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Kellyanne Conway defends Trump's criticism of CIA hacking report - video

Leon Wolf
The Blaze
Mon, 12 Dec 2016 16:34 UTC
Kellyanne Conway defended Trump
President-elect Donald Trump spent the weekend criticizing a CIA report that suggested Russian interference in the United States presidential election in his own inimitable fashion. Of course, Trump can hardly be blamed for defending his election victory as legitimate, but his strident tone and unfiltered tweeting style left him defending a new charge: that he does not respect the intelligence community.

In an interview Monday morning, Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway defended Trump's criticism of the CIA report and his respect for the intelligence community as a whole. Speaking with George Stephanopolous on ABC's "Good Morning America," Conway claimed that Trump did not dispute the finding that Russians likely participated in the hack of former Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta's emails but merely the conclusion that this changed the election result in America. She also stated her belief that these arguments are being made solely due to the fact that people did not like the election results:
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Info

Aleppo liberation: Palmyra and Washington's dilemma

John Wight
Sputnik
Tue, 13 Dec 2016 16:26 UTC
Palmyra, Syria
© REUTERS/ Omar Sanadik
The ability of Daesh to retake the Syrian desert city of Palmyra nine months, after being originally forced out, raises serious questions for those leading the various ongoing military operations in the country against the terrorist organization.

When it comes to the Syrian Army, for obvious reasons the bulk of its forces and its main focus have been on the military operation to liberate Aleppo, partly occupied by anti-government forces since July 2012.

At time of writing the battle to take back full control of Syria's second city is close to completion, with the scenes of thousands of men, women, and children celebrating in the streets putting the final nail in the coffin of a western narrative depicting the SAA and its allies as the 'bad guys', while in the process reinventing Nusra Front as a latter day French resistance or Partisans of Second World War repute.


Comment: Victory at last! East Aleppo fully liberated, Syrians celebrate in the streets

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Propaganda

Top 10 reasons why the CIA assessment on 'Russian hacking' is fake news

Joel B. Pollak
Breitbart
Mon, 12 Dec 2016 15:42 UTC
Putin John Podesta
On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) pledged to support a congressional investigation into whether Russian hacking affected the 2016 election. Republicans have nothing to fear from such an investigation, because they won the election fair and square.

No, Russia is not the friend that President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spent several years pretending it was. But the idea that Russian hackers coronated Trump is only the latest left-wing opiate — after white supremacists and "fake news" — designed to dull the pain of electoral defeat, and postpone the reckoning that must occur if Democrats are to pose a significant threat as an opposition party at any time in the near future.

Here are just ten of the reasons the "Russian hacking" story is a sham — a left-wing twist on the red-baiting McCarthyism of the 1950s.

1. There is actually no new information leading the CIA to its conclusion. The New York Times reports: "The C.I.A.'s conclusion does not appear to be the product of specific new intelligence obtained since the election, several American officials, including some who had read the agency's briefing, said on Sunday. Rather, it was an analysis of what many believe is overwhelming circumstantial evidence — evidence that others feel does not support firm judgments — that the Russians put a thumb on the scale for Mr. Trump, and got their desired outcome." In other words, someone only decided after Trump won that the accusation was worth making.

Comment: Aside from internal reports (like the CIA's torture scandal), you don't see investigative reports from the CIA because they are not an investigative body. Among other things, they provide 'intelligence', which is used for congress and other investigative agencies. The FBI does perform legal investigations however, and already concluded Russia didn't interfere in US elections because there are no facts that would stand up in a court of law. This CIA 'assessment' is without substance and mere fodder for their information war.

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Mr. Potato

Obama full of lies: Now he blames Russia for Trump

Andrew Malcolm
McClatchy DC
Mon, 12 Dec 2016 16:17 UTC
Russian President VladiVladmir Putin, with U.S. President Barack Obama
© Alexei Druzhinin APIn this Sept. 5, 2016 file photo, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, with U.S. President Barack Obama in eastern China's Zhejiang province.
Now that the 2016 election is long over and online hackers have had ample time to cover their e-tracks, a bold President Barack Obama has decisively ordered a "full review" of Russian and other interference in the United States electoral process.

We should probably say alleged Russian interference since no one has offered any proof, just reasonable suspicions of who might benefit from the release of documents that Democrats wanted to keep hidden. The Trump campaign criticized the move.
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Star of David

Israel advocates worry Trump's pick for Secretary of State has anti-Israel bias

Adam Horowitz and Philip Weiss
Mondoweiss
Mon, 12 Dec 2016 16:08 UTC
Rex W. Tillerson
© AP Photo/LM OteroRex W. Tillerson, chairman and CEO of ExxonMobil, listens to a question during a news conference after the shareholders meeting in Dallas, Wednesday, May 30, 2007.
Over the weekend Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson became the leading candidate to become Secretary of State in the incoming Trump administration. Although most attention has been directed towards his close relationship to Vladimir Putin, there are also questions about what his appointment will mean for Israel/Palestine.

So far it seems most pro-Israel commentators are not excited. Similar to his close relationship to Putin, Tillerson has built close relationships with OPEC member countries in his role with Exxon. Some think this doesn't bode well for Israel.

