Category Corrupt Congress

May 5 2023

The California Contagion – PacWest Teters on Becoming the Next Regional Bank to Collapse as Regional Banking Stocks Continue Severe Drops


Posted originally on the CTH on May 4, 2023 | Sundance 

According to those who relish the Cloward-Piven strategy, things are proceeding swimmingly.

…”As long as the decisionmakers continue doing the things that are creating the crisis, the crisis will continue.”

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said yesterday the “U.S banking system is sound and resilient,” insert uncomfortable snicker here.  However, uncertainty is continuing to pummel the banking industry, despite assurances from the Fed, Treasury, FDIC financial regulators and bankers such as Jamie Dimon who are all saying there is no crisis in the banking industry.

If you want to know the big picture source of the uncertainty, it’s the great pretending.  The average person can sense something is wrong, and the person who pays attention has the experience of institutional lying over the past several years.  The last ten years of lying and pretending has created the biggest collapse in institutional trust in U.S. history.

Russians interfered with the election – trust us. Stick this needle in your arm, it’s safe – trust us.  The FBI are the good guys – trust us. Biden won more votes – trust us. This inflation is merely transitory – trust us.

See the problem?

So, when the same voices shout, “the banking industry is sound, trust us,” well,… yeah, that suspicious cat sense that’s on high alert isn’t buying the chorus.

Reasonably intelligent people who accept things as they are, not as they would have us pretend them to be, can see the core connection to the World Economic Forum, Central Banks, and western globalist policy to change the entire dynamic of economics and finance around the “Climate Change” agenda, or Build Back Better, or Green New Deal.

Overlay that commonsense and pragmatic outlook with the logical consequences of the activity, and this banking collapse issue is a self-fulfilling prophecy.  As long as the decision makers continue doing the things that are creating the crisis, the crisis will continue.

(Via Wall Street Journal) – Regional-bank stocks tumbled Thursday despite assurances from the Federal Reserve that the banking system is on solid footing.

PacWest Bancorp PACW -47.04%decrease; red down pointing triangle, which has been hit hard since the collapses of several banks, dropped by about 40%. The stock started falling in after-hours trading Wednesday evening, after a report that it was considering selling itself.

PacWest said in a statement after midnight Eastern Time Thursday that its core customer deposits were up since the end of the first quarter, and that it hadn’t experienced any unusual deposit flows since the collapse of First Republic.

[…] Investors have been wondering how much further the problems in regional-banking could spread, and whether they will spill over to the broader economy. Some analysts said the decline in PacWest and others reflected the market’s tendency to view news as categorically good or bad, rather than worries about PacWest specifically. Western Alliance, another bank whose stock has been hit hard, fell by about 35%.

[…] Regional banks, as major lenders to businesses and families across the U.S., also tend to fall when investors are expecting a recession. The 10-year Treasury yield slipped this week, and Brent crude hit a 52-week low on Wednesday.

[…] On Wednesday afternoon, the Fed said the U.S. banking system “is sound and resilient,” echoing language from its March statement. Fed Chair Jerome Powell added then that deposit flows at banks had eased and that this week’s seizure and sale of First Republic should further stabilize the industry.

[…] PacWest shares were recently trading around $3.70, putting them on track for their lowest close on record. The stock has now lost some 85% of its value since March 8, the day that SVB spooked bank investors by announcing a loss and a planned capital raise.

Many of PacWest’s customers are tied to technology startups—a tightknit clientele that pulled from high-balance accounts en masse at Silicon Valley Bank before it failed. (more)

Apr 23 2023

Dual Justice – IRS and FBI Finished Hunter Biden Investigation More Than a Year Ago…


April 22, 2023 | Sundance 

The context for the IRS whistleblower case of political interference in the Hunter Biden investigation gains a significant amount of context with this new revelation. According to NBC reporting the FBI investigation of Hunter Biden concluded a year ago, and the IRS investigation “completed more than a year ago.”

If the IRS and FBI completed their investigation, then where are the charges?   Now the ‘whistleblower claims’ start to make sense.

(Via NBC) – Federal prosecutors have considered charging Hunter Biden with three tax crimes and a charge related to a gun purchase, said two sources familiar with the matter.

The possible charges are two misdemeanor counts for failure to file taxes, a single felony count of tax evasion related to a business expense for one year of taxes, and the gun charge, also a potential felony.

