You&#8217;re not going to believe today’s story — except, of course, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-53-please-stop-asking-me-to-comment-on-kanye-and-everything-else" target="_blank" rel="noopener">you are going to believe it</a>.
The Defense Department has failed another audit.
Yep.
Once again, the Pentagon just can&#8217;t account for the trillions of dollars they&#8217;ve taken from taxpayers.
Why should they have to account for it? Well, we don&#8217;t know where the money&#8217;s going — probably to our politicians who keep supporting the military-industrial complex. So they could be just washing money and sending it back to themselves.
But we wouldn’t know.
This is their fifth-ever audit and they have failed it. They are unable to account for more than half of their assets.
But don&#8217;t be upset, guys.
The government has come out and <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/pentagon/2022/11/16/dod-fails-audit-cites-ukraine-as-teachable-moment-in-accountability/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said that this moment</a>, coupled with the war in Ukraine,  is being viewed as “a teachable moment.”
I love that it&#8217;s a teachable moment. That sounds like something you&#8217;d learn in a remedial economics class.
This is a teachable moment, we can be better.
Never mind the Pentagon had 1,600 auditors who combed through the department.
The DOD says $3.5 trillion in assets and $3.7 trillion in liabilities.
They <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEPhJ3iQJ0Y" target="_blank" rel="noopener">can’t account for 61%</a> of those assets but never mind guys! It&#8217;s just a teachable moment.
Meanwhile, the American people are <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dem-senator-suggests-adding-87000-new-irs-agents-will-give-american-taxpayers-better-service" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allegedly getting more than 80,000 new IRS</a> agents to go through every penny you and I spend.
We are going to be held <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/select/irs-americans-over-the-600-threshold-on-payment-apps-must-report-it/">accountable</a> if we share more than $600 on PayPal. We’ll have to report that to the government.
But, wouldn&#8217;t it be wonderful if there was a box when we file our taxes where we could say, &#8220;I actually don&#8217;t know where that money went, but it&#8217;s a teachable moment? I feel like I&#8217;m learning from this moment and I can teach myself how to be better in the future.&#8221;
Why do I feel like if we did write that in when filing our taxes, we would end up in prison?
This is sort of interesting, because we&#8217;re watching. If there is one thing our government is consistent on, it is locking people up for tax fraud. We&#8217;ve seen this over and over again.
They make examples out of people for tax evasion and those who can’t account for millions. Meanwhile, the DOD can&#8217;t account for trillions.
It&#8217;s just a teachable moment. 
I don&#8217;t know why tax frauds don’t just use that when being put on trial.
It was a teachable moment for us. 
But more seriously, all of these shenanigans can only go on because we&#8217;re being robbed blindly by our own government. 
Instead, our leaders want us to focus on sex, gender, and race issues. The government wants you to be upset and protesting in the street when George Floyd dies at the hands of a police officer, allegedly. They want you to focus on the myth that police officers are hunting down unarmed black men.
They want you to be emotional, but not rational, about all of that so you don’t even question why you’re paying taxes or what that money is going toward.
I think we should not have to pay a single dollar in taxes until the auditors are able to figure out where trillions of dollars may have magically slipped away to.
Again, my perspective on all of this is that democracy is an illusion. It is just an illusion that our government is running the correct way and in order to clean up corruption, all we have to do is get the right guys in there. But when the right guys get in there, they become a part of this.
What&#8217;s happening in Washington D. C. should be considered a criminal enterprise.
This is why the people who should be serving in government are not.
Our government is filled with crooks.
They&#8217;re essentially just like Wall Street execs and it&#8217;s a shame to see. And that should be the number one story everywhere. By the way, trillions of dollars you just stole from the American people again. But you&#8217;re not going to see it covered much by legacy media.
Instead, the lapdog media is going to focus on something former President Donald Trump said, even though he is out of power. 
Let’s just run headlines of what Trump said and how it can be construed as racist or sexist or misogynist. Don&#8217;t worry about the fact that your government has and continues to steal from you.
But hey, it’s a teachable moment.

Candace_4b_216x9 copy 32

The Pentagon Failed Its Audit, But Don’t You Worry, It’s A ‘Teachable Moment’ 

Candace Owens

Pentagon

Readers Pass

Taxes

U.S.

