Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (IRT) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.16 on January 17thThunder rout short-handed Grizzlies 130-106 for their 11th straight victory
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is set to break more records Monday as U.S. stocks rise to add to last week’s gains. The S&P 500 was 0.2% higher, as of 3 p.m. Eastern time, and sitting just below its all-time high set two weeks ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 397 points, or 0.9%, to its own record set on Friday, while the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% higher. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Error! There was an error processing your request. Get the latest need-to-know information delivered to your inbox as it happens. Our flagship newsletter. Get our front page stories each morning as well as the latest updates each afternoon during the week + more in-depth weekend editions on Saturdays & Sundays.Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder rout Grizzlies, run streak to 11
Ruben Amorim warned “the storm will come” eventually as Manchester United’s head coach tried to temper expectations ahead of the trip to Arsenal. The 39-year-old has been a breath of fresh air since succeeding Erik ten Hag, with his personality and approach, coupled with promising early performances, bringing hope back to Old Trafford. Amorim has been touched by his warm welcome but repeatedly urged fans to avoid jumping the gun, having followed a draw at Ipswich with home wins against Bodo/Glimt and Everton. Wednesday’s trip to Arsenal is comfortably his biggest challenge yet and victory would see United move within three points of the Premier League title contenders. Put to Amorim it will be hard to manage expectations if they won in the capital, the head coach said: “I would like to say different things, but I have to say it again: the storm will come. “I don’t know if you use that expression, but we are going to have difficult moments and we will be found out in some games. “And I know that because I’m knowing my players and I know football and I follow football, so I understand the difference between the teams. “We are in the point in that we are putting simple things in the team, without training, and you feel it in this game against Everton, they change a little bit the way they were building up. “They are very good team, and we were with a lot of problems because we cannot change it by calling one thing to the captain. A midweek trip to the capital awaits 🚆 #MUFC || #PL pic.twitter.com/1e6VrILJW3 — Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 3, 2024 “So, we don’t have this training, so let’s focus on each game, on the performance, what we have to improve, trying to win games. And that is the focus. “I know it’s really hard to be a Manchester United coach and say these things in press conferences. We want to win all the time. No matter what. “We are going to try to win, but we know that we are in a different point if you compare to Arsenal. “So, it is what it is and we will try to win it and we go with confidence to win, but we know that we need to play very well to win the next football match.” The trip to Arsenal is the second of nine December matches for United, who are looking to avoid suffering four straight league defeats to the Gunners for the first time. The Red Devils have not won a Premier League match at the Emirates Stadium since 2017, but Amorim knows a thing or two about frustrating Mikel Arteta’s men. Arsenal thrashed Sporting Lisbon 5-1 in the Champions League last week, but in 2022-23 he led the Portuguese side to a Europa League last-16 penalty triumph after a 1-1 draw in London made it 3-3 on aggregate. “Arsenal this year, they play a little bit different,” Amorim said. “They are more fluid. “For example, two years ago when we faced them with Sporting, you knew how to press because you can understand better the structure. “Now it’s more fluid with (Riccardo) Calafiori and (Jurrien) Timber in different sides. One coming inside, the other going outside. Also (Martin) Odegaard changed the team, and you can feel it during this season. “So, you can take something from that game, especially because I know so well the opponent so you can understand the weakness of that team. “But every game is different, so you take something, but you already know that you are going to face a very good team.” This hectic winter schedule means Amorim sidestepped talk of January transfer business ahead of facing Arsenal, although he was more forthcoming on Amad Diallo’s future. The 22-year-old, who put in a man of the match display in Sunday’s 4-0 win against Everton, is out of contract at the end of the season, although the club holds an option to extend by a year. Diallo has repeatedly spoken of his desire to stay at United and it has been reported an agreement is close. Amorim said: “I think he wants to stay, and we want him to stay. So that is clear and we will find a solution.” We do not moderate comments, but we expect readers to adhere to certain rules in the interests of open and accountable debate.
