Gordon Chang appears on Fox News with Charles Payne (filling in for Bartiromo) to discuss the downstream consequences from the G20 meeting between President Trump and Chinese Chairman Xi Jinping.
While he generally frames the picture accurately, lately Chang has been hit or miss.  He accurately outlines how a win/win trade deal is not possible from the perspective of Beijing and their zero-sum outlook; however, he misses on the issues around Huawei; misses the entire hostage dynamic with Kim Jong Un; and then hits again on Hong Kong.

.
♦ On China President Trump appears to be working on a complete and total decoupling from the U.S. However, there are steps required in the interim that are in flux (EU and USMCA). Once those matters are resolved we will likely see the decoupling.
♦ On North Korea, just because DPRK state media spouts something doesn’t mean Kim Jong-Un has any control over it.  Beijing has majority influence over DPRK officials.
♦ On Hong Kong, after the Kim hostage rescue; and while the China decoupling is underway; we can expect Hong Kong to be a larger part of Trump’s Indo-Pacific initiative.
(more…)

A rather unusual tweet from Christine Pelosi, daughter of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, outlining a concern around the arrest of Jeffrey Epstein: “it is quite likely that some of our faves are implicated.”
Considering the frame-of-reference, the social circle and political network the Pelosi family, the use of the term “our faves” has rather looming implications:

(LINK to TWEET)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Financier Jeffrey Epstein was arrested late on Saturday on suspicion of sex trafficking of underage girls and will appear in federal court in Manhattan on Monday, a source familiar with the matter said, meaning he will face charges similar to those he avoided in a 2007 plea deal.

(more…)

One of the best testimonials to President Trump’s pragmatic perspective is his ability to rise above the ridiculous partisan political attacks and look at issues from a non-political solution-driven perspective.
In the latest example California Governor Gavin Newsom has been antagonizing the administration yet outlines how President Trump, a builder-in-chief, immediately called him and expressed his full commitment to helping California recover from two serious earthquakes that hit the state in two consecutive days. After Newsom toured some of the damaged areas he spoke to reporters at a press briefing.
Governor Newsom said he and President Trump talked about the challenges California has recently face, including two devastating wildfires just six months ago. “There’s no question we don’t agree on everything, but one area where there’s no politics, where we work extremely well together, is our response to emergencies”, Newsom said. “He’s committed in the long haul, the long run, to help support the rebuilding efforts” the governor said of President Trump.

(more…)

Acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Ken Cuccinelli, battles through the manipulative ‘open-border’ narrative of CBS Margaret Brennan to discuss ICE removals, border conditions, and asylum laws:

.
How the heck did never-Trump leader Ken Cuccinelli end up with a position in this administration? This is the same guy who tried to lead a 2016 convention effort to change the rules and remove Donald Trump as the Republican nominee.
ADD: After thinking about it, this series of Sunday talk appearances is likely a trial run to test Cuccinelli and see if he has genuinely had a ‘come-to-MAGA‘ change in outlook.
(more…)

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 †

Ellison Barber of Fox News reporting the ICE removals are likely to begin shortly:

.
On June 22nd, 2019, President Trump agreed to postpone any deportation enforcement after a call with Speaker Nancy Pelosi:
(more…)

Several media outlets are reporting on the arrest of Jeffrey Epstein on new charges relating to his prior controversial Florida arrest and conviction of sex crimes.

(Via Daily Beast) Billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was arrested for allegedly sex trafficking dozens of minors in New York and Florida between 2002 and 2005, and will appear in court in New York on Monday, according to three law enforcement sources. The arrest, by the FBI-NYPD Crimes Against Children Task Force, comes about 12 years after the 66-year-old financier essentially got a slap on the wrist for allegedly molesting dozens of underage girls in Florida.

(more…)

Before President Trump and Chairman Xi Jinping met in Osaka at the G20, Beijing requested the removal of current tariffs as a contingency for a Trump-Xi meeting.  The tariffs are causing two issues: (1) China is bleeding cash via subsidies to offset the tariffs and retain export position; (2) ancillary manufacturing companies are exiting China to avoid tariffs into the U.S. market.
Understanding how the static dynamic -he intentionally created- was favorable to the U.S., President Trump reasserted that current tariffs were not going to be removed.

After the Osaka meeting, President Trump and Chairman Xi agreed to re-open talks between the two teams with no new tariffs; however, as stated before the G20 summit the preexisting tariffs would remain.
Beijing is increasingly recognizing how the current status is disfavorable to their economy; and asserting that no further trade talks can take place until the U.S. promises to remove all tariffs as part of a completed agreement.

(SCMP) China has insisted that all tariffs on Chinese imports added by the United States during the trade war must be scrapped immediately as part of any deal to end the year-long conflict, which would require the Trump administration to give up its position that some levies remain in place even after an agreement is reached.

(more…)

The latest National Quinnipiac Poll of Democrat presidential candidates reflects a significant surge by Kamala Harris, a static position for Elizabeth Warren, and a slight drop for Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders.

Kamala Harris went from 7% in April to 20% in July. Elizabeth Warren went from 15% in April to 14% in July.  Joe Biden went from 24% in April to 22% in July.  Bernie Sanders went from 16% in April to 13% in July. That’s the top four.
Certainly Harris seems to be the biggest winner from the first debate; however, the biggest loser is not Joe Biden.  In April -at the time of his campaign launch- Pete Buttigieg was at 14%, now he’s down to 4%.  Buttigieg is the biggest loser.  As anticipated, all other candidates are essentially irrelevant.
(more…)