Donald
Chump's war of choice has sent prices soaring and increased inflation.
He had hoped, leading up to the visit to China, that the visit would
garner good press and enhance his fading image.
As we noted Friday,
Chump crashed and burned in China. He walked away with nothing.
Nada. Zilch. He folded and cowered and was meek and pretty much
played. On the world stage. Among others, he let down US farmers. Myriam Toua (THE MIRROR) reports:
Donald
Trump has, all of a sudden, announced a total U-turn on his campaign
promise to American farmers he would intervene on Chinese nationals
buying up land in the US, which has been met with fury by his once-loyal
MAGA voter base.
[. . .]
But
in Beijing, Trump was arguing that going ahead with his campaign pledge
would suddenly hurt farmers instead of help them, and asserted pulling
out the external investment [by Chinese buyers] would dramatically drive
down the price of land.
He
sang a very different tune, however, on his campaign trail in 2024 as
he pledged to protect farmland “by saying you can’t come” in response to
a reporter’s queries about Chinese-owned land at a Pennsylvania event.
Another
broken promise from Chump. Another time when he could have stood
strong for America but revealed himself to be a weak, inept and cowardly
character. After his state visit to China where
he met with President Xi Jinping,
With the trip to China ended -- and so clearly having been a failure -- many are weighing in. Anton Troianovski (NEW YORK TIMES) offers:
There was a vague agreement that China
would purchase Boeing jets and more American soybeans. There was
discussion about Iran and opening the Strait of Hormuz, and a nod to
other issues, like cracking down on chemicals used to make fentanyl.
But
President Trump departed Beijing on Friday with almost nothing concrete
to show for his two-day summit with President Xi Jinping of China.
After months of buildup and a delay necessitated by Mr. Trump’s
difficulty in extricating the United States from the war with Iran, the
summit ended with no major public progress
on the Middle East, trade, Taiwan, nuclear proliferation, artificial
intelligence or any of the other myriad issues that are sources of
friction between the world’s two superpowers.
Michael Tomasky (THE NEW REPUBLIC) registers with:
Donald Trump says China agreed to buy 200 jets from Boeing. He crowed
about it on Fox News Thursday night. But funny thing: A spokesman for
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was asked specifically about the jet
deal after Trump spoke, and he said nothing about any such agreement.
Wanna take bets on whether it actually happened?
Three points
here. First of all, we should stop quickly to note that it’s sad that
it’s come to pass that we just automatically believe a foreign
government—and China’s no less—over the president of the United States
(sad about him, that is, not us). Second, let’s remember that Boeing is
an American company in a deep and sustained crisis that was brought on
by basic greed: As David Goldstein explained in Democracy journal
in 2024, after its acquisition of McDonnell-Douglas in 1997, the
historically proud engineering culture at Boeing was destroyed as the
company became more anti-union and outsourced more of its production.
And third, assuming that Trump is lying or at least exaggerating,
well, we’ve just learned again for the jillionth time that Mr. Art of
the Deal is a total fraud. Let’s review.
- Remember how, in his first term, Trump was going to bring North Korea to its knees? Remember how he consistently heaped praise on
Kim Jong Un and his “beautiful vision for his country”? Well, it’s not a
“beautiful country” to the people who live there, and meanwhile, its
nuclear progress has been steady over the last decade—during most of
which, of course, Mr. Art of the Deal has been the president of the
United States. Experts think the nation has assembled about 50 warheads.
- Remember also that he was going to solve the Russia-Ukraine war on his first day back in office? In late March, a UN expert testified that
the violence was “worse than ever.” We—that is, most decent people—are
heartened by Ukraine’s resilience and wowed by its innovative drone
technology. But that “we” doesn’t include the president of the United
States, who obviously is cheering for his pal Putin—over whom he has
zero leverage.
- The 2025 tariff war on China totally backfired.
