Zero Hedge

A New Republican Vision For Health Care

A New Republican Vision For Health Care

Authored by Monique Yohanan via RealClearHealth,

The shutdown dispute offered a clear view into a problem that has shaped federal health policy for more than a decade. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) directs subsidies to insurance companies rather than to individual Americans. Democrats portrayed their position as a defense of middle-class families, but the system of subsidies they have created primarily protects and enhances insurance company profits.

The current ACA framework needs amendment to make structural reform possible. Republicans should state clearly what they are for: real choices for quality medical care that is affordable, secure, transparent, and accessible. There are three systemic reforms that can get us there.

The first reform is this: Americans should have a medical wallet on their phones.  Instead of subsidies going to insurance companies, money would go into a medical wallet the patient owns and can directly control. It would resemble a Health Savings Account, but unlike current law, it wouldn’t be restricted to just those with high-deductible insurance plans. Families could use a medical wallet for routine needs or save for later expenses. Ownership changes behavior. People compare prices, judge value, and choose services based on their own priorities. None of this is possible when the subsidies bypass individuals and go directly to insurance companies.

The second reform Republicans should champion is portable coverage. Insurance should be centered around the individual, not the employer or the state. It is about freedom and security. Right now patients have neither. Americans want the freedom to make a fresh start, whether that’s a new job or a move to a new state. To do that, they need the security of stable insurance.

The ACA in its current form has made purchasing private insurance out of reach. Too often workers are stuck in jobs they would otherwise leave because losing employee-provided insurance is simply too risky and expensive. Insurance company subsidies have led to yearly rate hikes for everyone exacerbating the problem. The 9% of the population on ACA plans have been insulated from these price jumps, but the rest of the country has felt the full burden of these increases.

The third reform is essential to the first two (and to any truly functional healthcare system): full and real price transparency. In the 15 years after the ACA became law, people still do not know the exact cost of services before they receive them. Consumers should be able to shop for most medical care, but this currently is impossible. Real prices aren’t available up front, let alone whether those prices reflect high quality, high value care. While the ACA included language to improve price transparency, enforcement has at best been inconsistent. Clear prices are particularly important when consumers control their own dollars and have coverage that lets them act on that information. The Marshall-Hickenlooper bill accomplishes this, and must be a priority for passage.

Republicans have an opportunity to reframe the discussion. Right now the system benefits insurance companies and the middlemen who serve them. It’s time for a reset that puts Americans first. This can happen if we give taxpayers control over dollars intended for their care, offer them insurance that stays with them when their circumstances change, and let them know what they are paying before they receive a bill. These are practical expectations consistent with how every other sector of the economy functions.

Medical Wallet. Portable Coverage. Real Prices Up Front. These principles offer a direct and comprehensible alternative. They shift the debate away from defending a legacy architecture that has only one clear beneficiary - insurance companies - and towards a system that can make coverage affordable for everyone. The shutdown made the choice clear. Policymakers can continue to protect insurer subsidies or they can build a structure that gives people control. They cannot do both.

Monique Yohanan, MD, MPH, is a Senior Fellow for Health Policy at Independent Women.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 22:10

DC Pipe Bomb Arrest Raises Questions About Christopher Wray's FBI

DC Pipe Bomb Arrest Raises Questions About Christopher Wray's FBI

Authored by Julie Kelly via RealClearInvestigations,

It’s a tale of two investigations.

In one version – based on past comments by former FBI Director Christopher Wray – the arrest last week of Brian Cole Jr. as the individual who allegedly placed pipe bombs near the Washington, D.C., headquarters of the Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee on Jan. 5, 2021, was the culmination of a dogged, five-year effort by the bureau. 

In another version, suggested by Dan Bongino, the bureau’s deputy director, FBI agents revived a long-dormant case a few months ago, quickly tracking down Cole through an existing body of evidence, not from new information. At a press conference following Cole’s arrest last week, Bongino said he assigned a fresh team of investigators out of the Washington FBI field office about two months ago that “scoured [existing evidence] over and over and over and over again.” Key pieces of evidence gathered under the previous administration – including credit card purchases of components used to construct the devices, as well as cell phone and vehicle activity from Jan. 5 – led investigators to Cole.

If Cole’s arrest proves to have solved the mystery of who planted the bombs, it presents another perhaps even more consequential question: Why did it take law enforcement so long to find him? Although there are no clear answers as of yet, Bongino’s description of the efforts that led to an arrest seems to contradict public comments and congressional testimony regarding the pipe bomb case previously provided by Wray. 

Given the case’s close connection to the highly-charged events of Jan. 6, questions are also being raised about whether Wray’s FBI essentially put the case on hold for political reasons. Such concerns stem, in part, from the bureau’s documented role in helping advance the discredited Russiagate narrative used against President Trump and its decision to remain silent as the Biden campaign dismissed Hunter Biden’s laptop as a “Russian plant” in the closing days of the 2020 campaign – despite the bureau having already verified its authenticity.

‘Every Rock’ Overturned

Although the bombs allegedly planted by Cole, who faces two federal charges relating to possession of an explosive device, never went off, law enforcement has always treated the bombs as possible instruments of mass casualties.

In the days after the Jan. 6 Capitol protest, top law enforcement officials promised to use all investigative resources necessary to track down the pipe bomb perpetrator. “Every tool, every rock is being unturned because we have to bring that person to justice,” Steven D’Antuono, head of the Washington FBI field office at the time, told reporters on Jan. 12, 2021. He also announced a $50,000 reward for anyone providing information leading to an arrest.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Michael Sherwin, who joined D’Antuono during the presser, even warned that felony murder charges “related to the use of destructive devices” could await the pipe bomber despite the fact that the devices did not detonate.

Records show the FBI devoted massive resources to the investigation in early 2021. A team of at least 50 FBI agents collected security camera footage, interviews, apparel purchases, cell phone records, police transmissions, and other evidence, resulting in a trove of 105 million data points by April 2021. Tips poured in from the public; analysts quickly identified the components, including a kitchen timer and a steel pipe used to construct the devices.

The FBI doubled the reward and released video clips of the alleged suspect, who was wearing a hoodie, distinctive Nike sneakers, and a face mask while carrying a backpack around the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

D’Antuono made another urgent plea for the public’s help in March 2021. “We know it can be a difficult decision to report information about family, friends, or co-workers, but this is about protecting human life,” he said in a five-minute video posted on the FBI’s website. Authorities continued to insist the devices had been “viable” and capable of injuring or killing bystanders.

In June 2021, Wray again told Congress under oath that the FBI was “aggressively investigating” who had planted the devices.

Troubling Details

But even as the FBI assured the public it was conducting a vigorous investigation, journalists and Republicans in Congress were uncovering troubling details surrounding the discovery of both devices. In January 2022, Politico reported that Sen. Kamala Harris, the incoming vice president, had been inside DNC headquarters when a plain-clothes Capitol Police officer found the pipe bomb under a bush between two benches next to the driveway of the building – the same driveway Harris’ Secret Service detail had used when she arrived a few hours earlier.

That disclosure raised concerns over the Secret Service’s sweep of the premises earlier that day, as did the discovery of security camera footage showing bomb-sniffing canine units twice deployed near the spot where the device was later found. Even after the device was discovered, video shows law enforcement acting nonchalantly about the potential danger – even allowing a group of schoolchildren to walk past the area. Adding to the mystery is a Quantico report that determined the devices at both the DNC and RNC were nonoperational – a finding, if true, that is likely to be trumpeted by Cole’s lawyers.

In another odd twist, Karlin Younger, the woman who found the pipe bomb near the RNC at 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 6, worked for FirstNet - the same provider that later told the FBI the cell phone data for Jan. 5 had been corrupted and was not recoverable. According to Bongino, the cell phone data had not been corrupted and was crucial evidence that led to Cole’s arrest. 

Younger said she alerted a security guard at the RNC after she found the device sitting near a dumpster when she went to finish her laundry at 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 6. But she also told an FBI investigator the device was not near the dumpster at noon when she went to start her first load, which contradicts the official timeline that the pipe bomber planted his devices on the night of Jan. 5. An FBI report on the components of the device disproved her statement that the RNC device contained a timer set at 20 minutes – suggesting the bomb was scheduled to detonate at the exact same time Congress convened at 1:00 p.m. to certify the 2020 election.

Demand for More Answers

Rep. Barry Loudermilk, chairman of a new select subcommittee on Jan. 6, wants more answers on the circumstances surrounding both discoveries. This week, he sent a letter to Younger asking her to sit for a transcribed interview before his new select subcommittee on January 6. He has previously asked the director of the Secret Service to make the agents on Harris’ security detail that day available for questioning. Loudermilk has also said he plans to explore the destruction of evidence – including the deletion of Secret Services text messages before and on January 6 and of video images from the DNC and RNC on Jan. 6. “As we go and looking for video on January 6th to see did anybody go back to these locations, that footage doesn't exist anymore,” he told podcaster Benny Johnson. “We have January 5th video, but we were told no one preserved January 6th. … This has inhibited our investigation.”

The revelation of those curious circumstances as the FBI investigation dragged on put Wray on the defensive. He refused to discuss details about the investigation with Republican Rep. Thomas Massie during a 2023 House Judiciary Committee hearing and would not confirm whether the FBI interviewed the officer who found the DNC device.

During a heated 2023 exchange with Rep. Eli Crane, an Arizona Republican, Wray said, “We [the FBI] have an entire dedicated team focused specifically on this investigation.” 

Wray also told the Arizona Republican, which had challenged him to explain the successful roundup of hundreds of J6 protesters but not the individual responsible for a potential “mass casualty” event that day, “We’ve done thousands of interviews, we’ve visited thousands of residents and businesses, viewed millions of pieces of data, there’s something like 39,000 video files, and we’ve assessed like 500 or so tips. We’ve done extensive public publicity, we’ve increased the reward money.” Wray further claimed that the FBI laboratory, weapons of mass destruction unit, technology division, and “cellular analysis team” were still hot on the pipe bomber’s trail. “I, as much as anybody, would like to see it solved.”

In a 2023 interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, Wray said the FBI had devoted “loads” of resources to the investigation and that he had “enormous confidence” in his team assigned to the pipe bomb case.

But when Wray retired shortly before President Trump took office for the second time, a full four years after the launch of the investigation, the pipe bomb case remained unsolved. 

More Headscratchers

Others doubt Wray’s assurances that this case remained a priority on his watch. A January 2025 update on the pipe bomb matter overseen by Loudermilk and Massie asserted, based on law enforcement correspondence, that interest in the case waned as early as one month after the Capitol protest. “By the end of February 2021, the FBI began diverting resources away from the pipe bomb investigation,” the report stated, citing as a reference a Feb. 2021 email from an unidentified Capitol Police official. “One possible explanation for the reduction in resources is that the number of credible leads began to decline, no longer requiring as many special agents to cover the workload.”

