Germany Sanctions Russia for Act of War / The Two Washington Posts / Trump Protects His Sons’ Investments (again!) / CIA Director Ratcliffe Advocates For Ukraine / The Oil Deal That Makes No Sense
Germany Declares Russia Responsible for the Drone Attack on Leipzig Halle Airport, Prepares Sanctions
Süddeutsche Zeitung
Ukrainian Antonov transport on the tarmac at Leipzig Halle airport at the time of an armed attack by three Russian drones laden with explosives. Photo: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa
Scott: While receiving inexplicably little attention in the United States where the media focus instead on Trump’s daily ration of bread and circuses, the Russian attack on a leading German airport has galvanized assessments across Europe to the effect that Russia’s war effort against Ukraine has now escalated to include targets in NATO members across Europe. Germany today announced the conclusion of its probe into the incident involving three armed Russian drones—this was a carefully planned armed attack involving drones and Russian intelligence agents on the ground. Moreover, it is inappropriate to brush this aside as more Russian “hybrid warfare,” because the drone attack was a full-throated act of conventional warfare that constitutes casus belli under the laws of war. Germany prepares a series of escalating sanctions against Russia as a result, and major NATO powers express their support. Countermeasures are likely to focus on disabling the Russian shadow fleet, from which drones are apparently being deployed. Who’s the outlier in the NATO club? As usual, Donald Trump. He continues to be a friend to the Kremlin and a grumbling participant in NATO at best. Kremlin strategy at this point is to highlight this difference, probably with a far more daring military assault on NATO’s eastern flank in response to which the US will do nothing.
Foreign Minister Wadephul announces tough measures against Moscow. The Consulate General in Bonn is to close, and the “Russian House” faces shutdown.
Following weeks of investigations by security agencies and intelligence services, the German government is convinced that Russia is behind the explosive-laden drone attack at Leipzig Airport. Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) and Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) announced on Tuesday evening during a joint appearance that investigators had traced the evidence back to Moscow. The explosives used, as well as the components and technology, were reportedly known from other Russian operations. Furthermore, the perpetrators involved pointed to orders originating from Moscow.
Initially, the government had remained cautious following the attack in early August. Interior Minister Dobrindt had at first attributed the assault only to “foreign powers.”
However, the information situation has since changed. German and international investigators and intelligence agencies have secured evidence, analyzed connection data, and reconstructed the plan of attack. On the evening of August 4, a drone rigged with explosives was discovered in the secure area of Leipzig/Halle Airport, situated among Ukrainian cargo planes. The airport serves as a key hub for aid to Ukraine.
The German government announced tough countermeasures. The Russian Consulate General in Bonn is to close on September 18. In addition, the contract for the “Russian House” in Berlin is being terminated, Wadephul said. The building in Berlin-Mitte—nominally intended to foster cultural and scientific exchange—is regarded as a covert espionage hub and a center for Russia to recruit agents. The planned closure of the facility aims to put a stop to these activities. Additionally, the German government is once again summoning the Russian ambassador, and entry controls for Russian nationals are being tightened.
Countermeasures include tackling the evasion of sanctions on oil exports by these vessels—a practice that has so far largely gone unpunished. Wadephul stated that pressure would be increased, though he did not provide specific details. On Tuesday, during an informal EU meeting of defence ministers in Ireland, State Secretary for Defence Sebastian Hartmann had already remarked that “all spotlights” must now be turned on the shadow fleet. Russia uses these often dilapidated tankers to circumvent international sanctions and finance its war of aggression against Ukraine.
The preliminary decision to attribute the incident to Russia had reportedly already been made on Monday evening during a strictly confidential meeting of high-ranking state secretaries from key ministries at the Chancellery. On Tuesday, Wadephul interrupted an official trip—which was supposed to take him from Algeria directly to a foreign ministers’ meeting in Ireland—to make a stopover in Berlin.
Invoking the NATO treaty is not currently part of the government’s planned response. Security experts had recently recommended that German policymakers trigger Article 4 of the NATO treaty in light of Moscow’s increasingly aggressive hybrid warfare against Western targets. This article mandates consultations whenever an ally perceives a threat to “the territorial integrity, political independence, or security of any of the Parties.” The article could still be invoked should the hybrid attacks from Russia persist or even intensify, it was further stated.
The Split Personality of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
Charles: Seven months ago the newsroom of The Washington Post was decimated, when 300 of its 800 journalists were fired.
