Puppet MastersS


Arrow Up

Government corruption in White House on the rise according to 'poll'

Charles S. Clark
Government Executive
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 12:33 UTC
Washington DC picture
Six out of 10 Americans say that the level of corruption in society has worsened in the past year, up from one third a year ago, according to a nationwide poll released on Tuesday by the nonprofit Transparency International.

Forty-four percent of Americans believe that corruption is pervasive in the White House, up from 36 percent in 2016, pollsters found after analyzing computer assisted interviewing of a random group of 1,005 adult respondents in October and November. Data were weighted to be demographically representative of all U.S. adults by age, gender, social grade, region, rural/urban area and ethnicity, the group said.

Choosing from nine influential groups in government, business and religion, respondents picked the Office of the President as the most corrupt, at 44 percent. Government institutions such as Congress and agency officials only fared slightly better than the White House. Nearly a third of respondents said that "most or all" business leaders are corrupt. The least corrupt group, respondents said, is judges, with only 16 percent thinking of them as corrupt.

Transparency International defined corruption as "the abuse of entrusted power for private gain." The key issues it identified included the influence of wealthy individuals over government; "pay to play" politics; the revolving doors between elected government office, for-profit companies and professional associations; and the "abuse of the U.S. financial system by corrupt foreign kleptocrats and local elites."

Comment: A little dirt on Transparency International:
Upon their page, "Who Supports Us," Transparency International admits that it receives funding from government agencies including:
  • The United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID);
  • Federal Foreign Office, Germany and;
  • The US State Department.
Transparency International not only receives funding from the very governments it is tasked to investigate, hold accountable and "index" annually, constituting a major conflict of interest, it also receives money from the following:
  • The National Endowment for Democracy;
  • Open Society Institute Foundation and;
  • Shell Oil.
[...]

Open Society in turn, is the sociopolitical fund employed by convicted financial criminal George Soros.
And Soros isn't exactly too keen on Trump and his administration. Are they trying to say corruption is on the rise and it's Trump's fault?

Read More...
Clipboard

Russia-gate: Revolving door of endless 'corrections'

Robert Parry
Consortiumnews
Mon, 11 Dec 2017 11:53 UTC
CNN fake news graphic
The U.S. mainstream media's year-long hysteria over Russia's alleged role in the election of Donald Trump has obliterated normal reporting standards leading to a rash of journalistic embarrassments that have both disgraced the profession and energized Trump's backers over new grievances about the MSM's "fake news."

Misguided groupthink is always a danger when key elements of the Washington establishment and the major news media share the same belief - whether that is Iraq's supposed possession of WMD or the need to bring down some foreign or domestic leader unpopular with the elites.

Yet, we have rarely witnessed such a cascading collapse of journalistic principles as has occurred around the Russia-gate "scandal." It is hard to keep track of all the corrections or to take note of all the dead ends that the investigation keeps finding.

But anyone who dares note the errors, the inconsistencies or the illogical claims is either dismissed as a "Kremlin stooge" or a "Trump enabler." The national Democrats and the mainstream media seem determined to keep hurtling down the Russia-gate roadway assuming that the evidentiary barriers ahead will magically disappear at some point and the path to Trump's impeachment will be clear.

Comment: It might also make the job of alternative media easier. What's hilarious is these "leading news organizations" crying "fake news" when other agencies report the facts and then it turns out they're the ones actually pushing out "fake news"! And it's much more damaging considering the reach they have. Time and time again they've shown that fair and balanced reporting is something they just don't adhere to. As they continue to report half-baked investigations (or even outright lies) without doing their due diligence, more people will begin to look elsewhere for the real story. Even their lame attempts at 'correcting' their stories don't inspire much faith.

