Why has public confidence in the Democratic Party collapsed to record lows?

In short, the party that champions illegal alien terrorists and cultural Marxism lost its authenticity a long time ago.

Voters see right through the bullshit of lies, non-sense identity politics, performative accents, and teleprompter-scripted speeches. The American people became outraged last week after Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders were caught flying around on private jets while “fighting oligarchy.” 

Meanwhile, the rudderless party is being thrown into a civil war, caught between old-school moderates and far-left activists like David Hogg, Jasmine Crockett, Hakeem Jeffries, and AoC. 

The latest Gallup polling data was nothing more than disastrous for the party of wokeism:

“Democratic leadership’s latest 25% confidence rating is an all-time low for the group — well below the previous 34% low recorded in 2023 and the average of 45% since 2001,” Gallup wrote in a report, adding, “Confidence ratings were last at the majority level in 2009 for Democratic congressional leaders and in 2003 for Republican congressional leaders.” 

Given all of this—and returning to the theme of authenticity—it’s no surprise that a majority of Americans have gravitated toward the ‘America First’ movement. President Trump doesn’t need a teleprompter; he speaks his mind directly and genuinely, which resonates with people who just want peace and prosperity, not domestic terrorism and protests that Democrats seem to have embraced in recent weeks. 

With the theme of authenticity in mind, internet sleuths point out that the Biden team may have photoshopped the former president into a family Easter photo.

As some users noted on X, the giveaway was a strangely placed, almost creepy-looking hand.

We wish everyone celebrating today a peaceful and joyful Easter. pic.twitter.com/GQNsdZNaw1

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) April 20, 2025

Here’s what X users said:

That’s creepy AF. Whose hand is this? Surely not yours. pic.twitter.com/4y0umeNI0q

— Dr. Simon Goddek (@goddeketal) April 20, 2025

You couldn’t even bother to show up for the family photo, loser. They had to photoshop you in. 🤣🤣🤣

— Buzz Patterson (@BuzzPatterson) April 20, 2025

They had to Photoshop the retard in, so sad

— Retard Finder (@IfindRetards) April 20, 2025

How fake do you have to be to literally have yourself photoshopped into your own families Easter photo before then posting it online to convince the world you’re wholesome?

— Jay Anderson (@TheProjectUnity) April 21, 2025

Also good question:

No Biden???? Where is our Catholic President???? Why would you not want to publicize him if he was such a great President???? https://t.co/IglHGWoB7O

— Hayden Horn (@HaydenHorn6) April 20, 2025

 Why can’t Democrats be authentic?

*  *  *

Top products last week at ZeroHedge Store:

– ZeroHedge Waxed Canvas Hat

– ZeroHedge Shirt

– IQ Biologix Astaxanthin (extremely potent anti-inflammatory)

– ZeroHedge Multitool

– Anza SWAT Micarta Blued (made in the USA)

Authored by Lance Roberts via RealInvestmentAdvice.com,

In financial markets, few technical patterns generate as much attention and anxiety as the death cross. This ominous-sounding term refers to a crossover on a price chart when a short-term moving average, most commonly the 50-day moving average (50-DMA), drops below a long-term moving average, usually the 200-day moving average (200-DMA). The “death cross” is a fantastic headline for the media to generate clicks and views. However, for investors, the “death cross” signals a market correction and suggests a more cautious investing approach. But there are a few questions we must answer.

1. What does the death cross mean?

2. How reliable is it as an indicator?

3. And how should investors respond when they see it?

Let’s answer those questions by exploring the death cross’s history, data, and interpretations, and explaining why context matters more than the signal itself.

What Is the Death Cross?

According to Investopedia:

“The “death cross” market chart pattern refers to the drop of a short-term moving average—meaning the average of recent closing prices for a stock, stock index, commodity, or cryptocurrency over a set period of time—below a longer-term moving average. The most closely watched stock-market moving averages are the 50-day and the 200-day.”

For investors, it is essential to note that the death cross is a lagging indicator. It only tells you that price action has deteriorated during the previous two months. In other words, it often only confirms an already obvious trend because it relies on historical data from moving averages. Furthermore, when the death cross occurs, markets are often near a short-term low.

I would be remiss to state that there are periods where the death cross preceded more severe bear markets of the past century, including 1929, 1938, 1974, and 2008. However, that is an example of sample selection bias, expressed by using only the selected data points to prove the predictive power of the death cross. Unfortunately, selecting only those data points ignores the numerous occasions when the death cross signaled nothing worse than a market correction and provided significant buying opportunities for investors.

