Good riddance

Dr. Deborah Birx, the coordinator of the White House's Coronavirus Task Force, says she plans to retire in the near future, capping a tumultuous run as one of the top U.S. officials guiding the government's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

[...]

Birx, 64, cited the strain the experience has put on her family. Birx was criticized after The Associated Press reported on Sunday that she spent time with family members at a vacation home after the Thanksgiving holiday, despite Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance urging Americans not to travel or mix with those outside their own household.

  MSN

That's not the only problem with Birx.

"My trip to Delaware after the Thanksgiving holiday solely focused on preparing the property for a potential sale. Members of my immediate household assisted in that as well," she said.

It just happened to be necessary at Thanksgiving.

"As some members of my immediate family could be at risk for COVID-19, I am extremely vigilant in taking all precautions to protect them. I self-isolate, I wear a mask, and I get tested when I interact with them. My family and I follow and practice CDC guidelines, and I encourage all Americans, especially those in situations similar to mine, to do the same."

[...]

"This experience has been a bit overwhelming. It's been very difficult on my family. I think what was done in the last week to my family — you know, they didn't choose this for me," Birx told Newsy. "They've tried to be supportive, but to drag my family into this when it's — my daughter hasn't left that house in 10 months. My parents have been isolated for 10 months."

Same as millions of other people, Deb.

Birx said she wants the "Biden administration to be successful" and will "be helpful in any role that people think I can be helpful in."

"And then I will retire," she said.

Now's good, Deb.

 

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

Let's AL amplify Lin Wood's insanity

It will put two Democrats from Georgia in and flip the Senate.

He wants Trump voters to boycott the Georgia runoff.  I say, YES!

"SCOTUS can then invalidate the Presidential election."  What's he smoking?  "Real conservative senators can then be appointed."  Appointed??  What on earth does an invalidated election bring in its wake?  "Kemp, Perdue, and Loeffler" will be arrested.  On what grounds?

"Listen very closely to what President Trump says.  His words ALWAYS have a deeper meaning."

Indeed they do.  But only as deep as, "Worship me and do my every bidding."

I worry about what Trump fanatics are going to do on January 6.  And January 20.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

Trump coup attorney Lin Wood going all out on Xmas day

There is no Pat Cippoloni. (It's Cipollone, but we'll let that slide.)  And just what is he hinting by referring to Jeffrey Epstein?

Wood has unleashed HIS kraken.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

The Trump Show and its legacy

Politio lists some of the many incidents in Trump's term that could have been scripts of the comedy show "Veep".  Stroll down clown show memory lane.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

UPDATE:  From The Guardian (UK)...

Trump’s confrontational manner, combined with his “America First” agenda, seriously undermined transatlantic relations and US global leadership. Joe Biden promises to set this right, but it will not be easy. France’s Emmanuel Macron exploited US introspection to advance ideas of European autonomy and integration. Leaders in the UK, Hungary and Poland cynically flattered Trump for their own political purposes.

Trump’s ill-disguised hostility left deep scars in Germany, the most important European ally. This apparent phobia, fed by Berlin’s large trade surplus and relatively low defence spending, had a misogynistic tinge. He was, on occasion, unbelievably rude to chancellor Angela Merkel. A recent Pew poll found only 34% of Germans think US relations are in good shape.

“Transatlantic relations worsened exponentially under Trump because of his open disdain for the European Union, his often belligerent interactions with EU leaders, and his vocal support for Brexit,” new analysis by the International Institute for Strategic Studies says.

[...]

Trump’s demand that European allies spend more on defence was not unreasonable, although his bullying brought only limited change.

[...]

Trump’s habit of thinking transactionally, not strategically, had a disastrous impact in Asia and elsewhere. He treated loyal allies Japan and South Korea with disdain – especially over misconceived talks with North Korea. He indulged rabble-rousers such as Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippines president, antagonised Pakistan, yet still failed to significantly enhance ties with India.

The fierce mutual animosity currently poisoning US-China relations is Trump’s most troublesome geopolitical legacy. Before 2017, there was still an outside chance that the old and new superpowers could find ways to get along. That’s gone. China is now viewed by Americans of all stripes as the No 1 threat. Beijing’s aggressive leadership is much at fault. But Trump’s trade and tech wars, Taiwan brinkmanship and “Wuhan virus” rhetoric made everything worse.

[...]

