Tag Archives: drugs

Sep 7 2020

Belarusian President Claims IMF & World Bank Offered him a Bribe to Impose COVID Restrictions


Armstrong Economics Blog/Conspiracy

Re-Posted Sep 7, 2020 by Martin Armstrong

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said last month via Belarusian Telegraph Agency, BelTA., that World Bank and IMF offered him a bribe of $940 million USD in the form of “Covid Relief Aid.” In exchange for $940 million USD, the World Bank and IMF demanded that the President of Belarus:

• imposed “extreme lockdown on his people”
• force them to wear face masks
• impose very strict curfews
• impose a police state
• crash the economy

Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko REFUSED the offer and stated that he could not accept such an offer and would put his people above the needs of the IMF and World Bank. This is NOT a conspiracy. You may research this yourself. He actually said this!

Now IMF and World Bank are bailing out failing airlines with billions of dollars, and in exchange, they are FORCING airline CEOs to implement VERY STRICT POLICIES such as FORCED face masks covers on EVERYONE, including SMALL CHILDREN, whose health will suffer as a result of these policies.

And if it is true for Belarus, then it is true for the rest of the world! The IMF and World Bank want to crash every major economy with the intent of buying over every nation’s infrastructure at cents on the dollar!

Interesting claims. They certainly cannot afford countries to buck the trend if they are behind this Great Reset.

Sep 7 2020

There Never Was a “Woods File” Underpinning The Carter Page FISA Application – Here’s How We Know…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree house on September 6, 2020 by 

The ‘Woods File’ is the mandatory FBI evidence file that contains the documentary proof to verify all statements against U.S. persons that are contained in any FISA application. Remember, this is a secret court, the FISA applications result in secret Title-1 surveillance and wiretaps against U.S. persons, outside fourth amendment protections.

The absence of evidence is not necessarily evidence of absence. However, in the case of the “missing” or “reconstructed” Woods file used to gain a Title-1 FISA surveillance warrant against U.S. person Carter Page, the overwhelming evidence shows there never was one. The Special Counsel manufactured the appearance of one ex post facto in 2018.

Here’s how we can tell:

♦ FIRST – Common Sense: Recent reports of the DOJ, FBI or NSD “losing” the Woods file are abjectly silly on their face. Given the specific importance of this specific case there’s no reasonable person who would believe such a critical file of underlying evidence would just go missing and have to be recreated by the Weissmann special counsel.

♦ SECOND – Precedent: In the March 30, 2020, memorandum written by the Office of Inspector General after review of 29 DOJ-NSD FISA applications, the IG noted the absence of Woods Files is not an uncommon occurrence. Factually within the 29 FISA applications reviewed, four were completely missing the Woods File. Meaning there was zero supportive evidence for any of the FBI claims against U.S. persons underpinning the FISA applications. [ie. The FBI just made stuff up]

♦ THIRD – How Would They Get Away With That?: To answer that question it is important to remember the DOJ-National Security Division, the entity responsible for the legal assembly of FISA applications, did not have any oversight. In 2015 the OIG requested oversight and it was Deputy AG Sally Yates who responded with a lengthy 58 page legal explanation saying, essentially, ‘nope – not allowed.’ (PDF HERE) All of the DOJ is subject to oversight, except the NSD.

The DOJ-NSD could get away with the lack of legal requirements because there was no entity providing oversight to ensure the completeness of the legal requirements they were supposed to follow. Not coincidentally this is the exact division within the DOJ that weaponized FARA investigations as the justification for political surveillance. [That becomes important later when we get to Carter Page specifics]

 

♦ FOURTH – Trish Anderson Admission: The Deputy General Counsel for the FBI National Security & Cyber Law Branch (NSCLB), Trisha Beth Anderson, admitted during her testimony to congress that she never verified the existence of the Woods File, nor its content. Anderson stated she never even reviewed the FISA application for appropriate assembly because it came to her from an unusual top-down process.

In front of a joint session of the House Judiciary and Oversight committees on Aug. 31, 2018, former FBI Deputy General Counsel Trisha Anderson said she was normally responsible for signing off on Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act applications before they reached the desk of her superiors for approval. Anderson said the “linear path” those applications typically take was upended in October 2016, with FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates signing off on the application before she did. Because of that unusual high-level involvement, she didn’t see the need to “second guess” the FISA application. (link)

Why did she do this? Trish Anderson disclosed why in her previously hidden testimony to congress (August 2018). [LINK]

Anderson said all FISAs need to be signed off on in the FBI’s National Security Law Branch, where she was assigned at the time. Anderson said she was the Senior Executive Service approver for the “initiation” of the Page FISA, including determining whether there is legal sufficiency.