Two senior law enforcement sources told NBC News about “growing frustration” inside the FBI because investigators finished the bulk of their work on the case about a year ago. A senior law enforcement source said the IRS finished its investigation more than a year ago.

The Washington Post previously reported that federal investigators believed they had gathered enough evidence to charge Hunter Biden with tax crimes and a false statement related to a gun purchase.

The decision on which charges to file, if any, will be made by U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who was appointed by President Donald Trump and retained by the Biden administration to continue the Hunter Biden investigation. There are no indications a final decision has been made, said the two sources familiar with the matter.

The IRS Criminal Investigation division, the Justice Department, the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware and attorneys for Hunter Biden declined to comment. (more)

According to the prior developments in the IRS whistleblower reporting, the “senior U.S. justice department official” who is interfering and lying under oath to congress is U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland.

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Merrick Garland is the unnamed official whose sworn testimony before Congress is being challenged in a bombshell letter from an IRS whistleblower’s attorney that also alleges a coverup in the Hunter Biden criminal investigation, The Post has learned. (more)

The issue stems from Garland testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee that Delaware US Attorney David Weiss would be able to investigate the Hunter Biden issues without interference from the DOJ, and that Weiss would be able to prosecute any crimes that may have occurred outside his Delaware jurisdiction.  As the story is evolving, Main Justice is not following the process as outlined by Garland, and the DOJ is actively involved in approvals or non-approvals of the investigative process.

The whistleblower’s attorney, Mark Lytle, appeared on Fox News with Brett Baier to outline the issues at stake in the matter and why congressional approval is needed before the IRS whistleblower can give specific evidence and testimony to the committees with jurisdiction.  WATCH:

Knowing what we know about how Main Justice is being operated in the era of Joe Biden, I would not be surprised to discover that Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco is actually the main character in this DOJ manipulation.  AG Garland may be the front man giving what amounts to false testimony, but it is likely Lisa Monaco pulling the strings behind Garland that are making his congressional statements false.

Apr 18 2023

Why Does the ECM Work On So Many Things?


Armstrong Economics Blog/Uncategorized Re-Posted Apr 17, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

COMMENT #1: Hi Martin, corn also turned nicely on the ECM:

JB

COMMENT #2: Hello Marty, I just want to point out that the Japanese yen broke really hard on the 10th. Not sure if this will prove to be a precursor of what is to come.

Thanks from Tokyo, your old home ground.

AS

COMMENT #3: Well the ECM also marked the reversal in trend in the 30-year bond. It peaked at 134 and fell to 130 by the end of the week. That was just remarkable.

Colin

COMMENT #4: Martin; is this chart real that people are sending around claiming it was Benner’s work?

Mat

ANSWER: As far as this chart of Brenner’s Cycle being real, the answer is no Someone has made it up and signed his name. They have at least extended his cycle correctly. The last time someone tried that they skewed the cycle to make it look like it forecast the Depression 1932 low.

When the WSJ published it, it showed 1932 instead of 1931. Brenner did not extend this out in this manner. What is important to understand is that Brenner was a farmer and farmers understand the cycles in nature. Economists and governments pretend they can smooth out the cycle and eliminate the booms and busts.

The business cycle always wins as both former chairmen of the Federal Reserve conceded – Arthur Burns and Paul Volcker.

Back during the 19th century when Brenner was observing the business cycle, it was still based on commodities. Kondratieff took the same data. I believe the reason WHY the Economic Confidence Model has been so accurate is that it was based on a list of Panics – not one sector of the economy. Therefore, the ECM incorporates weather as Brenner and Kondratieff did by using the commodity sector. Yet just that the ECM was derived from financial panics, it was not based on any one specific type so it strangely seems to have incorporated the whole gambit.

Furthermore, all previous cyclical analysis was based on just a single market like stocks. They have failed because they could not account for the external influence of a contagion. The fact that this list began with the Turks’ siege of Vienna, means that the list was also influenced by war and from an international perspective.

This is a fascinating subject that I will explore in far more detail in my coming book.

Apr 7 2023

A Kennedy to Challenge Biden in 2024


Armstrong Economics Blog/Politics Re-Posted Apr 7, 2023 by Martin Armstron

(AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

Robert F. Kennedy Jr, a moderate by the Democrat’s standards, has filed to run for president against Joe Biden. JFK’s nephew broke party lines when he began to speak out against vaccinations. He even wrote a book in 2021 entitled, “The Real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates, Big Pharma, and the Global War on Democracy and Public Health (Children’s Health Defense).”

