The Australian Gold Rush began in following gold discoveries at Coolgardie in 1892 and Kalgoorlie in 1893 located 370 miles (595 km) east-northeast of Perth. Once again, miners discovered two huge boulders with an extremely high gold content. Kalgoorlie is one of Australia’s most famous gold rush events because it was largely credited drawing people from around the world to search for the precious metals. Western Australia’s population grew from a meager 49,782 in 1891 to a booming 184,124 by 1901. In just those 10 years, the region became known as the Goldfields-Esperance region, often called the Golden Mile. It has typically been called in mining the most naturally rich square mile in all the earth.
Now we have boulders worth millions of dollars. The biggest one weighing 95kg and contains over 2,400 ounces of gold. The company has now begun to dig for gold they believe is worth at least $11 million. This is a rare find given this area was the center of attraction for gold miners.
The gold content of these rocks is very high. Some hope that they will lead to an even bigger discovery in the months ahead.
There is little doubt that Spain was once the Financial Capital of the West. Their discovery of America produced mountains of gold and silver to the point that they really impacted the European economy creating significant waves of inflation. However, there was the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714) which was why the famous Spanish Fleet that sank on July 31st, 1715 took place. This was a massive treasure fleet that remained in the New World until the war was over because the risk of being attacked by the British was too high. The British sought to prevent the Spanish from funding themselves for the war by preventing ships carrying gold to make it to Spain. The fleet was 11 ships and they are said to have been carrying not just gold and silver, but the dowry for the Queen called the Queen’s Jewels.
When the Spanish Colonial authorities heard of the great disaster, they responded from Havana and St. Augustine. Over 1,000 men died and the survivors were few on the beach. The authorities tried to direct their efforts at salvaging the galleons. By September 1715, some survivors were still at the camp on the beach. The Spanish authorities had turned the beach into a base of salvage operations. The Spaniards claimed that they were able to recover large portions of the treasure. This may have been a tactic of the Spanish exaggerating the amount of the recovery to deter others. Nevertheless, there were pirates were responding to the wreck perhaps even as fast as the Spanish. One English privateer named Jennings was a very successful pirate in early 1716. Given the vast number of coins that have still been recovered, obviously, the Spanish never recovered any significant portion.
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European conflict of the early 18th century that was triggered by the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700. His closest heirs were members of the Austrian Habsburg and French Bourbon families. With the riches of the New World at stake, who would rule Spain was a major economic prize. This also was a critical issue in changing the European balance of power. Charles II had actually left the undivided Spanish monarchy to Louis XIV’s grandson Philip of France who was proclaimed King of Spain on November 16th, 1700. Disputes erupted over the separation of the Spanish and French crowns. In reality, in an effort to regulate the impending succession there were three principal claimants, England, the Dutch Republic, and France. During October 1698, they signed the First Treaty of Partition. They all agreed that on the death of Charles II, Prince Joseph Ferdinand, son of the elector of Bavaria, should inherit Spain, the Spanish Netherlands, and the Spanish colonies. They also allocated Spain’s Italian dependencies would be partitioned between Austria which would get the Duchy of Milan and France Naples and Sicily.
Then in February 1699, Joseph Ferdinand died. Now a second treaty was drafted and signed on June 11th, 1699, by England and France and in March 1700 by the Dutch Republic and Spain. Leopold, however, refused to sign the treaty and demanded that Charles receive all the Spanish territories intact. Therefore, we see the contest between the Bourbons of France and Spain against the Grand Alliance. Bavaria joined France in September 1702 while Savoy and Portugal joined the Grand Alliance with Austria, whose candidate was Archduke Charles, the younger son of Habsburg Emperor Leopold. This led to war breaking out in 1701.
By 1710, fighting was really at a stalemate. France was unable to conquer Italy and the Low Countries. Philip V was the secure ruler in Spain. When Archduke Charles unexpectedly succeeded as Emperor Charles VI in 1711, Britain effectively withdrew. This then forced the Allies to make peace which produced the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, followed in 1714 with Rastatt and Baden. With the British withdrawing and peace was restored, then Philip V could be confirmed as King of Spain and, in exchange, he renounced the French throne. The European territories were divided between Austria, Britain, and Savoy. Britain emerged as the key European maritime and commercial power overshadowing the Spanish and the Dutch.
Spain had borrowed heavily for this War of Succession because it could not risk bringing in its treasure fleets. Spain had become a serial defaulter beginning in 1557 followed by 1570, 1575, 1596, 1607, and 1647 ending in a 3rd world status. The loss of the treasure fleet of 11 ships in 1715 was a crushing blow to Spain. The lost of the 1715 Treasure fleet reduced Philip V to the status of a beleaguered monarch. Philip V had badly needed all the gold and silver to pay loans. The New World wealth that had made Spain a world power in the 16th and 17th Century had now become a fraction of what it once was. Spain’s role in world affairs declined in proportion with the loss of the 1715 Treasure Fleet.
Nobody has yet found the gold, silver, and jewels that were designated as part of the dowry for his new 22-year-old wife. He had married Elisabeth Farnese of Parma by proxy in 1714 and was still trying to make a good impression on the reluctant lady. Her dowry was to be the greatest of any queen in Europe. More than 1200 pieces of rare jewelry were said to have gone down with the fleet. She was demanding that her dowry be the greatest in Europe. She requested a heart made of 130 pearls, 14-carat pearl earrings, a pure coral rosary with large sized beads and an emerald ring weighing 74 carats. The Queen’s dowry was reported to have been stored in the personal cabin of the Fleet’s senior officer. She gives a new meaning to the term “gold digger” and no doubt was a woman worthy of the title – high maintenance. Of course, they were never marriages for love or even physical attraction.
