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Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio Lead ‘Critical Minerals’ Strategic Ministerial Gathering

In the past few years people have heard the term “rare earth minerals” or “critical minerals” as they relate to the manufacture of component goods that are vitally important in the lives of everyone.  However, the term “rare” is somewhat of a misnomer.  The minerals themselves are not rare; indeed, they have been around for hundreds of millions of years in abundant supply.  It is the processing of those minerals into stable second stage commodities that has become rare.

As a result of western environmental rules and regulations, U.S, EU and developed nations have outsourced critical mineral processing (the dirty stuff) to China and Asia. We then import the finished commodity after processing.  This becomes a problem when you realize the processor can weaponize western dependency, as we have recently seen with China controlling the export of processed minerals needed for manufacturing.

President Trump has made a strategic decision to bring back the manufacturing of critical minerals to the United States and has made a policy decision to create a critical mineral reserve. Just last Monday President Trump announced a $12 billion strategic mineral reserve to combat China’s domination of critical mineral supply chains, a major step toward tackling China’s advantage in a crucial sector of the U.S. economy.  The initiative is called “Project Vault.”

“For years, American businesses have risked running out of critical minerals during market disruptions,” President Trump said. “Just as we have long had a strategic petroleum reserve and a stockpile of critical minerals for national defense, we are now creating this reserve for American industry,” Trump said during the Oval Office announcement.

Today in Washington DC, Vice-President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio led a critical minerals discussion at the State Dept., where they are organizing an effort to get all nations to invest and create their own critical minerals strategic reserves.  WATCH:

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Ed Martin Removed from Now Dissolved DOJ Weaponization Working Group, Report of Leaked Grand Jury Information

For the past week+, semi opaque stories have been circulating about Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche removing Trump’s appointed U.S. Attorney Ed Martin from official responsibility as it pertains to the ongoing DOJ Govt. Weaponization working group.

There has been a great deal of speculation regarding the rumors and inside DOJ motives therein. Why would Blanche remove Martin and what does it mean?  Lots of back and forth, lots of speculation and lots of angst has followed.  CTH took a wait and see approach.

Today a report surfaces from CNN that likely explains the context.  Now, with CNN as the outlet, sure there’s tons of room to dismiss the story and simply label it fake news; however, as with most things in DC, while CNN would certainly put the worst possible spin on the story, there is also likely some truth within the explanation.

With the Dept of Justice being in a hypersensitive mode and need to be exceptionally careful, lest they face attacks from the quadrillion powered spotlight upon their activity by the leftist opposition, the story of Ed Martin potentially sharing grand jury information about Adam Schiff and Letitia James mortgage fraud cases does reconcile the background context of Deputy AG Todd Blanche’s move to distance Martin.

WASHINGTON DC – A Justice Department review found that Ed Martin improperly handled grand jury materials that were part of an investigation targeting Donald Trump’s political enemies, at least two sources familiar with the review told CNN. It was at least part of the reason Martin was pushed out of DOJ headquarters early this year.

The review, which was overseen by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s office, focused on whether grand jury material gathered in the department’s mortgage fraud inquiries into Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James had been illegally shared with people not authorized to possess that information, multiple people briefed on the matter told CNN.

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February 4th – 2026 Presidential Politics – Trump Administration Day 381

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 February 4th – 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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FBI Director Kash Patel Outlines Fulton County Objective, Ongoing Epstein Information and Other Matters

As background for this interview, I’m going to say something that generally will not be received well by many. I have it on very good authority that FBI Director Kash Patel’s organization is currently one of the biggest impediments to successful execution of Trump administration domestic policy goals.

Specifically stated, DC operatives within the FBI are creating, manufacturing and leaking information against the goals and objectives of the White House, DOJ and other administration executive offices. In short, Kash Patel does not have his arms around the agency and subversive operatives are actively successful because of his incompetence. Accept it or disregard it, but that is the honest expressed sentiment from officials who are having to deal with the consequence.

All of that said, here is FBI Director Kash Patel appearing on Fox News to again emphasize that the agency is working in a supportive role on various domestic issues of concern. Not “lead“, “support.” WATCH:

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A Bigger Backstory – ICIG Delivers Read and Return Intelligence Report with Letter to Congress Vindicating DNI Tulsi Gabbard

The Intelligence Community Inspector General (ICIG) delivered the “read and return” intelligence report to congress that sits at the background of an anonymous whistleblower complaint against Director of National Intelligence, DNI Tulsi Gabbard. [CBS Story]  In addition to delivering the report, the ICIG also delivered a declassified letter outlining the framework of the backstory [SEE HERE].

I strongly urge people to take a few minutes and read both links above, particularly the pdf of the ICIG report that frames the complaint.  In essence, the same playbook the IC tried to create the impeachment narrative against President Trump (2019), they repeated against DNI Tulsi Gabbard.

Now, the story gets a little weedy, so at the risk of yet another subpoena for outlining highly classified intelligence information simply by using public sourcing information and strategic brain mapping to put dots together, the easiest way to explain what has happened is to tell the big picture story of it.

