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Dollars

Federal election records: Sanders wasted $161M+ on failed presidential campaign

Charlie Spiering
Breitbart
Wed, 08 Apr 2020 00:00 UTC
Sanders
© Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesFormer candidate for President Senator Bernie Sanders
The campaign finance report filed on February 29, 2020, showed that Sanders spent $160,984,978 on his campaign, according to Open Secrets.

Millions more were likely spent as Sanders continued to campaign through March and into April, despite cutting back on campaign activities as the coronavirus pandemic sent many states into lockdown.

Sanders was the most prolific fundraiser in the Democrat party, raising over $179 million from donors. Small donors contributing less than $200 represented 54 percent of his total donors, according to Open Secrets.

The self-described democratic socialist is the last Democrat candidate to leave the race, despite spending significantly less than several self-funded billionaire candidates.

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Stock Down

WTO chief: Covid-19 could cause deepest economic crisis 'of our lifetimes'


RT
Wed, 08 Apr 2020 17:03 UTC
stock market data
© Reuters/Maxim Shemetov
The coronavirus pandemic is likely to spark an unprecedented fall in global trade as well as an economic crisis rivaling the Great Depression, the head of the World Trade Organization (WTO) has warned.

"We confront what may well be the deepest economic downturn of our lifetimes," the organization's Director General Roberto Azevedo said in a grim forecast. "Comparisons with the financial crisis of 2008 and even the Great Depression of the 1930s are inevitable."

The international trade regulator has estimated that the global goods trade volume could shrink by 13 percent this year because of the pandemic even in the best-case scenario. Should governments around the world fail to bring the deadly virus under control any time soon, the world will stand to lose about a third of its total trade volume this year or even more.

International trade is already seeing what Azevedo described as "enormous" shocks in supply and demand caused by governments' decision to limit trans-border movements and restrict economic activities in line with quarantine measures.

Comment: 'Coronavirus hoax' is an example of how to hit, at minimum, four essentials to the wellbeing of mankind: Health, Money, Community and Freedom - by injecting Fear, Scarcity, Isolationism and Police State in one blow.

France extends lockdown:
Coronavirus lockdown measures in France, already in place for more than three weeks, will be extended further, President Emmanuel Macron's office said. The country has filed over 110,000 confirmed cases and 10,800 deaths.

The lockdown will be extended beyond the current deadline of April 15, the French presidential palace announced on Wednesday. The timeframe for the extension was not immediately clear and is likely to be announced by Macron, who will address the nation on the epidemic situation Monday.

Earlier in the day, France's Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said the lockdown measures have proven effective, but added that "the time to unwind the lockdown has not come. The [Covid-19] expansion is slowing so much that we might soon reach a flattening of the curve ... and that's most certainly due to the lockdown's effect."

France's coronavirus outbreak does appear to be entering a positive trend. On Wednesday, the number of people who died from Covid-19 in French hospitals grew 'only' by 8 percent.

Still, the figure might be incomplete as the authorities failed to secure data from nursing homes due to "technical problems." People who died in such institutions account for more than 30 percent of the nation's almost 11,000 fatalities.

While the lockdown measures apparently helped to slow down the spread of the disease, the battle against the outbreak has already sent France into a worst-in-decades recession. The French economy shrank around 6 percent in the first quarter of this year, showing its worst performance since 1945.

Despite the downturn, the country's financial system remains "solid," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said earlier in the day, and one should not be too concerned about its stability.


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X

Even media's loudest #MeToo champs are ignoring Biden sexual assault accuser Tara Reade

Alan Macleod
MintPress News
Wed, 08 Apr 2020 00:00 UTC
Biden
© AP/Matt RourkePresidential candidate, Former VP Joe Biden
Have you heard about the Joe Biden allegations? If you're relying on corporate media for your information, the answer is "probably not." As of April 8, there has been exactly zero coverage of the sexual assault allegations on CNBC, CNN, MSNBC, ABC or CBS News. Likewise, The New York Times and USA Today and have failed to discuss it. Meanwhile, the only mentions of Reade's name in The Washington Post appear as a paragraph buried thousands of words into a long news roundup and an unscripted question from a reader in a live Q&A session.

