by | Feb 29, 2024 | Aggregate
By Magharebia – Al-Qaeda creates Touareg-led brigade | القاعدة تنشئ كتيبة بقيادة طوارقي | Al-Qaida crée une brigade dirigée par des Touaregs, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=23633229
“Armies are always training to fight the last war.” Old military saying.
The Houthi attacks on merchant vessels in the Red Sea serve as a stark reminder of the threat non-state actors pose to the security of the United States and the world. Australia’s dispatch of its navy to participate in Operation Prosperity Guardian, despite being half a world away from its shores, underscores the global nature of the crisis posed by non-state actors. With their emergence, traditional concepts and strategies of warfare are rapidly becoming outdated, prompting a critical need for a new approach to national defense. Simply relying on conventional military might is no longer sufficient; the Department of Defense must adapt and innovate to effectively counter evolving threats.
Simultaneously, the ongoing threat from state actors armed with conventional and nuclear weapons underscores the complexity of modern security challenges. Additionally, the potential for state sponsorship of or influence on non-state actors introduces further complexity, requiring military strategists to adopt a balanced and nuanced approach to effectively tackle these diverse threats.
Transnational terrorist organizations and transnational crime groups are growing in number and in their geographic range. Islamic extremist groups have cells all over the world and are often aligned with local crime or terrorist organizations. Transnational organized crime, such as “mafia” from Russia, China, or Albania, is engaging in a wide variety of business lines from prostitution to drugs and gambling. Increasingly, financial crimes such as telephone and internet scams or credit card theft or cloning can be traced back to these groups. The internet and modern telecommunications allow them to work from anywhere in the world. AI and language tools help them overcome natural barriers that once suppressed their activities. And open US borders allow these groups to place agents within the U.S.
The Mexican drug cartels are a prime example of a modern, transnational crime organization. In addition to flooding America’s streets with illicit drugs, they are also the largest human traffickers, bringing illegals into the United States. They have associations with street gangs in the US who help with drug distribution, managing prostitution, as well as doing collection and enforcement. Throughout Latin America, cartels have destabilized the local governments and economic system to such a point that they are driving a flood of illegal immigration into the United States.
Russia’s private military company (PMC), Wagner Group, or Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Force (IRGF) operate in theaters ranging from Africa and the Middle East to Central and South America. They provide training, weapons, sometimes money, and combat support to despicable actors around the globe. While the Kremlin or Tehran may be controlling the reins of these attack dogs, both governments can claim plausible deniability and dispatch these forces to undertake operations that would trigger an international incident or a war if conducted by uniformed armies.
State-supported militias are changing the face of warfare. The United States was accused of war crimes for bombing Houthi positions in Yemen, with critics arguing that Yemen and the Houthis are not synonymous. And while bombing Tehran would most likely cripple the IRGC’s destabilizing activities, it would be considered a crime under international law.
Along with the rise of state-supported threat actors are private companies that sell their services to combatants. Elon Musk’s SpaceX aerospace company provided Starlink terminals to Kyiv, and the Canadian geo-intelligence firm MDA provided the Ukrainians with satellite imagery to track Russian troop movements. These are examples of Western firms aiding “the good guys” as chosen by their governments. But what about foreign firms from threat countries assisting the “baddies”?
The US is now sanctioning or considering sanctioning a number of Chinese firms that are aiding Russia. At the same time, China, taking a cue from Russia’s Wagner Group, is expanding its Private Security Companies (PSC), deploying them around the world. Compared to Wagner, there is much less risk that they would actively engage in combat, but they pose a tremendous espionage and diplomatic power threat, as they saturate pockets of the globe where China has investment interests.
Cyber threats, hacking, are a growing area of concern for the US government. These can come from state actors, non-state actors, private companies working on behalf of a foreign government, or transnational criminal or terrorist organizations. With the growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital platforms, small, well-equipped, and well-trained groups can pose as great a threat as a large conventional military, taking down US infrastructure, telecommunications, or financial networks. Unmanned systems (UxS), killer drones, and additive manufacturing (also known as 3D printing) multiply the danger.
The new nature of warfare is that wars are undeclared and unconventional. A response from the US military would be called a war crime by the international community. And so, each threat is being handled in isolation, and the resolution of one attack does not prevent the next one. To adequately protect the nation, the intelligence agencies, along with Homeland Security, Space Force, and the Cybersecurity Infrastructure Agency (CSIA), will play a larger role. At the same time, because these threats can emerge from anywhere at any time, there are likely to be restrictions on personal freedoms in the US, a precedent most of us do not want to see.
The post Non-State Actors: Growing National Security Threat appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Feb 29, 2024 | Aggregate
J6 Parent Ed Lang protests corrupt Biden Regime after his son who has been held in prison for 3 years without trial goes missing in the prison system.