But Anderson stressed “in this particular case, I’m drawing a distinction because my boss and my boss’ boss had already reviewed and approved this application.” She emphasized “this one was handled a little bit differently in that sense, in that it received very high-level review and approvals — informal, oral approvals — before it ever came to me for signature.”

Anderson said that FISA approvals are typically “tracked in a linear fashion” and that someone in the Senior Executive Service “is the final approver on hard copy before a FISA goes to the director or deputy director for signature.” She said the Page FISA was approved outside regular procedures. (more)

Anderson had signed-off on earlier Page FISA applications because they came to her already signed: ex. by James Comey (FBI) and Sally Yates (DOJ).

“Because there were very high-level discussions that occurred about the FISA,” Anderson said she believed that meant “the FISA essentially had already been well-vetted all the way up through at least the Deputy Director [McCabe] level on our side and through the DAG [Yates] on the DOJ side.” Yates had already signed the application by the time it made it to Anderson’s desk.

When Trish Anderson signed-off on the last Carter Page FISA renewal (June 29, 2017) the Special Counsel was now running the DOJ.  Andrew Weissmann, formerly of the DOJ-NSD, was running the special counsel operation.  Meanwhile FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe was in position and running the FBI.

This was the third renewal where Office of General Counsel (OGC) lawyer Kevin Clinesmith fabricated evidence to hide that Carter Page was working with, and was a source for, the CIA.

Again, Deputy General Counsel Trish Anderson rubber-stamped the application because it came with pre-approval from above.  Anderson never saw, nor questioned, any underlying documentation; or the absence thereof.   The lack of supportive documentation, a Woods File, passed her review because the application had pre-approval by her supervisors.

♦ FIFTH – IG Horowitz Provides Cover for Institutional Issues:  Within his December 2019, IG report on the four FISA applications, Inspector General Horowitz covers for the issue of missing supportive evidence by saying the customary procedure for the Woods File verification is not needed when the evidence involves a confidential human source (CHS):

This description is entirely consistent with the DOJ and FBI using the Chris Steele dossier as a replacement for the Woods File procedures.  Under this sketchy justification Steele would be an FBI confidential human source (CHS).  Ergo, the dossier served as the underpinning and the only requirement would be for the application to “accurately reflect what [Steele] told the FBI”.   That’s how they pulled this off.

♦ SIXTH –Everyone knew it was BS – AGAIN FARA (Remember, FARA via DOJ-NSD had no oversight) this is part of the corrupt process: Senator Johnson’s FISA timeline, citing page 62 of the IG report, states categorically that FBI HQ ordered the New York Field Office to open a Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) investigation of Carter Page on April 1, 2016, and that the NYFO did so on April 6, 2016.

Since Carter Page’s alleged Russian agent status (“an agent of a foreign government”) is the critical predicate for the original and three renewal FISA applications [core of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation], how can Crossfire Hurricane team maintain they did not open investigation until July 31, 2016?

Carter Page joined the Trump campaign March 21, 2016, eleven days before the order, and ten days after the Buryakov press release identified him to the Russians as the (undercover employee) UCE responsible for burning three of their SVR agents.

Not only is is incredibly unlikely that Page — who was still on the witness list for Buryakov’s prosecution until his sentencing on May 25, 2016 — was thought an appropriate subject for recruitment by the Russians, even after associating with the Trump campaign… but even if he was, the opening of the April 6, 2016, FARA investigation by the NYFO almost four months before Crossfire Hurricane “officially” opened meant the FBI’s investigation into a Trump campaign associate began long before they say it did.

Add to that reality the fact the FARA order likely came from FBI HQ via Bill Priestap, and there is no way the FBI could credibly believe a UCE they knew responsible for burning three SVR agents had been recruited by the same SVR due to his recent association with the Trump campaign. It was all smoke and mirrors.

♦ CONCLUSION: Taking all the above into proper context, when the office of inspector general announced on March 28, 2018, that he was going to review all four of the Carter Page FISA applications; no doubt the office of the special counsel, Andrew Weissmann; who was previously the DOJ-NSD FARA targeting coordinator; moved swiftly to create the appearance of a Woods File where none previously existed. That led to the Woods Procedure justification as stated by the IG.

