Beltway Insider: Biden, Bannon/Jan 6, Inflation, COVID/Vaccine Totals, EU, Russia, Ukraine, Poland, GE

President Biden is celebrating the passage of his Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act with visits to many of the examples of crumbling infrastructure around the nation that will receive a 21st century upgrade once the funding becomes released.

The President's job approval rating, according to the website fivethirtyeight.com, for the period ending November 14, 2021, decreased by 0.2% to 42.7% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness decreased by 1.2% percentage points to 51.6%, A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.


Beltway Insider: Biden/Infrastructure, Pegasus, Immigration, COVID/Vaccine Totals, China, Colin Powell


Biden Holds Signing Ceremony

The White House has invited a bi-partisan group of politicians to join the President for the signing of the Build Back Better bill, which passed both houses and will do more than modernize American infrastructure,

"We've invited a broad group of Republicans: some in Congress, governors, mayors, individuals who played a role in helping move the Infrastructure Bill forward.  And as we get close to Monday or on Monday, we'll provide you, of course, a list of attendees," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.

Trump's Men Face Indictment

Former President Trump's White House Adviser, Steve Bannon, has been indicted by a federal grand jury after he refused to comply with a Congressional subpoena, issued by the House Committee convened to investigate the January 6 insurrection.

"Former President Donald J. Trump has instructed his former aides not to comply with subpoenas from the special congressional committee investigating the Capitol riot, raising the prospect of the panel issuing criminal referrals for some of his closest advisers," The New York Times reported.

Bannon, who was the first of many top aides who served in the Trump White House, had been issued a subpoena in October. On the advice of counsel and the former President, he refused to comply. This resulted in the Committee to make the determination if they would be referring the matter to a federal grand jury, which they did.

Relieved of his duties by the President in 2017, Bannon had largely become a skeptic of the Trump administration. He served as a major on the record source of a scathing Trump biography, authored by Michael Wolff, in which the former president is presented as running a criminal enterprise in which Bannon confirmed as well as confirming the meeting with the Russians, which all parties deny, that set up the disinformation campaign against Democratic challenger Hillary R. Clinton.

While not in the service of the President, Bannon had returned to the fold after the Biden victory and provided suggestions to Trump on handling the January 6 electoral vote ratification process. It was during this time, he was preemptively pardoned, by President Trump, after he was arrested and indicted by a Manhattan federal grand jury on money crimes surrounding the funds raised for the Border Wall.

"Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a brief statement explaining the decision to indict Bannon. "Since my first day in office," he said, "I have promised Justice Department employees that together we would show the American people by word and deed that the department adheres to the rule of law, follows the facts and the law, and pursues equal justice under the law. Today's charges reflect the department's steadfast commitment to these principles,"' reported NBCnews.com.

Bannon, who is expected to turn himself in Monday, is not the only former Trump official facing contempt charges.

The January 6 Commission issued a total of 35 subpoenas covering close Trump Allies, Organizers of rallies and events preceding the January 6 attack, a Department of Justice official, Trump campaign officials and Trump White House officials.

Also served with Bannon, Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff; Dan Scavino Jr., a deputy chief of staff; and Kash Patel, a Pentagon chief of staff, each failed to meet the October deadline.

"Mr. Meadows failed to appear to answer questions at a scheduled deposition. Mr. Meadows's lawyer, George J. Terwilliger III, informed the committee that his client felt "duty bound" to follow Mr. Trump's instructions to defy the committee, citing executive privilege. "Mr. Meadows's actions today — choosing to defy the law — will force the select committee to consider pursuing contempt or other proceedings to enforce the subpoena," Mr. Thompson and Ms. Cheney said," reported The New York Times.

The committee, along with the President, has been quite clear that no one is above the law. As the committee continues to investigate the January 6 Insurrection, comprised of a bi-partisan committee, is determined to use the tools at their disposal to gather the facts.


World News: Turbulence in French Presidential Election


Harsh Sentence for Insurrectionist

A member of the January 6 rioters, Scott Fairlamb, a New Jersey resident, received the harshest sentence yet to be handed down in any of the January 6 prosecutions. Fairlamb will spend 41 months in prison for his role in the January 6 siege on the Capitol and for striking a Capitol police officer.

Federal prosecutors are also requesting longer a harsh and longer sentence for Jacob Chansley, the so called QAnon Sharma.

"Jacob Chansley, who wore face paint and a furry hat with horns when he stormed the Capitol, became "the public face of the Capitol riot," prosecutors said in a court filing late Tuesday. They recommended a longer prison sentence, four years and three months, when the Arizona man is sentenced next Wednesday, reported The Guardian.com.

Consumer Prices Surge Again

October again saw an increase in consumer prices with key areas hitting the pockets with gas prices and groceries and dining out experiencing the most substantial increases. Key areas where consumers have felt the surge are new and used car purchases, and medical care. Holiday travelers who intend to fly should see a decrease in airfare costs.

"U.S. inflation hit a three-decade high in October, delivering widespread and sizable price increases to households for everything from groceries to cars due to persistent supply shortages and strong consumer demand. The Labor Department said the consumer-price index—which measures what consumers pay for goods and services—increased in October by 6.2% from a year ago. That was the fastest 12-month pace since 1990 and the fifth straight month of inflation above 5%," reported The Wall Street Journal.

