The last bilateral meeting of the first day at the G20 in Osaka, Japan, was held between President Trump and Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro. [Video and Transcript]
The US accounts for 34 percent of the world’s soybean production with 108 million metric tons. Brazil accounts for 30 percent of the global production of the crop with 87 million metric tons. Combined, Trump and Bolsonaro control 64 percent of global soybean production. [China consumes 60 percent of global soybeans available for export.]
Note: Brazil is a strategic geopolitical U.S. partner against Chairman Xi’s influence, due to the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). It is obvious this has been discussed between Bolsonaro and POTUS Trump. Within the media pool some enterprising narrative engineer asked President Trump about the Day-Two meeting between Xi and Trump, as noted below (emphasis mine):
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[Transcript] PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much everybody. We’re with a gentleman who had one of the greatest election wins anywhere in the world, as far as I’m concerned, and he was very proud of his relationship with President Trump — President of Brazil. And he’s a special man — doing very well, very much loved by the people of Brazil. And I think we can say that Brazil and the United States are as close or closer as they’ve ever been. So I just want to welcome you and say thank you very much, my friend.
PRESIDENT BOLSONARO: (As interpreted.) Yes, indeed. Thank you very much. It gives me great pleasure to be next to you, Mr. President. I have been a great admirer of you for quite some time, even before your election, and it gives me great honor to be with you.
The two countries we represent have a great deal in common. We’re two major countries — great countries — and, together, can do a great deal to the benefit of our two peoples. Brazil is endowed with assets that the world does not have, and I will be able to engage in talks with President Trump to establish a full partnership to the (inaudible) development of our nations.
I support Trump. I support the United States. I support your upcoming reelection. And I do hope that you will come to Brazil, and you have an open and standing invitation to visit Brazil, even before the upcoming election, so that we can showcase to the world that politics in Brazil has indeed changed. And we stand together and ready to work close (inaudible).
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, thank you very much, Mr. President. And we will come to Brazil. And you do have assets that very few countries can even think about — the assets you have in your land and in your water and in so many other places. You have some of the great assets in the world. And it’s a tremendous country with tremendous people, so I look forward to going.
And we’re now talking about a lot of trade. We’re doing a lot of trade, but we’re doing more now than previously, and we have many things to discuss. Thank you all for being here. Thank you very much.
Q President Trump, are you going to ask Brazil to take sides on the trade war with China?
AIDE: Excuse me. Translation — translation for the President.
(The interpreter for President Bolsonaro speaks.)
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much everybody.
Q Are you going to ask Brazil to take sides in the trade war with China, President?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, we’re going to have a meeting with President Xi of China tomorrow, as you probably have heard. There seems to be a rumor about that, and we are indeed, and we look forward to it. I think it’ll be productive. And who knows? But I think it’ll productive. At a minimum, it will be productive. We’ll see what happens and what comes out of it.
But we’re doing very well as a country. The United States is the hottest country in the world right now and — the economy. And all of the leaders have come up and said that it’s incredible what’s happened with the United States. And they congratulate me and they congratulate the people of the United States.
But we are — we’re a hot country. We’re doing well. So we’ll see what happens tomorrow with China.
Q But how Brazil can help on that? How Brazil can help on that?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Help on what?
Q Help on the trade war with China?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Not a question of “help”; it’s a question of whether or not we do something. And I think we have a very good chance. We’ll see what happens. Ultimately, something will happen, and it’ll only be good — good things happen.
Q Mr. President, do you expect that President Xi is going to put an offer on the table tomorrow for a trade deal?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: We’ll see what happens. You’re going to know, maybe, before most. We’ll see what happens tomorrow. It’ll be a — it’ll be a very exciting day, I’m sure, for a lot people, including the world. It’ll be an exciting day. A lot of people are talking about it, and it’s very interesting. And it’s going to come out, hopefully, well for both countries. And ultimately, it will work out.
Q Have you promised China that you won’t put anymore new tariffs on for another six months?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: No, I haven’t promised. No. Good question. No.
Q Mr. President, have you discussed Venezuela with President Putin? And do you intend to discuss it in this meeting?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I discussed — well, we discussed a lot of things with President Putin. We had a very good meeting with President Putin. And we’ll have to see what happens with Venezuela. Venezuela is a — we’re behind the free Venezuela 100 percent. We’ll see what happens.
Q So did you lose momentum on Venezuela, President Trump?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: No, not at all. No. No. Things take time. But we’re behind a certain group of people; you know who the people are. We’re behind the people of Venezuela — that’s who we’re really behind, more than anything else. And we’ve been helping them a lot. We’ve been bringing a lot of food and a lot of medical and a lot of other things to Venezuela.
And we’re working with Colombia very closely — with Colombia — to help. Because, really, it’s a humanitarian crisis. That just shows what socialism can do.
You know, I’ve been watching the debates a little bit, in between meetings, and I wasn’t impressed. But when you look at the socialism and you look at what it can do — that’s what you’re talking about there. And that’s become like the Socialist Party. In fact, I heard — there’s a rumor the Democrats are going to change the name of the party from the “Democrat Party” to the “Socialist Party.” I’m hearing that. But let’s see if they do it.
The G20 summit in Osaka was filled with smiles, kisses, and handshakes between world leaders on their first day of meetings as they came together to discuss global issues such as trade and the digital economy.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe gathers the G20 world leaders to pose for a family photograph in front of Osaka Castle before being treated to dinner and a gala performance. It’s always interesting to watch the interactions between the G20 leaders.
There will be more detailed summaries coming later; however, here’s some of the more interesting aspects so far. The G20 Osaka, Japan Group Picture:
(Click Image to Enlarge)
As expected the schedule of President Trump’s first set of bilateral discussions seems structured around the Indo-Pacific strategy to counter China’s expansion. In this strategy within Southeast Asia geopolitics Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is the fulcrum for a shifting economic dynamic.
