Tag Archive for: President Trump

Back-Door Diplomacy On Live TV

On Friday, Americans witnessed the most incredible “diplomatic” exchange of all time, on live TV!

That was when Ukrainian president Zelenskyy came to the Oval Office and tried to shout down President Trump and Vice President JD Vance in front of the cameras.

I’ve been been reporting on world events for over forty years and I have never seen anything even remotely approaching the disgraceful performance of the Ukrainian war leader this afternoon.

Earlier this week, you saw diplomacy as it is normally carried out with the visits of French president Macron and British prime minister Sturmer.

Both, given the opportunity to comment on their relationship with President Trump during live press events and during separate one-on-one interviews with FoxNews anchor Brett Baer, applauded President Trump as a “game-changer,” whose innovative solutions provided hope for the first time in three years of ending the Russia-Ukraine war.

Could anyone imagine Joe Biden proposing a rare earth minerals and oil and gas investment deal with Ukraine that would intertwine the US and Ukrainian economies in such a way as to make Russian aggression so costly as to become highly unlikely?

Frankly, I can’t imagine any of our previous presidents having the imagination to come up with such an innovative solution to guarantee Ukraine’s security without putting the lives of US servicemen and women at risk. Both the French and British leaders had the elegance – and the wisdom – to recognize this.

Zelenskyy did not. Instead, he engaged in a shouting match with both President Trump and Vice-President JD Vance, talking over them non-stop like a badly-behaved TV guest.

At one point, Vance berated Zelenskyy for not saying thank-you for U.S. aid. He also noted that Ukraine was having problems recruiting fresh troops, and frequently took US and European leaders on “propaganda tours” to jin up support.

Zelenskyy responded dismissively, saying Vance didn’t know Ukraine and had only been to Ukraine once. Vance replied: “Do you think it is respectful to come to the Oval Office of the United States and attack the administration that is trying to prevent the destruction of your country?”

Zelenskyy then suggested that if the United States did not fully support the Ukraine war effort Putin would attack America. “You are protected by a nice ocean,” he said, “but you will feel that in the future.” Trump immediately cut him off. “You don’t know that. You don’t know that. Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel.”

WATCH: FULL fiery White House exchange between President Trump, JD Vance and Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Finally Trump basically threatened to toss Zelenskyy out of the White House. “If we don’t get a deal, you will have to fight it out by yourselves and it won’t be pretty,” he said.

Trump issued a statement on Truth Social shortly after the cameras went dark.

“We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today. Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure. It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

One hour later, the cameras returned to the Oval Office for the “official” press conference, where the two leaders returned to diplomatic niceties. Clearly, Zelenskyy had gotten the message.

I am sure that the spin rooms of the formerly mainstream media will be excoriating Trump in the days to come for confronting Zelenskyy. They will revive all the worn accusations that Trump has a soft spot for Russia, or is controlled by Putin.

And they will miss the very real news contained in this unusually frank exchange: Donald Trump truly wants peace in Ukraine, and he knows there can only be peace if the U.S. and its allies come together to restrain both Russia and Ukraine, like friends and bystanders who restrain teenagers in a cafeteria brawl.

But this brawl has been deadly, and as Trump repeatedly warned today, it could have led to World War III.

It’s time for the killing to stop, no matter how much Zelenskyy, Putin, and their allies want it to continue.

I discuss this in the heat of the moment on this week’s Prophecy Today Weekend. As always, you can listen live at 1 PM on Saturday on 104.9 FM or 550 AM in there Jacksonville, Florida, area, or listen to the podcast here.

Yours in freedom.

©2025 . All rights reserved.

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Ken Timmerman’s 14th book of non-fiction, THE IRAN HOUSE: Tales of Revolution, Persecution, War, and Intrigue, can be ordered by clicking here or by viewing my author’s page, here.

Secret Service’s ‘Inexcusable’ J6 Failures Stem From Much Deeper Problems, Former Agents Say

Leadership that completely ignores field agent concerns, combined with inconsistent communication protocols and a lack of preparation, lead to outcomes like the Secret Service’s failures on Jan. 6, 2021, former agents told the Daily Caller.

The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report July 31 detailing the agency’s performance on the day of the Capitol riot. A fundamental breakdown in inter-agency correspondence led to disparities in intelligence gathering and coordination between the agency and the United States Capitol Police (USCP), the former agents said.

“The bottom line that caused it all is, whether it’s a combination of the Capitol Police and the Secret Service or ultimately, the entity responsible for protection, were not prepared, or did not anticipate accurately, the necessary manpower,” former Secret Service agent Dean Peterson told the Caller. “Because of it, they were kind of caught off guard, and that led to some poor, in-the-moment decisions.”

The potential for chaos was obvious, however, according to Peterson, which render the mishaps “inexcusable.”

“I’m shocked, I guess, by what the intelligence community may or may not be communicating. I would think … you don’t need to be a part of these things and have intimate knowledge to have this perspective of like, ‘Wow, this is an unusual election circumstance,’” Peterson said.

The Secret Service said they fully cooperated with the OIG and have “taken steps to implement the majority of the recommendations” in the report, according to a statement they provided to the Daily Caller.

“The United States Secret Service (USSS) has a no-fail mission to protect our nation’s leaders. The actions taken by our agents on January 6, 2021 demonstrated their dedication to preventing harm to Secret Service protectees and assisting the U.S. Capitol Police,” the agency said. “We are continually improving protectee operations and benefit from oversight and investigations”

One example of the agency’s shortcomings was allowing Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to come within 20 feet of a pipe bomb at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) building in Washington, D.C, the OIG report notes.

The agency assigned two separate canine teams to sweep the DNC building where Capitol Police found the bomb the morning of Jan. 6 but did not assign an Explosives Ordnance Disposal team (EOD), which surprised agents on the ground, according to the report.

The Secret Service’s Operations Unit claimed that they didn’t request an EOD team because of a Department of Defense (DoD) rule that requires 72-hour advance notice for an EOD. The OIG, however, found seven occasions where EOD support was requested and approved despite being submitted less than 72 hours before a protectee’s visit.

“Regardless if it’s 72 hours or not, the job still needs to get done. If we’ve got a protectee that’s traveling to a location, the whole 72-hour thing, to me doesn’t make sense,” Michael Matranga told the Daily Caller.

The agency’s excuse was strange, Matranga says, and policy shouldn’t get in the way of safety.

A suspect allegedly planted two pipe bombs, one at the DNC and one at the RNC, the evening of Jan. 5, according to the FBI.

USCP received reporters of an “explosive device” at the RNC around 12:42 p.m. on Jan. 6, according to Republican Georgia Rep. Barry Loudermilk. Approximately 20 minutes later, officials discovered there was another “device” at the DNC while Harris was inside.

The violence at the Capitol had begun around 1 p.m., according to the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol’s report.

A group of young students appeared to walk in the vicinity of the alleged bomb at the DNC after officials had apparently discovered it was there, footage Republican Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie provided to Revolver News’ Darren Beattie appears to show.

Law enforcement have not identified the suspect who allegedly planted the bombs, offering a $500,000 reward for any leading information.

The disarray is largely due to a lack of leadership, Matranga told the Caller.

“The problem is the 8th floor, which is headquarters. They’re just not listening,” Matranga said. “There needs to be some serious procedural and policy changes in order for them to adapt to the current threat landscape.”

The July 31 OIG report says intelligence agencies compiled an information packet that “contained some information indicating a potential threat against the Capitol” but that the Secret Service did not receive it.

Two Task Force officers from the Secret Service did report hearing “general information” about potential protests, but “nothing out of the ordinary or uncommon.” These officers, however, later discovered they were not included on an email list set up to monitor pre-inauguration threats, according to the OIG report.

