A federal judge in Rhode Island on Friday blocked the Trump administration from ceasing to pay SNAP benefits that help feed 42 million Americans during the U.S. government shutdown.
The oral ruling by Judge Jack McConnell came a day before the administration was set to cut off that food stamp assistance.
A Justice Department lawyer argued during a hearing that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program did not exist anymore because there were no congressionally appropriated funds for it as a result of the shutdown.
The lawyer, Tyler Becker, also argued it was the administration’s discretion whether to use $6 billion in contingency funds already set aside by Congress to continue issuing SNAP benefits.
McConnell, in his ruling granting a temporary restraining order to plaintiffs who sued to maintain the benefits, told the administration to use those funds to maintain at least some of the SNAP benefits normally paid.
The White House East Wing is currently undergoing a major facelift as President Trump’s July 2025 proposal to build a ballroom began earlier this month. The addition is expected to hold approximately 1,000 guests in the proposed 90,000 square-foot facility.
The new structure has met fierce scrutiny from the Mockingbird media and political opponents of President Trump given the timing of the development during a federal shutdown. Democrats in the Senate continue to withhold the necessary votes to pass yet another continuing resolution.
Meanwhile, the entirety of the $200-300 million project being funded not by the taxpayer but rather by donors and the President himself.
Failed presidential candidate Kamala Harris, who slid into that “nomination” without receiving a single Democrat vote in the primary, invoked starving babies in a vulgar rant on the Jon Stewart podcast when comparing it to Trump’s construction project.
Again: the continuing resolution is being held up by Democrats in the Senate, not Republicans. President Trump has no legal authority until the bill reaches the Resolute Desk.
NEW: Kamala Harris *MELTS DOWN* over Trump ballroom
“Are you f*cking kidding me? This guy wants to create a ballroom for his rich friends while completely turning a blind eye to the fact that babies are going to starve when the SNAP benefits end in just hours from now! Come… pic.twitter.com/11iT7n3EH7
Another vocal critic, and a potential 2028 presidential hopeful, is California Governor Gavin Newsom. As far back as August, Newsom has criticized President Trump as living “in his own make-believe world,” saying “he’s too busy daydreaming about his $200M gold-plated ballroom”.
Earlier this week, Newsom posted on X that President Trump is building “his knock-off Versailles on White House grounds” while “his government shutdown is depriving millions of Californians” from food assistance. To date, a budget bill has not reached his desk as Democrats have continued to thwart passage in the Republican-controlled House and Senate.
Newsom, however, has his own problems with renovations and exorbitant costs in California’s state capitol. These issues, in fact, are funded by the taxpayers of California, in contrast to the “knock-off Versailles” funding at the White House.
As reported by KCRA 3’s Ashley Zavala, the California Capitol Annex project is coming under tremendous scrutiny in the Golden State. The years-long project that is estimated to cost taxpayers $1.1 billion has been less than transparent. In fact, according to Zavala, it has been “at least three years” since the California Legislature has provided any updates on the Capitol’s additions.
This week during a press conference, Newsom promised to “add a topic [to the] next conversation” with legislatures “around the annex.” Newsom proceeded to apologize for the lack of transparency from the Legislature and claimed he “didn’t know they weren’t talking” about the project.
During the off-topic question, Newsom called the White House construction a “desecration” and said the funding came under “curious circumstances” while claiming he had no knowledge of the lack of transparency regarding the annex project.
But Zavala had previously uncovered the creation of a three-member executive committee that meets “behind closed doors” to make decisions on the project. One member is directly tied to Newsom’s administration.
New: On CA Capitol Annex, Gov. Newsom said “as a taxpayer” he’d “like to know” about costs being kept from the public.