Jewish Insider gets this from ZOA's Mort Klein:
"As an oil man, he was obviously very close to many Arab countries, had close relations with them. I am worried that this may indicate bias against Israel. His closeness with Russia concerns me as well because Russia has been enormously hostile to Israel. So, in his work life, the Arabs and the Russians were key players in his day to day work. That makes me very concerned about whether he will be extremely biased against Israel."



Comment: What hostility? Russia and Israel: The neocon dilemma
Although generally ignored by the American mainstream media, Israeli-Russian relations have been improving for some time despite Russia's support for Iran, Syria and the Palestinians. The improvement stems in part from the fact that both countries have a common interest in opposing Islamic terrorism.

Comment: Bolton didn't make the cut but could be up for Assistant Secretary of State.

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Snakes in Suits

Lagarde shocked by 'imaginary plot' that led to trial


Bloomberg
Mon, 12 Dec 2016 15:42 UTC
Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde
© Stefanie Loos / Reuters
On the first day of her trial on decade-old negligence charges, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde told a Paris court Monday that the claims are nothing more than "an imaginary plot."

Lagarde told the Cour de Justice de la Republique that she was "profoundly shocked: shocked by the shortcuts, the approximations" in the 2015 indictment, which is "an imaginary plot" written by someone who never met her. Lagarde, the former French finance minister, said none of her former colleagues "could recognize me when reading the indictment."

"I want at long last to prove that I'm in no way guilty of any negligence," Lagarde said as she took the stand to answer the court's questions. The IMF chief, who is accused of not doing enough to prevent a massive government payout to Bernard Tapie eight years ago, rejected the charge and said she acted in the general interest.

Comment: Looks like Lagarde is trying to tip-toe out of this case:

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Chess

Duterte admits feigning illness to avoid an awkward meeting with Obama at APEC summit


RT
Tue, 13 Dec 2016 14:34 UTC
Heads of state lima peru APEC summit
© Mariana Bazo / Reuters Heads of state pose for a family photo during the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Summit in Lima
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said he skipped an evening event at a recent APEC summit to avoid meeting his US counterpart Barack Obama, whom he has targeted with offensive remarks on several occasions.

Duterte was not present at the leaders' gala or the traditional family photo op during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) session in Lima, Peru, last month. In a speech at the Wallace Business Forum in Manila, Duterte backtracked on his earlier explanation for the absence, and said he didn't skip the events due to an upset stomach, but rather feigned illness to avoid meeting Obama, the Philippine Star newspaper reported.

"I was there. I attended the meetings, actually. Do not believe those idiots out there. But you know, Obama was there, and because we had an exchange of words, I was just trying to avoid an awkward situation," Duterte said at the Monday gathering.
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Info

Pope Francis expresses condolences in letter to Assad over bloodshed in Syria


Sputnik
Tue, 13 Dec 2016 15:28 UTC
Pope Francis
© REUTERS/ Andrew Kelly
Pope Francis has sent a letter to Syrian President Bashar Assad, expressing his profound sympathy to Syria and its people, and calling for uniting all efforts to stop the bloodshed and restore peace.

According to Sana news agency, Pope Francis stressed in the letter that Syria was going through difficult times and asserted the Vatican's condemnation of all forms of terrorism and extremism. He also called on strengthening efforts on fighting against terrorism in Syria so that it could remain a model for coexistence among cultures and religions as it has always been.
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Stock Up

Russian trade with Iran significantly increased: Up by 80 percent


RT
Tue, 13 Dec 2016 15:05 UTC
Tehran
© Marius Bosch / Reuters Tehran's skyline at night with the Milad tower
Year on year trade between Russia and Iran has risen significantly, up by 80 percent according to Russian Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak. Novak is the co-chair of the Intergovernmental Russian-Iranian Commission on trade and economic cooperation and is in Tehran with a delegation of over 200 Russian officials. He met Iranian Minister of Communication Mahmoud Vaezi to talk about the possibility of Tehran signing a free trade agreement with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union next year.

The sides signed agreements to construct a heat and power plant, and railway electrification worth €2.2 billion. Last year, the two countries agreed to develop economic ties, with Moscow promising to provide a $5 billion state loan to Tehran to promote industrial cooperation. The money is expected to spur trade from the current $2 billion to a target of $10 billion. According to Novak, the money flowing between Russia and Iran tripled in 2016. "The return to normal bank payments is going to become a powerful trigger. This year the amount of financial payments has tripled," he said.

Comment: Russia and Iran have a burgeoning economic and trade relationship and together they are providing strong support to the embattled government of President Bashar Al-Assad.
See also:

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Dollars

Venezuela closes border with Colombia to combat mafia cash smuggling


RT
Tue, 13 Dec 2016 15:14 UTC
Venezuelans checking bolivar notes
© Marco Bello / Reuters
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has closed the frontier with Colombia for 72 hours to prevent the smuggling of bank notes due to be removed from circulation. The border only reopened in August after being shut for a year.

On Sunday, Venezuelan authorities said that the 100 bolivar banknote would be withdrawn and replaced with coins of the same face value within three days to crack down on organized criminals operating on the border.

On the official exchange rate the 100 bolivar banknote is equal to $10, but on the black market, it has fallen to about $0.02.

The government also plans to print six new bills worth between 500 and 20,000 bolivars, starting on December 15.

Comment: The situation in Venezuela is starting to crack from the outside influences to bring down Maduro:

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