President Trump hosts a bilateral with Prime Minister Abe, and then again hosts a rather unusual trilateral meeting between himself, Abe and India’s Prime Minister Modi. The three leaders met in a trilateral discussion at the Buenos Aires G20 in 2018.
PRIME MINISTER ABE: (As interpreted.) (In progress.) You were the first state guest to Japan. I would like to thank you for your visit. It was a great honor for us. And so many Japanese citizens had a huge welcome to President Trump.
The G20 Osaka Summit will commence from today. Through the contribution to international challenge and issues solutions, like the sustainable growth of the world economy, I’d like to communicate a strong message: Without the cooperation of the U.S. and Japan, such work wouldn’t be possible.
Once again, I will say, the first state guest in the era of Reiwa, by you, was a historic event. I thank you for your visit. Through G20, we’d like to cooperate so that we can produce good results. Thank you.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, thank you very much, Shinzo. It’s an honor. And we just left Japan, and now I’m back. (Laughter.) That was a quick trip, and it was a great honor to be your first guest. And meeting the Emperor and the Emperor’s family was, really, a very special thing on behalf of the United States.
And I can say we very much appreciate the courtesies — giving out the World Championship to the great sumo wrestler. (Laughter.) He was — you would not want to fight with him. He was great. But that was a very special evening and something that everybody is talking about. All over the world, they showed that. Everybody is talking about it.
But I just want to thank you. And I know we’re going to have a successful day. We’re going to be talking about many things, and we’re going to also be talking about a lot of trade. I appreciate the fact that you’re sending many automobile companies into Michigan, and Ohio, and Pennsylvania, and North Carolina — a lot of our states. I see they’re building all over the United States, a lot of the great Japanese car companies — and other Japanese companies also.
But in particular, the car companies have been terrific. They’re coming in and they’re building magnificent plants. We haven’t had that, and we very much appreciate it.
So we’ll be discussing trade. We’ll be discussing military. And we’ll be discussing the purchase of a lot of military equipment by Japan, and we appreciate that.
PRIME MINISTER ABE: (As interpreted.) It is indeed a great pleasure that I am able to convene this summit meeting of three countries: Japan, U.S., India. Three countries.
I think we three countries are the foundation of the peace and prosperity of the region. Free and open Indo-Pacific is something that we would like to strive toward, and I’d like to have closer coordination among three countries going forward.
Donald and Prime Minister Modi, I thank you for your cooperation to enable this summit meeting.
Now, please, Donald.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, it’s a great honor to be here and with my two very good friends. We’ve gotten to know each other very well over the last short period of time. And you and I are going to be meeting separately after this meeting.
PRIME MINISTER MODI: Yes.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: But, Prime Minister Modi, thank you very much. And congratulations on your great victory.
PRIME MINISTER MODI: Thank you.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I should say congratulations, really, to both, because Shinzō also had a great victory — a great electoral victory.
So, congratulations to both of you on the tremendous numbers, tremendous success, and tremendous popularity.
You’re doing a great job for your countries. And I’ll see you in a little while. I look forward to it.
PRIME MINISTER ABE: (As interpreted.) Thank you very much. Prime Minister Modi. I won victory in the presidential election of LDP.
And, Prime Minister Modi.
PRIME MINISTER MODI: I am very grateful to you that you have congratulated me for my victory in the elections. Japan, America, and India: JEI — J-E-I. Jai, in Hindi, means “victory.”
We are three countries that support democracy, and we met last time in Argentina and we had the opportunity to meet once again. This new forum — this forum of ours has received a new impetus, and there is a new faith and confidence in our relations. And I am sure that we’ll have meaningful discussions during our meeting.
We have common interests in the area of Indo-Pacific. We would like peace and stability in this region. We are committed to democracy, and therefore we would like a peaceful development and security in this region.
America’s dream has been to make America great again. And, in Japan, they have worked on the basis of Abenomics to take Japan to new heights. And India has called for collective efforts: inclusive growth, (inaudible), and “Make in India.” All our three countries have contributed in some way to the journey to us development in the world. I’m very grateful to you for hosting this meeting. Thank you very much.
Q Are you going to talk to Modi about trade?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: We’ll be talking trade. We’ll be talking about trade.
Q On the Japan auto tariffs, will you go ahead with the tariffs on the Japan automakers?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: We have a lot of things to talk about. It will be very positive. We have a lot of very positive news.
Q Will you be seeking assurances from Japan and India about Iran?
THE PRESIDENT: We have a lot of things to talk about.(LINK)
PRIME MINISTER MODI: (As interpreted.) Mr. President, at the beginning of my second term, I’m really very happy to have this opportunity to meet you. I would also like to express my gratitude after the huge democracy in India. The people of India gave us this huge victory — this landslide victory.
The people of India have reposed — have given me a second mandate. And immediately afterwards, after the victory in the elections, you called me over the telephone and congratulated me. And, two days ago, Secretary of State Pompeo carried a letter from you, which was a very warm letter. Also, it expressed the kind of sentiments that you have towards India, your love towards India. You expressed those issues. Once again, Mr. President, let me thank you.
Secretary Pompeo visited India two days ago. We had an opportunity to have discussions on many issues. Also, he carried, as I said a short while ago, your warm message. Given that we have a time limitation, in this meeting we would like to discuss four issues: Iran, 5G, bilateral relations, and defense relations.
The India-U.S. relations — we have a vision, which is far-sighted and positive. And India is committed to taking forward these relations within this far-sighted and positive vision. We will continuously strive to do so.
Once again, let me thank you, Mr. President, for having taken out time to meet me. Thank you.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, thank you very much, Mr. Prime Minister. And we’ve become great friends, and our countries have never been closer. I can say that with surety. And we work together in many ways, including military. But we certainly work together on trade, and we’ll be discussing trade today.
