It’s a rainy overcast morning in the Raleigh area as I commence writing part two of a wrap-up of the week just past. The Sunday morning newspapers I read just a bit ago made one thing much clearer. That is far from all I will attempt to briefly cover today. With that in mind, let’s explore.
Last week Mick Mulvaney made it official: Trump would host next year’s G-7 meeting at his metro Miami golf resort. This is a clear violation of the Emoluments Clause and itself would constitute another article of impeachment singularly sufficient for a responsible Congress to remove Trump from office. There was a huge public outcry and this time the noise worked because the Sunday morning newspapers carried the clear message that Trump had tweeted his surrender.
In his announcement Mulvaney had said that Doral was the clear winner among the eleven other sites considered, although he would not and did not plan to release the names of the other sites. It is easy to envision Doral being the clear winner if the other sites were places like the Starbucks in Brunswick, Georgia (I’ve been to both and they are nice Starbucks but totally unsuitable to host a G-7), or the Waffle House in Youngsville, North Carolina (been there too – the food is good). I could go on with my attempt at humor but you get the idea.
The bottom line is living proof of Chuck Schumer’s theory that Trump and his people only do the right thing after they are caught doing the wrong thing.
Sticking with Mulvaney’s press conference for a bit, he did the typical word salad admission of guilt we have seen time and again from Trump sycophants. He denied a quid pro quo with relation to Ukraine, and then he admitted it only to later deny what he had said. By the way since the quid pro quo would have benefited Trump politically it is both a violation of federal campaign finance law and an impeachable offense.
Among the many concerning things about the press shop of the Trump administration is that we almost invariably get news of US-Russian interactions first from the Russian state owned news outlet TASS. Thursday TASS released a statement saying that the two nations had joined forces in a cyber warfare cooperative. I swear if Trump could resurrect Al Capone he would nominate him for the post of FBI Director.
As you read this we are past the halfway point in October and yet we are no closer to enacting the necessary legislation to keep the federal government open past November 21st. A looming or actual government shutdown would be a pleasant distraction for Trump; not so much for the rest of America.
Saturday as I was running errands 3 Doors Down’s song Kryptonite came on the radio. That spurred this thought: Trump is to Superman as Nancy Pelosi is to kryptonite. Trump may characterize her as, “A third grade politician” but she will be his demise. Interestingly 3 Doors Down, armed with their single memorable song was the top act in Trump’s $100+ million inauguration. The next biggest act was The Piano Guys. $100+ million?
On Friday Florida Republican Representative Francis Rooney was less than stringent in his defense of Trump. On Saturday he announced that he would not seek reelection. While some may say it is a coincidence as a believer in Nance’s Law I see cause and effect.
Politics are murky in Washington and they are no better in London. Boris Johnson held an unusual, eleventh hour, Saturday session in the House of Commons in an effort to intimidate the chamber into accepting his latest Brexit deal. The short answer is that his gambit failed. For the latest and best analysis of where we go from here I suggest you consult the BBC. Fat guys, with bad hair and too long ties aren’t doing well with that democracy thing these days regardless of which side of the Atlantic they are on.
Despite the efforts of Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo the situation in northern Syria is as unsettled as ever. Supposedly Trump’s dynamic duo brokered a five day cease fire which was not only a joke but apparently never materialized. Books will be written on this topic but for now this paragraph will have to suffice.
Just so you don’t think all the evil in America resides in DC, this week it was revealed that Boeing knew of the problems with its 737 Max as far back as 2016. Who cares if some people die in the defense of corporate profit?
In 2001 Bill Clinton issued orders protecting the Tongass National Forest in Alaska. They stayed in placed under both Republican George W. Bush’s and Democrat Barack Obama’s administrations. Trees are natural defenders against carbon dioxide emissions. Tuesday Trump lifted the logging ban. This is the kind of long-term damage he is doing. The sad part is that with all the “sexier” news it hardly gets any “ink”.
The saddest news of last week was the passing of Democratic Representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland. The Chairman of the House Oversight Committee was a champion of progressive causes and a staunch defender of Baltimore, Maryland. Someone will take his seat after a special election and someone will move into his position as committee chair; replacing him is another issue.
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