The collective war being carried out by Ukraine and Brussels against Hungarian energy systems is escalating. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is now putting military defenses and security forces around critical infrastructure.
ORBAN: We will not give in to blackmail! I have ordered increased security for critical energy infrastructure.
The Ukrainian government is exerting pressure on the Hungarian and Slovak governments through an oil blockade. They will not stop there, as they are preparing further actions to disrupt Hungary’s energy system. Hungary cannot be blackmailed!
We will not give in to blackmail ❗️
I have ordered increased security for critical energy infrastructure.
The Ukrainian government is exerting pressure on the Hungarian and Slovak governments through an oil blockade. They will not stop there, as they are preparing further… pic.twitter.com/bulICvhy1m
If you were with CTH when I did the deep dive into the Miami-Dade School Police Department and Miami-Dade School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, you will likely remember how corrupt and sketchy he was. {SEARCH TOOL}
Carvalho was tightly aligned with the Obama/Biden administration, the “my brothers keeper” program and the Dade/Broward County “Promise Program” where high school kids who committed felonies were directed away from the criminal justice system and instead given school punishments (suspensions etc.).
I spent months fighting corrupt Miami-Dade officials and getting transcripts from internal police investigators who admitted to the corruption within the program. It was jaw-dropping.
Well, Carvalho left Miami-Dade and went to work in Los Angeles. Now this appears:
BREAKING: FBI LA confirms they are currently executing search warrants at two addresses, which a separate federal law enforcement source tells Fox News are the home and office of Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. LAUSD is the 2nd biggest school district in the country.
We are told the underlying affidavit in support of the search warrant is under seal, so it’s unclear what potential wrongdoing Carvalho may be suspected of. More as we get it. {SOURCE}
The Supreme Court tariff ruling has created the need for U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to modify the baseline tariff approach with the approvals of President Trump.
The baseline tariffs are being reset to 10% with upward adjustment to 15% as planned. The reciprocal tariffs will not require any substantive modifications as most of the Free Trade Agreements have been cemented with reciprocity tariffs as part of the negotiated deals.
USTR Greer appears on Bloomberg to clarify the current situation and provide some information as to the transitional baseline tariffs as now modified. Additionally, and importantly, Greer begins discussing the USMCA review and his acceptance that President Trump is openly questioning the value for us. Greer notes Mexico and Canada being used as import hubs to avoid tariffs is a big issue. WATCH:
Section 232 [Steel and Aluminum examples] of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (19 U.S.C. §1862, as amended) authorizes the President to impose trade restrictions—such as a tariff or quota—if the Secretary of Commerce determines, following an investigation, that imports of a good “threaten to impair” U.S. national security. {SOURCE}
Section 301 tariffs are a trade enforcement mechanism established under the Trade Act of 1974. They allow the U.S. government to impose tariffs on imports from countries that are found to be engaging in unfair trade practices. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) conducts investigations to determine if a country is violating trade agreements, and if so, it can impose tariffs as a corrective measure {SOURCE}
Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 allows the U.S. president to impose tariffs of up to 15% to address “large and serious” balance-of-payments deficits. This authority can be exercised without prior congressional approval for a limited duration of 150 days. After this period, any tariffs must be extended by Congress. {SOURCE}
*FYI, there is a lot of distracting noise in the various social media platforms about internecine MAGA battles and ego-driven points of specific interest. CTH chooses to focus energy and attention on the substantive policy issues that will generate substantive policy outcomes for America.
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.
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 †
President Trump captured a fantastic moment with the gold medal winning USA Mens Hockey team during his state of the union remarks. After the Olympic team spent time in the White House earlier in the day, the team was introduced during the state of the union with thunderous applause and chants of “USA, USA” from the chambers.
Even a few of the communists in the audience stood to applaud the team as President Trump highlighted his remarks about their success and the very unique nature of the team as a whole. A very American moment.
During the State of the Union address, President Trump surprised the audience with the introduction of helicopter pilot Eric Slover who was severely wounded in his legs during the successful raid in Venezuela to capture Nicholas Maduro.
Chief Warrant Officer 5 Eric Slover was repeatedly struck in the leg and hip by hostile fire as he was preparing to land. As his helicopter approached the target area, Venezuelan defense systems opened fire, and Slover was struck four times in the leg. The Chinook was also hit, but still flyable.
So, he kept flying. “One bullet after another. He absorbed four agonizing shots, shredding his leg into numerous pieces,” President Trump noted. Despite his wounds, Slover brought the aircraft and his team back to safety. Slover maintained control of the aircraft despite his wounds, executed the insertion, and ensured his crew successfully executed their objectives. He then piloted the aircraft back to the USS Iwo Jima. Within three hours, another team of helicopters would exfiltrate the assault team.
Slover is still recovering from his wounds and was standing with the assistance of a walker when he received the award. A total of seven Americans were wounded in the operation.
Tonight at 9:00pm ET, President Donald Trump will be delivering the first State of the Union speech of his second term in office. RSBN begins coverage at 7:00pm, with the speech scheduled to broadcast live on all broadcast and cable channels.
UPDATE: VIDEO & Transcript ADDED
[Transcript] – “Well, thank you very much, everybody. It’s really an honor. Speaker Johnson. Vice President Vance. First lady of the United States. Second lady of the United States.
Members of Congress and my fellow Americans, our nation is back, bigger, better, richer and stronger than ever before.
Less than five months from now, our country will celebrate an epic milestone of American history: the 250th anniversary of our glorious American independence. This July 4, we will mark two-and-a-half centuries of liberty and triumph, progress and freedom in the most incredible and exceptional nation ever to exist on the face of the Earth.”
A win for President Trump and the Dept of Homeland Security. The DC Court of Appeals has ruled against the plaintiff argument seeking to block the IRS (Treasury Secretary Bessent) from sharing cross-reference information with the Dept of Homeland Security (Secretary Noem).
Bottom line, the IRS can share data with DHS to identify status of illegal aliens.
“The only issue that we decide is whether, on the sparse record before us, Appellants have met their heavy burden to make a clear showing that they are entitled to the preliminary injunctive relief sought. For the reasons indicated, we conclude that Appellants have not.”
I guess we can put this in the open admission file surrounding the all-out effort by the European Union to defeat Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
According to a leaked document received by Reuters, the European Union is scheduled to permanently ban all EU nations from importing Russian oil. They have scheduled the ban to trigger on April 15th, three days after the Hungarian election.
BRUSSELS, Feb 24 (Reuters) – The European Commission will submit a legal proposal to permanently ban Russian oil imports on April 15, three days after Hungary’s parliamentary election, according to EU officials and a document seen by Reuters.
Two EU officials told Reuters the timing was designed to prevent the oil ban becoming a major factor in Hungary’s election campaign. Hungary and Slovakia, still reliant on Russian oil imports, are strongly opposed to any ban.
In the April 12 election, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his nationalist Fidesz party are facing the biggest challenge to their hold on power in 16 years.