U.S. officials appear to have reversed course on not paying SpaceX for its Starlink satellites over Ukraine, which have provided the country a military advantage as it battles Russian forces, and now the company&#8217;s CEO is suggesting that it does not want to be paid, even though it recently demanded payment.
CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/13/politics/elon-musk-spacex-starlink-ukraine/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> Thursday that the charitable contributions from SpaceX were likely coming to end after the company warned the Department of Defense in that it needed to start paying tens of millions of dollars per month to keep the terminals up and running.
The report said that a September letter from SpaceX asked the Pentagon to pay for Ukraine’s government to continue using the system which would cost “more than $120 million for the rest of the year and could cost close to $400 million for the next 12 months.”
SpaceX’s director of government sales wrote to the Pentagon, “We are not in a position to further donate terminals to Ukraine, or fund the existing terminals for an indefinite period of time.”
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk backtracked over the weekend on the company demanding payment for its services.
“The hell with it,” Musk <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-hell-with-it-elon-musk-reverses-course-on-starlink-decision-in-ukraine">said</a>, “even though Starlink is still losing money &amp; other companies are getting billions of taxpayer $, we’ll just keep funding Ukraine govt for free.”
Politico <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/10/17/pentagon-starlink-funding-ukraine-00062103" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> Monday that U.S. officials with knowledge of the situation said that the Department of Defense wanted to pay for the satellites to continue operating over Ukraine because the U.S. did not like Musk&#8217;s unpredictability. Funding for the effort would likely come out of the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative which has been used to purchase things needed for the country&#8217;s war effort.
European officials are now also getting involved in discussions on funding Starlink as Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-consider-pay-elon-musk-starlink-spacex-internet-ukraine/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Politico Europe that the ability of Ukraine&#8217;s military to operate via satellite should not be determined by one &#8220;super-powerful&#8221; person who could just randomly decide one day to shut off Ukraine&#8217;s internet access.
“I figured that it&#8217;s probably way better to have this as a contractual agreement between, let&#8217;s say, a coalition of countries that could purchase a service from Mr. Musk, the Starlink service, and provide it to the Ukrainians and keep on providing it to Ukrainians,” Landsbergis said.
Musk responded to the Politico report by appearing to suggest that he did not want to be paid for the satellite&#8217;s service.
&#8220;SpaceX has already withdrawn its request for funding,&#8221; Musk said. &#8220;To be precise, 25,300 terminals were sent to Ukraine, but, at present, only 10,630 are paying for service.&#8221;
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To be precise, 25,300 terminals were sent to Ukraine, but, at present, only 10,630 are paying for service
&mdash; Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1582098412501364736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2022</a></blockquote>
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NORWAY-INDUSTRY-BUSINESS-ENERGY-OIL-GAS

Pentagon Appears To Reverse Course On Paying Musk For Starlink In Ukraine, Musk Also Appears To Shift

Elon Musk

Starlink

Ukraine-Russia War

“<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/navy-commander-admits-to-being-bribed-by-fat-leonard-giving-classified-info-to-foreign-defense-contractor/">Fat Leonard</a>,” the flamboyant defense contractor who admitted bribing top <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-navy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Navy brass</a> with booze and hookers in a $35 million scheme and bolted while awaiting sentencing earlier this month, was nabbed in Venezuela on Tuesday morning as he tried to flee to Russia.
The Malaysian national, whose real name is Leonard Glenn Francis, was captured at the Caracas airport as he prepared to flee the South American country for Russia, Interpol said. Francis, 58, had been in U.S. custody, but earlier this month cut off his ankle monitor while under house arrest in San Diego and slipped out of the country, sparking an international manhunt.
“Francis Leonard Glenn had entered the country from Mexico with a stopover in Cuba, to then continue with his final destination to the federative republic of Russia, the fugitive was arrested at the Simón Bolívar de Maiquetía international airport when he was about to leave the country,”  Interpol Venezuela Director General Carlos Garate Rondon wrote in an Instagram post.
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&#39;Fat Leonard&#39; Francis captured in South America after flight to avoid sentence in Navy corruption scandal <a href="https://t.co/AzVehwoUS5">https://t.co/AzVehwoUS5</a>
&mdash; UPI.com (@UPI) <a href="https://twitter.com/UPI/status/1572937018468102144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 22, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Francis pleaded guilty in 2015 to playing Navy officials with cash, prostitutes, and expensive dinners to help his Singapore-based ship servicing company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia, land contracts. Prosecutors claim the company bilked the Navy out of $35 million for servicing ships. Francis was to be sentenced this month, after cooperating with prosecutors for years to secure convictions of dozens of people, including more than 20 Navy officers.
The plea deal called for Francis to repay the government the $35 million, but so far he has only repaid $5 million.
Last year, Francis bragged about his lucrative scheme in a <a href="https://fatleonardpodcast.com/">Project Brazen podcast series</a>.
“Everybody was in my pocket. I had them rolling around in my palm. I had the Navy by their balls. I turned my torpedo, my guns against them, because they betrayed me,&#8217; Francis says in one episode of a nine-part series.
Francis, who owns his own decommissioned U.S. war ship and is reportedly obsessed with American culture, described how he targeted Navy Commander Michael Misiewicz by providing him with prostitutes and infiltrating his inner circle of family and friends.
“They wanted to have the good life that they could not have,” Francis said. “They wanted the fine dining, the fine gifts, hotel rooms, sedans, luxury cars, watches, handbags, fancy meals, alcohol, cigars.”
But the Misiewicz operation was Fat Leonard’s downfall. When the Navy man’s wife, Marcy, confronted her husband about her suspicions he was cheating, he beat her. She reported him to Navy officials, who launched an investigation that uncovered damning emails.
Misiewicz was sentenced to over six years in prison.
Francis has claimed that senior admirals bribed were protected by the Pentagon.
“Some of the more senior admirals got handled by the Navy because then they can be brushed under the carpet, it&#8217;s little more than a slap on the wrist, they call it &#8216;different spanks for different ranks,” he said in the podcast series.