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Black Friday 2024 freebeat Brings Global Discounts and a Chance to Win Its Flagship Lit Bike
Safeguarding Global Trade: A New Era of Maritime SecurityIt's no secret that inflation has caused prices of goods and services to rise in the last few years. The need to spend more just to maintain your current standard of living is a constant worry for many families. There is an attractive solution to this problem: buying dividend stocks that can supply you with a stream of additional passive income to supplement your earned income. The ideal dividend stock should be a business with a strong competitive edge that possesses a long track record of increasing dividends. It should also generate huge amounts of free cash flow that can sustain its dividend payments. Such dividend stock candidates should sit well within your portfolio to supply you with the dividends you need to not only beat inflation but also provide you with some extra spending money for the nicer things in life. Here are three attractive dividend stocks that you can consider adding to your income portfolio. 1. Medtronic Medtronic ( MDT -0.20% ) makes medical devices for a wide range of specialities such as cardiovascular, diabetes, respiratory, spinal, and neurological. The company has a stellar track record of increasing its dividend over 47 consecutive years, with its latest being a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share. Net sales went from $31.7 billion in fiscal 2022 (ended April 30) to $32.4 billion in 2024. Net income, however, fell from $5 billion to $3.7 billion over the same period because of higher costs of goods sold and interest expenses. Despite the lower profit, Medtronic continued to generate consistent free cash flow, which averaged around $5.3 billion per fiscal year. With a payment of $3.67 billion in dividends for fiscal 2024, the dividend amounted to 70% of Medtronic's free cash flow and is, therefore, sustainable. The company reported earnings for the first half of fiscal 2025 as inflation starts to abate. Revenue rose 4% year over year to $16.3 billion, while operating income climbed 10.2% to $2.9 billion. With Medtronic enjoying a lower tax expense for the period, net income surged by 36% to $2.3 billion. Free cash flow for the business jumped 41% to $1 billion, building confidence that Medtronic can continue with its impressive track record of increasing dividends. The company continued its innovative streak, with close to 120 product approvals in the past 12 months, adding to its burgeoning portfolio of products and devices that cover a wide range of specialities and geographies. Interim CFO Gary Corona mentioned that Medtronic is focused on improving its margins and is increasing productivity through the centralization of operations and the consolidation of factories and suppliers. He also mentioned several promising new product launches that have yet to meaningfully scale up and deliver their full potential. Finally, Medtronic will focus on tuck-in acquisitions to boost areas that it lacks or need strengthening. These initiatives should help the business to continue growing and paying out higher dividends for the foreseeable future. 2. General Dynamics General Dynamics ( GD -0.24% ) is a global aerospace and defense company with a portfolio of products catered for the business aviation, ship construction and repair, and weapon systems sectors, among others. The company reported steadily increasing revenue and profits, while also generating copious levels of free cash flow. From 2021 to 2023, revenue from products and services increased from $38.5 billion to $42.3 billion. Earnings went from $3.26 billion to $3.32 billion over the same period. Free cash flow increased from $3.4 billion to $3.8 billion over the three years and averaged $3.55 billion per year, helping to fund General Dynamics' increased dividends. The company has increased its annual dividend without fail for 27 years, with the most recent increase being a 7.6% year-over-year rise to $5.68 per share. General Dynamics continued to report increased revenue and earnings for the first nine months of 2024. Revenue grew 12.3% year over year to $34.4 billion, while operating income jumped 14% to $3.4 billion. Net income for the engineering company climbed 14% to $2.6 billion. The business also generated a positive free cash flow of $1.4 billion for the period. General Dynamics continues to snag key contracts with the military. Back in November, one of the company's business units was awarded a contractor logistics support services contract that extends over seven years and provides services to the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, Army, and Coast Guard. A month later, General Dynamics was awarded a $5.6 billion contract from the U.S. Air Force to help modernize, integrate, and operate the latter's Mission Partner Environments. These promising