Great News Consumers: Olive Oil Bear Market Worsens As Harvests Improve
Spain’s Deoleo, the world’s largest olive oil producer, stated that the multi-year drought-driven crisis, which caused prices of “liquid gold” to surge, is ending as a favorable 2024-25 harvest gets underway in Spain. This suggests that olive oil prices at supermarkets are expected to decline in the months ahead.
Miguel Ángel Guzmán, chief sales officer at Deoleo, told CNBC, “We are still going through a phase of tension in olive oil prices, especially in the higher quality oils, such as extra virgin.
“However, the outlook is positive for the coming months, as the market is expected to begin to stabilize and normality is expected to be gradually restored as the new harvest progresses and supply increases,” Guzmán said.
He added, “Although there have been steps towards improvement, it would not be entirely accurate to say that the crisis is over.”
Spot prices for Spanish Olive Oil Extra Virgin peaked at 8,835 euros a ton in late January and have since tumbled into a bear market (-43.5%), sliding to around 5,145 euros by late fall. This is mainly because estimates point to improved harvests in the top-producing countries of Spain, Greece, and Tunisia.
Bloomberg’s Javier Blas pointed out, “Retail olive oil prices will follow down very soon (they have already in origin countries like Spain / Italy).”
CHART OF THE DAY: As the 2024-25 harvest gets underway in Spain and the rest of the Mediterranean, **wholesale** olive oil prices have crashed.
Now that the election is in the rearview mirror, the focus now turns to what the next four years are going to look like in a second Trump term. From all indications, things will not be business as usual.
Trump Turns The Tables
After being inaugurated as president in 2009, Barack Obama met with congressional Republicans to discuss his economic plans. There was a lot of complaining and pushback from the Republicans, but Obama made it clear he was going to push through his programs whether they liked it or not.
In a smarmy tone, Obama told the Republican leaders, “Elections have consequences” and added, “I won” for good measure. Obama did not have many major accomplishments, but he did push through Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act) and signed many executive orders to force changes in immigration law and to implement other preferences.
The phrase, “elections have consequences” was continually trotted out to make the point that winners can do what they want.
Now, events have come full circle.
Donald Trump not only won the White House in a landslide Electoral College vote and a majority of the popular vote, but his party took control of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Now it’s the Republicans who are turning the tables on Obama’s famous quote.
A Defensive Change
Take Trump’s choice for Secretary of Defense, for instance. Trump appointed Pete Hegseth, Major in the U.S. Army, combat veteran with service in Iraq and Afghanistan, winner of two Bronze Stars, and graduate of Princeton and Harvard. He is well-qualified, but not a conventional choice in the sense that he does not emerge from the swamp of the military-industrial complex. He’s a fierce opponent of “woke” policies that are weakening our military and hurting enlistments. He’s determined to force the retirement or resignation of a large cadre of generals and admirals who are more interested in political correctness than they are in combat readiness.
The Trump transition team is also creating a “Warrior Board” that will systematically review senior officers (so-called “Flag Officers” consisting of generals and admirals) to identify those who are overly political, woke, or supported former Chairman of the Joints Chief of Staff Mark Milley. Many will be forced out, which is not only good for morale but also creates space in the highest ranks for promotions of deserving Majors and Colonels.
More Disrupters
Or take two of his more “controversial” picks (if you listen to the hyperventilating of the mainstream media).
Tulsi Gabbard has been nominated to be the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). She is a former member of Congress and a Lt. Col. in the U.S. Army with deployments to Iraq. She received both a Meritorious Service Medal and a Combat Medical Badge. Gabbard is assigned to the Army Reserve’s Psychological Operations Command, which is perhaps the best possible background for an intelligence chief. But yet, many are screaming “no experience”!
Matt Gaetz has been nominated to be the next Attorney General of the United States. He has a first-class legal mind and excellent cross-examination skills, which will be needed in the course of prosecuting bureaucrats who committed illegal acts during the Biden-Harris years. Again, Washington and the media are panicking at the thought of Gaetz heading the DOJ.
