Fear Of Donald Trump Kept Putin From Invading Ukraine. Here’s How Trump Pulled It Off

BY: JOHN RATCLIFFE AND CLIFF SIMS

MARCH 03, 2022

John Ratcliffe served as the 6th U.S. Director of National Intelligence. Cliff Sims served as U.S. Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Strategy and Communications.

IMAGE CREDIT WHITE HOUSE PHOTO BY SHEALAH CRAIGHEAD

IMAGE CREDIT WHITE HOUSE PHOTO BY SHEALAH CRAIGHEAD

Trump not only successfully deterred Russia from acting against Ukraine, he effectively deterred a lot of bad behavior across the planet.

JOHN RATCLIFFE AND CLIFF SIMS

A recent Harvard-Harris poll found that 62 percent of Americans believe that Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if Donald Trump were still in the Oval Office. As former senior intelligence officials under President Trump, we agree with that view.

Russia invaded Georgia in 2008 when George W. Bush was president. Russia took Crimea in 2014 when Barack Obama was president. Russia has now invaded Ukraine with Joe Biden as president. However, when Donald Trump was president, Russia did not seize territory from any of its neighbors.

During his four years in office, Trump not only successfully deterred Russia from acting against Ukraine, he effectively deterred a lot of bad behavior across the planet. He focused on ending America’s foreign wars rather than launching new ones. At the same time, he brokered the Abraham Accords to expand peace in the Middle East.

The exercise of American power to deter adversaries is a complicated business. It involves a mix of military, economic, political, and diplomatic strategies and actions that together communicate the costs of threatening U.S. national interests.

Ultimately, the art of statecraft boils down to whether a president projects American strength that deters adversaries, or projects American weakness that emboldens our adversaries. 

So how did Trump succeed in containing Putin while the Russian autocrat has run wild with others in the White House? Why was he so successful at spreading peace elsewhere? We believe the long answer begins with these ten ways that Donald Trump projected American strength and kept the bad guys in check:

1. Rebuilt the American Military
2. Crusaded for American Energy Dominance
3. Set the Tone by Launching Surgical Missile Strikes in Syria in Early 2017
4. Developed Strong Relationships with Middle Eastern Nations Based on Mutual Interests
5. Was Ruthless with the Taliban While Winding Down the Afghanistan War
6. Crushed the ISIS Caliphate
7. Demonstrated a Consistent Willingness to Take out the Bad Guys
8. Stood Up to China
9. Strategically Used Unpredictability as an Asset in Foreign Affairs
10. Advanced Tough Russia Policies and Provided Lethal Aid to Ukraine while Maintaining an Open Dialogue

Each of these points are worthy of unpacking in-depth, but there are several that illustrate the dramatic difference in approach between Trump and Biden, starting with Afghanistan.

When President Trump initiated the process of ending America’s longest war, senior officials huddled in the Situation Room to discuss tactical challenges on the ground. The president reminded the group of America’s humiliating withdrawal from Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War, and said we must do whatever it takes to leave in a safe, orderly, and dignified way. When military leaders bemoaned the costs and logistical challenges of bringing home our equipment, the president said that he did not care if it was a helicopter or a styrofoam cooler. If it had an American flag on it, it was either coming home or getting destroyed to keep it from falling into the hands of our enemies. He vowed that we would leave on our terms, or we would not leave at all. 

Tragically, President Biden’s approach – which included the decision to abandon the strategically important Bagram Air Base prior to the evacuation – cost the lives of 13 American servicemembers and led to the Taliban parading victoriously through Kabul with billions of dollars of American combat equipment. The administration’s stunning incompetence – detailed in an official U.S. Army report – made the United States look weak and vulnerable on the world stage, and Putin was watching.

The world took notice when Trump ordered the killing of Iranian terrorist general Qassem Soleimani, who had operated with impunity throughout the Middle East until the U.S. military sent two Hellfire missiles through his vehicle. As a candidate for president, Biden released a statement condemning the righteous attack as a “hugely escalatory move” that brought us to “the brink of a major conflict across the Middle East.” This, of course, proved to not be the case, but it illustrated Biden’s unwillingness to do what it takes to establish credible deterrence. 

This principle of deterrence applies across the globe, which explains why the Chinese military has sent a record number of airplanes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone since Biden took office.

To the specific case at hand, Trump was much tougher on Russia than the media have led people to believe, while Biden has been far softer. 

Trump deployed such aggressive sanctions against Russia that President Obama’s Secretary of Defense Robert Gates called them the toughest in history, and he withdrew from one-sided treaties that hamstrung the U.S. while Russia violated the terms.

Biden has taken the opposite approach, appeasing Putin by handing him his top two geopolitical priorities on a silver platter. He unconditionally extended the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, allowing Russia to continue building tactical nuclear weapons while constraining our ability to modernize. And while Trump imposed sanctions to stop Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline in its tracks, construction was allowed to resume when Biden took office.

President Trump understood the power of building American energy dominance. By slashing onerous regulations, Trump sparked an American energy boom that ensured we would never be reliant on any other nation to meet our energy needs. Geopolitically, America’s increased export capacity reduced Putin’s leverage over our European allies, who depend on Russia for 40 percent of their gas and more than a quarter of their oil.

