Submitted by Thomas Kolbe

The asymmetrical trade agreement between the EU and the US will further worsen Germany’s recession. Yet neither politicians nor corporate leaders show any willingness to make the sweeping policy changes needed to reverse course.

Germany’s economic data leaves no room for illusions. After contracting by 0.9% in 2023 and another 0.5% last year, the decline will continue this year.

The Machine Room Has Been Blown Apart

It is precisely the sectors that have sustained German prosperity for decades—automobiles, construction, machinery—that are under the heaviest pressure. Without the artificial boost from state spending—now accounting for half of GDP—the private sector is set to shrink by 4–5% this year.

Since 2018, total productivity has been in steady decline. This is also a social problem: Germany is importing hundreds of thousands of welfare migrants into its social systems, yet the economy would have to boom just to keep per capita prosperity from falling.

A new survey by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) confirms what was already obvious: the EU–US trade deal will especially hurt Germany’s export-oriented economy.

According to the survey, 58% of companies expect additional burdens, rising to 74% for firms with direct US business. Only 5% expect any benefit.

“This deal may have been politically necessary, but for many German companies it’s a bitter pill,” said DIHK CEO Helena Melnikov. “Higher tariffs, more bureaucracy, falling competitiveness”—that’s the price of the diplomatic truce between Washington and Brussels.

As of Thursday, a general 15% tariff applies to exports to the US, hitting automotive and machinery manufacturers hardest. 89% of US-oriented firms report immediate disadvantages, 72% fear further tariff hikes, 80% worry about political arbitrariness in transatlantic trade, and more than half plan to scale back US operations.

Business Was Already Weak

In its May survey of over 21,000 companies, only 23% reported positive business expectations—down five points—while 30% expected deterioration. In industry, one in three anticipates fewer orders.

Just 19% plan to increase investment, while about a third plan to cut back. High energy prices, labor shortages, and political uncertainty are seen as the main drags. The DIHK forecasts a 0.3% recession for 2025, but adjusting for state spending, the real decline is closer to 4–5%.

Daily surveys confirm the same message: Germany is being deindustrialized, losing hundreds of thousands of core-sector jobs. The social security deficits already emerging are just the beginning. Yet both politics and business refuse to conduct an honest diagnosis.

The Green Deal remains sacrosanct. Energy costs for German industry are up to three times higher than for US competitors, double that of French firms—pushing energy-intensive sectors out of the country.

Dancing Around the Golden Calf

Nobody dares openly challenge Brussels’ climate agenda. A rare exception came in June, when a group of works council representatives wrote an open letter to the Chancellor, naming the Green Deal as a root cause of decline.

But most CEOs dodge the question. Mercedes-Benz chief Ola Källenius cites “weak demand, high production costs, and US tariff uncertainty” for falling margins—but ignores the Green Deal’s role. VW CEO Oliver Blume calls for lower energy prices and tax incentives for EVs—essentially more subsidies to keep the transition alive.

Corporate leadership is now fused ideologically with the Green Deal. The energy transition has battered Germany’s industrial base: sectors like construction and automotive have been knocked completely off track.

A Split Economy

Events like the “Made for Germany” coffee chat between 61 CEOs and the Chancellor are symbolic of a corporatist mindset. Large corporations can adjust or relocate production to sidestep regulation, but small and medium-sized enterprises—the Mittelstand—are being crushed.

The Green Deal’s bureaucratic weight ultimately clears the field for big corporations by eliminating smaller competitors.

The Mittelstand has no political backing, and many are fighting daily for survival—often ending in bankruptcy. In H1 2025, insolvencies rose 9.4% year-on-year to 11,900 companies.

There is still no sign of a policy shift on climate. The German corporate elite has failed to seize the initiative to force political change. Germany is heading for a hot autumn—economically and socially.

* * *

About the author: Thomas Kolbe, a German graduate economist, has worked for over 25 years as a journalist and media producer for clients from various industries and business associations. As a publicist, he focuses on economic processes and observes geopolitical events from the perspective of the capital markets. His publications follow a philosophy that focuses on the individual and their right to self-determination.

Authored by Pepe Escobar,

Of course it’s all about Alaska. Here’s what’s in play. But it’s the shadowplay that’s even more exciting.

Across the world, for those who grew up in the Cold War Swingin’ Sixties, the temptation is irresistible to cast Donald Trump as Goldfinger (but who would play Oddjob? Hegseth?)

Goldfinger, after all, is a powerful, ruthless gambler. His 21st century motto would be “Obliterate & Plunder”. In fact, sequentially, an orgy of obliteratin’ and plunderin’ if the occasions present themselves. Everything subjected to the search for the Golden Deal. My way. The only way.

