November 16, 2021
Seung Min Kim, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met Monday in a virtual summit that featured no breakthroughs but enabled the two global superpowers to engage on a slew of sensitive issues that have strained ties -- including Taiwan, trade and human rights. In a three-and-a-half-hour conversation that the White House characterized as 'respectful, straightforward and open,' the two sides did not make pledges or depart from established positions.... Biden raised concerns about China's suppression of minorities in Xinjiang province, about unfair trade and economic practices and its recent aggression against Taiwan. Xi, according to China's central broadcaster, offered assurances that China, which has pledged to unify Taiwan with China by force if necessary, would do its 'utmost' to achieve peaceful 'reunification.'" The AP's story is here. ~~~
~~~ Partly because the exchange between Presidents Biden & Xi was so long, and partly because this is what the Times does, the New York Times story is still (at 7 am ET) presented as a series of live updates.
Felicia Sonmez & Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "President Biden on Monday signed into law a sweeping $1.2 trillion infrastructure measure, notching an achievement that had long eluded his predecessor in the White House, Donald Trump. Republicans and Democrats gathered at the White House on Monday as Biden signed the legislation, which is aimed at improving the country's roads, bridges, pipes, ports and Internet connections. Trump had repeatedly tried and failed to secure a bipartisan infrastructure deal. 'Here in Washington, we've heard countless speeches, promises and white papers from experts. But today, we're finally getting this done,' Biden said. Vice President Harris and several lawmakers spoke ahead of Biden at the ceremony, including Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio). 'This is what can happen when Republicans and Democrats decide we're going to work together to get something done,' Portman said.... At one point, Biden praised Portman as a 'hell of a good guy,' then quipped: 'I'm not hurting you, Rob, because I know you're not running again.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: But of course Biden is, indirectly, hurting Portman, because Portman's office will get hate calls & hate mail from Trumpbots. This may be the last time in the next three years that anyone talks about bipartisanship in anything other than wistful longing for the mostly-mythical "good old days." Finally, finally, some mainstream journalists & opinionators seem to have caught up with Reality Chex contributors who have long recognized the anti-democratic, white-nationalist, violent power-grabbing essential core of the Republican party. ~~~
~~~ Politico's report is here. ~~~
~~~ If you want to know who-all was at the signing ceremony, this interactive WashPo article has the answers.
~~~ Here's one of the more "traditional" ways Republicans are trashing democracy to consolidate their power & cheat Democratic voters: ~~~
~~~ Reid Epstein & Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "A year before the polls open in the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans are already poised to flip at least five seats in the closely divided House thanks to redrawn district maps that are more distorted, more disjointed and more gerrymandered than any since the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965. The rapidly forming congressional map, a quarter of which has taken shape as districts are redrawn this year, represents an even more extreme warping of American political architecture, with state legislators in many places moving aggressively to cement their partisan dominance. The flood of gerrymandering, carried out by both parties but predominantly by Republicans, is likely to leave the country ever more divided by further eroding competitive elections and making representatives more beholden to their party's base." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Say, Joe Manchin, et al., I know how we could fix this & take a step toward saving democracy: suspend the filibuster & pass the voting rights bills.
Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "President Biden's pledge to fully pay for his $1.85 trillion social policy and climate spending package depends in large part on having a beefed-up Internal Revenue Service crack down on tax evaders, which the White House says will raise hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue. But the director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said on Monday that the I.R.S. proposal would yield far less than what the White House was counting on to help pay for its bill -- about $120 billion over a decade versus the $400 billion that the administration is counting on. A formal tally is expected to be released on Friday, but the projection by Phillip Swagel, who heads the budget office, could pose another setback for Mr. Biden's domestic policy legislation, which is already facing steep hurdles in the House and Senate." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Every setback is an opportunity. The opportunity here: Akhilleus answered this yesterday in his post "Tax the Rich."
Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has ordered the military's top commander in the Middle East to brief him on details of a U.S. airstrike in Syria in 2019 that killed dozens of women and children, the Pentagon said on Monday. The Pentagon's top spokesman, John F. Kirby, said Mr. Austin, who became secretary this year after the Biden administration took office, requested the briefing after reading an investigative report published over the weekend by The New York Times detailing the strike and allegations that top officers and civilian officials sought to conceal the casualties.... [The strike] was one of the largest civilian casualty incidents of the yearslong war against ISIS, but had never been publicly acknowledged by the U.S. military."
