DOJ Moves To Dismiss Immigration Case Against SpaceX

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion Thursday indicating it wants to drop a lawsuit accusing SpaceX of hiring discrimination against refugees.

The lawsuit filed by the DOJ in August 2023 alleged that SpaceX, owned by Elon Musk, violated the Immigration and Nationality Act by refusing to hire people with asylum or refugee status.

The aerospace company countersued the DOJ later that year on constitutional grounds. 

Last month, a federal judge in Texas granted the DOJ’s request to stay the lawsuit for 45 days, saying that the department lacks the authority to pursue its claims against SpaceX.

Aldgra Fredly reports for The Epoch Times that, in a court filing on Thursday, the DOJ requested that the court lift the stay on the lawsuit so it could proceed with filing a notice of dismissal. It did not provide a reason for the possible dismissal.

Both the DOJ and SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

In its 2023 lawsuit, the DOJ alleged that between 2018 and 2022, SpaceX discouraged asylees and refugees from applying for jobs and failed to fairly consider their applications due to their citizenship status. The DOJ accused SpaceX of falsely asserting in job postings and public statements that export control laws hindered the company from hiring people without U.S. citizenship.

“Under these laws, companies like SpaceX can hire asylees and refugees for the same positions they would hire U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents,” it stated. 

“And once hired, asylees and refugees can access export-controlled information and materials without additional government approval, just like U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents.”

The DOJ also stated that the Immigration and Nationality Act barred companies from discriminating against refugees and people granted asylum unless legally mandated to do so.

SpaceX, in its countersuit, denied any wrongdoing, saying that the company has always strived to “hire the very best candidates for every job regardless of their citizenship status.”

The company argued that due to the sensitive nature of its work—such as manufacturing technologies with military applications—it is subject to legal mandates under export control laws, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), which limit whom it can employ.

“These export control laws and regulations are critical to our national security. Moreover, violating them can have severe consequences for a company like SpaceX,” it stated, noting that failing to comply with the regulations could result in hefty fines and criminal penalties.

On Aug. 25, 2023, Musk stated on the social media platform X that his company had been told that hiring anyone who is not a permanent U.S. resident would violate ITAR.

“We couldn’t even hire Canadian citizens, despite Canada being part of NORAD! This is yet another case of weaponization of the DOJ for political purposes,” he stated.

Musk was appointed by President Donald Trump earlier this year to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has been tasked with reviewing federal agencies for potential downsizing and cost reductions.

Trump had previously said that Musk would not be able to take any action without approval from the White House, and the government “won’t let him go near it” if there is a conflict of interest.

DOGE’s work is expected to be completed by July 4, 2026, according to Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order.

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 13:25

Crash Landing: The Democratic Spin On Trump Causing Plane Accidents Collides With Reality

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

For weeks, politicians and pundits have engaged in a ghoulish effort to blame every plane accident on the Trump Administration, even accidents that occurred within the first weeks of the Trump Administration. 

Hillary Clinton led the effort by bizarrely suggesting that the collision of the airliner and the helicopter over the Potomac was due to the changes in Trump’s policies. 

The spin showed utter contempt for the intelligence of the public since there was no evidence that the Trump Administration policies had any impact on the accidents.

Nevertheless, the press and pundits fueled the false narrative by citing various accidents in January. That narrative then collapsed after CNN and other media outlets acknowledged that there were actually fewer accidents in January than average and that the Biden Administration saw more accidents during the same period.

The attempt to use these tragedies for raw political advantage is appalling. However, it also shows the complete disregard for the intelligence of voters in suggesting the nexus between the change of Administration and airplane accidents shortly after the inauguration.

It does not matter that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was not confirmed until January 28, 2025, less than 24 hours before the accident over the Potomac.

Nevertheless, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and others immediately weaponized that and later tragedies.

Schumer was joined by media figures like former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan, who later was compelled to delete a tweet on Sunday, Feb. 16 in which he wrote “Make American Plane Crash Again.” 

Like others, Hasan was connecting a small plane crash in Georgia to the start of the Trump Administration.

Then there was Rep. Eric Swalwell. We have previously discussed the bottomless pit of Swalwellian logic, such as shutting down the government to prevent government shutdowns.

The logic tree was felled again by Swalwell in blaming the Trump Administration for the crash in Georgia: “Trump is President. President Trump is in charge of air safety. All crashes are Trump’s fault.”

The only problem, as pointed out by CNN, is that air travel overall was better in January than prior such periods:

“In fact, if the preliminary numbers hold, January 2025 will surpass the previous record for the lowest number of total accidents, with eight fewer than the prior record low of 70 from January 2012.”

Does that mean that all aircraft safety like aircraft accidents are attributed to Trump? Of course not. Not only have no changes been made that have impacted the air traffic controllers in these cases, but none of the proposals would reduce those controllers.

The most bizarre was the effort to blame Trump for an accident where a plane flipped over in Canada.

On NBC, Tom Costello observed “as you know there has been talk about maybe staff cuts at the FAA as a part of President Trump’s effort to trim down the federal workforce.”

This is becoming a policy version of Six Degrees from Kevin Bacon. Every airport accident can be traced within six degrees of DOGE or Duffy.

It is very easy. Just take any airline mishap anywhere in the world and then trace it back to the United States and Sean Duffy. For example, there was also a water main break at the airport at Fort McMurray International Airport in Alberta. Ready? Go…

If you are struggling, just watch Schumer who is the most nimble at this game.

“I’m thankful that everyone in the flight incident in Toronto that took off from Minneapolis is safe, but we keep seeing these incidents day after day. Meanwhile, Trump’s doing massive layoffs at the FAA – including safety specialists – and making our skies less and less safe…Democrats are fighting to protect the flying public…To those asking whether it matters that the plane’s destination was in Canada: The flight took off from Minneapolis. The FAA was still responsible for inspecting the aviation equipment, and Trump just let go of FAA safety specialists.”

Done. Six degrees to Duffy.

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 12:50

Mexico President Sheinbaum Warns Against US Military Strikes On Cartels

In the wake of President Trump's designation of several Latin American drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday warned the White House against military action inside her country. 

"This cannot be an opportunity for the U.S. to invade our sovereignty," she told reporters. "With Mexico, it is collaboration and coordination, never subordination or interventionism, and even less invasion."

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum flanked by senior security officials during October 2024 inaugural ceremonies 

Her remarks followed Wednesday's US State Department announcement that it had designated eight Latin American drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. In addition to the notorious Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua that has been raising hell inside the United States, the list included Mexico's two principal drug traffickers: the Jalisco Nueva Generacion and Sinaloa cartels. 

The move fulfilled a promise Trump made during his 2024 election campaign. While the most likely initial actions will center on the legal and financial fronts, the terrorist designation opens the door for military action against the cartels. In the wake of the announcement, Trump advisor Elon Musk tweeted, "That means they're eligible for drone strikes."

Sheinbaum, however, warned against unilateral US military action:

“The Mexican people will under no circumstances accept interventions, intrusions or any other action from abroad that is detrimental to the integrity, independence or sovereignty of the nation... [including] violations of Mexican territory, whether by land, sea or air.”

Earlier, Sheinbaum said she had approved US surveillance drone flights over Mexico. That claim came after CNN reported that the administration tapped the CIA to use unarmed MQ-9 drones to monitor the cartels. The secret missions were communicated to members of Congress, with the description of the undertaking making no mention of a partnership with the Mexican government.

Since Trump took office, the CIA has been using unarmed MQ-9 Reaper drones to spy on Mexican drug cartels (USAF file)

There have also been indications of US Air Force RC-135V aircraft performing signal intelligence (SIGINT) missions inside Mexican airspace. Meanwhile, the Mexican Senate Commission has given the green light for US Special Forces deployment inside Mexico for "training missions." 

Sheinbaum has said she opposes a terrorist designation out of concern that US government actions under such a designation may violate Mexican sovereignty, arguing that the two countries should work in mutual consultation and collaboration. Last week, Sheinbaum threatened to retaliate for a terrorist-designation by expanding Mexico's lawsuit against several American gun manufacturers, including Smith & Wesson, Barrett, Colt and Sturm, Ruger & Co: 

“If they were to decree organized crime groups as terrorists, we would have to expand the lawsuit in the United States because -- as the Department of Justice itself has already acknowledged that 74% of the arms of criminal groups come from the United States -- then how are the arms manufacturers and distributors affected by the decree? The lawyers are looking at it, but they could be accomplices.”