For example, the following table from Marketwatch shows that since 1950, markets tend to rise within the next 12 months following a death cross.

This is because, as noted, the markets tend to be very oversold by the time the death cross triggers, and previous optimistic sentiment has reversed. We noted this in this past weekend’s #BullBearReport.

“For example, net bullish sentiment among retail and institutional investors is at some of the lowest levels on record, including during the “Financial Crisis.” The extreme negativity is interesting because the recent decline was orderly and mild compared to the chaos during the financial crisis. Yet, investors are as bearish on the current market as they were then. However, it is worth noting that during previous instances when sentiment was as negative as it is currently, such readings were near market bottoms.”

“Furthermore, the sharp spike in the volatility index, which is considered a “market fear gauge,” spiked to the highest levels seen since the COVID pandemic. If we combine the sentiment measures with the volatility index, we again see more extreme negative readings that often coincide with market lows rather than the beginning of larger reversions.”

In other words, historically speaking, the death cross, more often than not, is a potential contrarian indicator. However, as noted above, there have been instances where the death cross led to much more severe declines. How can investors differentiate between the two?

Structural Bear Markets Versus Event-Driven Corrections

While the media often dramatizes the appearance of a death cross, seasoned investors know it is just one piece of the puzzle. Corrections are part of a normal and healthy market process. As discussed in “Bullish Years Have Corrections Too:”

“In bullish years, markets often have corrections. Yet, after a lengthy bullish run, it always surprises me how quickly investors and the media panic with the slightest hint of a market pullback. During bullish years, corrections happen more often than you think. However, when corrections occur, it is not uncommon to see concerns about a “bear market” rise. However, historically speaking, the stock market increases about 73% of the time. The other 27% of the time, market corrections reverse the excesses of the previous advance. The table below shows the dispersion of returns over time. Critically, note that drawdowns of greater than 10% only occur 13% of the time.”

The correction from this year’s market peak is currently in a range that has only occurred 7% of the time historically, with the market declining 19.4% from peak to trough.

So far this year, the market decline certainly ranks among some of the worst-performing years in history. However, we are only one-third of the way into 2025, so how this year ends is still widely unpredictable.

But it is worth noting that since 1980, only eight (8) years have ended with more significant declines. Could this be the ninth? Yes, but for that to occur, we must put previous market declines and larger bear markets into context.

The difference between whether the death cross is a shorter-term corrective process or a larger “bear market” decline depends mainly on whether the cause of the market decline is “event-driven” or “structural.” As noted recently by the Daily Shot:

“Structural bear markets have historically been the deepest and longest, averaging over 55% declines and lasting nearly four years. In contrast, event-driven bears tend to be shorter and shallower, with quicker recoveries—averaging around 30% declines and under 10 months in duration. Post-WWII averages (orange diamonds) suggest more moderate outcomes relative to the broader historical record.”

This context is important when examining the current decline and triggering of the “death cross.” The chart below shows the difference in the length of “event-driven” versus “structural” corrections, signified by the triggering of the “death cross.” The dot.com and financial crisis periods were structural events, as significant corporate failures and credit-market dislocations occurred amid deep economic contractions. However, outside of those two significant structural impacts, all other “events” were short-lived, and markets soon recovered.

Given that the current market correction is driven by concerns over “tariffs,” it will likely be short-lived. There are two reasons for this view. First, the announced tariffs, which were more onerous than expected, will likely be largely reduced or removed through negotiations. Second, once the tariffs are finalized, the markets will adjust expectations for earnings and focus on future growth.

The question for investors is how to navigate the current market turmoil until this event-driven correction completes.

Navigating The Uncertainty

Does this mean you should ignore the “death cross” entirely? No. While the current correction is “event-driven” and will likely resolve itself soon, there is always a risk that something could trigger a “structural” decline, such as a recession or credit-related event. While such a risk remains quite low currently, that risk is not zero.

Furthermore, the death cross should not be viewed in isolation or trigger panic-driven decisions. Instead, investors should use it as a cue to take a more thoughtful approach to their portfolio management.

✅ Stay the Course if Fundamentals Are Sound. If your portfolio is well-diversified and aligned with long-term goals, the death cross may just be noise within a broader market cycle.

🌐 Use It as a Risk Management Cue. As we noted in “Market Crash: Hope In The Fear,” we used the recent rally in the market to reduce risk, hedge portfolios, raise cash, and rebalance allocations.

📊 Combine with Other Indicators. As noted above, while ominous, the current death cross collides with deeply oversold technical readings, as shown below, which typically suggest markets are near short-term lows rather than starting more significant declines.