China responded to Trump’s tariffs by limiting exports of rare-earth
metals, and Trump backed down. Today, U.S. soybean exports to China are down (they peaked during Sleepy Joe’s “disastrous” presidency), as are auto exports. The first Chinese EVs are landing in Canada even as we speak. These are ultra-luxury cars that sell for $10,000 or even $20,000 less than their American equivalents.
- Speaking
of Canada, why isn’t it the 51st state yet? And speaking of Northern
annexation, why isn’t Greenland part of the United States yet?
- How’s that world-class Gaza resort coming along?
- U.S.
relations with Europe are at an all-time low. And it isn’t because of
anything Europe did. Last December, the Trump administration released a security strategy paper calling
Europe a bigger threat to the United States than Russia or China
because of its progressive social and immigration policies, which
threatened the continent with “civilizational erasure.”
- And
finally, of course, there is Iran. The economic impact of the closure of
the Strait of Hormuz will be felt for months ahead. The latest wrinkle?
In India, where they apparently lap up Diet Coke, there’s a shortage of
the beloved elixir because there’s an aluminum shortage (Diet
Coke is sold only in cans there). The Middle East accounts for 98
percent of the global aluminum supply. Stock up on that Reynolds Wrap.
Joking aside: There are and will be dozens of such shortages, some far
more serious than Diet Coke. A UN official told AFP in Paris this week
that up to 45 million people in the developing world could face hunger or even starvation because of the global fertilizer shortage.
And at WSWS, Andre Damon weighs in:
US President Donald Trump returned to Washington Friday from a
two-day state visit to China—the first by an American president in
nearly a decade—that offered no let-up in the global eruption of
American imperialism. The trip produced no easing of the US blockade of
Iran, no halt to the US arming of Taiwan, no reduction of Trump’s
anti-China tariffs and no communiqué.
The meeting took place in
the shadow of the US attack on Iran that was launched less than three
months earlier. Despite the brutality of the US onslaught, the Trump
administration has failed to achieve its aims of overthrowing the
Iranian government, destroying its military and gaining control of the
Strait of Hormuz.
Trump hoped to arrive in Beijing as the
conqueror of Iran, ready to dictate terms to China with a stranglehold
on its energy supplies. Instead, he was facing a geopolitical disaster,
and he sought Xi’s aid in resolving the crisis created by the war.
Chump
flamed out. As usual, his self-promoting created hype and expectations
that his mediocre abilities were never going to delier on. Putin will be in China on Tuesday -- presumably showing Chump how a nation negotiates with China.
“It’s just time,” Michael Banks, who worked for Border Patrol for over 20 years, said in an interview with Fox News.
“I feel like I got the ship back on course,” he added, referring to
immigration enforcement at the southern border. “It’s time to enjoy the
family and life.”
January 16, 2025, he was put in the position by Chump. What changed? At the start of last month, Ana Giaritelli (WASHINGTON EXAMINER) reported:
The
national chief of the Border Patrol, Michael Banks, was known among
colleagues for taking regular trips abroad to engage in sex with
prostitutes, according to six current and former Border Patrol employees
who spoke with the Washington Examiner.
Banks “bragged” to colleagues while in his previous management role at Border Patrol
about paying for sex with prostitutes while traveling in Colombia and
Thailand over the course of a decade. Banks’ behavior was said to have
been investigated by Customs and Border Protection officials twice,
including last year, but the investigation ended abruptly while Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was in office, leading to more questions.
“I don’t know how he became the chief of the Border Patrol with his character,” a former Border Patrol agent told the Washington Examiner
in a phone call, adding that now-53-year-old Banks had personally
pushed him to come along on one of the trips. “He’s going to third-world
countries to take advantage of poor f***ing women, which disgusts the
hell out of me.”
Four
others said Banks talked freely with his subordinates about his travels
and that it was known why he went, making his promotion to the top of
the agency last year that much more flabbergasting.
“He
would tell people that’s why he was going on these trips — he would go
there to engage in activities with prostitutes,” a second person said.
