Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has drawn attention to a detailed personal account from a longtime Trump supporter who now questions key elements of the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt on then-candidate Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

In an April 12 post on X, Trisha Hope, a self-described J6 activist and 2024 Republican National Convention delegate from Texas, details how she shifted from staunch MAGA supporter to skeptic –  writing “I learned of the attempt on Trump’s life at the Butler rally.  I was in the middle of having dinner at a restaurant in Little Rock, AR.”

Then, at the convention, she thought it was strange that Trump opened his speech by saying he would recount the incident “exactly” once because “it’s actually too painful to tell,” which she found out of character for someone who makes everything about himself. Hope also thought that the ‘ICONIC’ photograph of Trump rising with fist raised, shouting “FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT” was weird and “perfectly timed” with a flag lowering and Secret Service agents positioned as if for a staged shot.

“Following the inauguration, I found it odd that Trump wasn’t going aggressively after those who allowed this to happen.  He seemed to behave like it was no big deal,” she writes, adding that Trump later promoted Sean Curran – the agent visible in the white shirt in that photo – to head of the Secret Service on January 22, 2025, rather than dismissing anyone for security failures. She also questions Trump’s limited subsequent references to the event, except to say he “took a bullet for us,” and argues that Corey Comperatore’s death was necessary to make the incident believable, while his widow has been denied ongoing answers. Hope concludes by urging readers to apply “critical thinking skills” and have “at least some questions.”

“Instead of his SS detail being terminated as they should have been, Trump made the gentleman in the white shirt the HEAD of the Secret Service on January 22, 2025.  Instead of losing his job Sean Curran was given a massive promotion,” she said. 

I was a long time Trump supporter, I became a National Delegate to make certain Trump was seated as the nominee.

While en-route to Wisconsin, I learned of the attempt on Trump’s life at the Butler rally. I was in the middle of having dinner at a restaurant in Little Rock, AR.… pic.twitter.com/Ed1gz2HiyB

— Trisha Hope – National Delegate-TX (@JustTheTweets17) April 12, 2026

Greene – a former MAGA loyalist whose split with the party over the Epstein files, airstrikes on Iran, Trump’s continued support for Israel and the Gaza conflict, and US involvement in Ukraine – led to her November 2025 resignation from Congress, amplified the post six days later. 

“Extremely important post worth the read and consideration. Corey Comperatore’s family deserves to know the truth about Matthew Crooks and what happened in Butler on July 13, 2024,” Greene wrote. “President Trump, of all people, should be leading the charge. Why isn’t he? That’s the question.”

Extremely important post worth the read and consideration.
Corey Comperatore’s family deserves to know the truth about Matthew Crooks and what happened in Butler on July 13, 2024.
President Trump, of all people, should be leading the charge.
Why isn’t he?
That’s the question. https://t.co/kTpoRHYsYZ

— Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 (@mtgreenee) April 18, 2026

The Official Story

According to the FBI, congressional investigations, and law enforcement accounts, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, acted alone when he fired eight rounds from an AR-15-style rifle from the roof of a building near the Butler Farm Show grounds. The shots grazed Trump’s right ear, killed 50-year-old volunteer firefighter and former fire chief Corey Comperatore (who was shielding his family), and critically injured two other attendees, David Dutch and James Copenhaver. A Butler County Emergency Services Unit officer and a Secret Service counter-sniper returned fire; Crooks was killed on the roof. The FBI has stated after extensive interviews and analysis that Crooks acted alone, though questions about his motive have persisted. Security lapses were acknowledged, including how Crooks was able to access the rooftop despite local police spotting him earlier, but the incident was classified as a genuine assassination attempt.

The Official Doubt

A growing number of voices – particularly from within former Trump-supporting circles – aren’t buying it – arguing that the iconic photograph appeared too perfectly composed to be spontaneous, with the flag lowering in sync, agents seemingly posing, and Trump allowed to stand exposed on stage for the image. Some note Trump’s RNC remarks as unusually curt, suggesting an intent to shut down further discussion rather than capitalize on the drama. Critics highlight the promotion of a Secret Service agent involved in the detail instead of widespread firings or accountability, and Trump’s relative silence on the matter afterward beyond occasional references to “taking a bullet.”

Trumps just been shot but here’s the Secret Service guiding photographers around ignoring danger to get the famous photo while the crane operator lowers the flag into position ignoring the danger.

Staged event. pic.twitter.com/P922el59kJ

— Irlandarra (@martinez_j7902) April 18, 2026

Skeptics also note several early security lapses and immediate post-incident actions as further reason to question the official timeline. Video and photographs show FBI investigators hosing down the rooftop where Crooks was killed the day after the shooting, arguing the scene was cleaned too quickly and that biological evidence was potentially lost. 

