The chief of the FBI is warning that China already has “burrowed” into critical infrastructure in the United States and now is just waiting for “the right moment to deal a devastating blow.”

The FBI’s Christopher Wray said in a Reuters report that an ongoing hacking campaign, known already as Volt Typhoon, has gained access to American telecommunications, energy, water and other companies, including pipeline operators.

Wray charged China is assembling the “ability to physically wreak havoc on our critical infrastructure at a time of its choosing. … Its plan is to land low blows against civilian infrastructure to try to induce panic.”

The report explained, “Wray said it was difficult to determine the intent of this cyber pre-positioning which was aligned with China’s broader intent to deter the U.S. from defending Taiwan.”

Continue reading HERE

Source: https://www.wnd.com/2024/04/wray-warns-china-getting-positioned-attack-american-infrastructure/

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Wray is expected to cite threats from Iran and China to argue that the sweeping surveillance powers authorized under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which is set to expire at the end of this month, are vital to U.S. national security.

“Stripping the FBI of its 702 authorities would be a form of unilateral disarmament,” Wray will tell the Democratic-led Senate Judiciary Committee during an oversight hearing, according to excerpts of his testimony released by the FBI.

The surveillance power of the U.S. government has come under scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers on both the right and left in recent years, particularly the ability of federal law enforcement to search for data on U.S. citizens picked up as part of surveillance of foreign targets.

Continue reading HERE

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-chief-urge-senate-panel-renew-us-global-surveillance-power-2023-12-05/

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Weekly Update

Greetings from Tyler,

There used to be some professions you could trust, within reason.  Medical doctors and scientists were above reproach.  They went to school and learned things the rest of us would just as soon not have to deal with.  But that earned them the lofty titles, and the respect of nearly everybody.

But it seems they are not immune to greed.  Doing the right thing comes with a hefty price tag, and nobody it seems, wants to rock the boat.  There’s enough money to go around if they won’t make waves.  Prominent doctors and scientists can become rich if they’re willing to spout the narrative.

We’ve seen basic rights curtailed, with untold implications. The government, state, federal or whoever, can mandate nonsense against your will?  It was in contravention of everything it means to be an American, but then you might die.  If you don’t comply, you’re probably a danger to all with whom you come into contact.  Fear was brought in to herd otherwise free Americans.  You’ve seen the examples of the businesses who lost it all on account of the “recommendations” of some national or international agency of repute.  Who did we think we were, daring to question the “science?”  If there’s anything you dare not question, it’s the accumulated knowledge of the highly educated.

It looks from here like they’ve squandered their credibility.  Do you think any scientists are employed who don’t pay lip service to global warming?  Are any doctors making a living on disputing the conventional wisdom on Covid?  Maybe two are.  When scientists and doctors lose their credibility…  We’ve been told whoppers by the anchors on national networks.  We’ve been fed a steady diet of the company line, and realized the networks are carrying water for the pharmaceutical outfits.  And government officials.  Maybe you’ve noticed.  Television funding comes from the advertisers.  Have you seen how many medical ads are playing?  Are they going to bite the hand…?

This has been a pretty rich week.  Watching the Attorney General of the United States playing dumb for all to see.  There was hardly a prosecution over looting and burning, all the uncivilized behavior we watched in horror.  But, if you’re in the public domain, you better not air any disagreement with the powers that be.  No, the agencies always apply the law without regard to any political influence whatever.  Complete with battering rams and swat teams.  The most dangerous thing you can do is disagree with the exercise of government power.  It’s enough to make you sick.  

There’s no end to the weapons and money we’re sending to Ukraine.  All but airplanes.  Every few days there’s another announcement of unfathomable sums awarded.  The pretender giving bear hugs to the recipient.  We witnessed the incongruous visit by Janet Yellen to award yet more, and then there were the clips.  “As long as it takes,” was uttered by all the top people.  Kamala’s intonation was real dramatic.  East Palestine, Ohio is flyover country as far as the bigwigs are concerned.  But Ukraine!  

The list of the goods squandered in Afghanistan has been published.  You can’t believe your eyes.  It’s mind boggling, and it goes on page after page.  Dozens of airplanes, helicopters, Humvee’s, tanks, millions of rounds of .50 caliber ammo, all the latest stuff.  Not to mention the airbase, one of the most sophisticated on earth, and our army evacuated in the most humiliating display since Saigon.  