The loss of the 1715 fleet immediately resulted in the debasement of silver coins which began in 1716. The Spanish mints flooded Spain with debased silver based on the real sencillo of 3·067 g, containing 2·556 g silver. These silver coins were called plata provincial. The silver minted in America was now officially called plata nacional, but was also called plata vieja (old silver) or plata gruesa (heavy silver), and occasionally plata doble (double silver).
The talk in the city of London is that there is now a rising chance that Theresa May will be gone perhaps by November or by Christmas at the latest. About 50 conservative MPs have been thoroughly fed up with the PM. The split she has caused in the Conservative Party has certainly put the British at risk of swinging left. Now even the Shadow Foreign Secretary, Emily Thornberry, has come out and claimed that there will be a Labour government in power “within six months”. She told the Financial Times: “They [Conservatives] are not capable of governing . . . We’re either going to have a general election in the autumn or we’re going to have it in the spring…”
Meanwhile, Juncker has effectively trashed May’s BREXIT proposals and Thornberry said: “I can’t believe [the EU] won’t give us the additional time to be able to negotiate because they know we have a completely different approach.”
This is the problem with Theresa May, she had voted to remain yet is in charge of negotiating BREXIT. Look for political fun and games in Europe to continue all the way into 2020. We have EU officials concerned about their jobs if the Euro fails and Theresa May who in her heart thinks Britain should go down with the EU ship. What a mess politicians has become on a grand scale globally
Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley has submitted a letter to ranking member Dianne Feinstein setting a deadline for Friday, September 21st, for Judge Kavanaugh’s accuser, Christine Ford, to respond on whether or not she will appear for testimony to support her claims. [Read Letter Here]
Chairman Grassley – As you know, the Senate Judiciary Committee has extended invitations to Dr. Ford and Judge Kavanaugh to testify on Monday, September 24. They have until this Friday at 10:00 a.m. to let us know whether they are coming. Dr. Ford has asked for the opportunity to be heard in a hearing, and I believe she should have that opportunity.
I recognize that testifying publicly about sexual assault allegations may be difficult for Dr. Ford, so I have offered her the opportunity to testify in any of four possible venues: (1) a public hearing; (2) a private hearing; (3) a public staff interview; or (4) a private staff interview. I am even willing to have my staff travel to Dr. Ford in California—or anywhere else—to obtain her testimony. (read more)
John Solomon and Buck Sexton interviewed President Trump on Tuesday September 18th, 2018, in the Oval Office. The interview covered a variety of subjects and Solomon has posted the transcript [SEE HERE]. The interview reveals some new information, such as President Trump’s 2016 gut instinct to fire FBI Director James Comey, and his advisors –likely Steve Bannon– talking him out of it.
Additionally, within the interview President Trump notes he has not seen the content of the documents he had directed to be declassified; he is relying on the group within congress -Nunes, Jordan, Goodlatte, Meadows, Zeldin, etc.- who have investigated the details and made the requests to the executive office for declassification.
Perhaps the most important aspect to the interview is President Trump putting to rest his direct, brutally honest and forthright opinion of Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
(Via The Hill) Buck Sexton: Mr. President, why haven’t you replaced your attorney general, given all the things you’ve said and everything else that’s come out about his actions, or inactions?
President Trump: I’m so sad over Jeff Sessions because he came to me. He was the first senator that endorsed me. And he wanted to be attorney general, and I didn’t see it. But he came very strongly he really wanted to be. And, I let him be.
And then he went through the nominating process and he did very poorly. I mean, he was mixed up and confused, and people that worked with him for, you know, a long time in the Senate were not nice to him, but he was giving very confusing answers. Answers that should have been easily answered. And that was a rough time for him, and he won by one vote, I believe. You know he won by just one vote.
President Trump: He won by one vote, and it’s so sad what happened. Then he gets in and probably because of the experience that he had going through the nominating when somebody asked him the first question about Hillary Clinton or something he said ‘I recuse myself, I recuse myself.’ And now it turned out he didn’t have to recuse himself. Actually, the FBI reported shortly thereafter any reason for him to recuse himself. And it’s very sad what happened. In the meantime, I don’t have an attorney general. It’s very sad. I’m not happy at the border, I’m not happy with numerous things, not just this.
Buck Sexton: Are we going to get a wall Mr. President?
President Trump: OK, well, let me just finish this. We’ll see what happens, I mean, we’ll see what happens. A lot of people have asked me to do that. And I guess I study history, and I say I just want to leave things alone, but it was very unfair what he did. And my worst enemies, I mean, people that, you know, are on the other side of me, in a lot of ways including politically, have said that was a very unfair thing he did. You know, you’ve seen that, when he recused himself. So anyway, so, so we’ll see how it goes with Jeff. I’m very disappointed in Jeff. Very disappointed.
[…] everyone of my Cabinet members is doing great. I just have one group that’s not been good. You know what that group is. (read full interview)
This is a prime example of the need to be intellectually honest and accept President Trump at his word. There is a tremendous amount of false-theory being cited by people struggling to accept the failure of AG Sessions to support the objectives of President Trump. “Trust the plan”, and/or “trust Sessions” are the most well-known proclamations.
Failure to modify and accept reality -against the backdrop of new information- leads to misplaced interpretations, cognitive dissonance, intellectual dishonesty and, even worse, creates a false perception of what is possible. Keep absorbing information without rational and logical discernment long enough, and you get ridiculous “Q Theories” and grand “Stealth Jeff Sessions” plans.
AG Jeff Sessions is recused from investigating corruption within the 2016 election, operation ‘spy-gate’, operation ‘crossfire hurricane’, and the Russia investigation. The same career OLC lawyers within the system convinced Sessions of his conflicts, and have carved the Attorney General out of the investigative processes within the DOJ.
