Jul 12 2025

Epstein – Bondi – Deep State


Posted originally on Jul 12, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Maxwell

Pam Bondi has made perhaps the most serious mistake of her entire life that she will look back on for years to come. Epstein’s saga was not some pedophile BS – it was the most sophisticated blackmail organization in modern history. As I have said before, I was personally warned that they would use women to try to get into my operation. That was back in the ’90s. This was nothing more than a honey-pot operation. It is understandable that Bondi has not found any “incriminating ‘client list‘” related to Epstein, triggering significant backlash among both Democrats and Republicans, when this was really a blackmail operation, not pedophiles.

The real question remains FOR WHOM WAS EPSTEIN OPERATING? Was this for the CIA or the Mossad? People wrongly think that releasing the “client list” will expose pedophiles. If that were the only issue, the Democrats had these files before the election and would have used them. Nevertheless, the MAGA base would like to see Trump FIRE Blondi without a doubt. She has become a massive liability and will impact the elections in 2026.  Bondi has refused to tell the truth, pretending there are no files, rather than explaining that this was a blackmail scheme operating for some intelligence operation was the wrong move.

2025_07_11_20_07_35_Chaos_at_the_FBI_as_Kash_Patel_and_deputy_Dan_Bongino_consider_quitting_over_Eps

Even the Daily Mail is now reporting the chaos at the FBI and the rumblings behind the curtain that even Kash Patel and deputy Dan Bongino are considering quitting over Epstein files after a furious clash with Pam Bondi. Even though Trump had promised transparency,  this is a scandal for which his presidency will also be remembered. Granted, this is far from just some pedophile operation. This one dives head-first into the Deep State.

Conspiracy_Case_FindLaw

As far as Maxwell being in jail, in New York City, found guilty following a one-month jury trial, of conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors to participate in illegal sex acts, transporting a minor to participate in illegal sex acts, sex trafficking conspiracy, and sex trafficking of a minor. CONSPIRACY is the favorite of tyrants for you do not have to prove you even committed a crime. All you need to prove is that there was an agreement – nothing more. So there does not have to be a client list. All they had to tell the jury was that Maxwell agreed with Epstein to get 16-17-year-old girls to entice their targets for blackmail. They did not have to prove that they had sex with a target. They did not have to prove that any target KNEW the girl was 17 vs 18. The jury only needs to find that you agreed to anything. Then you are guilty.

maxmin s

The Roman Maximinus I used Conspiracy, a crime still used by the United States, yet abandoned in Europe, Russia, and China. Conspiracy is the law of tyrants, for it allows the conviction of someone for a crime they did not commit, nor even attempted to commit, but you claim they “intended” purely as a mental state to commit in the future. Maximinus I engaged in legal persecution. He used conspiracy effectively and tore the Roman economy apart at its seams. He charged a noted Senator by the name of Magnus with conspiracy against the emperor, found him guilty, executed him, and then arrested 4,000 others, claiming they conspired with him to depose him. He then used criminal law to claim they had committed a conspiracy, and that, of course, justified confiscating all their property as well.

If you look closely, about 25% of all federal crimes are only conspiracy (18 U.S.C. § 371), where they do not have to prove you committed an actual crime, according to analyses of USSC data and reports from the Department of Justice (DOJ). The major conspiracy statute is used in drug cases, 21 U.S.C. § 846, which is most often used.  Analysis of drug cases reveals that conspiracy is a dominant charge in federal drug trafficking cases, often being the primary or only charge used.

The DOJ Will Seek Death Penalties for Conspiracy

Indeed, conspiracy charges are frequently and strategically used in federal murder cases. They are a powerful tool for federal prosecutors to avoid hard evidence, often serving several critical purposes. Conspiracy charges allow prosecutors to hold all participants in a criminal agreement responsible for the murder, not just the person who pulled the trigger (the “triggerman”). Anyone remotely connected can be executed under conspiracy even if they did not know someone else was going to kill someone. One famous case in the Southern District of New York charged three separate Italian groups with conspiracy to murder the same individual, when they did not have to prove anyone killed the individual; all they had was his car left at the airport, and nobody saw him ever since. All three Italian families were found guilty with no body and just theories.

