Month: September 2018

Following what can only be described as a catastrophic Friday – a day where Tesla stock and bonds both tanked in reaction to the company CEO publicly smoking marijuana and two key executives leaving – Tesla was back at it again Friday evening, publishing a blog post that sets lofty expectations for the quarter and dangles numerous other carrots in front of company employees, stockholders, analysts and anyone else morbidly curious watching as the saga unfolds.

The Friday evening blog post was said to be a copy of an internal email that was sent to all Tesla employees.

The email starts out by CEO Elon Musk thanking all of his employees for their “incredible efforts and contributions” and reminding them that the company was almost unknown 10 years ago. “This is a very exciting time for Tesla, to say the least, and you are the reason for the tremendous progress we’ve made in a relatively short period of time,” Musk wrote to his employees. 

Then, Musk launched right into specific guidance for the third quarter that, in light of his recent erratic behavior, the market is going to hold his feet to the fire on. In the second paragraph Musk boldly states, “We are about to have the most amazing quarter in our history, building and delivering more than twice as many cars as we did last quarter”.

Recall that in Q2, Tesla produced 53,339 vehicles and sold 40,768. Anybody reading this blog post is going to assume that this new guidance means that Tesla will be posting a minimum of 106,678 vehicles produced and 81,536 vehicles sold.

But then Musk follows it up with an odd qualifier, adding “For a while, there will be a lot of fuss and noise in the media” and then he urges employees to “just ignore them”.

Of course, if the company is going to hit its guided numbers, why the fuss? It leaves us wondering if it could be an allusion to coming news related to Musk, or perhaps the company not achieving its goal of being GAAP profitable for the quarter. Or, could there be something else inside of the black box that is Tesla that we may not even know about yet?

Musk then says that the company has the “the most exciting new product lineup of any company in the world.” He continues, “There is the Model Y, the Tesla (pickup) Truck, the Semi and the new Roadster. Then there is the Solar Roof, which is spooling up in production, and continued advancements in Powerwall and Powerpack.” To date, the company has released scarce details about their plans for building and ramping up these new models. 

Then, of course, in true Musk fashion, he dangles another carrot and alludes to more secrets, stating “And that’s just what people know about…”.

There are no notes in the blog post about how Tesla is going to produce all of these vehicles after slashing capex guidance twice in the last two quarters. Regardless of what Musk supposedly has coming down the pipe, the company is going to need capital to make it happen, which is why investors may not be waiting with bated breath for these new models.

Then, after two more key executive departures on Friday – the company’s Chief Accounting Officer and its Chief People Officer – Musk announced a slate of promotions and management management changes that includes:

• Jerome Guillen has been promoted to President, Automotive
• Kevin Kassekert has been promoted to VP of People and Places
• Chris Lister is being promoted to VP, Gigafactory Operations
• Felicia Mayo, Sr. HR Director and head of our Diversity and Inclusion program, has been promoted to VP
• Laurie Shelby, Tesla’s VP, Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) will now report directly to Musk
• Cindy Nicola, VP of Global Recruiting, will also report to Musk
• Dave Arnold, who is Tesla’s point of contact for numerous media outlets, has been promoted to Sr. Director, Global Communications

Musk wraps up the blog post and email by stating to his employees that what they are doing is “vital to achieving an amazing and sustainable energy future for all of humanity in life on earth”.

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Events are moving rapidly in Syria as Russian jets pound insurgent positions in Idlib Province and as the Syrian Army readies an imminent ground invasion which Damascus has described as coming in a “phased” approach. 

The White House responded to Syria and its allies initiating the bombing campaign by saying the US would respond “swiftly and vigorously” should chemical weapons be used, and a day ago claimed there’s “lots of evidence” chemical weapons are being prepared by the Syrian forces, claiming to have intelligence of such activities. 

And now America’s top general has confirmed the Pentagon is drawing up military options to attack Syria and is in close discussion with the White House over the plans.  Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told reporters on Saturday during a trip to India, according to Reuters:

…he was involved in “routine dialogue” with the White House about military options should Syria ignore U.S. warnings against using chemical weapons in an expected assault on the enclave of Idlib.

