Thread by @LibertyBlitz

This is one of the most important articles I've read all year. Details how financialization and short-termism have ruined the U.S. economy and made the military very vulnerable.

Must Read:
theamericanconservative.com/articles/ameri…

W. Nicholas Howley, one of the "most highly compensated CEOs no one has ever heard of," makes his millions by ripping off the Defense Department.

After reading this it's hard to not conclude that the vast majority of the DOD budget is pure waste, fraud, theft and corruption.

"It is no wonder our military capacities are ebbing, despite the large budget outlays—the money isn’t going to defense."

If this article is even half true, it should be the #1 story in America for a week.

This is the reason the U.S. is still in Afghanistan 18 years later. War is a business model in this country, not meant to win, but meant to make certain people a lot of money. This won't work out well if we face a real foe.

"In 2016, J.P. Morgan Chase agreed to pay a $264 million bribery settlement to the U.S. government for creating a program, called “Sons and Daughters,” to gain access to Chinese money by selectively hiring the unqualified offspring of high-ranking Communist Party officials..."

"Several other banks are under investigation for similar practices, including Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, who, not coincidentally, hired the son of China’s commerce minister."

If you haven't already, stop what you're doing and read this article.
theamericanconservative.com/articles/ameri…

I think China is a winning issue for Trump politically. I think the general public wants some genuine pushback. The key is he needs to avoid war with Iran at all costs.

Tariffs aren't the best way to go about this. It's abundantly clear corrupt U.S. "elites" have sold out this country for decades. Americans despise corrupt elites. Craft a message that combines China and corrupt U.S. elites, which is easy, because they are joined at the hip.

I'm going to say this one more time. Every single person on earth should read this. Should be your homework for the weekend. It is that important.
theamericanconservative.com/articles/ameri…

"In short, the financial industry, with its emphasis on short-term profit and monopoly, and its willingness to ignore national security for profit, has warped our very ability to defend ourselves."

It's not the industry, it is PEOPLE in the industry. Fellow citizens sold us out.

These people knew what they were doing and they did it anyway. Don't pretend otherwise.

I've been saying this for 10 years. Wall Street/finance crooks are amongst the most dangerous crooks. When you fail to put them in jail, you multiply the criminal behavior because the profit is too tempting. And here we are.

There's also a revolving door of sorts between the military and private equity. Remember who hired David Petraeus?
KKR.
kkr.com/our-firm/leade…