At the conclusion of the NATO summit, President Trump held a press conference prior to departing Brussels.

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The FBI counterintelligence official at the center of the Clinton and Trump investigations is scheduled to testify today.  FBI Agent Peter Strzok will testify publicly before a joint House Oversight/Judiciary Committee.  Testimony begins at 10:00am EST
House Committee Hearing Link – PBS Livestream Link – Fox News Livestream

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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.

President Trump Twitter @POTUS / Vice President Pence Twitter @VP

Sarah H Sanders Twitter @SHSanders45

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 †

Watch out Iraqi peoplekind.  You can go ahead and cancel that jihad thing…  Chrystia and Justin are in charge now:

(Tweet Link)

Booyah.  Feel the fear…

Three Options:  #1) Lisa Page can appear tomorrow with Peter Strzok (already scheduled). #2) Present herself for deposition Friday 13th.  #3) Do both 1 and 2.

Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) today called on Lisa Page to comply with a congressional subpoena, which required her to come before the committees to answer questions, or face contempt proceedings. Lisa Page, legal counsel to former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, is a key witness in the Committees’ joint investigation into decisions made by the Justice Department in 2016. Chairman Goodlatte subpoenaed Lisa Page to appear on July 11, 2018 for a deposition but she refused to appear.
Following Ms. Page’s refusal to appear, Chairmen Goodlatte and Gowdy sent a letter to Amy Jeffress, the attorney representing Ms. Page, calling on her client to testify voluntarily at an already scheduled public hearing on July 12, 2018 or appear for a deposition on Friday, July 13, 2018. If Ms. Page refuses these two accommodations, the House Judiciary Committee plans to initiate contempt proceedings on Friday, July 13, 2018.
Below is the text of the letter.
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Apparently the intransigence of former DOJ lawyer, and special counsel to Deputy FBI Director McCabe, Lisa Page has quite a history.
Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Bob Goodlatte, says the former FBI lawyer has been in complete defiance of cooperation with the House, rejects Page’s excuse that she hasn’t had enough time to prepare:

Ex-FBI LAYER Lisa Page today defied a House of Representatives issued Subpoena to testify before Congress! Wow, but is anybody really surprised! Together with her lover, FBI Agent Peter Strzok, she worked on the Rigged Witch Hunt, perhaps the most tainted and corrupt case EVER!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 11, 2018

Updated Statement from Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte below:
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President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump participate in the NATO Belgium welcoming ceremony.  Anticipated start time 1:10pm EST
UPDATE: Video Added

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Following a bilateral meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, President Trump meets with Emmanuel from France.  {transcript will follow later}
“I think its going to be very successful,” President Trump said, noting that the two have a tremendous relationship. Additionally, President Trump remarked the two leaders are discussing “trade, NATO, and a lot of different things, and hopefully in the end, it’ll all work out.”

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[Transcript 4:23 P.M. CEST]  PRESIDENT TRUMP: (In progress) — the President of France, who’s doing a terrific job being President of France. He’s changing a lot of things around. And I guess that had to happen. And I think it’s going to be very successful. We have a tremendous relationship. We’re discussing trade. We’re discussing NATO. We’re discussing a lot of different things. And hopefully, in the end, it will all work out. And so it’s great to be with you.
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Earlier this morning President Trump stunned NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the atomic sledgehammer of truth.  Stoltenberg never recovered.  The issue was/is NATO asking the U.S. for defense against Russia while the NATO member nations, driven by the construct of Germany, finance Russia through energy purchases.
Then comes the Angela Merkel bi-lateral meeting.

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[Transcript 3:45 P.M. CEST] – PRESIDENT TRUMP: We’re having a great meeting. We’re discussing military expenditure. We’re talking about trade. We have a very, very good relationship with the Chancellor. We have a tremendous relationship with Germany. They’ve made tremendous — you’ve had tremendous success and I congratulate you. Tremendous success. And I believe that our trade will increase and lots of other things will increase. But we’ll see what happens over the next period of a few months.
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