“Sentimentrader tracks 21 indicators in total, which are then combined into a single indicator, giving readings of when markets are trading at more extreme bullish or bearish levels. As shown, the market is currently trading at more extreme risk-off levels. While this does not mean the market is about to rise, historically, such extreme readings have been close to market bottoms.”

⚡ Consider Rebalancing or Rotating. Whether the current period is “event-driven” or “structural,” the market will have intermittent rallies which investors should use to rebalance risk, reallocate holdings, and increase cash levels to reduce volatility.

💡 Don’t Ignore the Golden Cross. While it is easy to become overly defensive during a corrective period, it is important to remember that eventually the “death cross” will reverse the crossover. When the 50-DMA rises above the 200-DMA, it creates the golden cross, which follows the market bottom. That signals a reversal of the previous process of reducing risk to increasing risk.

Conclusion

The death cross is a useful indicator, not a prophecy. It reflects short-term weakness, but doesn’t dictate the future. The key is to treat it as a signal to pay closer attention to the bigger picture, not a call to sell everything and flee to cash.

Long-term investors should remain focused on fundamentals, diversification, and goals. Short-term traders can use it as one of many tools to refine timing. Either way, understanding the death cross puts you in a better position to act with insight rather than emotion.

Authored by Daniel Greenfield,

The Supreme Court’s ruling in J.G.G. v. Donald J. Trump was not an unqualified triumph for the Trump administration’s deportations of foreign gang members, but it was a definite rebuke not just to Judge Boasberg, but to the entire D.C. Circuit Court shadow government.

The ACLU filed J.G.G. v. Trump in defense of five Venezuelan inmates in New York and Texas. All of the men claimed that they were not gang members and there was no indication that any of them were being deported, denying them any actual standing for coming before the court.

Especially before Judge James Boasberg who is thousands of miles away in Washington D.C.

Despite the lack of standing and the case being filed in the wrong venue, Judge James Boasberg, the chief judge of the D.C. Circuit Court, not only blocked the deportation of all gang members back to Venezuela, but ordered that planes currently over international airspace that were carrying gang members turn around and bring them back to the United States.

Boasberg fumed that the planes were not turned around on his mere word and threatened the Justice Department with repercussions for not recognizing his power over not only the entire country, but also the entire planet.

But why was a judge from the D.C. Circuit Court on a case involving inmates in Texas?

The answer is that leftist organizations and the judges of the D.C. Circuit Court were using one weird trick to seize power over the entire country (if not always the planet) and transform themselves into a shadow government able to block any Trump administration move.

The Supreme Court’s ruling vacating Boasberg’s order stated that, “the detainees are confined in Texas, so venue is improper in the District of Columbia” and directed that the appropriate “venue lies in the district of confinement”. So how did a D.C. judge ever get involved at all?

In Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s concurrence he noted that the “only question is where that judicial review should occur. That venue question turns on whether these transfer claims belong in habeas corpus proceedings or instead may be brought under the Administrative Procedure Act.” The Supreme Court’s ruling even noted that “initially the detainees sought relief in habeas among other causes of action, but they dismissed their habeas claims” and stated that “their claims fall within the ‘core’ of the writ of habeas corpus and thus must be brought in habeas.”

Kavanaugh then laid out a brief history of detainees, including those terrorists at Gitmo, bringing claims under habeas corpus rather than, strangely, under the Administrative Procedure Act.

The Administrative Procedure Act had been created in response to the rise of a vast unaccountable government bureaucracy under FDR. The APA was supposed to stop the administrative state from turning into exactly the kind of self-governing machine it grew into which FDR had described as threatening to “develop a fourth branch of government for which there is no sanction in the Constitution.” It was not meant to block presidents from executing their policies or subject every one of those policies to the review of the D.C. Circuit Court.

The D.C. Circuit Court however has enabled every leftist ‘resistance’ group to go ‘judge shopping’ and file APA complaints to block anything and everything President Trump does.

And so the ACLU appealed to the D.C. Circuit Court, wielding the Administrative Procedure Act, to challenge the question of whether President Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act (which predated the APA by 148 years) applied and what could be defined as wartime. The ACLU was asking Boasberg to block President Trump’s use of presidential powers based on an act meant to check bureaucratic overreach. And Judge Boasberg went ahead and tried to seize control of U.S. forces abroad from President Trump in the name of an act meant to regulate agencies.

The Supreme Court’s response to this unconstitutional abomination was milder than it deserved.

What gave the ACLU and Boasberg the idea that they could get away with it? The ACLU had previously sued the Trump administration for removing materials falsely describing the existence of a ‘transgender’ society as a violation of the “Administrative Procedure Act” by “removing articles without a reasoned basis” as if that were a matter subject to the APA.

