46 Comments
User's avatar
Wilbur Nelson's avatar

More of this -- hard, but fair reporting. Thank you.

Expand full comment
Safir Ahmed's avatar

Good reporting on Wiles and her background of lobbying for foreign governments and multinationals. And yes, stay on all appointees so we know who they are and where they come from.

Having said that, we ought to be cautious, even as we're vigilant, and at least for now, give Trump the benefit of the doubt. He returns to the presidency with newer people (Elon, RFK Jr. etc.) influencing him and his agenda.

In this video he lists a 10-point agenda -- if he achieves even half of it, it will be a radical move to break up the state-corporate merger, the revolving door, the censorship and "disinformation" activities of bureaucrats, term limits for Congress, and so on. https://x.com/charliekirk11/status/1854717077837562314?s=46&t=wepjGc_HBsLq3Gpb-c4oeQ

Let's watch him closely, and cheer him when he does good, and oppose him strongly when he doesn't.

Expand full comment
Clay Goldstein's avatar

I wish I had two hearts to give this post.

Transparency is the key. We need people from inside and outside, depending on the position, who's the person and what's the balance.

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
Nov 8
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Some ideas and examples of what can be done in individual states: Oregon health authority suspended covid vaccines; North Dakota banking system, state owned, state run banking system helps its people survive climate disasters. Their banks are doing very well. Let the revolution begin!

Expand full comment
Pam-icloud's avatar

Trump is part of & supportive of the global capitalist powers that be. He is not going to do sh!t to change that. Heads, they win- tails, we lose! People who think Trump is going to change any of that are delusional- he’s just going to work on getting his team at the top of the heap. Elon wants to be in that heap. RFK Jr. is about to receive a rude awakening- he has been conned big time but maybe being a genocide supporter messed up his brain??

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Some ideas and examples of what can be done in individual states: Oregon health authority suspended covid vaccines; North Dakota banking system, state owned, state run banking system helps its people survive climate disasters. Their banks are doing very well. Let the revolution begin!

Expand full comment
StanleyTwoBrix's avatar

I don't plan on giving any President, ever, the benefit of the doubt, because every single one in my lifetime presided over a degradation of the middle and working classes.

When I have a reason to have reason to feel anything but suspicion and apprehension and not be a fool, I will mark it as a beautiful day.

I hope that does come at some point. But I doubt it.

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Well, all we have is hope. I don't mind positive thinking but he screwed his gullible constituents in his first presidency. I hope he doesn't do it again but we are not as rich as the players in this game of politics, power and greed. So who do you think will influence him most?

Expand full comment
H8SBAD's avatar

It’s funny how the brain works. I want to believe the intentions of this new administration are MAGA, but I also want fair and unbiased reporting. Keep shining the light, Lee, and we’ll do our best to hold people accountable in a world of grays.

Expand full comment
Charles Wemyss, Jr.'s avatar

Important to report all sides of the situation and possible long term conflicts of interest and so forth. So very good reporting. But, it has been less than 72 hours since the presidential election has been determined in Trumps favor. The Dems have outright in the form of at least three Democrat governors said they will not really cooperate. We see the resist buttons and flags already and so on so forth. The Dems are now blaming Joe Biden for their pathetic efforts at coronating a empress. Can the incoming President elect get some space here? Can we get to the inauguration without blowing the country further apart? This writer isn’t asking the Rodney Mkng question of tbe ages because the answer is self evident, no we can’t all get along, but we might try to support and defend the constitution as a group, for as Benjamin Franklin opined, we should stick together and hang together for surely we hang individually if we don’t. The important part is that Lee Fang and real journalists like him get to keep digging and keep reporting. However, it might do well to see how the coming days truly unwind before losing our minds. Considering that the obverse would have Lee silenced and maybe tossed in the can for a similar story down the line with the Blob in charge and empowered with a Harris Walz win…jus sayin…

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Here's some clues about how things may unwind looking towards France.