Secret Service relies on intelligence agencies like the CIA, FBI and NSA to provide intelligence to them, but the process is far from streamlined, the former agents said.

People assume these agencies play nice, but Matranga told the Caller this isn’t always the case. Sometimes the agencies provide information that’s “very good,” while other times the intel is sorely lacking.

Matranga and Peterson spoke of a need for significantly more efficient communication between the agency and the intelligence organizations.

“The Secret Service, now, because of what they do, has to have a seat at the table … a more prominent seat at the table with the intelligence community,” Peterson said. “Far too many pieces of information do not get appropriately and timely communication, and that’s a huge issue.”

“At the end of the day, this is that breakdown in communication that has been going on for a very long time. It’s jurisdictional,” Matranga said.

Once the chaos began and protesters broke into the rotunda, the Secret Service’s Uniformed Division Chief offered to assist the United States Capitol Police (USCP) with extra officers. The chief then delegated that responsibility to the Assistant Chief, who told the OIG, “[He] thought the Chief requested another USSS official to assist with sending support to the USCP but did not know who.”

Ultimately, it took the Secret Service nearly an hour and a half to deploy additional officers to assist USCP after they initially offered their help, according to the report. The number of officers sent “may not have been the magnitude of assistance leadership anticipated.”

An email the Secret Service’s Protective Intelligence and Assessment Division (PID) sent to the Secret Service director at approximately 3:47 p.m. said they had sent 100 officers to the Capitol and would be deploying an additional 100 “within the next hour.”

The OIG found that the 100 number “far exceeded the actual number of officers that we could verify as present on the scene.” The report also says “Secret Service leadership provided inconsistent recollections of where these estimated numbers originated … ”

“What I have to believe is just either a lie about the available manpower or an egregious oversight of how manpower is allocated as a whole,” Peterson said of the response.

Some officers indicated they could have been better utilized to respond to rioters rather than securing the Dirksen Senate building due to their training and equipment, according to the report. Peterson concurred with their assessment.

“There was a very good group of available officers who could have immediately responded, because they are all trained to do that,” Peterson told the Caller.

Everyone is required to be prepared for civil disobedience, Peterson says, and the lack of additional support left him “a little confused.”

Matranga expressed an agency-wide lack of support in leadership. Peterson echoed that sentiment, noting that the agency may be better off if they cull some of their career bureaucrats.

The OIG made six recommendations to the Secret Service in their report, four of which the agency concurred with. The OIG suggested a reassessment of the Secret Service’s agreement with UCSP, improved policy guidance on requesting Technical Security Division (TSD) personnel, improved policy guidelines on requesting EOD personnel and an adequate procedure for ensuring the agency conducts after-incident reviews, all of which the Secret Service concurred with.

The Secret Service, however, did not concur with two of the OIG’s recommendations. The agency split from the OIG on their recommendations that they develop protocols for providing Civil Disturbance Unit (CDU) support to law enforcement and implement training for site agents on directing canine sweeps if there was no TSD on hand.

The agency said it was “opposed to developing and implementing protocols for providing CDU assistance to support law enforcement partners in the National Capital Region, even in the event of emergencies such as those that occurred during January 6, 2021,” according to the report.

“The Secret Service stated its primary mission limits its ability to provide emergency support to other law enforcement partners,” the OIG report notes.

An April 2022 update to the Secret Service’s operational procedures addressed “the need for site agents to be trained on directing canine sweeps” and requested the OIG close the recommendation.

Instead of addressing agents’ concerns, leadership encourages them to try to stretch their current resources, Matranga said.

“We got lucky on July 13. We absolutely got lucky.”

AUTHOR

Robert McGreevy

Reporter.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Who Is Usha Vance the wife Of Trump’s VP Pick? She’s the daughter of immigrants with an impressive resume!

Usha Vance, wife to Trump’s pick for vice president, Republican Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, has a long and impressive resume, which is likely to fall under increased scrutiny as she and her husband surge into the national spotlight.

A child of immigrants, Usha’s parents emigrated from India and settled in San Diego where they raised her, according to ABC News.

She attended Yale for her undergraduate degree and, after earning her Masters at Cambridge, returned to Yale for law school where she met Vance, he recalled in his memoir “Hillbilly Elegy.”

She built upon a prestigious educational CV with an even more impressive career resume.

She clerked for current Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh when he was on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2014-2015 and then for Supreme Court Justice John Roberts from 2017-2018, according to ABC News.

Following her clerkship for Roberts, she returned to her previous firm, Munger, Tolles & Olson, to serve as a trial lawyer, according to her LinkedIn. She left the firm shortly after Trump announced Vance as his running mate.

“Usha has informed us she has decided to leave the firm,” a Munger, Tolles & Olson spokesperson told Bloomberg Law. “Usha has been an excellent lawyer and colleague, and we thank her for her years of work and wish her the best in her future career.”

In his book, Vance describes Usha as being one of the most blunt people he’s ever met. She had “an extraordinarily direct way of speaking,” he wrote in “Hillbilly Elegy.”

“Where others might have asked meekly, ‘Yeah, maybe you could rephrase this?’ or “Have you thought about this other idea?’ Usha would say simply: ‘I think this sentence needs work’ or ‘This is a pretty terrible argument.’ At a bar, she looked up at a mutual friend of ours and said, without a hint of irony, ‘You have a very small head.’ I had never met anyone like her,” he wrote.

The pair have three children together. Vance credits her as his “spirit guide” in his book. Besides her lengthy list of professional accomplishments, she also served on the board of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, according to LinkedIn.

AUTHOR

ROBERT MCGREEVY

Reporter.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

‘I Take Responsibility’: Nancy Pelosi Fesses Up To J6 Blunder

Newly released video HBO provided to congressional investigators shows former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi claiming responsibility for the lack of police preparedness on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C., while she was fleeing the Capitol.

The video, shot by Pelosi’s daughter Alexandra, shows an irate Pelosi complaining about a lack of accountability for the incident.

“We have responsibility, Terry! We did not have any accountability for what was going on there, and we should have. This is ridiculous!” Pelosi exclaimed.

She then expressed contempt for what she appeared to feel was a late request for National Guard troops to help quell the situation.

“You’re gonna ask me in the middle of the thing, when they’ve already breached the inaugural stuff, ‘should we call the Capitol Police?’ I mean the National Guard. Why weren’t the National Guard there to begin with?”

“They thought that they had sufficient resources …” her Chief of Staff Terri McCullough answered, before Pelosi interjected.

“It’s not a question of how they had … they don’t know! They clearly didn’t know, and I take responsibility for not having them just prepare for more,” Pelosi concluded.

HBO released 45 minutes of footage to congressional investigators after a House Administration subcommittee requested it, according to Politico.

Congressional leaders, including Pelosi, chose not to deploy the National Guard early over concerns of “optics” amid 2020’s Black Lives Matter riots, according to a 2022 GOP report.

Additionally, then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley’s fear former President Trump would commandeer the military for political reasons allegedly influenced the delay of deploying the National Guard, D.C. National Guard witnesses testified in April.

The FBI and Department of Homeland Security had information beforehand that would suggest impending chaos and violence at the Capitol, but they failed to warn about or recognize it, according to a 2022 Senate report. They also allegedly ignored or downplayed a “massive amount” of intelligence.

“Throughout 2020, the FBI and DHS disseminated written documents detailing the potential for increased violent extremist activity at lawful protests and targeting of law enforcement and government facilities and personnel,” the report read.

“Despite online calls for violence at the Capitol, neither the FBI nor DHS issued a threat assessment or intelligence bulletin warning law enforcement entities in the National Capital Region of the potential for violence,” the report stated.