Historian Victor Davis Hanson sums up the Trump appointments battle best:
“Many of Trump’s first-round picks share some common themes. One, many, who were in the past victimized by government bullies and cowardly bureaucratic grandees, or proved sharp critics of the administrative state, are now, in karma-style, in charge of the very agencies that hounded him. So, Elon Musk, a perennial target of government regulatory functionaries, was once policed, but now he polices the bureaucratic police. Robert Kennedy, Jr., proposed overseer of government health programs, was often blasted as a crank by the subsidized scientists and the administrators within HHS whom he will now direct. Pete Hegseth fought the military DEI machinery while a soldier in the ranks and wrote a book about the corruption of the Pentagon. He will now, if confirmed, run the Pentagon. Tulsi Gabbard was improperly put on a national security travel watch list as a supposed security threat — and now will be a guardian of our security as Director of National Intelligence. Tom Homan was derided by the Biden administration and its Homeland Security minions as a fanatic border hawk; now he will run ICE and deal with the detritus of Biden fanaticism on the border. Two, none of these appointments are traditional swamp creatures. Few rotate from the think tanks. This time around there are no retired “Wise Men” or retired four-stars. Few are Uniparty magnificoes revolving back into high government from their DC university or New York corporate and investment waystations. None are DEI, cover-our-identity-politics-base candidates. By design, their past government service resumes are thin — few past undersecretaries of these or special assistants to those. And there are not a lot of suffixed alphabetic letters or prefixed long-winded titles that adorn their names. In other words, they are vaxed from the sort of acculturated administrative state mindset that has alienated and terrified the citizenry.”
Terrified, indeed.
Trump’s selections are what is needed to clean up the stink of Washington. Trump was the new kid in town in 2016 and failed to penetrate the Swamp. This time will be different and it will be like a breath of fresh air in the Beltway.
Give Obama credit where it’s due. Elections definitely have consequences.
Spy Drones? “Unusual Activity” Reported Over Morris County, New Jersey, Near Military Research Facility
A swarm of mysterious drones circled parts of Morris County, New Jersey, during the overnight hours, drawing the attention of local law enforcement. Additionally, some reports indicated a Black Hawk helicopter was in the area at the time of the drone swarm.
“Unusual activity reported over Morris County,NJ: multiple large drones spotted flying from the Somerset County border northward and back. Law enforcement has been advised to notify their communications centers of any sightings. Photo taken in Morristown,” N. Jerzy Fire Alert wrote on X on Monday night.
Unusual activity reported over Morris County,NJ: multiple large drones spotted flying from the Somerset County border northward and back. Law enforcement has been advised to notify their communications centers of any sightings. Photo taken in Morristown (📸 Josh Wolfson) pic.twitter.com/pSqe6KnwQj
N. Jerzy Fire Alert said, “NJSP aviation is reported to be in the area tracking the drones. An Army Black Hawk helicopter was also tracked on flight radar in the area. Multiple reports of the drones being spotted in Madison, Morris Township, and Mendham.”
NJSP aviation is reported to be in the area tracking the drones. An Army Black Hawk helicopter was also tracked on flight radar in the area. Multiple reports of the drones being spotted in Madison, Morris Township, and Mendham.
Multiple unidentified drones reported across Morris County NJ tonight. NJSP helicopter observed near Picatinny Arsenal area amid broader drone activity reported in Morristown, Madison, Mendham, Roxbury & along I-80 corridor. Law enforcement monitoring situation. pic.twitter.com/LLbFG5cpqX
This incident in Morris County comes after a fleet of spy drones swarmed some of America’s most sensitive national security sites, including Langley Air Force Base on Virginia’s shoreline late last year.
Was last night’s drone swarm incident in Morris County merely a distraction from the global and political chaos, or were these drones surveilling something of interest?
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) incurred a significant increase in its losses this fiscal year, as revenues jumped but volumes dipped.