Turns out, his office’s Director of Operations has been on a panel that meets regularly and makes final decisions on the project in private. pic.twitter.com/4S8uZ5na7r
Documents provided to KCRA 3 show Newsom’s director of operations has been part of a three-member executive committee that is expected to meet regularly and vote on final decisions about the project behind closed doors. The committee includes Newsom’s current Director of Operations Miroslava de la O, Democratic Assemblymember Blanca Pacheco and Democratic State Sen. John Laird.
A 2018 memorandum of understanding between the Legislature and governor’s office established the committee to ensure the legislature keeps the governor’s office in the loop on the project. While the legislature’s Joint Rules Committee does the bulk of the decision making, the agreement lays out ways in which the governor’s office is involved. The memo includes the expectations for the committee, stating it should meet as needed, with a monthly standing meeting that can be “more frequent or cancelled as necessary.”
The memo also states major changes to project scope, schedules, budgets and delivery methods made by the committee shall be subject to a majority vote. The memo has allowed everything the committee does to be kept confidential. The agreement was established before Newsom took office.
All three members of the committee have signed nondisclosure agreements that the Legislature has required since 2018 from people involved in the project in order to keep broad information about it confidential, which KCRA 3 first reported last fall. With the NDAs in place, the project price tag swelled from $558.2 million to more than $1 billion.
She’s as unlikeable as Hillary Clinton, and as trustworthy as her slick husband, Bill, in the Oval Office with an intern.
Michigan’s unpopular Democrat Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who has earned the reputation of the most untrustworthy individual ever to serve as the state’s top election official, is like two Clintons for the price of one. But her latest campaign ad may prove she isn’t quite as savvy as the Clintons at hiding their obvious flaws.
From her lie about “Detroit Police covering the windows” of the TCF Center counting room during the 2020 election because the Republican poll challengers were locked out by partisan hack election workers because “windows were being broken”…
MI SOS Jocelyn Benson is a LIAR.
Listen to SOS Benson LYING to the now-deceased WJR talk show host Frank Beckmann about why the windows were being covered during the counting of 2020 absentee ballots in Detroit, at the TCF Center.
…to calling the unlawful act of USPS workers stuffing stacks of absentee ballots into drop boxes meant explicitly for citizens to drop off a single absentee ballot, “perfectly legal and normal activity.”
Why are USPS workers in Detroit dropping off stacks of ballots at Detroit drop boxes instead of delivering them to the Clerks office in Detroit?
They are REQUIRED to ONLY deliver mail to the address on the envelope.
Benson has been sued for election-related issues astounding 69 times since she became Michigan’s secretary of state, including a lawsuit over her stunning directive to clerks during the 2020 election, when she told them to ignore signature matching on absentee ballots. To date, in a state with several left-leaning, partisan judges, Benson has lost five lawsuits and had “mixed results” in 7 others.
Benson is currently being sued by the US Department of Justice for refusing to turn over Michigan’s dirty voter rolls, hilariously claiming she doesn’t want the federal government (which issues Social Security numbers) to have access to the Social Security numbers of Michigan’s registered voters.
Yesterday, in an embarrassingly self-own campaign ad she posted on X, Benson can be seen casually walking away while a young man attempts a “trust fall.” The man, who, for most Michigan residents, represents Michigan voters, can be seen crossing his arms and falling backward into what he hopes are Benson’s arms as she catches him. Instead, in what could be the worst campaign decision of her career, Benson can be seen smiling as she casually walks away, leaving the man (Michigan voters) to fall, signaling that she is not to be trusted.
In addition to the poor optics of her video, which point to her untrustworthiness, Benson also makes an outlandish statement: “You can’t trust corporate-backed politicians, but you can always trust me.”
Apparently Jocelyn Benson has a problem with “coporate backed” candidates running against her, but a closer look at her top donors reveal that included in the whopping $3.5 million Benson’s campaign has banked since Jan. 1, 2025, are contributions from mutliple billionaires, including billionaire and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and George Soros’ anti-American offspring Jonathan and his leftist wife, Jennifer Soros who oversee the JJASF, a radical leftist grantmaking foundation they created in 2009.
