Back Story Newsletter
Good morning,
American Insurrection
What’s clear from the disturbing Jan 6th hearing Tuesday, is former President was so desperate to hang onto power even when those around him had largely called out his allegations of election fraud as completely false, he would do and sanction anything.
That included demanding people with weapons be allowed into his pre-riot rally, refusing to call off a march to the Capitol he knew would turn violent, and that he himself wanted to participate in and lead.
When his Secret Service team said he had to go the the White House and not the Capitol, he lunged for the steering wheel and at one of his Secret Service protection service saying “Im the effing President take me to the Capitol now” and later refusing to call off the riot even knowing the crowd was chanting hang Mike Pence, his V.P.
It’s history making, stunning details on an unhinged President, who should never be allowed to run for office again. But he may return in 2024 so buckle up.
General Michael Flynn, a former Nat. Sec. Advisor of Trumps, was also likely involved in pre violence planning and a video showed Flynn refusing to answer questions at the hearing, instead taking the fifth amendment. But the questions he took the fifth on included “do you believe in a peaceful transition of power” and again he took the fifth when asked whether he thought the violence at the U.S. Capitol was justified.
Shameful, revealing on who Trump surrounded himself with, and how close American democracy came to a coup.
Scottish Referendum
Nicola Sturgeon, Scotlands First Minister is persuasive in steering her country towards a new bid for independence. She has already anticipated the many court challenges to break away from the United Kingdom, so she wants to have the legal challenges all take place before planned referendum in October 2023.
P.M. Boris Johnsons Conservatives have said she is out of touch with Scots who will put economic concerns and health and education ahead of independence.
But the fact is many in Scotland see these issues as linked to Johnson’s badly timed Brexit and the vote to take the UK out of the Europe. 55% of Scots voted to remain in the EU but were forced to leave with Britain because it was a collective UK vote.
Boris Johnson’s lies over his parties during the Covid lockdowns hasn’t helped national unity here either, and if Scots voted to leave, it would be the biggest shock to the United Kingdom since Irish independence a century ago.
NATO And “1937 Moment”
NATO has voted to increase the numbers of front line forces, or forward battle groups, in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland to deter Russia from attacking Europe’s vulnerable flank.
300,000 troops is a massive upgrade from the existing 40 thousand NATO troops that are there now.
Estonia’s P.M. Kaja Kallas said last week NATO could not initially repel a Russia attack, but now this is a fundamental mind shift by NATO and a proper plan to defend the Baltic States.
The feeling in Europe now is clearly Russian President Putin has wider goals outside of Ukraine, and he would like to preside over a new Russian Empire. It means all of Europe is vulnerable, so the fight in Ukraine is critical to deter him.
NATO is showing strength, and that’s the one thing Putin needs to see at this time because strength is the only thing he seems to understand and respect.
NATO has also decided to increase Ukrainian armoured brigades that can move and attack Russian’s forces in the east of that country.
What is the goal in Ukraine for the west? Clearly the consensus is to push Russian forces at least back to the lines of the 2014 invasion of Ukraine.
If Ukraine could recapture the Donbas, that would be a tactical defeat of Russia and Putin’s future would be in doubt. But that’s the collective target because otherwise Putin’s next target will likely be a NATO country and the war in Europe will widen.
General Sir Patrick Sanders, the new chief of the general staff of the British Army has stated this is Europes “1937 moment” which was a decisive period leading to WW2.
Sanders said Russian President Putin and his "expansionist ambitions" pose the greatest threat to sovereignty, democracy and the freedom to live without violence that he has ever known.
Nato’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said he expects ratification of Sweden and Finland’s membership of the military alliance to be passed in record time. The road is now clear for their historic membership after Turkey withdrew objections.
Meantime Russia has shirked blame for Monday’s deadly missile strike on a central Ukrainian shopping mall that killed at least 20 people and injured dozens, calling accusations that it targeted civilians “fake” and a “provocation.” Video clearly shows a missile hitting the mall.
Other News…
-The long time confidant of sex pedophile Jeffrey Epstein was sentenced to 20 yrs in prison, after being convicted of child sex trafficking
-At least 51 migrants have died after being trapped inside a sweltering tractor-trailer truck found abandoned in Texas, authorities said on Tuesday. Two Mexican nationals tied to the smuggling incident were charged in U.S. federal court
-Six police officers on Vancouver Island in British Columbia were shot and injured during a bank robbery on Tuesday. Two of the three suspects involved were killed following the shooting at the Bank of Montreal in Saanich, B.C. The third got away.
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Dana Lewis