Yet now it’s possible that Goldfinger may have met its appropriate – collective – match.

This is what happened the last time a summit took place in Alaska, in this particular case US-China in a shabby hotel in Anchorage. That shook the geopolitical chessboard to the core. Trump-Putin might – but only under quite specific conditions.

There’s only one realistic, optimal endgame for Alaska: a joint declaration of intent, pointing to a follow-up, as in the next meeting to be held in Russian territory. A sort of starter for the long and winding road towards a real reset of US-Russia relations, including a possible settlement in the proxy war in Ukraine.

Essentially, they may agree to keep talking. Yet what really matters is what may be implied by the promise: Goldfinger refrains from imposing secondary sanctions on Russia’s partners.

That will constitute a tremendous BRICS victory (Iran excluded. Actually, two strategic allies of Russia would be excluded: Iran and the DPRK).

BRICS are actively building a coalition to stare down Goldfinger. The key players are Bear, Dragon, Toucan and Elephant – all four original founders of BRIC. Nightingale should be added later, as it is linked via geopolitical/geoeconomic strategic partnerships with Bear, Dragon and Elephant.

When it comes to the Alaska nitty gritty, the top Bear needs to consider all the ramifications of what is an imperative for the Russian General Staff and the vast intel apparatus in Moscow: unless Goldfinger minions stop weaponizing and providing precious intel to Ukraine is all its forms, the mythic “ceasefire” that Goldfinger and the pack of toothless chihuahuas in Europe desperately want will be just an intermission to allow Ukraine to rearm to the hilt.

That’s a tough call for the top Bear: he has to placate his domestic, radical critics who blast him for sitting down with the enemy, and at the same time he must deliver the goods to his under-siege BRICS allies.

BRICS counteract Goldfinger’s Plunder tactics

Bear, Dragon, Toucan and Elephant are involved in breathless telephone diplomacy to articulate their collective response to Goldfinger’s Tariff/Plunder drive.

Examples. Modi on Brazil: “A strong, people-centric partnership between Global South nations benefits everyone.”

Lula on India: “Brazil and India are, so far, the two most affected countries. We reaffirmed the importance of defending multilateralism and the need to address the challenges of the current situation.”

Xi to Lula: China backs Brazil to defend its national sovereignty; BRICS is “a key platform for building consensus in the Global South.”

Goldfinger’s Tariff Plunder works in several ways.

On India: because New Delhi refuses to open its vast agricultural market to tariff-free Made in USA imports (45% of India’s population directly depends on agriculture); and because India buys Russian oil at much-needed discount prices.

On Brazil: because the ultimate target is regime change and free reign to plunder Brazil’s natural wealth.

So far, Goldfinger’s Plunder antics have been stellar when it comes to engineering their own blowback: from allienating even allies – see abject European submission – to de facto burying multilateral trade, not to mention international law.

Example: just a few hours before the tariff “pause” on Made in China products was about to expire, Goldfinger signed an executive order extending the deadline for another 90 days. Translation: TACO, all over again. If the tariff “pause” went through, the economy of the $37 trillion-indebted “indispensable nation” would be in even more dire straits.

Then there’s Goldfinger’s possible Arctic gameplay, already examined here. There’s virtually no evidence Russia would allow the US to participate in the development of the Arctic-wide Northern Sea Route (NSR), or Arctic Silk Road in Chinese terminology.

The role of Russia’s Atomflot – 11 nuclear icebreakers, 9 of them in action, 2 being built, including Project 10510 Rossiya, a behemoth capable of navigating anywhere in the Arctic anytime – in parallel with Russia’s astonishing arsenal of new weapons systems, these are absolutely key variables on any serious discussion on any possible US-Russia partnership post-Alaska.

Goldfinger’s obsession to cage Nightingale

Now let’s look at Nightingale – an immensely complex case. Goldfinger has totally embarked on a multi-track maximum pressure/tension remix against Iran: forcing Hezbollah to disarm; forcing the collapse of Lebanon into factional war; legitimizing the “al-Qaeda R Us” dismemberment of Syria; forcing snapback UN-backed sanctions on Tehran.

Then came the Goldfinger-hailed “historic peace summit” with Azerbaijan’s Aliyev and Armenia’s Pashinyan.

Well, what Baku and Yerevan really signed under Goldfinger’s watchful eye is not a peace deal: it’s a mere memorandum of understanding (MOU).

Their Joint Declaration is extremely vague – and non-binding. What is promised is a “let’s keep talking” set up: “We acknowledged the need to continue further actions to achieve the signing and ultimate ratification of the [Peace] Agreement.”

