President Trump at NATO: New War of Words with Angela Merkel
At a breakfast meeting in Brussels on Wednesday with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, Trump said: "Germany is totally controlled by Russia because they will be getting from 60% to 70% of their energy from Russia, and a new pipeline, and you tell me if that's appropriate because I think it's not and I think it's a very bad thing for NATO."
Trump also accused Germany of only spending "a little bit over 1%" of its economic output on defense compared to the 4.2% spent by the US "in actual numbers".
German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded to Trump’s comments saying, "I want to say that I have experience of when a part of Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union. I am very happy that today we are united in freedom as the Federal Republic of Germany. Because of that we can say that we can make our independent policies and make independent decisions. That is very good, especially for people in eastern Germany."
Merkel added that Germany had put a huge proportion of its troops at NATO's disposal. "We are still very heavily involved in Afghanistan and thus we also defend the interests of the United States of America... and Germany was pleased to do it and did it out of conviction," she said.
Trump’s Criticism of the Nord Stream Pipeline
On Wednesday morning, Trump took aim at the Germans for an 800-mile-long planned pipeline beneath the Baltic Sea. The German government has been pursuing its Nord Stream 2 project for years, despite criticism from the United States and some Eastern European nations.
Trump renewed the long-standing U.S. criticism of the project on Wednesday, and doubled down by tying it to the future of NATO. “Germany, as far as I’m concerned, is captive to Russia because it’s getting so much of its energy from Russia,” Trump told NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking on camera. “We have to talk about the billions and billions of dollars that’s being paid to the country we’re supposed to be protecting you against.”
The EU figures suggest Russia is responsible for between 50% and 75% of Germany's gas imports, but gas makes up less than 20% of Germany's power production.
Germany has given political support for a new Baltic Sea pipeline, Nord Stream 2, which will increase the flow of Russian gas to EU states. The project has been sharply criticized by Poland and others.
About the Nord Stream Pipeline
The Nord Stream is an offshore natural gas pipeline that runs from Vyborg, Russia to Greifswald, Germany. It is owned and operated by Nord Stream AG. The project includes two parallel lines. The first line was laid by May 2011 and was inaugurated in November 2011, the second line was completed in October 2012.
In 2011, Nord Stream started evaluation of an expansion project which would include two additional lines (later named Nord Stream 2) to increase the overall annual capacity up to 110 billion cubic meters (3.9 trillion cubic feet). In January 2015, it was announced that the expansion project was put on hold since the existing lines were running at only half capacity due to EU restrictions. Although the pipeline has received no formal approvals from Denmark and Finland, it is scheduled to become operational in 2019–2020.
Can Brett Kavanaugh be Stopped?
The only way that Democrats can block Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination is if several Republican Senators vote no. This is not very likely, but it is not impossible because Senator Susan Collins of Maine, and Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska are not in favor of a justice who would work to overturn Roe v. Wade. But even if either of those two Senators voted ‘no,’ making the vote a tie, the deciding vote would then be given to President Trump.
It would take every Democrat and Independent and at least two Republicans to vote ‘no’ to stop Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination.
The arguments that Democrats are attempting to make to stop Brett Kavanaugh:
His view on what the president can do: Brett Kavanaugh has argued that presidents should not be distracted from their executive office responsibilities by potential criminal investigations.
The Democrats think he will overturn Roe v. Wade: The preservation of Roe v. Wade has long been seen as a defining issue in the Supreme Court fight, making it a key part of Democrats’ arsenal as they seek to take Brett Kavanaugh down.
He opposed the CFPD and is on the side of big corporations: Brett Kavanaugh has a record of his stance on large corporations and limiting regulation of them. They are taking this information from one of his rulings, including one where he questioned the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The Democrats are suggesting the Brett Kavanaugh would help dismantle the Affordable Care Act and Kavanaugh could undo existing gun control policies.
Ex-FBI lawyer won't attend interview with House lawmakers
After Lisa Page was subpoenaed by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, it was confirmed late Tuesday that she would not be attending the Congressional hearing that was scheduled for today, Wednesday July 11. Page was scheduled to testify before the House Judiciary and Oversight and Government Reform committees.