Then there’s police radio chatter that captured officers spotting Crooks, losing sight of him, and struggling to clearly relay the escalating threat between local law enforcement and the Secret Service – communications that were later explained as coordination failures but struck many as highly unusual. Multiple confirmed reports show Crooks was identified as suspicious, photographed with a rangefinder roughly 90 minutes before the shooting, and was spotted on the roof by Secret Service snipers about 20 minutes before he fired – details critics say should have prompted immediate action to remove Trump from the stage or secure the building.

NEW – Trump Assassin video shows him crawling on the roof while multiple people point him out to police

They yelled about him for *almost an entire minute*

It’s insane how Secret Service allowed this amateur to almost kill Trump pic.twitter.com/CWfHBGzOCp

— DC_Draino (@DC_Draino) July 15, 2024

BREAKING: New footage shows Trump rally attendees desperately shouting to law enforcement that there was someone with a gun on top of a structure.

How the hell did rally attendees see the suspect before Secret Service and police??

“He’s got a gun! He’s got a gun!” they… pic.twitter.com/VaiNDp3ZH9

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 14, 2024

What say you?

Drawing further attention to the global uranium supply-demand mismatch that we’ve been pounding the table on since 2020, Kazakhstan has outlined plans to accelerate exploration and create a strategic reserve for the nuclear fuel. 

We’ve repeatedly emphasized that the US is not moving fast enough if it hopes to secure fuel for its reactor fleet…

US Is Rapidly Expanding Its Nuclear Supply Chain: It’s Not Nearly Fast Enough https://t.co/gly9hVAKnr

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 19, 2026

The strategy, approved by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, calls for geological work on at least two new prospective deposits each year. The goal is to uncover high-potential resources while advancing development on already explored sites to refine estimates, extraction methods, and launch preparations.

Kazakhstan, the world’s top uranium producer with roughly one million tonnes of confirmed resources (14 percent of the global total as of early 2025), operates 14 extraction enterprises across multiple regions. 12 are joint ventures with partners from China, Russia, France, Canada, and Japan.

Kazakhstan stands alongside Australia and Canada as the main source of uranium ore imports to the US…

The document emphasizes guaranteeing long-term domestic supply for future nuclear power plants, strengthening export positions, and ensuring reliable sulfuric acid deliveries for in-situ leaching. It also envisions new alternative extraction technologies and full loading of future conversion, enrichment, and fabrication facilities with domestically sourced uranium.

As we highlighted in “Why The Price Of Uranium Is About To Soar,” a widening cumulative net deficit of 211 million pounds between 2025 and 2045, driven by reactor builds in China, Russia, and the United States, is already pushing long-term prices higher. Spot uranium recently traded near $86 per pound, with Goldman Sachs models pointing to roughly $91 by year-end 2026.

We also covered earlier this year on how hyperscalers such as Microsoft are actively exploring uranium-backed projects to secure zero-carbon electricity. With data center capex nearing $1 trillion over the last six years, data center developers have decided now is the time to check for fuel.

The hyperscalers have already outspent the most famous US megaprojects pic.twitter.com/D54qD8kO61

— Fin Moorhouse (@finmoorhouse) April 17, 2026

More countries are likely to announce strategic uranium reserves as the supply outlook for the industry becomes more bleak by the week…

China is adding reactors at breakneck speed and India is now looking to catch up, but the US is still grossly behind the rest of the world when it comes to construction of large-scale grid-supporting reactor plants…

Four months later, China has added 9 more reactors and is now building a total of 39 nuclear power plants. Meanwhile the US has added 0 and is still building 0 https://t.co/TJ6BoMghNk pic.twitter.com/O4idOANNUr

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 15, 2026

With the US still nearly completely reliant on the import of raw uranium ore, domestic producers such as Energy Fuels and Uranium Energy Corp stand to be called upon and supported by federal and state governments to reduce what could be framed as a national energy security threat. 

 Submitted by QTR’s Fringe Finance

When Henry Paulson steps back into the public conversation after years of relative silence, it’s not random timing. This is someone who sat at the center of the 2008 financial crisis and understands how quickly confidence can evaporate once stress begins to build in core markets.

Paulson also appears to be one of about…oh, I don’t know…six people in the entire nation who know that $39 trillion in debt is an unsustainable level for the country.

If you ask me, his recent interview with Bloomberg that is being passed around by traders should be read less as random innocuous commentary and more as a timing signal.

