Haley Takes Potshots at Trump, Apologizes for Civil War Gaffe in ‘SNL’ Appearance

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Haley Takes Potshots at Trump, Apologizes for Civil War Gaffe in ‘SNL’ Appearance

(Headline USA) Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley poked fun at herself over a campaign misstep during a Saturday Night Live appearance, but her primary target was GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump.

Haley joined the long-running comedy show’s leftist cast in an opening skit Saturday mocking the former president over his refusal to debate GOP primary rivals and questioning his mental fitness.

“Had a blast tonight on SNL!” she tweeted early Sunday. Know it was past Donald’s bedtime so looking forward to the stream of unhinged tweets in the a.m.”

The segment featured a faux CNN town hall with Trump in Columbia, South Carolina, which holds the next GOP nominating contest on Feb. 24.

SNL‘s Kenan Thompson and Punkie Johnson portrayed hosts Charles Barkley and Gayle King, respectively, and James Austin Johnson was Trump—a role he assumed in 2021 following the departure of accused killer Alec Baldwin.

Haley, a former South Carolina governor, portrayed an audience member who was introduced as “someone who describes herself as a concerned South Carolina voter” when  called upon to question the candidate.

“My question is, ‘Why won’t you debate Nikki Haley?’” she said.

“Oh my God, it’s her, the woman who was in charge of security on Jan. 6. It’s Nancy Pelosi,” Johnson’s Trump responded.

During a campaign speech in New Hampshire last month, Trump seemed to confuse Haley, who was his U.N. ambassador, with Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., the former House speaker, asserting that Haley was in charge of security at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Some have argued that Trump outwitted the leftist media, forcing them to acknowledge that Pelosi was responsible for the breach of the Capitol in their efforts to correct his misstatement.

After the town hall moderators corrected the stand-in Trump, Haley asked, “Are you doing OK, Donald? You might need a mental competency test.”

Johnson’s Trump told Haley: “You know what I did. I took the test and I aced it, OK? Perfect score. They said I’m 100% mental.”

The final question in the skit came from SNL host Ayo Edebiri, portraying another audience member, who questioned Haley about the root cause of the American Civil War.

The candidate, during a town hall in December in New Hampshire, was asked about the reason for the war, and she did not mention slavery in her response. She walked back her comments hours later.

“I was just curious, what would you say was the main cause of the Civil War?” Edebiri asked Haley during the show. “Do you think it starts with an ‘S’ and ends with a ‘lavery’?”

Haley replied: “Yep, I probably should have said that the first time,” before saying, “And live from New York, it’s ‘Saturday Night.’

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

Biden Cites Fabricated Meeting w/ French Leader Who Died in 1996 

Luis Cornelio
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Biden Cites Fabricated Meeting w/ French Leader Who Died in 1996 

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) President Joe Biden butchered a story about meeting with global leaders during a campaign speech in Las Vegas, Nevada—falsely claiming he had recently met with a former French president who passed away decades ago. 

On Monday, the 81-year-old president inaccurately stated that in 2021, he had spoken with former French President François Mitterrand, whom he also incorrectly identified as being from Germany.

“Right, right, right after I was elected, I went to what they call a ‘G7’ meeting, all the NATO leaders,” Biden declared, as reported by the National Pulse. “I sat down and I said, ‘America is back,’ and Mitterrand from Germany, I mean from France, looked at me, and said, said, ‘You know, why, how long you back for?’” 

Notably, Mitterrand concluded his presidency in 1995 and passed away a year later. On the other hand, Biden assumed the presidency in 2021, with Emmanuel Macron holding the French presidency at that time.

The former president’s statements referred to the Capitol riots on Jan. 6, 2021, a focal point in Biden’s campaign.

In the same falsehood-laden speech, Biden seemed to reference former Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel, who purportedly told the newly-elected president in 2021: “What would you say, Mr. President, if you picked up the paper tomorrow in The London Times and The London Times said a thousand people had broken into the House of Commons to ‘stop the election of the Prime Minister?’”