If we don’t live in an age of mass deception!  Even when the masses have most of the corruption figured out, the media is there to tell us otherwise.  There’s not a chance we’re as dumb as the media make us out to be.  But so far, they keep banging on.  They apparently can’t admit their part in the deception.  

For two or three years it would get you banned from social media if you suspected the wrong thing in public.  Any difference with the vaunted “experts” would wear the label of “disinformation.”

So the head of the F.B.I. comes out and casually states that Covid may have come from a Chinese laboratory.  That kind of talk would get you suspended from social media until recently. He didn’t admit that Fauci funded it,  but he did.  What?  Yeah, no big deal.  You could get kicked off any number of media platforms, with government lawyers making the decisions, if you were to surmise such a thing.  

Hopefully sooner or later, we’ll find out what really went on.  It’s not pretty.  It feels like much that we hold dear is under attack.  Suddenly, the U. S. is getting its nose bloodied all around the world.  The mainstream tries to explain, but anybody can see this is not good.  It’s starting to look like “our national leaders” are not on the side of America. 

Mark

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The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – March 3, 2023 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Greetings from Tyler,

It’s just so much easier to avoid what’s happening around the world. There is this scene this week in Davos, where the world’s “elite” went to congratulate themselves on saving the planet.  Al Gore delved into one of the more bizarre performances ever.  He used terms I’d never heard before.  But those terms, at least some of them, were not invented on the fly.  Will we all start talking about “rain bombs” and atmospheric rivers? What about boiling oceans?  

The participants seem to delve into self-congratulation, just happy to be in with so many other wealthy people and presumably seeing themselves as the saviors of all mankind.  They are talking about earth, aren’t they?  Mixing unlimited (and un-merited) vanity with all the scare-mongering is not a good look.  Maybe they’ll realize that when they get home.  Meanwhile they intend to frighten everybody into adopting their rules.  I guess they never heard of the American Constitution.  It must be an impediment to their plans, and they’ve got to scare us into submission.

Why are representatives of American law enforcement agencies over there? Is it to complain that they are not allowed to “prevent crime?” Crime is off the chart, but they’re more interested in monitoring everybody just to make sure nobody’s having any success with an unapproved message.

Records are being set at the border.  Now it’s over 250,000 per month, a full blown invasion.  Maybe you’ve seen some of the reports out of New York where these “immigrants” have trashed entire hotels, at our expense.  

The pretender is in such trouble, he may not survive his term in office.  But he knows little about it and his lawyers have told him not to ask. He has no regrets.  Bet that doesn’t last long.  Even the mainstream has to report the news eventually, and he’s not looking too good.  Somebody’s going to have to tell him that resignation over mishandling documents would be a lot less painful than what’s coming.  He castigated Trump for having classified documents, just couldn’t believe how irresponsible he’d been.  But Trump was the President, which gave him authority over documents.  The pretender has had this stuff for years, in the home where his son resides.  Uh oh.

California has suffered some of the worst flooding anybody can remember.  Nobody remembers 1860, before global warming had been discovered.  Maybe that was one of those “rain bombs” that buffoon Al Gore was talking about.  But it happened long before the industrial age.  It makes you wonder if they have an explanation for that.  Doubtful.

Have you noticed that the Kennedy assassination is back in the news?  Maybe there’s a reason all the documents haven’t been released.  You don’t suppose the “deep state” existed back in the 1960’s, or did it?  There have been some pretty disturbing revelations.  We’re waiting to see if anything gets traction.

How many ways is the U. S. going to get ruined by the pretender and his party?  It seems as if everything has fallen apart at once.  To find out that we’re funding these institutions that plan to change life as we know it is disgusting.  If they can’t scare us into submission, they’ll have to figure out how to FORCE us into their vision for the future.  

Mark

P. S. On a happier note, we’ve reached 130,000 this week online, and  we’ve run big ads for WATCH magazine and the Real Jesus. Another one is in the design process featuring only Bible quotes. Who can argue with that? Religious people run around being religious, and have no idea what the “good book” says. Have a great Sabbath.

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[Disclaimer]

The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – January 20, 2023 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

President Trump on Tuesday said he has “fully authorized the total Declassification of any & all documents” related to the Russia investigation and the FBI’s investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.

