For about a year CTH has predicted Chinese auto manufacturers BYD and GEELY would take over shuttered auto plants in Canada.  Specifically, six months ago, against the backdrop warning of Stellantis, Toyota and Honda telling the Canadian government that without the USMCA they would shift auto production to the USA, CTH predicted BYD and GEELY would make moves on those closed facilities.

The move by China is easy to predict.  Prime Minister Mark Carney has opened the door to Chinese EVs.  It would be in Beijing’s best interest to retool and take control of closed plants to begin mass production in North America.

Chinese EV manufacturing in Canada serves two purposes.

First, they would not be limited in production to the cars that remain in Canada as part of the agreement.  Factually, China would use their Canadian footprint as an export hub into Europe and save money on current distribution.   Remember, Europe is losing their auto manufacturing base to China and Germany is laying off 100,000+ auto workers.

Second, the appearance of Chinese auto manufacturing in North America would put pressure on the United States to permit their cheap EVs to enter the market.

Today Bloomberg is reporting exactly what we predicted.  Chinese automaker BYD (Build Your Dream) is asking local officials about the currently idled Stellantis auto plant.  Things are following a very predictable timeline.

BLOOMBERG – Chinese carmaker BYD Co. inquired about taking over an idled Stellantis NV plant in the Toronto suburbs, according to a local politician, signaling possible global interest in Canadian auto hubs in the midst of a trade battle with the US.

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Somehow Chief Justice John Roberts found that a single person who walks past the White House every month and doesn’t like the proposed appearance of the ballroom has some standing to sue and block construction. Go figure. Roberts also decided that the Obamacare mandate wasn’t a tax.

Roberts joined with the minority DEI judges in his position [RULING HERE]. However, the majority decision was against the woman having standing to sue. Therefore, the lawsuit was dispatched and the building can continue.

SCOTUS BLOG – […] On Monday, a divided court granted the government’s request for a stay, permitting construction to move forward while the litigation continues in the lower court. The majority’s opinion focused primarily on its conclusion that the National Trust likely does not have standing to challenge the project. The trust had submitted a declaration from Alison Hoagland, a member who lives in Washington, D.C., and said that she visits the area where the White House is located approximately once per month. Hoagland, who has “expertise in historic architecture,” claimed that the project caused “‘injuries’ to her ‘aesthetic, cultural, and historical interests’ because she finds the ‘scale,’ ‘height,’ and ‘massing’ of the government’s design distasteful.” But those are not the kind of “concrete” and specific injuries required to bring a lawsuit, the majority explained.

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What Barbara Boyd describes in this video about the ideological differences in the G20 reminds me of the long battles around MAGAnomics.

One mindset is based on despair, the scarcity mentality, and says there is a limited about of economic pie and it must be divided by government to ensure equitable distribution (Europe/Obama).  The other mindset is based on faith, an abundance mentality, and says we should create, innovate, build and expand economic activity to create more pies (MAGA/Trump).

In this Wednesday update, Barbara Boyd previews the G20 meeting in Asheville, framing it as a clash between an agenda centered on physical economic growth—advanced by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent—and what she calls the G20/EU’s long-running Malthusian, “green” framework that followed the 2008 financial collapse, bank bailouts, and a shift toward climate policies.

The episode contrasts Trump-era priorities—domestic manufacturing, supply-chain self-sufficiency, critical minerals, energy expansion, workforce upskilling, and new nuclear plans for shipping outlined by Energy Secretary Chris Wright—with European leaders’ efforts to build a “middle powers” bloc and “redirect” citizens’ savings into EU-directed investment. Boyd argues EU priorities include Ukraine war funding, the green transition, and open borders/free trade, and says the outcome of this fight will shape the future ahead of the midterms.

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Earlier this afternoon President Trump held an oval office event with several leaders in the pharmaceutical and medical sector, to discuss the latest developments in the reduction of prescription drug prices.

White House – President Donald J. Trump announced nine new agreements with pharmaceutical manufacturers to lower prescription drug prices for Americans in line with the lowest prices paid by other developed nations (known as the most-favored-nation, or MFN, price). The agreements bring the total number of pharmaceutical manufacturers with MFN deals to 26, covering 89% of the branded drug market.

[…] These nine pharmaceutical manufacturers committed to invest at least $19.6 billion collectively in U.S. manufacturing in the near term. Additionally, as part of the MFN agreements, several companies are donating active pharmaceutical ingredients for key products to the Strategic Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Reserve (SAPIR) to reduce reliance on foreign nations and ensure the United States has an adequate supply of such products in the event of an emergency. {source}

The media questions begin at 35:00 of the video:

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CTH continues to get considerable questioning about how the U.S-Canada fracture will take place, what it means for the Canadian dollar (CAD) and when the issues can be expected to apex.  It appears that part of the reasoned disconnect people are struggling with is directly related to the messaging from the Canadian government in combination with the financial media.