AUTHOR

ROBERT MCGREEVY

Reporter.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Socialist Speaker of the House Johnson Soon To Be Endorsed By His Communist Democrat Pals

Next week House Speaker Johnson will be delivered his pink slip by the few “real” Republicans left in Congress. Will Mike Johnson lose his job? Probably not because the Communist Democrats and the fraud Republican uni-party protect him. Speaker Johnson is delivering for the Biden agenda like a Grub hub delivery driver.

His betrayal of the American people and his unconstitutional decision to continue spying on American citizens without a warrant will be addressed on the House floor.

His funding of the military industrial complex which continues the global wars without oversight using our tax money without securing our own borders will be addressed.

The fraud Speaker of the House funded the continuing mass slaughter of pre-born children up to 9 months in the womb in states still killing these babies.

He funded the FBI and their brand new building after the FBI raided President Trumps home. He funded the DOJ after they filed fraudulently charges against him.

Next week (May 2024) we will get to see which republicans support this bottom feeding fraud Republican House Speaker when a vote is presented to terminate his leadership position.

Let’s watch the Communist Democrats get behind this fraud republican. It will be entertaining to see Democrats backing a Republican. We will soon know too which republicans are backing this Socialist spineless, weak House Speaker.

My friends Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) are the glue holding the conservative base together. History will speak highly of them in the future. If House Speaker Johnson really loves this country, our constitutional republic he would resign his position.

I can’t convince my Congressional friends to leave the do nothing Republican Party and become independents. The GOP is nothing more than extension of installed Marxist Joe Biden’s Communist anti American agenda. Our Founding Fathers definitely were all independents.

But stay tuned for an entertaining political civil war commencing soon on the House floor. It will separate the men from the boys just like one of those San Francisco Nancy Pelosi Democrat party fundraisers.

©2024. Geoff Ross. All rights reserved.

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VIDEOS: ‘The Great Setup’ Parts 1 & 2 with Dr. David Martin

Each detail he mentions in the timeline, this site remembers well.

This is recommended by Conservative Tree House.

The Great Setup With Dr. David Martin Full Part 1

Part 2.

ABOUT DR. DAVID MARTIN

Dr. David Martin is the founder and owner of the company M-CAM International which has provided research and corporate advisory services to over 160 countries and he has personally served as an advisor to the World Bank and many governments. Dr Martin first came to the attention of the world when he featured in the August 2020 documentary by Mikki Willis called Planandemic Indoctornation.

EDITORS NOTE: This Vlad Tepes Blog column with videos posted by Eeyore is republished with permission. All rights reserved.

LAWFARE 101: Blue Laws for Red Citizens

“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face — forever.” ― George Orwell, 1984

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.

“Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities.” ― Voltaire


Americans have been watching, with growing interest, the Lawfare being perpetuated by so called judges and prosecutors against President Donald J. Trump. Currently there are 4 criminal and 3 civil suits against President Trump.

These mulitple political persecutions have done two things:

  1. Made President Trump stronger both personally and as a presidential candidate and,
  2. Made President Trump a martyr, because many of us, we the people, understand what he’s going through and understand that we are next.

President Trump is increasingly viewed by Americans as a man who they can trust to do the right things for them.

Each of these Lawfare “show trials” have made him more popular than in 2016 and 2020.

Additionally, President Trump is benefiting from $ billions in free publicity and extensive media coverage.

On August 25, 2023 Reuters reported, “Trump, who had over 88 million followers when Twitter banned him, posted a photo on Thursday of the mug shot with the words: ‘ELECTION INTERFERENCE! NEVER SURRENDER!’ The post garnered more than 14 million views 50 minutes after going live.”

A reader sent us a link to an article published on professor Victor Davis Hanson’s The Blade of Perseus website. It gives a good run down on the current seven show trials and is provided here to understand what is really going on — LAWFARE.

You see, Trump isn’t the target, you and I are.


Blue Laws for Red Citizens

Victor Davis Hanson
American Greatness

One state prosecutor and one civilian plaintiff have already won huge fines and damages from Donald Trump that may, with legal costs, exceed $500 million.

Trump awaits further civil and criminal liability in three other federal, state, and local indictments.

There are eerie commonalities in all these five court cases involving plaintiff E. Jean Carroll, Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, New York Attorney General Letitia James, federal special counsel Jack Smith, and Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis.

One, they are either unapologetically left-wing or associated with liberal causes. They filed their legal writs in big-city, left-wing America—Atlanta, New York, Washington—where liberal judges and jury pools predominate in a manner not characteristic of the country at large.

Two, they are overtly political. Bragg, James, and Willis have either campaigned for office or raised campaign funds by promising to get or even destroy Donald Trump.

Carroll’s suit was funded by left-wing billionaire Reid Hoffman.

Smith sued to rush his court schedule in hopes of putting Trump on trial before the November election.

Three, there would not be any of these cases had Donald Trump not run for the presidency or not been a conservative.

Carroll’s suit bypassed statute of limitation restrictions by prompting the intervention of a left-wing New York legislator. He passed a special bill, allowing a one-year window to waive the statute of limitations for sexual assault claims from decades past.

Until Trump, no New York prosecutor like James had ever filed a civil suit against a business for allegedly overvaluing real estate assets to obtain loans that bank auditors approved and were paid back in full, on time, and with sizable interest profits to the lending institutions.

Alvin Bragg bootstrapped a Trump private non-disclosure agreement into a federal campaign violation in a desperate effort to find something on Trump.

Smith is also charging Trump with insurrectionary activity. But Trump had never been so charged with insurrection, much less convicted of it.

Willis strained to find a way to criminalize Trump’s complaints about his loss of Georgia in the 2020 national election. She finally came up with a racketeering charge, usually more applicable to Mafiosi and drug cartels.

Four, in all these cases, the charges could have been equally applicable to fellow left-wing public figures and officials.

Joe Biden, like Trump, was accused of sexual assault decades earlier by former staffer Tara Reade. Yet Reade was torn apart by the media and the left for inconsistencies in her memory. By contrast, the wildly inconsistent and amnesiac E. Jean Carroll won $83 million from Trump.

Jack Smith created the precedent of charging former president Trump for unlawfully removing classified files to his private residence.

But the government simultaneously did not charge Joe Biden for similar offenses. Yet Biden had removed files not for two years but for more than 30. He stored them not in one location but several.

His rickety garage was a mess, not a secure family compound like Trump’s estate. Moreover, Biden did so while a senator and vice president, without any presidential authority to declassify almost any presidential document he wished.

Biden never came forward to report the crime for over thirty years—until Trump was charged. Indeed, he was caught on tape six years ago, admitting to his ghostwriter that he possessed classified files but never reported it.

Bragg might have noticed that both Hillary Clinton (fined $113,000) and Barack Obama (fined $350,000) broke campaign financing laws. Neither was subject to federal criminal charges by local prosecutors.

An array of left-wing celebrities, politicians, 2004 House Members, former Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), and failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams have all recently challenged elections. They sought either to delay or redo ballot counting or, on the federal level, to sidetrack electors to ignore popular votes in their respective states.

These lawfare cases are part of other efforts that were highly partisan and without merit. Recall the Trump “Russian collusion” hoax and the “Russian disinformation” laptop farce.

In another first, some blue states are suing to take Trump’s name off the ballot for “insurrection,” a crime for which he has never been charged.

Total up the deaths, damage, and length of the summer 2020 Antifa/BLM riots. Then compare the tally to the one-day January 6 riot.

The former proved far more lethal, long-lasting, and destructive. Yet very few of the 14,000 arrested rioters in 2020 were ever prosecuted, much less convicted.

