U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr has sent the totality of the U.S. media into spasmodic fits of apoplexy today as he discusses the findings of the DOJ inspector general review of a highly corrupted FISA process.
The Attorney General talks about how the FBI weaponized their official duty in an effort to carry out what seems to be a political agenda.  Mr. Barr goes into detail with his thoughts on the current criminal review assigned to U.S. Attorney John Durham; and the unfortunate issues with a group at the top of the organization who politicized the FBI as an investigative agency and used an alliance of media assets to achieve political goals.

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Many people are writing and asking for my personal opinion of AG Bill Barr. I shall provide that below.
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Amid breaking developments on multiple trade fronts which will likely see USMCA passage; and the potential for enhanced China tariffs on December 15th; Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross appears with Maria Bartiromo to discuss the big picture.
Secretary Ross highlights the manipulation of USMCA ratification and timing by Pelosi to obfuscate the highly partisan political impeachment effort.  Mid-2019 CTH noted this strategic plan was visible and probable.
Ross also discusses the specifics of China, the EU and Brexit as it relates to the global trade reset being carried out in a methodical manner by the Trump administration.  The USMCA will be the first cornerstone domino in a chain of trade events that will fundamentally restructure the nature of all international trade and supply chains.  Great Interview:

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As we have discussed on these pages, the dynamic is severely consequential and the Wall Street multinationals are reacting to the daily details while Main Street gains strength. President Trump is dismantling global supply chains; focusing on bringing high-wage manufacturing industry back to the U.S; and driving a process of profound consequence through economic nationalism.
Titan Trump is winning the economic battle by: (a) repatriating wealth (trade policy); (b) blocking exfiltration (main street policy); (c) creating new and modern economic alliances based on reciprocity (bilateral deals); and (d) dismantling the post WWII Marshal plan of global trade and one-way tariffs (de-globalization).
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The Democrats within the House of Representatives have decided to suspend House Impeachment Resolution [HR 660] without following their own rules that established a House Minority Hearing. Instead, House leadership have produced two partisan articles of impeachment for a full house vote.
Both articles are exceptionally weak; the Democrats are rushing to cut their losses:

♦Article One is “Abuse of power” – and structured on a false premise that President Trump “exercised the powers of his public office to obtain an improper personal benefit, while ignoring or injuring the national interest.”
♦Article Two is “Obstruction of Congress” – and structured on a ridiculous premise that President Trump “engaged in unprecedented, categorical, and indiscriminate defiance of the impeachment inquiry”, by challenging congressional subpoenas and seeking relief from the judicial branch.
Both articles are structurally deficient in the extreme. It will be interesting to see which House democrats could possibly vote for these articles, especially article two. There is a possibility some democrats will ignore Pelosi’s whip.
The weakness of the articles now actually appears to be a feature, not a flaw. The exercise of the “impeachment process” writ large was more of a political promise to the far-left constituents of the resistance movement itself. Structurally there is no strength to either article; they appear designed to fail in the Senate. Again, a feature not a flaw.
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In an effort to keep the Daily Open Thread a little more open topic we are going to start a new daily thread for “Presidential Politics”. Please use this thread to post anything relating to the Donald Trump Administration and Presidency.

This thread will refresh daily and appear above the Open Discussion Thread.

President Trump Twitter @POTUS / Vice President Pence Twitter @VP

Stephanie Grisham Twitter @StephGrisham45

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

Jumpin’ Ju-Ju bones, Jim Jordan eviscerated about eleventy insufferable articles of impeachment in a single rapid-fire round of questioning.   WATCH:

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I can only imagine what Jimmy Jacket was like as a young ‘un:
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Earlier today President Trump and Vice-President Pence hosted a family education roundtable at the White House.  There were also questions from the media [Video and Transcript Below]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Okay, thank you very much. The IG report just came out, and I was just briefed on it, and it’s a disgrace what’s happened with respect to the things that were done to our country. It should never again happen to another President. It is incredible. Far worse than I would have ever thought possible. And it’s — it’s an embarrassment to our country. It’s dishonest. It’s everything that a lot of people thought it would be, except far worse.
So I’m going to get some very detailed briefing — briefings. But they are — it’s a very sad — it’s a very sad day when I see that; a very sad day when a lot of people see that. They had no nothing. It was concocted. And you say what you want — that was a — probably something that’s never happened in the history of our country.
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Amid the predictive discussions by those who have followed the three-year background of the potential DOJ & FBI FISA issues, there was one very specific aspect CTH was looking for:  Would the IG report redact the dates of the Carter Page FISA application and renewals?
We got that answer today, and that answer, unfortunately, is yes:

Ask yourself what is the national security value in hiding those dates?  Why does the DOJ need to hide them?   Unfortunately the answer highlights an institutional decision.
On its face the dates seem like an overly granular question; perhaps even a small detail that few would notice.  However, for CTH readers that little detail exposes so much.
In 2018 Main Justice made a very specific decision, a very specific lie, that once told would forever set them on a path – from which there is no return.  It was during a time between July and December 2018 that CTH realized the DOJ had handcuffed themselves to a cover story; and that cover story foretold future conduct.
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Earlier this afternoon Senate Judiciary Committee Lindsey Graham held a press availability to discuss concerns with the Inspector General report.   Senator Graham outlines three key FBI moments (for him) within the IG report, that highlight demonstrable and intentional misconduct.

1. January 2017 the FBI contacted the Steele Dossier sub-source and was informed the dossier was remarkably unreliable, out of context, and full of “bar talk”.
2. January 2017 the FBI lied. Telling the FISA Court the sub-source validated the dossier as evidence in order to get a renewal; a claim they repeated in April.
3. June 2017 the CIA told FBI Lawyer Kevin Clinesmith that Carter Page was working for them; and then Clinesmith changed that notification so he could submit the last renewal.

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U.S. Attorney John Durham issued a statement contradicting a key and consequential  conclusion of Inspector General Michael Horowitz, and reads in part:

…”last month we advised the Inspector General that we do not agree with some of the report’s conclusions as to predication and how the FBI case was opened.”

The reason for this conflict, and immediate rebuke by Durham, is stunningly clear on Page ii of the executive summary as highlighted below.  This is a very important element, and needs to be contemplated in its totality:
What inspector general Horowitz outlines in that key section is that: (A) he has reviewed everything, and talked to everyone (current and former) within the FBI; and (B) the ONLY evidence they FBI cited for the opening of Crossfire Hurricane is the singular conversation between George Papadopoulos and Australian Ambassador Alexander Downer and/or Downer’s asst. Erika Thompson.
That’s it.  Nothing else.
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