A big FUBAR happened in Culiacan Mexico yesterday as Mexican police and narcotics officers captured Ovidio Guzman, aka “Chapito”, the heir of drug kingpin El Chappo and current head of the Sinaloa cartel.
We watched via social media yesterday as a war broke out in Culiacan between the police/military and the cartel.  After authorities captured Chapito, hundreds of Sinaloa cartel members came down from the mountains and cut off the city.  The cartel began executing and capturing anyone who was assisting the arrest.  The city shut down.

To save themselves, the surrounded Mexican officials released Chapito back to the cartels and now the world has more evidence that Mexican President Lopez-Obrador has no control over the peace and security of Mexico.  The cartels are in charge.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican officials on Friday admitted they had bungled the arrest of kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s son, who they let go during shootouts with drug gangs in the streets of a major city, but the president insisted his security strategy was working.

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Office for Trade and Manufacturing Policy’s Peter Navarro discusses the China trade negotiations, the UAW General Motors strike, U.S. tariffs in European goods, and USMCA.
On the U.S-China ‘Phase-1’ construct the key issue is going to be the enforcement mechanism to ensure any agreement has strength.  On U.S. placing tariffs on the EU due to the Airbus ruling Navarro reminds everyone the WTO ruling does not permit the EU to place tariffs on U.S. productions.  On USMCA everyone avoids telling the truth; that is  Nancy Pelosi is waiting to see what happens in the Canadian election in three days.  If Trudeau wins re-election, the USMCA will likely be scrapped (tabled) by Pelosi.

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{*Note* We are holding-back on BREXIT-EU deal outlines until we complete reading the majority of the 2,000+ pages of UK-EU legal agreement construct.}
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In the bigger picture… Within the trade team, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is positioned with primary responsibility toward the EU and India. Ross clear-cuts through the politics, explains Trump’s objectives amid the trade proposals, and paves a path for U.S. Trade Rep Bob Lighthizer to engage his counterparts.
India has always been a key strategic nation within the global trade-realignment taking place by the Trump administration.  Under all of the banter, the “Indo-Pacific” strategy is structurally the decoupling of the U.S. from China. As a part of the strategy President Trump has positioned the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) as benefactors in manufacturing & trade as an outcome of the U.S. decoupling from China.

However, India has genuine concerns about the global dynamic. Specifically, India is worried about allowing the multinationals to have influence over their economy and social structure. In this regard India is not wrong; their concerns are not unfounded.
We can all see, heck we’ve lived through, massive multinational corporations quickly gaining too much influence; including -eventually- corporate influence over the politics of a nation. That inherently leads to corruption.
When Americans see it in other nations we call it “bribery and corruption”, but when it happens in Washington, DC, we call it “lobbying”; the process is exactly the same.
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National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow discusses the forecast for ratification of the USMCA against the backdrop of Pelosi’s announced focus on impeachment.
Additionally, Kudlow discusses the status of Chinese trade negotiations and the recently affirmed trade deal with Japan.

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 WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives is proceeding with efforts regarding the Trump administration’s trade deal with Mexico and Canada, U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters on Thursday, saying House Democrats had discussed the pact a day earlier.
“We’re moving ahead on the U.S-Mexico-Canada agreement,” Pelosi said at a news conference. “We’re, again, hoping to be on a continuing path to ‘yes’” to approve the deal aimed at replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). (link)
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Promises made – Promises Kept…

President Donald Trump delivers remarks to the media today while touring border wall construction in Otay Mesa, California.   As a builder himself, the president outlined some of the more particular details of the construction project including the difference between compressive strength and tensile strength of 5,000/lb concrete.  There is apparently some additional aspects to the wall that are kept secret (they’re wired for sound).

