Lots of Words – United States Supports but Does Not Sign “Coalition of Willing” Security Guarantees


Posted originally on CTH on January 7, 2026 | Sundance

I’ll post the video outcomes of the Paris summit comments below. However, in the interests of time and cutting to the chase, the picture below highlights the reality of things as they present.

The British-based “coalition of the willing” (+1 USA) assembled in Paris as the operation to manipulate the U.S. into forming the cornerstone of the Ukraine “security guarantees” continues. A great deal of this is public relations and psychological operations intended to create something against President Trump’s expressed intention.

However, everything you need to know about the eventual end of this long exposition is evident in the image that everyone pretends not to see.

German Chancellor Merz, Ukraine President Zelenskyy, French President Macron, British Prime Minister Starmer and then you have Mr Witkoff & Mr Kushner. What’s missing? Trump. There’s your answer!

There’s no President Trump because the intent of the principals is against our America-first interest. Hence, the USA did not sign up to the EU created security guarantees, because Trump is demanding they do their own work.

Key word “proposed” [read agreement] …”These elements will be European-led, with the involvement also of non-European members of the Coalition, and the proposed support of the US.”…

President Trump is presenting: The U.S. will provide intelligence *monitoring* assistance, but that’s it.

Not in our strategic interest. Not our war. Not our issue.

The U.S. delegation did not sign up to the statement the EU put forth after the meeting.

Lots of words were said.

Lots of gratitude was expressed.

Lots of support was mentioned. However, ultimately the responsibility for any agreed security guarantees will be carried by Europe, not by the United States.

As noted by Politico-EU[…] The statement from Kyiv’s European allies says they stand ready to commit to “legally binding” security guarantees to support Ukraine in the event of a peace deal with Russia.

Crucially, the monitoring and verification of a future ceasefire would be led by the U.S., with contributions from countries including the U.K. and Germany.

The plan also sets out security guarantees that would include long-term support for the Ukrainian armed forces, the deployment of a European-led multinational force in Ukraine in case of a peace settlement, and “binding” commitments to support Ukraine should there be a future Russian attack.

French President Macron continues misleading the media, changing the intention of President Trump:

“The coalition of the willing declaration for a solid and lasting peace … for the first time recognizes an operational convergence between the 35 countries, Ukraine and the U.S. to build robust security guarantees,” Macron told reporters. Washington will participate in those guarantees, including with the “backstop” that Europeans wanted, he added.

It’s professional parseltongue from Macron, a man well-versed in the art of linguistic manipulation.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that after a ceasefire, the U.K. and France will set up military hubs across Ukraine and “build protected facilities for weapons and military equipment to support Ukraine’s defense needs.”

France, the U.K. and Ukraine signed a separate declaration on Tuesday laying out these commitments.

The European-led multinational force will cover land, air and sea and will be stationed in Western Ukraine, far from the contact line, Macron said. France and the U.K. have previously said they would be willing to put boots on the ground — but most other coalition members, including Germany, have so far shied away from joining that commitment.

Other nations have suggested deploying aircraft based in neighboring NATO countries to monitor Ukrainian skies, and Turkey has agreed to lead the coalition’s maritime segment to secure the Black Sea.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Berlin was open to deploying its troops in a neighboring NATO country that would act in case of Russian aggression, telling reporters “we are not ruling anything out.” But he stressed that the final decision would be up to Germany’s parliament.

“I will only make proposals to the Bundestag once there is a ceasefire and the coalition of the willing has agreed on the procedure to be followed,” he told reporters. “The prerequisite is a ceasefire.”

Some European countries, however, remain reluctant to deploy military assets in a post-war Ukraine. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis repeated that Greece will not participate in a European military force in Ukraine. However, Greek government officials said Mitsotakis has not ruled out other forms of assistance, such as in maritime surveillance. (more)

[The EU Readout HERE]

Witkoff and Kushner continued the Trump approach to heap praise upon the coalition, affirm their best intentions and openly, publicly advocate for the support therein. However, this is a European issue, supported by the U.S, but not operationally engaged with U.S. military despite the EU/Ukraine demands and continued requests.

The U.S. will monitor the Ukraine ceasefire situation and act as a diplomatic peacekeeper, establishing deconfliction channels of open communication between the USA and Russia.  However, Europe, this so-called “coalition of the willing,” will be responsible for any military backstop within that approach.

Prime Minister Starmer is all-in to put his British troops on the ground. France less so, with Macron hedging. Germany even less so with Chancellor Merz saying his parliament needs to approve of troop movements.

Everyone is hedging, unsure, seemingly tenuous because they have never operated without the USA acting as the heavy enforcement mechanism.  President Trump is coaching them to take responsibility for their own region.  The ‘coalition of the willing’ is doing their typically European thing, shouting strong words at Vladimir Putin – but checking to make sure the biggest playground enforcer is standing behind them.

♦ My message to those who worry about President Trump committing us to something protracted that will eventually end in our being pulled into a European theater of conflict, quit worrying.  Trump is telling the EU to quit talking and start actively being responsible for their own security.  In the background Trump has bigger plans.

Hans Mahncke has a solid take on the bigger picture:

The notion that America wants Greenland for its raw materials is either insanely ignorant or just engagement bait. Extracting anything in the Arctic is prohibitively expensive, and often physically impossible, with extreme cold, thick ice, equipment that won’t function, and no roads, rail or ports to move anything once you have it.

The real reason America needs Greenland is its immense geostrategic military value, which should be obvious to anyone with a functioning brain, especially anyone who has ever looked at a map from above, with the North Pole at the center.

Sure, some tasks could be outsourced to NATO, but that alliance is on its last legs, burdened by too many countries with conflicting priorities, and has mainly served as a way for Europe to freeload on US security guarantees. Relying on it for American national security is reckless. It’s far smarter to cut out the endless middlemen and take direct control. (source)

Mahncke is correct. On one side of the ice, you have North America. On the other side of the ice you have, well, the reason for President Trump to order dozens of icebreakers.

October, 2025: Finland is slightly smaller than Montana and wedged between Sweden and Russia. Finland, a nation of approximately 5 million people, has a security outlook shaped by its geography, a strategic position within the new NATO/Arctic strategy.

President Trump holds a bilateral discussion with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, as the two leaders’ complete terms for eleven icebreaker ships valued at $6.1 billion. Under terms of the deal, three of the ships will be built by Davie in Galveston, Texas, and four by Bollinger Shipyards in Houma, Louisiana.

Finland is the world leader in icebreaker ship building and will help teach U.S. ship building companies the latest advances in the technology. [SOURCE]

Stay Elevated:

December, 2025: Appearing on Fox News to discuss the Ukraine v Russia conflict, Finland President Alexander Stubb is questioned about the conflicting U.S. intelligence reports pushed by Reuters saying Russia will invade Europe, versus DNI Tulsi Gabbard saying Russia has no capability or intent to invade Europe.

President Stubb notes his agencies work closely with U.S. intelligence and in his view, Tulsi Gabbard is correct regarding President Vladimir Putin’s intention. [SOURCE]

President Trump is dancing through a geopolitical minefield, deconstructing numerous long-standing economic and manipulative institutions along the way, while simultaneously keeping 100 domestic agenda plates spinning on sticks.

