Puppet MastersS


Snakes in Suits

Comey admits he was aware that Steele dossier was financed by Dems before signing off on FISA warrant to surveil Carter Page

Aaron Klein
Breitbart
Mon, 10 Dec 2018 16:31 UTC
comey
© Drew Angerer/Getty
In testimony, former FBI Director James Comey says that prior to signing a FISA application to obtain a warrant to conduct surveillance on Carter Page, a former adviser to President Trump's 2016 campaign, Comey was aware that the dossier authored by former British spy Christopher Steele was financed by Democrats who opposed President Donald Trump.

Yet according to Democratic and Republican House Intelligence memos, that information was not specifically included in the FISA application, which in part relied on Steele's work to obtain warrants to monitor Page.

The Steele dossier was reportedly funded by Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) via the Perkins Coie law firm.

In testimony to the House Judiciary Committee on Friday, Comey was asked about his knowledge of Steele's political patrons. A transcript of Comey's testimony was released on Saturday.
Read More...
Stop

Brexit is in complete and total chaos

Tyler Durden
Zerohedge
Mon, 10 Dec 2018 19:21 UTC
Theresa May
It has been a furiously chaotic day for Brexit developments, which considering the "organized" nature of the process to date, is saying something.

Just a few hours after the embattled U.K. prime minister announced to the House of Commons she would "unexpectedly" delay the critical Brexit vote - facing certain and humiliating defeat - and return to Brussels to seek "assurances" from European Union leaders, the fate of any upcoming votes to ratify the deal is now in limbo.

As ITV's Richard Peston reported, "it appears that UK PM May could keep the current talks with EU going well past January 21st "perhaps right up to Brexit day 29 March, and avoid any parliamentary Brexit vote," effectively eliminating a popular vote of disapproval for her process.


Comment: According to the BBC, May is defending her tactics thusly:
The prime minister vowed to put the deal to a vote but said there was no point at this stage because it would have been defeated.

She told MPs she would be speaking to EU leaders ahead of a summit later this week, about the "clear concerns" expressed by MPs about the backstop.

And she would also be "looking closely at new ways of empowering the House of Commons to ensure that any provision for a backstop has democratic legitimacy".

Mrs May wants to enable MPs to place obligations on the government "to ensure that the backstop cannot be in place indefinitely".

She again rejected all other alternatives that have been proposed to her deal - including a further referendum and leaving without a deal.

Her deal "gives us control of our borders, our money and our laws - it protects jobs, security and our Union", she said.

"It is the right deal for Britain. I am determined to do all I can to secure the reassurances this House requires, to get this deal over the line and deliver for the British people," she added.

Asked by Lib Dem leader Sir Vince Cable if EU leaders would be ready to ditch the backstop, she said they had shown they were aware of MPs' concerns that the backstop should be temporary.

"A number of European leaders I've spoken to have indicated that they are open to discussions to find a way to provide reassurance to members of this House on that point," she added.


Read More...
Snakes in Suits

Macron caves to Yellow Vest protesters in address to French nation: Hikes minimum wage, axes overtime tax, reduces pension contributions

Peter Allen
The Daily Mail
Mon, 10 Dec 2018 21:04 UTC
Macron
© Agence France-Presse/GettyAddressing the French people President Emmanuel Macron declared a 'social and ecomonic state of emergency' following weeks of violence across the country
He also vowed to crack down on tax evasion and state bureaucracy

French president Emmanuel Macron tonight announced a range of dramatic Socialist-style financial concessions to struggling workers so as to end an 'economic and social state of emergency'.

In a TV address lasting 12 minutes, he said a month of rioting and blockades justified a €100 (£90) increase in the minimum wage, taking it to €1498 (£1360).

This will not 'cost anything to the employer', said Mr Macron, and will be accompanied by all taxes and other charges on overtimes being scrapped.

There were also be an end-of-year bonus that employers can pay without being charged by the government, while taxes on those earning less than €2000 (£1800) will also end on January 1.


Comment: They should know:

Paris militarized in anticipation of impending coup attempt as govt. warns radicals infiltrating Yellow Vest movement

Read More...
Laptop

Everything Google knows about you: An insider's account of the dark side of search engine marketing

Patrick Berlinquette
Noteworthy
Tue, 04 Dec 2018 00:01 UTC
google home matrix
© Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesGoogle marketers like me are closing the gap between your offline and online worlds—and crushing your soul in the process.
When lazy journalists are pessimistic about Amazon's Alexa or Google Home, they say stuff like: "Even Orwell couldn't have predicted that we'd willingly bring Big Brother into our own homes."

What they fail to mention is our willingness to exchange privacy for convenience didn't start with the advent of virtual assistants. It started in the early 2000s, when people-in return for having access to Google products and seeing more relevant ads-allowed Google to have all their data.

Today, Google provides marketers like me with so much of your personal data that we can infer more about you from it than from any camera or microphone.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Snakes in Suits

Mueller's investigation is missing just one thing - a crime

Peter Van Buren
The American Conservative
Tue, 11 Dec 2018 12:16 UTC
Trumpmueller
© media.salon.comPresident Trump • SC Mueller
A baby born when Robert Mueller started his investigation would be talking by now. But would she have anything to say?

