White House nixed coronavirus masks in West Wing

 

Okay, it was early, in February, when the "first masks arrived on the White House grounds by special order of the National Security Council." Followed by, "Job One in their [WH staff] emergency response was to take personal precautions, preparing for the critical work at hand." But wait, the word got out this was happening and the higher-ups, assuming all the way up to Trump, decided this would not look good so the following decisions were made...

"If you have the whole West Wing running around wearing masks, it wasn't a good look," one administration official recalled of the directive that came down from senior staff and lawyers.

The West Wing wanted to "portray confidence and make the public believe there was absolutely nothing to worry about," the official said, revealing the image-conscious reason for the opposition to masks for the first time.

What this "confidence" got them was 7,489,417 cases of COVID-19, resulting in 212,506, mostly unnecessary, American deaths. The United States leads the world in these dismal statistics, all because Donald Trump was completely incompetent in the handling of the virus. Officials wanted to talk about Trump's ineptness but could not for fear of reprisals. But anonymously they...

"tell a consistent story of how White House attempts to deal with the virus were dogged by President Donald Trump's fixation on one thing: optics."

CNN reports...

"The radical polarization that now grips the country traces back to the very first workplace where it really sank in, at the West Wing of the White House."

As usual, the administration blamed its failures on Democrats. There's more...

"We lost so much time," a former administration official said, looking back. "The whole thing was mind-blowing. This could have been so different."

But it wasn't different and Donald Trump will have to live with those 212,506 American lives lost as long as he lives. Unfortunately, we know he doesn't care. 

Hard to believe? No! Donald Trump has 3,400 conflicts of interest

 

Yes, Donald Trump has had 3,400 conflicts of interest, and, yes, all while he has been in the Oval Office. CREW, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has labeled him the most corrupt president in history. My gut tells me that T-rump doesn't give a damn since multiple authors have books on the market that document his corruption over the years. If they were truly lies, like he is famous for, he would have quashed them with his legal team.

This is how CREW describes their study...

"Today’s report details some of the most glaring examples of presidential corruption and conflicts of interest ever raised by a president, all of which stem from his refusal to divest from his businesses."

You see, with Donald Trump it is all about money and power, and as he has indicated now, he won't give up his position in the White House because that is the doorway to his keeping that money coming in and holding on to the beloved power. Since Trump's election, CREW has...

"tracked interactions between the president, the Trump Organization, and those trying to influence government decisions and public policies, including members of Congress, industry groups, lobbyists and cabinet officials. These interactions have continued to blur the lines between where President Trump’s public responsibilities end and his private financial interests begin, and between his loyalty to the Trump Organization and his obligations to the American public."

There has been no separation, and quite the opposite, he has used his position to influence deals for the Trump brand in the United States and even throughout the world. This is how CREW characterizes it...

"The extraordinary numbers in this report paint a picture of a president who is fixated on the personal financial benefits he might derive from his public service—and a whole ecosystem of officials, special interests and governments that exploit that fixation in order to curry favor and advance their own interests,” said CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder."

Here are some of the report's focal points...

• President Trump has made more than 500 visits to the properties he owns and profits from. The president’s frequent travel to and from his properties has cost American taxpayers well over $100 million.
• 141 members of Congress have patronized Trump properties. These visits often coincide with events held by special interests or wealthy political donors that rake in millions of dollars for his properties. 
• Special interest groups, many of which have business before the Trump administration, have hosted or sponsored 130 events at Trump properties since he took office. Political groups have held another 88 events at Trump properties. 

Remember, there 3,397 more conflicts you can see at the CREW report here. Just scroll down to the bottom of the page.  

200,000+ COVID-19 deaths should beat Donald Trump in November

 

Coronavirus deaths in the U.S. are the highest in the world. Add to that the over 7 million cases in this country, also the most worldwide. We are second in new cases and new deaths and number one in serious/critical cases. Faring better in cases per 1,000 population, number 11, deaths per 1,000 pop. at number 10, and number two, behind China, for total tests completed. You can see this all for yourself on Worldometer, which is updated regularly. 

And yet another ghastly figure reported by the New York Times, the 200,000+ figure is...

"nearly two and a half times the number of U.S. service members to die in battle in the Vietnam and Korean Wars"

There is no reason for this other than the ineptness of Donald Trump in the running of this country and his hassling of the CDC, which is contradicted regularly by T-rump. If Barack Obama had been this incompetent--and he never would have--the political system would have erupted against him. But that is total hindsight and what we have today is a maniac in the White House who has lied about the seriousness of coronavirus from the beginning.

With around 40,000 new cases a day...

"Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the country’s top infectious disease expert, said he worries about the country entering the cooler months without having a handle on the virus."

Fauci is Trump's favorite whipping guy because the doc tells the truth, something Donald Trump does not understand. Just consider that all this could at least be slowed down if the population would wear masks and practice social distancing. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, said "wearing face masks may be more effective at protecting against COVID-19 than a vaccine.

The second major problem--Donald Trump is, of course, the first--is the anti-everything group, vaccines, facemasks, the pandemic. An August study provides that only 65% of the U.S. population use face masks; that leaves 35% who are actively passing around potential COVID-19 contamination. Here's the scenario...

"Still, the persistently high death numbers in the United States stand in stark contrast to mortalities in other high-income countries. Italy, once the center of the pandemic, reported 17 deaths on Monday; Germany reported 10 deaths the same day. In the United States that day, 428 people were reported to have died of the virus."

In the annual UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump once again blamed China's Xi for the coronavirus in the United States. In Xi's reply he, "described China’s response as scientific, generous and responsible," adding..."

“Any attempt at politicizing or stigmatizing this issue must be rejected.”

Donald Trump agonizes over the fact that China has done a much better job of controlling the COVID-19 virus than he did. Much, much! As an example, with a much larger population, China is 43rd in total cases where the U.S is number one. In total deaths China is number 30, the U.S. number one. Once again available on Worldometer. Joe Biden might very well want to study all the numbers and consider whether this might be a leading point in November.  

Ruth Bader Ginsburg and who will take her place on the Court

 

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was famous for her quotes. They ranged from men and women on the Court to abortion rights. Here are a few...

"When I'm sometimes asked 'When will there be enough (women on the Supreme Court)?' and my answer is: 'When there are nine.' People are shocked. But there'd been nine men, and nobody's ever raised a question about that."

"My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent."

"This [abortion rights] is something central to a woman's life, to her dignity. It's a decision that she must make for herself. And when government controls that decision for her, she's being treated as less than a fully adult human responsible for her own choices."

This is an idea on how she voted on the issues over the years, while she always had the respect of Court members and the American public. Her body was no doubt still warm when Republicans began positioning to fill her chair with the Court, with hardly a mention of this woman's commendable career. The GOP is desperate and they have already mounted a campaign on behalf of Trump's choice, Judge Amy Coney Barrett. But Democrats are playing their cards and they are strong.

Nancy Pelosi says she will even consider impeachment, if necessary. From my September 19, post, "there are already three Republican Senators who have voiced opposition with filling Ginsburg's position prior to the election. They are: Lisa Murkowski (AK), Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Another step would be Democrat Mark Kelly's win in Arizona (currently ahead 6.7 points). Here's the Kelly/McSally outcome...

“Two Republican and two Democratic election attorneys agree that state law and Senate practices would make Kelly eligible to take over the seat once held by Sen. John McCain as soon as Nov. 30, when the state election results are expected to be canvassed.”

The Daily Beast added...

"Tomasky had 3 ways McConnell could be stopped. One, to threaten expansion of the Court after the election; Two, Moscow Mitch may decide the polls are against it enough that proceeding could damage the GOP even more; and three, McConnell may just feel Democrats have the numbers to win and not want to rock the boat. This would be based on the three Republican Senators, above, and Mark Kelly's win in Arizona."

You can see where more Senators stand on the Ginsberg replacement in this New York Times article. It doesn't look good for Republicans but, then, we all know you cannot depend on Donald Trump nor Moscow Mitch to play fair. Dems beware!

At least 3 ways to stop Trump/McConnell Ginsburg replacement

 

DOES IT LOOK LIKE A SINKING SHIP, ABOVE? First of all, there are already three Republican Senators who have voiced opposition with filling Ginsburg's position prior to the election. They are: Lisa Murkowski (AK), Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Another step would be Democrat Mark Kelly's win in Arizona (currently ahead 6.7 points). Here's the Kelly/McSally outcome...

“Two Republican and two Democratic election attorneys agree that state law and Senate practices would make Kelly eligible to take over the seat once held by Sen. John McCain as soon as Nov. 30, when the state election results are expected to be canvassed.”

Daily Beast columnist Michael Tomasky remarked...

“Place yourself in the White House private residence, or down in Louisville, at Chez Mitch, when the news about Ginsburg was conveyed Friday. Do you think either of them took even 30 seconds to reflect on her service to her nation?”

The answer to that, of course, is a resounding no! 

Tomasky had 3 ways McConnell could be stopped. One, to threaten expansion of the Court after the election; Two, Moscow Mitch may decide the polls are against it enough that proceeding could damage the GOP even more; and three, McConnell may just feel Democrats have the numbers to win and not want to rock the boat. This would be based on the three Republican Senators, above, and Mark Kelly's win in Arizona. 