It is amazing to watch his navigation skills.

Do not join the opposition effort to divide.  Instead, smile and enjoy this.

Be thankful that God has allowed you to see what is unfolding. Others that remain asleep are not as lucky as you.

Ask yourself in prayer, why you. Why now? Then, think about this daily in your quiet time.

Affirm your spirit and allow this sense of fortunate knowledge to elevate your faith and confidence in a loving and purposeful God. You have the unique gift of discernment. Ultimately, you have been chosen.

Be thankful. Remember, Romans 13:12

Live a positive, affirming, purposeful and incredible life.

Within every battle, challenge and contest we encounter, always remember to be thankful and continue living your best life.

[Support Our Ongoing Mission Here]

Facing Expanded Federal and State Fraud Investigations, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz Announces He Will Not Seek Reelection


Posted originally on CTH on January 5, 2026 | Sundance |

As both federal and state fraud investigations expand, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announces he will not seek reelection in 2026.

The announcement was made in a four-page post on X.  Methinks the governor doth protest too much.

.

[SOURCE]

Zelenskyy Announces Eastern Ukraine Citizens Will Not Be Allowed to Vote in Elections


Posted originally on CTH on December 21, 2025 | Sundance 

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has agreed to hold elections if there is a ceasefire.  However, Eastern Ukraine citizens, those currently living in the Donbas region, who are supportive of Russia, will not be permitted to vote.

This creates a rather bizarre official hypocrisy within the Zelenskyy regime.  The official position of Zelenskyy is that Eastern Ukraine will never be accepted as a part of the Russian federation.

Zelenskyy has recently noted, with EU leadership support, that his government will never recognize Eastern Ukraine as part of the Russian federation.  However, this same region, approximately 20% of Ukraine, will not be permitted to participate in his controlled election.

Essentially, any Ukraine resident who does not support Zelenskyy will not be permitted to vote in any election, if any election is ever permitted.  Additionally, Zelenskyy notes that “there is the practice of voting abroad,” however, any region not controlled by Zelenskyy cannot submit votes.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy – “It is not up to Putin to decide when or in what format elections in Ukraine will take place, because these elections are exclusively for Ukrainian citizens. Therefore, he will certainly not influence anything, let alone the outcome.

Voting is carried out by citizens of Ukraine who are within the country, on Ukrainian-controlled territory. Here, we can ensure fair and transparent elections. There is also the practice of voting abroad. Elections cannot be held in territories not controlled by Ukraine, because it is obvious how they would be conducted – just as Russia always does.

Overall, elections depend on two factors: security and legislation. Security must be addressed; this is the top priority. It is important that our military personnel, who are defending the country, are able to vote. Every citizen has an absolute right to vote.

We have already discussed this with our U.S. partners; they raised this issue. If they raise it, it means they know how to help us ensure safe elections. This, primarily, could involve a ceasefire, or bringing the war to an end, or a ceasefire, at least for the duration of the elections.” {source}

Also from Zelenskyy:

We are moving at a fairly rapid pace, and our team in Florida has been working with the American side. European representatives were also invited. These negotiations are constructive and this matters. Much depends on whether Russia feels the need to end the war for real – it must not be a rhetorical or political game on Russia’s part. Unfortunately, the real signals coming from Russia remain only negative: assaults along the frontline, Russian war crimes in border areas, and continued strikes against our infrastructure. It is essential that the world does not remain silent about all of this. {source}

[…] Peace is better than war, but not at any cost, because we have already paid a high price. What matters for us is a just, durable peace – one that cannot be violated by another whim of Putin or any other Putin-like figure. It is extremely important to have strong security guarantees in place to prevent even the thought or the physical ability to come back to us with aggression.

I do not see the Budapest Memorandum as an agreement; I see it as nothing more than a piece of paper, because our territories were occupied, and so many people were killed. And this agreement did not protect us. I do not consider it strong or effective.

Therefore, for me, an agreement is not just about signing a document. One must know the details: what will happen if the Russians come with aggression and launch another war. How will the Americans and Europeans respond? How will our partners respond? What deterrence package will Ukraine have? What will be present on Ukrainian territory? How will our army be equipped? How strong will it be, and what reserves will we have? What can we count on? What sanctions package will be imposed simultaneously on the aggressor? {source}

The 2025 Attempted MAGA Fracture and the Benefactors Behind It


Posted originally on CTH on December 20, 2025 | Sundance

BUMPED: I see the efforts to divide the MAGA base continue. I remind everyone to be prudent in your discernment of who is antagonizing, what topics and processes they are using, and ultimately who benefits from it.  Remember, “there are trillions at stake!”  This nonsense battle of “influencers” and “podcasters” is, well, just gross. 

On March 3rd through March 6th, 2016, the Republican presidential primary was at the precipice of a key inflection point (Super Tuesday) when a large group of political leadership, tech titans, bankers and political influence agents assembled at the AEI summit in Sea Island, Georgia.

Citation Here – Citation Here and Citation HERE (w/itinerary details)

In the decade that passed, you have seen me reference this Sea Island group frequently, because the origin of where we are today can only be understood if you followed the outcome of that 2016 Sea Island meeting and the decade of activity therein.

In 2016 the agenda of the group, though they gently denied it at the time, was to figure out a way to remove the disruption Donald Trump represented from the business model of DC politics.  The Sea Island confab discussed how to stop him, or at the very least manage the potential damage he could deliver to the system – specifically, to the Republican wing of the UniParty apparatus.

Here in 2025, we are currently witnessing an outcome of activity from essentially the same group. For this phase, the intention is to fracture the baseline of support that underpins President Trump’s movement; what is reasonably called MAGA and the America-First movement.

What follows below is a review that might help people understand what exactly is behind the various pressure narratives we see being introduced into this narrative operation.   The remarks toward Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens, various iterations of Qatar vs Israel as espoused by voices like Mark Levin and Ben Shapiro, the claims of antisemitism shouted against any voice that doesn’t put the interests of the current Israeli administration at the forefront, and the various alignments therein.

In the biggest picture, this is not a battle against individual voices, but rather the positioning of interests to maintain the same objective that was discussed in the aforementioned Sea Island confab.

A few points are needed for context as this discussion enlarges.  First, I am only 80% finished with the year-long tracking of the participants; however, due to multiple requests this is one of the few times I will outline something that is not yet fully developed.  I have written about this activity before {SEE HERE} in 2023.

Second, this is not the first rodeo for this activity.  After the Tea Party rose in 2010, we saw this same institutional response from almost identical participants to control the threat of a leaderless organic grassroots movement.  President Obama, the DNC/RNC and the Republican power apparatus all opposed the Tea Party, as they do MAGA for exactly the same reason.

The need for control is a reaction to fear.

You might remember supporters of the various patriot or Tea Party grassroots organizations being targeted by the Obama DOJ and IRS. Simultaneously John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell labeled Tea Party supporters as political jihadists, extremists and hobbits.  The targeting operations to isolate, ridicule and marginalize the movement was both a DNC and an RNC operation.

