If there was a five-click dial available as a severity meter between the U.S. and China, something happened internally in Beijing, over the last 72 hours, because that dial just triggered movement from 3 to 4… Keep watching everything in the world of geopolitics with a mental 360° radar sweep looking for Chinese influence/interests.

Nuance and subtlety is everything in China. Culturally harsh tones are seen as a sign of weakness and considered intensely impolite in public displays between officials; especially within approved and released statements by officials representing the government.
Therefore, when we see China publicly use strong language – it indicates a level of internal disposition beyond the defined western angst. Big Panda becomes Red Dragon; there is no mid-status or evolutionary phase.

SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s state media on Monday lashed out at the policies of U.S. President Donald Trump in an usually direct attack, accusing him of “starring in his own carefully orchestrated street fighter-style deceitful drama”.
Trump’s wish for others to play along with his drama is “wishful thinking,” the ruling Communist Party’s People’s Daily newspaper said in an editorial.

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Watch out Iraqi peoplekind.  You can go ahead and cancel that jihad thing…  Chrystia and Justin are in charge now:

(Tweet Link)

Booyah.  Feel the fear…

If you haven’t followed the entirety of how the “Freedom Alliance” was assembled in the very early months shortly after the election of President Donald Trump, it’s hard to understand the scope of what is taking place in the middle-east.
The nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), led by Saudi Arabia, are on the cusp of transforming themselves into a modern and engaged era. The goals of the GCC allies, led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) are to remove the influence agents who have supported extremism, the Muslim Brotherhood, and stimulated and/or enabled crisis for personal and ideological gains.
Because of the financial reach within the parties involved, the downstream consequences are being felt within the political bodies of most nations including our own. Specifically within Washington DC’s deep-state institutions, career politicians on foreign affairs committees, and within the upper and lower tiers of the aggregate U.S. State Dept.  A great realignment is taking place.

Caption: There will come a time when you will need to choose a side. Think wisely…

French President Emmanuel Macron said today he will make an unexpected trip to Saudi Arabia after leaving the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to see Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and discuss crises in Lebanon, Yemen and the wider region.  This happens simultaneous to the UAE announcing they too are examining bank accounts for their own officials, officers and leaders within their nation.

DUBAI (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron is making a previously unscheduled trip to Saudi Arabia on Thursday to see Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid rising tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, notably over Lebanon and Yemen.

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Personally I hold a slow burning fuse…. As a general disposition I also find no value in cussing.  However, there are times in the course of current events when a person steps forth that is so arrogant, so condescending, and reflects behavior that is so self-serving, so genuinely and painfully a fraud of the highest order; that there’s just not enough tongue to bite.  Fuck George Bush – both of them.

The former presidents have penned a book waxing philosophically about their losing control of the republican party.  In the title of the book they have the audacity to call themselves “The Last Republicans”. :::gag:::
Within their high-minded views of their own importance, i.e. as gatekeepers of things righteous within the body politic, they can’t even see their pontificating elitism and how that condescending arrogance destroyed a cherished part of our nation; our middle-class.  CONSIDER:

NEWSWEEK – Both former President Bushes had choice words for current President Donald Trump in a new book scheduled to be published later this month, with the elder Bush reportedly calling the billionaire commander-in-chief a “blowhard” and flatly stating he does not “like” him.

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Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears with Mari Bartiromo to discuss the Iranian nuclear agreement and specifically President Trump’s call for revised security terms.
For those who travel through the deep geopolitical grass, this interview is particularly important as Netanyahu outlines the ‘why now’ aspect.  Note specifically how the Prime Minister frames the economic leverage strategy we have discussed –Backstory Here– and how the regional allies President Trump has assembled are all in concert with the larger objectives.  It’s actually a little surprising to see Netanyahu ‘out’ the Big picture.