In his interview, Paulson is explicitly warning that the scale of U.S. borrowing is now testing confidence in the Treasury market itself. With federal debt approaching $39 trillion, he points to the risk that the long-standing assumption of endless demand for U.S. government debt may no longer hold.

As he put it, “That’s a dangerous thing,” describing a scenario where foreign demand declines and Treasury prices fall. That is not a small shift in tone. The entire global financial system is built on the idea that Treasuries are the ultimate safe asset, and once that perception begins to weaken, the consequences cascade quickly.

What stands out even more is what he says next about how such a situation would resolve: “Should enough investors back out… the Federal Reserve would step in as a buyer of last resort.”

And as we all know, a “buyer of last resort” is simply another way of describing a return to large-scale intervention by the Federal Reserve. Whether policymakers call it stabilization, liquidity support, or something else (like the A.S.S.H.O.L.E.S. plan), the mechanism is the same: the central bank absorbs supply when the market no longer can. In other words, quantitative easing returns.

That leaves two realistic interpretations of why Paulson is speaking now.

Either he sees early signs of stress already forming beneath the surface of the Treasury market—declining foreign participation, weakening liquidity, or rising yields that are no longer being absorbed smoothly.

Or he is helping prepare the narrative for the policy response that will follow when those stresses become undeniable. Those two possibilities are not mutually exclusive. In fact, they often occur together.

His comments about needing an emergency response framework make that even clearer. He said, “We need an emergency break-the-glass plan… ready to go when we hit the wall,” and followed it with “It will be vicious.”

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Notice he said when we hit the wall, not if.

That is not the language of a former official casually discussing long-term fiscal challenges. It is the language of someone who expects a disorderly adjustment and understands how quickly conditions can spiral once confidence breaks.

Markets already assume that after the next deleveraging cycle, central banks will return to QE. That part is widely understood. What is not fully appreciated is the implication if the stress originates inside the Treasury market itself. Treasuries are not just another asset class. They underpin global collateral systems, anchor borrowing costs across the economy, and support the U.S. dollar reserve currency status. If confidence in that market begins to erode, the feedback loop is far more severe than a typical recessionary downturn.

In that scenario, the Federal Reserve stepping in as the marginal buyer would not simply stabilize markets. It would fundamentally alter how capital allocates globally. Real yields could compress rapidly, confidence in fiat stability could weaken, and capital could rotate into hard assets at a pace that exceeds even aggressive expectations. The move would not just be cyclical, it would be structural.

The second-order risk is even more significant. If foreign demand for Treasuries fades and the U.S. increasingly relies on its own central bank to finance deficits, the signal to the rest of the world is unmistakable. That is how pressure begins to build on a reserve currency. An FX adjustment tied to the dollar is not the base case today, but neither was a systemic breakdown in mortgage markets prior to 2008. These transitions always look implausible until they are suddenly obvious.

The key point is that Paulson is not someone who reappears without purpose. He understands the plumbing of the system and the fragility that sits beneath it when leverage is high and confidence is stretched. His warning that “We have to prepare for that eventuality” should not be dismissed as generic caution. It suggests that the risks are no longer theoretical.

There is more in his comments than a simple observation about rising debt levels. Either he sees stress forming already, or he is preparing markets for the policy response that will follow when that stress becomes visible. In both cases, the implication is the same: something larger is developing beneath the surface of the Treasury market, and when it breaks into the open, the consequences will extend far beyond bonds.

For portfolio ideas for this scenario, read this article at Fringe Finance here. 

—

QTR’s Disclaimer: Please read my full legal disclaimer on my About page here. This post represents my opinions only. In addition, please understand I am an idiot and often get things wrong and lose money. I may own or transact in any names mentioned in this piece at any time without warning. Contributor posts and aggregated posts have been hand selected by me, have not been fact checked and are the opinions of their authors. They are either submitted to QTR by their author, reprinted under a Creative Commons license with my best effort to uphold what the license asks, or with the permission of the author.

This is not a recommendation to buy or sell any stocks or securities, just my opinions. I often lose money on positions I trade/invest in. I may add any name mentioned in this article and sell any name mentioned in this piece at any time, without further warning. None of this is a solicitation to buy or sell securities. I may or may not own names I write about and are watching. Sometimes I’m bullish without owning things, sometimes I’m bearish and do own things. Just assume my positions could be exactly the opposite of what you think they are just in case. If I’m long I could quickly be short and vice versa. I won’t update my positions. All positions can change immediately as soon as I publish this, with or without notice and at any point I can be long, short or neutral on any position. You are on your own. Do not make decisions based on my blog. I exist on the fringe. If you see numbers and calculations of any sort, assume they are wrong and double check them. I failed Algebra in 8th grade and topped off my high school math accolades by getting a D- in remedial Calculus my senior year, before becoming an English major in college so I could bullshit my way through things easier.

