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Briefcase

Donald Trump's old tweets to Obama: 'Don't attack Syria', 'Stay out of Syria'


RT
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 16:33 UTC
Donald Trump
© Carlos Barria/Reuters
US President Donald Trump's decision to launch a missile strike on the Syrian military after an alleged chemical attack in Idlib brings back a series of tweets from 2013, when Trump urged then-President Obama not to go into Syria in a similar situation.

Back in 2013, Donald Trump, who was a real estate mogul and reality TV star before becoming president, strongly and repeatedly opposed then-President Barak Obama's intention to go into war with Syria after chemical attacks were blamed on Syrian government troops. The escalation was defused at the time when the Syrian government gave up its chemical munitions stockpiles, and Obama backed down.

However, today's President Trump seems to be doing everything Trump-2013 criticized Obama for.

The cost of the strike on the Syrian military airbase, which was ordered without Congressional approval, is estimated to be between $30 million and $100 million, depending on which modification of the Tomahawk cruise missile was used.


Back in 2013, Trump repeatedly told Obama not to go into Syria.


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Network

US lawmakers want to know how many Americans under surveillance


RT
Sat, 08 Apr 2017 11:16 UTC
Graphic of computer hacker
© xijian / Getty Images
Top members of the House Judiciary Committee have asked the Trump administration to reveal how many Americans are affected by expiring foreign surveillance programs that gather massive amounts of personal data.

In a letter to Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, House Judiciary Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia) and ranking member John Conyers (D-Michigan) have called for an estimate, according to Reuters, on how many Americans are involved in surveillance operations that expire at the end of the year. The surveillance programs in question are vested in Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

"It is clear that Section 702 surveillance programs can and do collect information about U.S. persons, on subjects unrelated to counterterrorism," wrote Goodlatte and Conyers. "It is imperative that we understand the size of this impact on U.S. persons as our committee proceeds with the debate on reauthorization."

The pair have requested an answer by April 24, Reuters reported.
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Eye 1

The Democratic Order's Berezovsky Trap

Phil Butler
New Eastern Outlook
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 10:40 UTC
Boris Berezovsky
When exiled Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky was found hanged in his Titness Park home in the UK in 2013 the jagged teeth of an espionage trap set for Russians was revealed. Today the legacy of Russia's most interesting exiled oligarch may be as the archetypical mafia informant. Here's a look at how today's anti-Russia actors are coerced into betrayal, deceit, and into doing the bidding of the New Democratic Order.

Most people outside the geo-political sphere know nothing whatsoever about the Boris Yeltsin era Russian oligarch named Boris Berezovsky. His colleague in exile, the former FSB spy Alexander Litvinenko, is far better known for his finally succumbed to the effects of radioactive Polonium 210 in 2006. It was Litvinenko the UK government and the mainstream media said was "probably" ordered killed by Vladimir Putin. But the other side of the story tells of two who were intricately involved in the steeping criminal activity Boris Yeltsin essentially resigned over, and the literal theft of the heritage of the Russian people from the instant of perestroika onward. In a poisonous bit of irony, a slew of Russian mafia outcasts and New World Order captains have now fallen into the same game of blackmail and murderous betrayal, or something my Dutch colleague Holger Eekhof refers to as "The Berezovsky Trap".
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Propaganda

Sources ramping the propaganda: SAS mission to destroy Syria's sarin stockpiles called off in 2013


RT
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 08:52 UTC
British SAS
© eliteukforces.info
An SAS mission to locate and destroy stockpiles of chemical weapons was called off in 2013 over fears up to half the troops could be killed carrying out the mission, anonymous sources claim.

The revelation comes after US President Donald Trump U-turned on his isolationist stance to launch Tomahawk missile strikes against a Syrian airbase in Idlib province in response to alleged chemical attacks on the rebel-held area.

The 2013 mission was floated but canceled by then-Prime Minister David Cameron in the wake of chemical rocket attacks in the towns of Ghouta and Khan al-Assal that year.
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Info

German energy giant calls for anti-Russian sanctions relief


RT
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 08:39 UTC
Wintershall worker
© Wintershall / Facebook
The EU penalties imposed on Russia over the eastern Ukraine crisis are causing significant damage to trade and should be gradually relaxed, the CEO of Wintershall Mario Mehren said in an interview with German business daily Handelsblatt, as quoted by RIA Novosti.

