Put Down The Pipe

 

FBI Pipe Bomber Breakthrough Exposes Biden Era Failures After Four Years

More than four years after pipe bombs appeared outside the RNC and DNC headquarters on January 5, 2021, and less than a month after The Blaze fingered a former Capitol Police officer in a now-retracted report (that their sources still stand by), the Trump administration announced the arrest of Brian Cole Jr., 30, of Woodbridge, Virginia, on Thursday. Cole has been charged under 18 U.S.C. § 844 for deploying an explosive device. 

During a press conference the day of the arrest, Attorney General Pam Bondi made it clear how this cold case was finally solved. According to Bondi, no new tips or witnesses led to the breakthrough - just persistent investigation and teamwork.

“Today's arrest happened because the Trump Administration has made this case a priority. The total lack of movement on this case in our nation's capital undermined the public trust of our enforcement agencies,” she said. “This cold case languished for four years until Director Patel and Deputy Director Bongino came to the FBI. The FBI, along with US Attorney Pirro and all of our prosecutors, have worked tirelessly for months sifting through evidence that had been sitting at the FBI with the Biden administration for four long years.”

Deputy Director Bongino also appeared on Fox News Thursday night. He explained to Sean Hannity that the truth about the J6 pipe bomber case had been sitting in plain sight for years, and the problem wasn’t a lack of evidence but a lack of leadership. “It's almost like they were intentionally trying to decimate faith in institutions,” he said.

“It's horrifying,” he added. “I don't know what they were doing.”

He explained that right after being sworn in - “probably 15 minutes later,” as he put it - he told the team, “When I get in there, I want a full brief on this pipe bomber case on day one.” Once he heard what had been done, he saw that the agents had put in real work, even “a pretty extensive amount of work,” but the case still needed urgent direction.

Protection From The President

 

Nearly 50,000 Ukrainians Have Applied For Asylum In Poland Since August

Via Remix News,

In the wake of Kyiv’s decision to allow men aged 18-22 to legally leave Ukraine last August, Poland has seen one of the largest waves of young Ukrainians flooding its borders. 

From Aug. 26 to Nov. 10, 49,700 Ukrainian citizens have applied for protection status (UKR), linked to a PESEL number, in Poland in recent weeks. As a comparison, for the January-February period of 2025, there were only 16,000 such applications, reports Do Rzeczy, citing data from  “Rzeczpospolita.”

Asylum status for Ukrainians provides the right to legal residence (currently until March 4, 2026), work, access to education, and benefits.

It is lost upon leaving Poland for more than 30 days, but can be reapplied for.

In total, over 2 million Ukrainians have applied for refugee status in Poland since 2022, but as of Nov. 12, only 964,400 had active status.

Over the past few months, the share of men aged 18-65 among new applicants has increased from 16.6 percent to 17.4 percent, while the share of women has fallen from 48.3 percent to 47.7 percent. 

According to Polish Border Guard data, from Aug. 29 to Nov. 24, 121,000 Ukrainians aged 18-22 entered Poland, of whom 59,000 returned to Ukraine.

This means that approximately 62,000 young men remained in Poland or departed for the EU. Experts emphasize that this is the first such large wave of young Ukrainians in this age group in Poland.

According to Kyiv, the change in regulations is intended to enable young people to study and work abroad. At the same time, men aged 18-22 are exempt from the mandatory mobilization process, which begins at age 25. However, according to data from the Polish Economic Institute, only 39 percent of young men take up employment, primarily in construction, transport, and industry. They often work in closed environments, which, as the Institute points out, hinders linguistic and social integration.

Meanwhile, crime and sabotage perpetrated by Ukrainians have become a problem. 

Police indicate that in the first half of 2025, 8,994 foreigners committed crimes in Poland, of which approximately 60 percent were Ukrainians. The most common offenses were drunk driving and fraud, including cybercrime. At the same time, Polish services emphasize that some Ukrainians are being used by Russian intelligence for sabotage activities. In Ukraine alone, 2,800 investigations into espionage and sabotage are ongoing.

Read more here...

via zer0hedge

Go Home Zelensky

 

Zelensky's Jet Reportedly In Near-Miss With Military Grade Drones In Ireland

Various major publications including The Telegraph and Newsweek are reporting claims that military-grade drones threatened Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's plane shortly before it landed at Dublin Airport on Monday.