contract wins should solidify the company's status as an essential contractor and help reinforce its reputation as a dependable business that can steadily increase its dividends over the long term. 3. Illinois Tool Works Illinois Tool Works ( ITW -0.86% ) is an industrial manufacturing company that produces products for seven verticals, including automotive, construction, and food equipment. Like General Dynamics, Illinois Tool Works has also demonstrated steady increases in both its revenue and net income over the years. Revenue increased from $14.4 billion in 2021 to $16.1 billion in 2023, while net income went from $2.7 billion to $3 billion over the same period. Free cash flow improved by a larger magnitude, going from $2.3 billion in 2021 to $3.1 billion by 2023 and averaging $2.4 billion per annum. This consistent free cash flow generation has allowed the company to increase its dividend without fail for close to three decades, going from just $0.16 in 1995 to $5.42 in 2023. Illinois Tool Works reported a mixed financial performance for the first nine months of 2024. Revenue dipped slightly by 1.3% year over year to $12 billion, but operating income managed to climb close to 6% to $3.2 billion. Net income surged 22% to $2.7 billion. The business also generated a positive free cash flow of $1.8 billion, and management upped the company's annual dividend for the 29th consecutive year to $6 per share. The company has made bold plans to continue growing and unveiled its strategic priorities during last year's Investor Day event. Illinois Tool Works has a target to grow organically by 4% to 7% from 2023 to 2030. Acquisitions should help to boost growth further, but these will be undertaken only if they are worth the time and effort and help to advance the company's long-term organic growth target. There will be two main types: bolt-on acquisitions to strengthen existing segments, and the building of new platforms. By 2030, Illinois Tool Works hopes to deliver between 11% to 13% per annum total shareholder return, comprising both organic growth and a 2% to 3% dividend yield. This can be achieved through a 9% to 10% annual earnings-per-share growth, coupled with a plan to increase the annual dividend by around 7% annually.By JILL COLVIN and STEPHEN GROVES WASHINGTON (AP) — After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill this week in a new, more visible role: Helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet picks to confirmation in the Senate, where Vance has served for the last two years. Vance arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and spent the morning sitting in on meetings between Trump’s choice for attorney general and key Republicans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The effort was for naught: Gaetz announced a day later that he was withdrawing his name amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations and the reality that he was unlikely to be confirmed. Thursday morning Vance was back, this time accompanying Pete Hegseth, the “Fox & Friends Weekend” host whom Trump has tapped to be the next secretary of defense. Hegseth also has faced allegations of sexual assault that he denies. Vance is expected to accompany other nominees for meetings in coming weeks as he tries to leverage the two years he has spent in the Senate to help push through Trump’s picks. The role of introducing nominees around Capitol Hill is an unusual one for a vice president-elect. Usually the job goes to a former senator who has close relationships on the Hill, or a more junior aide. But this time the role fits Vance, said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s first director of legislative affairs as well as chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence, who spent more than a decade in Congress and led the former president’s transition ahead of his first term. ”JD probably has a lot of current allies in the Senate and so it makes sense to have him utilized in that capacity,” Short said. Unlike the first Trump transition, which played out before cameras at Trump Tower in New York and at the president-elect’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, this one has largely happened behind closed doors in Palm Beach, Florida. There, a small group of officials and aides meet daily at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort to run through possible contenders and interview job candidates. The group includes Elon Musk, the billionaire who has spent so much time at the club that Trump has joked he can’t get rid of him. Vance has been a constant presence, even as he’s kept a lower profile. The Ohio senator has spent much of the last two weeks in Palm Beach, according to people familiar with his plans, playing an active role in the transition, on which he serves as honorary chair. Vance has been staying at a cottage on the property of the gilded club, where rooms are adorned with