The Melinda Richards Show on TNT Australia


Posted originally on Aug 10, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Quick Note – RFK Jr Still Glowing


Posted originally on the CTH on August 9, 2024 | Sundance

Just a quick reminder on the data that aligns around Robert F Kennedy Jr and the 2024 race.

Again, I will state emphatically, as I have from the outset, that almost all of RFK Jr’s support comes from voters aligned with Donald Trump.   RFK Jr is the IC splitter.  As a consequence, my long-held suspicion is that RFK Jr is working for the Intelligence Community.  In July of 2023, during his interview with James O’Keefe, my suspicion became a working thesis {SOURCE}.  That interview was full of tradecraft.

Later, in October of 2023, RFK Jr admitted his appearance in the race was intended more toward taking votes from President Trump than it was taking votes from Joe Biden {SOURCE}.  General election polling that surfaced thereafter, confirmed what RFK Jr had stated; he pulls more votes from Donald Trump than from Democrats {SOURCE}.

In a transparent attempt to stop the black voter gains to Trump, RFK Jr took the position of full support for black reparations {SOURCE}.  Few people saw that for what it was. Kennedy trying to mitigate the damage that Donald Trump does to the Democrat coalition.

Every move that RFK JR makes is clouded in plausible deniability.  However, if you look at the sum total of all the policy moves together, you can clearly see his target is to fracture the Trump support. {SOURCE} The Silicon Valley types were solidly in the RFK Jr camp, until the assassination attempt against President Trump failed.  Almost immediately, they jumped in unison from Kennedy to Trump.

I’ve been watching this RFK Jr pattern as I did with the Ron DeSantis background operation in 2021.  There are multiple aspects in the support network that parallel each other.

Then came the biggest tell.  RFK JR recorded the phone call between himself and President Trump during the GOP Convention.  That recording was then leaked to media, along with a cover story that RFK Jr didn’t know about the leaked audio – yeah, sure.  {SOURCE} More Tradecraft!

Now Politico is reporting that Joe Rogan and Russell Brand have endorsed RFK Jr.

POLITICO – Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. earned endorsements from top podcasters Joe Rogan and Russell Brand in the presidential race.

Kennedy has devoted the majority of his media strategy to alternative and independent creators, and the investment is paying off with endorsements in the critical last days of the campaign. (more)

The datapoint of value is not that Joe Rogan endorsed RFK Jr.  Seriously, that part I don’t care about, and also if true tradecraft is deployed, there is going to be some kind of plausible deniability retraction – as there always is.  The point to note is that Politico is quick to the typeset to tell everyone that Rogan and Brand are endorsing Robert Kennedy Jr.

It’s all sketchy, but one aspect is clear.  RFK Jr is in the race to pull support away from Donald Trump.

Take that overlay, add all of the datapoints that indicated RFK Jr had an ulterior motive within this election; then consider that RFK Jr knew Biden was going to be removed.   Apply that view and perspective in hindsight toward the visible data points.

Does that recording of the phone call with Donald Trump look different, if RFK Jr was intentionally working an IC operation and knew that Joe Biden was going to exit before the convention?

The Kennedy who sounds like Katherine Hepburn is way beyond sketchy.

The 17th Amendment


Posted originally on the CTH on August 9, 2024 | Sundance

Machiavelli said“It must be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to plan, more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to manage than a new system. For the initiator has the enmity of all who would profit by the preservation of the old institution and merely lukewarm defenders in those who gain by the new ones.”  A prescient and oft repeated quote that is pertinent to the situation.

When our founders created the system of government for our constitutional republic, they built in layers of protection from federal control over the lives of people in the states.  Over time those protections have been eroded as the federal bureaucracy has seized power.  One of the biggest changes that led to the creation of the permanent political class was the 17th amendment.

Our founders created a system where Senators were appointed by the state legislatures.  In this original system the senate was bound by obligation to look out for the best interests of their specific states.  Under the ‘advise and consent‘ rules of Senate confirmation for executive branch appointments, the intent was to ensure the presidential appointee -who would now carry out regulatory activity- would not undermine the independent position of the states.

The nucleus of corruption amid every element of the federal institutions of government is the United States Senate.   The U.S. Senate, also known as the “upper chamber,” is the single most powerful elected element in modern federal government.

