South African President Cyril Ramaphosa held a two-day summit with Saudi Arabia on mostly economic matters.

At the conclusion of the summit, he confirmed the intent of Saudi Arabia to join the BRICS economic coalition, which should not come as a surprise given the previous statements by Saudi leader and Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman (MbS).

(MSM) Ramaphosa confirms Saudi Arabia wants to join Brics family.  This was revealed by President Cyril Ramaphosa during his two-day state visit to the kingdom on Sunday.

“The Crown Prince (prime minister Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud) did express Saudi Arabia’s desire to be part of Brics and they are not the only country,” said Ramaphosa. He confirmed this on Sunday during an engagement with the media.

Brics held its first summit in 2009, with SA joining the following year. The bloc has generally been seen as an alternative to the dominance of the western economies.

“We did say that Brics having a summit next year under the chairship of South Africa in SA and the matter is going to be under consideration.

“A number of countries are making approaches to Brics members, and we have given them the same answer that it will be discussed by the Brics partners and thereafter a decision will be made.” (read more)

Since the outset of the Western Alliance sanctions against Russia, we have been predicting an increased geopolitical influence from the BRICS team.  A global financial and economic cleaving is underway created by the western nations chasing ideological climate change energy policy, while the rest of the world remains pragmatic toward oil, coal and natural gas as energy resources.

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Closing arguments wrapped up on the trial of Igor Danchenko, the primary source who delivered fraudulent information to Christopher Steele for transmission to the FBI.  The jury now has the case and it’s likely they will not convict.

When you accept the FBI knew the Steele Dossier was a fabricated assembly of political dirt against Trump, the trial of Danchenko becomes more about the FBI corruption than lies by the defendant.   How can the same DOJ who willingly and willfully benefitted from the lies, now turn around and prosecute the liar.   Hillary Clinton lawyers providing the defense for Danchenko used this angle to criticize the prosecution in closing arguments.

(Via CNN) […] Danchenko lawyer Stuart Sears said prosecutors brazenly cast aside information that “doesn’t support their narrative that he’s a liar.” Sears pointed out how Durham turned on his own witnesses after they provided evidence that helped the defense.

“The special counsel attacked them mercilessly,” Sears said. “They attacked the credibility of the very witnesses they called in here, because they didn’t say what they wanted them to say.”  Sears added: “The government’s own evidence in this case proves that the defendant is not guilty.”

Durham’s team urged jurors to convict Danchenko on Monday, telling them to “look at his own words” in emails from 2016 that they believe prove that he later misled the FBI about his ties to a possible dossier source.  “You didn’t check your common sense at the courthouse door,” prosecutor Michael Keilty said. “You need to use it.”

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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 JoeBama Administration and Presidency.

“This is no small thing, to restore a republic after it has fallen into corruption. I have studied history for years and I cannot recall it ever happening. It may be that our task is impossible. Yet, if we do not try then how will we know it can’t be done? And if we do not try, it most certainly won’t be done. The Founders’ Republic, and the larger war for western civilization, will be lost.”

“But I tell you this: We will not go gently into that bloody collectivist good night. Indeed, we will make with our defiance such a sound as ALL history from that day forward will be forced to note, even if they despise us in the writing of it.”

~ Mike Vanderboegh

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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When it rains, it pours.

At the same time as Hurricane Ian decided to make life a challenge for Southwest Florida residents, the PayPal controversy erupted that blindsided the Treehouse.

As most of you know PayPal has been the primary processor for financial contributions to the Treehouse to help pay for a wide variety of site costs including server hosting, data processing and container costs, proprietary commenting systems, site engineers, software licensing fees etc.

As it directly relates to our conversation CTH has never had an issue with PayPal, even during our site deplatforming from WordPress/Automatic.  However, that said, the initial terms of service changes that PayPal announced, then retracted, that begin November 1st was beyond ridiculous.  It is not surprising that everyone was shocked at the proposed change in terms, and many want an alternative.