It remains to be seen what happens with the much-ballyhooed 99-year American grip on the Zangezur corridor – trimphally named Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) – complete with grabbing 40% of its revenues (Armenia would get only 30%) and placing 1,000 American mercenaries to patrol Armenian territory, right south of Nightingale’s borders.

The big story is of course Goldfinger eager to snatch at least one connectivity corridor in southern Eurasia – in the strategic south Caucasus, using a gangster-minded MI6 asset (Aliyev) and a national traitor (meek Pashinyan), which will be discarded and/or sweetened in due time. Crucially, NATO membership was offered to both Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The Deep State’s game plan is total control: what really matters is the opening to establish a NATO corridor all the way to the Caspian.

There’s no way Nightingale will let that happen, not to mention Bear and Dragon: it would mean a direct NATO threat not only to the International North South Transportation Corridor (INSTC), which unites three BRICS (Russia, Iran, India) and crosses the Caspian, but also the Chinese Silk Roads, whose corridors traverse Iran with possible branch outs to the Caucasus.

Nightingale has already made it quite clear it will not allow any kind of change of status for the Zangezur corridor. And it has the necessary missile arsenal to back it up. IRGC Deputy Commander Yadollah Javani: Iran “will not allow an American corridor on its border.”

Wherever it comes from, Goldinger or the Deep State, the pressure by the Empire of Chaos is relentless. There will be no respite in the Hybrid – and otherwise – Wars on BRICS, especially on the new Primakov triangle (“RIC” as in Russia, Iran, China).

Alaska in principle should be about a reset of all US-Russia security matters – geopolitical, commercial, military, with Ukraine being just a subset. That will be a major stretch. It’s hard to imagine Putin being able to impress on Trump, on the same table, the finer points of NATO/US ceaseless plots to undermine, harass and destabilize Russia.

The most probable outcome is that the proxy war – and the SMO – will keep rollin’ on, but with the Deep State making extra bundles of euros by selling tons of weapons for NATO to dispatch to Kiev. But even without the promise of a new, serious, US-Russia security architecture, BRICS may still stand a chance to snatch a victory out of Goldfinger’s latest photo op.

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

Months after President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum targeting illegal aliens and other ineligible individuals from collecting Social Security Act benefits, the president told reporters at the White House on Thursday afternoon that nearly 300,000 illegals have been removed from the government program that provides financial benefits to eligible citizen taxpayers and/or lawful permanent residents (green card holders). 

“Last month, I signed the One Big Beautiful Bill, and allowed No Tax on Social Security for our great seniors … and to protect our benefits, we’ve already kicked nearly 275,000 illegal aliens off of the Social Security system,” Trump told reporters. 

.@POTUS: “Last month, I signed the One Big Beautiful Bill, and allowed No Tax on Social Security for our great seniors … and to protect our benefits, we’ve already kicked nearly 275,000 illegal aliens off of the Social Security system.” pic.twitter.com/uXDRbSsjoF

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 14, 2025

Recall that on April 15, the president signed a memorandum directing federal agencies to take immediate action to purge the Social Security system of illegals and fraudsters. 

As Maureen Steele via American Greatness elegantly noted earlier this year, “We don’t need an executive order to bar illegals from Social Security – we need a government that obeys the law.” 

Let’s not forget that the Biden-Harris regime facilitated the invasion of illegal aliens, allowing millions of these third-worlders to siphon dollars and essential services from citizens and lawful permanent residents – in what some have described as a classic Cloward–Piven strategy. 

The Federation for American Immigration Reform estimated that taxpayers spend more than $182 billion annually to cover costs associated with 20 million illegal aliens and their children, which includes $66.4 billion in Federal expenses plus an additional $115.6 billion in state and local expenses. 

The free lunch for the Democratic Party’s illegals is coming to an end. 

The fact that people who never paid into the system were withdrawing funds from it is Exhibit A on the unsustainability of Democrat policies.

They merely want to take money from Americans & give it to their new voter base. It’s disgusting.

— The Conservative Alternative (@OldeWorldOrder) August 14, 2025

 Or it was a classic Cloward–Piven strategy. 

Authored by Victoria Friedman via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The White House on Aug. 12 ordered an internal review of selected Smithsonian museums and exhibitions to ensure that all public-facing content aligns with President Donald Trump’s directive to celebrate U.S. exceptionalism.

In a letter sent to Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lonnie Bunch III, the White House outlined the steps that it expects the organization to take in the review, including examining websites, social media content, and educational materials “to assess tone, historical framing, and alignment with American ideals.”