AG Sessions did not plan with President Trump for the declassification directive. Sessions is recused:
Tashina “Tash” Gauhar – Yes, the DOJ/FBI lawyer at the heart of the Clinton-email investigation; the DOJ/FBI lawyer hired by Eric Holder at his firm and later at the DOJ; the DOJ/FBI lawyer who was transferred to the Clinton probe; the DOJ/FBI lawyer at the epicenter of the Weiner laptop issues, the only one from MYE who spoke to New York; the DOJ/FBI lawyer who constructs the FISA applications on behalf of Main Justice;…. just happens to be the same DOJ/FBI lawyer recommending to AG Jeff Sessions that he recuse himself….
But wait, do you notice how Dana Boente (former interim head of DOJ-NSD) was participating with Peter Strzok’s lead DOJ aide “Tash” Gauhar in the discussion which recommended Attorney General Jeff Sessions should be recused? Sessions’ official announcement came immediately after this meeting on March 2nd, 2017.
Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente retired from the DOJ in October 2017. In January 2018, amid the beginning of the sunlight furor upon the FBI, Director Christopher Wray re-hired Dana Boente as Chief Legal Counsel for the FBI.
When all those FBI lawyers are showing up with Lisa Page, Peter Strzok and Bruce Ohr during committee hearings, and telling them not to answer questions about their contacts with the media etc. who is in charge of those FBI lawyers? The same Dana Boente.
The officials within the system of the administrative state are protecting the administrative state from scrutiny. This protectionist outlook transfers to the Inspector General, and was evidenced in how the “summary of findings” within the IG reports did not match the details of fact within 600+ pages of evidence.
Rational discernment and the application of common sense logic is important when evaluating the battle inside the executive branch of government. The institutions of the FBI and DOJ appear to have been thoroughly corrupted by political operatives; and more extreme ideologues were rewarded and promoted during the prior administration.
Many of those politicized officials within the system are still present. The election changes the leadership, but the underlying organizational corruption remains, albeit under new management.
If the goal of management to save the institution is stronger than the goal to take the institution down to brass-tacks, eliminate corruption and rebuild, then the corrupt elements are able to survive the leadership change. By all measures, this is the current status of the FBI and DOJ.
Because the corruption happened during their tenure, current officials within the FBI, DOJ and much of the larger intelligence apparatus, are not in alignment with the reform goals demanded by change-agent President Trump. Their goal is to fight Trump’s goals.
“It must be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to plan, more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to manage than a new system. For the initiator has the enmity of all who would profit by the preservation of the old institution and merely lukewarm defenders in those who gain by the new ones.”
From June 2017 through May 2018, CTH was optimistic the Cabinet Leadership within the DOJ and FBI would accept the scale of corruption within their institutions and embrace reform. However, as more and more tripwires were crossed; and with the scale of the corruption even more visible; and with the calendar moving forward without any action; we were forced to accept the goals of AG Sessions, DAG Rosenstein and Director Wray were not reform goals – they are preservation goals.
The lack of action from the release of the prior two IG reports; the inability of the FBI to even acknowledge the severity within the May 2018 report on FBI misconduct; and the compounded issues surrounding the DOJ and FBI approach toward admitted classified intelligence leaker James Wolfe; leads only to one possible conclusion. The downstream consequences of the corruption are so entirely devastating, the sunlight is actually a risk – and must therefore be ‘managed’.
Conversely, outside the executive branch there are voices in congress holding no vested interest in the systemic corruption, and therefore they are in alignment with President Trump’s demands.
Members within the executive branch are working with the other side and holding Trump hostage while trying to wait-out the election hopeful to have a change in congressional power. This preserves their institutions and executes their goals.
It is a small valiant team within the legislative branch who are trying to help the President and force officials within the cabinet to admit the corruption.
Remember, there are multiple key leadership retirements within congress from members who are ambivalent to the outcome for President Trump. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan; Chairman of Oversight Committee Trey Gowdy and Chairman of the Judiciary Committee Bob Goodlatte are all leaving.
We need to campaign hard, and turn out the vote en masse in November, to support this sea-change moment in congress. We can actually achieve MAGA-minded congressional representation if we fight for it.
Project Veritas has released the second installment in an undercover video series unmasking the administrative state, ie ‘deep state’. Today’s video features Department of Justice paralegal Allison Hrabar using government-owned software and computers to push a socialist agenda. Also featured is Jessica Schubel, the former Chief of Staff for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services during the last Obama administration.
Both Schubel and Hrabar make admissions revealing that federal employees appear to be using their positions inside our government to resist or slow the Trump administration’s policies. It appears some laws have been broken in the process.
Earlier today President Trump traveled to North Carolina for a briefing by local, state and federal officials who are responding to the recovery efforts in North Carolina following Hurricane Florence. Following the briefing, President Trump toured some of the impacted regions and thanked those who are assisting in ongoing recovery efforts.
[Transcript] – Cherry Point, North Carolina – 10:47 A.M. EDT – THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much everybody. We appreciate it very — the job you’ve done has been incredible. Incredible. They’re talking about it all over the world. And we want to keep it going that way, because some of the hard work is now. We’ve gone through very dangerous work, and still dangerous, but some of the hard work is taking place right now, even though its nice and beautiful and sunny.
I was talking to the Governor. And, Governor, I want to thank you. A really fantastic — a fantastic job. But in speaking to the Governor, some of the flooding is actually epic. Hard to believe. And we’ve seen all the pictures where houses are literally covered beyond the roof. You don’t even know there’s a house there. And, you know, one of those things. Well, the water is starting to go down now, finally.
But again, I want to thank Governor Cooper. I want to express my gratitude to your Lieutenant Governor, Dan Forest, very importantly. And to all of the state and local leaders who have been really incredible partners throughout this response and recovery.
There’s been a lot of talent. A lot of work and a lot of talent. Without the talent, it doesn’t work either. You had a combination of hard work and that great ability.
Were joined also by Secretary Nielsen, Administrator McMahon, Director Mulvaney, and FEMA Administrator Long. I want to thank you all. Administrator, great job. Incredible job. The planning that went into this is beyond — beyond belief. So I just want to thank the Secretary and Administrator. Really — really something special.