The mystery drones reportedly reached the coordinates where the Ukrainian president's plane had been expected, but Zelensky is said to have arrived a little earlier than scheduled, touching down at around 11 pm, thus missing the drones.

Irish security officials believe the drones were intended to interfere with Zelensky's arrival, noting that they were flying with their lights on, also given the UAVs were military-spec. The episode is being presented in Irish and UK press reports as a form of hybrid warfare.

Source: PA Wire/The Sun

Afterward, the unidentified aircraft circled above an Irish Navy vessel that had been covertly positioned in the Irish Sea and which was patrolling there related to providing security for Zelensky's visit.

In all the drones were reportedly airborne for roughly two hours - which again would suggest are more sophisticated or even military drone technology, and the drone operators are unknown, amid an investigation.

Conflicting reports have suggested that four or up to five drones were involved in the incursion. Their operators and current whereabouts remain unknown.

According to more details via The Daily Mail:

The Dublin intrusion occurred inside a no-fly zone ordered by the Irish Aviation Authority for the duration of Zelenskyy's visit. Ahead of the visit, Irish MEP Barry Andrews posted a graphic on social media showing the no-fly zone which was imposed.

The drones then entered Irish-controlled waters and circled above the LÉ William Butler Yeats, which did not have air-search radar and was unable to disable them. An Irish Air Corps aircraft was airborne at the time but did not engage. 

One security official has been cited in press reports as describing of the UAVs, "They had their lights on. They wanted to be seen. They had both the capability and the intent. They could have acted at any time."

Western officials have suspected that this is an extension of alleged Russia-backed 'hybrid warfare' targeting Europe's skies.

However, there is cause for skepticism to these 'Russia did it!' allegations and mystery incursions...

Hide All The Money!

 

The UK Dominates The Most Damaging Tax Havens

A new analysis from the Tax Justice Network (TJN) has revealed the United Kingdom to be the biggest enabler of corporate tax dodging in the world.

As Statista's Anna Fleck shows in this infographic, British overseas territories and crown dependencies dominate the top eight roundup of places allowing multinationals to avoid paying tax on their profits.

You will find more infographics at Statista

Overall, this makes the UK responsible for about one third of global tax avoidance risk.

Ireland remained in ninth place for a second consecutive year in 2025, with an index value of 1,432.

It is followed by Luxembourg (1,399) and then the Bahamas (1,283), the latter of which is an independent member of the British commonwealth but not an OT or CD. In position 12 comes the Isle of Man (1,189) and in 13 comes Guernsey (1,145), both Crown Dependencies. The United Kingdom places in 19th position with a value of 865.

The index evaluates jurisdiction laws and monitors the volume of corporate financial activity entering and leaving jurisdictions. A Haven Score is determined by more than 70 questions under 18 indicators to find the extent to which a jurisdiction’s laws and regulations allow for corporate tax abuse. The outcome of these indicators are then combined with global scale weights, which are based on IMF data on foreign direct investments. The final figure is a measure of the contribution of each jurisdiction to the global problem of corporate tax abuse.

American Drone Force

 

Pentagon Deploys Its First Kamikaze Drone Squadron In The Middle East

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

US Central Command announced on Wednesday that it was launching the US military's "first one-way-attack drone squadron based in the Middle East" as President Trump’s Department of War continues to get further entrenched in the region.

"CENTCOM launched Task Force Scorpion Strike (TFSS) four months after Secretary of War Pete Hegseth directed acceleration of the acquisition and fielding of affordable drone technology," CENTCOM said.

Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) drones are positioned on the tarmac at a base in CENTCOM area of operations.

Hegseth has announced a program known as "Drone Dominance" that will involve spending $1 billion to acquire about 300,000 units over the next three years.

"Drone dominance is a billion-dollar program funded by President Trump's Big Beautiful Bill," the US War Chief said on Tuesday.

CENTCOM said that it has already "formed a squadron of Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) drones" and released photos of drones in its press release.

"LUCAS drones deployed by CENTCOM have an extensive range and are designed to operate autonomously. They can be launched with different mechanisms to include catapults, rocket-assisted takeoff, and mobile ground and vehicle systems," the command said.

On Monday, CENTCOM announced that it had opened a new bilateral command post in Bahrain, the headquarters of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet.