Katie Benner of the New York Times: "Stephen K. Bannon, who served as a senior aide to ... Donald J. Trump, surrendered to authorities and appeared in federal court on Monday, three days after he was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to provide information to the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Mr. Bannon's formal booking and first court appearance in the case ... marked an escalation in the clash between Mr. Trump's allies and the committee, which has issued scores of subpoenas seeking testimony and documents that could help it assemble a definitive account of the attack and what led to it. The charges against Mr. Bannon served as a warning to those who choose to defy the committee's requests for information. But Mr. Bannon also showed that he intends to use the attention on the criminal case to push his own views to a broad audience. Before entering the F.B.I.'s Washington field office, where he surrendered at around 9:30 a.m., and after leaving court later that afternoon, Mr. Bannon made statements that falsely implied that Mr. Trump had won the 2020 election. He told his supporters to remain focused on taking on 'the illegitimate Biden regime.'"
Max Boot of the Washington Post: "... ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl ... has unearthed a memorandum from Johnny McEntee, Trump's director of presidential personnel, listing 14 reasons for ousting Esper. That document was dated Oct. 19, 2020. Three weeks later Esper was fired by a Trump tweet. The very premise of McEntee's memo was both sinister and ludicrous -- a 30-year-old of no professional or intellectual distinction, whose path to power was carrying Trump's bags, was making the case for getting rid of a senior Cabinet officer for insufficient loyalty to the president.... [Trump] appears determined to turn the military into his personal goon squad.... The most damning and telling grievance against Esper was near the bottom of [McEntee's] pathetic document: 'When he assumed his role, he vowed to be apolitical.'... Trump tried to destroy the professional, apolitical ethos of the armed forces -- and if given the opportunity, he will almost certainly do so again."
Jennifer Szalai, book reviewer for the New York Times, catches out Jon Karl, veteran White House correspondent & all-around dolt: "... in his new book, 'Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show,' Karl comes across as almost poignantly ingenuous and polite to a fault, repeatedly flummoxed by what he saw in the last year of the Trump administration. 'Front Row [at the Trump Show,' also by Karl], which had the unfortunate timing of being published in March 2020, before the consequences of Trump's governance were fully laid bare, began with a solemn tribute to 'objectivity and balance' and a complaint that 'the mainstream media coverage of Donald Trump is relentlessly and exhaustively negative.' Just a year-and-a-half later, after 750,000 American Covid deaths and an attack on the Capitol, Karl allows that the 'Trump show' may have in fact been more sinister than mere theatrics after all.... 'Betrayal' is less insightful about the Trump White House and more revealing of Karl's own gradual, extremely belated awareness that something in the White House might in fact be awry.... For all the high-minded talk in his books about the journalistic pursuit of accuracy, he gives little indication that he had the imagination to handle the truth."
Flynn Attacks Foundational American Principle. Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "Former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn's call for 'one religion' in the US to win the battle of good versus evil has garnered sharp backlash from a range of critics. Flynn, who was subpoenaed last week by the House select committee investigating the January 6 attack, made the comment during a speech to a conservative Christian audience on the ReAwaken America tour in Texas this weekend. 'If we are going to have one nation under God, which we must, we have to have one religion,' he said. 'One nation under God and one religion under God, right? All of us, working together.' His message -- the latest in a lengthy history of outlandish remarks -- appears to be an inflammatory contradiction of the First Amendment, which protects freedom of religion.... Asked to react to Flynn's comments, Democratic Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina told CNN's Jim Acosta Sunday, 'This country was (founded) on independent and religious freedoms. Folks left to come here in search of these freedoms. Now, he would love to see that taken away.' Clyburn went on to say that it's another attempt by a former Trump official to undermine democracy." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I wonder what religion Flynn is espousing. According to LeBlanc, Flynn was addressing a group of "conservative Christians," but it's a safe bet those in the audience adhere to a variety of denominations. Flynn himself was reared as a Roman Catholic, and that's a denomination of an entirely different color, one that tends to view Protestants as heretics. Sorry, Episcopalians. Sorry, Jews. Sorry, Muslims. Sorry, Buddists, etc. And you'll be damned, atheists. Does Flynn get to pick the One & Only U.S. Religion? Maybe President*-for-Life Trump, he of the "little crackers," will pick the Faith of Our People. Or will there be a vote? Will Italian hackers or George Soros or Hugo Chavez (deceased) rig the vote? Sadly, Flynn has not responded to CNN's request for comment.
