Tag Archives: Joe Biden

national news

Trump is back? Good grief!

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(Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Donald J. Trump might be set to re-enter the political arena.

He is a disgraced former POTUS who got hammered in his bid for re-election in 2020. Trump faces possible criminal indictments in New York City and Fulton County, Ga. He’s got a huge debt of $400 million coming due. He continues to foment The Big Lie about the 2020 presidential election.

You know all about The Big Lie. It’s the one that suggests that President Biden won because of rampant vote fraud. Except there was no such fraud. Biden won fairly, squarely and bigly.

Trump signals he’s ready to get back in the game | TheHill

But the ex-POTUS is going to engage in some political rallies. He’ll lend his voice on behalf of Republican candidates running in the 2022 midterm election.

His hijacking of a GOP only demonstrates how far the party has fallen. Trump is a classic Republican In Name Only. The man has few actual political friends, just a cabal of officeholders and contenders who fear what can happen to them if they cross Trump.

To think that one of them, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, says “no one” questions Biden’s legitimacy as our commander in chief. Uh, Earth to McCarthy … Donald Trump questions it.

He wants to be a player in the midterm campaign.

Sigh … 

I want the blowhard/carnival barker/ex-liar in chief to disappear.

economic news, national news

POTUS punished for good deeds?

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By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

It really must be true that “no good deed goes unpunished.”

Consider the following:

President Biden took office in January as the nation was struggling to cope with the COVID pandemic. He promised tens of millions of vaccines in his first 100 days. He succeeded gloriously in outpacing that projection.

Then came a surge in consumer demand of supplies they couldn’t purchase because of restrictions caused by the pandemic. The worldwide supply chain has been strained as manufacturers struggle to meet the immense demand.

The punishment comes in the form of inflation that now has the White House troubled by the impact of that huge demand and the still-limited supply.

The Hill reports: All of those factors combined to push the consumer price index (CPI) up 0.8 percent in April and 4.2 percent over the past 12 months, the fastest annual rate since 2008, the Labor Department reported this past week. When stripping out the more volatile prices for food and energy, the index registered the biggest monthly increase since 1982.

While the ramped-up consumer spending is a sign of increased optimism, the Biden administration faces political risks as Americans find themselves dealing with inflation levels that the country hasn’t seen in more than a decade.

Inflation fears grow for White House (msn.com)

Joe Biden is a seasoned political hand. He knows he will get pilloried for the inflation. There is no way on God’s good Earth he is going to apologize for the accelerated vaccine distribution and vaccination rates that have contributed to the “crisis” resulting in the inflationary pressure.

International news

Stay the course on Israel, Mr. POTUS

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By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden needs to resist the pressure coming from the left wing of the Democratic Party regarding the exploding tensions between Israel and the Palestinians.

Israel is striking back hard at Hamas terrorists who have been launching missiles into Israeli neighborhoods, targeting civilians in their attempt to get Israel to change its settlement policy in Palestinian territory.

Joe Biden has long held during his half-century in public life that Israel is our most important ally in the Middle East, yet the far-left within the Democratic Party are pressuring him to look more kindly on the terrorists who are demanding social justice.

I get their concern. I want Israel and the Palestinians to live in peace as much as anyone. I also believe the Israelis have shown sufficient patience at terrorists — such as Hamas — keep threatening the lives of Israeli civilians.

As the New York Times reported: Less than 24 hours later, on Friday, nearly 150 prominent liberal advocacy organizations issued a joint statement calling for “solidarity with the Palestinian residents” and condemning “Israeli state violence” and “supremacy” in Jerusalem.

Tensions Among Democrats Grow Over Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (msn.com)

Biden’s instincts are correct. He needs no lecture from those on the fringes of his party on how to deal with the Palestinians. Does he want a two-state solution? Yes. Does he want to stand in “solidarity” with Palestinians? That’s a dicey proposition, given this nation’s long-standing “solidarity” with Israel.

We should stand strongly with Israel while seeking a permanent peace in the region that knows unbearable heartache.

medical news

Mask mandate lifted? OK, but …

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden has sort of spiked a proverbial football on the basis of a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ruling related to the killer pandemic that has put the entire planet on edge.

The CDC says fully vaccinated Americans need not wear masks.

Hoo-ray! Now does that mean we’re back to normal life? That all that worry and angst is a thing of the past? That we should toss all caution into the crapper?

Nope. Not going to go there.

Biden calls new mask guidance a ‘great milestone’ | TheHill

It means that fully vaccinated Americans — such as my immediate family (except for my younger than 12-year-old granddaughter) — would be wise to exercise some restraint and good judgment when mingling with crowds of people they do not know. Our granddaughter’s vaccination is approaching rapidly and for that I will be grateful beyond all measure.