You did indeed have a landslide election. That was a great election. Seventy-two percent, as I understand it. And that, in the United States, would be called a very big victory. And you deserve it. You’ve done a great job pulling everybody together. You had many factions.
I remember when you first took over, we were talking, and you had many factions and they were fighting with each other. And now they all get along. And you just — you’ve really brought it together, and I think it’s a fantastic tribute to you and your abilities.
Thank you very much for the relationship and the friendship. And I think we’re going to have a — some very big things to announce. A very big trade deal. We’re doing some very big things with India in terms of trade, in terms of manufacturing, in terms of — we will be discussing 5G. It’s a big subject nowadays, and other things having to do with like manner.
So, it’s been a lot of fun being with you. We’ve had some good talks already. And, again, I think you’ll be hearing some very productive elements come out.
We had a joint meeting with — as you know, as the press was there, we had a very successful meeting with Prime Minister Abe. And we also are going to be announcing some very big trade transactions, some very big trade deals. They’re moving many plants — auto plants — into the United States. And they announced some more this morning, and we’re very happy about that.
So, again, I want to thank you, and I want to congratulate you. And I look forward to talking. Thank you very much.
PRIME MINISTER MODI: Thank you. Thank you.
Q Mr. President, what is the most important thing for India to do on trade?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I think we just — we’ll continue to get along with India. India is doing very well as a country. We’re doing very well as country.
We have picked up, as you know, many trillions of dollars in worth and value at the United States. And I think we consider, right now — we’ll be discussing it with Prime Minister Modi — the hottest — we’re the hottest country in the world, the United States, right now. And everybody wants a part of it.
A big factor and a big relationship is that of India, and so we’re going to be discussing many things. All very positive. I think you will see and you will hear it’s all very positive. The relationship with India, as I said, has, I don’t believe, ever been better than it is right now.
Q What’s your message on Huawei, sir?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, it’s something we’re going to be talking about. We understand the subject very well. We actually sell Huawei many of its parts. A lot of people don’t know that, but the United States sells. We have great companies that are the leaders of a lot of what Huawei does, and we sell them a lot. So we’re going to be discussing that and also how India fits in. We’ll be discussing Huawei.
Q Mr. President, what will be your message on Iran?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: On who?
Q On Iran.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, it’s the same message I’ve been telling you for the last three days. It’s — we have a lot of time. There’s no rush. They can take their time. There’s absolutely no time pressure. I think that in the end, hopefully, it’s going to work out. If it does, great. And if doesn’t, you’ll be hearing about it.
Thank you.
Q How long will you delay the census for, Mr. President? How long will you delay the census for, until we get the citizenship question on?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much everybody.(LINK)
Today the President with met Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to discuss a wide range of issues including Iran’s dangerous activity in the Middle East, stabilizing Libya and the Sahel region, and supporting economic reform in Ukraine. The two leaders also reviewed ongoing negotiations with China and establishing fair standards for global trade.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much. It’s great to be with Chancellor Merkel, a friend of mine — a great friend of mine. And we’ve had a terrific relationship.
The trade between Germany and the United States, I think, has reached a — pretty much a high level. We’ll see if we can do even better, but it’s reached a level that it’s never reached before.
And we have many things to talk about, and we have a long meeting scheduled. And we’ll be spending some time later on together also. But I just want to say she’s a fantastic person, a fantastic woman, and I’m glad to have her as a friend.
And thank you very much, Angela. Thank you.
CHANCELLOR MERKEL: Thank you.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you.
CHANCELLOR MERKEL: (As interpreted.) Thank you. Thank you very much. I very much look forward to our exchange today.
We have a lot on our agenda, especially the fact that German investment in the United States is very important. Not only bilateral trade is important but also German companies are investing a lot in the United States of America.
We’re going to talk about international issues, the developments on the international front too, especially about what has been happening in West Africa. We will be also talking about counterterrorism, and I very much look forward to that exchange. Of course, Iran will also be on our agenda today.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I just passed a television set on the way here, and I saw that healthcare, and maximum healthcare, was given to 100 percent of the illegal immigrants coming into our country, by the Democrats. And, unfortunately, they didn’t discuss what they’re giving to American citizens. That’s not a good thing. So we just passed that, and then I came here.
And I will say that we’re going to have a very interesting time today.
You know, they have a debate going on. They had the first debate last night. Perhaps you saw it. It wasn’t very exciting — I can tell you that. And they have another one going on today. They definitely have plenty of candidates. That’s about it.
So I look forward to spending time with you rather than watching the debate.
Thank you.
Q President Trump, do you think Germany is living up to your expectations for them in terms of their defense commitments?
THE PRESIDENT: The Chancellor is a great friend of mine. She’s a great friend of mine.
Today, President Donald J. Trump met with President Vladimir Putin of Russia on the margins of the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan. President Trump and President Putin reviewed the state of the bilateral relationship between the United States and Russia. Both leaders agreed that improved relations between the United States and Russia was in each countries’ mutual interest and the interest of the world. The Presidents agreed the two countries will continue discussion on a 21st century model of arms control, which President Trump stated as needing to include China. The leaders also discussed the situations in Iran, Syria, Venezuela, and Ukraine.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much everybody. It’s a great honor to be with President Putin, his representatives, my representatives.
We have many things to discuss, including trade, and including some disarmament and some — a little protectionism, perhaps, in a very positive way. And we’re going to discuss a lot of different things.
We’ve had great meetings. We have had a very, very good relationship. And we look forward to spending some pretty good time together. A lot of very positive things going to come out of the relationship.
So, Vladimir, thank you very much. Thank you.
PRESIDENT PUTIN: Thank you, Mr. President.