“I have fully authorized the total Declassification of any & all documents pertaining to the single greatest political CRIME in American History, the Russia Hoax. Likewise, the Hillary Clinton Email Scandal. No redactions!” The president tweeted Tuesday night.

Donald J. Trump@realDonaldTrump
I have fully authorized the total Declassification of any & all documents pertaining to the single greatest political CRIME in American History, the Russia Hoax. Likewise, the Hillary Clinton Email Scandal. No redactions!

Paul Sperry@paulsperry_
When all the documents are finally declassified, and all the redactions removed from reports, the nation will see that the FBI and CIA not only knew the Russia “collusion” allegations against Trump were a political dirty trick, but that they were in on the trick.

Donald J. Trump@realDonaldTrump
“All Russia Hoax Scandal information was Declassified by me long ago,” Trump tweeted. “Unfortunately for our Country, people have acted very slowly, especially since it is perhaps the biggest political crime in the history of our Country.”

He added: “Act!!!”

Last year, the president gave Attorney General Bill Barr authority to declassify any documents related to surveillance of the Trump campaign in 2016. Trump, at the time, also ordered members of the intelligence community to cooperate with Barr’s probe.

Allies of the president, including Republicans on Capitol Hill leading their own investigations into the origins of the Trump-Russia probe, have criticized officials like FBI Director Christopher Wray and CIA Director Gina Haspel, claiming that the directors have been blocking the release of documents.

The president’s tweets come after Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe declassified documents that revealed former CIA Director John Brennan briefed former President Obama on Hillary Clinton’s purported “plan” to tie then-candidate Donald Trump to Russia as “a means of distracting the public from her use of a private email server” ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

DNI DECLASSIFIES BRENNAN NOTES, CIA MEMO ON HILLARY CLINTON ‘STIRRING UP’ SCANDAL BETWEEN TRUMP, RUSSIA

Fox News first reported that Ratcliffe declassified Brennan’s handwritten notes – which were taken after he briefed Obama on the intelligence the CIA received – and a CIA memo, which revealed that officials referred the matter to the FBI for potential investigative action.

“Today, at the direction of President Trump, I declassified additional documents relevant to ongoing Congressional oversight and investigative activities,” Ratcliffe said in a statement to Fox News Tuesday.

A source familiar with the documents explained that Brennan’s handwritten notes were taken after briefing Obama on the matter.

“We’re getting additional insight into Russian activities from [REDACTED],” Brennan notes read. “CITE [summarizing] alleged approved by Hillary Clinton a proposal from one of her foreign policy advisers to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a scandal claiming interference by the Russian security service,” Brennan’s notes read.

The notes state “on 28 of July.” In the margin, Brennan writes “POTUS,” but that section of the notes is redacted.

“Any evidence of collaboration between Trump campaign + Russia,” the notes read.

The remainder of the notes are redacted, except in the margins, which reads: “JC,” “Denis,” and “Susan.”

The notes don’t spell out the full names but “JC” could be referring to then-FBI Director James Comey, “Susan” could refer to National Security Adviser Susan Rice, and “Denis” could refer to then-Obama chief of staff Denis McDonough.

The declassification comes after Ratcliffe, last week, shared newly-declassified information with the Senate Judiciary Committee which revealed that in September 2016, U.S. intelligence officials forwarded an investigative referral on Hillary Clinton purportedly approving “a plan concerning U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump and Russian hackers hampering U.S. elections” in order to distract the public from her email scandal.

That referral was sent to Comey and then-Deputy Assistant Director of Counterintelligence Peter Strzok.

“The following information is provided for the exclusive use of your bureau for background investigative action or lead purposes as appropriate,” the CIA memo to Comey and Strzok stated.

“This memorandum contains sensitive information that could be source revealing. It should be handled with particular attention to compartmentation and need-to-know. To avoid the possible compromise of the source, any investigative action taken in response to the information below should be coordinated in advance with Chief Counterintelligence Mission Center, Legal,” the memo, which was sent to Comey and Strzok, read. “It may not be used in any legal proceeding—including FISA applications—without prior approval…”

“Per FBI verbal request, CIA provides the below examples of information the CROSSFIRE HURRICANE fusion cell has gleaned to date,” the memo continued. ““An exchange [REDACTED] discussing US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s approval of a plan concerning US presidential candidate Donald Trump and Russian hackers hampering US elections as a means of distracting the public from her use of a private email server.”

