran a race that was undoable. The person he ran against was unbeatable. Nice woman, Heidi, but unbeatable. And then Kevin Cramer said, “I can beat her.” And I think he only won by about 12 points, right? And they say he’s the only man in North Dakota that can win. And I said, “We’ll do it.” And I had him in my office three times and I said, “Kevin, you got to do it.” And I said, “He’s doing it.” And he turned me down. (Laughter.) Then he came back again — well, this time, I know he’s doing it. He calls me back and he said, “Sir, I’m not going to do it.” He said, “You know, in all fairness, I’ll call you back.” But I never give up, do I? So now, instead of being a congressman, he’s a senator. And you’ve been great. And thank you very much. Kevin Cramer. (Applause.)
Mike Crapo, a friend of mine. These are all warriors. These are — incredible. Mike — thank you very much, Mike. What a job you do. Mike is one of those guys — goes unsung, but behind the scenes, there’s nobody sharper, smarter, and we all respect you and love you. Every one of these people. Thank you very much, Mike. Appreciate it.
Steve Daines. Same thing I can say for my Steve. And he’s got a hell of a football team. How did they do this year? All right? They going to be back? They won it again? They have a good team. They have a good team.
Joni Ernst. You got ethanol, so you can’t be complaining, right? (Laughter.) Steve — (laughs) — Steve, that’s good for you too.
You know, Joni would call me, along with Chuck Grassley; they’d call as a tandem. You can’t beat the two of them. All they want to know about is ethanol. Ethanol. But we got it done.
Deb Fischer — same boat, right, Deb? You want that ethanol for Nebraska.
And a friend of mine, Lindsey Graham. He’s become a great friend of mine and he’s an outstanding man. He loves our country. He really does love our country. He works like hell. Do you do anything other than politics?
SENATOR GRAHAM: Golf.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: He’s likes golf, too. He likes golf too. Much better golfer than people would understand. He likes golf. But he’s a great guy. You get it done. He brings people together.
Chuck Grassley. Where’s Chuck? Where’s Chuck? Chuck. Will you stand up for a second? This guy is the toughest guy. He can say something in a nice manner and everybody is afraid. Right? (Laughter.) He made Comey choke during the hearing. He said, “Did you leak anything to the press?” “What? What? What? What?” Comey choked like a dog, and he was being nice when he said it.
Chuck is outstanding. Unbeatable — between you and the governor, those are two pretty good ones, right? Unbeatable under any circumstance. He makes the rounds like virtually every night. I think you still have never missed a vote. Have you ever missed a vote? He was — Chuck was — huh?
SENATOR GRASSLEY: Since 1993.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Ninety-three. He was in my office a month ago, and I thought it was very rude. He said, “Sir, I’m sorry, I have to leave.” “Why?” That was right in the middle of a meeting. I said, “Why?” He said, “Because I have to vote and I’ve never missed a vote” or some- — I said, “How many years?” He said, “1993.” That’s a long time. I said, “You know what? Go leave. That’s a good record to keep.” Because he’s a solid, reliable, unbelievable person, and he’s a friend of mine. So thank you very much, Chuck. (Applause.)
And let them know also about that ethanol, Chuck. We brought home the ethanol. Man, when you have those two calling — they were not nice about it, Jerry Moran. I want to tell you — where’s Jerry? Jerry, they were not nice about the ethanol. I want to say that.
And Jerry, with what he did with — we’re working together — very closely together with the vets. And it’s incredible what’s happened with what we approved on Choice. It’s made a whole big difference. You don’t hear complaints about the VA anymore. Do you notice? They go out, see a doctor. If they have to wait two months, or if they have to wait two days, they go out and see a doctor. Jerry Moran, folks. He did a fantastic job. (Applause.)
Rob Portman, great friend of ours from Ohio. Rob, fantastic job. I just left Ohio. They love you. They love you there, and you’ve done a fantastic job. And you are my friend. Rob Portman. (Applause.) Thanks, Rob.
Pat Roberts. A man from Kansas, who is going to be leaving us. I cannot believe that you’re not running again. You have at least — at least another 12 good, solid years in the Senate if you wanted them. You have to do it. You’re sure, right? Okay. He’s made that decision. But, Pat, thank you very much. And this is very important to Pat and to Mike Rounds, because what’s happened here, if you look, it’s so much about everything you stand for, especially the farmers. And the farmers are going to be so happy.
Where is Mike Rounds? Mike? Mike? Stand up, Mike. He’s another one. He was brutal to me. He would call: “I got to get this done. You got to get it done.” Right? Thank you very much, Mike. Fantastic job.
And Dan Sullivan, from the great state of Alaska. And I stop there every time I can, right? And I won by a lot. They like me in Alaska, right? But they like you too, Dan. And thank you very much.
Kevin McCarthy, as you know, left for the hoax. (Laughter.) Well, we have to do that, otherwise it becomes a more serious hoax. And Mark Meadows is a friend of mine, right from the beginning. Thank you, Mark, very much. Special guy. Special friend. Great wife, too. His wife actually supported me long before him, but he thinks I don’t know that. (Laughter.) She went on “Women for Trump,” when it wasn’t so fashionable. Like, on the worst day of my life, she was doing “Women for Trump” tours with 50 women on buses all over the great state of North Carolina. She’s fantastic.
Vern Buchanan. Thank you very much. Thank you, Vern. Great job you’ve done.
Mike Conaway. Thanks, Mike. Thank you, Mike.
By the way, Kristi, thank you for being here. I didn’t know you were going to be here. Thank you. Stand up. We’re going to do a big fireworks display, right? Mount Rushmore. We’re going over — I think I’m going to try and be there on July 4th.
So, the governor called. She ran a great race, a tough race. That was a tough competitor you had, right? A big star. And — but she was a bigger star, it turned out, Lindsey. But she said, “Do you think we can get fireworks back at Mount Rushmore?” I said, “Why?” They haven’t been there for — like for 20 years. I said, “Why?” “Environmental reasons.” I said, “You mean you can’t have fireworks because of the environment?” “Yeah, environmental reasons.” I said, “What can burn? It’s stone.” You know, it’s stone. It’s granite. (Laughter.)
So nobody knew why; they just said, “Environmental reasons.” So I called up our people. And within about 15 minutes, we got it approved, and you’re going to have your first big fireworks display at Mount Rushmore, and I’ll try and get out there if I can. (Applause.) Okay? Right? That’ll be great. Thank you very much for being here. Thanks, Kristi.
Mike Kelly. Where’s Mike? Mike, thank you very much, Mike. What a friend.
Drew Ferguson. What a friend. These are great people, I’m telling you.
Darin LaHood. Darin. Thank you very much, Darin. Great job.
Michael McCaul. You did a phenomenal job three, four days ago, Mike, with your speech on the floor. That was incredible. Very inspiring.
Patrick McHenry. He’s a — number one, he’s a great guy. And number two, he’s got the best name in politics. If I had that name, I would have won 20 years ago. (Laughter.) Patrick McHenry.
A man who’s got such courage — honestly, he deserves a medal. He’ll probably get one. We still have to win to get medals though, right? We can’t give medals if we don’t win. But this guy has never lost in his life. He is so tough and so smart. Devin Nunes. Thank you. Stand up, Devin. Everybody knows him. (Applause.)
What they put him through — (applause) — what these phony people, what these dirty cops and all of the others put you through — and, man, you survived it better than ever, and everyone respects you. And even Meadows respects you, and he respects very few people. (Laughter.) So, thank you, Devin, very much. Great job.
Adrian Smith. Thank you, Adrian. Thank you very much. And don’t feel — again, you guys are all set. I’ve introduced you — not much more for you, but you know. But you’re going to hear some great things about China, and you’re going to hear some also great things now because we have a who’s who of the world of business with us today.
David Abney, of UPS. David? Where are you, David? You can stand up, if anybody wants to. If you don’t want it — you know, if your company is not doing well, you may not want to stand up. (Laughter.) But UPS is doing very well. There will be a couple that will just sort of slink back into their chair. They’ll pretend they’re not here. Thank you, David. Great job you’ve done.
Darius Adamczyk, of Honeywell. A great company. Thank you very much. Great equipment you make. I have a lot of it. I use a lot of it, and the country uses a lot of it.
Ajay Banga, of Mastercard. Thank, Ajay. Fantastic job.
Josh Bolten, Business Roundtable. Thank you, Josh. Great job.
David Calhoun. He’s got a very easy company to run. He just took over Boeing. Where’s David? David. Where’s David?
MR. CALHOUN: Right here.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Stand up, David. See, he didn’t want to stand. Let me tell you: It’s not your fault. You just got there. (Laughter.) You’ll straighten it out quickly, please.
MR. CALHOUN: We will.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Okay. I have no doubt. It’s a great company.
Les Daniels, USTR, ACTPN. Okay?
Dan DiMicco. We’ve been fighting the steel things for 20 years together, Dan. I’d like to say “30,” but I don’t want to do that. Right? We’ve been fighting together for a lot longer than 20 years on the —
MR. DIMICCO: We’re winning.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: And now we’re winning. Finally. It took 25, 30 years. It took a little change at the top, didn’t it? But you’ve been a warrior for — for getting really taken advantage of as a country. And you’ve been a warrior, and I appreciate it. Right from the beginning, Dan and I — we — it was a fight of two people against the world.