From 2012 to 2015, the Jennifer and Jonathan Allan Soros Foundation gave the Roosevelt Institute, a left-leaning think tank that asserts that the system of free-market capitalism is inherently unjust, $500,000.
Another effort that is near and dear to the Benson donors is the Advancement Project (AP). The AP organizes non-white communities into politically active groups in opposition to voter identification and other electoral integrity laws, pushes for the re-enfranchisement of felons with few restrictions, and campaigns to alter school discipline rules to reduce punishments for many infringements. From 2012 to 2013, the Soros donors to Benson’s campaign awarded it $400,000.
Benson got absolutely wrecked on X, with post after post reminding voters how dishonest or untrustworthy she is:
Thank you for the endless memes, Anna Hoffman tweeted with a hilarious meme showing Benson’s blatant disregard for trust.
President Trump has escalated political warfare by openly calling for Joe Biden’s imprisonment, marking a stunning reversal of fortune that has Democrats scrambling and their former leader “squirming” under the weight of potential accountability.
House Republicans Prepare Biden Investigations
House Speaker has indicated potential congressional investigations into Biden’s actions, particularly focusing on controversial pardons issued during his final days in office. These investigations represent the GOP’s commitment to uncovering potential corruption and abuse of power that conservatives believe characterized the Biden administration. Republican lawmakers argue that Biden’s eleventh-hour pardons warrant scrutiny, especially given the administration’s previous claims about respecting judicial independence and the rule of law.
Biden himself called for Trump’s incarceration during a New Hampshire event, declaring “We gotta lock him up!” This mutual targeting represents an unprecedented breakdown in traditional political norms, with both figures openly advocating for their opponent’s imprisonment. Trump’s response demonstrates his determination to hold accountable those who he believes weaponized the justice system against him and his supporters.
Trump has harsh words for Biden after recent Arctic Frost developments: “He is a CRIMINAL AND SHOULD BE IN JAIL.” pic.twitter.com/uyiXImfQY7
The Department of Justice now confronts intense scrutiny over its handling of politically charged cases, with conservatives demanding investigations into Biden-era prosecutorial decisions. Trump’s statements reflect widespread Republican concerns about the previous administration’s selective enforcement of laws and apparent double standards. The situation underscores the urgent need for restoring public confidence in federal law enforcement agencies that many conservatives believe were compromised under Biden’s leadership.
As Trump consolidates power and Republicans control key investigative committees, Biden faces the real possibility of experiencing the same legal pressures that defined Trump’s political persecution. This dramatic reversal validates conservative arguments about the need for equal justice and accountability, regardless of political affiliation or previous office held.
Johnson: He was checked out of his job for quite some time, and there was a cover-up, the people around him. They would give him scripts… he did not know what he was signing…. he pardoned categories of violent criminals and turn them loose on the streets… You cannot allow a… pic.twitter.com/HizaGJlQH4
Another prominent Trump nemesis might be about to be in the federal crosshairs following an explosive report involving payments to a male Haitian-American campaign staffer over the course of several years.
As Fox News reported, Rep. Eric “Fang Fang” Swalwell’s (D-China) campaign has raised alarm bells after offering several different explanations for the payments, which totaled roughly $360,000 and go back to 2021.
FEC filings from Swalwell for Congress and his Remedy PAC, dating back to 2021 and as recently as last month, show over 75 payments to an individual named Darly Meyer, with various reasons given for the disbursements. Individual payments vary from as little as $53 to over $12,000.
Based on the payments, Meyer has earned varying amounts each year, including over 27 payments last year that added up to over $120,000. He is also on pace to make over $120,000 in 2025.
The FEC filings list several different reasons for the payments, ranging from travel expenses, car service, security services, and salary. There are also several payments to Meyer for things like “personal travel expense reimbursement,” “event flowers reimbursement” and postage.
Swalwell took to X to respond to the explosive Fox News report. He claimed the reason for this was due to him and his family receiving death threats, and wondered if he should send the bill.
