Former President Trump is ready to roll up his sleeves and help solve the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
In a post to TRUTH Social, Trump said he is prepared to personally lead negotiations to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The former president’s message comes after multiple explosions left Russia’s Nord Stream gas pipelines damaged this week, an incident some European leaders have decried as sabotage.
Trump began his proposal by hitting the current administration and noting the severity of the issues the damaged pipelines could pose to the world before pivoting to the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
“U.S. “Leadership” should remain “cool, calm, and dry” on the SABOTAGE of the Nord Stream Pipelines. This is a big event that should not entail a big solution, at least not yet. The Russia/Ukraine catastrophe should NEVER have happened, and would definitely not have happened if I were President. Do not make matters worse with the pipeline blowup. Be strategic, be smart (brilliant!), get a negotiated deal done NOW. Both sides need and want it. The entire World is at stake. I will head up group???” Trump wrote on the app.
However, Trump’s claim he could possibly lead a negotiated peace settlement between Russia and Ukraine drew rightful skepticism as the former president is currently ensnared in multiple legal challenges.
Outspoken comedian Michael Rapaport is warming up to Trump…
Rapaport, known for his vocal opposition to Trump, told former ESPN host Sage Steele that he “was wrong” about the GOP nominee.
The famous actor admitted during an interview he began to rethink his opinion after his friend, Dr. Enoch Wilf, rated Trump with “100%,” especially relating to his stance on Israel.
“I didn’t like his mouth,” Rapaport told Steele.
“It was low-hanging fruit there,” Steele remarked.
“The mouth and the mean tweets. I didn’t feel like it was appropriate. Yeah, it’s not appropriate. And I would say that to him today. If I would say, like, yo, your mouth, man. You’re the president. You’re also 79. You’re the president, you’re 79. You just got shot in the ear. Like, get some new material. Like, truly, like, bring us together. Like, shut the shit up. Like, you’re the president,” Rapaport said.
Watch:
Rapaport stated that the defense of Israel should be prioritized “first and foremost” and that Iran should face tariffs.
“So honestly, I mean, between your two issues, Israel and your money and the economy, would this be the first time you vote Republican?” Steele inquired.
“I’m not saying I’m gonna vote Republican,” Rapaport replied.
“Here was your quote. ‘Voting for Trump is on the table.’” Steele began.
“Yes,” Rapaport confirmed.
“Does that pain you to say?” Steele asked.
“Yes, it pains me! It pains me! It pains me to be wrong,” Rapaport responded.
“So, you think you were wrong about him?” Steele questioned.
“I was wrong. I wasn’t wrong about my personal feelings, and I wasn’t wrong about everything. And I wasn’t wrong about his behavior,” Rapaport said.
“A lot of people agree with that!” Steele said.
“I’m sure his own family are like, yo, calm down, man. Stop,” Rapaport continued.
“They do say that to him,” Steele commented.
“I’m sure! But I was wrong about Israel, and I was wrong about economy stuff,” Rapaport said. “I was wrong. I was… and I wasn’t even wrong about Israel. I was ill-informed about how he, you know, what he did about Iran and the importance of that and how it was. Put the screws to Iran.”
“I think, you know, as I’m sort of going through this process of understanding and learning, I feel no matter who anyone votes for, it’s never going to be exactly what you want,” Rapaport continued. “You know, I don’t agree with everything my wife says.”
“Yes! And you still love her, and you love the good and she’s working on the bad. So are you,” Steele said.
“But at the end of the day, you know, like I’m clear. I want my interest rates to be down. And I know, ‘Oh, that doesn’t have anything to do with….’ And then Israel needs to be protected more than ever now,” Rapaport said.
Liberal Carnegie Mellon professor, Uju Anya tweeted a truly disturbing message regarding Queen Elizabeth’s recent passing. As England mourns the loss of its steadfast monarch Anya tweeted that she hoped the Queen suffered in her final moments.
Queen Elizabeth II passed on Sept. 8th, 2022 after serving as reigning monarch for 70 years. She was England’s longest-reigning monarch.