In another case, ‘Judge’ Ana Reyes, a Uruguayan activist lawyer appointed by Biden as the first gay ‘Latinx’ judge in the D.C. Circuit Court, blocked the removal of mentally ill individuals who hallucinate the idea that they are members of some other sex than their biological one, by claiming that it’ss “soaked in animus and dripping with pretext, Its language is unabashedly demeaning, its policy stigmatizes transgender persons as inherently unfit” and argued, despite the mountain of evidence, that the Department of Defense had “not provided a legitimate reason for banning all transgender troops” and therefore violated the Administrative Procedure Act.

Reyes had confused the Administrative Procedure Act with her own personal opinion and rather than ruling on the legality of a policy based on actual laws, abused the APA to seize power over the Pentagon to promote her own favored social and sexual worldviews in the APA’s name.

But the Supreme Court has begun shooting down some APA abuses.

In its response to a Biden judge in Massachusetts blocking the Trump administration from ending education grants that violate its ban on DEI, the court noted that Judge Myong Joun and the court “lacked jurisdiction to order the payment of money under the APA” and that monetary cases involving the government are supposed to go to the Court of Federal Claims.

The APA has become a favored weapon of choice whether the issue at hand is financial, foreign policy, deporting illegal aliens or even publishing materials about the existence of transgenderism on government websites. During the first term of the administration, leftist groups had taken to boasting of having entire “teams of APA litigators and experts”.

And with a 93% loss rate for the Trump administration in APA cases, the judicial coup was a sound strategy. All a leftist judge had to do was declare that the Trump administration’s actions were “poorly reasoned” or lacked “sufficient rationale” and would override the president’s orders.

The APA enabled a massive shift of power from the executive branch to district courts, and to the D.C. Circuit Court which had seized virtually unlimited power from both the president and local courts and judges in the process creating an unelected shadow government.

But the D.C. judicial shadow government overreached itself. And Boasberg’s attempt to seize presidential powers has created a constitutional moment of crisis that may unwind the coup.

Nick Gerli, CEO and Founder of real estate analytics firm Reventure Consulting, has issued another troubling update on Florida’s housing market—this time sounding the alarm about a collapse in demand across the Miami metro area. He described the plunge in sales as “breathtaking.”

For the last few years, we’ve tracked the post-Covid surge in inventory hitting Sun Belt states, including this note from last summer: 

• Florida Housing Downturn “Keeps Getting More Intense By The Day”

This was followed by Gerli’s report in late January: “My Favorite Housing Market Graph Right Now“… 

“My Favorite Housing Market Graph Right Now” https://t.co/yzvc1WIyKM

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) January 30, 2025

Now Gerli has offered more color on the deteriorating housing market in Miami:

The collapse in demand in Miami’s housing market is breathtaking. Sales are down 50% from pandemic peak, and are 30% below the long-term average for March. There’s a narrative building in Florida that somehow Miami won’t be impacted by this housing downturn. And that narrative is likely wrong.

The collapse in demand in Miami’s housing market is breathtaking.

Sales are down 50% from pandemic peak, and are 30% below the long-term average for March.

There’s a narrative building in Florida that somehow Miami won’t be impacted by this housing downturn.

And that narrative… pic.twitter.com/JS9iHEfNYb

— Nick Gerli (@nickgerli1) April 19, 2025

Gerli debunked some misconceptions about the downturn, with some individuals saying this is “West Coast only.”

1) What I’m starting to hear here on the ground in Florida is that this is a “west coast only” downturn. And that it’s purely the hurricanes that hit Tampa last year that are causing issues.

But in reality – everywhere in Florida’s housing market is negatively impacted,…

— Nick Gerli (@nickgerli1) April 19, 2025

Inventory in Miami has surged to 51,000 homes – the second highest on record. 

2) Inventory in the Miami metro is up to 51,000 homes, which is the 2nd highest level on record for March according to Realtor’s inventory data set. pic.twitter.com/JHV6g08dYW

— Nick Gerli (@nickgerli1) April 19, 2025

Meanwhile. 

3) Meanwhile, price growth in the 3-county metro is now shifting down.

Values are already dropping in Palm Beach (-2.5%) and Broward (-1.1%) YoY.

While they’re still up slightly in Miami-Dade (+1.8%). pic.twitter.com/aZXcn7AtpP

— Nick Gerli (@nickgerli1) April 19, 2025

“In some ways, it’s surprising prices haven’t dropped by more already due to the demand collapse. And resulting inventory spike. but in the end housing downturns can take time to play out. And the whole Miami area is at a big risk if the current trends in the market continue,” Gerli noted. 