However, Gen. Dunford noted that not decision has been made to intervene militarily in response to Idlib. 

“But we are in a dialogue, a routine dialogue, with the president to make sure he knows where we are with regard to planning in the event that chemical weapons are used,” he told a group of reporters.

Dunford added in reference to his talks with President Trump: “He expects us to have military options and we have provided updates to him on the development of those military options.”

Trump has previously bombed Syria twice after allegations that Assad had ordered a chemical weapons attack — in April 2017 and April 2018 — the former was in response to a claimed sarin attack on Idlib. 

White House officials have vowed to hold Assad responsible for any chemical attack allegations that emerge. 

YouTube has shut down all Syrian government channels today.

— Leith Abou Infidel (@leithfadel) September 8, 2018

France also indicated last week that it too would respond with military force should chemical weapons be deployed. 

When pressed by reporters over whether the US actually has intelligence to back its claims, Gen. Dunford responded, “I wouldn’t comment on intelligence at all, in terms of what we have, what we don’t have.”

Meanwhile in Idlib, some truly strange theatrics have already begun, with Al Jazeera depicting locals preparing paper cups, bags and cotton, which are somehow supposed to serve as “chemical protective” gear. 

Chemical attack imminent? Syrians are turning charcoal and cotton into homemade masks. pic.twitter.com/xY88okS8c5

— AJ+ (@ajplus) September 7, 2018

Nevermind that nerve agents are absorbed through the skin, or that a little cotton and charcoal can do nothing, it’s all about setting the stage for a “provocation” in order to draw in US military intervention against Assad’s forces. 

* * * 

Meanwhile Russia has cited its own intelligence saying that Syrian armed groups in Idlib are preparing for a staged chemical provocation, which Moscow says the West will use to justify a strike against Syrian government forces.

Speaking to Newsweek ahead of this week’s events, Syria analyst Joshua Landis said that there is every reason to doubt the veracity of past rebel claims regarding government chemical weapons usage — a surprising admission given his prominence as speaking from within the heart of the media foreign policy establishment. 

Landis said, “I don’t know what to make of the U.S. and Russian war of words over the potential use of chemical weapons in Idlib. The final reports on the use of chemical weapons in Ghouta were not definitive.” 

“There was no evidence found for the use of nerve agents, but controversy over the use of chlorine gas. The rebels had reason to carry out a false flag operation, as the regime and Russians suggested, but the regime refused to let U.N. inspectors in to test for chemical weapons until after a lengthy delay, which was suspicious,” he concluded. 

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Three days after the US reported a record trade deficit with China, Beijing returned the favor and overnight the General Administration of Customs announced that China’s trade surplus with the U.S. hit another record monthly high in August, rising to $31.05 billion from $28.09 billion in July, and surpassing the previous record set in June as the world’s second-largest economy faced the threat of more tariffs from the Trump administration.

A key reason for the latest record print was the sharp slowdown in US outbound trade, as China’s imports from the US grew only 2.7% in August, a sharp slowdown from 11.1% in July. At the same time, China’s exports to the United States accelerated, growing 13.2% from a year earlier from 11.2% in July, even as U.S. tariffs targeting $50 billion of Chinese exports took full effect for their first full month in August.

Over the first eight months of the year, China’s trade surplus with the US – its largest export market – has risen nearly 15% arguably at the worst possible time, as the number will surely add to tensions in the trade relationship between the world’s two largest economies which culminated with Trump’s announcement on Friday that he is planning to slap tariffs on virtually all Chinese goods entering the US.

Behind China’s export boost a combination of factors: i) the weaker Chinese yuan and ii) exporters’ frontloading of shipments in anticipation of more tariffs, both of which contributed to the worsening trade imbalance according to Liu Xuezhi, an economist with Bank of Communications.

Chinese officials acknowledged Chinese exporters have been rushing out shipments to beat new U.S. tariffs, artificially buoying the headline growth readings, while some companies such as steel mills are diversifying and selling more products to other countries. “In the short term, it is difficult for the trade gap to narrow because American buyers cannot easily find alternatives to Chinese products,” Liu said. This suggests that the trade war, which has been escalating, won’t be resolved quickly, the Shanghai-based economist said.

