Hillary Clinton to be Honored by The Center

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center will honor Hillary Clinton at their April 20 dinner. Hillary will receive the Trailblazer Award at the event to be held at Cipriani on Wall Street.

For tickets and information, go here >>>>



Congratulations in advance, Mme. Secretary, on a well-deserved honor!

Battling the Trump Cabinet Nominations

We are bloody but unbowed. Yesterday, after massive efforts of letter writing, phone calling, emailing, and petition signing, Betsy DeVos was confirmed as Secretary of Education by an historic tie-breaking vote by VP and Senate President Mike Pence.

Not long afterward, the effort to confirm Jeff Sessions, noted bigot, as Attorney General ran into an effort by Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to read a letter penned in 1986 by Coretta Scott King in opposition to Sessions being appointed a federal district judge in Alabama.

Senate rebukes Warren for reading from Coretta Scott King letter

By Matt Viser and Victoria McGrane Globe Staff  February 08, 2017

WASHINGTON — Senator Elizabeth Warren was ruled in violation of Senate rules late Tuesday night after quoting from a decades-old letter written by Martin Luther King Jr.’s widow — a rare rebuke that silenced Warren from further debate on the nomination of Senator Jeff Sessions as attorney general.
The striking 49-to-43 vote, which occurred along party lines, marked yet another setback for decorum in a chamber that has long considered itself the world’s greatest deliberative body. It also immediately made the Massachusetts Democrat a hero of the left, with a Twitter hashtag #LetLizSpeak quickly going viral.
Read more >>>>

We see how this is going.

Here are the Twitter hashtags.

"Silencing Elizabeth Warren"
#LetLizSpeak
#ShePersists
#ShePersisted

Here is the exchange on the Senate floor.

The swamp gases in DC are toxic.

Stay battle-ready. This is just the beginning.

Thank you, Liz!

Here is the letter.

My Senator, Cory Booker.

Sen. @CoryBooker: I start my remarks tonight aggrieved by what I saw happen to @SenWarren. #StopSessions #LetLizSpeak pic.twitter.com/erfYPuNX6M

— Civil Rights (@civilrightsorg) February 8, 2017

From Hillary Clinton:

"She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted."

So must we all.https://t.co/JXROGHPNkH

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) February 8, 2017

Happy Black History Month!

Cross-posted at The Department of Homegirl Security.

Hillary Clinton Releases New Video

Hillary released this video yesterday.

LIVE NOW: An exclusive #MAKERS message from #HillaryClinton on the opening night of The 2017 #MAKERS Conference. "Despite all the challenges we face, I remain convinced that yes, the future is female." -MAKER @hillaryclinton wants you to tune in to The 2017 #MAKERS Conference LIVE now on MAKERS.com. Link in bio #BEBOLD

A video posted by MAKERS (@makerswomen) on Feb 6, 2017 at 6:13pm PST

Embed from Getty Images

Clinton Library Congratulates Queen Elizabeth II

Today marks the 65th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's ascension to the throne. It was a sad day for the princess because her father had passed away. She is the longest-reigning monarch in British history.


The Clinton Library posted this photo to mark the occasion.
Clinton Library ‏@WJCLibrary

Best wishes to Queen Elizabeth on her #SapphireJubilee. This photo was taken Dec. 14, 2000.

The White House: Live from the Improv

This is from the New York Times morning briefing.

• Two weeks in, miscues are worrying Mr. Trump’s aides.

The bungled rollout of his executive order barring immigrants from seven Muslim countries, a flurry of other miscues and embarrassments, and low approval ratings have led to Mr. Trump and his top staff rethinking an improvisational approach to governing that mirrors his chaotic presidential campaign.

Time and again Hillary Clinton warned that running a campaign is not the equivalent of governing and that running businesses is not like running a country. The way Trump ran his campaign gave every indication that his "governing" style was going to be fast, loose, and superficial.



Hillary tried to tell us, but you know: Tracy Flick, emails, private server, low energy, criminal, "lock her up," and worse.

Meanwhile Trump, all along, had a private server just to communicate with Russian parties not yet completely identified, had surrogates talking to Russians with close ties to the Kremlin and to Putin, and even told Russia to hack Hillary's email.

He has never bothered to inform himself, has eschewed reading and security briefings, and does not, to this day, read documents that are put in front of him for a signature, so he cannot ask questions about them, and concerns himself with whether the women on staff are wearing sufficiently feminine garb  - a twist darkly similar to the fashion police in Iran and other Islamic republics.

Improv is theatre and does entail skills, and there is no doubt that there are times when skilled statesmen and stateswomen must employ them. They are not, however, the go-to in the playbook. No matter how often we may refer to political kabuki, there is never an implication that preparation is not involved. To perform political kabuki, successful parties overprepare as do all good actors, students, teachers, and just about everyone else in a broad variety of responsible positions.