Republicans and Democrats worked together to eliminate the Tea Party, and Republicans were more than willing to lose elections to stop Tea Party supported candidates from winning.  This is important to remember, because that type of activity both evidences the UniParty apparatus and the opposition to the modern iteration of the Tea Party in the larger MAGA voting base.  In short, the DC professional political apparatus hates all versions of the same uncontrollable electorate regardless of label.

When they departed Sea Island, eventually the professional Republicans (GOPe) ended up settling on supporting Hillary Clinton, because Donald Trump could not be defeated within the confines of the party apparatus and became the presumptive nominee.   The tech group from Sea Island was already part of the Hillary Clinton alignment, and the “political influence agents” also saw Hillary as the comfortable, predictable and non-disruptive candidate. The key underpinning all of them was “anyone but Trump.”

Hillary then walked toward November with party Democrats, party Republicans, tech, Silicon Valley and the never-Trump conservatives.  However, Hillary encountered a major minus in the electorate when the Bernie Sanders group discovered the origin of the DNC control operation.  Hillary Clinton gained the party Republicans, but Hillary Clinton lost a lot of Bernie voters; many of them went to Trump.

[NOTE: It’s a little funny, but the five-year-long RNC -vs- TP/MAGA fight is essentially what we are now watching within the other wing of the UniParty, the DNC wing.  The grassroots left against the DNC professionals.  The “progressives” or “socialist democrats” are taking Democrat scalps the same way the grassroots right took down Republicans.  The old guard Democrats are quitting.]

All of this is said to frame the context for 2025, and the objectives of the political influence agents to break up the MAGA movement into smaller digestible pieces.  The wedge issue is not accidentally Israel.

Israel has been selected as a wedge issue to divide MAGA, because Israel-First influencers viewed themselves in a vulnerable position.  This too needs context.

♦ QATAR.  All year long I have been watching the Qatar vs Israel battle surface on social media.  At first it was a very odd dynamic to watch, because it did not make sense.  Then a few things became more visible that made it evident why the U.S-Israel groups were concerned.

In the decade that preceded 2025, you cannot find too many examples of Qatar ever having a positive headline outside the praise from Barack Obama and Joe Biden.  While Obama had always embraced Qatar (ex. bank for the Muslim Brotherhood), it was Joe Biden who labeled Qatar a major non-NATO ally.  The Obama/Biden administration liked Qatar, the first Trump administration not so much.

Prior to 2025, Qatar had a history of bad influence operations, where “bad” is defined as them doing really bad things; like funding radical Islamic extremists (creating the Arab Spring), giving safe haven to the exiled Islamist Egyptian leadership, financing Al-Jazeera, shipping covert CIA/State Dept weapons to the al-Qaeda operatives in Libya and Syria, being the bankers for Iranian money, supporting Hamas leadership, etc.

In the first Trump term, President Trump confronted Qatar and told the Gulf Cooperation Council (Egypt, Bahrain, UAE and Saudi Arabia) to maintain pressure on Qatar. So, it was quite a reversal to see the second Trump term reverse course entirely and begin praising Qatar.  However, if you think about the issue of the Israeli war in Gaza, and how that changed the landscape, things begin to take on a new context.

This new 2025 positive-Qatar vibe created anxiety for the pro-Israel elements inside the USA.  It wasn’t a matter of direct policy that seemed to unnerve them, but rather a change in influence priority.  Influence is a tenuous game of position.

In early 2025, Israel-first voices started to seem visibly worried their White House influence operation may be diminished by a positive Trump message toward Qatar.  In my opinion, that influence fear was actually substantive, and yet part of an intentional Trump foreign policy agenda; akin to a soft brushback pitch against the U.S-Israel influence shop who had become very comfortable taking their Trump influence for granted.

Friendly messaging toward Qatar’s influence shop was viewed by U.S-Israeli voices as a betrayal. However, given the nature of the Trump transition team having former lobbyists for Qatar, the friendly messaging was understandable; however, x2, that set of facts didn’t make it palatable for the Israeli coalition. Ergo, an influence battle began very early in the Trump administration, and the internecine Qatar vs Israel issue was visible to those of us who watch things closely.

Keep in mind, historically within the GOPe apparatus, this was a lucrative financial tug-of-influence game. The neocon/intelligence wing (Bolton/McCain) had one foot in pro-Qatar and one foot in pro-Israel, with ¹both sides funding for influence and delivering affluence.  So much so that their interests from a USA viewpoint were virtually indistinguishable, see Libya.  Additionally, behind this financial set of motives, this confab of influence beneficiaries was/is the core of that Sea Island meeting.

[¹President Obama played this dynamic brilliantly to the benefit of his Muslim Brotherhood allies.]

♦ THE RACE – At this point in the analysis, it is worthwhile dropping the traditional viewpoint of U.S. politicians as “candidates” and start thinking about them in the more accurate term as “horses.”  The horses race in the Kentucky Derby, but it is the owners who win the prize money.

When you view U.S. politicians as horses in the various races, we start to think more clearly about who their owners are. This is the key to understanding U.S political candidates.

You might be able to remember the name of the horse who won the Triple Crown, you might even remember the jockey who rode the horse, but less likely you remember who owned it.  In U.S. politics, it’s the owners within the political races who control the horses not the horses who control the owners.

Donald J. Trump represented a serious threat to this dynamic.  Trump is a horse who is also his owner; this is a major disruption in political sport.

The owners assembled in Sea Island, March 2016, to discuss this disruption.

By the time we get to 2020, the ‘anyone but Trump’ theme was clearly at play.  The Intelligence Community assisted, Big Tech assisted, corporate media assisted, our ever-predictable Republicans were once again purposefully and willfully blind, and with mail-in ballots all the rage, Trump was all alone against the entire apparatus with only voters trying to offset the American political control operation.   In the aftermath of the ridiculous outcome, all of the participants circled the wagons, and Nancy Pelosi provided the literal fence.

In 2021, the Big Tech sub-segment of the Sea Island confab then went full combat against MAGA elements, banning, deplatforming, demonetizing and removing any countervailing voices.  Meanwhile, anyone associated with Trump was targeted by the collaborating government mechanisms, DOJ/FBI and the media once again ran cover.

In the 2023 version of ‘anyone but Trump,’ 43 billionaires together with an assist from Sea Island attendee, Elon Musk, tried to launch Ron DeSantis as a MAGA alternative.  However, the Tea Party-hardened MAGA voters looked at their scars, and when they saw the $100 bill on a fishing line being dragged through the MAGA community, they refused to chase it.

By then, the 2016 Cruz Crew had switched to 2024 Alligator emojis, but even the “Evangelicals” with unlimited funding couldn’t fuel the DeSantis starship.

The Ron launch was as wobbly as DeSantis’ head during speaking engagements; and Casey wearing Melania’s heels, Duck Dynasty skinny pants and Sarah Palin’s ‘Grizzly Mama’ T-shirt couldn’t compensate.

What a hot mess.