Net loss for 2024 fiscal totaled $9.5 billion, up from $6.5 billion last year, said a Nov. 14 statement from the agency reflecting its earnings. The $3 billion increase in losses occurred at the same time the agency had a slight revenue increase from $78.18 billion to $79.53 billion. The revenue uptick was not supported by an increase in mail volume, which fell from 116 billion units to 112 billion units.
According to the USPS Office of the Inspector General, the postal agency “relies almost entirely on the revenue generated from postage” to cover the costs of delivering mail.
The jump in net loss occurred despite an increase in postal rates by the agency. This increase, implemented in January and July, was done in accordance with the 2021 Delivering for America (DFA) plan that calls for such annual hikes.
The 10-year plan is reportedly aimed at boosting USPS’s financial situation.
The postal agency said that more than 80 percent of the loss incurred this year was due to factors “outside of management’s control,” such as adjustments related to employees’ non-cash compensation, according to the report.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said the organization’s pricing and product strategies “are continuing to improve our revenue picture and fuel market share gains in our package business.”
Nonprofit advocacy Keep US Posted criticized the USPS for its large losses, blaming it on the agency’s focus on the DFA plan. The $9.5 billion loss is more than $3 billion above projections, said the nonprofit’s executive director, former congressman Kevin Yoder.
He attributed the losses to mail volume declines that negated the increase in package volumes. Yoder blamed DeJoy for pursuing the DFA’s “disastrous postage increases and misbegotten focus on packages over traditional mail, which is still the largest revenue-generator for USPS.”
“The bottom line is that these consistent financial losses are driven by stamp hikes which lead to disastrous mail volume losses, plus the complete failure of USPS to capture parcel market share in already crowded package delivery space.”
USPS chief financial officer Joseph Corbett said the ongoing trend of falling mail volume and rising package volume reinforces the agency’s commitment to fully implementing the DFA plan.
Adhering to the plan has resulted in cutting down work hours for the third straight year, resulting in $2.3 billion in annual savings, he claimed.
USPS and Price Hikes
When USPS last raised the price of stamps in July, it justified the decision by saying the hike was financially necessary for the agency, as per the DFA plan.
“USPS prices remain among the most affordable in the world,” it said.
Earlier in May, the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) said the postal agency’s July price increase was in line with regulations and that there was no legal reason to reject the hikes. PRC is an independent agency tasked with regulatory oversight of USPS.
A group of senators criticized USPS in a letter in April for the “unsustainable” price hikes. After the agency began raising postage rates, “we began to see the disastrous effects in 2023,” they wrote, pointing to a decline of 11 billion pieces of mail volume that year and the $6.5 billion loss.
“Instead of connecting the two issues, USPS blamed inflation, despite mail prices nearly doubling inflation in that time period.”
In September, Rep. Jake LaTurner (R-Kan.) introduced the USPS SERVES US Act, which Keep US Posted says will allow the PRC to course-correct USPS decisions driving the agency into “financial ruin.”
The bill seeks to limit “negative effects” of the DFA plan, which has made mailing expensive for customers, it said.
“Since August 2021, there have been six unprecedented postage hikes—one every six months, well above inflation—that have hurt businesses, newspapers, nonprofit mailers, and individual Americans,” LaTurner noted.
“With each price hike, demand for mail, which is still the biggest revenue-generator for the USPS, declines, access to our postal network is threatened, and the USPS slips further into financial ruin.”
On Friday, the postal agency said it filed a notice with PRC for raising Shipping Services prices scheduled to take effect from Jan. 19. Prices for Mailing Services will remain unchanged due to which First-Class stamp prices will not be raised.
Oil Slides On UN Report Stating Iran Agrees To Halt Near Bomb-Grade Uranium Production
Oil prices are falling Tuesday on the headline that Iran has agreed to cease producing uranium which is enriched at near nuclear bomb grade levels.
Israeli and Western officials have long been worried that the more than year-long Gaza war, alongside the recent-tit-for-tat missile exchanges between Tehran and Tel Aviv, have accelerated the Islamic Republic’s push to achieve a nuke.
