PDB Afternoon Bulletin | November 12th, 2024: Trump's Cabinet Spells Trouble For China & Riots Engulf Amsterdam
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It's Tuesday, 12 November. Welcome to the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. First, in the U.S., President-elect Donald Trump is gearing up to make some major cabinet announcements, with reports indicating that Florida Senator Marco Rubio will be asked to serve as Secretary of State, while South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem will be selected to head the Department of Homeland Security. Then,

Violence has once again broken out in the streets of Amsterdam, as the city grapples with a wave of anti-Semitic attacks following last week's soccer match, where Jewish fans were targeted and organized assaults across the city. Now, I always thought of Amsterdam as a fairly chill spot. Who knew that they had so many anti-Semites hiding in the shadows?

But first, our afternoon spotlight. Donald Trump's second-term cabinet is rapidly taking shape, with the president-elect expected to name his choices for the critical posts of Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security. As we've been tracking, Trump has wasted little time since last Tuesday's election, already selecting a border czar, the U.N. ambassador, and the head of the Environmental Protection Agency. Now, he's turning his attention to filling out the most senior roles in his second administration –

While I want to stress that his selections have not yet been made official, reports indicate that Trump will tap Florida Senator Marco Rubio to be the next Secretary of State, while South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem will be chosen to head the Department of Homeland Security.

Additionally, Trump has announced that Florida Congressman Mike Waltz, he's a noted China hawk, will serve as his national security advisor. Regarding the DHS posting, Nome is a somewhat surprising choice. A longtime Trump loyalist, the South Dakota governor was once considered a favorite to be his 2024 running mate, that's according to a report from the New York Post.

But she fell out of favor after admitting in a book that she published in May that she once shot and killed her 14-month-old dog named Cricket. Oh, that's a nice name. After deciding that his supposed, quote, aggressive personality made him unsuitable to be a hunting dog. Sorry, Cricket.

If she does end up as DHS secretary, Noem will oversee both the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, two agencies, of course, both critical to managing the immigration crisis at the U.S. southern border. A vocal critic of the Biden administration and a stalwart supporter of Trump's first-term immigration policies,

She would work hand-in-hand with Trump's border czar, Tom Holman, to secure the border and potentially enact a sweeping deportation program. Turning to Secretary of State, three sources close to Trump told The New York Times Monday that the president-elect has settled on Florida Senator Marco Rubio to serve as America's top diplomat.

Rubio is a noted foreign policy hawk and a strong defender of Israel, who has taken hardline stances when it comes to some of America's chief adversaries, including China, Iran, Venezuela, and Russia.

On China, Rubio has been one of the most outspoken senators advocating that the U.S. take a more aggressive approach with the Chinese Communist Party, the CCP. He's pushed for stronger protections on American trade, that's a position in line with Trump's tariff strategy, and has sought sanctions regarding their human rights abuses. Rubio also attempted to ban Chinese imports linked to the use of forced labor.

Regarding Russia, Rubio's stance has evolved over the years. According to the New York Times, while he's been a harsh critic of Russia in the past and a strong supporter of Ukraine in the early days of the war, more recently he has somewhat echoed Trump's language on the conflict, saying the war has reached a stalemate and, quote, needs to be brought to a conclusion.

Observers expect he'll likely support Trump in his efforts to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, though it's anyone's guess what such a scenario could look like.

Rubio has a history of working across party lines as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as well as the Senate Intelligence Committee, and his nomination would likely garner bipartisan support. If Rubio's role as Secretary of State weren't enough to rattle China, Trump's decision to select Florida Congressman Mike Waltz as National Security Advisor is sure to give leaders of the CCP some pause.

Walsh, a former Green Beret, is a self-proclaimed watchdog on Chinese military ambitions, who, much like Rubio, has advocated for a more adversarial stance towards the CCP.

Notably, Waltz pushed for the U.S. to boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to China's role in the origins of COVID-19, as well as the CCP's human rights abuses against the minority Muslim Uyghur population. Between Rubio and Waltz, Trump appears set to prioritize China when it comes to his America First foreign policy agenda. Coming up...

Violence has once again broken out in the streets of Amsterdam, as the city grapples with anti-Semitic attacks following last week's soccer match, where Jewish fans were targeted in organized assaults across the city. I'm sorry, did somebody decide to turn the clock back to late 1930s Europe? I'll be right back.

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Welcome back to the Afternoon Bulletin. Riots erupted Monday night in Amsterdam's new West Suburb as protesters set a tram ablaze and damaged multiple vehicles.

This unrest follows last week's violent fallout from a Europa League soccer match, which led Amsterdam officials to declare a state of emergency in the city. As we previously reported on the PDB, Thursday's match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv sparked violent clashes. Well, to be fair, they weren't really clashes, they were attacks on Jews. According to Amsterdam's mayor, anti-Israel protesters mobilized through social media and traveling on scooter and foot

targeted Jewish soccer fans, attacking them before fleeing to evade police. The incident left five individuals seriously injured and led to dozens of detentions. In response, Amsterdam's mayor imposed restrictions on gatherings, increased police surveillance, and designated specific risk zones to allow law enforcement to conduct stop-and-search operations.

The measures aim to curb further disruptions and protect public safety. Monday's riots saw protesters in Neowest armed with sticks and firecrackers, vandalizing property and damaging public infrastructure. Local media reported that a tram was set on fire and several vehicles were struck with stones.

Police extinguished the flames quickly and deployed riot officers to clear the area. However, authorities remain uncertain whether this violence directly relates to last week's soccer match or represents broader unrest.

Images circulating online show groups wielding makeshift weapons and causing extensive damage to public spaces in the suburb. Eyewitnesses reported dozens of individuals filling the streets, inciting chaos before dispersing upon the arrival of police reinforcements.

The Dutch police intensified their investigation, announcing five additional arrests related to last week's violence, identifying over 170 witnesses and gathering forensic evidence. The suspects, aged 18 to 37, are from Amsterdam and surrounding towns. Four remain in custody while one has been released but remains under investigation.

Previously, authorities detained four other suspects, including two minors aged 16 and 17, who are still in custody as the investigation continues. In a further bid to restore order, Amsterdam's mayor has banned all demonstrations within city limits and designated additional risk zones to prevent further violence. Heightened patrols and increased police presence aim to stabilize the situation as tensions obviously remain high.

The violence surrounding last week's events and Monday's riots casts a somber shadow over Amsterdam, to say the least, coinciding with the anniversary of Kristallnacht and challenging the city's long-standing reputation for tolerance. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu condemned the recent violence as, quote, "...horrifying," urging the Dutch authorities to deliver swift justice.

And that, my friends, is the PDB Afternoon Bulletin for Tuesday, 12 November. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com. Now, if you like what you hear on the PDB every day, but you'd like to hear it ad-free, well, we've got you covered. You can become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by simply visiting pdbpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed.

Stay safe, stay cool.