The MAGA alternative was as structurally inauthentic as Ron’s boots, even with the lifts.

Hey, be thankful.  No one has ever accused the Republican consultant class of accurately assessing the political landscape around them.

Their inauthenticity is what helps us to know who they are.  It’s a net positive.

I would make the argument that if Ron’s owners had somehow pulled it off, Biden would have been yanked fast and replaced with Newsom, and we’d be looking at the “future in hindsight” right now.

♦ 2025 – That Sea Island crew doesn’t quit.  The “anyone but Trump” operation is back in full swing despite the 2024 victory message.

Step #1 in the control process is to lose the 2026 election and put the Republican wing of the uniparty bird back into the minority.  Again, this isolates our people’s president.

However, they can’t just lose 2026 and call it a day.  They still need to manage the problem that President Trump represents for another three years.  There are Trump policies to undermine, Trump executive orders to let sit non-legislatively supported, and all of this inaction must take place while Trump supporters are distracted with maximum shiny things.

This is where the “political influencers” come into play as mercenaries and advanced operative messengers for a very useful dynamic to emphasize – the operation that began as Qatar vs Israel.

Tucker Carlson representing the face of JD Vance’s support network becomes a target for Mark Levin et al.  Candace Owens is labeled as the female face of Nick Fuentes, who, for some odd reason, is being algorithmically boosted by the same tech platforms that banned his account as an identified racist, extremist and antisemitic content producer.

This Fuentes boosting, again not coincidentally by the same elements who attended that 2016 Sea Island confab including Google, began in July 2025, about a month prior to TPUSA head Charlie Kirk telling his pro-Israel friends (billionaire Bill Ackman) that the content messaging on behalf of the Netanyahu government was backfiring amid Gen-Z.  To wit, Netanyahu said, ‘not to worry’ my good friends of Israel, Larry Ellison and David Ellison, have things under control with TikTok, Twitter and Paramount. CBS’s Bari Weiss announced shortly thereafter.

While the inside White House influence game continues, all of these various 2025 interests again find their origin in Sea Island, Georgia, at the March 2016 AEI conference.  Remember, think “owners” not “horses.”

♦ HORSES:

• Vice President JD Vance – Heir apparent to the MAGA endorsement of President Donald Trump.  Groomed from the stable of billionaire influence agent and one time (no more) friend of President Trump, Peter Thiel.  A more libertarian co-founder of Palantir, a skyrocketing AI software platform creator with billions in new federal contracts and likely more to come.  Palantir CEO Alex Karp, a key industrialist applying the very best of AI creator systems to the merging targeting and identity tracking technology of the future.

Without Peter Thiel, there is no Senator JD Vance in 2022.  Without Senator JD Vance there is no VP nominee in 2024.  Oh, and despite their stealth separating in 2017, Elon Musk and Peter Thiel remain BFF influencers in 2025.  And without Larry Ellison in 2022, there is no liquidity Musk to capture the Twitter Platform, which not coincidentally became a launch vehicle for the Ron effort shortly after Ellison said he would not allow Musk to fail.

So, where does that put JD Vance’s collar?  Who knows? We’ll keep watching as Mr Ellison, having successfully moved beyond the X operation, now moves to the TikTok/Paramount phase while simultaneously owning the Oracle system operation that X utilizes.

• Secretary of State Marco Rubio – For the first time in his political career, Marco is in a position where he is not directly accountable to voters.  Having risen through the Florida legislature, state house and on to a federal Senate seat representing Florida, for the first time Rubio is applying himself without any election worries.  His constituent base consists of President Trump.

Rubio is seemingly giving the appearance of having turned Maverick, having fun poking back at his previous owners, while running amuck in the free-range of Trump’s well-manicured landscape.  Is Rubio required to return to a previously designated stable?  Again, who knows. It’s super fun to watch this new less groomed, yet well maintained, stallion running in the wild.  However, his pedigree is as trained as a Lipizzaner stallion. Will he tire of the free-range? We’ll keep watching.

• Governor Ron DeSantis – The one constant political hot mess in an ever-consistent GOPe playbook.

You might say that DeSantis could never stand a chance given his failure to launch in 2024.  However, do not underestimate the stupidity of the professional consultant class who have a way of convincing owners that horse can run.

Ron’s only problem is he needs very narrow blinders and can’t turn corners.  Other than that, he’s solid in the straights when all the obstacles are removed and the track is groomed specifically for his platformed shoes.

The issue for Sea Island, with DeSantis, is that despite his extremely managed exteriors, and despite the massive amount of money spent on the influence operations and appearances, only a specific type of Jockey can fit that little saddle.

[I mean someone had to tell Casey what to wear in Iowa the last time, and, well, think about it….  They both looked in the mirror that morning and thought, “Awesome – this will get em’.”  How’d that work out?]

SUMMARY:  Underneath all of what we are visibly seeing and witnessing, especially the outrage du-jour, is an underlying political background that consistently tries to control outcomes through various methods.  This effort to split the MAGA base, using Israel or (insert_next_thing_here) as a wedge issue within the America First movement – only benefits one larger apparatus, the Sea Island billionaire control system.

This billionaire control system, a public-private partnership, previously deconstructed and co-opted the Tea Party returning the system to status quo.

The billionaires in finance and tech are set; their influence operation only varies slightly depending on the challenge, because they know they can purchase every horse in the race, and they are working earnestly through various iterations of the same owner playbook, with the end goal the same – control.

Just reject it.

Live your best life and pray.

Zelenskyy Announces Eastern Ukraine Citizens Will Not Be Allowed to Vote in Elections


Posted originally on CTH on December 21, 2025 | Sundance

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has agreed to hold elections if there is a ceasefire.  However, Eastern Ukraine citizens, those currently living in the Donbas region, who are supportive of Russia, will not be permitted to vote.

This creates a rather bizarre official hypocrisy within the Zelenskyy regime.  The official position of Zelenskyy is that Eastern Ukraine will never be accepted as a part of the Russian federation.

Zelenskyy has recently noted, with EU leadership support, that his government will never recognize Eastern Ukraine as part of the Russian federation.  However, this same region, approximately 20% of Ukraine, will not be permitted to participate in his controlled election.

Essentially, any Ukraine resident who does not support Zelenskyy will not be permitted to vote in any election, if any election is ever permitted.  Additionally, Zelenskyy notes that “there is the practice of voting abroad,” however, any region not controlled by Zelenskyy cannot submit votes.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy – “It is not up to Putin to decide when or in what format elections in Ukraine will take place, because these elections are exclusively for Ukrainian citizens. Therefore, he will certainly not influence anything, let alone the outcome.

Voting is carried out by citizens of Ukraine who are within the country, on Ukrainian-controlled territory. Here, we can ensure fair and transparent elections. There is also the practice of voting abroad. Elections cannot be held in territories not controlled by Ukraine, because it is obvious how they would be conducted – just as Russia always does.

Overall, elections depend on two factors: security and legislation. Security must be addressed; this is the top priority. It is important that our military personnel, who are defending the country, are able to vote. Every citizen has an absolute right to vote.

