The leaders of the twenty-nine NATO member nations are scheduled to meet next week in London, England.  Amid consistent pressure on the member states for increased defense spending to live up to their prior 2014 promises (Wales summit); and with NATO economies in a stalled geopolitical stasis due to their attachment to China (5G telecom), Russia (Nordstream II), and Iran; this summit holds increased possible ramifications.
This NATO summit could very well expose the duplicity and hypocrisy of the EU depending on how far U.S. President Donald Trump is willing to call them out.
There are going to be a lot of nervous snake handlers around the table(s), and with the U.K. elections in the near future there is a great deal at stake. The summit is Tuesday and Wednesday.  Here’s the White House background briefing:
[Transcript] – SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I just want to thank everyone for being here today, Friday after Thanksgiving.
Just up front, this call is going to be on background, attribution to a senior administration official, and there will be an embargo on the contents of this call until it’s completed.
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Two people were killed and up to five more stabbed as a terrorist used two knives to attack the public in London, England.  The attack happened near (and on) the London Bridge and the terrorist wore a dummy explosives vest.   Members of the general public tackled and disarmed the terrorist until police arrived moments later and shot him.
British authorities have confirmed the attack was a terrorist incident.  London Mayor Sadiq Khan has promised the British people he will write a strong letter of condemnation.

(Via Daily Mail) – Two innocent members of the public have died after a knifeman went on a rampage this afternoon in London.
Armed police shot dead a knifeman wearing a fake suicide vest today after he stabbed up to five people in a shocking terrorist attack as frightened crowds fled the scene.
Witnesses on the scene said the man had been brandishing two knives and had attacked people on the north side of London Bridge before running into the centre at around 2pm.

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Earlier today President Trump and Bulgarian Prime Minister Borissov held a press availability in the oval office prior to their bilateral meeting.  [Video and Transcript]

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[Transcript] – PRIME MINISTER BORISSOV: (As interpreted.) The Bulgarians like you so much, and they expect to have the problem with the visas solved — like with Canada.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Ah, okay. Well, we’re going to work on that problem.
I want to just thank the Prime Minister of Bulgaria for being here. It’s an honor to have you at the White House, in the Oval Office. We have meetings coming up in a little while. You have your representatives. I have my representatives. And I think we’re going to have very productive meetings.
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White House trade and manufacturing policy advisor Peter Navarro appears on Fox News to discuss two key economic and trade issues: (1) the current status of U.S-China trade discussions “round one”; and (2) the status of USMCA ratification (Pelosi’s delay).
Nothing in the China trade discussion is solid, until everything in the China trade discussion is settled; this is one of the key aspects to President Trump’s directive to USTR Robert Lighthizer.  No deal is a more favorable outcome than the construct of a trade deal that cannot be enforced.
On the USMCA ratification, again it all falls upon the politics of Pelosi.  The agreement would pass tomorrow if it were put up to a vote; there is no controversy.  Speaker Pelosi is holding back the ratification vote for pure political purposes.

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USMCA ratification is the first domino in long-chain of ‘America First’ economic benefits. As soon as USMCA passes a wave of North American investment will surge. The downstream consequences includes leverage for U.S-China, U.S-Europe, U.S-India and U.S-U.K trade agreements.
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Earlier today Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross appeared for an interview with Maria Bartiromo on the status of phase-one for the U.S-China trade deal, Huawei and ZTE national security concerns, and Speaker Pelosi blocking ratification of the USMCA agreement.
Secretary Ross cautions the Chinese deal is contingent on some very particular and important enforcement details. Additionally Ross discusses the potential national security issues with 5G network and AG Bill Barr having strong concerns about Huawei and ZTE.

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Within the current claims of the Democrats there is a baseline action that needs to exist for any “bribery” or “undue influence” claim to exist. Meaning there had to be pressure by President Trump upon the government of Ukraine to initiate an investigation of Joe Biden.