The move toward the US terror designation began with a Day One executive order from Trump tasking the State Department with evaluating that avenue. "The cartels have engaged in a campaign of violence and terror throughout the Western Hemisphere that has not only destabilized countries with significant importance for our national interests but also flooded the United States with deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs," Trump wrote. 

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 12:15

The Answer To 1913 Is 2025: 3 Charts That Show Why The Income Tax, The IRS, & The Fed Should All Be Abolished

Authored by Michael Snyder via TheMostImportantNews.com,

Most Americans don’t know that for much of U.S. history there was no federal income tax and there was no central bank.  But now everyone assumes that we must have a federal income tax and a central bank in order to have a functioning society.  Today, there are just a handful of nations that do not have an income tax, and more than 99 percent of the entire population of the globe lives in a country that has a central bank.  Of course the two work hand in hand.  A central bank creates a spiral of borrowing that is meant to be unbreakable, and an income tax is necessary to service payments on that debt spiral.  

It is not a coincidence that a federal income tax and the Federal Reserve were both established in 1913.  Since that time, we have piled up the biggest mountain of debt in the history of the world, and that is precisely the outcome that the system was designed to produce.

So what is the solution to this colossal mess?

The answer to 1913 is 2025.

This year, we are seeing things get proposed in Washington D.C. that once would have been unthinkable.

For example, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick just told Fox News that President Trump wants to “abolish the Internal Revenue Service”…

More details have emerged from the Trump administration about alleged plans to get rid of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and utilize tariffs so the “whole economy explodes.”

“His goal is to abolish the Internal Revenue Service and let all the outsiders pay,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Wednesday on “Jesse Watters Primetime.”

“As the president said, reciprocal tariffs, either you bring yours down or we’re going to bring ours up. If we go to their level, it will earn us $700 billion a year to be equal to everybody else,” he expanded Thursday on “America’s Newsroom.”

And it appears that the Trump administration is already taking concrete steps toward that goal.

In fact, it is being reported that “approximately 7,000 probationary workers” at the IRS are about to be hitting the bricks…

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is planning to slash approximately 7,000 probationary workers in Washington, D.C., and across the U.S. starting Thursday, according to reports.

The layoffs will affect probationary workers who have been employed for one year or less and have not been able to secure full civil service protection, The Associated Press reported, citing a person familiar with the plans.

Wow.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve is also being targeted by the new administration.

In fact, Elon Musk has suggested that the Federal Reserve could soon get visited by the Department of Government Efficiency…

Musk wrote on X in response to a user’s post about the billionaire’s support for an audit of the Fed that the central bank isn’t above scrutiny from DOGE.

“All aspects of the government must be fully transparent and accountable to the people. No exceptions, including, if not especially, the Federal Reserve,” Musk wrote.

Musk is a longtime critic of the central bank and has called out its decisions on monetary policy as well as claiming the Fed’s workforce is bloated.

This is wonderful news.

Because what we have been doing for decades is clearly not working.

The Federal Reserve system is designed to create debt, and the income tax is designed to service that debt.

We find ourselves on an endless hamster wheel that becomes more painful with each passing year.

The charts that I am about to share with you tell a very clear story.

The primary reason why we have had an almost unbelievably high standard of living over the past three decades is because we have piled up the biggest mountain of debt in the history of the world.  Once upon a time the United States was the wealthiest country on the entire planet, but all of that prosperity was not good enough for us.  So we started borrowing and borrowing and borrowing and we have now been living beyond our means for so long that we consider it to be completely normal.

When President Woodrow Wilson entered the White House in 1913, the U.S. was less than 3 billion dollars in debt.

Now we are 36 trillion dollars in debt…

This is what a central bank is designed to do.

Most people simply do not understand this.

We have been robbing future generations blind for so long that it doesn’t even seem to bother most people anymore.

It is time for a change.

Sadly, Americans have also accumulated the largest mountain of household debt in the history of the world.  The following chart which comes directly from the Federal Reserve shows the growth of household and non-profit organization debt over the years…

Of that amount, more than 18 trillion dollars of it is household debt…

Americans’ household debt levels, including credit card debt, rose to new all-time highs in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to a report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

The report showed that overall household debt increased by $93 billion to $18.04 trillion at the end of 2024, an all-time high. Credit card balances rose by $45 billion from the prior quarter to reach $1.21 trillion at the end of December, which is also a record high.

We have become accustomed to living in debt.  We go into massive amounts of debt to get an education, we go into massive amounts of debt to buy a home, we go into massive amounts of debt to purchase our vehicles, and we even pile up debt to buy holiday gifts and to purchase groceries.

The American people want to hear that better times are ahead.

But under the current system the only way to give the American people “better times” is to crank up the debt spiral to an even higher level.

That is the approach that our leaders have been taking for a long time, and it is madness.

When you add up all forms of debt in our society, it comes to a grand total of more than 100 trillion dollars…

We are literally committing national suicide.

I wish that I could get more people to understand this.

30 years ago, the total amount of debt in the system was less than 20 trillion dollars.

Now we have surpassed the 100 trillion dollar mark.

We are talking about a financial bubble that is unlike anything that the world has ever seen before.

If we continue down this road, our children and our grandchildren would have no future.

When people hear words like “billion” or “trillion” they tend to tune out.

But that is a mistake.

There is an enormous difference between a billion dollars and a trillion dollars.

Just how big is one trillion dollars?

To answer that question, I would like to use an illustration that I have used in my books.  If right this moment you went out and started spending one dollar every single second, it would take you more than 31,000 years to spend one trillion dollars.

Yet somehow we have piled up more than 100 trillion dollars of debt, and our financial status just keeps getting worse month after month after month.

If we want to get free from all this debt, we have to abandon the system that created all of this debt in the first place.

We need to abolish the Federal Reserve, the IRS and the income tax.

We have been living far, far beyond our means for decades, and it has been the greatest party in the history of the world.

But it is time to turn out the lights because the party is over.

The good news is that change is in the air.

The answer to 1913 is 2025, and those that are attempting to dismantle the current system should be applauded.

*  *  *

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

 

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 10:30

Pentagon Purge: Trump Fires Chairman Of Joint Chiefs, Navy Chief And Other Top Brass

Making good on a campaign pledge to shake up the senior military ranks to ensure a focus on his policy priorities, President Trump on Friday night took the extraordinary step of firing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and five more senior Pentagon officers. The fired chair, Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., had only served two-and-a-half years of his four-year term.  

Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs usually stay in their posts when control of the White House changes hands. Trump's move immediately triggered accusations that he was politicizing the US military. “A professional, apolitical military that is subordinate to the civilian government and supportive of the Constitution rather than a political party is essential to the survival of our democracy,” said Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed in a statement 

To replace Brown, Trump has nominated retired USAF Lt. Gen. Dan "Razin" Cain. The selection of Cain is highly unusual: Not only had he already retired from service, but he would be the first three-star general to ascend to the highest post in the US military. Cain is a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute and an F-16 pilot credited with 150 combat hours and two tours in Iraq. From 2021 to 2024, Cain served as the CIA's associate director for military affairs, collaborating on several highly classified initiatives, the New York Times reports. 

Announcing the nomination on Truth Social, Trump's praised Cain's performance against ISIS: 

"During my first term, Razin was instrumental in the complete annihilation of the ISIS caliphate. It was done in record setting time, a matter of weeks. Many so-called military 'geniuses' said it would take years to defeat ISIS. General Caine, on the other hand, said it could be done quickly, and he delivered."

When confirmed, retired Lt. Gen. Dan "Razin" Cain will be the first three-star to chair the joint chiefs (CIA photo)

While praising Cain, Trump accused his own predecessor for failing to recognize Cain's talents. "Despite being highly qualified and respected to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the previous administration, General Caine was passed over for promotion by Sleepy Joe Biden. But not anymore!" 

Trump was gracious, however, toward the fired chairman, thanking Brown for "his over 40 years of service to our country," calling him "a fine gentleman and an outstanding leader," and wishing him "a great future for him and his family."