The head of the Germany's largest crude oil and natural gas producer called for an examination of how to lift the sanctions, citing a similar appeal by former German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

According to Mehren, the punitive measures injured both the Russian economy and trade between Russia and Europe, but no steps have been made toward solving the political crisis.
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Dollar

Daesh seeks to control drug trafficking in northern Afghanistan


Sputnik
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 08:32 UTC
ISIL fighters in Afghanistan
© Youtube/PressTV Documentaries
Daesh terrorist group is looking to gain control over drug trafficking in northern Afghanistan to finance its activities, Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department on New Challenges and Threats Dmitry Feoktistov said at an inter-American anti-terror summit.

"Following the substantial destruction of ISIL's energy infrastructure it is critical to remain vigilant against its efforts to increase previously minor income streams, or to cultivate new ones. One of the new sources is drugs trafficking in Afghanistan, especially in the northern provinces, which ISIL is trying to get under control," Feoktistov stated at the summit in Washington on Thursday.
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Attention

Tillerson says 'new strategy' on North Korea in the works after Trump meets Chinese president


RT
Sat, 08 Apr 2017 08:09 UTC
China's President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan are greeted by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and his wife Renda St. Clair
© Joe Skipper / Reuters China's President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan are greeted by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and his wife Renda St. Clair.
During their two-day summit, President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived at new agreements on North Korea, according to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

After the summit at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, Tillerson told reporters that Trump and Xi came to an agreement on North Korea. Xi also recognized North Korea's nuclear capabilities have reached a "very serious stage of advancement," the secretary of state said Friday, Reuters reported.
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Stock Up

Tomahawk maker's stock Raytheon rises after US strike in Syria


RT
Sat, 08 Apr 2017 09:34 UTC
U.S. Navy
© U.S. Navy / Reuters
Raytheon, the company that makes the Tomahawk missiles used in the US air strike against Syria airbase by the US, saw its stock price rise in early trading, while sliding in the afternoon.

Defense and energy stocks moved higher Friday, with Tomahawk missile-maker Raytheon Corp. a key gainer, as investors seem to be betting that President Trump's decision may mean the Pentagon will need more Tomahawks, according to CNN Money.

"Raytheon RTN, +1.70% the maker of the Tomahawk missiles that were used in the attack, was last up 0.8%, after jumping more than 3% in the premarket to lead S&P 500 gainers,"reported MarketWatch.com

The Department of Defense asked for $2 billion over five years to buy 4,000 Tomahawks for the US Navy in its fiscal 2017 budget last February.

The missile has been a key tool of the Defense Department's arsenal for the last 25 years, according to the Military Times. They are designed to fly at low altitudes with speeds up to 550 miles per hour, giving them a strong defense against anti-aircraft measures. The 3,500 explosives also contain a guidance system that can be tailored to provide further evasive capabilities.

Comment: It's good bargain after all.

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Cowboy Hat

Scott Adams: Trump's "gains" from the Syrian air base attack

Scott Adams
Scott Adams' Blog
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 08:32 UTC
Trump Syria
As I blogged yesterday, the claim that Assad ordered a chemical attack on his own people in the past week doesn't pass my sniff test. For Assad to order a gas attack now - while his side is finally winning - he would have to be willing to risk his life and his regime for no real military advantage. I'm not buying that.

But let's say the world believes Assad or a rogue general under his command gassed his own people. What's an American President to do? If Trump does nothing, he appears weak, and it invites mischief from other countries. But if he launches 59 Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian military air base base within a few days, which he did, the U.S. gets several benefits at low cost:

1. President Trump just solved for the allegation that he is Putin's puppet. He doesn't look like Putin's puppet today. And that was Trump's biggest problem, which made it America's problem too. No one wants a president who is under a cloud of suspicion about Russian influence.
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Eye 1

Vault 7, part 4: WikiLeaks release shows CIA 'Grasshopper' used stolen malware from the 'Russian mafia'


RT
Fri, 07 Apr 2017 20:19 UTC
wikileaks cell phone
© Toru Hanai / Reuters
WikiLeaks has released the fourth part of 'Vault 7', named 'Grasshopper', the latest in a series of leaks detailing alleged CIA hacking techniques. It details malicious software WikiLeaks claims was taken from "suspected Russian organized crime."

The latest release consists of 27 documents WikiLeaks claims come from the CIA's 'Grasshopper framework', a platform for building malware for use on Microsoft Windows operating systems.

In a statement from WikiLeaks, 'Grasshopper' was described as providing the CIA with the ability to build a customized implant which will behave differently, depending on the security capabilities of a computer.

Comment: See also:

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