There never was a Woods File.  The FBI and DOJ relied upon the Chris Steele Dossier as the evidence to support the FISA application.  Chris Steele was identified as a Confidential Human Source, and his dossier was qualified as a replacement for the Woods File.

That’s exactly what happened.  I guarantee it.

Sep 7 2020

Sunday Talks – Trey Gowdy Doesn’t Foresee DOJ Probe Delivering any Legal Accountability for FBI Misconduct…


Posted originally on The Conservative tree house on September 6, 2020 by 

Trey Gowdy appears for an interview with Maria Bartiromo to discuss the latest known information from the background of the John Durham probes into DOJ, FBI and CIA corrupt intent and activity in the “spygate”, Trump surveillance, saga.

Within the interview Gowdy notes he does not expect to see any legal consequences as an outcome of the John Durham investigation beyond the current pleading by former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith.  While Gowdy can be an insufferable voice at times, on this issue and given the nature of the current political calendar, he would appear to be correct.

Gowdy asks the question about where everything started.  In the earlier interview with Peter Strzok (CBS), the FBI justification (current narrative) was pointed back to George Papadopoulos and his thin gruel conversation with Australian diplomat Alexander Downer.

.

At this point the corrupt DC elements appear to have successfully ran out the clock for 2020; and that is very frustrating from the position of two-tiers of justice.

However, that said there is a possibility more focus on the special counsel operation could lead to some rather eye-opening information. The public needs to know how corrupt the special counsel investigation was; what their exact intents and purposes were; and there is ample evidence mounting.

 

Sep 7 2020

CBS Interviews Peter Strzok To Set Defensive Narrative…


Posted originally on The Conservative Tree house on September 6, 2020 by 

It should be remembered that CBS interfered in the 2012 election by purposefully hiding an interview with President Obama where the former president denied terrorists were involved in the attack in Benghazi, a statement he denied in the 2012 debates.  As a result the politics of CBS are very clear in the narratives they choose to advance.

That said, in a heavily edited interview with former FBI Agent Peter Strzok, CBS once again attempts to shape a defensive narrative to cloud the truth of the DOJ and FBI intents within the 2016 election.  You’ll note this interview is actually very light on broadcasting the actual interview statements by Peter Strzok because: (a) Strzok has legal risk from any statement; and (b) the intent of this interview is shaping a defensive narrative.  WATCH:

.

This interview is frustrating on many levels.  First, because it shows how the absence of accountability by current DOJ officials has led to Strzok’s brazen ability to lie publicly.  Strzok has no fear in his appearance and is shamefully blame-casting and pushing a justification that is completely devoid from truth.

Secondly, this interview is a direct result of AG Barr failing to aggressively hold these former FBI officials accountable for intentional wrongdoing and purposeful corruption. There is no excuse.

 

Sep 3 2020

Australian Tyranny – Is Revolution Coming?


Armstrong Economics Blog/Australia & Oceania

Posted Sep 2, 2020 by Martin Armstrong

This video shows the tyranny in Australia as they arrested a pregnant woman for posting about a protest against the lockdowns. We have warned that the War Cycle, which includes Civil Unrest, turned up in 2014 and will build into intensity by 2022. This is not a forecast that has ever given me any pleasure. The two components are international war and civil unrest which leads to revolution. The worst seems to be on schedule for the Pi Target after 2024 and the peak of this 8.6-year business cycle wave of the Economic Confidence Model.

On January 1, 1901, the six colonies joined together forming the Commonwealth of Australia. The Revolutionary Cycle in Australia turned up in 2013, just slightly before the global War Cycle which turned up in 2014. The actions of the Australian government have completely turned toward an absolute authoritarian reign. Here you see that they are indeed monitoring all social media arresting a pregnant woman for merely posting on Facebook that a protest would take place. Even the German high court ruled that the government could not stop the protest on August 29th, 2020. Here in Australia, you see that the government has rejected every principle of a free society. Typically, the West would impose sanctions against Australia blocking all trade for they are treating their people no different than Russia invading Crimea as the West alleges, Syria, or Iran. Don’t forget the allegations against Iraq that it was a dictatorship.

The Australian Civil Unrest Cycle should begin to pop next year in 2021 and build into intensity by 2026. These politicians will be voted out of office so there will most likely be claims that in the middle of such a crisis, elections will be suspended. These politicians cannot now allow a free election for anyone who would then side with the people would be moved to arrest these politicians and prosecute them. Therefore, as long as Australian police act like the ones in this video, there will eventually be blood in the streets.

