4-6%
SolarWinds Hack Happened Just Before Company Announced New Chinese Expansion, Partnership
SolarWinds partnered with M.Tech in May with the goal of building their presence in China. They were hacked in March.
SolarWinds partnered with M.Tech to expand business into China in May 2020, shortly after the company was breached in a devastating cyber attack.
Sojung Lee, vice president, APJ sales, at SolarWinds said “The expansion of this partnership with M.Tech into China marks a new milestone for both of us,” adding that the partnership “will help SolarWinds to demonstrate its value in the China market.”
M. Tech, a Singapore based cyber security company, notes on its website that it has “a network of 32 offices” around the globe, including mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.
The partnership was extended in order to “enable businesses in China—across all vertical industries such as banking, finance, insurance, manufacturing, education, and other commercial sectors—to solve IT challenges and monitor, manage, and secure their applications, servers, data, infrastructure, and networks across on-premises, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments” according to Business Wire.
Along with M.Tech, SolarWinds’ China distribution partners include Westcon Solutions China, Kunlan Solutions (China) Inc, and Beijing KaiYao Co.,Ltd, according to their website.
This comes as ties between SolarWinds and communist China continue to emerge. On Twitter, President Donald Trump suggested that China “may be” behind the breach and that US voting machines may have been impacted, amid mainstream media and deep state usuals’ assertions that Russia and/or Russian actors were behind the attack, as National File reported.
https://nationalfile.com/solarwinds-hack-happened-just-before-company-announced-new-chinese-expansion-partnership/
Trump Vetos 2021 US Defense Bill, Labeling Measure 'Gift' to China, Russia
MORE DETAILS TO COME.
https://sputniknews.com/us/202012231081552869-trump-vetos-2021-us-defense-bill-labeling-measure-gift-to-china-russia/
ICE Buys Billboards In Sanctuary City Featuring At-Large Criminal Aliens
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched a billboard campaign today in Asheville, North Carolina, to alert the public of at-large immigration violators who may pose a public safety threat to the community. Several of the individuals were previously arrested or convicted of crimes in the U.S., but were released into the community instead of being transferred into ICE custody pursuant to an immigration detainer.
“It’s unfortunate that certain law enforcement agencies refuse to work with ICE to promote public safety by holding criminal aliens accountable and providing justice and closure for their victims,” said Thomas Giles, field office director of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Atlanta, Georgia. “Sanctuary policies not only undermine the integrity of our nation’s immigration laws; they also shield criminal aliens who prey on the people in their own communities.”
The billboards are located at or near:
I-26 .3 miles west of Butler Bridge Overpass
US 19/23 west of I-40
I-26 .6 miles west of Brevard Road
US 25-A .7 miles south of I-40 overpass
ICE lodges immigration detainers on individuals who have been arrested on local criminal charges and who are suspected of being removable, so that ICE can take custody of that person when he or she is released from local custody. When law enforcement agencies fail to honor immigration detainers and release serious criminal offenders onto the streets, it undermines ICE’s ability to protect public safety and carry out its mission.
The billboards feature cases like:
Luis Alberto Rodriguez-Castro, 53, a Honduran national, charged in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, in October 2011, with negligent homicide and vehicular manslaughter. Rodriguez-Castro, who entered the country without inspection at an unknown place in 1998, is wanted by ICE as an illegal alien in addition to being a criminal fugitive.
Daniel Acosta Garcia, 26, is a Mexican national illegally present in the U.S. Acosta Garcia was arrested by the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, May 16, for driving while impaired. On May 17, ICE lodged a detainer with the Buncombe County Jail, but due to their sanctuary policies, the detainer was not honored, and the subject was released into the community.
Bryan Josue Tabora Bautista, 23, is a Honduran national illegally present in the U.S. Tabora Bautista was arrested by the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, May 31, for driving while impaired. On June 1, ICE lodged a detainer with the Buncombe County Jail, but due to their sanctuary policies, the detainer was not honored, and the subject was released into the community.
Jose Adrian Pena Alvarez, 23, is a Honduran national illegally present in the U.S. Pena Alvarez was arrested by the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, May 19, and subsequently convicted, Nov. 4, for assault on a female. On May 18, ICE lodged a detainer with the Buncombe County Jail, but due to their sanctuary policies, the detainer was not honored, and the subject was released to the community.
Jaime Gonzalez Garcia, 29, is a Guatemalan national illegally present in the U.S. Gonzalez Garcia was arrested by the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, June 21, for driving while impaired and driving with a revoked license. On June 21, ICE lodged a detainer with the Buncombe County Jail, but due to their sanctuary policies, the detainer was not honored, and the subject was released to the community.