A more optimistic take came from Zhang Yi, an economist at Zhonghai Shengrong Capital Management, who told Reutersthat “there is still an impact from front-loading of exports, but the main reason (for still-solid export growth) is strong growth in the U.S. economy.”

Whatever the reason, for Trump the growing trade deficit with China is confirmation that his trade policies have failed to yield results in boosting trade; this has prompted the US president to roll out increasingly more aggressive tactics to pressure Chinese trade. A summary timeline of the trade tensions between the US and China is laid out below.

President Trump said Friday the administration is ready to announce tariffs on another $267 billion in Chinese goods, on top of levies on $200 billion of Chinese products it has been preparing. If enacted, the third round of tariffs would bring the total amount of goods subject to levies to more than the $505 billion of products the U.S. imported from China in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Aside from the US, overall Chinese trade in August posted a modest slowdown, as China reported a trade surplus of $27.91 billion in August, narrowing from a surplus of $28.05 billion a month earlier, and below the $31 billion consensus estimate. 

Exports growth for China moderated to 9.8% from 12.2% in July, below the 10% estimate. Imports growth decelerated as well to 20.0% yoy in August, from a strong increase of 27.3% yoy in July, but above the 18.7% consensus estimate, boosted by the cut in import duties for some consumer goods from July 1, 2018.  In sequential terms, exports momentum weakened to a contraction of 0.8% M/M non-annualized, the first time since April, from +0.2% in July. Imports declined as well by 1.0% M/M non-annualized, down from +5.6% in July.

Government measures such as stimulating infrastructure investment and injecting more funds into the financial market have boosted business confidence, Liu of Bank of Communications told the WSJ. He said he expects the Chinese economy to grow about 6.7% in the third quarter.

A curious observation: China’s trade surplus with the United States was larger than China’s total net surplus for the month, indicating China would be running a deficit if trade with the world’s largest economy was excluded.

While no one has predicted a sudden, sharp blow from U.S. tariffs, China’s official export data has been surprisingly resilient so far, with growth exceeding analysts’ expectations for five months in a row.

Yet while economists have noted that disruptions in supply chains are likely to be more company specific, and will take time to be reflected in broad economic data and corporate earnings reports, anecdotal evidence of mounting trade damage on both sides of the Pacific is on the rise. Official and private manufacturing surveys for China show global demand for Chinese goods is clearly on the wane, with export orders shrinking for months in a row.

“Risks have increased due to the negative impacts of China-U.S. trade friction. The impact on exports may gradually start to show up, with future export growth possible declining,” said Liu Xuezhi said.

For now however, the tenuous stalemate remains: while Trump is winning the trade war as represented by the capital markets, China continues to win in what really matters: a growing trade surplus with the US.

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Michael Cohen wants his money back. 

The former Trump attorney’s shell company, Essential Consultants, filed a status report on Friday night seeking to tear up the original 2016 agreement with Stephanie Clifford, a.k.a. Stormy Daniels to stay silent about an affair she claims to have had with President Trump over a decade ago. 

“Today, Essential Consultants LLC and Michael Cohen have effectively put an end to the lawsuits filed against them by Stephanie Clifford aka Stormy Daniels,” said Brent Blakely, a lawyer for Cohen. “The rescission of the Confidential Settlement Agreement will result in Ms. Clifford returning to Essential Consultants the $130,000 she received in consideration, as required by California law.”

According to CNN, the logic behind the move is that since Cohen no longer benefits from Clifford remaining silent since her “coming out” over the alleged affair, he is entitled to a refund. 

Daniels’ lawyer, Michael Avenatti, told CNN’s Cuomo Prime Time on Friday night that he only heard about the filing before going on air and hasn’t had a chance to mull it over. 

“I haven’t had a chance to digest it, I just saw it on my email literally right before I came on,” Avenatti said, adding “What they’re trying to do is they don’t want me to get a chance to depose Michael Cohen and Donald Trump… This is a hail Mary to try and avoid that, that’s my first guess.”

