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Iran's Guardians Council will suspend IAEA inspections if sanctions are not eased


RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Wed, 02 Dec 2020 20:36 UTC
Rohani

Iranian President Hassan Rohani speaking at a cabinet meeting in Tehran on December 2
An Iranian constitutional watchdog has approved a law requiring the government to suspend United Nations inspections of the country's nuclear facilities and step up uranium enrichment beyond the limit set under the 2015 nuclear agreement between Tehran and world powers if sanctions are not eased in one month.

The Guardians Council approved the legislation on December 2, a day after it was passed in parliament in what was seen as a show of defiance after the killing of a prominent Iranian nuclear scientist last week.

Iranian President Hassan Rohani criticized the law as "harmful" to diplomatic efforts aimed at restoring the 2015 nuclear deal and easing U.S. sanctions.

Comment: See also:

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Padlock

The Cost of Resistance

Chris Hedges
Consortium News
Wed, 23 Sep 2020 13:57 UTC
Hallam/Assange
© Jamie L. Lowe, CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons/KJN/Business Insider
Roger Hallam • Julian Assange
Two of the rebels I admire most, Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks publisher, and Roger Hallam, the co-founder of Extinction Rebellion, are in jail in Britain. That should not be surprising. You can measure the effectiveness of resistance by the fury of the response.

Julian courageously exposed the lies, deceit, war crimes and corruption of the ruling imperial elites. Roger has helped organized the largest acts of mass civil disobedience in British history, shutting down parts of London for weeks, in a bid to wrest power from a ruling class that has done nothing, and will do nothing, to halt the climate emergency and our death march to mass extinction.

The governing elites, when truly threatened, turn the rule of law into farce. Dissent becomes treason. They use the state mechanisms of control - intelligence agencies, police, courts, black propaganda and a compliant press that acts as their echo chamber, along with the jails and prisons, not only to marginalize and isolate rebels, but to psychologically and physically destroy them.

Comment: We are all too familiar with the criminal treatment of Julian Assange and the demonization of what he stands for, but perhaps not with Roger Hallam currently suffering a similar travesty of rights abuse and human degradation.

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Arrow Down

Trump threatens to veto defense bill over tech liability shield

Tal Axelrod
The Hill
Tue, 01 Dec 2020 10:39 UTC
Trump
© Getty Images/Meliman
US President Donald Trump
President Trump on Tuesday night threatened to veto a defense bill if it does not include the repeal of a legal shield for internet companies, throwing down the latest gauntlet in a fight over a piece of must-pass legislation.

Trump's warning took aim at Section 230, which gives tech companies protections for third-party content posted on their platforms and allows them to make "good faith" efforts to moderate content. The president and other Republicans have claimed that social media firms use the law to unfairly censor conservatives.

"Section 230, which is a liability shielding gift from the U.S. to 'Big Tech' (the only companies in America that have it - corporate welfare!), is a serious threat to our National Security & Election Integrity. Our Country can never be safe & secure if we allow it to stand," Trump tweeted.

"Therefore, if the very dangerous & unfair Section 230 is not completely terminated as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), I will be forced to unequivocally VETO the Bill when sent to the very beautiful Resolute desk. Take back America NOW. Thank you!"

Comment: The Hill reveals its lefty bias. Trump remains steadfast in his criticism of social network platforms and their abuse of control. Freedoms were compromised; voices banned; one party benefited. The evidence is pouring in.

See also: Defense bill does not include move to scrap Section 230, according to Senator Inhofe

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Cards

Trump's ace: Win or lose he can still devastate the Deep State with these perfectly-timed moves


Revolver
Mon, 30 Nov 2020 00:00 UTC
SnowdenTrumpAssange
© EPA-EFE/AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth/Wired/KJN
Edward Snowden • US President Donald Trump • Julian Assange
President Trump is still fighting hard to prove widespread fraud and reverse the initial results of the 2020 election. Even if the president fails to secure reelection, his presidency is not over yet. Two months remain before the next inauguration. There is much that President Trump can and should do right now. All of the actions below will set the table for a successful second term should President Trump win in court, but even if he doesn't they will stick one last finger in the eye of the corrupt elite cabal that hates him and his supporters so much.

1. Pardon Julian Assange and Edward Snowden

President Trump's pardon of General Michael Flynn the day before Thanksgiving was a welcome start. But President Trump shouldn't just pardon those who took personal risks by associating with him.

Julian Assange has done everything that journalists are supposed to do, and everything which America's fake press has abandoned in favor of left-wing activism. Assange has revealed the secrets of the powerful and how they really operate. He exposed the lies of officials like James Clapper. He embarrassed Hillary Clinton and the wider Democratic party by releasing emails that revealed the party's internal corruption. For all this, he spent years under house arrest in the U.K., and now the Department of Justice is fighting to extradite him so he can spend the rest of his life in an American prison.

Trump should put an end to this. Nothing would infuriate Washington more than to see Assange a free man. That is exactly why Trump should do it.

The same goes for Edward Snowden. The Deep State is obsessed with arresting Snowden for exposing their systemic spying operation against the American people. For seven years, Snowden has lived in exile. Meanwhile, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, who should have gone to prison for lying to Congress, is trotted out on CNN as a distinguished (and highly-paid) expert.