Tom Donohue, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. And that’s — where’s Tom? Thank you, Tom. Great job.
Brian Duperreault, of AIG. Do you know that company, Hank? AIG. Did you ever hear of AIG, Hank Greenberg? Thank you very much. I appreciate it, Brian.
Mary Erdoes, JPMorgan Chase. They just announced earnings, and they were incredible. Where — where are you? They were very substantial. Will you say, “Thank you, Mr. President” at least? Huh? (Laughter.) I made a lot of bankers look very good. But you’re doing a great job. Say hello to Jamie. I think we’re seeing him tomorrow.
Nancy Falotico, of Ford. Nancy, where are you? Hi, Nancy. So young. So young. That’s very impressive. Thank you very much. You’re doing a good job.
Jim Fitterling, Dow Chemical. Incredible company. Jim. Thank you, Jim.
Jack Fusco, Cheniere. Jack, thank you. Great.
Meg Gentle, Tellurian. Where are you? Hi. Congratulations.
Ken Griffin, Citadel. What a guy he is. Where are you, Ken? Where the hell is he? He’s trying to hide some of his money. Look, he doesn’t want to stand up. Where the hell is Ken? See, Steve, you’ll stand, and he’s very quiet about it. He’s in here someplace; he just doesn’t want to stand.
Harold Hamm. He puts a straw into the ground, and oil pours out. (Laughter.) It’s true. Other guys spend billions and billions of dollars; they can’t find oil. This guy takes a straw, he goes like this, and oil pops up. Harold, my friend. He’s been with me from the beginning. Right, Harold? He was with me from the day I came down the escalator with our First Lady.
By the way, do I see John Thune in this audience? John — how the hell do I not introduce John? They didn’t have your name down. I can’t believe it. Will you stand up? What a great guy he is. (Applause.)
VICE PRESIDENT PENCE: Kevin Brady and Shelley Moore Capito.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I also see Kevin Brady. Thanks, Kevin. Great job on the tax cuts.
Al Kelly, Visa. Al Kelly. Al Kelly, thank you.
Ryan Lance, ConocoPhillips. Ryan, great. You’re doing fantastically well.
Most of you, I can say, you’re doing fantastically well. “Thank you, Mr. President.” (Laughter.) Don’t worry about it. Don’t feel guilty.
Alan MacDonald, Citibank. Citibank. (Applause.) Good. Boy, you brought that back so far. I remember seven, eight years ago. But Citibank is doing fantastically well.
Raymond McDaniel, Moody’s. Good. Are you giving us good ratings, Raymond, please? Okay? We’re doing pretty good, right?
Sanjay Mehrotra, of Micron. Incredible company, the job you’re doing. Sanjay. Thank you, Sanjay, very much.
Steve Mollenkopf, Qualcomm. They had a merger going, and I said they should let that merger go by. I called up President Xi, and I — they rejected it. Remember? And then they accepted it. By that time, you were off to another deal. You didn’t even want it. But nobody else could have done that, right? But you could have had it.
Jim Morrison, of Jeep. What a great brand Jeep is. What a job they’ve done. That is a great brand. And congratulations.
Larry Nichols, Devon Energy. Larry? Larry. Thank you, Larry. Great job. These are great people.
Jason Oxman, ITI. Jason, thank you. Great job you’re doing.
Scott Schenkel, eBay. I sign things, and the next night, I see them on eBay. They’re sold. (Laughter.) They’re sold for a lot of money. I said, “Sir, could I have you just — would you sign my sneaker?” “Yes.” Then, two nights later, I see it on eBay, selling for $5,000. I say, “What kind of people are these, Lindsey?” Terrible. (Laughter.) Sometimes it’s the senators and the congressmen that do it. That’s — (laughter).
Gary Shapiro, CTA. Gary. Great job, Gary.
Greg Smith, of Boeing, also. And, Greg, get that going. Work together. Get it going. You know, Boeing makes a tremendous portion of our GDP. I had no idea it was such a big company. It was — I mean, I know it was big, but it could have up to a half a point of GDP. Some people say even more. So we’ve got to get that one moving fast, and it’s going to be better than ever, I think.
Mike Sommers, API. Mike? Thank you, Mike.
Paul Taylor, of Fitch. That’s another good ratings group. Are we doing okay at Fitch? Good. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have introduced you, if I thought — (laughter).
Robert [DEL: Thornson :DEL] [Thomson], News Corp. Where’s Rupert? Is Rupert not here? I can’t believe Rupert is not here. Is he the greatest though, or what? He was going to get $40 billion for his thing. He sold all the stuff he didn’t want. He sold it to some group that doesn’t like Trump as much; that’s the only problem. But he was going to get $40 billion, and he said, “I don’t know, they keep bidding this thing up.” They end up paying what? Seventy-five billion? And he kept the best stuff. So Rupert is doing right, huh? Rupert is fantastic, and that whole family is just a great family. So say hello, Robert.
And John Thornton. Oh, John. Where’s John? Where’s John? John is great. Good job, John. (Applause.) Thank you for all the help, too. Great job, John.
Jay Timmons, NAM. Jay, thank you very much. Thanks, Jay.
Stephen Vaughn, King and Spalding. Stephen. King and Spalding. I could use some good legal advice. Do you have some good lawyers over there? I could use some good lawyers, right? Ah, to hell with it. I just have to suffer through it the way I have all my life. (Laughter.) Somewhere along the line, they must be pretty good, right?
Jonathan Ward, Atlas Organization. Jonathan, thank you. Great job you’ve done.
Kevin Warsh. Kevin. Where’s Kevin? I don’t know, Kevin. I could have used you a little bit here. Why weren’t you more forceful when you wanted that job? Why weren’t you more forceful, Kevin? You’re a forceful person. In fact, I thought you were too forceful, maybe, for the job. And I would have been very happy with you.
But, Kevin, thank you for being here. You understand that very well, right? It bothers me when Germany and other countries are getting paid to borrow money. This is one — I don’t know where that all leads, but we have to pay. We’re the number one in the world, by far, and we have to pay for our money. Our interest rates are set high by the Fed. Our dollar is very high, and — relatively speaking. But when other countries get — literally, they’re under. They have negative rates — meaning, they’re under. They get paid. I love this. This concept is incredible. Again, you don’t know where the hell it leads. But you borrow money, and when you have to pay it back, they pay you. This is one that I like very much. And I’m going to talk to you about that, Lou Dobbs.
So we’re set at two. Tell me, why are we paying and other countries are getting money when they get paid back? I really want to know: Who are the people that buy this stuff? Who puts money into something when they say, “This is a guaranteed loss”? But that’s a whole different group of people than I know.
Glenn Youngkin, of Carlyle. Carlyle Group. Great group.
So, for decades, American workers, farmers, ranchers, manufacturers, and innovators have been hurt by the unfair trade with China. Forced technology transfer and intellectual property theft have been huge problems. Since China joined the World Trade Organization two decades ago, we have racked up nearly $5 trillion — the Vice Premier, I hope he’s not listening to this — (laughter) — in trade deficits, lost millions and millions of manufacturing jobs, and saw tens of thousands of factories close. And that had to do, also, with Mexico, and, to an extent, Canada.
What they did to this country with trade and trade deals — NAFTA. We had no deal with China. I mean, we had no deal. And it was like just easy pickings.
For years, politicians ran for office, promising action to remedy these practices, only to do nothing but allow them to continue. And it was pillage.
As a candidate for President, I vowed strong action. It’s probably the biggest reason why I ran for President, because I saw it for so many years. And I said, “How come nobody is doing something about it?” In the meantime, immigration, and building our military — also important. But that’s probably the biggest reason.
In June of 2016, in the great state of Pennsylvania, I promised that I would use every lawful presidential power to protect Americans from unfair trade and unfair trade practices. Unlike those who came before me, I kept my promise. They didn’t promise too hard but — (applause) — they didn’t do anything. And I actually think I more than kept my promise.
Now our efforts have yielded a transformative deal that will bring tremendous benefits to both countries. We have a great relationship with China, we have a great relationship with the leadership of China, and China fully understands that there has to be a certain reciprocity. There has to be. It cannot continue like this. It would be dangerous for it to continue like it was.
The agreement we signed today includes groundbreaking provisions in an area of critical importance to the United States: protecting intellectual property. So the deal you’re seeing today is a much bigger deal than — we have it very much guarded. They asked one of our Democratic — Cryin’ Chuck Schumer — “What do you think of the deal?” — two weeks ago. He had no idea what the deal was. Never saw the deal; it’s totally guarded.
“I don’t like it. I don’t like the deal,” he said. “Well, have you seen it?” “Yeah, I think I know what…” “Well, why don’t you like it?” “Well, they took the tariffs off.” Actually, we didn’t. He didn’t know anything about the deal. He just said exactly what probably you should say, as a politician. “How do you like the deal?” “I don’t like the deal.” “Do you know the deal?” “Uh, uh, sort of.” He never saw the deal. He knew nothing about it. He would love the deal, but he can’t say it, because he’s on the other party. But maybe Patrick would do the same thing, right?