This individual is a university professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where undergraduate tuition is 58,810 USD/year pic.twitter.com/JrR4RMepnn
President Joe Biden delivers remarks in National Statuary Hall on the one-year anniversary of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Thursday, January 6, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith)
The U.S. military has now sh*t down four high-altitude aerial objects over the United States or Canada within a week.
One object was the massive Chinese spy balloon downed off the coast of South Carolina Feb. 4 after it completed its eight-day journey conducting surveillance of sensitive military and nuclear sites across the entire United States.
The three other objects remain unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAP) – the new term for UFOs.
The Chinese spy balloon and UAPs are raising concerns over major gaps in North American security.
On Sunday U.S. military jet fighters shot down its fourth high-altitude aerial object, an octagonal entity over Lake Huron, Michigan.
Prior to that, on Friday, a second object was shot down over sea ice near Deadhorse, Alaska. And a third object was destroyed over Canada’s Yukon on Saturday, with investigators still hunting for the wreckage.
The U.S. military used AIM-9X Sidewinder short-range heat-seeking, supersonic missiles to bring down all four airborne objects.
One Sidewinder reportedly missed its target and landed harmlessly in Lake Huron.
“First shot missed. Second shot hit,” Milley told reporters. “We go to great lengths to make sure that the airspace is clear and the backdrop is clear up to the max effective range of the missile. And in this case, the missiles land, or the missile landed, harmlessly in the water of Lake Huron.”
While the weapons are primarily manufactured for U.S. forces, the missile is also sold in large quantities to a range of American allies, including South Korea, the UAE and Indonesia.
Canada, which is part of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) uses Sidewinders as well, but has not yet received its order of these latest, more capable, AIM-9X missiles.
One ex Canadian Air Force general stated that the older Sidewinders still fitted on Canadian CF-18s could not take down these objects at that high an altitude.
Canada’s Global News reported:
Retired Canadian general Tom Lawson, who flew CF-18s before serving as Norad deputy commander and then chief of the defence staff, said Canada’s CF-18s currently use an older version of the AIM-9 Sidewinder.
“When I was flying CF-18s, I did not have a weapon that would shoot down something over 40,000 feet if it was moving too slowly,” he said. “My radar wouldn’t have locked onto it. My heat-seeking missile, my AIM-9, would not have locked onto this thing.”
Meanwhile, the downing of China’s alleged spy balloon by the stealth F-22 Raptor jet fighter marked the first time the 5th generation jet has shot down an airborne target, and may be the first time an AIM-9X was fired in anger since it debuted in combat in Syria and Iraq almost a decade ago.
It was also likely the first time the missile was ever fired at the mind-boggling height of 60,000 ft, which is also near the top reported operational ceiling of 65,000 ft for the F-22.
The rapid-fire series of shoot-downs over Alaska, Canada and Michigan beginning February 10, after the initial balloon downing near South Carolina on Feb 4, has raised pressure on the Biden administration to explain the nature of the high-altitude craft and whether they pose a threat to national security.
From mid-October to December 2022, the National UFO Reporting Center catalogued some 1,255 new sightings of UAPs.
One U.S. official attributed the rise in the sightings to boosted surveillance capabilities by the military and not a rush of new foreign objects flying over American airspace.
However, later on Sunday, the U.S. Air Force general overseeing North American airspace said it still wasn’t clear how the objects were remaining aloft or being propelled through the air, or where they originated.
He also said he had not ruled any explanation out – including extraterrestrial life.
Since then, the U.S. government has announced that it suspects that three unidentified flying objects downed since last Friday were benign commercial or research craft and not linked to China’s alleged surveillance balloon program.
The comments may ease concerns that China is conducting an even more aggressive surveillance effort against the United States than initially believed.
They should also dampen fears of a UFO invasion.
However, these sightings and downing of UAPs over North American airspace still appear to be generating far more questions than answers.
Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.
Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 . attraverso Wikimedia Commons
On Thursday, sources revealed Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) will land in Taiwan for an unannounced visit.