Americans Are Calling It Quits

A record 4.4million Americans called it quits in September, leaving their jobs behind and continuing a trend that over the past two months, August, and September, 5.9 percent of the workforce have left their former employers.

"The number of people quitting in September constituted 3 percent of the workforce, according to a monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics survey released Friday. That number is up from the previous record, set in August, when 4.3 million people quit their jobs — about 2.9 percent of the workforce. In February 2020, before the big wave of pandemic-related layoffs began, 2.3 percent of workers quit their jobs," The Washington Post reported.

Analysts are contributing the departure to the instability in the market, COVID-19's lingering economic residual effects, childcare issues and attractive wages from other employers as well as upcoming vaccination mandates.

The White House press secretary Jen Psaki, addressed the concept of the great resignation and had this to say, "So, there's a range of issues; I'm not saying it's one thing. Certainly, we have concern about any industry that has a shortage of workers, but also, I don't think we should undervalue the fact that many workers feel this is a time to look for a better job with greater pay and more benefits."

Vaccine Totals

Bloomberg.com has built a vaccine tracker which can be seen here. "In the U.S., 439 million doses have been given so far. An average 1.4 million doses per day were administered over the last week," Bloomberg.com reported.

Coronavirus Totals

While the infection rates of the coronavirus have continued to decline around the world. A new strain, a mutation, has created global concern for leaders around the world are determining the best direction for the protection of the population. The importance of maintaining personal protective practices is imperative to controlling the spread.

For the one-week period ending November 14, 2021, coronavirus cases globally increased by 3,390,246 new confirmed cases, bringing the total of confirmed cases worldwide to 252,842,933 people with a total worldwide death toll of 5,042,905 deaths, and a 7-day death rate increase of 50,078. (Data from The New York Times).

COVID US Totals

Infections rates in the United States are also on the rise. For the two-week ending November 14, 2021, the total confirmed cases rose to 47,011,340 people with new confirmed cases increasing by 584,110 with a 7-day average of 83,444 cases per day. The coronavirus has claimed 761,818 total deaths, adding 7,899 more deaths over the two-week period. (Data from The New York Times).

Pentagon's Diary Gets Personal

Protecting for gain of function knowledge only aides those who initiated the constitutional violations. It does nothing to combat the homegrown terrorism or the narcissist above the law belief.


Justice Watch: And They Got Away With It (Part 4)


EU Warned of Possible Russian Invasion

The United States has warned the European Union of a possible further invasion of the Ukraine by Russian troops, as they monitor a buildup of military along the Crimean Peninsula. It would be the second invasion of the Ukraine, with the first costing Russia its place in the G8 nations pact.

"With Washington closely monitoring a buildup of Russian forces near the Ukrainian border, U.S. officials have briefed EU counterparts on their concerns over a possible military operation, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov Friday dismissed the report as "empty and unfounded efforts to exacerbate tensions,"' reported Bloomberg.com.

Crimea, which had been part of the Ukraine was taken in a surprise invasion after the Sochi Olympics, in 2014, when troops in place to guard against terrorism rolled across the Crimean Peninsula violated the territorial sovereignty of the Ukraine and claimed the coastal city. In days, a mock election was held where the inhabitants of the village agreed to succeed from the Ukraine. Crimea is also home to a large military base. Member nations of the G8 Summit voted unanimously to expel Russia in punishment and until Russian President Vladimir Putin restores Crimea to its rightful place.

According to the White House meetings and discussions with top Russian officials have been held. "We've also held discussions with Russian officials about Ukraine and U.S.-Russian relations generally.  As we've made clear in the past and we've made clear directly to them as well: Escalatory or aggressive actions by Russia would be of great concern to the United States.  We call for an immediate restoration of the July 2020 ceasefire.  And we stand with our partner, Ukraine, and condemn Russian aggression against Ukraine in all forms," White House Press secretary Jen Psaki said.


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Poland's Borders Overrun

Thousands of Iraqi immigrants arrived at Poland's border in what is being seen as a diversion by Russia to create an EU crisis destabilizing the region, that will distract and stretch its resources while he moves his military into place to take control of the Ukraine.

"European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met with President Biden at the White House this week and described a "hybrid attack" and a "cynical geopolitical powerplay. This is not a bilateral issue of Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Belarus," von der Leyen told reporters. "This is a challenge to the whole of the European Union. And this is not a migration crisis. This is the attempt of an authoritarian regime to try to destabilize its democratic neighbors. This will not succeed,"' reported Foxnews.com.

GE Splits the Light Bulb

General Electric announced this week, it was splitting the conglomerate into three companies, to focus on three separate industries, medical devices, power systems and aviation.

"The decision to split at GE was well received Tuesday, both in general markets and by those who had pushed for the change. "The strategic rationale is clear: three well-capitalized, industry leading public companies, each with deeper operational focus and accountability, greater strategic flexibility and tailored capital allocation decisions, wrote Trian Fund Management, a large stakeholder whose founding partner serves on GE's board," NPR reported.

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