Brown was just one of six casualties on Friday night. After Trump's announcement, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued a statement indicating that Chief of Naval Operations Adm Lisa Franchetti, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff James Slife have also been removed, along with the judge advocates general of the Army, Navy and Air Force.

Selected by Biden to command the Navy, Adm Lisa Franchetti's role as first female on the joint chiefs of staff was cut short on Friday night

While no reason was given for the removal of the top lawyers of three largest military branches, the action comes after Hegseth's repeated criticism of what he says are unwarranted restrictions on how soldiers conduct themselves on the battlefield. In his Senate confirmation hearing, Hegseth said military lawyers put "his or her own priorities in front of the war fighters, their promotions, their medals, in front of having the backs of those making the tough calls on the front lines.”

As for the other officers, Trump and Hegseth promised to clear out officers deemed too have embraced woke ideology, to include emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion over merit and performance. In his book, War on Warriors, Hegseth criticized Brown for "[making] the race card one of his biggest calling cards," and Hegseth questioned whether Brown's ascent resulted from merit or his skin color. Trump himself nominated Brown to become the Air Force chief of of staff in 2020, and heralded the fact that Brown would be the “first-ever African American military service chief.”

Gen. Charles "CQ" Brown was promoted to chairman of the joint chiefs by President Biden (AP Photo/Cliff Owen via Washington Times) 

In November, Hegseth called for Brown to be fired, along with others on the wrong side of woke-ism:

"First of all, you've got to fire the chairman of the Joint Chiefs...But any general that was involved -- general, admiral, whatever -- that was involved in any of the DEI woke shit has got to go. Either you're in for warfighting, and that's it. That's the only litmus test we care about."

In his book, Hegseth also questioned Franchetti's qualifications to serve as the highest ranking Navy officer, sarcastically writing, "If naval operations suffer, at least we can hold our heads high. Because at least we have another first! The first female member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff — hooray."

More recently, Hegseth used a Pentagon town hall to declare that diversity initiatives were "dividing the force as oppose to uniting it." Driving the point home, he pointedly attacked one of the most cherished rhetorical cornerstones of woke ideology, saying, "The single dumbest phrase in military history is ‘our diversity is our strength'." 

*  *  *

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Click hat... add to cart... check out... receive awesome hat... Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 09:55

Peter Schiff: The Government Should Fear The Public

Via SchiffGold.com,

Last week Peter joined Aaron Hoddinott on the Pinnacle Digest YouTube channel for an interview on Peter’s career, why the Fed can’t get anything right, the perennial gold vs. Bitcoin debate, and Aaron’s disagreements with Peter on the dollar. If you missed it, be sure to check out Peter’s podcast from Sunday!

To kick off the discussion, Peter reflects on how the Federal Reserve’s mistake early in his career motivates his thoughts today:

I’ve had my economic understanding and my suspicions with respect to government and the Fed since as long as I can remember. Obviously, the biggest mistakes that I saw the Fed make first was the Greenspan response to the 1987 stock market crash, which I found problematic....

The Fed just repeats its mistakes over and over. It’s hard for me to understand to what degree the Federal Reserve knows they’re making mistakes.

Continuing his critique, Peter questions the Fed’s self-awareness and accountability, noting that its cyclical errors are tough to stop:

I always have a hard time trying to discern whether or not they’re dishonest or ignorant. It’s one or the other. Or maybe it’s just predecessors who’ve been running the Fed for decades – they went down this path after 1971 and they can’t get off it. They made their bed a long time ago, and this is where we are. Once you go down this path, it’s very difficult to get off it because you have to admit the mistakes, but rather than do that, they just compound them by repeating them.

Shifting the focus to precious metals, Peter defends gold’s status as a competitive reserve asset and questions the stability of fiat currencies:

I would disagree with your position on gold. I think gold is a viable competitor to the dollar. I think that central banks have a choice as to what asset they’d prefer to hold as a reserve to back up their own currency. And I think that gold, hands down, is a better place for central banks to put their trust than the U.S. dollar because foreign central banks don’t use dollars as a payment mechanism – they’re holding them in reserves. Now as far as what other currency private companies could choose to trade in, I think gold also works a lot better than the dollar.

Aaron asks Peter about Bitcoin’s capped supply. Peter points out that this limit only applies to Bitcoin, while other cryptos may not have the same feature:

I’ve never bought into the finite supply argument of Bitcoin because it’s a finite supply of something of which there is an infinite supply of alternatives. Gold is in finite supply because it’s scarce in the earth. But gold has properties that are unique to it. … You know, we decided arbitrarily, somebody decided to limit the supply of Bitcoin. You know, it’s not that there’s some other factor other than a self-imposed limit, but there is no limit to the number of cryptos that can be created.

Expanding on his view of Bitcoin, Peter dismisses its role as money. It is not generally used as a medium of exchange. Instead, it operates more like other speculative financial assets:

To the extent that it’s used today, it [Bitcoin] is more as barter. I mean, yeah, there could be individuals that are accumulating Bitcoin that might accept it as payment because they want the Bitcoin. … I look at Bitcoin more as a collectible than anything. … But what excites people about a collection of Bitcoins is this prospect that it’s going to make them rich because Bitcoin is going to be a million.

Peter wraps with a reminder about the importance of keeping government power in check:

There’s a famous quote that when the people fear the government, it’s tyranny; when the government fears the people, you have freedom. You know, we need to turn the table so that the government is afraid of us, not the other way around. They’ve gotten so big. That’s why they’re able to steal from us with impunity. That’s why these government agencies can get away with all this waste, fraud, and abuse – because they haven’t feared the public in the Constitution. 

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 09:20

Russia Says It's Retaken 64% Of Kursk Territory Lost After Ukraine Offensive

Ukraine's Zelensky has previously signaled he hopes to get territory in the Donbass back from Russia by swapping it in return for Kursk. Ukraine's ambitious and high-risk Kursk offensive began in early August, and has resulted in dozens of towns and hundreds of square kilometers brought under Ukrainian military occupation.

But in a status update issued Friday, Russia's military declared that most of the territory has since been taken back, saying that nearly 65% of what was lost has been regained. 

"More than 800 square kilometers [309 square miles] have been liberated, which amounts to about 64% of the territory initially occupied," Sergei Rudskoi, first deputy head of Russia's General Staff, told a military newspaper.

"Currently the initiative in the Kursk region is fully on our side. Russian forces are advancing in all areas," Rudskoi described to Krasnaya Zvezda.

He also said that around "around 75%" of Ukraine's Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions' are held by Russia, in Ukraine's east, and that Ukrainian forces at this point control "less than 1%" of the eastern Luhansk region.

Rudskoi further said that throughout last year Russia took "almost 4,500 square kilometers of territory" in Ukraine, and dubbed it a "breakthrough" year.

"The Kyiv regime will not be able to significantly change the situation on the battlefield any more," Rudskoi added.

Ukraine's cross-border offensive into Kursk was always meant to force the Kremlin to divide its forces in order to defend its land, but this by and large has not happened - or in other words Putin has not taken the bait.

Instead, there have long been reports that thousands of North Korean troops have assisted Russian forces in seeking to take it back. But Moscow hasn't appeared in a hurry, and has not sacrificed its gains in Donetsk to make it happen.

Russia's defense ministry has made frequent statements highlighting Ukraine's immense losses trying to hold the seized Kursk territory over the last several weeks, stressing that it is Zelensky who has gotten the worse end of the gambit.

Zelensky Offers Land Swap With Putin To End War https://t.co/FuMYTI1jpy

— James Hirsen (@thejimjams) February 12, 2025

Some Russian sources have claimed Ukraine has lost some 50,000 troops during the invasion of Russian territory. The huge cross-border operation has been pushed back slowly by the Russian side, and the momentum is clearly in Moscow's favor.

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 08:45

US Flies B-52 Bombers Over Middle East In Show Of Force Amid Regional Tensions

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The U.S. Air Force sent two B-52 bombers on a high-profile “force projection” overflight across the Middle East on Feb. 17, in a bid to send a clear warning to adversaries and reinforce deterrence against escalating threats.

Two B-52s conduct a CENTCOM bomber task force mission in the Middle East on Feb. 17, 2025. CENTCOM

The bombers, which launched from RAF Fairford in the UK, flew over the airspace of nine Middle Eastern nations, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a Feb. 18 statement. The mission included aerial refueling and live munitions drops, with U.S. F-15s and fighter escorts from four partner nations providing security.