After Bernie Sanders pulled out of the race today, Joe Biden appears to be the Democrats' man for November. However, the former vice president's past is again coming back to bite him; in an interview with writer and podcast host Katie Halper, his former staff assistant Tara Reade accused the then-senator of sexually assaulting her in the Capitol Building in 1993. The allegations, if true, meet the legal definition of rape in the United States.

Comment: See also:

#MeToo, but not this time? Hashtag champion actress Alyssa Milano slammed for hypocrisy on Biden assault claims

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Oil Well

Oil prices surge as Russia, OPEC, et al., agree to historic output cuts


RT
Thu, 09 Apr 2020 14:35 UTC
Oil tanker
© Reuters/ Jean-Paul PelissierDawn of a new oil deal?
Crude prices jumped 12 percent on Thursday after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and major producers led by Russia agreed to cut output by 20 million barrels a day, according to Reuters sources.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) surged 12 percent on the report of collective cuts to $28.36 per barrel, while international benchmark Brent crude gained 8.5 percent to $35.79 a barrel.

Oil prices have collapsed after OPEC+ countries disagreed on production cuts last month, with Russia refusing to lower output. In response, Saudi Arabia ramped up its production to a record high of more than 12 million barrels per day, after previous OPEC+ production cuts expired at the end of March.

US President Donald Trump said last week Russia and Saudi Arabia could agree to cuts of 10 million to 15 million barrels per day (bpd), or 10 to 15 percent of global supplies. Moscow has insisted that it would only accept cuts to its output if other players, including the United States, joined in. However, the US Department of Energy said the country's output was already falling without government intervention.
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Stop

Appeals Court: Censorship lawsuit against tech giants put on hold 'because coronavirus'

Allum Bokhari
Breitbart
Mon, 06 Apr 2020 00:00 UTC
Big 4
© Reuters/The Stream
Apple, Google, Facebook, and Twitter must face a lawsuit brought in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals accusing the companies of deliberately censoring conservative viewpoints and violating the First Amendment.

The $1.5 billion lawsuit, brought by Republican congressional primary candidate Laura Loomer (R) and conservative organization Freedom Watch, accuses the tech companies of being quasi-state actors, and thus in violation of the First Amendment when they suppress protected speech.

The case argues:
Many of the principles set forth by the Supreme Court in Packingham lead to what appellants believe is the natural progression of the law to hold that social media companies are liable for First Amendment violations, given the progression of technology and its infiltration into the daily lives of nearly every single person," the pair said in their final brief.
The lawsuit cites Loomer's bans from multiple social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, and Facebook-owned Instagram as an example of tech giants suppressing protected speech.

Comment: See also:

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Jet3

Venezuelan Su-30 intercepts US military aircraft approaching its airspace


AMN
Thu, 09 Apr 2020 16:22 UTC
Sukhoi Su-30SM
© unknownSukhoi Su-30SM
A Venezuelan Su-30 fighter jet reportedly intercepted two U.S. military aircraft that approached their national airspace. Russian publication Avia.Pro reported:
"A few hours ago, the Su-30MK2 fighter was urgently raised into the air on combat alert, the reason for which was the approach of two American military aircraft to the borders of Venezuela. A Russian-made fighting vehicle successfully dealt with two potential intruders at once."
Citing unnamed sources, the publication said two U.S. aircraft took off from a military base in Puerto Rico and approached the territorial borders of Venezuela, which prompted the Venezuelan Air Force to get involved.
"TheSu-30MK2 fighter was raised to intercept them, which not only intercepted potential violators, but also successfully cracked down on two planes at once, forcing the latter to retreat."
A video circulating on social media shows the alleged footage of the Venezuelan Su-30 flying over the Barcelona region of Venezuela.

Comment:



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Bad Guys

Eric Eggers: You don't have to take Trump's word to see mail-in voting is rife with fraud

Eric Eddgers
Breitbart
Thu, 09 Apr 2020 19:05 UTC
election
© Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel/AP
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) continues to call for another round of stimulus to help mitigate COVID-19 related damage to the US economy. But as her previous efforts demonstrate, Pelosi's prescription to "save" the country might do irreparable harm to American democracy.

In addition to giveaways for climate change, labor unions and student loan forgiveness advocates, the bill contained several election-related measures that would fundamentally change the methods and security of the way our country votes.

Buried on page 643 of the original bill was the "American Coronavirus/COVID-19 Election Safety and Security" or ACCESS Act. It included funds for states to conduct elections via mail-in ballots during a declared national emergency, and would permit voters to return absentee ballots by designating another person to return the ballot to the post office or other ballot drop-off location, including an election office.

