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brooklynite
brooklynite's Journal
brooklynite's Journal
December 20, 2021
Andrew Yang uses the Joe Manchin situation to slam...Joe Biden (email)
But this episode also indicates that the dysfunction within the Democratic Party is even higher than I would have thought.
Joe Biden’s strength is meant to be his relationships on Capitol Hill. Joe Biden and Joe Manchin were colleagues in the Senate for decades as Democrats. They worked together countless times. They had a call last week that was meant to usher Build Back Better forward after months of negotiation.
Whatever happened, the meeting didn’t have the desired effect. After Manchin’s announcement on Fox, the Biden White House issued a public statement accusing Joe Manchin of going back on his word and said that he should change his mind again.
The Biden White House’s statement struck me as counterproductive – if you need a guy to come back to the table, characterizing him as dishonest publicly doesn’t seem like the right approach, regardless of what you might feel. Keep in mind that Trump won West Virginia by 39 points, so Manchin is in a position where the politics are complicated at best.
Joe Manchin said on Monday, “It’s staff driven” of the White House on a radio interview, which could easily be seen as a dig at the President.
Again, these guys were colleagues for years. Massive legislation was proposed along party lines via reconciliation because bipartisanship is nearly nonexistent. That legislation is on life support –at best - because the Democrats didn’t have the unanimity they needed. Families home for the holidays are unsure of whether the check they just received in December was the last.
December 20, 2021
Moderna booster shot should provide 'good level of protection' against omicron, vaccine maker says
Source: Washington Post
Vaccine manufacturer Moderna said Monday that a booster dose of its coronavirus vaccine significantly raised antibody levels against the omicron variant, amid growing concerns about its rapid spread in the United States.
A booster dose of Moderna’s vaccine — half the dose used in the original shots for adults — increased antibody levels against omicron by 37 times, the company said in a statement, citing preliminary data.
Those antibodies “should provide some good level of protection as we go into the holiday season,” Paul Burton, Moderna’s chief medical officer, said in an interview.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/12/20/moderna-covid-booster-omicron-protection/
December 20, 2021
“Try before you buy” is a classic sales maneuver: Car dealerships want you to test drive. Costco wants you to sample. Clothing stores want you to hit the dressing room. And West Virginia wants you to come live in the Mountain State and see if you want to stay forever.
That’s the mission of Ascend West Virginia, a program that pays full-time remote workers $10,000 to move to the state. They will also get $2,500 worth of outdoor recreation experiences and access to a co-working space, along with other perks. If they stay a second year, they get $2,000 more.
When West Virginia’s program was announced in April, about 7,500 people from 74 countries applied to move to Morgantown, which is home to West Virginia University. According to the Ascend website, the city has 1,400 climbing routes, 200 mountain-bike trails, 100 paddling runs and access to seven different ski areas
In the end, 50 people were chosen, and about 10 have made the move, including Samantha Fagan, a web designer and WordPress developer who was living in Berlin when she applied.
Meet the people getting paid $10,000 for moving to West Virginia
Washington Post“Try before you buy” is a classic sales maneuver: Car dealerships want you to test drive. Costco wants you to sample. Clothing stores want you to hit the dressing room. And West Virginia wants you to come live in the Mountain State and see if you want to stay forever.
That’s the mission of Ascend West Virginia, a program that pays full-time remote workers $10,000 to move to the state. They will also get $2,500 worth of outdoor recreation experiences and access to a co-working space, along with other perks. If they stay a second year, they get $2,000 more.
When West Virginia’s program was announced in April, about 7,500 people from 74 countries applied to move to Morgantown, which is home to West Virginia University. According to the Ascend website, the city has 1,400 climbing routes, 200 mountain-bike trails, 100 paddling runs and access to seven different ski areas
In the end, 50 people were chosen, and about 10 have made the move, including Samantha Fagan, a web designer and WordPress developer who was living in Berlin when she applied.
December 19, 2021
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/12/19/snl-covid-show-tom-hanks-tina-fey/
SNL scraps show and sends cast home amid coronavirus fears; Tom Hanks and Tina Fey pitch in
Source: Washington Post
In a first for “Saturday Night Live,” hours before an episode was set to air, producers scrapped the planned show and sent most of the cast home.
“Due to the recent spike in the Omicron variant and out of an abundance of caution, there will be no live audience for tonight’s taping of 'Saturday Night Live’ and the show will have limited casts and crew,” read a statement posted to the show’s Twitter account on Saturday afternoon. Charli XCX, the musical guest, tweeted that she was told she would no longer be able to perform due to coronavirus pandemic precautions.
Instead, as the show kicked off at 11:30 p.m., none other than Tom Hanks strolled out in front of a mostly empty, eerily quiet studio. “Thank you, surviving crew members,” Hanks said, as a few people applauded.
He noted that SNL planned to do its big Christmas show and induct host Paul Rudd into the “five timer’s club” — celebrities who have hosted the show five times — but thanks to the surge of coronavirus cases and in the interest of safety, that was not meant to be. (Before the show, the New York Post and Variety reported that multiple cast members tested positive for the coronavirus, though this did not come up on the air.)