I also want to thank some great friends of mine and some very talented people that love this state. They love all our states, I think we can say, and that’s Senator Richard Burr. Wheres Richard? Richard? Thank you very much. You have great representatives. Senator Thom Tillis, thank you. Thank you. Wheres Thom? Thank you, Thom. Lindsey Graham. Lindsey? What happened? Lindsey. (Laughter.) Oh, look at Lindsey.
Lindsey, do you want to pull up a chair? What happened to you? (Laughter.)
SENATOR GRAHAM: (Inaudible.)
THE PRESIDENT: You know, we could have — (laughter) — Richard, would you let him sit at our table? I don’t know. Come on. Pull up a chair, Lindsey. But Lindsey has been great.
And Tim Scott. Wheres Tim? Good. I don’t know, I feel pretty guilty. Come over here.
They have been fantastic, all of them — all four. And we’ve had a lot help from Congress, in all fairness. And were ready and they’re ready to do whatever we have to do to make this perfect. And that means, unfortunately, the money will be a lot, but its going to come as fast as you need it. We’re going to take care of everybody.
Hurricane Florence was one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the Carolinas. One of the most powerful and devastating storms ever to hit our country.
To the families who have lost loved ones, America grieves with you, and our hearts break for you. God bless you. We will never forget your loss. We will never leave your side. Were with you all way. And to all those impacted by this terrible storm, our entire American family is with you and ready to help. And you will recover.
Most importantly, we give thanks to the incredible first responders, including sheriffs, police officers, firefighters, our great Cajun Navy. They’re all over the place. I put them up online and everybody loved it. Everybody loved it. But they put themselves, all of them, in harms way. And what they’ve done to save precious lives of our citizens has been nothing short of incredible.
Nearly 20,000 federal and military personnel are supporting the response efforts along with Southeast Coast, including brave men and women of North Carolina and the National Guard. Now, of course, were going to South Carolina right after this, and they have been incredible. And I know you’ve worked and coordinated very well also, Governor, with South Carolina. That’s been a really great partnership.
Together with state and local first responders, they’ve assisted and rescued more than 3,000 people. So we want to thank you. And I will say, Ive been watching the Coast Guard with all of the helicopters lifting people off rooftops, and its been an incredible job you’ve done again. We appreciate it. Thank you very much.
More than 1.6 million meals have been delivered to North Carolina, and more than 400,000 are ready in South Carolina as soon as theyre requested. So were standing by with 400,000 meals in South Carolina.
Crews have restored power to over 1.2 million customers already in North and South Carolina. And the power is starting to go on as soon as the water goes down. They’re meeting the demand incredibly well. So I want to thank the power companies and all of the federal workers, but we have to also thank some of the power companies because they’ve been very responsive. As soon as that water goes down, for the most part, people have power.
In moments of despair, we witness the true character of the American people. So true. Citizens all across our country rally together to rescue the stranded, to protect the innocent, and to restore hope to families who have experienced tremendous and unbearable loss.
I want to thank all of the people here today. A very special group of people. Very talented group of people. And we love working with you. Its an honor to work with you. We’ve done a real job, and we’ve got to continue to do that real job because another phase is coming in right now, and were going to meet that phase just like we’ve met phase one.
So, Governor, again, thank you very much. I appreciate it. And to everybody, thank you very much. And whatever we have to do at the federal level, we will be there — and you know that — 100 percent.
And, Secretary Nielsen? Please.
SECRETARY NIELSEN: Yes, sir. Well, first I just wanted to start by thanking you for your leadership. I think we would all agree, we appreciate (inaudible) to respond, to direct all of our federal governments, to support our partners.
And what you see there is how that partnership works so well. We’ve got the private sector, weve got our congressional members, state and local officials. We certainly have all of our partners at DOD and the National Guard. So we are all working together as it should be, in unity of effort, under your leadership. And we greatly appreciate everyone’s partnership.
If I could, Id like to ask the Administrator to give us a brief update as to where we are.
ADMINISTRATOR LONG: So, Mr. President, as you know, a disaster response like this takes all of us working together, not just coordinating the federal government together, which has come together very well so far. But it takes all of us from neighbor helping neighbor, all the way up to the federal government, to help people overcome what they’ve been through.
Ive been on the ground yesterday. Ill be on the ground through tomorrow to make sure that I verify that were doing everything that we can right now. This event is not over; the rivers are still cresting. And so we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to the life, safety, and life sustainment mission.
But were also simultaneously working on making sure that we stabilize all of the critical lifelines in regards to the infrastructure. So its all interconnected. We got to get the roads open to be able to get the power crews into the isolated areas and the flooded areas. And we also have to put a big focus on the hazardous materials, and the health and medical capabilities, and getting them back up and running fully in every community.
One of the things thats most important is that we’re already pushing forward our disaster survival assistance teams into the fields, into the shelters. We need people to register with 1-800-621-FEMA, or they can download the FEMA app, or they can go through DisasterAssistance.gov.
But more importantly, my job is made easier when a governor like Governor Cooper, Mike Sprayberry, Erik Hooks, have truly done their part to be self-sufficient at the state level. They have been very strong and capable partners. So, thank you.
Thank you, Sir.
SECRETARY NIELSEN: And perhaps we turn it over to the Governor. Governor, as you said so well yesterday, Sunshine doesn’t need safety. So we’re right here with you in the midst of a very (inaudible) response.
GOVERNOR COOPER: Well, thank you, Mr. President, for coming to North Carolina as our rescue and recovery continues.
Our rivers are still cresting, and there is still danger for some people. Were hoping that they can get evacuated and that out first responders continue to make sure that people are brought to safety.
Our state took a gut punch, Mr. President. And our people are still reeling. We’ve lost 27 lives, officially, so far. And some more are under investigation. And we mourn their loss.