VENEZUELA-CRIME-CORRUPTION-CAPTURE-GLENN

‘Fat Leonard,’ Fugitive Who Bribed Navy Brass With Booze, Hookers, Nabbed After International Manhunt

'Fat Leonard,' Fugitive Who Bribed Navy Brass With Booze, Hookers, Nabbed After International Manhunt

Corruption

Crime

U.S. Navy

Venezuela

A two-star general’s retirement has reportedly been placed on hold as the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-military">military</a> investigates him over his social media conduct.
Maj. Gen. Patrick Donahoe is under administrative review by the U.S. Army. He previously served as commanding general of the Army’s Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, Georgia, but he has since been reassigned as his review plays out, according to the <a href="https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2022/09/19/ex-fort-benning-commanders-retirement-halted-over-tweets/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Army Times</a>.
Donahoe “has been temporarily assigned as a special assistant to the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command pending appropriate Department of the Army administrative reviews,” Army spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said.
A source familiar told the Army Times that Donahoe is under review for his social media conduct. It is not clear if Donahoe would be disciplined, or what discipline might come down should the review process find him guilty of some infraction.
Donahoe is well-known for his presence on Twitter. In 2019, the <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/2019/10/14/military-members-you-should-be-following-on-twitter/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Military Times</a> ranked him number one on a list of “top service members to follow” on the platform.
“All soldiers are leaders and the good ones stay informed with the broader world events that could determine their future. Brig. Gen. Donahoe is one of the real OGs on twitter giving soldiers a hint on how a top military leader thinks. And if leaders learn from example, you can’t go wrong by following his,” the outlet wrote at the time of his Twitter usage.
Donahoe currently has over 23,000 followers on Twitter. His account has been made private and his tweets are protected against public viewing.
Donahoe kicked off a series of media stories and criticism against him after he used his personal Twitter account to mock a retired Marine who publicly disagreed with Donahoe’s views on the COVID-19 vaccine.
In July 2021, Donahoe <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/retired-marine-woke-fort-benning-commanding-general" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> he would make the vaccine mandatory if he had the authority, citing a surge in ICU visits by young soldiers. Former Marine Josiah Lippincott responded to Donahoe, pointing out that the military had lost a total of 26 servicemembers to COVID-19 out of 2 million. After some back-and-forth, Donahoe responded by tagging Lippincott’s alma mater, Hillsdale College, and telling it to “come get your boy.”
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 <a href="https://t.co/k4WlL62BCm">pic.twitter.com/k4WlL62BCm</a>
&mdash; Ducky ¯_(ツ)_/¯ (@thatjerkme) <a href="https://twitter.com/thatjerkme/status/1572003938823438338?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 19, 2022</a></blockquote>
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That incident is reportedly not the subject of the ongoing review, though it is unclear what the review is focusing on specifically. Donahoe has been involved in several social media-related controversies in recent months, including criticizing Fox News host Tucker Carlson after he accusing President Joe Biden of “feminizing” the military, the Army Times reported.

Two-Star General, Tucker Carlson Critic Under Military Review Over Tweets: Report

Department of Defense

Tucker Carlson

U.S. Army

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/pentagon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pentagon</a> is recommending U.S. soldiers struggling with soaring food prices apply for welfare, in a move that underscores both low military pay and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/economist-reveals-when-america-can-expect-one-whopper-of-a-recession/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">economic headwinds</a> facing the nation as a whole.
The recommendation came last month from Sergeant Major of the Army Michael Grinston, and directs Army soldiers and their families to apply for food stamps through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program known by the acronym SNAP.
&#8220;With inflation affecting everything from gas prices to groceries to rent, some Soldiers and their families are finding it harder to get by on the budgets they&#8217;ve set and used before,&#8221; <a href="https://www.army.mil/article/258256">the written guidance from Grinston reads</a>. &#8220;SNAP is a U.S. government program that provides benefits to eligible low-income individuals and families via an electronic benefits transfer card that can be used like a debit card to purchase eligible food in authorized retail food stores. Service members and their families may be eligible.&#8221;
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&quot;The guidance points soldiers to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and links them to the federal welfare program’s website.&quot; &#8211;Billions and billions for Biden&#39;s suicidal Green New Deal and Ukraine, no money fo feed our soldiers and families!<a href="https://t.co/nEX2AckBWY">https://t.co/nEX2AckBWY</a>
&mdash; Laughing Libertarian (@William16723077) <a href="https://twitter.com/William16723077/status/1568608357191192577?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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The official guidance includes other lending and financial counseling programs available to soldiers and lists contact information to help them enroll in SNAP.
Although the Biden administration and much of the media insists the U.S. is not in a recession, the nation has experienced negative GDP growth in each of the last two quarters, meeting the traditional definition for a recession. In addition, inflation is running at nearly double-digit percentages and food prices in particular have risen at the fastest rate in decades.
Mackenzie Eaglen, is a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who studies defense budgets and military readiness, said nearly a quarter of enlisted men and women can’t afford to put food on the table.
“What they need is more money,” Eaglen wrote in a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/inflation-catches-the-pentagon-flat-footed-army-paychecks-food-stamps-defense-department-budget-ppi-troops-11662405897?mod=hp_opin_pos_6">Wall Street Journal column</a> this week. “The Defense Department’s flat-footed response to inflation will result in a real—and cumulative—pay cut for service members.”
Eaglen said the Pentagon received more federal funding from Congress than it had requested, but ignored inflation concerns and short-changed the men and women who serve.
Now, she wrote, “Congress will have to appropriate even more to save America’s troops from the Defense Department’s negligence. It’s the only way to get troops and their families the financial lifeline they need.”
Base pay for the lowest-ranking Army private is $21,999.60, according to <a href="https://www.goarmy.com/benefits/while-you-serve/money-pay.html">GoArmy.com</a>. Salaries for enlisted men and women the lower ranks rise gradually through promotions, but not always by years of service alone.