“LOL get this — @Pete_Pinedo of Faux News emailed and asked why I’ve spent $350,000 on security,” Swalwell wrote. “I responded, ‘because there’s a direct correlation between the lies Fox tells about me and the death threats that follow aimed at me and my kids.’”
“Maybe I should send Pete the bill?”
LOL get this — @Pete_Pinedo of Faux News emailed and asked why I’ve spent $350,000 on security. I responded “because there’s a direct correlation between the lies Fox tells about me and the death threats that follow aimed at me and my kids.”
Hans von Spakovsky, a former FEC commissioner and now senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation, explained to Fox News that “this is the type of bizarre inconsistency that should catch the attention of the FEC.”
He went on to say that this revelation should “cause the agency’s auditing arm to investigate whether these were legitimate payments to a legitimate contractor.”
In addition to his work on Swalwell’s campaign, Meyer owns a North Hollywood-based limousine service called CYD Global Car Service, which specializes in luxury travel. The company offers professional chauffeurs, corporate shuttles, and limousine services.
Fox News also notes that Meyer serves as an administrator of a Facebook group called “CaliHaitians – Haitians in Az, Ca, Nv, Hi, Or, Wa,” which calls itself a “progressive community” of Haitians living in the United States. The group’s goal is to forge a “closer bond” with “head members of groups/organizations that are able to provide professional services to strengthen the community.”
This raises a difficult question: Why did Swalwell feel the need to allocate such a substantial amount of money to this individual, and what is this man’s actual role in the congressman’s campaign?
Andrew Day, Sumantra Maitra, and Joseph Addington discuss U.S.-China economic warfare, the Trump-Xi meeting, the small boat attacks in South America, the Gaza ceasefire collapse, and university students challenging JD Vance on Israel. Recorded October 30, 2025.
Deep State FBI and DOJ officials are already starting to leak information on Kash Patel’s decision to conduct a predawn raid and arrest multiple people planning a terror attack over the Halloween weekend.
“This morning the FBI thwarted a potential terrorist attack and arrested multiple subjects in Michigan who were allegedly plotting a violent attack over Halloween weekend,” Patel said.
“More details to come. Thanks to the men and women of FBI and law enforcement everywhere standing guard 24/7 and crushing our mission to defend the homeland,” Kash Patel said.
Fox News later reported that the thwarted terror attack was connected to ISIS. Details were not immediately available.
This morning the FBI thwarted a potential terrorist attack and arrested multiple subjects in Michigan who were allegedly plotting a violent attack over Halloween weekend. More details to come. Thanks to the men and women of FBI and law enforcement everywhere standing guard 24/7…
Sebastian Gorka, Senior Director for Counter Terrorism confirmed law enforcement thwarted a “Jihadi” terror plot.
This morning Federal agents, under the direction of @FBIDirectorKash and @AGPamBondi, successfully disrupted a Jihadi terror plot in Detroit timed for Halloween when innocent children should be enjoying themselves Trick or Treating.
Video posted on social media shows FBI officials arresting several individuals planning the attack.
FBI Director Kash Patel: Michigan Terror Plot Foiled, Multiple Arrests Made
The FBI says it has successfully disrupted a potential terrorist plot in Michigan. Director Kash Patel announced early Friday that several individuals were arrested for allegedly planning a violent… https://t.co/kCAkOC3cIXpic.twitter.com/0zD68UEYxd
Immediate details of the raid were unclear on Friday morning but Deep State officials at the FBI and DOJ are leaking to MSNBC to undermine Kash Patel.
Per a leak to MSNBC: “Senior Justice Department and FBI officials expressed frustration Friday that FBI Director Kash Patel publicly disclosed an investigation into what he called a “potential” Halloween weekend terrorist plot near Detroit — before investigators had a chance to flesh out key details, including whether the attack actually was imminent, two people familiar with the matter told MSNBC.”