cherubs, oriental rugs and intricate golden inlays. It’s a world away from the famously hardscrabble upbringing that Vance documented in the memoir that made him famous, “Hillbilly Elegy.” His young children have also joined him at Mar-a-Lago, at times. Vance was photographed in shorts and a polo shirt playing with his kids on the seawall of the property with a large palm frond, a U.S. Secret Service robotic security dog in the distance. On the rare days when he is not in Palm Beach, Vance has been joining the sessions remotely via Zoom. Though he has taken a break from TV interviews after months of constant appearances, Vance has been active in the meetings, which began immediately after the election and include interviews and as well as presentations on candidates’ pluses and minuses. Among those interviewed: Contenders to replace FBI Director Christopher Wray , as Vance wrote in a since-deleted social media post. Defending himself from criticism that he’d missed a Senate vote in which one of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees was confirmed, Vance wrote that he was meeting at the time “with President Trump to interview multiple positions for our government, including for FBI Director.” “I tend to think it’s more important to get an FBI director who will dismantle the deep state than it is for Republicans to lose a vote 49-46 rather than 49-45,” Vance added on X. “But that’s just me.” While Vance did not come in to the transition with a list of people he wanted to see in specific roles, he and his friend, Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who is also a member of the transition team, were eager to see former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. find roles in the administration. Trump ended up selecting Gabbard as the next director of national intelligence , a powerful position that sits atop the nation’s spy agencies and acts as the president’s top intelligence adviser. And he chose Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services , a massive agency that oversees everything from drug and food safety to Medicare and Medicaid. Vance was also a big booster of Tom Homan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who will serve as Trump’s “border czar.” In another sign of Vance’s influence, James Braid, a top aide to the senator, is expected to serve as Trump’s legislative affairs director. Allies say it’s too early to discuss what portfolio Vance might take on in the White House. While he gravitates to issues like trade, immigration and tech policy, Vance sees his role as doing whatever Trump needs. Vance was spotted days after the election giving his son’s Boy Scout troop a tour of the Capitol and was there the day of leadership elections. He returned in earnest this week, first with Gaetz — arguably Trump’s most divisive pick — and then Hegseth, who has was been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017, according to an investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing. Vance hosted Hegseth in his Senate office as GOP senators, including those who sit on the Senate Armed Services Committee, filtered in to meet with the nominee for defense secretary. While a president’s nominees usually visit individual senators’ offices, meeting them on their own turf, the freshman senator — who is accompanied everywhere by a large Secret Service detail that makes moving around more unwieldy — instead brought Gaetz to a room in the Capitol on Wednesday and Hegseth to his office on Thursday. Senators came to them. Vance made it to votes Wednesday and Thursday, but missed others on Thursday afternoon. Vance is expected to continue to leverage his relationships in the Senate after Trump takes office. But many Republicans there have longer relationships with Trump himself. Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, said that Trump was often the first person to call him back when he was trying to reach high-level White House officials during Trump’s first term. “He has the most active Rolodex of just about anybody I’ve ever known,” Cramer said, adding that Vance would make a good addition. “They’ll divide names up by who has the most persuasion here,” Cramer said, but added, “Whoever his liaison is will not work as hard at it as he will.” Cramer was complimentary of the Ohio senator, saying he was “pleasant” and ” interesting” to be around. ′′He doesn’t have the long relationships,” he said. “But we all like people that have done what we’ve done. I mean, that’s sort of a natural kinship, just probably not as personally tied.” Under the Constitution, Vance will also have a role presiding over the Senate and breaking tie votes. But he’s not likely to be needed for that as often as was Kamala Harris, who broke a record number of ties for Democrats as vice president, since Republicans will have a bigger cushion in the chamber next year. Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.
