Category Blogger C0nservative Tree House

Feb 22 2025

President Trump Discusses Self-Centered Zelenskyy, “I’ve Had it”


Posted originally on CTH on February 21, 2025 | Sundance

During an interview with Brian Kilmeade, President Donald Trump sounds like he is battling the same cold as me.  However, on the serious side, President Trump goes through the geopolitical map of challenges being faced and gives a brutally honest perspective on the current status.

At 06:30 of the interview, President Trump outlines his current opinion on the Ukraine President and the reason for it.  President Trump talks about the simple process of creating a surety (rare earth minerals) for U.S. taxpayer funds that have been sent to Zelenskyy, and the outline of a deal the people who control Zelenskyy ultimately rejected.

President Trump is frustrated at the approach taken by the EU toward Russia where shutting the door to Vladimir Putin ultimately resulted in nothing.  As noted by President Trump, closing down conversation, triggering sanctions that ultimately were futile, and isolating the nation of Russia only made the problem worse.  Ultimately, leading to President Trump saying, “I’ve had it” with the “games” being played as thousands of young men are being killed for nothing.  It is a very honest conversation.  WATCH: 

.

Feb 21 2025

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Discusses DoD Priorities, DOGE, Budget Cuts and Defense Spending Audit


Posted originally on CTH on February 21, 2025 | Sundance

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth delivers a statement on current operational objectives and goals within the Pentagon. In these remarks Secretary Hegseth outlines his goal and responsibility to deliver truthful information to the American people about what is going on behind the scenes. Cool Stuff. WATCH:

.

Feb 21 2025

President Trump and Tiger Woods Deliver Remarks from White House Recognizing Black History Month


Posted originally on CTH on February 21, 2025 | Sundance

President Donald Trump, together with his friend and guest Tiger Woods, hosts a reception at the White House to celebrate Black History Month.

The full remarks by President Trump are below:

.

Feb 21 2025

Hassett, Miller and Waltz Join Karoline Leavitt During White House Press Briefing


Posted originally on CTH on February 20, 2025 | Sundance

National Economic Council Director, Kevin Hasset; Senior Policy Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff, Stephen Miller; and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz join White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt for daily press briefing in the Brady room of the White House.

The three senior advisors to President Trump join Leavitt to celebrate the first month of anniversary of the inauguration. WATCH:

.

Feb 21 2025

Planned Press Conference with Zelenskyy and Envoy General Kellogg Cancelled by U.S. Side


Posted originally on the CTH on February 20, 2025 | Sundance 

As we walk in the deep weeds of how the Russia/Ukraine conflict and negotiated peace agreement (likely ceasefire) is unfolding, each granular step is worth reviewing.

President Trump’s envoy retired U.S. Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg and Ukraine President Zelenskyy had a meeting today. At the conclusion of the meeting a planned press conference and media availability was cancelled.

[…] The format of the press event, which was to include comments to the media by Zelenskyy and retired U.S. Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, was changed at the last minute so that the two did not deliver statements or field questions from journalists. The change was requested by the U.S. side, Ukrainian presidential spokesman Serhii Nikiforov said. (link) 

It appears that President Trump’s forceful, direct and brutally honest remarks about Zelenskyy caught many people off-guard.

President Zelenskyy’s announcement in Turkey where he changed plans and cancelled his trip to Saudi Arabia, aligns with this ongoing dynamic.  In the pretending version, Zelenskyy justified his change in plan because he felt slighted by a non-invitation to participate in the talks between the Russian team and U.S. team.

However, in the non-pretending review, we all know Zelenskyy cannot make an independent decision.  In the background of Zelenskyy’s decision making there are just too many interests.

Zelenskyy’s comments from Turkey were exceptionally obtuse.  The meeting between Secretary of State Rubio and Foreign Minister Lavrov was about organizing the communication channels for further discussion.  There was no reason for Zelenskyy to be in the room as Russia and the USA talked about how to structure their contacts.  Zelenskyy’s reasoning for cancelling his trip to Saudi Arabia was nonsense.