Perhaps the biggest headscratcher – how the new team of investigators used cell phone data that D’Antuono claimed had been corrupted – demands answers. In sworn testimony to Congress, D’Antuono had told lawmakers that the FBI “did a complete geofence” for the night of Jan. 5 but that “some data was corrupted by one of the providers.” That assertion appears to be false.

Congress appears interested in determining how Wray’s FBI came up empty-handed. A House Judiciary Committee spokesman told RCI “everything is on the table” in terms of getting answers from the former director about the pipe bomb investigation. Efforts to reach Wray and D’Antuono for comment were unsuccessful.

But the public is entitled to know whether the investigation begun during Wray’s tenure was simply a case that took five years to bring to fruition – or whether it is another example of a federal investigation compromised by political considerations.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 21:00

DC Pipe Bomb Arrest Raises Questions About Christopher Wray's FBI

DC Pipe Bomb Arrest Raises Questions About Christopher Wray's FBI

Authored by Julie Kelly via RealClearInvestigations,

It’s a tale of two investigations.

In one version – based on past comments by former FBI Director Christopher Wray – the arrest last week of Brian Cole Jr. as the individual who allegedly placed pipe bombs near the Washington, D.C., headquarters of the Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee on Jan. 5, 2021, was the culmination of a dogged, five-year effort by the bureau. 

In another version, suggested by Dan Bongino, the bureau’s deputy director, FBI agents revived a long-dormant case a few months ago, quickly tracking down Cole through an existing body of evidence, not from new information. At a press conference following Cole’s arrest last week, Bongino said he assigned a fresh team of investigators out of the Washington FBI field office about two months ago that “scoured [existing evidence] over and over and over and over again.” Key pieces of evidence gathered under the previous administration – including credit card purchases of components used to construct the devices, as well as cell phone and vehicle activity from Jan. 5 – led investigators to Cole.

If Cole’s arrest proves to have solved the mystery of who planted the bombs, it presents another perhaps even more consequential question: Why did it take law enforcement so long to find him? Although there are no clear answers as of yet, Bongino’s description of the efforts that led to an arrest seems to contradict public comments and congressional testimony regarding the pipe bomb case previously provided by Wray. 

Given the case’s close connection to the highly-charged events of Jan. 6, questions are also being raised about whether Wray’s FBI essentially put the case on hold for political reasons. Such concerns stem, in part, from the bureau’s documented role in helping advance the discredited Russiagate narrative used against President Trump and its decision to remain silent as the Biden campaign dismissed Hunter Biden’s laptop as a “Russian plant” in the closing days of the 2020 campaign – despite the bureau having already verified its authenticity.

‘Every Rock’ Overturned

Although the bombs allegedly planted by Cole, who faces two federal charges relating to possession of an explosive device, never went off, law enforcement has always treated the bombs as possible instruments of mass casualties.

In the days after the Jan. 6 Capitol protest, top law enforcement officials promised to use all investigative resources necessary to track down the pipe bomb perpetrator. “Every tool, every rock is being unturned because we have to bring that person to justice,” Steven D’Antuono, head of the Washington FBI field office at the time, told reporters on Jan. 12, 2021. He also announced a $50,000 reward for anyone providing information leading to an arrest.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Michael Sherwin, who joined D’Antuono during the presser, even warned that felony murder charges “related to the use of destructive devices” could await the pipe bomber despite the fact that the devices did not detonate.

Records show the FBI devoted massive resources to the investigation in early 2021. A team of at least 50 FBI agents collected security camera footage, interviews, apparel purchases, cell phone records, police transmissions, and other evidence, resulting in a trove of 105 million data points by April 2021. Tips poured in from the public; analysts quickly identified the components, including a kitchen timer and a steel pipe used to construct the devices.

The FBI doubled the reward and released video clips of the alleged suspect, who was wearing a hoodie, distinctive Nike sneakers, and a face mask while carrying a backpack around the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

D’Antuono made another urgent plea for the public’s help in March 2021. “We know it can be a difficult decision to report information about family, friends, or co-workers, but this is about protecting human life,” he said in a five-minute video posted on the FBI’s website. Authorities continued to insist the devices had been “viable” and capable of injuring or killing bystanders.

In June 2021, Wray again told Congress under oath that the FBI was “aggressively investigating” who had planted the devices.

Troubling Details

But even as the FBI assured the public it was conducting a vigorous investigation, journalists and Republicans in Congress were uncovering troubling details surrounding the discovery of both devices. In January 2022, Politico reported that Sen. Kamala Harris, the incoming vice president, had been inside DNC headquarters when a plain-clothes Capitol Police officer found the pipe bomb under a bush between two benches next to the driveway of the building – the same driveway Harris’ Secret Service detail had used when she arrived a few hours earlier.

That disclosure raised concerns over the Secret Service’s sweep of the premises earlier that day, as did the discovery of security camera footage showing bomb-sniffing canine units twice deployed near the spot where the device was later found. Even after the device was discovered, video shows law enforcement acting nonchalantly about the potential danger – even allowing a group of schoolchildren to walk past the area. Adding to the mystery is a Quantico report that determined the devices at both the DNC and RNC were nonoperational – a finding, if true, that is likely to be trumpeted by Cole’s lawyers.

In another odd twist, Karlin Younger, the woman who found the pipe bomb near the RNC at 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 6, worked for FirstNet - the same provider that later told the FBI the cell phone data for Jan. 5 had been corrupted and was not recoverable. According to Bongino, the cell phone data had not been corrupted and was crucial evidence that led to Cole’s arrest. 

Younger said she alerted a security guard at the RNC after she found the device sitting near a dumpster when she went to finish her laundry at 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 6. But she also told an FBI investigator the device was not near the dumpster at noon when she went to start her first load, which contradicts the official timeline that the pipe bomber planted his devices on the night of Jan. 5. An FBI report on the components of the device disproved her statement that the RNC device contained a timer set at 20 minutes – suggesting the bomb was scheduled to detonate at the exact same time Congress convened at 1:00 p.m. to certify the 2020 election.

Demand for More Answers

Rep. Barry Loudermilk, chairman of a new select subcommittee on Jan. 6, wants more answers on the circumstances surrounding both discoveries. This week, he sent a letter to Younger asking her to sit for a transcribed interview before his new select subcommittee on January 6. He has previously asked the director of the Secret Service to make the agents on Harris’ security detail that day available for questioning. Loudermilk has also said he plans to explore the destruction of evidence – including the deletion of Secret Services text messages before and on January 6 and of video images from the DNC and RNC on Jan. 6. “As we go and looking for video on January 6th to see did anybody go back to these locations, that footage doesn't exist anymore,” he told podcaster Benny Johnson. “We have January 5th video, but we were told no one preserved January 6th. … This has inhibited our investigation.”

The revelation of those curious circumstances as the FBI investigation dragged on put Wray on the defensive. He refused to discuss details about the investigation with Republican Rep. Thomas Massie during a 2023 House Judiciary Committee hearing and would not confirm whether the FBI interviewed the officer who found the DNC device.

During a heated 2023 exchange with Rep. Eli Crane, an Arizona Republican, Wray said, “We [the FBI] have an entire dedicated team focused specifically on this investigation.” 

Wray also told the Arizona Republican, which had challenged him to explain the successful roundup of hundreds of J6 protesters but not the individual responsible for a potential “mass casualty” event that day, “We’ve done thousands of interviews, we’ve visited thousands of residents and businesses, viewed millions of pieces of data, there’s something like 39,000 video files, and we’ve assessed like 500 or so tips. We’ve done extensive public publicity, we’ve increased the reward money.” Wray further claimed that the FBI laboratory, weapons of mass destruction unit, technology division, and “cellular analysis team” were still hot on the pipe bomber’s trail. “I, as much as anybody, would like to see it solved.”

In a 2023 interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, Wray said the FBI had devoted “loads” of resources to the investigation and that he had “enormous confidence” in his team assigned to the pipe bomb case.

But when Wray retired shortly before President Trump took office for the second time, a full four years after the launch of the investigation, the pipe bomb case remained unsolved. 

More Headscratchers

Others doubt Wray’s assurances that this case remained a priority on his watch. A January 2025 update on the pipe bomb matter overseen by Loudermilk and Massie asserted, based on law enforcement correspondence, that interest in the case waned as early as one month after the Capitol protest. “By the end of February 2021, the FBI began diverting resources away from the pipe bomb investigation,” the report stated, citing as a reference a Feb. 2021 email from an unidentified Capitol Police official. “One possible explanation for the reduction in resources is that the number of credible leads began to decline, no longer requiring as many special agents to cover the workload.”

Perhaps the biggest headscratcher – how the new team of investigators used cell phone data that D’Antuono claimed had been corrupted – demands answers. In sworn testimony to Congress, D’Antuono had told lawmakers that the FBI “did a complete geofence” for the night of Jan. 5 but that “some data was corrupted by one of the providers.” That assertion appears to be false.

Congress appears interested in determining how Wray’s FBI came up empty-handed. A House Judiciary Committee spokesman told RCI “everything is on the table” in terms of getting answers from the former director about the pipe bomb investigation. Efforts to reach Wray and D’Antuono for comment were unsuccessful.

But the public is entitled to know whether the investigation begun during Wray’s tenure was simply a case that took five years to bring to fruition – or whether it is another example of a federal investigation compromised by political considerations.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 21:00

ICE Announces Arrest Of 400 Illegal Immigrants In Minnesota

ICE Announces Arrest Of 400 Illegal Immigrants In Minnesota

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

More than 400 illegal immigrants have been arrested in Minnesota by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as part of Operation Metro Surge, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement on Dec. 12.

Federal agents move away protestors in front of Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices in Portland, Ore., on Oct. 4, 2025. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Operation Metro Surge targets the “worst of the worst” illegal immigrants who had flocked to Minnesota, assuming the state’s “sanctuary” politicians would protect them, DHS said.

Sanctuary jurisdictions are places in the country where local or state officials refuse to enforce federal immigration laws or cooperate with federal immigration authorities. Minnesota is one of such states, according to an Aug. 5 statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Among the arrested were a Burmese national convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct using force or coercion, a Somali convicted of robbery, a Laotian convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a child under 13, and an Ecuadorian national who was previously arrested for assaulting a police officer, DHS said.

DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin accused Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who have been vocal against ICE operations, of “fail[ing] to protect the people of Minnesota.”

“They let these monsters and child predators roam free,” McLaughlin said. “Thanks to our brave law enforcement, Minnesota is safer with these thugs off their streets.”

The Epoch Times reached out to Walz and Frey for comments and did not receive a response by publication time.

The arrests come as immigration enforcement officers continue to face a surge in attacks nationwide.

