Feb 20 2025

President Trump Impromptu Presser Aboard Air Force One – Returning to White House

Posted originally on the CTH on February 20, 2025 | Sundance

There are some contextual comments from President Trump that are never reported, this is one of those examples. Within these impromptu press remarks aboard Air Force One, President Trump gives context for his current position toward the leadership in Ukraine, and other matters.

The beginning remarks about U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent traveling to Kyiv to meet with President Zelenskyy, and the fact that Zelenskyy refused to meet with him – says quite a lot about the lack of respect the Ukraine president is openly willing to display. Obviously, this is one datapoint that helps explain President Trump’s perspective. WATCH:

Feb 20 2025

President Trump Delivers Remarks and Takes Questions During FII Institute Summit

Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance

President Trump delivered the keynote address at the Future Investment Initiative Institute (FII Summit) in Miami, Florida.

Remaining in a rapid response forward footing in case events unfold quickly, President Trump’s key foreign policy advisors and emissaries are traveling with him as he addresses the audience. During part of the remarks, President Trump addressed the current headline foreign policy issues in Gaza and Ukraine, once again calling attention to the madness of the conflict.

At 3:52 of the video segment below, President Trump begins discussing the position of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Keep in mind, during the transition phase prior to the inauguration, during the early days of the administration and all the way up to last week, President Trump has been in discussions with Zelenskyy. So, President Trump has a pretty solid understanding of where Zelenskyy stands on the issue of ending the conflict. With that backdrop, listen:

The full speech, with questions is below:

Feb 20 2025

State Dept Poised to Designate Latin-America Gangs Tren de Aragua, MS13 and the Sinaloa Cartel as Foreign Terrorist Organizations

Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundanc

A notice in the federal register [SEE HERE] scheduled to be published on February 20, 2025, outlines how the U.S. State Department under Marco Rubio intends to designate Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa Cartel and MS13 as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.

In combination with enhanced actions by the Dept of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Patrol and the U.S. Treasury Dept., the designation opens up a lot of authority for the U.S. government to target not only the gangs, but any entity or enterprise who supports their activity; including the government of Mexico.

WASHINGTON – […] This designation allows the U.S. to impose financial sanctions on these groups and people connected to them, and cooperate with allies to cull cartels. It also allows the U.S. to declare members of these groups as “inadmissible” to the country and ineligible for immigration benefits.

It’s not immediately clear how far these sanctions might go — or who they may target. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment.

The move follows President Donald Trump’s latest efforts to crack down on cartels. On Jan. 20, Trump signed an executive order that established a pipeline for cartels and other international groups that “constitute[d] a national security threat beyond that posed by traditional organized crime” to be labeled as global terrorists.

These moves could expose countries like El Salvador — which the U.S. aims to collaborate with on countermigration, but have also been accused of having dealings with gangs — to terror charges and restrict their cooperation with the U.S. (read more)

Feb 20 2025

French President Macron and British PM Starmer Coming to U.S. to Discuss Ukraine with President Trump

Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance

Last weekend French President Emmanual Macron organized an emergency meeting in Paris with leaders from the European Union to address the unfolding crisis of President Trump organizing a ceasefire and peace in the war between Ukraine and Russia.

The outcome of the meeting was what would be expected. Each member of the EU said they would not put their military forces into a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine if the United States were not leading the effort. Having previously warned the NATO alliance to step-up their military spending, President Trump has no intention of putting U.S. troops into a regional conflict that affects Europe.

Additionally, Macron has domestic political issues he is hopeful to draw attention away from; meanwhile British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is similarly alarmed as the U.K has taken up the prominent position of military support for Ukraine. Together, they are both planning quick trips to the White House for talks with President Trump.

WASHINGTON DC – French President Emmanuel Macron is coming to Washington next week, national security adviser Mike Waltz said on Wednesday.

Macron called for an emergency “informal” meeting with world leaders just days ago in Paris to discuss European security and the challenges posed by President Donald Trump’s administration. Trump and Macron had a “friendly” but brief conversation just prior to the summit, POLITICO reported on Monday.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is also set to visit next week, Waltz said on Fox News. Starmer’s office confirmed the visit earlier this week.

This trip comes on the heels of Trump’s increasing jabs at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for not doing more to end the war in Ukraine earlier. Trump called Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections” on Wednesday, as European leaders are growing fearful that Trump will side with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the interests of longtime European allies.

The White House did not immediately respond to request for comment. (read more)

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been traveling throughout Europe and the Mid-East seeking support and comfort as he attempts to retain the status quo. There are multiple billions at stake for Ukraine as U.S. taxpayers have been funding the operations of government, and the retirement accounts of Ukrainian officials.

In April 2022, Ukraine Prime Minister Shmyhal was not the least bit bashful saying cash was important because American taxpayers, the working American people, have a duty to fund the pensions and retirement accounts of the Ukrainian people, including govt politicians.

Germany, France, Great Britain and the larger EU assembly cannot and will not cover the bills for Ukraine themselves. This is a major issue for them and one of the primary reasons they will not put their military forces into the lead position on behalf of Zelenskyy. This is also a big point of contention for President Trump.

Meanwhile, Vice President J.D. Vance on Wednesday warned the Ukrainian president against attacking President Donald Trump, saying that ‘badmouthing’ him in public would only backfire.

Vance spoke to DailyMail.com hours after Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky accused Trump of living in a Russian-made ‘disinformation space.’