“Bomber Task Force missions demonstrate U.S. power projection capability, commitment to regional security, and ability to respond to any state or non-state actor seeking to broaden or escalate conflict in the CENTCOM region,” Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM commander, said in a statement.

While CENTCOM declined to specify which countries participated in the mission, the deployment follows recent U.S.-led airstrikes against terrorist targets in Syria and Iraq, a carrier withdrawal from the region after a collision with a merchant ship, and heightened Iranian military activity.

Two major airstrikes were carried out in recent days by CENTCOM and regional partners, aimed at degrading terrorist networks.

U.S. forces launched a precision airstrike in northwest Syria on Feb. 15, killing a top financial and logistics official for Hurras al-Din (HaD), an al-Qaeda affiliate. Iraqi Security Forces, enabled by CENTCOM, struck an ISIS cell near Rawa, Iraq on Feb. 12, killing five ISIS operatives and destroying weapons, suicide vests, and explosives.

“We will continue to relentlessly pursue terrorists in order to defend our homeland, and U.S., allied, and partner personnel in the region,” Kurilla said in a statement.

The B-52 bomber mission also coincides with a temporary U.S. naval void in the region after the USS Harry S. Truman sustained damage in a collision with a commercial bulk carrier near Egypt’s northern coast, prompting its departure.

This marks the third time since the Israel–Hamas war began in 2023 that the United States has lacked a carrier presence in the Middle East, leaving regional waters open to increased Iranian military activity.

Iran, meanwhile, has continued its military buildup, unveiling new precision-guided drones in Khuzestan province and conducting missile drills near the Strait of Hormuz last month, according to Iranian state media reports.

Tehran has been ramping up its uranium enrichment operations, with U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi recently warning that Iran is “pressing the gas pedal” on enriching uranium to near weapons grade. Some experts estimate that Iran already has enough material to make around 10 small nuclear warheads about the size of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima in 1945, which killed 100,000 people in an instant. Iranian officials maintain the enrichment program is peaceful and for civilian purposes.

The B-52 flyover also came on the same day as a key U.S.–Russia meeting in Saudi Arabia, where officials tentatively agreed to restore previous diplomatic ties and establish de-escalation working groups over Ukraine.

The talks—led by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio—excluded both Ukrainian and European officials, triggering backlash from America’s European allies.

The B-52 mission marks a revival of the deterrence and strength-projection tactics known from President Donald Trump’s first term, when overflights were used to pressure Tehran after the 2018 U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

Trump signed a national security memorandum on Feb. 4 that restores a policy of “maximum pressure” on Tehran, “denying Iran all paths to a nuclear weapon, and countering Iran’s malign influence abroad.”

The memorandum also calls for Iran’s terrorist network to be neutralized and for its development of missiles to be countered.

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 08:10

Germany's Baerbock Issues Warning To US Over Failure To Back "Liberal Democracies"

After days of EU officials essentially begging Washington to give the bloc a seat at the table in talks with Russia to end the Ukraine war, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has warned the US that its actions could severely damage relations with Europe.

She urged for the European Union to put more pressure on Washington, and coupled the statement with a warning of what will happen if "liberal democracies" can't be supported. This is after President Trump has blasted Ukraine and the Zelensky government for refusing to hold elections or achieve peace with Moscow.

"We are increasing the pressure on the Americans" to signal "that they have a lot to lose if they stop standing by the liberal democracies of Europe," she said Friday during a campaign event near Berlin.

Getty Images

Her words sound like a threat issued in the direct of President Trump, which he's unlikely to take very kindly too, at a moment the US administration has been denouncing Zelensky's 'rude' behavior.

She repeated Berlin's warnings against a "sham peace" in Ukraine, and voiced the need to prevent forcing Kiev into painful and unfair concessions.

"A sham peace - that is, a peace that is not peace, but blackmail or a surrender is not peace, but the opposite: further preparation for even more war and violence," the German top diplomat said. She again emphasized that she and Germany will support Ukraine "as long as it needs it."

On the question of the future of European-US relations under Trump, Baerbock said at this point drawing firm conclusions are premature, noting that "nothing has been decided there."

Meanwhile EU officials aren't the only ones in 'shock' after Trump dismissed Zelensky as a 'dictator' this week, but Ukrainian officials too are alarmed that Kiev's biggest backer has clearly turned:

“It is painful, it’s not easy, it’s not easy to process,” Kira Rudik, member of the Ukrainian parliament and leader of the opposition Golos party, said of Trump’s remarks.  

...The rhetorical tit-for-tat was a mistake, said Oleksiy Goncharenko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament for the opposition European Solidarity party. 

Zelensky's own officials are desperately warning him not to take the bait, and to ignore Trump's rhetorical harshness against Ukraine.

"What’s happening, it’s a catastrophe," Goncharenko added. "That was a very big mistake from Zelensky to react to what Trump said… that Trump is in a disinformation bubble — after that it was clear Trump would react. We know that these things, for him being criticized publicly, I don’t know, it is the worst possible thing."

Der Spiegel cover: "Betrayed. First Zelensky, then us? The US's radical withdrawal from its allies"

The Ukrainian official continued, "The best thing now, I think, just is not to reply anymore and try to find somebody who will message Trump and try to rebuild at least some kind of relationships — because we need United States, that’s all. We desperately need the US."

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 07:35

European Military Chiefs Proposed Dubious Plan To Send 30,000 Troops To Ukraine

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

The Times reported on Wednesday that European military chiefs have proposed a plan to deploy 30,000 troops to Ukraine to provide security guarantees as part of a potential future peace deal.

The report said the UK and France are leading the discussions about deploying a "reassurance" force to Ukraine, an idea that’s been firmly rejected by Moscow. In response to the report, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reiterated Russia’s opposition to the deployment of NATO troops to Ukraine.

Via Daily Mail

Peskov pointed to recent comments from Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who said the "presence of armed forces from NATO countries [in Ukraine]… is completely unacceptable to us."

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has also ruled out the idea of a NATO deployment to Ukraine, saying if a peacekeeping force is deployed, it must be a non-NATO mission. But the British and French plan envisions the US providing support for the European deployment.

The Times report reads: "A US backstop, which is deemed essential for the plan, would likely be based on the ‘extraordinary strength in air power’ that NATO countries have. It could be in the form of US aircraft based in Poland and Romania, subject to the agreement of President Trump, an official suggested."

The report comes after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was ready to send British troops to Ukraine. While Starmer is eager, others doubt the British military is really up for the deployment. Lord Danatt, head of the British Army from 2006 to 2009, has said the British military is too "run down" to lead the mission.

Keir Starmer will present Trump a plan to send fewer than 30,000 European troops to Ukraine.

He will urge Trump to have US jets and missiles on standby in Eastern Europe to respond with if Russia breaks the terms of the deal.

European forces will be deployed to Ukrainian… pic.twitter.com/z4BD6Dh6bW

— Clash Report (@clashreport) February 20, 2025

"Our military is so run down at the present moment, numerically and as far as capability and equipment is concerned, it would potentially be quite embarrassing," Danatt said.

"If we were to deploy 10,000 troops each rotation for six months, that would effectively tie up 30,000 or 40,000 troops, and we just haven’t got that number available."

Tyler Durden Sat, 02/22/2025 - 07:00

Arctic Defense: The Growing Geopolitical Battle For The North

Authored by Brian Giesbrecht via The Epoch Times,

The Distant Early Warning Line (DEW Line) runs north of the Arctic Circle from Alaska in the west to Baffin Island in the east, then continues across Greenland.

It was built by the United States, with the cooperation of Canada, at the height of the Cold War in the 1950s as a defence against the Soviet Union.

Most of the self-sufficient bases on this line had a paved runway, with equipment and personnel necessary to keep the runway cleared. The bases had to be operational for the dozens of fighter planes that were kept at the ready by U.S. Strategic Air Command, in case Soviet jets came over the North Pole.

Most of those sites fell into disuse, and the DEW Line became the North Warning System. Not much has happened since then. 

Although the federal government has promised to address the deterioration of our defences, nothing of substance has been done by Ottawa to deal more effectively with the defence of our vast North. Similarly, although the government has promised to modernize its NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence Command) commitments, it has been largely ignored.