By contrast, the Biden administration sought to jail hundreds for crimes allegedly committed on January 6, such as “illegal parading.”

We are entering a dangerous era in America.

Ideology and party affiliations increasingly determine guilt and punishment. Opponents are first targeted, and then laws are twisted and redefined to convict them.

The left is waging lawfare with the implicit message to political opponents: either keep quiet or suffer the consequences.

About Victor Davis Hanson

Victor Davis Hanson is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, a professor of Classics Emeritus at California State University, Fresno, and a nationally syndicated columnist for Tribune Media Services.

He is also the Wayne & Marcia Buske Distinguished Fellow in History, Hillsdale College, where he teaches each fall semester courses in military history and classical culture.

Hanson was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2007, and the Bradley Prize in 2008, as well as the Claremont Institute’s Henry Salvatori Award (2022), the American Spirit Award from the National World War II Museum (2021), the Edmund Burke Award (2018), the William F. Buckley Prize (2015), the Claremont Institute’s Statesmanship Award (2006), and the Eric Breindel Award for opinion journalism (2002).

Hanson, who is the fifth successive generation to live in the same house on his family’s farm, was a full-time orchard and vineyard grower from 1980­–84, before joining the nearby CSU Fresno campus in 1984 to initiate a classical languages program. In 1991, he was awarded an American Philological Association Excellence in Teaching Award, which is given yearly to the country’s top undergraduate teachers of Greek and Latin.

Hanson has been a National Endowment for the Humanities fellow at the Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford, California (1992–93), a visiting professor of classics at Stanford University (1991–92), an Alexander Onassis Fellow (2001), and was named alumnus of the year of the University of California, Santa Cruz (2002). He currently directs the Working Group on the Role of Military History in Contemporary Conflict at the Hoover Institution.

He has served as a presidential appointee to the 1776 Commission (2020) and the American Battle Monuments Commission (2007–08), a board member on the H. F Guggenheim Foundation, and currently serves on the Bradley Foundation Board of Directors.

He was also the visiting Shifrin Professor of Military History at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland (2002–03). He received the Manhattan Institute’s Wriston Lectureship in 2004, and the 2006 Nimitz Lectureship in Military History at UC Berkeley in 2006. He has also been visiting William Simon Professor (2009, 2012, 2013–14, 2023) at the Pepperdine University Graduate School of Public Policy and received an honorary Doctor of Laws from the Pepperdine Law School.

Hanson is the author of hundreds of articles, book reviews, scholarly papers, and newspaper editorials on matters ranging from ancient Greek, agrarian and military history to foreign affairs, domestic politics, and contemporary culture.

He has written or edited 26 books.

©2024. Dr. Rich Swier. All rights reserved.

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Michigan State Police Discovered Widespread 2020 Voter Fraud & Turned Over Evidence to FBI—Who Apparently Did Nothing

Last evening a gentleman informed me that he believes the claims of 2020 Election Fraud were preposterous and “made-up.” Merely a conspiracy theory and Trump being a “poor sport” in losing. After two and a half years of diligent, very slow but steady and emotionally painstaking work proving otherwise, there are still those who choose to live in their self-made “comfortably numb” bubble. I think their predecessors on the Titanic were similar as they were told to leave their staterooms, prepare to board life boats and evacuate the ship. Dressed in high fashion expensive clothing, and growling at the inconvenience these similarly “comfortably numb” remained in their self-made bubbles of opinion even as they were escorted onto the main deck and saw the iceberg mountain the ship had struck which led to the giant ship already tilting downward having taken on mammoth amounts of water. They were far more interested in what would be on the breakfast menu then the reality before them.

Evidence be damned…similar to the “I’m content in my comfortable world of Marxist philosophy and/or sufficient money capable of snuffing out noise and distractions not to my taste” predecessors, the self-absorbed non critical thinkers of today just cannot be bothered examining evidence, their minds are already set or dulled or both! Furthermore their life-styles have not been terribly altered…yet! With less funds and positions of comfort a large number of the younger generation who have been indoctrinated via the school and college systems are, likewise, simply not able to critically think their way through the mounting evidence of planned deterioration our country is experiencing.

A preponderant number of elected officials in public office and candidates seeking such positions have conveniently loss what our founders established and demonstrated in their own lives – Service above Self. It is no longer relevant to place God and Country above or before self when seeking or holding public office. Self-made agendas leading to higher positions is the game. Defending the principles and foundational beliefs of our exceptional nation are no longer proper; or worse, they are racist or some other derogatory term. America may not die from bullets or bombs but be destroyed from within by those who have chosen to alter and abolish our country to serve their own means, their own agendas, their own pride and prejudice. America may very likely survive from patriots, even a remnant, who in their heart believe and are willing to stand, be counted, terribly abused and slandered defending the principles and foundational beliefs of our exceptional nation. Members of the Michigan State Police are such an example.

After two and a half years of diligent, very slow and emotionally painstaking work, there are remnant patriots across our Land still fighting the good fight. Fighting to prove the 2020 Election (2022 Election as well) was a diabolical deception, corrupted financially and otherwise, fraud, even a conspiracy to destroy the basic gift our founders presented to us if we would only hold on to it; the gift of free and unencumbered elections. Look at the link below to see still more evidence presented by the Michigan State Police, and purportedly covered-up by the FBI. For those comfortably numb in their bubble simply move on nothing to see, nothing to learn. But if you consider yourself a remnant patriot like our brothers and sisters in the colonies of 1775, hunker down and continue to fight for the life of this country.

Michigan State Police Discover Widespread 2020 Voter Fraud and Turn Over Evidence to FBI – Who Apparently Did Nothing

 | Sundance

Stunning discovery being shared by Gateway Pundit about a network of massive ballot fraud and voter registration fraud in Michigan as a result of a city clerk notifying local police.  The investigation uncovered a multi-state voter registration operation and the details within the state police report are quite remarkable.

(Gateway Pundit) […] On October 8, 2020. only one month before the 2020 general election, Muskegon, MI City Clerk Ann Meisch noticed a black female (whose name was redacted from the police report), dropping off between 8,000-10,000 completed voter registration applications at the city clerk’s office.

The Muskegon Police Department was contacted and asked to investigate. On 10/21/20 First Lieutenant Mike Anderson was contacted by Tom Fabus, Chief of Investigations for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s Office. According to the MI State Police report, Mr. Fabus asked for Michigan State Police assistance with a joint investigation of alleged voter fraud being conducted by the Muskegon Police Department and the AG.   An investigative task force was formed, and an investigation was initiated. (read more)

Read more.

©2023. Lyle J. Rapacki. Ph.D. All rights reserved.

RELATED ARTICLE: Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel Confirms 10K Voter Registrations Delivered to Muskegon Clerk in October 2020 Were FRAUDULENT

Trump Unleashes Flurry Of Endorsements For Politicians Across The Country

Former President Donald Trump endorsed three candidates with statements from the Save America PAC on Friday evening.

Republican South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, Republican Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo and Republican Arkansas Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin received Trump’s “Complete and Total Endorsement,” according to statements released by Save America PAC.

“Henry McMaster has been a great Governor for the wonderful people of South Carolina. He is Strong on the Military, our Vets, Crime, and the Second Amendment,” the statement read. “He has also been a fabulous Chief Executive for his State. Henry has my Complete and Total Endorsement as he runs for re-election!”

McMaster was one of Trump’s earliest supporters, according to PBS. Trump endorsed McMaster in his first full-term gubernatorial campaign in 2018.

Crapo, who has held his position since 1999, is up for re-election in 2022. He had voted against convicting Trump in the former president’s second impeachment trial.

