Beltway Insider: Biden/Russia, Ukraine, NATO, COVID/Vaccine Totals, Omicron, Abrams, Michigan

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President Biden will attend a previously scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to address the large military presence along the Ukraine border which caused immediate notification to foreign allies of an impending invasion with approximately 175,000 Russian troops.

The President's job approval rating, according to the website fivethirtyeight.com, for the period ending December 5, 2021 decreased by 0.3% to 42.6% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness decreased by 0.2% to 51.6% of those polled who disapprove of his effectiveness. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.


Beltway Insider: Biden, Putin/China, COVID/Vaccine Totals, Strickland/Arbery, Steven Sondheim


U.S. Intelligence Confirms Possible Ukraine Invasion

While not an emergency meeting, President Biden will use the scheduled session with Russian President Vladimir Putin to address the military build-up along four strategic locations along the Ukraine border.

U.S. Intelligence issued an immediate warning to the European Union of the potential of invasion as early as January 2022, also releasing satellite imagery of the locations which form a crescent moon along the Russia-Ukraine border.

"The Kremlin has been moving troops toward the border with Ukraine while demanding Washington guarantee that Ukraine will not join NATO and that the alliance will refrain from certain military activities in and around Ukrainian territory. The crisis has provoked fears of a renewed war on European soil and comes ahead of a planned virtual meeting next week between President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin," The Washington Post reported.

The four points of troop build-up with the southernmost point of troops amassed in Crimea which position Russian troops build-up along the Ukraine border which caused immediate notification to foreign allies of an impending invasion with 175,000 Russian military.

Putin Pokes North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

Putin, who caused his own nation to be suspended from the group of eight largest economies, the G8, with his invasion in 2014 of the Ukraine, is now demanding a legal and binding agreement from NATO that it will not invite the Ukraine to be a part of its global organization.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin is demanding a legally binding guarantee that NATO will not expand east — including to Ukraine — and plans to raise the issue in an upcoming phone call with President Biden, according to the Kremlin," Axios.com reported.

NATO member nations, which currently include 30 European Nations, including Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Crotia, Czech, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States, decide who is a member of NATO and that is how the process has always been.

"I think we are not the only country who feels that the onus is really on Russia to reduce their bellicose rhetoric, to make some changes as it relates to the buildup of military troops that we see at the border and will really — the onus is really on them." White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a press briefing.

NATO presented Ukraine a timeline for entry in 2008, and currently the officially timeline has yet to announced and further, no action has been taken by NATO to move ahead. Although NATO as increased exercises in international waters near the border of Russia and Ukraine, NATO has yet to solidify its invitation or entry. With the possibility of Ukraine joining forces with NATO, the alliance of member nations will be a force to stand against the aggression of Putin.


World News: The Virus and The World's Agenda


President Biden is expected to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, this week, to address the buildup of troops along the Ukraine border and to assuage fears of an impending invasion by the power-hungry leader.

"NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg condemned the Kremlin on Wednesday for suggesting that support for a sovereign country like Ukraine is a "provocation." "It's only Ukraine and 30 NATO allies that decide when Ukraine is ready to join NATO," Stoltenberg said. "Russia has no veto, Russia has no say, and Russia has no right to establish a sphere of influence to try to control their neighbors," Axios.com reported.

Vaccine Totals

Bloomberg.com has built a vaccine tracker which can be seen here. "In the U.S., 462 million doses have been given so far. An average 949,494 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. The importance of maintaining personal protective practices is imperative to controlling the spread.

For the one-week period ending December 5, 2021, coronavirus cases globally increased by 4,278,145 new confirmed cases, bringing the total of confirmed cases worldwide to 265,361,197 people with a total worldwide death toll of 5,247,332 deaths, and a 7-day death rate increase of 51,002. (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 December 5, 2021, the total confirmed cases rose to 49,010,250 people with new confirmed cases increasing by 839,018 with a 7-day average of 119,859 cases per day with a 7-day increase of 47,004 cases per day. The coronavirus has claimed 786,803 total deaths, adding 9,493 more deaths over the 7-day period. (Data from The New York Times).

U.S. Sees First Cases of Omicron

Omicron, the latest COVID-19 variant of still undetermined potency, has been detected in at least 15 states with cases popping from coast to coast and while this new variant has posed great risk in less developed countries the Delta variant remains the dominant area of concern in the United States.

Centers for Disease Control Director Rochelle Walensky said, "Delta accounted for most cases in the United States and as vaccines are known to protect against hospitalization and death, health officials hope they will blunt the impact of Omicron as well. She said that of the 90,000 to 100,000 cases a day, 99.9% of them are the Delta variant," Reuters reported.

Omicron remains active on the CDC's radar and with the sharp spike in confirmed cases over the past week, the potential for additional confirmed cases of the variant first reported in South Africa is extremely likely.

Omicron's quick spread has now been detected on six continents and in 25 countries, and as in the original COVID-19 spread, logarithmic calculations will systemically spread the virus and even when an expected saturation on the new variant is reached the potential of additional variants remain on the horizon. Vaccination remains the safest and most effective means of preventing infection and while reinfection remains possible individuals who have been fully vaccinated experience less harsh symptoms as opposed those who are not vaccinated.