We have already discussed this with our U.S. partners; they raised this issue. If they raise it, it means they know how to help us ensure safe elections. This, primarily, could involve a ceasefire, or bringing the war to an end, or a ceasefire, at least for the duration of the elections.” {source}

Also from Zelenskyy:

We are moving at a fairly rapid pace, and our team in Florida has been working with the American side. European representatives were also invited. These negotiations are constructive and this matters. Much depends on whether Russia feels the need to end the war for real – it must not be a rhetorical or political game on Russia’s part. Unfortunately, the real signals coming from Russia remain only negative: assaults along the frontline, Russian war crimes in border areas, and continued strikes against our infrastructure. It is essential that the world does not remain silent about all of this. {source}

[…] Peace is better than war, but not at any cost, because we have already paid a high price. What matters for us is a just, durable peace – one that cannot be violated by another whim of Putin or any other Putin-like figure. It is extremely important to have strong security guarantees in place to prevent even the thought or the physical ability to come back to us with aggression.

I do not see the Budapest Memorandum as an agreement; I see it as nothing more than a piece of paper, because our territories were occupied, and so many people were killed. And this agreement did not protect us. I do not consider it strong or effective.

Therefore, for me, an agreement is not just about signing a document. One must know the details: what will happen if the Russians come with aggression and launch another war. How will the Americans and Europeans respond? How will our partners respond? What deterrence package will Ukraine have? What will be present on Ukrainian territory? How will our army be equipped? How strong will it be, and what reserves will we have? What can we count on? What sanctions package will be imposed simultaneously on the aggressor? {source}

Elise Stefanik Withdraws from NY Governor Race and Resigns from Congress


Posted originally on CTH on December 19, 2025 | Sundance

New York Representative Elise Stefanik announced on X that she is suspending her race for New York governor and will not be seeking reelection in congress.  Essentially a complete exit from electoral politics.

ELISE STEFANIK – While spending precious time with my family this Christmas season, I have made the decision to suspend my campaign for Governor and will not seek re-election to Congress. I did not come to this decision lightly for our family.

I am truly humbled and grateful for the historic and overwhelming support from Republicans, Conservatives, Independents, and Democrats all across the state for our campaign to Save New York.

However, as we have seen in past elections, while we would have overwhelmingly won this primary, it is not an effective use of our time or your generous resources to spend the first half of next year in an unnecessary and protracted Republican primary, especially in a challenging state like New York.

And while many know me as Congresswoman, my most important title is Mom. I believe that being a parent is life’s greatest gift and greatest responsibility. I have thought deeply about this and I know that as a mother, I will feel profound regret if I don’t further focus on my young son’s safety, growth, and happiness – particularly at his tender age.

I am incredibly grateful to the people of New York’s 21st District for entrusting me to represent you in the United States Congress. Thank you to my dedicated staff over the past decade. I am proud of the significant results that we successfully delivered for the hardworking families in our district and across America. It has been a tremendous professional honor to serve as your Congresswoman over the past eleven years.

Thank you for your support and encouragement as my family and I look forward to the next meaningful personal and professional chapter.

God Bless and Merry Christmas 

This is a very interesting withdrawal from politics.   Stefanik was very well positioned within the republican party and within republican party leadership in Washington DC.  However, earlier this month, fellow Republican and Nassau County official Bruce Blakeman, whom President Trump had labeled “100% MAGA” announced his own bid for governor, setting up a contested primary between himself and Stefanik.

Stefanik had a recent dustup with Speaker Johnson over the issue of an amendment to the NDAA that would require the FBI to give congressional notification for any candidate for federal office who would be under investigation.  She won that battle and the amendment was included.

Bannon 2.0 – Another Trump Chief of Staff Creates Another Hot Mess


Posted originally on CTH on December 16, 2025 | Sundance 

Last time it was Steve Bannon who held multiple interviews with Michael Wolff for his book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.  This time it is White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles who sat down for a series of recorded ‘on the record’ interviews with Vanity Fair author Chris Whipple. [Article w/ Paywall]

The interviews with Susie Wiles have been taking place all year, with recordings of her statements made to ensure she could not retract the divisive content now deployed by Vanity Fair at a critical moment in the Trump administration.

The intent of the Vanity Fair outline is to paint the most negative light possible, and it appears Susie Wiles gave Chris Whipple all the ammunition to do so.

TIMING: This anti-Trump narrative, supported by the toxic statements by Wiles, is dropped at a key moment when European leadership is purposefully pushing a narrative against President Trump. This series of articles and documented interviews hits at a moment of merging interests against the administration.  The coordination is noted.

SUBSTANCE: The New York Times outlines some of the statements by Susie Wiles that are going to grab attention.

[…] “Over the course of 11 interviews, Ms. Wiles offered pungent assessments of the president and his team: Mr. Trump “has an alcoholic’s personality.” Vice President JD Vance has “been a conspiracy theorist for a decade” and his conversion from Trump critic to ally was based not on principle but was “sort of political” because he was running for Senate. Elon Musk is “an avowed ketamine” user and “an odd, odd duck,” whose actions were not always “rational” and left her “aghast.” Russell T. Vought, the budget director, is “a right-wing absolute zealot.” And Attorney General Pam Bondi “completely whiffed” in handling the Epstein files.”

[…] She said she urged Mr. Trump not to pardon the most violent rioters from Jan. 6, 2021, which he did anyway. She unsuccessfully tried to get him to delay his major tariffs because of a “huge disagreement” among his advisers. And she said the administration needed to “look harder” at deportations to prevent mistakes.

[…] She attributes her ability to work for Mr. Trump to growing up with an alcoholic father, the sportscaster Pat Summerall. “High-functioning alcoholics or alcoholics in general, their personalities are exaggerated when they drink,” she said. “And so I’m a little bit of an expert in big personalities.” While Mr. Trump does not drink, she said he has “an alcoholic’s personality” and operates with “a view that there’s nothing he can’t do. Nothing, zero, nothing.”

[…] Ms. Wiles confided in Mr. Whipple in March that she had told Mr. Trump that his presidency was not supposed to be a retribution tour. “We have a loose agreement that the score settling will end before the first 90 days are over,” she said then. When that did not happen by August, she told Mr. Whipple that “I don’t think he’s on a retribution tour” but said that he was aiming at people who did “bad things” in coming after him. “In some cases, it may look like retribution,” she said. “And there may be an element of that from time to time. Who would blame him? Not me.”

[…] In the interviews published by Vanity Fair, Ms. Wiles faulted Ms. Bondi, one of her closest friends in the administration, for her early handling of the Epstein files, an issue that has been a cause célèbre for Mr. Trump’s right-wing base.

“I think she completely whiffed on appreciating that that was the very targeted group that cared about this,” Ms. Wiles said. “First, she gave them binders full of nothingness. And then she said that the witness list, or the client list, was on her desk. There is no client list, and it sure as hell wasn’t on her desk.” Mr. Vance, by contrast, understood the sensitivity because he himself was “a conspiracy theorist,” she said.