“Due to the recent spike in the Omicron variant and out of an abundance of caution, there will be no live audience for tonight’s taping of 'Saturday Night Live’ and the show will have limited casts and crew,” read a statement posted to the show’s Twitter account on Saturday afternoon. Charli XCX, the musical guest, tweeted that she was told she would no longer be able to perform due to coronavirus pandemic precautions.
Instead, as the show kicked off at 11:30 p.m., none other than Tom Hanks strolled out in front of a mostly empty, eerily quiet studio. “Thank you, surviving crew members,” Hanks said, as a few people applauded.
He noted that SNL planned to do its big Christmas show and induct host Paul Rudd into the “five timer’s club” — celebrities who have hosted the show five times — but thanks to the surge of coronavirus cases and in the interest of safety, that was not meant to be. (Before the show, the New York Post and Variety reported that multiple cast members tested positive for the coronavirus, though this did not come up on the air.)
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/12/19/snl-covid-show-tom-hanks-tina-fey/
December 18, 2021
White House not budging on Feb. 1 end to student loans forgiveness
PoliticoThe White House has been pretty clear in recent days: Federal student loan payments will resume Feb. 1 as President Joe Biden lifts the nearly two-year pandemic-era pause despite pressure from many in his own party to extend it.
Behind the scenes, that political reality has led the Biden administration to conduct Zoom meetings with allies in the student loan forgiveness space in an effort to make the resumption of loan repayments as smooth as possible.
But despite their no-drama intent, the confabs have not always been smooth sailing.
One such “tense meeting,” described by someone familiar with what happened in the conversation, happened Wednesday. Loan forgiveness advocates relayed to members of Biden’s domestic policy and economic teams that beyond the actual economic, legal and policy implications of lifting the loan repayment pause, the move was “bad politically.” They wanted “to sound the alarm to them about what we believe to be a very serious political mistake that they’re about to be making,” said a second source familiar with the conversation.
Behind the scenes, that political reality has led the Biden administration to conduct Zoom meetings with allies in the student loan forgiveness space in an effort to make the resumption of loan repayments as smooth as possible.
But despite their no-drama intent, the confabs have not always been smooth sailing.
One such “tense meeting,” described by someone familiar with what happened in the conversation, happened Wednesday. Loan forgiveness advocates relayed to members of Biden’s domestic policy and economic teams that beyond the actual economic, legal and policy implications of lifting the loan repayment pause, the move was “bad politically.” They wanted “to sound the alarm to them about what we believe to be a very serious political mistake that they’re about to be making,” said a second source familiar with the conversation.
December 18, 2021
Denmark says the pandemic's toughest month is just beginning.
Washington PostCOPENHAGEN — In a country that tracks the spread of coronavirus variants as closely as any in the world, the signals have never been more concerning. Omicron positives are doubling nearly every two days. The country is setting one daily case record after another. The lab analyzing positive tests recently added an overnight shift just to keep up.
And scientists say the surge is just beginning.
As omicron drives a new phase of the pandemic, many are looking to Denmark — and particularly the government institute devoted to testing, surveillance and modeling — for warnings about what to expect.
The emerging answer — even in this highly vaccinated, wealthy northern European country — is dire. For all the defenses built over the last year, the virus is about to sprint out of control, and scientists here expect a similar pattern in much of the world.
“The next month will be the hardest period of the pandemic,” said Tyra Grove Krause, the chief epidemiologist at Denmark’s State Serum Institute, a campus of brick buildings along a canal.
And scientists say the surge is just beginning.
As omicron drives a new phase of the pandemic, many are looking to Denmark — and particularly the government institute devoted to testing, surveillance and modeling — for warnings about what to expect.
The emerging answer — even in this highly vaccinated, wealthy northern European country — is dire. For all the defenses built over the last year, the virus is about to sprint out of control, and scientists here expect a similar pattern in much of the world.
“The next month will be the hardest period of the pandemic,” said Tyra Grove Krause, the chief epidemiologist at Denmark’s State Serum Institute, a campus of brick buildings along a canal.
December 18, 2021
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/biden-address-omicron-variant-unveil-new-steps-help-communities-tuesda-rcna9263
Biden to deliver Tuesday speech on omicron variant as Covid cases rise
Source: NBC News
President Joe Biden will deliver a speech Tuesday to address the omicron variant and unveil new steps the administration is taking to help communities in need of assistance, a White House official told NBC News on Saturday.
Biden is expected to go beyond his already unveiled "winter plan" with additional measures while "issuing a stark warning of what the winter will look like for Americans that choose to remain unvaccinated," the official said.
The news comes amid a rise in Covid-19 cases and pleas from federal health officials for people to get vaccinated.
Aides said the Biden administration is "prepared for the rising case levels" and that Biden intends to explain how his team "will respond to this challenge," the official said.
Biden is expected to go beyond his already unveiled "winter plan" with additional measures while "issuing a stark warning of what the winter will look like for Americans that choose to remain unvaccinated," the official said.