The review comes as the country prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, with White House officials saying that “it is more important than ever that our national museums reflect the unity, progress, and enduring values that define the American story.”

The review will initially focus on eight museums—including the National Museum of American History, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the National Museum of the American Indian—with additional museums to be reviewed in a second phase.

This initiative “aims to ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions,” White House officials stated in the letter.

The letter referenced Trump’s executive order, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” signed on March 27.

The order aims to counter the “revisionist movement,” which Trump described as a concerted effort to rewrite American history and replace facts with “a distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth.” Trump singled out the Smithsonian in the order, saying it had come under the influence of a “divisive, race-centered ideology.”

‘Focusing on Americanism’

The Smithsonian has been asked to provide the White House team with several documents—some due within 30 days of receiving the letter—including its programming for the 250th anniversary, exhibition plans and supporting materials, and lists of invited speakers and events.

Scheduling interviews with curators and senior staff, the submission of other documentation, and the finalizing of updated plans to celebrate the nation’s birthday are expected within 75 days.

Within 120 days, museums have been directed to begin implementing content corrections, where necessary, “replacing divisive or ideologically driven language with unifying, historically accurate, and constructive descriptions across placards, wall didactics, digital displays, and other public-facing materials.”

White House officials stated in the letter that they viewed the process as a collaboration and an opportunity for museum staff to “embrace a revitalized curatorial vision rooted in the strength, breadth, and achievements of the American story.”

“By focusing on Americanism—the people, principles, and progress that define our nation—we can work together to renew the Smithsonian’s role as the world’s leading museum institution.”

The Smithsonian Institution is a “museum, education and research complex of 21 museums and the National Zoological Park, as well as research facilities,” and is about 62 percent federally funded, with its federal budget totaling more than $1 billion, according to its website.

The Smithsonian Institution told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement on Aug. 13: “The Smithsonian’s work is grounded in a deep commitment to scholarly excellence, rigorous research, and the accurate, factual presentation of history.

“We are reviewing the letter with this commitment in mind and will continue to collaborate constructively with the White House, Congress, and our governing Board of Regents.”

Rolling Back DEI

The review is in line with the Trump administration’s wider efforts to roll back diversity, equity, and inclusion ideology from government, education, the military, and other U.S. institutions.

In February, Trump removed the board of trustees at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, installing a new board with himself as chairman.

The president had criticized the Kennedy Center for promoting what he called “anti-American propaganda” and promised to realign its mission with his “vision for a Golden Age of American Arts and Culture.”

On Jan. 29, Trump signed an executive order laying out his administration’s plan for the United States’ 250th Independence Day celebration next year.

The White House said this executive order will fulfill Trump’s 2024 campaign pledge to bring “not just one day of celebration, but an entire year of festivities across the nation.”

Ryan Morgan contributed to this report.

A Republican consulting firm is warning that Google’s Gmail platform is disproportionately flagging Republican fundraising messages as spam while allowing similar Democratic solicitations to reach inboxes.

In a memo to clients obtained by The New York Post, Targeted Victory – whose roster includes the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana and Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee – described the filtering pattern as “serious and troubling,” saying it continued as recently as June and July. The firm said emails containing links to the Republican fundraising platform WinRed were, “in many cases, sending them directly to spam,” while identical test messages with links to the Democratic platform ActBlue were “delivered without issue.”

“If Gmail is allowed to quietly suppress WinRed links while giving ActBlue a free pass, it will continue to tilt the playing field in ways that voters never see, but campaigns will feel every single day,” the memo said. Video demonstrations of the firm’s testing were included.

The allegations come despite previous scrutiny of Gmail’s email filtering practices. In 2023, the Federal Election Commission dismissed a Republican National Committee complaint alleging political bias in Gmail’s spam algorithms. A year earlier, a federal judge dismissed an RNC lawsuit making similar claims.

Critics, including President Donald J. Trump, have long accused Google of political interference, alleging that the company has manipulated search results to disadvantage Republicans and, in one instance, suppressed news of an assassination attempt against Mr. Trump. In March, Elon Musk wrote on social media that Google had interfered “to help Democrats thousands of times every election season.”

Google has denied wrongdoing. “Email filter protections are in place to keep our users safe,” José Castañeda, a company spokesman, said in a statement Wednesday. “They look at a variety of signals – like whether a user has previously marked an email as spam – and apply equally to all senders, regardless of political ideology.”

Research has previously identified differences in filtering. A 2022 study by North Carolina State University found that Gmail flagged 59 percent more Republican fundraising emails as spam than Democratic ones during the lead-up to the 2020 election. “We observed that the [spam filtering algorithms] of different email services indeed exhibit biases towards different political affiliations,” the researchers wrote at the time.