Avenatti then suggested that Cohen is trying to get back into Trump’s good graces, and that the only way Daniels would pay back the money is in exchange for Cohen and Trump’s depositions. 

“Michael Cohen is playing a game in an attempt to avoid his deposition and that of Mr. Trump,” Avenatti said. “He is back to doing Trump’s bidding and acting as a fixer.“

Cohen has found himself on the wrong side of the law after the FBI raided his office, hotel room and home in April as a part of the Southern District of New York’s investigation.

Cohen admitted in August to arranging a nondisclosure agreement with Daniels to buy her silence about her alleged affair with Trump. Cohen pleaded guilty to making an excessive campaign contribution, since the $130,000 payment was made in service of the campaign and exceeded the $2,700 federal limit for campaign donations.

Cohen has recently told friends he feels isolated from the President and told ABC News in July that his first loyalty is to the country and his family, not Trump. –CNN

Cohen operated in Trump’s inner circle for around a decade, both before and after the 2016 US election. At one point he said he was so loyal to the President that he would take a bullet for him – however he has since changed his tune.

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Via Disobedient Media

It has been a busy month for Twitter, and Alex Jones, with Jack Dorsey forced to defend the decision not to ban Jones early last month, only reverse course by suspending Jones shortly after a tense Senate hearing on social media.

The Senate hearing, in which Dorsey spoke alongside Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, saw the Twitter CEO questioned on his decision not to ban Jones. Shortly afterward, Twitter permanently suspending Jones’s verified account as well as that of Infowars.

The Gateway Pundit reported Jones’s response to the ban:

“I was taken down not because we lie, but because we tell the truth — and because we were popular… And because we dared to go to that committee hearing and stand up to Rubio and stand up to the lies of mainstream media and speak the truth.”

Meanwhile, in a statement regarding the decision to ban Jones, Twitter Safety wrote:

 

 

The Tweet is particularly hypocritical, in its bizarre allusion to Jones having committed ‘past violations’ of Twitter rules, even though Jack Dorsey had been forced to defend the company’s policy in regards to not having banned Jones, by stating outright that Jones had not violated Twitter policy.

As reported by the New York Post, after Infowars was banned from a plethora of other social media platforms all within the same 12-hour window in early August, Dorsey Tweeted: “We know that’s hard for many but the reason is simple: he hasn’t violated our rules. We’ll enforce if he does. And we’ll continue to promote a healthy conversational environment by ensuring tweets aren’t artificially amplified.”

 

 

Dorsey reiterated this stance during his testimony given to the Senate concerning Twitter’s policy concerning the alleged “Russian meddling” in the 2016 Presidential election.

Essentially, in suspending Jones, Twitter is attempting to have its cake and eat it too – but in doing so, the company exposes the enforcement of its rules as both arbitrary and political. This must raise the alarm among those who value free speech in the dawn of a digital age.

To break this hypocrisy down, we note that Twitter claims it does not engage in politically motivated censorship by explaining that the reason they had not banned Jones in early August hinged on the fact that Jones had not broken Twitter’s rules.

Then, in attempting to assert that the subsequent permanent suspension of Jones’s Twitter account was likewise not politically motivated, Twitter Support reverses this position, arguing that the ban resulted from not only a recent infringement of Twitter’s rules but also hinged on “past violations.”

So, if the latest Tweet from Twitter Safety is to be believed, one might argue that Dorsey protected Jones based on some type of favoritism despite having violated rules. Or, the latest statement is an attempt to justify politically censoring a dissident voice.

In this way, Twitter reveals that its suspension of Jones – and its censorship policy in general – is motivated by political expediency and pressure from the same authorities that interrogated Dorsey on his reasons for refusing to ban Jones just days prior.

Disobedient Media has regularly reported on the politically motivated censorship of other figures and journalistic groups, decrying the brief suspension of Caitlin Johnstone, who, (unlike State Department whistleblower Peter Van Buren,) was rapidly “un-suspended” in the face of a massive online uproar after she was initially banned.

