Well this is troubling on many levels.  According to a responsive filing from the FISA Court (full pdf below), there wasn’t any hearing on the sketchy FISA application submitted by the DOJ/FBI to conduct FISA Title-1 surveillance on Carter Page.
Even more disturbing, according to the secret court, it is customary to just accept and review the FISA applications as presented without judicial inquiry into the content.

(link to pdf)

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch today announced that in response to a Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit, the Justice Department (DOJ) admitted in a court filing last night that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court held no hearings on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) spy warrant applications targeting Carter Page, a former Trump campaign part-time advisor who was the subject of four controversial FISA warrants.  (read more)

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Thankfully, it looks like lawful common sense has interceded…

New Mexico – The FBI on Friday announced that it has arrested all five of the New Mexico compound suspects, just days after multiple charges were dropped against those involved. The suspects were charged with violating federal firearms and conspiracy laws.

The announcement comes as local prosecutors dropped charges in the death of a 3-year-old boy at the property. Taos County District Attorney Donald Gallegos said Friday his office will now seek grand jury indictments involving the death. Gallegos said seeking indictments will allow more time to gather evidence.

“The defendants, Jany Leveille, 35, a Haitian national illegally present in the United States, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, 40, Hujrah Wahhaj, 37, Subhanah Wahhaj, 35, and Lucas Morton, 40, are charged in a criminal complaint that was filed earlier today in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico,” the bureau said in a statement.
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There’s an Associated Press report published today presenting a ridiculously slanted version of the Bruce Ohr testimony from the perspective of two leaking democrat congressional staffers who were present. However, if you fly passed the nonsense narrative engineering, and go way down in the article you might note this (emphasis mine):

[…] One of the meetings he recounted was a Washington breakfast attended by Steele, a Steele associate and Ohr. Ohr’s wife, Nellie, who worked for the political research firm, Fusion GPS, that hired Steele, attended at least part of it.
[…] That breakfast took place amid ongoing FBI concerns about Russian election interference and possible communication with Trump associates.
[…] That revelation prompted the FBI to open the counterintelligence investigation on July 31, 2016, one day after the breakfast but based on entirely different information.  (link)

Breakfast with “a Steele associate” on July 30th, 2016.
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U.S. Trade Represenative Robert Lighthizer releases a statement announcing the administration is filing a NAFTA Section 2202 trade modification “notification of intent” letter to congress:

Washington, DC – U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer today issued the following statement regarding the status of trade negotiations with Mexico and Canada:
“Today the President notified the Congress of his intent to sign a trade agreement with Mexico – and Canada, if it is willing – 90 days from now.  The agreement is the most advanced and high-standard trade agreement in the world.  Over the next few weeks, Congress and cleared advisors from civil society and the private sector will be able to examine the agreement.  They will find it has huge benefits for our workers, farmers, ranchers, and businesses.
“We have also been negotiating with Canada throughout this year-long process.  This week those meetings continued at all levels.  The talks were constructive, and we made progress.  Our officials are continuing to work toward agreement.  The USTR team will meet with Minister Freeland and her colleagues Wednesday of next week.”  (link)

Under the original 1993 terms and Chapter 22 of the Implementation Act, Lighthizer notifies congress that trade parties have modified the terms; this is the Section 2202 notification of modification. Ninety days after the date of the notification the U.S. and Mexico can sign the new terms of agreement; congressional approval is not required. [Canada can still join the U.S-Mexico agreement but they need to act fast.]
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Deploying her best cutesy high school routine at the Canadian Embassy in Washington DC, Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland gives an update on the state of trade negotiations between Canada and the United States.
The presentation is fraught with *tells* highlighting how every word is carefully selected through the prism of domestic politics. Chrystia now heads back to Canada for debriefing, discussion and poll-testing of Canadian sentiment. She will meet again with USTR Lighthizer next Wednesday with an answer as to whether or not to include Canada in the 2202 notification.

President Donald Trump makes remarks and signs the “Executive Order to Promote Retirement Security in America” at the Harris Conference Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. Anticipated Start time 3:00pm.
UPDATE: Video Added

Continual emphasis on the severity of Canadian politics is needed to understand the latest developments in the U.S-Canada trade negotiations.
The Trump administration set a deadline of today for Canada to join the U.S-Mexico trade agreement and make the NAFTA replacement agreement a three-way pact.  The concessions needed by Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland to join the agreement were politically devastating.

In order for Canada to accept or join, via a NAFTA 2202 modification, they would need to agree to the U.S-Mexico modification terms. For Canada they would have to:

• open their telecommunications and banking sector (eliminate non tariff barriers).
• eliminate soft-wood (lumber) and aeronautics subsidies.
• begin a process of lowering their assembly use of Chinese/Asian goods.
• accept the rules of origin for North American manufacturing.
• eliminate protectionist tariffs on dairy and farm products.
• accept the U.S-Mexico terms for arbitration and dispute resolution.

President Trump and U.S. Lighthizer are holding all the cards.  As we previously highlighted they don’t care if Canada doesn’t join; the U.S. would likely prefer to send congress a NAFTA 2205 withdrawal notification removing the U.S. from the original 1993 NAFTA construct in combination with a simultaneous 2202 modification notification for the U.S-Mexico side of the agreement.
This would allow the U.S. to go into a one-on-one trade negotiation where six months and a day from the 2205 notice. The U.S. would then apply 25% auto tariffs on Canadian made vehicles while negotiating a bilateral deal. Canada is in a very weak negotiating position; politics are paramount for the Canadian team; their exit needs political cover.  Media need to help the optics for the Canadian team.
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks Friday, August 31, 2018 about the Canadian perspective on trade negotiations with the U.S. – Everything about the Canadian position is framed through the prism of politics not economics. Virtue signalling is the primary tactic.
Trudeau and Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland are in a tenuous position, they cannot accept the terms of the U.S-Mexico deal because they cannot afford to drop the protections and carve-outs within their highly controlled and subsidized economy. Canada would have to: drop telecommunications and banking barriers; drop protectionist tariffs on Dairy and agricultural products; and drop subsidies for the lumber and aeronautics industry.

Well, there’s yet another promise kept.  Candidate/President Trump always said he would deploy the “killers” to renegotiate trade deals:

…‘When it comes to negotiating, “Robert Lighthizer is a vicious son of a bitch.”…

~Gordon Ritchie

Somehow I think this type of criticism will only elevate U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer in the eyes of President Trump.
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