Puppet MastersS


Mr. Potato

Stoltenberg: No Russian attack on Baltics coming, but beware "possible intentions"

Alexander Nosovich (translated by Tom Winter)
RuBaltic.ru / Fort Russ
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 19:21 UTC
NATO-Generalsekretär Jens Stoltenberg
© Reuters"The threat from Russia is this big!"
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the Baltic countries are not subject to the threat of military attack. It follows from this statement that the calls of the heads of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to increase the presence of the North Atlantic alliance in their countries are unjustified, and the already existing NATO armed forces need to be withdrawn from the Baltics as unneeded.

"NATO sees concerns about terrorism and cyberattacks, but nothing points to the possibility of a conventional military attack on any of the NATO countries, including the Baltic countries," said Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance Jens Stoltenberg during his official visit to Denmark.

"We are alarmed by the actions of Russia and its possible intentions, but at the same time it is important that we do not overdramatize the situation," said Stoltenberg. A very characteristic statement.


Comment: What else can one respond with but "D'uh!"

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Bulb

"Make government work again": Trump's slashes discretionary govt spending and jobs, boosts Energy and Defense

Charles S. Clark
Government Executive
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 18:50 UTC
Trump budget
© AP Photo/Andrew HarnikPresident Trump met with his Cabinet on Monday prior to the release of his budget proposal.
With the aim of "making government work again," the Trump White House on Thursday unveiled a $1.1 trillion budget blueprint for discretionary spending in fiscal 2017 and 2018 that would abolish 19 agencies and eliminate thousands of agency jobs.

The 54-page "America First" document, focused primarily on fiscal 2018, would boost the Defense Department and related programs at Energy by $54 billion, and Homeland Security by $2.8 billion. It would offset such increases by cutting the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development by $10.1 billion (28 percent) and the Environmental Protection Agency by $2.6 billion (31 percent). The latter cut would eliminate approximately 3,200 positions, according to the document.

Comment: As with most things 'Trump', this budgeting plan can't be looked at through strict black and white terms. There's clearly a need to make governmental agencies who use American tax payers money more efficient and effective, but there is also a need to examine certain agencies like the IMLS, which have shown greater need over the past years. The funding of the American war machine also still stands as overwhelmingly excessive, and if Trump really wanted to make a dent in obnoxious spending, he should start there.

See also: Trump's chopping block: The 10 largest programs he wants to cut spending on

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Handcuffs

Lock him up! Netanyahu's lawyer testifies in PM's criminal probe


Sputnik
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 19:17 UTC
netanyahu
© AP Photo/ Tsafrir Abayov
The personal lawyer of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu testified to police investigators on Monday concerning two criminal investigations in which the premier is currently implicated.

According to police, David Shimron only testified about an investigation alleging that Netanyahu and his family illegally accepted gifts from billionaires, known as Case 1,000 and an attempt by the PM to halt the expansion of the Israel Hayom newspaper and receive more favorable coverage by having several conversations with Arnon Mozes, publisher of Yediot Aharonoth in an investigation called Case 2,000.

Netanyahu's wife, Sara, is also implicated in the graft case. After a third round of questioning in January, the prime minister defended himself before the Knesset, saying the accusations were politically motivated and that he had done nothing illegal or out of the ordinary.

He said, "The goal is to pressure the attorney-general to press charges at any cost. There is no limit to the hounding, the persecution, the lies."

Comment: Out of the ordinary? Perhaps not. Illegal? Very probably. See also:
  • Netanyahu pursued for graft: Israeli Police wanted to question Kerry but was blocked by Attorney General


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Attention

UN nuclear watchdog says N. Korea may have doubled uranium enrichment


RT
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 19:45 UTC
Supreme leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong-un
© KCNA / ReutersSupreme leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong-un
North Korea may now be a step closer to developing a nuclear weapon as its facilities are extensively producing plutonium and enriching twice as much uranium as several years ago, according to the head of the UN-run nuclear energy agency.

Pyongyang's nuclear capabilities might overwhelm all previous predictions, Yukiya Amano, director general of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), told the Wall Street Journal. The reclusive country, he said, is accelerating the production of plutonium and the enrichment of uranium.

"This is a highly political issue. A political agreement is essential," Amano said. "We can't be optimistic. The situation is very bad. We don't have the reason to be optimistic."

Amano, who played a leading role in brokering the landmark nuclear pact reached between six world powers and Iran in 2015 to downsize Tehran's nuclear potential, cast doubt on chances of engineering a similar deal with North Korea.

"The situation is very different. Easy comparisons should be avoided," he said. The IAEA chief added that the agency's satellite imagery indicates that Pyongyang has doubled the size of the facility at Yongbyon nuclear research center, where the enrichment is believed to take place.

Comment: See also:

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Briefcase

U.S. House GOP pushes healthcare reform vote after Trump intervention 'closes the deal'


RT
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 15:52 UTC
Donald Trump and Paul Ryan
© Kevin Lamarque/ReutersU.S. President Donald Trump and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.
The vote to repeal Obamacare will take place this week, the House Republican leadership has announced after meeting with President Donald Trump, seeking to dispel rumors of opposition within the ranks and brushing off criticism from Democrats.

"Seven years of this failed experiment is enough," Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) announced on Tuesday, telling reporters that the Trump administration and the GOP are "all in" on repealing and replacing the previous administration's sweeping healthcare mandate.

Trump met with the House Republicans on Tuesday and told them that failing to pass the healthcare reform could cost many of them their seats in the 2018 midterm election, The Hill reported, citing a source inside the meeting who wished to remain anonymous.