That will continue to be our mantra as we regain our footing en route to life as we once knew it.

President Biden calls it a milestone. He is taking a victory lap of sorts, although he has been discreet in his outward behavior as we have cleared various mile posts along the way — much to his great credit.

“I think it’s a great milestone, a great day. It’s been made possible by the extraordinary success we have had in vaccinating so many Americans, so quickly,” Biden added.

OK. I’m all in with the new guidelines. I wish I could be totally serene about our collective future and our national health. I am not yet there, given all the “variants” and the crises that are erupting in places like India, Brazil and parts of Europe.

However, I am heartened by the progress the nation is making in eradicating this hideous killer.

 

national news

Big Lie: alive and festering

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

The Big Lie, the one fomented by Donald Trump, is alive and festering in Maricopa County, Ariz.

What gives? Well, a group of conspiracy theorists is ramrodding a supposed “recount” of votes cast during the 2020 presidential election. The Arizona vote ended up narrowly in President Biden’s total, giving him the state’s electoral votes.

The conspiracy nuts are looking for justification to turn the results over in the state’s most populated county. My prediction? They won’t find anything, at least not legitimately.

However, there is not a damn thing legitimate about what is happening in Arizona and in Maricopa County.

The Big Lie purveyors, who hang on the lie promoted by Donald Trump that the election was “stolen” through vote fraud, are on the hunt for anything they can use to give validation to the phony assertion about fraud that did not exist.

The so-called “audit” of the ballots is being done by individuals and organizations with zero election experience. They are Trumpkins in disguise. They have stooped to looking for evidence — and this is fantastic! — of “bamboo” in the paper used in ballots to confirm specious assertions of manipulation by nefarious forces in Southeast Asia.

We are witnessing a ridiculous attempt spurred on by a ridiculous former POTUS to overturn the results of a fair, legal and free election.

Sheriff Goes Ballistic After Arizona Recounters Demand Access To County Passwords | HuffPost

There will be nothing constructive gained from this form of idiocy, other than to confirm that those who are seeking to overturn the results are, indeed, certifiable idiots.

They are being fed The Big Lie. They consume it willingly and seemingly with glee. They stand behind a man elected to the presidency and then defeated in his re-election bid only because they adhere to the nonsense and the lies he throws out there.

Now they are messing around with an electoral process that has been deemed “the most secure in U.S. history.” Who made that assertion? Donald Trump’s choice to protect the electoral system, Christopher Krebs, who then got “rewarded” for doing his job by getting fired by the Liar in Chief. Someone has to explain to me how that makes a lick of sense.

So it is that the Big Lie is alive.

It is festering.

national news

Why not help families?

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Someone will have to explain to me in simple terms just why the Republican caucus in Congress is so adamant in opposing the family portion of President Biden’s infrastructure relief package.

Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell has declared that the acceptable price tag for an infrastructure bill has increased to $800 billion, which is up from the $568 billion price tag proposed initially by the GOP.  But he wants any legislation to focus on roads, bridges, rail lines … you know, the “traditional” infrastructure items.

McConnell ups acceptable price tag for infrastructure package (msn.com)

Biden wants to expand the definition of infrastructure to include benefits for families. Providing health care. Waiving the cost of attending community college. Raising the minimum wage.

Why is that such a terrible thing in the eyes of Republicans?

Surely they cannot believe that the government has no role to play here. Or can they?

Biden is set to meet with congressional leaders on Wednesday. It’ll be a bipartisan affair. The president will get to employ his formidable negotiating skills and perhaps parlay his relationships with the likes of McConnell into some form of compromise.

He needs to start with putting the GOP leadership on the record about whether they want to help families. Or do they want to kick them aside in favor of fixing potholes?

I happen to believe we need to go bigger rather than smaller.

local news, national security, State news

Border madness must be handled

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

I am going to concede that conditions on our nation’s southern border need attention, they need serious repair, they need an administration that is willing to get tougher than it has been so far.

A neighbor of mine is a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper who is leaving soon for a temporary-duty assignment southeast of Laredo.

He describes the situation on the border as “an out of control mess.”

My neighbor blames President Biden’s administration for it. He didn’t say so directly, but I believe he endorsed the Donald Trump administration policy of rounding up undocumented immigrants, fast-tracking their status while being held and then sending them back to the country from which they fled.

The Biden administration approach is more an “open border” matter. I reminded him that the border isn’t “open” and that Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are stopping illegal immigration every single day.

He acknowledged that but said that the Biden administration’s more tolerant policy is enticing people to flee to this country.

I get that Joe Biden has taken a dramatically different approach to undocumented immigration than the one used by his immediate predecessor. However, I will not accept the notion that our borders are “open” and available for anyone to enter this country.