According to the Targeted Victory memo, the firm first contacted Google about the issue on June 30 after receiving complaints from clients. Google, the memo said, initially “deflected” the concern by “blaming local settings” for the filtering behavior.

The firm’s tests involved sending identical emails to Gmail accounts, with the only difference being a WinRed or an ActBlue donation link. “The only difference between the two emails was the link,” the memo said. “ActBlue delivered. WinRed got flagged. That is not a coincidence.”

“This held true even for major accounts, including Trump and Elise Stefanik links, compared to DNC links,” the memo continued. After what it described as weeks of back-and-forth, Google’s support team acknowledged that WinRed links were deemed “suspicious” and, in some cases, flagged with a red banner warning that the message was “potentially suspicious or unsafe,” according to a screenshot dated July 22.

“This should alarm every campaign and committee that relies on email to connect with voters,” the memo concluded.

Authored by Jackson Richman via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

WASHINGTON—There were 45 arrests made in Washington on the evening of Aug. 13, according to FBI Director Kash Patel, as President Donald Trump’s quest to fight crime in the nation’s capital continues amid the federal government’s takeover of the city’s police department.

“The FBI and our partners made 45 arrests—29 immigration-related, 16 tied to the violent crime surge, and 3 firearm seizures,” Patel wrote on X.

🚨OVERNIGHT IN DC 🚨

The FBI and our partners made 45 arrests – 29 immigration-related, 16 tied to the violent crime surge, and 3 firearm seizures.

Charges include:

🟥Assault on a federal officer
🟦Possession of child sex abuse material
🟥Illegal firearms
🟦Drug trafficking…

— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) August 14, 2025

Charges against those arrested included assault on a federal officer, possession of child sex abuse material, illegal firearms, and drug trafficking. There were also fugitive apprehensions and an arrest for someone throwing a Subway sandwich at an officer.

The last crime was caught on a 29-second video. It shows a man facing an officer, looking away for a moment, and then throwing the sandwich at him. The man runs away, crossing the street, and is chased by officers. The officers eventually catch up to him.

“The @FBI arrested this individual last night. He has been charged with felony assault on a federal officer,” Patel said on X, accompanied by a video of the incident.

The subject was an employee of the Department of Justice, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi. He has since been fired, she said.

Trump has instructed federal law enforcement to patrol Washington for 24 hours every day. The federal government can control the city’s police department for 30 days. Congress must approve any extension.

The president said the extension will be necessary.

“We’re going to be asking for extensions on that—long-term extensions,” he said on Aug. 13. “You can’t have 30 days.”

Trump announced on Aug. 11 that the federal government would take over Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department.

“This is Liberation Day in D.C., and we’re going to take our capital back,“ Trump said at a press conference. ”We’re taking it back under the authorities vested in me as the president of the United States.”

He said that Bondi is “taking command of the Metropolitan Police Department” and that Terry Cole, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, is “designated as the interim federal commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Department.”

In addition to signing an executive order declaring a crime emergency in the nation’s capital, Trump signed a presidential memorandum to send the National Guard into the city.

The National Guard does not have the authority to arrest people, although they can detain them until law enforcement arrives.

District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser has criticized Trump’s actions, calling them “unsettling.”

“My message to residents is this,” she said at an Aug. 11 press conference. “We know that access to our democracy is tenuous. That is why you have heard me and many Washingtonians before me advocate for full statehood.”

Bowser told MSNBC on Aug. 10, “We are not experiencing a crime spike.”

In addition to crime, the Trump administration is looking to fight homelessness.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Aug. 12 that homeless people who refuse to leave their encampments will face a fine or jail time. They will be offered mental health and addiction services.

“These are preexisting laws that are already on the books,” she said. “They have not been enforced.”

Following mounting speculation in recent months that Warren Buffett was quietly buying a stake in distressed health insurer UnitedHealth, earlier today his Berkshire Hathaway published its latest 13F filing, confirming that it had done just that during the second quarter after the stock cratered in late April amid regulatory concerns. The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate acquired just over 5 million shares in UnitedHealth, a stake which was worth $1.6 billion as of June 30 making it Berkshire’s 19th largest holding. At the same time, Berkshire also liquidated its entire $1 billion stake in T-Mobile during the period. 

The investment in the health insurer follows multiple crises for UnitedHealth, including the shocking assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan in an execution-style murder by rabid leftist Luigi Mangione. 

UnitedHealth has also faced unexpected increases in medical costs. In April, it reported earnings below Wall Street estimates for the first time in more than a decade, and slashed guidance, sending the stock price plummeting. It has since replaced its CEO and announced plans to replace its chief financial officer.

