Beltway Insider: Biden V-C Day, CDC, COVID/Vaccine Totals, Israel/Hamas, Colonial Pipeline, NYC

President Biden, with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have announced the lifting of coronavirus restrictions, a welcome move that state governors are adapting to some degree, with expectation of a coronavirus victory day shortly.

The President's job approval rating, according to the website fivethirtyeight.com, for the period ending May 16, 2021, decreased by 0.7% to 52.8% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness increased by 0.6% percentage points to 40.7%. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.


Beltway Insider: Biden, US Reopens, Schools, COVID/Vaccine Totals, FB/Trump, Navalny, Afghan Bombing, Chauvin


Biden Touts Victory Over Coronavirus

President Biden received a much-needed shot in the arm this week as the CDC announced it was essentially lifting all coronavirus mask restrictions for those who have been fully vaccinated, in a move that is cascading across the United States as if the residual pixie dust from the previous administration has blinded the administration to the statistics.

The Victory over Coronavirus Day is as necessary as the V-E or V-J Day celebrations of World War II. The freedom to venture out, sans mask, to mingle, without socially distancing, to gather, and all the pre-pandemic lifestyles are once again available. The unseen enemy has been conquered.

And it didn't take a New York minute for the multitude to fill New York City's Times Square sans mask, for photos and celebrations.

"While the relaxed guidelines had some ripping the cloth from their faces and vowing to party like it's 2019, many around the country — particularly front-line workers and parents of small children — worried for their health, and wondered whether and how to implement the new guidance, at odds with the local regulations in some states," The Washington Post reported.


State Department Releases COVID Report


Unfortunately, not to be a buzz kill, that is not the science. Remember science? Also very much debated in the 2020 election. The science behind the coronavirus victory is still in the making. Globally, cases are still on the rise and not contained to a location or demographic. If it is airborne, it will remain airborne. That's the science.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director of the US Centers for Disease Prevention said, "We are asking people to take their health into their own hands, to get vaccinated, and if they don't, then they continue to be at risk. For the unvaccinated, our policy has not changed," she said. "We were going to get to a place in this pandemic where vaccinated people were going to be able to take off their mask. We're lucky to be there with the science that we have, and now we have to take this foundational step that is completely based in science and understand what it means as we open the entire country," CNN reported.

CDC Lifts Mask Mandates

The CDC sent shockwaves through the population this week as they announced updated mask guidelines.

"Anyone who is fully vaccinated can participate in indoor and outdoor activities, large or small, without wearing a mask or physical distancing.  If you are fully vaccinated, you can start doing the things that you had stopped doing because of the pandemic.  We have all longed for this moment when we can get back to some sense of normalcy," said Walensky, Director of the US Centers for Disease Prevention, during a White House press conference.

Walensky clarified her comments throughout the week by adding the mask mandates are intended for the fully vaccinated and require an honor code system. For the anti-vaxxers, the possibility of infection remains high, for those who are vaccinated, the possibility of infection is low, and if infection does occur the symptoms are considerably lessened.

States will enact their own policies as long as coronavirus criteria and protocols remain within the window of normal. If confirmed coronavirus cases spike beyond preset mandates, states will have the option to return to lower levels of openness.

Infection rates in the United States are continuing steady between 33,000 and 35,000 confirmed cases daily. Manageable infection rates, as dense urban areas and society reopens including large scale events such as sporting events, are expected.

Biden Travel to Europe in June for EU Summit

President Biden will make his first international trip as president of the United States when he travels to the United Kingdom and Belgium in June 2021.

"President Biden will attend the G7 Summit in Cornwall, U.K., which is happening from June 11-13, where he will reinforce our commitment to multilateralism, work to advance key U.S. policy priorities on public health, economic recovery, and climate change, and demonstrate solidarity and shared values among major democracies.  He will also hold bilateral meetings with fellow G7 leaders, including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson," White House Press Secretary Jill Psaki said.

The President will also attend a NATO summit, reconfirming the United States support of the NATO Alliance.

War Imminent as Israel, Hamas Skirmishes Erupt

President Biden has stepped into the Middle East crisis placing phone calls to both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority Leader, Mahmoud Abbas, urging a cease fire to hostilities and hoping to calm tensions in the region.

"Diplomatic efforts by President Biden and U.S. regional allies to reach a cease-fire have not stopped the escalation between Israel and Hamas, which on Sunday trudged into its seventh day and has spilled over into mass protests in Israeli towns and in the West Bank," The Washington Post reported.

The effort by President Biden, appeared to go unnoticed, and failed at its initial attempt to prompt the two parties to cease the violence which has escalated over the past week. The United Nations held closed door sessions this week seeking ways to de-escalate the violence.


World News: Former Israeli Mayor David Rubin Sheds Light on Israeli Politics (Q&A)


Unfortunately, all efforts have failed. The underlying issues of the violence remain, the two-state solution, and the continual generational hatred between Jewish citizens and Arab citizens, each with their own cultures, religions, history, traditions, and beliefs.

In what has been the worst fighting since 2014, both sides have experienced casualty as Hamas has targeted the Holy City of Jerusalem with bombing raids. Israeli has pummeled the Gaza Strip destroying extensive tunnels built by Palestine to move men, and equipment across boundaries.