Overcoming Evidentiary Hurdles is the #1 objective of using conspiracy. Proving conspiracy (an agreement and overt acts) can sometimes be easier than proving the specific intent and act of murder itself, especially for individuals further removed from the killing. Evidence like communications, meetings, financial transactions, or preparatory actions can establish the conspiracy.

Then there is the Pinkerton Liability. Under the Pinkerton doctrine (based on Pinkerton v. United States, 328 U.S. 640 (1946)), conspirators can be held liable for foreseeable crimes committed by their co-conspirators in furtherance of the conspiracy, even if they didn’t directly participate in or intend that specific crime. This is crucial in murder cases. This is what makes the US conspiracy law the law of tyrants. They can sentence you to death for the actions of someone else with no requirement to prove you even knew, so much for justice.

Conspiracy to commit murder (often charged under 18 U.S.C. § 1117) carries a potential penalty of up to life imprisonment, or if death results, potentially the death penalty or life without parole. Conspiracy charges are not just used; they are a fundamental strategy in federal prosecutions. They allow the government to achieve its virtual 99% conviction rate. There will never be freedom in the United States until the charge of CONSPIRACY is repealed.

Jul 12 2025

The Illusion of Democracy


Posted originally on Jul 12, 2025 by Martin Armstrong |  

Jul 12 2025

Social Media Platforms


Posted originally on Jul 11, 2025 by Hannah Jackson 

Social Media

As some of you may have noticed, I am back on social media. The idea is to post video-based content of interviews (snippets) as well as shorter-form text on Twitter.

 I will be posting a story on Instagram where you can ask questions. I will be answering them on video once a month.

 The X (Twitter) account is my personal one, which I am starting to use again. The original Armstrong Economics account is also up and active.

 The official accounts are the following.

 https://www.youtube.com/@martinarmstrongae

 INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/armstrongeconomics?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

X (Twitter) Personal:

https://twitter.com/armstrongecon?s=21

 X(Twitter) Armstrong Economics:

TIKTOK:

@armstrongeconomics

Thank you for all of your continual support, following, and spreading of the word!

Jul 12 2025

President Trump Announces 35 Percent Baseline Tariff for Canadian Goods Not Covered Under USMCA


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance 

President Donald Trump has announced a 35% baseline tariff rate for Canada on all imported goods not currently covered under the soon-to-expire USMCA trade agreement.

“Instead of working with the United States, Canada retaliated with its own Tariffs,” President Trump shared on Truth Social. “Starting August 1, 2025, we will charge Canada a Tariff of 35% on Canadian products sent into the United States, separate from all Sectoral Tariffs.”

[LINK]

As noted by President Trump in his remarks during Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to the White House, Trump plans to renegotiate the USMCA and end the trilateral agreement in favor of two bilateral trade deals.

During the oval office meeting President Trump said, “as you know [USMCA] terminates fairly shortly. It gets renegotiated fairly shortly.” Then the biggest statement, “this was a transitional deal, and we’ll see what happens, we’re going to start renegotiating that”… “I don’t know if it serves a purpose anymore.”  …. “And the biggest purpose it served was, we got rid of NAFTA.” 

President Trump is going to exit the trilateral USMCA in favor of two distinctly different bilateral trade agreements between the U.S and Mexico; and the U.S and Canada.  The only consideration now is the timing.  President Trump is 100% focused on the BIG ECONOMIC PICTURE; it’s not about the politics, it’s all about the economics.

♦ BACKGROUND – Following the 2024 presidential election, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau traveled to Mar-a-Lago and said if President Trump was to make the Canadian government face reciprocal tariffs, open the USMCA trade agreements to force reciprocity, and/or balance economic relations on non-tariff issues, then Canada would collapse upon itself economically and cease to exist.  In essence, in addition to the NATO defense shortfall, Canada cannot survive as a free and independent north American nation, without receiving all the one-way benefits from the U.S. economy.

To wit, President Trump then said, if Canada cannot survive in a balanced rules environment, including putting together their own military and defenses and meeting their NATO obligations, then Canada should become the 51st U.S state.  It was following this meeting that President Trump started emphasizing this point and shocking everyone in the process.  However, in the emotional reaction to Trump’s statements, no-one looked at the core issues outlined by Trudeau that framed President Trump’s opinion.  {BACKGROUND HERE}

Jul 12 2025

Several Reports Say Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino Threatening to Quit Over Epstein Issues and DOJ Response


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance

Julie Kelly is personally very close to Dan Bongino and a significant advocate for him.  According to Julie Kelly and various other media sources, Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino is threatening to quit over issues surrounding how the DOJ has handled the Jeffrey Epstein information.

