The Patriot Post Digest 7-26-2018

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The Patriot Post Digest 7-26-2018
From The Federalist Patriot
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The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest

Jul. 26, 2018 · https://patriotpost.us/digests/57361-mid-day-digest

THE FOUNDATION

“Harmony, liberal intercourse with all Nations, are recommended by policy, humanity and interest. But even our Commercial policy should hold an equal and impartial hand: neither seeking nor granting exclusive favours or preferences; consulting the natural course of things; diffusing and diversifying by gentle means the streams of Commerce, but forcing nothing; establishing with Powers so disposed; in order to give trade a stable course.” —George Washington (1796)

IN TODAY’S EDITION

Trump gets results on trade, as EU makes concessions.
The other Russian hacking — the electrical grid.
New revelations of Twitter, Facebook censoring conservatives.
Universal basic income is the nanny state on steroids.
A new study says conservatives find life more meaningful.
An environmental battle in California highlights who the real preservationists are.
How Big Data could affect your health insurance.
Daily Features: Top Headlines, Memes, Cartoons, Columnists, and Short Cuts.

IN BRIEF
Trump Is Getting Desired Results From Tariffs1

Thomas Gallatin

Wednesday saw an example of what is widely touted as President Donald Trump’s greatest strength — negotiating a good deal. Following his meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and his top trade official, Cecilia Malmström, Trump announced an agreement that effectively avoids a trade war. “This was a very big day for free and fair trade,” Trump stated. “Over the years, the United States has lost hundreds of billions of dollars to the European Union and we just want it to be a level playing field for our farmers, our manufacturers, [and] for everybody.”

Juncker also expressed a positive conciliatory note after previously having threatened retaliatory measures for Trump’s proposed 25% automobile tariff on all European imports. He noted, “We are close partners — allies, not enemies. We have to work together.”

News of the agreement sent the markets jumping in relief.

Trump’s repeated talk of zero tariffs and fair trade seems to have encouraged good-faith negotiations and the recognition that the current state of trade is not the level playing field it needs to be. With this initial agreement, the EU will import more U.S. soybeans and liquid natural gas. It’s important to note that the deal on natural gas directly challenges Vladimir Putin by reducing Europe’s reliance on Russian energy2.

Juncker also agreed to pursue badly needed reforms at the World Trade Organization, as Trump has long argued that WTO judges are biased against the U.S. Further, the EU will work to align its regulatory standards to allow for a better and fairer market within Europe for U.S. medical devices. And finally, both Trump and Juncker made a commitment to work toward an eventual zero-tariff trade deal. “The United States and the European Union together count more than 830 million citizens and more than 50 percent of global GDP,” a joint statement noted. “If we team up, we can make our planet a better, more secure, and more prosperous place.”

Through this latest deal, Trump has deftly set pieces in place and strengthened his hand, effectively ratcheting up pressure on China to come to the negotiation table. There are also positive signs coming out of Mexico as the newly elected president’s chief trade negotiator, Jesus Seade, indicated on Tuesday that Mexico is open to a new deal: “What I see … to be a very feasible expectation is that we’ll be concluding negotiation in the next two months if possible, or in the next few months a bit further down the road.” He added, “President Trump has a very personal style. He likes to appear chaotic. But the last thing he is is chaotic. I think he’s a very intelligent man.”

Clearly, Trump’s tariff gamble3 is paying off, and despite wide criticism from both sides of the political aisle, he has steadily maintained the course and is starting to get the results he has been after the whole time — a fair and level playing field for American workers and businesses. Trump’s moves to achieve fair and free trade are actually reminiscent of Ronald Reagan’s strategy to force the Soviet Union to the negotiation table via a nuclear arms race — seemingly counterintuitive but effective.

https://patriotpost.us/articles/57354-trump-is-getting-desired-results-from-tariffs

The Other Russian Hacking — the Electrical Grid4
Jordan Candler

It goes without saying that election meddling is hardly the only threat posed by Russian operatives. According to a new Wall Street Journal report5, “Hackers working for Russia claimed ‘hundreds of victims’ last year in a giant and long-running campaign that put them inside the control rooms of U.S. electric utilities where they could have caused blackouts, federal officials said. They said the campaign likely is continuing.”

The hackers were members of a group known as Dragonfly or Energetic Bear, which is backed by the Kremlin. The Journal explains that the group “broke into supposedly secure, ‘air-gapped’ or isolated networks owned by utilities with relative ease by first penetrating the networks of key vendors who had trusted relationships with the power companies, said officials at the Department of Homeland Security.” One DHS official even stated that the hackers “got to the point where they could have thrown switches.” Translation: Portions of our nation’s utilities — which were previously flagged for inadequate security measures6 — were effectively in the hands of foreign enemies.

DHS began alerting utility executives to the hazards posed by these specific Russian hackers four years ago. By 2016, the Russian incursion on U.S. utilities was underway, though Russia refuses to admit culpability — which is just as believable as that nation’s pleading innocence on election meddling. Investor’s Business Daily suggests7 “it’s clear the U.S. needs to increase its focus on this threat.” The risk isn’t hyperbole, after all. As IBD goes on to note: “Those who think it can’t happen here need to think again. In December 2015, Russia launched an attack on Ukraine’s power grid that led to electricity outages for hundreds of thousands of people.”

Yes, election meddling is serious business and requires a forceful response. But hacking into America’s utility companies is an even more pressing and far-reaching concern — particularly when, as IBD points out, “there is no indication that [Russian meddling] had a significant impact on any election here in 2016.” Some Democrats will no doubt remain unconvinced, so in an effort to persuade them, remind them that they won’t be able to keep spewing “Russia stole the election” nonsense on national television if those same Russians end up causing blackouts. That’ll get ‘em moving.

https://patriotpost.us/articles/57332-the-other-russian-hacking-the-electrical-grid

New Revelations of Twitter, Facebook Censoring8
Nate Jackson

The leftist bias of social media giants isn’t news. But here and there we do find more evidence to support the charge. Both Twitter and Facebook are themselves news this week for more of the same.

Twitter is reportedly “shadow-banning” prominent Republicans. In this case, a shadow ban is hiding someone from autofill search lists. According to9 Vice News, no conservative ally to be sure, “Republican Party chair Ronna McDaniel, several conservative Republican congressmen [including Mark Meadows, Jim Jordan, Devin Nunes, and Matt Gaetz], and Donald Trump Jr.’s spokesman no longer appear in the auto-populated drop-down search box on Twitter. … It’s a shift that diminishes their reach on the platform — and it’s the same one being deployed against prominent racists to limit their visibility. The profiles continue to appear when conducting a full search, but not in the more convenient and visible drop-down bar.”