The leakers claimed Kash Patel ‘acted hastily’ without Main Justice’s approval.
“Justice officials registered concern that Patel appeared to have acted hastily on the probe without Main Justice’s approval, with the apparent goal of seeking some credit for the FBI, but in a way that could interfere with the investigation, according to the sources. MSNBC has not named them as they fear retaliation,” MSNBC reported.
Beatrix von Storch is co-chair of the AfD party in the German parliament
This interview was conducted by Alexander Junger and originally published by Eagle Eye Explore on October 2nd, 2025. It has been edited for clarity and readability, and is republished here at The Gateway Pundit with the kind permission of Eagle Eye Explore.
Deputy Parliamentary Leader of Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), Beatrix von Storch, has become a central figure in the fight over Germany’s political future. As calls to ban the AfD grow louder and police raids target critics under vague “hate speech” laws, von Storch warns that the country is crossing a line — from democracy to what is effectively an authoritarian regime.
In this interview, she challenges the government’s crackdown on dissent, condemns the media’s silence on Germany and Europe’s ever-increasing problem with migrant crime, and outlines AfD’s plan to restore order: enforce the constitution, repatriate illegal migrants, and protect citizens from rising violence. On foreign policy, she rejects globalist orthodoxy, calling for a sovereign Germany that can cooperate with Russia, maintain independence from Washington and Brussels, and keep NATO focused on defense — not foreign adventures.
Furthermore, von Storch also calls for a pragmatic energy mix of coal, nuclear, and Russian gas to ensure affordable power. She argues that Europe’s future should be a union of nations, not a centralized superstate, and predicts a political realignment that could reshape Brussels entirely.
Her message is direct: the harder the globalist establishment clamps down, the more support grows for AfD’s vision of a secure, sovereign, and self-determined Germany.
The German political elite is openly plotting to ban your party—do you believe Germany is still a functioning democracy, or has it turned into an EU-style managed oligarchy?
This is precisely the point at which the question of whether Germany is still a functioning democracy will be decided. In a functioning democracy, the opposition is not banned but has the opportunity to take on government responsibility and change policy if it secures a majority. If Germany initiates a ban procedure against the party that, according to polls, is currently the strongest, that is proof that Germany is no longer a functioning democracy.
With over a hundred police raids targeting AfD members and right-wing dissidents under vague “hate speech” laws, how do you survive and operate in what increasingly looks like an authoritarian crackdown?
I believe these repressive actions show how nervous the establishment has become. How great must the fear be if they now storm a pensioner’s home with a large police force just because he called the minister a ‘fool’? They have lost the hearts of the people, and that’s why they respond with threats and intimidation.
Deputy Parliamentary Leader of Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), Beatrix von Storch
Germany’s cities are becoming unrecognizable, with migrant-driven crime exploding—why is the mainstream media silencing the truth, and how will AfD reverse this demographic and social disaster?
Mainstream media do not report openly on this because more citizens would then turn against these policies and vote for the AfD. The Basic Law of the Federal Republic states that no one has a right to asylum in Germany if they arrive via a safe third country, which is the case for almost all refugees and asylum seekers. We will therefore work according to what is written in our constitution consistently. In addition, we will initiate the return of those who are not entitled to asylum and are no longer threatened in their home countries—that is, the vast majority. Furthermore, we will send home all foreigners who commit crimes in Germany and take a tough stance against crime in general.
The German government is blindly following the transatlantic globalist script—what would AfD’s foreign policy look like regarding Germany’s sovereignty and strategic autonomy from Washington and Brussels?
We want to organize Europe as a community of sovereign nation-states. We support a common market and close cooperation, but not a political union. We want NATO to remain a purely defensive alliance. States and conflicts outside NATO territory should not fall within NATO’s scope. A meaningful future task for NATO could be to assist its member states in protecting their borders against illegal immigration.
