COVID 19 Pandemic

Joe Biden Promoting Science And Truth On COVID 19 And Climate Change

It is truly refreshing to have a President who promotes science and truth, rather than half baked lies and phonies who advocate crazy solutions to important matters, including COVID 19 and Climate Change.

The lack of knowledge and education of so many Americans, and particularly those who follow their religious beliefs over science, is shocking!

But with all of the push on science, it is clear a substantial minority of Americans will refuse to take the COVID 19 vaccinations, and will continue to refuse face masks, social distancing, and postponing personal pleasures including being in crowds that endangers all of the rest of us.

The ignorance and susceptibility of millions of Americans who will accept conspiracy theories advocated by demagogues is a long term threat to the stability and security of the nation, even beyond the COVID 19 Pandemic emergency!

This is a major challenge to the Biden Presidency, to overcome the damage perpetrated by the Donald Trump Presidency in so many areas!

Joe Biden Becomes Third President (After Ulysses S. Grant And Lyndon B. Johnson) To Emphasize Racial Equity In First Months Of His Presidency

President Joe Biden has made racial equity a landmark moment of his Presidency from the beginning, and already is perceived as being the third President to make civil rights a major goal immediately upon taking the oath.

The first President to do this was Ulysses S. Grant in 1869, promoting the concept of the 15th Amendment, granting the right to vote to African American men, and being added to the Constitution in 1870.

Also, Grant promoted better treatment of Native Americans in his Inaugural week, and is seen as the most tolerant and open minded on that issue of any President in the post Civil War years.

The second President to make civil rights a key issue immediately was Lyndon B. Johnson upon becoming President after the assassination of John F. Kennedy in November 1963. Johnson made the push for the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which had been floundering in Congress after it was introduced by Kennedy in the summer of 1963. And Johnson went on to promote also the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as the 15th Amendment had been denied for many decades in the Southern states, as Jim Crow segregation reigned.

And now, Joe Biden is pushing and promoting action, as a result of the well known discrimination in criminal justice; and in dealing with the endemic poverty in minority communities; the lack of adequate health care including in the COVID 19 Pandemic; problems of education and work opportunities and housing that persist; the need to clean the environment where often there is massive pollution in areas ignored before now; and also the difficulties faced by women, transgender citizens, the gay community, and the disabled. The purpose is to get rid of systemic discrimination against all the above groups.

One can hope that major progress on these areas of policy can be accomplished!

Joe Biden Starts Off Aggressively, With 30 Executive Orders In Three Days

President Biden is starting off his administration with a series of quick actions through 30 executive orders in three days in office, and more to come!

These include:

14 on the Corona Virus

4 on the Economy

2 on the Environment

5 on Immigration

2 on Equity

1 on Ethics

1 on Regulation

1 on the Census Bureau

These include in detail:

Reinstating ties with the World Health Organization; Enforcing a mask mandate on federal properties and public transportation; Coordinating the national response to the COVID 19 Pandemic.

Halting construction of the Mexico Border Wall; Ending the Muslim Ban; Including non citizens in the Census Count; Protecting DACA immigrants from deportation; Stopping aggressive actions to find and deport undocumented immigrants.

Re-entering the Paris Climate Accords; Revoking the permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline; Revoking rollbacks to Vehicle Emission Standards; Undoing decisions to slash the size of several National Monuments; Enforcing a moratorium on oil and natural gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; Reestablishing a working group on the social costs of greenhouse gases.

Ending the 1776 Commission which distorted the role of slavery in American history; Rooting out systematic racism, and working to prevent discrimination based upon gender, sexual orientation or gender identity and promote equity and diversity in all government programs and agencies.

Extend a federal moratorium on evictions, and foreclosures on mortgages; A pause on federal student loan interest and principal payments.

Three Republican Freshmen In Congress Who Should Be Expelled As Threats To Civil Order

The kooks have come out in the Republican Party, and there are at least three freshmen who should be expelled as threats to civil order and common decency.

These three members of the House have displayed that they are dangerous, extreme in their craziness, and unwilling to obey Congressional rules.

The first is Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who is a full blown QAnon supporter, and plans to promote an impeachment resolution against the newly inaugurated President Joe Biden on his first full day as President on January 21, 2021.

A second is Lauren Boebert of Colorado, also a QAnon supporter, who carries firearms on her person against safety rules, and created a scene when asked to go through metal detectors as a result of the January 6, 2021 Capitol Hill Insurrection. She is a gun rights advocate who has also resisted cooperation in dealing with the COVID 19 Pandemic.