On Dec. 12, DHS said an ICE officer was attacked by a criminal illegal immigrant in Tullos, Louisiana, who “savagely bit the officer’s hand while resisting arrest.”

The bite broke through the skin and drew blood, the agency said, while calling on politicians in sanctuary jurisdictions and media to stop calling for resistance against ICE enforcement.

“DHS law enforcement is facing a 1,150 percent increase in assaults against them and an 8,000 percent increase in death threats. This is the reality of what our ICE officers are facing every day as they go to work to simply do their job and enforce the law,” McLaughlin said.

“Many of these assaults, including biting and vehicle rammings, are happening as a direct result of sanctuary politicians encouraging illegal aliens to evade arrest.”

There has been pushback from officials in Minneapolis and Minnesota over the federal government’s enforcement operations.

In Minneapolis, the City Council unanimously approved a stronger version of its “sanctuary city” ordinance on Dec. 11 amid the federal government’s illegal immigration crackdown.

Community members gather for a public hearing as the Minneapolis City Council considers strengthening the city’s separation ordinance barring cooperation with ICE in Minneapolis, Minn., on Dec. 9, 2025. Jenn Ackerman for The Epoch Times

Updates to the “separation ordinance,” which bans local police from assisting federal immigration-enforcement efforts and has been in effect for 22 years, were passed by the council, 13-0. There are no Republicans on the council.

During the meeting, Councilmember Jason Chavez, whose parents came from Mexico, said, “Our undocumented immigrants as a whole are being arrested, detained, deported, and not being able to come home.”

Chavez vowed to “continue to resist this Trump administration.”

Meanwhile, Minnesota Gov. Walz wrote a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem on Dec. 11, saying he has serious concerns about ICE operations allegedly resulting in “multiple arrests of United States citizens” in Minneapolis.

“The forcefulness, lack of communication, and unlawful practices displayed by your agents will not be tolerated in Minnesota,” he wrote.

DHS criticized the letter in a Dec. 12 X post, highlighting that there is a “growing and disturbing trend” of agitators and rioters obstructing law enforcement during the arrest of illegal immigrants.

The department highlighted the surge in attacks against officers and warned that obstructing law enforcement is not a protest but a crime.

“Secretary Noem has been clear: if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” DHS said.

“Instead of trying to spread misinformation, @GovTimWalz should focus on protecting American lives and thanking the brave men and women of DHS law enforcement who are risking their lives to make communities in his state safer.”

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 19:50

ICE Announces Arrest Of 400 Illegal Immigrants In Minnesota

ICE Announces Arrest Of 400 Illegal Immigrants In Minnesota

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

More than 400 illegal immigrants have been arrested in Minnesota by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as part of Operation Metro Surge, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement on Dec. 12.

Federal agents move away protestors in front of Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices in Portland, Ore., on Oct. 4, 2025. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Operation Metro Surge targets the “worst of the worst” illegal immigrants who had flocked to Minnesota, assuming the state’s “sanctuary” politicians would protect them, DHS said.

Sanctuary jurisdictions are places in the country where local or state officials refuse to enforce federal immigration laws or cooperate with federal immigration authorities. Minnesota is one of such states, according to an Aug. 5 statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Among the arrested were a Burmese national convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct using force or coercion, a Somali convicted of robbery, a Laotian convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a child under 13, and an Ecuadorian national who was previously arrested for assaulting a police officer, DHS said.

DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin accused Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who have been vocal against ICE operations, of “fail[ing] to protect the people of Minnesota.”

“They let these monsters and child predators roam free,” McLaughlin said. “Thanks to our brave law enforcement, Minnesota is safer with these thugs off their streets.”

The Epoch Times reached out to Walz and Frey for comments and did not receive a response by publication time.

The arrests come as immigration enforcement officers continue to face a surge in attacks nationwide.

On Dec. 12, DHS said an ICE officer was attacked by a criminal illegal immigrant in Tullos, Louisiana, who “savagely bit the officer’s hand while resisting arrest.”

The bite broke through the skin and drew blood, the agency said, while calling on politicians in sanctuary jurisdictions and media to stop calling for resistance against ICE enforcement.

“DHS law enforcement is facing a 1,150 percent increase in assaults against them and an 8,000 percent increase in death threats. This is the reality of what our ICE officers are facing every day as they go to work to simply do their job and enforce the law,” McLaughlin said.

“Many of these assaults, including biting and vehicle rammings, are happening as a direct result of sanctuary politicians encouraging illegal aliens to evade arrest.”

There has been pushback from officials in Minneapolis and Minnesota over the federal government’s enforcement operations.

In Minneapolis, the City Council unanimously approved a stronger version of its “sanctuary city” ordinance on Dec. 11 amid the federal government’s illegal immigration crackdown.

Community members gather for a public hearing as the Minneapolis City Council considers strengthening the city’s separation ordinance barring cooperation with ICE in Minneapolis, Minn., on Dec. 9, 2025. Jenn Ackerman for The Epoch Times

Updates to the “separation ordinance,” which bans local police from assisting federal immigration-enforcement efforts and has been in effect for 22 years, were passed by the council, 13-0. There are no Republicans on the council.

During the meeting, Councilmember Jason Chavez, whose parents came from Mexico, said, “Our undocumented immigrants as a whole are being arrested, detained, deported, and not being able to come home.”

Chavez vowed to “continue to resist this Trump administration.”

Meanwhile, Minnesota Gov. Walz wrote a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem on Dec. 11, saying he has serious concerns about ICE operations allegedly resulting in “multiple arrests of United States citizens” in Minneapolis.

“The forcefulness, lack of communication, and unlawful practices displayed by your agents will not be tolerated in Minnesota,” he wrote.

DHS criticized the letter in a Dec. 12 X post, highlighting that there is a “growing and disturbing trend” of agitators and rioters obstructing law enforcement during the arrest of illegal immigrants.

The department highlighted the surge in attacks against officers and warned that obstructing law enforcement is not a protest but a crime.

“Secretary Noem has been clear: if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” DHS said.

“Instead of trying to spread misinformation, @GovTimWalz should focus on protecting American lives and thanking the brave men and women of DHS law enforcement who are risking their lives to make communities in his state safer.”

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 19:50

Santa Vs The Grinch, Diets, & QE

Santa Vs The Grinch, Diets, & QE

By Peter Tchir of Academy Securities

Santa vs The Grinch, Diets, & qe

The week ended with a bang.

At Academy’s Holiday Party, the Marines pulled out all the stops to win the annual “service song” contest (they actually brought out instruments, with Dakota leading the charge on the trumpet).

We rolled (like the Army’s rolling along song), straight into Bloomberg TV Friday morning, where Academy was the guest host for the entire 6am hour. Had some interesting guests on the Geopolitical/European side, a bond portfolio PM, and an analyst who covers Disney (I abstained from asking him a question as I just didn’t think I could contribute usefully to the Disney-OpenAI deal discussion).

Santa vs The Grinch

Post-FOMC, markets rallied making it appear like the Santa rally was well underway. We will be circling back on a couple of things mentioned in our Quick Take on the FOMC. Starting with the final line from that report – the Oracle earnings call could be market moving.

Oracle struggled the next day, but markets fought back from their lows, with some serious “rotation” occurring. But more “questionable” news from the chip and data center/AI space weighed on markets again on Friday, this time, without a late-day stick save.

We use the word “questionable” because on the one hand, we heard phrases like:

  • Slight miss, overall solid, decent guidance, new clients added, backlogs, etc.

All phrases that you would not normally associate with individual stocks down double digits or even the Nasdaq 100 down 2%. Clearly expectations are high and valuations still require very strong numbers/guidance for bullishness on data centers/AI to remain intact.

Since November 20th, we’ve seen the Nasdaq 100 lag (still up, but lagging) while the Russell 2000 has been the star of the show.

We pick that date because that was the day we started to see the Fed hawks capitulate – the Santa Rally Recipe.

We argued that breaking the 100-Day Moving Average (DMA) made the Fed “see the light” and turn noticeably dovish (the probability of a rate cut jumped from the 30s to 90s in a matter of days).

We are trading right around the 50-DMA right now on the Nasdaq 100. It could still act as resistance, which we should see Sunday night/Monday morning. But if it breaks through there, the 100-DMA is clearly in play. What is concerning is that it was quite clear to many that the Fed played a crucial role in defending the 100-DMA. Will they do it again if we get there? Possibly, but how? The next meeting is quite far off, by market standards.

We will be watching some of these technical levels closely as it seems that not only is the “free money” gone, but the hurdle to creating further market cap gains has ratcheted higher. We define “free” money as things like announcing $X in spending on AI/data centers and being rewarded with a market cap increase far in excess of $X.

So far, the Grinch hasn’t caught up to the people in Weeville (Russell 2000), but it seems impossible to believe that further weakness here won’t bring down all the markets:

  • The stocks just make up such a large portion of the big indices, and it will be difficult for even the Russell 2000, with little actual overlap, to fight the trend. The outperformance can continue, but would likely all be negative.

  • The industry makes up such a huge part of the economic story including spending and the wealth effect (more than jobs but there are jobs too). It is difficult to see how markets can do well (though rate cut expectations, which I think are too low, will increase with more cuts coming sooner than is currently being priced in).

More “technical” than usual, but since we “survived” the Fed and the Santa rally seemed back in play, positioning (which goes hand in hand with technicals) may be offsides again coming into a period of low levels of true liquidity.

Which Brings Us to Diets

I cannot remember the last time there was this much chatter about single name CDS, with Oracle’s CDS leading the way. Not only did we end the TV interview on Friday talking about that, but we also spent some time on Friday helping Barron’s understand CDS, in relation to big tech and data centers.

We mentioned Debt Diets a few weeks ago, and want to highlight it again. It was our “Theme for 2019.” At the time, many corporations were seeing their stocks come under pressure, largely due to strains in the credit market for their names. It is “easy” for corporate leadership to ignore the debt markets when their stock price is doing really well. You can probably even give credit markets only a cursory glance if your stock is facing some pressure, but credit is just a side story. But when credit becomes a main part of the story – it is difficult to ignore. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It might sound bad, but it doesn’t have to be.

When Credit Leads the Way

This chart, for me, explains why a “debt diet” may be on the way (and yes, we will explain what we mean by that, and why it isn’t necessarily bad, and follows our end of “free” money narrative).

It is possible that I’m “grasping” at straws, but from the middle of September to the middle of October, the credit market and stock market were not “beating the same drum.” Yes, the stock market faced some selling pressure, but it also had a solid rebound. The credit market basically widened every day during that period.

Now they are back to moving in the same direction and it seems almost impossible to ignore the performance of the credit market when making a decision on the stock market.

Which brings us to the Debt Diet.

  • Companies can alter their spending plans.

