White House directs fury over G-7 meltdown to Canada's Trudeau

President Trump stirred up a hornet’s nest during last week’s summit of major world leaders, suggesting they agree to embrace a full free trade world with no tariffs or barriers — and then withdrawing from the summit’s joint communique after he felt insulted.

White House officials unloaded on Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in unusually stark terms Sunday, saying he stabbed the president in the back with amateurish attacks over trade. They also said the young leader, who hosted the Group of Seven summit, made Mr. Trump look weak as he jetted from Canada to Singapore to face North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.

“There’s a special place in hell for any foreign leader that engages in bad-faith diplomacy with Donald J. Trump and then tries to stab him in the back on the way out the door,” Trump adviser Peter Navarro told “Fox News Sunday.”

Mr. Trump went into the G-7 summit somewhat of a pariah just weeks after he slapped tariffs on aluminum and steel imports from much of the world, including Canada and the European Union.

At the summit, Mr. Trump said, he told the leaders that the U.S. had been maltreated for decades by lopsided trade deals, which he was rebalancing. But he also delivered a tantalizing vision: a world where the big economies agreed to tear down all barriers, including tariffs and subsidies, and embrace full free trade.

“That’s the way you learned at the Wharton School of Finance,” said Mr. Trump, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s famed business school.

The president reiterated Saturday that he also is considering scrapping the North American Free Trade Agreement in favor of bilateral trade deals with Canada and Mexico individually.

In a post-summit press conference, Mr. Trump insisted that his relationships with other leaders were “very good” despite disagreement on the issues.

Soon afterward, Mr. Trudeau held his own post-summit press conference and said Mr. Trump’s move to justify the aluminum and steel tariffs by citing U.S. national security was “kind of insulting.”

“Canadians, we’re polite, we’re reasonable, but we also will not be pushed around,” Mr. Trudeau said.

The remarks clearly rankled Mr. Trump, who accused Mr. Trudeau of being two-faced. He tweeted that the prime minister acted “mild and meek” toward him at the G-7 but engaged in “very dishonest & weak” behavior after his departure.

“Based on Justin’s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our U.S. farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our U.S. Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the U.S. Market!” the president tweeted from the presidential aircraft.

White House Chief Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow said Mr. Trudeau “really kind of stabbed us in the back.”

“He did a great disservice to the whole G-7,” he told CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Other world leaders seemed to side with Mr. Trudeau.

“International cooperation cannot be dictated by fits of anger and throwaway remarks,” French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said Sunday. “We spend two days working out a [joint] statement and commitments. We are sticking to them and whoever reneges on them is showing incoherence and inconsistency.”

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said Canada “does not believe that ad hominem attacks are a particularly appropriate or useful way to conduct our relations with other countries.”

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, California Democrat, said Sunday that Mr. Trump was making a big mistake by pulling out of the largely symbolic statement of unity at the G-7.

https:// www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/10/justin-trudeaus-remarks-rile-donald-trumps-aides/

Peter Navarro: 'There's a special place in hell' for Justin Trudeau after Trump 'stunt'

White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro used unusually harsh language Sunday in blasting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for holding a “stunt” press conference to say his nation will not be pushed around by tariffs imposed by President Trump.

“There’s a special place in hell for any foreign leader that engages in bad faith diplomacy with Donald J. Trump and then tries to stab him in the back on the way out the door,” Mr. Navarro told Fox News Sunday.

“That’s what bad-faith Justin Trudeau did with that stunt press conference. That’s what weak, dishonest Justin Trudeau did — and that comes right from Air Force One,” he said.

After Mr. Trump’s departed the Group of Seven nations summit in Quebec, Mr. Trudeau held a press conference Saturday stating that all of the member nations, including the U.S., had signed a communique pledging to lower tariffs and other trade barriers.

Mr. Trudeau also said it was “kind of insulting” the U.S. had imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum under the guise of national security, noting Canadians stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Americans in overseas wars.

Mr. Trump fumed on Twitter and directed U.S. representatives not to sign the communique.

Mr. Navarro and White House Chief Economic Advisor Larry Kudlow used the Sunday talk circuit to slam Mr. Trudeau for his comments, saying the Canadian leader should have thanked the president for even showing up before a Singapore summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.