And the third is the youngest member of the House in many years, 25 year old Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina, who also packs weapons and resists metal detectors, using the excuse that he is in a wheel chair, and is not accountable to be searched as a result.

All three opposed the Electoral College ceremony for Joe Biden, and all three promote defiance and lack of cooperation, and come across as overly confrontational.

The Republican Party has become, more than ever, a party of dangerous and defiant membership, and all three show signs to any intelligent person as being mentally unstable and believers in conspiracy theories.

All three are under investigation for their possible involvement in the Insurrection, including possibly encouraging the events of that horrible day!

The Refusal Of So Many Americans To Accept Science, And The Role Of Government

It is extremely frustrating to witness, both personally, and in coverage of the news, that so many people refuse to accept science, and also the role of government.

The first purpose of government is to PROTECT and DEFEND the American people, and that includes sacrifice and concern about others, NOT just about one’s own pleasures and desires.

And the promotion of science is essential, and needs to be respected over religious beliefs and whims, and this includes recognition of updates in science over the decades since one learned science when in school!

To see so many people claiming their rights over responsibility to society as a whole is infuriating, and it has made the struggle against COVID 19 ever more difficult, leading to one of every thousand Americans dying as the year 2020 comes to an end!

Any government leader who refuses to put restrictions on the population in a time of a once in a lifetime pandemic is someone who should be summarily removed from office, but instead, we have many Americans condemning such state governors as Andrew Cuomo of New York, Larry Hogan of Maryland, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, and Gavin Newsom of California, among others. These are both Democratic and Republican governors, so this is not a political statement!

Instead, these selfish, self centered individuals applaud such reckless and irresponsible governors as Ron DeSantis of Florida and Kristi Noem of South Dakota, who have presided over disastrous conditions, and lied and manipulated the truth, following the lead of Donald Trump, who is responsible for his refusal to accept reality, and promoted masks and social distancing as a model for America!

So the so called “greatest nation in the world” has the biggest loss of life, cases, and hospitalizations of any nation in the world, and it could have been otherwise, but politics and egomaniacal behavior mattered more to Trump than the lives and safety of Americans.

Donald Trump will never live down the massive loss of life in less than one year on his watch, and those who refuse even now to accept science and the role of government will carry the burden of guilt, and many of these same individuals will refuse to accept vaccination, and the hope is that fate will punish them for this stupidity and lack of concern for others!

Republican Double Standard: Massive Tax Cuts For Wealthy, But Limit Financial Aid In Pandemic

The Republican Party is proving once again that they favor the wealthy with massive tax cuts that add to the national debt, but have no interest in giving financial aid in the once in a century COVID 19 Pandemic, arguing it will add to the national debt!

Meanwhile, tens of millions are desperate, facing eviction, hunger, inability to pay basic needs. This is having not only a physical threat to health, but also emotional and mental!

A payment of $2000 would vastly help tens of millions of Americans get through the increasing pandemic, as the earlier $1200 payment in the spring of 2020 prevented the economic decline from being worse than it is.

Ultimately, more financial aid will be needed, and the wealthy, who have had “gifts” of massive tax cuts three times in the pat 40 years, under Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and now Donald Trump, will have to cough up more in taxes, as they have the patriotic duty to recognize that the entire economy is in the worst disaster since the 1930s, and demands their cooperation!

This includes the super billionaires, including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and others, who have increased the wealth exponentially in the past nine months!

If Mitch McConnell does not allow a vote, the Republicans will lose the two Senate races in Georgia a week from today, but even if a $2000 payment is approved, the Republicans are harming themselves by their lack of concern for average Americans, only finally agreeing under duress, not a good image for a corrupt political party!

The Heroes Of 2020: Bright Lights In A Year The Worst In Most People’s Lifetimes

The year 2020 has been the worst year in most people’s lifetimes, but there have been heroes who deserve attention and appreciation from all decent Americans.

The ultimate hero is Dr. Anthony Fauci, who reached the age of 80 yesterday, and has been an inspiration to anyone who believes in science, and respects expertise over “junk science”, or science that is generations out of date.

Some of our greatest heroes of the year, sadly, have departed, including Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who left a legacy of promotion of equal rights for all groups in America, including women, people of color, the disabled, and equal justice for all.

Also departing this world was Congressman John Lewis of Georgia, who promoted the concept of “good trouble” to advance human rights in a world and nation that too often is not engaged in such efforts.

Another hero is former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who advanced equality of gays and lesbians, just by becoming the first known gay Presidential contender, and now will be the first openly gay Cabinet officer as Secretary of Transportation.