Elizabeth Williamson of the New York Times: "A state court in Connecticut granted a sweeping victory to the families of eight people killed in a 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., who had sued the far-right broadcaster and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and his Infowars media outlet for defamation. The judge ruled on Monday that because Mr. Jones had refused to turn over documents ordered by the courts, including financial records, he was liable by default. The decision, combined with previous rulings in Texas in late September, means Mr. Jones has lost all the defamation lawsuits filed against him by the families of 10 victims. Lawyers for Mr. Jones said he would appeal." MB: Just to be clear, Mr. Jones is one of the most reprehensible people on the planet.
The Pandemic, Ctd.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Tuesday are here.
Stephanie Nolen & Rebecca Robbins of the New York Times: "Pfizer announced a deal on Tuesday to allow its promising Covid-19 treatment to be made and sold inexpensively in 95 poorer nations that are home to more than half of the world's population. The agreement follows a similar arrangement negotiated by Merck last month, and together the deals have the potential to vastly expand global production of two simple antiviral pills that could alter the course of the pandemic by preventing severe illness from the coronavirus." The AP's story is here. MB: Evidently, Moderna has not followed suit, because this morning I saw a harsh anti-Moderna ad (running on CNN, I think), complaining that the company was not giving breaks to poor nations. (If the ad is unfair to Moderna, somebody let me know, please. [I could not find the ad on the YouTubes.])
Linda Searing of the Washington Post: "At least 50 percent of people who survive covid-19 experience a variety of physical and psychological health issues for six months or more after their initial recovery, according to research on the long-term effects of the disease, published in the journal JAMA Network Open. Often referred to as 'long covid,' the adverse health effects vary from person to person. But the research, based on data from 250,351 adults and children, found that more than half experience a decline in genera well-being, resulting in weight loss, fatigue, fever or pain. About 20 percent have decreased mobility, 25 percent have trouble thinking or concentrating (called 'brain fog'), 30 percent develop an anxiety disorder, 25 percent have breathing problems, and 20 percent have hair loss or skin rashes. Cardiovascular issues -- chest pain and palpitations -- are common, as are stomach and gastrointestinal problems." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Not that wingers will find out about this science-y report, but this evidently-peer-reviewed study puts another deep crimp in the popular anti-vax theory that contracting Covid-19 is the best way to get immunity. (The other well-known crimp: as a deterrence, infection does not appear to work as well as vaccination.)
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here.
Oklahoma. Quint Forgey of Politico: "The Pentagon's top spokesperson [John Kirby] on Monday insisted Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had the authority to require National Guard members to get vaccinated against Covid-19, despite new resistance from Oklahoma's highest-ranking military official.... 'Refusing to [comply], absent an approved exemption, puts them in the same potential [for disciplinary action] as active-duty members who refuse the vaccine,' [Kirby said]."
Beyond the Beltway
Arizona. Sarah Burris of the Raw Story: "Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey [R] bragged about the exciting new funding for his state that will fund rural broadband to anyone who wants it.... The funding is coming from President Joe Biden's 'American Rescue Plan' that no Republican supported. Speaking to MSNBC on Monday, Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) laughed with host Chris Hayes at the Republican governor for taking credit for Democratic policies.... Ironically, Ducey penned an op-ed last week for the Wall Street Journal, claiming that Biden has left Arizona behind...." MB: Not "ironical"; "duplicitous mendacity." According to Hayes, the title of Ducey's broadband press release was, "Gov. Ducey Invests $100 Million in Broadband." I hope this makes the front page of some of Arizona's major papers. Yo, Joe: this is how "bipartisanship" really works.
Georgia. Richard Fausset & Tariro Mzezewa of the New York Times: "Lawyers for the three white Georgia men on trial for the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man, tried unsuccessfully on Monday to convince a judge to declare a mistrial, with one of the lawyers reiterating his argument that prominent Black pastors should not be allowed in the courtroom because they unfairly influence the jury. Kevin Gough, who represents the defendant William Bryan, 52, unleashed a wave of condemnation last week when he declared that 'we don't want any more Black pastors coming in here' after the Rev. Al Sharpton spent a day observing the trial in the courtroom's public gallery. On Monday, the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson came to the courtroom and sat between Mr. Arbery's parents, prompting a second effort from Mr. Gough to ban the prominent civil rights leaders from the proceedings." MB: Hey, white pastors: time for you to show up, too, in support of the Arbery family.