    • Probably unnecessary here, but for the space as a whole, it might be a good time for CEOs and CFOs to explain their spending plans more clearly. To, not necessarily, pay “homage” to creditors, but make sure creditors understand their concerns are being taken into account.

    • Clarity, especially as to what might make them cautious on building more (maybe some rough alignment of building with profits and positive cash flow in mind, versus an almost “build it and they will come” mentality).

  • Companies do not need to be “afraid” of creditors, but a clearer recognition of their importance to your future might be in order.

A lot can be done without changing the plans today. I see a lot of ways that clarification and some identification of issues or trends that might change spending plans could go a long way towards improving spreads and leaving the market hungry for more issuance in 2026 and beyond!

Debt Diets are Manageable – An AI Diet Might Not Be

So far, this seems more like a “debt diet” type of situation in the data center space. The news that has come out doesn’t seem to have changed the overall narrative (backlogs, new clients, etc. all seem to argue this is more about a change in valuations than a meaningful change in trend for the industry).

However, I am nervous that we could see an AI Diet developing:

  • How much are companies budgeting for AI spend next year? The following year? Just like the industry itself had “free” money for a period of time, it was impossible for any corporation in America to do anything but spend more on AI. As companies have now been using AI for 2 years or more, are they all seeing the benefits they thought they paid for? Certainly, some are and they are probably rejoicing in their spending. But everyone? Especially in an economy, where away from certain industries (our little i-shaped view of the economy), we are seeing little growth. For now, I think the spending from corporate America continues, but it will be possibly “abated” as opposed to unabated.

  • Chips and China. The admin is comfortable selling a greater variety of chips to a greater variety of nations (China being the most important, though I’d argue that the Middle East isn’t far behind in importance). The question is whether China wants chips in the quantity that would fuel real revenue growth? Or is China willing to forego some quality today, in an effort to continue to bootstrap their own chip industry and make them more competitive with the top chips being designed/produced by U.S. companies and TSMC? I think this is more about constraining the upside rather than creating downside risk to spending on U.S. chips, but I have this nagging concern that “we” may be underestimating the resources and skills that China is devoting to this.

  • Electricity. If there is one thing our Macro, Structured Products, and Sustainable Finance teams agree on – it is the importance of electricity in today’s economy and the risk that we cannot generate electrons quickly and efficiently enough to satisfy the needs of industry going forward. This “molecules to electrons” has been a theme of ours for quite some time and fits perfectly into our ProSec™ (Production for Security) framework. If you were starting to think, wonder, or even hope that we could go an entire T-Report without mentioning ProSec™, we had to disappoint you.

    • If you have not read Stav Gaon’s work on data centers, I highly recommend you do. You can find his work under the Securitized Products Research & Strategy tab on Academy’s website. You can scroll and pick through his various pieces on data centers.

I think the Debt Diet is real and not necessarily bad. I don’t think the AI Diet is real, but since it is very bad if it occurs, it seemed worth at least highlighting that risk in our “diet” framework.

qe

Is the $40 billion of Federal Reserve purchases QE or a non-event? Or somewhere in between?

It “depends.” Clearly the Fed had to address some issues within the front end of the yield curve. SOFR, as a secured rate, should not be more expensive than unsecured rates. That is embarrassing, and has some small economic consequences. This is NOTHING like elevated LIBOR. When we have problems on interbank lending or even in the commercial paper markets, we can worry. This is much more of an issue with regulations, regulatory capital, and return on capital. The rules have been created in such a way, that it isn’t particularly economic (or even feasible) for the banking industry to price and trade SOFR at levels where “it should trade.” So, to the extent these purchases are “temporary” and designed to get us through year end and “clean things up” (and then they can be reduced or eliminated), it isn’t really QE or even qe. Bitcoin does as good of a job as any asset class at “sniffing” out balance sheet expansion and it has been moderately happy, but not giddy, since the announcement was made.

If the Treasury decides to take advantage of this by reducing issuance of longer-dated bonds, to sell more T-Bills to the Fed, and does this month after month, it starts to look a lot more like QE.

For now, I’ll be in the “qe” camp and that this is more of a “fix,” than in the full-on QE camp, but I’m not sure why Treasury wouldn’t try to make this work a lot more like QE than maybe even Powell intended?

I continue to believe that “we ain’t seen nothing yet” in terms of how the admin and Treasury will work with the Fed to achieve 3% or lower on the front end and a 3-handle (under 4%) on 10s.

At 4.18% on 10s and 2s vs 10s at 66 (the highest since February 2022), I’m tempted to be buying 10s and putting on flatteners. But, it is probably a bit early, as the market doesn’t feel that healthy, and I think that we need Japanese yields to really stabilize and Europe to make it clear on whether they are going to spend aggressively, or seize Russia’s frozen reserves, or let the 5% defense spending fizzle, before we can get too comfortable on U.S. rates.

It does seem ”curious” that Goolsbee went from dissenting on Wednesday (wanted no cut) to highlighting that he thinks there will be more cuts next year than others! I wonder what sort of “bollocking” he got from the admin between the FOMC meeting and his speaking opportunity?

Bottom Line

I am not sure how we got to the “bottom line” without mentioning Tuesday’s jobs data. The release date is highly unusual and I certainly don’t understand how the government shutdown will affect the report. Since it is delayed, the response rate could be higher, but maybe much of the preliminary work wasn’t done?

The consensus is for 50k jobs to be created. I’d be leaning towards the under. I do think a weak jobs report would help bonds. I agree with Goolsbee that the Fed will cut sooner and more aggressively than is priced in, but it won’t help the long end much (just yet) and won’t help stocks – as the “slowdown” story (despite the Fed raising GDP expectations for next year) will weigh on stocks.

One thing I can tell you with certainty is that despite all this talk of diets, and probably because of the holidays and travel, I’m very reluctant and even a bit scared to step on a scale.

Have a great week, but expect more chop and volatility coming into year end and the start of next year, which should be a gangbuster one for debt issuance, and may well make credit markets interesting to focus on again! I’ve almost missed the fact that in the past year, where everything in credit seemed so dull (until the latter half when the financing needs started to hit home), we also saw the first signs of unexpected problems in private credit.

With all that is going on in the world, and U.S. service members at risk, it was fun to sit back and watch a great Army-Navy football game

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 18:25

Santa Vs The Grinch, Diets, & QE

Santa Vs The Grinch, Diets, & QE

By Peter Tchir of Academy Securities

Santa vs The Grinch, Diets, & qe

The week ended with a bang.

At Academy’s Holiday Party, the Marines pulled out all the stops to win the annual “service song” contest (they actually brought out instruments, with Dakota leading the charge on the trumpet).

We rolled (like the Army’s rolling along song), straight into Bloomberg TV Friday morning, where Academy was the guest host for the entire 6am hour. Had some interesting guests on the Geopolitical/European side, a bond portfolio PM, and an analyst who covers Disney (I abstained from asking him a question as I just didn’t think I could contribute usefully to the Disney-OpenAI deal discussion).

Santa vs The Grinch

Post-FOMC, markets rallied making it appear like the Santa rally was well underway. We will be circling back on a couple of things mentioned in our Quick Take on the FOMC. Starting with the final line from that report – the Oracle earnings call could be market moving.

Oracle struggled the next day, but markets fought back from their lows, with some serious “rotation” occurring. But more “questionable” news from the chip and data center/AI space weighed on markets again on Friday, this time, without a late-day stick save.

We use the word “questionable” because on the one hand, we heard phrases like:

  • Slight miss, overall solid, decent guidance, new clients added, backlogs, etc.

All phrases that you would not normally associate with individual stocks down double digits or even the Nasdaq 100 down 2%. Clearly expectations are high and valuations still require very strong numbers/guidance for bullishness on data centers/AI to remain intact.

Since November 20th, we’ve seen the Nasdaq 100 lag (still up, but lagging) while the Russell 2000 has been the star of the show.

We pick that date because that was the day we started to see the Fed hawks capitulate – the Santa Rally Recipe.

We argued that breaking the 100-Day Moving Average (DMA) made the Fed “see the light” and turn noticeably dovish (the probability of a rate cut jumped from the 30s to 90s in a matter of days).

We are trading right around the 50-DMA right now on the Nasdaq 100. It could still act as resistance, which we should see Sunday night/Monday morning. But if it breaks through there, the 100-DMA is clearly in play. What is concerning is that it was quite clear to many that the Fed played a crucial role in defending the 100-DMA. Will they do it again if we get there? Possibly, but how? The next meeting is quite far off, by market standards.

We will be watching some of these technical levels closely as it seems that not only is the “free money” gone, but the hurdle to creating further market cap gains has ratcheted higher. We define “free” money as things like announcing $X in spending on AI/data centers and being rewarded with a market cap increase far in excess of $X.

So far, the Grinch hasn’t caught up to the people in Weeville (Russell 2000), but it seems impossible to believe that further weakness here won’t bring down all the markets:

  • The stocks just make up such a large portion of the big indices, and it will be difficult for even the Russell 2000, with little actual overlap, to fight the trend. The outperformance can continue, but would likely all be negative.

  • The industry makes up such a huge part of the economic story including spending and the wealth effect (more than jobs but there are jobs too). It is difficult to see how markets can do well (though rate cut expectations, which I think are too low, will increase with more cuts coming sooner than is currently being priced in).

More “technical” than usual, but since we “survived” the Fed and the Santa rally seemed back in play, positioning (which goes hand in hand with technicals) may be offsides again coming into a period of low levels of true liquidity.

Which Brings Us to Diets

I cannot remember the last time there was this much chatter about single name CDS, with Oracle’s CDS leading the way. Not only did we end the TV interview on Friday talking about that, but we also spent some time on Friday helping Barron’s understand CDS, in relation to big tech and data centers.

We mentioned Debt Diets a few weeks ago, and want to highlight it again. It was our “Theme for 2019.” At the time, many corporations were seeing their stocks come under pressure, largely due to strains in the credit market for their names. It is “easy” for corporate leadership to ignore the debt markets when their stock price is doing really well. You can probably even give credit markets only a cursory glance if your stock is facing some pressure, but credit is just a side story. But when credit becomes a main part of the story – it is difficult to ignore. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It might sound bad, but it doesn’t have to be.

When Credit Leads the Way

This chart, for me, explains why a “debt diet” may be on the way (and yes, we will explain what we mean by that, and why it isn’t necessarily bad, and follows our end of “free” money narrative).

It is possible that I’m “grasping” at straws, but from the middle of September to the middle of October, the credit market and stock market were not “beating the same drum.” Yes, the stock market faced some selling pressure, but it also had a solid rebound. The credit market basically widened every day during that period.

Now they are back to moving in the same direction and it seems almost impossible to ignore the performance of the credit market when making a decision on the stock market.

Which brings us to the Debt Diet.

  • Companies can alter their spending plans.