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NewtekOne, Inc. ( NASDAQ:NEWT – Get Free Report ) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, December 13th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of 0.19 per share by the business services provider on Monday, January 13th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.84%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. NewtekOne has decreased its dividend by an average of 29.5% annually over the last three years. NewtekOne has a payout ratio of 35.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect NewtekOne to earn $2.12 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 35.8%. NewtekOne Stock Performance Shares of NEWT stock opened at $13.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $342.23 million, a P/E ratio of 7.27 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $13.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.08. NewtekOne has a 52 week low of $10.07 and a 52 week high of $15.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.98. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades NEWT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. B. Riley increased their price objective on shares of NewtekOne from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of NewtekOne from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $15.00 price objective (up from $13.00) on shares of NewtekOne in a research report on Friday, November 8th. View Our Latest Stock Report on NewtekOne Insider Buying and Selling In related news, CEO Barry Sloane acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $12.95 per share, for a total transaction of $38,850.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,164,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,084,872.25. The trade was a 0.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website . Insiders purchased 8,750 shares of company stock valued at $119,568 over the last 90 days. 6.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. About NewtekOne ( Get Free Report ) NewtekOne, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Newtek Bank, National Association that engages in the provision of various business and financial solutions under the Newtek brand name to the small- and medium-sized business market. The company accepts demand, savings, NOW, money market, and time deposits; and provides loans including SBA loans, commercial and industrial loans, and commercial real estate loans. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for NewtekOne Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for NewtekOne and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .
WASHINGTON, DC — President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to buy Greenland would be the US’s largest territorial addition in history — topping even the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, which nearly doubled America’s size at the time. Trump, 78, on Sunday added steam to his push to acquire the Arctic island when he announced PayPal cofounder Ken Howery as his pick to be the US ambassador to Denmark, which has controlled the mammoth territory for more than 300 years. “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,” Trump wrote . Greenland’s 836,330 square miles slightly exceed the 827,987 square miles that America gained with the Louisiana Purchase, a deal struck between then-President Thomas Jefferson and France. Trump’s acquisition also would be more than double the size of President James Polk’s 1845 annexation of the Republic of Texas, which included disputed regions that now are part of neighboring states. The proposed Trump administration move would top President Andrew Johnson’s 1867 Alaska purchase’s 591,000 square miles, too. Most of sparsely populated Greenland’s 56,000 residents are Inuit — related to other indigenous groups along the northernmost fringe of Canada and Alaska — and in principle have been given permission by Copenhagen under a 2009 law to sever ties should they so choose. In 2019, then-President Trump floated his interest in buying Greenland, which abuts North Atlantic shipping lanes and hosts important radar and weather installations, but the idea was swiftly shot down by Danish and Greenlandic officials. A year later, during the final year of Trump’s first term, aides within the White House and Treasury Department took a closer look at how to make a purchase happen — even identifying financial resources that could be used for the early phase of the project and crafting a blueprint for a diplomatic charm offensive, sources have told The Post. “We were moving quickly on these things up until the final days,” former Treasury Department official Thomas Dans said. “Our hope was the Biden administration would pick up on this. We were poised to do something.” Trump’s aides who previously worked on the plan determined that the people of Greenland held the key and would need to be persuaded that joining the US was in their best interests. Currently, the relatively poor residents depend heavily on an annual block grant from Denmark’s government. The roughly half-billion-dollar grant contributes about 20% of Greenland’s GDP and half of the public budget, according to the International Trade Administration. “It’s almost like an indenture of old, where the Greenlanders remain reliant on an economic subsidy that Denmark sends them and essentially have to bootstrap their way to a new future,” Dans said. “They’re asset-rich and cash-poor — kind of frozen in