Ms. Wiles said she has read the Epstein documents and acknowledged that Mr. Trump’s name is in them. “We know he’s in the file,” she said. “And he’s not in the file doing anything awful.”

[…] Ms. Wiles described frustration with Mr. Musk, the billionaire who early in the year was empowered to eviscerate federal agencies and fire employees en masse with almost no process. “He’s an odd, odd duck, as I think geniuses are. You know, it’s not helpful, but he is his own person.” When he shared a post saying that Stalin, Mao and Hitler didn’t murder millions, their public sector workers did, Ms. Wiles said, “I think that’s when he’s microdosing.” Asked what she meant, she said, “he’s an avowed ketamine” user.

[…] In the interview with The Times on Monday, Ms. Wiles took issue with the quote attributed to her about his drug use. “That’s ridiculous,” she said. “I wouldn’t have said it and I wouldn’t know.” But Mr. Whipple played a tape for The Times in which she could be heard saying it.

[…] She acknowledged sharp internal divisions over Mr. Trump’s announcement of major tariffs last spring. “There was a huge disagreement over whether” tariffs were “a good idea,” she said. “We told Donald Trump, ‘Hey, let’s not talk about tariffs today. Let’s wait until we have the team in complete unity and then we’ll do it.’” But he announced them anyway and “it’s been more painful than I expected.”

[…] As for the potential successors, Mr. Vance and Mr. Rubio, she distinguished how each of them came around to supporting Mr. Trump after initially opposing him. “Marco was not the sort of person that would violate his principles,” she said. “He just won’t. And so he had to get there.” As for Mr. Vance, “his conversion came when he was running for the Senate. And I think his conversion was a little bit more, sort of political.”

Mr. Rubio told Mr. Whipple what he has said publicly, that “if JD Vance runs for president, he’s going to be our nominee and I’ll be one of the first people to support him.” (read more)

Immediately after publication of the Vanity Fair story, Mrs. Wiles took to Twitter to explain her position:

[SOURCE]

Mrs. Wiles never explains why, for all that is reasonable and holy, she would even sit down with Vanity Fair for eleven interviews over the course of the year.

If you find yourself looking at this narrative engineering and saying, “WTF, why would she be so stupid?”  You are not alone.

Perhaps it’s the old axiom that sooner or later the senior staff always convince themselves that they are the star of the show.  Or perhaps Mrs. Wiles just never heard the Snake Poem:

On her way to work one morning
Down the path ‘longside the lake
A tender-hearted woman saw a poor half-frozen snake
His pretty colored skin had been all frosted with the dew
“Oh well,” she cried, “I’ll take you in and I’ll take care of you”
“Take me in, tender woman
Take me in, for heaven’s sake
Take me in, tender woman,” sighed the snake

She wrapped him up all cozy in a comforter of silk
And laid him by thе fireside with some honеy and some milk
She hurried home from work that night, and soon as she arrived
She found that pretty snake she’d taken in had been revived
“Take me in, tender woman
Take me in, for heaven’s sake
Take me in, tender woman,” sighed the snake

She clutched him to her bosom, “You’re so beautiful,” she cried
“But if I hadn’t brought you in, by now you might have died”
She stroked his pretty skin again and kissed and held him tight
Instead of saying thanks, that snake gave her a vicious bite
“Take me in, tender woman
Take me in, for heaven’s sake
Take me in, tender woman,” sighed the snake

“I saved you,” cried the woman
“And you’ve bitten me, but why?
And you know your bite is poisonous and now I’m gonna die”
“Oh shut up, silly woman,” said the reptile with a grin
“You knew damn well I was a snake before you took me in”

Oscar Brown Jr

Pentagon Says It’s Investigating Senator Mark Kelly


Posted originally on CTH on November 24, 2025 | Sundance

This could potentially be very good news; however, the battle between where we are today and where we would need to be in order to address unlawful sedition criminally is very far apart.  Let’s hope the Pentagon and DOJ can harden up and start to take down these political bad actors.

In a social media post Monday, the Pentagon said it received complaints over former U.S. Navy Captain Mark Kelly’s efforts to undermine President Trump and destabilize the U.S. government.

[SOURCE]

The pentagon saying they received, “serious allegations of misconduct” against him, and “a thorough review of these allegations has been initiated to determine further actions, which may include recall to active duty for court-martial proceedings or administrative measures.”

WASHINGTON DC – […] Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared the Pentagon’s post and referred to the lawmakers as the “Seditious Six.” Noting that five of the six lawmakers do not fall under the Pentagon’s jurisdiction, he added that Kelly does.

[SOURCE

A New Book “Stolen Elections” with Lara Logan, Gary Berntsen and Ralph Pezzullo


Posted originally on CTH on November 23, 2025 | Sundance 

President Trump is calling attention to a recent podcast interview conducted by Lara Logan with Gary Berntsten and Ralph Pezzullo, surrounding the new book “Stolen Elections” as authored by Pezzullo. [TRUTH SOCIAL]

Several people have also sent me information related to this *video interview with strong recommendations to watch it and review the content.   The interview is over 2 hours long, and I know everyone’s time has value. I have only just begun to review the content, but I am sharing for those with interest.  WATCH: 

*Keep in mind, underneath all of the discussion is an intent to sell a book.  Out of respect for those who sent it to me, I will finish watching it.

CHAPTERS:
(0:00:00) – Exposing the True Power Players
(0:04:34) – The Stolen Elections Investigation
(0:10:04) – Foreign Influence
(0:20:12) – Uncovering Election Fraud Networks
(0:30:12) – Persecuted Christians

(0:35:41) – Revealing Evidence
(0:39:42) – Foreign Election Interference
(0:44:13) – Foreign Influence in US Intelligence
(0:58:08) – Global Election Fraud Networks
(1:06:33) – The Cartels’ Global Influence
(1:11:42) – Infiltration of American Institutions
(1:23:04) – Uncovering Election Fraud
(1:31:51) – Chinese Hybrid Warfare in US Elections
(1:44:47) – Investigating Election Fraud Networks
(1:55:24) – Father-Son Diplomatic Bond
(2:01:13) – State Department Covert Actions
(2:10:09) – The Fight to Save America
(2:15:56) – Cartel Connections

[SOURCE]

The 2025 MAGA Fracture and the Benefactors Behind It


Posted originally on CTH on November 22, 2025 | Sundance

BUMPED: I see the efforts to divide the MAGA base are in full swing.  I remind everyone to be prudent in your discernment of who is antagonizing, what topics and processes they are using, and ultimately who benefits from it.  Remember, “there are trillions at stake!”  

On March 3rd through March 6th, 2016, the Republican presidential primary was at the precipice of a key inflection point (Super Tuesday) when a large group of political leadership, tech titans, bankers and political influence agents assembled at the AEI summit in Sea Island, Georgia.

Citation Here – Citation Here and Citation HERE (w/itinerary details)

In the decade that passed, you have seen me reference this Sea Island group frequently, because the origin of where we are today can only be understood if you followed the outcome of that 2016 Sea Island meeting and the decade of activity therein.