The Intelligence Branch is the most powerful branch of government.  However, the U.S. Senate is the most powerful assembly of federally elected officials.  We pretend the IC branch doesn’t exist; that’s part of our problem.  At least we admit the Senate exists.

All other elected federal corruption is dependent on a corrupt and ineffective Senate.  If we correct the problems with the Senate and reconnect the representation within the chamber to the state-level legislative bodies, we will then see immediate change.  However, there would be ZERO institutional allies in this effort.

When the 17th amendment (direct voting for Senators) took the place of state appointments, the perspective of ‘advise and consent’ changed.  The senate was now in the position of ensuring the presidential appointee did not undermine the power of the permanent bureaucracy, which is the root of power for the upper-chamber.

Senate committees, Homeland Security, Judiciary, Intelligence, Armed Services, Foreign Relations, etc. now consists of members who carry an imbalanced level of power within government.  The senate now controls who will be in charge of executive branch agencies like the DOJ, DHS, FBI, CIA, ODNI, DoD, State Dept and NSA, from the position of their own power and control in Washington DC.

In essence, the 17th amendment flipped the intent of the constitution from protecting the individual states to protecting the federal government.

Almost every source of federal issue: ex. spending, intervention and foreign assistance, conflict with the states, burdensome regulation, surveillance and spying on American citizens, the two-tiered justice system and the erosion of liberty & individual rights (see COVID examples), can be sourced back to the problem created by the 17th amendment.

Because of the scale of their power, the Senate will not give up control easily; and every institution of society and government will actively work to block/stop We The People from taking back control of the upper chamber.  Every entity from Wall Street to multinational corporations, big tech, banks, foreign governments and world organizations would align against us.   When you truly understand the epicenter of the corruption, then you are able to see the tentacles extending from it.

It would be easy to say “repeal the 17th amendment;“ it is ‘another kettle of fish’ entirely to walk through the process to make that happen.  Yes, ultimately, we do need a full repeal of the 17th amendment and return the selection of the senators from each state with a nomination and appointment process within the state legislature.  [Common Explainer Here]

Seventeenth Amendment- “The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.

When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.” (link)

Prior to the 17th amendment, there was significant state level corruption as business interests and senate candidates worked in power groups with party officials to attain the position.  Politicians seeking Senate seats began campaigning for state legislative candidates in order to assemble support.

The state legislative races then became a process of influence amid powerful interests seeking to support their Senate candidate.   Get the right people in the State legislature and you can get the Senator appointed.

Those state-level entities, bankers, wealthy people of influence, later became the permanent K-Street lobbying groups once the 17th amendment was ratified. In essence, they just shifted the location of their influence operation from the state to an office in Washington DC.   [Those same power groups, albeit much larger, now write the physical legislation we see in congress.]  Additionally, prior to the 17th amendment, there were issues of vacancies in federal senate seats as state legislatures could not agree on an individual Senator.

The biggest issue following the passage of the 17th amendment became Senators who were no longer representing the interests of their state.  Instead, they were representing the interests of the power elite groups who were helping them fund the mechanisms of their re-election efforts.

A Senator only needs to run for re-election every six years.  The 17th amendment is the only amendment that changed the structure of the congress as it was written by the founders.

Over time, the Senate chamber itself began using their advice and consent authority to control the executive and judicial branch.  The origination of a nomination now holds the question: “Can this person pass the Senate confirmation process?”  The Senate now abuses this power to ensure no one challenges them.  Additionally, the Senate began using their oversight capacity to control elements within the executive branch and judicial branch.   The full scope of that issue in modern form is OUTLINED HERE – which is the cornerstone of the Intelligence Branch of Government.

If we can repeal the 17th amendment and return the selection to the state legislature, you can see where the background work of Tactical Civics and Extreme Federalism begin to take on importance.   [NOTE: Within the repeal effort we would need to include a recall process for states to reach out and yank back their Senator if they go astray; the ability to recall was missing in the original construct of the framers; it would need to be added.]

◊ PATH ONE is the primary platform of the presidential candidate…. a visible and emphasized mandate that includes: “vote me into office and you are voting to repeal the 17th amendment “.  This specific election issue would need to be the #1 priority of the candidate and spoken at every event.

This approach gives presidential candidate Donald Trump the mandate to demand congress to act if he won the 2024 election.  We need a warrior of epic strength, resolve and fortitude. We need Donald Trump.

◊ PATH TWO is the parallel path built along with the 2024 election platform path and put into place in the event that Congress refused to accept the mandate.