US-MILITARY-TRAINING

Pentagon Tells Struggling Army Soldiers, Families To Apply For Food Stamps

Pentagon Tells Struggling Army Soldiers, Families To Consider Food Stamps Amid Soaring Inflation

Food Stamps

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/pentagon">Pentagon</a> paused shipments of F-35s to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-military">U.S. military</a> and other buyers after discovering that an engine component in the jet is sourced from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/china">China</a>.
The Defense Contract Management Agency notified the Pentagon’s office handling F-35s that an alloy used in the plane’s turbomachine pumps comes from China. Lockheed Martin, which assembles the aircraft, may need a special exemption to bypass the Buy American Act if it wishes to restart production, according to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/09/07/pentagon-suspends-f-35-deliveries-china-00055202">Politico</a>.
The alloy is present in magnets inside the turbomachine pumps. The alloy has not harmed the jet’s integrity, and F-35s already in operation will remain in operation, according to the F-35 Joint Program Office.
“We have confirmed that the magnet does not transmit information or harm the integrity of the aircraft and there are no performance, quality, safety or security risks associated with this issue and flight operations for the F-35 in-service fleet will continue as normal,” F-35 program spokesman Russell Goemaere told Politico in a statement.
“Defense contractors voluntarily shared information with DCMA and the JPO once the issue was discovered and they have found an alternative source for the alloy that will be used in future turbomachines,” he added.
Lockheed Martin spokeswoman Laura Siebert said: “We are working with our partners and DoD to ensure contractual compliance within the supply chain. The magnet has no visibility or access to any sensitive program information. The F-35 remains safe for flight, and we are working with the DoD to resolve the issue as quickly as possible to resume deliveries.”
While the plane is assembled by Lockheed Martin, the turbomachine pumps are produced by Honeywell.
“Honeywell remains committed to supplying high-quality products that meet or exceed all customer contract requirements,” Honeywell spokesman Adam Kress told Politico. “We are working closely with DOD and Lockheed Martin to ensure that we continue to achieve those commitments on products Honeywell supplies for use on the F-35.”
In late July, the U.S. Air Force temporarily <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/air/2022/08/15/all-us-air-force-f-35s-are-flying-again-after-ejection-seat-checks/">grounded</a> all in-service F-35s in its fleet over concerns about ejector seat initiator cartridges. Service technicians inspected hundreds of cartridges across 349 jets, as well as more cartridges kept in reserve. Inspectors located four that they thought may be defective. The fleet was back to normal operations within about two weeks.

F-35

Pentagon Halts F-35 Purchases After Discovery Of Chinese Component

Airplane

Communist China

Supply Chain

U.S. Military

House Republicans, angry that tens of thousands of National Guardsmen have reputedly been kept inactive because they have not complied with the Pentagon’s vaccine mandate, fired off a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin demanding he repeal the mandate.
Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL), the first Green Beret elected to Congress, wrote the letter, which was signed by 13 other Republican members of Congress. “National Guard troops who have not received two COVID-19 vaccine doses by June 30, 2022 are under threat of, or actively being barred from, federally-funded deployments and receiving pay, according to the Pentagon’s late 2021 vaccine order,” The Daily Mail <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11165491/House-Republicans-Pentagon-Lloyd-Austin-National-Guard-vaccine-mandate.html">pointed out</a>.
Citing the updated guidance released by the CDC on August 11 which acknowledged greater immunity to COVID among the general public, Waltz wrote, “Why not also reduce the strain on our already faltering military recruitment and retention efforts by taking this new data into consideration, as the CDC has in their new guidance, and revise the Department of Defense’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate?”
“Approximately 45,000 National Guardsmen are unable to participate in crucial training in support of their federal missions due to a vaccine mandate that does not slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus,” Waltz charged, adding, “All of this is happening with the backdrop of a recruiting and retention crisis the military services have not seen in decades.”
“Our military has been crippled by the restrictive COVID-19 policies that the Department of Defense under the Biden administration have implemented,” Waltz told The Daily Mail. “At a time when our adversaries, including China, are rapidly expanding and modernizing their militaries, why would the Department of Defense continue to implement a policy that decreases military recruitment, retention, and readiness?”
In January, Austin sent a letter to the governors of Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Nebraska, Texas and Wyoming. He <a href="https://www.axios.com/2022/02/01/pentagon-vaccine-mandate-lloyd-austin-texas">wrote</a>, “To ensure that we maintain a healthy and ready military force capable of accomplishing our mission to defend this nation and to protect the American people, vaccination against COVID-19 is an essential military readiness requirement.”
The governors of Texas and Alaska had filed suit challenging the Pentagon’s vaccine mandate for the National Guard, arguing that the federal government had no authority over them. “There has long been a clear and distinct line between when National Guardsmen are governed by state authority and when they are governed by federal authority. When National Guardsmen are serving the State, the federal government has no command authority,” the lawsuit <a href="https://gov.alaska.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022.01.25-Govs.-Dunleavy-Abbott-NG-lawsuit.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stated</a>.