Returning to the November election and the control of the Senate, there are more vulnerable candidates. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina (he is tied with Jaime Harrison); Cal Cunningham (D) leads incumbent Thom Tillis (R) by 3.6 pts; and in Georgia, David Perdue (R) v. Jon Ossoff (D) (Perdue ahead by 4.3 pts.) plus a runoff election. More you can see here. My point is there are several chances for the left to take the Senate, made more positive by the current state of affairs.

And now a GOP Governor, Charlie Baker (R-MA)...

"issued a statement on Twitter urging Senate Republicans to hold off on filling Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat until after the November election."

So it would appear the damn is breaking with Moscow Mitch's support, accompanied by the realization by many, on both sided of the aisle, that this corrupt, conniving, bogus head of the United States Senate is not to be trusted or listened to. He'll get even less attention after Joe Biden enters the White House. That is, if McConnell beats Amy McGrath. 

Joe Biden has support of young Hispanic voters

 

The ex-Vice President has the Latino age group 18-34 solidly behind him, but trails Donald Trump in older Hispanics. The younger ones number 14,588,994 and Biden's supporters of 60% total 8,753,396. But he still needs that almost 20 million Latinos who are 35+. And US Today reports he isn't doing as well with this profile as Hillary Clinton did in 2016. Here's the scenario...

"This year, a record 32 million Latinos across the country will be eligible to vote, making them the largest minority electorate for the 2020 election. According to the survey, nearly two-thirds (64%) of young Latinos say they definitely will vote in November, and another 22% say they probably will."

Still: " When asked who they expected to win the election, 53% of the young Latinos surveyed said Biden would while 52% said Trump would be re-elected," which is troubling because it shows a somewhat lack of confidence in Joe Biden. There are a lot of first-time-voters and the fear of being deported if outed appears to be lessening. I've said it before; it's time to bring in Kamala Harris and use her advocacy to win over the Hispanic vote.

Read more...

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Donald Trump demeans U.S. troops, including former senator John McCain

 

James Mattis, Donald Trump's former Sec. of Defense denounced Trump saying

 

that he was "a threat to the Constitution." John Kelly, a retired four-star general and former White House chief of staff, was not on speaking terms with Donald Trump when he left the White House and is purported to be able to confirm the disparities against American troops. And Trump's obsession with John McCain produced comments like this re. his funeral...

“We’re not going to support that loser’s funeral,” and he became furious, according to witnesses, when he saw flags lowered to half-staff. “What the fuck are we doing that for? Guy was a fucking loser,” the president told aides.

Not exactly the kind of comment one might expect from the person sitting in the Oval Office. Knowing sources within the White House said...

"he seems to genuinely not understand why Americans treat former prisoners of war with respect. Nor does he understand why pilots who are shot down in combat are honored by the military."

That could be because he was a draft dodger who connived through his doctor an exemption from the draft over a bogus health problem. Once at Arlington Natl' Cemetery to celebrate the death of Kelly's son in Afghanistan, “I don’t get it. What was in it for them?” One of Kelly's friends added...

“He can’t fathom the idea of doing something for someone other than himself,” one of Kelly’s friends, a retired four-star general, told me. “He just thinks that anyone who does anything when there’s no direct personal gain to be had is a sucker. There’s no money in serving the nation.” Kelly’s friend went on to say, “Trump can’t imagine anyone else’s pain. That’s why he would say this to the father of a fallen marine on Memorial Day in the cemetery where he’s buried.”

Yes, this is, tragically, Donald Trump. And there is much more in the Atlantic article I recommend reading.

Read even more here.

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Are police cozy with far right?

Mark of the White Supremacist

A former FBI agent speaks, "Too many local police don’t take the far right seriously – or actively sympathize." The Brennan Center for Justice says there is, "Racism, White Supremacy, and Far-Right Militancy in Law Enforcement." A couple of observations from Brennan...

"many have concluded that a structural or institutional bias against people of color, shaped by long-standing racial, economic, and social inequities, infects the criminal justice system."

"These systemic inequities can also instill implicit biases — unconscious prejudices that favor in-groups and stigmatize out-groups — among individual law enforcement officials, influencing their day-to-day actions while interacting with the public."

Mike German, the former FBI agent has been warning of this enigma for years, but the problems have escalated in the last couple of years as Donald Trump spews racism and white supremacy from the Oval office. In an undercover assignment in California against neo-Nazi groups in Los Angeles, California, in 1992, there were routine warnings...