US Marshals transferred J6 political prisoners Ryan Samsel and Jake Lang from the DC Gulag earlier this month to an undisclosed location, and no one knows where they are.
Jail guards forced Samsel and Lang to adhere to a temperature check around 7 pm the night before their move, a typical indication that within hours, any semblance of normalcy would be torpedoed, and they would be mysteriously transferred to another jail in another state.
At approximately 4 am in the morning, Samsel and Lang were chained and shackled in black box cuffs and thrown on a bus and were provided no information about where they would be taken.
The two high-profile January 6 defendants could be transferred to any jail across the United States or even housed in a maximum security prison at the BOP’s discretion.
J6 political prisoner Jake Lang was arrested on January 16th, 2021, and remains incarcerated without bail or trial for over THREE YEARS now.
On January 6, 2021 Jake attended the protest and rally in Washington DC because he believed the election was stolen from Donald Trump. Jake was one in a million Trump supporters who turned out that day to hear President Trump speak at the Ellipse in Washington DC.
Later that day, Jake walked to the US Capitol, where he was gassed and trampled when Capitol Police pushed Trump supporters down the stairs. Jake was nearly killed.
Jake save Philip Anderson’s life that day from the horrific abuse by Capitol Police after Philip was knocked out under a pile of bodies the police pushed on top of him.
Now Jake is sitting behind bars without trial – and it is not clear where the regime is holding him. The Biden regime hates this man, Jake Lang, because he continues to speak out on his innocence and refuses to bow down to this abusive administration.
** If you’d like to support the January 6 political prisoners, please visit SponsorJ6.com.
On Wednesday, Jake Lang’s father took action after three years of seeing his only son abused horribly by the Biden regime.
Ed Lang stood outside the Fairman Federal Courthouse in Washington DC on behalf of his son who is now lost in the prison system.
Ed Lang: Out here protesting in front of the Fairman Federal Courthouse in Washington DC on behalf of my son and every other J6er for the inequitable unlawful political persecution of these poor J6 patriots and their families. So it’s about time we got off our sofas, get out of the house, get out to the streets, and peacefully protest. Hold these judges accountable, hold the DOJ accountable, the FBI accountable… Any citizen can be picked up off the street now and held like my son, for three years and six days as a supposed pretrial detainee held by the regime. And so I urge everyone to get out and stand up, and take this country back peacefully.
This is something we are used to reading about in Castro’s Cuba – NOT in the United States.
It’s time American’s wake up and stand up against this abuse – before it’s too late.
The post Bereaved J6 Parent Ed Lang Protests Outside DC Courthouse After 3 Years of His Son’s Incarceration Without Trial – And Now His Son Has Gone Missing in the System (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Feb 29, 2024 | Aggregate
US founders bow in prayer as they contemplate the formation of the greatest nation in world history.
By Tom Renz – Attorney/Author/Analyst – www.TomRenz.com and tomrenz.substack.com
While I probably do not deserve it, I am going to dub myself the face of Christian Nationalism. I am a Christian that is proud of my Christian beliefs, and I am absolutely an America first nationalist that believes that America and her interests should be first in the world. As the newly self-appointed face of Christian Nationalism in the United States, I am furious. I am furious that my faith is being misrepresented and twisted, I am furious that the enemies of freedom are lying and misrepresenting my country, and I am furious that the bought and paid for mainstream media is knowingly promoting these lies.
Let me begin with what Christian Nationalism isn’t. Christian nationalism is NOT what the mainstream media liars are calling it. According to a piece of journalistic garbage published in Axios (https://www.axios.com/2024/02/28/poll-christian-nationalism-americans-reject) Christian Nationalism is tied with things like banning books and teaching religion in schools. The propagandists behind the article failed to mention that the books these terrible “Christian Nationalists” were pushing to ban were pornography and they were requesting that the aforementioned porn was found in schools. They also failed to mention that the idea of teaching religion was less about a specific religion and more about teaching basic values of right and wrong that no society can function without.
Yes – Axios and their quasi-journalist writer (Russell Contreras) certainly know how to misrepresent the facts. The same article went on to include the highlighted gem below.
Somehow, Christianity and American Nationalism are, in the opinion of the author of this article, presented as news centered on Race, despite the fact that America has done more to end slavery, segregation, and things like apartheid than any other nation in history. Despite the fact that the nation that this author is denigrating literally and rightly created a national holiday to celebrate the greatest civil rights leader in history – Dr. Martin Luther King. Yes, according to Russell, the nation that has an entire month dedicated to acknowledging black history is a nation that is represented by whiteness.