The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided in this page. These are not the opinions of any of my employers, partners, or associates. I did my best to be honest about my disclosures but can’t guarantee I am right; I write these posts after a couple beers sometimes. I edit after my posts are published because I’m impatient and lazy, so if you see a typo, check back in a half hour. Also, I just straight up get shit wrong a lot. I mention it twice because it’s that important.

By Sunday morning, the latest Bloomberg ship tracking data showed that tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz had largely ground to a halt. There were multiple incidents of tankers U-turning over the last 24 hours. At the same time, a senior Iranian official renewed threats to close the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.

The Hormuz chokepoint (closed once again after briefly opening on Friday morning) comes as the US blockade of Iranian ports remains in place and US-Iran diplomatic channels appear active.

President Trump told Fox News that special envoy Steve Witkoff is traveling to Pakistan for talks with Iranian negotiators, suggesting the Trump team and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio are still pursuing a negotiated off-ramp.

Separately, Trump wrote on Truth Social that his representatives “will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations.”

Trump also renewed threats made earlier this month to “knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran” if no deal is reached, warning that “they’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy.”

Confirmation of another round of upcoming US-Iran talks comes one day after Iran shuttered the Hormuz, citing the US Naval blockade that remains in place.

The odds of shipping traffic returning to normal on the Hormuz by the end of the month are currently around 28% on Polymarket. Those odds just hours ago, early Sunday, stood around 18%.

Strait of Hormuz traffic returns to normal by end of April?
Yes 28% · No 72%
View full market & trade on Polymarket

Overnight, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of the Iranian parliament, admitted on national television that there had been “progress” with Washington, but that there were many gaps and some fundamental points remained.

“We are still far from the final discussion,” said Ghalibaf, one of Tehran’s top negotiators.

Ghalibaf continued, “If America does not lift the blockade, traffic in the Strait of Hormuz will definitely be limited.”

Trump has accused Tehran of getting “a little cute” with its flip-flopping on the strait that was reopened on Friday but abruptly closed on Saturday morning.

Trump’s full Truth Social post from earlier:

Iran decided to fire bullets yesterday in the Strait of Hormuz — A Total Violation of our Ceasefire Agreement! Many of them were aimed at a French Ship, and a Freighter from the United Kingdom. That wasn’t nice, was it?

My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations. Iran recently announced that they were closing the Strait, which is strange, because our BLOCKADE has already closed it.

They’re helping us without knowing, and they are the ones that lose with the closed passage, $500 Million Dollars a day! The United States loses nothing. In fact, many Ships are headed, right now, to the U.S., Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, to load up, compliments of the IRGC, always wanting to be “the tough guy!”

We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran.

NO MORE MR. NICE GUY! They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years. IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END! President DONALD J. TRUMP

Latest headlines:

Strait of Hormuz Crisis

Shipping in the Strait of Hormuz was at a near standstill early Sunday after Iran reversed its decision to reopen the waterway and fired on vessels attempting to pass (BN)

Several LNG tankers reversed course en route to the Strait of Hormuz after Iran warned ship captains that the vital channel is once again closed to maritime traffic (BN)

Two Indian vessels reported firing and returned to the Persian Gulf (BN)

Iran’s foreign ministry says US naval blockade is a ‘violation’ of ceasefire (AFP)

US-Iran Negotiations

Trump said his special envoy Steve Witkoff is traveling to Pakistan for talks with Iran on Tuesday, with talks potentially lasting into Wednesday (BN)

Trump says US negotiators will be in Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran, resuming negotiations after the Strait of Hormuz standoff escalated (APW) (APW)

Iran says ‘commitment for commitment’ policy in US talks (NS8)

Trump’s Threats and Statements

Trump renewed threats to ‘knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran’ if no deal is reached (BN) (AFP)

Trump said Iran has committed a ‘serious violation’ of the ceasefire but a peace deal is still possible, stating ‘It will happen. One way or another. The nice way or the hard way’ (BN) (JPT)

Trump tells Fox US has massive ammunition prepared against Iran (BN)

Regional Impact

The standoff threatens to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy and undermine expectations of an imminent peace deal (BN)

Analysis suggests America’s Iran operations may help China edge out US influence in Southeast Asia, with several NATO allies distancing themselves from Washington (SMP)

The previous day’s US-Iran wrap:

US Prepares To Board Iran-Linked Ships Globally Following Iranian Gunboat Attack On Tanker In Hormuz

Other Polymarket Iran Predictions:

US x Iran permanent peace deal by May 31, 2026?
Yes 63% · No 38%
View full market & trade on Polymarket

Kharg Island no longer under Iranian control by May 31?
Yes 13% · No 88%
View full market & trade on Polymarket

. . . 