People need to be at odds with all western governments. France is a precursor to what's coming to the US of A. Check it out. But here's a little background on the content. The first site is a review of a book, Le Printemps des Sayanim (‘The Sayanim Spring’) by Jacob Cohen which for some reason has not been translated to English. The second site is a four and one half hour interview of said author. I watched it in one sitting because it was fascinating and informative and a clear view of what is coming or actually what's already here as the well informed know. They are most important. The 3rd is part of a series Paul Cudenec is putting out and the 4th is a researched history of the Rothschilds banking history for which I was called anti-semitic simply because somebody did their research on the most powerful family in the entire world who happen to be Jewish.

https://paulcudenec.substack.com/p/the-stench-of-the-system-sayanim

https://archive.org/details/JacobCohenDocumenterview480p

https://paulcudenec.substack.com/p/the-stench-of-the-system-propaganda

https://winteroak.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/enemiesofthepeopleol.pdf

Expand full comment
pr's avatar

Well this won't be quick but I'll try to pursue it all.

A lightweight hour-and-a-half, does any mesh with this? (And Wolff apparently has French connections)

https://www.youtube.com/live/i7iGPm0vloA?feature=shared

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Some ideas to work towards in our individual states: Oregon health authority suspended covid vaccines for health care workers; North Dakota banking system, state owned, state run banking system helps its people survive climate disasters.

Expand full comment
pr's avatar

Some common sense critical thinking is SO not rocket science and takes far less time and fewer brain knots. Reminds me of those local government broadband projects - for the public! Thx. [p.s. I read those 3 posts, enough to pull out Bernays but not for night reading]

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Here’s this. Watch Webb before it disappears:

North Dakota is the only state in the union that has a state bank in which a money spigot opens when disaster strikes their people, unlike the feds. They were the first lawmakers who when The Great Taking revealed an evil plot to take land and homes still paying on a mortgage

https://thebndstory.nd.gov/an-agile-partner/role-in-disaster-relief/

https://scheerpost.com/2024/11/04/ellen-brown-our-fragile-infrastructure-lessons-from-hurricane-helene/#respond

David Rogers Webb

https://www.youtube.com/com/watch?v=1GHXeOPbNG4

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Two of my favorite economists. thank you

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

Hope I don’t overload you but things are disappearing from the internet.

North Dakota is the only state in the union that has a state bank in which a money spigot opens when disaster strikes their people, unlike the feds. They were the first lawmakers who when The Great Taking revealed an evil plot to take land and homes still paying on a mortgage

https://thebndstory.nd.gov/an-agile-partner/role-in-disaster-relief/

https://scheerpost.com/2024/11/04/ellen-brown-our-fragile-infrastructure-lessons-from-hurricane-helene/#respond

David Rogers Webb

https://www.youtube.com/com/watch?v=1GHXeOPbNG4

Expand full comment
Vicki C.'s avatar

The Dems and legacy media are all on the bandwagon ready and willing to place blame on poor old Joe Biden when just a few short months ago he was being hailed as one of the most noble and best statesmen of our time with Nancy Pelosi even suggesting that his image should be added to Mt. Rushmore. Sure doesn't take long for the worm to turn so no surprise we are all suffering from continual whiplash?

Expand full comment
Paula's avatar

You might also want to follow these two websites:

winteroak.org.uk

mronline.org

Expand full comment
Bill Astore's avatar

Remember the classic line from "Casablanca": Major Strasser has been shot! Round up the usual suspects.

Donald Trump has been elected again. Round up the usual suspects. The usual insiders, lobbyists, neocons who are pro-Israel and anti-Iran, pro-NATO military generals, Goldman Sachs types, and so on.

Expand full comment
pr's avatar

This raises some interesting red flags, the first being that US sanctions are illegal. Don't we need to decide and articulate values before we assign blame? My first thought on bottom line is: what benefits the American people and doesn't hurt the world?