“Mike is tough on Crime, Strong on the Border, and fights for our Military and our Vets,” Trump said in his statement. “He will continue to be a Champion for our Second Amendment and the great Outdoorsmen and Women of Idaho and the USA.”

Griffin previously announced his intention to run for governor of Arkansas but withdrew his nomination after Sarah Huckabee Sanders joined the race, NBC affiliate KARK reported.

“Lieutenant Governor Tim Griffin, who is running for Attorney General, is a highly respected Army Veteran who will always fight for the great people of Arkansas,” Trump said in his statement. “Tim will be tough on Crime, defend our Second Amendment, loves our Military and our Vets, and will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the brave Men and Women of Law Enforcement.”

COLUMN BY

CHRISTOPHER TREMOGLIE

RELATED ARTICLES:

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster Tests Positive For Coronavirus After Attending White House Party

Trump Rips GOP Strategist Karl Rove: ‘He’s A Pompous Fool’

‘The Pressure Is Mounting’: Kayleigh McEnany Says Biden’s Staff Doesn’t Want Him To Hold A Press Conference

EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller Column is republished with permission. All rights reserved.

VIDEO: Americans are OUTRAGED over #Obamagate & Biden Corruption–WHERE IS CONGRESS?

Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton appeared on “Lou Dobbs Tonight” to discuss Judicial Watch obtaining the secret service records showing extensive travel by Hunter Biden during the Obama years; Burisma Holdings landing a deal with a USAID program while under a corruption investigation; the FBI refusing to release documents to the Daily Caller relating to the primary source for dossier author Christopher Steele; mail-in ballots in New Jersey destroyed in a mail truck fire; AG Barr denying pattern of upholding President Trump’s interests while blaming the “media narrative”; and more!

RELATED ARTICLES:

The Benghazi Cover-Up and Biden Corruption Scandal—Here’s What We Know”

Understanding #ObamaGate Means Questioning Obama Directly!

EDITORS NOTE: This Judicial Watch video is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Full David Brock confidential memo on fighting Donald Trump

Full David Brock confidential memo on fighting Donald Trump obtained by the Washington Free Beacon at the January 19-21, 2017, ‘Democracy Matters’ Florida donor retreat at Turnberry Isle Resort in Aventura, Florida.

Full David Brock Confidential Memo On Fighting Trump by Joe Schoffstall on Scribd

RELATED ARTICLE: To Sink Trump is to Sink Ordinary Americans | Opinion – Conservative

Views on Radical Islam: An interview with Dr. Sebastian Gorka, Deputy Assistant to the President

The Trump Administration spearhead of the ideological war against Radical Islamic Jihadism is Dr. Sebastian Gorka, Deputy Assistant to President Trump and member of the White House Strategic Initiatives Group. He has recently surfaced as spokesperson for the Administration on this and related issues and been the subject of a number of media reports. We had prior knowledge of his views on Radical Islamic jihadism from our New English Review book review and interviews prior to his involvement in the Trump transition team.  Subsequently, following the President’s election he was selected to serve in the Executive Office of the President.  We were afforded an opportunity to interview him on a wide range of current issues on Northwest Florida’s Talk Radio 1330 AMWEBY.  The program aired February 28, 2017.

Among the following national security and foreign policy issues addressed in the 1330amWEBY interview with Dr. Gorka were:

  1. Why the Trump Administration is concerned about the threat from radical Islamic Jihadism?
  2. Who are the ‘self-styled’ counterterrorism experts criticizing the Administration for exposing the ideology behind Radical Islamic Jihadism?
  3. The dangerous threat of Iran’s nuclear and missile development, state support for global terrorism and hegemonic aspirations in the Middle East.
  4. Importance of Israel, Jordan, Egypt as allies in support of US national security interests in the Middle East.
  5. Possible formation of a NATO-type regional military alliance composed of Sunni Arab Monarchies, Emirates and states with possible links to Israel.
  6. Administration views on Turkey and the Kurds in the war to defeat ISIS.
  7. Global spread of Radical Islamic Jihad especially in Sudan, Nigeria, Niger and Mali in Africa.

What follows is the interview with Dr. Gorka:

Mike Bates: Good afternoon welcome back to Your Turn. This is Mike Bates. With me in the studio Jerry Gordon is the Senior Editor of the New English Review and its blog The Iconoclast and joining us by telephone Dr. Sebastian Gorka, Deputy Assistant to the President in the strategic initiatives group. Dr. Gorka, welcome.

Dr. Sebastian Gorka: Thank you for having me.

Bates: Dr. Gorka, you have been criticized significantly by so-called counter-terrorism experts for concentrating on addressing the ideology behind radical Islamic terrorism. Is there any merit to that criticism at all?

Gorka: It’s quite ironic that the individuals that have written these recent critiques are in many cases the people who are responsible for the last eight years of Obama administration policies. That completely ignored the ideological component of groups like ISIS and Al Qaeda and simply resulted in the atrocious situation we have today with ISIS declaring a caliphate of remarkable affiliates across the globe and with attack after attack occurring not only in America but especially in Europe. So the fact is denying the reality of what your enemy believes makes it very difficult to stop them recruiting new terrorists in the future. That’s my bottom line.

Bates: So how are you advising the Trump administration concerning the threat from radical Islamic terrorism?

Gorka: The President, even before he became the Commander in Chief, was very clear on these issues so we are just continuing the work of the presidential campaign. If your listeners look at a very important speech that wasn’t paid adequate attention to it, the Presidents’ Youngstown speech which was very clear on the ideological components of this war. Then we have the inauguration which was very specific, his fifteen minute speech that talked about the radical Islamic terrorist threat the phrase of your former President denied and refused to use.  Then we had  last Friday his address to CPAC which was just as strenuous and talked about obliterating the threat and wiping them from the face of the earth.  Our belief is that this is a war against individual organizations like ISIS. However, in the long term it is really a counter-ideological fight that has to resolve finally in the delegtimization of the religious ideology that drives groups like ISIS.

Jerry Gorda: Dr. Gorka, speaking about obliterating ISIS what changes might we expect in administration policies towards the Kurds in the war to defeat ISIS and the resolution to the conflict in Syria?

Gorka: Unlike previous administrations we don’t give our playbook away in advance. We don’t talk about the specifics of our war plan. However, the President has been clear that whether it’s the Kurds or whether it’s others in the region America is not interested in invading other peoples’ countries; that’s un-American. Our nation was born in a rejection of imperialism not the colonization or occupation of other countries.  Whether it is the Kurds or local Sunnis or the forces of Iraq, we are interested in helping our partners in the region win their wars for themselves. It’s not about American troops being deployed in large numbers, it’s about helping those Muslim nations and forces in the Middle East who want to be our friends help them win their battles for themselves.

Bates: Well speaking about them winning the battles for themselves there have been some news reports about some administration discussions about the possible formation of a NATO type regional military alliance in the Middle East. Is there anything developing there?

Gorka: Again we are going to keep our powder dry and we are not going to give away our game plans in advance. The bottom line is not the labels or not what we wish to package things into. The issue is the local actors stepping up to the plate with our assistance to fight their backyard war.  I mean it’s not, Christians who have been decimated, Yazidis have been decimated but by far the largest number of victims of the jihadist groups are their fellow Muslims. They are not just the Shia who they deem to be heretics but in many parts of Iraq and Syria and elsewhere the ISIS forces, the related groups are killing other Sunnis that they disagree with.  Whatever the coalition it will be very different from the smoke and mirrors coalition that was created under the Obama years which really wasn’t a serious force.

Gordon: Dr. Gorka, how dangerous is the threat of Iran’s nuclear and missile development, state support for global terrorism and hegemonic aspirations in the Middle East?