The Trump administration has made it clear that it finds Canada’s defence readiness to be unacceptable. The complaint is legitimate.

The fact is that the world is very different from what it looked like in the 1950s and 60s. At that time, the Soviet Union was the major threat to the West, while communist China was desperately poor and weak. Under Mao’s “Great Leap Forward” and later his “Cultural Revolution,” millions starved. China looked then more like North Korea than the economic and military behemoth it has become today. We certainly didn’t fear it as a threat.

Now, both communist China, and an increasingly aggressive Russia are formidable foes. They are also very interested in the North. Ominously, they have recently partnered with each other in a “friendship without limits” which raises the possibility that they might collaborate (or be collaborating right now) on joint plans for the military and commercial exploitation of the North.

The fact that shipping on a large scale through the Northwest Passage might be a possibility in the not-so-distant future is one of the reasons why. The passage can cut shipping distances drastically, so huge amounts of money and fuel can be saved. Future passage from Asia to Europe via the Northeast Passage (also called the Northern Sea Route) and Northwest Passage would be incredibly valuable—strategically, militarily and commercially—for both Russia and China.

Russia is far ahead of Canada on northern strategy and development. It has at least 40 ships capable of breaking through ice, including eight nuclear-powered icebreakers. Canada has no icebreakers that are nuclear powered. Recent promises to build two are years away from fruition. The Americans are acutely aware of Russia’s northern superiority.

Northern security goes some way to explaining Donald Trump’s very public offer to buy Greenland. 

Whether he is serious about buying it, or just wants better access guarantees, is something known only to Trump and his closest advisers.

The prospect of Greenland falling under the control of its adversaries (and possible future enemies) must alarm the Pentagon. Is such a prospect remote? Consider the fact that there are only 56,000 Greenlanders. China and Russia, separately or jointly, could make each Greenlander a millionaire with $56 billion. That is a small sum for those giants. Is it not possible that America wants to get to Greenlanders with an offer first? After all, Denmark has assured the Greenlanders that they can become independent with a simple vote. The prospect of becoming millionaires might have strong appeal to the relatively poor indigenous inhabitants of that huge, cold island. Trump’s concerns about the security of his nation are very real. He probably sees preventing China or Russia (separately or as a combined force) from gaining control of Greenland as absolutely vital.

More likely than bribing Greenlanders, Chinese Communist Party-controlled corporations could gain a foothold in Greenland by making attractive offers to the inhabitants, as the CCP has done throughout the developing world with its Belt and Road Initiative. The days of European empires, with Europeans waving attractive trinkets in the faces of poor natives, have been replaced with today’s savvy Chinese businessmen doing essentially the same thing.

But a glance at the map shows how close Greenland is to Canada. Trump probably has many of the same concerns about the vast, largely undefended Canadian Arctic that he has about Greenland. And some of Canada’s recent actions are probably causing alarm in the Trump camp.

An example might be the ceding of partial sovereignty by Canada to Nunavut. Nunavut is a huge land mass. Like Greenland, it is rich in natural resources, particularly natural gas. And, like Greenland, it is also strategically important.

Nunavut sits smack dab on a Northwest Passage that might be worth trillions of dollars in the future. Who controls the passage could turn out to be a determining factor in whether the West, or “no-limits” China/Russia, will be the victor in future Great Power struggles. Like Greenland, Nunavut has a small population, about 38,000 mainly poor Inuit people. The Foreign Interference Commission has been clear that besides targeting governments at different levels, foreign actors also try to exploit indigenous communities.

We have seen how important the issue of CCP control of the Panama Canal is to the Americans. The possibility of China/Russia control of the Northwest Passage could well be equally important to them. Not to be alarmist, but shouldn’t the fact that that China has already—very quietly—been making huge deals with semi-autonomous indigenous territories concern Canadians as well?

Will semi-autonomous Nunavut decide that their consent is required to use the passage, perhaps even from Canadian vessels? Now that United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) has become law in Canada, could indigenous people in these semi-autonomous indigenous territories assert tribal law that would trump other laws? If you think this is too far-fetched, consider that fact that our Supreme Court has already held that tribal law cancels Charter protections in some cases, and even held that indigenous people who are not Canadian citizens and do not live in Canada can have rights to Canadian resources. How does the United States view such giveaways of Canadian sovereignty to indigenous groups?

Nunavut is not the only part of Canada that is being ceded, or partially ceded, to indigenous groups. In British Columbia, Haida Gwaii (formerly Queen Charlotte Islands) looks like it will have a status similar to Nunavut.

BC’s government seems determined to give other parts of the province over to the many First Nations who live there as well. Each would presumably be able to make their own laws, and make commercial agreements with whomever they choose. That would include CCP-controlled companies.

There will no doubt be protective provisions in those agreements, but B.C. has adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA). A double whammy of DRIPA and UNDRIP might arm indigenous groups with effective weapons to assert sovereignty, even in the face of government opposition. Canadian courts have been amazingly willing to give indigenous groups what they want. What are the chances that Haida Gwaii separatists are even now planning business deals with CCP-controlled corporations that will make Washington—and should make Ottawa—extremely uncomfortable?

How will the Trump, or future administrations, see these developments? Will Americans tolerate a British Columbia, or a Canada, that cedes its sovereignty to people who are increasingly being urged to see themselves not as British Columbians or Canadians but as victims of a “colonizing” Canada? Or how does the United States regard a Canada that closes its eyes to human smuggling on semi-autonomous Mohawk border reserves? Americans see their security being compromised.

Under pressure from the United States, Canada is only now promising to build more icebreakers and improve northern defence.

A federal election is in the offing. A prime minister will be chosen. His or her new government will negotiate agreements with the United States that will undoubtedly include doing things we should have done long ago: enhancing our northern defence, meeting our NATO commitments, and rebuilding our dilapidated armed forces. Our political leaders will also be forced to do a major rethink on all matters relating to North American security.

Trump, or any American president, would not even think of giving away sovereignty as Canada is doing so casually. As we think about security, perhaps this is a good time for Canada to work closely with indigenous communities to strengthen Arctic defence, ensuring that all regions remain integrated within a unified security framework.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times or ZeroHedge.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 23:25

First In-Orbit Image Released From Classified X-37 Spaceplane

On Thursday evening, the Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs published the first-ever in-orbit image captured by Boeing's X-37 spaceplane, which was shared on the DVIDS website.

USAF Public Affairs described the photo, taken by an onboard camera designed to monitor the X-37's "health and safety," as showing Earth in the distant background during a series of "experiments in a highly elliptical orbit in 2024." 

"As part of the X-37 B's seventh mission, the vehicle executed a series of first-of-its-kind maneuvers, called aerobraking, to safely change its orbit using minimal fuel," the public affairs office said. 

The top-secret spaceplane, built by Boeing and operated by the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office and the Space Force, has spent years in space quietly conducting classified missions. Its real purpose has yet to be revealed. 

With each successive top-secret mission, the X-37B spends long and longer time in orbit:

• OTV-1: launched on Apr. 22, 2010 and landed on Dec. 3, 2010, spending over 224 days in orbit.

• OTV-2: launched on Mar. 5, 2011 and landed on Jun. 16, 2012, spending over 468 days in orbit.

• OTV-3: launched on Dec. 11, 2012 and landed on Oct. 17, 2014, spending over 674 days in orbit.

• OTV-4: launched on May 20, 2015 and landed on May 7, 2015, spending nearly 718 days in orbit.

• OTV-5: launched on Sept. 7, 2017 and landed on Oct. 27, 2019, spending nearly 780 days in orbit.

• OTV-6: launched on May 17, 2020 and landed on Nov. 12, 2022, spending over 908 days in orbit.

• OTV-7: launched on Dec. 29, 2023 ... still ongoing... 

In the age of DOGE, perhaps it's time for the Space Force to provide more color on the spaceplane's objectives to determine if the return on investment for taxpayers is truly justified.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 23:00

Mapping The Growth Of Government

Submitted by OpenTheBooks

As DOGE continues searching for and flagging waste, fraud and abuse across the federal government, American taxpayers are hearing about a lot of outrageous spending – and obscure agencies and projects – for the first time.

The scandalous spending at USAID on foreign programs (think a transgender opera in Colombia) and progressive NGO’s (think The Aspen Institute) set off an explosion of headlines. Separately, our own auditors found $22 BILLION spent by the Office of Refugee Resettlement – a division of Health and Human Services – on aid to migrants since 2020. Again, NGO’s were granted the money to go out and act as ideological proxies for the Biden administration.