Julie Kelly writes, “Sources confirm to me the blow up between Dan Bongino and Pam Bondi is very real. This has been brewing for four months and came to a head at the White House on Wednesday. He has not been in the office since. Most of the frustration at FBI relates to her handling of Epstein disclosures and disputes between FBI and Bondi about how to proceed. Bongino appears ready to resign imminently if Bondi remains in office.”

Axios, CNN and various other outlets have essentially confirmed the same story.

Mary Margaret Olohan from the Daily Wire writes, “Bongino in particular, one source said, is frustrated that the DOJ, at the start of this week, declared the Epstein case effectively closed and determined that the accused sex trafficker died by suicide while awaiting trial, with few further details shared. He wants more documents unsealed, the source added.”  Olohan also said, “Source close to Dan Bongino tells me it’s either him or Pam Bondi, and that he won’t stay at FBI if she stays at DOJ.

If this is all true is doesn’t bode well for Dan Bongino and he will likely be asked to depart from his position, if he has not already resigned.  This type of emotional response is considered a significant sign of instability amid executive level office holders.  The either/or threat never works at this level.

Apparently no one could see this coming.

Jul 12 2025

Melania Trump Delivers a Heartfelt Message to Flood Victims


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance

Traveling with President Trump to visit the families and those devastated by the recent floods in Texas, Melania Trump delivered a message to those in the region. WATCH:

Full video of the roundtable discussion and remarks below.

Jul 12 2025

Chopper Presser – President Trump Impromptu Remarks Departing White House


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance

Chopper pressers are the best pressers.  President Trump gives remarks to the assembled media as he departs the White House.   Interestingly, if you watch the video all the way through you will notice that there’s almost no Secret Service detail accompanying President Trump or Melania Trump as they approach the public rope line.

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Jul 12 2025

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche Affirms Content of DOJ/FBI Epstein Memo


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance

Many people surmise the Trump administration is unaware of the ongoing MAGA backlash to the DOJ and FBI position on matter of Jeffrey Epstein.

For a significant -albeit unknown- portion of President Trump’s support base, the case against Jeffrey Epstein was/is a strong part of how they positioned their MAGA support.  That coalition is now furious and threatening to withdraw support for President Trump on all other policy areas.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche affirmed today the conclusions within the DOJ/FBI memo about the Epstein matter are factually the conclusions shared by all leadership within the Dept of Justice and FBI.

[SOURCE]

Attorney General Pam Bondi, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino are all telling the same story.

There is trouble afoot.

~ Amid the tales of Rome, the colosseum held a very fickle crowd.

Brutus and Cassius enter the Forum with a crowd of plebeians. Cassius exits to speak to another portion of the crowd. Brutus addresses the crowd from the stage, assuring them that they may trust in his honor. He did not kill Caesar out of a lack of love for him, he says, but because his love for Rome outweighed his love of a single man. He insists that Caesar was great but ambitious: it was for this reason that he slew him. He feared that the Romans would live as slaves under Caesar’s leadership.

He asks if any disagree with him, and none do. He thus concludes that he has offended no one and asserts that now Caesar’s death has been accounted for, with both his virtues and faults in life given due attention. Antony then enters with Caesar’s body. Brutus explains to the crowd that Antony had no part in the conspiracy but that he will now be part of the new commonwealth. The plebeians cheer Brutus’s apparent kindness, declaring that Brutus should be Caesar. He quiets them and asks them to listen to Antony, who has obtained permission to give a funeral oration. Brutus exits.

Antony ascends to the pulpit while the plebeians discuss what they have heard. They now believe that Caesar was a tyrant, and that Brutus did right to kill him. But they wait to hear Antony.

He asks the audience to listen, for he has come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. He acknowledges Brutus’s charge that Caesar was ambitious and maintains that Brutus is “an honorable man,” but he says that Caesar was his friend (III.ii.84).

