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Welcome to the Deep State Daily. This newsletter highlights top news stories that literally no one else is paying attention to. We pull some stories from major news outlets, but we also call attention to niche websites, think-tanks, and media outlets. Enjoy our newsletter? Forward it to a friend by clicking the forward button above. Not already a Member or Insider? Consider supporting us by upgrading your membership.
From Deep State Radio
FP Interrupted: It\’s All About the Benjamins
The only things missing were the back and knee slaps. Otherwise, it was all smiles and genteel banter on Tuesday when U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Saudi Arabia’s Prince Muhammad bin Salman (aka MBS). You’d think the visit was a courtesy catch-up among longtime allies. It wasn’t. Pompeo flew to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital, in what should have been a dressing down over Jamal Khashoggi. Read more here
1-ON-1 With Ivo Daalder: A Discussion Of The New Book “The Empty Throne; America’s Abdication Of Global Leadership”
Ivo Daalder and James Lindsay, two of America’s leading foreign policy experts have written an in-depth analysis of Donald Trump’s tenure to date as president. It is a withering critique, but more importantly it assesses not just how Trump’s policy are a departure from three-quarters of a century of U.S. foreign policy ideas and ideals but what the consequences of the Trump presidency may be. Join us for this important and timely discussion. Tune in
New Voices: A Different Kind of Choice for a Voter
The idea did not surface immediately following the 2016 election. Nor was it influenced solely by the election. What was happening didn’t seem real. It wasn’t so much denial as it was refusal to acknowledge. I latched onto #notmypresident as a formal statement, and I changed my Facebook profile photo to a black screenshot. I was in mourning. Continue reading here
ICYMI: Emergency DSR: John Bolton Becomes National Security Advisor
David Sanger of the New York Times, Rosa Brooks of Georgetown University Law Center, Evelyn Farkas of the Atlantic Council and Edward Luce of the Financial Times elucidate. Listen here
Deep State Radio Live at the Comedy Cellar on November 6, 2018 at 9:30PM. Join David Rothkopf, Rosa Brooks, Max Boot and others for a night of comedy as we analyze the mid-terms election results. For more information or to make a reservation, please click below.
Stories We\’re Watching
Caravan Fallout: I’m Not Shouting, YOU’RE SHOUTING!!!!
White House chief of staff John Kelly and national security adviser John Bolton got into a shouting match outside the Oval Office last night. The dispute is said to have been sparked by a southwest border migration report released by US Customs and Border Protection. Their heated exchange underscores the wider fallout from the Honduran migrant caravan on immigration policy and domestic politics. President Trump continues to pressure Mexico to act. Yesterday Mexico arrested a US citizen said to be the organizer of the march, dispatched 2 jet planes of federal police to the border, and began a program to offer 100 visas a day to caravan migrants.
• Politico: Tensions between Kelly and Bolton erupt in shouting match outside
• US Customs and Border Protection: Southwest Border Migration FY2018(official report)
• The Wall Street Journal: Migrant Caravan Masses Near Mexico’s Southern Border
Khashoggi Updates: Fallout From Khashoggi’s Disappearance Widens
Yesterday President Trump acknowledged that Khashoggi was likely dead, and he lamented the continued global coverage of the disappearance. Later that day, at a Montana campaign rally, Mr. Trump lauded Republican Rep. Greg Gianforte, who plead guilty to assaulting a journalist in 2016. In the wake of Khashoggi’s disappearance, many are calling for a reassessment of US-Saudi relations, which is likely to have wider security, economic, and geopolitical implications. As of today, Khashoggi has not been confirmed dead by any official agency in USA, KSA, or Turkey. And, President Trump has yet to implicate the Saudi royal family in Khashoggi’s disappearance.
• Forbes: The Secret History Of The Saudi Consulate Affair: Turkey\’s Counter-Attack
• New York Times: How One Journalist’s Death Provoked a Backlash That Thousands Dead in Yemen Did Not
• Al Jazeera: Trump rebuked for praising Republican who body-slammed reporter
3 top Afghan leaders assassinated days before national elections
In a botched assassination in Kandahar, the Taliban have killed 3 Afghan leaders just days before parliamentary elections. The Afghan leaders were meeting with US commander, General Scott Miller, at the time. General Miller was unharmed, but three others were wounded. This attack has resulted in a weeklong delay of elections. The fallout from this is likely to be an increased American military presence in Southern Afghanistan and an uptick in civil unrest. Regional experts have also warned that this could affect voter turnout.
• NPR: Top Provincial Leaders Assassinated Ahead Of Elections In Afghanistan
• Defense One: Violence delays some Afghan elections…
• Associated Press: Taliban attack kills top Afghan officials, US general unhurt
• RadioFreeEurope: Elections In Afghanistan\’s Kandahar Province To Be Delayed A Week
Surveillance-R-Us: Israel Offers Dictators a Curated Selection of Cutting-Edge Espionage Tools
A far-reaching, yet little covered investigative report published yesterday indicates that Israel has supplied dictators with tools to remotely monitor civilian human rights activists, journalists, and dissidents. The reach of these Israeli-intelligence contracts is global and includes countries with no official ties to Israel. This report follows the discovery that Israel sold weapons to Myanmar during the ethnic cleansing campaign against the Rohingya. Saudi Arabia used Israeli cyber weapons to target a dissident in Canada. Israeli military are already known to monitor social media, blogs, forums, and messages sent through apps.
• Haaretz: Israel\’s Cyber-spy Industry Aids World Dictators Hunt Dissidents and Gays
• The Globe and Mail: The new assassins: Why countries are getting away with murder
• The Forward: Canary Mission Blacklist Is Secretly Bankrolled By Major Jewish Federation
• Al Jazeera: UAE used Israeli spyware \’to target Qatari emir, Saudi prince\’
Brexit Developments: May Wants to Hit Pause on Brexit
Earlier this week, at the Brussels EU summit meeting, British Prime Minister Theresa May discussed with other European leaders a possible extension of Brexit’s 20-month transition period. This transition period would essentially amount to a pause, and would result in very few changes from current status quo. Brexit is set to come into effect next March. May’s recent attempts to negotiate the terms of the UK’s exit from the EU have focused on requests for additional time to avoid possible economic damage. Broader brexit negotiations have centered around trade, immigration, and the Northern Ireland border.
• Der Spiegel: Watching a Country Make a Fool of Itself
• The Guardian: Former MI6 boss says Brexit makes UK more vulnerable to attacks like Russian novichok poisoning
• Inside Trade: UK ambassador ‘reasonably confident’ about a Brexit deal, says U.S.-UK FTA remains priority
Xi Jinping & Donald Trump: A G20 Reunion?
President Xi Jinping and President Trump have tentatively agreed to meet on the sidelines of the Buenos Aires G20 leaders’ summit on November 29. If confirmed, this would be their first face-to-face meeting in nearly a year. Some are hopeful this could signal a thaw in the relations between the world’s two largest economies. Economists are concerned that further escalation of the US-China trade war coupled with contractionary fiscal policies could dampen global growth.
• South China Morning Post: Xi Jinping, Donald Trump agree to talks at G20 summit next month
• Reuters: U.S. economic policy toward China to get tougher, say economists: Reuters poll
• Australian Financial Review: China and the US seek the impossible compromise