Obviously, this would be an ugly battle.   The second path is a convention of states in the first year of President Trump’s second term in office.

The ‘convention of states‘ would be detailed, strategically planned, and the future schedule determined during the 2024 GOP convention preceding the November election (assuming the right candidate wins).   That way, if congress refuses to act on their own, within say the first 100 days of the new administration, the state legislatures will then assemble a convention for the singular and limited purpose of one action item: “repeal the 17th amendment “.  That’s it. Full Stop.  Nothing more. Nothing else entertained.

There is a lot more to this, and a lot more to cover in discussion of this.  However, this is the path that can resolve most of the issues we face with an out-of-control federal government.   The shift in power would kneecap the Intelligence Branch of Government by re-instituting genuine oversight and control. A repeal of the 17th amendment stops Senators from campaigning, needing to raise money and puts them directly into the accountability position as a steward for the interests of their state.

The people within each state would then have a mechanism to address any negative federal action by contacting their state legislative representative.  In a worst-case scenario, a rogue Senator could be removed within days if they support any federal legislative activity that is not in alignment with the state interest.  This approach also wipes out most of the power amid the Senate Majority Leader, as he/she could also be recalled by the state and would be less likely to work against the interests of the majority in the chamber.

The House of Representatives was created to be the voice of the people, ie, “The Peoples’ House.”  However, the U.S. Senate was structurally created to be the place where state government had representation in the federal government decision-making.  The 17th amendment completely removed state representation, and we have been in an escalating battle over state’s rights ever since.

Overlay that DC structural issue with the fact that almost all of the bureaucracy created by this skewed DC system is now in place to defend itself from any outside effort to change it, and you get this UniParty problem that Donald Trump fully exposed.

Repeal the 17th amendment and we would see the most significant restoration of freedom, liberty and social balance in our lifetime.

CIA Meeting With Terrorist Before Afghan Pullout Led To Afghanistan Being Under Chinese Influence


Posted originally on Rumble By Bannons War Room on: Aug 08, 2024 at 07:00 pm EST

Can Trump Prevent the Coming War?


Posted Aug 9, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Zelensky.Trump_.VeryDangerous

I have been asked numerous times if a Donald Trump victory would equate to eliminating our computer’s projection for war. No. No one can alter a cycle once in motion. We can change the velocity at best but everyone and anyone who has tried to alter a cycle, be it war or business, has failed.

Yes, Donald Trump has said that he would end the Russia-Ukraine war before his first day in office. It is true that Donald Trump could delay the onset of the growing global conflict BUT he cannot alter the cycle. Our computer shows that war could break out by 2027, and the financial implications will be fully felt by 2028.

China.Iran_.SaudiArabia.PeaceTreatyMarch2023

Where will the war break out? All of these conflicts are connected. In the Middle East you have most of the Arab countries as pro-Russian. They see the United States as Israel’s protector.

NorthKorea.Russia
2022_03_22_12_20_01_Japan_opposes_Russian_withdrawal_from_World_War_II_peace_treaty_talks_over_sanct

Then North Korea became bolder with new alliances, creating panic in South Korea and Japan. Taiwan is growing bolder as well under new leadership and promises of protection from wealthy nations. China is on hyper-alert to prevent the neocons from interfering in its One China policy with Taiwan. There is a group of countries that are being excommunicated by the West, driving those nations to form their own necessary trade alliances. This is similar to 1914 where you are dividing the world up and alliances are forming out of the self-interest of each individual nation.

Putin Xi
Biden Vows to Protest Taiwan

Trump cannot change anything since the cycle is already in place. War is inevitable.

America Needs Truckers


Posted originally on Aug 9, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Truckers

America has lost 1,544,700 trucking jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis. There are 30,000 less truckers on the road now compared to July 2023. Demand has not waned and this will undoubtedly contribute to supply chain slowdowns.

The trucking transportation sector has been declining steadily for the past four months, based on data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. We saw how terribly governments treated truckers amid the pandemic, deeming them essential employees but forcing them to forego their medical autonomy. The average age for a driver is between 46 to 60 and there is a prominent age gap within the industry.