“So I think those stories are out everywhere, and you can’t put them
away or not give it attention because he was the one telling people
about these trips.
The day after NYT did their bury their head in the sand post, THE SPECTATOR noted:
Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks has resigned, ostensibly “to retire
and return home to Texas to focus on my family and ranch.” Banks served
under President Biden but quit in frustration over the administration’s
lax border policies. When Trump returned to office, Banks took up his
old job again: like Cincinnatus, he came out of retirement to serve, and
will now return to his plow.
Perhaps “plow” is the operative word here. It’s widely speculated that Banks is in fact resigning because of a Washington Examiner investigation,
which claims that he was a sex tourist who made regular trips to
Colombia and Thailand while in post. According to six current and former
Border Patrol employees, Banks used to boast of his sexual exploits to
colleagues, and would be remarkably upfront about the purpose of these
trips to anyone who asked. It ought to be said that prostitution is
legal in both those countries, but that using the services of ladies (or
gentlemen!) of the night is against agency policy.
Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling (THE NEW REPUBLIC) notes:
But Banks’s sudden departure comes at a curious time, as
reports circulate about his penchant for sex workers. Border Patrol
employees told the Washington Examiner last month that Banks was “known among colleagues for taking regular trips abroad to engage in sex with prostitutes.”
Banks
even “bragged” about his deviant habits with colleagues while in his
previous role in Border Patrol, and allegedly paid for sex with
prostitutes while travelling across Colombia and Thailand over the
course of a decade. CBP reportedly investigated his behavior twice,
including last year, but the probe was squashed by former Homeland
Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
The
paper of record, THE NEW YORK TIMES, is going to let this pass without
comment? And you wonder how Jeffrey Epstein or, for that matter, Harvey
Weinstein got away with so much for so long. It's right there in the
'report' by Ashley Ayn.
And
not only does the record need to reflect these allegations against
Banks to be accurate regarding Banks, it also needs to reflect the
allegations to be accurate regarding Donald Chump. Yet again, Chump's
surrounded himself with people who never should have been appointed by
him. Did Chump know about the allegations before he appointed Banks to
the job? If not, when did Chump find out?
Let's wind down with this from Senator Elizabeth Warren's office:
FDA approved mifepristone for use over two decades ago
Supreme Court set to rule on right-wing extremist attempt to roll back access to medication abortion
“Law and policy governing
access to lifesaving, time-sensitive medication abortion care in the
United States should be equitable, transparent, and based on the best
available peer-reviewed evidence-based science.”
Text of Resolution (PDF)
Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Elizabeth
Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Minority Leader Chuck Schumer
(D-N.Y.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Tina Smith
(D-Minn.), led the entire Senate Democratic caucus in reintroducing a
resolution affirming that the abortion medication mifepristone is safe
and effective, and underscoring that law and policy related to the
medication must be equitable, transparent, and based on the best
available peer-reviewed evidence-based science.
The resolution comes hours before the Supreme Court’s administrative stay in Louisiana v. FDA is
set to expire — which, without action, would uphold the Fifth Circuit’s
ruling threatening millions of women’s access to mifepristone, even in
states where abortion is legal.
The resolution was co-sponsored by Senators Angela Alsobrooks
(D-Md.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Lisa
Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Maria Cantwell
(D-Wash.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Tammy
Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.),
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Maggie Hassan
(D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie
Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Amy Klobuchar
(D-Minn.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Angus King (I-Maine), Ben Ray Luján
(D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy
(D-Conn.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Gary Peters
(D-Mich.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Bernie Sanders
(I-Vt.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Jeanne Shaheen
(D-N.H.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mark
Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and
Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).
The resolution was endorsed by the following organizations: All*
Above All, American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists,
American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Reproductive Rights, EMAA
Project, In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice
Agenda, National Abortion Federation, National Asian Pacific American
Women's Forum, National Council of Jewish Women, National Latina
Institute for Reproductive Justice, National Network of Abortion Funds,
National Partnership for Women and Families, National Women's Law Center
Action Fund, Physicians for Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood
Federation of America, Power to Decide, Reproductive Freedom for All
(formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America), and URGE: Unite for Reproductive
& Gender Equity.