Russell then goes on to claim that Christian Nationalists want to make some sort of magical legal proclamation that Christianity should be legally declared a Christian nation and we should become some sort of church-state. Of course, Neither Axios nor Russell presents anything approximating evidence of this position, but why to let journalistic integrity get in the way of a good story, right? This article even goes so far as to suggest that Christian Nationalists somehow oppose democracy despite the fact that we are actually a republic and so this is entirely irrelevant… but again, it helps position the hit piece, and who cares about facts?
Essentially Axios and Russell are promoting the same lies the rest of the media is pushing. While the question we should all be asking is who is behind the war on America and Christianity, I want to move on to explain why I so proudly stand as a Christian Nationalist.
Britannica defines a nationalist here (https://www.britannica.com/topic/nationalism) as: “nationalism, ideology based on the premise that the individual’s loyalty and devotion to the nation-state surpass other individual or group interests.” In other words, a nationalist would believe that an American should be loyal to America and be an American first. While this may sound disturbing to some I would ask what is wrong with being loyal to a nation that stands for protecting the inalienable rights bestowed on all people by the creator listed in the Declaration of Independence? Why shouldn’t I take a stand for a nation that has freed slaves and ended segregation globally, was the originator and has remained the largest supporter of suffrage in world history, has created more wealth and technological advancement for people all over the world than any other nation in world history, and stopped people like Hitler time and time again?
The short answer is I should, and if you disagree, you only have the right to do so because your freedoms are protected by the nation you hate – right, Axios? With that said, let’s move on to Christianity. I am a terrible Christian but proud of my faith. I’m curious about all those who seem to hate Christianity so much and which part they oppose. Christianity was founded by a guy who said to forgive those who do wrong to you, love your neighbor and treat everyone as you would want to be treated, and don’t judge people – only actions. Which of these values is threatening? Is it, perhaps, the implied truth that Christianity promotes freedom, love, and respect, and these values don’t align with theirs? While I hope everyone finds their way to Christianity, I absolutely respect the absolutely inalienable right for everyone to believe as they choose – which is the core tenant of Christianity (Jesus made people followers, not slaves, and it was ALWAYS a choice). I also look forward to someone explaining to me why the core values of Christianity are somehow threatening to America as it was founded.
The bottom line is that the only issue with Christian Nationalism is that there isn’t more of it. If more people appreciated the nation that fought globally for equality and ushered in many of the standards of living that our modern age is founded, then we could all work together far more effectively to continue to promote those ideals. If more people treated others as they wanted to be treated and loved their neighbor, things would be far better in almost every way. I guess my question for Russell, Axios, and all the other leftists is, why do you hate America, and why don’t you love and respect your neighbors? After all, if you are an American that dislikes Christian Nationalism, that is exactly what you stand for.
The post Christian Nationalists – Loving Their Neighbor and Loving Their Country Since 1776 appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Feb 29, 2024 | Aggregate
President Joe Biden is losing one of his last levers of support over the Republican Party — and he’s not happy about it.
On Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican who represents the old guard of the GOP — literally and figuratively — announced he was stepping aside as party leader in November.
“One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter,” McConnell said in prepared remarks delivered before the upper chamber, The Associated Press reported. “So I stand before you today … to say that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate.”
“As I have been thinking about when I would deliver some news to the Senate, I always imagined a moment when I had total clarity and peace about the sunset of my work,” the 82-year-old senator added. “A moment when I am certain I have helped preserve the ideals I so strongly believe. It arrived today.”
What “ideals” these were are anyone’s guess, although it’s worth noting it came one day after McConnell reportedly joined with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in a closed-door meeting to pressure GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson to reach some kind of spending deal in the House of Representatives. Draw your own conclusions.
Whatever the case may be, the 81-year-old president wasn’t pleased to hear that McConnell was leaving his position.
“I’m sorry to hear McConnell stepped down,” Biden said when asked about it Wednesday.
He then outlined why conservatives shouldn’t be sorry.
“I’ve trusted him, and we have a great relationship,” the president said. “We fight like hell. But he has never, never, never misrepresented anything. I’m sorry to hear he’s stepping down.”
President Biden says he’s “sorry to hear” Mitch McConnell is stepping down from Senate leadership:
“I trusted him, we had a great relationship, we fought like hell. But he never, never, never misrepresented anything. I’m sorry to hear he’s stepping down.” pic.twitter.com/U4a1RaQ94v
— The Recount (@therecount) February 28, 2024
Perhaps the president is sorry that McConnell isn’t leaving his Senate seat as well as his position as party leader, as this would mean that Kentucky’s Democratic governor could appoint a replacement — although, as NBC News noted, Kentucky law directs governors to appoint a successor from the senator’s own party based on a list of choices, so there is that.
But perhaps Biden can’t remember when McConnell “misrepresented anything” because 1) he’s not a Republican, 2) his memory is shot or 3) both.