It’s become clear that Americans need an exhaustive map of the federal government and how much spending at each agency has grown over time.

When we began that work, we immediately found another problem.

Record keeping within the Federal Register, which is supposed to be the definitive guide to government policy, is shockingly bad.

At least 75 agencies listed there are effectively defunct or obsolete; they’ve been subsumed by other entities, renamed, or don’t even exist any longer.

Not only are agencies listed that are long-defunct, but records of those agencies are often not updated, so members of the public must conduct deep research to ascertain the composition of their own government.

The vast scope of DOGE’s task becomes much clearer in that context.

We doubled down and began taking inventory of the remaining agencies that do exist, so that taxpayers can track the changing number of federal employees per agency and the growth in expenditures over the years. We’re untangling this web in a public database.

By cataloguing every federal agency, it will create a clearer picture of the government as it stands. Where is there duplication? Bloat? Which agencies are mostly sending cash out the door for others to do the work of government?

For DOGE to be as effective as possible, it’s necessary to have the best possible understanding of the status quo as of 2024.

Open the Books will periodically release a list of agencies our auditors have studied, charting their growth, expense and activity over time. Are taxpayers getting their money’s worth? Are they getting anything at all? Regardless of your affiliation, it’s in everyone’s interest to open the books together and find out.

THE FIRST 50

Already, we’ve charted nearly 50 federal agencies as far back as the data goes, tracking the growth in headcount and the growth in outlays (money spent by the agency).

They include the Department of Justice; Department of Defense; Department of Transportation; Department of Homeland Security (and its many subagencies like FEMA, ICE and the Border Patrol); Department of Education; Department of Health and Human Services (which includes the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Food & Drug Administration); and an assortment of independent agencies ranging from the now-infamous USAID to the lesser known, like the Administrative Conference of the United States.

We’ll continue updating this list over the next weeks until taxpayers have the full picture. It’s an absolute avalanche of data with historical context, and we invite every concerned citizen, journalist, member of Congress, and DOGE employee to take a close look. There’s an untold number of stories to be mined from these topline numbers!

KEY EXAMPLES

Critics of DOGE have complained – early and often – that the size of the federal workforce has not grown enormously since the last time cuts were implemented in the Clinton era. Why make cuts when the country has grown and the federal workforce has stayed static? they demand to know.

At agency after agency, a pattern emerges. While headcounts may or may not grow appreciably, spending seems to soar much faster regardless.

Across the political spectrum, there are explanations to be had – it’s not just inflation.

Progressive critics of the efficiency project say the real problem is privatization of government services – private-sector outsourcing like Medicare Advantage or huge equipment contracts signed by the Pentagon. More small-government proponents lament the amount of NGO’s that sop up taxpayer dollars to act as ideological proxies for the administration in power.

SIDEBAR: Our most recent story details shocking amounts of money filtered out of HHS to nonprofit organizations for aid to migrants. Not just life-saving aid, but help with home and auto loans, small business startups, fixes for credit histories, and much more! $22.6 Billion worth. Nonprofit group International Rescue Committee alone received $598 million since 2020! READ MORE.

There’s plenty of data to suggest both can be true, and then some. (We can’t forget improper payments either!)

National Institutes of Health

Take the National Institutes of Health for example. Sure, headcount grew 21.5% higher than in the year 2000. But over the same period, spending has skyrocketed 301% of that figure.

Department of Education

The pattern repeats, even more extremely, at the Department of Education. Employee headcounts actually decreased since 2000, to 13.9% lower. But spending? It rose to astonishing 749% of the prior total.

That calculation looks even more galling on the heels of recent news the American students are not recovering from Covid learning losses – they’ve fallen further behind on reading and made little improvement in math. The National Assessment of Educational Progress—known as America’s report card – showed “growing numbers of students lack basic reading skills,” according to the Associated Press. Peggy Carr, commissioner for the National Center of Education Statistics, told journalists that “poor results can no longer be blamed solely on the pandemic, warning the nation’s education system faces ‘complex challenges.’”

FEMA

What about the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)? They’ve come under fire for shortfalls in their Disaster Relief Fund, and for spending big sums to house migrants in hotels. Well, their employee count actually did rise significantly – it’s just that their spending still outpaced it by miles.

FEMA headcount was 290% higher in 2024 than in 2000. But spending swelled more than seven times faster – to 2,096% of the prior spending levels! There has to be a better way to get aid to disaster zones that’s more timely and efficient – and get away from mission creep like migrant housing.

USAID

For good measure, we’ll take a look at the Agency for International Development (USAID), as it’s been the subject of so much news. Head count since 2000 has grown 218% larger. But spending has risen to 467.7% of outlays from 2000. That’s a lot of DEI for Serbian workplaces and trans comic books for Peru.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 22:35

These Are The Countries Who Depend On Remittances The Most

Remittance inflows to low- and middle-income countries rose to $685 billion in 2024, up from $647 billion the previous year, according to estimates from the World Bank. 

Globally, remittances also grew, reaching $905 billion.

In absolute terms, India ($129 billion), Mexico ($68 billion), and China ($48 billion) remained the top recipients of remittances in 2024. However, it’s smaller and poorer economies that feel the impact the most, as these inflows make up a significant share of their economies. Tajikistan, where remittances accounted for 45.4 percent of GDP in 2024, is one such case. OECD analysts say this is partly driven by the higher demand in Russia for migrant workers.

As Statista's Anna Fleck shows in the following chart, three of the top four countries where remittances made up the largest share of GDP were classified as highly fragile by the OECD. 

 

You will find more infographics at Statista

Nicaragua (27.2 percent of GDP), for example, saw high remittances as economic and political instability drove migration, primarily to the United States. Honduras was previously also listed a “high fragility” context in an earlier OECD report, but has since been downgraded to a lower fragility rating.

Overall, the OECD identified 14 out of 61 highly or extremely fragile contexts where remittances made up more than 10 percent of GDP in 2023.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 22:10

Former CNBC Analyst To Admit Conning Investors Out Of Nearly $3 Million

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Former CNBC financial analyst James Arthur McDonald faces decades behind bars after defrauding investors out of at least $2.7 million, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Feb. 19.

James Arthur McDonald, Jr., pleaded guilty to bilking investors out of at least $2.7 million. FBI

McDonald, 53, a former resident of Arcadia, Calif., agreed to plead guilty to one count of securities fraud, a felony that carries a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

“This defendant was entrusted by his clients to care for their money and he violated that trust by using it to enrich himself,” said acting U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally.

In June 2024, federal officers arrested McDonald in Washington state, where he fled in 2021 to avoid appearing before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

At his Washington hideout, officers found a fake Washington, D.C., driver’s license bearing McDonald’s photograph and the name “Brian Thomas,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.

McDonald was the CEO and chief investment officer of two companies headquartered in Los Angeles—Hercules Investments LLC and Index Strategy Advisors Inc. He also often appeared on the CNBC financial news network.

In late 2020, federal prosecutors say McDonald lost tens of millions of dollars of Hercules client money after adopting a risky short position that effectively bet against the health of the U.S. economy in the aftermath of the U.S. presidential election.

McDonald projected that the COVID-19 pandemic and the election would result in major sell-offs that would cause the stock market to drop, federal prosecutors asserted.

When the market decline did not happen, Hercules clients lost between $30 million and $40 million.

By December 2020, Hercules clients were complaining to company employees about the losses, according to court documents.

The SEC filed a civil complaint against McDonald in September 2022, charging him and Hercules with violating federal securities law.

In early 2021, McDonald solicited millions of dollars’ worth of funds from investors to raise capital for Hercules but misrepresented how the money would be used. The SEC alleges he raised more than $5.1 million from 23 investors and clients and misappropriated more than $2.9 million of those funds for personal investments and Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors, meaning he paid some clients using funds from other clients.

The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) at its headquarters in Washington on May 12, 2021. The SEC filed civil charges against James Arthur McDonald, Jr., in 2022, accusing him of violating federal securities law. Reuters/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

He also failed to disclose the massive losses the company previously realized, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.