Following Zelenskyy’s remarks from Turkey, President Trump dropped the “dictator” hammer that captured all the headlines.  President Trump was in full non-pretending mode during all of his comments, including Trump’s repeated point about initiating a ceasefire and Ukraine needing to organize elections.  The latter point is extremely troubling for the IC elements who control Zelenskyy for obvious reasons.

Without doubt, President Trump caught everyone off-guard with the forcefulness of his remarks. Volodymyr Zelenskyy is now in the non-pretending crosshairs.  This is the dynamic to watch most, because the principals (Putin and Trump) are both well known for their brutal honesty.

I doubt Kellogg knew President Trump was going to hit Zelenskyy with such a direct confrontation.  Heck, I doubt anyone knew how forceful President Trump was going to be.  As a consequence, any press availability today -less than 24 hours since President Trump’s remarks- was going to be filled with questions to Zelenskyy about them, as well as questions to Kellogg.   Cancelling the presser was a smart move.

President Trump is being President Trump, navigating a complicated dynamic in search of an optimal solution; and as he is prone to do, his attributions and explanations for his opinion’s cuts through the Gordian knot of diplomatic pretending.

In the background, the elements who support, control and utilize Zelenskyy for their own goals and objectives, were likely also caught off-guard. How could they not be?

The principals (Trump and Putin) are talking, and soon they will likely meet.

Everything between now and then is structural filler.

Feb 21 2025

Senate Votes to Affirm Cloture 51-47 Closing Debate on Kash Patel, Final Full Senate Vote Anticipated at 1:45pm EST Livestreams


Posted originally on the CTH on February 20, 2025 | Sundance

The Senate will vote today on Kash Patel’s nomination to lead the FBI. If confirmed, Patel will be the 18th Cabinet official approved by lawmakers since President Donald Trump’s inauguration one month ago. Hearing from the base of supporters, almost all republicans have now rallied around Patel; finally admitting the FBI needed structural reform.

A cloture vote to end debate is just completed.  Mitch McConnell voted to affirm Patel, and 51-47 was the final cloture vote.  The final full Senate confirmation vote is expected at 1:45pm EST and should be consistent with the cloture outcome. Livestream Link Below:

.

There is a White House Press secretary briefing at 1:00 pm, the full Senate vote confirming Kash Patel is at 1:45 pm. President Trump is having a White House event at 3:00 pm and will speaking to the Republican governors at 7:20 pm. 

.

Feb 20 2025

President Trump Impromptu Presser Aboard Air Force One – Returning to White House


Posted originally on the CTH on February 20, 2025 | Sundance

There are some contextual comments from President Trump that are never reported, this is one of those examples.  Within these impromptu press remarks aboard Air Force One, President Trump gives context for his current position toward the leadership in Ukraine, and other matters.

The beginning remarks about U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent traveling to Kyiv to meet with President Zelenskyy, and the fact that Zelenskyy refused to meet with him – says quite a lot about the lack of respect the Ukraine president is openly willing to display.  Obviously, this is one datapoint that helps explain President Trump’s perspective.  WATCH:

.

Feb 20 2025

President Trump Delivers Remarks and Takes Questions During FII Institute Summit


Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance

President Trump delivered the keynote address at the Future Investment Initiative Institute (FII Summit) in Miami, Florida.

Remaining in a rapid response forward footing in case events unfold quickly, President Trump’s key foreign policy advisors and emissaries are traveling with him as he addresses the audience.  During part of the remarks, President Trump addressed the current headline foreign policy issues in Gaza and Ukraine, once again calling attention to the madness of the conflict.

At 3:52 of the video segment below, President Trump begins discussing the position of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.  Keep in mind, during the transition phase prior to the inauguration, during the early days of the administration and all the way up to last week, President Trump has been in discussions with Zelenskyy. So, President Trump has a pretty solid understanding of where Zelenskyy stands on the issue of ending the conflict.  With that backdrop, listen:

,

The full speech, with questions is below:

.

Feb 20 2025

French President Macron and British PM Starmer Coming to U.S. to Discuss Ukraine with President Trump


Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance

Last weekend French President Emmanual Macron organized an emergency meeting in Paris with leaders from the European Union to address the unfolding crisis of President Trump organizing a ceasefire and peace in the war between Ukraine and Russia.

