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China’s Economic Demise And Its Impact On The US

Few are as candid and historically accurate as hedge fund manager Kyle Bass when identifying structural breaks in the global economy. In a recent interview, Bass painted a grim but telling picture of China’s economic condition, warning:

“We are witnessing the largest macroeconomic imbalances the world has ever seen, and they are all coming to a head in China.”

While China has long been touted as the next great economic superpower, its recent trajectory reveals a far different story, one marked by policy missteps, systemic financial rot, and a rapidly eroding growth engine.

Bass didn’t mince words either:

“China’s economy is spiraling with no end in sight.”

China’s GDP deflator, the broadest measure of prices across goods and services, continues to decline as economic activity erodes.

For investors around the globe, this isn’t just a regional concern; it’s a seismic macroeconomic event that will ripple through capital markets. The implications are significant for U.S. investors because when global economies falter, especially one as large and interconnected as China’s, capital doesn’t just vanish. It moves. That movement will significantly impact U.S. assets as flows transfer back into U.S. dollars and Treasury bonds. This global repositioning of capital isn’t merely a symptom of market volatility; it reflects a profound reevaluation of risk in the face of deteriorating confidence in China’s financial system.

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Infamous Sports Memorabilia Dealer Found Dead After Shocking $350 Million Counterfeit Confession

On Tuesday, Brett Lemieux, a seasoned sports memorabilia dealer, was found dead by authorities during the execution of a search warrant at his business, which was under investigation for alleged fraudulent activities, the New York Post reports.

Lemieux, founder of the sports memorabilia website MisterManCave, claimed in a striking Facebook post on the “Autographs 101” group Wednesday morning that he had sold over four million counterfeit items, amassing more than $350 million in sales, authorities said. Shortly after Lemieux posted the 1,200-word message, which has since been removed, Westfield, Indiana, police reported that he died by suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Lemieux claimed in a Facebook post that he orchestrated a large-scale counterfeit scheme, forging holograms and authentication stickers for sports collectibles that imitated products from major companies like Fanatics and Panini.

Lemieux claimed he flooded the market with 80,000 pieces of counterfeit memorabilia following the death of Kobe Bryant in 2020.

The sports memorabilia industry is reeling from Brett Lemieux’s suicide and his confession of orchestrating a large-scale counterfeit scheme, though some industry insiders expressed little surprise at the revelations.

“People have known about this guy. They’ve known his work. They know what he’s been up to,” said Steve Grad, an industry expert. “He has been at it for years and years. And he’s driven down the price of things. You know, you look at a Tom Brady autograph and Tom Brady’s value is affected drastically by this individual.”

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More questions than answers as RCMP gives update on missing Nova Scotia siblings

Despite reviewing 5,000 video files and 600 public tips, the RCMP’s “intensive” investigation into the disappearance of two young Nova Scotia siblings nearly three months ago remains unsolved, according to Global News.

Lilly (6) and Jack Sullivan (4) went missing May 2 from their Lansdowne Station, Pictou County home. Mounties began a missing persons investigation the same day.

RCMP are forensically examining seized materials, including a pink blanket, found during ground and air searches. 

Daniel Robert Martell, stepfather to the missing children, confirmed it was a piece of Lilly’s blanket. “There is more evidence than what the public knows, but I can’t elaborate on any of that,” he said in a CBC interview.

RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Carlie McCann told reporters it was found outside near Lilly and Jack’s home. “Police are investigating if and how it relates to her and her brother’s disappearance.”

Volunteers and rescue officials dedicated 12,000 hours to the search, looking for the children and clues. Police scaled back the search on May 7, citing low survival odds.

Searches of surrounding areas found little evidence, save a boot print and the blanket.

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Wells Fargo Suspends Travel to China After Communist Regime Blocks Top Banker from Leaving

Wells Fargo suspended travel for all of its employees to China on Thursday after the Chinese government slapped an exit ban on banker Chenyue Mao.

Mao is an American citizen who was born in Shanghai. She is a managing director for Wells Fargo, working from an office in Atlanta. According to the bank, her duties include helping international companies manage their working capital in different countries.

Mao specializes in “factoring,” the practice of selling accounts receivable to third parties. The seller gets cash immediately, while the buyer or “factor” proceeds to collect on the invoices they purchased at a discount. Companies that do business overseas often find factoring preferable to running debt collections operations in foreign countries.