Notably, the National Pulse debunked some of Biden’s verbal inaccuracies, including the fact that the prime minister in the United Kingdom is not “elected,” and the “London Times” is not an actual newspaper.

In 2022, Biden confused Macron with Mitterrand, leading the White House to edit the official transcript, inserting Macron’s name in brackets to rectify the error.

The verbal gaffes come as Biden seeks re-election ahead of the 2024 election, where he is likely to face off with his 2020 opponent, former President Donald Trump.

Trump has made Biden’s verbal competency a major campaign issue. Despite facing constant negative coverage and several Democrat-led indictments, several polls indicate the former president taking the lead.

CNN Axes New Morning Show after Multiple Scandals, Poor Ratings

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CNN Axes New Morning Show after Multiple Scandals, Poor Ratings

(Headline USA) CNN axed its new morning show this week as the network’s ratings continued to crater, according to The Guardian.

CNN This Morning, launched by ousted former network CEO Chris Licht, featured anchors Don Lemon, Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.

Lemon, a former prime-time star who had been exiled to the morning show, was later fired following a series of controversies that included making misogynist comments about his female co-anchors.

Collins, meanwhile, was promoted to fill the 9 p.m. time slot of another disgraced ex-host, Chris Cuomo.

Starting this week, the morning show will no longer air, and Harlow will be reassigned, new CNN boss Mark Thompson said in a memo.

The 50 or more producers and staffers on the show have also been let go and asked to reapply for different positions, the memo said.

In place of CNN This Morning, anchor Kasie Hunt’s show will now run until 7 a.m., and CNN News Central will move up to run from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m.

Another change to CNN’s line-up: Jim Acosta, the former White House correspondent known for his testy exchanges with former President Donald Trump and his aides, will anchor a new daily one-hour show beginning at 10 a.m.

This “change in strategic direction” was “not a reflection on the talent, expertise and dedication of the New York based editorial production and operations teams who’ve worked on our morning output,” said Thompson, who took over as CNN’s CEO last August. “They’re among the best in the business.”

Rather, the shake-up was “inevitable in an industry undergoing a revolution,” he claimed.

CNN This Morning was plagued by multiple scandals thanks to Lemon, who was ousted from the network last April.

Lemon reportedly clashed with his co-hosts Harlow and Collins repeatedly, but he was finally cut loose after making derogatory comments about GOP presidential candidates Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy on air.

In a statement, Lemon claimed his firing was due to “larger issues” that were at play.

“I was informed this morning by my agent that I have been terminated by CNN. I am stunned,” he wrote in a post on Twitter.

“After 17 years at CNN I would have thought that someone in management would have had the decency to tell me directly,” he added. “At no time was I ever given any indication that I would not be able to continue to do the work I have loved at the network.”

White House Forced to Deny Report of Biden Calling Netanyahu a ‘Bad F***ing Guy’

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White House Forced to Deny Report of Biden Calling Netanyahu a ‘Bad F***ing Guy’

(Headline USA) The White House was forced to deny a report this weekend that President Joe Biden blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “bad f***ing guy.”

According to Politico columnist Jonathan Martin, Biden is “deeply suspicious” of Netanyahu, leading him to privately insult the top Israeli official in conversations with aides.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates rejected the report, claiming “the president did not say that, nor would he.” Bates insisted that Biden and Netanyahu have a “decades-long relationship that is respectful in public and in private.”

But according to Martin, Biden has for years held a “deep-seated fear” of Netanyau taking advantage of the U.S.

This concern has allegedly grown in the wake of Israel’s retaliation against Hamas, with Biden warning his advisers that Netanyahu could “drag the U.S. into a wider war in the Middle East, a conflict that would ensure American weapons keep flowing to the region, troops soon follow and, in the maelstrom, international pressure on him to agree to a Gaza cease-fire and his domestic political difficulties both dissipate,” Martin wrote.

Biden, who is notorious for berating and belittling White House staff, has also privately insulted former President Donald Trump, according to Politico, calling him a “sick f***.”

On a separate occasion, Biden also said of Trump: “What a f***ing a**hole the guy is.”