Trump approved the Keystone XL oil pipeline at home and shut down Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Eastern Europe. Biden reversed both decisions, meaning he has been harder on America’s energy producers than he has been on Russia’s. To add insult to injury, as the Russian army pushed into Ukraine, Biden’s climate envoy John Kerry hoped aloud that “President Putin will help us to stay on track with respect to what we need to do for the climate.”

Vladimir Putin’s appetite for expansion did not wane during the four years Trump was in office, and the world was not just miraculously a safer place. Bad actors like Putin simply knew that they had to restrain themselves or deal with the consequences. In nearly every way possible, President Biden has weakened the United States and our allies and empowered Putin. As a result, Russia is on the march, even as the Ukrainian people have inspired the world with their courage and resilience. And in the wings, America’s greatest threat – Xi Jinping’s China – waits, and watches.

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Andrew Cuomo Sued by State Trooper for Sexual Harassment

In a story that went right under the radar in the last few weeks because all of the focus was on Covid and Russia Russia Russia as usual, former New …

Andrew Cuomo Sued by State Trooper for Sexual Harassment

Compliments of thedcpatriot.com

In a story that went right under the radar in the last few weeks because all of the focus was on Covid and Russia Russia Russia as usual, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been sued. 

This time by a New York State Trooper for sexual harassment. 

According to the claims, the trooper is accusing Cuomo of violating her. The trooper also accused former aid to Cuomo, Melissa DeRosa of covering up the entire incident. 

According to the new lawsuit, the woman is referred to as “Trooper 1”, and claims “she felt violated as the Governor intentionally touched her in intimate locations between her breasts and vagina.”

“As Trooper 1 went ahead of the Governor to hold a door open for him, the Governor placed the palm of his hand on her belly button and slid it across her waist to her right hip, where her gun was holstered,” the complaint went on to say.

“As with his other victims, the governor used his physical proximity to Trooper 1 to touch her inappropriately,” the lawsuit claims.

The Spokesman for Andrew Cuomo Rich Azzopardi released a statement through the Associated Press, stating: “Gov. Cuomo will fight every attempt at cheap cash extortions and is anxious to have the dirty politics stop — we look forward to justice in a court of law.”

Cuomo told investigators that he would hug the female trooper hello, and that he “may have touched her shoulder,” according to the report. He said he didn’t remember additional touching.

“If I did, it was incidental, and I don’t remember doing that,” he said.

DeRosa, accused of helping to cover up the alleged incident, had previously blasted the trooper’s claims in a lengthy statement in November posted to Twitter.

DeRosa noted “it’s absolutely beyond the pale for this trooper, who by her own admission I barely knew — who has already attempted to extort me for money — to make these accusations based on false rumors and for them to be printed in a newspaper.”

“Not only is this ludicrous, it’s hurtful, and potentially actionable,” she continued.

Statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America on Wisconsin Voter Fraud Discovered

From thedcpatriot.com. Thank you Matt!

The following is a statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America. In the following statement, the 45th President …

Statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America on Wisconsin Voter Fraud Discovered

The following is a statement by Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America. 

In the following statement, the 45th President addresses newly discovered voter fraud in Wisconsin. 

You can read the full statement below. 

Even more Voter Fraud was just discovered in Wisconsin. It shows the Election was Rigged and Stolen. A hearing this week revealed at least 50,000 illegal phantom votes were cast in the 2020 Presidential Election, which is more than twice the “victory” margin. Incredible problems were also uncovered within Wisconsin’s voter rolls, including an apartment building with 102 percent turnout rate (not possible), 113 ballots cast from an address where no one lives, 3,713 “voters” registered to U.S. Post Offices, and 625,000 dead people on Wisconsin’s voter rolls. In addition, 46,000 votes were cast on Nov. 3rd based on voter information that was never verified by the state. This is on top of massive ballot harvesting, rigged “indefinitely confined” votes, the Wisconsin Election Commission instructing election officials to break the law, Zuckerberg drop boxes, etc. So who in Wisconsin is leading the charge to decertify this fraudulent Election? It’s time for RINOs to step forward and save our Country!

US Treasury Yield Curve Highlights ‘Recession Concerns Showing up More Prominently’

Fears of a recession and a 1970s-style stagflation economy continue to grip Wall Street and investors this week, as multiple reports show that recession signals have intensified. With oil and commodity prices surging, Reuters reports that investors are “recalibrating their portfolios for an expected period of high inflation and weaker growth.”

While Wall Street Fears Stagflation, Analyst Believes ‘Global Markets Will Collapse’ This Year

This week there’s been a slew of headlines indicating that fears of a 1970s-style stagflationeconomy have risen and economic fallout is coming soon. Three days ago, Reuters’ author David Randall noted that U.S. investors are scared of a hawkish central bank, oil prices surging, and the current conflict in Ukraine. Randall spoke with Nuveen’s chief investment officer of global fixed income, Anders Persson, and the analyst noted stagflation isn’t here just yet, but it is getting near that point.

“Our base case is still not 1970s stagflation, but we’re getting closer to that ZIP code,” Persson said.