Does AfD view Russia as an enemy, or rather as a natural partner for peace, energy cooperation, and balancing global power against American and EU imperial overreach?
It is in Germany’s interest to be part of the West while maintaining good relations with Russia. Diplomatic coordination with Washington and Moscow, for example, made German reunification possible. For the Russians, it is beneficial to have a partner in the West, and for the West, it is valuable to have a strong Germany that can build bridges to the East. A global confrontation between the West and Russia may serve the agenda of certain hardliners and ideological firebrands on both sides—but it is not in our interest.
Would an AfD government end Germany’s submissive military dependence on NATO, and seek a more independent European or national security model, perhaps even exiting NATO altogether?
It’s paradoxical that those who have dismantled the Bundeswehr over the past twenty years now want to spend hundreds of billions on rearmament. We need a sensible middle ground. The military requires solid, long-term planning beyond war hysteria and panic about Russia. The same applies to NATO. It should fulfill its traditional role as a defensive alliance, but NATO has no place in Afghanistan or Ukraine.
The Green Party has turned Germany into an energy basket case—what’s AfD’s vision for energy independence, and would you reintroduce coal, nuclear, and affordable Russian gas?
We want an energy mix consisting of coal, nuclear power, and gas—including from Russia. We do not want to be dependent on a single energy source or supplier.
Deputy Parliamentary Leader of Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) Beatrix von Storch
Von der Leyen called dissenting MEPs ‘extremists’—do you see this as an admission of fear by the EU elites, and how can the European Right capitalize on this growing popular rebellion against Brussels?
Ursula von der Leyen is a politician of the past. Merkel and Macron made her President of the European Commission. Merkel is gone, and Macron is politically a lame duck. In Brussels, they’re trying to wall themselves off against the winds of change and ignore reality. But for the EU, the quote by Mikhail Gorbachev applies: ‘Those who are late will be punished by life.’
How do you envision the role of AfD in building a patriotic, sovereign alliance across Europe—do you see prospects for deeper cooperation with parties like Fidesz, RN, and Patriots for Europe?
Yes, obviously. I believe the time will come when the majority of EU member states will be governed by right-conservative governments, and a new majority will also form in the European Parliament. Perhaps Ursula von der Leyen’s successor will be Viktor Orbán—sounds unrealistic? But who would have believed in 2016 that the new U.S. President would be Donald Trump, or that Milei would become President of Argentina, or that Nigel Farage could be a frontrunner for Prime Minister in the UK? We are currently witnessing a historic shift, and many things are possible.
And lastly, you recently made a surprise trip to the White House. Can you tell us about that?
My recent visit to the White House left me deeply encouraged. The U.S. government has clearly recognized the growing threat to democracy and free speech posed by censorship policies and state repression across Europe. The unwavering support of the Trump administration for liberty-minded, conservative, and patriotic movements cannot be overstated.
Should President Trump succeed in pressing the European Union to repeal the censorship mandates embedded in the Digital Services Act, it would mark a major victory—not only for the United States, but for every freedom-loving citizen across Europe. Such a breakthrough would send a powerful message: that the values of open debate, individual liberty, and national sovereignty still matter in the Western world.
A Maryland Democrat State Senator was charged with extortion for threatening to release a sexually explicit video of a former political consultant.
According to charging documents, State Senator Dalya Attar, her brother Joseph Attar, and Baltimore police officer Kalman Finkelstein conspired to release a video of a former campaign consultant in bed with a married man.
The purpose of the threat was to silence the campaign consultant and stop her from making any negative remarks about Dalya Attar that could harm her political ambitions after the two had a falling out.
Recording devices that looked like smoke detectors captured the victim’s affair. The unnamed consultant was staying in an apartment owned by Officer Finkelstein’s family.
Dalya Attar, an Orthodox Jew, sought to harm the political consultant’s effort to marry off her daughter. The smear campaign could damage the political consultant’s reputation because she is also a member of the tight-knit Jewish community.