 Gorka: That’s a question that could have a PhD dissertation level response. Let’s just talk about the facts. We know Iran according to the U.S. Government is a state-sponsored terrorism, the largest state-sponsor of terrorism. It is not doing this recently it has been doing this since 1979 whether it is from the Iranian hostage siege crisis all the way down.  This is a nation that I like to depict as an anti-status quo actor. This is a nation that doesn’t share basic interests with the normal values of the international community. They are not interested. If you are a theocratic regime that wishes to forcibly and subversively export  your theocratic vision around the world what is the common interest you could have with America or with any of our allies? That’s the false premise upon which U.S. Iran relations were based in the last eight years and the idea that a nation that has that destabilizing ideology wishes to acquire weapons of mass destruction including nuclear capability means that they do represent a threat to all nations that believe in a global stability.

Gordon: Dr. Gorka, how important is Israel as an ally in support of U.S. National Security interests in the Middle East versus resolution of the impasse with the Palestinians?

Gorka: There is no greater partner of the United States in the Middle East. We are very close and we help the Jordanians, Egypt, UAE  redressing and improving the very  negative relationship that was established between the White House under the Obama administration and Egyptian President Sisi’s government. Israel, as a beacon of democracy and stability in the Middle East, is our closest friend in the region and the President has been explicit in that again and again So it would be difficult  to overestimate just how important Israel is not only to America’s interest in the region but also to the broader stability of the Middle East.

Bates: And what kind of role do you foresee for Turkey?

Gorka: I think that is in many ways up to Ankara. Historically, after it’s accession to NATO, Turkey became one of the most important nations in the alliance. It had the largest army in Europe. As a result of its location it was highly important during the Cold War geo-strategically. Recent events with an emphasis to rising fundamentalist attitudes have questioned the future trajectory of Turkey. The administration and the President is clear that it wishes to be a friend to those who wish to be our friends.  I think you know any good relationship depends upon both parties willingness to work together. We would like to continue a fruitful relationship with Turkey but that depends upon the government in Ankara itself.

Gordon: Dr. Gorka, the Obama administration lifted sanctions against the Islamic Republic of the Sudan on the cusp of leaving office. This despite evidence that the regime of President Bashir is raising a terrorist army literally to foment jihad in the Sahel region of Africa. What remedies might the administration consider to combat this?

Gorka: Again you are trying to tease out very concrete policy prescriptions from us and I’m really not prepared to do that at this point. Remember we are in week six of the administration.  However, we do recognize and we are very serious about the fact that of what I call the global jihadi movement isn’t just an issue in the Middle East. We like to focus on the so-called five meter target. It was Al Qaeda for a decade then it morphed into the Islamic state or ISIS.  There are large swaths of territory in Africa that are unstable, are not sovereign in the sense that the local government exercises full control over them. The mere fact alone if you look at Nigeria, the Boko Haram, the black African jihadi group has sworn allegiance to ISIS and Ab? Bakr al-Baghdadi and has been incorporated into the Islamic state, changed its name to the West African Province of the Islamic state. That shows you just how serious the situation is.  Jihadism truly spreads from whether it’s Aleppo, whether it’s Raqqa, whether it’s Africa, Mali, Nigeria or to the streets of Brussels or San Bernardino. We fully appreciate just how global the threat is and that includes Africa as well.

Bates: Dr. Gorka, it obviously includes the United States as well.  One of President Trump’s very first executive orders had to do with the restriction of entry into the United States from people from seven countries. The administration was criticized by the Democrats and the media, my apologies for being redundant there.  However, if you look at the numbers of those seven affected countries, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan, Somalia, Syria and Yemen,  have a combined population of  220 million people and there is a global Muslim population of 1.6 billion.  That means that 86 percent of Muslims in the world are not prevented from entering the United States and yet it was portrayed as a Muslim ban. How does the administration intend to come out with a revised plan that can avoid that criticism or do you think the criticism will come no matter what?

Gorka: The criticism will come no matter what because there is a fundamental disjuncture between the mainstream media, a perception of the world and the actual reality of how serious the threat is. These are the countries that either are state sponsors of terrorism or are the hotbeds of jihadist activity today be it Islamic State or Al Qaeda. This is a threat analysis we inherited from the Obama administration.  The idea that it is controversial is asinine and secondly you’re absolutely right. If this had been an Islamaphobically generated executive order then how is it the most populous Muslim nation in the world, Indonesia, was left off of the list? How is it the most populous Arab Muslim nation in the world  Egypt was left off the list? The challenge that was politically brought was that there was some ulterior motive behind the listing of these seven countries.  The fact is it is an unemotional cold analysis of the threat to America that was the reason for the drawing up of that moratorium of that list of seven nations.  But if you have a political agenda then of course you will spin things politically.

Bates: Another nation that’s not on that list is Saudi Arabia. Can you address the cooperation we are getting from the House of Saud regarding the overall global war on Islamic terrorism?

 Gorka: Again, it’s getting a little too specific.  However,  I will talk about some good things that have occurred. We know that there were issues with certain elements of Saudi society propagating or supporting the propagation of radical ideologies around the world. That attitude changed quite drastically in about ’05, ’06 when Al Qaeda started targeting Saudi officials on Saudi soil.  A nation that may have been problematic for several years has recently been reassessing its attitude to these international actors.  We expect to see even more positive things coming out of Saudi Arabia as we in the White House, especially the President and Secretary Tillerson start to rebuild the relationships with all our allies in the region that were so detrimentally affected by the treatment they received at the hands of the Obama White House.

Bates: Well if I may editorialize for just a moment, it is a relief to see an administration that is taking the threats seriously and is dealing with the world as it is and not as it wishes the world were. Dr. Sebastian Gorka, Deputy Assistant to the President in the strategic initiatives group, thank you so much for joining us this afternoon on Your Turn on 1330 AM WEBY.

LISTEN to the 1330 AM WEBY interview with Dr. Gorka.

RELATED ARTICLE: Swede Democrat leaders pen WSJ op-ed imploring Americans to avoid the mistakes Sweden made 

EDITORS NOTE: This column originally appeared in the New English Review.

‘The Golan is ours’ — Israel Sovereignty and American National Security

A momentous joint press conference was held at the White House with President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu on February 15, 2017. For the first time in recent memory, a U.S. President was not demanding that Israel relinquish sovereign territory that had been granted under international law. That meant that the Jewish nation was entitled to negotiate secure borders in the land west of the river.

Things appear to be changing in the Middle East among the Sunni Arab monarchies, Emirates and states recognizing that America’s democratic ally is the proverbial strong horse opposing the hegemonic aspirations of the Shia Islamic Republic of Iran. An Iran that in consort with its proxy Hezbollah is actively engaging in creating a Shia crescent from the Persian Gulf via Iraq and Syria to the Mediterranean Coast of Lebanon. Moreover, Iran has control of two world maritime choke points in the oil trades; the Straits of Hormuz and the Bab al Mandab (at the mouth of the Red Sea).

Golani Tree - Golani Brigade symbol May Golani.png

The Golani tree symbol of the IDF Golani Brigade of the Northern command.

For Israel there is evidence that Iran’s IRGC Qods force and its proxy Hezbollah are ranging across the vital Golan Heights frontier. That is reflected in clashes that resulted in the deaths of IRGC Generals and a Hezbollah commander, son of the terrorist mastermind Imad Mughniyah.   A frontier that is also witnessing the expansion of ISIS militia on the southern portion of the Golan frontier.