(As interpreted.) Well, I cannot but agree with Mr. President. We have something to discuss here. All the topics have been outlined. We haven’t seen each other since Helsinki meeting, although our teams have been together working and they gave us a great opportunity to follow up on that.
Thank you very much, both teams, for that. Thank you for your time.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much. Thank you.
Q Mr. President, will you tell Russia not to meddle in the 2020 election?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Yes, of course, I will.
Don’t meddle in the election, President. Don’t meddle in the election.
Q Mr. President, are the Ukrainian ships still an issue in the relationship?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: We haven’t discussed it. We haven’t discussed it.(LINK)
President Trump delivers remarks on digital trade and the 5G networks:
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….. More to follow
Reuters Top News
✔@Reuters
Leaders and attendees take part in a photo session at the #G20 summit in Osaka, Japan. More: https://reut.rs/2NiR6j8
Honored to join @SecPompeo & @POTUS in a meeting w/PM Abe to coordinate on critical matters that will strengthen the U.S.-Japan #Alliance . 日米同盟を強化する重要課題に連携して取り組む #日米首脳会談 に、トランプ大統領とポンペオ国務長官と出席でき光栄でした。#G20サミット#G20
The G20 begins in Osaka, Japan, against the MASSIVE backdrop of the U.S-China geopolitical and economic confrontation. As the barking spiders jump stupid in Miami, the real center of world focus is on Osaka, Japan and President Trump -vs- Chairman Xi Jinping. There are tens-of-trillions at stake. – G20 Website –
The schedule for President Trump reflects a history of some serious background work that has led to this moment in time. Two years after the original ‘golden ticket’ tour of Asia, President Trump is reaffirming with strategic partners (PM Abe) and delivering key messages to those who yet have a role to play (PM Modi).
It is worth paying close attention to the economic nationalist coalition that President Trump has carefully assembled. [Watch Abe, Modi and Bolsonaro.] Remember, Osaka is 11 hours ahead of U.S. Eastern Time Zone.
8:25am Friday JDT / 7:25pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT arrives at INTEX Osaka, Osaka, Japan
♦8:30am Friday JDT / 7:30pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan. Osaka, Japan
♦ 9:15am Friday JDT / 8:15pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a raretrilateral meeting with the Prime Minister Shinzo abe of Japan and Prime Minister Modi of the Republic of India, Osaka, Japan. This is the second trilateral with Modi and Abe.
♦9:35am Friday JDT / 8:35pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister Modi of the Republic of India, Osaka, Japan.
Donald J. Trump
✔@realDonaldTrump
I look forward to speaking with Prime Minister Modi about the fact that India, for years having put very high Tariffs against the United States, just recently increased the Tariffs even further. This is unacceptable and the Tariffs must be withdrawn!
10:30am Friday JDT / 9:30pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a bilateral meeting with the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Angela Merkel, Osaka, Japan
11:15am Friday JDT / 10:15pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in an official welcome and family photo, Osaka, Japan
12:00pm Friday JDT / 11:00pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in the G20 leaders’ special event on the Digital Economy, Osaka, Japan
12:20pm Friday JDT / 11:20pm Thursday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a G20 working lunch on the Global Economy, Trade, and Investment, Osaka, Japan
2:00pm Friday JDT / 1:00am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a bilateral meeting with the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, Osaka, Japan
♦3:30pm Friday JDT / 2:30am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in a bilateral meeting with the President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, Osaka, Japan
4:05pm Friday JDT / 3:05am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT departs INTEX Osaka en route to the hotel in Osaka, Japan
4:25pm Friday JDT / 3:25am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT arrives at the Hotel, Osaka, Japan
6:15pm Friday JDT / 5:15am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT departs the RON en route to Osaka Geihinkan, Osaka, Japan
6:30pm Friday JDT / 5:30am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT arrives at Osaka Geihinkan cultural theater, Osaka, Japan
6:35pm Friday JDT / 5:35am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT participates in the G20 cultural program, Osaka, Japan
9:05pm Friday JDT / 8:05am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT departs Osaka Geihinkan en route to the Hotel, Osaka, Japan
9:20pm Friday JDT / 8:20am Friday EDT – THE PRESIDENT arrives at the Hotel, Osaka, Japan
Details are beginning to emerge about the agreement between Democrats and Robert Muller surrounding his closely constructed upcoming testimony.
The baseline here is very important. As we have outlined throughout, and especially since the Democrats won the mid-term election, the Mueller “team” is closely coordinating with the Pelosi, Schiff, Nadler and Cummings group about how best to continue the efforts of the Weissmann and Mueller small group within the DOJ and FBI.
The connective tissue between House Democrats and the “Small Group” within the FBI (Weissmann and Mueller lead), is the Lawfare group. As noted in the text message between Lisa Page and Peter Strzok; and as noted in the hiring of former FBI legal counsel James Baker; and as noted in the Nadler and Schiff hiring of Lawfare members for their staff; the coordination between the seditious group (DOJ/FBI) and the politicians is crystal clear.
CTH advised everyone to pay close attention to the details in the agreements between Pelosi, Schiff, Nadler and the corrupt team led by Robert Mueller. Everything they are doing is based on a coordinated plan between ideologues. The effort to remove President Trump is one long continuum… it has not stopped. The Mueller testimony is just another part of this process.
Here’s some of the transparently sketchy details as outlined by staff leaks to NBC. Remember, these legislative “staff members” are part of the Lawfare group (I cannot emphasize this enough):
WASHINGTON — After months of negotiations, former special counsel Robert Mueller has agreed to testify before the House Intelligence and Judiciary committees on July 17, but his willingness still comes with some parameters, according to a congressional aide with knowledge of the arrangement with Mueller’s office.
There will be two open sessions with Mueller and two closed sessions with his staff.
Pay attention to how these are being structured. Two open sessions with limited questions, and only one opportunity for questions by each member of the committee.