In June, Mao was elected as chairwoman of FCI, a global industry organization for international accounts receivable. FCI was called Factors Chain International when it was established in 1968, and factoring remains one of its primary interests, but it has diversified into other aspects of finance and debt collection across national borders.

When it announced Mao’s election as chair of its executive committee, FCI noted she had over 21 years of experience with factoring and has worked at Wells Fargo for over a decade. During that time, she was credited with growing “annual import-factoring flows to 2.6 billion euros (over $3 billion in U.S. dollars) while fostering innovation in open-account solutions.”

FCI said her goals as chairwoman included recruiting more banks to the organization and “expanding import-factoring know-how within the network.”

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“I Can’t Believe The New York Times Thought It Would Get Away With This…”

The irony is thick enough to choke on…

The New York Times, that bastion of so-called journalistic integrity, churned out yet another hit piece on President Donald Trump, painting him as some vengeful tyrant hell-bent on crushing his political foes. 

According to the paper, Trump supposedly views his opponents as downright evil, promising a campaign of retribution that sends shivers down the spines of the elite media class. 

Last week, he denounced a reporter as a “very evil person” for asking a question he did not like. This week, he declared that Democrats are “an evil group of people.” 

“Evil” is a word getting a lot of airtime in the second Trump term. It is not enough anymore to dislike a journalistic inquiry or disagree with an opposing philosophy. Anyone viewed as critical of the president or insufficiently deferential is wicked. The Trump administration’s efforts to achieve its policy goals are not just an exercise in governance but a holy mission against forces of darkness.

The characterization seeds the ground to justify all sorts of actions that would normally be considered extreme or out of bounds. If Mr. Trump’s adversaries are not just rivals but villains, then he can rationalize going further than any president has in modern times. 

This isn’t journalism; it’s selective outrage at its finest. The Times acts like Trump’s tough talk is some unprecedented assault on democracy, conveniently forgetting or willfully ignoring the years of venomous rhetoric that the left spewed against Trump and conservatives everywhere. It has the gall to portray Trump as the villain while pretending that its side hasn’t been fanning the flames of division for nearly a decade. 

If the Times is so concerned about demonizing political enemies, maybe it should look in the mirror, or better yet, revisit one of the most egregious examples from its own camp: from Barack Obama’s spying on Trump to frame him for colluding with Russia to Joe Biden’s lawfare campaign that literally tried to put Trump in prison.

Actions may speak louder than words, but Joe Biden spoke rather loudly during his infamous speech at Independence Hall back in 2022, where he didn’t even hide the fact that he saw his political allies as evil.

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Trump’s Deputies Use Medicaid Data to Help ICE Find Migrants

President Donald Trump’s deputies have completed a data-sharing deal to let ICE agents use government Medicaid data while enforcing the nation’s popular immigration laws, according to a report by the Associated Press.

Under a new agreement, “ICE will use the CMS [Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services] data to allow ICE to receive identity and location information on aliens identified by ICE,” the agreement says,” the AP reported Thursday, adding:

The department’s assistant secretary, Tricia McLaughlin, said in an emailed statement that the two agencies “are exploring an initiative to ensure that illegal aliens are not receiving Medicaid benefits that are meant for law-abiding Americans.”

Millions of illegal migrants have shared their identities and addresses to use the taxpayer-funded Medicaid system, often via emergency rooms and state-funded clinics.

The data is not being copied to ICE. Instead, ICE will be allowed to verify identities and addresses during regular work hours.

The information-sharing deal reflects the determination of Trump’s deputies to remove a myriad bureaucratic and regulatory barriers to the enforcement of the nation’s immigration laws.

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Congressional Cuts To PBS, NPR Could Unravel Leftist Propaganda Nodes Nationwide 

The Republican-controlled House delivered the final blow with a 216-213 vote on Thursday night to eliminate $1.1 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which supports leftist propaganda networks such as NPR, PBS, and affiliated stations nationwide. Attached to the bill was also an $8 billion cut targeting the U.S. Agency for International Development, which has been accused of corruption.

The New York Times penned an article for its readers, offering multiple graphics that paint a grim picture of areas nationwide at risk of losing access to public radio and television. What the NYT fails to acknowledge is that the $1.1 billion in funding cuts to NPR, PBS, and affiliated stations represent a major blow to the leftist propaganda matrix—in other words, the information war of misinformation and disinformation waged by the left is about to crack a whole lot more.