“I just arrived in Taiwan to send a message to Beijing – we will not accept bullying America will stand firm for freedom around the world and will not tolerate acts that harm our country and our allies,” Sen. Blackburn shared in a message on Twitter.
Blackburn’s visit comes on the heels of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s recent trip to Taiwan which has infuriated the Chinese government.
China, which has long claimed Taiwan as its own territory, argues the trips infringe on its sovereignty and violate America’s One China Policy which states that the U.S. acknowledges the Beijing government as the sole government of China.
The Indo-Pacific Region is the next frontier for the New Axis of Evil,” Blackburn said in a statement that did not mention her impending visit to Taiwan. “Meeting with leaders from Fiji, the Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea was an important step in showcasing America’s commitment to the region and expanding our strategic relationships.”
“Continuing these long-established partnerships is important to the success of both East Asian nations and the United States. I am grateful for their leadership. We must stand against the Chinese Communist Party,” she added.
China reacted to the previous August visits by launching multiple live-fire military exercises surrounding Taiwan in what many have described as a “dress rehearsal for an invasion.”
According to Sen. Black burn’s office, she is the sole lawmaker on the visit. The Senator was already on her way home from a foreign trip visiting Fiji, the Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea this week.
Intelligence officials connected to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) warned that Russia has launched a plan to interfere in the 2024 election to bolster the chances of former President Trump being re-elected.
In a briefing with reporters on Tuesday, ODNI officials said that Russia is the “preeminent threat” to the election.
“It’s all the tactics we’ve seen before, primarily through social media, efforts using influential U.S. voices to amplify their narratives and other tactics,” an official said. “And as far as who they’re targeting, what we can say today is, Russia is sophisticated enough to know that, targeting swing state voters is, particularly valuable to them.”
Officials said that the intelligence community expects Russia will increase its underhanded activities as U.S. election day gets closer in order to manipulate public opinion, underscoring the threat to America’s political landscape.
Although former President Trump was not named specifically, ODNI officials said that the Russian interference is mimicking similar preferences for U.S. presidential candidates seen in previous election cycles.
Russia is “undertaking a whole-of-government approach to influence the election, including the presidential race, Congress and public opinion,” the official said, noting that Russia has grown “more sophisticated” over the years in election interference.
The Kremlin, officials said, is targeting specific voting groups in swing states, as well as looking to promote “divisive narratives and denigrate specific politicians,” although no specifics were provided.
The briefing noted that while China doesn’t plan to influence the outcome of the presidential race, the communist nation is being carefully monitored to see if it mingles in down-ballot races.
Just North of the border Canadian educators and concerned parents are concerned by a male shop teacher’s choice to don distracting and inappropriate attire in the classroom. While the teacher says he’s transgender and should be entitled to embrace his true self in the school others say he’s taken things way too far.
The FBI Is currently searching for an Iranian intelligence operative who has been allegedly plotting to assassinate current and former U.S. government officials, especially those who served in the Trump administration.
According to The Daily Wire, the Bureau’s Miami field office issued a public alert as it sought information on Majid Dastjani Farahani, who is suspected of being a member of Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security, Semafor reported. The FBI warned of Farahani, 42, in a Most Wanted notice on Friday, saying that he speaks Farsi, French, Spanish, and English and will often move between Iran and Venezuela.
Seeking Information: Iranian intel officer Majid Dastjani Farahani is wanted for questioning regarding the recruitment of individuals for operations in the U.S., to include lethal targeting of current/former USG officials. https://t.co/jyL3ZYRbo3
According to the FBI, Farahani was recruiting “individuals for various operations in the United States, to include lethal targeting of current and former United States Government officials” as part of a revenge operation for the U.S. taking out Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani in 2020 under Trump and Pompeo.
Semafor reported that U.S. officials said Pompeo and former special envoy for Iran Brian Hook were given 24-hour security after the FBI warned of Farahani. In 2022, the Department of Justice indicted members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for an alleged plot to assassinate former National Security Advisor John Bolton, who also served under Trump.