The House Judiciary Committee will have to choose which of its members are able to ask Mueller questions during its open session. Unlike the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the Judiciary Committee is quite large, almost double in size, so only 22 of its 41 members will be present for the open session, the aide said.
The details of the agreement between the committees and Mueller’s office are still being worked out, a second congressional aide said, and could still change.
Judiciary Committee members who do not get to ask questions of Mueller will still be able to attend a closed session with Mueller’s staff following the open testimony, where they will be able to ask about material that was redacted from the public eye.
Notice the closed session without Mueller. This is with Andrew Weissmann and the key members of his investigative unit. This is the heart of the real corruption. Mueller is only the figurehead. Weissmann is the real lead, and the closed door session allows the Democrats to use the Weissmann testimony.
Each member of the Intelligence Committee will be able to ask Mueller questions for five minutes in the open session before following up in a similar closed session.
Limiting the exposure of Mueller is a way for Pelosi, Schiff and Nadler to mitigate the risk. Only one round of questions.
In the closed sessions, the Intelligence Committee will have access to the unredacted version of volume I of the Mueller report, which focuses on the question of collusion and conspiracy with the Russian government, while the Judiciary Committee will have access to the unredacted version of volume II, which focuses on obstruction of justice.
Nice trick here. Notice the closed door sessions are not classified. This is the way for Pelosi, Schiff and Nadler to get the material -the innuendo and suspicion- injected into their narrative.
The unredacted content will be discussed; that means all of the investigative pathways, including the maliciously corrupt false trails will be put into the discussion. AND the politicians are free to talk about any/all content of that discussion because it is not classified.
Neither committee will have access to any information that is redacted for purposes of protecting information provided to the grand jury.
Although there will be no transcript of the closed sessions, they are not considered classified, so members may discuss what they heard.
The first congressional aide said members of both committees will not be restricted in what they can ask Mueller, but they do expect he will largely stick to the information he provided in the report. (link)
Without a transcript, there will be no factual record of the testimony behind closed doors. This allows Pelosi, Schiff, Nadler and staff to make any claim about the content, regardless of the level of falsity, and there’s no factual way for rebuttal. This is by purposeful design.
Again, the use of Robert Mueller is part of the soft-coup effort. Mueller was selected for this role by the internal DOJ and FBI group who carried out the investigation. The real scheming is by the team directly under Mueller; and Mueller gets to play the role of willfully blind to the scheme. Again, by design.
Mueller didn’t select his team; the pre-existing team of corrupt officials selected him.
Andrew McCabe and James Baker, were the two guys who put the pressure on Rosenstein to select Robert Mueller. James Comey, Andrew McCabe, James Baker, Lisa Page, Peter Strzok, Sally Yates, Mary McCord, Mike Kortan, James Rybicki, Andrew Weissmann, David Laufman, John Carlin, and many more are all collectively connected to this effort.
Additionally, all those aforementioned individuals are connected to Benjamin Wittes and the Lawfare Group.
Not enough people understand the role of the Lawfare group in the corruption and political weaponization of the DOJ, FBI and larger intelligence community.
What Media Matters is to corrupt left-wing media, the Lawfare group is to the corrupt DOJ and FBI.
All of the headline names around the seditious conspiracy against Donald Trump assemble within the network of the Lawfare group.
Three days after the October 21st, 2016, FISA warrant was obtained, Benjamin Wittes outlined the insurance policy approach.
FBI Director James Comey, FBI Legal Counsel James Baker, Comey memo recipient Daniel Richman, Deputy AG Sally Yates, Comey friend Benjamin Wittes, FBI lead agent Peter Strzok, FBI counsel Lisa Page, Mueller lead Andrew Weissmann and the Mueller team of lawyers, all of them -and more- are connected to the Lawfare group; and this network provides the sounding board for all of the weaponized approaches, including the various new legal theories as outlined within the Weissmann-Mueller Report.
The Lawfare continuum is very simple. The corrupt 2015 Clinton exoneration; which became the corrupt 2016 DOJ/FBI Trump investigation; which became the corrupt 2017 DOJ/FBI Mueller probe; is currently the 2019 “impeachment” plan. Weissmann and Mueller delivering their report evolved the plan from corrupt legal theory into corrupt political targeting. Every phase within the continuum holds the same goal.
The current “impeachment strategy” is planned-out within the Lawfare group.
After the 2018 mid-terms, and in preparation for the “impeachment” strategy, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler hired Lawfare Group members to become committee staff.
Chairman Schiff hired former SDNY U.S. Attorney Daniel Goldman (link), and Chairman Nadler hired Obama Administration lawyer Norm Eisen and criminal defense attorney Barry Berke (link), all are within the Lawfare network.
Remember, Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller didn’t come into this process as an ‘outsider’, and Mueller didn’t select his team. The corrupt Lawfare team inside government (FBI Counsel James Baker, DOJ Deputy Andrew Weissmann, FBI Deputy McCabe etc.) already knew Mueller. The team had established personal and professional connections to Mueller, and they brought him in to lead the team.
When you realize that Robert Mueller didn’t select the team; rather the preexisting team selected their figurehead, Robert Mueller; then results make sense. Robert Mueller can never be allowed to testify to congress without extremely tight controls because if questioned Mueller actually has very little understanding of what took place.
A disconcerting aspect to the Lawfare dynamic is how current U.S. Attorney General William Barr has knowledge of this. Barr knows and understands how the Lawfare network operates. Barr is from this professional neighborhood. Like Mueller, Barr also knows these people.
“As a matter of law. In other words, we didn’t agree with the legal analysis- a lot of the legal analysis in the report. It did not reflect the views of the department. It was the views of a particular lawyer or lawyers“…
Under Eric Holder, Sally Yates, Loretta Lynch, Tom Perez, Robert Mueller, James Comey and Andrew McCabe, the focus of the DOJ and FBI became prismatic toward politics and tribalism. All of the hired senior lawyers and officials had to be aligned with the political intents of the offices.