"The new facility will be staffed by forces from the United States and Bahrain and serve as a hub for integrated air defense planning, coordination, and operations. This is CENTCOM’s second bilateral air defense command post in the region," CENTCOM said.

LUCAS drones are manufactured by Arizona based SpektreWorks. Source: SpektreWorks

Minnesota Madness

 

Police 'Will Not Cooperate With ICE Agents': Minneapolis Mayor

Authored by Janice Hisle via The Epoch Times,

As Minnesota anticipates more U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) action in Minnesota—a state where many Somali immigrants are accused of defrauding welfare programs—Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the city’s law enforcement will not work with federal agents.

“Our police officers are not ICE agents; they will not cooperate with ICE agents,” Frey said at a Dec. 2 news conference.

ICE has been conducting large-scale immigration enforcement operations in a number of cities, sometimes drawing opposition from protesters and from Democratic leaders.

 

At the news conference, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O‘Hara and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter III emphasized support for law-abiding Somalis and other immigrants who hold jobs and run businesses. People who are fearful of ICE action should inform themselves about their rights, the officials said. O’Hara also said that his officers “absolutely have a duty to intervene” if people’s rights are being violated.

 

O‘Hara said his officers “do work with federal law enforcement literally every day around violent crime, around people smuggling fentanyl into the country, gang violence, those types of things.” However, O’Hara said, “Federal law enforcement is aware that we absolutely will have nothing to do with anything related to immigration enforcement.”

That has been true for years in the Twin Cities, which are among more than a half-dozen so-called sanctuary cities that the Justice Department has sued over policies that shield illegal immigrants.

The pending lawsuit, coupled with the new public remarks from the Twin Cities’ leaders, reflects increasing tensions between Minnesota and the federal government.

After recent publicity over massive Minnesota welfare-fraud schemes that mostly involve suspects of Somali origin, President Donald Trump announced plans to end “temporary protected status” for Somalis in the North Star State. Minnesota Democrats, including Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Gov. Tim Walz, and Attorney General Keith Ellison, have criticized the president’s actions.

A New Kind Of Banking

 

Why Tether Is Buying More Gold Than Many Central Banks, And What It Signals

Authored by Dilip Kumar Patairya via CoinTelegraph.com,

• Tether purchased 26 tons of gold in Q3 2025, a larger quarterly acquisition than any reporting central bank. Its total holdings reached 116 tons, placing it among the world’s top 30 gold holders.

• Stablecoin issuers, sovereign wealth funds, corporations and tech firms are increasingly active in gold markets. This trend marks a structural shift in global demand once dominated by central banks.

• Central banks added 220 tons of gold in Q3 2025, up 28% from Q2. Countries such as Kazakhstan, Brazil, Turkey and Guatemala made notable additions despite record prices.

• While central banks buy gold for national monetary policy, Tether’s purchases come from profits and support diversification, resilience and collateralization for USDT.

The global financial system is witnessing a period when non-state entities are competing with central banks to build gold reserves. Tether, the issuer of Tether USDt - the largest stablecoin in the world - is now one of the largest buyers of gold. In a single quarter, the company purchased more gold than most central banks did in the same period.

This article explores how an enterprise moved ahead of central banks in purchasing gold for its reserves and discusses independent attestations of the purchase. It also examines the rise of non-state gold buyers and what Tether’s gold buying does not indicate.

A private company outpacing central banks in buying gold

During the third quarter of 2025, Tether added 26 metric tons of gold to its holdings. According to analysts at Jefferies, this made Tether the single-largest gold buyer in that quarter, larger than the combined purchases of all reporting central banks.

By the end of September 2025, Tether’s total reported gold holdings stood at about 116 tons. If ranked alongside countries on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) official gold reserves list, this would place Tether among the top 30 holders worldwide, ahead of nations such as Greece, Qatar and Australia.

Per analysis from the investment bank Jefferies, Tether’s 26-ton purchase in Q3 2025 exceeded the official gold purchases of many mid-sized central banks during the same period. This reflects a wider trend.

Large private players, including stablecoin issuers, sovereign wealth funds and multinational corporations, are becoming significant participants in markets once dominated by governments. Research from the World Gold Council has also pointed to rising non-sovereign demand for gold.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said on X, “While the world continues to get darker, Tether will continue to invest part of its profits into safe assets like Bitcoin, Gold and Land.” The company has emphasized that these gold purchases are made from profits, not from customer reserves that back USDT. It holds that diversification into real assets strengthens long-term resilience.