In short, despite the increased trade friction, a decoupling of the U.S. economy from the Canadian economy just seems unfathomable to most observers. The main question we receive is ‘when will things happen‘?  Meaning when will financial markets react?  The most obvious answer to that question is, when the USA announces the termination of the USMCA (CUSMA) trilateral.

If you hold the opinion that all of these trade friction points will be resolved within the margins of the USMCA, then it is correct to predict that no significant material impact will be felt north of the border.  If, however, you hold the opinion that the USMCA will be terminated because the core of the issues between the two countries are irreconcilable, then the material impact will come as soon as that announcement is made.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, the only Canadian government official to attend President Trump’s inauguration, appears on Fox Business. Like all other Canadian officials, she cannot contemplate the elimination of CUSMA/NAFTA.  Such an outcome is simply beyond her comprehension. WATCH:

In previous interviews and broadcasts, Mrs Smith claimed if Canada was to introduce an export tax the USA would respond accordingly.  This is not accurate.  The U.S. has no mechanism to place a tax on exports.

Additionally, inside Canada the structure is provincial.  That means each province taxes each other province for goods and services.  In the USA we have state sales taxes, but those taxes are applied across all goods sold to/inside an individual state.  Ex. Florida does not tax Texas.  Florida has one sales tax for all goods regardless of their origin.

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This is a new report but builds on prior activity.  Former FBI Director James Comey leaked his memos about President Trump and the FBI’s fraudulent “Crossfire Hurricane” operation to his friend Daniel Richman, with the intent of Richman leaking those memos to the media. However, when the issue was discovered James Comey claimed Daniel Richman was his lawyer in an obvious attempt to shield Richman from forced testimony about the events.

SEE Richman article from 2018 – SEE Richman article from 2017 – See Richman article from 2019 

NOVEMBER 2025 – Former U.S Attorney Lindsey Halligan then took up the case and began reinvestigating in 2025. That’s why Halligan was targeted by Lawfare operatives’ intent on her removal. However, prior to her removal Mrs Halligan smartly filed a court response outlining all of the background evidence against James Comey so that prosecution could take place with/without her in place.

FOX News is now reporting that a grand jury is approving a subpoena for Daniel Richman so they can hear directly about his involvement in the activity.  The events surrounding the leaking of the ‘Comey memos’ is central to the matter of the FBI targeting President Trump after he took office in 2017.  The memos were being leaked in order to get support for a Special Counsel operation led by Andrew Weissmann.

[SOURCE]

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Dept of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Dept of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin hold a press conference to announce emergency DoT and DHS action to initiate an emergency shutdown of regulated training centers for commercial driver’s licenses.

Actions announced include DoT (1) Emergency removal of 110 commercial driver’s license (CDL) schools associated with more than 5,000 drivers who failed English language proficiency tests. (2) Launching a nationwide audit of third-party CDL skills testers and states’ oversight of the testers. (3) Results from 40-state investigation of additional training schools. From DHS (1) Synchronized single-day sweep targeting more than 200 training schools across 23 states. (2) Joint coordination with USDOT. (3) HSI and ICE updates on ongoing investigations targeting CDL-related businesses and schools.

Secretary Duffy and Secretary Mullin outlined the issues and actions in a press conference this morning. WATCH:

[Press Release Here]

What Secretary Mullin outlined in his remarks is stunning.  During one taskforce setup, in the first day they stopped 14 big rig drivers with a CDL that said “No Name Given” for the truck driver’s identification.  They didn’t even have names on their commercial driver’s licenses.

At 41:10 of the video, a reporter downplays the issue claiming only 1% of the accidents on the road are caused by drivers who do not speak English.  Secretary Mullin responds with a very intense pushback against the reporter.

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In an effort to keep the Daily Open Thread a little more open topic we are going to start a new daily thread for “Presidential Politics”. Please use this thread to post anything relating to the Donald Trump Administration and Presidency.

This thread will refresh daily and appear above the Open Discussion Thread.

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Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

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A very interesting outline as Promethean Action’s Mike Steger notes the current lack of USA street protests is directly connected to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent tracking, tracing and targeting the dark money non-profits.

From Arabella Advisors and the Sixteen Thirty Fund to the Tides Foundation, Open Society Foundations, CAIR, and the Southern Poverty Law Center, Mike explains how donations can move through interconnected charities and political organizations without revealing the original donors. These networks, he argues, allow billionaire-backed operations to influence elections, protests, political movements, and American culture while retaining their tax-exempt status.

Mike then examines the Trump administration’s response, including Treasury’s Form 990 Transparency Initiative, investigations into nonprofit financial networks, and efforts to hold tax-exempt organizations accountable for where their money goes. He also considers how Bessent’s campaign against Iran’s financial infrastructure offers a model for dismantling domestic networks accused of financing political violence.

But this system did not begin with a recent election. Mike traces its legal foundation to 1913, when the Rockefeller Foundation received a permanent charter and the Revenue Act created broad tax exemptions for charitable, religious, scientific, and educational organizations. WATCH:

Chapters:

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