He adds that Caesar brought to Rome many captives, whose countrymen had to pay their ransoms, thus filling Rome’s coffers. He asks rhetorically if such accumulation of money for the people constituted ambition.

Antony continues that Caesar sympathized with the poor: “When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept” (III.ii.88). He reminds the plebeians of the day when he offered the crown to Caesar three times, and Caesar three times refused. Again, he ponders aloud whether this humility constituted ambition. He claims that he is not trying to disprove Brutus’s words but rather to tell them what he, Antony, knows; he insists that as they all loved Caesar once, they should mourn for him now.

Antony pauses to weep. The plebeians are touched; they remember when Caesar refused the crown and wonder if more ambitious people have not stepped into his place. Antony speaks again, saying that he would gladly stir them to mutiny and rebellion, though he will not harm Brutus or Cassius, for they are—again—honorable men.

Anthony then brings out Caesar’s will. The plebeians beg him to read it. Antony says that he should not, for then they would be touched by Caesar’s love for them. They implore him to read it. He replies that he has been speaking too long—he wrongs the honorable men who have let him address the crowd. The plebeians call the conspirators traitors and demand that Antony read the will.

Finally, Antony descends from the pulpit and prepares to read the letter to the people as they stand in a circle around Caesar’s corpse. Looking at the body, Antony points out the wounds that Brutus and Cassius inflicted, reminding the crowd how Caesar loved Brutus, and yet Brutus stabbed him viciously.

He tells how Caesar died, and blood ran down the steps of the Senate. Then he uncovers the body for all to see.

The plebeians weep and become enraged. Antony says that they should not be stirred to mutiny against such “honourable men” (III.ii.148). He protests that he does not intend to steal away their hearts, for he is no orator like Brutus. He proclaims himself a plain man; he speaks only what he knows, he says—he will let Caesar’s wounds speak the rest. If he were Brutus, he claims, he could urge them to rebel, but he is merely Antony.

The people declare that they will mutiny nonetheless. Antony calls to them to let him finish: he has not yet read the will. He now reads that Caesar has bequeathed a sum of money from his personal holdings to every man in Rome. The citizens are struck by this act of generosity and swear to avenge this selfless man’s death. Antony continues reading, revealing Caesar’s plans to make his private parks and gardens available for the people’s pleasure.

The plebeians can take no more; they charge off to wreak havoc throughout the city. Antony, alone, wonders what will come of the mischief he has set loose on Rome.

Octavius’s servant enters. He reports that Octavius has arrived at Caesar’s house, and also that Brutus and Cassius have been driven from Rome.

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  • Caesar, Trump
  • Brutus, Bondi
  • Cassius, Patel
  • Anthony, Musk
Jul 12 2025

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump Travel to Texas to View Flood Region


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance

With approximately 120 killed in the devastating floods, President Trump and First Lady Melania travel to Texas today to visit with those impacted.  The President and First Lady departed Joint Base Andrews earlier and RSBN will be covering the day’s events.

Together the first couple will survey damage, meet with the families of victims, and President Trump is expected to join local and state officials for a roundtable about current recovery efforts.

Video of the departure is below and RSBN ongoing livestream coverage is below the fold.

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Jul 12 2025

Trump Attempts to Slow the Inertia of War – Now Sending Weapons to NATO Instead of Ukraine


Posted originally on CTH on July 11, 2025 | Sundance

Everyone can see the play by President Trump. Essentially, the “coalition of the willing” (U.K, Germany, France) are not willing to go to war against Russia without the United States in front of them.  Giving the coalition the weapons puts the consequences of their use on the heads of NATO allies.

Despite the majority of Washington DC, specifically the Senate thirsting, pleading and demanding an expanded NATO war, President Trump does not want to go to war against Russia. However, simultaneously Trump has to try and steer the war machine controlled by DC, the Senate, USIC and NATO.

The INERTIA for expanded war is evident.  President Trump is now trying to split the baby regarding Russia, by sending patriot missiles and weapons to NATO as opposed to sending them directly to Ukraine.

In February Marco Rubio earnestly and honestly said, “The Ukraine conflict is a proxy war for the United States against Russia.”  President Trump has concurred with that statement and through his prior comments he attempted to extricate the U.S. from this dynamic.