Treachery And Betrayal From NATO?

 

"We Must Protect Volodymyr": Leaked Call Shows European Leaders Conspiring Against Trump Peace Plan

In a development that is not entirely surprising, European leaders are claiming that Washington is looking to "betray" Ukraine and President Zelensky during potential formal peace negotiations with Russia. "There is a possibility that the United States will abandon Ukraine on territorial questions without providing clarity on security guarantees," French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly said according to a "leaked" phone call record with other European leaders.

Likely this was an intentional leak and bit of strong signaling to the Trump administration, as Europe has not been on board with the US President's proposed peace plan from the start. "There is a possibility that the US will betray Ukraine on the issue of territory without clarity on security guarantees," Macron continued. He laid his view that there was "a great danger" for Zelensky. However, Macron's office has subsequently sought to clarify that "The president did not use those words."

Via Reuters

The leaked transcript of the call between European leaders strategizing about how to protect the Zelensky government and Kiev's interests was published Thursday by the German magazine Der Spiegel.

Also reportedly on the line engaged in the conversation were German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and of course Zelensky as well.

Merz had in the dialogue agreed that Zelensky should be "extremely careful in the coming days" and warned the Ukrainian leader that "they are playing games with you and with us."

Finland's President Stubb followed with, "We must not leave Ukraine and Volodymyr alone with these people" - after NATO Secretary General Rutte chimed in: "I agree with Alexander. We must protect Volodymyr." The underlying assumption seems to be that Zelensky is in a weak position and is being bullied by the more powerful US officials who have leverage.

The context to this part of the conversation is particularly interesting, given it seems to focus on Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who were just in Moscow meeting with Putin, and are spearheading efforts to get the Trump 28-point peace plan (or 19-points based on reports of a revised version) past the goal line. Politico presents the section of the transcript as follows: 

Finland’s Stubb seemed to agree with Merz, according to the transcript. "We cannot leave Ukraine and Volodymyr alone with these guys," he said, apparently referring to Witkoff and Kushner, which attracted agreement from Rutte. 

"I agree with Alexander — we must protect Volodymyr [Zelenskyy]," the NATO chief said. NATO declined to comment when reached by POLITICO.

Der Spiegel admits in its report that "These and other statements reproduced in the notes of the conversation illustrate the Europeans' deep distrust of the two Trump confidants." Michael Weiss, who was one of the report's co-authors, framed all of this as focused on countering "American dirty tricks to the end war."

One aspect to the conversation was the leaders found agreement on the issue of frozen Russian assets kept in EU banks, which they consider a purely European prerogative, amid recent reports the US is ready to return these to Moscow as part of a finalized Ukraine peace deal.

Washington efforts to quickly achieve peace by seriously engaging both sides are likened to "dirty tricks"?...

 

All Together Now

 

The "Community Of Central Asia" Could Reduce Russia's Regional Influence

Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack,

The Central Asian Republics (CARs) fall within Russia’s “sphere of influence” for historical, economic, and security reasons.

The first stems from their shared history under the Russian Empire and USSR, the second from the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in which Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan participate, while the third relates to the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) that includes them and Tajikistan. Russia’s influence, however, has waned in recent years.

Its understandable prioritization of the special operation created the opportunity for Turkiye to expand its influence through the “Organization of Turkic States” (OTS) in which Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan participate with Turkmenistan as an observer. The OTS began as a socio-cultural integration group that now also promotes economic and even security cooperation, thus challenging the EAEU and CSTO. The US also made major trade inroads there earlier this month during the latest C5+1 Summit.

These developments were greatly facilitated by the US-mediated normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani ties and the attendant “Trump Route for International Peace & Prosperity” (TRIPP) that was unveiled during their three leaders’ White House Summit in early August.

This will essentially lead to Turkiye injecting Western influence along Russia’s entire southern periphery, especially through the expected ramping up of military exports there, which threatens to pose serious latent challenges to Russia.

The latest move on this front was the CARs inviting Azerbaijan to join their annual Consultative Meeting of Heads of State and then rebranding as the “Community of Central Asia” (CCA), coincidentally right after their meeting with Trump. Regional integration is always positive, but in this case, it could also reduce Russia’s regional influence.

That’s because all six might deal with Russia as a group instead of individually. This could lead to tougher negotiating stances if they’re emboldened by Turkiye and the US.