Comment: Does anyone seriously think Trump would ever leave office with merely a whimper? Four feisty years say otherwise.

See also:
Election hot take: 5 reasons pardoning Assange could drastically enhance Trump's legacy

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Dollar

Leaked emails: Anders Aslund, Atlantic Council's Russia-basher in chief, tried to solicit funds from Russian billionaires

Kit Klarenberg
RT
Wed, 02 Dec 2020 09:06 UTC
Anders Aslund
© Getty Images/Ali Atmaca/Anadolu Agency/Sputnik/Valery Melnikov
Anders Aslund
Internal Atlantic Council emails reveal the NATO-connected 'think tank' aggressively schmoozed the obscenely wealthy owners of Russia's Alfa Bank, in order to secure a slice of their vast riches.

The communications have been released publicly as a result of the ongoing defamation case brought against Fusion GPS and its founder and chief Glenn Simpson in a Washington, DC court, by Mikhail Fridman, Petr Aven and German Khan, the owners of Alfa Bank. The three allege false allegations against them in the 'Trump-Russia dossier', produced for Fusion GPS by former MI6 operative Christopher Steele, damaged their reputation.

The now-notorious and utterly discredited dossier alleged they and the bank maintained a covert communications channel with Donald Trump, and moreover delivered "large amounts of illicit cash" to Vladimir Putin when he was deputy mayor of St. Petersburg in the 1990s.

In July, the trio were awarded damages in a separate action brought against Orbis Intelligence, Steele's private espionage firm, in London after Judge Mark Warby ruled the dossier's allegations were "inaccurate or misleading" and the former spy had failed to take reasonable steps to verify the claims.

Comment: See also: Putin expels the families

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X

Defense bill does not include move to scrap Section 230, according to Senator Inhofe

Alex Nitzberg
Just the News
Wed, 02 Dec 2020 09:00 UTC
Trump Inhofe
© Win McNamee/Getty Images
US President Trump and Sen. Inhofe
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe has indicated that the current National Defense Authorization Act legislation does not eliminate Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act.

President Trump on Tuesday tweeted that he would veto the defense bill unless it does away with Section 230, which pertains to protection -- a liability shield -- for companies regarding content posted by users. It also relates to issues of content moderation.

The Oklahoma Republican senator indicated that while he shares the president's desire to scrap Section 230, such a move is not included in the current defense bill. "First of all 230 has nothing to do with the military," Sen. Inhofe said, according to The Hill. "And I agree with his sentiments we ought to do away with 230 but you can't do it in this bill. That's not a part of the bill."

Comment: Tulsi Gabbard endorses Trump's elimination of Section 230 shielding Big Tech:
Donald Trump's demand to repeal an old rule shielding tech giants from liability for things users publish has been endorsed by maverick Democrat Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, prompting speculation that her party will disown her again.

Gabbard, whose term representing Hawaii expires in January, voiced her support for President Trump on Twitter. "Please don't back down. The freedom and future of our country is at stake," she wrote on Tuesday, in response to his demand to repeal Section 230.


The piece of legislation was adopted in the 1990s to protect the budding internet sector from lawsuits over things that users publish on their platforms. Because of it, companies like Facebook and Twitter are not treated as publishers that can be held accountable for the content that they provide access to. Critics say the provision has outlived itself, giving undue protection to dangerously powerful corporations.

Open support for a Trump proposal coming from a Democratic party member is a rare thing in the highly polarized American political landscape. Gabbard's breaking of the ranks stirred anger and prompted predictions that she would be "canceled" again.


Gabbard consistently rejects the partisanship divide that many other US politicians currently accept as a fact of life. Just a few days ago, she voiced her support for a Supreme Court decision that temporarily suspended Covid-19 restrictions placed on religious institutions in New York.

Gabbard openly criticized the provision during her primary campaign and in October co-sponsored a bill which would amend Section 230.
Trump doubles down on repealing Section 230 but congresspersons answer back:

"230 has nothing to do with the military," said Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe (R-Okla.). "I agree with his sentiments ... but you can't do it in this bill. That's not a part of the bill."

"I would hope that he would not actually follow through with that because the NDAA is critical," Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) said regarding Trump's veto threat over Section 230.

Congressional negotiators began signing a compromise bill between the House and Senate versions, known as a conference report, Wednesday evening without any language on Section 230.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), meanwhile, has said he "cannot support" the NDAA because it doesn't contain Section 230 reforms but does contain language regarding the Confederate-named bases, and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said he was supportive of Trump "using all the leverage he can" to reform the tech protection.

However, those voices of support appear to be in the minority, with Republicans in Senate leadership noting that the NDAA must be passed.

"I don't think the defense bill is the place to litigate that," Sen. John Thune (S.D.), the No. 2 Senate Republican, said. "There will be enormous support for getting the defense authorization bill passed and hopefully signed into law."
Tulsi Gabbard is one of the few in Congress that puts the wellbeing of the country ahead of partisan politics.