The memo is heavily redacted.

Ratcliffe informed the committee last week that the Obama administration obtained Russian intelligence in July 2016 with allegations against Clinton, but cautioned that the intelligence community “does not know the accuracy of this allegation or the text to which the Russian intelligence analysis may reflect exaggeration or fabrication.”

According to Ratcliffe’s letter, the intelligence included the “alleged approval by Hillary Clinton on July 26, 2016, of a proposal from one of her foreign policy advisers to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a scandal claiming interference by Russian security services.”

Nick Merrill, Clinton’s spokesperson, called the allegations “baseless b———t” last week. A spokesman for Clinton did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment on the declassified documents.

But Ratcliffe, in a statement released after the information was made public, pushed back on the idea he was advancing “Russian disinformation.”

DURHAM ASSUMED PARTS OF HUBER’S CLINTON INVESTIGATION

“To be clear, this is not Russian disinformation and has not been assessed as such by the Intelligence Community,” Ratcliffe said in a statement to Fox News. “I’ll be briefing Congress on the sensitive sources and methods by which it was obtained in the coming days.”

A source familiar with the documents told Fox News on Tuesday that the allegation was “not disinformation.”  “This is not Russian disinformation. Even Brennan knew, or he wouldn’t be briefing the president of the United States on it,” the source said. “There is a high threshold to orally brief the president of the United States and he clearly felt this met that threshold.”

Another source familiar with the documents told Fox News that “this information has been sought by hundreds of congressional requests for legitimate oversight purposes and was withheld for political spite—and the belief that they’d never get caught.”

The source added that the Brennan notes are significant because it is “their own words, written and memorialized in real time.”

Meanwhile, last week, during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Comey was asked whether he received an investigative referral on Clinton from 2016, but he said it didn’t “ring any bells.”

“You don’t remember getting an investigatory lead from the intelligence community? Sept. 7, 2016, U.S. intelligence officials forwarded an investigative referral to James Comey and Strzok regarding Clinton’s approval of a plan [about] Trump…as a means of distraction?” Graham asked Comey.

“That doesn’t ring any bells with me,” Comey said.

Graham questioned “how far-fetched is that,” citing the fact that Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, through law firm Perkins Coie, hired Fusion GPS and ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele to author and compile information for the controversial and unverified anti-Trump dossier.The Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, through law firm Perkins Coie, hired Fusion GPS and ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele to author and compile information for the controversial and unverified anti-Trump dossier.

The dossier contains claims about alleged ties between Donald Trump and Russia that served as the basis for Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrants obtained against former Trump campaign aide Carter Page.

Attorney General Bill Barr last year appointed U.S. Attorney of Connecticut John Durham to investigate the origins of the FBI’s Russia probe shortly after special counsel Robert Mueller completed his years-long investigation into whether the campaign colluded with the Russians to influence the 2016 presidential election.

It is unclear whether this information will be considered part of Durham’s investigation, or whether the president’s declassification will affect Durham’s investigation.

Last month, Fox News reported, though, that Durham had assumed aspects of U.S. Attorney John Huber’s investigation into the Clinton Foundation.

A source familiar with Durham’s investigation told Fox News last month that parts of what Huber was investigating in 2017 — involving the Clinton Foundation — have been incorporated in Durham’s investigation.

In November 2017, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed Huber, the U.S. attorney for Utah, and other senior prosecutors to evaluate “certain issues” involving the sale of Uranium One, and other dealings related to the Clinton Foundation. Sessions tapped Huber after requests by congressional Republicans, who had been calling for the appointment of a special counsel to review the matters. Huber was also tasked with reviewing the FBI’s handling of the Clinton email probe, including allegations that the Justice Department and FBI “policies or procedures” were not followed.

It has been unclear, for years, the status of Huber’s investigation, but another source told Fox News Thursday that Huber has faced mounting criticism from the Justice Department and White House over his progress.

It is unclear whether any aspects of the Clinton email investigation were included in Huber’s review.

Brooke Singman is a Politics Reporter for Fox News. Follow her on Twitter at @BrookeSingman.

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-authorizes-declassification-of-all-russia-collusion-hillary-clinton-email-probe-documents

The post Trump authorizes declassification of all Russia collusion, Hillary Clinton email probe documents first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

“The Russians are absolutely intent on trying to interfere with our elections,” Wray said during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday.