    • Probably unnecessary here, but for the space as a whole, it might be a good time for CEOs and CFOs to explain their spending plans more clearly. To, not necessarily, pay “homage” to creditors, but make sure creditors understand their concerns are being taken into account.

    • Clarity, especially as to what might make them cautious on building more (maybe some rough alignment of building with profits and positive cash flow in mind, versus an almost “build it and they will come” mentality).

  • Companies do not need to be “afraid” of creditors, but a clearer recognition of their importance to your future might be in order.

A lot can be done without changing the plans today. I see a lot of ways that clarification and some identification of issues or trends that might change spending plans could go a long way towards improving spreads and leaving the market hungry for more issuance in 2026 and beyond!

Debt Diets are Manageable – An AI Diet Might Not Be

So far, this seems more like a “debt diet” type of situation in the data center space. The news that has come out doesn’t seem to have changed the overall narrative (backlogs, new clients, etc. all seem to argue this is more about a change in valuations than a meaningful change in trend for the industry).

However, I am nervous that we could see an AI Diet developing:

  • How much are companies budgeting for AI spend next year? The following year? Just like the industry itself had “free” money for a period of time, it was impossible for any corporation in America to do anything but spend more on AI. As companies have now been using AI for 2 years or more, are they all seeing the benefits they thought they paid for? Certainly, some are and they are probably rejoicing in their spending. But everyone? Especially in an economy, where away from certain industries (our little i-shaped view of the economy), we are seeing little growth. For now, I think the spending from corporate America continues, but it will be possibly “abated” as opposed to unabated.

  • Chips and China. The admin is comfortable selling a greater variety of chips to a greater variety of nations (China being the most important, though I’d argue that the Middle East isn’t far behind in importance). The question is whether China wants chips in the quantity that would fuel real revenue growth? Or is China willing to forego some quality today, in an effort to continue to bootstrap their own chip industry and make them more competitive with the top chips being designed/produced by U.S. companies and TSMC? I think this is more about constraining the upside rather than creating downside risk to spending on U.S. chips, but I have this nagging concern that “we” may be underestimating the resources and skills that China is devoting to this.

  • Electricity. If there is one thing our Macro, Structured Products, and Sustainable Finance teams agree on – it is the importance of electricity in today’s economy and the risk that we cannot generate electrons quickly and efficiently enough to satisfy the needs of industry going forward. This “molecules to electrons” has been a theme of ours for quite some time and fits perfectly into our ProSec™ (Production for Security) framework. If you were starting to think, wonder, or even hope that we could go an entire T-Report without mentioning ProSec™, we had to disappoint you.

    • If you have not read Stav Gaon’s work on data centers, I highly recommend you do. You can find his work under the Securitized Products Research & Strategy tab on Academy’s website. You can scroll and pick through his various pieces on data centers.

I think the Debt Diet is real and not necessarily bad. I don’t think the AI Diet is real, but since it is very bad if it occurs, it seemed worth at least highlighting that risk in our “diet” framework.

qe

Is the $40 billion of Federal Reserve purchases QE or a non-event? Or somewhere in between?

It “depends.” Clearly the Fed had to address some issues within the front end of the yield curve. SOFR, as a secured rate, should not be more expensive than unsecured rates. That is embarrassing, and has some small economic consequences. This is NOTHING like elevated LIBOR. When we have problems on interbank lending or even in the commercial paper markets, we can worry. This is much more of an issue with regulations, regulatory capital, and return on capital. The rules have been created in such a way, that it isn’t particularly economic (or even feasible) for the banking industry to price and trade SOFR at levels where “it should trade.” So, to the extent these purchases are “temporary” and designed to get us through year end and “clean things up” (and then they can be reduced or eliminated), it isn’t really QE or even qe. Bitcoin does as good of a job as any asset class at “sniffing” out balance sheet expansion and it has been moderately happy, but not giddy, since the announcement was made.

If the Treasury decides to take advantage of this by reducing issuance of longer-dated bonds, to sell more T-Bills to the Fed, and does this month after month, it starts to look a lot more like QE.

For now, I’ll be in the “qe” camp and that this is more of a “fix,” than in the full-on QE camp, but I’m not sure why Treasury wouldn’t try to make this work a lot more like QE than maybe even Powell intended?

I continue to believe that “we ain’t seen nothing yet” in terms of how the admin and Treasury will work with the Fed to achieve 3% or lower on the front end and a 3-handle (under 4%) on 10s.

At 4.18% on 10s and 2s vs 10s at 66 (the highest since February 2022), I’m tempted to be buying 10s and putting on flatteners. But, it is probably a bit early, as the market doesn’t feel that healthy, and I think that we need Japanese yields to really stabilize and Europe to make it clear on whether they are going to spend aggressively, or seize Russia’s frozen reserves, or let the 5% defense spending fizzle, before we can get too comfortable on U.S. rates.

It does seem ”curious” that Goolsbee went from dissenting on Wednesday (wanted no cut) to highlighting that he thinks there will be more cuts next year than others! I wonder what sort of “bollocking” he got from the admin between the FOMC meeting and his speaking opportunity?

Bottom Line

I am not sure how we got to the “bottom line” without mentioning Tuesday’s jobs data. The release date is highly unusual and I certainly don’t understand how the government shutdown will affect the report. Since it is delayed, the response rate could be higher, but maybe much of the preliminary work wasn’t done?

The consensus is for 50k jobs to be created. I’d be leaning towards the under. I do think a weak jobs report would help bonds. I agree with Goolsbee that the Fed will cut sooner and more aggressively than is priced in, but it won’t help the long end much (just yet) and won’t help stocks – as the “slowdown” story (despite the Fed raising GDP expectations for next year) will weigh on stocks.

One thing I can tell you with certainty is that despite all this talk of diets, and probably because of the holidays and travel, I’m very reluctant and even a bit scared to step on a scale.

Have a great week, but expect more chop and volatility coming into year end and the start of next year, which should be a gangbuster one for debt issuance, and may well make credit markets interesting to focus on again! I’ve almost missed the fact that in the past year, where everything in credit seemed so dull (until the latter half when the financing needs started to hit home), we also saw the first signs of unexpected problems in private credit.

With all that is going on in the world, and U.S. service members at risk, it was fun to sit back and watch a great Army-Navy football game

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 18:25

We're "At The Beginning Of The Credit Destruction Cycle"; Ed Dowd Warns

We're "At The Beginning Of The Credit Destruction Cycle"; Ed Dowd Warns

Via Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com

Former Wall Street money manager and financial analyst Ed Dowd of PhinanceTechnologies.com warned in September we were at the “Beginning of Panic Rate Cut Cycle.”  Since that prediction, the Fed has cut interest rates three times.  Looks like Dowd called it correctly.  

So, when does the panic kick in?  Dowd says, “The panic kicks in when there is some sort of banking wobble or stock market wobble, which is in the process of setting up..."

"Private credit is the first to show problems.  We had Tricolor Holdings (subprime auto lending bankruptcy) go poof.  We had First Brands (bankruptcy) go poof.  This is all private credit.  We have had other lenders like PrimaLend (bankruptcy) starting to go poof.  Private credit is just like subprime.  It not a very big part of the Jenga credit chain, but it’s enough to start a daisy chain of knock-on effects.  

So, this is where we are, at the beginning of the credit destruction cycle.  We are seeing consumer credit card delinquencies nearing all-time highs, auto loan delinquencies and, next up, we will be seeing mortgage delinquencies. 

People stop paying their credit cards first, then their auto loans and stop paying on their homes last. 

As the layoffs accelerate, and we are already seeing more high-profile layoffs at Amazon, UPS and you name it, once those begin, we will be seeing higher delinquency rates.”

Dowd sees much lower prices for homes.  Dowd says,

“There is a distinct problem between homes for sale and homes sold, meaning there are a lot of people wanting to sell their homes and not a lot of people buying them. 

The inventory continues to grow. . .. The only way this clears is through price.  The price of homes is going lower. 

We had an overbuild in multi-family housing because of the illegal immigrants.  Those deals are going sour and rolling over. 

Rents are coming down. . .. It’s all slowly going the wrong way, and it will become a mainstream topic in 2026.”

In past interviews, Dowd points out there was massive fraud in the Biden Administration, especially in unemployment figures. 

That, too, will all be revealed.  This is why Dowd pointed out last year that President Trump “Inherited a Turd of an Economy.”

What is working are precious metals, especially gold.  Dowd does not see gold losing its shine anytime soon.  Dowd says,

“If we get any kind of credit crisis, gold may get sold temporarily where people sell what they can, but not what they want.  Long term, gold looks like it’s going to $10,000 an ounce on the charts by 2030.  Everything is conspiring fundamentally and technically to lead us that way.  They made gold a Tier 1 asset.  

That makes gold money again in the banking system. . .. I would not get scared out of my physical gold position anytime soon.”

Dowd has new cutting-edge analysis on China for institutional investors.  China is a lot weaker than anyone can imagine.  Dowd says,

“Not only does China have long-term structural problems, our report identifies a very acute part of their real estate crisis, which is beginning now and accelerating into 2026. . .. China is struggling mightily.  We have more bargaining chips than a lot of us think.  When I hear things like ‘China holds all the cards and Trump is screwed,’ I laugh.”

There is much more in the 45-minute interview.

There is lots of free information on Dowd’s website called PhinanceTechnologies.com.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 16:20

We're "At The Beginning Of The Credit Destruction Cycle"; Ed Dowd Warns

We're "At The Beginning Of The Credit Destruction Cycle"; Ed Dowd Warns

Via Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com

Former Wall Street money manager and financial analyst Ed Dowd of PhinanceTechnologies.com warned in September we were at the “Beginning of Panic Rate Cut Cycle.”  Since that prediction, the Fed has cut interest rates three times.  Looks like Dowd called it correctly.  

So, when does the panic kick in?  Dowd says, “The panic kicks in when there is some sort of banking wobble or stock market wobble, which is in the process of setting up..."

"Private credit is the first to show problems.  We had Tricolor Holdings (subprime auto lending bankruptcy) go poof.  We had First Brands (bankruptcy) go poof.  This is all private credit.  We have had other lenders like PrimaLend (bankruptcy) starting to go poof.  Private credit is just like subprime.  It not a very big part of the Jenga credit chain, but it’s enough to start a daisy chain of knock-on effects.  

So, this is where we are, at the beginning of the credit destruction cycle.  We are seeing consumer credit card delinquencies nearing all-time highs, auto loan delinquencies and, next up, we will be seeing mortgage delinquencies. 

People stop paying their credit cards first, then their auto loans and stop paying on their homes last. 

As the layoffs accelerate, and we are already seeing more high-profile layoffs at Amazon, UPS and you name it, once those begin, we will be seeing higher delinquency rates.”

