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May 13th – 2026 Presidential Politics – Trump Administration Day 479

In an effort to keep the Daily Open Thread a little more open topic we are going to start a new daily thread for “Presidential Politics”. Please use this thread to post anything relating to the Donald Trump Administration and Presidency.

This thread will refresh daily and appear above the Open Discussion Thread.

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Wednesday May 13th – Open Thread

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

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President Trump Corrects the Record

There was much fake news about the tech and finance leaders traveling with President Trump to China.  Moments ago, President Trump corrects the record:

TRUTH SOCIAL – “CNBC incorrectly reported that the Great Jensen Huang, of Nvidia, was not invited to the incredible gathering of the World’s Greatest Businessmen/women proudly going to China. In actuality, Jensen is currently on Air Force One and, unless I ask him to leave, which is highly unlikely, CNBC’s reporting is incorrect or, as they say in politics, FAKE NEWS!

It is an Honor to have Jensen, Elon, Tim Apple, Larry Fink, Stephen Schwarzmann, Kelly Ortberg (Boeing), Brian Sikes (Cargill), Jane Fraser (Citi), Larry Culp (GE Aerospace), David Solomon (Goldman Sachs), Sanjay Mehrotra (Micron), Cristiano Amon (Qualcomm), and many others journeying to the Great Country of China where I will be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to “open up” China so that these brilliant people can work their magic, and help bring the People’s Republic to an even higher level! In fact, I promise, that when we are together, which will be in a matter of hours, I will make that my very first request. I have never seen or heard of any idea that would be more beneficial to our incredible Countries!”

~ President DONALD J. TRUMP

Tim Apple” always cracks me up. lol

As previously noted and discussed by USTR Jamieson Greer, since the original trip to Beijing was announced several months ago, it was very easy to identify this visit was not a customary ‘state visit’ in the formal sense of the term.  Instead, this trip was always planned as a trade, finance and economic business trip specifically to engage Chairman Xi with a financial and investment focus.

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U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer Survives Another Day Assisted by Pending King Charles III Speech to Parliament

British monarch King Charles III is scheduled to deliver the annual ‘king’s speech’ to the U.K Parliament on Wednesday, and that was the essential defense position of those who are trying to maintain embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer in power as the Labour Party leader.

The king’s speech is an address to Parliament to outline his legislative priorities and the anticipated support from the political assembly. Without a solid Prime Minister in place, it would seem like an address to a leaderless body. However, once the speech is finished, the struggles for Prime Minister Starmer are soon to resurface.

British pundit Neil Oliver asked the most alarming question on GB News earlier this evening when he pondered who exactly does Keir Starmer work for? Noting very similar issues in both France and Germany with Emanuel Macron and Chancellor Freidrich Merz respectively, Oliver outlines how many EU leaders are pushing national policies while seemingly disconnected from the citizens of their countries. WATCH:

Oliver senses something bigger is afoot with the seismic shift in British electoral politics.  The nation is demanding a change in direction away from leftist policies.  When President Trump was asked about the dynamic earlier today, he said Keir Starmer needs to decide whether to leave or try and stay in power.  Dropping pretenses and speaking pragmatically, President Trump further pointed to the suicidal energy policies that are driving up the costs of living for all European citizens.

Via Daily Mail – […] On a dramatic day at Westminster, four Labour ministers resigned, saying they no longer had confidence in Sir Keir. The number of Labour MPs calling for him to go rose to 90, and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood was forced to deny she is on the brink of quitting after telling the PM to set out a timetable for his departure. (more)

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Extensive Chopper Presser – President Trump Delivers Impromptu Remarks Departing White House

President Trump departed the White House today for a long-awaited trip to Beijing, China for a summit with Chairman Xi Jinping.  This trip to China is all business with no customary diplomatic venues or state visit festivities planned.  This trip is straight to Beijing, business – then depart.

As President Trump departs the White House, he walks the lengthy press pool line to answer questions.  The best audio/video is currently this one.

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Zelenskyy’s Chief of Staff Andrey Yermak Appears in Court to Face Stunning Charges of Corruption and Money Laundering

Andrey Yermak is not just some random high-level government official in Ukraine.  Andrey Yermak was President Zelenskyy’s right hand, chief of staff, organizer of the functions of Ukrainian government and the guy who controlled the systems that keep all other government officials working on the agenda of the President.

If you took Susie Wiles and Marco Rubio’s responsibilities and combined them into one job function, that would be the scale of importance and influence that Andrey Yermak controlled inside the Ukrainian government and the office of President Zelenskyy.

