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Tuesday, May 1, 2018
All Gave Some~Some Gave All
*****
Many happy hours spent here at the Velma Teague Library in Glendale, Arizona. The people were helpful and just plain nice. A wonderful place to escape to. Helen’s and my special thanks for many happy and productive hours spent there during our extended stay in the Phoenix area.
Angry President Trump: 'Disgraceful' leak of Mueller Russia probe questions
President Donald Trump says it is "disgraceful" that questions special counsel Mueller gave his attorneys were "leaked" to the media.BY DARLENE SUPERVILLE AND MARY CLARE JALONICK, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Donald Trump says it's "disgraceful" that a list of proposed questions from special counsel Robert Mueller was "leaked" to the news media.
The New York Times late Monday published around four dozen questions compiled by Trump's lawyers during negotiations with Mueller's investigators earlier this year over the prospect of a presidential interview. Mueller is investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election, whether Trump's campaign was involved and if the president obstructed justice after the campaign.
The Times report said Trump's lawyers compiled the questions into a list and that document was "provided to The Times by a person outside Mr. Trump's legal team."
The questions range from Trump's motivations for firing FBI Director James Comey a year ago to contacts Trump's campaign had with Russians. Although Mueller's team has indicated to Trump's lawyers that he's not considered a target, investigators remain interested in whether the president's actions constitute obstruction of justice and want to interview him about several episodes in office. They have not yet made a decision about an interview.
Trump lawyer Jay Sekulow declined to comment to The Associated Press, as did White House lawyer Ty Cobb.
In his tweet, Trump said there were "no questions on Collusion" and, as he as many times before, called Mueller's investigation a "Russian witch hunt." He said collusion with the Russians "never existed."
In a second tweet, Trump said: "It would seem very hard to obstruct justice for a crime that never happened."
The questions do appear to indicate that Mueller is looking into possible collusion. Some touch on Russian meddling and whether the Trump campaign coordinated in any way with the Kremlin. In one question obtained by the Times, Mueller asks what Trump knew about campaign staff, including his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, reaching out to Moscow.
Mueller has brought several charges against Manafort already, including money laundering and bank fraud. None of the charges relate to allegations of Russian election interference and possible coordination with Trump associates, and Manafort has denied having anything to do with such an effort.
One question asks what discussions Trump may have had regarding "any meeting with Mr. Putin," referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Another question asks what the president may have known about a possible attempt by his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to set up a back channel with Russia before Trump's inauguration.
Many of the questions obtained by the Times center on the obstruction issue, including his reaction to Attorney General Jeff Sessions' recusal from the Russia investigation, a decision Trump has angrily criticized.
The queries also touch on Trump's businesses and his discussions with his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, about a possible Moscow real estate deal. Cohen's business dealings are part of a separate FBI investigation.
Additional questions center on Michael Flynn, Trump's former national security adviser, who has pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his discussions on sanctions against Russia with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the presidential transition. Flynn is now cooperating with Mueller's investigators.
"What did you know about phone calls that Mr. Flynn made with the Russian ambassador, Sergey I. Kislyak, in late December 2016?" reads one question. Another asks if there were any efforts to reach out to Flynn "about seeking immunity or possible pardon."
Flynn was fired Feb. 13, 2017, after White House officials said he had misled them about his Russian contacts during the transition period by saying that he had not discussed sanctions.
The following day, according to memos written by Comey, Trump cleared the Oval Office of other officials and encouraged Comey to drop the investigation into Flynn.
Full Transcript: Netanyahu Reveals Secret Iran Nuclear Files
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The Times of Israel reports: Full text of a presentation by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Iran’s nuclear program, in Tel Aviv on April 30, 2018. (Netanyahu, who began by hailing one of the “greatest achievements” of Israeli intelligence in obtaining the material he was showcasing, spoke in English and later delivered a Hebrew summary.)
Good evening. Tonight, we’re going to show you something that the world has never seen before. Tonight, we are going to reveal new and conclusive proof of the secret nuclear weapons program that Iran has been hiding for years from the international community in its secret atomic archive.
We’re going to show you Iran’s secret nuclear files.
REVEALED: Mitch McConnell’s In-Laws Bought 10 Massive Ships from the Chinese Government Since His Wife Elaine Chao Became Transportation Secretary
by PETER SCHWEIZER AND JACOB MCLEOD
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) in-laws have ordered 10 massive cargo ships from the Chinese government since the senator’s wife Elaine Chao became Secretary of Transportation. The deep financial ties between the Chao family’s shipping business Foremost Group and the Chinese regime were first revealed in the #1 New York Times bestseller Secret Empires.