Azerbaijan’s inclusion suggests that it’ll share its experiences managing this summer’s tensions with Russia and serve as its Turkish ally’s supervisor within the CCA to align it as closely as possible with the OTS (remembering that non-Turkic Tajikistan isn’t a member).

This likely role coupled with the timing of the CCA’s announcement right after the C5+1 and three months after TRIPP’s unveiling suggests that they want to rebalance ties with Russia and could rely on Azerbaijan’s guidance if this results in tensions.

Remember Biden?

 

Treasury Boss Bessent Nukes NYT Hypocrisy Over Desperate Trump Health Smears

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent delivered a brutal takedown of legacy media frauds Wednesday, calling out The New York Times for their shameless double standard on presidential fitness.

Fresh off a three-hour cabinet marathon with President Trump, Bessent faced down a Times hack at their own summit and laid bare the hypocrisy. The same outlet that buried Joe Biden’s dementia for years now peddles baseless panic about Trump’s vigor.

It’s the latest desperate ploy from a press corps still seething over their 2024 election wipeout, desperate to undermine a leader who’s delivering on all fronts.

? BREAKING: In a mic drop moment, Sec. Scott Bessent just PUMMELED the NYT to their faces for a HUGE double standard on Donald Trump's health

"WHERE was the New York Times? We just had a 3 hour cabinet meeting yesterday!"

"For 10 MONTHS Biden did not have a cabinet meeting.… pic.twitter.com/HyPWjPWFUF

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 3, 2025

The fireworks erupted Tuesday at the NYT’s glitzy DealBook Summit, where Bessent squared off against financial columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin. Sorkin, parroting his paper’s latest hit piece “Signs of Fatigue: Trump Faces Realities Of Aging in Office”, tried to corner Bessent on Trump’s supposed “mental decline” and reduced visibility. Big mistake. Bessent didn’t flinch—he fact-checked the fraud live on stage.

“You had what was one of the greatest scandals of all time, that the coverage of the Biden administration, Joe Biden’s diminished capacity, and the cover up. And that’s why it’s probably fair to raise these questions. Where was the New York Times? We just had a three-hour cabinet meeting yesterday, Andrew.”

He didn’t stop there, dismantling the 25th Amendment fever dreams, noting “For ten months, the Biden administration did not have a cabinet meeting… How are you going to invoke the 25th Amendment if the cabinet secretaries never see the president, which they didn’t?”

“I hear from people in the Treasury Building that I see President Trump more in a day than my predecessor saw Joe Biden in half a year!” Bessent urged while Sorkin squirmed, mumbling about “fair questions.”

Post-summit, Bessent doubled down in a further interview, admitting the Times’ lies hit him like a freight train. He couldn’t let it slide—not when the “paper of record” was torching its own credibility in real time.

“He immediately went into attack and gotcha mode! I couldn’t take the hypocrisy,” Bessent declared.

? NOW: Scott Bessent says he COULDN'T TAKE the New York Times lying to his face on stage – "So I just had to fact-check him!"

"He immediately went into attack and gotcha mode! I couldn't take the HYPOCRISY." ?

"He just played to the audience…the NYT are so far from the… https://t.co/i1IGBfZFWp pic.twitter.com/nNMnLDNZvD

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 4, 2025

“He just played to the audience…the NYT are so far from the truth,” Bessent continued, noting “How are people gonna construct the narrative of this second Trump presidency when the supposed ‘paper of record’ is so far off?!”

Bessent also described Trump’s unbreakable stamina, relating “He’ll call me, ‘Scott, I didn’t wake you, did I?’ No, sir, I’m always awake at 1:52AM on a Tuesday!”

He added, “We did the trip to Alaska. We did a round trip one day, and we arrived back…our batteries are out. We land at Andrews, and the president’s like, ‘oh, it’s morning in Europe now.’ I think we had spent probably 20 hours in the air in Alaska. And he said, ‘let’s start making phone calls and call the European leaders!’ So we had to sit on the tarmac for two more hours while he made phone calls!”

? JUST IN: Scott Bessent PUMMELS the media for latching on to the theory that Donald Trump's health is "deteriorating"

"He'll call me, 'Scott, I didn't wake you, did I?' No, sir, I'm always awake at 1:52AM on a Tuesday!" ?