Read More...
Eggs Fried

From 'Watergate' to 'Russiagate' - from the sublime to the ridiculous

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 13:56 UTC
Trump Nixon
The recent string of false media stories about Russiagate shows the media's growing desperation as proof for the Russiagate collusion allegations fails to appear

The recent string of misfires of Russiagate stories in the US media, and the growing signs of alarm amongst proponents of the Russiagate conspiracy theory in the media and elsewhere following the angry exchanges between Republican Congressmen and FBI Director Christopher Wray in the House Judiciary Committee, are symptoms of the growing desperation within the media and amongst proponents of the Russiagate conspiracy theory that the evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians that they counted on is failing to turn up.

To understand the reason for this alarm it is merely necessary to compare the time line of the Watergate scandal - the scandal which provides the benchmark for all political scandals involving US Presidents - with the progress or rather lack of it of the Russiagate scandal.

Comment: Also from Alexander Mercouris: Russiagate keeps falling apart: Strzok-gate and Mueller's cover-up

Read More...
Folder

Rep. Devin Nunes orders investigators to physically remove outstanding documents from DOJ; threatens to hold McCabe in contempt

Joshua Caplan
Gateway Pundit
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 13:24 UTC
Jeff Sessions and Devin Nunes
Jeff Sessions and Devin Nunes


House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-CA) ordered congressional investigators to physically remove all outstanding documents from the Justice Department on Thursday.

"Intel Cmte chair Nunes says Hse Intel Cmte will send investigators to DoJ Thursday to do a "scrub" of documents they have pursued since winter. Nunes says if McCabe doesn't appear next Tuesd, he will move to subpoena him..or potentially hold McCabe in contempt of Congress," tweeted Fox News' Chad Pergram.



Comment: Interesting:
FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe abruptly cancelled his closed door testimony in front of the House Intelligence Committee as news emerged that the wife of Senior DOJ official Bruce Ohr worked for Fusion GPS, the opposition research firm which assembled the infamous "Trump dossier." Ohr was demoted last week after allegedly trying to conceal his contacts with Fusion.

Fox News reporter Chad Pergram's sources tell him "McCabe has an Ohr problem," and they believe "FBI DepDir McCabe not coming to Hse Intel Cmte tomorrow because he'd be asked about Bruce Ohr & Ohr's wife Nellie who worked for Fusion GPS," adding "something far more sinister."

Pergram also tweeted "Expect subpoenas to compel McCabe to appear this wk."

Comment: Previously:

Read More...
Bad Guys

The Saudi war in Yemen: A Western-sponsored genocide

Ricardo Vaz
Investig'Action
Wed, 13 Dec 2017 13:18 UTC
funeral hall Sanaa Saudi bombing Yemen
In October 2016 Saudi Arabia struck a funeral hall in Sanaa twice in a space of minutes, killing over 150 people.
Almost three years have passed since Saudi Arabia announced it was intervening militarily, with its allies, in Yemen, to remove the Houthis (officially called Ansar Allah) from power after they had taken over the capital. Western analysts saw it as a bold move from recently-empowered (deputy) crown prince Mohammad bin Salman (MbS), weapons manufacturers and their political representatives were delighted. But what had been predicted as a swift military operation has turned into a humiliating stalemate. Unable to impose its will by force, Saudi Arabia and its bold prince have resorted to war crimes and collective punishment, imposing a humanitarian catastrophe on the Yemeni people.

The lack of media interest makes it seem like a crisis unfolding in slow motion. But that is only because outrage and compassion are now meant to be weaponised when they can be useful in justifying imperialist interventions. For the Yemeni people the agony is real and there is no escaping it. In what was already the poorest country in the region, the Saudi-led bombings of infrastructure and the blockade imposed on Yemeni ports have left millions on the brink.
Read More...
Propaganda

MSM was wrong about Assad & ISIS - and as usual they won't admit it

Max Abrahms & John Glaser
LA Times
Wed, 13 Dec 2017 13:18 UTC
Assad Speach
The Islamic State is a shadow of its former self. In 2014, the extremist group seemed to make substantial inroads in achieving its stated goal of a caliphate. It boasted tens of thousands of fighters and territorial control over an area roughly the size of South Korea. By almost every metric, Islamic State has collapsed in its Syria stronghold, as well as in Iraq. As a former foreign fighter recently admitted, "It's over: there is no more Daesh left," using an Arabic acronym for Islamic State.