Bipartisan Representatives Discuss Need To Protect Afghan Partners During War Withdrawal

GOP Reps Demand Biden’s Sec Def Revoke Vaccine Mandate For National Guard

Lloyd Austin

National Guard

Vaccine Mandate

National Security Council Coordinator <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/the-stuff-of-movies-fox-news-pentagon-reporter-worked-behind-the-scenes-to-get-gravely-wounded-colleague-out-of-ukraine/">John Kirby</a> laughed off the suggestion that anyone in Saudi Arabia would have intentionally exposed President Joe Biden to COVID — which he contracted shortly after returning to the White House from his recent Middle Eastern jaunt.
New York Post reporter Steven Nelson put the question to Kirby during a Wednesday briefing, noting that the president had begun to show symptoms of the virus just a few days after returning from his trip, where he met first with Israeli officials and then with several officials in Saudi Arabia.
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REPORTER: &quot;Has the US government ruled out the possibility that the Saudi government deliberately exposed the president to the coronavirus?&quot;
KIRBY: &quot;The idea that a foreign nation state would deliberately try to infect POTUS with a virus is just ludicrous.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/eAViKxDXB5">pic.twitter.com/eAViKxDXB5</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1552388652080193539?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2022</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;President Biden may have begun to have symptoms about four days after returning from Saudi Arabia,&#8221; one reporter began. &#8220;Has the U.S. government ruled out the possibility that the Saudi government may have deliberately exposed the president to the coronavirus?&#8221;
&#8220;I think I should refer to Karine on that question, in terms of talking about the president&#8217;s medical condition, that&#8217;s out of my scope,&#8221; Kirby replied, indicating White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre.
&#8220;But — but — but — I — I don&#8217;t know where this idea is coming from,&#8221; Kirby continued. &#8220;I don&#8217;t know what prompted you to ask it that way. But the idea that a foreign nation state would deliberately try to infect the President of the United States with a virus is just ludicrous. Just absolutely ludicrous, there&#8217;s nothing to it and it should be treated as the ridiculous idea that it is.&#8221;
Retired Marine Corps bomb tech and Fox News regular Joey Jones wasn&#8217;t certain he bought Kirby&#8217;s protestation, however. &#8220;No way the country that aided the 9/11 hijackers could&#8217;ve done such a thing &#8230; just no way!&#8221;
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No way the country that aided the 9/11 hijackers could’ve done such a thing… just now way! <a href="https://t.co/Ki55ZTtImL">https://t.co/Ki55ZTtImL</a>
&mdash; Joey Jones (@Johnny_Joey) <a href="https://twitter.com/Johnny_Joey/status/1552390185148719104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Marine Corps veteran Dave Ross appeared to agree.
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<a href="https://t.co/cU2zxmm4LE">https://t.co/cU2zxmm4LE</a> <a href="https://t.co/X3FVS9aR7H">pic.twitter.com/X3FVS9aR7H</a>
&mdash; Dave Ross (@drosssports) <a href="https://twitter.com/drosssports/status/1552394811050561536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Author and journalist Sophia Nelson pointed to the gruesome murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 — and noted that until that happened and United States intelligence sources revealed that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman had likely directed the murder, people might have believed something like that to be ludicrous as well.
&#8220;Hmmmmm so is the idea that they would use a bone saw to dismember a US journalist. Just sayin,&#8221; Nelson tweeted.
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Hmmmmm so is the idea that they would use a bone saw to dismember a US journalist. Just sayin. <a href="https://t.co/vzO5in7XT2">https://t.co/vzO5in7XT2</a>
&mdash; Sophia A. Nelson (@IAmSophiaNelson) <a href="https://twitter.com/IAmSophiaNelson/status/1552401172182536195?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Biden, who reportedly met with Saudi officials in an effort to convince them to produce more oil and relieve some of the pain at the pump for consumers, <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/biden-claims-he-confronted-saudi-crown-prince-over-murder-top-saudi-official-pushes-back/">claimed he challenged</a> Bin Salman regarding Khashoggi&#8217;s murder — but Saudi officials have since disputed the claim.