On Saturday, Bitcoin.com News reported on the skyrocketing energy stocks, precious metals, and global commodities breaking market records. The same day, the popular Twitter account Pentoshi tweeted about a pending “greater depression.” At the time of writing, the tweet was retweeted 69 times and has close to a thousand likes. Pentoshi told his 523,500 Twitter followers:

The most exciting thing this year. Will be global markets collapsing. Any market that trades above 0 will be too high. They will call this: ‘The greater depression’ which will be 10x worse than the Great Depression.

US Treasury Yield Curve Highlights ‘Recession Concerns Showing up More Prominently’

The following day, Reuters’ author Davide Barbuscia detailed that “recession concerns are showing up more prominently in the U.S. Treasury yield curve.” Data from Barbuscia’s report stresses that the “closely watched gap between yields on two- and 10-year notes stood at its narrowest since March 2020.”

Two- and 10-year U.S. Treasury Yield Curve Rates via Nasdaq on March 6, 2022.

Numerous financial publications are highlighting how rising oil and commodity prices are typically associated with a pending recession. Furthermore, recent filings indicate that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway obtained a $5 billion stake in Occidental Petroleum. Berkshire Hathaway has also doubled the firm’s exposure to Chevron as well.

Source: https://news.bitcoin.com/tag/copper/

Guantanamo detainee called ’20th Hijacker’ of 9/11 sent home by the Biden Administration, will get ‘mental health’ treatment

By B911 – March 7, 2022

A Guantanamo Bay detainee who was accused of trying to join the 9/11 hijackers has been sent back to Saudi Arabia for ‘treatment for mental illness,’ the Biden Administration said Monday.

Mohammad Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani was sent from the famed prison to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where he will receive treatment at a psychiatric facility.

“After two decades without trial in U.S. custody, Mohammed will now receive the psychiatric care he has long needed in Saudi Arabia, with the support of his family,” law professor at the City University of New York Ramzi Kassem, who represented al-Qahtani, said. “Keeping him at Guantanamo, where he was tortured, and then repeatedly attempted suicide, would have been a likely death sentence.”

The Department of Defense released this statement:

On June 9, 2021, the Periodic Review Board process determined that law of war detention of Mohammad Mani Ahmad al-Qahtani was no longer necessary to protect against a continuing significant threat to the national security of the United States. Therefore, the PRB recommended that al-Qahtani be repatriated to his native country of Saudi Arabia, subject to security and humane treatment assurances.

On Feb. 4, 2022, Secretary of Defense Austin notified Congress of his intent to repatriate al-Qahtani to Saudi Arabia. In consultation with our Saudi partners, we completed the requirements for responsible transfers

The United States appreciates the willingness of Saudi Arabia and other partners to support ongoing U.S. efforts toward a deliberate and thorough process focused on responsibly reducing the detainee population and ultimately closing of the Guantanamo Bay facility.

The PRB process was established by the President’s March 7, 2011 Executive Order 13567. It is consistent with section 1023 of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2012 and affirmed in Executive Order 13823 (January 30, 2018).

The PRB panel consists of one senior career official each from the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Justice, and State, along with the Joint Staff and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Source: https://breaking911.com/guantanamo-detainee-called-20th-hijacker-of-9-11-sent-home-by-the-biden-administration-will-get-mental-health-treatment/

Don’t you feel safer now? SMH

NYC teachers with vaccine exemptions are being treated like pariahs

By Melissa Klein
March 5, 2022 | 2:10pm

They are unvaccinated and shunned.

New York City educators granted medical or religious exemptions from the required COVID-19 vaccination were mandated to report to school buildings Monday where some said they were treated like pariahs.

The teachers and other staffers who showed up at a building on Ocean Avenue in Flatbush were met with hostility from vaccinated DOE workers already at the site. The unjabbed were directed to one stairwell — forbidden to walk down the first-floor corridor where the vaccinated staff work, and forbidden from using their restroom.

Upstairs, those with exemptions made do with only a single toilet that flushed irregularly, or tiny children’s toilets, staffers told The Post. The kiddie commodes were replaced Wednesday night after they complained.

“The whole thing just reeks of discrimination and segregation. I never in my life have ever experienced something like this,” said a teacher who normally works on Staten Island and has a medical exemption for the vaccine.

The teacher, who had been working from her New Jersey home since October, says commuting to the Brooklyn site takes up to three hours one way.

A Staten Island administrator reporting to the building said the DOE also reassigned her from the regular duties she had performed from home since September to work remotely doing what she called busy work.

“I’m miserable because I’m not with children and I’m not with my teachers. I’m sitting here in a room not helping a soul. I feel like we’re being punished,” said the educator who has a medical exemption.

Another teacher assigned to the building, a former parochial school used for several years by the DOE but largely empty recently, said she suffered a concussion Thursday after a window fell out of its frame and hit her on the head.

She said the building was dirty and, with nine other people in a room with her, it was difficult to teach her special education students remotely.

“What they’re doing to us is just disgusting”she said.

To accommodate other teachers, the DOE rented the former St. Brigid School in the East Village from the Archdiocese of New York.

Source: nypost