We have farmers who have lost significantly their crops. A lot of businesses are down. And, of course, people have lost their homes. We have about 10,000 people right now in shelters. I talked to one the other day who had a rescue out of an apartment in downtown Wilmington. And I will say this: All the way from firefighters in Wilmington, to our state responders, our National Guard, and the United States Coast Guard, there have been some heroic first responders who have saved lives.
We are beginning the process of getting our feet under us, Mr. President. We’re getting water and supplies, hot meals to people. We’re beginning to clear roads, although we have a number of roads continuing to be closed, including parts of Interstate 95 and Interstate 40. And you can imagine what that does to commerce and people trying to get from one place to the next.
We have a lot of power that has been restored, but there are thousands of people who are still waiting to get their power back.
I know that this state has a great economy, great education. We are a beacon in the south. And we have weathered storms before in our state. But, Mr. President, we have never seen one like this. This one has been epic, it has been disastrous, and it has been widespread. It is a storm like no other.
We’re beginning the process, with your federal help and with our local county people; many of them are here today. And we want to thank our local responders and all of the help that they have given to deal with people right there on the ground. But we’re starting to figure out how we will build back. We will do it in a smart and strong way. I’ve been grateful for Secretary Nielsen and for Admiral Buschman. Thank you for your help with the Coast Guard and helping to rescue people.
And, Mr. President, Brock Long, as FEMA Administrator, along with Albie Lewis, who has been here, they are helping us right now significantly. And we’re grateful.
I’ve got a great Emergency Management Director in Mike Sprayberry and my Secretary of Public Safety, Erik Hooks. They’re all onboard. Our Adjutant General of the National Guard, General Lusk, has been doing a fantastic job.
And this Title 10 that we’ve invoked with our joint military exercise, we are grateful to the members of the U.S. military who have stepped up and helped us through this process.
But, Mr. President, we’ve got a long road ahead in the days and the months, and even years ahead, to make sure we build back to where we need to be here in North Carolina. And you’re here, and I’m asking you, sir, for your help, every step of the way. All of these federal agencies are going to have to help us in cutting red tape and making sure we can be smart about this rebuilding process.
We still understand that people have a lot of immediate needs, and that’s going to be critically important over the next few days and weeks. But long-term rebuild, I know the resiliency of North Carolinians. We have an amazing state. I know that we can come back stronger than ever. But we’re going to need your help.
And thank you for coming to listen to this.
THE PRESIDENT: And I’ll be there. Congressman, thank you. Thank you, Roy. We will be there 100 percent. And all of the folks from the federal government that are around the table, they’re confirming it. That’s why we started early and we’ll be here late.
And we want to thank the great job you’ve done and all of your people. Thank you very much.
I’d like to maybe ask Richard Burr to say a few words, your great senator who’s done an incredible job. And then we’re going to ask Thom Tillis to say a few words. These are two people that love this state and they love the country.
Richard?
SENATOR BURR: Well, Mr. President, I’m going to say to this group exactly what I said to you on the plane. I’ve been doing disasters in North Carolina as an elected representative for now 25 years. I’ve never seen the preparation, the coordination, the collaboration between the federal, state, and local government like I’ve seen prior to this event.
If we do half as good in the response as we did in the preparation, then North Carolinians are going to be in good hands.
The challenge is, quite frankly, going to be this: We’re faced with things in this event that we havent been faced with before. And the ability to have the Coast Guard and DOD assets in this state, upfront, before the event, has enabled those at a local, state, and federal level to adjust what plans we might have had in place, and deliver water and food and essentials in a way that we could get into any community in this state. Without that level of collaboration, we’d have people that were in serious, serious problems much worse than today.
And I am grateful for the federal component but I am as grateful, Governor, for the way the state emergency management folks and first responders, who in some cases have been volunteers in local communities that had a boat, aided their neighbors. And that’s what’s so great about this state.
Thank you, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Richard, very much. And Tom?
SENATOR TILLIS: Well, just very briefly, just to echo everything that Senator Burr said, we’re now moving towards the next step, which is getting the initial funding for recovery. We’ve made a request. We’ll be moving forward with trying to get the money in place for some of the initial recovery. But then we’ll work very closely with the Governor.
Governor, thank you for being so prompt on getting the initial need in. That was very instructive to the appropriation request. We’ll continue to work with state and local authorities.
And just thank all the volunteers, as well — the Red Cross and everybody else who have come together. And Congressman Rouzer, every one of the counties in his district were affected. He’s been working hard. He’s been on the ground the entire time. And this is when North Carolina and America is at its best. We’re all coming together and working for the people in North Carolina and South Carolina.
And, President, thank you for your leadership.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thank you, Thom. Thank you. And for you leadership.
As Thom and Richard said, we’re getting all teed up for a lot of money to come down to the area. You’re going to need it. And we have it, and we will be supplying it. And there will be nothing left undone. You’ll have everything you need.
So we’re going to have — it’s going to be probably a rough two weeks, and then it will get a little bit softer. But it’s going to be — people don’t realize how a very difficult phase is beginning probably today with a beautiful sunshine. So your two representatives and your — by the way, your congressman, are working very hard. So we’ll have it all taken care of. Thank you very much, Congressman. Thank you very much. Appreciate it very much. Great job.
Does anybody have anything to say? Any of our folks?
Administrator McMahon, would you say something please?
ADMINISTRATOR MCMAHON: Thank you very much, Mr. President. First of all, I’m a North Carolina girl. I was born and reared in New Bern. Both my parents were civil service employees right here at Cherry Point Air Base. So I feel like I’ve come home.
I’m the Administrator of SBA, and I just want to let all of you know that where SBA comes in is on the front side, but we are immediately right there. As a matter of fact, we’re already staged at East Carolina to deploy our folks into the field to get people’s businesses back up and running, to get them back in their homes. This is the time that SBA actually makes the loans and not just guarantees the loans.