My neighbor, though, is joining other DPS troopers to assist local and federal law enforcement officials in doing their job. He believes this DPS involvement will last a while, that the situation along our border is too grave to clear up over the short term.

He is a bright young man. I will accept his diagnosis of the problem.

However, I am going to swallow the hook that contends that an “open border policy” is to blame for it.

This matter needs a concerted federal and state effort to resolve. I am going to hold out hope that Gov. Greg Abbott will resist the temptation to hurl blame and insults and will get to working with the president and his team to resolve this matter.

national news

McConnell: who needs to govern?

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has made a startling admission.

He has acknowledged, in effect, that he has no interest in governance. He said that “100 percent of my focus is to block” everything that President Biden wants to do.

There. You got that?

This is the same guy who in 2010 declared that his sole focus was to make Barack H. Obama “a one-term president.” Well, that mission went down in flames, as President Obama was re-elected two years later.

Now the Kentucky Republican has in effect doubled down on his earlier mission statement by saying that he is focused solely on blocking Joe Biden’s agenda.

What, I dare ponder, is Mitch McConnell’s agenda … if he has one.

economic news, national news

‘Meager’ jobs report prompts more action? Sure, but wait

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

The Labor Department produced some relatively desultory job-creation figures this morning.

The private non-farm sector generated “only” 266,000 jobs in April, said the Labor bean counters. There had been projections of a million plus such jobs.

What was the response from President Biden? He said the relatively skimpy job growth means the government must do more to stimulate an economy crushed by the COVID pandemic.

I agree with him … to a point.

The jobs figures signal a need to approve something akin to the infrastructure/family/jobs package that Biden has presented to Congress.

I am not sure that we need to receive yet another round of “stimulus checks” to boost the economy.

Don’t get me wrong. My wife and I appreciate the aid we got from the government already. The $2,400 we received during the last year of the Trump administration and the $2,800 we received shortly after Joe Biden took office both have gone a long way to easing any difficulty in our home.

However, I remain a deficit hawk. I am fearful of the enormous deficits being run up during the current federal budget year. I want there to be more economic aid, but I also want it to come in the form of boosting tax rates for mega-wealthy Americans and corporations who find a way to avoid shouldering their share of the tax burden.

As for the infrastructure portion of the Biden package, by all means let us put people to work building and rebuilding our roads, bridges, airports and seaports. President Biden has thrown out an interesting idea, to re-create the Civilian Conservation Corps established during the Franklin Roosevelt administration as a way to rid the nation of the Great Depression. Let’s have that discussion, too.

I am not panicking just because one month’s job numbers didn’t measure up to what the brainiacs had predicted. I urge our government leaders to avoid pushing the economic pedal to the metal full bore.

national news

Entering a dark era

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By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

It pains me to think this, let alone say it out loud.

We have entered a dark, foreboding era where demagoguery and cultism are replacing serious policy discussion.

President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has replaced the most corrupt, inept, unfit, unqualified individual ever to hold the office of U.S. president. And yet the men and women who would follow Donald J. Trump to the gates of hell have, seemingly, done that very thing.

They are standing as obstructionists to a constructive agenda that President Biden seeks to craft for the nation. What’s even more frightening is that many of the Trumpsters are hiding behind the Big Lie that says the November 2020 election was pilfered from their guy. Thus, they demagogue themselves breathless, implying that Joe Biden isn’t a legitimate president.

Biden says he is willing to compromise with Republicans on the grand infrastructure package he has laid out there. It’s big, man. The GOP leadership in Congress has countered with a significantly smaller package. To be fair, it also represent a significant investment. Biden’s plan starts at $2.2 trillion; the GOP plan starts at $568 billion. President Biden says he is willing and ready to talk to Republicans about finding common ground.

Is the Republican congressional leadership listening to him? Not outwardly. They contend that Biden’s plan is a non-starter. They won’t raise taxes on rich people who saw their tax burden lightened in the 2017 GOP-led tax bill that Trump signed into law.

You want demagoguery? How about the nonsense the GOP keeps spouting about Biden’s “open border policy”? The border isn’t open. We are rounding up undocumented immigrants every hour of every day. Our immigration cops are holding them, trying to process them through a broken immigration system … that Joe Biden inherited.

From my perch out here the loyal opposition doesn’t look all that loyal in that it seems reluctant to negotiate in good faith with a president who seeks to employ those legendary legislative skills built over a professional lifetime in public service.

This is a dark time, folks. So help me I thought I saw flashes of light the day the nation turned Donald Trump out of office.

It must have been an oncoming freight train.

Am I giving up on the new president? Nope. Won’t happen. I intend to keep pushing, pitching and promoting a constructive agenda whenever the moment suits me.

At this moment, it suits me just fine.