>>15847662

>>15847666

666 ==>Cruz

>>15847688

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/30/cruz-warns-saudis-to-stop-using-oil-in-economic-warfare-against-us.html

Ted Cruz, other senators, warn Saudis to stop using oil in ‘economic warfare’ against the US

cnbc.com/2020/03/30/cruz-warns-saudis-to-stop-using-oil-in-economic-warfare-against-us.html

March 30, 2020

Key Points

Sen. Ted Cruz said he and other senators recently ripped into the Saudi ambassador in a conference call over its oil price war with Russia.

The Texas Republican said the price war has threatened to put American producers out of business.

Cruz said the senators warned that they would take action against Saudi Arabia if the “economic warfare” continued.

watch now

VIDEO03:28

Sen. Cruz: Senators call on Saudi Arabia to allow the price of oil to stabilize

Sen. Ted Cruz told CNBC on Monday he and eight other GOP senators recently ripped into the Saudi ambassador in a conference call over the oil price war with Russia that has threatened to put American producers out of business.

In a “Squawk Box” interview, Cruz said the call with Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was “as candid a call, and direct a call, as I’ve ever had with a foreign leader.”

“We quite frankly unloaded on her,” the Texas Republican said.

Oil prices have plummeted as Saudi Arabia and Russia remain locked in a price war that began after Russia earlier this month rejected an additional 1.5 million barrels per day production cut proposed by OPEC.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude briefly dipped below $20 on Monday. Brent, the international benchmark, fell to its lowest price in nearly 18 years.

Following Russia’s rejection, Saudi Arabia slashed its official oil price and announced that it will increase production to 12.3 million barrels per day when the current production cuts expire at the end of March. Tanking prices have made it unprofitable for many U.S. firms to to remain active, analysts have said.

Cruz said the senators warned that they would take action against Saudi Arabia if the “economic warfare” continued, though he did not mention any specific retaliatory measure.

“We said, ‘Look, there are a whole series of steps we can take to escalate foreign policy pressure’ — and we outlined a number of them — ‘if you continue engaging in economic warfare against the United States, trying to drive down the price of oil in order to exploit this coronavirus crisis to drive a bunch of American producers out of business.’”

The Saudi embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cruz said the senators on the call were among the 13 Republicans who wrote a letter to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman earlier in March urging him to halt Saudi efforts to boost production and lower prices. He said the lawmakers have “historically been the strongest allies in the Senate of Saudi Arabia,” suggesting that support could be on the line.

“If they don’t change their course, their relationship with the United States is going to change very fundamentally,” Cruz said.

In addition to Cruz, the Senate Republicans who signed the letter were Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska; North Dakota’s Kevin Cramer and John Hoeven; Ron Johnson of Wisconsin; John Cornyn of Texas; John Kennedy and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana; John Barrasso of Wyoming; Tom Cotton of Arkansas and James Lankford and James Inhofe of Oklahoma.

Cruz did not say which nine were on the conference call.

Princess Reema sought to pin the blame on Russia. Cruz said he responded that Russia was not expected to be a friend to the United States, while Saudi Arabia was.

“You are not behaving like a friend when you are trying to destroy thousands and thousands of small businesses all across Texas and the country,” he said he told her.

“The Saudis are hoping to drive out of business American producers, and in particular shale producers, largely in the Permian Basin in Texas and in North Dakota,” Cruz told CNBC. “That behavior is wrong, and I think it is taking advantage of a country that is a friend.”

Cruz also said he hoped that President Donald Trump, scheduled to speak with Russian leader Vladimir Putin by phone on Monday morning, would bring up the issue.

Trump said on Fox News earlier on Monday that he would bring up the price war, noting that Saudi Arabia and Russia “both went crazy.”

– CNBC’s Pippa Stevens and Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report.

>>15847716

>is he from Texas?

