February 24, 20223 yr Wow, that's surprising Quote The Secret Service is telling Republican investigators that it cannot find communications related to Hunter Biden’s travels for 2010, 2011, or 2013 — when President Joe Biden was the vice president. "In consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, on June 11, 2021, the Secret Service provided documents responsive to your request in accordance with law, longstanding Executive Branch practice, and Department-wide standards,” Murray wrote to the GOP. "In October 2020, the Secret Service worked extensively with your committees, and agreed to search parameters provided by your offices to identify communications regarding Mr. Biden’s travel. These search parameters did not yield communications for the years 2010, 2011, or 2013.”
February 24, 20223 yr 31 minutes ago, The_Omega said: Wow, that's surprising Dude never links the article lol.
February 24, 20223 yr 3 minutes ago, Boogyman said: Dude never links the article lol. A Google search shows it comes from the Washington Examiner.
February 24, 20223 yr 32 minutes ago, DEagle7 said: A Google search shows it comes from the Washington Examiner. Yeah I didn't really care all that much about it this particular one, I'm just noticing it and it's annoying as F. Just post a link to the article and maybe the opening paragraph or headline. Just posting a wall of text that is part of a larger article without a link to it is pretty dumb.
February 25, 20223 yr So the GOP was using government resources to do opposition research into the son of the then candidate (now President), and the big news is they didn't find Biden using government emails to discuss Hunter's travel plans in certain years?
February 25, 20223 yr 4 minutes ago, JohnSnowsHair said: So the GOP was using government resources to do opposition research into the son of the then candidate (now President), and the big news is they didn't find Biden using government emails to discuss Hunter's travel plans in certain years? They’re on Hillary’s secret server.
February 25, 20223 yr 14 hours ago, Boogyman said: Yeah I didn't really care all that much about it this particular one, I'm just noticing it and it's annoying as F. Just post a link to the article and maybe the opening paragraph or headline. Just posting a wall of text that is part of a larger article without a link to it is pretty dumb. 90% are from radical, right wing fanfiction sites, so.......
February 26, 20223 yr "It’s going to take a hell of a lot of work to make up for all the damage he’s done internationally and nationally," Biden said. "His network of thugs and co-conspirators are going to continue to try to undermine our democracy in the meantime." "Imagine what he can do in another year," Biden continued. "Imagine what can happen to Ukraine." Indeed.
February 26, 20223 yr Author Some prayers are being answered: Quote Biden approves $350 million in military aid for Ukraine By Steve Holland and Mike Stone WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden instructed the U.S. State Department to release up to an additional $350 million worth of weapons from U.S. stocks to Ukraine on Friday as it struggles to repulse a Russian invasion. In a memorandum to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Biden directed that $350 million allocated through the Foreign Assistance Act be designated for Ukraine's defense. Ukraine has been asking for Javelin anti-tank weapons and Stinger missiles to shoot down aircraft. On Saturday, Blinken said in a statement that this third authorization for weapons shipments to Ukraine was "unprecedented." The Pentagon said the weapons included anti-armor, small arms and various munitions in support of Ukraine's front-line defenders. The United States drew from U.S. weapons stocks to supply Ukraine in the fall of 2021 and then again in December. Over the past year the United States has committed more than $1 billion in security assistance to Ukraine, Blinken said. Other nations have pledged military materiel to Kyiv as Ukraine's military fights against an invading Russian force. Russian troops started advancing into Ukraine again on Saturday after President Vladimir Putin paused the offensive a day earlier in anticipation of talks with Kyiv that never happened, the Kremlin said. read more The Netherlands will supply 200 Stinger air defense rockets to Ukraine as quickly as possible, the Dutch government said in a letter to parliament on Saturday. read more Belgium has pledged 2,000 machine guns and 3,800 tons of fuel. read more France has decided to send defensive military equipment to Ukraine to support the country against Russia's invasion, a French army spokesman said on Saturday, adding that the issue of sending offensive arms was still under consideration read more https://www.reuters.com/world/biden-approves-350-million-military-aid-ukraine-2022-02-26/
February 28, 20223 yr biden's initial sanctions were criticized....but more & more nations have been coming onboard with additional sanctions. i'm not saying it's because biden has been hard at work mending relationships with nato & the west after 4 years of trump trying to ruin those relationships....but it's probably because of biden mending relationships with nato & the west after 4 years of trump trying to ruin those relationships.
February 28, 20223 yr Biden even got the cowardly Germans on board. The man is just a gifted diplomat. He's already earned at least 5 more votes from me in the next election, and several more in Arizona.