Christopher Wray, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.CREDIT:BLOOMBERG

Wray appeared at an oversight hearing a day before Robert Mueller, the former special counsel, was due to testify publicly before Congress about his two-year investigation of Russian interference to sway the 2016 presidential race toward President Donald Trump.

“Everything we’ve done against Russia has not deterred them enough?” asked Senator Lindsey Graham, the Republican committee chairman. “All the sanctions, all the talk, they’re still at it?”

“Yes. My view is until they stop they haven’t been deterred enough,” Wray responded.

The post Russia interfering with US elections: FBI first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Wray, who testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, discussed the threat when asked about whether the bureau was prepared to combat any potential influence by foreign powers.

NIKKI HALEY WARNS OF CHINA THREAT, CALLS BEIJING OUR ‘FOREMOST NATIONAL SECURITY CONCERN’

“I would say that there is no country that poses a more severe counterintelligence threat to his country right now than China,” Wray said. “That is saying a lot and I don’t say it lightly.”

Wray added that Russia is “probably” next in line.

“China is fighting a generational fight here,” Wray explained. “And when I say China, I want to be clear, this is not about the Chinese people as a whole or the Chinese Americans in this country. What it is about, though, is a variety of ways the Chinese Communist Party is using government officials, private sector entities … to steal their way up the economic ladder at our expense.”

Wray said, though, that the FBI has “probably about 1,000 plus investigations all across the country involving attempted theft of U.S. intellectual property, whether it’s economic espionage or counter-proliferation, almost all leading back to China.”

“The threat is deep and diverse and wide and vexing—whether, in terms of actors, techniques and targets used,” Wray said, explaining that the FBI has to contend with government officials as well as “nontraditional collectors,” including scientists, students, and businesses looking to steal American innovation. “We are working extremely hard with all of our partners to combat it.”

Wray called defense against Chinese influence a “high, high priority” for the bureau and the administration as a whole, but maintained that the Russians are also “absolutely intent on trying to interfere with our elections.”

“Our primary focus is malign foreign influence,” he said, noting that he feels the bureau is well-prepared in their efforts.

“We feel that we have significant resources devoted toward foreign influence,” Wray said, speaking to the president’s budget, and added that further congressional funding could be added.

Wray has been warning of the threat posed by China for months. In April, during a panel with the Council on Foreign Relations, Wray elaborated on specifics of China’s alleged “stealing innovation,” warning they have abilities to interfere through businesses, universities, and organizations. Wray said the FBI is even meeting with companies to provide “threat awareness briefings.”

REPUBLICANS LAUNCH MUELLER HEARING WAR ROOM, AIM TO TURNTABLES ON DEM ‘PHOTO OP’

“They’re doing it through Chinese intelligence services, through state-owned enterprises, through ostensibly private companies, through graduate students and researchers, through a variety of actors all working on behalf of China,” Wray said in April. “The kind of activity I’m talking about goes way beyond fair market competition. It’s illegal, it’s a threat to economic security, and by extension, it’s a threat to our national security.”

The intense focus on cyber and election security comes after the intelligence community and former Special Counsel Robert Mueller revealed evidence of Russia interfering in the 2016 presidential election.

Thirteen Russians and three Russian companies were indicted in Mueller’s probe, accused of a sophisticated plot to wage “information warfare” against the U.S.

Last year, the Trump administration imposed sanctions against the Kremlin meant to counter Russia’s destabilizing activities, including its interference in the 2016 election and its destructive cyber-attacks.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/wray-says-china-poses-severe-counterintelligence-threat

The post FBI’s Wray sounds alarm over China, warns of ‘severe counterintelligence threat’ first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Top national security and intelligence officials sounded the alarm during a high-powered White House press briefing, raising concern about foreign operations that pose a threat to the 2018 midterms and even the 2020 election.

“We continue to see a pervasive messaging campaign by Russia to try to weaken and divide the United States,” Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said.

The briefing showed the administration renewing its public commitment to combating the Russian threat, just weeks after President Trump faced broad and bipartisan criticism for initially appearing to accept Russian President Vladimir Putin’s denial of meddling during their summit in Helsinki.

But National Security Adviser John Bolton, in a new letter to senators, said Trump has directed a “vast, government-wide effort” to protect U.S. election integrity.

