Good morning. Here’s your Early Warning for 19 July 2018. (All times Eastern.)
White House
The President is scheduled to receive his intelligence briefing, meet with Secretary Mattis and then have lunch with Secretary Pompeo.
State Department
State Department officials are scheduled to meet with the Chinese ambassador and the Korean National Assembly in separate, closed-door meetings today.
Defense Department
There are no publicly scheduled events for the DoD’s top officials.
The Carl Vinson (CVN-70) was last reported in the Hawaii Area of Operations. The Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) is reportedly in the East Atlantic, and the Ronald Reagan (CVN-76) is in the Philippine Sea. Conflict requiring a Carrier Strike Group does not appear imminent.
Congress
Significant House Activity:
- The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence will hold a hearing on the Chinese threat to the U.S. Government and private sector research. *
Significant Senate Activity:
- The Energy and Natural Resource Committee will hold a hearing on the proposals to reorganize the Departments of Energy and the Interior.
* Reporting will appear in the Strategic Intelligence Summary or National Intelligence Bulletin.
Economy/Finance
President Trump and the European Union are staring down the barrel of a gun where it concerns trade tariffs. President Trump has warned that the EU needs to lower tariffs on U.S. goods or he’ll be forced to respond with U.S. tariffs, namely on automobiles and parts. This morning, an EU policy advisor tweeted: “Either [EU president] Juncker manages to convince Trump to de-escalate when they meet next week or keep your seatbelts fastened”. [source]
Weather
The National Hurricane Center reports that tropical cyclone activity is not expected during the next 48 hours.
Drought conditions persist across much of the Southwest.
What I’m Looking at this Morning
Trump: Supporting tiny NATO ally Montenegro could start World War 3
Marines practice machine gun tactic to take out Russian vehicles
US not prepared to fight China, near-peer competitors
Notable Quotable
“A decade ago, America was home to nearly a third (153) of the world’s 500 largest companies by revenue … Our share is now a quarter (126). Over the same 10 years, meanwhile, China boosted its own representation on this venerable list from 29 companies to 111.” – Clifton Leaf, Axios