In 2016 the agenda of the group, though they gently denied it at the time, was to figure out a way to remove the disruption Donald Trump represented from the business model of DC politics.  The Sea Island confab discussed how to stop him, or at the very least manage the potential damage he could deliver to the system – specifically, to the Republican wing of the UniParty apparatus.

Here in 2025, we are currently witnessing an outcome of activity from essentially the same group. For this phase, the intention is to fracture the baseline of support that underpins President Trump’s movement; what is reasonably called MAGA and the America-First movement.

What follows below is a review that might help people understand what exactly is behind the various pressure narratives we see being introduced into this narrative operation.   The attacks against Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, various iterations of Qatar vs Israel as espoused by voices like Mark Levin, the claims of antisemitism shouted against any voice that doesn’t put the interests of the Israeli government at the forefront, and the various alignments therein.

In the biggest picture, this is not a battle against individual voices, but rather the positioning of interests to maintain the same objective that was discussed in the aforementioned Sea Island confab.

A few points are needed for context as this discussion enlarges.  First, I am only 80% finished with the year-long tracking of the participants; however, due to the severity of the issue and the urgency therein, this is one of the few times I will outline something that is not yet fully developed.

Second, this is not the first rodeo for this activity.  After the Tea Party rose in 2010, we saw this same institutional response from almost identical participants to control the threat of a leaderless organic grassroots movement.  President Obama, the DNC/RNC and the Republican power apparatus all opposed the Tea Party, as they do MAGA for exactly the same reason.

The need for control is a reaction to fear.

You might remember supporters of the various patriot or Tea Party grassroots organizations being targeted by the Obama DOJ and IRS. Simultaneously John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell labeled Tea Party supporters as political jihadists, extremists and hobbits.  The targeting operations to isolate, ridicule and marginalize the movement was both a DNC and an RNC operation.

Republicans and Democrats worked together to eliminate the Tea Party, and Republicans were more than willing to lose elections to stop Tea Party supported candidates from winning.  This is important to remember, because that type of activity both evidences the UniParty apparatus and the opposition to the modern iteration of the Tea Party in the larger MAGA voting base.  In short, the DC professional political apparatus hates all versions of the same uncontrollable electorate regardless of label.

When they departed Sea Island, eventually the professional Republicans (GOPe) ended up settling on supporting Hillary Clinton, because Donald Trump could not be defeated within the confines of the party apparatus and became the presumptive nominee.   The tech group from Sea Island was already part of the Hillary Clinton alignment, and the “political influence agents” also saw Hillary as the comfortable, predictable and non-disruptive candidate. The key underpinning all of them was “anyone but Trump.”

Hillary then walked toward November with party Democrats, party Republicans, tech, Silicon Valley and the never-Trump conservatives.  However, Hillary encountered a major minus in the electorate when the Bernie Sanders group discovered the origin of the DNC control operation.  Hillary Clinton gained the party Republicans, but Hillary Clinton lost a lot of Bernie voters; many of them went to Trump.

[NOTE: It’s a little funny, but the five-year-long RNC -vs- TP/MAGA fight is essentially what we are now watching within the other wing of the UniParty, the DNC wing.  The grassroots left against the DNC professionals.  The “progressives” or “socialist democrats” are taking Democrat scalps the same way the grassroots right took down Republicans.  The old guard Democrats are quitting.]

All of this is said to frame the context for 2025, and the objectives of the political influence agents to break up the MAGA movement into smaller digestible pieces.  The wedge issue is not accidentally Israel.

Israel has been selected as a wedge issue to divide MAGA, because Israel-First influencers viewed themselves in a vulnerable position.  This too needs context.

♦ QATAR.  All year long I have been watching the Qatar vs Israel battle surface on social media.  At first it was a very odd dynamic to watch, because it did not make sense.  Then a few things became more visible that made it evident why the U.S-Israel groups were concerned.

In the decade that preceded 2025, you cannot find too many examples of Qatar ever having a positive headline outside the praise from Barack Obama and Joe Biden.  While Obama had always embraced Qatar (ex. bank for the Muslim Brotherhood), it was Joe Biden who labeled Qatar a major non-NATO ally.  The Obama/Biden administration liked Qatar, the first Trump administration not so much.

Prior to 2025, Qatar had a history of bad influence operations, where “bad” is defined as them doing really bad things; like funding radical Islamic extremists (creating the Arab Spring), giving safe haven to the exiled Islamist Egyptian leadership, financing Al-Jazeera, shipping covert CIA/State Dept weapons to the al-Qaeda operatives in Libya and Syria, being the bankers for Iranian money, supporting Hamas leadership, etc.

In the first Trump term, President Trump confronted Qatar and told the Gulf Cooperation Council (Egypt, Bahrain, UAE and Saudi Arabia) to maintain pressure on Qatar. So, it was quite a reversal to see the second Trump term reverse course entirely and begin praising Qatar.  However, if you think about the issue of the Israeli war in Gaza, and how that changed the landscape, things begin to take on a new context.

This new 2025 positive-Qatar vibe created anxiety for the pro-Israel elements inside the USA.  It wasn’t a matter of direct policy that seemed to unnerve them, but rather a change in influence priority.  Influence is a tenuous game of position.

In early 2025, Israel-first voices started to seem visibly worried their White House influence operation may be diminished by a positive Trump message toward Qatar.  In my opinion, that influence fear was actually substantive, and yet part of an intentional Trump foreign policy agenda; akin to a soft brushback pitch against the U.S-Israel influence shop who had become very comfortable taking their Trump influence for granted.

Friendly messaging toward Qatar’s influence shop was viewed by U.S-Israeli voices as a betrayal. However, given the nature of the Trump transition team having former lobbyists for Qatar, the friendly messaging was understandable; however, x2, that set of facts didn’t make it palatable for the Israeli coalition. Ergo, an influence battle began very early in the Trump administration, and the internecine Qatar vs Israel issue was visible to those of us who watch things closely.

Keep in mind, historically within the GOPe apparatus, this was a lucrative financial tug-of-influence game. The neocon/intelligence wing (Bolton/McCain) had one foot in pro-Qatar and one foot in pro-Israel, with ¹both sides funding for influence and delivering affluence.  So much so that their interests from a USA viewpoint were virtually indistinguishable, see Libya.  Additionally, behind this financial set of motives, this confab of influence beneficiaries was/is the core of that Sea Island meeting.

[¹President Obama played this dynamic brilliantly to the benefit of his Muslim Brotherhood allies.]

♦ THE RACE – At this point in the analysis, it is worthwhile dropping the traditional viewpoint of U.S. politicians as “candidates” and start thinking about them in the more accurate term as “horses.”  The horses race in the Kentucky Derby, but it is the owners who win the prize money.

When you view U.S. politicians as horses in the various races, we start to think more clearly about who their owners are. This is the key to understanding U.S political candidates.

You might be able to remember the name of the horse who won the Triple Crown, you might even remember the jockey who rode the horse, but less likely you remember who owned it.  In U.S. politics, it’s the owners within the political races who control the horses not the horses who control the owners.

Donald J. Trump represented a serious threat to this dynamic.  Trump is a horse who is also his owner; this is a major disruption in political sport.

