Trump will leave NATO – ex Pentagon chief

Without the US to hold it up, the bloc would “collapse,” Mark Esper has told MSNBC

“I think one of the first things that would happen is he would withdraw support for Ukraine,” Esper replied. “And of course if that were to happen, the whole effort to support Ukraine in its war with Russia would eventually crumble. The United States is like the big block in the Jenga tower; you pull us out and everything collapses.”

“His next move would be to begin pulling us out of NATO, certainly troops out of NATO countries,” Esper told MSNBC. “And eventually that could cause the collapse of the alliance … and the next – does he start looking, as he would discuss with me and others at the time – does he look to pull troops out of Korea, out of Japan, out of other countries that are allied with us?”

https://www.rt.com/news/588687-trump-withdraw-nato-esper/

Maricopa County Republicans UNANIMOUSLY Pass Resolution Calling on Arizona Legislature Impeach Arizona’s Attorney General for Persecuting Honest Election Officials

The Maricopa County Republican Committee has unanimously adopted a resolution, calling on the Republican Controlled Arizona House and Senate to bring impeachment charges against the fraudulently elected and tyrannical Attorney General.

The Arizona Legislature reconvenes on January 8, 2024.

Recall that the 2022 election in Arizona was rigged and stolen when 60% of machines failed on election day in the state’s largest county. Trump-Endorsed Republican Arizona Attorney General Nominee Abe Hamadeh reportedly lost by 280 votes out of more than 2.5 million ballots.

Mayes is now targeting election officials who questioned her fraudulent election and are fighting for honest elections moving forward.

The Gateway Pundit recently reported that a grand jury indicted Republican Cochise County Supervisors Tom Crosby and Peggy Judd on felony charges of Interference with an Election Officer and Conspiracy — all because they wanted to ensure accuracy with a hand count audit of the stolen 2022 election before officially certifying.

This is perfectly legal as ARS 16-622(A) gives Arizona County Supervisors discretion over canvassing election results, and ARS 16-602(B) requires County Supervisors to conduct a hand count audit of “at least two percent of the precincts in that county.”

Previously, former Secretary of State and questionably elected Governor Katie Hobbs sued Cochise County for not certifying her stolen election – where 60% of machines failed Republican Voters on election day in Maricopa County. Republican Cochise County Chairwoman Peggy Judd later voted to certify the election in Cochise under duress with Democrat Ann English. However, Tom Crosby, the third vote, refused to attend the coerced and corrupt certification meeting. Crosby is the only County Supervisor in Arizona who courageously did not vote to certify the rigged 2020 election.

Hobbs also threatened to jail Mohave County Supervisors if they did not vote to certify the stolen election.

Kris Mayes, who also stole her election by just 280 votes, is now weaponizing her legal authority to “quash any and all opposition,” said attorney Bryan Blehm, who is still fighting to overturn the rigged 2022 election on behalf of Kari Lake. The message is clear: “If you don’t agree with Kris Mayes’ interpretation of the law, then we will send you to jail,” Blehm continued with sarcasm. “She wants to do for Arizona, I think, what Joseph Stalin did for the Soviet Union.”

This is nothing more than a ploy to intimidate Counties into certifying future elections with massive fraud.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2023/12/just-maricopa-county-republicans-unanimously-pass-resolution-calling/

Western banking dominance will end – Putin

New technologies are threatening an archaic financial system, according to the Russian president

The Western financial system is becoming outdated because of new technologies and could lose its dominant global position in the near future, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.

Addressing the VTB Investment Forum in Moscow, Putin pointed out that modern tech solutions, such as blockchain, are increasingly being used in international payments.

“According to experts, in the coming years this will lead to a real revolution that will finally undermine the monopoly of large Western banks,” Putin said, noting that some of those financial institutions are currently “not in the best condition.”

The Russian president added that the interbank messaging system SWIFT has been discredited because it cut off Russian banks and is being replaced by payments in national currencies.

Global economic relations are changing, and the previous model of globalization is being replaced by a multipolar model, according to Putin.

https://www.rt.com/business/588678-western-banks-dominance-end/

"Why No Advertiser Boycott?" Musk Nails Disney's Iger After Facebook Child Sexual Abuse Bombshell

Elon Musk took another shot at Disney CEO Bob Iger Thursday, after the state of New Mexico sued Meta for allegedly enabling child sexual abuse and trafficking - yet Disney and other woke advertisers, who paused advertising on X in a kneejerk reaction to claims of antisemitism - apparently have no problem when it comes to the sexual exploitation of minors.

"Why no advertiser boycott, Bob Eiger? [sic]" Musk posted on X. "You are endorsing this material!"

The fact check on this is beyond hilarious… with Snopes suggesting that it's false because " the claim is based on the incorrect assumption that snorkeling in the waters around a private island is the same as physically standing on that island," and "Second, the trip advertised is not one that is, or was, led by Disney. It was, instead, what is known as a "Port Adventure." These are activities recommended by Disney that can be found, for extra cost, when docked at various ports of call on Disney Cruises."