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

A Nigerian immigrant was arrested in Sarzana, Italy after local residents spotted him roasting a freshly killed cat on a makeshift barbecue in a Park—right beside a children’s playground.

The man, described as shoeless, had set up a grate over an open fire in the Crociata public space dedicated to a local partisan commander. Passersby called the carabinieri (Italian police), who arrived to find him in the act. He was charged with animal cruelty offences.

The shocking scene, captured in photos that quickly spread online, has triggered nationwide anger in Italy. Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini branded it “a heinous act that must not go unpunished.”

🇮🇹 Sarzana. Policja zatrzymała Nigeryjczyka, który zabił i upiekł na grillu kota parku publicznym na oczach przechodniów. Dostał zarzuty znęcania się nad zwierzętami. „Okrutny czyn, który nie powinien mieć miejsca w cywilizowanym społeczeństwie”, komentuje radny ds bezpieczeństwa pic.twitter.com/mLdg08SrsI

— Adam Gwiazda (@delestoile) April 17, 2026

Sarzana’s Administrative Officer and Security Councillor Stefano Torri reacted with fury, urging “What happened this afternoon in Crociata Park is an atrocious act that cannot and should not have a place in a civilised society,” he stated.

Torri went further: “As an Administration, we are ready to reiterate strongly: we will not allow anyone to come into our territory to import sick and barbaric customs and customs. Those living in our country have a duty to respect our laws and our sensitivity towards animals. We won’t tolerate our land being turned into a theatre of the uncivilised by those who have no respect for the rules of civil life.”

He promised improved safety measures and to “return it to the citizens,” adding that the administration is working on a tender to bring “positive aggregation, order, light and legality” back to the park.

It remains unclear whether the cat was a family pet or a stray.

Apparently this is quite common place among the new Italian populace:

Meanwhile in Italy. Man, who is not named, tried to cook a cat using a makeshift fire on a pavement near to the Campiglia Marittima station in the province of Livorno, Tuscany. pic.twitter.com/Uk3Jg8GQ8L

— Enigma (@BrumsBlueArmy) October 28, 2023

Nor is it isolated across the West. Just last month we reported on migrants filmed catching and butchering swans and ducks in parks and canals across the UK and Ireland.

Protected birds were trapped in crude wire cages, snatched from waterways, and prepared for consumption in scenes that left locals stunned.

These cases drew direct parallels to Springfield, Ohio, where Haitian migrants faced accusations of grabbing ducks by the neck, decapitating them in parks, and taking them home to eat.

A city commission meeting heard residents testify to the practice, and a clip later surfaced showing the city manager admitting he had “heard about” the reports of Haitian migrants eating pets—despite frantic media efforts to dismiss the claims as baseless.

The pattern is unmistakable. Open-border policies continue to import individuals en mass with entirely incompatible habits that clash with basic Western norms

Public parks are meant for families and children, not open-air barbecues of neighbourhood cats. When authorities have to step in to “return” spaces to the people who actually built and maintain them, it’s a damning indictment of how far unchecked immigration has already gone.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

The US military is deploying unmanned and autonomous surface platforms that can tow an advanced mine-hunting sonar system to detect sea mines that were deployed by Iranian naval forces. This development comes even as Iran closed the Hormuz chokepoint on Saturday morning.

By Sunday morning, Iran’s chief negotiator said some progress had been made in negotiations with the US, but there is still a long way to go before a deal is reached.

Despite the volatility in the Hormuz chokepoint’s operational status, somewhat like Katy Perry’s “Hot N Cold,” the US military deployed numerous sea drones towing the floating sonar minesweeping system. 

WSJ explained: 

The Common Uncrewed Surface Vessel, a drone made by RTX that tows a new floating sonar system called the AQS-20, scans the bottom of the sea for mines, patrolling columns that are 100 feet wide at a time.

Battery-powered submarine drones, called the MK18 Mod 2 Kingfish and the Knifefish, made by General Dynamics can be dropped in the water from a small boat and then scan for mines in a pattern.

MK18 Mod 2 Kingfish

Knifefish

“You’re less concerned about attrition, so sending them through the minefield is much more palatable, and if you lose some, they can be replaced,” said Scott Savitz, a senior engineer at Rand who previously worked with the Navy’s mine warfare command and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command.

The minesweeping push by the US Navy is unfolding alongside the US blockade at Hormuz, which the Trump administration hopes will pressure Tehran in talks.

