Trump Vows Maximum Criminal Penalties for Illegal Voters

The upcoming vote is set to show whether the Republican Party will be able to retain control of both houses of Congress. Thus, American voters will also pass judgment on Donald Trump’s presidency.

On the eve of the 2018 midterm election, US President Donald Trump announced that law enforcement had been “notified to watch closely for any illegal voting.”

“Law Enforcement has been strongly notified to watch closely for any ILLEGAL VOTING which may take place in Tuesday’s Election (or Early Voting). Anyone caught will be subject to the Maximum Criminal Penalties allowed by law. Thank you!” the US President tweeted.

This is not the first time that the US president has spoken about illegal voters taking part in the country’s elections. Soon after the 2016 presidential vote, he stated that he had won the popular vote on 8 November “if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.”

Why Midterm Election is So Important?

The election will take place on November 6. US voters will cast ballots to fill 435 seats in the US House of Representatives, one-third of the 100-member Senate and other local and state positions. The outcome of the vote will determine if the Republican Party can maintain control of both chambers of Congress.

The elections are held midway through a US president’s term (hence why they are called midterm) and are usually regarded as a referendum on the incumbent administration.

If the US Democratic Party wins a Senate majority, they would be able to block cabinet and Supreme Court appointments. If they win a House majority, they could significantly hinder the presidential administration’s ability to implement its programs. Moreover, they could also begin impeachment proceedings against Trump.

https://govtslaves.info/2018/11/05/trump-vows-maximum-criminal-penalties-for-illegal-voters/

US Militia Groups Form Their Own Caravan to Secure Border

The Texas Minutemen announced that they intend to bring together an estimated 200 members to provide unofficial support for the US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).

A handful of civilian militia are on their way to the southern border of the US to offer their services to the CBP enforcing US immigration laws, facing an estimated 4,000 immigrants moving northward through Mexico, The Hill reported.

“We’ll observe and report, and offer aid in any way we can,” said Shannon McGauley, a Texas Minutemen spokesman, cited by the Washington Post.

McGauley says that the Texas Minutemen have a purported 100 volunteers heading to the border. Reportedly, these militia are carrying coolers, tents, guns, live ammunition and have been supplied with aerial drones.

“My phone’s been ringing nonstop for the last seven days. You got other militias, and husbands and wives, people coming from Oregon, Indiana. We’ve even got two from Canada,” McGauley said, adding that he could not precisely say how many people are headed south in support of the mission.

Earlier this week, Newsweek reported that the US military is concerned about “unregulated militia members self-deploying to the border in alleged support” of federal CBP employees, citing documented reports by the National Guard.

The documents warned of “incidents of unregulated militias stealing National Guard equipment during deployments,” and warned that an estimated 200 militia members could show up.

US President Donald Trump had previously ordered the deployment of some 5,200 American soldiers to the border as a means to support the duties of the CBP.

A so-called migrant caravan of mostly Central American asylum-seekers attempting to enter the US has been heading north for the past several weeks. Trump earlier said he may send as many as 15,000 troops to the border, warning that the soldiers would be allowed to use force and conduct arrests.

https://govtslaves.info/2018/11/05/us-militia-groups-form-their-own-caravan-to-secure-border/

U.S. Announces Eight Waivers From Iran Oil Sanctions. China, Turkey Included

US State Secretary Mike Pompeo said on November 5 that China, India, Italy, Greece, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Turkey had received waivers that would allow them to continue “temporary” imports of Iranian oil without facing penalties.

“I promise you,” Pompeo said, “that doing business with Iran in defiance of our sanctions will ultimately be a much more painful business decision than pulling out of Iran.”

Pompeo claimed that the US has a broad support for the Trump administration’s approach. He added that “There are more than three” countries in Europe, which didn’t receive waivers. France, Germany and the U.K. as well as Russia and China have worked to preserve the Iran nuclear deal following the US exit.

“There are certain transactions that they can continue to do, whether they’re humanitarian transactions or certain trade in the restricted accounts,” Pompeo said commenting on the approach of the US towards EU states.

Furthermore, Pompeo said that there will be a “swift punishment” to countries who defy the US’ anti-Iran sanctions.

Earlier on the same day, the US officially imposed a ban on Iranian oil imports and sanctioned more than 700 Iranian companies and energy producers, and individuals. They target 50 Iranian banks, 200 individuals, and vessels in Iran’s shipping and energy sectors, as well as one airline and 65 of its aircraft.

The newly imposed sanctions marked the second phase of the so-called maximum pressure campaign launched by the Trump adminsitration in order to force Iran to re-shape its foreign and defense policies as well as to overthrow the current Iranian government.

Commenting on the sanctions, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that Iran “will face mounting financial isolation until they fundamentally change their destabilizing behavior.”

https://southfront.org/u-s-announces-eight-waivers-from-iran-oil-sanctions/