“All Justin Trudeau had to do was take the win,” Mr. Navarro said.

He said Mr. Trump had “bigger things on his plate” and was willing to sign a “socialist communique” struck by the G-7 summit, though felt compelled to back out of the agreement after Mr. Trudeau criticized him publicly.

https:// www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/10/peter-navarro-sees-special-place-hell-justin-trude/

Lindsey Graham says Trump won't back down to Kim: 'There's really only two options – peace or war'

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina says President Trump is “very much ready” to set the table for a peaceful resolution to North Korea’s nuclear threat, though he won’t back down “like we’ve done in the past.”

“Donald Trump is not going to capitulate, so there’s really only two options — peace or war,” Mr. Graham told ABC’s This Week on Sunday.

Mr. Trump landed in Singapore on Sunday for the historic summit on Tuesday. Mr. Kim arrived in a Chinese jumbo jet earlier in the day.

Mr. Graham said he doesn’t expect a deal on Tuesday — it’s the start of a deliberate process.

But he said Mr. Trump won’t let the problem fester in pushing a hard line on Mr. Kim, whose nation would receive long-term security in return.

“I think president wants this to come to an end in his first term. They understand electoral politics in North Korea of the United States, they always try to run out a president in terms of the time on his watch,” he said. “That’s not going to happen here.”

Mr. Graham said he supports Senate Democrats who urged Mr. Trump to get a deal that’s permanent and has verifiable outcomes on denuclearization, but they need to have his back.

“Here’s what I would say to my Democratic colleagues. I appreciate you telling the president what a good deal would look like, but the country needs you to back the president up to get that deal,” he said.

https:// www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/10/lindsey-graham-says-donald-trump-not-going-capitul/

>>1691202

Which one, what's the headline, I don't see it, sorry if it's a repeat, but I looked 1st.

>>1691282

Sorry, Blind, I guess I understood the relevance of Special Place, and whated to make sure it got here. Same story different sources. I should have opened my eyes more.

Trump commits $256 million to revive long-neglected national parks, gets no thanks from left

He may never get credit from environmentalists, but President Trump is building a unique conservation legacy by focusing on the restoration and rehabilitation of America’s majestic yet long-neglected national parks.

The Interior Department announced last week $256 million in funding for infrastructure projects at 22 national parks, including the Great Smoky Mountains, Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone, marking another step toward the goal of wiping out a stubborn $11.6 billion maintenance backlog.

While Mr. Trump, a native New Yorker who built a real estate empire with luxury hotels and resorts, isn’t necessarily known for communing with nature, his decision to prioritize repairs to the national park system does jibe with his appreciation for grandeur and insistence on high-quality surroundings.

“The President is a builder, he loves to build and he loves our National Parks, so it is a natural fit that the Administration is dedicating so much attention to rebuilding our aging parks infrastructure,” Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Wednesday in a written statement.

Projects covered by the funding include overhauling the visitor center at Mount Rushmore, rehabilitating wastewater systems at Yellowstone and the Great Smoky Mountains national parks, and repairing flood damage to the Scotty’s Castle visitor center in Death Valley National Park.

Closer to Washington, $18.2 million has been designated to repair the Arlington Memorial Bridge on the George Washington Memorial Parkway and $21.4 million to restore the Thomas Jefferson Memorial roof and portico at the National Mall and Memorial Parks.

Projects are in the works to make the features more accessible to tourists, which will have a “tangible effect on a person’s experience when visiting our nation’s parks,” Mr. Zinke said.

“It’s another step toward prioritizing infrastructure because it is an investment that bolsters local economies and gateway communities,” he said. “And it is another step in prioritizing access for all Americans to our public lands.”

That commitment to revitalizing the national parks has nonetheless failed to impress liberals locked in a perpetual state of battle with the Trump administration over environmental issues.

Matt Lee-Ashley, a former Obama administration official and senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, suggested that Mr. Trump may be too committed to the national parks.

“The Trump administration seems solely focused on the national parks at the expense of investments in the management of other public lands that Americans also use frequently, like national forests,” Mr. Lee-Ashley said in an email.

Since 2010, the National Park Service has recorded an $11 billion to $12 billion backlog of deferred maintenance projects, even though the number of annual visitors to the 417 properties swelled by 12 percent over the past decade to 330 million.

