Quick NAFTA Update…

Yesterday U.S. Trade Represenative Robert Lighthizer and Mexico’s Minister Ildefonso Guajardo met in Washington DC for a bilateral discussion. Likely one of the key avenues for Lighthizer to explore surrounded the upcoming election of a hardline Marxist in Mexico and how Guajardo views the impact to Mexican policy therein.

At this point it’s virtually guaranteed that Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will win the election – I would VERY strongly bet on that outcome (likelihood 85%).  That puts a Hugo Chavez type ideologue, and the attached economic policies, at our southern border. [Pro-Tip: prepare your business affairs accordingly now, and avoid the chaos later]

Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland arrived in Washington DC today to join Lighthizer and Guajardo and expand the informal discussion toward a trilateral trade discussion.

Thankfully Lighthizer is on his home turf because he’s now surrounded by left-wing globalist advocates from Mexico, Canada and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce via Tom Donohue.

There was some media talk, and a hint from Trump’s NEC Chairman Larry Kudlow yesterday, about the U.S. strongly wanting to have an agreement on principle utilizing the cornerstone of the Auto-Sector as a building block.

However, I cannot caution strongly enough that NEC Chairman Larry Kudlow is in love with NAFTA and POTUS Trump is not.  So filter Kudlow’s optimistic glee against his trade worship with NAFTA.

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It’s Complicated – Chairman Devin Nunes Demand Letter to FBI Director Wray and AAG Rosenstein…

It was noted –and reported– yesterday that House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes sent a letter (full pdf below) to FBI Director Christopher Wray and Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.  Nunes is demanding un-redacted FBI documents surrounding the origination of the July 2016 counterintelligence operation against candidate Donald Trump, and the FISA application stemming from within the FBI investigation.

The issue(s) surrounding the declassification of the FISA application and subsequent FISA warrant against Carter Page are not new.  The new aspect within the Nunes demand relates to a request for the intelligence community “electronic communication” (EC) that kicked off the initial FBI counterintelligence op.  Within that new line of inquiry the subject of interest is ultimately former CIA Director John Brennan.

However, there are issues here; serious issues. There are VERY valid reasons why the FBI (Wray) and DOJ (Rosenstein) would push back against HPSCI Chairman Devin Nunes.  It’s complicated, and we’ll try to unpack.

Begin by noting on page two of the Nunes request, Paragraph #3, something all media writing about the Nunes demand seem to overlook.  Screengrab below:

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Joe diGenova Goes Full Wolverine on Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein…

Alan Dershowitz and Joe diGenova appear on Sean Hannity TV show to discuss the latest revelations in the Robert Mueller ‘Muh Russia’ collusion investigation.

Against yesterday’s backdrop discovery of the secret instructions from Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, Joe diGenova goes full wolverine.

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President Trump Signs Proclamation Instructing Secretary of Defense To Bolster DHS at Southern U.S. Border…

Today President Donald Trump signed a proclamation directing the National Guard to be deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border.  Earlier today DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen explained the process:

In a memorandum to Defense Secretary Mattis, Homeland Security Secretary Nielsen and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, President Trump states the “situation at the border has now reached a point of crisis.”  The document orders the Secretary of Defense to support the Department of Homeland Security in securing the southern border to stop the flow of drugs and people.

FROM THE WHITE HOUSEWHAT: President Donald J. Trump is authorizing the deployment of the National Guard to support the Border Patrol in its mission to protect our country and stop the stream of illegal immigration.

To give our Border Patrol agents the support they deserve, President Trump is authorizing the deployment of National Guard units to the southern border to aid their mission.

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Very Important Economic Confrontation: Neil Cavuto -vs- Larry Kudlow…

Neil Cavuto is the defender of multinational Wall Street interests.  Cavuto’s boss, Rupert Murdoch has a well known insider nickname: “Mr. Wall Street”… The Murdoch operations (Fox News and Wall Street Journal among them) are ideological advocates for multinational corporations and historic globalist trade practices; to the detriment of the U.S. middle-class.  Cavuto and Murdoch are aligned with U.S. Chamber of Commerce President, Tom Donohue, in all things related to Big Multinational Trade.

In this interview there is a very apropos example of the twisted disconnect evident in the multinational corporate media perspective.  Please watch the part that begins around 04:55 and listen closely to Cavuto:

…”and we’re really seeing the effect on the folks who have to pay the bills for this sort of thing … we’re already seeing soybean prices coming down; we’re seeing pork related prices coming down … folks are taking it on the chin, what are you telling them?”… etc.