"A redacted version of a 2006 FBI intelligence assessment, White Supremacist Infiltration of Law Enforcement, alerted agents to 'both strategic infiltration by organized groups and self-initiated infiltration by law enforcement personnel sympathetic to white supremacist causes,'"

There's more from German...

"A leaked 2015 counter-terrorism policy guide made the case more directly, warning agents that FBI 'domestic terrorism investigations focused on militia extremists, white supremacist extremists, and sovereign citizen extremists often have identified active links to law enforcement officers.'"

The former agent says that "white supremacists have engaged in deadly rampages in Charleston, South Carolina, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and El Paso, Texas." It gets worse...

"More ominously, neo-Nazis obtained radiological materials to manufacture 'dirty' bombs in separate cases in Maine in 2009 and Florida in 2017, which were only avoided through chance."

The point is we have been lucky when it comes to the discovery of nuclear threats before they occur. What we don't need is law enforcement standing in the way or even aiding and abetting in these events. Police are basically honest and dedicated to their jobs to protect the public. The problem is identifying those who aren't. Mike German's article here.

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CNN's Daniel Dale highlights Trump RNC convention lies

Anderson Cooper-Daniel Dale

Of course we expected a parade of deceit from Donald Trump at his RNC speech on the last night of the Republican convention. It was a big show for the morons packed close together, most without masks, on the south lawn of the White House, a group of around 2,000 with the potential of turning into another super spreader of COVID-19. Why not...everyone else is doing it. But it gave the Oval Office lunatic another shot at adding to his collection of over 20,000 lies.

Right after the convention ended, Daniel Dale, an expert fact checker with CNN talked to CNN's Anderson Cooper about Trump's ongoing clash with the truth. Here's what he said to Cooper...

“Anderson, this president is a serial liar, and he serially lied tonight,” Dale told anchor Anderson Cooper, and then—over the course of three dizzying minutes—ticked off 21 instances of Trump assaulting the truth, everything from his erroneous claims that Joe Biden wants to take down the border wall and confiscate guns to his bogus boast that no president has done more for the African-American community.

Dale finished and Anderson Cooper jokingly asked: "That’s it?” Dale replied: “There’s more. How much time do you have?” But it really wasn't funny, as both men must have agreed, the leader of the greatest nation in the free world feels it is okay to lie about most everything that comes out of his mouth. It is a character trait most would agree not appropriate for the position. That is, of course, except for Trump's double-digit supporters.

There's lots more to the Daily Beast article you can read here. And Daniel Dale's rattling off of Donald Trump mistruths is a must-watch!

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Trump shuts down briefings on election security

The noose tightens around the neck of the November election with Donald Trump eliminating a source of critical information from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. It seems they are afraid to do live briefings to "avoid the risk of saying something that might incur the wrath of the President," according to former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. Here's the scenario...

"With a written release or a written report, you avoid the back-and-forth of questions, some of which could be quite probing. And I think, I think the DNI would like to avoid that and avoid the risk of saying something that might incur the wrath of the President," former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said on Saturday.

There's more...

"I think this is a terrible thing with respect to the need to inform the electorate about what foreign nations are doing to interfere in our political process, most notably the Russians," added Clapper, a CNN contributor.

Apparently, the committee hasn't replied to CNN requests for qualification. There is back and forth within the Trump administration that China wants Biden to win but Russia wants Trump to win. My assumption is the White House is afraid the intelligence will lean too heavily with China's desires than with Putin's Russia. The irony is that so far I have seen no indication Biden wants help from China, but plenty that Trump will take anything he can get from Russia.

READ MORE...

Controlling the use of your name and personal data

Back in 2005, when I was still a part of the junk mail business, I began seriously questioning whose property an individual's name, address and other personal data was. I came to the conclusion, and it also seemed common sense to me, that the individual should own this data and be paid for its use. I created a formula for how the American public should be compensated and publicized it nationally. It was met by resistance by the entire industry, even privacy organizations.

My proposal, which was introduced on July 4, 2006, "Independence is Control Over your Name and Personal Data," was met with hostility from junk mailers, the Direct marketing Assn., and many privacy groups whose purported purpose was to protect your name and personal data. Here's an excerpt...

"There is only one answer to protecting our names and personal data, and holding Big Brother at bay when it comes to business and government usurping individual privacy. Orwell’s 1984 predicted it, and we are very close to fulfilling his prophesy, but Americans are beginning to see the light and the need to protect their inner sanctum."

That led to...

