Donald Trump spoke to reporters at the White House on Wednesday and delivered a series of characteristically absurd remarks on a wide range of topics, starting with his fledgling, “Phase One” trade deal with the Chinese.
Over the past three days, markets have been forced to digest conflicting headlines. Although Xi’s media man Hu Xijin indicated on Monday that Beijing viewed last week’s progress favorably, the Chinese side is said to seek more talks by the end of the month in order to iron out the “wrinkles”, as it were.
Additionally, sources told Bloomberg on Tuesday that China may try to tie the “$40 to $50 billion” farm purchases figure to the lifting of tariffs. All of this as the White House and US lawmakers continue to accuse China of human rights violations.
Read more: China Thinks Trump Needs To Lift Tariffs If He Wants Xi To Make ‘Patriot Farmers’ Solvent Again
For his part, Trump says reports suggesting China won’t start buying farm products until the deal is signed are wrong. China, the president insists, is already buying from US farmers (or “great patriot ranchers”, as he calls them).
As for the deal itself, it “may not be signed” until he and Xi meet at APEC in Chile. “China wants to buy – they want to make a deal”, Trump pressed. He also predicted the market will rise today. Apparently, he’s making real-time calls on the close now.
On Turkey’s ongoing military operation in northern Syria (which has resulted in hundreds of deaths and effectively ceded control of Kurdish-held territory to Russia and Bashar al-Assad, who struck a protection deal with the SDF on Sunday) Trump doubled down on his controversial comments.
“They’re no angels”, the president said of America’s former Kurdish allies in the fight against ISIS. “It’s up to Turkey and Syria to fight over Syria’s land”, he added. Here’s Trump:
The president also called the Turkish-Syria border “brilliant” from a strategic perspective, and insisted that he’s “trying to get Turkey to do the right thing”.
Trump didn’t say whether he had spoken to Napoleon Bonaparte.
Not completely related but if you want to understand the distortions out there take a look at this from our esteemed minority leader in the house. Talk about a broken mirror…
The Censure Resolution of Chairman Schiff
October 16, 2019 | View Online
Moments ago, I spoke on the floor of the House of Representatives to call for the censure of Chairman Adam Schiff.
On numerous occasions, he has used his position to mislead the American people. This censure resolution is about restoring a process that is fair, objective, and fact-based, and you can read it for yourself here.
“We have the solemn duty to find the facts. To be stewards of the truth. It is the truth that must guide our work. When the truth is contorted, twisted, and disregarded, the American people lose. The fabric of our institution starts to erode.
“Sadly, that is exactly what is happening with the House Intelligence Committee under the Democrat leadership. It should not have come to this.
“On numerous occasions–as outlined in this resolution–the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee has used his position to mislead the American people.
“But this resolution is about more than the actions of any one individual. When false evidence is entered into the official record or communicated directly to the American people, the People’s House loses the credibility it needs to function properly. If that credibility is not restored–if the American people cannot trust that the process will be fair and that information will be honestly shared–they will lose trust in the soundness of our system of government.
“That is what this resolution is all about: To protect the integrity of our proceedings, which censure is designed to do. To restore a process that is fair, objective, and fact-based. And to reassure the American people that the stakes and intensity of our current debate will not overwhelm their government.
“We face a critical moment in the life of Congress and the history of this country. It should not have come to this, but it has. This is not a decision we take lightly, but it is the right thing to do.
“I urge all my colleagues to join me in support of this resolution.”
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