According to the Reventure app, prices across Miami-Dade County are 20.3% overvalued. 

5) In particular, prices in Miami-Dade county are 20.3% overvalued compared to the long-run norms, indicating some major downside risk. pic.twitter.com/Gwboa5av7y

— Nick Gerli (@nickgerli1) April 19, 2025

He warned: “The more overvalued prices are, the greater the risk of downturns.”

6) The more overvalued prices are, the greater the risk of downturns.

You can see Miami went through an epic downturn in the last crash, when prices actually became 33% undervalued.

This is when a lot of people in Miami real estate made their money. pic.twitter.com/vLeaP6vqB9

— Nick Gerli (@nickgerli1) April 19, 2025

Separately, and more broadly, the US housing inventory for new homes has hit its highest level since 2007.

What could possibly go wrong in an oversupplied housing market, with 30-year fixed mortgage rates hovering around 7%?

Authored by Ken Silva via Headline USA,

A county judge in New Mexico has reportedly resigned after Homeland Security Investigations agents arrested a suspected Tren de Aragua gang member and other illegal aliens at his home.

The resignation of Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano comes after HSI agents executed a search warrant at his home on Feb. 28—arresting suspected 23-year-old gang member Cristhian Ortega-Lopez there. Agents also took an undisclosed number of other illegal immigrants into custody, and seized four firearms that he handled illegally.

The details of Ortega-Lopez’s case are wild.

According to court records, the suspected Tren de Aragua member was arrested while entering the U.S. illegally on Dec. 15, 2023. Due to overcrowded Border Patrol facilities, Ortega-Lopez was released three days later.

This is absolutely bonkers: It looks like the judge’s wife disclosed that the Tren de Aragua member was living with them — and she seemingly discloses multiples crimes, including that he worked illegally and crossed the border 5 times in recent months

The judge’s family might… https://t.co/nLnbo55oFD pic.twitter.com/rnRvRadly7

— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) April 21, 2025

Ortega-Lopez was supposed to stay in Denver pending removal proceedings. However, he moved to El Paso, Texas, without informing Homeland Security or any other government agency.

It was in El Paso where Ortega-Lopez met Nancy Cano, the wife of Judge Cano. The Canos admitted they hired Ortega-Lopez to install a glass door for them—which is illegal since the Venezuelan was not authorized to work.

Ortega-Lopez was evicted from his apartment last April, after which he moved in with the Canos.

The suspected Tren de Aragua member’s relationship with the Canos became cozy, so much so that he was introduced to their daughter, April Cano, who let him use her guns—which, like him working without authorization, is illegal.

Unfortunately for the Canos, Ortega-Lopez posted pictures of himself with those firearms on social media.

The story became arguably even stranger after the HSI agents executed the Feb. 28 search warrant. On March 13, Nancy Cano wrote to U.S. Judge Damian Martinez, pleading for him to have mercy on Ortega-Lopez. In that letter, Cano seemingly admits that she illegally hired the immigrant—and also hired him out to others.

“Each job he got I was told he did an excellent job. No one was ever disappointed. I started to receive more requests for him to return or referral for more jobs,” she said, also enclosing pictures of Ortega-Lopez with the Cano family.

“On five different occasions he went through Border Patrol check points with no problems,” she added—perhaps disclosing yet more crimes. “I took him in as my own son … Please consider his future and give him a chance.”

During a court hearing the next day, U.S. Judge Damian Martinez asked Justice Department prosecutor Maria Armijio if she knew Judge Cano. When the prosecutor said she didn’t know Judge Cano, Martinez said he did know him—and trusted him.

“I’ve met him before several times and he’s got a BS meter like you – a lot of people have never seen. He knows when somebody is BS’ing him,” Judge Martinez said. “I don’t think Judge Cano has a BS meter and I don’t think he would just let anybody live in his property.”

Judge Martinez found that Ortega-Lopez was not a flight risk, and ordered him to be released. The DOJ appealed on March 28, disclosing more information about Ortega-Lopez’s relationship with the Canos, as well as his affiliation with Tren de Aragua. According to the DOJ, agents found ample evidence of his gang affiliation while searching his cell phones.

“A search of the cellphones revealed the following, which affirms the fact that the Defendant is a TdA member: 

“(1) A conversation with an individual on April 30, 2024, in which he refers to his AK-47 tattoo as an ‘Aragua train,’ and comments that he is worried about telling [Nancy Cano] about it,” the DOJ said in its March 28 appeal.