At the same time, [Biden] must repair the harm caused by Trump’s inexplicably deferential attitude towards Vladimir Putin in Russia – the backdrop to the Mueller inquiry and his impeachment. This puzzle has yet to be solved.

[...]

In appraising Trump’s foreign policy record, supporters point to his brokering of new ties between Israel and Arab regimes – including the grandly named Abraham Accords. If these deals lead to a broader, just settlement of the Palestine-Israel conflict, claims of “historic” success may ultimately be justified. To date, Trump’s main contribution has been to help entrench Benjamin Netanyahu, a hard-right prime minister opposed by a majority of Israel’s voters, who is on trial for alleged corruption.

  Guardian

I have a different view of Trump's - Jared's - "peace" efforts. I believe they simply made a deal with Netanyahu to support him in exchange for a pretense at a peace deal with Palestine, so Trump could vie for a Nobel Prize and have something to campaign on for 2020. In fact, the deal wasn't even between Israel and Palestine; it was between Israel and the UAE.

When Trump is gone, so will the faux "peace" arrangement go.  Actually, it's already gone.  It ended on November 5, two days after the election - one day after the results showed Trump lost.

He vowed to end “forever wars”. But in Afghanistan his peace efforts camouflaged a dishonourable scramble for the exit. He betrayed Kurdish allies in Syria, falsely claimed to have beaten Isis, and ceded the battlefield to Bashar al-Assad, Russia and Turkey. By wrecking the Iran nuclear deal, he made a dangerous problem infinitely worse.

[...]

Trump was a catastrophe for the climate crisis and the environment, for the Covid emergency, for racial and gender equality, for the global fight against poverty and hunger, and for the UN and multilateralism in general.

[...]

Trump encouraged authoritarian “strongman” leaders such as Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Egypt’s dictator Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, and hooligans such as Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro. He coddled autocrats such as Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman and Russia’s Putin. Worse, his lies eroded trust in democracy and the rule of law, at home and abroad. Yet even as, properly and electorally vanquished, he slowly departs, he continues to antagonise and divide – and to be lionised by the right.

[...]

Trump’s personal brand of viciousness appealed to every worst human instinct, justified every vile prejudice, excused every mean and unkind thought. His is a blind ignorance that resonates with those who will not or cannot see. Falsehood is always easier than truth. For these reasons, Trump’s global legacy is Trumpism. It will live on – toxic, immoral, ubiquitous and ever-threatening.

Twitter warnings are how Communism starts

Who knew?

The man is truly deranged.  I think I know what his defense is going to be when the lawsuits start.

We'll still be paying for this until he dies

Treat

Remember Brexit?

Maybe they finally have their deal.

The fast-track ratification of the post-Brexit trade deal between the U.K. and the European Union got underway on Christmas Day as ambassadors from the bloc’s 27 nations started assessing the accord that takes effect in a week.

[...]

They are set to reconvene again on Monday and have informed lawmakers at the European Parliament that they intend to take a decision on the preliminary application of the deal within days.

  AP

Grinch

Has he gotten his Trump tweet ripping yet?

Car bomb in Nashville

UPDATE:

Just before the blast, witnesses in the area reported a dire warning coming from the RV: “Evacuate now. There is a bomb. A bomb is in this vehicle and will explode."

Then, the voice started a 15-minute countdown.

Officers were conducting door-to-door checks in the area and redirected a man walking his dog along the street. The force of the explosion knocked an officer to the ground and gave another officer what police hope is temporary hearing loss. Three people were hospitalized with injuries, police said.

[...]

Betsy Williams, the owner of the Melting Pot building across the street, told The Tennessean that guests reported the RV was stationed there since Thursday night.

Williams, who lives in a loft apartment on the third floor, said she heard the sound of loud, rapid-fire gunshots at about 4:30 a.m.

After multiple rounds of gunshot sounds, Williams said she called 911.

Then, she said, she heard a repeated warning she said came from the RV parked outside her building.

[...]

Williams said she, her spouse and family left the lofts in their pajamas. She took her cat Mavis but left her valuables behind.

They headed to Nissan Stadium and waited. When they didn’t hear an explosion, they headed back. They were at Second Avenue and Broadway when they saw a fireball fly over the AT&T building on Second Avenue.

[...]

She saw the windows in her loft had been blown out.

[...]

Flights out of BNA Airport in Nashville were halted Friday afternoon due to telecommunications issues associated with the incident.

[...]

The downtown area was sealed off with an active investigation underway led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the help of Nashville, state and federal agencies.

  MSN

UPDATE