As part of the campaign to raise capital, McDonald received $675,000 in investment funds from one victim group on March 9, 2021. Prosecutors say he misappropriated most of those funds in various ways, including spending $179,610 at a Porsche dealership and transferring $109,512 to the landlord of a home McDonald was renting in Arcadia.

Prosecutors also claim McDonald defrauded clients of his other firm, Index Strategy Advisors Inc., using less than half of about $3.6 million he raised for trading purposes. Instead, he frequently commingled client funds with funds from his personal bank account, which he used to purchase luxury cars and to pay rent on his home, personal credit card charges, and Hercules operating expenses.

Prosecutors also say he used the funds to make Ponzi-like payments to the company’s clients.

In total, McDonald caused losses of about $2.7 to more than $3 million, according to federal prosecutors.

In April 2024, U.S District Judge Percy Anderson found McDonald and Hercules liable and ordered they pay civil penalties and several million dollars in disgorgement, which is a court-ordered remedy requiring that someone give up ill-gotten gains.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 21:45

Here's When Every Continent's Population Will Peak This Century

After 350 straight years of global population growth - including a 4x surge from 2 billion in the year 1920 - this trend is finally set to reverse.

Earth’s population is expected to peak in 2084 at 10.3 billion after which it will begin tapering off.

This graphic, via Visual Capitalist's Pallavi Rao, explores every continent’s population from 1975 to 2100, with estimates used from 2025 onward.

Data comes from the UN’s World Population Prospects (2024).

Peak Population Year For Every Continent and Region

While global peak population is still around 60 years away, some regions will hit their peak a lot sooner.

Europe, for example, already peaked in 2020 at 750 million people.

Note: All figures are estimates.

Meanwhile, Asia and Latin America will hit their peaks in the 2050s, at 5.3 billion and 731 million respectively.

However Africa, Northern America, and Oceania will keep growing slowly past 2100. Under current projections, they will not hit their peaks this century.

Explaining Population Projections

How and why are some regions peaking earlier, later, or not at all?

The answer lies in fertility rates and migration patterns.

First, the fertility rate is measured as the average number of births a woman will have over her lifetime. Since the 1970s, the global fertility rate has been declining steadily.

However, many African nations still have relatively high fertility rates, leading to more births, which leads to a growing population.

Note: All figures are estimates.

In contrast, European countries have some of the lowest fertility rates in the world. When the fertility rate drops below the replacement rate (the number of births required per woman, for a generation to replace itself), and migration into the region isn’t enough to offset it, a region’s population begins to decline.

However for Northern America and Oceania, international migration into the region (most likely from Africa and Asia) will bolster declining birth rates, at least until 2100.

Finally, these UN estimates take current fertility, mortality, and migration assumptions into account. They can change, and therefore future projections can also change drastically.

Low fertility rates have an immediate impact on births. Check out Declining Birth Rates in the Most Populous Countries (1950-2024) to see their dramatic fall.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 21:20

Nearly 2 Dozen Trinitarios Gang Members Arrested In Massachusetts

Authored by Rachel Acenas via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Nearly two dozen members of a violent transnational gang were arrested and charged in Massachusetts, federal authorities announced Feb. 19.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in a file photograph. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement via Getty Images

Twenty-two alleged Trinitarios gang members face various federal charges including racketeering conspiracy in connection with several murders, attempted murders, shootings, kidnappings, and robberies.

Authorities confirmed that factions of the Trinitarios gang have been identified in the cities of Lawrence, Lynn, Boston, and Haverhill.

“We believe those arrested today–leaders, members, and close associates of the Trinitarios–have allegedly shown a reckless indifference to human life in order to control their turf, push their poison, and make money,” Jodi Cohen, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston Division, said in a statement.

The investigation, led by U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE), began in the aftermath of four murders and a series of attempted murders and shootings that happened in Lynn back in 2023. Two of the alleged gang members were juveniles at the time the crimes were committed and have been charged with murder.

“The Massachusetts Trinitarios allegedly recruit new members among communities of legal immigrants and illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic—specifically juveniles in local high schools in Lawrence and Lynn,” according to ICE.

U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley said this latest enforcement ends the gang’s “reign of terror” in Massachusetts.

Meanwhile, federal prosecutors continue to target violent criminal enterprises. Members and associates of Tren de Aragua, one of the world’s most dangerous transnational criminal organizations, have been nabbed in recent targeted enforcement operations across the country.

The Trump administration on Wednesday officially designated six drug cartels and two gangs as foreign terrorist organizations, or FTOs.

The organizations that received the label include Tren de Aragua, MS-13, Sinaloa cartel, Jalisco New Generation cartel, Tepalcatepec cartel, Los Zetas cartel, Gulf cartel, and La Nueva Familia Michoacana.

The notice issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the groups pose a risk to U.S. national security, foreign policy, and economic interests. The label expands the government’s ability to crack down on criminal groups operating in the United States. Designating a group as an FTO allows the government to disrupt the group’s finances through sanctions, including asset freezes and travel bans, on its members and associates.

The move comes after Trump issued an executive order on his first day in office last month that called on officials to evaluate whether any criminal cartels or transnational gangs should be designated as terrorism groups.

From NTD News

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Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 20:05

Social Security Chief Says Millions Of Dead People On Record 'Not Necessarily Receiving Benefits'

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The new head of the Social Security Administration (SSA) on Wednesday addressed speculations that millions of deceased individuals over the age of 100 may be receiving Social Security benefits, stating that they are likely exaggerated.

A Social Security card sits alongside checks from the U.S. Treasury in Washington on Oct. 14, 2021. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Acting SSA Commissioner Lee Dudek, appointed recently by President Donald Trump, issued a statement on Feb. 19, clarifying concerns raised by Trump, DOGE frontman Elon Musk, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. The three had said in social media posts and press briefings that SSA records list individuals as being 100, 200, or even 300 years old—raising questions about potential improper payments.

Dudek said he wants to “acknowledge recent reporting about the number of people older than age 100 who may be receiving benefits from Social Security,” adding that the “reported data are people in our records with a Social Security number who do not have a date of death associated with their record.”

“These individuals are not necessarily receiving benefits,” Dudek said, while expressing confidence in the audits conducted by DOGE, which Trump has tasked with uncovering any fraud, waste, and abuse in government spending.

“I am confident that with DOGE’s help and the commitment of our executive team and workforce, that Social Security will continue to deliver for the American people,” Dudek said.

Trump said at a Florida press briefing on Feb. 18 that DOGE’s findings suggest “millions and millions” of centenarians may be receiving benefits improperly. This is “obviously fraudulent or incompetent,” he said.

“If you take all of those millions of people off Social Security, all of a sudden, we have a very powerful Social Security with people that are 80 and 70 and 90, but not 200 years old,” the president said.

Click pic... buy colostrum... live long enough to collect vampire social security? Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back.

“It’s a very positive thing” that DOGE had shed light on the potential issue, Trump said. “We’re figuring it out.”

Musk echoed these concerns on social media.

“Maybe Twilight is real, and there are a lot of vampires collecting Social Security,” he joked in one post. In another, he wrote: “Having tens of millions of people marked as ‘ALIVE’ when they are definitely dead is a HUGE problem. Some of them would have been alive before America existed as a country. Think about that for a second.”

Musk also criticized the lack of action on past government reports that highlighted the issue. “What’s super weird is that the @USGAO pointed out years ago that millions of dead people were tagged as alive by Social Security, but nothing was done!” he wrote.

Leavitt said in an appearance on Fox News that Musk and DOGE have been working to identify fraud at the SSA. “They haven’t dug into the books yet but they suspect that there are tens of millions of deceased people receiving fraudulent Social Security payments,” she said.

Concerns about outdated records are not new. SSA’s Office of the Inspector General has noted the presence of inactive Social Security numbers and that the records don’t necessarily mean fraudulent payments are occurring.

A March 2015 report and a July 2023 follow-up found that the SSA had not updated its system to properly annotate death information for approximately 18.9 million people born in 1920 or earlier who were not officially marked as deceased. The reports also stated that “almost none” of these individuals were actively receiving benefits.

The SSA ultimately decided not to update the database due to the cost, which was estimated to exceed $9 million. Additionally, since September 2015, SSA policy has automatically stopped payments to anyone listed as older than 115 years old.

The extent of improper Social Security payments remains uncertain.