So please go to SBA.gov and click on the “Disaster” banner. It will take you to the right place. We’ve already approved, I think, just a little — fewer than 10 applications already for mortgages and loans for businesses. So they’re low interest, they’re long-term fixed rates. So please allow us to help you. Go online and start getting your applications in so that we can help our communities and our homeowners and even renters who have lost personal property in the storm get back on their feet.
Thank you, sir.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Linda, very much. Anybody? Any questions? Statements? Congressman?
REPRESENTATIVE ROUZER: First of all, let me thank you for being here. You have a great heart for the American people. That’s one of the things I like so much about you. And it just really means a lot for you to be here at this particular time.
We have a lot of folks that are really, really hurting. And I got a couple of points I want to make, but before I forget, though, I want to thank Brock Long and his team. I’ve been with him for the past several days. They’re doing incredible work. Everybody around this table is just doing a lot of collaborative, great work together.
Your Admiral here at Coast Guard — I walked in the airport, RDU Airport, the other day, and saw doctors and nurses that were stranded, trying to find a way back to New Hanover Regional Medical Center. And this guy here helped us get it cleared to get them on that C-130 and take them to ILM Airport.
And I don’t think I’ve ever seen a CEO of a hospital that was happier than our CEO at Hanover Regional the other day.
So your team is doing an incredible, incredible job. A few things I want to mention: Housing is so critically important, as you know. Infrastructure, incredibly important. I serve on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as you know. Really looking forward to working with you as we move forward on rebuilding our infrastructure, not just here post-storm, but we’ve got to do a lot of pre-mitigation work for the next storm.
You know, these storms aren’t going to end. They’re going to keep coming. And the more we can prepare, the more we can clean out these rivers, these ditches, all the creeks and streams, they’re all — they’re all stopped up. That’s part of the reason why we have such a monumental flood. My district, as Senator Tillis said, eight of my nine counties are completely — almost completely underwater. They’re all major disaster areas. And so I think rebuilding this infrastructure is going to be critically, critically important.
Of course, housing is number one. Agriculture in my district — huge component of this state — $87 billion industry. I see Steve Troxler here in the audience — our Commissioner of Agriculture. We’ve got to have more than just a new farm bill. We’ve got to have a real disaster package for agriculture as well.
And then our beach communities: Our beaches, our inlets and our waterways are a key component of infrastructure in this country. It’s vital to tourism in my district, as you know. And of course, I know you’re quite familiar with Wrightsville Beach in Wilmington and that area, and Brunswick County, Pender County. All these counties need a tremendous amount of help. And I just thank you and appreciate you being here and appreciate all the work of your entire team — not only now, but as we move into the future.
THE PRESIDENT: Appreciate it very much, Congressman.
COMMISSIONER WHITE: Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, please.
COMMISSIONER WHITE: My name is Woody White, and I represent 220,000 citizens of New Hanover County. I want to thank you for coming here. I’d like to echo the comments that were very ably made by David and the others around the table about what’s been done. And I also want to share with you the hope and optimism that our people have about the economy that you’ve created, about the people that you put back to work. Because all these next two or three or four phases of recovery are better because of the preparations, the economy that you have created, and we appreciate it.
I have been out in our community since this storm before it began, in it every day since it was here. And folks are cutting trees, putting power lines up, feeding their neighbors, loving each other, caring for each other, and they have incredible hope and optimism in the future.
It tells me something that you brought the Administrator of the Small Business Association here today, that you’re thinking about the future too. I own a small business, and they’re the lifeblood of our economy in New Hanover County. And we thank you for being here and for your leadership.
THE PRESIDENT: That’s really nice. I appreciate it very much. The economy is, fortunately, doing really well, and I would say maybe the best economy our country has ever had. So that’s important.
And we want to get everybody back to work so they can, you know, take (inaudible) — because this area has been very badly damaged. But we’ll get it up and working again, Governor, very quickly. I have no doubt about it.
Anybody else? Anybody? Yes.
MAYOR JONES JR.: Mr. President, hi, I’m Jerry Jones, the Mayor of Morehead City.
THE PRESIDENT: Hi, Jerry.
MAYOR JONES JR.: And just on behalf of a grateful community — and not just talking about Morehead, but talking about coastal North Carolina — your presence here today means a whole lot to all of us. It means, you know, we’re not left stranded alone on this island. It means the federal government is here helping us, along with the state government and many local governments.
And being a mayor of a small town and having to — being the boots on the ground and walking the food lines with my constituents — and not just my constituents; I’ve got people from outside the county. Just building up something that you said earlier about community pride and spirit — I mean, the community spirit is, from what I’ve witnessed, is as high as it’s ever been.
THE PRESIDENT: Great.
MAYOR JONES JR.: It is — it is not — and what I’ve learned also, that communities aren’t just in neighborhoods, they’re not just in towns and states; I’m talking about a national community. People have come from all over the nation to come to Carteret County to assist us. And just on my way up here, I had three phone calls from people throughout the state that wanted to bring provisions down to Carteret County. And so I’m helping organize that.
And when I walked through the lines of the people — and I have to say this: My first experience, I’ve never stood in line before to get a drink of water or a meal or sandwich or any way. The people, you know, when I ask them, my first question to them is, “How are you? Are you safe?” And they said, “Yeah, we’re safe. However, my neighbor, you know, they lost everything they had. You know, my house is under water.” And my response to them always is, “Yes, but at least we are here today talking about it.” And they always just give praise to God when that’s mentioned.
And so I’ll know we’ll get through this together. It’s baby steps, as we all mentioned. Although it happened overnight, the rebuilding is not going to be overnight. But from the state and local level, the federal level, we’ll make it happen.
And again, just the presence of everybody around this table is going to mean a whole lot to everybody affected with Hurricane Florence. So, thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Mayor. Appreciate it.
COMMISSIONER MANSFIELD: Mr. President, Mark Mansfield, Chairman of the Carteret County Commissioners. And I want to thank you and your team for coming down with Governor Cooper, Senator Tillis, Senator Burr, and other representatives.
