Puppet MastersS


Arrow Up

S&P affirms Russia's credit rating enabling Moscow to weather additional sanctions


RT
Sat, 21 Jul 2018 01:14 UTC
Putin Economic
© Bloomberg
S&P Global has affirmed Russia's BBB long-term and short-term sovereign credit rating, noting that the country's balance of payments and fiscal health should allow it to weather challenges that might arise from future sanctions.

In its ratings update on Friday, S&P affirmed Russia's BBB/A3 foreign currency sovereign credit score with a stable outlook and its BBB/A2 local currency score. In its justification for the move, the agency said it took account of Russia's "solid external and public balance sheets coupled with a flexible exchange rate and prudent fiscal framework."

These combined factors should be enough for the Russian state to "absorb shocks from possible new international sanctions," the agency, which is the world's leading provider of independent credit ratings, stated.

The stable outlook given by the agency to the Russian economy reflects "renewed escalation of geopolitical tensions" that might lead to the tightening of anti-Russian sanctions "against the potential for further strengthening of Russia's public and external finances."

Comment: 'Putinomic' reforms offer increasing national stability, while U.S.' economic tantrums result in more openings globally for Russia. Loosening of sanctions will up the rating, tightening or increasing sanctions will lower it.

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Headphones

NYT reveals Michael Cohen secretly taped Trump


RT
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 18:08 UTC
Michael Cohen
© Brendan McDermid/ReutersMichael Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney.
Donald Trump was secretly recorded by his personal attorney Michael Cohen discussing a proposed hush payment to a Playboy model, the New York Times reported, setting off a new cycle of media frenzy.

The tape was among the files the FBI seized in the April raid of Cohen's office, the Times reported on Friday, citing "lawyers and others familiar with the recording." Cohen is being investigated for potential campaign finance violations, over allegations that he paid off one or more women who claimed to have had affairs with Trump.

Although nobody has heard the content of the recording yet, the Times story spurred frenzied speculation among the anti-Trump crowd that this was finally it, the smoking gun they've been looking for, the one thing that will finally overthrow Trump and, uh, make Mike Pence president.

Comment: We didn't have President Al Gore.

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Attention

Trump's response to secret lawyer tapes: 'Totally unheard of and perhaps illegal'


RT
Sat, 21 Jul 2018 13:43 UTC
Trump
© Iran ocregister.comPresident Donald Trump
US President Donald Trump has responded to reports that his former attorney Michael Cohen secretly recorded their conversations, calling the move "totally unheard of and probably illegal."

Taking to his favorite method of communicating with the masses, Trump's tweet Saturday was the president's first response to Friday's report in the New York Times that claimed tapes seized by the FBI in April contained secret conversations between him Cohen discussing a proposed hush payment to a Playboy model who claims to have had an affair with the billionaire in 2006.

Calling it "inconceivable" and "almost unheard of" that federal agents would "break into a lawyer's office (early in the morning)," Trump then hit out at his former lawyer and special consul calling Cohen's actions "totally unheard of & perhaps illegal."

Comment: See also:

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Biohazard

Evil Russian Novichok: The odorless nerve agent that just so happens to also stink to high heaven

Rob Slane
The Blogmire
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 19:07 UTC
salisbury cleanup crew
Here is a little primer for the British Government on basic logic. Actions have consequences. What this means is that consequences must stem from actions. And the two must be connected. So far so good?

Let me give an example. If I spill boiling hot coffee on my foot, it will cause me pain and possibly even a blister. To flip that over, if I have a blister on my foot, you might ask me, "Oh, how did you get that?" If I told you that I spilt hot coffee on my foot, you would probably wince and say something like, "Ouch, that must have hurt." And the chances are that you would be satisfied with my explanation. Why? Because boiling hot coffee split on the foot is quite capable of causing a blister.

But what if, in answer to your question of how I came to get the blister, I told you that I spilt some orange juice on my hand. Would you accept my answer? Would you wince and say, "Ouch, that's gotta hurt"? Would you go away and say to others, "Poor guy, he spilt orange juice on his hand, and now he's got a horrible blister on his foot"? Probably not!

Your reaction would probably be more along the lines of, "Huhhh??? You spilt orange juice on your hand, and you got a blister on your foot? What are you talking about?" And the reason for this reaction is that you understand that actions have consequences, and consequences stem from actions. And we all know that whereas spilling boiling hot coffee on the foot might well cause the foot to blister, spilling orange juice on your hand will not have that effect.
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Arrow Up

Ann Coulter: What we really need is for Putin to tell us he's responsible for illegal immigration - then the liberals will finally care

Ann Coulter
Townhall
Wed, 18 Jul 2018 18:55 UTC
Ann Coulter
© Gage Skidmore - https://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/
I don't know what Trump said during that two hours when he met privately with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but like so many in the media, I know what I hope he said: Mr. Putin, I need you to publicly admit your complicity in our illegal alien problem.

Only if Putin owns up to deploying a vast network of Russian assets to personally direct the movements of millions of illegal aliens across the Sonoran Desert, through dozens of checkpoints and into our country, in fulfillment of his master plan to attack America's financial viability, national security and future prospects, will the media, the Democratic Party and corporate Republicans ever emerge from their stupor and admit that we have a huge problem on our southern border.

Illegal immigrants have killed multiple times more Americans than Russia has in its entire history -- or could ever hope to kill, even with a well-placed nuclear bomb.

But nothing will be done, unless we can prove Putin is behind it.

Our media and government want you to fixate on Russia's annexation of Crimea as the big problem facing our country, hoping you'll forget about the gaping hole on our border.