“Iran began enriching uranium at up to 60% levels in 2021,” Bloomberg reviews of what has put UN inspectors on edge.
“That material could quickly be upgraded to the 90% level typically used in nuclear weapons, prompting concern across Europe and the U.S. Iran still has enough fuel on hand to produce a handful of warheads, should its leadership make a political decision to move forward,” the report continues.
But then a key line based on a 12-page IAEA report:
Monitors from the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday that Iran has begun implementing measures “aimed at stopping the increase of its stockpile,” according to a 12-page report seen by Bloomberg News. The Islamic Republic’s engineers have already taken the first steps necessary to cap output, the report said.
Could this be the Trump effect happening in real time?
Tehran has expressed willingness to work with the incoming Trump administration, and is of course fully aware that some pro-Israel hawks have already been placed in key positions (most notably Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary, and Mike Huckabee as US ambassador to Israel).
But some top Iranian officials are still waiving the nuclear threat around…
⚡️GAME CHANGER
Ayatollah Khamenei’s top advisor, Mohammad-Javad Larijani, says that Iran can achieve Nuclear Deterrence in 24 hours, while our enemies predicted that it will take us 48 hours pic.twitter.com/RfLK7p9oVW
The reality is that Tehran knows that Trump will carry a big stick, and will be more willing to give Israel a wide berth for conducing offensive action against the Islamic Republic. Tehran could now be trying to show President-elect Trump that it’s taking serious steps to deescalate things.
Musk Goes All In On ‘Judge Dredd’ Matt Gaetz, Notes ‘Douchebag’ Garland Never Brought Charges
Elon Musk has come out swinging for Rep. Matt Gaetz, as the Florida lawmaker and President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general faces scrutiny over sexual misconduct allegations that may throw his Senate confirmation into disarray.
“Matt Gaetz has 3 critical assets that are needed for the AG role: a big brain, a spine of steel and an axe to grind,” Musk wrote in a Tuesday post on X. “He is the Judge Dredd America needs to clean up a corrupt system and put powerful bad actors in prison,” Musk continued, adding “Gaetz will be our Hammer of Justice.”
Musk also addressed the allegations, saying he considers them “worth less than nothing,” as “Under our laws, a man is considered innocent until proven guilty.
“If AG Garland (an unprincipled douchebag) could have secured a conviction against Gaetz, he would have, but he knew he could not.
“Case closed.”
As for these accusations against him, I consider them worth less than nothing. Under our laws, a man is considered innocent until proven guilty.
If AG Garland (an unprincipled douchebag) could have secured a conviction against Gaetz, he would have, but he knew he could not.…
Senators on both sides of the aisle are requesting more information into a House ethics probe of Gaetz which allegedly contains accusations that Gaetz paid for sex with a woman who was 17 at the time. The DOJ investigated the allegations, but decided in February of 2023 not to file any charges against him. Gaetz has denied the allegations.
Ukraine’s ATACMS Strike On Russia Comes After Putin Lowers Threshold For Nukes
About a day after President Biden authorized Ukraine to use the long-range US-made MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System to strike deeper into Russian territory, a new report suggests that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have hit a military installation in the western Bryansk region. This comes after Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia’s nuclear weapons doctrine was changed and signed by President Vladimir Putin, indicating “the use of Western non-nuclear rockets by the Armed Forces of Ukraine against Russia can prompt a nuclear response.”
“For the first time, Ukraine’s Defense Forces struck Russian territory with ATACMS ballistic missiles,” RBC Ukraine news agency reported Tuesday.
RBC Ukraine said the military facility near the city of Karachev in the Bryansk region was successfully hit with ATACMS. This location was about 115 kilometers (71 miles) from the border with Ukraine.
ATACMS flew more than 140 km and hit a target in the Bryansk region, russia.
This means that the strike permit applies not only to Kurshchyna, as the Western media wrote about it. This attack also showed that the air defense of the russian Federation will have big problems with… pic.twitter.com/0Y1PU8g1Nt
“Indeed, for the first time, we used ATACMS to strike Russian territory. The strike was carried out against a facility in the Bryansk region, and it was successfully hit,” one source told the local media outlet.