And I’d especially like to thank Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest. He came down the day after the hurricane and visited us personally at the emergency operations center.
Things are still dire in Carteret County. We have — over half of our whole county is without power. We obviously have had the river and the creek flooding — storm surge flooding. And Williston to Stacy, they had probably 8 to 12 feet of water in homes.
These people have been displaced, and we are temporarily sheltering, neighbors are sheltering, but we’re going to need help with shelter.
The big thing is public safety. We haven’t had trash pickup since the Wednesday before the storm. They’ve cut and run. We’re getting back open now. But for health reasons, we need to make sure that we get all of your guys’ help to expedite the boots on the ground.
I mean, I know protocols and procedures — you’ve got manuals — but as I look around, I see the military force here, anybody who’s done training, you know training is one thing, but being in the foxhole when the bullets are coming by your head are completely different. And we hope we will have all your continued support to help our boots on the ground, facilitate the resources, and help the people of our county and the surrounding counties in Eastern North Carolina.
I thank all you guys again. We appreciate all you’re doing. And we’ll probably be asking you for more. Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Excuse me?
MS. GOOD: (Inaudible.)
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, please.
MS. GOOD: Mr. President, thank you so much for being here, for coming to North Carolina. The story for Duke Energy is also a story of partnership. And so I’m pleased to report that we’ve restored a million and a half citizens for power. We have 150,000 to go. And we will not leave until that power is restored.
Now, we had the opportunity to work with so many around the table that have made it possible with the Governor and his administration, with Director Sprayberry, with the federal agencies, Secretary Nielsen, Under Secretary Krebs, not only the planning but the resources necessary to restore power on this scale. So we thank you for the leadership and the partnership. It’s made it possible. And we’re anxious to get 150,000 more citizens back.
THE PRESIDENT: Good. Thank you very much. And how is Lake Norman, that area? How is that doing?
MS. GOOD: Good.
THE PRESIDENT: It’s doing good?
MS. GOOD: But still 10 or 12 inches of rain.
THE PRESIDENT: I love that area. I can’t tell you why, but I love that area.
MS. GOOD: It’s very nice. Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: It’s been really terrific.
GENERAL O’SHAUGHNESSY: Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes.
GENERAL O’SHAUGHNESSY: Mr. President, Secretary Mattis gave us very clear direction from the Department of Defense to make sure that we anticipate every need that the states could have so we could help the citizens.
Governor Cooper’s team here was phenomenal to help us understand what exactly those needs were going to be so we could pre-posture and be ready for immediate response. So, hats off to Governor Cooper and the broader team here in North Carolina.
And also, at FEMA, Brock Long was able to help us coordinate that federal response that was seamlessly tied into the state and local efforts. And I’d like to highlight, Mr. President, that there are 28 different states that have contributed to the National Guard, through the EMACs — the compacts that they have with the state of North Carolina, between North Carolina and South Carolina — and that just shows the strength of the National Guard as well, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Great job, General. Appreciate it.
Okay. Thank you very much. Let’s get back to work.
Departing the White House this morning -heading to North Carolina- President Trump held an impromptu presser with DC media on a variety of topics.
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[Transcript] South Lawn – 9:20 A.M. EDT – THE PRESIDENT: Were going to North Carolina. Well then be heading to South Carolina. Were doing very well there, but the rivers are cresting. They’re just starting to crest. We’re really just going to say hello to all of the folks from FEMA, the military, the people that are working so hard. And I think it will be an incredible day. We’ll be coming back at about six or seven tonight.
Q Your reaction to Ford calling for an FBI investigation?
THE PRESIDENT: Say it?
Q Your reaction to Ford calling for an FBI investigation? (Inaudible.)
THE PRESIDENT: Well, it would seem that the FBI really doesn’t do that. They’ve investigated about six times before, and it seems that they don’t do that.
Q They would do it if you asked them to, Mr. President. They will do it if you ask them to. Will you considering asking them to?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I would let the senators take their course. Let the senators do it. They’re doing a very good job. They’ve given tremendous amounts of time. They’ve already postponed a major hearing. And, really, they’re hurting somebody’s life very badly.
And it’s very unfair, I think, to — as you know, Justice Kavanaugh has been treated very, very tough, and his family. I think it’s a very unfair thing what’s going. So we’ll see. But I do think this: They’ve given it a lot of time. They will continue to give it a lot of time. And, really, it’s up to the Senate, and I really rely on them. I think they’re going to do a good job.
Q (Inaudible.)
THE PRESIDENT: I’d really want to see her. I really would want to see what she has to say. But I want to give it all the time they need. They’ve already given it time. They’ve delayed a major hearing. There’s no more just about — look, when I first decided to run, everybody said the single most important thing you do is a Supreme Court justice, okay? We’ve all heard that many times about a President.
I would say this: I think he’s an extraordinary man. I think he’s a man of great intellect, as I’ve been telling you. And he has an unblemished record. This is a very tough thing for him and his family. And we want to get it over with. At the same time, we want to give tremendous amounts of time. If she shows up, that would be wonderful. If she doesn’t show up, that would be unfortunate.
Q What did you mean when you said you don’t have an Attorney General? What did you mean by that?
THE PRESIDENT: I’m disappointed in the Attorney General for numerous reasons. But we have an Attorney General. I’m disappointed in the Attorney General for many reasons. And you understand that.
Q Are you going to fire Jeff Sessions?
THE PRESIDENT: We are looking at lots of different things. I have a great Cabinet. We have the greatest economy ever in the history of our country. So we’re very happy with the way things are running, generally speaking. I dont think we’ve ever had an economy like this. Somebody was on just this morning, from Reagan — from the Reagan White House. He said this is one of the great economies in history. So we’re very happy.
Q (Inaudible.)
THE PRESIDENT: I can’t hear you.
Q (Inaudible.)