Many Democrats are outraged and have called Kennedy an undercover Republican. His own wife, a popular actress in Hollywoo(D), publicly stated that she does not support her husband’s views. “My husband’s opinions are not a reflection of my own. While we love each other, we differ on many current issues,” she stated. If you can’t win the support of your own family, it won’t be easy to convince the majority of the nation to vote in your favor. His sister Kerry who runs the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights group, has also publicly voiced her opposition to her brother, calling his ideas “dangerous.” Some believe he is a nepotism candidate who has succeeded as a result of his last name.

“If I run, my top priority will be to end the corrupt merger between state and corporate power that has ruined our economy, shattered the middle class, polluted our landscapes and waters, poisoned our children, and robbed us of our values and freedoms. Together we can restore America’s democracy,” he stated before announcing his bid.

Anyone is better than Joe Biden, but his mental impedance makes him the ideal puppet for the Deep State since he cannot form his own thoughts. Kennedy’s views do not align with the Democrat’s agenda and he will struggle to find support from the DNC. A Democrat who opposed the COVID power grab is unheard of. Still, Biden struggles to speak coherently and his people are decreasing his public speaking engagements to hide his mental incompetence. The 2024 US Presidential Election will be an absolute fiasco if it is even permitted to take place.

Apr 6 2023

Politicians & Scandals – Always


Armstrong Economics Blog/Politics Re-Posted Apr 6, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: I recall there was some scandal between a bank that failed and Senator Dodd of the Dodd-Frank bill that revised banking. Do you have anything on that?

Thank you for being the only reliable sources these days

RK

ANSWER: You must be referring to the 2008 Countrywide Financial Scandal. There was a political loan scandal in 2008-2009 that involved U.S. politicians who allegedly received favorable mortgage rates. In June 2008 Conde Nast Portfolio reported that numerous Washington, DC politicians over recent years had received mortgage financing at noncompetitive rates at Countrywide Financial because the corporation placed the officeholders in a program called “FOA’s”–“Friends of Angelo“, Countrywide’s Chief Executive Angelo Mozilo.

The politicians who obtained such favorable financing included the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, Christopher Dodd (D-CT), and the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Kent Conrad (D-ND). Countrywide’s political action committee had also made large donations to Dodd’s campaign.

Mar 31 2023

Why America Will Lose this War As every one Since WWII


Armstrong Economics Blog/Neocons Re-Posted Mar 30, 2023 by Martin Armstrong

A number of people have asked why does Socrates say that the United States will lose this war. One states: “The standalone American firepower without UK/ France, etc, itself is tremendous. How does Socrates say that America will lose the war? It may lose financially. The Chinese have the worst track record in any war.” Perhaps I should just say, cyclically – it’s just TIME.

The Neocons are in charge of this war. They are trying conventionally for their constant goal of REGIME CHANGE. They are doing what Khrushchev had threatened Communism would win and we will bury you. This is their mantra and they think forcing a Republican form of government upon the rest of the world will bring peace. Those were the dreams of Hitler and Napoleon as well. Communism collapsed because it is simply unsustainable. Nevertheless, the Neocons have never backed down. They objected to Reagan even meeting with Gorbehev saying you can never trust Russians.

The Neocons have pushed endless wars for their hatred. They have NEVER won a single war. The US has lost EVERY war post WWII. Korea was a standoff, and Vietnam, along with Afghanistan were all losses and for what? They remove Saddam Husein and unleashed ISIS where Saddam kept the religious fanatics in check. Their theory was to remove all dictators in the Middle East and that would bring peace to Israel. They supplied arms and that led to the overthrow of Quadaffi in Libya and they were trying the same in Syria.

Now Nukes are no longer a deterrent when you are playing with nuclear powers. They have used Ukraine as cannon fodder to weaken Russia and they hope they can then invade under any excuse and conquer Russia, which has been their end goal for decades. They bank on that they can defeat Russia and it will never go nuclear. I am flabbergasted by some of these Neocons and their sheet hatred of the Russian people like Adam Kinzinger who proclaims we can defeat Russia in 3 days. I suppose we could then turn and defeat China perhaps in 5 days. These people play with the lives of innocent civilians and send other people’s sons and daughters to war to be sacrificed for their personal hatred. The claim Putin is evil but never look in the mirror to see the hatred in their own eyes.

