U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed the media in Mexico City amidst his tour of Latin America, underscoring U.S. efforts to confront drug cartels, curb migration, and boost regional security cooperation. Mexico is being squeezed economically with increased internal pressure by cartels about sovereignty, Mexico seeks balanced collaboration. WATCH:
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The first, is the FISA (702) reauthorization, and there is a lot that will surface in the next several months likely to upend the best laid plans of the administrative UniParty [Tulsi Factor]. The second, is the USMCA reauthorization – the end of the trilateral trade agreement, and the structural shift into two separate free trade agreements.
As to the latter issue, while Mexico and Canada are currently in a state of economic flux, only Mexico is preparing to deal with the seismic shift that is about to unfold. Canada is going to be caught completely off guard.
While Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is trotting around Europe trying to establish his relevance amid the pro-Ukraine coalition, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is spending time focused on her domestic economy.
Mexico is preparing to drop significant tariffs on Chinese imports, a proactive move to position Mexico in advance of the upcoming bilateral discussion.
Sheinbaum knows that right now for every deportation ICE executes, her economy is hit as remittances recede. Simultaneously, for every mile of border wall that is completed, the financial dependency model increases. President Trump’s leverage in the upcoming bilateral trade negotiation against Mexico increases each day, week and month.
Claudia Sheinbaum is smartly focused on trying to get ahead of the issues, while Mark Carney ignores his vulnerability and is about to make Canada naked to the economic weaknesses created by Justin Trudeau.
Attorney General Pam Bondi and other top law enforcement officials held a press briefing in Brooklyn, New York, after Sinaloa Cartel boss Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia pled guilty in federal court. WATCH:
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The reality of the U.S-Canada economic relationship and the position of President Donald Trump is not that difficult to understand if you take all the disparate datapoints and quotes from Trump and put them into context.
During a White House meeting with Mark Carney, President Trump essentially told the Canadian Prime Minister why he was in no hurry to get to a deal with Canada.
The 35% tariffs on non-USMCA goods are going to trigger on August 1st, because the main priority of Trump -looking toward Canada- is to dissolve the USMCA.
During the May 6th oval office meeting with Carney, President Trump was discussing the USMCA and said: “As you know it terminates fairly shortly. It gets renegotiated fairly shortly.” … “This was a transitional deal, and we’ll see what happens, we’re going to start renegotiating that” … “I don’t know if it serves a purpose anymore.” …. “And the biggest purpose it served was, we got rid of NAFTA.”
To understand why President Trump wants to dissolve the USMCA {SEE HERE}. To understand the technical value of dissolving the USMCA {SEE HERE}. It’s not a complicated economic analysis; it’s common sense.
Currently, approximately 60% of the traded goods and services between the U.S. and Canada are covered by the USMCA; the remaining 40% will be hit by tariffs on August 1st at a 35% rate.
When the USMCA is renegotiated, predictably dissolved in favor of two bilateral trade agreements – one for Mexico and one for Canada, all of the U.S-Canada trade sectors will be part of the enlarged free trade negotiation. As a result, there is absolutely no motive to engage in trade discussions now.
President Trump announced on Truth Social a baseline tariff rate of 30% for both the European Union and Mexico. Other sector specific tariffs still apply.
The EU rate is interesting in that the 30% rate is lower than the Canadian rate of 35%, yet the EU rate exceeds the current ‘chicken tax’ rate historically applied to imported SUVs and Trucks. Strategically, the 30% tariff rate on Europe is a major incentive for various EU sectors to shift manufacturing into the USA.
Without a formal declaration of the end of the Marshall Plan, the reciprocity rate of 30% for all EU imports also equalizes the transatlantic trade benefit. It will be interesting to see how the EU responds, given any retaliation could be added to the existing baseline.
Canada is currently trying to organize a trade agreement with the EU, in the hopes of positioning themselves toward the transatlantic group as they were toward the transpacific group (vis-a-vis China).
Announcement from Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins: “I have ordered an immediate shutdown of live cattle, bison, and horse trade through the southern U.S.–Mexico border. This decisive action comes after Mexico confirmed another case of New World Screwworm in Veracruz.”
(Washington, D.C., July 9, 2025)– Yesterday, Mexico’s National Service of Agro-Alimentary Health, Safety, and Quality (SENASICA) reported a new case of New World Screwworm (NWS) in Ixhuatlan de Madero, Veracruz in Mexico, which is approximately 160 miles northward of the current sterile fly dispersal grid, on the eastern side of the country and 370 miles south of the U.S./Mexico border.
This new northward detection comes approximately two months after northern detections were reported in Oaxaca and Veracruz, less than 700 miles away from the U.S. border, which triggered the closure of our ports to Mexican cattle, bison, and horses on May 11, 2025.