But you know what? I would say that you shouldn’t. This is an unbelievable deal for the United States. And, ultimately, it’s a great deal for both countries. And it’s going to also lead to even a more stable peace throughout the world.
China is helping us with North Korea. China is helping us with a lot of the things that they can be helping us with — which you don’t see in a deal, but they have been very, very helpful with respect to Kim Jong Un, who has great respect for President Xi.
And it’s all a very, very beautiful game of chess, or a game of poker, or — I can’t use the word “checkers” because it’s far greater than any checker game that I’ve ever seen. But it’s a very beautiful mosaic.
But China is giving us a lot of help, and we’re giving them a lot of help on things that we help them with. And one of the things that we are also talking about is fentanyl. And President Xi has already instituted very strong penalties and arrested large numbers of people who are sending fentanyl into our country. That never happened before. (Applause.)
So China has made substantial and enforceable commitments regarding the protection of American ideas, trade secrets, patents, and trademarks. This was not, according to most — they didn’t know we covered any of this. We’ve covered a lot of this. It’s phase one. But they’re doing many more things in phase one than anyone thought possible.
China has also pledged firm action to confront pirated and counterfeit goods, which is a big problem for many of the people in the room — the counterfeiting. We’ll make sure that this happens, and we have very, very strong protection.
In addition, the agreement addresses forced technology transfer policies that can require companies to give away their know-how and trade secrets. So now, when Boeing has some work done over in China or wants to sell planes over in China, they don’t have to give up every single thing that they’ve ever — you know, that they’ve worked so hard to — to develop and to come up with. Are you guys hearing that? You don’t have to give up anything anymore. Just be strong. Just be strong. Don’t let it happen. But you don’t have to do that.
It was a terrible — it was a terrible situation going on there. And a lot of it was because our co- — our companies, I have to say this, were very weak. You were very weak. You gave up things that you didn’t have to give up. But now, legally, you don’t have to give them up.
Under this deal, transfers and licensing of technology will be based on market terms that are fully voluntary and reflect mutual agreement.
Phase one will also see China greatly expand imports of the — to the United States. We want to buy a lot of their product inexpensively.
But we have an additional $200 [billion]. They are going to be what — what is, to me, very important. Number one, they’re going to be spending much more than $200 billion over the next two years, including up to $50 billion just on agriculture alone.
And some of the numbers that I wrote down — on manufacturing, they’ll be spending $75 billion. They’ll be putting into our country, okay? They’re going to be putting into our country $75 billion on manufacturing. Fifty billion dollars’ worth of energy. So that’s great for our energy people. We’re the number one in the world now; we weren’t. We’re now the number-one energy group in the world. We’re bigger than Saudi Arabia, and we’re bigger than Russia. We’re bigger than everybody. (Applause.)
And for those people that are in the room that are very much into it, of which we have a lot of the oil and gas folks in the room: I’m approving some pipelines in Texas momentarily, which will give you — which would’ve taken 15 more years to get. But you’re going to have them very quickly. I mean, we take from a 15-year period to about a 2-month period, and I’m angry at my people for taking so long. Right?
But if we do that, we’ll be up about another 22 percent in oil and natural gas. So we have $50 million for — $50 billion for energy, $50 billion for agriculture, and $40- to $50 billion on services, including, Rob, financial services. So the banks are going to be doing great. Credit cards — all of the things that you do so well. You’re going to be able to now go into China and really do a job. And they’re going to be working with you.
One of the other things I have to say is that protection of intellectual property — we have very strong protection of intellectual property. A lot of people thought this deal was just a simple deal for — the farmers are going to get $50 billion. Remember I said, Lindsey, they have to go out and buy larger tractors?
China was doing $16 billion with the farmers. And they stopped. Why not? You know, they’re in a negotiation. So our people agreed to $20 [billion], and I said, “No, make it $50 [billion]. What difference does it make? Make it $50 [billion].” They say, “Sir, our farmers can’t produce that much.” I said, “I love our farmers. Let them tell me they can’t do it.” And I said, “Tell them to go out and buy a larger tractor. Buy a little more land.” But they’ll be able to do it. I have no doubt they’ll be able to do it. (Applause.)
So, the other thing that I think we have is the currency devaluation standards. We have a very strong standard for currency devaluation. And, in all due respect, China was one of the greats in history at doing that, and we’re going to work on it together. But currency devaluation will now have some very, very strong restrictions and very powerful restrictions. And we have just full — again, the word — one of the strongest things we have: total and full enforceability. And you know what that means: total, full enforceability on all of this.
So, the agreement tears down major market barriers for U.S. food and agricultural exports. China will now welcome American beef and pork, poultry, seafood, rice, dairy, infant formula, animal feed, biotechnology, and much, much more. Because frankly, you know, they were not doing things that they were supposed to be. And that’s okay. Because now they will. The deal will also benefit energy, manufacturing services, and all sectors of the economy.
And I will say this: This deal — again, they thought it was a 50-billion-dollar agricultural deal. Now it’s much more than $200 billion, of which 50 is agricultural. But the rest is in all of the other things that we just discussed, especially for financial. And you should really look at it. And you have a free pass. And you don’t have to worry about the 49 percent where you can’t own, because you’re going to be able to own now. And you’re not going to have to take partners that are forced upon you. It’s an incredible deal from that standpoint, too.
We’re delighted that the Chinese consumers will now enjoy the greater access to the best products on Earth — those made, grown, and raised right here in the USA.
So phase one, which has been really incredible — you know, we almost had the whole deal done, but this is better. This is a more detailed deal for this aspect of the deal. It was such a big deal before. And this is a much more — much more targeted, much more powerful deal for everything we’re doing, which is a very large part of the deal.
But we’re going to be starting phase two, as soon as this kicks in. We’ll be starting phase two. We’re leaving tariffs on, which people are shocked, but it’s great. But I will agree to take those tariffs off, if we are able to do phase two. In other words, we’re negotiating with the tariffs. We have 25 percent on $250 billion worth of goods. And then we’re bringing the 10 percent down to 7.5 percent on $300 billion worth of goods plus.
So — but I’m leaving them on, because otherwise we have no cards to negotiate with. And negotiating with Liu is very tough. But they will all come off as soon as we finish phase two. And that would be something that some people on Wall Street will love, but from what I see, they love this deal the way it is now. But we have very strong cards. And, frankly, China and I are going to start negotiating with Bob and Steve and everybody very, very shortly.
So, from this nation’s vibrant heartland to our gleaming cities, millions of workers and farmers and innovators have waited decades for this day. We never even had a deal with China. In all fairness, I don’t blame China. I blame the people that stood here before me. I don’t blame China. I told that to President Xi. I was in Beijing, making a speech, saying how they’re ripping us off. And guess what? He wasn’t too happy. I looked at him. I said, “He’s not happy.” And I said, “I better change the speech quickly.”
So I said, “I don’t blame him. I blame our Presidents.” And I’m right. We should’ve done the same thing to them, but we didn’t. We didn’t. We never had a deal with them. They’d do whatever they wanted it.
With this signing, we mark more than just an agreement; we mark a sea change in international trade. At long last, Americans have a government that puts them first at the negotiating table. First in trade. First in every deal, every decision, and every action we take with incredible enforceability.
As we move on to phase two, I look forward to continuing to forge a future of greater harmony, prosperity, and, really, commerce — commerce and — far beyond commerce, between the United States and China. This is something that — far beyond even this deal — it’s going to lead to a even stronger world peace.
We now have — we now have a big investment in each other and in getting along with each other. And this deal is phase one. We’ll probably be able to conclude it with phase two. We don’t expect to have a phase three. But it’s something that we all want to get done, and it’ll be a tremendously big deal. This is something that’s going to be so special, however, to our manufacturers, our farmers, our bankers, our service people. Nobody has ever seen anything like it. This is the biggest deal there is anywhere in the world, by far. And that’s good.
We’re doing another big one next week. But this is the biggest deal anybody has ever seen. And it can lead to being a deal that’s unprecedented, because China has 1.5 billion people, and ultimately, in phase two, we’re going to be opening up China to all of your companies. So I hope you folks can handle it.
So now I’d like to ask Ambassador Lighthizer and Secretary Mnuchin to say a few words, please. Thank you. (Applause.)
AMBASSADOR LIGHTHIZER: Mr. President, Mr. Vice President, Mr. Vice Premier: It is an honor to be here for this momentous event. The President has long fought for fair and balanced trade for Americans. He has, for years, complained about our enormous trade deficit with China and the unfair practices which have, in part, contributed to it.
Indeed, solving the trade crisis was a major objective of his campaign and of his administration. The United States and China are two great countries with two great economies, but two very different economic systems. It is imperative that we develop trade and economic rules and practices that allow us both to prosper. The alternative is not acceptable for either of us.
This phase one agreement is the result of over two years of hard work. It is an important part of the President’s economic plan, and it is a big step forward in writing the rules needed and developing the practices that we must have going forward.
This agreement will benefit both the United States and China. I am grateful to the President for allowing me to be part of this plan. I am grateful to Secretary Mnuchin, my friend with whom I have worked so closely on this and on so many other matters.
Finally, I would like to thank and acknowledge the more than 60 men and women at USTR and other agencies who have worked so hard on this, day and night, for so many months.