“A single attack can have widespread and cascading consequences. … It’s not just risk to prosperity, privacy, and infrastructure,” Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said. “Our democracy itself is in the crosshairs.”

Coats said the threat is “real” and “continuing” and “we’re throwing everything at it.”

“Our focus today is simply to tell the American people we acknowledge the threat,” Coats said. “It is real. It is continuing. And we’re doing everything we can to have a legitimate election.”

While the upcoming midterm elections are certainly a target for Russia and other nations with influence capabilities, FBI Director Christopher Wray stressed that “this is not just an election cycle threat.”

“Our adversaries are trying to undermine our country—whether it’s election season or not,” Wray said, noting that the intelligence community has met with top social media and technology companies to provide classified briefings so they can better monitor their platforms. “It’s going to take all of us working together—this threat is not going away.”

Wray added: “As I’ve said consistently, Russia attempted to interfere in the last election and continues to engage in malign influence operations … and this needs to be taken extremely seriously.”

Coats said that current Russian efforts are not as “robust” as during the 2016 election cycle, but that Moscow has taken on “numerous” other strategies to influence public opinion — through media, social media, bots and proxies — “with the intent to … drive a wedge and undermine our democratic values.”

Earlier this week, Facebook uncovered “sophisticated” efforts, possibly linked to Russia, to influence American politics in advance of the midterms. The social media giant said in a blog post that it removed 32 accounts from Facebook and Instagram because they were involved in “coordinated” political behavior and appeared to be fake.

Facebook did not say the effort was explicitly aimed at the midterm elections, but said the timing could be a sign of an attempt.

Other methods of cyber influence were revealed last week, when a report surfaced that Russian hackers allegedly targeted staff employed by Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., using a sophisticated password-stealing scheme. The hack was apparently unsuccessful, but an example of Russian meddling practices.

Other U.S. officials and lawmakers have been targeted by foreign actors. Coats told reporters Wednesday that the intelligence community processed that type of information through House or Senate leadership, and then disseminated the findings down to the individual lawmakers targeted. Coats, though, said he could not release any other names.

“The Russians are looking for every opportunity, regardless of party, whether it applies to the election, to continue pervasive efforts to undermine our fundamental values,” Coats said.

And last month, Maria Butina, a Russian national accused of working as a covert spy while in the U.S. on a student visa, was arrested. Butina is accused of attempting to infiltrate multiple organizations in the U.S. at the direction of an unnamed senior Kremlin official. She has pleaded not guilty to the allegations, but remains in jail as prosecutors argued she could be a flight risk.

Fox News’ Christopher Carbone, Gregg Re and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/08/02/trump-officials-sound-alarm-on-russian-meddling-vow-to-fight-back-democracy-in-crosshairs.html

The post Trump officials sound alarm on Russian meddling, vow to fight back: Democracy ‘in the crosshairs’ first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Watching FBI agent Peter Strzok battle with Congress, my initial reaction was pure anger. His repeated, arrogant insistence that he had done nothing wrong despite tons of evidence to the contrary convinced me he deserved immediate firing — if not the firing squad.

Gradually, though, anger gave way to amazement as Strzok grew increasingly combative and condescending. Given his predicament, the sneering and smirking were stupid, and yet he persisted.

Who is this jerk, I wondered, and how in the hell did he get to be a big shot at the FBI? And why are taxpayers still paying for the privilege of his malignant presence on the FBI payroll?

My answers can be summarized in four names: James Comey, Jeff Sessions, Rod Rosenstein and Christopher Wray. They are chief culprits in the death of public trust in the Department of Justice.

The cause of death was murder, and it was an inside job.

Strzok, whose voluminous texts with his office lover show him to be a king of partisan bias, rose to leadership positions under former FBI Director Comey — and it shows. Comey’s self-righteousness was his ultimate undoing, but not before he led the agency into a double death grip of corruption and rank partisanship.

Blinded by his own ambition, Comey brushed aside superiors, rules and maybe laws while giving Hillary Clinton a free pass and turning the screws on Donald Trump. Comey defends himself by saying he sought to protect the FBI’s independence, as if it — and he — are a fourth branch of government that is beyond accountability from the other three.

In the end, he disgraced the agency and himself, though he gained consolation in the millions he made by selling his book to Trump haters.

But the FBI didn’t stink only from the head — Comey’s deputy, Andrew McCabe, also was fired, and could be prosecuted for allegedly being dishonest with investigators about a media leak.

