Trump-Kim Vietnam summit: explosive Cohen allegations look set to overshadow meeting – l

Bali  News and Views Editor's Comments:

It appears that Donald Trump is going to have more than a bad hair day in Hanoi, Vietnam tonight as he waits for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. 

Although they may sign a historic document ending the Korean War which has little significance as to the future of North Korea and nuclear arms elimination it will definitely be a headline after it is signed.

Shortly after dinner tonight I'm sure Trump will rush back to his room to watch his former private attorney and confident Michael Cohen give testimony in front of Congress, which is not going to be favorable.

I will be staying up past my bedtime in Bali and have canceled all meetings in the morning tomorrow morning in case this thing drags out into the early morning.

I will be watching the markets closely especially the US dollar which I have shorted against the Canadian dollar, precious metals and a few others.

What I think is going to happen tonight is revealing, convincing evidence that Trump committed not only bad judgment but possibly broke the law while in office.

There could be a call for impeachment even during the investigation or shortly thereafter.

At any rate Donald Trump is going to have a very bad night and I wouldn't be surprised if Kim Jong-un takes advantage of Trump's distraction to take advantage of him and get Trump to commit to things he wouldn't normally agree to.

Let's see if I am right.

______________________________________________

Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un have arrived in Hanoi for meeting to discuss denuclearisation but claims from Cohen seem likely to dominate
US negotiating 

position in disarray ahead of summit with North Korea
Cohen to call Trump a ‘racist’ and ‘cheat’ in first public hearing
LIVE Updated 8m ago



9m ago 08:02

Trump may have declared himself “in love” with Kim Jong-un but it appears their opposing food tastes are causing friction already. According to sources who spoke to CNN, White House officials keep intervening with this evening’s dinner menu to keep it “super simple” to suit Trump’s palette (his favourite food famously being a McDonalds Big Mac)


Kevin Liptak
✔@Kevinliptakcnn

Dinner drama: A source close to the planning of tonight’s Kim-Trump dinner tells CNN that as of a few hours ago the chefs were struggling to get a menu approved because officials from both countries —especially the White House — kept adjusting the menu to make it “super simple”
13
3:25 PM - Feb 27, 2019

A statement released by White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has provided a summary of the meaty issues discussed during Trump’s meetings earlier today with Vietnam’s President Nguyen Phu Trong and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. They included the strengthening of the economic and strategic ties between the two countries and Vietnam’s agreement to buy over $21bn worth of US-built airplanes and jet engines:
The leaders agreed on the need for continued progress toward the final, fully verified denuclearisation of the DPRK

They discussed ways to strengthen the United States—Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership, including by deepening political, security, economic, and people-to-people ties, and through cooperation on humanitarian and legacy of war issues.
The leaders also committed to promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific with shared principles of respect for sovereignty, peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international law, and freedom of navigation and overflight.
They welcomed the growing commercial relationship between these two countries, as demonstrated by today’s contract signings worth over $21 billion between United States companies Boeing, GE/CFM, and Sabre Corporation; and Vietnam companies VietJet, Bamboo Airways, and Vietnam Airlines.
Updated at 7.56am GMT

31m ago 07:40
What we know so far

Donald Trump is due to meet with Kim Jong-un tonight to discuss denuclearisation and engagement between the two countries. The two leaders arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam on Tuesday.

This is the second summit between the two leaders, following the historic first meeting between the leaders in June last year in Singapore.

They are due to meet at 6:30 pm local time for dinner and discussions, before continuing their talks tomorrow.

Trump has spent the morning meeting with Vietnamese leaders and signing commercial trade agreements with Vietnam. He has four hours free before his scheduled meeting with Kim Jong-un.

The talks look set to be overshadowed after explosive allegations about Trump were published by his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, ahead of a Congressional committee meeting tomorrow. Cohen is set to give evidence to a House committee on Wednesday, and has released his statement ahead of time.

In his statement, Cohen alleges Trump is a “conman”, a “racist” and “liar”who knew about the WikiLeaks trove of hacked Clinton campaign emails before they were released and lied about negotiating a real estate project in Russia during his presidential campaign.


Donald Trump, who is currently in his hotel with a clear afternoon in his schedule ahead of his meetings this evening, has not commented on Cohen’s allegations.