February 28, 20223 yr Author Quote Why Aren't the Sanctions Tougher? Joe Biden has announced sanctions on some Russian banks and some of Vladimir Putin's cronies, but by no means all of either. Paul Krugman observed that they could be much stronger. David Leonhardt also noted that they could be much tougher. But making them tougher raises a number of issues that Biden doesn't want to raise, at least for now. One thing that Biden cares about a lot is unity among the allies. He does not want to impose any sanctions unless the entire European Union goes along with them. Getting agreement isn't so easy. Some of the objections are frivolous, but some are serious. For example, Italy objects to banning the export of luxury goods to Russia since it, well, exports luxury goods to Russia. Wealthy Russian ladies love Gucci handbags, and a half-way decent bag runs $3,000 or so. Germany gets most of its natural gas from Russia and is afraid that hitting the Russians too hard will cause them to turn off the gas spigot, which would be a disaster for the 20 years or so it would take to build a new nuclear plant and get it running. The biggest sanction of all would be to kick all Russian banks off the SWIFT banking network. At first, Biden was against this move, but on Saturday evening, he sort of changed his mind, at least a little. Then he announced that some (but not all) Russian banks would be expelled from the SWIFT network. It is not clear how much effect this will have though, since Russian companies that want to buy or sell something internationally can then just open an account with one of the banks that is still on SWIFT. This decision is a weak compromise because some allies, especially Germany, don't want that since then they couldn't pay Russia for the gas it exports to Germany. If Germany couldn't pay, Russia would cut off the gas supply for nonpayment, ideology and war aside. This is not to say kicking all the Russian banks off SWIFT will never happen, but it would take a bigger provocation than merely invading Ukraine to get there. Krugman makes the point that Putin and his cronies have hid trillions of dollars worth of stolen money in bank accounts and assets in the West. Some of these are hard to move, such as huge homes and land holdings. The problem with seizing them isn't a legal issue. A recent law gives the U.S. government the power to seize the assets. The Russians would sue and in 10 years the Supreme Court would announce whether the law was constitutional. But meanwhile, the assets would be frozen. The real problem, as we pointed out over the weekend, is that many rich and powerful Americans are deeply involved with Russian kleptocrats and going after the Russians would of necessity also catch their American enablers. For example, Donald Trump Jr. once said: "In terms of high-end product influx into the U.S., Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets." Going after the Russian kleptocrats would invariably mean going their partners, like the Trumps. And it is not only in the U.S. A Trump skyscraper in Toronto was also built with Russian money. And it is not only the Trumps. Many high-end real estate projects are full of laundered Russian money and going after them would expose American, Canadian, British and other enablers, none of whom will cooperate with any investigation. In the U.K. the money laundering is probably even worse than in the U.S. Boris Johnson might be hesitant to turn that stone over for fear what he might find. It would include many of his friends and top supporters. Another problem is that some of the laundered money might be in off-shore tax havens like the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas. The U.S. could easily bully them into cooperating by banning all flights to and from them and kicking them off the SWIFT network. However, going after tax havens would also require tackling domestic corruption, which would be a long and difficult process since all of the folks affected can afford top-notch legal help. Leonhardt sees several other issues related to tougher sanctions. First, some of them will hurt Western companies and economies. Western companies that do a lot of business with Russia would feel the pinch and companies that already delivered products to Russia and are waiting for payment would feel it extra hard. Second, by not cracking down too hard on Putin personally and his cronies, some lines of communication are still open. Rounding up all the children of the oligarchs studying at U.S. universities and putting them on the next flight to Moscow would definitely get the oligarchs' attention, but might make communication more difficult. Third, by keeping some options in reserve (e.g., a complete SWIFT ban), there is a way to respond if Putin turns up the heat. In addition, if the sanctions become unbearable, Putin could start cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure, which would force Biden to reply in kind and pretty soon the nukes could be flying. Some private businesses are doing their own version of sanctions. For example, Delta Airlines has suspended its alliance with Aeroflot, the Russian national airline. Bars all over the U.S. are pouring their Russian vodka down the drain and encouraging customers to order Ukrainian vodka in its place. The Ontario Liquor Board is not only pulling all the Russian liquor from the shelves of its 679 stores, but is offering refunds to customers who have already purchased Russian liquor and don't want it anymore. Even Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX), who is only Trumpy in some ways, has asked Texas restaurants and restaurants to stop selling Russian products. The trouble with this approach is that Russia has so few export products that anyone wants (except oil and gas) that there isn't much to boycott. There are also a few business that are getting involved the other way: helping Ukraine. For example, Elon Musk has activated his Starlink network of satellites to provide satellite Internet service to Ukraine to replace the terrestrial Internet service Russia has knocked out. However, Starlink requires special terminals, but Musk is shipping them to Ukraine as fast as he can. All these are small actions, but together they could make Putin's life more complicated
March 1, 20223 yr So, in addition to the Republican response tonight, there are also going to be 2 Democrat responses? To a SotU given by a Democrat president?