[CIA Director John Brennan brought the same political goals to an intelligence apparatus that held a preexisting disposition of alignment, see Mike Morell: “I ran the CIA now I’m endorsing Hillary Clinton”.]
Their agencies were used against their ideological enemies in large operations like Fast-n-Furious, IRS targeting, Gibson Guitar etc. And also smaller operations: Henry Louis Gates, George Zimmerman, Darren Wilson, Ferguson, Baltimore etc. All of these activist Lawfare examples were pushed and promoted by an allied media.
Many of the ‘weaponized’ approaches use radical legal theory (ex. disparate impact), and that ties into the purposes and methods of the Lawfare Group. The intent of Lawfare is described in the name: to use Law as a tool in Warfare. The ideology that binds the group is the ideological outlook and purpose: using the legal system to target political opposition.
After landing in Osaka, Japan, for the G20 Summit that begins tomorrow (tonight EDT), President Trump and the U.S. delegation have dinner with Australia’s newly elected Prime Minister Scott Morrison. [Video and Transcript]
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[Transcript] PRESIDENT TRUMP: Hello everybody. I hope you all had a nice flight — those that came with me. (Laughter.) It’s very nice to have dinner.
And, really, I want to congratulate the Prime Minister on a tremendous victory. He had a fantastic victory, as you know. He didn’t surprise me, but he surprised a lot of other people. See, I knew him, so I said, “He’s going to do very well.” And he did. He did. They called it an upset, but I don’t call it an upset. You probably didn’t. Your wife didn’t call it an upset. (Laughter.) But I want to congratulate you very much. It’s a fantastic thing you did.
PRIME MINISTER MORRISON: Well, thank you, Mr. President. And thanks for hosting us here tonight. It’s going to be an important few days. But there’s no better or stronger or deeper relationship than the United States and Australia.
As you said, we’ve been together for a very long time — 100 years — as our ambassadors have been involved in that program in the United States of fighting together but working together. And the achievements speak for themselves.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: That’s exactly right.
Q Mr. President, are you coming to Melbourne for the President’s Cup Golf?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I’ll tell you what: I’d like to. (Laughter.)
PRIME MINISTER MORRISON: There’s a warm invitation. It’s standing.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: It might not be easy, but I’d like to. (Laughter.) That’s a big deal. That’s going to be great. That’s going to be great.
Q Mr. President, you talk about “America first” a lot. Do you recognize that, for many of your allies, sometimes it’s seen as “America alone” because it has adverse impacts on countries like Japan and Australia — like on trade, for example?
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Yeah, well, I think I can say very easily that we’ve been very good to our allies. We work with our allies. We take care of our allies. Generally speaking, I’ve inherited massive trade deficits with our allies. And we even help our allies militarily.
So we do look at ourselves, and we look at ourselves, I think, more positively than ever before. But we also look at our allies. And I think Australia is a good example. We’ve worked together very closely – – just recently, on a big trade situation. We had a little bit of a trade deal going, and it worked out very well for both of us.
And I think especially when it comes to those great allies, and Australia would be right there. We’re very proud of it. It’s one of our oldest and one of our best. We were just talking about the battles that we fought together. These are big-name battles, and they were tough battles, and we won every one of them.
President Trump is taking ‘splodey-head-making to new artistic levels of agitprop courtesy of Meme artist Carpe Donktum. Very Funny:
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What really drives the fury of the left, and their allies in the media, is how President Trump has broken the stranglehold they had over pop culture. President Trump knows how to use funny and snarky agitprop to drive them bananas.
The moonbats simply cannot cope and President Trump supporters are laughing at the ridiculous reactions. Best President ever….
Fox News senior strategic analyst Gen. Jack Keane (Ret.) on the fallout from President Trump imposing new tariffs on Iran targeting the Supreme Leader and other top Iranian leaders and reports global telecom carriers were attacked by suspected Chinese hackers. FOX Business Network (FBN) is a financial news channel delivering real-time information across all platforms that impact both Main Street and Wall Street. Headquartered in New York — the business capital of the world — FBN launched in October 2007 and is the leading business network on television, topping CNBC in Business Day viewers for the second consecutive year. The network is available in more than 80 million homes in all markets across the United States. Owned by FOX, FBN has bureaus in Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and London.
Alan Dershowitz appears with two panel members of the ‘Tick-Tock-Boom club’ to discuss the potential of Robert Mueller’s testimony.
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On the issue of the May 16th, 2017, Mueller trip to the White House raised by ‘tick-tock’ chairman Greg Jarrett, his emphasis is on the wrong syllable.
If Mueller does appear before congress the substance of Mueller’s White House visit should be ignored, and his status within the visit should be the focus. Not to beat a dead horse, but the purpose of Rosenstein taking Mueller to the White House had nothing to do with Mueller as a candidate for FBI Director.
Congress needs to skip the BS, and get right to the heart of the issue. Here is five Minutes of rapid fire questions for Mueller on this subject:
♦On May 16, 2017, were you applying to become FBI Director?
♦Why did you go to the White House?
♦When did Rod Rosenstein contact you about going to the White House?
♦When did Rod Rosenstein first contact you about becoming special counsel?
♦Did you speak to any members of the DOJ or FBI prior to going to the White House?
♦Were there conversations about a possible ‘special counsel position’ prior to May 16th, 2017?
♦Were you aware President Trump was under investigation prior to your conversation of May 16th, with President Trump?
♦Were you aware of the nature of the investigation, prior to May 16, 2017?
♦Were you aware of the possibility of being appointed ‘special counsel’?
♦Did you take any recording devices into the Oval Office meeting?
♦Did you own the cell phone you left in the Oval Office on May 16, 2017?