Given public warnings to avoid public places and gatherings such as traditional polling stations, the push to expand mail-in balloting makes sense. But it is also true that mail-in ballots are highly susceptible to fraudulent interference and tampering. In fact, Donald Trump closed his press conference last Friday by stating his opposition to national mail-in balloting because "I think a lot of people cheat."
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Light Saber

Former Trump campaign adviser Papadopoulos denied campaign was involved in DNC hack in recorded conversation

Catherine Herridge
CBS News
Wed, 08 Apr 2020 18:52 UTC
Papadopoulos
© BBCGeorge Papadopoulos
In late October 2016, less than two weeks before the presidential election, a former adviser to then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, George Papadopoulos, denied to an FBI confidential source that the campaign was involved in the circumstances surrounding the hack of the Democratic National Committee's email system, calling the idea "illegal."

CBS News has now reviewed the transcript of the conversation between Papadopoulos and the confidential source working for the FBI, and has published key excerpts below.

The recorded conversation between Papadopoulos and the confidential source working for the FBI was documented in the December report issued by Justice Department Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz into the FBI's surveillance of campaign aide Carter Page and other actions related to the FBI probe known as "Crossfire Hurricane." But the excerpts of the transcript published here provide new details about the interaction between Papadopoulos and the FBI source in the final days of the presidential campaign.

Comment:

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Syringe

AG Barr opposes Bill Gates proposal for COVID-19 vaccine certificates

Zachary Steiber
The Epoch Times
Thu, 09 Apr 2020 18:47 UTC
William Barr
Attorney General William Barr came out in opposition to a proposal floated by Bill Gates for people to eventually gain certificates for being vaccinated against the CCP virus.

"I'm very concerned about the slippery slope in terms of continuing encroachments on personal liberty. I do think during the emergency, appropriate, reasonable steps are fine," Barr said on Wednesday night when asked about the proposal during an appearance on Fox News's "Ingraham Angle."

Pressed to be more specific, he added, "I'd be a little concerned about that, the tracking of people and so forth, generally, especially going forward over a long period of time."
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Bad Guys

Saudi-led coalition declares two-week ceasefire in Yemen, says to prevent COVID-19 outbreak


Sputnik
Wed, 08 Apr 2020 18:27 UTC
Yemen ceasefire coronavirus covid-19 saudi
© Reuters / Khaled AbdullahA girl wears a protective face mask amid fears of the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Sanaa, Yemen March 17, 2020
Senior Saudi officials have announced a ceasefire in Yemen to begin on Thursday in an effort to contain the COVID-19 outbreak in that country.

A two-week-long ceasefire in Yemen will begin on Thursday at noon local time between the Royal Saudi Armed Forces and its allied forces on the one side, and the Houthi militant group and its allies on the other, according to senior Saudi officials in Riyadh.

The officials said the ceasefire is aimed at bringing the Houthis to the negotiating table for peace talks led by the United Nations, as well as to halt the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country, which has already been wracked by famine and disease for years due to the war.

The health system in Yemen is essentially nonexistent, but those facilities that do exist have been concentrating on addressing a cholera outbreak that has afflicted more than 2.2 million people since 2016, killing thousands. Medical supplies are hard to come by amid the continuing Saudi blockade of major Yemeni ports, and running water is equally scarce.

Comment: The Houthis were not impressed by the Saudi offer, launching missiles just after the announcement.


Riyadh has sweetened the offer with an aid package to help the disease-stricken country, which appears to have U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo's blessing. It seems Saudi Arabia is getting tired of its fruitless war against Yemen.
Saudi Arabia will provide $500 million in humanitarian aid for Yemen and $25 million more to fight the spread of COVID-19, the kingdom's Vice Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman al Saud said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, state Saudi media reported that the Saudi-led coalition had put military operations on hold for two weeks. The move was welcomed by UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths.

"Today, Yemen may face an even bigger disaster in case of the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, that is why the kingdom has announced the allocation of $500 million for the UN humanitarian plan on Yemen in 2020 and additional $25 million to fight the spread of the pandemic," the official tweeted.

The vice defense minister stressed that the two-week ceasefire would create favorable conditions for de-escalating tensions in Yemen.




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