Beltway Insider: Biden Orders Houthi Strike, French PM, Ukraine War, Taiwan, Election 2024: Iowa Caucus, MLK

Details: Category: Beltway Insider; Published on Sunday, 14 January 2024 12:24; Written by Janet Walker

President Biden ordered a series of strategic airstrikes, as part of a multi-national effort, on Houthi targets in Yemen that facilitated attacks in the Red Sea region, to stop the possibility of an escalating Middle East conflict.

The President's job approval rating, according to the website fivethirtyeight.com, for the period ending January 14, 2024 increased by 0.6% to 39.0% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness decreased by 0.7% to 56.2% of those polled who disapprove of his effectiveness. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.

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U.S. Conducts Strikes on Houthi Strongholds

President Biden announced this week, in a letter to Speaker of the House, Representative Mike Johnson (R-LA), and the Senate Pro Tempore President Patty Murray, (D-WA) he along with a multi-national coalition had ordered airstrikes against Houthi targets located in the nation of Yemen, that are supporting the escalating attacks on U.S. ships and other vessels stationed in the Red Sea region.

"United States forces as part of a multinational operation alongside the United Kingdom, with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands, conducted discrete strikes against facilities in Yemen that facilitate Houthi militants' attacks in the Red Sea region. These facilities include air and coastal surveillance radar sites, unmanned aerial system launch facilities and launch sites, and cruise and ballistic missile facilities and launch sites," Biden said.

Over the past months, the Houthi attacks have increased, making travel through the region increasingly dangerous for U.S. military. The threat of an escalating Middle East war continues as these state bad actors see the continued Israeli offensive as motivation.

"We're not interested in a war with Yemen. We're not interested in a conflict of any kind here. In fact, everything the President has been doing has been trying to prevent any escalation of conflict, including the strikes last night," said John Kirby, NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications.

Ukraine War and the GOP

The instability of the Republican led House of Representatives has continued to surface, this time over continued funding for Ukraine with the most recent Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) shooting down a continued support package.

"On December 6, Republicans tanked a spending bill that would have provided $50 billion in additional aid to Ukraine and $14 billion in aid to Israel, The New York Times reported last month. House and Senate Republicans demanded more concessions from the Biden administration in exchange for supporting the bill, primarily related to immigration reform and border security," reported BusinessInsider.com.

The attempted extortion by the GOP to withhold funding while Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to violate the territorial sovereignty of the Ukraine, goes to the core of the party's inability to work together even within its own ranks. The republican leadership have used the most common abuse tactic suffered in domestic violence cases: withholding money, while ensuring that additional casualties will be suffered by the Ukrainians, expected the democrats to budge in their political game of chicken.

Ukraine recently suffered a disastrous night as Russian military forces pummeled the region with more than 40 drones strikes, without the necessary funding, the Ukraine military will continue to lose ground gained. Twelve of these ballistic missile strikes managed to hit a target.

Putin, who has been speaking in terms of victory, is alleged to have said to Aleksey Zhuravlyov, "Poland is next," TheMessenger.com said.

Aleksey Zhuravlyov, a Putin ally said, "They understand very well that Ukraine is finished. So what's next? Sweden is getting ready and so are the Balkans. The Poles have quieted down a bit, they probably started to realize that they are next. Of course, we have no illusions, but we understand that all of them are getting ready for the next stage of war."

Macron's Foreign Minister Visits Kyiv

French President Emmanuel Macron cabinet has undergone a youthful transformation with the appointment of Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, 34, the youngest person to ever hold the position and also the only serving openly gay cabinet member.

Macron also appointed a new Foreign Minister, Stephane Sejourne who moved quickly to reassure Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of his government's continued and undivided support.

"Sejourne, in a joint news conference alongside Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, reiterated his government's pledges of support for Ukraine, "Russia is hoping that Ukraine and its supporters will tire before it does. We will not weaken. That is the message that I am carrying here to the Ukrainians. Our determination is intact," APnews.com reported.

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Taiwan Election Illicit Sharp Comments from Biden

As China continues to issue sharp saber-rattling statements, the incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen prevailed for an historic and unprecedented third term praising the people for ignoring the continued fearmongering by China's president Xi-Jinping.

World leaders, while congratulating the people of Taiwan and President Ing-wen for choosing democracy over tyranny, stopped short of encouraging Taiwan to consider independence as China continues to posture that reunification remains the future for the nation.

Biden, members of his cabinet, elected U.S. officials, and world allies have all congratulated the new president and the people of Taiwan on their choice. Biden, however, clarified the U.S. position stating emphatically, "we do not support Taiwanese independence."

China has enforced its position through bullying tactics. After former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the nation, Xi-Jinping held five days of military drills and exercises in the Taiwanese waters, threatening the island nation with invasion.

