The accused murderer of Charlie Kirk appeared in Utah court today.

Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old man accused of killing Charlie Kirk made his first in-person court appearance, as he was allowed to wear civilian clothing permitted by Utah Judge Tony Graf.

In addition to hearing pre-trial motions, the judge granted the state’s motion to amend the gag order to further define the term “witness.” {Via ABC} Prosecutors argued the term was vague and overly broad, given there are potentially more than 3,000 witnesses to the campus shooting. The judge ruled that “witness” under the order applies to those who are part of the prosecution and defense teams, including people who will likely be called to testify at a hearing or trial.

As previously noted by FBI Director Kash Patel, the Utah state police are leading the investigation into Tyler Robinson and his assassination of Charlie Kirk.  The role of the FBI is “supportive” in responding to requests from state police and prosecutors.

Robinson has been charged with aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child.

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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.

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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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Lyndon LaRouche (1922-2019) was a rather eclectic fellow in the world of American politics for several generations. Some of his perspectives were sound and nationalistic, and some of his perspectives slipped into the realm of geopolitical conspiracy theory finding British Imperialism under every rock and blaming Queen Elizabeth II for assassination attempts against him.

Susan Kokinda and Barbara Boyd of Promethean Action continue the LaRouche tradition while smoothing out some of the more outlandish elements the originating political movement was known for. Barbara Boyd is the spokesperson and treasurer of the LaRouche Youth Movement. Boyd’s partner, Susan Kokinda, maintains a belief that eliminating British Imperialism is the objective of President Trump’s America-First policy agenda.  This is where I disagree.

While the outcome of President Trump’s policy does factually lead to the result LaRouche advocated, I strongly doubt “eliminating British imperialism” is the prism through which Donald Trump’s thought process flows.  That said, in the overall picture of American politics, the Kokinda and Boyd analysis of Trump’s opposition is generally accurate.

In their most recent update, Susan Kokinda discusses how President Trump’s recent national security strategy marks a significant departure from over a century of British-influenced American foreign policy.  Their review delves into the geopolitical friction between the U.S. and the UK, particularly regarding their strategies toward Russia and Ukraine.

Mrs. Kokinda underscores the broader clash of worldviews between America-First sovereignty and British-led internationalism, highlighting the latest developments including reactions from Russia and European elites. The episode also examines the opposition Trump faces from both within the U.S. political establishment and British geopolitical strategists and emphasizes the importance of maintaining political support to ensure the success of Trump’s transformative policies.  WATCH:

The divergence between the worldview of the European Union and President Trump is accurately presented as above.  The Ukraine/Russia war serves as a case study in how the two worldviews conflict.  The core of U.K policy and national security strategy continues to view Russia as the biggest threat; the national security outlook by President Trump does not.

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President Trump had previously said that Zelenskyy has until Christmas to make a decision on the negotiated ceasefire and peace plan organized over weeks of discussions between the U.S., Ukraine and Russian intermediaries.

Ukraine President Zelenskyy then rushed to Paris, London, Brussels and Rome to coordinate with European stakeholder interests. [Notably, he never prioritized discussion of the proposal with the people of Ukraine.]

Zelenskyy then announced his European partners were close to finalizing a counterproposal deal.

Interestingly, the leaders of Germany, U.K., France and Ukraine then leak they had a 2-hour phone call with President Trump.  It’s interesting, because President Trump chose to stay quiet about the call as the “coalition of the willing” plotted their next move to keep the USA attached to their collective destiny.

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said they “agreed that this was a critical moment – for Ukraine, its people and for shared security across the Euro-Atlantic region”. A White House official confirmed the call took place but did not give details. {link}

British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spoke with the other heads of state, declaring that they were at a “critical moment,” according to a spokesperson for Downing Street. “The Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to the president of the United States, Donald Trump, the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, and the Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz today,” they said. {link}

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz then announces the “coalition of the willing”, which is specifically Germany, Great Britain and France, will reassemble with President Zelenskyy to solidify the next steps in the “security guarantee” part of their proposal. Previously, the trio would only commit to be “willing” if the USA agreed to protect their military forces on the non-NATO territory of Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine, together with American and European partners, is working on three separate documents related to security and the country’s postwar development. {link}

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Taking a very significant step to be in alignment with President Trump’s North American trade bloc construct, Mexico has passed a sweeping set of tariffs against Chinese imports.

The motive for the move by President Claudia Sheinbaum and her political party, Morena, which controls both legislative chambers is clear.  Mexico is moving into direct alignment with President Trump as the likelihood for the end of the current USMCA trade agreement looms.

President Trump has sent clear signals expressing his intent to dissolve the USMCA trade agreement in favor of two bilateral agreements, one with Mexico and one with Canada.

The Mexican government led by Sheinbaum have made moves throughout the year to stay in alignment with a favorable trade agreement, while the Canadian government led by Mark Carney has been more antagonistic toward any change.

The Mexican trade leadership seem to have long expected the change to the USMCA, and now there are indications Canada realizes what is about to happen, albeit reluctantly.

As a consequence of their proactive position, Mexico has now passed up to 50% tariffs against a host of imports, mostly textiles, shoes, appliances, cars and automobile parts.  The tariffs will apply to any imports that are not part of a previously organized free trade agreement, which has the practical outcome of hitting mostly imports from China. That approach aligns directly with the tariff rate applied by President Trump toward Beijing.

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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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If New Zealand and Australia, both 5-eye partners, were not used as the testing ground during the COVID-19 and vaccination exploits, this current move may not have gained the same level of scrutiny.  However, with a documented history of Australia pushing the limits against freedom and liberty, this latest development is notable.

Effective today, all Australian social media users will need to prove their age on websites and apps including Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X and YouTube.  Users under the age of 16 are banned from accessing the sites/apps.

“But it’s only Australia,” say most.  Think again.  In the era of modern internet travel and Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), how is the compliance aspect going to be determined?   That’s the problem the Australian control agents are now trying to address.

An intellectually discerning person would note the compliance angle should have been worked out long before the regulatory and compliance switches were flipped and the rushed-into-place law was activated.  The Internet Police Czar charged with enforcing the ban is an American.

As Politico notes, “Australia’s eSafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant, an American tasked with policing the world’s first social media account ban for teenagers, acknowledges Australia’s legislation is the “most novel, complex piece of legislation” she has ever seen. … She told a conference in Sydney this month she expects others to follow Australia’s lead. “I’ve always referred to this as the first domino,” she says.

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The premise of this interlocutory exchange is beyond bizarre when you think about it.

President Trump’s negotiation team worked with Ukraine officials and Russian officials to establish the parameters for a ceasefire proposal. Representatives from the U.S, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, working as moderators for a cessation of hostilities, held multiple meetings with high level Ukraine and Russian officials, including Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin, and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

As a consequence, President Trump’s team (Rubio, Witkoff and Kushner) have spent hundreds of hours, including nine entire days over the last two weeks, in detailed face-to-face discussions with Ukraine officials.

Zelenskyy then goes to Paris, London, Brussels and Rome, to consult with European leaders, and then has the audacity to say he will present a counterproposal from the Europeans to President Trump.

PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY – “Today, we already discussed with our negotiating team the results of yesterday’s work in London, which was conducted at the level of the National Security Advisors of our European partners. This was agreed upon yesterday at the leadersʼ level.

We are working very actively on all components of potential steps toward ending the war. The Ukrainian and European components are now more developed, and we are ready to present them to our partners in the U.S. Together with the American side, we expect to swiftly make the potential steps as doable as possible.

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