Michael Cohen will testify that Trump knew Roger Stone talked with WikiLeaks about DNC email dump

Bali News & Views Editors comments:

Most people my age bracket who lived through the Nixon debacle and eventual resignation of the President for committing a crime when he broke into Watergate offices will remember that John Dean was perhaps the most prominent man to bring down Nixon.

The similarities between John Dean and Michael Cohen are Amazing.

They both were right-hand men of the president of the United States accused of committing crimes which could lead to impeachment.

They both were offered a plea bargain deal and decided to reveal all about their boss at the time.

In a little under six hours hundreds of millions of people around the world will be glued to the television when John CohenGives live testimony to a special Congressional committee investigating Russian interference into the 2016 election.

Will Michael: be the John Dean of the Trump administration?

Time will tell stay tuned?

After testimony in closed hearing on Tuesday, president’s former lawyer will appear before House committee Wednesday

By Manu Raju, Senior Congressional Correspondent

(CNN)Donald Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen is prepared to testify that Trump was aware of longtime adviser Roger Stone's efforts to reach out to WikiLeaks in advance of its release of damaging information about Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, according to a copy of his public testimony submitted to Congress and obtained by CNN.

In a stunning 20-page statement provided Tuesday night to lawmakers, Cohen details a wide range of allegations against Trump -- from making racist comments about African-Americans to participating during his presidency in an illegal hush-money scheme to keep his alleged extramarital affairs quiet -- as well as suggesting Trump faked a medical condition to get out of serving in the Vietnam War.

And Cohen will provide new details saying Trump was engaged in an aggressive pursuit of a major project in Russia in 2016, alleging the President's attorneys edited Cohen's 2017 testimony when he lied to Congress, downplaying the efforts to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.
He says Trump never directly ordered him to lie to Congress but he believed he was carrying out an order given his interactions with Trump, who was making public statements about not having any business dealings with Russia.

In short, Cohen calls Trump a "racist," a "conman" and a "cheat."
In the testimony, Cohen will allege that, in 2016, he witnessed Trump taking a phone call from Stone, who was on speakerphone.

"Mr. Stone told Mr. Trump that he had just gotten off the phone with Julian Assange and that Mr. Assange told Mr. Stone that, within a couple of days, there would be a massive dump of emails that would damage Hillary Clinton's campaign," Cohen will say, according to his prepared testimony.
Trump responded, according to Cohen: "Wouldn't that be great."

Cohen's allegations, if true, would amount to the first time anyone with direct knowledge has said that the President had advance knowledge of the WikiLeaks dump of Clinton emails. Cohen also said the President's personal lawyers "reviewed and edited" his 2017 statements when Cohen lied to Congress about the Trump Organization's pursuit of a massive project in Moscow.
READ: Michael Cohen's opening statement to Congress
Stone -- who has been indicted on charges of making false statements, witness tampering and obstructing justice -- has denied discussing the matter with Trump or having any such interactions with WikiLeaks. He is fighting his charges in court.

Cohen's opening statement also suggests that Trump may have been aware in advance of a 2016 meeting set up by Donald Trump Jr. and Russians at Trump Tower -- something that Trump and his eldest son have long denied. Cohen will tell Congress that he witnessed Trump Jr., in June 2016, tell his father: "The meeting is all set."

Cohen acknowledges not knowing for sure that Trump's son's comments were in reference to the meeting with Russians.

"I also knew that nothing went on in Trump world, especially the campaign, without Mr. Trump's knowledge and approval," Cohen will say. "So I concluded that Don Jr. was referring to that June 2016 Trump Tower meeting about dirt on Hillary."

The White House has attacked Cohen's credibility, calling him someone who cannot be trusted given he has already pleaded guilty to lying.
When asked for comment on Cohen's prepared testimony, the White House referred to press secretary Sarah Sanders' Tuesday statement on Cohen's testimony.

"Disgraced felon Michael Cohen is going to prison for lying to Congress and making other false statements," Sanders said in that statement. "Sadly, he will go before Congress this week and we can expect more of the same. It's laughable that anyone would take a convicted liar like Cohen at his word, and pathetic to see him given yet another opportunity to spread his lies."
According to a copy of the opening statement he prepares to deliver to the House Oversight Committee Wednesday, Cohen says Trump lied repeatedly about a number of matters -- and made a host of racist statements.

House panel to Dems: Russia off limits in Cohen's public hearing
He also provides new details suggesting Trump was heavily involved in the pursuit of the Trump Tower Moscow project in 2016.