There it is.  Did you catch it?

In discussing futures Cavuto sounds the alarm for “Soybean prices coming down.”  “Pork prices coming down”; and “the folks “taking it on the chin.”

Now, think.  What Neil Cavuto is saying is that U.S. food futures prices are forecast to come down.  In that scenario who exactly is taking it on the chin?

Who is it that Neil Cavuto sees losing out in his position?  It’s not the family going to the grocery store… they will see lower prices… so who are these “folks” losing out?

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Newly Appointed NEC Chairman Larry Kudlow Talks Trade…

Replacing Gary Cohn, today is day one for Larry Kudlow to hit the airwaves as President Trump’s new Chairman of the National Economic Council.  This will be an interesting dynamic to watch.  In essence, Kudlow’s job – whether he admits it or not, is to remove the clenched grip of U.S. Chamber of Commerce President, Tom Donohue, from the republican trade and business position.

With multinational trade confrontations now taking center stage, Kudlow is going to have to slowly shift the GOPe political minds into a modern Trump-era where Main Street U.S.A. is the priority.  Wall Street needs to shift to domestic investment if they desire to remain beneficiaries.

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August 2nd, 2017 DOJ Letter From Rod Rosenstein To Special Counsel Mueller Outlining Investigative Authorization…

When reviewing new information against the backdrop of existing information it is important not to get so caught up in the weeds that you miss the obvious.  This is the important aspect to a new information release from Robert Mueller.

Overnight last night Special Counsel Robert Mueller released an attachment as part of a responsive court pleading.   The attachment was a previously unknown letter from Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to Robert Mueller outlining the specific authority of his investigative appointment.  The letter from Rosenstein to Mueller is dated August 2nd, 2017.

[scribd id=375478974 key=key-4DaehSp6U38EiB8eNVXS mode=scroll]

There are several elements to break down, and one of the best ways to review the information is to first ask “why”?

  • Question #1) Why did Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein deliver a non-public outline of investigative authority to Mueller on August 2nd, 2017?
  • Question #2) Why would Robert Mueller be seeking a signed more specific outline of his investigative authority on August 2nd, 2017; a full three months after he was assigned the role of Special Counsel?
  • Question #3) Why would Robert Mueller need to redact the content of an official outline of his investigative instructions from the Asst. Attorney General?

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Prequel – Specific Instructions From Rod Rosenstein to Robert Mueller Surface…

Overnight last night Special Counsel Robert Mueller released an attachment as part of a responsive court pleading.   The attachment was a previously unknown letter from Asst. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to Robert Mueller outlining the specific authority of his investigative appointment.  The letter from Rosenstein to Mueller is dated August 2nd, 2017.

The revelation of the content within the letter, in conjunction with the specific date of transmission to Robert Mueller, substantively changes my review of Rod Rosenstein’s 2017 motives and intents surrounding his authorization of the Special Counsel appointment.

Before getting to the Rosenstein letter to Mueller, it is important to review the origin of a specific fact that will be a key component in the next post.  To establish an important and needed time-frameSee Page 18, Item #3, second paragraph of Interim Congressional Report:

“The FBI’s conduct in relation to supplying the text messages between Strzok and Page only heightens concern about actions and intentions at the highest echelons of the FBI. The DOJ OIG obtained the initial batch of text messages on July 20, 2017.

Inspector General Horowitz gained the Page/Strzok text messages on July 20th, 2017.

[scribd id=375481287 key=key-stZBcF9s9AoCFQyY3knk mode=scroll]

 

President Trump Contemplates Use of U.S. Military at Southern Border…

I don’t know how many people are connecting the dots of President Trump’s border security proposals, and the increased urgency therein, to the upcoming -almost guaranteed- outcome of the Mexican election… but the connection is too brutally obvious to be ignored by the intellectually honest.

With a commanding -and growing- 18 point lead, it is almost a certainty our closest Southern neighbor is going to be run by a far-left Marxist ideologue, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.  It is against this backdrop, and the certain conflict with the U.S. economy, where we see a renewed sense of urgency from President Trump today:

WASHINGTON DC – President Trump on Tuesday said that the U.S. will secure the southern border with the military until a wall can be built, calling the move a “big step.”

Trump made the remarks during a meeting with Baltic leaders, where he said he had discussed the matter with Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.

“Until we can have a wall and proper security, we’re going to be guarding our border with the military,” he said. “That’s a big step, we really haven’t done that before, or certainly not very much before.”

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