♦Between the afternoon Oval Office meeting and the next day announcement to the Gang-of-Eight by Rod Rosenstein and Andrew McCabe, when exactly did you agree to become special counsel?
♦How did Rod Rosenstein contact you between May 16, 2017 and early morning May 17, 2017, about becoming special counsel?
♦Did you immediately agree to become special counsel when asked?
♦How much time transpired between Rosenstein asking you to become special counsel and your acceptance of the position?
See where this line of questioning goes?
The dynamic here is pretty damned obvious.
There was less than 24 hours between the time Mueller and Rosenstein were in the Oval Office (May 16th), and the time Rosenstein told the Gang-of-Eight that Mueller was appointed Special Counsel (May 17th).
That’s not a lot of time for discussion and contemplation by Mueller. Yet, Rosenstein confirmed Mueller’s appointment to the Gang-of-Eight less than 24 hours after the oval office meeting.
So it stands to reason the first contact about the position happened prior to the May 16th Oval Office meeting. If accurate, Mueller was aware Trump was under investigation, AND Mueller was aware he could be special counsel to take over the investigation prior to the Oval Office meeting.
I’ll bet you a dozen donuts the entire purpose of the Oval Office meeting with Mueller was part of the FBI investigation…. and Mueller’s cell phone wasn’t actually Mueller’s cell phone… it was an FBI phone set up so that McCabe’s investigators could listen to the conversation with the target of the investigation, President Trump.
Occam’s Razor – A former FBI Director… meeting with the president of the United States… in the oval office…. in the middle of one of the more consequential time-periods in history… immediately after the firing of the former FBI Director… with family and a network of friends curious as to the outcome…. who is also communicating with the Deputy Attorney General… doesn’t *accidentally* leave his cell phone in the Oval Office.
That background allows people to absorb the intent and motivations of the Special Counsel investigation. How many people even know Robert Mueller interviewed President Donald Trump six days after the FBI launched a criminal “obstruction of justice” investigation, and ten months after the FBI launched the counterintelligence investigation….
..The May 16, 2017, Mueller meeting with President Trump in the Oval Office.
The Mueller Report shows there never was a Trump Russia-Collusion-Conspiracy case to begin with; and with the report showing how most of Mueller’s investigative time was spent gathering evidence for an ‘obstruction case’; and with new revelations from Andrew McCabe, John Dowd and Mueller officials overlayed on the previous Strzok/Page texts; we can now clearly reconcile the May 16th, 2017, meeting between President Trump, Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein and Robert Mueller. Here’s how…
FBI Director James Comey was fired on Tuesday May 9th, 2017. According to his own admissions (NBC and CBS), Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe immediately began a criminal ‘obstruction’ investigation the next day, Wednesday May 10th; and he immediately enlisted Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
These McCabe statements line up with with text message conversations between FBI lawyer Lisa Page and FBI agent Peter Strzok – (same dates 5/9 and 5/10):
It now appears that important redaction is “POTUS” or “TRUMP”. [Yes, this is evidence that some unknown DOJ officials redacted information from these texts that would have pointed directly to the intents of the DOJ and FBI. [WARNING: Don’t get hung on it.]
The next day, Thursday May 11th, 2017, Andrew McCabe testifies to congress. With the Comey firing fresh in the headlines, Senator Marco Rubio asked McCabe: “has the dismissal of Mr. Comey in any way impeded, interrupted, stopped, or negatively impacted any of the work, any investigation, or any ongoing projects at the Federal Bureau of Investigation?”
McCabe responded: “So there has been no effort to impede our investigation to date. Quite simply put, sir, you cannot stop the men and women of the FBI from doing the right thing, protecting the American people and upholding the Constitution.”
However, again referencing his own admissions, on Friday May 12th McCabe met with DAG Rod Rosenstein to discuss the issues, referencing the criminal ‘obstruction’ case McCabe had opened just two days before. According to McCabe:
… “[Rosenstein] asked for my thoughts about whether we needed a special counsel to oversee the Russia case. I said I thought it would help the investigation’s credibility. Later that day, I went to see Rosenstein again. This is the gist of what I said: I feel strongly that the investigation would be best served by having a special counsel.” (link)
Recap: Tuesday: Comey Fired; Wednesday: McCabe starts criminal ‘obstruction’ case; Thursday: McCabe testifies to congress “no effort to impede”; Friday: McCabe and Rosenstein discuss appointing a Special Counsel.
After the weekend, Monday May 15th, McCabe states he and Rosenstein conferred again about the Special Counsel approach. McCabe: “I brought the matter up with him again after the weekend.”
Now, overlaying what we know now that we did not know in 2018, to include the John Dowd interview and McCabe admissions, a very clear picture emerges.
On Tuesday May 16th, Rod Rosenstein takes Robert Mueller to the White House to talk with the target of the ‘obstruction’ criminal investigation, Donald Trump, under the ruse of bringing Mueller in for a meeting about becoming FBI Director.
Knowing McCabe launched a criminal obstruction investigation six days earlier (May 10th); and knowing Mueller was ineligible for the position of FBI Director; this “meeting” looks entirely different.
This meeting looks like an opportunity to gather evidence for the obstruction case.
Heck, perhaps this meeting was even recorded as part of the FBI investigation.
Remember the Rosenstein ‘wear a wire‘ debates? Well, did Rosenstein need to actually wear a wire, or did soon-to-be appointed Special Counsel Robert Mueller just carry the recording device into an undercover deposition?… Consider:
WASHINGTON – Andrew McCabe, the disgraced former acting FBI director, reveals in his new book that Robert Mueller temporarily left his cell phone behind after a meeting with President Trump in the Oval Office and that the phone “later had to be retrieved.”
McCabe did not explain why he included the detail in his book.