"Biden met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in November in an attempt to ease tensions between the two global powers. During the meeting, Xi demanded the U.S. "stop arming Taiwan" and said that its "reunification" with China was "unstoppable," while Biden reiterated that U.S. policy on Taiwan had not changed," Politico.com reported.

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Coronavirus Totals

The CDC has recommended every person from age six months, including senior citizens, should receive at least one shot of an updated Covid vaccine. Vaccines and boosters are still considered the most effective agents against contracting the Coronavirus.

For the 7-day period ending January 14, 2024, the total of confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide reached 773,819,856 confirmed cases, an increase over the past 7 days of 681,038 cases worldwide. The total worldwide death toll increased by 18,726 to 7,010,568 deaths. The United States has stopped providing Covid data to the World Health Organization. (Data updated December 31, 2023, from The World Health Organization).

COVID U.S. Totals

As hospitalizations and infection rates continue to rise in the United States, some jurisdictions are suggesting new mask mandates. For the 7-day period ending January 14, 2024, new Covid hospitalizations in the U.S. increased by 36,272 to 6,693,491. The coronavirus has claimed 1,167,210 total U.S. deaths, adding 2,092 deaths, over the past 7 days. (Data updated December 30, 2023, posted January 6, 2024, from the CDC).

Mask Mandates Return In Several States

Governors around the nation are preempting the spread of the newest variant JN.1, by implementing mask mandates once again. As these mandates are specific to public service employees including first responders, medical care providers, fire and police services, the uptick in reported Covid-19 cases, as well reported increases in flu and respiratory infections, the general public, especially in densely populated areas should also consider precautionary options.

"Hospitals in California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Washington D.C. have all brought back divisive rules meaning masks are mandatory for selected people in medical settings. The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control has recorded a 10.4 percent increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations across America in the week leading up to December 16. There has been an increase of 3.4 percent in deaths related to coronavirus in the same period," Newsweek reported.

Armed with knowledge is always an advantage and having the knowledge of the original Covid-19 capabilities will inform citizens to make their own decisions on preemptive care and preventative procedures.

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Iowa Caucuses – Road to the White House 2024

Iowa Polls Play in Trumps Favor

Iowa polls are revealing shocking results as former president Donald Trump holds a commanding 30-point lead over his nearest challenger former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley with 20% and in third place, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis with 16%.

"Boosted by his standing with evangelical Christians, first-time caucusgoers and registered Republicans, former President Donald Trump holds a nearly 30-point lead in the final NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa poll before Monday's GOP caucuses," NBCnews.com reported.

As the Iowa Caucus are traditionally bragging rights and momentum building, stirring the middle America pot of Trumpism rhetoric will only add to a destructive and humiliating campaign process for the highest and allegedly most dignified office in the nation. With the world watching, America's allies observe with disdain the continued dissolution of decorum as political rot erodes the democratic electoral process.

Weather Expected to Influence Iowa

As Iowans usually enjoy the momentary January spotlight, and boost in the economy, which descends every four years for the presidential caucuses, the spotlight may turn this year to the extreme cold expected in caucus state.

The National Weather Service has issued wind chill warnings for the Hawkeye state in effect until Tuesday, January 15, with forecasted wind chills as low as 45 below zero.

"The forecast now calls for sub-zero temperatures on the night Iowans caucus to commence their presidential nominating process. But some in the state have been feeling another chill: the sense that their much ballyhooed "first in the nation" exercises might not matter all that much this year," NPR.org reported.

As the rest of the nation watches, shivering at the results, the possibility that Iowans will stay home and sit this one out is very real.

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MLK, Jr., Holiday: A Time of Remembrance

For many the history of America's civil rights movement remains largely unknown, key figures, Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr., may bring some recollection to students. For others, Martin Luther King, Jr., day is simply a day to pause after the whirlwind of the holidays.

The horrors of American history can be seen in punctuated moments in time, a time capsule of days, times, seasons, and events. The Civil Rights movement, a southern cry for freedom, which usually is greeted with the "huh?," when trying to explain the residual struggles of slavery, that flowed like a contamination through the soil of history and spouted from putrefied roots during the late 1950s and 1960s.

Martin Luther King, Jr., became the de facto leader of this movement for equality, and as with most writers the volumes that should be dedicated to him and the movement, to pass down the scared moments along with the victorious are usually reserved for historians and aggregators. His beliefs were captured during his most famous "I have a Dream" speech given to a mixed gathering, whites, blacks, men, women, young, old, from the north and south, at that time the largest ever to gather on the Mall in Washington, DC. It prompted change.

So, while a single day to commemorate a man whose life prompted change may seem paltry, using the day to pull back the layers of the past, to remember the struggles, to understand without those days, and Martin Luther King, Jr., and others like him, these new seasons wouldn't be possible.

For more information on President Joe Biden w ww.whitehouse.gov.