Putin: Russia seeks full-scale restoration of US ties

 Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during a plenary session of the Valdai Discussion Club on Thursday that his country aims for a "full-scale restoration" of relations with the United States.

"Russia reserves the right to be guided by our national interests, one of which, by the way, is the restoration of full-scale relations with the United States," Putin added. "No matter the differences, if we treat each other with respect, then even the most firm, persistent bargaining will still pursue the goal of achieving something beneficial."

He added that contradictions between Russia and the United States are "normal" and "natural," while noting that Russia is ready to work together with other countries.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/Putin:-Russia-seeks-full-scale-restoration-of-US-ties/64918512

Putin quotes on NATO, Europe and confrontation

 Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on Thursday at the Valdai Discussion Club, in the Russian city of Sochi. He spoke in Russian, and his words are translated by Reuters.

Here are some of the main quotes:

ON ’HYSTERIA’ AMONG EUROPE’S LEADERS:

"The ruling elites of united Europe continue to whip up hysteria. It turns out that war with the Russians is practically on the doorstep. They repeat this nonsense, this mantra, over and over again. ... They can’t believe what they’re saying, that Russia is going to attack NATO? ... They’re either incredibly incompetent if they truly believe it, because it’s impossible to believe this nonsense, or they’re simply dishonest."

ON RUSSIA’S RESPONSE TO EUROPEAN MILITARY BUILDUP:

"We simply cannot ignore what is happening. We have no right to do so for reasons of our own security. I repeat, our defence and safety. Therefore, we are closely monitoring the escalating militarization of Europe."

"Are these just empty words, or is it time for us to take countermeasures? ... Germany, for example, says that the German army should be the most powerful in Europe. Good. We listen carefully, understanding what is meant."

"I think no one doubts that such measures will force Russia to act, and Russia’s countermeasures will not be long in coming. It seems (to me) that the response to these threats will be, to put it mildly, very convincing."

https://www.investing.com/news/world-news/putin-quotes-on-nato-europe-and-confrontation-4269097

'Humana Projects Strong 2025 Earnings Amidst Star Ratings Challenge'

 

• Humana’s 2026 Medicare Advantage Star Ratings show 20% of members in 4-star plans.
• Humana expects improved ratings and affirmed its 2025 earnings guidance.

Humana announced its preliminary 2026 Medicare Advantage Star Ratings, revealing that approximately 20% of its members are enrolled in plans rated 4 stars and above, with an average Star rating of 3.61. The company is executing a contract diversification strategy to improve future ratings and expects a higher percentage of members in top-rated plans by 2027. Despite not being satisfied with the 2026 ratings, Humana is confident in its operational improvements and strategic initiatives, anticipating a return to Top Quartile results for the 2027 Star Ratings. Additionally, Humana affirmed its 2025 earnings guidance, projecting approximately $13.77 in GAAP EPS and $17.00 in adjusted EPS, reflecting confidence in its core business operations and strategic planning.

https://www.tipranks.com/news/company-announcements/humana-projects-strong-2025-earnings-amidst-star-ratings-challenge

De-debanking: Eric Trump reportedly opens Citi account, deposits some of father’s trust money

  Eric Trump, son of U.S. President Donald Trump, has established a trust at Citigroup that holds some of his father’s money, according to a Bloomberg News report published Thursday.

The banking relationship reportedly began after Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser reached out to congratulate President Trump on his November election victory. Andy Sieg, the bank’s wealth management chief, subsequently led discussions with Eric Trump.

Bloomberg News reported that Citigroup has considered measures to restrict information about the new trust to key personnel only, including Sieg and Kent Lucken, a Citigroup banker managing the relationship. The value of the trust, which names President Trump as beneficiary, is unclear.

In an August interview with CNBC, President Trump claimed that JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), the country’s two largest lenders, had previously refused to accept his deposits after his first term in office. The President has repeatedly expressed concerns about "debanking" affecting his family and other prominent conservative political figures

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/eric-trump-reportedly-opens-citi-124408969.html

​​​​​​​Democrats' Gov't Shutdown Accidentally Revives Trump's Pledge To Cut DC Waste & Fraud

 Democrats voted for a government shutdown, and that's precisely what they got.

They find themselves in an optics nightmare - as party leaders were surely aghast watching CNN's Jake Tapper call out House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) over the hill they've chosen to die on - restoring provisions that were eliminated in Trump's 'big beautiful bill' that provides free healthcare to illegal immigrants.