Farahani is also accused of recruiting people to run “surveillance activities focused on religious sites, businesses, and other facilities in the United States.”
Soleimani was killed in a U.S. drone strike ordered by Trump in January 2020. Shortly after Soleimani’s death, the top Iranian general and other officials vowed that Iran would get revenge on the U.S.
ANALYSIS – In the ‘what the h*ll are you thinking’ category – a contingent of Russian soldiers marched in the annual Mexican Independence Day parade over the weekend.
Russian troops had participated before, but not since Moscow launched its war of aggression against Ukraine.
This year marked 213 years since the end of Spanish rule in Mexico.
And even as deadly fentanyl precursor ingredients are entering Mexico, to then be made into the deadly drug and flood the U.S., a Communist Chinese military honor guard from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) also marched alongside Mexican troops.
The presence of the Russian troops drew criticism because of the Russia’s brutal invasion of its neighbor. Mexico, which has long harbored bitterness against the United States for intervening militarily in Mexico in the 1800s, has condemned Russia’s invasion but has adopted a policy of ‘neutrality’ and has refused to participate in sanctions.
Populist socialist Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador (known as AMLO) noted that a contingent from China also participated. “All the countries that Mexico has diplomatic relations with were invited,” he said.
AMLO admitted the issue had become “a scandal,” but blamed it on the news media being against him.
Ukraine’s Ambassador to Mexico, Oksana Dramaretska, posted online that “The civic-military parade in Mexico City was stained by the participation of a Russian regiment; the boots and hands of these war criminals are stained with blood.”
But this is only the latest Russian flirtation by AMLO.
As Arturo Sarukhan writes in his commentary for Brookings: “…it would seem that some in Mexico, unwittingly, or wittingly, seem intent on opening a ‘second front’ for Moscow from there.”
What’s behind all of this? Given that Mexico trades in two days with the United States what it trades in a whole year with Russia, ideology seems to be paramount. The traditional left in Mexico — and throughout Latin America in general — tend to support policies that push back against “Western imperialism” but is also skeptical of liberalism and what it perceives as its institutions and stakeholders, which — like many authoritarian regimes — it considers to be tools of Western values and hegemony.
It should therefore come as no surprise that the Mexican left is inclined to swallow and regurgitate Russian disinformation and propaganda (“NATO aggression,” “denazification of Ukraine”), see sanctions as another form of “imperialism” and an attempt to corner Russia, and resort to RT and Sputnik as sources of valid information.
The Kremlin, creating a contrast with U.S. troops on Russia’s borders, has also asked frequently, if rhetorically, what if Russian troops were stationed across the border in Mexico?
Maybe this is one way for Moscow to make that point. But there is more to the story.
Some members of López Obrador’s Morena party have publicly expressed affection for Russia even after the invasion, and López Obrador has frequently criticized the United States for sending arms to Ukraine.
López Obrador’s administration has continued to buy Russia’s Sputnik COVID vaccine and intends to use it as a booster shot later this year, along with Cuba’s Abdala vaccine.
Experts have questioned the use of those vaccines, along with Mexico’s own Patria vaccine, as a booster for new variants, because all of them were designed in 2020 to combat variants circulating at the time.
Mexico would rather buy old and likely ineffective vaccines from Russia, than be on better terms with the United States. Under AMLO Mexico is also a helpful tool for Moscow in other ways.
As Sarukhan wrote:
…Viktor Koronelli, Russia’s ambassador to Mexico, who said during the recent launching of the Mexico-Russia friendship caucus that “Mexico will never join anti-Russian sanctions” and that “across the world, there are countries like China, like India, like Mexico, that will never say ‘Yes, Sir’ to Uncle Sam’s orders.”
Despite all this Russian bravado and bluster, I would be just as concerned, or more so, about the Chinese military presence in the parade. As AMLO noted, a contingent from China also participated, and no one complained about that.
But China’s influence in Mexico is likely far more significant than Russia’s, and far more threatening to the United States.
Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of Great America News Desk.