The disclosure of Buffett’s UNH stake sent the insurer’s shares up more than 10% in after hours trading.

There were several other notable changes in Berkshire’s portfolio, which amounted to $258 billion as of June 30.

After a three quarter pause, Buffett resumed selling his Apple stake, offloading another 20 million shares during the period, after slashing his holding of the iPhone maker by more than half last year. Yet even at 280 million shares, Berkshire’s Apple stake remains its largest equity stake by market value, despite it falling by about $9.2 billion in the three months ended June 30.

Berkshire also continued trimming holdings in Bank of America, selling 21 million shares and bringing its stake down to about 8% at the end of June. Buffett started whittling down the bank investment last year, without providing any explanation for the move. 

Curiously, Buffett remains in largely degrossing mode, and reduced his holdings in 4 of his top 5 positions (AAPL, BAC, KO and CVX), only keeping his American Express stake unchanged. Other names that saw a reduction were Davita, Liberty Media, Capital One. 

Buffett also added to some of his holdings: he modestly boosted his stake in Constellation Brands and Dominos, and more than doubled his position in Pool Corp. 

One of Berkshire’s equity bets, a stake in consumer foods giant Kraft Heinz, has been a headache for Buffett’s company. The conglomerate took a $3.8 billion impairment charge on its investment earlier this year, and kept its holding unchanged in the second quarter.

Finally, while liquidating his entire $1 billion stake in TMobile, Buffett also added new positions in Nucor, DR Hodton, Lamar Advertising And Allegion. As Bloomberg notes, Berkshire boosted its investment in US homebuilders in what appears to be a bet on lower rates in the future, building its stake in Lennar and buying 1.5 million shares of D.R. Horton. The company also bought more shares of steel manufacturer Nucor Corp. Those changes were omitted in a previous filing as the company requested confidentiality.

The full breakdown is below.

Source: 13F

Authored by J.T. Young via RealClearPolitics,

For the last 10 years, it’s been difficult for Democrats to win elections unless the campaigns center on Donald Trump. But the arrival of Zohran Mamdani on the national stage risks carrying the Democratic Party far off message – and derailing its strategy for 2026 and beyond.

With his upset win in the Democratic primary, Democratic-Socialist Mamdani has the inside track in New York City’s mayoral race. New York already has a host of problems: crime, illegal immigration, high spending, high taxes, and a declining population and dwindling tax base. Mamdani’s radical policy proposals only threaten to add to these woes. 

Free bus service, government-run grocery stores, and government-built housing all promise to increase New York City’s already high spending. Mamdani’s commitment to increase taxes on higher income and whiter neighborhoods will increase New York City’s already high taxes. Together, the two will squeeze the city’s economy, pushing out more of the city’s population and further eroding its tax base. Mamdani’s earlier support for defunding the police and not cooperating with ICE will hike crime and illegal immigration. 

In sum, Mamdani threatens to accelerate the negative economic and societal spiral New York City has been experiencing for some time. It is the last thing New Yorkers need. 

Accentuating America’s perception of Democrat excesses in the nation’s biggest city is also the last thing Democrats need. How big a problem is this for Democrats? Such topics were among President Biden’s worst polling performances: According to Real Clear Politics’ final average of Biden’s job approval polling, Americans gave him just a 38.8% approval on his handling of the economy, 38% on crime, and 33.5% on immigration.      

What’s more, Mamdani, and other big-city mayors and mayoral candidates espousing radical policies, could eclipse the Democrats’ national campaign strategy of running against Trump as well. 

Over the last decade, Democrats’ only national election successes have come when Trump is the election’s focus. In 2018, with Trump in office, they won control of the House of Representatives. In 2020 with Trump as the incumbent, Democrats won the presidency and the Senate. 

Conversely in 2016, Democrats could not escape Hillary Clinton being their standard-bearer. As a result, they lost the White House in a profound political upset. In 2022, with Joe Biden in office, Democrats lost the House. In 2024, Biden and Harris were both incumbents; with reelections being referendums on incumbents, the focus was again on Democrats, and they lost the presidency.

Having learned these lessons, Democrats aim to make Trump the focus in 2026 and 2028 – even without Trump on the ballot. Despite a string of policy successes, Trump remains a divisive political figure. According to RCP’s recent average of national polling, Trump’s job approval rating is just 45.9% and his favorability rating only 44.5%.

Without Trump on the 2026 and 2028 ballots, Republicans must defend his divisive legacy without having the benefit of his vote-getting ability. 