“Failing stations will create a cascade effect in this highly connected and interdependent system, impacting content producers and leading to the potential collapse of additional distressed stations in other areas of the country,” Tim Isgitt, CEO of advisory firm Public Media Company, told the NYT.

Let the dominoes fall—this development could trigger a mass unraveling of the government-funded propaganda nodes nationwide that have brainwashed millions of Americans with toxic wokeism.  

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President Claudia Sheinbaum May Sue ICE over Mexican Farmworker Who Died During Immigration Raid

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is considering legal action against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency after a Mexican farmworker fell to his death during an immigration raid in California.

Jaime Alanís Garcia was hospitalized and ultimately passed away after falling off a roof during an ICE raid in Caramillo, California.

ABC7 wrote:

Federal agents clashed with protesters during the immigration raid at the farm in Ventura County, one of at least two large-scale raids in Southern California on July 10.

Garcia’s family said he fell about 30 feet off a building while he was possibly trying to run from federal agents. Garcia suffered a broken neck and skull.

The tragic situation led Sheinbaum to say that they are considering legal options.

“We are supporting the family, we are in contact with them, and we’re also exploring the possibility of filing a complaint (in the U.S.) because this is unacceptable,” Sheinbaum said during a press conference.

She added, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is currently reviewing the matter. It is very unfortunate that this happened. All our solidarity and support go to the family, and there must not be another case like this one. That’s why the complaint must be filed in the courts over there.”

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Brazil Raids Bolsonaro’s Home, Orders Him To Wear Ankle Monitor After Trump Blasts Leftist Country

The Brazilian Supreme Court ordered that police raid former President Jair Bolsonaro’s home and place an ankle monitor on him on Friday, escalating its targeting of the conservative leader as President Donald Trump defends him.

After the Brazilian Supreme Court issued search warrants and restraining orders on Bolsonaro, federal police raided his home, and the former president was banned from contacting foreign officials, Reuters reported. Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes cited a “concrete possibility” of Bolsonaro fleeing the country when he issued the order.

Brazil’s increased pressure on Bolsonaro comes shortly after President Trump defended his political ally and blasted the Brazilian Supreme Court for its “witch hunt” targeting Bolsonaro. Trump also imposed a 50% tariff on Brazil last week, citing the country’s “insidious attacks on Free Elections, and the fundamental Free Speech Rights of Americans.”

“The way that Brazil has treated former President Bolsonaro, a Highly Respected Leader throughout the World during his Term, including by the United States, is an international disgrace,” Trump said in a letter to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. “This trial should not be taking place. It is a Witch Hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!”

Moraes specifically called out Trump’s tariff on Brazil in his Friday order, arguing that it is intended to create an economic crisis in Brazil and interfere with the country’s judicial system.

On Thursday, Trump posted a letter on Truth Social that he sent to Bolsonaro, which read in part, “I have seen the terrible treatment you are receiving at the hands of an unjust system turned against you. This trial should end immediately! I am not surprised to see you leading in the polls; you were a highly respected and strong leader who served your country well.”

Bolsonaro told Reuters that he believes the Supreme Court’s move on Friday is in response to Trump’s recent comments. The former Brazilian president called Moraes a “dictator” and denied that he had any plans to flee the country.

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Nancy Pelosi: Epstein Story Is a ‘Distraction’

Thursday on MSNBC’s “Chris Jansing Reports,” Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said President Donald Trump’s involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein story was just a “distraction.”

Jansing said, “Is there’s anything the president can do now to get his supporters to move off of the Epstein issue?”

Pelosi said, “This is a distraction. We have major issues right here with things we’re voting on today in the Congress, again, in terms of the rescission that the president and the Senate have sent back over us to cut all of these resources out of helping poor people throughout the world, to be America play its leadership role in soft power to keep us safe, and to keep us healthy — viruses know no boundary. And instead we’re talking about him-, about this thing and his own base has its own views of what the president should do. I’ll leave it up to them to talk it out. But again, whether it’s Jeffrey Epstein or Alcatraz, it’s all off the subject of what they’re doing with this budget that is harmful to the kitchen table, meeting the kitchen-table needs of the American people.”

Jansing said, “I want to make sure I understand what you mean when you say distraction. Do you think that Pam Bondi going to Alcatraz is meant potentially as a distraction from Epstein, which has not gone over well at all with the president’s base?”

Pelosi said, “No, I think they’re both distractions.”

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