The New York Times released a piece in 2022 claiming that the issue is based on the truck driver lifestyle that entails long weeks or months on the road and often sleeping in your truck. I have a friend who is a trucker who often calls his truck a prison on wheels. As one driver told the New York Times: ““The lifestyle probably is the first thing that smacks people in the face,” he says. “You know what it does to you. You’re thinking about it all the time. We’re tired. Our bodies are starting to go. Our bladders have been put to the test. And no exercise. We end up with all types of heart and other health ailments. You can’t truly fathom what it’s done to you.”

Regulations have caused an increasingly challenging environment for drivers. These regulations also differ by state, with many drivers wishing to avoid certain states altogether. Trucking is lumped in with warehousing in most government data. Warehousing jobs rose 10,700 last month to 1,794,900. However, that was the largest spike in employment since March 2022. Transportation and Warehousing as a collective now has an unemployment rate of 5.7%, up from 4.8% the month prior.

Around 72% of American freight is moved via trucks. The US Census Bureau states that there are 3.5 million truckers, with 8.4 million people employed in trucking related positions suck as laborers, operators, and sales workers.

Simply put – people no longer wish to begin careers in the trucking industry. This presents a major problem as the median aged driver is not far off from retirement, but people are leaving the industry in droves beforehand.

Why Republics Will Fall


Posted originally on Aug 9, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

  

Republics are the worst form of government, for every representative can be bribed. Those who are honest get very frustrated, for they will pass rules to prevent anyone from actually even making a motion on the floor. Motions will have to come from Committees. If you do not play nicely, the speaker decides who gets on what Committees. Look at the smirks of the woman behind him, knowing nothing will change.

Here, Mike Bost is frustrated at the corruption in the Illinois House of Representatives. We do not live in a Democracy. The “establishment” is dictated by the Deep State, and far too often, the actual direction of the country is determined by people who are behind the shadows and never stand for election. The head of the European Parliament never stands for election. The head of the EU appoints them. The people have no say in anything meaningful.

Pentagon Gifts $110 Million Air Base to Terrorists  


Posted originally on Aug 8, 2024 By Martin Armstrong |  

Pentagon 2

The United States has once again willingly abandoned weapons and ammunition in a foreign nation. Niger has been in a state of upheaval due to economic conditions and a corrupt government. The incoming regime has asked the US military to evacuate, and likely to their surprise, the US government has agreed to abandon Niger’s Air Base 201.

The Pentagon spent $110 million to build the base in 2019 and has been spending about $30 million per year on operations. The strategic position helped the US fight terror networks that have migrated from the Middle East. Somehow, this new incoming regime is holding more power than the established US government, and the Pentagon was unable to successfully negotiate keeping this base. “This does make safeguarding U.S. security interests in the Sahel that much harder,” Maj. Gen. Kenneth P. Ekman of the Air Force, tasked with overseeing the withdrawal, told the Times in July. “The threats from ISIS and Al Qaeda in the region are getting worse every day.”

The Biden Administration is absent. No one is in charge. Kamala may be parading around as the new elect, but she has yet to hold an official conference. And where is Joe? He’s still technically the president of the United States but has been MIA. Everyone simply accepts he is “in a basement in Delaware,” while the government breaks into fractions that are utterly incompetent. The US government did not even give its own military the opportunity to collect the materials left behind. Biden’s foreign policy is simply to abandon ship and deal with the consequences later when our own weapons are used against our troops.

Hunger Protests in Nigeria


Posted originally on Aug 7, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

The world has erupted in conflict as a direct result of the economy turning down. We are seeing it across the globe, from Bangladesh, Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria to name a few. There is peace when everyone is fat and happy but that is no longer the case in the majority of the world amid the cost of living crisis. Some places have been hit far worse than others. The Nigerian naira lost 230% of its value in the past year and is utterly worthless. Inflation reached 34.19% in June 2024, the highest level since March 1996. Food inflation alone is up 40.87%. The cost of living crisis has caused the people to take to the streets to engage in what the media has deemed “the hunger protests.”

The World Bank valued Nigeria’s GDP at $362.81 billion in 2023 and expects it to surpass $386.4 billion by 2025. GDP advanced 2.98% YoY during Q1, primarily driven by the services sector, which contributed over 58% to the aggregate. Nigeria is an oil-rich nation and Africa’s largest oil producer.