David Anaya Gutierrez, 37, is a Mexican national illegally present in the U.S. Anaya Gutierrez was arrested by the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, Oct. 8, 2019, for possessing cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, trafficking cocaine, continuing a criminal enterprise and resisting a public officer. On Oct. 11, 2019, ICE lodged a detainer with the Buncombe County Jail, but due to their sanctuary policies, the detainer was not honored, and the subject was released to the community.
https://breaking911.com/ice-buys-billboards-in-sanctuary-city-featuring-at-large-criminal-aliens/
The FBI Has Emails That Tell Us Why Hunter Biden Was Hired by Burisma: Report
Emails obtained by the FBI last year detail how Hunter Biden, the son of former Vice-President Joe Biden, “strategized with his business partner on how to leverage an upcoming official trip to Kiev by his father, then-Vice President Joe Biden, to clinch” his lucrative position on the board of Burisma, reports Just The News, which has obtained copies of the emails.
Just The News reviewed these communications, and they show Hunter Biden referring to his father as “my guy” and he took credit for “adding value” because his father had made comments to Ukrainian leaders about natural gas production that would be of benefit to them.
Part of Hunter Biden’s strategy was to get Burisma to sign a consulting deal with him and his business partner Devon Archer before his father, then vice president, visited Ukraine.
“The contract should begin now — not after the upcoming visit of my guy,” Hunter Biden wrote Archer on April 13, 2014, a week before his father planned to visit. Hunter already knew he would be appointed to the board of Burisma, and that he wanted Burisma to pay additional consulting fees to him or his law firm, Boies Schiller Flexner.
Hunter wrote that the deal with Burisma “should include a retainer in the range of 25k p/m w/ additional fees where appropriate for more in depth work to go to BSF for our protection.” Hunter then explained that this deal would be “separate from our respective deals re board participation.”
Records previously obtained by Just the News show Burisma paid Boies Schiller Flexner a $250,000 retainer on July 5, 2014 as well as more than $3 million between 2014 and 2016 to a firm connected to Archer and Hunter Biden called Rosemont Seneca Bohais.
The emails were provided to the FBI last December as part of a laptop hard drive believed to belong to Hunter Biden that had been left at a repair shop in Delaware. The shop owner, John Paul Mac Isaac, turned over a copy of the hard drive to agents under a federal grand jury subpoena.
Mac Isaac’s lawyer, Brian Della Rocca, confirmed to Just the News on Tuesday that the emails detailing Hunter Biden’s efforts to land the Burisma deal in 2014 were on the hard drive turned over to the FBI.
Hunter Biden is currently under federal criminal investigation. Joe Biden claims the allegations against Hunter are “Russian disinformation.”
“If corroborated by the FBI, the emails would provide the most direct evidence to date of how Hunter Biden traded on his father’s name to score business with a Ukrainian company run by an oligarch who was under criminal investigation at the time,” explains Just The News. They note that the emails make no indication whether or not Joe Biden was aware of his son trying to leverage his influence. However, according to Hunter’s former business partner Tony Bobulinski, Joe Biden was supposed to get a cut out of Hunter Biden’s lucrative deals with China.
https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/matt-margolis/2020/12/23/the-fbi-has-emails-that-tell-us-why-hunter-biden-was-hired-by-burisma-report-n1227261
Michigan AG threatens sanctions against lawyers who attempted to overturn election
'Myself and also Secretary Benson, will be filing complaints to the attorney grievance commission'
Michigan Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel will seek sanctions against attorney Sidney Powell and other lawyers she says made "intentional misrepresentations" in filing lawsuits to challenge the results of the Michigan presidential election.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday, the attorney general said she also intends to pursue court costs and fees and to file complaints with the attorney grievance commission, the Detroit News reported. She will join the City of Detroit and an attorney for Wayne County voter Robert Davis in seeking sanctions against the lawyers representing Republicans in cases seeking to overturn the state election.
President Donald Trump lost Michigan to President-elect Joe Biden by 154,000 votes. In the wake of the election, Powell and others made allegations of widespread voter fraud, and several lawsuits were filed that sought to prove those allegations in court and prevent the election from being certified. Those efforts were unsuccessful.
In response, Davis' attorney Andrew Paterson filed a motion with the U.S. District Court for Michigan's Eastern District seeking sanctions against the lawyers who represented six Michigan Republicans who sought to have the court declare Trump the winner in Michigan. Paterson's motion asked the court to sanction "the egregious conduct of the plaintiffs and their attorneys for making clearly frivolous arguments and using the judicial system to obtain unprecedented relief, to satisfy plaintiffs' selfish and destructive political agendas."