More than a strategy, this is a necessity for Democrats. Trump is the only thing that unites them as a party. Democrats lack their own winning policies; their most prominent stands against Trump have been issues – illegal immigration, transgender rights, and crime – that cost them in November 2024. The result is that Democrats find themselves with an abysmal standing: A recent WSJ poll found only 33% of Americans had a favorable view of the Democratic Party.

If elected mayor of America’s largest city, Mamdani undermines this approach.    

Republicans would love nothing better than to run against New York, the same way they ran against California when Kamala Harris became Democrats’ presidential nominee. Republicans proved last year that they can win the presidency handily without winning either coast. 

In 2024, Republicans lost New York, California, Washington, and Massachusetts by an average of 58% of the popular vote. Yet, Democrats won only 121 of the remaining 433 electoral votes – just 28%. Republicans won 72% of the electoral votes outside Democrats’ coastal strongholds. Only needing 270 total electoral votes for victory, Trump’s 312 votes give Republicans a virtual stranglehold on America’s “flyover” country – where 80% of America’s total electoral votes lie.

In contrast, Democrats have no chance without New York and California; so, they are stuck with sticking up for both. If Mamdani succeeds in rotting the Big Apple, Democrats could see 2026 and 2028 potentially going from a best-case scenario to a worst-case scenario. Democrats would find themselves either defending Mamdani’s radical policies and alienating America or rejecting Mamdani’s radicalism and alienating their far-left supporters. 

Apple is preparing a sweeping lineup of new hardware as part of a broader push into artificial intelligence and the smart home, according to people familiar with the plans. The centerpiece is a tabletop robot, targeted for release in 2027, that is designed to act as a lifelike virtual companion. The company is also developing a smart speaker with a display for next year, as well as home-security cameras that would anchor a new Apple-branded security system.

The projects, which have not been publicly announced, are part of a strategy to reinvigorate the company’s product pipeline and expand into categories dominated by rivals like Amazon, Google and Samsung, Bloomberg reports.

Chief Executive Tim Cook signaled the scope of the work in an all-hands meeting this month, telling employees: “The product pipeline – which I can’t talk about – it’s amazing, guys. It’s amazing. Some of it you’ll see soon. Some of it will come later. But there’s a lot to see.”

The company has struggled to maintain momentum with recent projects. The Vision Pro mixed-reality headset, promoted as Apple’s next big platform, has sold below expectations, while the design of its most popular devices has remained largely unchanged for years. The company has also been criticized for lagging in the generative AI race, even as OpenAI has signaled ambitions to move into hardware with former Apple design chief Jony Ive.

Robotics as the Centerpiece

The tabletop robot, code-named J595, is described as an iPad-size display mounted on a motorized arm that can pivot, extend and reposition itself to follow users in a room. It will feature an entirely new version of Siri, designed to engage in conversations, recall information and insert itself into group discussions. Apple has tested giving the assistant a visual personality under the codename Bubbles, with options ranging from an animated Finder face to Memoji-like characters.

FaceTime will be a central function, with the ability to track people around a room during calls. Apple has also tested letting an iPhone act as a joystick to remotely reposition the robot during videoconferences. Designers are considering a final product that resembles the “Pixar Lamp” — a reference to the animated studio’s logo — and prototypes use a 7-inch display on a swiveling base.

A New Operating System for the Home

Both the robot and the smart display will run a new operating system called Charismatic, built for multiuser households. The interface combines elements of the Apple TV and Apple Watch software, with a focus on widgets, voice commands and facial recognition to personalize content as users approach.

The smart display, code-named J490, will be a pared-down version of the robot, launching as soon as mid-2025. It will support home controls, music playback, browsing and videoconferencing, but initially without the robot’s advanced conversational Siri.

Apple’s home push also includes cameras, starting with a battery-powered model, code-named J450, that uses facial recognition and infrared sensors. The system could automate functions like turning off lights when a room is empty or playing music for a specific family member. The company has explored a doorbell that can unlock doors using facial recognition.

Siri Overhaul and AI Ambitions

Underlying these devices is a major upgrade to Siri, developed under the codename Linwood and powered by large language models. Apple is also testing a parallel project, Glenwood, that could integrate outside AI models such as Anthropic’s Claude.

Engineers are working on a version code-named Linwood with an entirely new brain built around large language models — the foundation of generative AI. The goal is to tap into personal data to fulfill queries, an ability that was delayed due to hiccups with the current version.

That new software, known internally as LLM Siri, is planned for release as early as next spring, Bloomberg News has reported. But work is going even further: Apple is preparing a visually redesigned assistant for iPhones and iPads that will also debut as early as next year. -Bloomberg

Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, told employees this month that the overhaul has produced “a much bigger upgrade than we envisioned” and that “there is no project people are taking more seriously.”