Robert McNamara (1916 – 2009) was a leading Neocon that pushed the country into the Vietnam war.  He was famous for saying: “I learned early on never answer the question that is asked of you. Answer the question that you wish had been asked of you. And quite frankly, I follow that rule. It’s a very good rule.”

Before he died, he finally admitted that they were wrong particularly in their assessment of Russia as a threat. The perception that Russia is a threat is still dominating the agenda today. The propaganda that Putin is a KGB guy who wants to re-establish the Soviet Empire is absurd. In the 22 years that he has been in power, he has neither tried to re-establish communism nor has he sought to retake the old Soviet states like Poland, the Czech Republic, or even Ukraine. The same claims today about Russia are the very same ones that justified Vietnam.

Apparently, McNamara died with the guilt of sacrificing 58,000 Americans on the Neocon altar of war for at the end of his life, he admitted they were wrong. They are NOT Americans. They DO NOT serve American interests. They only serve their own International interests and are dragging countries into endless wars and carnage.

While these neocons only focus on war, they are destroying the United States economy. They are pouring money into this undeclared war on Russia when in fact the Constitution states that ONLY Congress can declare war – not the President. The United States will lose the war, and we are losing our title of Financial Capital of the World. Just as WWI & WWII took that title away from Britain, WWII will take it from the United States and hand it squarely into the arms of China.

Than the warmongering Neocons for destroying your future all because of their personal hatred.

Mar 29 2023

IRS Makes Visit to Matt Taibbi Home on Day of His Congressional Testimony


Posted originally on the CTH on March 28, 2023 | Sundance

If there is one additional person that I would be certain is under full spectrum surveillance, it’s dissident comrade Matt Taibbi.  With the background of Twitter and the DHS national security interests still part of the social media construct, you can be sure all elements of the administrative state have a focus on his internal search requests.

One of the reasons why I give Matt Taibbi a lot of credit, is because I am well aware how the shadow dwellers, what DC would call ‘stakeholders’, are watching him; yet he persists on his reviews and investigations.

Secondly, given his general Michael Hastings aligned disposition, Taibbi would be the first person to dismiss his own risk status.  Something akin to, ‘nah, they wouldn’t‘, but oh yes, they would.

On the day that Taibbi was giving testimony to the House committee reviewing the ‘Weaponization of Federal Government’, an IRS agent just happened to coincidentally visit his home.  Committee Chairman Jim Jordan now wants to know if the two coincidences are connected.

(Via Wall Street Journal) – […] House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan sent a letter Monday to IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen seeking an explanation for why journalist Matt Taibbi received an unannounced home visit from an IRS agent. We’ve seen the letter, and both the circumstances and timing of the IRS focus on this journalist raise serious questions.

Mr. Taibbi has provoked the ire of Democrats and other journalists for his role in researching Twitter records and then releasing internal communications from the social-media giant that expose its censorship and its contacts with government officials. This effort has already inspired government bullying, with Chair Lina Khan’s Federal Trade Commission targeting new Twitter owner Elon Musk and demanding the company “identify all journalists” granted access to the Twitter files.

Now Mr. Taibbi has told Mr. Jordan’s committee that an IRS agent showed up at his personal residence in New Jersey on March 9. That happens to be the same day Mr. Taibbi testified before the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government about what he learned about Twitter. The taxman left a note instructing Mr. Taibbi to call the IRS four days later. Mr. Taibbi was told in a call with the agent that both his 2018 and 2021 tax returns had been rejected owing to concerns over identity theft. (read more)

Mar 29 2023

Boasberg Strikes Again – Deep State DC Judge, with a Long History of Deep State Rulings, Rejects Trump’s Executive Privilege Over Pence Forced J6 Testimony


Posted originally on the CTH on March 28, 2023 | Sundance 

Former FISA Court Presiding Judge James Boasberg is no longer on the FISC.  However, he continues to advance the interests of the DC Deep State with rulings specifically tailored to protect the national security state.  [Boasberg Background Here]

In his latest ruling as the top federal judge in the DC circuit court, Boasberg has decided that executive privilege between President Trump and Vice-President Pence does not exist when it comes to any conversations that led up to Pence’s role on January 6th presiding over the senate and the confirmation process for state electoral votes.