I should begin with Ambassador Jeffrey Gerrish, who’s my deputy, who led this effort. Thank you for your patriotism. (Applause.)
I would also like to single out Ambassador Gregory Doud, who is my agriculture deputy — (applause) — and the Assistant USTR responsible for this enormous effort, Terry McCartin. (Applause.)
This was a great — this was a great team effort by my office, as well as the Departments of Treasury, Agriculture, Commerce, and many others.
I should all also acknowledge the hard work of the Chinese side. Vice Premier Liu He is a leader who is diligent; patriotic; as near as I can tell, always working; and has proven himself honorable.
To appreciate — (applause) — we appreciate also the efforts of Minister Zhong. Thank you to Liao Min, his principal — the Vice Premier’s Principal Deputy, and the rest of your team. Once again, congratulations, President Trump. And congratulations, President Xi. (Applause.)
SECRETARY MNUCHIN: Thank you very much. Mr. President, Mr. Vice President, under your leadership, the economic policies of this administration are working. Tax cuts, regulatory relief, and now great trade deals are making the U.S. economy stronger and helping American business and workers and farmers.
This is an incredible accomplishment. I want to particularly thank Ambassador Lighthizer. You’ve done an extraordinary job leading this effort across, literally, in enormous resources. Every single agency contributed to this. The White House. This was a real team effort. So thank you very much for your extraordinary job.
I’d also like to thank the Vice Premier and his team. We could not have done this without all of you. This was a lot of hard work. And again, I’d like to thank you and President Xi. A great step forward, momentous agreement between our two countries. Thank you. (Applause.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: By the way, I have to just tell you that a woman is in the room who loves her state so much. And I didn’t introduce her before because I wanted to say for — you have been so great. Would you please stand up, Shelley? West Virginia Senator. Thank you. Great. Thank you, Shelley. (Applause.)
So I want to, again, thank the Vice Premier for the work we’ve done together. It’s been — it’s been an incredible number of months. It was stop and go. And it looked like it was pretty much going to be stop and never go.
But I’d like to now invite you, on behalf of the great nation — and it is indeed a great nation. In fact, I’d like you to just relax a little while. Take it easy. Go out, see a movie. Tell President Xi I said, “President, go out. Have a round of golf. See a movie.” “No, no, no. I am too busy.”
But they are workers. This China is an incredible, incredible nation. And I’d like to have you say a few words. Mr. Vice Premier, please. (Applause.)
VICE PREMIER LIU: (Inaudible.) (Off-mic.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Yes. Yes.
The Vice Premier would like to read a letter that was just sent to me, I found out, from President Xi. And we’ll ask the interpreter to come up, please. Okay? Thank you very much. That’s very nice.
VICE PREMIER LIU: (As interpreted.) Thank you, President Trump. Now, may I read out the message from President Xi Jinping to President Donald J. Trump?
(In English.) Sorry. (Laughter.)
(As interpreted.) Mr. President, as China and the United States sign the phase one trade agreement, I asked Vice Premier Liu He to bring to you my warm greetings.
As I said during our phone call on the 20th of December, last year, conclusion of the phase one trade agreement between China and the U.S. is good for China, for the U.S., and for the whole world.
It also shows that our two countries have the ability to act on the basis of equality and mutual respect, and work through dialogue and consultation to properly handle and effectively resolve relevant issues.
In the next step, the two sides need to implement the agreement in real earnest and optimize its positive impact so as to make even greater progress in China-U.S. trade and economic cooperation.
To maintain healthy and steady growth of China-U.S. relations serves the interest of both countries and requires joint efforts from both sides.
In that spirit, I hope the U.S. side will treat fairly Chinese companies and their regular trade and investment activities, and give support to the collaboration between enterprises, research institutes, and schools and colleges of the two countries as it will help enhance mutual trust and cooperation between us.
China is prepared to work with the U.S. in that direction. And I will stay in close touch with you personally.
I believe that under our guidance, China-U.S. relations will deliver more results and bring greater benefits to our peoples in the year ahead.
The Chinese Lunar New Year is just a few days away. I and my wife Peng Liyuan extend our season’s greetings to you, to Melania, and your family. May you all enjoy happiness and success in the New Year.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much. (Applause.) That’s beautiful. Thank you.
VICE PREMIER LIU: (As interpreted.) Honorable President Donald Trump, Honorable Vice President Mike Pence, Ambassador Lighthizer, Secretary Mnuchin, colleagues, friends, ladies and gentlemen: Good afternoon. Today, China and the United States will be officially signing the phase one trade agreement.
First of all, allow me to pay tribute to our two presidents.
I also want to thank the U.S. principals, our two economic teams, and all those who have made their contribution to this phase one trade agreement.
As two great countries with important responsibilities in world affairs, China and the United States, with the larger picture in mind, have taken a serious approach to our differences and worked to manage them appropriately, reaching phase one trade agreement. It is good for China, for the United States, and for the world.
This is a mutually beneficial and win-win agreement. It will bring about stable economic growth, promote world peace and prosperity, and is in the interest of the producers, consumers, investors in both countries.
At the same time, this agreement is not directed at, nor will it affect, the lawful rise in interest of any third country. It is in line with WTO rules.
A cooperative economic and trade relationship is the propeller of the overall China-U.S. relations. Over the past two years, the two sides encountered some difficulties in the economic and trade field. At times, there were setbacks in our trade talks because, on some issues, we don’t see eye to eye. However, our two economic teams do not give up with relentless efforts from both sides. On the basis of equality and mutual respect, we have reached this phase one trade agreement.
As we Chinese often say, one should not be daunted by difficult problems because there are always more solutions than problems. (Applause.)
This is an extensive agreement. After it is signed, China will work with the U.S. at — in the principle of equality and mutual respect, strictly honor the agreement, accommodate each other’s core concerns, and ensure the good implementation of the phase one trade agreement. It is the pressing need and will also play an important role in the growth of bilateral economic and trade relations in the future.
As to where we will go from here, there is a Chinese proverb that goes, “The beginning is the most difficult part.” There is a similar saying in English: “A good beginning is half the success.” They mean the same thing. It means that we need to continue to be problem-oriented and focus on implementing the phase one trade agreement so as to bring about a good start in the sound economic and trade relations going forward.
As the living standards of the Chinese people rises, we will import fine-quality agricultural products from countries across the world.
As the two sides have agreed based on the market demand in China, in line with market terms, Chinese businesses will purchase 40 billion U.S. dollars of agricultural products from the United States annually. If the demand is strong, the companies may buy more.
To make it happen, the two governments need to foster a sound marketing environment for businesses to expand trade activities.
Ladies and gentlemen, friends: The Chinese economy is transitioning from high-speed growth to high-quality development. A new philosophy is governing our development across the board. Reform and opening-up is picking up speed. This year we’ll build a moderately prosperous society in all respects.
China’s per capita GDP has exceeded 10,000 U.S. dollars. A 400 million-strong middle-income group is emerging, and a massive domestic market is taking shape. China welcomes investors from around the world to China, including those from the United States. And we’ll expand imports of fine-quality products and services from other countries.
China will continue to enhance the legal environment, step up the protection of property rights and intellectual property, apply a management system of pre-establishment national treatment, plus the negative list, and create a level playing field. China will open itself even wider. (Applause.)
Ladies and gentlemen, friends: The world is now at a critical historical crossroads. We are faced with the major strategic choice of how to promote major country cooperation and international cooperation.
China has developed a political system and a model of economic development that suits its national reality. This doesn’t mean China and the United States cannot work together. On the contrary, our two countries share enormous common commercial interests, and we are faced with multiple common challenges like terrorism, counter-narcotics, widening income gap, an aging population, major diseases, resources, and protecting the environment. There is a real need for closer cooperation.
President Xi Jinping points out that there are a thousand reasons to make China-U.S. relations succeed and not a single one to let it fail. We must seek common ground while putting aside differences and find a path toward win-win cooperation. This has important implications for China, the United States, and the world at large.
It has been, and will continue need to be, proved that we both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. Cooperation is the only right choice. We need to act in the overall interest of world peace and development and shared future of humanity, pursue equal consultation with mutual respect, and take forward China-U.S. relations based on coordination, cooperation, and stability, and fulfill the great historic mission that we shoulder together.
While I see many visionary people here in the audience who have made an important contribution to the sound development of China-U.S. relations, please accept my most sincere appreciation. (Applause.)
The Lunar Chinese New Year is coming soon. I extend season’s greetings to you. I wish you good health and all the success. Again, thank you very much, President Trump, and thank you all. (Applause.)
Now I’d like to invite Ambassador Cui Tiankai to say a few words. Thank you. (Applause.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: And just prior to signing, we’ll ask Ambassador Cui to come up and say a few words. Thank you. (Applause.) Yes, please.
AMBASSADOR CUI: (As interpreted.) Honorable President Trump, Vice President Pence, Secretary Mnuchin, Ambassador Lighthizer, Your Excellency, Vice Premier Liu He, Minister Zhong Shan, and Governor Yi Gang, ladies and gentlemen: Just now, Vice Premier has given us the comprehensive elaboration on China’s principled position on the China-U.S. phase one trade agreement.
Given the highly complex international environment, reaching a China-U.S. phase one trade agreement based on equality and mutual respect is good for China and the U.S., and good for the peace and prosperity of the whole world.