We last looked at what Mueller had publicly-and what he didn't have-some 10 months ago, and I remained skeptical that the Trump campaign had in any way colluded with Russia. It's worth another look now, but first let's give away the ending (spoiler alert!): there is still no real evidence of, well, much of anything significant about Russiagate. One thing that is clear is that the investigation seems to be ending. Mueller's office has reportedly even told various defense lawyers that it is "tying up loose ends." The moment to wrap things up is politically right as well: the Democrats will soon take control of the House; time to hand this all off to them.
Read More...
Jet4

Russian bombers stalked by Norwegian F-16 jets during official flight to Venezuela


RT
Mon, 10 Dec 2018 18:35 UTC
Tu-160 strategic bomber
© Sputnik / Maxim TumanovTu-160 strategic bomber
Two Russian Tu-160 strategic bombers, and an N-124 transport and an Il-62 plane have carried out a 10,000-kilometer flight from Russia to Venezuela, being shadowed by Norwegian F16s along the way, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The flight of the Russian air group was conducted over the Atlantic Ocean, the Barents Sea, the Sea of Norway and the Caribbean Sea. "During some parts of the route, the Tu-160 bombers were escorted by the F16s of the Norwegian Air Force," the ministry said.

Moscow pointed out that the impressive journey was performed "in strict accordance with the international regulations on the use of airspace."

Comment: It could be their paranoidal or belligerent nature that would have them stalking Russian planes like that. Either way, neither Russia nor the host country could perceive these actions as anything but unsettling, and it just goes to show how arrogant the perpetrators are thinking that international norms of conduct don't apply to them: Also check out SOTT radio's: NewsReal: Israeli-French Deception Downs Russian Spy Plane Off Syria, US Escalates 'Regime Change' Against Iran

Read More...
NPC

Ocasio-Cortez 'blasts' lobbyists at congressional orientation event

Alex Gangitano
The Hill
Tue, 11 Dec 2018 12:16 UTC
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is criticizing the presence of lobbyists at a traditional bipartisan orientation program for newly elected congressional lawmakers.

"Our 'bipartisan' Congressional orientation is cohosted by a corporate lobbyist group. Other members have quietly expressed to me their concern that this wasn't told to us in advance," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted on Thursday. "Lobbyists are here. Goldman Sachs is here. Where's labor? Activists? Frontline community leaders?"

Ocasio-Cortez is in Cambridge, Mass., for the Program for Newly Elected Members of Congress. The program, which started in 1972, is hosted by the Harvard Kennedy School's Institute of Politics in collaboration with the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Congressional Institute.
Read More...
Eye 1

Israeli troops raid Palestinian news agency firing tear gas while searching for drive-by shooting footage


RT
Mon, 10 Dec 2018 20:55 UTC
IDF troops
© AFP / Abbas MomaniIDF troops in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli troops have raided the official Palestinian news agency, WAFA, which says the soldiers fired tear gas inside the building and locked journalists in a single room as they were looking for CCTV footage.

"Dozens of heavily armed Israeli soldiers" have made it inside the WAFA headquarters in Ramallah in the occupied West bank on Monday, the agency said.

The IDF fired tears gas inside the building "causing suffocation and difficulty in breathing" among the staff, it added.

The journalists were ordered to stay in a single room as the Israeli troops entered the server room and went through the agency's security footage.

They withdrew after around an hour, taking copies of videos from the CCTV cameras with them, WAFA said.

Comment: A drive by shooting is much more reflective of the Israeli military mindset and capabilities, a bit like their raid on the TV station, dropping tear gas as they went. One can expect the footage will be all over the Israeli news if the findings support their position, if, however, its revealed to be the work of Israeli's, and their seizure was a way to cover up their crimes, then it will never see the light of day. Also check out SOTT radio's: The Truth Perspective: Identity Politics on Steroids: How Zionism Outdoes Them All

Read More...
Arrow Down

Down the Drain! Trump backs record $750 billion defense budget request to Congress, says US official


CNBC
Sun, 09 Dec 2018 00:00 UTC
  • U.S. President Donald Trump has backed plans to request $750 billion from Congress for defense spending next year, a U.S. official said on Sunday, signaling a Pentagon spending hike at a time of potential belt-tightening elsewhere in the government.
  • A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Defense Secretary Jim Mattis had discussed the budget with Trump in recent days and outlined the risks of flat defense spending.
U.S. President Donald Trump
© Drew Angerer /Getty Images
Donald Trump has backed plans to request $750 billion from Congress for defense spending next year, a U.S. official said on Sunday, signaling a Pentagon spending hike at a time of potential belt-tightening elsewhere in the government.

Trump, faced with a budget deficit at a six-year high, told his Cabinet earlier this year to come up with proposals to cut spending by their agencies by 5 percent, but he suggested the military would be largely spared.

The $750 billion would be even more than the $733 billion request that the Pentagon had been expected to make for fiscal year 2020. It is also well above a $700 billion figure Trump cited in October.
Read More...
Star of David

Israeli double standards: No compensation for Gaza doctor over children's killing


Middle Eastern Eye
Thu, 06 Dec 2018 00:00 UTC
Meanwhile, Netanyahu is coordinating with Hungary over revisionist Holocaust museum
moaning Palestinians parents 2009
© AFPSome 1,300 Palestinians were killed during the 2008-2009 Gaza conflict
An Israeli court ruled that the defence ministry did not owe anything to a Gaza doctor after three of his children were killed in their home by Israeli tank fire during an attack on the small blockaded enclave a decade ago, Kikar Shabbat reported.

Izz al-Din Abu al-Aish became one of the faces of Palestinian suffering during Israel's 2008-9 assault on the besieged Gaza Strip, when three of his daughters and a niece were killed at the exact moment he was giving an interview to Israeli television on 16 January 2009
Read More...