 

After the previous turning point of August 7th, 1964 which picked the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution incident to the day, there were massive protests against the Vietnam War. This is also the era when the Beatles wrote the song Revolution. Today, they would probably be thrown in prison for daring to even sing it. In Britain, the BBC is banning a song Rule Britania because it says they will never be slaves.

Never in my wildest imagination did I ever expect such a wholesale coup against our freedoms. This is what the rest of us face from 2021 on. Politicians no longer represent the people. They have simply gone mad. There are elections coming in 2021 around many places globally. I would expect them to be rigged, or even suspended for those in power doing this sort of oppression will surely not be re-elected. This is a global coup because the socialistic systems are failures which include the pensions for government workers.

Sep 1 2020

DC Circuit Appeals Panel Rebukes House Effort to Enforce Subpoena Compelling Don McGhan Testimony…


Posted originally on The Conservative tree House on August 31, 2020 by 

In November 2019 activist Federal District Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson ruled former White House counsel Don McGahn must appear before Congress; however, she also ruled McGahn retained the ability to “invoke executive privilege where appropriate” during his appearance. The central issue is separation of power.

The White House appealed the ruling to the DC appellate court on constitutional grounds, and on February 28, 2020, a three judge panel from the DC circuit agreed with the White House position.  The House of representatives could have appealed the decision; however, instead, the main lawfare activist, House counsel Doug Letter, took a different approach and sought to argue the case based around their right to enforce a subpoena.

Today a politically divided DC appeals court panel ruled the House can’t go to the judicial branch to enforce legislative subpoenas because there is no statute giving the legislative chamber the authority to force the executive branch to enforce an action against its own constitutional interests.

DC Via Politico – […] “The decision is likely to spark a renewed debate over the House’s power of “inherent contempt” — its long-dormant ability to fine or jail witnesses who refuse to comply with its oversight requests.

Though courts have acknowledged this power exists, it has been in disuse since World War II. The House has emphasized that resorting to such heavy-handed tactics would only worsen government dysfunction. Court proceedings are far more desirable — to the House and to society — House counsel Doug Letter has argued during the House’s legal battles.

The new ruling appears to leave in place one other option for enforcing House subpoenas: the threat of criminal prosecution for contempt of Congress. However that option does not seem viable in cases involving fights over demands for testimony or records from the executive branch, since the Justice Department has long taken the position that it will not prosecute in cases where an official or ex-official was complying with a presidential assertion of executive privilege. (more)

The permanent political coup, led by the primary Lawfare activists who have infected the DOJ and all bodies politic, continues…  Everything is tenuous.

All of this judicial turmoil is a downstream result from electing Barack Obama to fundamentally transform America in 2008.  Where we are today can be traced to the continuum that many warned about more than a decade ago.

 

Aug 26 2020

Belarus & the Covert Civil Unrest


Armstrong Economics Blog/Civil Unrest

Re-Posted Aug 26, 2020 by Martin Armstrong

QUESTION: Dear Mr. Armstrong, I am writing from Lithuania, next to Belarus, which is is undergoing some serious civil unrest. It is anyone’s guess whether the presidential election outcome was faked/real, but the fact is that President Lukashenko is under serious pressure aimed at him being ousted. A question arises if the concerted effort to remove him was precipitated by his skeptical attitude towards all things covid19. I have to admit that I am no big fan of any dictator including Lukashenko, but the timing seems odd, as TPTB cannot care less for human rights abuse- Saudi Arabia is ok to them.

MY QUESTION IS IF BILL GATES IS PULLING THE STRINGS, as Lukashenko made a mockery of the corona affair? There were some obviously staged events in Lithuania to support the uprising in Belarus. And what worries me most, is the fact that participants were joining gloved hands and had masks on, sort of voluntary slaves. Ironically, the Belarus dictator let his people live their normal lives, including football games, when my Lithuania was under lockdown, and my 9 yo daughter has some anxiety issues since. Sort of Stockholm syndrome.

Keep up your great work.

PS

ANSWER: President Lukashenko is often called the accidental last dictator of Europe. There is no question that the Belarusian government has been against the climate change movement. Only in January 2020 did it announce an action plan to phase out polymer packaging. However, Lukashenko also rejected COVID-19 and did not lockdown his economy.