We hope both sides will abide by and implement the agreement with earnest to keep the China-U.S. trade relations in the right direction of mutual benefit and win-win, and deliver greater benefits to the people of our two countries.
China’s development is a result of the wisdom and hard work of 1.4 billion Chinese people. And the rights of the Chinese people to pursue a better life is what should be there.
There is great potential for greater China-U.S. cooperation, and the defining feature of this economic cooperation between our two countries is mutual benefit. People of both countries benefit from such cooperation. These facts haven’t and will not change.
The China-U.S. relationship is now at a crucial juncture. As we have reached the phase one trade agreement, it is now important that we leverage the opportunity earnestly, implement the strategic consensus reached between our two Presidents, and keep our bilateral relations in the right direction.
We need to strengthen strategic communication and dialogue on various levels to build trust, reduce misgivings and misunderstandings and misjudgment, and properly manage differences so as to build a China-U.S. relationship based on coordination, cooperation, and stability.
To conclude, I want to take this opportunity to thank you again, friends from all the communities in the United States for your support to the healthy growth of China-U.S. relations. Let’s work together in the New Year. Thank you. (Applause.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, just in closing — and we’re going to sign right now, but it just doesn’t get any bigger than this — not only in terms of a deal, but really in terms of what it represents.
Keeping these two giant and powerful nations together in harmony is so important for the world — not only for us, for the whole world. And the world is watching today.
So it’s a great honor to be involved. It’s a great honor, Mr. Vice Premier, to be with you. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. (Applause.)
(The agreement is signed.)
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**
END 1:06 P.M. EST
James O’Keefe, III and Project Veritas went undercover into the Bernie campaign and the results are worse than we feared. Radical communists talking about confrontation with the police and “burning Milwaukee down” if Bernie’s candidacy is rejected as before.
Here is the first full length video from Project Veritas.
Don’t worry though, they’re righteous. Everyone who doesn’t think as they do will be placed into “nice” Soviet-style Gulags, with conjugal visits, for re-education. Those Gulags weren’t so bad. Amazing ignorance. Guessing they never read Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Whaddaya think?
I was a kid growing up in the burbs of Chicago in ’68, (this kid/adult can’t even remember the correct year of the protest, thinks it was in ’78 not ’68), but I still recall Dad railing about the open warfare on the streets of Chicago during the convention of ’68.
Does anyone here still remember the march over the bridge in Milwaukee in the same summer? Similar outcomes. And Milwaukee, with their socialist bent, is a tinderbox for this kind of activity.
They’re radical and scary. Do not look away.
Milwaukee in the summer is a gorgeous city. Everyone is outside and the weather is clear, less humid, perfect for outdoor sports, bistros, beach, or boating on the lake. No, might be a good idea to stay away from Milwaukee during this convention…… bad karma.
Reaction to the Project Veritas videos has been swift, and James O’Keefe, III, promises there is much more to come.
Have to tell you guys about this soup/stew recipe. Strangest thing is, ….it has restorative powers. I’m not lying and never run into anything quite like it in 30yrs of active cooking. We joke, “it’s like an IV fluid for those who are disease ridden, exhausted, or homesick”. Don’t get me wrong, I love to cook, and ran a high end catering company for years, but this is different. It’s not like regular food. Sure, many casseroles have that “homecooked” feel, but we’ve never had a similar response like we get with this soup/stew. Since it’s cold outside, and cold and flu season, I thought it would be nice to share the bounty. I’m giving this to you exactly like we make it. No secrets between friends at QTree.
Chicken Soup/Stew ~ 30-50 hearty man-size servings, enough to share and be generous.
Ready to start?
Meanwhile, while we’re waiting on the carrots/celery to cook…..
The whole thing need to come to a boil, sort of, it will never really boil but becomes very hot. You need this step to activate the flour and thicken properly. It takes about 30-45 minutes on my stove top. Be careful and don’t use too high of heat as the bottom burns and the soup will be ruined. I stir about every 5-7 minutes during this process, checking the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
It’s supposed to simmer for about an hour, but I’ve never had my family wait that long to grab a bowl. We keep the whole pot, lid turned upside down, in an extra fridge and anyone can grab a cup, warm up in the microwave, when they are hungry. To stretch even further, add 2-12oz bags of frozen, then cooked, green beans, for a nice addition. Fresh mushrooms don’t work, too much moisture, I’ve tried. Peas don’t work well either. We serve with about a tablespoon of bacon bits on the top and I still have bacon bits leftover for salads.
It’s a killer recipe, incredibly healthy, and lasts all week long. I dole out portions to the son in college and his roomies, sick folks from church, or hungry firemen/police if they have a big incident.
One note: The recipe originally called for 5lbs of potatoes and we made it this way for a few years. Substituting the lentils (or white beans) is like a protein injection and no sleepiness from the high carbs of the potatoes.
One more note: I found this is a great team project. Husbands have no objection to slicing up vegetables and kids can peel carrots. They set up with a big cutting board in front of a football game. Makes it easier and everyone has a hand in.
It’s a super food.
Stay warm and healthy, love to all.
Note to Alison: No dried apricots in this one. Bwwhahahaa!
“It’s cooler near the lake.”, is the motto for Milwaukee. Wanna go to a MAGA Rally in Milwaukee? President Trump is going to need all our help in this state, tough crowd. We could stay a while. Gosh, we could eat our way across the Midwest, from Toledo to Milwaukee. The food is wonderful.
This time, our Master Troll President is hosting a Rally on the same night as the boring Dem Debates. Great strategy.
Milwaukee has a STRONG German and Polish influence. It’s the land of great cheeses, beer (Pabst + Miller + Sprecher ) great meats and especially brats, Milwaukee Tools, and Harley Davidson. A city with a highly skilled labor force which leans Democrat…. even Socialist. Milwaukee elected three mayors who ran on the ticket of the Socialist Party: Emil Seidel (1910–1912), Daniel Hoan (1916–1940), and Frank Zeidler (1948–1960). Often referred to as “Sewer Socialists“, the Milwaukee Socialists were characterized by their practical approach to government and labor.
We’ll see you at the rally!
This Superlative Sanctuary Sunday Open Thread, with full respect to those who worship God on the Sabbath, is a place to reaffirm our worship of our Creator, our Father, our King Eternal.
It is also a place to read, post and discuss news that is worth knowing and sharing. Please post links to any news stories that you use as sources or quote from.
In the QTree, we’re a friendly and civil lot. We encourage free speech and the open exchange and civil discussion of different ideas. Topics aren’t constrained, and sound logic is highly encouraged, all built on a solid foundation of truth and established facts.
We have a policy of mutual respect, shown by civility. Civility encourages discussions, promotes objectivity and rational thought in discourse, and camaraderie in the participants – characteristics we strive toward in our Q Tree community.
Please show respect and consideration for your fellow QTreepers.
Before hitting the “post” button, please proofread your post and make sure you’re addressing the issue only, and not trying to confront the poster.
If you feel the need to bare your fangs, we have a companion site – called The U Tree – where you can run wild and free with the Wolfpack where all legal free speech is allowed.
But NOT HERE in The Q Tree. Personal attacks, name calling, ridicule, insults, baiting and other conduct for which a penalty flag would be thrown are VERBOTEN.
In The Q Tree, we’re compatriots, sitting around the campfire, roasting hot dogs, making s’mores and discussing, agreeing, and disagreeing about whatever interests us. This board will remain a home for those who seek respectful conversations.
Please also consider the Important Guidelines, outlined here. Let’s not give the Internet Censors a reason to shut down this precious haven that Wolf has created for us.
Our movement is about replacing a failed and CORRUPT political establishment with a new government controlled by you, the American People. ~ Candidate Donald J. Trump
Also remember Wheatie’s Rules:
Hopefully, every Sunday, you can find something here that will build you up a little . . . give you a smile . . . and add some joy or peace, very much needed in all our lives.
“This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” . . . “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
God looks at us and deals with us on the basis of love . . . agapé love . . . love that puts our well-being first. He knows what’s best for us and he nudges us and sometimes shoves us in that direction.
When we trust in Jesus as our Savior, God sends the Holy Spirit to live within us as a Helper to shape our lives toward what God knows is best for us.
God’s Word lists nine characteristics that the Holy Spirit works to grow in each Believer to shape our lives toward how God wants us to live. These characteristics are called the Fruit of the Spirit.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
The Fruit of the Spirit is:
Love, a love that seeks the highest good for others;
Joy, a gladness that is not based on one’s circumstances;
Peace, a deep contentment, shalom, unity with God and with people;
Patience or Forbearance, being slow to speak and slow to anger;
Kindness, showing mercy, sympathy, helpfulness;
Goodness, being generous and open-hearted;
Faithfulness, being dependable, loyal and trustworthy;
Gentleness, being calm, non-threatening; and
Self-control, behaving well and in a way that honors God.
It’s important to note here that the Holy Spirit is our Helper . . . He’s not going to magically change us while we ignore Him and continue to live the life of the world and “me first”.