A July 2024 report from the Social Security inspector general found that, between fiscal years 2015 and 2022, the agency distributed nearly $8.6 trillion in benefits. Of that amount, $71.8 billion, less than 1 percent, was classified as improper payments, with the majority being overpayments to living recipients rather than deceased individuals.

Additionally, in early January, the U.S. Treasury recovered more than $31 million in various federal payments—not limited to Social Security—that had been mistakenly sent to deceased individuals. Former Treasury official David Lebryk described the recovery efforts as “just the tip of the iceberg.”

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 19:15

China's Vice-Premier Spars With Bessent In Call Over Tariffs & 'Economic Imbalances'

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and China’s Vice-Premier He Lifeng held a video call on Friday, kicking off crucial diplomatic efforts between the President Xi Jinping government and the new Trump administration.

As expected, the Chinese side raised "serious concerns" on the recent imposition of tariffs and other restrictive measures on Chinese goods by the Trump White House, at a moment of growing fears of a renewed trade war.

Chinese Vice Premier He, via Reuters

"Both sides recognized the importance of China-US economic and trade relations and agreed to continue to maintain communication on issues of mutual concern," a rather guarded and vanilla readout from the Chinese government’s State Council said.

The "in-depth" exchange of views recognized the importance of bilateral economic and trade relations, the Chinese readout said further.

Likely central to the conversation was Beijing's objections to the Trump-imposed 10% tariffs which came in early February as a punitive response to the explosion of Chinese fentanyl trafficking. Beijing had hit back with targeted tariffs of up to 15% on select US imports, and warned that sanctions - including on Google - could come next.

The readout issued soon after the call from the US Treasury chief highlighted that Bessent and Vice-Premier He discussed counternarcotics efforts, economic imbalances, and unfair policies.

Below is the short US readout in full:

Earlier today, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent had an introductory call with Vice Premier He Lifeng of the People’s Republic of China to exchange views on the bilateral economic relationship.  Secretary Bessent expressed serious concerns about the PRC’s counternarcotics efforts, economic imbalances, and unfair policies, and stressed the Administration’s commitment to pursue trade and economic policies that protect the American economy, the American worker, and our national security.  Secretary Bessent and Vice Premier He agreed to remain in communication going forward.

The question of a likely visit by Chinese President Xi to Washington looms large in the background. The day prior, Trump while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One indicated he expects Xi to visit soon, but didn't reveal a timeline.

Saying that "it's possible" for for Washington and Beijing to strike a new trade deal, he acknowledged that more direct talks are needed. "We'll have, ultimately, President Xi, we will have everybody coming (to the US)," Trump said.

The recent response from Chinese state media...

Instead of protecting American economic interests, Washington's tariffs, as multiple studies have shown, have driven up prices, reduced economic output and employment, and dented the overall economy. https://t.co/irR3Leg8Pi pic.twitter.com/hGY1B3p45T

— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) February 21, 2025

The Republican president has further lately teased the threat reciprocal tariffs for all countries that tax US imports, which would escalate global trade tensions.

In a January Hannity interview just days after being sworn in to his second term, Trump displayed a reluctance to escalate the trade war, stating that he would "rather not" impose tariffs on China. He has emphasized  his willingness to negotiate with President Xi and has sought to avert a clash between the world's two largest economies. 

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 17:20

Trump Admin Serious About Combatting Global Censorship

Authored by Sean Nelson via RealClearPolitics,

President Donald Trump is well known for his America First agenda. Some have interpreted this as an isolationist stance of retreat from the world stage. If anything, the first few weeks have shown an energetic engagement on foreign policy. America First hasn’t meant disengagement with the world. Rather, it has meant taking seriously American foundational principles and believing those are core values that other nations will look up to when demonstrated proudly.

One of those fundamental American principles is free speech, and the Trump administration is making sure that the world sees America vigorously fighting for it.

This new posture of strongly proclaiming the American value of free speech on the global stage had its biggest demonstration yet for the new administration last week. On Friday, Vice President J.D. Vance spoke at the Munich Security Conference. Rather than focusing on external global threats from Russia and China – as important and real as they are – Vance turned his attention to a major worrisome trend in Europe: the rise of aggressive censorship.

Vance lamented the “retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America.” For Americans, censorship is itself an attack on democracy. As the Vice President stated, “Dismissing people, dismissing their concerns, or worse yet, shutting down media, shutting down elections, or shutting people out of the political process protects nothing. In fact, it is the most surefire way to destroy democracy.” Free speech is not supposed to just be an American value but a universally shared fundamental right, protected in international treaties and charters enthusiastically signed onto by European allies.

Vance highlighted one example in particular of the attack on freedom of expression, that of British Army veteran and ADF International client Adam Smith-Connor. Smith-Connor was charged in November 2022 for violating a “buffer zone” outside an abortion clinic in the UK when he had silently prayed outside of it. This past October, Smith-Connor was criminally convicted for his three minutes of silent prayer. Smith-Connor’s appeal will be heard in July.

But that is just one example of what has become increasingly systematic attempts in Europe at ever larger scales to censor and control public discourse to exclude “wrong” opinions.

Other cases abound, like that of Päivi Räsänen, the Finnish member of Parliament who has been hounded on “hate speech” criminal charges now for almost four years and investigations for even longer because she posted a picture of a Bible verse on then-Twitter.

But on a broader level, Europe’s Digital Services Act (DSA) would make every European social media user subject to the censorship regime and potentially export that censorship throughout the world, including America. The DSA imposes enormous penalties on large social media companies that do not comply with orders to censor so-called “illegal content,” broadly defined as anything that is illegal under EU or national law. Notably, this can include vague and subjective terms like “hate speech,” “misinformation,” and “disinformation,” which are readily weaponized against disfavored religious views, as the stories above show.

Because large social media companies are often American companies, that means that the DSA could harm not just American business but lead to the censorship of Americans. Nearly every major digital service provider in the United States, from Adobe to Zoom, and most social media platforms, maintains these kinds of harmful policies prohibiting “hate speech” or “misinformation,” as reported by ADF’s Viewpoint Diversity Index. If you oppose the government’s position and voice that opinion on social media, there’s a very real chance that a European bureaucrat will try to silence your voice as “misinformation.” Just look at Smith-Connor’s and Räsänen’s cases.

The concern that Europe’s mania for expanding and exporting censorship – as bad as that is by itself – will be felt on American shores was the animating principle for Vance’s push for free speech in his European trip last week and has become a major theme. Earlier in the week, during his speech on AI, Vance directly criticized the Digital Services Act and “the massive regulations it created about taking down content and policing so-called misinformation.” “America cannot and will not accept that,” he said.

Vance is not pursuing this free speech posture toward Europe alone. Congressman Jim Jordan, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, sent the European Commission a letter at the end of last month “express[ing] our serious concerns with how the DSA’s censorship provisions affect free speech in the United States.” Last week, the Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the “Censorship-Industrial Complex,” highlighting censorship efforts abroad.

One of President Trump’s first actions was an executive order preventing any federal efforts to facilitate censorship against Americans, especially under the guise of combatting “misinformation,” “disinformation,” and “malinformation.” This was a sharp turnabout from the Biden-Harris administration’s pressuring of social media companies to censor posts skeptical of government policies. Secretary of State Marco Rubio followed this up by announcing that he would terminate “any programs that in any way lead to censoring the American people.”

Vance and the Trump administration’s critics have tried over the weekend to make Vance’s position sound extreme, but instead have only confirmed how right he was to make a strong defense of free speech. No reaction was more egregious than CBS’s on Sunday, when Margaret Brennan absurdly blamed free speech for the Holocaust, while 60 Minutes promoted the German system of prosecuting thousands of cases of online “hate speech” and insults. Now that the weaponization of terms like “misinformation” and “disinformation” has been exposed, the rhetoric from opponents of free speech has become more direct.

Vance’s speech has been a clarifying moment, laying down clearly the choice between free speech and censorship. When it comes to opposing global censorship, and especially when that censorship can affect Americans, the Trump administration is fulfilling its promises early on. Vance’s Munich speech is the clearest demonstration yet that America will take the lead again in ensuring the protection of free speech for Americans and worldwide.

Sean Nelson is an international human rights lawyer who serves as legal counsel for global religious freedom at ADF International.

Tyler Durden Fri, 02/21/2025 - 17:00