“Abortion opponents nationwide continue to push their politically
motivated attacks on mifepristone and medication abortion to make it
harder for everyone, everywhere to get care. That’s despite decades of
research and millions of people using mifepristone to safely and
effectively end a pregnancy,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO, Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “In
the face of these attacks, we are grateful to Senator Warren, Sen.
Baldwin, Senate Minority Leader Schumer, Sen. Wyden, Sen. Murray, and
Sen. Smith for reaffirming that science-based policies must govern
access to mifepristone.”
“Mifepristone continues to be crucial to our ability to access
abortion care— and that is precisely why abortion opponents have been
relentless in their efforts to restrict it nationwide, including in
states where abortion is legally protected,” said Jessica Arons,
director of the Liberty Division for Policy and Government Affairs at
the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). “As this resolution
affirms, millions of people have used mifepristone to safely end
pregnancies and treat miscarriages for more than 25 years, including by
telemedicine. We thank Senator Warren for introducing legislation to set
the record straight and push back on anti-abortion propaganda, and we
call on Congress to protect the right to abortion and end this political
interference with our personal healthcare decisions once and for all.”
'“For
decades, the science has been overwhelmingly clear:
mifepristone is safe and effective. Millions of Americans have relied on
this critical medication, which revolutionized access to care. We’re
grateful to Senator Warren, Sen. Baldwin, Senate Minority Leader
Schumer, Sen. Wyden, Sen. Murray, and Sen. Smith for their ongoing
efforts to ensure the critical decisions about necessary—and sometimes
life-saving— healthcare are based in science, not ideology,” said
Rachana Desai Martin, Chief U.S. Program Officer at the Center for
Reproductive Rights.
The lawmakers first introduced this resolution in 2023, following the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade,
which sparked attacks on reproductive rights across the country. Since
then, 20 states have banned or restricted access to abortion care.
Senator Warren has led the charge to protect reproductive freedom:
- In May 2026, Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) led
12 senators in pressing the Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC) on the Commission’s efforts to weaken a rule affirming
employment protections for workers undergoing fertility treatments.
- In March 2026, U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.); Ron Wyden,
Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee; and Senate Minority
Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) led
23 colleagues in publishing a new report revealing the harm Donald
Trump and Republicans in Congress have caused to Americans in the six
months since their dangerous provision to “defund” Planned Parenthood,
buried in their Big, Beautiful Bill, went into effect. The report
reveals that, in addition to acting as a backdoor abortion ban, the
“defund” provision has ripped away Americans’ access to essential
services — including primary care, birth control, cancer screenings, and
wellness exams — and raised health care costs.
- In November 2025, ahead of the Senate Finance Committee’s
confirmation vote for Thomas M. Bell, Donald Trump’s nominee for Health
and Human Services (HHS) Inspector General (IG), U.S. Senator Elizabeth
Warren (D-Mass.) exposed Bell’s flip-flopping and slammed his extreme anti-abortion views.
- In July 2025, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) pressed
Michael Stuart, nominee for General Counsel of the Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS), on his dangerous anti-vaccine views, staunch
anti-abortion advocacy, and more. Ahead of his confirmation hearing in
front of the Senate Finance Committee later today — at which Senator
Warren will question Stuart — Senator Warren sent Stuart a letter
outlining her key concerns with his nomination.
- In February 2025, Senators Warren and Duckworth pressed
Dr. Mehmet Oz, President Trump’s then-nominee for the Administrator of
the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), on his hostile
anti-abortion record.
- In December 2024, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) reintroduced
the Health and Location Data Protection Act, legislation banning data
brokers from selling Americans’ sensitive personal information.
- In September 2024, at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee, Senator Elizabeth Warren highlighted the dangerous consequences women faced after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
###