The Golan is strategic to Israel’s national security reflected in its annexation by Israel’s parliament the Knesset in 1981. Yet, there have been efforts at the UN suggesting that Israel’s sovereign claim to the Golan is questioned. That despite it being included in the original Palestine Mandate granted to Great Britain at the Sam Remo conference in 1920. After two climatic wars fought in 1967 and in 1973, Israel is not about to give up its sovereign claim to the Golan.Further, Israel’s ears on the Middle East can be found on the summit of Mount Hermon at the base of the frontier monitoring digital communications.  IDF Golani units are deployed on the heights of this important bastion.  The UNDOF force in the demilitarized has been routed during the six plus years of the Syrian civil war. Israel has provided humanitarian aid and medical assistance to Syrian civilians and casualties of opposition militias often treating them in field hospitals and in emergency cases sending them to hospitals in central Israel.  The Syrian frontier on the Golan divides the Druze community, the Israeli branch of which are loyal citizens and yet understand the predicament of their cousins across the frontier.

There has been talk of establishment of so-called safe zones in southern Syria at the apex where Israel, Jordan and Israel meet.  At issue is what international forces would staff it. Given the record of the UN peacekeepers it is dubious that it could effectively defend the suggested safe zones. Israel’s experience in the Lebanon wars indicates that it is not about to take on the responsibility of a security zone in Syria. The one in Lebanon ended disastrously in the pell mell withdrawal from the Southern security zone   in 2000.

That apex at the conjunction of the three counties frontiers is now the target of the Islamic State. A recent Jewish Press report confirms the activity of Islamic State Salafist militia overrunning the apex area of Southern Syria, Jordan and Israel threatening the Golan frontier. It reports that the ISIS militia is lead by a Palestinian Salafist. While the IDF Chief of Staff Eizenkot would like the UNDOF to block further movement by the ISIS, their track record has been abysmal. Thus his assessment is that the IDF on the northern frontier could see intense fighting occur this spring.

Jonathan Schanzer and Marc Dubowitz crystallized in a Wall Street Journal article, “Golan,” stressing the vital importance of Israel’s sovereignty.  They noted:

Benjamin Netanyahu has achieved his primary objective of resetting ties with the U.S. after eight years of tensions. True, the Israeli prime minister and Donald Trump still need to bridge the gap on issues such as Palestinian-Israeli diplomacy and West Bank settlements. But they seem to be on the same page on a broad range of regional matters.

That could lead to a breakthrough on an issue of strategic importance to Israel. According to reports of the two leaders’ meeting on Wednesday, Mr. Netanyahu asked for U.S. recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

The move makes sense for both sides. It would provide the Israeli government with a diplomatic win while helping the Trump administration signal to Russia and Iran that the U.S. is charting a new course in Syria.

[…]

By recognizing Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan, the Trump administration would signal to Russia that, while Washington may now coordinate with Moscow on activities such as fighting Islamic State, it doesn’t share Russia’s goals for Syria.

Moreover, it would show that the U.S. will take a tougher line on the provision of arms and intelligence to Iran and Hezbollah.

Recognition of Israel’s Golan claims would acknowledge that it needs these highlands to hold off a multitude of asymmetric and conventional military threats from Syria—and whatever comes after the war there. Israel continues to target Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah to prevent them from establishing a base of operations on the Syrian Golan.

Recognizing Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan would also soften the Palestinians’ core demand for a state within the 1967 borders. If an international border can be revised along the Syrian border, the Palestinians will have a harder time presenting the 1949 armistice line along the West Bank as inviolable.

Against this background we reached out to someone who knows the strategic importance of what Messrs. Schanzer and Dubowitz have espoused, Ambassador Yoram Ettinger former Israeli emissary in Washington involved with Congressional liaison.

Mike Bates overlooking Kotel and Dome of the Rock Mosque on Temple Mount 3-2014.jpg

Mike Bates

Mike Bates:  Good afternoon welcome back to Your Turn, this is Mike Bates. We continue with our conversation, our Middle East round table discussion. With me in studio is Jerry Gordon,  Senior Editor of the New English Review and his blog the Iconoclast.

JBG headshot 1-26-14 SMALL.jpg

Jerry Gordon

Jerry Gordon: Glad to be back.

Bates: And joining us by telephone from Israel is Yoram Ettinger, former Israeli Congressional Liaison.

Yoram Ettinger: Thank you very much.

yoram-ettinger-picture

Former Ambassador Yoram Ettinger

Bates: Ambassador Ettinger, from your perspective as a former Israeli Emissary involved with Congressional relations, how significant was the outcome of the joint press conference at the White House on January 15th?

Ettinger: I would say that the outcome of the meeting between the leaders of the US and Israel is very significant.  It signals reconnection of the US administration with Middle Eastern reality after eight years – and more years – of assuming that the Palestinian issue is the core cause of regional turbulence and the crown jewel of Arab policymaking. Now there is an Administration that realizes, with all due respect, the Palestinian issue is not the primary or secondary, not even tertiary issue when it comes to Middle East priorities. The current administration seems to focus on the major threats to the US as well as to Western democracies and the regional and global stability. These are: Iran’s megalomaniacal aspirations and its  aim to become a major nuclear power. Second is Islamic terrorism  and third, the need to minimize the clear and present danger to every  pro- American Arab regime in the middle east, such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain and Oman.

On all of those issues – Iran, Islamic terrorism, and the need to stabilize the pro- American Arab regimes – Israel plays a very unique role. The question is, are you going to sacrifice the very essential cooperation between US and Israel on the altar of the Palestinian issue? It seems to me that President Trump and his advisors may or may not go along entirely with Israel’s view of the Palestinian issue.  They are not going to sacrifice dire American national security interests on the altar of the Palestinian issue, which is not, is not, a core cause as far as Arab policymaking is concerned.

Bates: Ambassador Ettinger, I realize Israel is a democratic country, and like every democratic country, the people are not unified in their view of the world any more so in Israel as it is in the United States. But I’m curious. If you can generalize, what is the sense of the Israeli people to President Trump versus what we had for the previous eight years, President Obama?

Ettinger: Certainly Israel is highly diversified as far as ideology, as far as world view, even as far as Judaism is concerned.  However, one should note that a major factor in Israel is a sense of patriotism. We see that on the occasion of wars, on the occasion of conflicts with Arab countries, and recently on the issue of the Palestinians.  We see coalitions of all the big groups in Israel.  In fact, something which is not common in the US. The  majority of our special operation forces are very Dovish, and I emphasize very, very Dovish in their world view, and the majority of Israel’s combat pilots are also very Dovish.

And, their worldview has nothing to do with the fact that they are first to be called to serve during wartime, and they serve superbly.

When it comes to President Trump, the perception in Israel is that he is supportive of Israel. The public has accorded him at this point very significant support, unlike the case of the eight years with President Obama – when many Israelis sympathized with him as far as personality is concerned, maybe as it was reflected by television, newspapers, radio – but most Israelis were aware that as far as President Obama was concerned, Israel was not exactly one of his top positive priorities. When it comes to President Trump, the sense is that he does regard the Jewish State as a cardinal, positive element on his agenda.

Gordon: Ambassador, what is the danger of having a Palestinian state adjacent to the Jewish nation of Israel?

Ettinger: When it comes to Israel, the clear and present lethal threat is highlighted at this time of global instability, violence, and intolerance, tenuous agreements, tenuous regimes and policies. With a Palestinian state, Israel would be once again constrained to an eight-to-fifteen mile sliver along the Mediterranean, over-towered and dominated by the mountain ridges of the West Bank of Judea and Samaria. This is not exactly a prescription for long life expectancy. It’s a prescription for suicide, I believe.

But the key point is not what it means for Israel. For your American listeners, the issue is what would the impact be on America’s national security. And Americans should know when it comes to a Palestinian State, based on its track record, we are talking about a definite erosion of America’s authority in the Middle East and definite injury to very important American national security interests. For instance, there is the American-supported Hashemite monarchy in Jordan. A Palestinian State on the one hand and Hashemite regime in Jordan east of the Jordan River constitute an oxymoron.