White House Holds Press Briefing

‘Ludicrous’: John Kirby Laughs Off Suggestion That The Country Behind 9/11 Might Have Infected Biden On Purpose

John Kirby Laughs Off Suggestion That Saudi Arabia Might Have Infected Biden On Purpose

COVID

Joe Biden

John Kirby

Saudi Arabia

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/united-states">United States government</a> announced that it would be sending another round of foreign aid worth $270 million to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ukraine">Ukraine</a> on Friday to help the war-torn nation defeat <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ukraine-russia-war">Russian President Vladimir Putin</a>.
On Friday, the Department of Defense announced that the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/biden-administration">Biden administration</a> has sent Ukraine more than $8.2 billion in aid since the start of his administration, including $7.3 billion since Russia invaded in late February.
&#8220;Today, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced $270 million in additional security assistance for Ukraine,&#8221; the DOD said in a press release. &#8220;This includes President Biden’s announcement of a Presidential Drawdown of security assistance valued at up to $175 million, as well as $95 million in Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds.&#8221;
The press release <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3102984/270-million-in-additional-security-assistance-for-ukraine/">noted</a> that the Presidential Drawdown is the &#8220;sixteenth such drawdown of equipment from DoD inventories for Ukraine that the Biden Administration has authorized since August 2021.&#8221;
According to the Pentagon, Ukraine will be provided with four additional high mobility artillery rocket systems and additional ammunition for HIMARS, four command post vehicles, 36,000 rounds of 105mm ammunition, additional anti-armor weapons, spare parts, and other equipment, as well as 80 Phoenix Ghost tactical unmanned aerial systems.
This round of aid comes just 10 days after the U.S. government and the World Bank <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-announces-another-round-of-1-7-billion-in-aid-to-ukraine">announced</a> they were sending a combined $1.7 billion in assistance to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ukraine">Ukrainian</a> government in an effort to support <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/health-care">health care workers</a> in the war-torn nation.
On July 12, the Associated Press <a href="https://federalnewsnetwork.com/government-news/2022/07/ukraine-gets-1-7b-in-fresh-aid-to-pay-health-care-workers/">reported</a> that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) announced that the funds were being provided to help stop <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/vladimir-putin">Russian President Vladimir Putin</a>’s “brutal war of aggression.”
USAID has now sent approximately $4 billion in financial support to Ukraine.
USAID administrator Samantha Power told the AP that while Putin’s “assault on Ukraine’s public services continues, the United States is rushing in with financial support to help the government keep the lights on, provide essential services to innocent citizens and pay the health care workers who are providing lifesaving support on the frontlines.”
For his part, President Joe Biden has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-refuses-to-limit-aid-to-ukraine-make-sure-they-are-not-defeated-by-russia">maintained</a> that the U.S. will continue to support Ukraine through various measures indefinitely in order to defeat Russia.
“We are going to support Ukraine as long as it takes,” Biden <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSI0qRc0I8I">told</a> reporters when asked about the future of the United States’ commitment to Ukraine in late June.
“They’ve had to renege on their national debt for the first time since the beginning, in almost well over a hundred years. They’ve lost 15 years of the gains they’ve made in terms of their economy,” Biden said of Russia. “They’re going to have trouble maintaining oil production because they don’t have the technology to do it. They need American technology. They’re also in a similar satiation in terms of their weapons systems and some of their military systems. So they’re paying a very, very heavy price for this.”
“I don’t know how it’s going to end but it will not end, but it will not end with a Russian defeat of Ukraine in Ukraine,” Biden added.
The president has also said Americans should expect to pay high gas prices until Russia is defeated.
In June, a reporter <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-on-how-long-its-fair-to-expect-americans-to-pay-historic-gas-prices-as-long-as-it-takes-to-beat-putin">commented</a> on the high prices of gas in the U.S. and asked Biden, “How long is it fair to expect American drivers and drivers around the world to pay that premium for this war?”
Biden responded again by saying that Americans should expect to pay higher prices at the pump until Putin is stopped.
“As long as it takes,” Biden responded, “so Russia cannot in fact defeat Ukraine and move beyond Ukraine. This is a critical, critical position for the world. Here we are. Why do we have NATO? I told Putin that in fact, if he were to move, we would move to strengthen NATO. We would move to strengthen NATO across the board.”

Concept of Ukrainian finanse, banking and saving money. US dollars cash on flag of Ukraine