The rumor is that the opposition is being funded by Soros. Lukashenko accused the West of fomenting unrest as he sought to consolidate his grip on power amid widening protests. But it may not be governments, but clandestine activists on a global scale. Lukashenko spoke as the European Union rejected the official results of the vote. The EU naturally expressed its solidarity with protesters. The EU said it’s preparing sanctions against Belarusian officials responsible for the brutal post-election police actions. Lukashenko is also keeping in close contact with Putin in Russia.

Aug 18 2020

$30M Advance to WE Charity Still Outstanding?


WHERE’S THE MONEY?

Ken Grafton image

Re-posted from the Canada Free Press By  —— Bio and Archives—August 17, 2020

We Scandal, Justin Trudeau

For reasons not disclosed, WE Charity received a $30M advance payment from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) in connection with the contribution agreement to administer the Canada Student Service Grant (CSSG) program.

The government has not confirmed repayment.

Questions regarding the program began almost immediately following the announcement on April 22nd by Prime Minister Trudeau of a $9-billion student aid package, which contained CSSG.

WE received payment(s) from the government amounting to $30M (for yet unspecified purposes)

While the contribution agreement with WE was not approved until June 23rd, WE started work on May 5th. According to testimony from Trudeau Chief of Staff Katie Telford before the Finance Committee, an unnamed official in the PMO spoke with WE on May 5th (in what must have been an interesting call), following approval of WE by the COVID-19 Cabinet Committee (on the basis of a recommendation from Youth Minister Bardish Chagger).

The PM testified however that he didn’t hear about WE in connection with CSSG until May 8th.

Cabinet approval was given on May 22nd, and the public service began negotiating an agreement with WE the following day…eighteen days after WE started work.

It was reported that although the contract was signed on June 23rd, it came into effect on May 5th (before the PM heard about it). If this sounds like complete nonsense, the “backdating” of contracts is generally permissible under Canadian Law…but not however for the purpose of misleading third parties (such as the public) or to circumvent Rules or Legislation (such as the requirement for Cabinet approval).

In the wake of growing controversy regarding conflict of interest and another investigation by Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion, cancellation of the WE agreement was announced on July 3rd.
Public confusion is forgivable here. The timeline is convoluted, but critical.

Somewhere between May 5th and July 3rd – and we can only assume that both the Ethics Committee and the Finance Committee will investigate transaction dates in order to determine whether any payments were made prior to signing the contract on June 3rd – WE received payment(s) from the government amounting to $30M (for yet unspecified purposes).

Where is the money now?

Appearing before the Ethics Committee Aug 11th, Chagger could not say how much of the $30M has been repaid by WE since the contract was finalized; “We can share that … $30 million has been released to the organization through the contribution agreement. I was not aware of how much money has been returned,” As Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Youth, Chagger was responsible for CSSG.

Non-Liberal committee members, and many Canadians, were surprised to learn that Chagger didn’t know how much money had been recouped…and that it wasn’t a higher priority.

Conservative MP Michael Barrett asked, “Why hasn’t the money been returned at this point? That seems odd. It’s been quite some time since the program was cancelled or that WE withdrew…” Chagger responded, “We want to ensure that all processes are being followed. So, I can assure you that the public service is working with the organization to ensure that it is returned.”

According to a Global News article on Aug 11th, WE issued a statement saying that they have repaid $22M of the $30M handed out when the contract was signed, and have been waiting on the government to accept the remaining $8M…whatever that means. A WE spokesperson said, “WE Charity has repeatedly communicated to ESDC the desire to return the remaining funds as soon as the government is able to accept the transfer.” They did not elaborate as to why they hadn’t returned the full amount immediately, or why the government was having difficulty accepting the outstanding balance.

Due diligence has been one of many glaring anomalies with respect to WE-Gate, with questions regarding WE’s financial health.

In testimony before the Finance Committee, Kate Bahen of watchdog Charity Intelligence Canada, outlined how she used easy-to-access financial data to report that WE Charity had financial stress, “At August 2019 year-end, WE Charity had cash and investments (gross funding reserves) of $11.5m compared with $14.0m at year-end August 2018. WE Charity’s bank loans increased to $13.7m in 2019 compared with $11.1m in 2018. This creates a negative funding reserve of $2.2m. For the second year, WE Charity is in breach of its financial covenants on its bank debt. Its bank has waived these conditions for the current period.”

With the $1 trillion debt that the Liberals have incurred, Canada has already emptied the national piggy-bank…and every penny counts

This would be the point where the loans officer at your local bank branch stops returning your calls.

A cursory review of WE’s 2018 Audited Financial Statement should have raised red flags.