Dalya Attar did not want the Orthodox Jewish community to be aware of her liberal voting record.
“She wants her daughters to get married more than she wants to screw me,” Dalya Attar wrote in a WhatsApp message, NBC News reported.
Dalya Attar was charged with multiple counts of conspiracy, extortion via interstate communications, aiding and abetting, and interception and disclosure of a wire, oral, or electronic communication.
Joseph Attar allegedly threatened the married man and told him that he commented on Dalya Attar’s voting record he would release the video.
“I’ll share this video with everybody you know, everyone she knows, every Rabbi in town, your kids, your wife, her daughters,” Joseph Attar allegedly told the consultant’s paramour.
A Democratic state senator from Maryland is accused of orchestrating a scheme to secretly record two critics — including a former campaign consultant — in bed together and then using the footage to threaten and silence them, according to a newly unsealed federal indictment.
Federal prosecutors say Maryland State Sen. Dalya Attar, her brother Joseph “Yossi” Attar and Baltimore Police Officer Kalman Finkelstein secretly filmed the pair during an intimate encounter, then used the recording to intimidate them into silence.
The 20-page indictment, unsealed Thursday, charges the trio with conspiracy, extortion, illegal wiretapping and violations of the Travel Act.
Prosecutors allege the group targeted the consultant, identified as Victim 1, who had worked for Attar’s 2018 campaign and later supported her political rivals. Victim 2 was in a romantic relationship with Victim 1 and was married to another person at the time, the documents say.
The pressure has reached a boiling point – attacks next?
The escalation is continuing in the anti-cartel operations in Latin America, with drug-boat attacks and the deployment of the largest force to the region since the darkest days of the Cold War.
Yesterday, the WSJ reported that the Donald J. Trump administration had ‘identified targets in Venezuela that include military facilities used to smuggle drugs’.
Air and missile strikes are expected to force the hand of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to step down.
“While the president hasn’t made a final decision on ordering land strikes, the officials said a potential air campaign would focus on targets that sit at the nexus of the drug gangs and the Maduro regime. Trump and his senior aides have been particularly focused on unsettling Maduro as the U.S. military has attacked boats allegedly carrying drugs in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean.”
Of course, the WSJ has just been named by Trump as ‘fake news’, and their reports need to be considered under great scrutiny, and not believed right away.
US Southern Command troops amphibious drill in Puerto Rico.
However, the Miami Herald also reported on this – and what’s more, indicates that the decision to strike has been taken, and the attacks are imminent.
“The Trump Administration has made the decision to attack military installations inside Venezuela and the strikes could come at any moment, sources with knowledge of the situation told the Miami Herald, as the U.S. prepares to initiate the next stage of its campaign against the Soles drug cartel.”
BREAKING
The Trump administration has reportedly authorized strikes on Venezuelan military sites, with the attacks expected to begin at any time. – Miami Herald pic.twitter.com/RYNYfh1604
The strikes aim to destroy military installations used by the cartel allegedly headed by Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro.
“Sources told the Herald that the targets — which could be struck by air in a matter of days or even hours— also aim to decapitate the cartel’s hierarchy. U.S. officials believe the cartel exports around 500 tons of cocaine yearly, split between Europe and the United States.”
There is even speculation that Maduro himself may be one of the targets.
“’Maduro is about to find himself trapped and might soon discover that he cannot flee the country even if he decided to’, the source said. ‘What’s worse for him, there is now more than one general willing to capture and hand him over, fully aware that one thing is to talk about death, and another to see it coming’.”
“So far, the force has been used mainly in maritime operations. As of this week, U.S. strikes have targeted fast boats the administration says were carrying narcotics—most intercepted off Venezuela’s coast; the attacks have killed 61 suspected traffickers.”
Update: The White House responded: “Unnamed sources don’t know what they’re talking about,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a Friday statement to Fox News. “Any announcements regarding Venezuela policy would come directly from the President.”