Expand full comment
Joy in HK fiFP's avatar

I had just finished reading the NYT’s article on Wiles. Together with yours we get a far clearer picture of who she is. In fact, I think we don’t need theirs at all. If she can help ratchet down the insane warmongering against China, that would be a valuable contribution to the world. Thanks Lee, from a sleepy traveler just arrived in Cape Town.

Expand full comment
BookWench's avatar

Lee, how dare you tell the truth about the "First Female Chief of Staff" ever??!!!

Just kidding! I am glad to see it! (& I don't give a crap about any of that "first female" nonsense.)

I'm hoping you posted something about this on X. This is troubling, & I'm glad you're following his staffing decisions so closely. We can't let any Deep State/lobbyist losers slip through.

This is why I follow you, Lee!

Thanks!

Expand full comment
KEITH HELLER's avatar

Lee, you've been on fire recently. Love it.

Expand full comment
Malibuexpress's avatar

I would not assume Wiles' allegiance is to China or its interests because the firm she co-chairs lobbied for a Chinese telecom company successfully for $75k a month. She's been around a long time, has served in multiple campaigns and my guess is that amount of $$ is relatively insignificant to a lobbying firm that is as influential as hers is claimed to be. I also think having the likes of Leon Panetta, Dick Cheney or Mike Pompeo in a presidential cabinet is far more concerning.

Expand full comment
James Schwartz's avatar

Oh shit. Cmon Lee! Couldn’t you give me a week??? Good to know and I hope somebody posts this. I don’t have any social media myself or I’d be a cryer. Just when I thought we were saved. Politics comes and smacks me in the face to show we really don’t matter. Mebbe she’s learned the error of her ways. Jk

Expand full comment
Siezmo's avatar

Thank you for supplying the link to Susie Wiles on the Mercury website. Once I checked out the page listing their "team" I got a less frightening reaction to "co-chair." Although I don't know what "co-chair" means. The other 125 team members are presidents and vice presidents, partners, managing directors ... Wiles also managed Rick Scott's and Ron DeSantis' campaigns. SOMEONE must have vetted her. One more thing: with all the Kelly quotes floating around regarding Trump having the propencity of being a facist dictator (I'm being kind when I say "propencity"), I have not heard or seen Kelly say the words. Does anyone have a link?

Expand full comment
pr's avatar

Adding to your request a definition of 'fascist dictator' in the context of the current administration's illegal wars against and invasions/occupations/mass murders of those not like US, not willingly subservient to US.

Consider the US political and media propensity to propagandize: good v. evil. Wasn't Geo. Bush's memorable quote (sans maturity or critical thinking but what a boon to some commercial enterprises), you're with us or with the terrorists. That doesn't essentially describe today's Biden-Harris, Clintons, Obamas, Bush, Cheneys cabal? At whose cost? Democracy, rule of law, the world?

Expand full comment
Donald Obama's avatar

"Hikvision, in particular, has faced enhanced sanctions from the Biden administration over allegations that the company’s surveillance cameras are used for human rights abuses and military purposes."

Meanwhile - 30 billion plus sent to Israel this year alone.

Perhaps Palestinians are merely "human animals" (per Israeli president Herzog) and hence we are looking at some simple animal abuse, and the mass murder of women and children is actually not a military purpose, but merely genocide. Or to put it more succinctly - the rules based international order at work.

Expand full comment
Robert Shannon's avatar

Lee, you burst my bubble. Here I thought “behind every successful man is a great woman.” Now we find out he may be getting scammed again. I thought her having worked closely with Trump the last few years she would have good insight to helping him run the White House, but I guess it’s ‘buyer beware’ again.

Expand full comment
Vicki C.'s avatar

Great reporting as usual Lee. I am trying to work on being a little more optimistic so voted for Trump this election cycle therefore want to keep an open mind on his actions and motives, but as a truth seeker I hope you continue to report on the news no matter where it leads.

Expand full comment
Brandy's avatar

Need to get this out there. She needs to remove herself from those roles. I sure hope Vance or someone around him knows all this. Thanks.

Expand full comment