On Saturday, Iran shut the waterway, and two Iranian gunboats fired on a tanker near Oman, while a second tanker was hit by a “projectile.”

Clearing the backlog of tankers trapped in the Gulf could take weeks or months, and restarting energy assets in the region will also take time. There is also a loss of sizeable energy production capacity in the Gulf area, such as LNG production in Qatar, which could take several years to return to prewar levels. We’ve noted that the beneficiary of this loss production will be US energy exporters in the Gulf of America.

Autonomous minesweeping operations in Hormuz by the US Navy are part of a broader push toward automation and AI on the modern battlefield, as low-cost unmanned systems rise and future wars are expected to be fought with robots.

Related:

US Deploys Ukrainian-Style Drone Boat In Iran War As AI Weapons Race Accelerates

US Launched Kamikaze Drones Against Iran, Reflecting Lessons Learned From Ukraine

And this:

Zelensky’s Interceptor Drones Deployed Across Eurasia, Now Shooting Down Iranian Shaheds

Can’t stop the ‘Rise of Skynet’….

AI’ Kill Chains’ And Rise Of Skynet-Like Weapons Offer Glimpse Of 2030s Battlefield

The core issue is that the hyperdevelopment of low-cost autonomous warfare systems in Ukraine, Russia, China, and elsewhere has effectively pulled 2030s-era warfare into the present. Washington is already preparing for that threat on the Homeland (read here).

Via Middle East Eye

US Envoy Tom Barrack has downplayed escalating tensions between Turkey and Israel as just “rhetoric” and pushed for regional cooperation between the two countries in security and energy projects.

Speaking during a panel at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, Barrack pushed back against comments from some officials in both countries that suggested they could come into conflict in the near future. “I think Turkey is just not a country to be messed with,” Barrack said.

​​​​​Handout: Antalya Diplomacy Forum via AFP

Barrack said that both countries were seeing a distorted image of each other as a result of sensationalized media coverage that painted both as expansionist.

“So if you wake up in Tel Aviv, you read the newspaper, what do you see? You see the diagram on the paper of The Ottoman Empire 2.0, which is Vienna to the Maldives, right,” he said.

“You wake up in Istanbul and read the paper and it’s Greater Israel.”

Turkey was the first Muslim-majority country to recognize the state of Israel in 1949, and has enjoyed largely cordial security and trade ties throughout most of their modern history.

However, since the 2010 attack on the Mavi Marmara flotilla, when Israeli forces raided a Turkish ship delivering aid to Gaza and killed 10 of those on board, tensions have been strained and the government has increasingly hit out at Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.

The ‘next Iran’?

The most recent attempt to restore relations in September 2023 – which saw Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meeting and shaking hands for the first time in New York – collapsed the next month after the 7 October Hamas-led attacks on Israel and the subsequent genocide in Gaza.

Since then, the rhetoric has escalated from politicians in both countries, with former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett describing Turkey as potentially the “next Iran” in March.

The US government has staunchly backed Israel’s military actions across the region, including joining its war on Iran. However, Turkey’s status as a Nato member and US President Donald Trump’s stated admiration for Erdogan has led American officials to seek to restore relations between the two countries.

Barrack told the forum in Antalya that the energy price shocks from the Iran war had proven the importance of regional cooperation to maintain energy security.

“Everything comes from Turkey. It’s fiber optics. We’re talking about Azerbaijan and Armenia, which is flowing oil, gas, information, data and materials. Where does it go? How does it go?” he said.

“So Israel aligned with Turkey, like Israel aligned with Abu Dhabi. Saudi Arabia could be aligned with Israel and, for the prosperity of the Israeli people, to me that’s the answer.”

Some recent rhetoric out of Israeli media:

‘No matter how much Trump might deny it, Israel has grave concerns over Erdoğan of Turkey with very good reason.’@perry_dan on #TheRundown with @Nicole_Zedeck pic.twitter.com/KgPvInm5Oe

— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) December 30, 2025

Barrack added that Israel should go further, and try to engage Turkey as part of the International Stabilisation Force established for Gaza as part of the ceasefire deal signed in September. “The smartest thing that Israel could do is to entice and embrace Turkey to enter that force,” he said.

Barrack said that Erdogan’s interactions with the Palestinian group Hamas was instrumental for reaching a deal to release Israeli hostages, and that it happened because Ankara didn’t designate the group.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also met with Barrack on Monday for what they said was a “productive” meeting.