With an annual National Park Service budget of about $3 billion, however, “you simply can’t take care of all of these items,” said agency spokesman Jeremy Barnum. “This will address some of the higher-priority projects at the national parks.”

Mr. Zinke also has championed a bipartisan bill introduced in March that would allocate up to $18 billion for a national park restoration fund built by revenue from energy production on federal lands and waters.

https:// www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/10/donald-trump-dedicates-national-park-funds-restora/

>>1691392

I doubt he will ever sign this thing, it goes against everything he stands for. Foolish on their part they thought they could just sneak it in? Scum all of them who participated in this fraud.

China pulls missiles from South China Sea island in possible nod to Trump

The Chinese militarization of the South China Sea has been happening for some time. Since the weak Obama administration wouldn’t stand up to any dictator, the Chinese, along with other adversaries, probably just said “Why not?” and proceeded with their malignant behavior in creating the ability to block traffic in one of the world’s busiest sea lanes.

Anti-ship missile batteries, anti-aircraft defense systems, fighter jets and bombers have all been sighted on the atolls in the region that China has claimed and fortified.

Satellite imagery and new analysis from Israeli intelligence firm ImageSat International (ISI), dated June 3, suggested the Chinese surface-to-air missile systems on Woody Island, in the Paracel Islands, may have been removed or relocated, The South China Morning Post reported.

Beijing-based naval expert Li Jie declared the Chinese may have removed them for maintenance purposes, or simply hidden them inside buildings, only to be redeployed again later, wrote SCMP.

“With the increasingly tense relations between the two countries, it’s understandable that we make a little gesture of compromise,” said Li.

“It’s not wise for China to directly confront the U.S. We shall decide later [on possible redeployment] after the tensions go down.

“It’s better that we make three steps forward and two steps back, because both sides are still restrained and neither side wants to go to war,” wrote SCMP, quoting Ni Lexiong, a naval expert with Shanghai University of Political Science and Law.

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis made it very clear recently that the U.S. military will challenge China’s attempted dominance of the waterway.

The Chinese action could be a nod to President Trump, who recently signed a deal with Chinese telecom company ZTE, extracting fines and monitoring in a face-saving measure for both sides.

The art of the deal truly is at work in the Pacific and everything is related, from North Korea, to China, to Russia, to Japan to the South China Sea.

https:// www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/10/china-pulls-missiles-south-china-sea-island-possib/

>>1691394

He just warming up for real life.

>>1691515

Yes it with everything else to deal with this really is a big deal.

>>1691424

He's gonna need a Daddy when he goes to the big house.

>>1691556

I believe that's his Daddy, kek

Missing Air Force officer found 35 years later

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - A high-ranking Kirtland Air Force Base officer with top security clearance who disappeared 35 years ago has been found in California.

The Air Force Office of Special Investigations said in a news release this week that William Howard Hughes, Jr., was apprehended at his home after a fraud investigation involving a fake identity he had been using.

Hughes was involved in classified planning and analysis of NATO’s control, command and communications surveillance systems during the Cold War. He specialized in radar surveillance.

He was 33 years old and single when he vanished, according to news reports from the time of his disappearance.

Hughes was last seen withdrawing more than $28,000 in Albuquerque in the summer of 1983 after returning from a two-week vacation in Europe. He had just completed a stint in the Netherlands, where he worked with NATO officers on the Airborne Warning and Control electronic surveillance aircraft. He was supposed to be back in Albuquerque by August of that year.

An Office of Special Investigations spokeswoman told the Albuquerque Journal that there’s no indication Hughes was involved with the Soviet Union or that any classified information was leaked.

Hughes told authorities after his capture on Wednesday that he was depressed about being in the Air Force and decided to leave. He created a fake identity and lived in California ever since. Hughes was charged with desertion and is being held at Travis Air Force Base in California.

It’s unclear if he had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.

https:// www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jun/10/missing-air-force-officer-found-35-years-later/

>>1691652

I am thinking this must be an important connection, based on what his duties were. Wonder what he was hiding from?

>>1691681

Indeed, I expect we will find out more in the coming days ahead. Something to watch for sure.