"To be clear, Mr. Trump knew of and directed the Trump Tower negotiations throughout the campaign and lied about it," Cohen will tell the committee. "He lied about it because he never expected to win the election. He also lied about it because he stood to make hundreds of millions of dollars on the Moscow real estate project."

Cohen says that Trump did not "directly" tell him to lie to Congress. "That's not how he operates," Cohen says.

But he says that Trump would tell him and the public he has "no business" with Russia, even as he was negotiating the Moscow project.
"In his way, he was telling me to lie," Cohen says.

ANALYSIS: What Michael Cohen needs to answer for
Cohen also says he's providing the panel with several documents to back up his allegations, including a check Trump wrote from his bank account to reimburse him for hush money payments to silence Stormy Daniels' story in 2016 about her alleged affair with Trump. Trump denies having an affair with Daniels.
But in the testimony, Cohen recounts how he was visiting Trump in February 2017 in the White House when the President assured him his reimbursement checks were coming in the mail. He said Trump made 11 payments of $35,000 each to reimburse him in the hush-money scheme, saying he's providing the House panel with a copy of an August 2017 check signed by the President from his personal bank account.

"The President of the United States thus wrote a personal check for the payment of hush money as part of a criminal scheme to violate campaign finance laws," Cohen will say.

Cohen also says he's providing the committee with copies of letters he wrote threatening Trump's high school, college and the College Board not to release his grades or test scores.

Moreover, Cohen says he has documentation showing Trump arranging a bidder at an auction to purchase a portrait of himself, which he later reimbursed the bidder for from his charitable organization.

And he provides information about Trump's decision to avoid serving in the Vietnam War. Cohen was directed to avoid answering reporters' questions about the matter, he will say. Trump, who has long claimed his deferment was due to a bone spur, had no medical records to provide because there was no surgery, Cohen said.

"You think I'm stupid, I wasn't going to Vietnam," Cohen recalls Trump as saying.

In jarring testimony, Cohen also says Trump repeatedly made racist comments about African-Americans. While driving through a poor neighborhood in Chicago, Trump allegedly told Cohen that "only black people could live that way."

Cohen added that Trump said that African-Americans "would never vote for him because they were too stupid."

Is Michael Cohen going to cause the demise of Trump like John Dean did to Nixon?

Bali News & Views Editors comments:

After watching former White House attorney representing tricky Dick Nixon John Dean describe on CNN a few minutes ago about what tomorrow is going to be like for a very similar person Michael Cohen I decided to refresh my memory on John Dean.

Most people my age bracket who lived through the Nixon debacle and eventual resignation of the President for committing a crime when he broke into Watergate offices will remember that John Dean was perhaps the most prominent man to bring down Nixon.

The similarities between John Dean and Michael Cohen are Amazing.

They both were right-hand men of the president of the United States accused of committing crimes which could lead to impeachment.

They both were offered a plea bargain deal and decided to reveal all about their boss at the time.

In a little under 11 hours hundreds of millions of people around the world will be glued to the television when John CohenGives live testimony to a special Congressional committee investigating Russian interference into the 2016 election.

Will Michael: be the John Dean of the Trump administration?

Time will tell stay tuned?

After testimony in closed hearing on Tuesday, president’s former lawyer will appear before House committee Wednesday

• US politics live – latest news

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0:53

 Michael Cohen: 'I appreciate the opportunity to clear the record' – video

Michael Cohen, the longtime lawyer and aide to Donald Trump, testified before the Senate intelligence committee on Tuesday in the first of three congressional appearances this week that could contain explosive testimony about how Trump allegedly broke the law while in office, according to US media reports.

Cohen, who once said he would “take a bullet” for Trump but has since turned against his former boss, appeared before the Senate panel in a closed session.

Over the course of the hearings, NBC News said Cohen plans to “provide evidence of alleged criminal conduct by Trump since he became president”, while the New York Times reported Cohen “will use documents and his personal experiences to support his statements”.

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Cohen will appear in another closed session before the House intelligence committee on Thursday. But all eyes will be on what the former Trump aide reveals on Wednesday, when he is to testify before the Houseoversight and reform committee in a public hearing.

Tensions rose ahead of the long-awaited session, when the Florida lawmaker Matt Gaetz on Tuesday appeared to threaten Cohen on Twitter.