Both Kiev and Washington have been met with a new provocation related to North Korea’s role in supporting Russia during the over four-year long Ukraine war, at a moment Russia continues to claim sovereignty over Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

Ukraine and its Western backers have vehemently rejected Russia’s hold on Ukrainian territory, and efforts to annex and politically normalize the occupation. But now, for the first time a Russian-installed official in Kherson is hosting North Korean diplomats in an ‘official’ capacity. 

Vladimir Saldo (left) and Shin Hong Cheol.

“A Russian-installed official in occupied southern Ukraine has held talks with North Korea’s ambassador in Moscow, discussing potential cooperation in agriculture and other sectors, according to statements and media reports,” writes The Moscow Times.

It highlights the deepened political and defense ties between Pyongyang and the Kremlin amid the Ukraine war, which the Kim Jong Un government sees as a war of NATO imperialist aggression:

Vladimir Saldo, the Moscow-appointed head of the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine’s Kherson region, met North Korean Ambassador Sin Hong Chol at the North Korean Embassy in Moscow, South Korea’s Korea JoongAng Daily reported.

Saldo later published photographs of the meeting on social media, saying the sides explored possible collaboration in agriculture and humanitarian initiatives, as well as culture, sports and education.

But there’s huge symbolism in the meeting, also in seeking to publish news of it far and wide. Russia has long demanded international political recognition of its militarily-held territories in Ukraine. This recognition is expected to start with its closest allies – but for now has stopped there.

Previously, it became well-known that North Korea sent at least 10,000 of its troops to help Russia in Ukraine. The CIA and Western countries expressed deep alarm over this.

International reports based on South Korean intelligence estimates earlier this year said that around 2,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed while fighting alongside Russia so far.

Now it seems the Kremlin is ready to increasingly play host to North Korean officials and greet them with open arms, working on bilateral deals and partnering in programs in agriculture and public programs.

Via Remix News,

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and his far-left government are not over the finish line yet when it comes to their plan to legalize hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants. Now, the Spanish legal group Hazte Oír have made the first successful step in challenging the far-left government’s “Royal Decree,” which was used to pass the legislation without a vote from parliament.

After Hazte Oír’s application was accepted for processing by the Spanish Supreme Court, the government now has a non-extendable 20-day deadline to hand over the complete administrative file regarding mass legalization.

While it does not guarantee a reversal, it places the decree in a state of significant legal uncertainty. By admitting the case, Spain’s top court has found sufficient legal grounds to examine the merits of the lawsuit rather than dismissing it outright.

🇪🇸🚨With up to 800,000 migrants set to be legalized in Spain, massive crowds have gathered outside the Moroccan Consulate in Almería.

The Moroccan Government says it will streamline documentation so that its citizens can quickly become regularized.pic.twitter.com/GK4Q62yVVs

— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) April 16, 2026

The Supreme Court will verify whether the government followed correct legal procedures and whether it possessed the constitutional authority to use a Royal Decree for a mass regularization, according to La Razon.

The legal risk for the government currently remains high. The plaintiffs argue that such a measure requires a formal law passed by Parliament rather than a simple cabinet decree. Crucially, Hazte Oír has requested a precautionary suspension of the law. If the Supreme Court grants this, the legalization process would be frozen immediately while the judges deliberate on a final ruling.

Hazte Oír argues that if the decree is allowed to proceed, it will create “irreparable damage” by granting legal status to hundreds of thousands of people — a situation that would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to reverse even if the decree is later found to be illegal.

Already, scenes showcasing thousands of migrants across the country lining up at different embassies to receive the proper paperwork to apply for legalization have spread across social media. The law, which went into effect on April 15, has proven controversial and been fiercely opposed by conservative and right-wing parties.

“These are the lines to manage mass regularization in each municipality of Spain. Tomorrow this chaos will move to the health centers, to the social services, to the real estate agencies… It’s called thirdworldization. It’s already happening. Our priority is to reverse it, radically,” wrote Vox party leader Santiago Abascal.

Estas son las colas para gestionar la regularización masiva en cada municipio de España.

Mañana este caos se trasladará a los centros de salud, a los servicios sociales, a las inmobiliarias…

Se llama tercermundización. Ya está pasando. Nuestra prioridad es revertirla,… pic.twitter.com/kfxq0tO5Wf

— Santiago Abascal 🇪🇸 (@Santi_ABASCAL) April 16, 2026

In contrast, Sánchez has been active promoting his Royal Decree, writing: “Thanks to civil society, institutions, the Church, social agents, and the Plataforma Regularización Ya for making it possible. Regularizing is not just necessary: it is just. It is recognizing a reality that already exists. It is guaranteeing rights and obligations, dignity and social cohesion.”

Hoy arranca un proceso histórico, damos un paso de justicia para quienes ya forman parte de nuestra vida cotidiana.