Trump was there "to do what he does best, and that is to close the deal," Ryan said afterward.

"The president just came here and knocked the ball out of the park," and explained to the representatives "what kind of rendezvous with destiny we have here," Ryan told reporters.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-California) explained that the repeal will proceed in phases, with the first applying federal anti-trust scrutiny to insurers, and the second allowing small businesses to pool their resources across state lines.
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Stock Down

Forbes estimates Trump's fortune has decreased $1 billion over past year


RT
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 18:26 UTC
US President Donald Trump
© Joshua Roberts / ReutersUS President Donald Trump
The personal fortune of US President Donald Trump has decreased by $1 billion since last March, dragging the billionaire 220 places lower in the Forbes Rich List.

Trump's estimated net worth has fallen to $3.5 billion from $4.5 billion a year ago, according to the magazine's latest ranking published on Monday. As a result, the president is now 544th on the list.

Much of the decline in Trump's finances is caused by the softness in the midtown Manhattan real estate market, according to Forbes.

"Forty percent of Donald Trump's fortune is tied up in Trump Tower and eight buildings within one mile of it. What happens in that micro-market does more to affect the net worth of Donald Trump than anything else in the world. Lately, the neighborhood has been struggling," the magazine said.
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Cards

Economic report: China sits on financial house of cards


RT
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 11:12 UTC
China's economy
© CHROMORANGE / Bilderbox
Financial risks are mounting in China despite government efforts to rebalance the economy away from low-value manufacturing, said the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

According to the OECD annual report, Beijing should urgently address rising levels of corporate debt, excess production capacity and frothy prices in property and other asset markets that add to the risk of "disorderly default."

It forecast China's economic growth is likely to slow to 6.5 percent this year and cool further to 6.3 percent in 2018.

The Chinese economy grew 6.7 percent last year, its slowest pace in a quarter-century, and Beijing has set a goal of about 6.5 percent growth for 2017.

"After decades of breath-taking expansion, the focus should be on making growth more resilient, sustainable and inclusive, and addressing risks to stability," said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria.

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Airplane

DHS bans large electronics for some Middle East flights to US


RT
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 17:52 UTC
US Middle East flights
© Arnd Wiegmann / Reuters
Some electronics will not be permitted in the cabin of US-bound flights from eight Middle Eastern and African countries, the Trump administration has confirmed. The ban applies to non-stop flights and is the result of a security threat.

The restriction affects flights to the United States from 10 international airports.

Those airports include the cities of Cairo, Egypt; Amman, Jordan; Kuwait City, Kuwait; Casablanca, Morocco; Doha, Qatar; Riyadh and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Istanbul, Turkey; and Abu Dhabi and Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The ban will prohibit passengers from carrying electronic items bigger than a cellphone in their cabin baggage. Larger devices such as tablets and laptops must be placed in checked luggage.
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Calculator

Trump's chopping block: The 10 largest programs he wants to cut spending on

Eric Katz
Government Executive
Mon, 20 Mar 2017 00:00 UTC
chopping block
President Trump requested an array of cuts in his fiscal 2018 budget to arrive at $54 billion in overall reductions in domestic agency discretionary spending.

He proposed eliminating entirely 19 independent agencies, though the real meat in terms of dollars came from inside Cabinet-level agencies. By the White House's estimate, Trump proposed cutting hundreds of programs entirely. More than 50 activities would be on the chopping block at the Environmental Protection Agency alone, though that accounts for only 0.6 percent of the total cuts.

The White House defended most of the program cuts by saying they have not lived up to their stated purpose, or they fail to demonstrate evidence of their success. In some cases, the programs simply do not align with Trump's priorities.

"Every agency and department will be driven to achieve greater efficiency and to eliminate wasteful spending in carrying out their honorable service to the American people," Trump wrote in his budget.

Comment: Maybe Trump is doing this with the intention of sending the message that he is serious about cutting wasteful spending and doesn't expect these programs to be cut, but this reduction in budget (coupled with his recent increase in military spending) is strangely reminiscent of George W. Bush's moves early in his disastrous Presidency. Still, it may be that Trump sees the need to go backward a bit in order to go forward, and is looking to secure some confidence in his political base before he can make the sweeping change he ran his campaign on. We'll see...

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Chess

Return of the zombies: Fiona Hill to take over President Trump's Russia desk

John Helmer
Dances With Bears
Tue, 21 Mar 2017 17:38 UTC
Return of the Zombies
© johnhelmer.net
There is a Fiona Hill on each side of the Atlantic.

One is joint chief of staff for Prime Minister Theresa May in London. The other Fiona Hill (lead image, right) is also British. She was appointed this month to be senior director for Europe and Russia at the National Security Council (NSC) in Washington. Between 2006 and 2009, Hill was the Russia desk officer on the National Intelligence Council under President George Bush, then President Barack Obama.

The White House announced Hill's appointment by an anonymous leak to Foreign Policy magazine on March 2. The leaker claimed Hill had been selected at least a fortnight earlier by the NSC's chief of staff Keith Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant-general, before Michael Flynn was forced to resign as the National Security Advisor on February 13; and before Lieutenant-General H.R. McMaster was put in Flynn's place on February 17. The announcement of Hill sandbagged her position, but Hill was nervous about confirming it. "Hill did not immediately respond to a request for comment," Foreign Policy reported.

Before Hill joined the US intelligence services, she held an operational post at the Eurasia Foundation; that is a State Department contractor for regime change operations in the former states of the Soviet Union. The State Department rationale for the Eurasia Foundation, its establishment documents show, was "to accelerate and broaden American engagement in the development of civil societies in the Commonwealth of Independent States."
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