Puppet MastersS


Brain

Trump orders probe into who really ran country under Biden

Joe Biden
© Drew Angerer/Getty ImagesFormer US President Joe Biden
US President Donald Trump has ordered a sweeping investigation into his predecessor's administration, directing the Department of Justice to examine whether unelected aides effectively governed the country during Joe Biden's presidency.

The probe into Biden's final acts in office will scrutinize the use of autopen signatures on official documents, including the commutation of 37 death sentences and pardons granted to family members and political allies, according to an executive directive published by the White House on Wednesday. Trump's order stated:
"Given clear indications that President Biden lacked the capacity to exercise his Presidential authority, if his advisors secretly used the mechanical signature pen to conceal this incapacity, while taking radical executive actions all in his name, that would constitute an unconstitutional wielding of the power of the Presidency,"
The investigation centers on allegations that Biden's cognitive decline allowed staffers to make key decisions without his direct input. Investigators have been tasked with determining whether there was a coordinated effort within the Biden administration to conceal the president's health issues from the public, including possible conspiracies to suppress evidence of cognitive decline and to artificially portray him as fit for office.

Comment: 'The pen' has not only become mightier than the sword, it has become more devious.


Star of David

Netanyahu says Israel fighting Hamas 'in various ways' amid claims it armed ISIS-affiliated Gaza militia

crowd with stuff
© Mariam Dagga/APPalestinians carry food and humanitarian aid packages • Gaza Humanitarian Foundation • Rafah • Gaza Strip • May, 2025
Israeli lawmaker alleged Netanyahu is now supporting a new militia to counter Hamas. Sources told Haaretz last week that an armed group tied to Yasser Abu Shabab has recently begun operating in southern Gaza.

Opposition lawmaker and former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Thursday that Israel is providing weapons to a Jihadist group in the Gaza Strip affiliated with ISIS.

Responding to the allegations, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said that "Israel is working to defeat Hamas in various ways, on the recommendation of all heads of the security establishment."

In an interview with Kan Bet public radio, Lieberman said that, similar to how Netanyahu propped up Hamas as a counterweight to the PA, he is now helping establish a new armed force as a counterweight to Hamas.

Last week, two sources told Haaretz that a new militia had recently begun operating in the southern Gaza Strip, saying it is linked to a man identifying himself as Yasser Abu Shabab.

Explosion

Foreign-made explosives used in railway terrorist attacks - Russian prosecutors

Bastrykin
© Victor Tolochko/SputnikAlexander Bastrykin
Explosives used to blow up two railway bridges in Russia over the weekend were foreign-made, the head of Russia's Investigative Committee Aleksandr Bastrykin has announced. The attack, which claimed the lives of seven civilians, was organized by Ukrainian intelligence, he added.

Speaking at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and government officials on Wednesday, Bastrykin said that the "evidence collected by the investigators directly points to [the fact] that all three terrorist attacks [in Bryansk and Kursk regions] were beyond any doubt arranged by Ukrainian special services."

According to Bastrykin, the bombs used in the attacks "were composed of foreign-made plastic explosives equivalent to 15kg of TNT," and set off by a Ukrainian-made detonator.

He added that the probe into the blasts is still underway, with the authorities working to identify all those responsible.

Comment: See also: Collapses of two bridges in Russia were sabotage - investigators


Gavel

German court rules turning away asylum seekers unlawful

German police
© Andy BuenningGermany's new conservative government has advised police to turn back irregular migrants at the border.
A Berlin court has said that Germany must adhere to the EU's Dublin procedure when turning back asylum seekers at the border. The ruling challenges a new migration policy, and the government says pushbacks will continue.

The Berlin Administrative Court on Monday ruled that the rejection of asylum seekers at border controls is unlawful unless carried out under the EU's Dublin procedure.

The urgent decision is a blow to Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has pledged to crack down on migration. Shortly after taking office last month, Chancellor Merz's government advised police that they could turn back irregular migrants at the border, even if they applied for asylum.


Bad Guys

EU tech laws are intended to erect a digital Iron Curtain

european union eu tech laws censorship digital iron curtain graphic
© Shutterstock
Brussels is bullying Big Tech by censoring content and changing algorithms, but it is citizens worldwide who will pay the price.

Over the past decades, Europe has created little of real relevance in terms of technological platforms, social networks, operating systems, or search engines. In contrast, it has built an extensive regulatory apparatus designed to limit and punish those who have actually innovated.

Rather than producing its own alternatives to American tech giants, the EU has chosen to suffocate existing ones through regulations such as the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The DSA aims to control the content and internal functioning of digital platforms, requiring the rapid removal of content deemed "inappropriate" in what amounts to a modern form of censorship, as well as the disclosure of how algorithms work and restrictions on targeted advertising. The DMA, in turn, seeks to curtail the power of so-called gatekeepers by forcing companies like Apple, Google, or Meta to open their systems to competitors, avoid self-preferencing, and separate data flows between products.