“(2) A conversation with an individual in which they discuss the $5,000 award offered by the State of Texas for TdA members and joke about the reward money,” the DOJ’s appeal added.

“(3) A conversation with an individual in which the other participant warns Defendant about sending photographs that may jeopardize him in the United States that also includes a request to get a grenade or two 38s.”

Agents also allegedly found photographs of two brutal murder victims that includes mutilated bodies, decapitated heads and dismembered hands on Ortega-Lopez’s cell phones.

A hearing is schedule for April 30 for Judge Martinez to reconsider allowing Ortega-Lopez to remain free on bail. The Canos have reportedly declined to comment on the matter.

El Salvaror’s President Nayib Bukele has offered to swap 252 Venezuelans deported to his country for “political prisoners” held by Venezuela.

Bukele has agreed to hold deportees from the US in a maximum-security prison known as CECOT in exchange for payment – currently reported at around $6 million and growing. The Trump administration on March 15 sent 261 suspected illegal alien gang members to CECOT under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, and has sent roughly 30 more since then, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The Trump administration alleges that the deported Venezuelan illegals belong to criminal gangs, including Tren de Aragua, which he deemed a terrorist organization earlier this year.

On Sunday, Bukele wrote on X that the 252 Venezuelans could be sent to Venezuela in exchange for the same number of “political prisoners” held by the Maduro government under a “humanitarian agreement.”

“Your political prisoners haven’t committed any crime,” he wrote.

“Mr. Nicolas Maduro, you have said on numerous occasions that you want the Venezuelans back and free,” reads the post. “Unlike you, who have political prisoners, we don’t have political prisoners. All the Venezuelans we have in custody were detained as part of an operation against gangs like the Tren de Aragua in the United States.

“Unlike our detainees, many of whom have committed murder, others have committed rape, and some have even been arrested multiple times before being deported, your political prisoners have committed no crime. The only reason they are imprisoned is because they opposed you and your electoral fraud.

“I want to propose a humanitarian agreement that includes the repatriation of 100% of the 252 Venezuelans who were deported, in exchange for the release and delivery of an identical number (252) of the thousands of political prisoners that you hold,” Bukele continued (translated).

If Maduro accepts the deal, it could ease political pressure on the Trump administration, which has been accused of denying due process to illegals and was temporarily blocked by the Supreme Court on Saturday from further deportations under the 18th century law.

The proposal comes after US Democrats dropped everything to demand the return of a ‘wrongly deported’ El Salvadoran national living in the US illegally, Kilmar Abrego Garcia. 

Garcia, whose wife issued a restraining order for domestic violence, was issued a deportation order and was later given a “withholding of removal” status due to danger he faced from a ‘rival gang’ if he returned to El Salvador.

Last week, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) visited Abrego Garcia in El Salvador after Bukele refused to cooperate with an order by the US Supreme Court instructing the Trump administration to “facilitate” the return of Abrego Garcia.

According to Venezuelan rights group Foro Penal, there are 903 political prisoners being held by Maduro, including protesters and opposition leaders. Among the political prisoners Bukele mentioned is the son-in-law of former diplomat Edmundo González, who ran against Maduro and is considered by some allies of Washington to have won the election. Also being held by Maduro are journalist Roland Carreño, and the mother of opposition leader María Corina Machado.

Authored by Charles Kennedy via OilPrice.com,

• The U.S. is introducing fees on operators of China-built vessels calling at U.S. ports.

• These fees could reach up to $5.2 million per call for large supertankers.

• The U.S. Trade Representative states the move aims to address Chinese dominance and bolster the U.S. shipbuilding industry.

The U.S. move to penalize China-built and China-owned vessels calling at U.S. ports could lead to an oil supertanker made in China and operated by a Chinese company facing a fee of up to $5.2 million per call at a U.S. port, shipbrokers have estimated.

The U.S. last week announced fees on vessel owners and operators of China based on net tonnage per U.S. voyage. 

The previous proposal was a per-port-entry fee of up to $1.5 million on Chinese-built vessels, and up to a $1 million per-port-entry fee on any vessel (Chinese-built or non-Chinese-built) for operators that have any Chinese-built vessels in their fleet or orderbook.

Now, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) plans to impose fees on operators of Chinese-built ships based on net tonnage or containers, increasing incrementally over the following years.

Commenting on the new USTR move, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said, “Ships and shipping are vital to American economic security and the free flow of commerce.”

“The Trump administration’s actions will begin to reverse Chinese dominance, address threats to the U.S. supply chain, and send a demand signal for U.S.-built ships,” Greer added.

