The merchants of Death—Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, General Dynamics, et al—gathered in Washington on Wednesday like a flock of vultures descending on roadkill. “The Pentagon will host leaders from the top eight U.S. weapons manufacturers on Wednesday to discuss the industry’s capacity to meet Ukraine’s weapons needs if the war with Russia lasts years, two Read More...
The Trump administration has finally clarified its stance on Syria—it plans to occupy portions of the country and remove its elected leader, Bashar al-Assad.
The former reason is, of course, predicated on the phony Islamic State threat, while the latter is based on the threadbare excuse the United States must prevent al-Assad from butchering his own people and, after all, Syrians deserve democracy American-style, even if the price is 500,000 dead men, women, and children.
On January 11 during a meeting on immigration, President Trump asked why America accepts immigrants from “shithole countries.” His remark was aimed at Haiti and Africa.
Although the remark resulted in widespread condemnation and a denial from the administration, Trump was correct about the conditions in Haiti and Africa despite the crudity of his commentary.
Left out of the discussion, however, are the reasons for deplorable conditions in these countries.
On January 4, the Trump administration announced it will suspend military aid to Pakistan. According to State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert, the government of Pakistan has not taken “decisive action” against the Taliban and the so-called Haqqani Network.
Additionally, the US placed Pakistan on a “Special Watch List” for “severe violations of religious freedom.”
Over the last few days, anti-government protests have broken out across Iran. It’s reported the protests are focused on deteriorating economic conditions and corruption in the Islamic Republic. Demonstrators have gathered in a number of cities, including Tehran, the holy city of Qom, Isfahan, Kermanshah, Rasht, Sari, and Hamedan.
In late November, the Atlantic Council, established as a NATO cheering section in 1961, applauded the National Security Council for its decision to send more weapons to the Poroshenko government in Ukraine.
On November 18 it was reported President Trump would consider a plan “to counter Russian aggression in the region.” The NCS plan includes a $47 million grant package that would supply Ukraine with high-tech weapons, including Javelin anti-tank missiles.
President Donald Trump is courting bad company. He’s talking with Erik Prince, the founder of Blackwater, ex-CIA officer John R. Maguire, and Iran-Contra figure Oliver North in a bid to create his own private version of the Central Intelligence Agency. A proposal has been submitted to the current CIA boss, Mike Pompeo, The Week reported on December 5.
Having failed to unseat Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the United States has switched its focus to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
In an act of blatant hypocrisy, the US House has passed “Sanctioning Hezbollah’s Illicit use of Civilians as Defenseless Shields Act,” a bill that sanctions Hezbollah for alleged war crimes while ignoring its own checkered past brimming with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
There are several unanswered questions about the terror attack in Manhattan on October 31, allegedly by Sayfullo Saipov, a Uzbek immigrant. Most prominent is a report by a neighbor in Patterson, New Jersey, who said he saw Saipov in the company of two identified men.
“They didn’t look like construction workers. They weren’t dressed like they were going to work,” Carlos Batista told Fox News. “I would see him with them more than his own kids.”
CIA Director Mike Pompeo told an interviewer at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) the CIA will “become a much more vicious agency” in conducting covert operations against its roster of enemies, most prominently Iran and North Korea.
Pompeo also told the gathering of neocons Trump decertified the Iran deal not because it is in violation—the Iranians are playing by the rules—but rather because Trump has been told it “would curtail Iranian adventurism.”