Senior Trump campaign adviser Chris Lacivita argued Biden’s derogatory comments shouldn’t come as a surprise.

“It’s a shame that Crooked Joe Biden disrespects the presidency both publicly and privately,” Lacivita told Politico. “But then again, it’s no surprise he disrespects the 45th president the same way he disrespects the American people with his failed policies.” 

The Trump campaign has continued to capitalize on the report, warning voters that Biden’s opinion of Trump doesn’t stop with just Trump.

“Biden will spit on us & call us every curse word in the dictionary,” the Trump campaign wrote in an email. “And I know with your patriotic support at this very moment, WE WILL STOP HIM!” 

Elon Musk: Biden Allowing Mass Illegal Immigration to Stack Dem. Voter Rolls

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Elon Musk: Biden Allowing Mass Illegal Immigration to Stack Dem. Voter Rolls

(Headline USA) Billionaire Elon Musk argued over the weekend that the Biden administration was deliberately allowing millions of illegal immigrants to flood the country in order to stack the Democrat voter rolls before Election Day.

Musk has been outspoken on the border crisis since visiting the southern border and meeting with Texas officials late last year. He pointed out that part of what is drawing so many illegals to the country was the fact that they know they won’t be deported with President Joe Biden in office.

“Homeland Security Secretary [Alejandro] Mayorkas issued written guidance making it clear that: Illegal presence alone is not grounds for deportation,” Musk tweeted.

“Criminal charges, convictions or gang membership alone are not enough for deportation,” he added. “You basically have to be a convicted axe murderer to be deported!”

Musk cited a recent example in which several migrants attacked two New York City police officers near Times Square.

Six of the seven migrants involved in the attack have been released without bail under the policies established by George Soros-backed District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

“As happened this week, you can literally assault police officers in broad daylight in New York, be released with no bail, give everyone the finder and ‘still’ not be deported!!” Musk wrote. “Outrageous.”

The reason the Biden administration was allowing this is simple, he noted.

“That’s because every deportation is a lost vote,” Musk said. “They are importing as many votes as possible before the elections.”

Musk also seemed to throw his weight behind the Republican Party’s effort to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. And when one user wrote that Mayorkas should “face criminal charges for blatantly breaking his oath of office,” Musk replied, “I agree.”

Non-governmentat organizations helping the Biden administration facilitate illegal immigration should also face charges, Musk added.

“NGO personnel who deliberately and repeatedly broke the law to facilitate illegal immigration should face prosecution immediately!” Musk wrote.

Eric Adams’ Admin to Give Illegals Pre-Paid Credit Cards

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Eric Adams’ Admin to Give Illegals Pre-Paid Credit Cards

(Headline USA) Despite complaining about the financial toll the open-border crisis was taking on New York City, Mayor Eric Adams launched a pilot program this month to provide asylum seekers with pre-paid credit cards, the New York Post reported.

The $53 million program, run by New Jersey-based Mobility Capital Finance, will provide illegal immigrants who arrive in New York City with the cards to use on food and other basic amenities.

The city claims the cards can only be used at bodegas, grocery stores, supermarkets and convenient stores. It said migrants would have to sign an affidavit agreeing to spend the funds only on food and baby supplies or they would be kicked out of the program.

The amount on each credit card would vary, depending on the size of the family and whether they were employed, according to the contract with Mobility Capital Finance. A family of four would be offered $1,000 per month. 

The cards would get refilled every 28 days.

The initiative will start with 500 migrant families staying at the Roosevelt Hotel in midtown, Manhattan and replace the current food service offered to the migrants. If it is successful, it will expand to all migrant families who arrive in New York and are put up in short-term hotels, which is around 15,000 migrants currently.

“Not only will this provide families with the ability to purchase fresh food for their culturally relevant diets and the baby supplies of their choosing, but the pilot program is expected to save New York City more than $600,000 per month, or more than $7.2 million annually,” Adams spokesperson Kayla Mamelak said in a statement.

Mamelak did not specify how the additional $53 million in spending would ultimately save the city money.