Price Discovery Party

 

Clear That 'Something Behind The Scenes Is Breaking' Holter Warns, We're Headed For A Derivative Meltdown

Authored by Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com 

Financial writer and precious metals expert Bill Holter (aka Mr. Gold) said at the beginning of November that there was “more risk in the financial system now than any time ever.”  

There are so many ways the system can break down it’s hard to keep track, but let’s start with exploding silver prices that happened at the end of last week.  Holter says,

“In a 48-hour period of time, silver was up over $5 per ounce.  It’s pretty clear and pretty obvious that something behind the scenes is breaking. 

We know that the lease rates have exploded.  We know that the borrow rates on SLV have exploded. 

We also know that in the last 5 to 7 years, silver has been in a deficit... At this point, you are looking at a 400-million-ounce deficit on an annual basis, and global production is 850 million ounces...

The rumor is somebody has put in a $20 billion order, which would mean 400 million ounces. 

If that is the case, that order cannot be met, and that will create shark infested waters...

If somebody stands for delivery and it looks like it may be difficult for them to get delivery, then everybody is going to stand for delivery because they know that their contracts are worthless.”

What would happen if there is an actual failure to deliver in the silver market?  Mr. Gold says,

“If that gets confirmed, then that one day you will see a huge spike, but markets won’t open after that.  That will cascade.  What will happen is all the COMEX contracts for both silver and gold will default. 

That will spill over to the rest of the CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange).  It has contracts on US Treasuries and stocks.  They have contracts on everything.  If the silver contracts blow up and the gold contracts blow up, how much confidence are you going to have on pork bellies or stocks...

The derivative market is $2 quadrillion.  In the future, you are going to measure your wealth by how many ounces of silver and how many ounces of gold you own...

Once you get a failure to deliver, you will get a Mad Max scenario.  Failure to deliver will melt down all derivatives. 

The world runs on credit, and credit runs on faith.  If you break faith, then you have a real problem in the financial markets and the real economy.”

In closing, Holter warns, “The problem is there is very little collateral left.  Everything has been borrowed against already.” 

Holter is not alone in his thinking about huge risk in the system.  It appears billionaire investors Jeff Gundlach and Ray Dalio agree with Holter, and they are warning of liquidity problems.  For the first time in their successful careers, they are both buying physical gold.

On a total system stopping derivative meltdown, Holter says, “Most people think it is not possible, and it can’t happen.  Mathematically, a meltdown in derivatives that melts everything down is coming.  It’s over.  Mathematically, it’s over.”

There is much more in the 41-minute interview.

Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog as he goes One-on-One with financial writer and precious metals expert Bill Holter/Mr. Gold as the risk in the financial system increases for 12.2.25. 

To Donate to USAWatchdog Click Here

via zer0hedge

Obama Taught Them How To Do It

 

How Obama Paved The Way For Trump's Venezuelan Killings

Authored by Jim Bovard

The Trump administration’s killings of scores of Venezuelans are justifiably provoking outrage. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth recently proclaimed, "We have only just begun to kill narco-terrorists." Donald Trump and Hegseth are cashing a blank check for carnage that was written years earlier by President Barack Obama.

In his 2017 farewell address, Obama boasted, "We have taken out tens of thousands of terrorists." Drone strikes increased tenfold under Obama, helping fuel anti-US backlashes in several nations.

As he campaigned for the presidency in 2007, then-Senator Barack Obama declared, "We will again set an example for the world that the law is not subject to the whims of stubborn rulers." Many Americans who voted for Obama in 2008 expected a seachange in Washington. However, from his first weeks in office, Obama authorized widespread secret attacks against foreign suspects, some of which spurred headlines when drones slaughtered wedding parties or other innocents.

On February 3, 2010, Obama’s Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair stunned Washington by announcing that the administration was also targeting Americans for killing. Blair revealed to a congressional committee the new standard for extrajudicial killings:

“Whether that American is involved in a group that is trying to attack us, whether that American has—is a threat to other Americans. We don’t target people for free speech. We target them for taking action that threatens Americans.”