Of course there is theatre in politics. There have also been entertainers who have made the transition to politics relatively smoothly including George Murphy, Ronald Reagan, Fred Thompson, Hulk Hogan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Al Franken for example.  But it is a transition involving different skills sets.

Trump team moving on from improv? That involves homework, and homework involves reading. We'll see how this goes.

---

P.S. On another note, it is not lost on me that the Times chose the verb to bar rather than to ban. Just saying.

Clinton Takes on Super Bowl LI

Hillary and Chelsea Clinton were not attaching any political subtexts to last night's Superbowl LI, but they did register their appreciation of a few notables.

Chelsea Clinton ‏@ChelseaClinton 11h11 hours ago

So happy to see President George H.W. Bush & Mrs. Bush looking so healthy & strong #SuperBowl

Hillary Clinton ‏@HillaryClinton 9h9 hours ago

Hillary Clinton Retweeted Us Weekly

I'm one of 100 million #SuperBowl fans that just went #Gaga for the Lady, & her message to all of us.

Hillary Clinton added,

Us Weekly @usweekly

This land was made for you and me @ladygaga #SB51

3,925 replies 47,280 retweets 174,886 likes

Throwback Thursday Part II: The Russians, the Memos, the Sanctions - The Art of the Steal

We should know by now, two weeks in, what the new administration's tactic is. Like a shell game con artist, they employ a certain sleight of hand. They throw a fireball out that dazzles, enrages, and engages attention. While we are attending to this distraction, even more serious shady doings are going on somewhere else that we somehow miss. An example.

Yesterday, Trump's meandering, inept introduction of Black History Month so astonished (and, frankly, amused to the point of Twitter parodies) that while we were all attending to 199-year-0ld Frederick Douglass "who has done a terrific job that is being recognized by more and more people," the Senate confirmed Rex Tillerson for secretary of state while Congress removed an anti-graft section of Dodd-Frank that will permit petroleum companies (among others) to conceal payments to foreign governments.  Actually, according to one source, all of these things happened.



Today, at the National Prayer Breakfast, there was this:

"And I want to just pray for Arnold if we can, for those ratings" Trump says after boasting Apprentice "went down the tubes" once he left”

The media and the social nets went nuts!  Meanwhile, back at the ranch:

The US Treasury just amended Obama's sanctions order to 'authorize certain transactions' with Russia's FSB

Natasha Bertrand
The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control on Thursday published an amendment to President Barack Obama's sanctions order against Russia to "authorize certain transactions" with Russia's Federal Security Service.
The new authorization will allow US companies to pay up to $5,000 a year to the FSB — which oversees technology imports into Russia — to secure licenses from the security services to export information technology products to Russia, as long as other aspects of the sanctions order aren't violated, according to the document published by the Treasury.
Obama issued harsh sanctions against the FSB — first in April 2015 and again in December of last year — which it accused of playing a role in hacking campaigns targeting US citizens and infrastructure during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Read more >>>>

Who's going to notice this after Trump prayed for Arnold's pitiful ratings?

Of course back on September 24, Hillary Clinton's campaign issued this statement.

Hillary For America on Trump’s Sticky Kremlin Relations

September 24, 2016

Hillary for America Statement on Bombshell Report About Trump Aide’s Chilling Ties To Kremlin

Friday, HFA senior national spokesperson Glen Caplin released the following statement in response to the new bombshell report that Trump’s foreign policy adviser is being probed for suspected meetings with senior Russian officials:
“It’s chilling to learn that U.S. intelligence officials are conducting a probe into suspected meetings between Trump’s foreign policy adviser Carter Page and members of Putin’s inner circle while in Moscow. You have to ask why he would meet with Igor Diveykin, who is believed by U.S. officials ‘to have responsibility for intelligence collected by Russian agencies about the U.S. election.’ This comes as Russian hackers continue their attempts to influence the outcome of our elections, something Trump openly invited. This is serious business and voters deserve the facts before election day.
Read more >>>>

During the October 19 presidential debate, this.