The call transcript between President Trump and President Zelenskyy doesn’t show such a request.  Ukraine President Zelenskyy said there was never such a request by President Trump; and now Ukraine Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko says there was never such a request from U.S. Ambassador Sondland on behalf of President Trump:

(Via Daily Mail) The Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vadym Prystaiko told Ukrainian reporters a day after the first public impeachment hearing that Ambassador Gordon Sondland did not detail any relationship between the assistance and probe, according to Interfax, a Ukrainian news agency.

‘Ambassador Sondland did not tell us, and did not tell me exactly, about the relation between the [military] assistance and the investigations,’ Prystaiko told journalists in Kiev. ‘You should ask him. I do not recall any conversation with me as with foreign minister. It was not we, the Ukrainian officials (who were told this).’

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A very strong jobs market, and wage growth for the middle-class at the highest rate in decades, continues to benefit Main Street USA.  As noted within the sales and earnings report from Walmart today, the U.S. middle-class continues to thrive in a MAGA-driven U.S. economy.

(Reuters) […] Consumer spending going in to the crucial holiday season remains healthy, Chief Financial Officer Brett Biggs told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. Retailers earn a sizeable chunk of their annual revenue during November and December.
“The consumer remains in pretty good shape, employment situation is good, fuel prices are low … wage growth is pretty good,” he said. (more)

It is easy to forget how two-years-ago the doomsayers and financial pundits were claiming President Trump’s tariff policies were going to create massive price increases.  They were completely wrong in their predictions.  The latest U.S. inflation reports show low inflation at 1.8 percent year-over-year.
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Funny stuff amid headlines discussing the likelihood of President Trump postponing a 25% tariff on European autos.  What the pundits are missing is how President Trump has positioned a myriad of trade dynamics that make EU action unavoidable.   This is the fun stuff, so let’s enjoy the details.
The current headlines surround President Trump “postponing” a 25% tariff on EU automobiles as an outcome of the major EU manufacturers (mostly Germany) promising increased investment in their U.S. operations.  By itself this would be considered a win for President Trump, but that’s not the whole picture, not even close.

What the more broad trade and manufacturing dynamic includes will explain what EU economists are only just now starting to realize.  Yes, the major European auto-makers will put more investment into the United States (thereby lessening the EU industrial economy); however, the auto decision is not because they are presenting a magnanimous benefit of sorts, but rather it is a foregone conclusion; an unavoidable reality due to a previous trade agreement construct.
Within the USMCA agreement President Trump negotiated a win-win-win for Mexico, Canada and the U.S. through a requirement that 75 percent of North American auto content must originate from manufacturing within North America.  Failure to reach that threshold means the auto company will be subject to a 25 percent tariff to bring the product to the U.S. market.
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The major industrial economies of the European Union (U.K., France, Germany) have been the beneficiaries of a decades-long system which allowed one-sided benefits -via tariffs- against U.S. products.
With President Trump demanding reciprocity, and with less industrial purchasing from China, the EU is now starting to contemplate a dramatically different economic future.

(Reuters) – Persistent weakness in euro zone manufacturing raises the risk of other sectors of the economy being infected, extending the currency bloc’s recent downturn, European Central Bank policymaker Yves Mersch said on Monday.
“The longer the weakness in manufacturing persists, the greater the risk that other sectors of the economy will be affected by the slowdown as well,” Mersch told a conference.
“Risks to the growth outlook remain on the downside overall.” (read more)

I think it is safe to say the majority of American voters have no idea how deeply the global economy is dependent on systems of trade that are based on the U.S. trade deficits.
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National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien continues to impress today as he appears on Face the Nation for an interview with the ever-emotional and overly-dramatic resistance dingbat Margaret Brennan. [Transcript of Interview Here]
In 2016 and 2017 President Trump said NATO was obsolete and the moonbats went  bananas; NATO is the only thing saving the planet Brennan claimed.  Fast forward to 2019… Trump meets with a NATO nation leader (Erdogan) and the moonbats go bananas; NATO is a horrible construct, Erdogan bad. Yes, liberal apoplexy is contagious in groups.

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[Transcript] – MARGARET BRENNAN: Joining us now to weigh in on Syria and more is the President’s National Security Adviser, Robert O’Brien. Good morning to you, Mr. Ambassador.
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER ROBERT O’BRIEN: Good morning, MARGARET.
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