Strzok appears to be a chip off the Comey/McCabe block. Like them, he insists he is committed to the FBI’s high standards, but his reprehensible conduct makes a mockery of his claims.

His stated contempt for Trump and his promise to stop him from becoming president render Strzok unfit to be a dogcatcher.

But, aping his mentors, he nonetheless demands his denials of wrongdoing be accepted as if his integrity is self-evident. All three believe they are entitled to trust and respect, without having to earn or return either.

Which brings us to Sessions, Rosenstein and Wray. How can they stomach the likes of Strzok and refuse to clean the stables?

Sessions, as attorney general, is nominally the boss over his deputy, Rosenstein, and FBI Director Wray. But by recusing himself from anything related to the 2016 campaign, Sessions abdicated the most important part of his job.

As I have said, his appointment was Trump’s biggest mistake, one that denied the president and the nation a functioning attorney general. The most critical result is the unchecked and apparently endless investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller.

Speaking of which, breathes there a soul who believes the timing of Mueller’s latest batch of ghost indictments of Russians has nothing to do with Trump’s planned meeting with Vladimir Putin? The timing shows Rosenstein, who announced the charges, and Mueller are neck deep in politics by trying to force Trump to confront Putin about the meddling charges.

Is that their job? Would they embarrass and try to box in Barack Obama or any other president?

Their decision persuades me both harbor suspicion of Trump’s legitimacy, and thus feel entitled to abuse their powers to wade into issues that are none of their business. In that way, they are no better than Comey, McCabe and Strzok — applying a double standard of law enforcement based on their personal views. That makes them, at the least, allies of the resistance.

Rosenstein’s stonewalling conduct toward Congress over Russia-probe documents is especially suspicious. Claims he threatened members and their staffs ring true, and, if they are, it means he lied under oath when he denied making any threats.

But, thanks to the somnolent Sessions, we can add Rosenstein to the long list of those above accountability. A real attorney general — oh, what’s the use? Sessions is not a real attorney general and never will be.

Then there is Comey’s successor, Wray. He looks as if he wandered into the wrong movie theater and can’t find the exit.

He defined himself as unwilling to tackle the mess he inherited by downplaying the devastating inspector general report on the handling of the Clinton investigation. While conceding the findings made it “clear we’ve got some work to do,” he minimized them by saying, “It’s focused on a specific set of events back in 2016, and a small number of FBI employees connected with those events. Nothing in the report impugns the integrity of our workforce as a whole, or the FBI as an institution.”

Baloney. While it’s true only a fraction of the total employees were singled out, they were the director of the FBI, his top deputy, the deputy’s top lawyer and Strzok, the head of counterintelligence.

Others were also faulted, but not named, including an agent who tried to get his son a job on Clinton’s campaign while sending campaign boss John Podesta “heads up” emails.

And so the corruption of the Justice Department proceeds, unmolested by actual justice. The voter revolution of 2016 has more work to do.

In up to his wa$te

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is a slow learner. Despite two massive corruption cases growing out of his economic development boondoggles, the governor continues to act as if he knows the secret sauce for revitalizing local economies across the state. And reflecting his re-election campaign, he’s inflating the rhetoric.

Cuomo’s office recently sent a flurry of press releases announcing “transformational projects” and taxpayer-funded developments. Batavia, Cortland, Hudson, Hicksville, Rome, Kingston and even the South Bronx got his magic wand waved over their problems.

If past is prologue, scammers, especially Cuomo confidants and big donors, will reap the benefits, followed by investigations, indictments and convictions.

Can’t he just stop?

Blas schooled

Comes now another sign that Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is waking up to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s education shell games.

Following a lawsuit, City Hall reneged on a plan to allow a Success Academy middle school to occupy the same space one of its elementary schools used, leaving students and families in limbo. Adams, a Democrat, met with parents and blasted City Hall for making the “situation worse.”

Earlier, Adams initially supported de Blasio’s attempt to end the specialized high school test. But after meeting with Asian parents angered over the plan, Adams withdrew his support.

Speak up, parents. Finally, somebody is listening.