Gracias a la sociedad civil, a las instituciones, a la Iglesia, a los agentes sociales y a la Plataforma Regularización Ya por hacerlo posible.

Regularizar no es… pic.twitter.com/Zm3ErHEHft

— Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) April 16, 2026

The law is expected to have not only a dramatic effect on Spain, including its public services, but all of Europe, as these legalized migrants will have the right to travel freely across borders within the EU.

The lawyer of Hazte Oír is pointing out the irreversible nature of the decree to argue that it is most certainly a law that should have been passed by parliament. The appellant association, Javier María Pérez-Roldán, refers specifically to the transformative aspect of the law on the Spanish system, noting “the granting of residence and work authorizations; registration with Social Security; access to benefits; and the suspension of final expulsion orders.”

Hazte Oír indicates that the Royal Decree “structurally alters the State’s immigration policy, with direct and lasting effects” on the labor market, the public benefits system, the municipal registry, “and, in the medium term, the electoral roll.”

As many critics of the law have also pointed out, the mass amnesty will have profound effects on public services, which are already buckling under the pressure of mass immigration.

“Massive regularization without planning directly impacts the saturation of essential public services (educational and social), affecting the collective interests that this association defends,” said Pérez-Roldán.

While the Supreme Court did not grant an immediate suspension, that suspension could still arrive once the court reviews the documentation justifying the law. In such a case, the process of legalization could be frozen, creating a legal limbo for all migrant applicants.

Royal Decrees are also legally reserved for situations of “extraordinary and urgent need.”

Hazte Oír argues there is no “sudden emergency” that justifies bypassing the normal legislative process. They argue the government is using a “shortcut” to avoid political friction in Congress.

In contrast, the government argues the situation is urgent because of labor shortages in key sectors like agriculture and hospitality, and the humanitarian need to bring “invisible” people into the social security system to fund future pensions.

It is unclear if the Supreme Court will buy this argument from the government.

While the Royal Decree was used to bypass parliament, which allowed the government to fast-track the process of legalization, it may also still prove the decree’s downfall.

Read more here…

Via The Libertarian Institute

President Donald Trump said Congress must extend Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) even if it means giving up “rights and privileges.” Section 702 allows for the collection of Americans’ data without a warrant. 

In a post on Truth Social, Trump urged House Republicans to reject any amendments to the legislation that would extend Section 702. “I am asking Republicans to UNIFY, and vote together on the test vote to bring a clean Bill to the floor,” he wrote. “We need to stick together when this Bill comes before the House Rules Committee today to keep it CLEAN!”

Republican Congressman Thomas Massie attempted to introduce three amendments to the legislation that would have required law enforcement to obtain a warrant before collecting Americans’ data. His amendments were rejected. 

Trump argued that he and Americans should be willing to sacrifice their 4th Amendment right to privacy in exchange for security.

“While parts of FISA were illegally and unfortunately used against me in the Democrats’ disgraceful Witch Hunt and Attack in the RUSSIA, RUSSIA, RUSSIA Hoax, and perhaps would be used against me in the future, I am willing to risk the giving up of my Rights and Privileges as a Citizen for our Great Military and Country!” He added, “Our Military Patriots desperately need FISA 702, and it is one of the reasons we have had such tremendous SUCCESS on the battlefield.”

Congress last voted to extend Section 702 in 2024. If Congress does not pass a new extension, the government’s Section 702 powers will expire on Monday. The House is currently considering an 18-month extension. 

Last night between midnight and 2am, they tried to pass two bad versions of FISA…

Both would have allowed Feds to unconstitutionally spy on Americans.

We stopped both versions, but the fight isn’t over. Eventually, it was decided to give them two more weeks to fix FISA. https://t.co/VkckZwH5j4

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 17, 2026

During the debate in 2024, Trump, who was then a Republican Presidential candidate, demanded Congress terminate FISA. “KILL FISA, IT WAS ILLEGALLY USED AGAINST ME, AND MANY OTHERS. THEY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN!!!” Trump wrote. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson is seeking to fulfill Trump’s demand to extend Section 702 before the deadline.

However, he is struggling to pressure enough Republicans to vote for the legislation without amendments. Capitol Hill sources told Politico that a vote is unlikely to happen this week as Johnson does not believe enough Republicans will vote for the bill.

* * *

Massie, a Trump defying Republican and Libertarian-leaning firebrand, is up for reelection in the House…

Rep. Thomas Massie puts his Republican ‘brand’ against Trump’s in Kentucky https://t.co/HXjhXKBgZQ pic.twitter.com/whNG10JsPV

— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) April 15, 2026