U.S. Sending $270 Million More Taxpayer Dollars To Ukraine

U.S. Sending $270 Million More To Ukraine

Ukraine

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-military">U.S. military</a> is researching the possibility of using high-altitude balloons to enhance its efforts to gather data on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/russia">Russia</a> and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/china">China</a> as tensions with the two nations continue to strain.
The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/pentagon">Pentagon</a> is investing tens of millions of dollars into researching high-altitude inflatables to help collect intelligence on China and Russia, especially on the rival countries’ hypersonic weapons programs, according to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/07/05/u-s-militarys-newest-weapon-against-china-and-russia-hot-air-00043860">Politico</a>. The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-defense">Department of Defense</a> plans to commit tens of millions of dollars to the research effort next fiscal year.
“High or very high-altitude platforms have a lot of benefit for their endurance on station, maneuverability and also flexibility for multiple payloads,” Tom Karako, head of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Politico.
The Pentagon has spent about $3.8 million on balloon-related military projects in the past two years, but plans to increase that to about $27.1 million in fiscal year 2023, according to budget documents reviewed by Politico.
One of the main benefits of using balloons to gather intelligence instead of other aircraft is cost. For balloons to operate for several weeks or months is a cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars versus millions of dollars to operate an aircraft or satellites.
The Department of Defense has already been researching the benefit of using balloons for data collection and surveillance as part of a program known as Covert Long-Dwell Stratospheric Architecture (COLD STAR). The program began as a way to research how balloons might be used to gather intelligence on drug smuggling operations and to locate traffickers.
The program has since transitioned to the military to use to monitor weapons programs and other proceedings by the United States’ chief rivals.
The U.S. Army has been <a href="https://www.armytimes.com/smr/technet-augusta/2021/08/18/us-army-wants-a-high-altitude-jammer/">researching</a> the potential for balloons and inflatables for several years in a program called High-Altitude Extended-Range Long Endurance Intelligence Observation System (HELEIOS). The program’s goal was to use balloons to gather intelligence and engage in jamming or other disruptive capacities. Such a tool would be important for the Army taking control of any area in which it is expected to operate in the future.

Israeli-made surveillance Aerostat Balloon

Pentagon Pumping Millions Into High-Altitude Balloon Research

China

Russia

Roughly 40,000 U.S. Army <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/national-guard">National Guard</a> soldiers — or 13% of the force — who refused to take the mandated <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/covid-19-vaccine">COVID vaccine</a> had one last chance on Thursday, June 30, to get vaccinated before military officials could force members out of the service.
But <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/marsha-blackburn">Sen. Marsha Blackburn</a> (R-TN) introduced <a href="https://www.blackburn.senate.gov/2022/6/blackburn-backs-national-guard-members-set-to-be-fired-over-covid-vaccine-refusal-in-new-legislation">legislation</a> on the Guardsmen’s deadline that would ban federal funds used to require a National Guard member to receive the coronavirus vaccine, and prohibit the Secretary of Defense from taking any adverse actions against Guard members who did not comply with the mandate.
Blackburn&#8217;s legislation stands as a guard for the 40,000 Guardsmen who would face termination and ultimately threaten U.S. national security.
&#8220;Our servicemembers are the bedrock of America,&#8221; Blackburn told <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2022/06/30/marsha-blackburn-introduce-legislation-backing-national-guard-members-set-fired-covid-vaccine-refusal/">The Daily Caller</a> before introducing the legislation. &#8220;Firing 40,000 Guardsmen for refusing the COVID vaccine would be both a complete disgrace and a threat to our national security.&#8221;
&#8220;I am honored to stand beside our National Guardsmen and women by introducing this legislation to protect them from President Biden&#8217;s forever pandemic,&#8221; she said.
Blackburn joins several House Republicans who have proposed laws to end COVID mandates, masks, and vaccines.
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS), a physician, <a href="https://twitter.com/RogerMarshallMD/status/1542167230628171777">said</a> on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/twitter">Twitter</a> that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden">President Biden</a> &#8220;is allowing illegal immigrants of unknown vax status to invade our country every day but is still willing to fire up to 40,000 American heroes.&#8221;
Tennessee National Guard members urged the state&#8217;s governor, Bill Lee, Wednesday to take action against the mandate and sue the federal government if necessary.
Stars and Stripes <a href="https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2022-06-30/tennessee-national-guard-vaccine-mandate-6508334.html#.Yr3okj4d4Vw.twitter">reported</a> Guard members along with their families and friends delivered a petition to Lee&#8217;s office at the capitol.
&#8220;On June 30, hundreds of your Tennessee National Guard soldiers – under an illegal, improper order by the Biden administration’s Department of Defense in defiance of natural law and the United States Constitution – are scheduled to be dismissed from service due to refusal to accept a COVID-19 vaccination,&#8221; the petition states. &#8220;It is your duty before God and the citizens of the great state of Tennessee, sir, to help these men and women. Please stop them from being fired, sir!&#8221;
Data from The Associated Press shows approximately 30% of the guardsmen in six different states and more than 10% still in 43 other states still need the shot. Roughly 7,000 have asked for exemptions, mainly for religious purposes, and about 14,000 soldiers simply refused to bow down to the mandate altogether.
&#8220;When you&#8217;re looking at 40,000 soldiers that potentially are in that unvaccinated category, absolutely there&#8217;s readiness implications on that and concerns associated with that,&#8221; said Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, director of the Army National Guard in an Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/article/covid-health-army-only-on-ap-government-and-politics-41f0f24bd26b2f8c4284e1fd396f88b8">interview</a>. &#8220;That&#8217;s a significant chunk.&#8221;
Jensen said military officials would give &#8220;every soldier every opportunity&#8221; to get vaccinated to continue their military career.
&#8220;We&#8217;re not giving up on anybody until the separation paperwork is signed and completed,&#8221; he said. &#8220;There&#8217;s still time.&#8221;
Well, that time has expired.
Pentagon officials said after the June 30 deadline that National Guard soldiers wouldn&#8217;t receive payment by the federal government when activated on federal status — including monthly drills and their annual two-week training period. Even those assigned to work on the southern border or COVID-related missions in various states either have to get fully vaccinated or lose out on payment and participation.
However, states that don&#8217;t require the COVID jab could still allow activated duty members to serve in their respective states and receive state payments.
Last year, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/defense-secretary-austin-orders-national-guard-get-vaccinated-face-los-rcna7131">ordered</a> every service member of the U.S. Military to get vaccinated, saying it is critical to maintaining the health and readiness of the force, The Associated Press reported. In response, at least seven governors asked Austin to reconsider and not enforce the mandate on National Guard members.
Austin declined and said that the coronavirus &#8220;takes our service members out of the fight, temporarily or permanently, and jeopardizes our ability to meet mission requirements.&#8221;
He said Guard troops must either get the vaccine or lose their Guard status.