The shipment of missiles to NATO instead of Ukraine is simply a way of trying to stop direct support, yet Trump is forced by the inertia toward war to maintain a footing of expanded conflict with Russia.

To be very clear, Russian President Vladimir Putin is clear-eyed on this situation with NATO, and he has been all along.

Putin has said repeatedly that NATO was/is in direct conflict against Russia despite Ukraine not being a NATO member.  This conflict with NATO well precedes Putin’s decision to conduct a ‘special military operation’ within Ukraine.

Now, we see through Trump’s approach the dropping of pretenses.  Putin was correct.  With NATO directly providing the war weapons to Ukraine there is no pretense, no doubt. NATO countries are funding an offensive war against Russia using a non NATO proxy state, Ukraine.

As I have said, this western triggering has always been the inertia for war, and that war is now likely to expand as a result of NATO and even, unfortunately, President Trump’s approach.

The only thing that works in his/our favor is the cowardice of the U.K, France and Germany to fight Russia without the USA.

President Trump may try and distance himself and by extension the USA from this consequence of expanded conflict. But the consequence exists regardless of the obfuscation.  We are parsing terms.

The US is going to fund expansion of the conflict directly with arms to Ukraine or indirectly by sending arms to NATO to give to Ukraine. The destination and intent of the weapons is the same regardless of the procedural process.

I came to Russia this time to understand the nature of how western inertia to war can exist, despite the people of the west demanding the opposite. I wanted to see for myself exactly what Russia was preparing for, and exactly how the people of Russia were reacting to that preparation.

Russia is well prepared, both physically and psychologically to go to war against any adversary.  Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating is between 70 to 80%, and despite what you might have heard in western propaganda media, the economy inside Russia is doing very well.  In addition to the two-year service requirement (18-20 years old), all men aged 25 to 35 have been refresher trained in preparation.

The psyche of the Russian military is ready to get rid of the Nazis.  Also, the sentiment of Europeans’ dislike of Ukrainian Nazis is easy to spot, albeit not well known outside the region.  Despite decades of Brussels and USA provocation and political manipulation (perhaps because of it), there’s not a lot of pro-NATO support for the west here.

I am not a big fan of Russia; nor do I agree with the way the government constructs societal life within it. There are a lot of negatives to daily life in Russia. However, I do have a complete understanding of the govt positions and reasons for them.

Western media have pretended that Ukraine was not a U.S/NATO proxy war against Russia. Now, those pretenses are dropped.  Conversely, Vladimir Putin never pretended.

Putin always accepted that Ukraine was, and long has been, a NATO proxy state for conflict against Russia; which is exactly the reason he ‘invaded‘ Ukraine in the first place.

President Trump may be trying to split the baby amid the retention of pretense, but it’s a pretense Russian President Vladimir Putin never held, he could not afford to.

Thus, the inertia of war and people asking “how did this happen?”

If I am accurate in his exit strategy, President Trump hopes to extricate himself from the Russia-Ukraine problem by putting the conflict directly into the lap of NATO, more specifically into the lap of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz; the so called “coalition of the willing.”

President Trump is giving the weapons to NATO, again Starmer, Macron and Merz, for transfer to their buddy in Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.  President Trump then stands back and draws distance from the consequence of what they do with them.  However, this is also a massive provocation because NATO is now essentially operating on behalf of a non-NATO state, Ukraine, against another non-NATO power, Russia.

President Trump cannot remove the fact that the USA is the lead in all things NATO.  As soon as France, Germany and the U.K start bombing Russia albeit from the geography of Ukraine, the conflict will expand.

NATO -thanks to President Trump- would then be baiting Vladimir Putin to attack France, Germany or the UK in retaliation, which would trigger Article 5; subsequently the USA is drawn into the conflict by agreement, and voilà a full expanded war between NATO and Russia commences.

But why?

If neither Russia or Ukraine are NATO members, why is NATO involved at all?

Good question.  Perhaps President Trump will answer that question on Monday.

President Trump told NBC News, “I think I’ll have a major statement to make on Russia on Monday.”

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Live your very best life, but prepare for war.

Like a fat kid playing dodgeball, I’m out of here tomorrow (hopefully), and will hold an AMA on the topic of all things Russia next week.