What's more, Democrats handed President Trump a gift - not only do they look stupid for trying to add $1.5 trillion to the national debt, they've opened the door for President Trump to deliver on one of his core campaign promises; cutting waste and fraud, a crusade that began with Elon Musk and DOGE in his first term but has since lost momentum - well, until now. 

On Tuesday, the president warned that he could "get rid of a lot of things" that would heavily impact the Democratic Party, adding, "We can eliminate many things we didn't want ... and they'd be Democrat things." 

By Wednesday morning, left-wing New York Governor Kathy Hochul and fellow Democrats were furious about Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought's announcement that the Trump administration withheld $18 billion in New York City infrastructure projects due to "unconstitutional DEI principles". This shows how the administration has a lot more power during the shutdown to slash and burn spending that funds the Democratic Party machine.

Late last night, Trump wrote on Truth Social, "Republicans must use this opportunity of Democrat forced closure to clear out dead wood, waste, and fraud. Billions of Dollars can be saved." 

Vought has fired up the chainsaw ... again.

Panic mode sets in for Democrats in the far-left state of Maryland. 

Trump did warn Democrats ahead of the shutdown that his administration was ready to slash jobs and programs .... 

Democrats appear to have made a miscalculated move in forcing a shutdown, one that now inadvertently gives the Trump administration the runway to cut even more waste and fraud from a bloated federal bureaucracy. A January Ipsos poll found that a majority of Americans support downsizing the federal government. With the national debt soaring to $37.5 trillion, savings must be found wherever possible. Those savings now appear to be coming from defunding the Democratic Party’s globalist machine, which has squandered not only the inheritance of previous generations but also the future of young Americans through its nation-killing woke policies. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/democrats-govt-shutdown-misstep-revives-trump-doge-clear-out-dead-wood-bloated-dc

Amgen Repatha (evolocumab) Hits Primary Endpoints in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease

Amgen announced that evolocumab reduced the risk of MACEs such as heart attack and stroke in patients without any prior history of these events.

The phase 3 VESALIUS-CV trial has achieved its dual primary endpoints, demonstrating a significant reduction in major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE) risk due to evolocumab (Repatha) in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and no prior history of heart attack or stroke.1

Announced by Amgen on October 2, 2025, VESALIUS-CV met the endpoints of time to first occurrence of a composite of heart attack, ischemic stroke, and coronary heart disease (CHD) death, as well as time to first occurrence of a composite of CHD death, ischemic stroke, heart attack, or any ischemia-driven arterial revascularization. Both endpoints were clinically and statistically significant, and no new safety signals were observed.1

“These results mark an important milestone in the fight against cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death worldwide,” Jay Bradner, MD, executive vice president of research and development at Amgen, said in a statement. “The benefit across all endpoints and established safety profile underscore Repatha’s role as a cornerstone therapy in comprehensive lipid management.”1

The double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled VESALIUS-CV trial enrolled >12,000 adult patients with known ASCVD or high-risk diabetes. The trial was begun after the 2017 FOURIER study proved the association between evolocumab and a reduction of MACEs in patients with established ASCVD and a history of MACEs, such as heart attack or stroke.1

All participants had no history of heart attack or stroke, an LDL-C ≥90 mg/dL, or non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) ≥120 mg/dL, or apolipoprotein B ≥80 mg/dL. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either evolocumab or placebo, along with optimized lipid-lowering therapy, and were followed for an approximate median of 4.5 years.

https://www.hcplive.com/view/vesalius-cv-repatha-evolocumab-achieves-of-primary-endpoints-in-patients-with-ascvd

Incyte (INCY) Price Target Lifted on CALR Antibody Program Optimism

 RBC Capital retained its Sector Perform rating on Incyte Corporation (NASDAQ:INCY) and increased its price target from $72 to $81 on September 24. The firm attributed the change in part to growing interest in Incyte’s ‘989 CALR antibody program ahead of expected ASH (American Society of Hematology) updates.

While RBC Capital anticipates that key opinion leaders would want at least 30% spleen volume reduction for myelofibrosis (MF) combination therapy, the firm will be watching for sustained responses and deeper variant allele frequency (VAF) over time for essential thrombocythemia treatment.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/incyte-incy-price-target-lifted-053538724.html