Yet, overt corruption prevents the people from benefiting. Corruption has long been a problem in Nigeria. Most recently, Parliament attempted to impeach Siminalayi Fubara last October after serving only five months in office in favor of his predecessor, Nyesom Wike. Fast forward to the entire Parliament building burning down, followed by the resignation of 27 lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress. Fubara’s proposed 2024 budget led to nine cabinet members and five elected officials resigning. Government then split in half – one supporting Fubara and the other supporting Wike. Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu overstepped by dropping all cases pending against Fubara. And basically, they have accomplished nothing but continued spending and were already knee-deep in the mess past governments have created. About 90% of the nation’s revenue goes toward repaying its debts. They have no real economic plan it place. Then leave it to government to cripple its own ability to earn. Last May, Tinubu implemented a slew of regulations and economic reforms that included ending energy subsidies and devaluing the naira.

Oh, and Tinbu approved of raising the salaries of government under his economic plan. He also found the funds to purchase a presidential yacht and luxury vehicle. He set aside public funds to renovate his own residence. All of this as the currency continued to decline while inflation rose. The people had been urging the government to remove the fuel regulations and do something, anything, to help.

The people are hungry. Their currency is worthless and they cannot afford food or energy. “Hunger … brought me out. I don’t have money to buy fuel … there’s total bad government. It’s 10 days (of rage). We’ll remain on the streets till our demands are met,” one man told CNN in regards to the 10 Days of Rage protests.

Police and protestors have met fatal ends amid these protests and hundreds have been arrested. Human rights organizations are asking the Nigerian government not to fire live rounds at protestors. The situation is an absolute mess. The president rushed to address measures by removing some taxes on food imports and raising the minimum wage but it is far too little, too late. He must step aside and allow a new government to reform Nigeria’s economic situation. The people have nothing left to lose. This is what happens when corrupt governments push the people to a breaking point.

Kamala on Inflation – Ignoring the Elephant in the Room


Posted originally on Aug 7, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Kamala has a plan to conquer inflation – increase government spending and raise taxes! She has been avoiding the topic in recent speeches, but her past comments can give us some insight.

Before the government passed the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest government spending package in our nation’s history, Harris praised the Build Back Better agenda for working to lower costs for the average American. The Inflation Reduction Act was originally the Build Back Better Act and the Democrats were seeking $2.2 trillion in funding. “And, Build Back Better is not going to cost anything — we’re paying for it. So when we can get Build Back Better passed, and we are optimistic that we will, the American people will see costs actually reduced around some of the most essential services that they need to take care of their basic responsibilities, including issues like child care and elder care, and also preschool,” Harris said.

Kamila Harris

Harris clearly does not understand how these social programs are funded. “We” are paying for the act, as in we the people. The Inflation Reduction Act not only added to the national deficit but contributed to overall inflation. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen admitted the proposal was a trojan horse to push through the climate change agenda, and Harris has selected a climate zealot as her VP pick.

Harris sponsored the Green New Deal when in the Senate. She originally supported a ban on fracking before backtracking. As attorney general for California, Harris sued major oil companies for climate change disinformation. She has pledged her allegiance to the Paris climate agreement that aims to reduce emissions by 2035. Again, this all ties into the Build Back Better agenda put forth under the Great Reset. Spending endlessly on saving the planet is merely a rouse for needless government spending and reducing our freedoms by citing something that cannot be questioned in today’s political climate.

Elephant in the Room 2

Harris has already sought for a corporate tax rate of 35%, higher than Biden’s 28% and far beyond any other developed nation. She does not seem to grasp international business or trade. She has focused on price gouging, insisting the corporations are somehow immune from inflation and passing those costs along to the consumer.

The migrant crisis has certainly put America in dire conditions. We simply cannot afford millions of new residents who live on taxpayer subsidies. I suppose it is pointless mentioning Kamala’s run as the border tzar as she completely ignored our nation being invaded.

War is the primary driver of inflation, and no establishment install would be complete unless they supported foreign wars that in no way involved America. Zelensky and Harris have met half a dozen times, and she will continue to provide him blank checks. Harris would like to involve the US in Israel’s war as well, providing vague statements to the public since half of her voter base is pro-Hamas. She skipped out on Bibi’s speech in the US Congress for a sorority event.

Inflation and the entire cost of living crisis is the number one issue that American voters want resolved. Kamala Harris has no plan to combat inflation. She would like to back climate change initiatives and fund foreign wars, which all but guarantees inflation would rise under a Kamala presidency, followed by our taxes rising as those with no basic concept of economics believe the people should pay for government’s fiscal irresponsibility.