Foremost Group, which is owned by Sec. Elaine Chao’s father and Sen. McConnell’s father-in-law James S.C. Chao, signed contracts with a subsidiary of the state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) for four bulk cargo ships in June and September 2017. In December 2017, Chao’s company signed another contract with state-owned CSSC at Foremost’s New York office for two massive 210,000-ton ships. James S.C. Chao and two of Elaine’s sisters were in attendance. So, too, was the Consul General of China in New York, as well as representatives from the CSSC. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Foremost Group-CSSC Signing CeremonyThen on January 31, 2018, Foremost Group ordered four more 210,000-ton ships from CSSC. Angela Chao, sister to Sec. Elaine Chao and Foremost’s Deputy Chairman, said she expects cooperation between the two entities to extend into the future. In January 2017, Angela Chao joined the board of the state-owned Bank of China.
The finances of Sec. Elaine Chao and her husband, Sen. Mitch McConnell, are closely tied to the Foremost Group. In 2008, James Chao gave a $5 million-$25 million “gift” to Sen. McConnell, more than tripling his net worth. Contracts with other Chinese state-owned enterprises make up a significant portion of Foremost’s business. James and Angela Chao previously served on the board of CSSC Holdings, a major contractor for the Chinese military and a key supporter of the PLA Navy.
Despite increasing threats of a trade war between the Trump Administration and the Chinese government, the Chao family’s ties to the Chinese government do not seem to have cooled. To the contrary, as the 10-ship order suggests, they have accelerated. Moreover, James Chao was recently in China for an event promoting his new Chinese-language biography. The event was sponsored by Xinhua, the Chinese state-owned media outlet, and the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), a branch of the Communist Party known to be active in foreign influence operations. Sponsors praised James Chao as a great promoter of China abroad, referring to him as “vanguard of China-US exchanges.”
The Chao’s Chinese counterparties are often closely aligned with China’s foreign policy elite. CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin, attended the book event with the Chao’s. She is the daughter of a former Chinese president and wife of a former Major General in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Another official in attendance now serves as Deputy Director of the United Front Work Department, a division of the Communist Party involved in managing foreign relationships.
Trade and infrastructure deals around the globe have become a centerpiece of China’s foreign policy in recent years. These deals are part of the strategic “One Belt, One Road” initiative, a massive plan to expand China’s sphere of influence across Asia and Africa. U.S. analysts view OBOR as both a military and economic challenge to the United States. One detailed study regards it as a “state-directed effort to bolster Chinese political influence and extend its military reach from Indonesia to East Africa.”
But the Chao family describes it in much more benign terms. In a March 2017 statement, Angela Chao called OBOR “very important not only to China’s development, but for the many surrounding and neighboring countries, and thus the world….I hope to also be able to contribute to this important initiative that has the potential to raise the standard of living for so many.”
The United States has so far declined to participate directly in OBOR or join China’s Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). However, the Trump Administration sent a delegation to the 2017 Belt & Road Forum in a notable deviation from previous policy. Elaine Chao’s position as Transportation Secretary gives her great influence over U.S. policy regarding central components of the plan. Secretary Chao is spearheadingthe Trump administration’s $200 billion infrastructure proposal.
Foremost has yet to disclose the financial details of its latest deals with CSSC. Similar transactions with CSSC have recently cost over $47 million per vessel, a price that would place the total value of the Foremost deals at nearly half a billion dollars. Under current federal disclosure laws, which do not apply to adult relatives, Secretary Chao and Senator McConnell are not required to report their family’s dealings with a major foreign military contractor. Secretary Chao is known to be extremely close with her father, who claims that she calls him nightly and involves him in official administration events “as often as she can.”
State Dept. Releases List of Top 10 Best Allies, Worst Opponents at United Nations
by JOEL B. POLLAK
AFP TIMOTHY A. CLARY
The U.S. State Department has released a report on the voting behavior of other countries at the United Nations — and has identified the top ten best and worst countries in terms of voting for or against the U.S., respectively.
The April 26 report, “Voting Practices in the United Nations 2017,” was prepared after the Trump administration made clear it would consider cutting aid to countries that voted against the U.S. in UN institutions. That warning came after the UN General Assembly voted 128 to 9 (with 35 abstentions) last December to oppose President Donald Trump’s decision to relocate the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to the capital city of Jerusalem.