place.” Dans, whose grandfather was deployed to Greenland during World War II, has played a continuing role in helping win over residents — including by bringing one of the island’s top social media influencers, Jørgen Boassen, to the president-elect’s Election Day watch party in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Nov. 5. In theory, Greenlanders would be presented with a Trump administration plan to improve their economic standing and also ensure their continued self-government, followed by a vote on whether to accept that plan, which would then be ratified by Copenhagen’s parliament ahead of a handover. But the 47th president will face an uphill climb, with Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede writing this week that “Greenland is ours. “We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom,” the PM said. Dans said it’s most likely that Greenland would have to be acquired through a compact of free association — similar to what the United States already has with the nominally independent Pacific islands of Palau, the Marshall Islands and Micronesia, which each have United Nations seats but rely heavily upon the US. It’s unclear if Greenland would be considered independent — as is the case with those three Pacific countries — or if the special set-up would denote a closer integration. Other sparsely populated territories, such as the Pacific territories of Niue and the Cook Islands, are associated with New Zealand and aren’t internationally considered to be independent. “All of these compacts of free association are custom-crafted,” Dans said. Trump has floated other possible US acquisitions, too — saying over the weekend that the US may try to retake the Panama Canal Zone, which was given to Panama in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter. Trump said he is incensed over the Central American country’s high fees on US shipping in the region and worried about the waterway if its neutrality is threatened by China. Panama’s president has already publicly voiced his fierce opposition to the notion. The United States hasn’t added substantial amounts of territory in nearly a century. President Woodrow Wilson presided over the purchase of the 136-square-mile US Virgin Islands from Denmark in 1917 for $25 million and the United States assumed trusteeship over four Pacific territories formerly ruled by Japan at the end of World War II, with only the Northern Mariana Islands remaining a US territory. Trump aides and allies say he is not kidding about adding Greenland and potentially retaking the Panama Canal. “The president is 100% serious,” a source close to Trump said. Another source close to the camp said, “Trump is of the belief that empires that don’t grow start to fail. He is a student of history, and this is one of the schools of thought. “He really favors past presidents who were expansionist on the continent. He knows it’s a legacy item that cannot be distorted or taken away by political opposition.”Abortions are up in the US. It's a complicated picture as women turn to pills, travelIn the past two days, there have been two reports of sharks caught by anglers on the Huntington Beach Pier.Revelations that senior US intelligence officials in the early days of the virus pandemic suppressed research indicating a Chinese lab leak as the origin of Covid-19 surfaced in a new Wall Street Journal report titled " Behind Closed Doors: The Spy-World Scientists Who Argued Covid Was a Lab Leak " late this week. The investigation by WSJ's Michael Gordon and Warren Strobel shows the disagreements within the intelligence community over Covid origins ... But an investigation by The Wall Street Journal shows that the disagreements among intelligence experts over what should be included in the report ran deeper than is publicly known . Nor were the FBI scientists the only ones who believed that the intelligence directorate's review didn't tell the whole story . Three scientists at the National Center for Medical Intelligence , part of the Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency, conducted a scientific study that concluded that Covid-19 was manipulated in a laboratory in a risky research effort. But that analysis was at odds with the assessment of their parent agency , the Defense Intelligence Agency, and wasn't incorporated in the report presented to Biden . -WSJ Specifically, who decided to exclude input from the Defense Department and the FBI—the only agency to conclude with "moderate confidence" that a lab leak was the likely origin—from the August 2021 briefing to President Biden and the subsequent official federal conclusion that Covid most likely originated naturally? David Asher , a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and former head of State Department investigations into Covid origins, joined Vince Coglianese , host of WMAL's "The Vince Coglianese Show," on Friday evening to discuss the cover-up of Covid's origins during the Biden administration. "We can confirm based on public commercial business records with Chinese government businesses were controlled by the Chinese intelligence service. I mean, the stuff about Hunter and James Biden , you know, his son and brother being tied to CEFC, a company that was infamously associated with the Ministry of State Security in China ... I think it has a lot to do with it, and that needs to be investigated as well. I mean, there's no logical reason why Biden would not continue the Covid investigation that I started. He was briefed on it and he buried , it" Asher said. Asher