I haven't counted to see how many Americans died as a result of Putin's reacquiring Crimea -- yes, I have! ZERO. Meanwhile, Mexican drug couriers kill more Americans every week than the Communist Soviet Union did when it shot down Korean flight 007 for flying into its airspace, almost starting a nuclear war.
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Quenelle - Golden

Italian interior minister schools deluded US journalist on Crimea unification and Ukraine's foreign backed coup - UPDATE


RT
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 18:34 UTC
Matteo Salvini
© Tony Gentile / ReutersFILE PHOTO: Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini
Italian Interior Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said that Crimea "legitimately" belongs to Russia as he argued with a US journalist who called the 2014 referendum held on the peninsula "fake."

When Washington Post journalist Lally Weymouth confronted Salvini with the apparently provocative question of whether or not he supports Russia's "annexation" of Crimea, Salvini pointed out that there was actually a referendum, prompting her to claim it was "fake."

In response, Salvini noted that it was just the journalist's subjective "point of view." "There was a referendum, and 90 percent of the people voted for the return of Crimea to the Russian Federation," the Italian interior minister said.

Comment: With sane voices like Italy's Salvini, there is still a glimmer of hope for the world: Also check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Mass immigration: Wall 'em out of Fortress Europe and the Trump State?

Update (July 21): The Ukrainian 'government' is peeved with Italy over Salvini's truthful speech:
Ukraine is expecting the Italian ambassador for a chat at its Foreign Ministry after Matteo Salvini, Italy's Interior Minister, slammed the 2014 Euromaidan protests and coup in Kiev as "pseudo-revolution" sponsored from abroad.

"On Monday, we'll be meeting with the Italian ambassador [Davide La Cecilia]. He's a nice person and we understand that he can't be held responsible for the words of the politicians in his home county," Olena Zerkal, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister, told the local Channel 5 on Friday.
...
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry responded with a statement, saying that Salvini words were "not grounded in real facts and in contradiction of recognized principles and norms of international law."

Zerkal also attempted to downplay Salvini's words on Friday by saying that "it was hard to expect any different rhetoric from him," following Salvini's previous visit to Crimea while being an Italian lawmaker.
If you're triggering anyone in the Ukrainian government, that means you're doing something right. Right on, Salvini.

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Red Pill

Ron Paul has praise for Trump's "peaceful negotiations" with Putin; damnation for 'Deep State' and media warmongers

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Sat, 21 Jul 2018 16:19 UTC
america polls on Russia
The American media are "almost unanimously endorsing the idea that we have to have an enemy," declares International peace and trade advocate Ron Paul, warning that "at this point, especially for the last 20 years, they've been working very hard to make Russia the enemy, and I think this is wrong."

However, bucking the mainstream sheeple narrative, in a new RT interview, Paul praised how United States President Donald Trump handled himself at a meeting in Helsinki, Finland this week with Russia President Vladimir Putin. Says Paul, "I was sort of pleased with the way Trump handled himself." In particular, Paul comments that Trump emphasized the benefit of "peaceful negotiations," something Paul supports, calling it "a step in the right direction."
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Treasure Chest

Stirring the pot: US releases $200mn in military aid to Ukraine


RT
Sat, 21 Jul 2018 15:06 UTC
US Marines
© US Navy Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Ryan Riley / Flickr
Just days after the Helsinki summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Washington has cleared the transfer of $200 million in military assistance to Ukraine.

The sum, earmarked for "security assistance", was allocated months ago, but was kept on hold pending "a series of defense reforms" the US demanded of Kiev. On Friday, the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington announced that the funds have been released - which was soon confirmed to CNN by Major Sheryll Klinkel, a Pentagon spokeswoman.

Citing another unnamed Pentagon official, CNN reported that the funding will be used for training, counter-artillery radars, high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles ("Humvees"), night vision goggles, as well as communications and medical equipment.
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Stop

Iran supreme leader Khamenei threatens to block all Gulf oil exports if its own are stopped


RT
Sat, 21 Jul 2018 14:53 UTC
oil tanker
© Ahmed Jadallah / Reuters
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said that no country in the region will export oil if Iran's exports are stopped. The same threat was earlier voiced by President Hassan Rouhani.

Speaking to Iranian ambassadors and senior diplomats on Saturday, Khamenei backed Rouhani's earlier warning to close the Strait of Hormuz, thus blocking all oil shipments from the Persian Gulf.

"[These] were important remarks that reflect Islamic Republic's approach," the Ayatollah said, according to his official website. He added that Iran's Foreign Ministry must closely follow the approach.

Comment: There are a lot of threats between the US and Iran with various moves and countermoves. This situation could heat up.

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Blue Planet

EU and Japan sign historic trade agreement to reshape global economic map

Peter Korzun
Strategic Culture foundation
Sat, 21 Jul 2018 13:48 UTC
Donald Tusk and Shinzō Abe
A new era for the EU and Japan, the champions of global free trade and multilateral agreements, has begun. A landmark event that will change the global economic landscape has taken place. The EU and Japan signed a massive free trade deal at the 25th EU-Japan Summit on July 17 in response to recent geopolitical developments. The parties sent what they are calling a "clear message" against protectionism. The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) will provide a powerful impetus to the economic growth of its signatories and also set the standards for their other trading partners.

The EPA creates a large free-trade area (FTA) with no tariffs whatsoever, encompassing almost a third of the world's GDP and 600 million people. Now that the deal has been signed, it will also apply to the UK during the two-year Brexit transition period that will begin in March 2019.

The "mega-trade" deal will affect 40% of global trade (up to 70% in high-tech sectors). A drop in prices is likely to boost spending and spur growth. The European Union annually exports more than $100bn (£75bn) in goods and services to Japan. EU agricultural exports could increase by up to 180%.
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