Source: https://nypost.com/2018/07/14/peter-strzoks-arrogance-is-the-product-of-a-corrupt-fbi/

The post Peter Strzok’s arrogance is the product of a corrupt FBI first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Rescue teams evacuate wounded people outside the Maalbeek metro station in Brussels on March 22, 2016 in wake of the ISIS-claimed attack. (AFP)

Is the battle against the ISIS terrorist organization still ongoing despite its military defeats in Iraq and Syria? This question has started to trouble the Americans more than others.

A survey by the University of Maryland in cooperation with Brooking Institute found that 70 percent of Americans see ISIS as the greatest challenge to the US in the Middle East.

Is ISIS really still a threat to the US within its territories? Can we say that President Donald Trump’s strategy to combat ISIS outside his country’s borders was a success, but a failure on the inside?

Prior to his election, Trump had made it clear that he wanted to combat ISIS. After his election, he adopted a more hands-on military policy, albeit a decentralized one, in Syria by offering training and air cover. He also gave the military greater say in field decisions. The results were Trump’s success in liberating in 11 months 40,000 square kilometers of territory that had been occupied by ISIS.

The US military presence in Syria will not end any time soon with the defeat of the terror group. The troops will remain there to prevent Iran and Syrian regime forces from seizing territories that have been freed from the group.

In Iraq, the US-led international coalition played a central role in the liberation of the city of Mosul. Trump’s administration also played an effective role in pressuring countries to stop their terror financing. This weakened ISIS and culminated in the liberation of several other Iraqi cities.

ISIS threats against the US

Despite its defeats in the Middle East, ISIS has not stopped its threats against the US. American intelligence has been wary of this threat from the start. Former Director of US National Intelligence James Clapper had warned in an interview to CNN that ISIS was capable of launching attacks in the US similar to the ones its carried out in Paris and Brussels.

Trump’s controversial decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has pushed the terrorist organization to renew its calls to launch attacks in the US. At the end of 2017, the group released online a photograph of a man wearing a scarf, showing the ISIS logo, with New York City’s Central Park in the background. The photo’s caption read: “We are in your home.” A number of other similar threats have also been made online, leaving observers to wonder if this was just part of a propaganda war or a precursor for an actual attack.

ISIS to American: We are among you

An analysis of this virtual campaign has led observers to believe that the real threat is now posed from splinter ISIS cells and not the leaders of the group itself. This is a more dangerous prospect than actual direct ISIS attacks. Why so?

When ISIS lost its Raqqa stronghold in Syria, it lost with it all of its professional media capabilities that were the backbone of its once impressive propaganda machine. As evidence, the recent New York photos appear amateurish and were likely taken by bloggers, not actual members of ISIS. This raises the disturbing prospect that ISIS may have won the social media war. Through online media, the group is able to reach and control new members, who have a tendency to extremism and stoke these sentiments to radicalize them. Most worrying is that the locations of these new recruits is unknown and their terror plotting will remain secret, making them much more dangerous than known ISIS members.

General Townsend and the US ‘caliphate’

Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, the former commander of the international coalition against ISIS, said that destroying ISIS’ so-called “caliphate” in Raqqa does not mean the destruction of the organization. He instead spoke of the possibility of the emergence of a so-called “virtual caliphate” where ISIS will seek to recruit new followers from all over the world.

A security or military confrontation against the virtual threat is useless. Such a war will need electronic measures to combat terrorists on Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets.

Another danger aspect of the online war are continuous attempts by experts inside the organization to hack the emails of US officials, especially security and intelligence figures. ISIS had indeed hacked the information of US soldiers and diplomats, releasing their names and telephone numbers. In some instances, their home addresses and credit card information were also released.

Threat from the Caribbean

Very few people have been alerted to the potential terrorist threat posed by the small nation of Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean. Some 125 ISIS members have hailed from the country in recent years, prompting US authorities to label it as a potential extremist hub. The island is only three hours away from the US and despite the extremist label, it has so far flown under the radar of security monitors.

New ISIS members seeking to attack the US may arm themselves with new weapons by adopting “innovative terrorism.” An example of this may be mass cyanide poisonings in malls or even in food products sold at groceries, which may lead to a worldwide disaster.

Given these possible threats, the FBI said that ISIS remains the greatest threat to the US. This was confirmed in late September by bureau Director Christopher Wray. He said that ISIS, along with local extremists, are the greatest threat to the country. The FBI, he added, has continued to track down Americans seeking to travel to join ISIS and seeking to carry out terror attacks within the US.

The post ISIS Threatens the US Again first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.