According to the News, the motion cites U.S. Code that permits a judge to require attorneys to pay "excess costs, expenses and attorney's fee" for conduct that "multiplies the proceedings in any case unreasonably and vexatiously."
"It is unfathomable that licensed attorneys would deliberately file false and misleading affidavits and pleadings with the Court in an effort to disenfranchise millions of Michigan residents," Davis said. "Not only should these individuals and their attorneys be assessed financial sanctions, but they also should be barred from practicing in the federal courts in the Eastern District of Michigan."
The City of Detroit is also seeking sanctions against the lawyers.
https://www.theblaze.com/news/michigan-ag-sanctions-lawyers-overturn-election-
MSM SPIN
Trump vetoes defense bill, setting up potential override
President Trump followed through Wednesday on his threat to veto a massive annual defense policy bill, setting up what could be the first and only veto override of his presidency.
Congress passed the fiscal year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) earlier this month with more than the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto, though it is unclear how many Republicans will buck the president in an override vote.
Trump objected to the $740 billion policy legislation because it did not include a provision repealing Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a law that provides a legal shield to tech companies like Twitter and Facebook.
Trump also threatened to veto the legislation because it included a provision requiring Confederate military bases to be renamed within three years and has recently complained that he views the bill as weak on China, despite a litany of provisions aimed specifically at Beijing.
Trump, who had 10 days excluding Sundays to act after Congress sent him the bill, waited until the last day he could to veto it.
Both the Senate and House will now need to vote to override Trump’s veto to enact the massive bill, which outlines Pentagon policy for the coming year and typically attracts broad bipartisan support. The bill already passed the Senate in an 84-13 vote and the House in a 355-78 vote.
The bill, which has become law for 59 years in a row, is considered must-pass because it authorizes a host of special pay and bonuses for troops, military construction projects, training programs and other vital operations.
Congress must override the veto before noon on Jan. 3, when the 117th Congress will be sworn-in. If Congress fails to override the veto by then, lawmakers would need to start from scratch on the bill.
The House plans to hold its veto override vote Monday, in a rare post-Christmas session.
If the House successfully overrides Trump, the Senate is planning to come back the following day. But it could still be days after that before the upper chamber holds a final override vote if senators who support Trump’s veto drag out procedural hurdles. Senators have suggested the override vote could happen the morning of Jan. 3, just before the new Congress takes office.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who briefly held up passage of the NDAA earlier this month, indicated Monday he could similarly delay an override vote.
“I very much am opposed to the Afghan war, and I’ve told them I’ll come back to try to prevent them from easily overriding the president’s veto,” Paul told reporters.
Trump’s opposition to the legislation caused tensions between the president and Senate Republicans in the waning weeks of his presidency.
"My intention was and is to ensure the Senate continues fulfilling our obligation to the men and women of our armed forces. I hope the president will not veto this bill," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said from the Senate floor this week.
Republicans indicated earlier that there had been efforts to persuade Trump to back down from his veto threat, and they were hoping a strong enough vote would convince him to sign the bill.
But they ultimately were unsuccessful.
https://thehill.com/policy/defense/529915-trump-vetos-defense-bill-setting-up-potential-override
Are We Facing a Future Where Life Only Goes “Back to Normal” for Rich People?
As jobs and businesses vanish, and prices go up, Americans could soon face another expense – the expense of proving that they’re “healthy.”
While the government tells us that the Covid vaccinations are going to be “free,” are they really? Let’s take a look.
How much will it actually cost to get vaccinated against Covid?
While the government is paying for the vaccine itself, it will still cost money for most people to get injected with it.
However, providers will be able to bill you an administrative fee for giving the shot to patients, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This would be similar to paying a charge when you visit the doctor’s office, or for specialized vaccine delivery, such as infusion, a process in which a substance — like medication, a chemotherapy drug or hydration — enters the bloodstream intravenously.
If you don’t have insurance, the medical provider you used should be reimbursed for any COVID-19 treatment you receive through the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund, at no cost to you.
…If you receive a bill for administration fees, it’s still unclear whether or not those will be covered in full. It’s a good idea to contact your local provider or health insurance company for more details on whether you’ll be charged additional fees before receiving a vaccine. It might be that you have more than one option for immunization, including finding a medical provider that would give you the vaccine free of charge, or offer a more straightforward approach to reimbursement if you’re charged. (source)
So it’s kind of free, sort of, unless somebody charges you but then you might be able to get your money back. Multiply by your number of family members.