It is this writer’s opinion that the across-the-board escalation in censorship we are witnessing represents the next domino to fall after the gagging of Julian Assange in late March, which has resulted in protests and shows of solidarity ever since, alongside the tightening of technocracy’s stranglehold on dissident voices.

One positive development in the wake of Jones’s suspension was manifested in some legacy press outlets who have finally begun to question silicon valley’s role in determining censorship policies on what amount to public forums for the expression of first-amendment-protected free speech.

No matter what one thinks of Alex Jones and Infowars, the censorship of any dissident or anti-establishment voice is a cause for grave concern. Disobedient Media will continue to report on such censorship as it occurs.

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We previously chronicled a number of the more explosive of Washington Post editor Bob Woodward’s strategically “leaked” excerpts from his upcoming book about the Trump administration earlier this week. 

In response to the allegations, Trump unleashed a string of tweets Tuesday and Wednesday slamming the allegations as false and libelous. Woodward’s book – titled “Fear” – includes a number of wild and seemingly tailor-made to fit the headlines type anecdotes. 

But amidst some of the more bombshell claims currently driving national media attention are some hidden and “minor” nuggets which nevertheless reveal hilarious interactions between current and former administration officials and staffers. 

A notable one that stands out is now subject of this hilarious viral tweet: Mattis to Spicer: “I’ve killed people for a living. If you call me again, I’m going to fucking send you to Afghanistan”.

The passage was revealed by White House Associated Press journalist Zeke Miller, who got an early glimpse of the book. 

Woodward pp133: Sean Spicer…tried several times to persuade Mattis to appear
on Sunday talk shows… The answer
was always no.
‘Sean,” Mattis finally said, “I’ve killed people for a living. If you
call me again, I’m going to fucking send you to Afghanistan. Are we
clear?”

— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) September 5, 2018

The passage details a particular moment in which Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis unleashed on former White House press secretary Sean Spicer after the latter badgered the general to appear on more television shows. 

Mattis is said to have an aversion to TV appearances, and has only made a single appearance on a network show since Trump took the oval.

That one appearance, in a May 2017 Face the Nation segment resulted in prior Mattis one-liners such as when he told the host John Dickerson that nothing kept him awake at night, but that “I keep other people awake at night.”

Perhaps Mattis did manage to scare a somewhat pesky Spicer who apparently kept urging him to go on Sunday morning talk shows. Mattis said “no” a number of times prior to the moment his patience wore thin. 

“Sean,” Mattis said, according to the excerpt of the book, Fear, “I’ve killed people for a living. If you call me again, I’m going to fucking send you to Afghanistan. Are we clear?”

Who secretly wishes that Mattis had sent Spicer to Afghanistan?

— Rocky820 (@therealrocky820) September 6, 2018

Meanwhile Mattis has adamantly denied some of the more scandalous alleged incidents detailed in the book: “The idea I ever called the president an idiot is not true,” said Kelly, who stated further that Woodward’s book is “another pathetic attempt to smear people close to President Trump and distract from the administration’s many successes.”

While it could be that much of the book will be subject of thorough debunking, especially when the public gets their hands on copies, the Mattis “I’m going to fucking send you to Afghanistan” is definitely a keeper. 

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A brawl broke out at a Chick-Fil-A in Northwest Washington, DC when an angry customer attacked an employee who proceeded to savagely beat him down in front of a crowd of horrified customers.

The customer – who was caught on camera throwing the first punch – was arrested and charged with simple assault. The Chick-Fil-A employee wasn’t charged with a crime, but was fired by Chick-Fil-A. The incident unfolded at a restaurant in on Wisconsin Avenue in the Tenleytown neighborhood, according to Fox.

According to the police report, the 55-year-old customer was shouting at customers and causing a scene at the restaurant before he went behind the counter and threw a punch at a 27-year-old employee who had asked him to leave. The video shows the employee repeatedly punching the customer before the fight was broken up by other employees. The customer was then taken to a hospital and treated for minor injuries.

In a statement, Chick-Fil-A apologized for the incident, adding that it urges employees to treat all customers with “dignity and respect.” The company added that it has launched an investigation of the situation.