Matt Gaetz

✔@mattgaetz

Hey @MichaelCohen212 - Do your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends? Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if she’ll remain faithful when you’re in prison. She’s about to learn a lot...

15.4K

5:12 AM - Feb 27, 2019

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Cohen’s lawyer, Lanny Davis, said his team would not respond to Gaetz’ allegations, “except to say we trust that his colleagues in the House, both Republicans and Democrats, will repudiate his words and his conduct”.

Cohen will be testifying under penalty of perjury but will probably be met with skepticism from Republicans who will seek to draw attention to a track record of dishonesty.

The White House sought to discredit Cohen on Tuesday before the hearings began.

The White House spokeswoman, Sarah Sanders, issued a statement saying he was “going to prison for lying to Congress and making other false statements”.

Sanders said it was “laughable that anyone would take a convicted liar like Cohen at his word, and pathetic to see him given yet another opportunity to spread his lies”.

The latest major Trump resignations and firings

 

Read more

Lanny Davis, Cohen’s lawyer, told the Times that Cohen’s response to questions about his credibility will be: “I take full responsibility, I lied in the past; now you have to decide if I’m telling the truth.”

Cohen was sentenced to 36 months in prison in December for crimes including lying to Congress about Trump’s business dealings with Russia, and facilitating illegal payments. Cohen is set to surrender on 6 May to begin his sentence, as ordered by a federal judge.

In his guilty plea, Cohen said: “I made these misstatements to be consistent with Individual 1’s political messaging and out of loyalty to Individual 1.”

Individual 1 was a reference to Trump.

According to the New York Times, Cohen is expected to discuss what he says he knows of contacts between Trump and Russia, and lay out details on hush payments – which Cohen says were directed by Trump – made to two women, porn actor Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, during Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Trump denies the allegations and says that Cohen lied to get a lighter sentence.

US lawmakers are likely to hear Cohen testify that Trump asked him several times about a proposed skyscraper project in Moscow long after he secured the Republica–n presidential nomination, according to reports.

Cohen’s assertion that Trump was inquiring about the project as late as June 2016, if true, would show Trump remained personally interested in a business venture in Russia well into his candidacy.

Trump faces a legal reckoning – but are his worst troubles yet to come?

 

Read more

On 29 November, Cohen pleaded guilty to lying to Congress by telling lawmakers in 2017 that all efforts relating to the Moscow project had ceased by January 2016. In fact, Cohen said, those efforts continued until June 2016.

Trump has repeatedly denied any collusion took place between his campaign and Moscow.

Cohen is also expected to discuss what he knows about a meeting between Trump campaign associates and a Russian lawyer in Trump Tower before the 2016 election, a matter that is of particular interest to special counsel Robert Mueller and congressional investigators.

But he is only expected to discuss matters related to Russia in the closed-door interviews with the congressional intelligence committees, so as not to interfere with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and links to Trump’s campaign.

Cohen’s week of interviews come as House Democrats launch multiple investigations into Trump’s ties to Russia and conflict-of-interest issues within the administration. House Republicans in the last Congress investigated whether Trump’s campaign coordinated with Russia, but ended that inquiry over Democratic objections, saying that there was no evidence that they did so. The Senate’s Russia investigation continues.

Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this article

John Dean

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For other people named John Dean, see John Dean (disambiguation).

John Dean
John Dean in the White House, 1973
White House Counsel
In office July 9, 1970 – April 30, 1973
President	Richard Nixon
Preceded by	Charles Colson
Succeeded by	Leonard Garment
Personal details
Born	John Wesley Dean III October 14, 1938 (age 80) Akron, Ohio, U.S.
Political party	Republican (formerly) Independent
Children	1
Education	Colgate University College of Wooster (BA) Georgetown University (JD)

John Wesley Dean III (born October 14, 1938) is a former attorney who served as White House Counsel for United States President Richard Nixon from July 1970 until April 1973, where he became deeply involved in events leading up to the Watergate burglaries and the subsequent Watergate scandal cover-up. He was referred to as the "master manipulator of the cover-up" by the Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI).^[1] He pleaded guilty to a single felony count, in exchange for becoming a key witness for the prosecution. This ultimately resulted in a reduced prison sentence, which he served at Fort Holabird outside Baltimore, Maryland.