Alarmingly, clerk of the Privy Council Ian Shugart admitted that federal officials did not probe WE Charity’s financial situation or governance structure when doing homework on the $912-million deal.

It has also come out that the WE agreement was actually made with the WE Charity Foundation, a private company owned by WE founders Marc and Craig Kielburger, not WE Charity. The foundation has no employees or assets, other than WE Charity. Since the payment was made to what is effectively a holding company, recovery of the funds could prove problematic.

It is incumbent upon the Government to inform Canadians what the status of the $30M is exactly, and when it will be fully repaid. If $22M has indeed been repaid, the government needs to say so, and recover the remainder owed.

With the $1 trillion debt that the Liberals have incurred, Canada has already emptied the national piggy-bank…and every penny counts.

Where’s the money?

Aug 13 2020

A Plea from a Member of the Italian Parliament – International Call to Action


Armstrong Economics Blog/Politics

Re-Posted Aug 13, 2020 by Martin Armstrong

International call to action: demand your governments to access the technical-scientific data of Covid-19 emergency!

Italian international call to action demanding transparency and data on Covid-19.

We are appealing to all the associations (and citizens) whose Countries have experienced and are still experiencing restrictive measures like Italy. We need to share with you an unacceptable fact and we want to ask other citizens in the world to take action in order to shed light on the many shadows that envelop the emergency situation we are facing.

We are an Italian association 1 fighting for freedom of choice in the vaccination and therapeutical fields since 1993, but we are here today speaking also to those associations that do not totally agree with our way of thinking and living freedom.

Italian people have gone through the Covid-19 pandemic strictly following the rules imposed. Italian people have complied with the Government’s restrictions and provisions but even so, for months we have been watching tv programs showing drones, helicopters and law enforcement vessels chasing and identifying individual citizens walking deserted streets or empty beaches, 2-3-4-5-6-7 and even law enforcement precluding religious services. Media have been pointing the finger at the runners, ordinary citizens going solo for a run, suddenly becoming terrible plague spreaders and primary cause of infection, according to the mainstream media narrative.

We are silently accepting our Country’s economy to fall apart and we should at least expect that our Government, responsible for the imposed restrictive measures, would clarify and be willing to provide evidence and answers to the people.

Every single choice the Italian Government made to manage the Covid-19 emergency, was and will be based on the opinion of the Technical-Scientific Committee (CTS). A small number of people called the shots of the Government Agenda, from the forms and lasting of Lockdown, to the masks, the social distancing, and any regulatory act always issued “having consulted the CTS”.
Recently, three lawyers, being part of a foundation, decided to file a FOIA (request for access to documents) , specifically requesting to view the minutes of the Scientific Technical Committee of February 18th, March 1st, 7th, 30th and April 9th. The data and opinions expressed and collected in these minutes are basically the reason, the drive, the foundation for the Government to have issued every act relating to the Covid-19 emergency management.

After the request has been rejected at first instance, the lawyers have been forced to apply to a Court. On July 23rd, 2020 the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio (TAR) had ruled in favour of the publication of the documents by August 21st at the latest. 8

And here is the shocking and for us unacceptable fact: the Italian Government, through the State’s attorney, on July 31st opposed 9the Court (TAR) ruling, motivating that the publication would have caused “a real damage to public order and security that exposing the CTS minutes, at this stage of the emergency, would cause for both technical assessments and general guidelines of the technical body”. 10

On August, 5th 2020, we learned from journalistic sources 11 and from the same lawyers who had requested access to the documents, 12 that the Italian government will publish these minutes, but the question remains unchanged:

Why did not it make immediately transparent what really happened in the emergency? If the Italian government acted on expert opinions, why did it oppose the publication of the data? What are the contents of these reports that should cause damage? Why would damage to public order and security even be expected?

In the next days we will inform everyone about the content of these minutes, verifying together with many experts who work alongside us, if the emergency policies have been correctly undertaken, if they were fair or exaggerated or disproportionate, up to at least the end of the State of Emergency, but the fact that the Government has opposed the publication of documents that should be public, worries us greatly. We remind that the news of the declassification of the minutes, if analyzed with intellectual honesty, show that it took place solely for political conflicts with the parliamentary opposition, not for true listening and transparency towards citizenship.

All of you reading us, both ordinary citizens and associations, have at your disposal a tool created for this kind of action, the Freedom of Information Act, 13 that is the law granting freedom of information and public access to data held by national governments!