Separately, media outlet Kyiv Post stated the 67th arsenal of the Main Directorate of the Missile and Artillery Directorate of Russia was hit. The facility reportedly had large stockpiles of anti-aircraft missiles, munitions for multiple launch rocket systems, artillery ammunition, and guided bombs, much of which was supplied by North Korea.
Kyiv Post noted:
Russian media sources, including residents on social networks, reported explosions coming from within the Karachev district, and suggesting that a “military base” was being attacked. The Russian Astra Telegram channel shared videos of the incident, while local reports said that there had been strikes on this arsenal in late 2023 and again in June and October this year.
Bloomberg revealed more details about the attack:
Russian Defense Ministry confirmed Ukrainian armed forces launched a strike with US-made ATACMS ballistic missiles at a military object in Bryansk region on the border with Ukraine, Interfax reports.
5 missiles were shot down, 1 damaged; no casualties reported
Missile debris caused fire in a military installation
Here’s alleged footage of the strike:
❗️For the first time in history! The Armed Forces of Ukraine today struck a facility on the territory of the Russian Federation with ballistic ATACMS from the United States, – media reports citing sources. pic.twitter.com/kO4Qs9ASPr
Earlier, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that President Vladimir Putin signed new changes to Russia’s nuclear weapons doctrine.
Peskov said the new modifications signify “the use of Western non-nuclear rockets by the Armed Forces of Ukraine against Russia can prompt a nuclear response.”
Peskov’s comments were made shortly after President Biden approved Ukraine’s use of ATACMS against military targets deep inside Russia.
Additionally, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov addressed the nuclear doctrine, stating that the threshold for using nuclear weapons has been lowered, during an event in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.
Lavrov asserted that Russia’s position is that nuclear war won’t happen, and that fundamentally Russian nuclear doctrine doesn’t differ from the United States’ – which sees nukes as a ‘deterrent’. But still, he added, Russia will “react accordingly” to Ukraine firing a US long-range missile.
In markets, US equity futures and European equities fell on the news.
Global bonds climbed on World War III threats. The yield on the US 10-year slid about seven basis points to 4.34% & dollar surged.
“The market reaction is logical, one could feel already yesterday that the tension, was rising,” said Andrea Tueni, head of sales trading at Saxo Banque France, who was quoted by Bloomberg, adding, “For the moment the market reaction is contained, some are still in a wait-and see- mode.”
Even though the Russian leader warned the US and its European allies against using ATACMS against Russian military facilities within its borders, which could spark a direct conflict, the Biden-Harris team of warmongers and the Europeans continued pushing the world closer to World War III.
One of Harris’ biggest supporters…
Meanwhile, Donald Trump Jr. views this ultra-dangerous ploy by the lame-duck Biden administration as a move by radical far-left Democrats in the White House to push the world dangerously closer to WW3 before his father takes office.
“The Military Industrial Complex seems to want to make sure they get World War 3 going before my father has a chance to create peace and save lives,” he said on X Sunday.
Users on the prediction market platform website Polymarket have bid up the contract “Will a nuclear weapon detonate in 2024?” from 11% at 0400 ET to around 18% at 0930 ET.
Polymarket has made betting on binary events in the news cycle possible…
Lavrov Warns “West Is Escalating Conflict” Just After Putin Signs Nuclear Doctrine Expanse Into Effect
Starting in late September, Russia had unveiled its expanded nuclear doctrine which proposed a lowered threshold for Russian strategic forces’ use of nukes. This was due to the “emergence of new sources of military threats and risks for Russia and our allies” – amid fiercer drone and missile attacks coming across the border from Ukraine. This change in nuclear doctrine has now been formally signed into effect by President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, two days after President Biden authorized Ukraine to begin conducting long-range strikes inside Russia with US-made missiles.