The extraordinary language on both sides comes at a critical time in the war between Ukraine and Russia, as Trump pushes for a speedy resolution. (read more)

Most western media ignored the obvious when JD Vance and Marco Rubio met with the Ukraine delegation on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. It was clear from the body language and visible arrogance from the Ukraine side, this was not a meeting of aligned allies.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy is counting on a pressure campaign from the EU, the global intelligence apparatus, and domestic corporate interests inside the U.S. to keep his position solid against the policies of President Trump and JD Vance. The financial benefits of the conflict have enriched a variety of U.S. politicians who are also helping to create pushback against President Trump.

The one thing all of the aligned interests fear most is a geopolitical agreement, even possibly an alignment, between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, it appears that both leaders well understand the objective and are undeterred in their diplomacy.

If you listen carefully to this segment of Secretary Marco Rubio’s comments a few days ago, you quickly realize the goals of President Trump and how universally they are opposed by the people and institutions that benefit from conflict. Listen carefully:

https://twitter.com/jj_talking/status/1891997156212425095

Feb 20 2025

The IRS will Begin With 6,000 Layoffs This Week?

Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance

According to the New York Times, the IRS will begin laying off up to 6,000 staff this week.

(New York Times) – The Internal Revenue Service will begin laying off roughly 6,000 employees on Thursday as part of the Trump administration’s push to downsize the federal work force, three people familiar with the agency’s plans said.

The terminations will target relatively recent hires at the I.R.S., which the Biden administration had attempted to revitalize with a surge of funding and new staff, the people said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

The Trump administration has begun laying off probationary employees — who do not enjoy as much job protection as their more tenured colleagues — across the federal government in recent days.

I.R.S. managers on Wednesday began asking employees to report to the office in the coming days and bring with them their government-issued equipment, according to messages viewed by The New York Times. The I.R.S. employs roughly 100,000 accountants, lawyers and other staff across the country. (read more)

Feb 20 2025

IT BEGINS: President Trump Starts Peeling Back the Zelenskyy Mask

Posted originally on the CTH on February 19, 2025 | Sundance

It was inevitable. We have been together from the outset of the conversation where we admitted to ourselves that sooner or later the pretending was going to have to stop. Well, here we are.

President Donald Trump begins a very uncomfortable process to peel back the mask that Ukrainian President Zelenskyy represents. This is needed:

President Trump – Think of it, a modestly successful comedian, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, talked the United States of America into spending $350 Billion Dollars, to go into a War that couldn’t be won, that never had to start, but a War that he, without the U.S. and “TRUMP,” will never be able to settle. The United States has spent $200 Billion Dollars more than Europe, and Europe’s money is guaranteed, while the United States will get nothing back. Why didn’t Sleepy Joe Biden demand Equalization, in that this War is far more important to Europe than it is to us — We have a big, beautiful Ocean as separation.

On top of this, Zelenskyy admits that half of the money we sent him is “MISSING.” He refuses to have Elections, is very low in Ukrainian Polls, and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden “like a fiddle.” A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left. In the meantime, we are successfully negotiating an end to the War with Russia, something all admit only “TRUMP,” and the Trump Administration, can do. Biden never tried, Europe has failed to bring Peace, and Zelenskyy probably wants to keep the “gravy train” going. I love Ukraine, but Zelenskyy has done a terrible job, his Country is shattered, and MILLIONS have unnecessarily died – And so it continues….. (link)

This is likely to stir a big controversy, but it is needed.

CTH has outlined that elements outside our central government, likely CIA clandestine operators in coordination with GCHQ in U.K, are the leading operators on what they frame as Ukraine military operations.

Two days ago, on the morning when Secretary of State Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov were scheduled to meet in Riyadh, someone carried out an attack on U.S-owned energy infrastructure. U.S military assets, drones that originated from Ukraine attacked a pumping station responsible for transporting oil through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC). This is not exclusively a Russian oil infrastructure asset. This is partly a western asset belonging to American energy corporations. As noted by Medvedev: “In 2024, American businesses accounted for over 40% of CPC oil shipments, and together with other Western companies, their total share exceeded 65%.”

Zelenskyy was in the UAE at the time. He was NOT leading or authorizing this engagement. So, who was it? No one in the west is asking this question, only the Russians mention it. This is only one example.

Sooner or later, something is bound to happen, because the desperation to retain control amid those within the IC consortium is palpable and visible. They fear President Trump and President Putin forming a geopolitical alliance and they are reacting out of fear for diminished influence.

This presents a problem for our nation. The background here is very concerning. This is why I said, “at a certain moment, likely as a part of a media question, someone is going to ask President Trump why a certain action was taken by his administration in the Ukraine conflict. President Trump will respond by saying, “we didn’t do that.” The puzzled media will repeat the question. President Trump will again say, no one in my administration did that. …. And suddenly, things will reveal.”

Biden was never in control of the Ukraine operation. This is something that started within the U.S. State Department (CIA division) long before Biden was installed. President Trump is now having to deal with a geopolitical consequence that comes from this collaborative IC operation that is obviously no longer exclusive to the USA. Other intelligence agencies are now too far enmeshed to safely retreat.

It makes sense for President Trump to start this conversation by pointing out the Zelenskyy factor within it. It was a logical prediction to look at the scope of the problem and see Zelenskyy as the Gordion knot that needs to be cut.

Unfortunately for all of us, this is a very concerning -albeit necessary- conversation to have.

President Trump now has the challenge to guide this awakening carefully. It is a very concerning realization for our country to accept that representative government is not in control of things, the amorphous Intelligence Community is at the center of it.

Keep watching.