Never mind that a string of freezing episodes in 2023 was attributed to a concussion the leader suffered after a fall last March. The lack of medical answers regarding McConnell’s condition — which, considering the fact he’s older than both Biden and former President Donald Trump — could be considered a lack of proper representation about the full nature of his health.
New letter from Capitol attending physician Monahan to McConnell:
“There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder or that you experienced a stroke, TIA or movement disorder such as Parkinson’s disease.” pic.twitter.com/DTnRJSUqh2
— Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) September 5, 2023
However, in terms of McConnell having “never, never, never misrepresented anything,” perhaps Biden ought to listen to GOP Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson describing, this month, how the minority leader absolutely misrepresented his strategy on getting border security funding in negotiations with the president and the Democrats.
When he entered negotiations for the foreign aid/border security bill that ended up being dead on arrival in the House, “McConnell said his top priority was funding for Ukraine,” Johnson said.
“But public opinion and the very strong political rhetoric that we ought to secure our own border before we spend $60 billion to secure Ukraine’s was effective. And so McConnell finally switched and said, ‘OK, we’ve got to let Democrats know that we are serious. We are going to defeat closure on this bill, and we are going to demand that border security is going to be attached to funding for Ukraine,’” the senator continued.
“Then secret negotiations occurred on an issue the public supports Republicans on, and we end up with this monstrosity of a bill. It is an immigration bill. It’s not a border security bill. But during that time frame, we repeatedly talked about making Ukraine funding contingent on border metrics,” he said.
Then, Johnson said, “using his own authority without telling the conference even though he knew the conference supported tying border security or Ukraine funding to actually securing the border, McConnell just took that off the table.”
“And that moment of leverage we had where we could use Biden’s desire for Ukraine funding to actually force him to use his executive authority to secure the border has been lost, and that is why so many of us are speaking out against McConnell,” the senator said. “It was such a breach of his leadership position and such a, just a horrible thing to do to Americans who want a secure border.”
WATCH: Sen. Ron Johnson exposes how Mitch McConnell betrayed Republicans on border security. pic.twitter.com/ijWTzGauff
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) February 13, 2024
So maybe you’re not surprised that Joe Biden thinks Mitch McConnell “never, never, never misrepresented anything” — because McConnell hasn’t to him. However, in terms of “fight[ing] like hell” with him, now that’s some grade-A misrepresentation.
If he wants to find out what “fight[ing] like hell” looks like, though, my guess is that he’ll find out once McConnell is gone.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
The post Biden Not Happy About Mitch McConnell Stepping Down, Says He ‘Never Misrepresented Anything’ appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
by | Feb 29, 2024 | Aggregate
President Joe Biden joked on Wednesday that doctors told him he looked “too young” after he underwent an annual physical earlier in the morning.
Biden, 81, cracked the joke amid speculation about what doctors could have discovered while evaluating him earlier that morning as questions mount as to whether he is mentally or physically fit to serve another term in the White House.
While he spoke to reporters, he was asked about his physical and what his doctors had to say.
“They think I look too young,” he said.
Joe Biden on possible health concerns following his annual physical: “They think I look too young!”pic.twitter.com/gYvHrcTOem
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) February 28, 2024
Biden added “Everything’s great” regarding his health and concluded, “There is nothing different than last year.”
According to NBC News, Biden underwent a routine physical at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland and was pronounced “fit for duty.”
White House physician Kevin C. O’Connor wrote in a summary of the exam that Biden “fully executes all of his responsibilities without any exemptions or accommodations.”
As The New York Post noted, Biden did not alert the public of the doctor’s visit ahead of time and the appointment was not on his schedule.
The visit was only learned about Wednesday morning when Biden was departing the White House and shouted at reporters.
“I’m going to Walter Reed to get my physical,” he said.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked about Biden’s physical during her daily media briefing on Wednesday afternoon.
She was evasive when pressed on the matter of Biden’s health and whether he should take a cognitive test, NBC News reported.
When asked why Biden was not making his personal physician available to the media, Jean-Pierre referred to his brief comments on the visit to Walter Reed.
COVERUP? Karine Jean-Pierre claims they’re “trying to get back to the norm” by preventing Biden’s physician from briefing the press on Biden’s physical and cognitive health pic.twitter.com/75RIHcCb64
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) February 28, 2024
“The president said that they thought that he was too young,” she said. “You heard from the president, he talked about this when he was asked.”
Biden’s age and fitness have been the source of questions for years.
The president’s health finally received widespread media coverage last month, when Justice Department special counsel Robert Hur said he did not charge Biden in his classified documents case because of his age and mental state.
A report from Hur stated Biden had severe memory issues when interviewed and that had he been charged and tried for mishandling sensitive information, sympathetic jurors might have viewed him as a forgetful old man.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
The post Biden Says Doctors Told Him He Looks ‘Too Young’ After Physical appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