“They take hundreds of millions of dollars and even billions of dollars, and then they vote against us. Well, we’re watching those votes. Let them vote against us. We’ll save a lot. We don’t care,” the president said. His warning was reiterated by UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, who said after the vote: “We will remember it when we are called upon to once again make the world’s largest contribution to the United Nations and we will remember it when so many countries come calling on us, as they so often do, to pay even more and to use our influence for their benefit.”
The report on UN votes is prepared annually, but has additional significance this year due to those warnings.
In 2017, the best U.S. ally at the UN was Israel, and the worst U.S. enemy at the UN was Zimbabwe.
The report also notes the best ten: “The 10 countries with the highest voting coincidence with the United States were, in descending order: Israel, Micronesia, Canada, Marshall Islands, Australia, United Kingdom, France, Palau, Ukraine, and the Czech Republic.”
It also notes the worst ten: The 10 countries with the lowest voting coincidence with the United States were, in ascending order: Zimbabwe, Burundi, Iran, Syria, Venezuela, North Korea, Turkmenistan, Cuba, Bolivia, and South Africa.”
According to the USAID website, the latter countries received the following amounts of U.S. aid, across all agencies, in fiscal year 2016 (the last year for which full records are available, rounded to the nearest million):
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Zimbabwe: $261 million
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Burundi: $75 million
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Iran: $3 million
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Syria: $916 million
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Venezuela: $9 million
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North Korea: $0
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Turkmenistan: $3 million
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Cuba: $16 million
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Bolivia: $1 million
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South Africa: $597 million
The total was close to $2 billion.
Haley said last week, upon release of the report: “[T]his is not an acceptable return on our investment. When we arrived at the UN last year, we said we would be taking names, and this list of voting records speaks for itself. President Trump wants to ensure that our foreign assistance dollars – the most generous in the world – always serve American interests, and we look forward to helping him see that the American people are no longer taken for granted.”
Of the ten countries voting least often with the U.S., South Africa may already be feeling the consequences.
On Monday, South Africa learned that the U.S. would not be exempting it from new steel tariffs. The South African government released a statement in protest against the U.S. decision: “South Africa is concerned by the unfairness of the measures and that it is one of the countries that are singled out as a contributor to US national security concerns when its exports of aluminium and steel products are not that significant.”
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. He was named to Forward’s 50 “most influential” Jews in 2017. He is the co-author of How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, which is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
VP Pence Physician Behind Ronny Jackson Attack
By Sarah Carter
Unsubstantiated rumors and accusations targeting White House physician Rear Admiral Ronny Jackson, who was nominated by President Donald Trump to be Secretary of the Veterans Affairs Administration, have been propelled by media outlets and Democratic members of the Senate without any proof that those allegations were true.But where did these rumors and accusations start? Who was fighting to keep Dr. Jackson from being nominated and who wanted to smear his name publicly?
According to four administration officials, the main allegations were brought forth by Vice President Mike Pence’s Army physician Dr. Jennifer Pena, who is assigned to Pence by the White House Medical Unit and does not work directly for the office of the Vice President. Those officials contend Pena has held a long-time grudge against Jackson because of his continuing promotions in the White House. She began her career at the White House during the Obama administration. According to the officials, Pena, who is still active military and assigned to the White House Military Office, did not follow proper protocol to report on the allegations. Instead, she went directly to the Senate with the support of some current and former White House medical staff who were her loyalists. None of the allegations she allegedly brought forth have been substantiated.
“This is like something out of the show Madame Secretary…”
Pence’s spokesman, Deputy Assistant Jarrod Agen could not be reached immediately for comment. Pena, who was appointed to the White House Medical Unit during the Obama administration, did not return several calls for comment. According to Democrats with the Senate Veteran’s Affairs Committee the bombshell allegations were allegedly backed by 23 individuals, but the committee did not release the names of those individuals bringing the allegations.
Jackson, who served in the White House under three administrations, withdrew his nomination for Veteran’s Affairs and stories contending he is no longer the President’s physician are only partially accurate. Jackson had abdicated his role as the President’s physician when he was nominated by Trump for the Veteran’s Affairs Administration but as of Monday, he continues to work in the White House Medical Unit.
Those who have served with Jackson, both in the Bush administration and Trump administration, describe the attacks against Jackson’s character as flat out wrong and unbelievable, current and former administration officials told this reporter. A number of former Obama administration officials have also come forward in Jackson’s defense, along with the U.S. Secret Service, which shot back at the allegations brought by the top Democrat on the Veteran’s Affairs Committee member Sen. Jon Tester from Montana.