People opposed to President Trump inside the National Intelligence Council (NIC), which in 2025 was a sub-silo inside the CIA, wrote an analysis saying the Venezuela gang ‘Tren de Aragua” (TdA) was not officially affiliated with the Venezuela government. Therefore, when President Trump and Secretary Rubio defined TdA as an officially recognized terrorist group, the analysis was intended to separate the TdA violence from the official U.S. policy toward Venezuela.

[The NIC is the “federal agency” being described in the media reports. I suspect the report’s authors were Mike Collins and Maria Langan-Riekhof or close associates therein.]

The “highly classified” component to the analysis, the part that intentionally skewers the telling of the story, is almost certainly the sourcing for the NIC analysis.

Here I would estimate with 90%+ confidence, that a CIA asset within the Venezuela government was the source of the intelligence saying TdA is not officially aligned with the Venezuelan govt.  That CIA asset could be someone very close to former dictator Nicholas Maduro, or someone currently inside the transitional government.  That source makes the component to the NIC analysis “highly classified.”  [However, it also fulfills the goals and operational agenda of the people who want to weaponize the “whistleblower angle.]

Now, I want to break out a component here because it is directly related to the reason for anti-Trump IC to manufacture this official CIA-NIC analysis.  Remember, Judge James Boasberg’s argument against deporting TdA members was based on his refusal to accept the deportees were designated terrorists.  Venezuela would not take them back, so President Trump sent them to the maximum-security prison in El Salvador.

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Senate Intelligence Vice-Chair Mark Warner Holds a Press Conference, Extremely Concerned About Intelligence Community Control of Govt Being Weakened

A natural law within human behavior: “The need for control is a reaction to fear.”

Earlier today, the Vice-Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), Senator Mark Warner, delivered a statement and took questions from the press pool.  The subject was his extreme concern about the actions of Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard against the background of the U.S. intelligence community losing their grip on American politics.  In every nuance of every syllable, Mark Warner is very concerned about this.

Warner talks about the intelligence community “Gang of Eight” [@16:37] being formed specifically so that critical issues of vital national security could be shared and reviewed in a secure forum for oversight.  This is the same Mark Warner who on March 17, 2017, shortly after 4:00pm, leaked a top-secret highly classified FISA warrant in an effort to achieve his domestic political objectives.  Warner genuinely doesn’t think we know about it.

Senator Mark Warner rails against Tulsi Gabbard for working on election integrity issues without debriefing the Senate Intelligence Committee.  In short, what reasonably concerns Warner is that organized intelligence community work to influence U.S. election outcomes is going to be impaired by DNI Tulsi Gabbard.   Warner notes the DNI should never be permitted to review domestic intelligence operations in U.S. elections, and he is very angry about what might happen if this continues.  WATCH:

Those who have been with CTH for more than a little while will understand why we have been documenting the Senate Intelligence Committee as the key enabler for the Intelligence Community to run amok with no accountability.  The SSCI is the most corrupt of all DC institutions.

CTH is certain Mark Warner played a role in leaking the Carter Page FISA application.  CTH is also reasonably confident that Senator Mark Warner and CIA Director Gina Haspel coordinated the Eric Ciaramella “whistleblower” complaint, through ICIG Atkinson, that facilitated the 2019 impeachment effort.   The evidence is in Atkinson’s October 2019 testimony to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, that has been sealed and classified.  That transcript remains a House equity, outside the reach of the executive branch per the plan of HPSCI Chairman Adam Schiff.

For the current topic, Senator Warner is highly concerned a review of the 2020 election outcome might reveal gross election manipulation.

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Remarkable Rendering of White House Ballroom Currently Under Construction

Between the White House ballroom currently under construction, and the proposed Arc du Trump currently in the planning stage, Washington DC could look entirely different when President Trump leaves office.  The classic elements are genuinely inspiring.

PRESIDENT TRUMP – “This beautiful building will be, when complete, the much-anticipated White House Ballroom — The Greatest of its kind ever built! It is a rendering from the Treasury Building, directly across the street, and replaces the very small, dilapidated, and rebuilt many times, East Wing, with a magnificent New East Wing, consisting of a glorious Ballroom that has been asked for by Presidents for over 150 years. Being an identical height and scale, it is totally in keeping with our historic White House. This is the first rendering shown to the Public. If you notice, the North Wall is a replica of the North Facade of the White House, shown at the right-hand side of the picture. This space will serve our Country well for, hopefully, Centuries into the future! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP

Who do you think will be the first “guest of honor” at a state dinner using the completed ballroom?

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Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Gives a Brief Press Availability from The White House

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt provides brief comments on current political events to the assembled press pool on February 3rd. Mrs. Leavitt outlined President Trump’s support for the SAVE Act, federal legislation to require voter ID.

On the economic front the U.S. has finalized the outlines of the U.S-India free trade agreement, and the latest manufacturing index shows significant gains in production and productivity; all positive indicators.  Mrs Leavitt also faced questions about DNI Tulsi Gabbard attending the search warrant execution in Fulton County, Georgia, as the administration continues to review the potential for foreign interference in U.S. elections.

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February 3rd – 2026 Presidential Politics – Trump Administration Day 380

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…)