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In the background, and as a direct counter to how President Trump is using the Trump Doctrine of economic leverage, you will note that China, Russia, Iran and other state adversaries are creating a financial network to avoid their exposure to U.S. trade currency leverage.  Their strategic action is what’s driving up the value of crypto-currencies like Bitcoin as tools to avoid Trump’s leverage and Secretary Mnuchin’s aligned economic policy influence.
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Just because western media doesn’t understand how President Trump executes a geopolitical strategy based on economic leverage, that doesn’t mean adversaries are not fully aware of the effectiveness of the approach.
The Trump Doctrine has two avenues toward dealing with national security adversaries.
The first route is direct assignment of responsibility toward the enablers: see China for North Korea; The Gulf States for Qatar (Sunni extremism); Russia for Syrian terrorism (Assad); and Pakistan for Afghanistan (Taliban); as recent examples.

However, when the geopolitical threat stems directly from the enabler, and not the enabled, the Trump Doctrine has a distinctly different and far more encompassing, approach.  Route two goes through leveraging regional allies and partners: See ASEAN and India for ¹China; and France, Poland, Baltic States for ²Russia.  And now President Trump is beginning to shift toward ³Iran.
In each case: China, Russia and Iran, unlike Western media, these powers assemble volumes of research to assist them in understanding the most likely sequence of events President Trump will take.
When we say volumes of research, we indeed mean hundreds of people researching and drafting position documents based upon every scintilla of every deal Donald J Trump has engaged in.  No expenses are spared as these state actors assemble information toward their own strategy to counter the most unpredictable adversary they have faced.
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On August 22nd, 2017, President Trump began a very familiar process toward Pakistan within the foreign policy approach known as the “Trump Doctine”: the accurate ownership of responsibility by honestly calling out the historic nature of the relationship.
The approach toward the Taliban through the enablers in Pakistan followed an identical pattern: ♦noted in the Muslim Brotherhood’s enabling via Qatar; ♦noted in Assad’s enabling via Russia; ♦noted in North Korea’s enabling via China.
In each example President Trump positions his chosen policy leverage toward the enabler, toward the root cause, and not direct confrontation with the symptom.  The results from this approach are quite remarkable.
Well, today:

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At times Alan Dershowitz can express insufferable political opinions that can make blood pressure cuffs explode.  At other times, on the libertarian side of liberty principles, Dershowitz becomes an ally against the insufferable overbearing administrative state. He’s an odd duck, but carries a quacker worth hearing.
In this segment, the subject matter is well outlined. However, that said, along with every single person in media and punditry, Dershowitz is not connecting President Trump action to the economics of the Trump foreign policy doctrine.

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If people would spend more time studying DJT they’d see the foreign policy strategy of President Trump clear as day. POTUS Trump surrounds himself, optically and vocally, with the overwhelming appearance of military solution providers. This is not accidental; it is entirely by design.
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Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani delivered remarks today at the U.N. discussing the difference between U.S. President Donald Trump’s current strategy and the failed policy of former President Obama.
Two key differences underline the optimism of Ghani: #1) President Trump listened to what the region needed for stability; and #2) The Trump Doctrine of appropriately placing responsibility on Pakistan due to their enabling conduct with the extremist Taliban.

(Reuters) – Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Wednesday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s strategy to win the war in Afghanistan will work where his predecessor’s failed because the Afghan army is stronger and Trump wants a regional approach and a harder line with Pakistan.
Ghani also said that former President Barack Obama “did not have a partner in Afghanistan,” implicitly criticizing former Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who frequently disdained U.S. policy and the U.S.-led international military force.

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President Donald Trump –  “Thank you very much. Thank you. Please be seated. Vice president Pence, Secretary of State Tillerson, members of the cabinet, General Dunford, Deputy Secretary Shanahan, and Colonel Duggan. Most especially, thank you to the men and women of Fort Meyer and every member of the United States military at home and abroad. We send our thoughts and prayers to the families of our brave sailors who were injured and lost after a tragic collision at sea as well as to those conducting the search and recovery efforts.
“I am here tonight to lay out our path forward in Afghanistan and South Asia. But before I provide the details of our new strategy, I want to say a few words to the service members here with us tonight. To those watching from their posts, and to all Americans listening at home. Since the founding of our republic, our country has produced a special class of heroes whose selflessness, courage, and resolve is unmatched in human history.
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