Dowd sees much lower prices for homes.  Dowd says,

“There is a distinct problem between homes for sale and homes sold, meaning there are a lot of people wanting to sell their homes and not a lot of people buying them. 

The inventory continues to grow. . .. The only way this clears is through price.  The price of homes is going lower. 

We had an overbuild in multi-family housing because of the illegal immigrants.  Those deals are going sour and rolling over. 

Rents are coming down. . .. It’s all slowly going the wrong way, and it will become a mainstream topic in 2026.”

In past interviews, Dowd points out there was massive fraud in the Biden Administration, especially in unemployment figures. 

That, too, will all be revealed.  This is why Dowd pointed out last year that President Trump “Inherited a Turd of an Economy.”

What is working are precious metals, especially gold.  Dowd does not see gold losing its shine anytime soon.  Dowd says,

“If we get any kind of credit crisis, gold may get sold temporarily where people sell what they can, but not what they want.  Long term, gold looks like it’s going to $10,000 an ounce on the charts by 2030.  Everything is conspiring fundamentally and technically to lead us that way.  They made gold a Tier 1 asset.  

That makes gold money again in the banking system. . .. I would not get scared out of my physical gold position anytime soon.”

Dowd has new cutting-edge analysis on China for institutional investors.  China is a lot weaker than anyone can imagine.  Dowd says,

“Not only does China have long-term structural problems, our report identifies a very acute part of their real estate crisis, which is beginning now and accelerating into 2026. . .. China is struggling mightily.  We have more bargaining chips than a lot of us think.  When I hear things like ‘China holds all the cards and Trump is screwed,’ I laugh.”

There is much more in the 45-minute interview.

There is lots of free information on Dowd’s website called PhinanceTechnologies.com.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 16:20

Watch: Top Biden Official Belatedly Admits Ukraine War Truth Bombshell

Watch: Top Biden Official Belatedly Admits Ukraine War Truth Bombshell

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is way behind the times. On Sunday he very belatedly expressed willingness to drop Ukraine's bid to join NATO. In place of this, he's seeking robust security guarantees. "We are talking about bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the United States — namely, Article 5-like guarantees ... as well as security guarantees for us from our European partners and from other countries such as Canada, Japan and others," Zelensky told journalists in a group chat, as reported in Financial Times.

"These security guarantees are an opportunity to prevent another wave of Russian aggression," he said. "And this is already a compromise on our part." But this should have been taken off the table all the way back in February of 2022, on the eve of the Russian invasion, or even well before. He's much too late 'offering' this 'concession' just as White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner are meeting Sunday in Berlin with Zelensky, and then separately with the national security advisers of Germany, France and the UK.

The open secret has for years been that the Washington and EU establishments know full well that it was historic and recent constant NATO expansion which led to this horrific, grinding war. This reality is so well understood that in their private, non-official commentary even former top Biden officials fully admit the fact. Yet these same Biden officials had while in government pursued policies fueling the Ukrainian proxy war as they wanted to 'weaken' Russia. They considered the issue of NATO expansion as a prime rationale of Russia's invasion to be an off-limits talking point. Indeed for any sincere, independent commentators... to so much as raise the issue would get them smeared as a "Putin apologist". But watch this recent and highly revealing clip below of Joe Biden's top official for Europe and former national security official Amanda Sloat admitting the truth:

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 15:45

Watch: Top Biden Official Belatedly Admits Ukraine War Truth Bombshell

Watch: Top Biden Official Belatedly Admits Ukraine War Truth Bombshell

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is way behind the times. On Sunday he very belatedly expressed willingness to drop Ukraine's bid to join NATO. In place of this, he's seeking robust security guarantees. "We are talking about bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the United States — namely, Article 5-like guarantees ... as well as security guarantees for us from our European partners and from other countries such as Canada, Japan and others," Zelensky told journalists in a group chat, as reported in Financial Times.

"These security guarantees are an opportunity to prevent another wave of Russian aggression," he said. "And this is already a compromise on our part." But this should have been taken off the table all the way back in February of 2022, on the eve of the Russian invasion, or even well before. He's much too late 'offering' this 'concession' just as White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner are meeting Sunday in Berlin with Zelensky, and then separately with the national security advisers of Germany, France and the UK.

The open secret has for years been that the Washington and EU establishments know full well that it was historic and recent constant NATO expansion which led to this horrific, grinding war. This reality is so well understood that in their private, non-official commentary even former top Biden officials fully admit the fact. Yet these same Biden officials had while in government pursued policies fueling the Ukrainian proxy war as they wanted to 'weaken' Russia. They considered the issue of NATO expansion as a prime rationale of Russia's invasion to be an off-limits talking point. Indeed for any sincere, independent commentators... to so much as raise the issue would get them smeared as a "Putin apologist". But watch this recent and highly revealing clip below of Joe Biden's top official for Europe and former national security official Amanda Sloat admitting the truth:

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 15:45

Gunman Who Killed 3 Americans In Syria Was Member of Syrian Government Forces

Gunman Who Killed 3 Americans In Syria Was Member of Syrian Government Forces

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com

The gunman who killed two members of the Iowa National Guard and an American civilian interpreter in an attack in Palmyra, central Syria, on Saturday was a member of the Syrian government’s security forces, according to the Syrian Interior Ministry.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) first reported that the attacker was a member of the security forces and called for the Syrian government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an offshoot of al-Qaeda, to get rid of members who have an "ISIS ideology."

The Syrian Interior Ministry claimed that, before the attack, Syrian authorities had "decided to fire him" for having "extremist Islamist ideology" and had planned to do so on Sunday. "We discovered him in December and were going to dismiss him, but we didn’t make it in time because it was a holiday," said ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba, according to The Cradle.

US Army Sergeant with a translator & two Syrian soldiers during a training in Syria on April 30, 2025. US Army photo

A Syrian security official told AFP that the attacker had been in the security forces "for more than 10 months and was posted to several cities before being transferred to Palmyra."

According to Wael Essam, a Palestinian journalist who has covered the conflict in Syria for many years, the perpetrator has been identified as Tariq Satouf al-Hamd from the Aleppo countryside. Essam said that al-Hamd was previously a member of ISIS, but after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad, he traveled to Idlib, the former home base of HTS, and joined the General Security.

The attack occurred when US military officers were meeting with Syrian Interior Ministry officials while US and Syrian troops stood guard at a base near the city of Palmyra. According to The Wall Street Journal, a lone gunman appeared in a window and opened fire on the US and Syrian soldiers, and he was pursued by Syrian troops and killed. However, according to Essam’s report, the attacker blew himself up.

"The attacker tried to reach the meeting room in the headquarters of the General Security in Palmyra (formerly the Military Security headquarters) where senior officers are present, and in the corridor he clashed with the American guards and the translator and blew himself up," Essam wrote on X.

Essam also suggested that other members of the Syrian security forces were involved in the attack. "Security sources confirmed to me that Syrian intelligence, along with the Coalition forces, arrested six elements from the General Security at the headquarters in Palmyra, accused of coordinating the operation with him, and it is said that they are from the group that moved with him from the desert to the General Security in Idlib," he said.

He added that Syrian authorities were “unable to identify his previous affiliation with the organization (ISIS), and there are hundreds like him, due to the large numbers who joined and which the security apparatus needed after the fall of the regime.”

President Trump and other US officials have called the incident an "ISIS attack" and have left out the detail that the perpetrator was a member of the Syrian military, which the US has allied itself with despite HTS’s al-Qaeda past, and as of Sunday, ISIS hasn’t taken credit for the shooting.

"This was an ISIS attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He added that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is "extremely angry" about the attack. Trump recently hosted Sharaa at the White House despite his past as an al-Qaeda leader and ally of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder of ISIS.

The Syrian government itself has contradicted the below Trump claims...

Both Trump and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth vowed there would be retaliation for the attack, and according to the SOHR, there’s been an escalation of US operations in the region, including surveillance flights and arrests of people on suspicion of "affiliating with ISIS and/or adopting its ideology."

The Syrian government has also announced its escalating operations against Syria. During Sharaa’s visit to the Oval Office, his government officially joined the US-led anti-ISIS coalition despite its al-Qaeda links and many of its soldiers having a similar ideology to ISIS, putting US troops operating in Syria at risk of insider attacks.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 15:10

Gunman Who Killed 3 Americans In Syria Was Member of Syrian Government Forces

Gunman Who Killed 3 Americans In Syria Was Member of Syrian Government Forces

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com

The gunman who killed two members of the Iowa National Guard and an American civilian interpreter in an attack in Palmyra, central Syria, on Saturday was a member of the Syrian government’s security forces, according to the Syrian Interior Ministry.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) first reported that the attacker was a member of the security forces and called for the Syrian government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an offshoot of al-Qaeda, to get rid of members who have an "ISIS ideology."

The Syrian Interior Ministry claimed that, before the attack, Syrian authorities had "decided to fire him" for having "extremist Islamist ideology" and had planned to do so on Sunday. "We discovered him in December and were going to dismiss him, but we didn’t make it in time because it was a holiday," said ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba, according to The Cradle.

US Army Sergeant with a translator & two Syrian soldiers during a training in Syria on April 30, 2025. US Army photo

A Syrian security official told AFP that the attacker had been in the security forces "for more than 10 months and was posted to several cities before being transferred to Palmyra."

According to Wael Essam, a Palestinian journalist who has covered the conflict in Syria for many years, the perpetrator has been identified as Tariq Satouf al-Hamd from the Aleppo countryside. Essam said that al-Hamd was previously a member of ISIS, but after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad, he traveled to Idlib, the former home base of HTS, and joined the General Security.

The attack occurred when US military officers were meeting with Syrian Interior Ministry officials while US and Syrian troops stood guard at a base near the city of Palmyra. According to The Wall Street Journal, a lone gunman appeared in a window and opened fire on the US and Syrian soldiers, and he was pursued by Syrian troops and killed. However, according to Essam’s report, the attacker blew himself up.

"The attacker tried to reach the meeting room in the headquarters of the General Security in Palmyra (formerly the Military Security headquarters) where senior officers are present, and in the corridor he clashed with the American guards and the translator and blew himself up," Essam wrote on X.

Essam also suggested that other members of the Syrian security forces were involved in the attack. "Security sources confirmed to me that Syrian intelligence, along with the Coalition forces, arrested six elements from the General Security at the headquarters in Palmyra, accused of coordinating the operation with him, and it is said that they are from the group that moved with him from the desert to the General Security in Idlib," he said.

He added that Syrian authorities were “unable to identify his previous affiliation with the organization (ISIS), and there are hundreds like him, due to the large numbers who joined and which the security apparatus needed after the fall of the regime.”

President Trump and other US officials have called the incident an "ISIS attack" and have left out the detail that the perpetrator was a member of the Syrian military, which the US has allied itself with despite HTS’s al-Qaeda past, and as of Sunday, ISIS hasn’t taken credit for the shooting.