See also:

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Star of David

Israel: As elections draw near, Netanyahu counts on Ultra-Orthodox parties for support

Elizabeth Blade
Sputnik
Sun, 29 Nov 2020 05:20 UTC
Netanyahu
© Reuters/Carlo Allegri
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu
The Haredi parties are loyal to Netanyahu, says an Israeli expert, primarily because he caters to their demands when it comes to budgets and exemption from the army. In return, he says, the Prime Minister gets their blind support.

Once again, Israelis are returning to the polls. Members of the country's opposition intend to submit a bill on Wednesday that if passed will dissolve the current government, prompting another general vote, the fourth in just two years.

Recent polls predict that Likud party, under the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will be the strongest performer, as it is projected to get 31 out of 120 seats in the country's parliament, the Knesset.

To remain in his position, Netanyahu will need to form a coalition with other right-of-centre parties to obtain the magic number of at least 61 parliamentarians.

In the past, assembling that number was not an easy task, and the efforts of the country's opposition to see Netanyahu leave office will not make it a "peace of cake" this time either.

Comment: Netanyahu: The gum on the shoe of Israeli politics. Everywhere they step...there he is.

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Eye 2

Ultranationalist organizations are radicalizing Ukraine's youth and Kiev is footing the bill

Gabriel Gavin
RT
Thu, 03 Dec 2020 18:04 UTC
military training Ukraine neo nazi ultranationalists
© REUTERS/Maksim Levin
Participants take part in a practice hand-to-hand combat, during a military patriotic game of survival for youth, at the place of fighting between the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) and the Soviet NKVD secret police troops in April 1944, in Ternopil region, Ukraine, May 1, 2017
An RT investigation has revealed how a far-right group has used Ukrainian taxpayer funds to teach ultranationalist ideas to thousands of young people, with one opposition leader accusing the government of "brainwashing."

Every year, at the end of the summer, more than a hundred young Ukrainians are bussed out to the leafy wilderness around the Derman-Ostrog National Park, in the Rivne region, for three days of survival skills, first aid and physical activity.

But while experiences just like this are shared by teenagers across the whole of Central and Eastern Europe, this weekend away has a darker side. Known as the Gurby-Antonivsti Games, the trip is organized by the youth wing of Ukraine's most notorious ultranationalist group and commemorates a bloody battle that took place in those same forests in 1944, between local right-wing partisan fighters and Soviet forces pursuing the retreating army of Nazi Germany.

Comment: Ukraine is broke, so we know who is actually paying for indoctrinating Ukraine's children.

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Clipboard

What's there to fact check? USA Today covers for Biden Press Secretary Jen Psaki wearing a hammer-and-sickle hat


RT
Wed, 02 Dec 2020 02:17 UTC
Then-State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki poses with her Russian counterpart Maria Zakharova, US Secretary of State John Kerry, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in Paris, January 13, 2014.
© US State Department
Then-State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki poses with her Russian counterpart Maria Zakharova, US Secretary of State John Kerry, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in Paris, January 13, 2014.
Anyone wondering how protective the legacy media will be of Joe Biden's incoming administration got a good indication on Tuesday, when USA Today fact-checked a photo of his Press Secretary Jen Psaki wearing a Soviet souvenir.

There was no allegation that the photo, posted on Twitter by Donald Trump campaign spokesman Matt Wolking, was altered or fraudulent. There was no assertion made by Wolking that might be considered false or misleading. His tweet merely described the picture, showing Psaki wearing the pink ushanka hat while posing with her then-boss, US Secretary of State John Kerry, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and her Moscow counterpart Maria Zakharova.

Comment: Social networks and mainstream media censor everything that does not fit their agenda



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USA

Trump outlines election fraud allegations in WH Speech: Our country needs somebody to say 'you're right'

Tim Hains
Real Clear Politics
Wed, 02 Dec 2020 00:01 UTC
Trump speech election fraud
© Whitehouse.gov
President Donald Trump promised to protect a voting system that is "under siege" in a pre-recorded speech alleging election fraud released by the White House on Wednesday. In the unannounced speech that dropped on Facebook late Wednesday afternoon, Trump outlined claims of fraud declaring the election "rigged." The president said he is not opposed to conceding to President-elect Joe Biden.

"On top of everything else, we have a company that's very suspect," Trump said. "It's name is Dominion, with the turn of a dial or the change of a chip, you could press a button for Trump and the vote goes to Biden. What kind of a system is this? We have to go to paper, maybe it takes longer. But the only secure system is paper."

"This election is about great voter fraud, fraud that has never been seen like this before," Trump said in the speech. "It's about poll watchers who were not allowed to watch. So illegal. It's about ballots that poured in, and nobody but a few knew where they came from. They were counted, and they weren't for me. It's about big leads on election night, tremendous leads, leads where I was being congratulated for a decisive easy victory. All of a sudden, by morning or a couple of days later, those leads rapidly evaporated. It's about numbers of ballots that were sent that nobody know where they came from. It's about machinery that was defective, machinery that was stopped during certain parts of the evening, miraculously to open with more votes."

Comment: For the transcript of the speech, see: As Not Reported in The Media: Trump Gives 50-minute Address to The Nation on Election Fraud




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