Day: June 22, 2022

Canada to spend billions on NORAD so US can rule world

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

The Liberals are intent on funneling ever more of our collective resources to bolster the US Empire, spending lavishly to “modernize” Canada’s chief bi-national military accord.

On Monday Defence Minister Anita Anand announced the government would spend $4.9 billion to upgrade the North American Aerospace Defense Command. The federal government said it will devote $40 billion to NORAD over 20 years, but it may be far more than that noted David Pugliese in a story headlined: “Cost to modernize NORAD set at $40 billion, but will final tally be higher?”

Canada to spend billions on NORAD so US can rule world

Biden officials worry their Russia sanctions were so powerful they also brought economic suffering to the US, report says

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

Corporate ‘Self-Sanctioning’ of Russia Has US Fearing Economic Blowback

But some Biden administration officials are now privately expressing concern that rather than dissuading the Kremlin as intended, the penalties are instead exacerbating inflation, worsening food insecurity and punishing ordinary Russians [they don’t care about the people, the true purpose of sanctions is to encourage people to overthrow their leader] more than Putin or his allies.

…

When the invasion [special military operation] began, the Biden administration believed that if penalties exempted food and energy [what exemptions?!], the impact on inflation at home would be minimal. Since then, energy and food have become key drivers of the highest US inflation rates in 40 years, a huge political liability for President Joe Biden and the Democratic party heading into November’s mid-term elections [they only care about winning the midterms].

…

There’s no sign that administration officials feel their sanctions policy was a mistake or that they want to dial back the pressure. If anything, officials have said a key US goal is to ensure Russia can’t do to other nations what it has done in Ukraine [then tell Puppet Zelensky to negotiate instead of flooding Ukraine with weapons!!].

…

The Biden administration rejects [denies] any suggestion that sanctions are part of the problem, emphasizing that the US isn’t penalizing humanitarian goods or food, and putting [shifting] the blame on Putin’s decision to attack Ukraine, including by targeting shipping on the Black Sea [which is blocked with mines].

…

About 1,000 companies have so far announced that they are curtailing operations in Russia, according to data collected by the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute. That underscores one reason sanctions are so popular with policy makers: They essentially outsource US policy to the private sector [intentional and/or just being lazy?!], which makes it less surgical, less calibrated and less responsive to policy changes, said Smith, the former OFAC adviser.

This becomes important as all sides seek an end to the war [no, they don’t]. The lifting of sanctions can be dangled as an incentive to help bring about a diplomatic resolution to the conflict. But right now it’s hard even to offer that as a potential benefit of entering into negotiations because much of the pullout by American businesses has been self-inflicted [they screwed themselves]. Companies could face public blowback if they are seen as rushing back into the Russian market.

Headline stolen from:

Biden officials worry their Russia sanctions were so powerful they also brought economic suffering to the US, report says

Trump swindles the deplorables

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

As much as I’m enjoying the January 6th committee’s careful assembly of evidence proving former President Trump is a [douchebag]. I wasn’t seeing much in the way of a criminal offense until this week’s underreported story about how Trump used his “STOP THE STEAL” fundraising appeals to grift his supporters out of $250 million, none of which was, in fact, used to fight election fraud.

Ann Coulter: Trump swindles the deplorables

Related:

Trump’s $250 million grift: Calling Attorney General Leslie Rutledge to enforce Deceptive Trade Practices Act:

But there was also this, from the New York Times account, which bears closer scrutiny:

Investigators went further on Monday, detailing how the Trump campaign and its Republican allies used claims of a rigged election that they knew were false to mislead small donors and raise as much as $250 million for an entity they called the Official Election Defense Fund, which top campaign aides testified never existed.

“Not only was there the big lie,” said Representative Zoe Lofgren, a California Democrat who played a key role in the hearing, “there was the big rip-off.”

Money ostensibly raised to “stop the steal” instead went to Mr. Trump and his allies, including, the investigation found, $1 million for a charitable foundation run by Mark Meadows, his chief of staff; $1 million to a political group run by several of his former staff members, including Stephen Miller, the architect of Mr. Trump’s immigration agenda; more than $200,000 to Trump hotels; and $5 million to Event Strategies Inc., which ran the Jan. 6 rally that preceded the Capitol riot.

Aides said Kimberly Guilfoyle, the girlfriend of Mr. Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr., was paid $60,000 to speak at that event, a speech that lasted less than three minutes.

“It is clear that he intentionally misled his donors, asked them to donate to a fund that didn’t exist and used the money raised for something other than what he said,” Ms. Lofgren said of Mr. Trump.