"This was an ISIS attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He added that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is "extremely angry" about the attack. Trump recently hosted Sharaa at the White House despite his past as an al-Qaeda leader and ally of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder of ISIS.

The Syrian government itself has contradicted the below Trump claims...

Both Trump and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth vowed there would be retaliation for the attack, and according to the SOHR, there’s been an escalation of US operations in the region, including surveillance flights and arrests of people on suspicion of "affiliating with ISIS and/or adopting its ideology."

The Syrian government has also announced its escalating operations against Syria. During Sharaa’s visit to the Oval Office, his government officially joined the US-led anti-ISIS coalition despite its al-Qaeda links and many of its soldiers having a similar ideology to ISIS, putting US troops operating in Syria at risk of insider attacks.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 15:10

Zelenskyy Open To Dropping NATO Bid As Peace Talks Continue On Berlin

Zelenskyy Open To Dropping NATO Bid As Peace Talks Continue On Berlin

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is willing to drop efforts to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) if the United States and European allies offer “security guarantees” in order to end the war.

“Thus, today, bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the US, Article 5-like guarantees for us from the US, and security guarantees from European colleagues, as well as other countries — Canada, Japan — are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion,” Zelenskyy said in a WhatsApp chat with reporters on Dec. 14.

As Jacki Thrapp reports for The Epoch Times, Zelenskyy insisted that the “compromise” must be legally binding and supported by the U.S. Congress in order to bring an end to the years-long conflict.

The Ukrainian leader’s comments to journalists came ahead of his meeting in Berlin with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner on Sunday.

“We are preparing for a meeting with the American side,” Zelenskyy posted on X Sunday morning.

“There are many important details, and we are working thoroughly on every point of every draft. The key thing is that all the steps we agree on with partners must work in practice to deliver guaranteed security. Only reliable guarantees can deliver peace. We count on our partners to continue working constructively as well.”

Zelenskyy is expected to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after the meeting with U.S. officials on Sunday night.

Ukraine’s openness to dropping a NATO bid is a move that is welcomed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who does not want any NATO troops stationed there.

Kushner and Witkoff met with Putin on Dec. 2 for a five-hour-long negotiating session.

Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, told reporters afterward that the meeting was “constructive” but “compromises have not yet been found.”

Russians want Ukraine to withdraw forces from the part of the Donetsk region that the United States proposed making a demilitarized free economic zone, which was rejected by Kyiv.

Zelenskyy confirmed on Dec. 10 that Ukraine supported key parts of an economic outline to rebuild the country once the war ends, which has been a major aspect of peace discussions.

The rebuilding plan was a refined version of Trump’s initial 28-point proposal, in which Ukraine would yield territories such as Crimea, Luhansk, and Donetsk to Russia, Ukraine having a constitutional block from joining NATO, and allowing Russia to return to the G7.

Russia has launched more than 1,500 drones, nearly 900 guided aerial bombs, and 46 missiles at Ukraine in the past week, Zelenskyy said on Sunday.

Recent attacks have left hundreds of thousands without power, heat, or water in multiple regions across the country.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 14:35

Zelenskyy Open To Dropping NATO Bid As Peace Talks Continue On Berlin

Zelenskyy Open To Dropping NATO Bid As Peace Talks Continue On Berlin

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is willing to drop efforts to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) if the United States and European allies offer “security guarantees” in order to end the war.

“Thus, today, bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the US, Article 5-like guarantees for us from the US, and security guarantees from European colleagues, as well as other countries — Canada, Japan — are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion,” Zelenskyy said in a WhatsApp chat with reporters on Dec. 14.

As Jacki Thrapp reports for The Epoch Times, Zelenskyy insisted that the “compromise” must be legally binding and supported by the U.S. Congress in order to bring an end to the years-long conflict.

The Ukrainian leader’s comments to journalists came ahead of his meeting in Berlin with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner on Sunday.

“We are preparing for a meeting with the American side,” Zelenskyy posted on X Sunday morning.

“There are many important details, and we are working thoroughly on every point of every draft. The key thing is that all the steps we agree on with partners must work in practice to deliver guaranteed security. Only reliable guarantees can deliver peace. We count on our partners to continue working constructively as well.”

Zelenskyy is expected to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after the meeting with U.S. officials on Sunday night.

Ukraine’s openness to dropping a NATO bid is a move that is welcomed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who does not want any NATO troops stationed there.

Kushner and Witkoff met with Putin on Dec. 2 for a five-hour-long negotiating session.

Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, told reporters afterward that the meeting was “constructive” but “compromises have not yet been found.”

Russians want Ukraine to withdraw forces from the part of the Donetsk region that the United States proposed making a demilitarized free economic zone, which was rejected by Kyiv.

Zelenskyy confirmed on Dec. 10 that Ukraine supported key parts of an economic outline to rebuild the country once the war ends, which has been a major aspect of peace discussions.

The rebuilding plan was a refined version of Trump’s initial 28-point proposal, in which Ukraine would yield territories such as Crimea, Luhansk, and Donetsk to Russia, Ukraine having a constitutional block from joining NATO, and allowing Russia to return to the G7.

Russia has launched more than 1,500 drones, nearly 900 guided aerial bombs, and 46 missiles at Ukraine in the past week, Zelenskyy said on Sunday.

Recent attacks have left hundreds of thousands without power, heat, or water in multiple regions across the country.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 14:35

Liam Neeson, MAHA Ally? Narrates RFK Jr. Doc Slamming Lockdowns And COVID Jabs

Liam Neeson, MAHA Ally? Narrates RFK Jr. Doc Slamming Lockdowns And COVID Jabs

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In an unexpected pivot that’s sending shockwaves through the pharma lobby, Liam Neeson has narrated a documentary titled Plague of Corruption: 80 Years of Pharmaceutical Corruption Exposed, an adaption of Dr. Judy Mikovits’ book and backed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.‘s Children’s Health Defense. 

It appears this is not just another celeb voiceover—it’s a direct assault on the COVID-era overreach that crushed freedoms and livelihoods under the guise of “public health.”

Neeson, long hailed for his UNICEF ambassadorship pushing global jabs, now aligns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, calling out mRNA vaccines as “dangerous experiments” and the scientists behind them as “fanatics.” 

The film is outspoken on lockdowns, highlighting how they wrecked millions without saving lives from the virus itself. 

The documentary, co-authored by Mikovits and attorney Kent Heckenlively, pulls the curtain on decades of alleged pharmaceutical scandals. 

Published by Kennedy’s group—now with RFK Jr. at the helm of Health and Human Services under Trump—it features interviews praising Kennedy as a truth-teller against Big Pharma’s stranglehold.

Neeson’s narration drives home the human cost of tyrannical policies: “Thousands of lives were lost, not to the virus, but to the mental anguish brought on by these harsh restrictions.” 

He wraps with a call to action: “We cannot change the past, but we can demand transparency and accountability for the future.” And defiantly: “This is not the end of our story. This is the beginning of a new chapter.”

Of course, the backlash was swift from the usual suspects in media and pharma circles, desperate to discredit anyone questioning their narrative. 

Neeson’s reps fired back in a statement, insisting: “We all recognize that corruption can exist within the pharmaceutical industry, but that should never be conflated with opposition to vaccines. Liam never has been, and is not, anti-vaccination.”

They doubled down: “His extensive work with UNICEF underscores his long-held support for global immunization and public-health initiatives.” And clarified: “He did not shape the film’s editorial content, and any questions about its claims or messaging should be directed to the producers.”

It’s a very odd move for Neeson, who  previously heaped praise on vaccines, including COVID jabs, in a 2022 UNICEF spot, where he called them a “remarkable human success story.” 

He elaborated: “Over the last 75 years, billions of children have been vaccinated, thanks to scientists, to health workers, to volunteers.”

Continuing: “If you’ve ever been vaccinated, or vaccinated your children, then you are part of the arm-to-arm chain that keeps all humanity safe.”

But in today’s climate, with RFK Jr.  draining the swamp at HHS, Neeson’s involvement signals a shift. It’s no secret the COVID mandates were a power grab, forcing experimental shots on Americans while Big Pharma raked in billions tax-free. Lockdowns shuttered businesses, spiked suicides, and eroded liberties—all while elites partied mask-free.

For the documentary, Mikovits, a whistleblower vilified by the establishment, teams with Heckenlively to expose how agencies like the CDC buried evidence of harm.

The film’s trailer features RFK Jr. front and center, promising accountability. It’s a far cry from the Plandemic series, but builds on that momentum to challenge the deep state’s health cartel.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 14:00

Liam Neeson, MAHA Ally? Narrates RFK Jr. Doc Slamming Lockdowns And COVID Jabs

Liam Neeson, MAHA Ally? Narrates RFK Jr. Doc Slamming Lockdowns And COVID Jabs

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In an unexpected pivot that’s sending shockwaves through the pharma lobby, Liam Neeson has narrated a documentary titled Plague of Corruption: 80 Years of Pharmaceutical Corruption Exposed, an adaption of Dr. Judy Mikovits’ book and backed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.‘s Children’s Health Defense. 

It appears this is not just another celeb voiceover—it’s a direct assault on the COVID-era overreach that crushed freedoms and livelihoods under the guise of “public health.”

Neeson, long hailed for his UNICEF ambassadorship pushing global jabs, now aligns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, calling out mRNA vaccines as “dangerous experiments” and the scientists behind them as “fanatics.” 

The film is outspoken on lockdowns, highlighting how they wrecked millions without saving lives from the virus itself. 

The documentary, co-authored by Mikovits and attorney Kent Heckenlively, pulls the curtain on decades of alleged pharmaceutical scandals. 

Published by Kennedy’s group—now with RFK Jr. at the helm of Health and Human Services under Trump—it features interviews praising Kennedy as a truth-teller against Big Pharma’s stranglehold.

Neeson’s narration drives home the human cost of tyrannical policies: “Thousands of lives were lost, not to the virus, but to the mental anguish brought on by these harsh restrictions.” 

He wraps with a call to action: “We cannot change the past, but we can demand transparency and accountability for the future.” And defiantly: “This is not the end of our story. This is the beginning of a new chapter.”

Of course, the backlash was swift from the usual suspects in media and pharma circles, desperate to discredit anyone questioning their narrative. 

Neeson’s reps fired back in a statement, insisting: “We all recognize that corruption can exist within the pharmaceutical industry, but that should never be conflated with opposition to vaccines. Liam never has been, and is not, anti-vaccination.”

They doubled down: “His extensive work with UNICEF underscores his long-held support for global immunization and public-health initiatives.” And clarified: “He did not shape the film’s editorial content, and any questions about its claims or messaging should be directed to the producers.”

It’s a very odd move for Neeson, who  previously heaped praise on vaccines, including COVID jabs, in a 2022 UNICEF spot, where he called them a “remarkable human success story.” 