Anyone, by a legal team but also independently, may submit along the same lines a request for access to the documents aimed at verifying what are the conditions, the minutes, the documents that the various Countries have based on to pass decrees and various acts in the context of the Covid-19 emergency, obviously in relation to those acts that brought a counterpart in economic and limitations of personal freedoms terms. In our opinion, this is necessary, not because of a priori mistrust but because of a proper civic sense and supervisory task, democratically exercised with the tools available which exist precisely for these purposes.

If you believe that there are the conditions to raise legitimate doubts in the management of Covid-19 and if your Government has not made public all the data, opinions and “advice” of the experts dedicated to the Covid-19 emergency that have led to pass laws with inevitable strong impact on citizens’ lives in the short and long term, request in first person to make the original data and reports visionable!

Repropose this action in various Countries increases the possibility of shedding light on the management of this emergency situation linked to Covid-19, where the Italian government has instead vetoed this possibility, at least for now.

We are here to support all interested parties, according to our capabilities we will provide further clarification and our help for better understanding how the request has been put forward and how the Government has decided to reply.

A coordinated action is important and useful above all because it gives a clear sign of the people’s need and will to have answers, and it also increases the chances to obtain data and answers in this regard.

Thanks to everybody,
Corvelva Staff
Document undersigned by:

Sara Cunial, Member of Parliament
Ivan Catalano, President of COSMI, former MP and former Vicepresident of the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry “Depleted Uranium”
Davide Barillari, Regional councillor of Lazio and President of the Commission Pluralism of Information
ADER
CliVa Toscana
Colibrì Puglia
Cittadini liberi consapevoli Puglia
CReLDiS
GruppiUniti.it
Genitori del No Obbligo Lombardia
VacciPiano Sicilia
… e molti altri
References
Website for International Call

If Bill Gates Was President

Aug 6 2020

How Many Times? That Is The Question


Finance Committee Hearing or Liberal Campaign Ad?

Ken Grafton image

Re-posted from the Canada Free Press By  —— Bio and Archives—August 4, 2020

How Many Times? That Is The Question

Prime Minister Trudeau testified before the Parliamentary Finance Committee on July 30th in connection with the WE Charity scandal, currently under investigation by Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion.

Canadians can be forgiven for wondering why.

Amping up the Trudeau charm, well lit and smiling directly into a high-resolution camera, coiffed hair blacker than beard; the relaxed PM was clearly focused upon communicating directly with voters, rather than answering questions from committee members.

The Trudeau brand was under attack, and the message for Canadians was that his Liberal government is doing a great job. The narrative ran that they would in fact be doing even more for Canadians, if it weren’t for Conservatives bringing up this nettlesome conflict of interest thing. Sure, he should have recused himself from approving the sole-source WE contract, but that wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for COVID-19…and his long-standing interest in youth-affairs. The Liberals’ commitment to providing financial assistance to students during COVID-19 led to an accelerated implementation of the CSSG Program…which caused the PM to slow down the approval process because of the increased scrutiny and appearance of conflict of interest that his family affiliation with WE would bring…before then failing to recuse himself from the process. The Civil Service made all the decisions anyway, not the PM. If the logic is difficult to grasp here…well….

Although it is impossible to disconnect the damming, feculent bright-red Liberal dots leading from WE to the Prime Minister, distraught Liberal spin doctors had obviously been billing some overtime on damage control.

The central pivot from conflict of interest and Liberal corruption seems to be good intentions and the tremendous benefit to young Canadians that could have been…if only the unfortunate scandal hadn’t blown up (read, if they hadn’t been caught).

Canadians should blame the Conservatives and Bloc Quebecoise, for making a mountain out of a mole-hill, really…when you think about it…from a Liberal prospective…

The questioning began:

MP Pierre Poilievre – “What is the total dollar value of all expenses reimbursed and fees paid and any other consideration provided by the WE group to you, your mother, your spouse, your brother and any other member of your family? Just the total please.”

PM Trudeau – “Uh…I don’t have that exact figure…uh…reimbursing expenses is something done by an organization…uh…for example…so I don’t have…uh…those totals.”

Liberal MP Julie Dzerowicz (trying) – “Mister Speaker…uh…Point of Order…Mister Chair, sorry…not Mister Speaker. My Point of Order is what’s the relevance of these questions…uh…of ancillary…uh…fees paid to family members to the official motion…?”