We have a responsibility here to want to grow our Spirit Fruit and work toward that end. God’s Word puts that responsibility on us and tells us that we are to yield to the Holy Spirit. We are not to be passive but active in the development of our Fruit of the Spirit. In Colossians 3:10-15 Paul tells Christians to put on many of the same virtues. In 2 Peter 1:5-8 Peter tells his readers to add to their faith some of the same characteristics that are called the Fruit of the Spirit.
It’s important to know what the Fruit of the Spirit is and to diligently work to make it part of our Christian life. We don’t get to spiritual maturity by pursuing our own interests. We need to yield our lives to the Spirit’s leading by means of the Bible (Romans 8:14; Galatians 5:18). Our Christian life is always a combination of the work of the Spirit of God in originating fruit and the cooperation of our will.
John 14:15-17
If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever – the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
John 14:26
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
When God, the Holy Spirit, gives us His fruit in ever increasing measure, I don’t believe He just zaps us with a little fruit basket because we mentally agree with yielding to the Holy Spirit, were good last week and read our Bibles a bit more than usual. I believe God puts us into situations where we need to have love or joy or peace or patience and then, after going through many situations not using the Fruit of the Spirit, we slowly, even sometimes reluctantly, come to the realization that it is actually in our own best interest to live our lives with that basket of fruit . . . full and overflowing.
Us coming to the knowledge that God is, once again and always, correct in these matters is a very important lesson for us to learn.
The Spirit’s fruit needs time to grow. It will not grow like Jack’s beanstalk. Our old sin nature works to choke out the work of the Spirit.
The Holy Spirit gives us the power we need to resist and ultimately reject those old sinful desires. We can say “no” to sin and accept the way God provides (1 Corinthians 10:13) by following the Holy Spirit’s leading.
As we give the Spirit more control of our lives, He begins to do in and through us what only He can do – to shape us and grow us to look more like Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:17-18).
As difficult as growing fully ripened Fruit of the Spirit is (nigh impossible), the actual task at hand is absolutely impossible. In Jesus’ words, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Since God’s goal for all His children is for us to be like Jesus (Romans 8:29), the Holy Spirit constantly works to rid our lives of the “acts of the sinful nature” (Gal 5:19) and to display His fruit instead. The presence of the Fruit of the Spirit is evidence that our character is becoming more like Christ’s.
The Fruit of the Spirit works to rid our lives of the works of flesh.
Galations 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
God’s Orchard
Our world is an orchard God planted and grows,
With deep, dark, rich soil and water that flows.
We are His trees, all growing in God’s fields,
And each is unique with different yields.
God gave us His Spirit to show us the way
To grow fruit for Him, each and every day.
This isn’t just for you, it’s also for me,
So I have to ask, what’s growing on our trees?
The foremost of God’s fruit is agapé love.
Love God, and our neighbors: His gift from above.
Love the Lord with all our heart, mind and soul,
And love our neighbors – those must be our goals.
Joy is the fruit to make our poor hearts glad.
God plan is our happiness, not to be sad.
Believing in Him, inexpressible joy,
Now and forever, His presence to enjoy.
Peace, God’s peace, a harmony of mind,
A fruit to be treasured for all of time.
Let the peace of Christ rule in our heart
And our fears and worries will all depart.
Patience we show when we wait on the Lord;
Waiting and trusting are special rewards.
Goals, plans and steps are all made by man,
But all will be done by God’s perfect plan.
Kindness to others, as shown through our life,
Is our protection from discord and strife.
For just as God gave His kindness to us,
We can give others our kindness plus.
Goodness is uprightness of life and heart,
One of the things setting Christians apart.
The world might call it having a good name,
But we credit God, from Whom goodness came.
Faithfulness leads to God’s blessings, it’s true,
A faithful servant, the best we can do.
For Jesus was faithful, in life and death,
There, on the cross, to His very last breath.
Gentleness and meekness should grow on our tree,
As we walk with our God in humility.
Though we crave honors, it must be reversed.
Forever in God’s eyes, the last will be first.
Self-control will keep us on God’s path,
Not seeking the world and incurring His wrath.
The Kingdom of God is not worldly pleasure,
But righteousness, peace and joy in good measure.
Hate, anger, impatience, cruelty and strife
Are what the world chains to us in life.
Wickedness, betrayal, wantonness, and pride
Will be bound to us, so we must decide.
Will we live life for God, for all of our days,
Praising and thanking and walking in His ways?
It is for freedom that Christ set us free,
Let’s search our hearts now, what’s growing on my tree?
Welcome to the OPEN THREAD!!!!!!!! January shall be known as “Expose the Sham in SHAMUARY!” Let the truth bombs fall. Expose the hypocrisy of the press, malinent of politicos, bureaucracy, and NGOs.
Here are a few examples:
2. For the past 3 days, the press and Dems have foamed at the mouth about curbing the President’s Power with a War Powers Resolution. They passed it. The media covered it. It means nothing. It’s toothless. All a big act for the media and to mislead the people. Besides that, most people think the War Powers Act is unconstitutional.
#3. The word of the day has been “Crossfire”, intended to mislead the public to believe a Ukrainian Airliner was shot down, with 176 dead, because of something the USA did. No.
Expose them all!!!!!!!!!!! They’re STONE COLD BUSTED!
Cuz you know what happens right?
Now for the housekeeping.
We don’t believe in political correctness at QTree. 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. Important Guidelines are outlined here in the January 1st open thread, with an addendum on 20191110. In other words, please keep it SOMEWHAT civil. We have a new board – actually a new SITE – called The U Tree – where people can take each other to the woodshed without fear of censorship or moderation. NOT HERE. This board will remain a REFUGE for those who need civility, either some or all of the time.
SPEAK THE FIVE WORDS BOLDLY TO OUR PRESIDENT!, “I AM PRAYING FOR YOU!“
And remember….. it is time to drain the swamp in DC and LOCALLY. Please make a commitment in the new year to attend a LOCAL board meeting for your town or municipality or school board. Get involved and make your presence known. Put your local officials phone numbers in your cell phone and call them once a week (or more often).
“Our movement is about replacing a failed and corrupt political establishment with a new government controlled by you, the American People.”
Candidate Donald J Trump
Also remember Wheatie’s Rules:
RSBN Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzePH6z5c2A
FOX10 Phoenix Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDE2KG0mIGw
Golden State Times Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWXPkK02j6MHW-4xCJzgMuw/featured
When you have to get home to Toledo, any excuse will do.
Corporal Klinger dreamed of Tony Packo’s corner cafe when he served in the Army in Korea but Packo’s is still there, still serving their famous pickles and peppers for hot dogs.
But this time, we get to travel with the President to Toledo, Ohio, for a MAGA/KAG Rally and seriously kick off the 2020 Presidential campaign season. Toledo has changed dramatically since the Korean War and even more since MASH ended.
Also, maybe worth considering was the dispute between Ohio and Michigan over a border area that was known as the Toledo Strip. It nearly came to war between the two states. Andrew Jackson intervened to help resolve the dispute. One outcome was that Michigan was given most of the Upper Peninsula as compensation in the settlement. (Hat tip to ItsWoot) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toledo_War
Toledo was founded in 1833, re-founded in 1837 at the conclusion of the Toledo War, but expanded rapidly when the Erie and Miami (connected Cincinnati to Lake Erie) Canals were finished. Since Toledo is located on the manufacturing beltway between Chicago and New York, the glass manufacturers arrived in 1880’s and Toledo’s nickname became “Glass City”. To this day, Owens Corning and Libby Glass are still big employers in Toledo.
The Great Depression hit hard in Toledo and many WPA projects were completed at the time, an amphitheater, aquarium, zoo, and Museum of Art. In the 80’s, the downtown of Toledo was in recession/depression as the suburbs grew. Yet, recent hockey rinks and ballparks have brought people back to the downtown area.
The population of Toledo as of the 2010 Census was 287,128 making it the 71st-largest city in the United States. The 2018 population estimate is 274,975. Population is going down in Toledo. It hit a high in 1970 of 383,818, shrunk by 1/3 since the onset of NAFTA. Amazing what the destruction of manufacturing can do to a city. Housing and rents are inexpensive in Toledo and many old gems still exist.
Outstanding Statistic for Toledo is their location. Toledo is within 250 miles of 7 metro areas – each of them containing greater than a 2 million population, Detroit, Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, and Chicago. It makes Toledo a perfect business location.
The Toledo economy is bustling and picking up in a Trump economy. Look at the top 40 places to work, GM, Solar, Libby, Grain Elevators and AgriBusiness, Dana Manf, Owens Corning, Healthcare, Banking, etc. https://topworkplaces.com/publication/toledoblade/
Toledo has a perfect port location on west end of Lake Erie, just south of Detroit. The town is split by the Maumee River and ideally located for shipping and transport logistics.
Michael, our dearest QTreeper usually in charge of food for our MAGA Rally threads is going to have a good time in Toledo. This is a town which has a rare mix of outstanding Mediterranean to Hungarian food + the best hot dogs in the world + an overabundance of local breweries + the normal Chinese/Japanese/Mexican/SteakHouse etc. It’s a food-gasm in Toledo.
Ahhhh, would give anything to spend the afternoon with this guy in his bakery, learning how to make ciabattas and meat pies. LOOK at those pans!!!!!
The hot dogs/Polish sausages are legendary in Toledo. Rudy’s, Central Hot Dog, and Tony Packo’s are the local haunts. Even Obama made it to Rudy’s for a hot dog, so President Trump would probably go to Tony Packo’s.