The outcome of the meeting was what would be expected. Each member of the EU said they would not put their military forces into a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine if the United States were not leading the effort.  Having previously warned the NATO alliance to step-up their military spending, President Trump has no intention of putting U.S. troops into a regional conflict that affects Europe.

Additionally, Macron has domestic political issues he is hopeful to draw attention away from; meanwhile British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is similarly alarmed as the U.K has taken up the prominent position of military support for Ukraine.  Together, they are both planning quick trips to the White House for talks with President Trump.

WASHINGTON DC – French President Emmanuel Macron is coming to Washington next week, national security adviser Mike Waltz said on Wednesday.

Macron called for an emergency “informal” meeting with world leaders just days ago in Paris to discuss European security and the challenges posed by President Donald Trump’s administration. Trump and Macron had a “friendly” but brief conversation just prior to the summit, POLITICO reported on Monday.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is also set to visit next week, Waltz said on Fox News. Starmer’s office confirmed the visit earlier this week.

This trip comes on the heels of Trump’s increasing jabs at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for not doing more to end the war in Ukraine earlier. Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” on Wednesday, as European leaders are growing fearful that Trump will side with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the interests of longtime European allies.

The White House did not immediately respond to request for comment. (read more)

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been traveling throughout Europe and the Mid-East seeking support and comfort as he attempts to retain the status quo.  There are multiple billions at stake for Ukraine as U.S. taxpayers have been funding the operations of government, and the retirement accounts of Ukrainian officials.

In April 2022, Ukraine Prime Minister Shmyhal was not the least bit bashful saying cash was important because American taxpayers, the working American people, have a duty to fund the pensions and retirement accounts of the Ukrainian people, including govt politicians.

Germany, France, Great Britain and the larger EU assembly cannot and will not cover the bills for Ukraine themselves.  This is a major issue for them and one of the primary reasons they will not put their military forces into the lead position on behalf of Zelenskyy.  This is also a big point of contention for President Trump.

Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance on Wednesday warned the Ukrainian president against attacking President Donald Trump, saying that ‘badmouthing’ him in public would only backfire.

Vance spoke to DailyMail.com hours after Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky accused Trump of living in a Russian-made ‘disinformation space.’

The extraordinary language on both sides comes at a critical time in the war between Ukraine and Russia, as Trump pushes for a speedy resolution.  (read more)

Most western media ignored the obvious when JD Vance and Marco Rubio met with the Ukraine delegation on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.  It was clear from the body language and visible arrogance from the Ukraine side, this was not a meeting of aligned allies.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy is counting on a pressure campaign from the EU, the global intelligence apparatus, and domestic corporate interests inside the U.S. to keep his position solid against the policies of President Trump and JD Vance.  The financial benefits of the conflict have enriched a variety of U.S. politicians who are also helping to create pushback against President Trump.

The one thing all of the aligned interests fear most is a geopolitical agreement, even possibly an alignment, between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.  However, it appears that both leaders well understand the objective and are undeterred in their diplomacy.

If you listen carefully to this segment of Secretary Marco Rubio’s comments a few days ago, you quickly realize the goals of President Trump and how universally they are opposed by the people and institutions that benefit from conflict. Listen carefully:

https://twitter.com/jj_talking/status/1891997156212425095
Feb 20 2025

The IRS will Begin With 6,000 Layoffs This Week?


Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance 

According to the New York Times, the IRS will begin laying off up to 6,000 staff this week.

(New York Times) – The Internal Revenue Service will begin laying off roughly 6,000 employees on Thursday as part of the Trump administration’s push to downsize the federal work force, three people familiar with the agency’s plans said.

The terminations will target relatively recent hires at the I.R.S., which the Biden administration had attempted to revitalize with a surge of funding and new staff, the people said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

The Trump administration has begun laying off probationary employees — who do not enjoy as much job protection as their more tenured colleagues — across the federal government in recent days.

I.R.S. managers on Wednesday began asking employees to report to the office in the coming days and bring with them their government-issued equipment, according to messages viewed by The New York Times. The I.R.S. employs roughly 100,000 accountants, lawyers and other staff across the country. (read more)