Texas. High Noon. David Goodman of the New York Times: "Beto O'Rourke entered the race for Texas governor on Monday, criticizing what he described as the ultraconservative policies and anti-immigrant rhetoric of Gov. Greg Abbott. It is a long-shot bid to win an office Democrats last occupied in 1995. In a video announcing his run and in an interview on Monday, Mr. O'Rourke, a former El Paso congressman and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, presented his campaign as a corrective to what he said were the 'extremist policies' of the state's Republican leadership, including Mr. Abbott, the Republican incumbent who has overseen a sharp turn to the right in Texas." MB: Remember, all the townfolks thought Gary Cooper would lose, too.
Vermont. Amy Wang, et al., of the Washington Post: "Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), the longest-serving member in the Senate, announced Monday that he will retire at the end of his term rather than run for reelection next year. Leahy, 81, who was first elected in 1974, would have been up for reelection to a ninth term in 2022.... Leahy [announced his retirement] at a news conference Monday at the Vermont State House in Montpelier from the same room where he announced his first Senate candidacy."
Virginia. Ellie Silverman of the Washington Post: "Ahead of the deadly Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville four years ago, lead organizer Jason Kessler appeared to instruct supporters to mislead law enforcement, in communications presented in court on Monday. 'If the police ask you how many people we have coming don't tell them,' Kessler wrote in a July 18, 2017, Facebook message. 'If they think we have more than 400 they might be able to help the city pull our permit. Privately we can tout the 800-1,000 number better for our enemies to underestimate us.'... Kessler is one of two dozen defendants - including some of the country's most infamous white supremacists and hate groups -- testifying during a federal civil trial to determine whether they engaged in a conspiracy to commit racially motivated violence during that weekend."
Wisconsin. Julie Bosman, et al., of the New York Times: "The jury will begin on Tuesday to deliberate the fate of [Kyle] Rittenhouse, who is accused of first-degree intentional homicide and four other felonies in the shootings of three men in the aftermath of protests in 2020. Throughout the morning and afternoon on Monday, ... lawyers delivered dueling narratives [during their closing arguments]." The AP's story is here. MB: I watched a few minutes here and there of the closing arguments, which included video of the murders, sometimes screened frame-by-frame. It was really hard to watch. Well, reportedly for the jury, and for me. But not for Kyle. He sat there looking bored & otherwise unemotional through all of it. I suppose that would be the how many psychopaths react to recitations of their crimes. Over the weekend, I saw a clip of his mother telling Fox "News" she was so proud of Kyle. So a family of psychopaths.
Wyoming GOP Goes All-in for former Criminal-in-Chief. AP: "The Wyoming Republican Party will no longer recognize Liz Cheney as a member of the GOP in its second formal rebuke for her criticism of ... Donald Trump. The 31-29 vote Saturday in Buffalo, Wyoming, by the state party central committee followed votes by local GOP officials in about one-third of Wyoming's 23 counties to no longer recognize Cheney as a Republican. In February, the Wyoming GOP central committee voted overwhelmingly to censure Cheney, Wyoming's lone U.S. representative, for voting to impeach Trump for his role in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol."
Way Beyond
Belarus/Poland, etc. Andrew Roth of the Guardian: "Polish riot police on the country's border with Belarus have fired water cannon and teargas at people forcibly attempting to cross into the European Union. The clashes come a day after EU governments approved sanctions against the Belarusian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, for allegedly engineering the crisis by allowing thousands of asylum-seekers from the Middle East to travel through Belarus to the border with Poland. Televised footage from the border on Tuesday morning showed dozens of men throwing rocks and approaching a fence near the border crossing at the Polish town of Kuźnica."
North Korea. He's Ba-a-ack. Rachel Pannett of the Washington Post: "North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has made his first public appearance in more than a month, visiting a new state-developed alpine city billed a 'model' socialist 'utopia,' as he looks to cement his legacy during a period of widespread food shortages."
Russia. "Reckless Risk." Paul Sonne, et al., of the Washington Post: "Russia conducted a strike against a Soviet-era satellite in space on Monday, creating more than 1,500 pieces of debris that U.S. officials said posed a reckless risk and showed Moscow's insincerity when it says it doesn't want to weaponize space. The test marked the first time that Russia has demonstrated an ability to strike a satellite using a missile launched from Earth. During a briefing, State Department spokesman Ned Price said the anti-satellite test had created more than 1,500 pieces of sizable debris that could damage other satellites or affect astronauts at the International Space Station." ~~~
~~~ Kylie Atwood, et al., of CNN: "The US strongly condemned a Russian anti-satellite test on Monday that forced crew members on the International Space Station to scramble into their spacecraft for safety, calling it 'a reckless and dangerous act' and saying that it 'won't tolerate' behavior that puts international interests at risk."
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