Comment: Nunes appears to be a hardcore libertarian, who believes that corporations should be allowed to operate unfettered, relying on 'the market' to rein in their excesses. We all know how that's gone. That being said, the actions of the EU are equally bad, intending to subordinate foreign companies to its own censorship goals.


Bad Guys

Ex-French spy claims US intel behind Ukrainian attack on Russian planes

Ukrainian Shark mini UAV drone
© Stanislav Krasilnikov; RIA NovostiRussian soldier standing next to a downed Ukrainian Shark mini UAV
Kiev could not have remotely piloted drones deep inside Russia without American satellite data, according to Guillaume Ancel

Ukraine would not have been able to remotely attack strategic Russian aircraft parked deep inside Russian territory without direct intelligence and satellite support from the US, a former officer in the French military has claimed.

Ukrainian drones struck airbases across Russia on Sunday in a coordinated attack known as 'Operation Spider's Web', targeting sites from Murmansk in the Arctic to Irkutsk in Siberia. Kiev has claimed that around 40 Russian military aircraft were damaged or destroyed, including Tu-95 and Tu-22 long-range bombers. Moscow has not confirmed the claims, reporting that most of Kiev's drones were shot down. The strikes were reportedly carried out using commercial trucks rigged with explosive-laden drones that had been smuggled inside Russia.

Russian Flag

Putin: 'Illegitimate Kiev regime' is turning into terrorist organization

Vladimir Putin
© Sputnik / Gavriil GrigorovRussian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the government via videoconference.
The latest terrorist acts carried out by Ukraine in Russia are the outcome of decisions made by the political leadership, the president has said

Facing heavy battlefield losses, the "illegitimate Kiev regime" has resorted to organizing terrorist attacks to try to intimidate Russia, President Vladimir Putin has said.

The recent acts of railway sabotage in Russia's Bryansk and Kursk Regions were "undoubtedly a terrorist act," Putin said. He added that "the decisions to carry out such crimes were, of course, made in Ukraine" by the political leadership.

Explosion

Is Russia's Pearl Harbor approaching?

Jets
© public domainAircraft • Russian airports under attack
The war will continue and things are going badly for Kiev on the ground: Russia is advancing steadily across the front, capturing two villages a day.

First the facts, as far as they are known, then personal opinions

It is 1 June 2025. Five Russian airports - Olenya, Belaya, Diaghilev, Ivanovo and Ukrainsk - have been attacked, with Ukraine claiming responsibility. The targets were strategic bombers used in the Ukrainian conflict to launch conventional missiles, but which are also part of Russia's so-called "nuclear triad".

According to Ukraine, the operation was the result of more than a year and a half of preparations: hundreds of drone components were brought into Russian territory, stored in a warehouse in Chelyabinsk (not far from the border with Kazakhstan, where they presumably entered), assembled, loaded onto wooden structures and then onto trucks headed for the vicinity of the bases. From there, the drones were launched against the aircraft. It is unlikely that the truck drivers knew what they were transporting (one of them was found dead, suffocated with an electrician's cable tie). This is a familiar scenario, as in the case of the truck that exploded on the Crimean bridge, an incident that was shrouded in silence, given the embarrassment that followed, despite the truth being blatantly obvious.

Arrow Down

Israel losing most steadfast EU supporter - Bloomberg

Neti
© Jack Guez/Getty ImagesIsraeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu
Germany is reportedly considering curbs on trade and arms sales amid outcry over Gaza.

Germany is rethinking its military and trade ties with Israel, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. The "surprising" pivot from one of the Jewish state's staunchest supporters comes amid a worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and growing frustration in Berlin over Israel's actions.

"German anger" rose in mid-May as Israel intensified its campaign against Hamas while continuing to block humanitarian aid, according to information obtained by Bloomberg.

Germany has adhered to a long-standing policy that protecting Israel is a post-Holocaust obligation. It has also been Israel's largest European arms supplier and one of its top trade partners.

In Germany's first such public comments since the war began 20 months ago, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said last week that the humanitarian situation could "no longer be justified by a fight against Hamas terrorism."

During a phone call with Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, Merz urged the Israeli prime minister to allow "sufficient humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip immediately."

Comment: Israel is losing momentum and support on a global scale. Look for drastic measures.


Arrow Down

Ayatollah rejects US nuclear proposal, vows Iran to keep enriching uranium

Ayatollah speech
© EPAAyatollah Ali Khamenei's televised speech
Iran has finally reacted to the US proposal for a fresh nuclear deal which was submitted Saturday via Omani mediators, and as expected it has dismissed Washington demands to take uranium enrichment down to zero.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has made clear in fresh statements Wednesday that abandoning uranium enrichment was "100%" against the Islamic Republic's interests. This comes on the heels of a Truth Social post issued by President Trump which said in all caps: WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM.

Khamenei as the Ayatollah, or top Shia religious cleric, has final say over all matters of state policy, but notably he didn't call for halting the talks altogether, after it's gone through five rounds, including at Rome.

He said the US proposal "contradicts our nation's belief in self-reliance and the principle of 'We Can'". This is consistent with Iranian officials' prior position defending enrichment as a matter of national sovereignty that cannot fully be abandoned.