Boasberg, an ally of SSCI Chairman Mark Warner, has intercepted several cases that brought sunlight upon the corrupt DC system.  In each case Boasberg ruled in favor of maintaining the corruption, including his willfully blind support of the FBI searching NSA databases to conduct illegal surveillance of Americans, and including Boasberg’s personal appointment of Mary McCord to run defense on behalf of the corrupt DOJ main office.

ABC News – The top federal judge for the D.C. district court has issued a swift rejection of former President Donald Trump’s assertion of executive privilege to prevent former Vice President Mike Pence from testifying before a grand jury investigating efforts to overturn the 2020 election, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

At the same time, the judge issued a ruling that narrowly upheld parts of a separate legal challenge brought by Pence’s attorneys, who have argued Pence should be exempt from providing records or answering certain questions that align with his duties as president of the Senate overseeing the formal certification of the election on Jan. 6, 2021.

According to sources, D.C. Chief Judge James Boasberg ordered that Pence should have to provide answers to special counsel Jack Smith on any questions that implicate any illegal acts on Trump’s part.

Pence’s team had argued that such communications could run afoul of the Speech and Debate Clause that shields officials in Congress from legal proceedings specifically related to their work.

“The DOJ is continuously stepping far outside the standard norms in attempting to destroy the long accepted, long held, Constitutionally based standards of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege,” a Trump spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News. (read more)

The entire judicial system is corrupt.. soup to nuts, all of it.

Mar 23 2023

Mexican President AMLO Hits Biden Over Likely Arrest of Trump, While Pushing Back Against Dangerous Cartel Narrative


Posted originally on the CTH on March 22, 2023 | Sundance

Let it not be said that Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez-Obrador (AMLO) does not understand what the Biden administration is attempting in the recent criticism and passive aggressive posturing toward Mexico.

Yesterday, AMLO was outlining a specific set of infrastructure initiatives that are ongoing.  Three new oil refineries together with new railroads and highways are under construction as the government continues positioning itself for energy independence. [Video Here]  However, it’s what he said after the energy remarks that’s really stunning.

The energy plan, which runs counter to the expressed demands of Canada and the United States, includes two regional ‘green’ refineries that will have the ability of turning used cooking oil into fuel.  However, the plan also includes new oil refinery capacity that will permit cheap gasoline independent of the need for Mexican oil to be refined in Texas and returned.

All of the refinery projects are on schedule to be completed by the end of this year and into 2024.  In essence, Mexico will have very cheap gasoline and diesel fuel in the near future.  This was previously outlined as a goal by AMLO in July 2022, and is against the interests the Biden administration.  Now those plans are becoming a reality.  Mexico is not joining the North American suicide mission of windmills, solar panels and reliance on unstable green energy.

Ever since the July 2022 Oval Office press conference at the White House, CTH has been saying to keep an eye on Mexico, because these energy plans align more with the BRICS nation agenda than the goals and objectives of the World Economic Forum (western nations).   It is not accidental the U.S. government, including our intelligence agencies and DHS, has been seeding a negative overall impression of Mexico ever since.

During his remarks, and showcasing that AMLO does actually understand how the Biden administration will/is using alternate angles to undermine the Mexican government, AMLO publicly hit back at Joe Biden over the pending arrest of President Trump.  As noted by U.S-Mexican correspondent José Díaz Breseño, “Angry at US criticism of human rights in Mexico, AMLO comes out in defense of Trump, assuring that his arrest would be a move to prevent him from running for President in 2024.”

President Lopez-Obrador also pushed back against the U.S. narrative about dangers in Mexico related to the cartels. “AMLO goes further to say that the Biden Administration has no right to speak about violence in Mexico since it allegedly authorized “sabotaging” the Nord Stream gas pipeline as journalist Seymour Hersh argues.” Breseño notes.

Have you noticed that not a single U.S. media outlet is reporting on this issue?  I have been looking, waiting to see if anyone would pick up on this very important story; yet, it is almost invisible in the United States.  This silence is not a mistake.  The UniParty media do not want these notations taking place.  Indeed, if we stand back and look at the larger geopolitical picture, we can again see that AMLO is a thorn in the side of the larger objectives of the western alliance.

We will keep watching…