"Saudi Arabia's foreign minister condemned "provocative Israeli plans" aiming to displace Palestinians in Jerusalem in some of the country's harshest language in recent years. Hady Amr, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Israel-Palestinian affairs, met with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Sunday to discuss a cease-fire, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the military operation was expected to last at least several more days," The Washington Post reported.

The intensified ground and air attacks included leveling the AP and AL Jazeera media offices in an Israeli bombing attack.

More than 190 Arabs have died, and ten Israeli citizens have died, two fell running to bomb shelters, in the attacks.

FDA Authorizes Pfizer Vaccine in Teens

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved this week the two shot Pfizer vaccine for adolescence age 12 to 15 years old. This allows for an additional population demographic to receive protection against the coronavirus and is a positive first step in reopening all schools for in-person learning.

"Adolescents, especially, have suffered tremendously from the covid pandemic. Even though they're less likely than adults to be hospitalized or have severe illness, their lives really have been curtailed in many parts of the country," said Kawsar R. Talaat, an assistant professor of international health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "A vaccine gives them an extra layer of protection and allows them to go back to being kids," The Washington Post reported.

Vaccine Totals

Bloomberg.com has built a vaccine tracker which can be seen here. "More than 1.45 billion doses have been administered across 176 countries, according to data collected by Bloomberg. The latest rate was roughly 23.7 million doses a day," Bloomberg.com reported.

"In the U.S., the latest vaccination rate is 1,975,460 doses per day, on average. At this pace, it will take another 3 months to cover 75% of the population," reported Bloomberg.com.

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 week ending May 16, 2021, coronavirus cases globally increased by 4,946,300 new confirmed cases, bringing the total of confirmed cases worldwide to 162,230,700 people with a total worldwide death toll of 3,363,800 deaths, a weekly death rate increase of 86,900. (Data from The New York Times).

COVID US Totals

Infections rates in the United States are also on the rise. For the week ending May 16, 2021, the total confirmed cases rose to 32,950,700 people with new confirmed cases increasing by 237,100 with an average of 33,871 cases daily over a seven-day period. The coronavirus has claimed 585,200 total deaths, adding 4,200 more deaths to the total of lives lost due to the coronavirus. (Data from The New York Times).

India's COVID Total

The coronavirus in India with a population of more than 1.3 billion has now become the global epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic. India is seeing a daily increase of 346,082 confirmed coronavirus cases a drop of 45,000 daily cases. The totals continued to rise and even as nations are rallying to provide needed medical supplies and personal protective equipment, the dense population is facing daunting challenges in control as millions flee the densely populated areas and return to remote corners carrying the deadly disease with them.

Colonial Fuel Hack Exposes U.S. Cyber Weaknesses

Colonial Fuel Company, the owners of the largest fuel pipeline in the United States, targeted by Darkside reportedly paid an unspecified ransom to the Russian Hacking organization, who provided a decrypting tool which allowed the company to restart its computers.

"We do not believe the Russian government was involved in this attack.  But we do have strong reason to believe that criminals who did the attack are living in Russia.  We have been in direct communication with Moscow about the imperative for responsible countries to take decisive action against these ransomware networks.  Our Justice Department has launched a new task force dedicated to prosecuting ransomware hackers to the full extent of the law, " the President said.


Consumers Pay the Price of Russian Fuel Pipeline Cyberattack


Ransomware attacks are not new, with primary targets associated with the healthcare or personal data industries and are becoming increasingly popular as hacker/terrorists demand untraceable cryptocurrency.

The Colonial Ransomware attack, was without a doubt the first of a new wave of infrastructure ransomware attacks which aim to disrupt, dismantled, and target the supply chain of America's industries that are increasingly dependent, if not completely dependent on computers systems.

"The attack that led Colonial Pipeline to shut down its 5,500-mile pipeline, causing fuel shortages throughout the southeastern United States, underscored that the ballooning ransomware wave isn't just about money. Targeting the private businesses that run much of the economy also threatens national security," The Washington Post reported.

A week of interruption of Colonial, caused disruptions in gasoline delivery for nearly 300million Americans along the southern United States and northeastern corridor and caused many gasoline stations to run out of fuel. Moreover, the disruption of services resulted in toxic behavior, arrests and price gouging, a general amplification of bad attitudes and conduct.

Darkside, the group behind the hack, are emerging post-pandemic with an all-out blitz attack to make up for the lost year's revenue.

"DarkSide had a profitable quarter. The ring that collected $14 million in ransoms for all of 2020 and raked in $46 million in just the first three months of this year, according to an analysis by Chainalysis," The Washington Post reported.

The week-long shut down bought into the spotlight America's vulnerabilities. A nation dependent on fuel, as the majority of the population is yet to own an electric vehicle, could be crippled in a prolonged attack.

New Yorkers Are Heading to the Polls

New Yorker's are heading to the polls this June to determine which of the crowded field of thirteen democrats and two republicans will become the next candidates for New York City Mayor and face off in the general election slated for November 2, 2021.

For more information on President Joe Biden www.whitehouse.gov.

Sources: Various © Articles covered by Copyright protection

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