Moving forward, the critical issue for CTH extends beyond the actual processing of financial support and into the sphere of privacy.  One of the reasons CTH costs so much to operate is the foundational stance we take on user engagement and privacy; it’s not something I can ever, or will ever, compromise upon.

Almost all funded websites contract payment and subscription services to third party providers.  CTH does not like the security window this approach creates.  If we need to switch financial processors, now is the time to use this opportunity to close any security vulnerability.

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Appearing with Jonathan Karl for an interview Dr. Anthony Fauci now claims his advice had nothing to do with the closings of schools during the government response to COVID-19.

This pontificating pustule of political pomposity has the nerve to claim all of his COVID-19 dictates and recommendations from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) were not responsible for what he calls unanticipated “deleterious effects” to students and young people.  WATCH: 

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The full interview is below:

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After CNN’s Dana Bash failed in her effort to make Arizona Republican Candidate Kari Lake look bad in an interview, Lake’s opponent Katie Hobbs came on the broadcast.  The difference between professional Kari Lake and the up-talking nonsense of Katie Hobbs is stark.

This is the first time I have watched Ms. Hobbs during a broadcast election interview, and it does not come as a surprise to see CNN not upload the outcome onto their YouTube channel for additional attention and replay.  Hobbs is a complete ideological idiot, and I don’t say that lightly.  How this woman is even being considered to become a governor is beyond my comprehension.  Seriously, WATCH:

https://youtu.be/ppxZCPDTqqY

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Who in their right mind would consider this a qualified candidate for governor?  Good grief, the only example this compares to is that 2007 Ms. Teen USA nonsense.  Hobbs even sounds like her. Yikes.

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John King’s ex wife on CNN, narrative engineer Dana Bash, was well prepared to target Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake on Sunday.  However, with a solid foundation grounded in pragmatic common sense, Mrs Lake eviscerated the effort of Ms. Bash.   Kari Lake continues to impress.

Dana Bash began the interview with a constructed strawman argument about how Kari Lake as governor would address the Joe Biden inflation crisis.  Kari Lake swatted the issue away with a strong policy position to eliminate state rental tax and taxes on groceries in Arizona.  Bash didn’t expect it, and never quite recovered. WATCH: 

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Rumble CEO @Chris Pavlovski and Rumble Video Creator @SteveWilldoit stepped up in a major way to help survivors of Hurricane Ian today by sending a convoy of 12 travel trailers and generators into Southwest Florida to support a dozen displaced families.  This is a blessed contribution to the recovery effort.

The convoy traveled to Fort Myers where they will be transferred to a dozen families who have lost their homes, providing a temporary housing solution that is much needed.  Just an awesome job by the Rumble Video company and a content creator for the platform.

Thousands of people are displaced from their homes in Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Pine Island, Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Island.  There isn’t an empty hotel room within 100 miles of Lee County as families struggle to find housing.

There are tents set up in parking lots in the South Fort Myers area as temporary shelters for those unable to find alternative housing.  This type of private sector support is very much needed and appreciated.  Rumble is headquartered in Longboat Key Florida, and CEO Chris Pavlovski extends his belief in civic stewardship with generous support for those families most severely impacted by the recent storm.  Awesome Job.  #FloridaStrong

Video of the convoy arriving, below:

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Appearing for an interview with Dave Rubin, the founder of Locals and a major conscript of the branding and image shaping effort behind Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Megyn Kelly gives Mr. Rubin the bitter pill of truth. {Direct Rumble Link}

Within this excerpt, Mr. Rubin struggles through the five stages of grief following Kelly’s red pill delivery, eventually stabilizing his emotion by accepting Florida Governor Ron DeSantis can still deliver good political outcomes for the state.   It’s a very interesting dynamic to watch for a few reasons.

First, because Megyn Kelly has first-hand experience with the power of the MAGA attachment to the atypical America-First leader.  Second, because Kelly’s truthful statements cut against the objective for why Rubin was recruited by DeSantis Inc.  WATCH:

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