Adams has demanded additional funding from the Biden administration to manage the influx of migrants to the city, warning the economic consequences of mass illegal immigration would “destroy” New York City.

His office did not explain how continuing to provide financial incentives for migrants to travel to New York would reduce the flow of migration.

Trump-Friendly Rapper Arrested after Winning Big at Grammy Awards

Jacob Bruns
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Trump-Friendly Rapper Arrested after Winning Big at Grammy Awards

(Jacob Bruns, Headline USA) Rapper Killer Mike, who had recently expressed doubts about reelecting President Joe Biden, was arrested after winning several Grammy Awards on Sunday, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Killer Mike (aka Michael Render) had received several awards at the ceremony, including best rap song, best rap performance and the best rap album.

Police were hesitant to provide reasons for his detainment other than mentioning an altercation.

“At around 4 p.m., an individual was detained at [Crypto.com Arena] for a physical altercation,” a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman noted.

“The individual is currently being questioned,” added the spokesman. “I cannot confirm the identity of the individual until the person is charged. The investigation is ongoing.”

Later in the evening, the LAPD published a Twitter post noting that the rapper was in the process of being released after being booked on a misdemeanor battery charge.

Notably, Killer Mike had recently denounced Biden in a Friday appearance on Bill Maher’s Real Time.

After Maher asked his feelings about the upcoming election, however, he stopped short of endorsing former President Donald Trump, the GOP frontrunner, who has received growing support from the black community, including several high-profile rap stars.

“My feeling is, pick your policy, not your person,” Killer Mike suggested, noting that the policies chosen by the next president will inherently affect people for generations.

Maher pressed Killer Mike to say more.

“I’m for black people,” Killer Mike said, wishing everyone a good Black History Month.

Failing to secure any solid commitments, Maher asked, “You can’t get yourself to say vote for Biden over Trump?”

“Can he get himself to apologize for the crime bill?” the rapper questioned in response, presumably alluding to Biden’s 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, which has been the cause for some controversy on the Left.

Killer Mike also suggested that Biden needed to “get his head out of his a**” and ask black people what they want and how the federal government can help them.

Scientists Suggest Giant Space Umbrella to Block Sun’s Rays

Jacob Bruns
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Scientists Suggest Giant Space Umbrella to Block Sun’s Rays

(Jacob Bruns, Headline USA) A group of Israeli scientists became the latest climate alarmists to promote the radical idea of blocking the sun to prevent global warming, while failing to take into account the possible unintended consequences, the New York Times reported.

Globalists like the World Economic Forum and billionaire Bill Gates have floated similar theories involving the use of “geoengineering,” such as creating an atmospheric layer of reflective particles.

Yet, none may seem more like the sinister plot of a James Bond story than the latest proposal, to create and launch a massive space umbrella.

The space umbrella would theoretically be sent into space between the earth and the sun to block some substantial proportion of the sun’s ultraviolet rays.

According to Yoram Rozen, a physics professor and the director of the Asher Space Research Institute at Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, it would give scientists a chance to show the world how far technology can go in manipulating nature.

“We can show the world, ‘Look, there is a working solution, take it, increase it to the necessary size,’” he said.

Other scientists expressed interest in the project as well.

Istvan Szapudi, an astronomer at the University of Hawaii, proposed tethering the umbrella to an asteroid to hold it in place.

“I’m not saying this will be the solution, but I think everybody has to work toward every possible solution,” said Szapudi, who also claimed that if 10% of military spending in the world were given up, that money could be used to pay him and his colleagues to create and launch the umbrella.

“Saving the Earth and giving up 10 percent of your weapons to destroy things is actually a pretty good deal in my book,” he said.

The idea was initially proposed in 2006 by Roger Angel, a professor at the University of Arizona.

Angel suggested at the time that the project was, in fact, feasible and might lead to a reversal or at least mitigation of what was then known as global warming.

“It’s just like you just turned a knob down on the sun,” Angel said, “and you don’t mess with the atmosphere.”

Still, not all climate-change scientists agree that the space umbrella is a good idea.