[…] Therefore, in order to protect American livestock and our nation’s food supply, Secretary Rollins has ordered the closure of livestock trade through southern ports of entry effective immediately. (read more)
As we have noted from the beginning, the overwhelming majority of the Canadian people genuinely have no idea what the final goal is for President Trump; this includes Prime Minister Mark Carney. A few Canadians can see the big picture, but only a very few.
Today, President Trump announces that all trade negotiations with Canada are halted, effective immediately, because Mark Carney and his team are trying to target the USA with a Digital Services Tax. When you know the end-game for Trump, you can clearly see how this positioning from Canada once again plays directly into his hands.
PRESIDENT TRUMP – “We have just been informed that Canada, a very difficult Country to TRADE with, including the fact that they have charged our Farmers as much as 400% Tariffs, for years, on Dairy Products, has just announced that they are putting a Digital Services Tax on our American Technology Companies, which is a direct and blatant attack on our Country. They are obviously copying the European Union, which has done the same thing, and is currently under discussion with us, also.
Based on this egregious Tax, we are hereby terminating ALL discussions on Trade with Canada, effective immediately. We will let Canada know the Tariff that they will be paying to do business with the United States of America within the next seven day period. Thank you for your attention to this matter!
Things are getting very interesting as the clock ticks toward the end of the USMCA trade agreement.
Almost no one is watching the USMCA element because it quietly exists only in the background of events. However, pay close attention to the ancillary stories because they will eventually merge with the end of the USMCA and two bilateral trade agreements between the U.S-Canada and the U.S. and Mexico later this year.
NATO funding and Canadian economic independence, and by extension the EU and China, comes into the northern agreement. Border security and Mexican economic independence, and by extension immigration and China, comes into the southern agreement. The strength of MAGAnomic policy flows directly through both.
In the quiet sphere, a few days ago Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, a key player in the trade program, announced sanctions against three Mexican financial organizations that underline the influence of the Mexican cartels and the Mexican government. [Treasury Announcement Here]
“The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued orders identifying three Mexico-based financial institutions—CIBanco S.A., Institution de Banca Multiple (CIBanco) [ORDER HERE], Intercam Banco S.A., Institución de Banca Multiple (Intercam) [ORDER HERE], and Vector Casa de Bolsa, S.A. de C.V. (Vector) [ORDER HERE]—as being of primary money laundering concern in connection with illicit opioid trafficking, and prohibit, respectively, certain transmittals of funds involving CIBanco, Intercam, and Vector. These orders are the first actions by FinCEN pursuant to the Fentanyl Sanctions Act and the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, which provide Treasury with additional authorities to target money laundering associated with the trafficking of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, including by cartels”. (more)
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is furious. “The Treasury Department hasn’t provided a single piece of evidence to show that any money laundering was taking place,” she said. “We aren’t going to cover for anyone, there isn’t impunity here. They have to be able to demonstrate that there was actually money laundering, not with words, but with strong evidence.”
Hopefully these are the political stunts that will force the reluctant hand of Attorney General Pam Bondi to intervene. Criminal arrests and federal prosecutions of politicians pulling these stunts are needed.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander locked arms with an illegal alien as immigrations officials were removing the target for deportation. Lander purposefully interfered in a federal apprehension of a criminal alien, and should be prosecuted.
The media are selectively showing a portion of the video after Lander is handcuffed by police. However, in the earlier segment below you can clearly see Mr Lander intentionally locking arms with the target in an effort to stop ICE enforcement from taking custody. WATCH:
.@bradlander just arrested at immigration court pic.twitter.com/nDqEK1Lzcw
— Courtney Gross (@courtneycgross) June 17, 2025
Judicial warrants are not required to apprehend and deport illegal aliens.
NEW YORK — New York City mayoral candidate Brad Lander was handcuffed and detained by federal agents Tuesday afternoon while escorting migrants from immigration hearings in Lower Manhattan.
Footage and video of the hectic incident is firing up the third-place candidate’s suddenly energetic campaign, as he shows himself taking on an issue that’s central to President Donald Trump’s political agenda.
Border Czar Tom Homan appeared for a podcast discussion with Dr Phil. Homan makes a strong point about the “customs” aspect in Customs and Border Patrol and outlines how it was customs enforcement that backstopped the reason for the ICE raid in Los Angeles. There was a money laundering operation underway that had long been investigated.
“Dr. Phil and Border Czar Tom Homan break down the major LA raid targeting cartel-linked businesses, sparking protests and debate. They discuss a major multi-agency operation in Los Angeles targeting criminal enterprises in the garment industry. Homan explains how ICE, DEA, FBI, IRS, and other agencies collaborated to serve search warrants, uncovering $80 million in undeclared imports, $17 million in unpaid tariffs, and arresting 41 undocumented immigrants.
The operation, part of a larger investigation into money laundering and cartel activity, sparked intense protests and clashes outside targeted businesses. Homan discusses the challenges of balancing law enforcement with public outcry, the new zero-tolerance policy for interference, and the importance of transparency about the broader criminal context of these actions.” WATCH:
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