Ukraine has already taken advantage of that, also on Tuesday, using a MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile System to strike a military installation in the western Bryansk region. “For the first time, Ukraine’s Defense Forces struck Russian territory with ATACMS ballistic missiles,” RBC Ukraine news agency reported Tuesday.
RBC Ukraine said the military facility near the city of Karachev in the Bryansk region was successfully hit with ATACMS after six missile were fired (with Russia saying it intercepted five of them). This location was about 115 kilometers (71 miles) from the border with Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has described that the nuclear doctrine changes mean that “the Russian Federation reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in the event of aggression using conventional weapons against it and/or the Republic of Belarus.”
“An important element of this document is that nuclear deterrence is aimed at ensuring that a potential adversary understands the inevitability of retaliation in the event of aggression against the Russian Federation or its allies,” Peskov said.
Thus this is the key change and lowering of the threshold – that even conventional weapons used by an enemy could trigger nuclear retaliation if deemed enough of a threat against Russia and its sovereignty.
The Associated Press also spells out, “The new doctrine allows for a potential nuclear response by Moscow even to a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power.”
Alarmingly, Peskov has already said that a Ukrainian attack like today’s could potentially trigger it:
Asked Tuesday if a Ukrainian attack with longer-range U.S. missiles could potentially trigger a nuclear response, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov answered affirmatively, pointing to the doctrine’s provision that holds the door open for it after a conventional strike that raises critical threats for the “sovereignty and territorial integrity: of Russia and its ally, Belarus.”
Also according to the newly expanded doctrine, in the event Western powers assist another nation in a major attack on Russian soil, those same Western powers will also be held responsible. This can trigger Russian nuclear launch. This appears to be why Peskov answered in the affirmative.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has addressed the nuclear doctrine change from Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.
He asserted that Russia’s position is that nuclear war won’t happen, and that fundamentally Russian nuclear doctrine doesn’t differ from the United States’. But still, he added, Russia will “react accordingly” to Ukraine firing a US long-range missile.
He expressed hope that the West will study the update in Russia’s nuclear doctrine. “The West appears to be working towards escalating the Ukraine conflict,” he said. Meanwhile the US has indicated it won’t respond to Russia’s nuclear doctrine move.
MAGA Takeover Or Adelson’s Proxy Regime? Highlights From Blumenthal, Beattie At Last Night’s ZH Debate
MAGA or MIGA?
Will Trump and his new cadre of appointees succeed in ending the wars, closing the border, slashing bureaucracy, and ridding our food/medicine of poison? Or will he get rolled by the Deep State again?
Revolver News founder Darren Beattie and Grayzone Editor-in-chief Max Blumenthal dove deep into Trump’s cabinet in last night’s debate, hosted by friend of ZeroHedge Adam Taggart (who was kind enough to fill in for Judge Napolitano due to a last minute issue — please subscribe to Taggart’s YouTube channel to thank him).
Here were the highlights:
Battle of the Billionaires: Miriam Adelson & Elon Musk
Zionist mega-donor Miriam Adelson has called for full annexation of the West Bank in Palestine, a move that would surely stir the already-boiling Middle East. Could Space X founder Elon Musk act as a counterbalance? Beattie thinks so.
Beattie: “Elon Musk is not an interventionist by any means… Elon Musk matters a thousand times more than Miriam Adelson or any other, you know, person who’s donated this time around.”
“The one billionaire that matters most — other than Donald Trump — is Elon Musk.”
Giving credit to Musk for reportedly engaging in peace talk with Iran last week, Blumenthal nonetheless pointed out that even the world’s richest man has bent the knee to “the lobby” in the past.
Blumenthal: “[Ben Shapiro] took Elon Musk to Auschwitz after Elon Musk took on the ADL and realized there was actually a force more powerful than the so-called richest man in America.”
“[Musk] had to bow to the power of the Israel lobby and the Zionist movement, and that should really tell us something about the danger that is faced in this Trump administration.”
Iran, China, Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela… these are just a few countries where Marco Rubio would like to see the governments toppled, as Blumenthal noted.