Susanne Baur, from the European Center for Research and Advanced Training in Scientific Computation in France, argued that the umbrella would be massively expensive and could be easily damaged in space.

As a result, Earth could be suddenly hit by massive amounts of radiation if the umbrella failed, leading to potential catastrophe.

Silver Demand Expected to Hit Second-Highest Level on Record in 2024

Money Metals News Service
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Silver Demand Expected to Hit Second-Highest Level on Record in 2024

(Mike Maharrey, Money Metals News Service) Silver demand is expected to rise 1 percent, hitting 1.2 billion ounces in 2024, the second-highest level on record, according to projections by the Silver Institute.

Industrial demand for silver is expected to lead the growth in global demand this year with a 4 percent increase to a record 690 million ounces. That would build on the all-time high industrial demand in 2023. Continued growth in the solar energy sector and the automotive industry will continue to be key drivers of growth.

The push for green energy is expected to provide long-term support for the silver market.

According to the Silver Institute, global photovoltaic installations significantly exceeded market expectations in 2023, and new capacity additions are forecast to reach another record high this year. Silver offtake will also benefit from a technological breakthrough bringing new, higher-efficiency N-type solar cells into mass production. These solar cells use even more silver than the older technology.

According to a 2022 research paper by scientists at the University of New South Wales, solar manufacturers could consume over 20 percent of the current annual silver supply by 2027. And by 2050, solar panel production will use approximately 85–98 percent of the current global silver reserves.

Some analysts speculate that silver demand for photo production will eventually flatten as the industry develops cheaper alternatives to the white metal. But according to the paper, even if the industry finds ways to reduce the use of silver in individual panels, overall demand will still increase.

The results show that the current rate of reduction in silver consumption is not sufficient to avoid increasing silver demand from the PV industry and that the transition to high-efficiency technologies including TOPCon (a more advanced N-type silicon cell technology, first scaled in 2019) and SHJ (Silicon heterojunction solar cells, which are very efficient) could greatly increase silver demand, posing price and supply risks.

The green energy sector should also remain relatively recession-proof due to government commitments to funding it.

Meanwhile, a projected recovery in the consumer electronics market should further boost industrial silver demand.   

The silver jewelry market is also projected to set a record in 2024, rising 6 percent. A resurgence in Indian jewelry demand is expected to drive the increase.

The Silver Institute expects investment demand to decline in 2024, sagging to a 6-year low. According to its analysis, demand in the U.S. will likely lead the way as stocks surge and economic growth thanks to anticipated Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.

There is a blind spot in the Silver Institute’s analysis. It does not seem to anticipate anything breaking in the U.S. economy due to higher interest rates. A financial crisis would crater that expected economic growth and tank the stock market. There are already signs of stress in the banking system and the commercial real estate market is ripe for a crisis.

If something breaks in the economy, this scenario would likely send investment demand soaring, but could put a damper on industrial offtake.

On the supply side, the Silver Institute projects a recovery in mine output, pushing total supply up 3 percent to an 8-year high of 1.02 billion ounces.

This will be somewhat offset by a decline in silver recycling.

Even with the recovery of mine output, the Silver Institute projects another market deficit in 2024 with demand outstripping supply. This would mark the fourth straight year of a structural market deficit and further cut into silver reserves.

Although this year’s deficit is expected to ease by 9 percent to 176 Moz (194 Moz in 2023), it will still be exceptionally high by historical standards.

Silver Is Not Priced for These Market Dynamics

As we reported last month, silver is not priced for these market dynamics.

At between $22 and $23 an ounce, silver is on sale.

The gold:silver ratio has spread to almost 90:1. That means it takes almost 90 ounces of silver to buy one ounce of gold. This is a historically wide spread.

The average gold:silver ratio in the modern era has generally ranged between 40:1 and 60:1. When the ratio widens far beyond that range, as it has in recent years, it typically returns toward that mean.

For instance, the ratio fell to 30:1 in 2011 and below 20:1 in 1979.