Back to school vax clinic at FedEx Field

Sen. Marsha Blackburn Backs 40,000 Unvaccinated National Guard Soldiers Facing Termination Over Vaccine With New Legislation

COVID-19 Vaccine

Marsha Blackburn

Unvaccinated

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/china">Chinese</a> secret agents tried to stop a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/texas">Texas</a> rare earth minerals mining project by posing as concerned Lone State state residents, according to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/pentagon">Pentagon</a>.
The Beijing-directed operation allegedly targeted Lynas Rare Earth and other mining firms in a bid to derail the supply chain in the United States. Chinese agents used thousands of phony social media accounts to whip up opposition to the project, the cybersecurity firm Mandiant, which the Department of Defense <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3077280/reports-of-disinformation-campaign-against-rare-earth-processing-facilities/">praised</a> for bringing the operation to light, <a href="https://www.mandiant.com/resources/dragonbridge-targets-rare-earths-mining-companies">wrote</a>.
“The campaign used inauthentic social media and forum accounts, including those posing as residents in Texas to feign concern over environmental and health issues surrounding the plant,” wrote Mandiant.
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Fascinating. Pro-Chinese agents posed as concerned local residents on social media to try and spark protests over the opening of rare earth mines in the US and Canada, a report found <a href="https://t.co/tiSVuW6AdR">https://t.co/tiSVuW6AdR</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/bpolitics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@bpolitics</a>
&mdash; Henry Sanderson (@hjesanderson) <a href="https://twitter.com/hjesanderson/status/1542061650550849536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 29, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Mandiant, which uncovered the failed scheme, dubbed the Chinese operation “Dragonbridge.” Australia-based Lynas, the largest rare earth mining company in the world, has a $30 million defense contract to build a facility in Texas, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-rareearths/pentagon-awards-30-million-in-rare-earths-funding-to-australias-lynas-idUSKBN2A135Y">according</a> to Reuters. The Chinese agents allegedly used the fake Twitter and Facebook accounts to spread unfounded fears of environmental damage and radiation they claimed could cause cancer, gene mutation, and newborn deformities.
Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in the U.S., called the accusations slander.
“China is one of the biggest victims of disinformation,” Liu <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/jun/29/china-targeted-pentagon-rare-earth-contractor-disi/">told</a> The Washington Times. “China always opposes the creation and dissemination of disinformation. There are some people and forces in the world who are keen to fabricate rumors, slander and discredit China.”
China has long sought to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/china-moves-to-extend-global-dominance-in-mining-processing-key-resources">control</a> the global market for rare earth minerals, which are needed for manufacturing fighter jets, submarines, smartphones, televisions, electric vehicles, medical equipment, and other high-tech products.
<div id="attachment_403310" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-403310" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-403310 size-large" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Screen-Shot-2022-06-30-at-8.49.28-AM-1024x457.png" alt="The Pentagon said Chinese agents sought to block a Texas rare earth materials project" width="1024" height="457" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/Screen-Shot-2022-06-30-at-8.49.28-AM-1024x457.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/Screen-Shot-2022-06-30-at-8.49.28-AM-300x134.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/Screen-Shot-2022-06-30-at-8.49.28-AM-768x343.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/Screen-Shot-2022-06-30-at-8.49.28-AM.png 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />The Chinese agents allegedly used fake social media accounts to amplify opposition to the mining project. (Mandiant)</div>
The Pentagon is trying to bolster U.S. production of the materials, and signed the deal with Lynas as part of the effort. The company claims the Texas operation could produce enough rare earth minerals to cover a quarter of the world&#8217;s demand, per Reuters.
Mandiant said &#8220;Dragonbridge&#8221; was also behind fake accounts aimed at stopping a project in Saskatchewan by Canadian mining company Appia Rare Earths &amp; Uranium and an Oklahoma project by USA Rare Earth.
“DoD appreciates the diligence of Mandiant in identifying this disinformation campaign, and will continue to work with our partners to provide accurate information related to this and other supply chain investments,” the Pentagon said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping Arrives in Hong Kong for the 25th Anniversary the City’s Handover to China

Chinese Secret Agents Spread Fear On Fake Social Media Accounts To Target Texas Mining Project: Report

Spying

Texas

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