That said, the Trump Supporters are gearing up for Toledo!!!!!!!!
And courtesy of Cuppa, we have John Denver, singing about Toledo, Ohio.
This one is pretty, a holiday tune about Toledo. Beautiful voice.
Apparently, in about an hour, the President will address the nation about the Iranian attacks on our bases last night. Transcript is located below.
Here is the live link from FOX 10 in Phoenix.
Golden State Times Link:
Going to be a busy day, folks. QTree will add info as it becomes available. God Bless our Troops and love to all.
Golden State Times does not have a live feed link up for the President’s Address. Yet, here is his presser from yesterday with the Greek PM.
Remember, there is a MAGA/KAG rally in Toledo, Ohio tomorrow.
Transcript:
THE PRESIDENT: As long as I am President of the United States, Iran will never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.
Good morning. I’m pleased to inform you: The American people should be extremely grateful and happy no Americans were harmed in last night’s attack by the Iranian regime. We suffered no casualties, all of our soldiers are safe, and only minimal damage was sustained at our military bases.
Our great American forces are prepared for anything. Iran appears to be standing down, which is a good thing for all parties concerned and a very good thing for the world.
No American or Iraqi lives were lost because of the precautions taken, the dispersal of forces, and an early warning system that worked very well. I salute the incredible skill and courage of America’s men and women in uniform.
For far too long — all the way back to 1979, to be exact — nations have tolerated Iran’s destructive and destabilizing behavior in the Middle East and beyond. Those days are over. Iran has been the leading sponsor of terrorism, and their pursuit of nuclear weapons threatens the civilized world. We will never let that happen.
Last week, we took decisive action to stop a ruthless terrorist from threatening American lives. At my direction, the United States military eliminated the world’s top terrorist, Qasem Soleimani. As the head of the Quds Force, Soleimani was personally responsible for some of the absolutely worst atrocities.
He trained terrorist armies, including Hezbollah, launching terrorist strikes against civilian targets. He fueled bloody civil wars all across the region. He viciously wounded and murdered thousands of U.S. troops, including the planting of roadside bombs that maim and dismember their victims.
Soleimani directed the recent attacks on U.S. personnel in Iraq that badly wounded four service members and killed one American, and he orchestrated the violent assault on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. In recent days, he was planning new attacks on American targets, but we stopped him.
Soleimani’s hands were drenched in both American and Iranian blood. He should have been terminated long ago. By removing Soleimani, we have sent a powerful message to terrorists: If you value your own life, you will not threaten the lives of our people.
As we continue to evaluate options in response to Iranian aggression, the United States will immediately impose additional punishing economic sanctions on the Iranian regime. These powerful sanctions will remain until Iran changes its behavior.
In recent months alone, Iran has seized ships in international waters, fired an unprovoked strike on Saudi Arabia, and shot down two U.S. drones.
Iran’s hostilities substantially increased after the foolish Iran nuclear deal was signed in 2013, and they were given $150 billion, not to mention $1.8 billion in cash. Instead of saying “thank you” to the United States, they chanted “death to America.” In fact, they chanted “death to America” the day the agreement was signed.
Then, Iran went on a terror spree, funded by the money from the deal, and created hell in Yemen, Syria, Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Iraq. The missiles fired last night at us and our allies were paid for with the funds made available by the last administration. The regime also greatly tightened the reins on their own country, even recently killing 1,500 people at the many protests that are taking place all throughout Iran.
The very defective JCPOA expires shortly anyway, and gives Iran a clear and quick path to nuclear breakout. Iran must abandon its nuclear ambitions and end its support for terrorism. The time has come for the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia, and China to recognize this reality.
They must now break away from the remnants of the Iran deal -– or JCPOA –- and we must all work together toward making a deal with Iran that makes the world a safer and more peaceful place. We must also make a deal that allows Iran to thrive and prosper, and take advantage of its enormous untapped potential. Iran can be a great country.
Peace and stability cannot prevail in the Middle East as long as Iran continues to foment violence, unrest, hatred, and war. The civilized world must send a clear and unified message to the Iranian regime: Your campaign of terror, murder, mayhem will not be tolerated any longer. It will not be allowed to go forward.
Today, I am going to ask NATO to become much more involved in the Middle East process. Over the last three years, under my leadership, our economy is stronger than ever before and America has achieved energy independence. These historic accomplishments changed our strategic priorities. These are accomplishments that nobody thought were possible. And options in the Middle East became available. We are now the number-one producer of oil and natural gas anywhere in the world. We are independent, and we do not need Middle East oil.
The American military has been completely rebuilt under my administration, at a cost of $2.5 trillion. U.S. Armed Forces are stronger than ever before. Our missiles are big, powerful, accurate, lethal, and fast. Under construction are many hypersonic missiles.
The fact that we have this great military and equipment, however, does not mean we have to use it. We do not want to use it. American strength, both military and economic, is the best deterrent.
Three months ago, after destroying 100 percent of ISIS and its territorial caliphate, we killed the savage leader of ISIS, al-Baghdadi, who was responsible for so much death, including the mass beheadings of Christians, Muslims, and all who stood in his way. He was a monster. Al-Baghdadi was trying again to rebuild the ISIS caliphate, and failed.
Tens of thousands of ISIS fighters have been killed or captured during my administration. ISIS is a natural enemy of Iran. The destruction of ISIS is good for Iran, and we should work together on this and other shared priorities.
Finally, to the people and leaders of Iran: We want you to have a future and a great future — one that you deserve, one of prosperity at home, and harmony with the nations of the world. The United States is ready to embrace peace with all who seek it.
I want to thank you, and God bless America. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you.
Yesterday, we did a rehash of ME history highlighting major events over the last 30+ years. We’re trying to get an objective view of what happened, what we did, where we screwed up, and what we could have done differently through various administrations. It was time for a reassessment. Not sure if anyone accurately explained the Obama Doctrine of “appeasement” of Iran. Did you get that message? Could any of us passed a test on Obama Doctrine in the Middle East? Well, Robert Malley knew what it was, he wrote it.
Wait until you see what we found today.
The JCPOA ensured a path to nuclear weapons for Iran. Bottom line, we knew some things would never work and Iran should never have a nuclear weapon, which is why Trump ripped up the JCPOA.
But what to do? Once Team Trump decided to identify Iran as an enemy, act like Iran is an enemy, and TREAT Iran as an enemy, and actually act like our military was a REAL military, we thought we were in the clear, right? Sure, we wanted to get rid of ISIS, get out of Syria and Afghanistan, and we’re working on it. Yes, the QUDS forces killed some of ISIS because ISIS was also in Iran’s way. Yet, Team Trump had everyone heading in the same direction, clearly defined good guys and bad guys. Sounds easy, right?
Iran = the bad guys.
At the end of yesterday’s post, we talked a little bit about “The Crisis Group”. They bugged me, like a snake lurking in the weeds. Made me want to throw a yellow caution flag. Robert Malley is the CEO, head of the Crisis Group. This is the internal enemy, the behind the scenes opposition. It’s the people who are too narcissistic to admit failure and would rather drive the world off a cliff than admit they were wrong. It’s leftover Obama Administration fellows who are clogging up the works.
Keep in mind, I’m a mere bumbling middle-aged lady in a flyover state who makes blueberry muffins. I’m no one special, but I stumbled across Robert Malley yesterday and lil’ ole me stopped on a dime.
Thus, when I woke up this morning and saw a reposted article from Tony Badran on Robert Malley in Tablet, I started looking over my shoulder. Pretty weird, eh? Imagine my surprise. How is it possible we can all be thinking about the same thing? The same person/group? At roughly the same time? And if I can see the problem “from my kitchen window”, why is everyone in the chattering inter-agency assessment community so damn blind? Or, more likely, intentionally avoiding the conversation?
Again, here is the link to the Crisis Group. It’s an NGO, receive funds from grants (read as US Taxpayer dollars), various countries, and private donations. It’s a who’s who of progressives and similar to the Atlantic Council. In the case of Crisis Group, their goal is to push favor towards Iran, whereas Atlantic Council’s goal is to do anything to oppose Russia. It’s a nest of vipers, former high ranking officials with media execs to push a narrative anywhere on the planet they wish. Take a look at the Board of Directors. https://www.crisisgroup.org/who-we-are/board
Robert Malley was born in ’63, served in the National Security Council under Obama from ’14- January of 2017. He’s a “global conflicts resolution” lawyer/specialist and immediately flew the coup when Trump was inaugurated, returning to the Crisis Group. He went to Yale/Oxford/Harvard. Gee whiz, he must be really smart. But note his resume, Malley worked at Crisis Group BEFORE he went into the NSC under Obama. AND the Crisis Group has been pro-Iran since the 90’s. Why was Malley picked for the NSC during the JCPOA negotiations? Interesting choice. Cue the suspicious cat or dog…..
From his Wikipedia bio, obviously carefully curated, “Malley is considered an expert on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and has written extensively on this subject advocating rapprochement with Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood.”