The pandemic era provides a more recent example. As the Fed cut rates and launched quantitative easing to prop up a shaky economy caused by rate hikes the prior year, the gold:silver ratio climbed to nearly 93:1. As sliver rallied along with gold, the gold:silver ratio plunged from over 100:1 to just over 64:1, close to the high end of the historical norm.

It’s pretty clear that silver isn’t priced for the current demand dynamics.

A Banking Crisis Is Quietly Brewing

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A Banking Crisis Is Quietly Brewing

(Stefan Gleason, Money Metals News Service) The Federal Reserve’s most recent policy statement came with a curious omission. Fed officials removed language from previous statements that proclaimed “the U.S. banking system is sound and resilient.”

That begs the question: Is the banking system no longer sound and resilient?

The Fed initially inserted the language in March 2023 following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) – whose balance sheet obviously wasn’t sound or resilient.

Fed officials and banking regulators went out of their way to assure us that SVB’s troubles were particular to its portfolio of assets. But higher interest rates, falling bond values, and shaky commercial real estate markets are negatively affecting other large banks as well.

Last week, shares of New York Community Bancorp suffered a dramatic selloff after it reported $252 million in losses for the fourth quarter of 2023.

Broader troubles for regional banks loom in this supposedly strong economy. In the event of (or ahead of) a recession, a wave of bank failures could trigger another financial crisis, some industry analysts warn.

None other than JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon is warning of a debt crisis gathering. In recent remarks, Dimon said unsustainable growth in U.S. government debt is heading toward a “cliff” that will trigger a “rebellion” among global holders of Treasuries.

Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, PNC, and other big banks have recently announced the closures of hundreds of physical branch locations across the United States.

It’s meant to reduce overhead costs and push customers into online banking.

Some customers of Chase Bank have recently reported thousands of dollars in deposits missing from their accounts and having difficulty obtaining a resolution. Other customers have had their accounts abruptly closed without warning or explanation.

Last summer, attorneys general in 19 states accused JPMorgan of discriminating against banking customers by closing their accounts for having the wrong political beliefs or engaging in too many cash transactions, for example.

In the current environment, holding some of one’s liquid wealth outside the banking system is an essential asset protection strategy. Physical precious metals represent hard money that is no one else’s liability and cannot be digitally “lost” or canceled.

Some bullion holders make the mistake of storing their coins, rounds, or bars in a bank safe deposit box.

While the contents of safe deposit boxes are generally not known to bank employees or reported to the government, risks remain. They include branch closures, bank failures, thefts, and in some circumstances raids by law enforcement agents. Your personal information is held at the bank and is ultimately tied to any safe deposit box you own.

In a few cities, non-bank safe deposit box facilities exist that claim to offer greater security and privacy protection. Unfortunately, those very claims of privacy invited suspicions from the Feds – in at least one instance – that such facilities are used to hide ill-gotten assets.

In March 2021, the FBI raided hundreds of anonymous safe deposit boxes offered by a company called US Private Vaults in Beverly Hills. The agency attempted to seize everything in customers’ boxes worth more than $5,000 without even bothering to charge them individually with a crime.

Last month, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the FBI acted unlawfully in rummaging through boxes looking for valuables to take – and even refusing to return the property to lawful owners.

That doesn’t mean the FBI or other government agencies won’t be able to find legal workarounds to conduct future, more narrowly targeted raids of “private” safe deposit box facilities.

9th Circuit FBI illegally raided hundreds of safe deposit boxes featured update

To be sure, what likely attracted the FBI’s attention to US Private Vaults was its unusual business model of eschewing all identification information on any box holder. In other words, not even US Private Vaults knew the identity of their own safe deposit box holders, much less the actual contents.

The most secure way to store bullion is through a dedicated bullion vault facility such as Money Metals Depository that operates outside the banking system and doesn’t allow clients to use it for cash, jewelry, or anything else that could attract unwanted attention from authorities.

Bullion held on behalf of clients in the Money Metals Depository is held in separate, individualized accounts. And in the unlikely event of theft or natural disaster, it is fully insured by Lloyd’s of London.

Of course, physical precious metals themselves represent the ultimate insurance against meltdowns in the financial system and devaluations of government-issued fiat currency.

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