The rollback of Islamic State must come as a shock to the chorus of journalists and analysts who spent years insisting that such progress would never happen without toppling the regime of Bashar Assad - which is, of course, still standing. A cavalcade of opinion makers long averred that Islamic State would thrive in Syria so long as Assad ruled because the Syrian Arab Army was part of the same disease.
Read More...
Propaganda

China: Official media outlet advises how to survive nuclear attacks, and the fake news story that they're building refugee camps

Jay Syrmopoulos
Free Thought Project
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 12:00 UTC
china wants war us bases
Revealing the extreme direness of the situation on the Korean Peninsula, a state-run Chinese media outlet based in a province bordering North Korea and Russia - the Jilin Daily - published a "common sense" guide for surviving a nuclear war, according to Reuters.

Although the full-page article of guidelines doesn't specifically mention North Korea, the warning was clearly a result of the increasing tensions between a nuclear-armed DPRK, and the United States.

The influential Chinese state-run Global Times described the article as a public service announcement due to the situation on the Korean peninsula.

Comment: Check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: 'Containing' Russia-China and Global Economic Collapse

Also See:

Read More...
Attention

Tanzania: President pardons two child rapists while another official calls for pregnant school girls to be forced to identify father

Karen McVeigh
The Guardian
Wed, 13 Dec 2017 06:30 UTC
Tanzanian President John Magufuli (centre) in Dodoma. He pardoned the two convicted rapists along with thousands of other prisoners in his independence day speech on Saturday.
© STR/AFP/Getty ImagesTanzanian President John Magufuli (centre) in Dodoma. He pardoned the two convicted rapists along with thousands of other prisoners in his independence day speech on Saturday.
Activists accused Tanzania's leaders of "promoting a culture of human rights violations", as the release of two high-profile child rapists this week coincided with calls for pregnant schoolgirls to be arrested.

John Magufuli, the Tanzanian president, pardoned the two men, who were convicted of the rape of 10 primary school children aged between six and eight, along with thousands of other prisoners, in his independence day speech on Saturday.

News of their release emerged as a government official in the east African country called for pregnant pupils to be taken into custody. On Monday, John Mongella, the regional commissioner of Mwanza, said the move would force girls to testify against those who impregnated them. This followed calls from the president earlier this year to ban pregnant girls from school.
Read More...
Star of David

Senior IDF service members arrested over alleged scam


Sputnik
Wed, 13 Dec 2017 13:08 UTC
Israeli flag
Almost two dozen senior Israel Defense Force service members, Defense Ministry officials and technology company employees were put in handcuffs on Tuesday for allegedly stealing $28 million, or 100 million new Israeli shekels, from the government, the Times of Israel reported.

The scheme to steal taxpayer funds allegedly involved the suspects billing Israel's Defense Ministry for telecom projects that never happened or were only partially complete.

Giltech and Uricom, two telecommunications firms in Israel, were listed as the technology companies involved in the scam, according to the Times of Israel. The identities of the IDF and officials involved in the operation have not been disclosed.
Read More...
Magic Hat

Another double-standard for Pelosi: 'Horrible' that accuser Paula Jones was able to sue Bill Clinton

Kyle Olson
The American Mirror
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 00:01 UTC
Nancy Pelosi
© Yuri Gripas / Reuters
In the eyes of Nancy Pelosi, sexual harassment accusers are equal. Some are just more equal than others - and equality apparently depends on the political party of the accused.

The House Minority Leader, and highest ranking woman in the U.S. government, told reporters she thought it was "horrible" that Paula Jones was able to sue President Bill Clinton for sexual harassment in the 1990s.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Pelosi recalled hearing the news that Jones would have her day in court. Pelosi said she was traveling with Bill and Hillary Clinton through Europe and stopped in London to meet with Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Comment: Good ol' 'Double Standard' Pelosi, at it again! It's "horrible" that an accuser was able to bring a case against Bill Clinton, but yet she's "proud" of Trump's accusers.

Read More...