Norm Eisen and his two dozen allies within the various Lawfare NGO’s have again interceded and temporarily blocked the financial settlement between the IRS/DOJ and Donald Trump, the $1.776 billion anti-Weaponization Fund settlement.

The weaponization fund was established as part of a settlement agreement between Mr. Trump and the Internal Revenue Service to end a civil lawsuit he and his sons filed in January over the illegal leaking of his tax returns by the IRS. While President Trump will receive no benefit from the settlement, under the agreement the fund aims to “provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of all others who suffered weaponization and lawfare.”

There is zero legal precedent for a non-participant in the settlement to interfere in the terms and conditions of the settlement itself.  All outside parties have zero standing to interfere in the settlement and all reasonable legal minds will tell you exactly the same.  A Lawfare challenge is futile because taxpayers do not have legal standing to stop the govt from settling lawsuits (see Pigford et al).

In 1923 the Supreme Court said that a taxpayer’s interest in money from the Treasury “is shared with millions of others” and is “comparatively minute and indeterminable.” “If we have an intersection collision with a postal truck and a settlement is negotiated to give $5 million to a family, does anybody have standing to come in and say, ‘the government paid too much in that settlement?'”  The answer is no.

However, the law is really not what stands behind the Lawfare approach. Lawfare is a political strategy designed for public consumption that relies upon the media and stupidity of the American populace.  Smart, intelligent and reasonable people can see through Lawfare when applied.

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The technical definition of a “recession” is two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth. The 4th quarter of 2025 and 1st quarter of 2026 have identified exactly that problem, negative GDP growth in Canada. [-1% and -0.1% respectively] The pretending is fierce, and again CTH warns everyone to be careful about exposure to the Canadian sector in their investment holdings.

As customary, whenever the economic policy of a political leftist delivers a bad outcome, the media contort themselves in order to avoid defining the situation accurately.  Instead, the financial media project -without merit- that the current situation is more positive.  Unfortunately, the data doesn’t provide much room to arbitrarily change the definitions.

Keep in mind this announcement today comes on the heels of the Bank of Canada warning that a “cascading series of events could cause a sharp loss of investor confidence and lead to a spike in demand for liquidity or rapid asset sales.”  This is a particularly pertinent phrase given one of the common reasons being attributed to the negative GDP, increased import values – specifically Canadians purchasing gold.

Several financial outlets have noted the increase in the value of Canadian imports, a negative in the GDP calculation, is being driven by Canadians (institutions and individuals) purchasing gold as a hedge.  The Canadians are buying gold as a hedge against both inflation and currency devaluation.

This activity puts additional context onto the statements from the Bank of Canada, who would likely have advanced notice of this issue.  Hence, the Bank of Canada also saying, “In normal times, hedge fund activity helps keep markets running smoothly. But if conditions become strained, this activity could amplify stress and disrupt core funding markets.”  The Wall Street Journal:

WSJ – OTTAWA — Canada’s economy unexpectedly shrank for a second consecutive quarter as activity stalled at the start of the year, raising the likelihood the country dipped into a recession.

Gross domestic product, a broad measure of goods and services produced across Canada, edged down 0.1% in seasonally adjusted annualized terms in the January-to-March period, Statistics Canada said Friday.

The economy also contracted a larger-than-previously-estimated 1% in the final quarter of last year. Back-to-back quarterly declines typically define a technical recession.

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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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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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CBS has rewritten their storyline as they now claim their “source” has reversed position.  Originally, CBS claimed the U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of Illinois was investigating the mentally unstable E. Jean Carroll, the woman who falsely accused President Trump of rape sometime approximately 30 or 40-years ago, she’s not sure.

Now CBS is reporting their source changed the story and the DOJ investigation is actually into the American Future Republic PAC, which is a non-profit run by Reid Hoffman, the man who funded the fraudulent political lawsuit filed by E. Jean Carroll.  A substantive difference in narrative.

[SOURCE]

(Via CBS) – […] “On Wednesday evening, a source familiar with the matter told CBS News that the investigation was focused on whether Carroll had committed perjury during a deposition in connection with her civil lawsuits against Mr. Trump in which she alleged he had sexually abused and defamed her.

On Thursday, however, that source followed up and said Carroll is not the target of the investigation, which is focused on funding that Hoffman’s nonprofit, American Future Republic, provided to help cover some of her legal team’s expenses.

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For the past several days, ICE agents and Antifa affiliated protesters have clashed outside the Delaney Hall detention center in Newark, New Jersey. The rioting protesters have blocked the entrance, stopping vehicles from entering the facility.  Multiple trucks can be seen in this video at a standstill.

I’m going to ask the question again: Why Doesn’t the FBI Stop this violent, organized, national activity?

As President Trump is known to say, “don’t make it complicated.” Just look at things as they are, as they present themselves to be, and ask the most obvious questions.

“Domestic Tranquility?” Consider Antifa.

How can a group within America openly threaten police, use violence against police, throw Molotov cocktails, bricks and explosive fireworks at police. Use batons, shields, bats and physical violence against police and federal law enforcement; destroy vehicles, set cars on fire, destroy property, trash and block the streets and create chaos, completely without consequence?

It doesn’t matter where it is happening, that’s irrelevant. Think plainly and simply.

How does any individual or group get to do this without being arrested?

It doesn’t make sense, unless….

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…”A cascading series of events could cause a sharp loss of investor confidence and lead to a spike in demand for liquidity or rapid asset sales”…

That’s a diplomatic way for the Bank of Canada to say the current financial situation in Canada is tenuously at risk, if the economic relationship with the United States severs as a result USMCA points of conflict becoming irreconcilable.  An interesting statement against the backdrop of Prime Minister Mark Carney having just visited New York making a pitch to American investors {citation}.

The Bank of Canada released their 2026 Financial Stability Report {see pdf here}, and Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers and Deputy Governor Toni Gravelle delivered remarks today about the analysis.  I’ve prompted the video below to the point of interest, as well as the transcript for the portion being highlighted [7:12 to 9:15].  WATCH:

[Transcript]  – […] “However, vulnerabilities have increased in some parts of the system. Stock and corporate debt valuations have risen and are high relative to historical norms. This makes markets more vulnerable to a sharp correction.

The issuance of global sovereign debt is also rising, and hedge funds are playing a bigger role in buying that debt, often using borrowed money. In normal times, hedge fund activity helps keep markets running smoothly. But if conditions become strained, this activity could amplify stress and disrupt core funding markets.

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This should be interesting.  As White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt remains on maternity leave, the Trump White House has done something remarkable and very unique.  Cabinet members are taking turns delivering the White House press briefing.

Today, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent steps up to the podium and will be delivering the White House briefing at 2:00pm ET.  Secretary Bessent has been one of the standout leaders throughout the first seventeen months. Livestream links below:

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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…)

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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