Then a funny thing happened: the reporters left behind proved they were undaunted. All year they have been breaking one devastating story after another about the Trump administration, even though their owner, Jeff Bezos, now spends as much time as possible cozying up to the president.
The dual personality of the Post was particularly obvious yesterday when Post reporter Jonathan Edwards reported that more than half of the publicly known donors to Trump’s ballroom have won $50 billion in new or expanded Federal contracts in the last six months.
Most of these same 14 companies “are also facing federal enforcement actions over alleged wrongdoing or have had such actions suspended by the Trump administration since the start of Trump’s second term,” according to a new report from Public Citizen, a nonprofit.
Naturally, the single biggest winner was the military-industrial complex. Defense giant Lockheed Martin won about $43.8 billion in new or expanded contract funding since last fall, followed by Booz Allen Hamilton, with $4.2 billion, and Palantir with more than $1 billion.
The story noted that Amazon, founded by Post owner Bezos, was among the other contributors who won new contracts this year.
“These giant corporations aren’t funding the Trump ballroom fiasco out of the goodness of their hearts,” said Jon Golinger, a public policy advocate at Public Citizen and an author of the report. “They have massive interests before the federal government, and they hope to curry favor with, and receive favorable treatment from, the Trump administration.”
Construction at the site of the former East Wing, seen last week. (Anne Lebreton/AFP/Getty Images)
Unlike the news department, the new editorial board of The Washington Post has turned sharply to the right since the massive layoffs occurred earlier this year. So on the same day the news department was exposing the ballroom as the latest of the administration’s dozens of pay-for-play schemes, the opinion section was praising the latest 5-4 decision of the Supreme Court, which allowed Trump to proceed with the construction of his latest monstrosity.
The Court ruled in a case brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, one of whose members, Alison K. Hoagland, said she was injured by the aesthetic change being wrought on the White House.
The conservative majority of the Court (without chief justice John Roberts) said the National Trust didn’t have the proper standing to challenge the president’s right to desecrate the grounds of the White House. As Robert Reich wrote on Substack, if the National Trust (and its longtime member) “doesn’t have standing to complain about Trump’s mayhem on the People’s House, I can’t imagine who would.”
But The Washington Post editorial writers disagreed. Without ever mentioning that their boss was himself a beneficiary of the ballroom pay-for-play scheme, they asserted the Court’s decision was completely appropriate.
They never mentioned that Amazon was contributing to the ballroom’s construction.
Donald Trump Jr Boosts Polymarket Investment by Around $300 Million, Dad Steps in To Help Out
Wall Street Journal
Polymarket held a promotional event at a Washington, D.C., bar in March. Photo: Graeem Sloan/Bloomberg
Scott: I wonder why Trump is pulling out all the stops trying to block the states from licensing or regulating internet gambling, particularly where internet prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi are involved? Might it be because Trump family money is behind both of them in a big way?
The investment fund 1789 Capital, in which Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, is investing around $300 million into Polymarket, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The investment is part of a $1 billion round led by 1789 that would value Polymarket at $21 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
Polymarket declined to comment.
The investment will make 1789 one of Polymarket’s largest backers. Intercontinental Exchange, Polymarket’s largest investor, disclosed in July that its $1.6 billion stake in Polymarket amounted to 22% of the company’s shares outstanding.
Polymarket, along with rival Kalshi, has attracted controversy for permitting users to place bets on sports, which some regulators have criticized as gambling. Both platforms have listed markets that have led to charges of insider trading. Both also see more traders losing money than winning, The Journal previously reported.
1789 had previously invested a total of around $200 million into Polymarket, according to a person familiar with the investments.
Polymarket has a data partnership with Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal. Bloomberg previously reported that 1789 was leading the billion-dollar round.
1789 made its first investment in Polymarket before the 2024 election. That year, Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan was seen at a table with Trump Jr. and Omeed Malik, founder of 1789 Capital, at the Republican National Convention
After his father won the presidential election, Donald Trump Jr. joined 1789 as a partner and the firm invested in Polymarket again.
Earlier in August, Malik hosted a Republican fundraiser with Vice President JD Vance at Malik’s New York Hamptons home. Among the attendees were Trump Jr. and Polymarket’s chief executive, Shayne Coplan
The venture-capital firm’s success has attracted scrutiny from House Democrats. Last week, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D., Md.) wrote to 1789’s leadership demanding a list of the firm’s investments, communications with the government and information about its decision to hire Trump Jr.