Engineers have used systems like ChatGPT and Google Gemini during development of the tabletop robot and other AI features. The new Siri is expected to debut as early as next spring on iPhones and iPads, with a redesigned visual interface and tighter integration with personal data.

Beyond the Home

Apple is also working on redesigned iPhones for this year, as well as longer-term projects such as smart glasses, a foldable phone, a large foldable MacBook–iPad hybrid, and a 20th-anniversary iPhone.

The new hardware push comes as the company seeks fresh growth after scrapping high-profile initiatives like its self-driving car program. If successful, the products could help counter the perception that Apple no longer innovates at its former pace — and put the company in a stronger position to compete in the next era of AI-driven consumer technology.

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned multiple individuals and companies linked to a Mexican cartel for engaging in timeshare fraud targeting U.S. citizens, the department said in an Aug. 13 statement.

“These complex scams often target older Americans who can lose their life savings. The lifecycle of these scams can last years, resulting in financial and emotional devastation of the victims,” the department said.

Cartels typically obtain information on timeshare owners in Mexico from insiders working at resorts, Treasury said. Call centers then contact them, falsely claiming to be third-party brokers, sales representatives, or attorneys from the timeshare industry or sectors such as real estate, financial services, and travel.

“The fraud may include timeshare exit scams (a.k.a. timeshare resale scams), timeshare re-rent scams, and timeshare investment scams,” the Treasury statement said.

“The common theme is that victims are asked to pay advance ‘fees’ and ‘taxes’ before receiving money supposedly owed to them. This money never comes, and the victims are continuously told to pay additional ‘fees’ and ‘taxes’ to finalize the transactions.”

The scammers direct victims to send money to accounts held in Mexican banks and brokerages.

People may be victimized repeatedly, with the fraudsters representing themselves as a law firm that could help them recover lost funds for a fee.

In some cases, the criminals may pose as government officials, accusing the victims of engaging in suspicious transactions and demanding payment of fines to avoid imprisonment.

The Treasury’s latest sanctions target four Mexican individuals and 13 Mexican companies with ties to Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the United States. CJNG is also known as the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

The sanctioned individuals and companies are based in the popular tourist destination of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, which also acts as a strategic stronghold of the cartel, the Treasury statement added.

Americans with timeshare investments in the region may be targeted by these scammers.

The Treasury said CJNG was increasingly supplementing its drug trafficking proceeds through revenues generated via timeshare scams.

“We are coming for terrorist drug cartels like Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion that are flooding our country with fentanyl,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.

“These cartels continue to create new ways to generate revenue to fuel their terrorist operations. At President Trump’s direction, we will continue our effort to completely eradicate the cartels’ ability to generate revenue, including their efforts to prey on elderly Americans through timeshare fraud.”

Last year, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center received almost 900 complaints related to timeshare fraud schemes in Mexico, with losses of more than $50 million, said the Treasury.

In a June 7, 2024, statement, the FBI warned about timeshare scams.

Assistant Special Agent in Charge Paul Roberts, who leads FBI New York’s Complex Financial Crimes Branch, said there were 6,000 victims of timeshare fraud in the previous five years, with losses totaling over $300 million.

Timeshare fraud may go unreported because the victims either don’t realize they are being scammed or do not know they can get help to tackle the issue, according to the FBI.

“There is nothing embarrassing about falling victim to a scam like this,” Roberts said. “The worst thing that people can do is suffer in silence out of shame or fear of judgment.”

Red Flags

In July last year, federal agencies issued warnings about Mexican cartel-run timeshare scams.

A joint notice from the Treasury and the FBI asked financial institutions to be “vigilant in detecting, identifying, and reporting timeshare fraud perpetrated by Mexico-based transnational criminal organizations (TCOs).”

“Older adults, including retirees, are frequent victims in these schemes,” the notice said.

The TCOs use funds stolen via timeshare fraud to back their drug trade, including manufacturing and selling fentanyl and other deadly synthetic drugs in the United States, the agencies allege.

The FBI lists several red flags Americans with timeshares should watch out for to avoid getting defrauded.

For one, third parties asking for upfront fees or taxes or demanding a power-of-attorney form are suspicious, because these are not industry-standard practices, the agency said.

People claiming to be a government official and threatening arrest or prosecution if money isn’t paid, and those who reach out for some kind of settlement are red flags as well, it added.

“If someone contacts you about your timeshare and requests cash upfront, stop communicating with them, and don’t send them money,” said the FBI.