In a statement, Bob Goodlatte, a Virginia Republican, said Lisa Page “has no excuse for her failure to appear, saying she has known for months the two committees were interested in her testimony.”
“It appears that Lisa Page has something to hide,” he said. “She plans to blatantly defy a congressional subpoena by refusing to appear for her deposition. “We will use all tools at our disposal to obtain her testimony,” Bob Goodlatte’s statement continued.
Comments from Lisa Page’s lawyer, Amy Jeffress:
Lisa Page’s lawyer, Amy Jeffress, released a statement saying her client had only been subpoenaed four days before the hearing and needed more time to prepare.
“The Committees would be asking Lisa about materials that she has not yet been shown. In fact, Lisa and I went to the FBI today to review the materials that were previously produced to Congress related to her proposed interview, but after waiting more than three hours, we were not provided with any documents.”
Jeffress said in a statement today that, “She [Lisa Page] has offered to voluntarily appear before the Committees later this month. She simply needs clarification of the scope of the Committee’s interest in interviewing her and access to relevant documents so that she can provide complete and accurate testimony. I received a message from the Department of Justice after 11pm last night that they finally granted her request to review the relevant documents. We are working to arrange that process quickly so that we can move forward with her appearance before the Committees.”
Trump Promotes Poll That Found Hispanics are Better Off
An Emerson College poll that was conducted from July 6-7, 2018 found that Hispanics are better off now than they were two years ago.
Question: Are you better or worse off financially than you were two years ago? (Among Hispanics)
Better Off: 62%
Worse Off: 25%
Question: Are you better or worse off financially than you were two years ago? (Overall)
Better Off: 42%
Worse Off: 26%
About the Same: 30%
Unsure: 2%
Survey Shows Washington DC, Detroit, New York Among the Worst-Run Cities in U.S.
Personal finance website WalletHub has released its rankings for the worst big cities in the country and found that several high-profile places are at the bottom of the list when it comes to city management and operating efficiency.
In order to determine the best- and worst-run cities in America, WalletHub compared 150 of the most populated cities across six key categories: 1) Financial Stability, 2) Education, 3) Health, 4) Safety, 5) Economy and 6) Infrastructure & Pollution.
The 10 worst-run cities according to WalletHub are: Washington D.C., Detroit, MI, New York City, NY, San Francisco, CA, Gulfport, MS, Oakland, CA, Chattanooga, TN, Flint, MI, Cleveland, OH, and Hartford, CT.
The 10 best-run cities according to WalletHub are: Nampa, ID, Provo, UT, Boise, ID, Lexington, KY, Missoula, MT, Sioux Falls, SD, Durham, NC, Lewiston, ME, Nashua, NH, Oklahoma City, OK.
The survey also found that, ironically, the District of Columbia, which is home to the nation’s budget makers, was ranked as the worst city when it comes to budget per capita. D.C. also finished near the bottom of the 150-city list in terms of public education and health scores. Detroit, the second “worst-run” city, finished in last place in WalletHub’s rankings for financial stability and overall economy. St. Louis, the 15th-worst-run city, posted the worst score in terms of safety according to the survey. In road quality, Los Angeles, Santa Ana, Fremont, Oakland, and San Francisco all tied for the worst streets in the U.S.
Mail Time!
- Please address my thoughts on this - Liberal Democrats are so crazed by the Supreme Court pick because they have been for the most part unable to pass through their state legislature (via the law) their wants with regards to the social tenants of this country. Therefore, they have had to utilize the courts for their ideas to become law. When there are no longer judges that will aid them due to conservative appointments, they will be even more unhappy and crazed.
- Hi Bill, this is the first time I have written to you even though I have been a follower for as long as I can remember. The ONLY place I can hear the news without a biased spin! Bill, how can the Democrats make such a HUGE issue of a Supreme Court Justice candidate not being biased when we already have proof on video that Ruth Bader Ginsburg hates Trump and is very vocal about it????? Go figure?? Am I missing something??
- Dear Bill, my husband and I have watched you every night since you were on the Factor, and I have NEVER been so well-informed about the news and how our great country works! I am a super busy stay-at-home mom of 4 young children, and your succinct podcast works will for me. I listen to you at night after I put the kids down while I do dishes/laundry, etc. |