But “involved” is a vague standard—as is “action that threatens Americans.” Blair stated that “if we think that direct action will involve killing an American, we get specific permission to do that.” Permission from who?

via Reuters

Obama’s first high-profile American target was Anwar Awlaki, a cleric born in New Mexico. After the 9/11 attacks, Awlaki was showcased as a model moderate Muslim. The New York Times noted that Awlaki “gave interviews to the national news media, preached at the Capitol in Washington and attended a breakfast with Pentagon officials.” He became more radical after he concluded that the Geoge W. Bush administration’s Global War on Terror was actually a war on Islam. After the FBI sought to squeeze him into becoming an informant against other Muslims, Awlaki fled the country. He arrived in Yemen and was arrested and reportedly tortured at the behest of the U.S. government. After he was released from prison eighteen months later, his attitude had worsened and his sermons became more bloodthirsty.

After the Obama administration announced plans to kill Awlaki, his father hired a lawyer to file a challenge in federal court. The ACLU joined the lawsuit, seeking to compel the government “to disclose the legal standard it uses to place U.S. citizens on government kill lists.” The Obama administration labeled the entire case a “State Secret.” This meant that the administration did not even have to explain why federal law no longer constrained its killings. The administration could have indicted Awlaki on numerous charges but it did not want to provide him any traction in federal court.

In September 2010, The New York Times reported that “there is widespread agreement among the administration’s legal team that it is lawful for President Obama to authorize the killing of someone like Mr. Awlaki.” It was comforting to know that top political appointees concurred that Obama could justifiably kill Americans. But that was the same “legal standard” the Bush team used to justify torture.   

End The Income Tax?

 

"Get Rid Of It" - Trump Suggests He'll Soon Slash/End Income Tax

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

President Trump signaled Tuesday that the federal income tax could soon be history. Speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting, Trump laid out a vision of economic freedom powered by massive tariff revenues from foreign nations— putting America First instead of bleeding hardworking citizens dry to fund globalist giveaways.

With tariffs surging and billions pouring in from trade deals, Trump is paving the way for a tax revolution that could explode the economy overnight. The President’s declaration came during a press gaggle at the White House, where he emphasised the unprecedented revenue streaming into U.S. coffers thanks to his tough trade policies.

“I believe that at some point in the not-too distant future, you won’t even have income tax to pay,” Trump stated plainly. He elaborated, “Because the money we’re taking in is so great and it’s so enormous that you’re not going to have an income tax to pay. Whether you get rid of it or just keep it around for fun or have it really low, much lower than it is now, but you won’t be paying income tax.”

Trump’s push to axe the income tax isn’t new—it’s rooted in his America First agenda that flips the script on how the government funds itself. As he explained in his inaugural address, “Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens. For this purpose, we are establishing the External Revenue Service to collect all tariffs, duties, and revenues. It will be massive amounts of money pouring into our Treasury, coming from foreign sources.”

This echoes his campaign trail musings, where he told podcaster Joe Rogan that tariffs could fully replace income taxes. “Yeah, sure, why not?” Trump replied when asked if he was serious about ditching personal income taxes.

Who Will Clean My House?

 

Judge Restricts Immigration Arrests In DC

A federal judge on Dec. 2 ordered the Trump administration to stop making warrantless immigration arrests in the District of Columbia without probable cause.

Federal officers arrest a man in the District of Columbia on Aug. 30, 2025. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

Judge Beryl Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said the plaintiffs made a strong case that immigration officers have been arresting immigrants without warrants or conducting assessments to determine if each individual poses a flight risk.

Federal law states that an officer can arrest an immigrant without a warrant “if he has reason to believe that the alien so arrested is in the United States in violation of any such law or regulation and is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained for his arrest.”

“Defendants’ systemic failure to apply the probable cause standard, including the failure to consider escape risk, directly violates the clear statutory requirement,” as well as Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulations implementing the law, Howell said in an 88-page decision.

Howell ordered the Department of Homeland Security and its divisions, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to stop making warrantless arrests without an individualized determination of whether the person is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained and that the person being arrested “is in the United States in violation of law or regulation regulating the admission, exclusion, expulsion or removal of aliens.”

The Department of Justice, which represents agencies in legal cases, and the DHS did not return requests for comment on the ruling.

CASA, a Maryland-based organization that sued along with individuals who have been arrested in the nation’s capital in recent months by immigration officers, did not respond to a request for comment.

The lawsuit stated that federal agents have been “indiscriminately arresting without warrants and without probable cause District residents whom the agents perceive to be Latino” without warrants and without individualized assessments that those being arrested are illegally in the United States or likely to escape before agents can obtain a warrant.