WALLACE: Secretary Clinton, I want to clear up your position on this issue, because in a speech you gave to a Brazilian bank, for which you were paid $225,000, we've learned from the WikiLeaks, that you said this, and I want to quote. "My dream is a hemispheric common market with open trade and open borders." So that's the question...
TRUMP: Thank you.
WALLACE: That's the question. Please quiet, everybody. Is that your dream, open borders? CLINTON: Well, if you went on to read the rest of the sentence, I was talking about energy. You know, we trade more energy with our neighbors than we trade with the rest of the world combined. And I do want us to have an electric grid, an energy system that crosses borders. I think that would be a great benefit to us.
But you are very clearly quoting from WikiLeaks. And what's really important about WikiLeaks is that the Russian government has engaged in espionage against Americans. They have hacked American websites, American accounts of private people, of institutions. Then they have given that information to WikiLeaks for the purpose of putting it on the Internet.
This has come from the highest levels of the Russian government, clearly, from Putin himself, in an effort, as 17 of our intelligence agencies have confirmed, to influence our election.
So I actually think the most important question of this evening, Chris, is, finally, will Donald Trump admit and condemn that the Russians are doing this and make it clear that he will not have the help of Putin in in this election, that he rejects Russian espionage against Americans, which he actually encouraged in the past? Those are the questions we need answered. We've never had anything like this happen in any of our elections before.
WALLACE: Well?
TRUMP: That was a great pivot off the fact that she wants open borders, OK? How did we get on to Putin?
WALLACE: Hold on -- hold on, wait. Hold on, folks. Because we -- this is going to end up getting out of control. Let's try to keep it quiet so -- for the candidates and for the American people.
TRUMP: So just to finish on the borders...
WALLACE: Yes?
TRUMP: She wants open borders. People are going to pour into our country. People are going to come in from Syria. She wants 550 percent more people than Barack Obama, and he has thousands and thousands of people. They have no idea where they come from.
And you see, we are going to stop radical Islamic terrorism in this country. She won't even mention the words, and neither will President Obama. So I just want to tell you, she wants open borders.
Now we can talk about Putin. I don't know Putin. He said nice things about me. If we got along well, that would be good. If Russia and the United States got along well and went after ISIS, that would be good.
He has no respect for her. He has no respect for our president. And I'll tell you what: We're in very serious trouble, because we have a country with tremendous numbers of nuclear warheads -- 1,800, by the way -- where they expanded and we didn't, 1,800 nuclear warheads. And she's playing chicken. Look, Putin...
WALLACE: Wait, but...
TRUMP: ... from everything I see, has no respect for this person.
CLINTON: Well, that's because he'd rather have a puppet as president of the United States.
TRUMP: No puppet. No puppet.
CLINTON: And it's pretty clear...
TRUMP: You're the puppet!
CLINTON: It's pretty clear you won't admit...
TRUMP: No, you're the puppet.
CLINTON: ... that the Russians have engaged in cyberattacks against the United States of America, that you encouraged espionage against our people, that you are willing to spout the Putin line, sign up for his wish list, break up NATO, do whatever he wants to do, and that you continue to get help from him, because he has a very clear favorite in this race.
So I think that this is such an unprecedented situation. We've never had a foreign government trying to interfere in our election. We have 17 -- 17 intelligence agencies, civilian and military, who have all concluded that these espionage attacks, these cyberattacks, come from the highest levels of the Kremlin and they are designed to influence our election. I find that deeply disturbing.
WALLACE: Secretary Clinton...
CLINTON: And I think it's time you take a stand...
TRUMP: She has no idea whether it's Russia, China, or anybody else.
CLINTON: I am not quoting myself.
TRUMP: She has no idea.
CLINTON: I am quoting 17...
TRUMP: Hillary, you have no idea.
CLINTON: ... 17 intelligence -- do you doubt 17 military and civilian...
TRUMP: And our country has no idea.
CLINTON: ... agencies.
TRUMP: Yeah, I doubt it. I doubt it.
CLINTON: Well, he'd rather believe Vladimir Putin than the military and civilian intelligence professionals who are sworn to protect us. I find that just absolutely...

We were warned by Hillary even though no government agency stepped up to clarify the situation.  Some of what we heard back then appears, more specifically, in what have come to be known as the Christopher Steele Memos.

There we learned, not only of Kremlin quid pro quos for the lifting of sanctions, as cited below, but also of potential 'kompromat' on Trump. (see p.9) Unfortunately, the media focused heavily on the 'kompromat' which involved some hanky-panky with prostitutes rather than on the bigger picture which included influencing U.S. voting blocs in order to get Trump elected so that sanctions could be lifted. The implication of that 'kompromat' is, of course, that Trump can be blackmailed to do anything the Kremlin wants.

Memos: CEO of Russia's state oil company offered Trump associate, allies a stake if sanctions were lifted

Natasha Bertrand

Jan 27, 2017

An unverified dossier with claims about President Donald Trump’s ties to Russia contained allegations that the CEO of Russia’s state oil company, Igor Sechin, offered former Trump ally Carter Page and his associates a 19% stake in the company in exchange for the lifting of US sanctions on Russia.
The dossier says the offer was made in July 2016, when Page was in Moscow giving a speech at the Higher Economic School. The claim was sourced to “a trusted compatriot and close associate” of Sechin, according to the dossier’s author, former British spy Christopher Steele.
“Sechin’s associate said that the Rosneft president was so keen to lift personal and corporate western sanctions imposed on the company, that he offered Page and his associates … up to a 19 per cent (privatised) stake in Rosneft,” the dossier said. “In return, Page had expressed interest and confirmed that were Trump elected US president, then sanctions on Russia would be lifted.”
Read more >>>>

While it remains true that these memos have not been verified, it is awfully spooky that these sanctions are being lifted.  Can we expect the Ukraine sanctions to fall next?