Quban Kanadian

>>15847733

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-oil-trump-saudi-specialreport/special-report-trump-told-saudi-cut-oil-supply-or-lose-u-s-military-support-sources-idUSKBN22C1V4

Special Report: Trump told Saudi: Cut oil supply or lose U.S. military support- sources

reuters.com/article/us-global-oil-trump-saudi-specialreport/special-report-trump-told-saudi-cut-oil-supply-or-lose-u-s-military-support-sources-idUSKBN22C1V4

By Timothy Gardner, Steve Holland, Dmitry Zhdannikov, Rania El Gamal

12 Min Read

''WASHINGTON/LONDON/DUBAI (Reuters) - As the United States pressed Saudi Arabia to end its oil price war with Russia, President Donald Trump gave Saudi leaders an ultimatum.''

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a family photo session with other leaders and attendees at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 28, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

In an April 2 phone call, Trump told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that unless the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) started cutting oil production, he would be powerless to stop lawmakers from passing legislation to withdraw U.S. troops from the kingdom, four sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The threat to upend a 75-year strategic alliance, which has not been previously reported, was central to the U.S. pressure campaign that led to a landmark global deal to slash oil supply as demand collapsed in the coronavirus pandemic - scoring a diplomatic victory for the White House.

Trump delivered the message to the crown prince 10 days before the announcement of production cuts. The kingdom’s de facto leader was so taken aback by the threat that he ordered his aides out of the room so he could continue the discussion in private, according to a U.S. source who was briefed on the discussion by senior administration officials.

The effort illustrated Trump’s strong desire to protect the U.S. oil industry from a historic price meltdown as governments shut down economies worldwide to fight the virus. It also reflected a telling reversal of Trump’s longstanding criticism of the oil cartel, which he has blasted for raising energy costs for Americans with supply cuts that usually lead to higher gasoline prices. Now, Trump was asking OPEC to slash output.

A senior U.S. official told Reuters that the administration notified Saudi leaders that, without production cuts, “there would be no way to stop the U.S. Congress from imposing restrictions that could lead to a withdrawal of U.S. forces.” The official summed up the argument, made through various diplomatic channels, as telling Saudi leaders: “We are defending your industry while you’re destroying ours.”

Reuters asked Trump about the talks in an interview Wednesday evening at the White House, at which the president addressed a range of topics involving the pandemic. Asked if he told the crown prince that the U.S. might pull forces out of Saudi Arabia, Trump said, “I didn’t have to tell him.”

“I thought he and President Putin, Vladimir Putin, were very reasonable,” Trump said. “They knew they had a problem, and then this happened.”

Asked what he told the Crown Prince Mohammed, Trump said: “They were having a hard time making a deal. And I met telephonically with him, and we were able to reach a deal” for production cuts, Trump said.

Saudi Arabia’s government media office did not respond to a request for comment. A Saudi official who asked not to be named stressed that the agreement represented the will of all countries in the so-called OPEC+ group of oil-producing nations, which includes OPEC plus a coalition led by Russia.

“Saudi Arabia, the United States and Russia have played an important role in the OPEC+ oil cut agreement, but without the cooperation of the 23 countries who took part in the agreement, it would not have happened,” said the Saudi official, who declined to comment on the discussions between U.S. and Saudi leaders.

The week before Trump’s phone call with Crown Prince Mohammed, U.S. Republican Senators Kevin Cramer and Dan Sullivan had introduced legislation to remove all U.S. troops, Patriot missiles and anti-missile defense systems from the kingdom unless Saudi Arabia cut oil output. Support for the measure was gaining momentum amid Congressional anger over the ill-timed Saudi-Russia oil price war. The kingdom had opened up the taps in April, unleashing a flood of crude into the global supply after Russia refused to deepen production cuts in line with an earlier OPEC supply pact.

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>>15847662

Biden-boosting influencer ‘Brooklyn Dad’ slammed for taking PAC money

nypost.com/2021/03/10/brooklyn-dad-influencer-slammed-for-taking-pac-money

By Natalie O'NeillMarch 10, 2021

''A Joe Biden-boosting social media influencer known as “Brooklyn Dad Defiant” came under fire Wednesday for reportedly failing to disclose that he accepted tens of thousands of dollars from a Democratic political action committee.''