March 1, 20223 yr Author I believe our president will rise to the occasion tonight Quote Opinion: Quick! Rewrite the State of the Union. By Jennifer Rubin Columnist|Follow Yesterday at 1:17 p.m. EST I don’t envy the White House speechwriters. They no doubt spent weeks preparing for a State of the Union address touting the economic recovery, the prospect of a post-pandemic return to normal and the administration’s inflation-fighting plans. Then the world change Ukraine has captured the imagination and hearts of free people around the globe. Thanks to months of planning and careful diplomacy, President Biden put together the most impressive and unified alliance since World War II to oppose Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion. With the sanctions that Putin has invited, the Russian economy is in free fall. We and our allies are amply arming Ukraine. Russia is bogged down in an unwinnable war and turning into a pariah state. Biden needs a very different State of the Union. Instead of defending remarkable domestic progress, with foreign policy relegated to the back end of the speech, he needs to flip the order and build the speech around a historic moment when the United States is leading a worldwide coalition in defense of freedom. This is a time for public education. Complaints from critics of the response to Putin, ranging from disingenuous to churlish, have distracted and confused the public in large part because many Americans do not appreciate what we’ve already done. Republican talking points get regurgitated in media coverage. The obsession with fully cutting off Russia from SWIFT international bank communications is a case in point. Critics are whining about unplugging the fax machine while we’ve already cratered the Russian economy. "Too slow!” "Not enough!” "The U.S. is trailing the E.U.!" Really? In a week, we hit Russia with heavy economic sanctions, commanded the moral high ground, changed the national security outlook of Europe and provided (along with allies, reluctant in the past) weapons for Ukraine. By cajoling European boldness, we ensure unity and avoid finding ourselves out on our own. Biden can clear up a lot of misunderstanding by answering some basic questions. What have we done? We set up a perfectly unified alliance with the singular goal of making Putin pay a crushing economic price and inducing him to abandon his fixation on rebuilding the Russian empire. Our diplomatic work created unprecedented collaboration in the West, collectively imposing formidable sanctions. We overcame the European Union’s usual political timidity and economic self-interest. We used intelligence to show the public how Putin was going to mount his unjustified war. Short of going to war with a nuclear-armed state headed by a deranged dictator, it is hard to think what else we could have done. This is the most effective response to Russian aggression since the Berlin Airlift. Biden should take credit. Was our timing right? Denying the grievance-filled, unhinged Russian president a provocation by refusing to enact preemptive sanctions was wise. Instead, we effectively used the time to deploy intelligence, gaining a commanding position to shape world opinion. The madman in Moscow was not deterrable because he never imagined Ukraine would fight and the world would unite. By holding our fire and letting the world see Putin’s monstrous aims, we were able to summon economic sanctions that otherwise would have been unimaginable. Why is this a big deal? An inflection point has arrived for the United States and for democracy. The United States is leading the world because we remain the only superpower — and are a democratic superpower. Biden is demonstrating that if we can cultivate democratic alliances to check illiberal aggressors, we take the moral high ground, engage world opinion and stiffen our allies’ resolve. The result will be a more prosperous world with stable borders. Democracies do not attack neighbors; they keep the peace. For the first time since the end of the Cold War, thanks to the Biden alliance, democratic nations are coming to grips with their own obligations and strengths. The tide is turning against illiberal regimes in the existential battle between free and unfree nations. What does this have to do with the economy and our agenda at home? When we undermine the results of elections, when we impede voting (the cornerstone of democracy) and when we disparage the rule of law, we lose the moral capital to construct alliances of the type Biden has put together. When we fortify democracy and defend our principles, we can lead a worldwide alliance. Democracy makes us free and makes us strong; it provides an anchor for international partners and economic prosperity. When we move to green energy, we sap the strength of commodities-based despotic regimes and enhance our own economic potential. When we produce results such as the infrastructure legislation and create an unprecedented coronavirus vaccine program and new antibody treatments (and share these with the world), we show the superiority of free societies. When we rescue our own economy and prepare for a new economy, we show that our ability to grow, innovate and provide opportunity dwarfs that of closed societies. Biden should highlight his accomplishments and show that democracy can produce results, overcome partisan sniping and dampen the impulse to obstruct. We’ve begun the long haul to recovery, Biden needs to argue, and we need to sustain our momentum. In sum, the president should forget his old speech, embrace the moment and be flexible enough to frame these historic events in ways that bolster the United States and his own presidency. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/02/28/rewrite-state-of-union/
March 1, 20223 yr That won’t be sweat streaming down his face. It will be his body getting rid of the excess Botox and Prevagen that they shoot him full of before the speech.
March 1, 20223 yr Author 3 minutes ago, The_Omega said: That won’t be sweat streaming down his face. It will be his body getting rid of the excess Botox and Prevagen that they shoot him full of before the speech. It just kills you that Biden is deftly navigating this crisis, doesn't it?
March 1, 20223 yr 1 minute ago, EaglesRocker97 said: It just kills you that Biden is deftly handling this crisis, doesn't it? Biden's sweat has nothing on this...
March 1, 20223 yr Author 1 minute ago, jsdarkstar said: Biden's sweat has nothing on this... I definitely thought of this image when he said that. Like, uhhh, do you really wanna go there?
March 1, 20223 yr 16 minutes ago, EaglesRocker97 said: I believe our president will rise to the occasion tonight Biden should just read Jennifer Rubin's article. LOL. Great article.
March 1, 20223 yr 8 minutes ago, EaglesRocker97 said: It just kills you that Biden is deftly navigating this crisis, doesn't it? Deftly, completely failing, same thing.
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