“There is a viral video circulating of an altercation that took place Sept. 4 between a restaurant team member and an individual in a franchised restaurant outside of Washington, DC. This video is incredibly disturbing to watch, and we do not condone violence or the team member’s response to the situation in any way. Our franchise restaurant Operators and their team members strive to create a safe and welcoming environment and to treat all guests with dignity and respect. This situation does not live up to our brand’s commitment to hospitality, and for that, we are very sorry.”

“According to the franchise Operator, the team member involved in the altercation is no longer working in the restaurant. We are continuing to investigate this situation, including what happened before the video was taken and how it escalated so quickly.”

Watch the video below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Federal prosecutors in Manhattan are probing whether anyone within the Trump organization violated campaign-finance laws in connection with the Michael Cohen case, according to Bloomberg, citing a person familiar with the matter. 

The Federal prosecutors are operating on a “parallel track” to special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Mueller has been referring various aspects of his investigation to appropriate counterparts within the Department of Justice. 

Among other crimes, Cohen admitted to violating campaign finance laws. He acknowledged that he paid off a woman who claimed to have had an affair with the president, saying he did it at the direction of the candidate himself and that Trump’s company then repaid him. Notably, the president said the next day that Cohen’s acts weren’t a crime. Whether others in Trump’s orbit were complicit — steering money to benefit his campaign without making proper disclosures or by exceeding federal limits — is not yet clear. No one else has been charged. –Bloomberg

Michael Cohen plead guilty to two counts of campaign finance violations that are not a crime. President Obama had a big campaign finance violation and it was easily settled!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 22, 2018

Trump’s organization consists of several private companies heavily invested in real estate – run by the President’s sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. since he took office. 

Central to the investigation is thought to be longtime CFO Allen Weisselberg, who was granted “limited” immunity by US prosecutors, and who has already provided “narrow cooperation” with federal authorities regarding Cohen’s activities and hush agreements, according to Bloomberg’s source. 

During Cohen’s indictment, prosecutors claimed that two Trump company executives – one of whom is thought to be Weisselberg – approved improper payments in violation of campaign-finance laws. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, Weisselberg coordinated the Trump Organization’s reimbursement of Cohen’s $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels (real name Stephanie Clifford). Weisselberg didn’t know what the payment was for, according to the Journal, citing “a person familiar with the CFO’s thinking,” when he agreed in January 2017 to pay Cohen $35,000 per month “pursuant to retainer agreement.” 

That month, according to charging documents filed Tuesday, Mr. Cohen gave executives at the Trump Organization a copy of the bank statement from his bank account for Essential Consultants LLC, the company he used to pay Ms. Clifford the previous fall. The statement reflected Mr. Cohen’s $130,000 payment to Ms. Clifford, as well as an additional $50,000 that Mr. Cohen added in handwriting was for “tech services.”

Executives at the Trump Organization “ ‘grossed up’ for tax purposes” Mr. Cohen’s requested reimbursement, doubling it to $360,000, and added a $60,000 bonus, the document said. The next month, one executive at the company asked another executive to pay Mr. Cohen’s monthly retainer “from the trust” and to “post to legal expenses.” –WSJ

Weisselberg was called to testify earlier this year before a federal grand jury, according to the Journal‘s previous reporting. 

Weisselberg’s interview with Mueller’s team raised eyebrows among prosecutors for precisely the same reason. He is likely to have a lot of historical knowledge & know where evidence can be found. If he is cooperating, prosecutors may not need Cohen. https://t.co/IYkKOgN1hE

— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) August 22, 2018

Weisselberg has already been interviewed by the New York Attorney General’s office as part of the state’s investigation of alleged improprieties at Trump’s charitable foundation. The attorney general filed a civil suit against Trump and three of his children in June claiming that they treated the charity like a “piggy bank” and that at least $2.8 million in charitable funds was directed to the 2016 campaign. The Foundation has denied the allegations and said the suit was politically motivated. –Bloomberg

Cohen faces five years in prison for five counts of tax evasion and one count of bank fraud unrelated to Trump or the 2016 campaign. He also faces two counts of campaign finance violations involving payments to Stephanie Clifford (Stormy Daniels) and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. 

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