Left, Volodymyr Zelenskyy – Right, Andrey Yermak

Today, following an explosive criminal corruption charge that surfaced less than 36 hours ago, Andrey Yermak appears in court to face charges of corruption, theft and money laundering.  Yermak was under investigation for his role in theft through the energy sector and now stands accused of using construction projects near Kiev as a tool to launder money to himself and other high-level government officials.

There are three facets to this I find very interesting.  First, is the timing.  Second, is the often-overlooked admission by National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) about them working closely with FBI investigators in Europe and American intelligence units.  Third, is the way they caught him: “The anti-corruption bureau shared part of a wiretapped conversation as part of its case and said six more people had been identified as suspects.”

(Via BBC) – […] For years he was a close friend of Zelensky, and led Ukraine’s talks with the US until an anti-corruption raid on his flat last November prompted his resignation.

Ukraine’s Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office (Sapo) said it was asking the Kyiv court to either place him in preventive detention or give him bail of about $4m (£3m).  The head of the National anti-corruption bureau (Nabu) stressed that Zelensky himself was not part of the pre-trial investigation.

Yermak had been the president’s closest adviser throughout Russia’s full-scale invasion, until he became caught up in a broader inquiry by Sapo and Nabu into an alleged $100m (£74m) embezzlement scheme in Ukraine’s nuclear energy sector.

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FBI Director Kash Patel Appears Before Congress – 2:00pm ET Livestream

Today, at 2:00pm FBI Director Kash Patel and Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terrance Cole will join other federal law enforcement officials to testify on the president’s 2027 budget request before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee.  Democrats are poised to push a narrative about Kash Patel’s personal habits driven by an Atlantic article accusing him of drunkenness and misbehavior.

While the focus of the appropriations testimony is the budget request, undoubtedly much of the questioning will surround ongoing matters and priorities of the FBI and DEA.  Recent events in Mexico related to indictments of government officials involved in drug trafficking may also be the subject of inquiry.  Could be interesting.  Testimony begins at 2:00pm ET.

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Former CIA Director John Brennan Says There are Still “Legions” of His Allies, Deep State Operatives, at DOJ, FBI and CIA

Appearing on MSNBC to talk to Lawfare ally Nicole Wallace, wife of New York Times narrative engineer Michael Schmidt – the guy who received leaks from FBI Director James Comey via Daniel Richman, former CIA Director John Brennan notes there are “legions” of operatives still embedded within the DOJ, FBI and CIA who are working against President Donald Trump.

This is not a surprise as we have noted the Trump administration continues to take apart the tentacles of Lawfare and Intelligence operatives in Main Justice, various U.S. Attorney offices, FBI Headquarters, FBI field offices and various Intelligence Community silos.

Marco Rubio has been working to clean up the National Security Council as well as the State Department operations, including USAID.  Tulsi Gabbard and John Ratcliffe have been working on the NSA and CIA collaboratively, and Todd Blanche has been working through the Dept of Justice.  FBI Director Kash Patel has removed about ten percent of the problem in his agency.

The core problem goes back to what we outlined on these pages {GO DEEP} and is not limited to those operatives who remain from the Obama/Biden era.  Some of the problems surface as a result of ‘republican’ voices recommending “sleeper cell” staff and sketchy personnel for positions in the administration. [I’ll put an example below]

One way to tell if the agency head or leader understands the challenge is by paying attention to how they talk about the agency’s mission objective.

Leaders like Marco Rubio and Tulsi Gabbard have openly acknowledged the problem and are actively tackling corruption within their ranks. Even John Ratcliffe has admitted his agency was politically weaponized and has taken steps to address it. There’s still a lot of work ahead, but their actions show visible progress.

People like Pam Bondi and Kash Patel have praised the institutional embeds without drawing attention to the corruption beneath them. Thankfully, Acting AG Todd Blanche seems to be taking a more confrontational approach internally, so maybe Kash Patel will follow suit. This isn’t about style—it’s about results, and there’s an urgent need for action.

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May 12th – 2026 Presidential Politics – Trump Administration Day 478

In an effort to keep the Daily Open Thread a little more open topic we are going to start a new daily thread for “Presidential Politics”. Please use this thread to post anything relating to the Donald Trump Administration and Presidency.

This thread will refresh daily and appear above the Open Discussion Thread.

(more…)

Tuesday May 12th – Open Thread

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

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