Tester’s office did not return phone calls for comment.
“(Jackson) is disgusted that the accusations have carried so much weight with nothing to back them up,” said a senior Trump administration official, who knows Jackson. “This is a vendetta in particular and these false allegations were given to members of Congress then leaked to the press. There is absolutely no merit to any of these stories…he’s disgusted with the whole thing.”
A White House official told this reporter that there is no evidence or documentation of the allegations that Jackson drove drunk and wrecked a government vehicle, quarterly audits don’t show any evidence that Jackson over prescribed medication and there is no evidence or reports of him drinking on the job.
The onslaught of stories drew attention away from the administration’s mission to fill the post at the Veterans Affairs Administration and led Jackson to withdraw his name from the nomination last week.
“This is like something like out of the show Madame Secretary,” said a former Bush Administration official, who knows Jackson and served with him in the White House. The official referenced the American political television series starring Tea Leone, which shows the seedy side of Washington D.C. and the backstabbing tactics of those trying to rise to the top.
“Dr. Jackson was always professional and kind,” said the former Bush official. “I never heard of any of these allegations against him until Pena brought them to Congress. I never saw any evidence of this. It’s tragic what’s happened to him.”
Jackson has endured numerous security clearances and had never had a disparaging report from the FBI, according to Administration officials. Those security clearances require investigators to interview family, friends, former employers, neighbors, current coworkers and even old friends. The months-long investigations can be grueling and investigators ask about everything from that person’s personal habits to possible foreign contacts and connections.
The White House on Friday said officials conducted a thorough review of presidential Jackson’s vehicle records. They only found three minor incidents but there was no evidence supporting a document released by Senate Democrats this week that he “wrecked” a car after drinking at a Secret Service going-away party.
Secret Service has just informed me that Senator Jon Tester’s statements on Admiral Jackson are not true. There were no such findings. A horrible thing that we in D.C. must live with, just like phony Russian Collusion. Tester should lose race in Montana. Very dishonest and sick!
In a rare move, the Secret Service released a statement denying the details that its agents had to intervene during an overseas trip because Jackson was drunk and pounding on a door that would have disturbed then President Obama.
“Sen. Tester even admitted that he reviewed the FBI files and there was no derogatory information in there about Jackson but he still spread malicious rumors,” said a current Administration official. “Certainly we would never nominate anybody who had derogatory information. Pena has had a long-standing feud with doctor Jackson…she’s very jealous that he’s been consistently promoted. This isn’t about being a whistleblower – there are other procedures for that. She went up to the hill and she spoke with approximately twenty-five Democrats…she’s a holdover in the White House and didn’t want Jackson to be nominated.”
Trump has called on Tester to resign after the Montana Senator took the anonymous allegations to the press, telling CNN that Jackson was known as the “candy man” for passing out prescription drugs, to include the sleep aid Ambien, on overseas trips and then giving those staffers drugs to wake up.
Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrumpAllegations made by Senator Jon Tester against Admiral/Doctor Ron Jackson are proving false. The Secret Service is unable to confirm (in fact they deny) any of the phony Democrat charges which have absolutely devastated the wonderful Jackson family. Tester should resign. The.....
Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump....great people of Montana will not stand for this kind of slander when talking of a great human being. Admiral Jackson is the kind of man that those in Montana would most respect and admire, and now, for no reason whatsoever, his reputation has been shattered. Not fair, Tester!
Tester, the top Democrat on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, had taken allegations public by saying on CNN that Jackson was known as ‘the candy man’ to staffers in the White House and that Jackson would give drugs to passengers traveling with the president overseas to ‘put them to sleep and then give them the drugs to wake them back up again.’”
Sen. Tester
Tester did not disclose who brought the allegations to his committee.
But the unfounded allegations include:
But the unfounded allegations include:
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Jackson had private stocks of controlled substances, suggesting he took advantage of lax record-keeping of drug inventories in the White House medical unit.
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At one time there was missing Percocet. It threw the medical staff into a panic, the Tester report found. It said Jackson had provided a large supply to a staffer in the White House military office, the report said.
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Jackson asked staffers to write prescriptions for each other so that drugs could be given to non-beneficiaries. According to the report, the physicians felt uncomfortable that they refused to be part of the culture of loose distribution of drugs to current and former White House staffers.
Ciao…….Helen and Moe Lauzier
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