Shortly after the Watergate hearings, Dean wrote about his experiences in a series of books and traveled around the United States to lecture. Dean is currently a commentator on contemporary politics, authoring books, and writing a column for FindLaw's Writ online magazine. He is strongly critical of neoconservatism and the Republican Party, and is a registered Independent. He has been strongly critical of Presidents George W. Bushand Donald Trump.^[2][3]

One Day, Platinum Will Shock The Market

Bali news and views editor's comments:

Lawrence playing the markets While on vacation in Italy

As most of my readers are well aware I've been in precious metals as a dealer or investor since 1978.

I made a bundle back in 1978 to 1980 and several times along the way.

Many of you may remember my prediction years ago that palladium which was selling at $200 an ounce would hit $800 an ounce which it did when I sold. I wish I would've held it because now it's $1,500 an ounce.

One metal that I believe is completely underpriced is platinum-selling right now roughly at $800 or $500 below the price of gold. There is absolutely no fundamental or technical reason for this.

This is why I agree with the gentleman below that platinum is going to surprise everyone. I've been buying on dips since last year this year made substantial profits on it already.

In fact this week there are pending strikes in South Africa at mines that specialize in platinum production which could cause platinum to surge. It may rise above gold where it normally is.

Remember you can start a platinum investment as little as $90 for platinum 1/10 oz coin, put in your safety deposit box and forget about it. You'll thank me in the future.

I don't sell the metal so I have no reason to recommend it other than to help you make money.

Feb. 11, 2019 6:00 AM ET

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 About: ETFS Physical Platinum Shares ETF (PPLT), Includes: AAAU, AGQ, BAR, CEF, DBP, DBS, DGL, DGLD, DGP, DGZ, DSLV, DZZ, GLD, GLDI, GLDM, GLDW, GLL, GLTR, IAU, IAUF, OUNZ, PALL, PHYS, PLTM, PSLV, PTM, QGLDX, SGOL, SHNY, SIVR, SLV, SLVO, SPPP, UBG, UGL, UGLD, USLV, USV, ZSL

Andrew Hecht

Commodities, long/short equity, medium-term horizon, long-term horizon

MARKETPLACE

Hecht Commodity Report

(17,650 followers)

Summary

The laggard for too long.

Weak versus gold since 2014.

Weak versus palladium since 2017.

Even Rhodium has soared.

PPLT on all dips for the long term.

Looking for more? I update all of my investing ideas and strategies to members of Hecht Commodity Report. Get started today »

We heard the word "patience" from the Fed last week when the U.S. central bank backtracked from their hawkish approach to monetary policy that dominated their decisions in 2018. Patience is "the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset." The synonyms for the term are forbearance, tolerance, restraint, resignation, stoicism, fortitude, sufferance, and endurance.

The Fed pledged that they would take a more prudent approach to increasing the Fed Funds rate over the coming months, but it will be economic data that ultimately drives their decision-making process. Following the late January message from the central bank, many market participants were anything but patient when it came to their approach to investing and trading. Stocks rallied in the wake of the Fed meeting as many called the pivot from a hawkish monetary policy the "Powell Put" on the stock market.

I have been a patient investor in the platinum market for far longer than I would like to remember. I have bought the metal on a scale-down basis since 2017 and have watched the price deteriorate and evaporate. With a renewed sense of fortitude, I am waiting for the day when platinum finally reflects its true nature as one of the rarest precious metals with a myriad of industrial applications. Based on the price action in gold, palladium, and even the rhodium markets, platinum remains far too cheap at its current price and patience is the one virtue I must remember so that I can participate when the long overdue correction to the upside finally arrives.

The Aberdeen Standard Physical Platinum Shares ETF product (PPLT) is a highly liquid instrument that does an excellent job tracking the price action in the platinum market as it holds 100% of its assets in platinum bullion.

The laggard for too long

Platinum continues to be a mangy precious dog with fleas, and on Thursday, February 7, the market provided me with another reminder of how non-precious metal continues to be these days. Gold settled Thursday's session with a loss of only one tick or 10 cents per ounce on the active month futures contract. Silver rose by 1.2 cents, and palladium futures posted a $6.50 per ounce gain on the day. On a day when three of the four precious metals that trade on the COMEX and NYMEX futures exchange were quiet to higher, platinum lost $16.50 per ounce on the active month April futures contract which put the price back below the $800 per ounce level as it settled at $797.30.