In short, Disney only recommended the trip to Epstein's pedo island, and it doesn't count if it's just snorkeling.

Meta Sued

On Tuesday, New Mexico sued Meta for "knowingly" exposing children to 'sexual exploitation and mental health harm.'

In a Tuesday court filing, New Mexico’s Attorney General’s (NMAG) Office revealed that it had conducted an undercover investigation, creating fake accounts of minors which were then used to fish for offending content, according to a press release reported by the Daily Caller.

"Meta and its CEO tell the public that Meta’s social media platforms are safe and good for kids," reads the lawsuit. "The reality is far different. Meta knowingly exposes children to the twin dangers of sexual exploitation and mental health harm. Meta’s conduct has turned New Mexico children who are on its platforms into victims. Meta’s motive for doing so is profit."

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/why-no-advertiser-boycott-musk-nails-disneys-iger-after-facebook-child-sexual-abuse

Blinken Conveys 'Unwavering Support' For Guyana After Venezuela's Maduro Proclaims "Esequibo Is Ours", Gives Energy Companies 3 Mos To Exit

Neighboring Venezuela now considers around three-quarters of the oil-rich nation theirs - with President Nicolás Maduro presenting a map on television that shows Guyana's Esequibo region as under the jurisdiction of Caracas.

Maduro vowed to create a Venezuelan state known as Guyana Esequibo, for which he will grant Venezuelan citizenship to Guyanese residents there.

Maduro will has granted licenses and ordered state oil company PDVSA and state metal conglomerate CVG to drill for oil in the area.

A special military unit will be created for the territory.

Energy companies in the Esequibo region such as Exxon Mobil will "have three months to withdraw."

Guyanese President Irfaan Ali said he would report the matter to the UN Security Council, saying in a late-night televised address "The Guyana Defense Force is on high alert," adding "Venezuela has clearly declared itself an outlaw nation."

The UN Security Council will hold a closed-door meeting on the issue Friday, Bloomberg reports.

Now, the US State Department is involved.

"Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Guyanese President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali to reaffirm the United States’ unwavering support for Guyana’s sovereignty," said the State Department in a late Wednesday news release.

Department spokesman Matthew Miller also told reporters that the Biden administration supports a peaceful resolution.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/blinken-conveys-unwavering-support-guyana-after-venezuelas-maduro-proclaims-esequibo

Western Academia Is Just As Morally And Intellectually Corrupt As Congress, If Not Worse

The US ADP employment report, the week’s second second-tier labour data ahead of initial claims today and payrolls tomorrow, came in weaker than expected at 103K vs. 130K, with slight downwards revisions to back data. Anyone would have thought a giant red LED sign saying ‘DEFLATION!’ had appeared over the economy, because that’s how it was taken by some. Indeed, taking the ADP the other way, Treasury Secretary Janet ‘Magic Mushroom’ Yellen just stated: “Economists who’ve said it’s going to require very high unemployment to get this done [meaning lowering inflation] are eating their words… It doesn’t seem at all like it's requiring higher unemployment." You thought we had tensions between a tight Fed and a loose Treasury before? Even Nick Timiraos at the WSJ notes Yellen was throwing shade. Given her Burns-like confidence, she will probably soon be throwing money too: 11 months until the 2024 election, after all.

Oil prices also went to a six-month low which Yellen will try to claim as a win for her failed policies targeting Russian energy price caps after another US inventory-build according to the EIA. I repeat, if this is holds, it’s a win for the Fed and what they have been doing, not Yellen and what she has been.

In the Red Sea there was a possible new attack on a merchant ship, and Houthis in Yemen fired a cruise missile at the Israeli port city of Eilat, which was shot down. True, the US may force Israel to end its war with Gaza in weeks (as the UN Secretary General triggers Article 99 of the UN Charter for the first time since 1989 to call for a Security Council debate). However, there is more than one front involved.

Defence Minister Gallant stated Israel will act against Hezbollah in Lebanon if a diplomatic push for the UN to enforce the resolution demanding it retreat back over the Litani river 30km from the Lebanon-Israel border fails. That would be the second of three dominos we flagged after 10/7 which lead to a regional escalation involving energy and Suez, a scenario the market discounts because it prefers its navel to anything naval.

While Russia’s President Putin was in Saudi and the UAE, all smiles and handshakes, the US Congress rejected Ukraine and Israel military aid bills. As the Saudis and UAE look for a defence umbrella they can rely on, the US is not only still trying to reach out to an Iran the Sunni Arab world mostly doesn’t trust, but is now even tentative about reacting to Houthi attacks, because it knows where the chain of command leads: Tehran.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/western-academia-just-morally-and-intellectually-corrupt-congress-if-not-worse