And what about all the apps for proving you’ve gotten vaccinated? Will that be government-funded or will people pay a few bucks to the app store to download it onto their smartphones? What about people who don’t have phones? What about those who can no longer afford phone service?
I think it’s pretty easy to see that this could become an escalating expense for some and completely unaffordable for others. If you’ve never been in a position where an added $5 expense could make or break your grocery bill, then it may be difficult for you to understand how tough this could be on families who have suddenly found themselves living in ever-deepening poverty.
How will you manage if you can’t prove that you’re covid-free?
https://patriotrising.com/are-we-facing-a-future-where-life-only-goes-back-to-normal-for-rich-people/
FBI arrests woman for sending pictures of a mutilated body and threatening the family of election official who refused to certify Biden's win in Michigan
Katelyn Jones, 23, was charged with threatening violence through interstate commerce in connection to the threats that were sent to Monica Palmer
Palmer was slammed for refusing to certify and then attempting to rescind her vote to certify the close to 878,000 votes from Michigan's largest county
The election official received numerous threatening texts from an unknown person who used a cellphone number with a 269 area code
Company records that showed a 269 number that was made 10 minutes before Palmer got her first threatening message
In addition to the text, Palmer was also sent threatening messages on her Instagram page on November 18 from a user named '@_etfere'
Palmer's address, phone number and her husband's phone number were shared by the user
A New Hampshire woman has been arrested for sending pictures of a mutilated female body and threatening the family of a Michigan election official who refused to certify the results for Joe Biden.
Katelyn Jones, 23, is accused of calling Wayne County chairwoman Monica Palmer a 'racist b****' and a 'terrorist' after she refused to confirm the 878,000 votes from Michigan's largest county.
President Trump called Palmer on Tuesday November 17 after she revised her vote to express his gratitude for her support.
The threatening violence through interstate commerce charges against Jones stem from an FBI investigation probing the fallout from Trump's defeat in the election and unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud, the Detroit News reports.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9083129/FBI-arrests-woman-sent-election-official-pictures-mutilated-body.html
SHE’S LOSING IT: Nancy Pelosi Goes on CNN and Has a Meltdown Too Amazing to Miss.
WATCH the entire exchange here. Blitzer’s face is priceless.
https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/shes-losing-it-nancy-pelosi-goes-on-cnn-and-has-a-meltdown-too-amazing-to-miss/
Unexplained explosion and fire destroy world’s second largest pharmaceutical factory producing precursors for hydroxychloroquine
Prepare for supplies to tighten for the cheap, effective therapeutic treatment for early stage Covid-19 infection, hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). Just as the medical establishment in the US is relaxing its absurd and lethal suppression of the cheap, generic drug, following President Trump’s endorsement of it early in the pandemic, HCQ’s continued availability may suffer. The world’s second largest pharmaceutical facility producing the precursors for HCQ has been destroyed by an explosion and fire.
Taiwan English News reports:
An explosion at a pharmaceutical factory in Taoyuan City left two injured and caused a fire early this afternoon, December 20.
People as far as Tamsui District in New Taipei City reported hearing the massive blast shortly after noon. Immediately after the blast, thick black smoke could be seen pouring out of the SCI Pharmtech factory. (snip)
The cause of the explosion is currently under investigation.
Liberty Times reported that the factory produces hydroxychloroquine APIs [active pharmaceutical ingredients - TL], and is the world’s second largest HCQ raw material supplier.
A subsequent report indicates that one of the injured workers, a Filipino guest worker who suffered third degree burns over 90% of his body, has died. The explosion broke out around noon and set off subsequent explosions in volatile substances nearby.
The Taipei Times reports that company spokesmen state, “… it would take at least six months to rebuild the plant, as most production lines were damaged by the fire….”
Supplies may be tight, as the SCI Pharmtech had already expanded production and sales of HCQ APIs to meet growing demand:
The company reported cumulative revenue of NT$2.61 billion in the first 11 months of this year, up 18.19 percent from NT$2.21 billion in the same period last year, thanks to steady shipments of APIs for hydroxychloroquine
The cause of the fire is under investigation. Given the explosive character of some of the ingredients, there may well be a perfectly innocent explanation for the fire. But a six-month delay in resuming production may delay HCQ supplies to early stage Covid-19 patients, who could otherwise treat their affliction with it, combined with zinc and an antibiotic like azithromycin.