The President was briefed on the project by Douglas Harrison (Acting San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent, United States Customs & Border Protection); Kathleen Scudder (San Diego Sector Deputy Chief Patrol Agent, United States Customs & Border Protection); Scott Garrett (San Diego Sector Division Chief, United States Customs & Border Protection); James O’Loughlin (Border Wall Program Lead, Emergency Action Programs, Department of Defense), and various local officials.
[Video Below, Transcript Will Follow]

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By now everyone is familiar with the Lawfare network; an alliance of ideological political interests inside and outside government who use the law to achieve their objectives.  [Specific Example Here]

During the Obama administration the Lawfare group: (1) weaponized the IRS for political targeting; (2) weaponized the DOJ and FBI for political targeting; (3) weaponized the intelligence community for political activism; (4) created new legal theories around ‘disparate impact’ to weaponize the National Labor Relations Board; and generally used embedded officials to advance far-left political interests across the spectrum of govt.

After they lost the 2016 election the Lawfare group immediately: (1) worked to delegitimize the presidency of Donald Trump; (2) delegitimize National Security Adviser General Flynn; (3) target, disempower and isolate AG Jeff Session; (4) delegitimize AG Bill Barr and the institution of the FBI outside their control; (5) delegitimize DHS, Border Patrol and Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE); and (6) delegitimize any institution or office that would now be removing or overturning their former Lawfare constructs.
What we are seeing today from the Lawfare Alliance appears as a designed effort to continue this overall agenda; now focused on delegitimizing the Supreme Court of the United States.

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The supreme court has upheld President Trump’s immigration enforcement policy that denies asylum claims to migrants who travel through safe nations to reach the U.S.

(Via AP) […] The justices’ order late Wednesday undoes a lower-court ruling that had blocked the new asylum policy in some states along the southern border. The policy is meant to deny asylum to anyone who passes through another country on the way to the U.S. without seeking protection there. (more)

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Acting Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Mark Morgan holds a press conference to update on the status of ongoing border security and immigration enforcement.  [Video and Transcript Below]
Border arrests fell to roughly 51,000 in August, a more than 60 percent decrease from 133,000 arrests in May, which was the peak of the recent surge. [CPB Press Release] However, Commissioner Morgan emphasized that Mexico must continue to do more to secure the border.  Morgan said Mexico has taken “meaningful and unprecedented steps” to stop migrants passing through its country, “but they need to do more.”

U.S. and Mexican officials are scheduled to meet tomorrow to discuss ongoing efforts and expectations from the Trump administration to continue avoiding tariffs. President Andres Manuel Lopez-Obrador deployed thousands of troops from a newly formed National Guard to intercept migrants and keep them from reaching the U.S. Southern border.  AMLO does not want to face U.S. tariffs on Mexican products.
[Transcript] ACTING COMMISSIONER MORGAN: Good morning. And thank you all for being here today.
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White House Director of Trade and Manufacturing Policy Peter Navarro appears on Fox News to discuss the current status of the U.S-China trade discussions and the USMCA.
Ms. Bartiromo points out how U.S. multinationals are holding back further investment in Asia due to ongoing President Trump tariffs.  Mr. Navarro points out there is no uncertainty if U.S. companies would invest in Main Street USA.
However, the Wall Street multinationals do not want to give up on their Asian investments and bring U.S. manufacturing jobs back to North America.  Hence the conflict between Wall Street/The Big Club and Main Street/President Trump.

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As Navarro noted, the narrative about October talks between the U.S. and China are driven by the collaborative financial interests of Beijing and Wall Street multinationals in an effort to create the image of something that doesn’t exist.  Prepare accordingly.
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I am thankful every day that we have a businessman in the White House who brilliantly understands how to leverage U.S. economic power to achieve national security objectives.
While remaining under the threat of punishing U.S. tariffs, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez-Obrador (aka AMLO) is strictly enforcing migrant blockades to stop the unlawful travel of Central American migrants to the U.S. border.

(Via AP) […] Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said he believes Mexico’s strategy of cracking down on illegal migration with a National Guard deployment, investment in Central America and allowing the U.S. to make more asylum seekers wait in Mexico is enough to avert President Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on all Mexican imports.

Ebrard is scheduled to meet with U.S. officials Tuesday at the White House to review the progress.

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