The news comes amid a rise in Covid-19 cases and pleas from federal health officials for people to get vaccinated.
Aides said the Biden administration is "prepared for the rising case levels" and that Biden intends to explain how his team "will respond to this challenge," the official said.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/biden-address-omicron-variant-unveil-new-steps-help-communities-tuesda-rcna9263
December 18, 2021
Lord Frost reportedly resigns as Brexit minister
BBCBrexit minister Lord Frost has reportedly resigned from Boris Johnson's government.
Lord Frost led the UK's negotiations over the EU Withdrawal Agreement and Northern Ireland Protocol.
The Mail on Sunday, which first reported the news, said he handed Mr Johnson his resignation a week ago.
He resigned over the "political direction" of the government including the introduction of stricter Covid curbs in England, the paper said.
Lord Frost led the UK's negotiations over the EU Withdrawal Agreement and Northern Ireland Protocol.
The Mail on Sunday, which first reported the news, said he handed Mr Johnson his resignation a week ago.
He resigned over the "political direction" of the government including the introduction of stricter Covid curbs in England, the paper said.
December 17, 2021
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/17/politics/rick-perry-jan-6-text-mark-meadows-nov-4/index.html
Jan 6 investigators believe Nov. 4 text pushing strategy to undermine election came from Rick Perry
Source: CNN
Washington (CNN)Members of the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 attack on the US Capitol believe that former Texas Governor and Trump Energy Secretary Rick Perry was the author of a text message sent to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows the day after the 2020 election pushing an "AGRESSIVE (sic) STRATEGY" for three state legislatures to ignore the will of their voters and deliver their states' electors to Donald Trump, three sources familiar with the House Committee investigation tell CNN.
A spokesman for Perry told CNN that the former Energy Secretary denies being the author of the text. Multiple people who know Rick Perry confirmed to CNN that the phone number the committee has associated with that text message is Perry's number.
The cell phone number the text was sent from, obtained from a source knowledgeable about the investigation, appears in databases as being registered to a James Richard Perry of Texas, the former governor's full name.
The number is also associated in a second database as registered to a Department of Energy email address associated with Perry when he was secretary. When told of these facts, the spokesman had no explanation.
A spokesman for Perry told CNN that the former Energy Secretary denies being the author of the text. Multiple people who know Rick Perry confirmed to CNN that the phone number the committee has associated with that text message is Perry's number.
The cell phone number the text was sent from, obtained from a source knowledgeable about the investigation, appears in databases as being registered to a James Richard Perry of Texas, the former governor's full name.
The number is also associated in a second database as registered to a Department of Energy email address associated with Perry when he was secretary. When told of these facts, the spokesman had no explanation.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/17/politics/rick-perry-jan-6-text-mark-meadows-nov-4/index.html
December 17, 2021
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-17/trump-celebrity-apprentice-tapes-being-reviewed-in-fraud-suit
Donald Trump's 'Celebrity Apprentice' Tapes Are Being Reviewed in a Fraud Suit
Source: Bloomberg
Unaired footage from Donald Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice” TV show is being reviewed by a team of lawyers in Los Angeles as part of a suit accusing the former president and his children of ripping off viewers for years by endorsing a troubled multilevel marketing company.
Lawyers for people who say they were fraudulently induced by Trump to invest in the marketing company, ACN Opportunity LLC, have been waiting for almost two years to access the tapes held by Hollywood studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, as part of a federal suit they filed against the Trumps in 2018.
They lawyers “are working diligently to make efficient progress” in reviewing two episodes of the reality-TV program, plaintiffs attorney Roberta Kaplan said in a letter Thursday to the New York judge overseeing the case. They’re looking for evidence including unscripted, behind-the-scenes chatter among the Trumps, who allegedly didn’t really believe in the products they pitched.
Kaplan wrote to advise the judge that ACN this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take its appeal challenging a federal appeals court ruling denying ACN’s attempt to force the Trump case into arbitration, even though ACN isn’t a party in the litigation. In the letter, Kaplan called it an “extraordinary” delay.
Lawyers for people who say they were fraudulently induced by Trump to invest in the marketing company, ACN Opportunity LLC, have been waiting for almost two years to access the tapes held by Hollywood studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, as part of a federal suit they filed against the Trumps in 2018.
They lawyers “are working diligently to make efficient progress” in reviewing two episodes of the reality-TV program, plaintiffs attorney Roberta Kaplan said in a letter Thursday to the New York judge overseeing the case. They’re looking for evidence including unscripted, behind-the-scenes chatter among the Trumps, who allegedly didn’t really believe in the products they pitched.
Kaplan wrote to advise the judge that ACN this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take its appeal challenging a federal appeals court ruling denying ACN’s attempt to force the Trump case into arbitration, even though ACN isn’t a party in the litigation. In the letter, Kaplan called it an “extraordinary” delay.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-17/trump-celebrity-apprentice-tapes-being-reviewed-in-fraud-suit
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