Another hero is Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, who has done an amazing job pursuing justice, equality, and the interests of the American people, in a time of the massive threat presented by Donald Trump, and has not blinked at his threats, misogyny, and crazed insanity. She has had to deal with the unrelenting misogyny of many in the Republican Party opposition, and Trump supporters who show a total lack of respect for her that they would never utter against a man!

Another hero is California Congressman Adam Schiff, who was a key player in the impeachment investigation of Donald Trump, and is Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. He has suffered from threats and vicious attacks by Donald Trump and his minions, but has demonstrated courage and conviction in an admirable manner.

Another hero is South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn, the highest ranked African American in Congress as House Majority Whip, third ranking leadership role. If it were not for Clyburn, Joe Biden would not have been able to become the Democratic Presidential nominee this year, as Clyburn’s endorsement was a major factor in Biden winning the South Carolina Primary and moving forward to the top of the Democratic Presidential ticket.

Another such hero is the future First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, who, with her elegance and intelligence, will raise the level of that position from the disgraceful low level it reached in the past four years.

California Senator Kamala Harris, soon to be Vice President of the United States, is another hero, who will be the first woman, and first woman of color with her Jamaican and Asian Indian heritage, to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency. She is a role model for women and racial minorities, and will be a very influential Vice President, more in the direction of Joe Biden, Al Gore, and Walter Mondale, than Mike Pence!

And last but not least, Joe Biden, who is a man of decency, compassion, ethics, and empathy, will be our 46th President on January 20, 2021. He will face the most daunting set of issues of any President since Abraham Lincoln in 1861, Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, and Barack Obama in 2009. His long career in Congress, and his outstanding Vice Presidency give America hope, that in a time of a “dark winter”, as Joe Biden calls the COVID 19 Pandemic and the Second Great Depression, that Biden will take leadership on the level of FDR’s New Deal to take us to brighter days and a recovery in 2021 and beyond!

Everyone needs to pray for his success, but all know that he will not waste a minute or a day in promoting himself on Twitter or playing golf, as our despicable 45th President, Donald Trump, has done more of in the past four years, than doing his job!

Trump Condemns Republican Senate Leadership and Own Cabinet Officers On His Way To Oblivion!

Donald Trump, down to less than a month to oblivion, as a defeated President, the first in nearly 30 years, is condemning Republican leadership in the Senate, presenting them with the issue of how to respond to his attacks.

He has attacked Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Majority Whip John Thune, both of whom have accepted that Joe Biden is the President Elect,and is demonstrating that he is totally unstable as he storms around the Oval Office, bringing pressure on Vice President Mike Pence to prevent the accurate Electoral College vote in a joint session of Congress on January 6.

He has been critical of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and outgoing Attorney General William Barr for their recognition that Russia was involved in a cyber attack on American government institutions.

He seems ready to burn down everything and everyone around him, and is already involved in a disgraceful number of pardons to criminals who should be facing prosecution and incarceration for their crimes.

And now, at the eleventh hour, Trump is calling on Congress to modify the COVID 19 Relief Bill, raising the amount sent to American taxpayers from $600 to $2000 per individual, after spending months ignoring the matter completely, focusing only on the issue of his claim that he should win the election of 2020!

Republican Senate Reprehensible In Its Lack Of Compassion For Victims Of COVID 19, And Depression!

The Republican Party of Donald Trump is demonstrating once again its lack of compassion for victims of COVID 19 and the Second Great Depression which has developed as a result of Trump’s refusal to take action early, and be consistent on promoting patriotism and sacrifice on the part of the American people!

The Republican Senate majority has resisted any substantial federal aid, and there are plenty of villains in this matter, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky; Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin; Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky; Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania; Senator Ted Cruz of Texas; Senator Mike Lee of Utah; Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas; and others.

Hopefully, the two runoffs in Georgia will lead to two Democrats, and the ability of the Joe Biden Administration to have control of both houses of Congress in the 117th Congress of 2021-2022!

Donald Trump Should Leave White House At Christmas And Not Return!

It is a good idea for Donald Trump to leave the White House at Christmas, go to Mar A Lago and never return!

It would give the government nearly a month to clean up, fumigate, and sanitize the building, considering the contamination caused by COVID 19, and the recklessness practiced by Trump and the entire White House Trump loyalists, endangering the lives of White House Staff and Secret Service agents, many of whom have taken ill due to the lack of concern by Donald Trump!

Otherwise, there would only be about six hours to transform the White House from the Trump Presidency to the Biden Presidency on Inauguration Day!