Under the new plan, the fee on a China-made China-operated supertanker could reach up to $5.2 million per call because of the large tonnage of the supertankers compared to smaller oil tankers, according to the research arm of Arrow Shipbroking Group cited by Bloomberg.

The previous per-call only fee would have charged up to $3.5 million for a tanker to call at a U.S. port.

Oil traders have already started to avoid hiring tankers built in China amid concerns that port fees could be coming for Chinese vessels at U.S. ports as part of a plan by President Donald Trump to revitalize the American shipbuilding industry. 

Oil traders and charterers that are booking vessels to call, load, or discharge cargoes at U.S. ports are seeking vessels not built in China, market sources told Bloomberg earlier this month.

Just weeks after Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives slashed his Tesla price target by 43%, citing a brand crisis fueled by CEO Elon Musk’s involvement with DOGE, he’s back with another warning about a “code red” moment for the most American-made car brand—one day before its first-quarter earnings on Tuesday. 

“Musk needs to leave the government, take a major step back on DOGE, and get back to being CEO of Tesla full-time,” Ives penned in a note to clients on Sunday. 

He said, “Tesla is Musk and Musk is Tesla….and anyone that thinks the brand damage Musk has inflicted is not a real thing, spend some time speaking to car buyers in the US, Europe, and Asia. You will think differently after those discussions.”

Two weeks ago, Ives, whose analyst rating on the stock remains “Buy” rated, slashed his price target to $315, down from $550. He explained, “Tesla has essentially become a political symbol globally, adding, “It is time for Musk to step up, read the room, and be a leader in this time of uncertainty.”

According to the analyst, Tesla faces “potentially 15%-20% permanent demand destruction for future Tesla buyers due to the brand damage Musk has created with DOGE. “ Yet we must point out that the Tesla protests were small-scale and funded by corrupt NGOs connected with rogue billionaires and the Democratic Party. 

The good news for Ives is that Musk is a special government employee with DOGE, a temporary federal employee who can only work 130 days a year. There are ways around extending SGE time, but a recent report from Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, said Musk is expected to step back from his hole once the 130 days lapse. 

Ives remained bullish on Tesla, calling the brand one of the “most disruptive technology companies on the globe over the coming years.” Yet he said Tesla needs its “most important asset”: Musk. 

On Tuesday, Tesla will announce its earnings for the first quarter. From a delivery perspective, we already have a good idea about weak sales—that’s because it releases delivery numbers for the quarter several weeks before it releases its full results. 

At the start of April, Tesla reported 330,000 vehicle deliveries in the first quarter, missing Goldman, JPM, Morgan Stanley, and UBS’ estimates of between 351,000 and 375,000. 

Tesla shares have been halved since their record high on Dec. 17.

As of the latest Wall Street consensus (data via Bloomberg), 54.1% of analysts covering Tesla maintain a “Buy” rating, 24.6% rate the stock as “Hold,” and 21.3% assign a “Sell” rating.

Ives concluded, “We view this as a fork in the road time: if Musk leaves the White House there will be permanent brand damage, but Tesla will have its most important asset and strategic thinker back as full time CEO,” adding, “If Musk chooses to stay with the Trump White House, it could change the future of Tesla/brand damage will grow.” 

On the same day Pope Francis—known for his inclusive beliefs—passed away, another globalist fell: Klaus Schwab, the architect of the World Economic Forum’s dystopian agenda, announced he was stepping down from the WEF board. It marks the end of an era for Schwab, who championed radical wokeness, bug eating, mass vaccination campaigns, population control, and climate de-growth policies through what often resembled digital communism—social credit scores, central bank digital currencies, and many more China-like policies. Meanwhile, cultural shifts across the Americas signal a rising movement toward traditional values, sending the WEF’s ideological woke grip on governments, non-government organizations, corporations, the church, and society into disarray. 

“Following my recent announcement, and as I enter my 88th year, I have decided to step down from the position of Chair and as a member of the Board of Trustees, with immediate effect,” Schwab wrote in a statement. 

Schwab stepped down as executive chairman one year ago (read: here), with former Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende taking over daily operations. WEF said Vice Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe was appointed board chairman in the interim and that a search committee for replacement had been appointed.

WEF stated: 

“At a time when the world is undergoing rapid transformation, the need for inclusive dialogue to navigate complexity and shape the future has never been more critical. The Board of Trustees of the World Economic Forum underlines the importance of remaining steadfast in its mission and values as a facilitator of progress. Building on its trusted role, the Forum will continue to bring together leaders from all sectors and regions to exchange insights and foster collaboration.” 