He elaborated: “Over the last 75 years, billions of children have been vaccinated, thanks to scientists, to health workers, to volunteers.”

Continuing: “If you’ve ever been vaccinated, or vaccinated your children, then you are part of the arm-to-arm chain that keeps all humanity safe.”

But in today’s climate, with RFK Jr.  draining the swamp at HHS, Neeson’s involvement signals a shift. It’s no secret the COVID mandates were a power grab, forcing experimental shots on Americans while Big Pharma raked in billions tax-free. Lockdowns shuttered businesses, spiked suicides, and eroded liberties—all while elites partied mask-free.

For the documentary, Mikovits, a whistleblower vilified by the establishment, teams with Heckenlively to expose how agencies like the CDC buried evidence of harm.

The film’s trailer features RFK Jr. front and center, promising accountability. It’s a far cry from the Plandemic series, but builds on that momentum to challenge the deep state’s health cartel.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 14:00

Education Dept To Warn Applicants For Aid At Schools With Low Earnings For Grads

Education Dept To Warn Applicants For Aid At Schools With Low Earnings For Grads

In a bid to help young Americans make better-informed judgements about the costs and benefits of college education, the US Department of Education has started warning financial-aid applicants who are considering schools whose graduates have weak earnings. 

The red flag is now being presented within the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process. It's triggered when applicants indicate they're considering a school where the average graduate earns less than a high school graduate. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said the move will help clear the fog that's led too many students to stumble into educational paths that carry a high risk of a crummy earnings:  

“More than half of all Americans now say a college degree is not worth the price, and total outstanding student loan debt is approaching $1.7 trillion. Families deserve a clearer picture of how postsecondary education connects to real-world earnings, and this new indicator will provide that transparency. Not only will this new FAFSA feature make public earnings data more accessible, but it will empower prospective students to make data-driven decisions before they are saddled with debt.” 

Americans have racked up $1.7 trillion in student loan debt, with many of them turning around and asking for their debt to be cancelled (Anna Rose Layden - New York Times) 

As students complete the FAFSA, they will be presented with an "earnings indicator" for every school where they direct FAFSA to provide information to. When applicants apply to a school that fails the high school comparison, a "low earnings" warning will appear, and the school's average graduate earnings will be depicted with the color red in the accompanying chart.    

According to the Education Department, more than 2% of the country's undergrads are attending colleges that fit that dismal profile. However, more than 22% of colleges in the Education database are in the "low earnings" category. Most of them are for-profit schools -- such as beauty schools -- and there are also an assortment of historically black institutions, Bloomberg reports. Collectively, colleges whose grads lag high school graduates  are raking in upwards of $2 billion in federal aid every year. 

At CollegeScorecard.ed.gov, students can not only view average earnings at some 5,900 colleges, but also dive deeper to see earnings at the program level. For example, the report on Bucknell University shows that median graduates of the selective Pennsylvania school earn $93,807, compared to the $53,747 midpoint for four-year colleges. (These figures are incomes 10 years after entering a school.) For economics majors, the Bucknell median is $101,580. Meanwhile, the historically black Virginia University of Lynchburg's median earnings are just $28,000 -- below the $32,860 median for American high school completers. 

MIT graduates' median income of $143,000 puts the school atop the Department of Education database. (Pictured: Belgian MIT engineering grad student Sofie Stribos - MIT photo)

Nudging people away from schools with lousy earnings profiles doesn't only help students, it may also serve taxpayers by trimming the number of people who default on federal loans. Student loan delinquencies are soaring following the end of the Biden-era payment holiday / vote-buying scheme. More than 9 million student-loan debtors have missed at least one payment in 2025, and the share of accounts more than 30 days past a payment due-date has doubled from the level seen before the payment suspensions kicked in during the Covid pandemic, according to the Financial Times.  

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 13:25

Luxury Cars, Private Villas And Stacks Of Cash: How Somali Fraudsters Spent Minnesotans' Money

Luxury Cars, Private Villas And Stacks Of Cash: How Somali Fraudsters Spent Minnesotans' Money

Luxury cars. Private villas. First-class flights. And taxpayer money meant to feed hungry kids.

New exhibits from court obtained by CBS News reveal how Somali defendants in one of the largest COVID-era fraud schemes in US history plowed through hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer money on lavish lifestyles - including lakefront Minnesota properties, overwater bungalows in the Maldives, a Porsche Macan, stacks of cash, designer jewelry, campaigne-soaked vacations, and overseas wire transfers. 

This photo of a text exchange, presented in court, shows a box stuffed with cash and a message saying "$270,000 dollars."  Court exhibit

Videos show defendants in the case celebrating poolside at a Madlives luxury resort.

In one text, a defendant bragged: "You are gonna be the richest 25 year old InshaAllah [God willing]."

Exhibits entered into evidence include:

  • A confirmation email for a stay in an overwater villa with a private pool at Radisson Blu Resort Maldives
  • Lakefront property in Minnesota
  • Receipts showing wire transfers to China and East Africa
  • First class tickets to Istanbul and Amsterdam
  • A 2021 Porsche Macan
  • Stacks of cash, texted between defendants
Screenshots of videos from a Maldives vacation, presented as government evidence in a Minnesota fraud trial. Court exhibit Millions for 'Meals' That Never Existed

At the center of the scandal is a nonprofit-backed food program that prosecutors say was systematically exploited. One defendant alone billed the state for $47 million, claiming to have served 18 million meals at more than 30 locations - while failing to distribute a single meal, according to prosecutors. 

Among those sentenced is Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, 24, who used stolen taxpayer funds to finance luxury travel and high-end purchases. At sentencing, U.S. District Judge Nancy E. Brasel issued a sharp rebuke, telling him: “Where others saw a crisis and rushed to help, you saw money and rushed to steal.”

Nur was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay nearly $48 million in restitution.

Cash Flows Overseas — and Unanswered Questions

The defendants also wired millions of dollars overseas, including to banks and companies in China, East Africa, and Kenya. Investigators say tracing funds routed through China is especially difficult, calling it an investigative “black hole.”

One of the luxury cars presented as government evidence in a Minnesota fraud trial. Court exhibit

One defendant, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, 36, sent more than $1 million to Chinese banks in six separate wire transfers in 2021 and nearly $3 million to Kenyan accounts. In one text message, Farah instructed someone to send money to Mogadishu’s Bakara Market, a location once controlled by al Shabaab.

Farah, who owned a Minnesota restaurant contracted to provide meals under the program, was sentenced last month to 28 years in prison. At sentencing, a judge said his crimes were driven by “pure, unmitigated greed.”

Terror Funding? Officials Say No Evidence... So Far

The scale of the fraud has reignited political scrutiny. House Republicans recently launched a probe into Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s handling of the case, while the Treasury Department announced it is reviewing whether stolen funds could have reached extremist organizations - with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealing that investigators are tracking the overseas transfers. That said, CBS News sources tell the outlet that they have yet to uncover evidence that taxpayer money made it to terrorist group al Shabaab. 

Somali illegal alien Abdul Dahir Ibrahim, who was convicted of fraud, has been photographed with Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., (left) and Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (right). (ICE)

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that investigators are tracking overseas transfers to determine their ultimate use. But federal investigators told CBS News there is no evidence that taxpayer money was funneled to al Shabaab, and prosecutors have presented no terrorism-related charges.

A lakefront home presented as evidence in a Minnesota fraud trial. Court exhibit

"There was never any evidence that this money went to fund terrorism nor was there any evidence that was the intent of the 70 people we indicted," said former U.S. Attorney Andy Luger, whose office prosecuted many of the cases. 

So far, 61 people have been convicted in the sprawling Minnesota fraud scandal, with more investigations still underway. As investigators continue chasing the money trail, one question still looms: How did so much cash slip through the cracks - and who else knew?

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 11:05

Slovak PM Fico Blast Brussels Warmongers, Wants No Part Of Western Europe If Russian & Ukrainian Lives Are "Worth Shit"

Slovak PM Fico Blast Brussels Warmongers, Wants No Part Of Western Europe If Russian & Ukrainian Lives Are "Worth Shit"

Authored by Thomas Brooke via Remix News,

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said he will block any European Union solution that finances Ukraine’s military expenditures, accusing Western Europe of treating Russian and Ukrainian lives as being “worth shit” and of prolonging what he described as senseless bloodshed.

In a post on X, Fico said he had held an almost hour-long phone conversation with European Council President António Costa focused on EU funding for Ukraine.

“While he spoke about money for the war in Ukraine, I kept repeating the senseless daily killing of hundreds to thousands of Russians and Ukrainians,” Fico wrote.

“If for Western Europe the life of a Russian or a Ukrainian is worth shit, I do not want to be part of such a Western Europe.”

Fico said he told Costa that Slovakia would not support any measure leading to EU financing of Ukraine’s military costs, regardless of how long negotiations might last. “I told A. Costa that I will not support anything, even if we have to sit in Brussels until the New Year, which would lead to support for Ukraine’s military expenditures,” he wrote.

The post accompanied the publication of a formal letter sent by Fico to Costa and to all EU prime ministers ahead of the next European Council meeting, where the European Commission’s proposals to secure Ukraine’s financial needs for 2026 and 2027, including the possible use of frozen Russian assets, are expected to be discussed.

In the letter, Fico stated that Slovakia would not back any solution that includes funding Ukraine’s military expenses.

“At the upcoming European Council, I am not in the position to support any solution to Ukraine’s financial needs that would include covering Ukraine’s military expenses for the coming years,” he wrote.

Fico argued that there was no military solution to the conflict and that continued arms financing was extending the war.

“The policy of peace that I consistently advocate prevents me from voting in favor of prolonging military conflict, because providing tens of billions of euros for military spending is prolonging the war,” he said.

He also warned against using frozen Russian assets for military purposes, arguing this could undermine peace efforts, including those led by the United States, which he said envisaged using such assets for Ukraine’s postwar reconstruction. He recalled raising these concerns at an informal EU meeting in Angola and pointed to corruption risks in Ukraine.

While rejecting EU-funded military support, Fico said Slovakia would continue to assist Ukraine in non-military areas. He cited humanitarian aid, electricity supplies, gas delivered through reverse flow, infrastructure projects, and support for nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees living in Slovakia. He reiterated Slovakia’s support for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, while noting that some member states were increasingly voicing reservations about early membership.

Fico said his position was final and would not change under pressure or prolonged negotiations. “I cannot, and will not under any pressure, endorse any solution to support Ukraine’s military expenditures in which the Slovak Republic would participate,” he wrote, while adding that he respected the right of other EU member states to pursue different approaches on a voluntary basis.

The European Council has not publicly responded to Fico’s remarks.

Read more here...

Tyler Durden Sun, 12/14/2025 - 10:30

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