McCabe says that Mueller left the phone behind after Trump had interviewed Mueller as a potential candidate to replace James Comey as FBI director. The interview reportedly took place in the Oval Office just one day before Mueller had been appointed special counsel in the so-called Russia collusion case. (more)
Oh, I think I know why McCabe included the detail in his book… leverage.
In combination with the ‘wear a wire’ comments, McCabe’s stealth book note is a shot across the bow to Rod Rosenstein and Robert Mueller. Only the insider ‘small group’ would understand what McCabe is threatening. It’s a get out of jail free card that McCabe played to escape the clutches of the 2018 DC criminal referral.
McCabe telling Rosenstein: Don’t try to put yourself of a pedestal and act like you were not a direct participant in the investigation of President Trump; remember the May 16th, operation? And, guess what…. it looks like it worked.
[This would explain why DC U.S. Attorney Jessie Liu dropped the case against McCabe?]
The next day, Wednesday May 17th, 2017, Rod Rosenstein and Andrew McCabe go to brief the congressional “Gang-of-Eight”: Paul Ryan, Nancy Pelosi, ¹Devin Nunes, Adam Schiff, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Schumer, Richard Burr and Mark Warner.
… […] “On the afternoon of May 17, Rosenstein and I sat at the end of a long conference table in a secure room in the basement of the Capitol. We were there to brief the so-called Gang of Eight—the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate and the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees. Rosenstein had, I knew, made a decision to appoint a special counsel in the Russia case.”
[…] “After reminding the committee of how the investigation began, I told them of additional steps we had taken. Then Rod took over and announced that he had appointed a special counsel to pursue the Russia investigation, and that the special counsel was Robert Mueller.” (link)
Immediately following this May 17, 2017, Go8 briefing, Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein notified the public of the special counsel appointment.
According to President Trump’s Attorney John Dowd, the White House was stunned by the decision. [Link] Coincidentally, AG Jeff Sessions was in the oval office for unrelated business when White House counsel Don McGahn came in and informed the group. Jeff Sessions immediately offered his resignation, and Sessions’ chief-of-staff Jody Hunt went back to the Main Justice office to ask Rosenstein what the hell was going on.
Now, with hindsight and full understanding of exactly what the purposes and intents were for Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein to bring Robert Mueller to the White House, revisit this video from June 2017:
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The DOJ (Rosenstein) and FBI (McCabe) activity in coordination with the Robert Mueller team was always about the obstruction case from day one; heck, from even before Robert Mueller was appointed.
The totality of all primary effort has always been to protect the ruse of the Russia investigation by throwing out nonsense Russian indictments and keeping Manafort, Flynn and Papadopoulos (the original spygate targets) under control…. while the focus was on building the obstruction case against President Trump. Remember what FBI Agent Peter Strzok said:
…”you and I both know the odds are nothing. If I thought it was likely, I’d be there no question. I hesitate in part because of my gut sense and concern there’s no big there there.”
Mueller’s investigative ‘small group’ were the people inside Main Justice (DOJ) and FBI headquarters who redacted the Lisa Page and Peter Strzok text messages, and removed messages and communication antithetical to their goals.
As Devin Nunes outlined recently the Mueller team also kept key documents and information away from congress; stalled any effort to expose the unlawful aspects of “SpyGate’ and the fraudulent foundation behind the Carter Page FISA application; and undermined any adverse discoveries in the leak investigations (James Wolfe) writ large.
This investigative small group didn’t change when Mueller arrived, they just retooled the focus of their effort based on new leadership and new objectives. Those who created the Trump-Russia collusion/conspiracy case of 2016, evolved into creating the Trump obstructing justice case of 2017, 2018 and 2019.
Everything Mueller and Rosenstein were doing in late 2017 and throughout 2018 was intended to drag-out the Russia conspiracy narrative as long as possible, even though there was no actual Trump-Russia investigation taking place. The goal for the “small group” was to bury the risk by Democrats winning the 2018 mid-terms.
It was always the “obstruction” investigation that could lead to the desired result by Mueller’s team of taking down President Trump through evidence that would help Pelosi and Nadler achieve impeachment . The “obstruction case” was the entirety of the case they were trying to make from May 2017 through to March 2019.
All of the hostile DOJ and FBI action toward the people within the targeting of the investigation: Targeting Michael Flynn and Mike Flynn Jr; Paul Manafort’s early morning no-knock FBI raid; Michael Cohen’s FBI office raid; Roger Stone’s FBI and SWAT team raid; etc… All of it, was designed to provoke President Trump into taking action that would further fuel the ‘obstruction‘ case. It was all BAIT.
[¹] Now we know why House Speaker Paul Ryan moved to sideline Devin Nunes under the cloud of an ethics investigation.
Due to the size of the field, the first Democrat presidential primary debate takes place over two nights: tonight Wednesday, June 26, and Thursday, June 27, in Miami.
NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo are hosting the debate and hold exclusive rights to broadcast from 9pm EST to 11 p.m EST on both nights.
The moderators for the debate are: NBC News’ Lester Holt, Savannah Guthrie and Chuck Todd; MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, and Telemundo’s José Diaz-Balart.
The candidates for the first night are: Former Housing Secretary Julián Castro; Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas; Former Rep. John Delaney of Maryland; Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City; Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio; Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii; Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota; Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey; Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts; and Washington Governor Jay Inslee.
If you are a communist, socialist, communal activist; or if your hobbies include sitting around a campfire picking parasites off your friends; then grab your sustainable algae cakes and consider this an open discussion thread.
Or if you are just looking for a laugh by watching Moonbats howl, well, that’s OK too.
I have created this site to help people have fun in the kitchen. I write about enjoying life both in and out of my kitchen. Life is short! Make the most of it and enjoy!
This is a library of News Events not reported by the Main Stream Media documenting & connecting the dots on How the Obama Marxist Liberal agenda is destroying America