I’ve been to Taoyuan and visited industrial facilities there. It is very close to Taipei Taoyuan International Airport, the major international airport serving Taipei and Taiwan, and also to Hsinchu Science Park, a high-tech mecca, housing over 400 companies. This area is highly sophisticated and prosperous, and has a bullet train station connecting it to central Taipei in about half an hour’s travel time. It is not at all some third world backwater; quite the contrary.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/12/unexplained_explosion_and_fire_destroy_worlds_second_largest_pharmaceutical_factory_producing_precursors_for_hydroxychloroquine_.html
A big global cyberattack is on its way and Klaus Schwab is so kind to tell us in advance
He says the covid crisis will look like a “small disturbance in comparison”. wtf
Will this wipe out all our bank accounts, savings, investment portfolios ? is there any way to prepare for this ? buy physical gold ?
www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/06/covid-19-pandemic-teaches-us-about-cybersecurity-cyberattack-cyber-pandemic-risk-virus/
civilianintelligencenetwork.ca/2020/11/23/the-great-reset-prepare-for-de-industrialization-coming-this-winter-2020-greatreset-darkwinter-circuitbreakerlockdown-buildbackbetter/
Another 803,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week
Claims for unemployment benefits fell across most categories in Wednesday's Labor Department report. Still the job market recovery has stalled while more than 20 million Americans need aid to make ends meet.
Another 803,000 Americans filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week on a seasonally adjusted basis.
That was a drop off from the week before but still nearly four times the claims during the same period in 2019, and yet another sign that the US job recovery has run into serious trouble.
During normal times, seasonal adjustments help smooth out wobbles in economic data and make it easier to read and compare. But during the pandemic, this trick hasn't worked so well. Without seasonal adjustments, initial claims were much higher 869,398 last week, albeit still lower than the week before.
On top of that, 397,511 workers filed for benefits under the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, which provides aid to groups that aren't usually eligible for jobless benefits, such as the self-employed. That number is not adjusted for seasonal swings.
Added together, 1.3 million Americans filed initial jobless claims last week on an unadjusted basis.
Continued claims, which count workers who have applied for benefits for at least two weeks in a row, stood at 5.3 million, slightly lower than in the prior week.
Congress agreed on a new round of stimulus to combat the fallout from the pandemic over the weekend. It would include an extension of the unemployment benefits that millions of Americans need to make ends meet. Benefits created specifically for the pandemic are otherwise slated to expire in just a matter of days.
However, President Donald Trump's complaints about the bill, delivered on video via Twitter on Tuesday, raised the risk of more economic turmoil, not to mention a government shutdown. Trump asked Congress to amend the bill and up the amounts paid in stimulus checks.
A mixed economic picture
http://www.tathasta.com/2020/12/another-803000-americans-filed-for.html
Georgia secretary of state joins GOP push to end no-excuse absentee voting
Raffensperger says system 'opens the door' to illegal voting after calling most 2020 voter fraud claims unfounded
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger joined fellow Republicans Wednesday in calling for an end to allowing all voters in the state to submit absentee ballots without providing justification for why they cannot vote in person.
Many states instituted "no-excuse" absentee voting in 2020 so that voters could avoid crowds at polling sites during the coronavirus pandemic, although Georgia has had it for 15 years. After the high voter turnout and tumultuous aftermath of the 2020 election, Raffensperger endorsed eliminating the practice during a Georgia House hearing.
"The no-excuse system voted into law in 2005 long before most of you, if not all of you, long before I was in the General Assembly it makes no sense when we have three weeks of in-person early voting available," Raffensberger said. "It opens the door to potential illegal voting, especially in light of the federal rules that deny us the ability to keep voter lists, registration files, clean."
Raffensberger also noted that allowing everyone to vote via absentee ballot poses logistical difficulties.
In addition to changing the standard for who can vote absentee, Raffensberger also called to impose a voter ID requirement for absentee ballots instead of the current signature-matching system, which could be subjective.
The suggestions to improve election security came immediately after Raffensberger claimed most allegations of voter fraud during November's election were invalid. He opened the hearing by saying that while "there are real, substantive questions," but "the vast majority of claims we have seen online and in the media, and even discussed in the halls of the Capitol are simply unfounded."
When asked why Raffensberger's office wanted to eliminate no-excuse absentee voting, the secretary of state's general counsel Ryan Germany explained, "It's harder to provide confidence in that process."
So far, Georgia voters have requested more than 1.3 million absentee ballots for the Jan. 5 Senate runoff races, while 1.2 million people have voted early in person.
Republicans in the Georgia State Senate have said they will push to make this change, as well as the voter ID requirement for absentee ballots, after President Trump narrowly lost the state by less than 12,000 votes. According to the Georgia secretary of state's office, President-elect Joe Biden received nearly 850,000 absentee votes compared to just over 450,000 for Trump.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/georgia-secretary-of-state-gop-end-no-excuse-absentee-voting