Majid Padellan, who runs the nearly 900,000-follower-strong Twitter account

— and has been slammed previously for urging Bernie Sanders to drop out of the 2020 presidential race

— allegedly accepted more than $57,000 from a pro-Biden PAC, Really American, last year, according to Refinery29.com, which cited tweets circulating Tuesday.

In his Twitter bio, Padellan says he’s a senior adviser to the PAC — but followers slammed him for failing to admit he allegedly got paid to post pro-Biden opinions and theories, according to the outlet.

“Brooklyn Dad being a paid Dem op is pretty unsurprising, it absolutely does pay to have/promote sh–ty political opinions in America,” one user tweeted.

Another added, “There’s a difference between acknowledging you’re a senior advisor to a PAC and disclosing that you’re being paid to influence American voters on social media. Every tweet & the profile should include a *Paid Advertisement disclaimer.”

In recent months, Padellan has frequently tweeted his support for the Biden administration and defended the president from criticism of policies and moves ranging from the rollout of stimulus checks to the fact that he hasn’t yet held a solo press conference.

He is also known for tweets bashing Donald Trump and the GOP, and one that discredited Tara Reade’s allegations of sexual assault against Biden last year.

Other Twitter users defended him, saying public figures and influencers often get paid to promote content on social media.

“Am I the only one who doesn’t give a sh-t if Brooklyn Dad (and all the others on both sides of the fence) get paid to share their opinions?” one user wrote. “Isn’t that the goal of all influencers?”

But social media influencers generally disclose when they’re getting paid to promote a product or service, other observers said.

It wasn’t immediately clear if Padellan was directly paid to post positive tweets about Biden. He didn’t immediately return The Post’s requests for comment Wednesday.

>>15847871

>>15847837

''…that an attack against one is an attack against all''

>>15847899

>…that an attack against one is an attack against all

The United States Takes Seriously…

''The United States Takes SeriouslyThat An Attack Against One Is An Attack Against All!''

– Kamala

The United States takes seriously that an attack against one is an attack against all.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2022/03/10/remarks-by-vice-president-harris-and-president-andrzej-duda-of-poland-in-joint-press-conference/

…Today, we discussed, Mr. President, many issues that relate to our special bond also, because, I will say as a point of personal privilege, we have a substantial Polish American community in my hometown of Los Angeles but throughout the United States, who understands the relationship that we have on many levels, including the diplomatic but also cultural relationships that span generations.

And so, through all of that and in the spirit of those relationships and our shared commitments — our shared commitment to the importance of international norms and rules — you and I discussed today many important topics, in particular as it relates to the eastern flank. And we talked specifically about what we cared deeply about in terms of our commitment — the United States commitment to Article 5.

I’ve said it many times; I will say it again: The United States commitment to Article 5 is ironclad. The United States is prepared to defend every inch of NATO territory. The United States takes seriously that an attack against one is an attack against all. We are here today to restate that commitment, but also do what we must do to reinforce our support of Poland and our Allies through the EU and NATO Alliance.

In particular, as it relates to troop deployment, we have recently deployed an additional 4,700 American troops to Poland. That’s on top of the years of rotation of about 5,000 American troops in Poland.

We are pleased to have announced this week that we have directed two Patriot missile defense systems to Poland. And today, I can announce that we have delivered those Patriot systems to Poland. We do this as a reminder and as a demonstration of our commitment to the security of our Allies and our commitment, in particular, to Poland at this moment in time.

March 10, 2022

Briefing Room

• Speeches and Remarks

Belweder Palace

Warsaw, Poland

12:57 P.M. CEST

PRESIDENT DUDA: (As interpreted.) Your Excellency and distinguished Madam Vice President of the United States of America, distinguished ladies and gentlemen: This is a very important moment in our relations. But, first and foremost, under these circumstances which we are facing right now in Europe, behind our Eastern border, in Ukraine — friendly to us and with us — where the Russian troops are carrying out a barbarious aggression and murdering innocent people, murdering civilians, bombing maternity hospitals from which, under dramatic circumstances, wounded women right before labor — are being carried out.