Top Jordanian military officers made it very clear to their colleagues in Israel that the top priority of the Hashemites  is to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state. Now the issue is not merely one more, or one less pro- American Arab regime.  A change in regime in Jordan would cause tectonic ripple effects, which would not be limited only to Jordan, but a definite spill- over southward to Saudi Arabia and from Saudi Arabia to the rest of the pro- American  Arab Gulf states.

This means that a Palestinian state could trigger ripple effects all the way into the Persian Gulf area, playing into the hands of Iran, also possibly into the hands of Russia and China and certainly adversely effecting America’s interest. It could create an Iranian block from Iran through Iraq, Jordan, all the way to fifteen miles from the Mediterranean. That  would mean loss of pro- American control of two critical waterways, the Bab el Mandab and Hormuz Straits in the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf, two of the most critical waterways for oil tankers, which would have an impact on the  global economy and  American economies.

You might also find a guarantee of naval rights, landing rights for the Russian, possibly Iranian, maybe Chinese, naval and air force, in the eastern flank of the Mediterranean, which once again would undermine vital American interests.

All this is based on the track record of Palestinians, which includes the waves of terrorism in the 1920s, 30s, 40s; collaboration with the Nazis during the Second World War; collaboration with the USSR after the war; collaboration with Ayatollah Khomeini after the demise of the Shah of Iran; and very close ties with Russia, North Korea, China, Cuba, and Venezuela.

Bates: Ambassador  Ettinger there was a recent  The Wall Street Journal op-ed by Jonathan Schanzer and Mark Dubowitz of the Washington DC based Foundation for Defense of Democracies drew attention to the possibility of Israel asserting sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Why did Israel annex the Golan Heights in 1981 and what geo-political and national security significance does it have given the threats on the frontier from Iran’s proxy Hezbollah and Syrian Islamic opposition  and ISIS?

 Ettinger: First of all, the Golan Heights is not foreign terrain for the Jewish state. The Golan Heights is part of the Jewish homeland going back some 3,500 years .  As far as contemporary strategy is concerned, there are only two options when it comes Golan: will it be part of Israel, controlled by Israel; or will it be a platform for rogue organizations, rogue regimes. There is no other option, although again in the wishful la-la land of some western policymakers, one could transform it into an international, neutral area.  Certainly when you look at the Middle East there is no such thing as a neutral element or neutral space.

As far as the impact of the Golan Heights, once again on the region as a whole and on Israel. One can go back to 1970 when Syria was a major military Arab power, Syria invaded Jordan. With the US bogged down in Southeast Asia, there was no way it could stretch military hand and help the pro- American late King Hussain. They called Israel. Israel mobilized its troops and the following day – without firing a single shot, only through the posture of deterrence of the presence of Israel – the Syrian military withdrew back to Syria. That was possible because Israel controlled the Golan Heights in 1970, which meant we were at the point where we could reach Damascus and basically take over Syria.

Should Israel be off the Golan Heights, and once again there is violence which threatens pro-American Arab regime in Jordan, without the Golan (and certainly there would already be a Palestinian state), Israel would be in no position, have no power to exert any posture of deterrence to assist the US, assist pro-American Arab regimes. We are talking today about the proliferation of Islamic terrorist organizations, many of which operate in Syria, which means with proximity to the Golan Heights and should Israel get off Golan Heights, the only question would be: which rogue regime, which rogue organization, will then control the Golan Heights.

Bates: There is no question that the Golan Heights are critical to the security of Israel. I made a day trip through Golan Heights when I was in Tiberius a few years ago. It’s beautiful, sparsely populated area.  It is of  massive strategic importance. Why doesn’t the United States recognize the Golan Heights as part of Israel’s sovereign territory and is there any chance that will change under a Trump presidency?

Ettinger: It’s true that Golan Heights is critical for Israel’s national security, but it’s also true that it is  very important for America’s own national security, America’s own posture of deterrence in the Middle East.  Israel on the Golan Heights, Israel on the mountain ridges of Judea Samaria extends the strategic hand of the USA. With Israel off the Golan Heights and certainly off the mountain ridges of the West Bank, Israel is going to be transformed from a national security asset to a national security liability and a burden on the US. And the US is facing, in my mind, intensifying, and not reduced, threats due to the current trends in the Middle East and throughout the world. The US cannot rely on Europe which has lost its will power gradually – and is also losing its muscle. Israel is the only element in the Middle East upon which the US can rely. It is probably the most effective force anywhere in the world upon which the US can rely on.

Bates: No, question about it Ambassador.

Gordon: Ambassador, what is behind Israel’s emergence as a world leader in high tech global investments and its impact on the country’s economy?

 Ettinger: Out of necessity, due to the attempt to strangle Israel territorially, militarily, economically; due to various attempts to boycott and sanction Israel; and due to real lack of natural resources, Israel had to rely on its brain power. We have managed not only to survive but we have managed to develop – I would say next to the US – a major global, high tech technological country, both commercially and militarily. Today, in Israel, we have 250 research and development centers operated by global high tech giants, most of them American, some European. These are the centers that develop for Intel and Microsoft, and Apple and Google, and other giants, the latest innovative technologies. Israel contributes to research and development in America, to the competitiveness of American industries in the global competition, and to America’s foundation of employment.

Bates: It is a huge benefit, Ambassador. We have been speaking with Jerry  Gordon of the New English Review and its blog the Iconoclast and  with Ambassador Yoram Ettinger.  You can find Ambassador Ettinger online at www.theettingerreport.com.

Thanks so much for joining us this afternoon on 1330amWEBY

Listen to the broadcast, here.

EDITORS NOTE: This column originally appeared in the New English Review.

He did it! President Donald Trump signs Executive Order on Refugees

I happened to catch him signing as I came in just before 5 p.m. today.  But, will have to wait for the exact details of the order’s text.

***Update January 28th*** Michael Patrick Leahy at Breitbart reported late last night about the details of the Executive Order, click here.

We believe it includes a 120-day moratorium, a cap on refugee resettlement for this fiscal year at 50,000 and some kind of inter-agency directive to improve the vetting process (the so-called extreme vetting).  Earlier today we pointed out that 50,000 was not that great a reduction, here.

Now the ball must be placed in Congress’ court!

congress

Every effort must be made in those 120 days to pressure Congress to begin to reform the entire Refugee Admissions Program.

I suspect many members of Congress gave a sigh of relief that Donald Trump was going to take the heat (and oh, there will be heat, more on that later), so they can pretend something is being done and THEY DON’T HAVE TO DO IT.

Trump has taken the monkey off their backs, you must put it right back on!

I’m telling you that if the law is not changed we will be back to square one come the end of May!  The President’s pen and phone can only do so much. The next President can undo it all, if the law is not rewritten.

So Trump should threaten to extend that moratorium unless Congress begins the hard work of reevaluating and ultimately rewriting the Refugee Act of 1980.

And, if there are any brave Senators or Members of Congress willing to take the lead, that legislator should hold field hearings around the country to hear directly from citizens about the impact more immigrant labor is having on local workers, to hear about the economic challenges local and state governments are facing, and to assess the cultural upheaval communities are experiencing.

Do not stop doing whatever you are doing in your pockets of resistance, but make sure everything you do gets to the ears of your member of Congress and US Senators.

See our complete Trump Watch! archive here.

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RELATED INFOGRAPHIC:

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EDITORS NOTE: The featured image of President Trump signing the Executive Order on Extreme Vetting at the Pentagon is courtesy of NBC News.