And then we find the golden nugget: “In 2015, the Obama administration appointed Rob Malley as its “point man” on the Middle East, leading the Middle East desk of the National Security Council.[4] In November 2015, Malley was named as President Obama’s new special ISIS advisor.[5] “
Malley was the Obama point man for ISIS? What? Have any of you guys ever seen Malley’s picture before today? So, when James Foley was beheaded, it would have been a “policy failure” by Malley? When the Jordanian pilot was burned alive in a cage, would that have been another policy mistake by Malley? How about the Yazidi women/children sold as sex slaves? Don’t tell me that was approved policy. Or the million + immigrants into Europe?
Why haven’t we done a thorough probe of Malley? He’s at the center with blood on his hands…… and he LOVED the Muslim Brotherhood. In researching this piece, several experts have described the “Arab Spring” as the Muslim Brotherhood’s coming out party, as opposed to independent citizens who wanted to throw off old and repressive dictators. Interesting…..
Then we get to the history of Robert Malley. Check his Wiki Bio, he could have been Obama’s brother. His mother — “worked for the United Nations delegation of the Algerian National Liberation Front (FNL), and her husband, Simon Malley (1923–2006), an Egyptian-born Jewish journalist who grew up in Egypt and worked as a foreign correspondent for Al Gomhuria. A communist sympathizer, the elder Malley spent time in New York, writing about international affairs, particularly about nationalist, anti-imperial movements in Africa.
It gets better. I’m the same age as Malley. When my dad moved me to Chicago in ’69 to build skyscrapers and roll around in American Capitalism, Malley’s father moved him to France to open a leftist magazine called Africasia. Malley’s dad, Simon Malley, was so far left, he was thrown out of France in 1980 when “then French president Valéry Giscard d’Estaing briefly expelled Simon Malley from the country to New York, due to his hostility towards the Western world and Israel.[6] “
What????? Malley’s dad was too far left for France…….. so New York state took him?
Naturally, young Robert Malley went to Yale, then Oxford for a PhD in political philosophy (just like Chelsea Clinton), and he wrote about “third worldism” and the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Yet, Malley was so smart, he decided to pick up a JD at Harvard……… where his classmate was one……… Barack Obama……. What are the chances?
Why didn’t we see that one coming?
See this picture below? Robert Malley is at the end, on the left. Followed by the short humpty-dumpty Napoleon guy, next to John Kerry…… who consistently meddles in the ME subverting President Trump’s policies. At the end is the white-haired Cruella deVille – Wendy Sherman, the latest star pundit at MSNBC. She’s the one who screwed up DPRK in the 90s, giving North Korea nuclear weapons during the Clinton Administration. These are the people who have been wrong for decades.
THIS is the JCPOA negotiating team.
But let’s get into the Badran article from Tablet which beautifully explains the problem. Here is the link to the full article. https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/293996/malley-in-wonderland
The Tony Badran article begins by discussing another article written by Malley for Foreign Affairs (( https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/middle-east/2019-10-02/unwanted-wars?spJobID=1740145950&spMailingID=60564848&spReportId=MTc0MDE0NTk1MAS2&spUserID=MTk4Mzk3MjU2NjEzS0&sp_mid=60564848&sp_rid=bmlycm9zZW5AZ21haWwuY29tS0&utm_campaign=unwanted_wars&utm_medium=newsletters&utm_source=pre_release%252520 ))) . Save yourself the time. I read Malley’s original article and I wanted to throw tomatoes at him. His arrogance is inescapable. This is the kind of guy who is so caught up in personal pride, he would be easily compromised by two Vegas hookers in about 30 minutes. Suddenly Epstein’s modus operandi is making a lot of sense to me. Robert Malley is a deeply ideological communist and he does not like the USA and he hates Israel. His logic is flawed and he is a dangerous man.
Yet, the Malley essay is a lackluster defense of Obama’s foreign policy. Malley seems depressed, desperate, wildly partisan, as Obama’s legacy of the JCPOA is in tatters. Malley insists the only way forward for us all, for us to save the WORLD, is more diplomacy and negotiation……. the kind of stuff only smart guys like Malley can do.
And the folks in the agencies take their cues from Malley, as he was Obama’s right hand in the Middle East. It was Malley’s push which netted the recent block on more weapons to Saudi for the Yemen war.
No, there is another option, brought forth by President Trump. Treat Iran like an enemy and hit them over the head. Thugs respect strength and sometimes you need a bigger StrongMan with a bigger gun. Establish a deterrent, a consequence for their actions…. like the death of Soleimani. Iran has been unchecked for a decade.
Clearly, Malley wants to run away from the Middle East, “avoid the tinderbox” and blame allies like Saudi and Israel. He describes Saudi’s war with Yemen as “reckless”, and shames Israel for actions in Lebanon and Syria. “How dare they object to Iranian presence”, seems to be the mantra. Funny, I had a salesman in Yemen when the Houthis started the war with Saudi. His brother was the manager of the port. The Saudis didn’t start anything. Iran funded the Houthis to bug Saudi at their southern border. And somehow Israel should stand down while Iran runs Hezbollah, Hamas, and Syria? Nah…… I can’t see the Jewish people ignoring all the rockets…. suicide bombers…. burning crops… you know…. terrorists.
It’s true though, the strategy from Obama/Malley was to strengthen Iran in order to balance the power of Israel and Saudi. Strike a balance for peace and harmony in the region (I’m looking for white doves to be released and the seas to be parted by Obama). In effect, the Obama Admin sided with Iran, against our allies……. for some “greater good”…. according to smart guys from Yale/Harvard/Oxford.
In other words, if our allies are strong, then America should seek to weaken them until “balance” is achieved, which will help bring about more “peace.” If Iran were stronger, and Israel and Saudi Arabia were weaker, then peace would therefore be more likely. American policy, in the present moment at least, should therefore be to strengthen Iran at the expense of Israel and the Saudis.
Indeed, this odd syllogism, which anchors the essay, is hardly Malley’s own; it simply reiterates Obama’s core vision for the region. The goal of achieving “balance” in America’s posture in the Middle East is how Obama presented his strategy of realigning American interests with Iran. For Obama, it was not in America’s interest to lead a regional alliance system which stands in opposition to Iran, and which therefore threatens to move the U.S. closer to war. Rebalancing away from traditional allies means moving closer to Iran, and away from the security architecture in which America had formerly been invested.
https://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/293996/malley-in-wonderland
Gobsmacked. We had suspicions Obama was a sell-out to Iran but here it is in black and white. My poor little flyover state brain can’t handle it, but here it is. Common knowledge amongst the bureaucracy.
How did it happen? Who thought it was a good idea to turn Iran loose and throw Israel and Saudi under the bus? Guess that explains why Obama left Netanyahu waiting, cooling his heels for over an hour, outside the Oval Office. Yet, it’s clear, that was Obama’s policy and Malley was merely aligned in thinking. Such a reversal was dramatic, however, what caused it? Because make no mistake, the policy was malicious and intentional.
Answer can be found in the rejection of Bush policy, nation building, endless war, and the utter disaster of Iraq and Afghanistan. Elections have consequences and the Obama team seized the opportunity. Reading further in the article, when the Obama admin came in, they reassessed and took an opposite approach = hands off Iran. Let Iran and Saudi share the region. Coddle Iran to the detriment of Saudi and especially Israel.
Both Malley and Badran freely admit the “interagency consensus” is now tilted against Israel and Saudi and loyal to Obama policy = cozy up to Iran. Well, that explains why they had such a fit when Khashoggi was killed. It also explains why they had a fit when Trump visited Saudi Arabia for his first foreign visit. And why the Deep State thinks Trump is dumb……… because he does not agree with “them”.
“I think there was a comfort with a United States that was comfortable with an existing order and the existing alignments, and was an implacable foe of Iran,” Obama said in 2014, referring to Gulf Arab states. “What I’ve been saying to our partners in the region is, ‘We’ve got to respond and adapt to change.’”
In other words, it was Obama’s “new normal” for the Middle East.
Malley was/is far more concerned about Sunni tribal divisions than the problem of Iran and points again to MBS killing of Khashoggi, isolating Qatar, war in Yemen, and the “kidnapping of Lebanon’s foreign minister” (he was stopped at the border to save his life – Saudi learned about the assassination plot)….. which also explains the extended stay at the Ritz Carlton for the Saudi Princes.
Malley and his disciples are sprinkled through the Dem candidates running for President and their influence is real. Malley prefers Bernie Sanders the fellow communist sympathizer, personally, but there are other members of the team interspersed in Butteigeg and Warren campaigns as well as others. Malley thinks if President Trump is a one term President, the old Obama policy will “snap back” (which is why Kerry is running around the middle east) and Iran will again be in good graces, with Israel and Saudi on the outs.
And not only that: What is perhaps more surprising, and more significant, about Malley’s essay is the extent to which it serves as a blueprint for understanding the larger foreign policy consensus in Washington—one that is embraced by both Democrats and Republicans, whether wittingly or not.
As an architect of the Obama administration’s highly deliberate and disciplined Middle East policy, and as a representative of the new Democratic Party foreign policy elite, Malley’s thoughts are worth studying carefully.
Other articles in my research for this article mention Malley over and over again as a possible National Security Advisor for a Dem Administration if they win in November.
Get your head around the idea.
Official Dem policy is to embrace Iran.
In 2020, vote like your life depends on it.