"(2 In the case of compensation in the sale of consumer names and personal data, this same system would calculate revenue by individual, and maintain an accounting of what is due. Based on the junk mail industry’s annual take of $4 billion for the selling of names and private information, I feel the name-holder should receive one-half. Ideally, it could be placed in an account bearing simple interest of 3 percent, and the person could eventually draw around $607 a month to supplement their retirement, or take the proceeds in cash."

And then I did a follow-up piece some two weeks later, "Junk Mail Industry Continues to Rob Customers," which reassessed my earlier post of July 4, remarking how junk mailers seemed to ignore the individual's privacy, selling your name repeatedly...

"Yet, the very culprits responsible for the conspiracy are whining over how to get even more results from your names and private information. In a recent article, “Marketers Feel Data-Challenged,” from Direct, a junk mail industry publication, a survey reveals a general unhappiness by companies of not realizing the highest return from your personal data. They want more and more of it, but don’t know how to use it. Pathetic."

There's more...

"In keeping with the inaccuracy of ChoicePoint and Acxiom data from another survey ( 73% and 67%, respectively), junk mail marketers seem to fare no better, with only 30% reporting their data as reliable. Have you ever known of an industry selling its product—mailing lists—for $4 billion a year with an average error rate of 70%? I think not."

Well, the American public, a bunch of lazy apathetics I call them, didn't respond to my proposal, but apparently California sees the idea of the protection of this private information very important. Important enough to pass California Consumer Protection Act, or CCPA, and I look forward to seeing its effect on the use of our names and private information. Read more here...

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Michael Cohen's Trump tell-all does that and more

"Disloyal: A Memoir. The true story of the former personal attorney to President Donald J. Trump," is due out October 6, but Cohen is pushing for September. The recently published foreword site had so much traffic it crashed, which gives you an idea of the significance of the expose. Cohen says...

“'From golden showers in a sex club in Vegas, to tax fraud, to deals with corrupt officials from the former Soviet Union, to catch and kill conspiracies, to silencing Trump’s clandestine lovers, I wasn’t just a witness to the president’s rise—I was an active and eager participant,' it says, among other things."

When Cohen first outed Trump to congressional leaders, "he urged others to rethink their support," resulting in the following comment...

“To those who support the President and his rhetoric, as I once did, I pray the country doesn’t make the same mistakes as I have made or pay the heavy price that my family and I are paying,” Cohen recalled, “exhorting them to learn from my example.”

Cohen continually felt that he was under surveillance, checking to see if he was being followed. Paranoid, perhaps, but completely logical when you are dealing with Donald Trump. After all, as Cohen describes it, he was the most infamous person in the country at the time. I have read over a half-dozen books on Donald Trump recently but think I am looking forward to this one most. Read more here...

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COVID-19 aerosol transmission must be addressed

There are three kinds of coronavirus transmission: "The first is through “fomites,” objects that are contaminated with the virus (which could include someone else’s skin)." The second "is through droplets, small bits of saliva or respiratory fluid that infected individuals expel when they cough, sneeze, or talk." The latter is the major source according to WHO and the CDC, but in this case the droplets fall to the ground after traveling 3 to 6 feet.

The above droplets are only important when coughing and sneezing. However, more important is the third pathway which is aerosols. Here is Jimenez's assessment...

“'Aerosol' (sometimes referred to as 'airborne') transmission is similar to droplet transmission, except that the bits of fluid are so small that they can linger in the air for minutes to hours."

Both "WHO and CDC both state that aerosols could lead to transmission under highly specific situations, both organizations maintain that they are less important." Professor Jimenez disagrees...

"I believe this is a significant mistake and on July 6 I, along with 239 scientists, appealed to the WHO to reevaluate their stance. WHO updated its position in response, but the agency’s language continues to express skepticism of the importance of this pathway."

Even considering WHO's and the CDC's position on aerosols...

"just a few diseases, including measles and chickenpox, have been accepted as being transmitted through aerosols—and only because these are so transmissible that the evidence could not be ignored by the medical community."

Here is an excellent illustration...

"it is useful to use cigarette or vaping smoke (which is also an aerosol) as an analog. Imagine sharing a home with a smoker: if you stood close to the smoker while talking, you would inhale a great deal of smoke. Replace the smoke with virus-containing aerosols, which behave very similarly, and the impact is similar: the closer you are to someone releasing virus-carrying aerosols, the more likely you are to breathe in larger amounts of virus."

Jimenez describes it like "cannonballs" flying from someone's mouth that "travel through the air until they either hit something (worst case someone else’s eyes, mouth or nostrils) or fall to the ground." That is not a good scenario but is just yet another mandate for masks and social distancing that, while not guaranteed, are proven to cut back the transmission of COVID-19 significantly. This is an excellent article you can read here.

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