Might recognize some of the WEF’s board members…

Schwab’s resignation also comes three months after President Trump told globalist CEOs at the WEF’s 2025 Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, “America is back.” It also follows Trump and Elon Musk’s DOGE initiative, which nuked USAID programs that funneled billions of taxpayer dollars into corrupt NGOs.

🚨Trump tells Davos that DEI is abolished, and meritocracy is back in the US govt:

“My administration has taken action to abolish all discriminatory diversity, equity and inclusion nonsense.”

“America will once again become a merit-based country.”

It is “official policy of the… pic.twitter.com/6AWHkAIxQv

— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) January 23, 2025

Last month, Eric Weinstein made some very interesting comments at ARC 2025, indicating:

The post-World War II order has fallen. JD Vance has announced this – I personally think it’s very important that the US treat its friends in Europe very very well and it should be done in a fashion that lets people know that the US will be there for the long haul. I am sure that that is in the cards, but we have to realize that we are waking up from a very long period of time which I’ve called the “Great Nap”...

Did Trump’s MAGA derail Schwab’s ‘Great Reset’ plans?

Klaus Schwab now admits that we’re seeing a political revolution against his Great Reset plans.

Whether you want to believe it or not, he’s finished. He might still be standing, but he’s done.

He took his shot, went all in, and he was denied…

By us.pic.twitter.com/ofK0BJJrzl

— Matt Gubba (@MattGubba) January 11, 2024

Looks like it. But globalists will rebrand. So stay tuned. 

*  *  *

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– ZeroHedge Waxed Canvas Hat

– ZeroHedge Shirt

– IQ Biologix Astaxanthin (extremely potent anti-inflammatory)

– ZeroHedge Multitool

– Anza SWAT Micarta Blued (made in the USA)

Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times,

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal immigrant who was deported to El Salvador by the Trump administration, has been transferred from the country’s maximum-security prison to a detention facility, where he now has his own room, according to an April 20 court filing by the U.S. State Department.

Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran native, illegally entered the United States in 2011 and was living in Maryland. He was arrested and deported to El Salvador in March for allegedly being a member of the MS-13 gang, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, despite an immigration judge having issued a withholding of removal—which legally barred his deportation to his home country—in 2019 due to concerns for his safety.

The department said Abrego Garcia was transferred from El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) to a facility in Santa Ana eight days before he met with U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) on April 17 during the senator’s visit to the country.

“Abrego Garcia told Sen. Van Hollen that he had been placed in the administrative building of Centro Industrial, in a room of his own with a bed and furniture, and that he was not in a cell,” Michael Kozak, a senior official at the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, said in the filing.

Van Hollen traveled to El Salvador last week to visit Abrego Garcia after Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele said the man would not be returned to the United States.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate his return to the United States after it acknowledged that he was deported following an administrative error.

The administration has said that it lacked the authority to return Abrego Garcia from El Salvador as he was already in the custody of a foreign nation.

Speaking to reporters on April 16, Van Hollen said the Salvadoran government initially denied him a visit or phone call with Abrego Garcia after meeting with the country’s Vice President Félix Ulloa. That visit occurred the following day when Salvadoran officials transported the man to the hotel where Van Hollen was staying.

The senator has accused the Trump administration of defying court orders.

“When you defy court orders and deny one man his Constitutional rights, you threaten them for ALL,” Van Hollen stated on social media, adding that there was no evidence linking Abrego Garcia to the MS-13 gang.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

President Donald Trump has criticized Democrats whom he said were falsely portraying Abrego Garcia as an innocent person, saying that two courts have found him to be a member of “the violent, killer gang MS-13.”

“Those lying to the American People on behalf of violent criminals have to be held responsible by the Agencies and the Courts,” Trump stated in a Truth Social post on Sunday.

U.S. President Donald Trump greets Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele at the White House on April 14, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

On April 18, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released documents detailing Abrego Garcia’s past encounters with law enforcement.

According to the documents, Abrego Garcia was pulled over in Tennessee for speeding while carrying eight other individuals in a vehicle belonging to his employer in December 2022.

No luggage was found in the vehicle. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the group’s three-day travel from Texas to Maryland “reek of human trafficking.”

“We hear far too much about the gang members and criminals’ false sob stories and not enough about their victims,” McLaughlin said in a statement. Abrego Garcia was not charged in the incident.

In 2019, Abrego Garcia was identified by the Prince George’s County Police Department’s gang unit as a member of the MS-13 gang. He was later granted withholding of removal by an immigration judge, according to the DHS.