THE PRESIDENT: Well, the FBI has been very involved with respect to Justice Kavanaugh. They know Justice Kavanaugh very well. They’ve investigated him, I guess, six times. And they’ve investigated him for this hearing.
Look, if she shows up and makes a credible showing, that will be very interesting and we’ll have to make a decision. But I can only say this: He is such an outstanding man. Very hard for me to imagine that anything happened.
Q (Inaudible) Kim Jong Un?
THE PRESIDENT: We had very good news from North Korea, South Korea. They met, and we had some great responses. I got a tremendous letter from Kim Jong Un. As you know, it was delivered three days ago. We’re making tremendous progress with respect to North Korea.
Prior to becoming President, it looked like we were going to war with North Korea, and now we have a lot of progress. We’ve gotten our prisoners back. We’re getting our remains back. They continue to come in. A lot of tremendous things.
But very importantly, no missile testing, no nuclear testing. Now they want to go and put a bid in for the Olympics. No, we have a lot of very good things going.
Remember this: Prior to my coming into office, a lot of people thought we were going — it was inevitable — we were going to war in North Korea. And now we’re — the relationships, I have to tell you, at least on a personal basis, they’re very good. It’s very much calmed down.
Q (Inaudible) Kim Jong Un says he wants reciprocal measures.
THE PRESIDENT: Well, we’ll see what he’s looking at. We’ll see. But in the meantime, we’re talking. It’s very calm. He’s calm; I’m calm. So we’ll see what happens.
Q Are you concerned about what Paul Manafort will tell investigators?
THE PRESIDENT: No, I’m not.
Q Why?
THE PRESIDENT: I’m not. Because if he’s honest — and he is — I think he’s going to tell — as long he tells the truth, it’s 100 percent. He was with Ronald Reagan. He was with Bob Dole. He was with McCain. He was with many, many people. That’s what he did. Paul Manafort was with me for a short period of time. He did a good job. I was very happy with the job he did. And I will tell you this: I believe that he will tell the truth. And if he tells the truth, no problem.
Q Would you consider a pardon for Paul Manafort?
THE PRESIDENT: I dont want to talk about it now.
Q Why are you (inaudible) refugees into the country? Why are you cutting the refugee number to 30,000?
THE PRESIDENT: Because we want to be able to take what we can handle.
Q Mr. President, you said you feel badly for Brett Kavanaugh and this is a tough time for his family. Do you feel anything for Christine Blasey Ford?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I’d have to see what she has to say. I’ve given her a lot of time. The senators have given her a lot of time. We continue to give her a lot of time. We’ve held up the whole hearing.
What I don’t like is that Senator Feinstein had this letter for a period of like three months, from July, maybe even before that — but from July. Why didn’t Senator Feinstein bring this up at her meeting with Judge Kavanaugh? Why didnt the Democrats — they knew about the letter, because she was showing it to Democrats — why did they wait until everything was finished and then bring it up? That doesn’t look good.
Thank you very much. I’ll see you in North Carolina.
I’ve probably reviewed thousands of congressional letters, and intelligence committee letters from oversight, along with even more executive agency responses. In fact, CTH has shared hundreds of outlines covering granular details within many of the internal memos and correspondences. However, I have never seen anything like this before.
The combination of arrogance, hubris and desperation within a letter (pdf here) from the four Democrats on the intelligence oversight Gang of Eight, is palpable even in text format.
Legislative branch members: Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Adam Schiff and Mark Warner write a letter today to Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and FBI Director Christopher Wray, demanding the executive branch cabinet members withhold information from the White House.
Perhaps more stunningly, and extra-constitutionally (meaning outside the framework of constitutional separation of power), within the jaw-dropping letter the four Democrats outline previous verbal conversations and current agreements with Coats, Rosenstein and Wray where the Cabinet officers agreed to keep information away from the White House Chief Executive, the President.
That third paragraph is particularly interesting: …”the verbal assurance you provided us that DOJ and FBI would not provide the White House“…
Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot?
Why would the Trump DOJ and FBI be giving Pelosi Inc. “assurances” of their intent to withhold intelligence from the White House (Office of the President).
Why would Rosenstein and Wray be giving “assurances”? I digress.
This letter reeks of corruption, manipulative intent, and between-the-lines admissions of gross intelligence abuses. Additionally, the appearance of a visible alignment between corrupt executive branch officials (Wray, Rosenstein, possibly Coats) and corrupt intelligence oversight officials (Schiff, Warner, Pelosi, Schumer) is jaw-droppingly obvious.
This corrupt and self-interested alignment has always belayed our optimism that President Trump had a cabinet willing to confront institutional corruption. Our concern has always been that these aligned officials will fight against President Trump’s sunlight requests.
Likely DNI Dan Coats will release the declassified FISA portions as requested; thankfully the FISC (Judicial Branch) supports the executive branch in this approach.
However, we should probably temper optimism -at least in timing- surrounding the emails and text messages from Ohr, Comey, Page, Strzok and McCabe. Those bogus “declassified” releases are more dependent on the corrupt DOJ (Rosenstein) and FBI (Wray).
“Assurances”! F-YOU swamp, and your corrupt “assurances”.
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This is a library of News Events not reported by the Main Stream Media documenting & connecting the dots on How the Obama Marxist Liberal agenda is destroying America
The Australian Gold Rush began in following gold discoveries at Coolgardie in 1892 and Kalgoorlie in 1893 located 370 miles (595 km) east-northeast of Perth. Once again, miners discovered two huge boulders with an extremely high gold content. Kalgoorlie is one of Australia’s most famous gold rush events because it was largely credited drawing people from around the world to search for the precious metals. Western Australia’s population grew from a meager 49,782 in 1891 to a booming 184,124 by 1901. In just those 10 years, the region became known as the Goldfields-Esperance region, often called the Golden Mile. It has typically been called in mining the most naturally rich square mile in all the earth.
Centinel2012 