Medical Science: COVID-19 - More Shots for You or Your Kids


"The Omicron variant has dozens of genetic mutations not seen together before in the virus, and scientists say that the number and type of changes suggest that it is much more transmissible than earlier forms, though solid proof of that is still lacking. In fact, many crucial questions about the variant remain unanswered: Does prior infection protect against serious illness, if not against infection? Do existing vaccines provide strong immunity to it? Is the illness it causes usually milder, as some early reports have suggested?," The New York Times reported.

The potential of a COVID-19 related shutdown reminiscent of March 2020 is unlikely as state leadership is moving into COVID management. Essentially understanding the limitations and responding accordingly is the new normal and rule of the day.

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.

CNN Fires Chris Cuomo

The CNN news network has terminated anchor Chris Cuomo, brother of disgraced former New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo, effective immediately after revelation the misuse of his position and effectively used his position to aide his brother's defense.

"A CNN spokesperson said in a statement, "Based on the report we received regarding Chris's conduct with his brother's defense, we had cause to terminate. When new allegations came to us this week, we took them seriously, and saw no reason to delay taking immediate action." While the contours of Chris Cuomo's involvement with the governor's office showed that [he], while working as one of CNN's top anchors, was also effectively working as an unpaid aide to the governor," CNN reported.

Michigan High School Shooting

In an all too familiar story in America, a 15-year-old boy, Ethan Crumbley, opened fire this week in the hallway of Oxford High School, a Detroit Michigan suburb, filled with students killing four and wounding seven others.

What has turned this story into more than a footnote on gun violence in America is the extraordinary move by the Karen D. McDonald, the Oakland County prosecutor, who decided to charge the parents, Jennifer, and James Crumbley, with four counts each of involuntary manslaughter, a move that has the nation examining parental responsibility and gun laws.

After announcement of the intent to charge the parents, the pair left their home in an effort to skip town and were eventually caught in Detroit in a warehouse.

"The couple were charged in the students' deaths after officials said their son, Ethan Crumbley, 15, carried out the shootings on Tuesday using a handgun his parents had bought for him. On Friday, Karen D. McDonald, the Oakland County prosecutor, said the Crumbleys were culpable in the year's deadliest school shooting because they had allowed their son access to a handgun while ignoring glaring warnings that he was on the brink of violence," The New York Times reported.


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


Killed in the shooting, Hana St. Juliana, 14; Madisyn Baldwin, 17; Tate Myre, 16, who died in the back of the police vehicle that rushed to transport him to the hospital, and Justin Shilling, 17 who died of his injuries after arriving at the hospital. The seven others who were shot remain hospitalized. A teacher was grazed and was treated and released.

The glaring warnings are a red flag to schools across the nation, as reports of images depicting gun violence, blood, a laughing emoji, and a self-professed statement of "the thought won't stop" were found on his person and in his possession and dismissed by his parents.

He also used the school's internet to search for ammunition a day before the November 30, 2021, shooting, which caught the attention of school officials who notified his parents. Ms. Crumbley's offhanded reply via text message appears to have encouraged him in his deception by telling him in a text message, on the same day, "LOL, I'm not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught," Ms. McDonald said," The New York Times reported.

The weapon used, a 9mm Sig Sauer, was bought for the son as a an early Christmas present, by his parents on Black Friday and posted on social media.

Abrams Enters Georgia Governor Race

Stacy Abrams has announced her intent to run for Governor of the state of Georgia. A former Georgia State Representative for ten years, Abrams, a democrat, ran in 2018 for Governor in a race she eventually lost to republican Brian Kemp, in a nasty race marked by accusation of black voter suppression. Abrams also worked tirelessly to flip the state blue in the recent 2020 elections.

"Abrams, who announced on her candidacy Wednesday on Twitter, is easily the highest-profile Black female political leader in the country who does not currently hold elected office. Abrams' brilliance as a service-oriented leader, former elected official, and voting-rights advocate places her in a long unbroken line of Black women organizers and activists who have sought to reimagine American democracy," CNN reported.

Senator Bob Dole Dies

Former Republican Senator Bob Dole, the longest running U.S. senator and three times Majority leader died today. He was 98. A World War II veteran, Dole was left for dead on the battlefield in Italy after suffering a shell hit and was not expected to survive. His story of recovery is a triumphant over tragedy story, and one that few outside of his immediate family or senate colleagues knew.

President Biden released this statement on the passing of Senator Dole, "Bob was an American statesman like few in our history. A war hero and among the greatest of the Greatest Generation. And to me, he was also a friend whom I could look to for trusted guidance, or a humorous line at just the right moment to settle frayed nerves. I am grateful for the times we shared. Bob was a man to be admired by Americans. He had an unerring sense of integrity and honor. May God bless him, and may our nation draw upon his legacy of decency, dignity, good humor, and patriotism for all time."

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

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