Blumenthal: “[Rubio is] going to escalate with this Monroeist foreign policy that John Bolton also articulated with coups, color revolutions, all kinds of sabotage and sanctions, and it will create more migrant pressure.”
“Many of the weapons companies that are also fueling the Taiwan lobby in Washington have supported Marco Rubio.”
Lending a ‘White Pill”, Beattie offered analysis of Rubio that could indicate his hawkish inclinations have tempered (or at least that he will respect the Trump agenda more so than first-term hardliners).
Beattie: “We shouldn’t have this ossified picture of things from 2015… you have people who are pathologically committed and ideological, whereas I don’t think that Rubio is of that sort.”
“He is not the sort — I think — like a Pompeo or like a Bolton who would be a driving force in opposition stated Trump preferences of bringing peace and resolution to the variety of global conflicts.”
“If Trump could avoid war with Pompeo, he can certainly avoid war with Rubio.”
Former Hawaiian Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard has repeated the standard pro-Israel mantras over the years, but — as Blumenthal conceded — her foreign policy ran contrary to much of the Jewish state’s agenda, like regime change in Syria which she opposed. Is Gabbard playing politics?
Blumenthal: “[Tulsi] has actually gone against the grain of the most malevolent force in the United States, which is really admirable… Tulsi Gabbard is someone who has the potential to really reform the intelligence services.”
“The reason she’s hated so much is because… she targeted the real source of the war machine, which was sending over a billion dollars in weapons and aid to fanatical jihadist proxies of al-Qaeda, which were tearing Syria to shreds.”
On Gabbard, Blumenthal and Beattie saw eye-to-eye.
Beattie: “She knows about the malicious activities of these groups like the [Syrian] White Helmets and people like Victoria Nuland and all of these scam organizations whose sole purpose is to dupe the United States into conflicts that it shouldn’t be in.
According to Blumenthal, Hegseth is both a jarhead and religiously fanatical zionist… not a great combo.
Blumenthal: “[Hegseth] fought — not to make peace and prevent new Wars from happening — but he fought knowing that his sons Gunner, Boon, and Rex would have to fight a war to defend Israel and that Israel’s interests and the interests of the US are fundamentally intertwined and form the bedrock of western civilization.”
“Fundamentally intertwined with a country that’s been at perpetual war with all its neighbors. That’s currently engaged in ethnic cleansing of 400,000 people that it’s trying to starve out of the Gaza Strip so it can take their land.”
The Grayzone editor-in-chief highlighted Hegseth’s defense of soldiers who committed war crimes, like Eddie Ghallager who “shot little girls for fun in Afghanistan”, a story corroborated by the New York Post. Hegseth then advocated for Ghallager’s release.
While Blumenthal admitted it could be entertaining to see Hegseth clash with woke warmongers, that is ultimately a side-show and Fox News talking point that distracts from the bigger picture:
“The real issue isn’t whether the military is too gay… The issue is whether it’s going to continue to go to war to defend the strategic depth of a tiny little apartheid state thousands of miles away.”
Beattie and Blumenthal dissected most of the major cabinet appointments over the course of their 2-hour debate, so we suggest all readers enjoy the full discussion below:
US Housing Starts & Building Permits Slump Back Near COVID Lockdown Levels
US Housing Starts and Building Permits disappointed in October with the former dropping 3.1% MoM (-1.5% exp) and -0.6% MoM (+0.7% exp) respectively. This is the second straight month of declines for both measures of housing activity…
Source: Bloomberg
That pulled the SAAR totals down to four month lows – hovering just above COVID lockdown levels…
Source: Bloomberg
Under the hood, it was very mixed with Single-family permits rising and multifamily permits dropped. Single-family Starts plunged while multi-family Starts jumped…
Source: Bloomberg
As rate-cut expectations have fallen, so have homebuilders actions it seems…
Source: Bloomberg
But homebuilder ‘hope’ remains high…
Source: Bloomberg
With trump back in charge, how much will Powell and his pals really want to cut rates now?