The owners assembled in Sea Island, March 2016, to discuss this disruption.

By the time we get to 2020, the ‘anyone but Trump’ theme was clearly at play.  The Intelligence Community assisted, Big Tech assisted, corporate media assisted, our ever-predictable Republicans were once again purposefully and willfully blind, and with mail-in ballots all the rage, Trump was all alone against the entire apparatus with only voters trying to offset the American political control operation.   In the aftermath of the ridiculous outcome, all of the participants circled the wagons, and Nancy Pelosi provided the literal fence.

In 2021, the Big Tech sub-segment of the Sea Island confab then went full combat against MAGA elements, banning, deplatforming, demonetizing and removing any countervailing voices.  Meanwhile, anyone associated with Trump was targeted by the collaborating government mechanisms, DOJ/FBI and the media once again ran cover.

In the 2023 version of ‘anyone but Trump,’ 43 billionaires together with an assist from Sea Island attendee, Elon Musk, tried to launch Ron DeSantis as a MAGA alternative.  However, the Tea Party-hardened MAGA voters looked at their scars, and when they saw the $100 bill on a fishing line being dragged through the MAGA community, they refused to chase it.

By then, the 2016 Cruz Crew had switched to 2024 Alligator emojis, but even the “Evangelicals” with unlimited funding couldn’t fuel the DeSantis starship.

The Ron launch was as wobbly as DeSantis’ head during speaking engagements; and Casey wearing Melania’s heels, Duck Dynasty skinny pants and Sarah Palin’s ‘Grizzly Mama’ T-shirt couldn’t compensate.

What a hot mess.

The MAGA alternative was as structurally inauthentic as Ron’s boots, even with the lifts.

Hey, be thankful.  No one has ever accused the Republican consultant class of accurately assessing the political landscape around them.

Their inauthenticity is what helps us to know who they are.  It’s a net positive.

I would make the argument that if Ron’s owners had somehow pulled it off, Biden would have been yanked fast and replaced with Newsom, and we’d be looking at the “future in hindsight” right now.

♦ 2025 – That Sea Island crew doesn’t quit.  The “anyone but Trump” operation is back in full swing despite the 2024 victory message.

Step #1 in the control process is to lose the 2026 election and put the Republican wing of the uniparty bird back into the minority.  Again, this isolates our people’s president.

However, they can’t just lose 2026 and call it a day.  They still need to manage the problem that President Trump represents for another three years.  There are Trump policies to undermine, Trump executive orders to let sit non-legislatively supported, and all of this inaction must take place while Trump supporters are distracted with maximum shiny things.

This is where the “political influencers” come into play as mercenaries and advanced operative messengers for a very useful dynamic to emphasize – the operation that began as Qatar vs Israel.

Tucker Carlson representing the face of JD Vance’s support network becomes a target for Mark Levin et al.  Candace Owens is labeled as the female face of Nick Fuentes, who, for some odd reason, is being algorithmically boosted by the same tech platforms that banned his account as an identified racist, extremist and antisemitic content producer.

This Fuentes boosting, again not coincidentally by the same elements who attended that 2016 Sea Island confab including Google, began in July 2025, about a month prior to TPUSA head Charlie Kirk telling his pro-Israel friends (billionaire Bill Ackman) that the content messaging on behalf of the Netanyahu government was backfiring amid Gen-Z.  To wit, Netanyahu said, ‘not to worry’ my good friends of Israel, Larry Ellison and David Ellison, have things under control with TikTok, Twitter and Paramount. CBS’s Bari Weiss announced shortly thereafter.

While the inside White House influence game continues, all of these various 2025 interests again find their origin in Sea Island, Georgia, at the March 2016 AEI conference.  Remember, think “owners” not “horses.”

♦ HORSES:

• Vice President JD Vance – Heir apparent to the MAGA endorsement of President Donald Trump.  Groomed from the stable of billionaire influence agent and one time (no more) friend of President Trump, Peter Thiel.  A more libertarian co-founder of Palantir, a skyrocketing AI software platform creator with billions in new federal contracts and likely more to come.  Palantir CEO Alex Karp, a key industrialist applying the very best of AI creator systems to the merging targeting and identity tracking technology of the future.

Without Peter Thiel, there is no Senator JD Vance in 2022.  Without Senator JD Vance there is no VP nominee in 2024.  Oh, and despite their stealth separating in 2017, Elon Musk and Peter Thiel remain BFF influencers in 2025.  And without Larry Ellison in 2022, there is no liquidity Musk to capture the Twitter Platform, which not coincidentally became a launch vehicle for the Ron effort shortly after Ellison said he would not allow Musk to fail.

So, where does that put JD Vance’s collar?  Who knows? We’ll keep watching as Mr Ellison, having successfully moved beyond the X operation, now moves to the TikTok/Paramount phase while simultaneously owning the Oracle system operation that X utilizes.

• Secretary of State Marco Rubio – For the first time in his political career, Marco is in a position where he is not directly accountable to voters.  Having risen through the Florida legislature, state house and on to a federal Senate seat representing Florida, for the first time Rubio is applying himself without any election worries.  His constituent base consists of President Trump.

Rubio is seemingly giving the appearance of having turned Maverick, having fun poking back at his previous owners, while running amuck in the free-range of Trump’s well-manicured landscape.  Is Rubio required to return to a previously designated stable?  Again, who knows. It’s super fun to watch this new less groomed, yet well maintained, stallion running in the wild.  However, his pedigree is as trained as a Lipizzaner stallion. Will he tire of the free-range? We’ll keep watching.

• Governor Ron DeSantis – The one constant political hot mess in an ever-consistent GOPe playbook.

You might say that DeSantis could never stand a chance given his failure to launch in 2024.  However, do not underestimate the stupidity of the professional consultant class who have a way of convincing owners that horse can run.

Ron’s only problem is he needs very narrow blinders and can’t turn corners.  Other than that, he’s solid in the straights when all the obstacles are removed and the track is groomed specifically for his platformed shoes.

The issue for Sea Island, with DeSantis, is that despite his extremely managed exteriors, and despite the massive amount of money spent on the influence operations and appearances, only a specific type of Jockey can fit that little saddle.

[I mean someone had to tell Casey what to wear in Iowa the last time, and, well, think about it….  They both looked in the mirror that morning and thought, “Awesome – this will get em’.”  How’d that work out?]

SUMMARY:  Underneath all of what we are visibly seeing and witnessing, especially the outrage du-jour, is an underlying political background that consistently tries to control outcomes through various methods.  This effort to split the MAGA base, using Israel or (insert_next_thing_here) as a wedge issue within the America First movement – only benefits one larger apparatus, the Sea Island billionaire control system.

This billionaire control system, a public-private partnership, previously deconstructed and co-opted the Tea Party returning the system to status quo.

The billionaires in finance and tech are set; their influence operation only varies slightly depending on the challenge, because they know they can purchase every horse in the race, and they are working earnestly through various iterations of the same owner playbook, with the end goal the same – control.

Just reject it.

Live your best life and pray.