continued, " The Chinese created Covid . It was not Fauci - he did contribute science, technology, and US taxpayer dollars to it. So did the US State Department and United States Agency for International Development provided huge amounts of money to the Chinese for investigating bat coronavirus viruses and then doing in effect gain of function type research in China ." " We have a Deep State that is so out of control ..." Asher emphasized. He continued, "We have so much to do in the second Trump Administration to uncover the origin of Covid , assess the costs culpability and responsibility of the Chinese, and then go after our own government Deep State apparatus that covered this thing up with the Chinese in their own sort of parallel universe of a premeditated cover-up." "We had a senior scientist named Adrienne Keen who used to brief people like me at the State Department. She didn't tell us that she was also working for the World Health Organization, apparently at the time, as a contractor. I mean, like, I can't start the level of which this is crazy. I mean, the FBI's investigation clearly indicated that this thing came out of a lab based on a suspected animal accident ," the former State Department official said. He noted that the American people "will soon learn" the truth about the origins of Covid. "Remember Biden Declassified all the Covid intelligence, but nothing was actually put out there. There's a lot of intelligence that John Ratcliffe will get out the door very very soon ," Asher said. He added, "I've met with some of the NSEC team already about it. I know that Senator Paul, who is up on The Hill, will attack this with a bulldozer and machine gun if necessary to get to the bottom of this . The FBI just recently put out with its spokesman on the record that they maintain their investigation, and I wouldn't be surprised that there might even be criminal charges against some of these people involved - probably not Fauci himself because he'll get away forever with anything - but I wouldn't be surprised if Biden pardons him preemptively and probably pardons his brother preemptively. His brother did not create Covid but his brother was getting millions of dollars in money from the Chinese, which is why Biden didn't want to investigate the origin of Covid because it would get in the way of that uh relationship." Asher said, "The FBI is sitting on a huge case file of over 200 people that they ran a criminal investigation in effect ... and maybe we're going to see criminal charges because somebody in the US government needs to be blamed" for Covid . Separately on X, Asher wrote: "This was why I told people that we at State—via " deep State"—were partially to blame for the coverup . It wasn't the team I advised, certainly, leading the investigation, not Secretary Pompeo. It was a certain senior official in charge of "arms control" and his minions, including Keene . They were the ones who warned us repeatedly we were opening something akin to a Pandora's box , which would blow up in our faces. I made it clear whatever is inside the box, I didn't care if it blew up in THEIR faces —We needed to get to the bottom of what caused COVID, why the Chinese were covering it up and facilitating its release, and why NIH and a bunch of scientists they funded were in on the Fauci organized US coverup. Scientific Wuhangate continues but will be getting exposed under Donald Trump II. Much more to come, I hope." This was why I told people that we at State—via “deep State”—were partially to blame for the coverup. It wasn’t the team I advised, certainly, leading the investigation, not Secretary Pompeo. It was a certain senior official in charge of “arms control” and his minions, including... https://t.co/BGZMRpobWw In another X post, he said, " We all need to get ready to help President Trump make America truly Great again by holding the ChiComms accountable for mass murder and Fauci and "scientific" associates as accessories of the crime. I'm now triple deep black MAGA on COVID, fentanyl, and making China pay ." Thanks for listening. We all need to get ready to help President Trump make America truly Great again by holding the ChiComms accountable for mass murder and Fauci and “scientific” associates as accessories of the crime. I’m now triple deep black MAGA on COVID, fentanyl, and... Asher also noted on X, " President Trump absolutely should pull the plug on the WHO . It's a worse than useless organization. It totally failed us in the biggest public health crisis modern world history. It's a disgrace and a disservice to civilization." President Trump absolutely should pull the plug on the WHO. It’s a worse than useless organization. It totally failed us in the biggest public health crisis modern world history. It’s a disgrace and a disservice to civilization https://t.co/O2pXLGjsOl And this... Great analysis https://t.co/axR2vaavHc As well as, let's not forget about the documentary "Thank You, Dr. Fauci," which provides the American people with an understanding of Covid origins... @BiosafetyNow formed after the pandemic to combat Fauci’s reckless gain-of-function agenda, expose negligence, malfeasance and fraud. Scientists like @Bryce_Nickels and @jbkinney are working to retract illegitimate science papers secretly commissioned by Fauci and others 🧵3/15 pic.twitter.com/VTDO4BkLg9 The American people are set to receive a truth bomb about Covid origins—something Zero Hedge readers have been well aware of since January 2020 (see: here ).
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