Chairman Wayne Easter – “I don’t think that is a Point of Order Miss Dzerowicz, back to Mister Poilievre.”
Poilievre – “So you are telling me that you don’t know how much immediate family members have been paid in expense reimbursements by this organization.”
Trudeau – “Uh…my mother and my brother are professionals in their own right who…uh…have…uh engagements…uh…and have for many, many years with organizations across the country…”
Poilievre – “Do you know?”
Trudeau – “…uh…and I…uh…don’t have the details of their…uh…work…uh…work experiences of their…uh…expenses.”
Poilievre – “What about your spouse? What is the dollar figure?”
Trudeau – “Uh…WE…uh…I think WE Charity has been able to share those figures with you.”
Poilievre – “When was the last time that she had an expense reimbursed by WE Charity?”
Trudeau – “Uh…I…uh…believe it would have been to uh…”

As one can gather from this short excerpt, the Prime Minister was less than forthcoming. It’s a fine line between pivoting and refusing to answer. In Court, it may well have led to a charge of Contempt. Perhaps a Contempt of Parliament charge would be appropriate here.

Trudeau’s repetitive and vexatious use of the word “uh”

Also telling was Trudeau’s repetitive and vexatious use of the word “uh”. In linguistics, “uh” is known as a “hesitation form”, or “filler word”. Filler words are often a red flag for deception. In Psychology Today, Professor Jack Schafer of Western Illinois University, a behavioral analyst for the FBI, explains. “Little words, often ignored in normal speech, can signal deception. Words such as um and uh indicate cognitive load. Liars experience increased cognitive load. Um and uh signal impending delays is speech. Liars need time to evaluate their answers to ensure their lie will be believed. Liars also need additional time to choose the right words to camouflage the truth. Truthful people do not need extra time to convey information.”

The Prime Minister wouldn’t lie though, would he?

So, what are the issues with WE-Gate exactly?

The growing Hydra-like list may keep Commissioner Dion up at night:

  • Was CSSG designed specifically for WE to administer?
  • Why the Canada Service Corps was not tasked with CSSG?
  • Why a sole-source contract?
  • Details of due diligence done, due to the fact that WE appeared to be in financial trouble and in violation of bank covenants. WE Board Members had resigned and mass layoffs of staff had occurred. WE had also never delivered a similar program previously.
  • Why was WE paid $30M upfront, and how will it repay taxpayers?
  • Why was a WE real estate shell company used, instead of WE Charity?
  • Why was a $30M upfront payment made on contract award?
  • WE claimed initially that the PMO had called, asking if they wanted the CSSG contract.
  • Who authorized WE, and why, to begin spending money on May 5th, prior to June 23rd approval?
  • Failure to recuse/Conflict of Interest –
    • PM has spoken for WE in past
    • WE has paid for Trudeau campaign ads/gave Trudeau a platform to connect with hundreds of thousands of young voters
    • WE has paid Margaret and Alexander Trudeau
    • WE has paid Sophie Trudeau
    • WE relationship with Katie Telford
    • WE paid Bill Morneau $42K expenses
    • WE employs two Morneau daughters.

Beyond the blatant corruption

Beyond the blatant corruption issues however, the CSSG model may have also been fatally flawed from birth. The very real possibility exists that CSSG could violate Minimum Wage laws. CSSG would pay a student up to $10 per hour, which is less than the minimum wages in all of Canada’s provinces and territories. If the concept of paid volunteers seems counter-intuitive, the law actually recognizes two classes of volunteers. According to Labour Law firm Goldblatt Partners, “Volunteers are not covered by the Employment Standards Act in Ontario, and need not be paid the minimum wage. But that does not mean that an employer can evade its obligations under the Act by classifying anyone as a volunteer. Only a ‘true volunteer’ is excluded from the protections of the Act…if a participating student views the program as a means to make a livelihood during a time that fewer summer jobs are available, they may be able to argue that they are not a ‘true volunteer.’” A class action lawsuit waiting to happen then.

But, back to the show.

Poilievre (translation) – “I have a simple question for you. How many times does a Minister in your Government need to break the Ethics Act before being sacked? How many times?”
Trudeau (translation) – “We…uh…take it very seriously, every time there are Ethics issues…
Poilievre – “How many times?”
Trudeau – “…and…”
Poilievre – “How many times?”
Chair – “The Prime Minister has the floor…and he has the right to answer. Mister Prime Minister”

He had the right to answer, but apparently not the ability.

How many times? That is the question…for all Canadians.

Great campaign slogan for Conservatives next election cycle…