Oh, and by the way, subsequent to all of that there was this in October! No one knows who bought those shares.

The deal on the sale of a 19.5 percent stake in Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft will bring Moscow some $11.1 billion in revenues, the company announced Saturday.

Hillary Clinton and her team tried to warn us. But, you know, emails, wikileaks, 'flawed,' 'ill,' and 'shrill.' Not the perfect (female) candidate - which is the enemy of not just the good, but of the best yet.



The next time the 'central committee' sends up a flare, look in the other direction. That is where the damage will be occurring - in the shadows.  Watch this space!

Hillary Clinton: On the Town ... Again!

Bill and Hillary Clinton were out on the town last night. They took in a performance of the Broadway hit In Transit, billed as a love letter to New York City, at the Circle in the Square.  Perhaps they were celebrating Hillary's new book deal and upcoming speaking engagements.

Embed from Getty Images

Of course she got another standing ovation because B'way loves Hillary!

Hillary, Bill Clinton Get a Standing Ovation at Broadway’s ‘In Transit’

February 2, 2017

By  Dana Rose Falcone

Back on Broadway! Almost one month after getting a standing ovation at The Color Purple, Hillary and Bill Clinton received the same reaction at the Wednesday, February 1, performance of In Transit. Hillary’s longtime top aide Huma Abedin was also in attendance.

Read more and see more pics >>>>

Throwback Thursday: I TOLD You to #WatchThisSpace!!!

Monday I posted this: #WatchThis Space: Arctic Activity.  Well you really have to watch! Things are moving fast, and there are a lot of moving parts. This, from Michael Grunwald in Politico.

Rex Tillerson Tried to Get This Rule Killed. Now Congress Is About To Do It For Him

Should oil companies disclose payments to foreign governments? The GOP, and former Exxon CEO, think not.

By Michael Grunwald

February 01, 2017

... back in 2010, ExxonMobil’s then-CEO, Rex Tillerson, was deeply worried about Section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reforms, a bipartisan amendment that required drilling and mining companies to disclose any payments they make to foreign governments. So Tillerson and one of his lobbyists paid a half-hour visit to the amendment’s Republican co-author, then-Senator Richard Lugar, to try to get it killed.

Tillerson argued that forcing U.S. oil firms to reveal corporate secrets—such as paying foreign governments—would put them at a competitive disadvantage. He also explained that the provision would make it especially difficult for Exxon to do business in Russia, where, as he did not need to explain, the government takes a rather active interest in the oil industry.

SNIP

Today, seven years later, Republicans confirmed Tillerson as President Trump’s Secretary of State, despite allegations that he’s too cozy with Russia. At the same time, the GOP is preparing to try to kill the disclosure rule created under Section 1504, despite warnings from international aid groups that the move would provide a wink-and-nod blessing to hidden corporate payments to petro-thugs. The House is expected to act this afternoon, and since the move relies on a special mechanism for reversing rules enacted late in a presidential term, Senate Republicans will need a mere majority rather than a filibuster-proof 60 votes to follow suit.

Read more >>>>

As you probably could have guessed ...

U.S. House Passes Resolution to Kill Extractive Anti-Graft Rule

Four years to the day since Hillary Clinton exited the State Department, Tillerson will occupy Foggy Bottom, and Congressional Republicans have blown smoke and fog over corporate payments to foreign governments. This in conjunction with the Arctic activity slips past much of the MSM while they occupy themselves with Trump thinking Frederick Douglass is still alive.

Just a reminder: The Benghazi-cum-server-cum emails Oversight Committee railed and wailed a lot in the course of their hearings about Hillary's State Department initiatives promoting American businesses overseas.  That is part of the Secretary of State's job, and all of those initiatives were transparent.

John Kerry's successor enters with a cloak of invisibility ready made.



Keep watching this space! The war in Urkraine is escalating.  Remember that plank in the Republican platform that Trump had removed?

Hillary Clinton to Deliver 2017 Wellesley Commencement Address

Hillary Clinton was the first student to deliver a commencement address at Wellesley when she graduated in 1969. She had been chosen for the task by her classmates. When the guest speaker that year, Senator Edward Brooke of Massachusetts,  delivered remarks which she felt conflicted with the aspirations she and her class held, she departed from her prepared address and spoke from her heart - famously!

Well, she's coming back! This time as the guest speaker at the 2017 commencement.

Hillary Rodham Clinton ’69 Will Return to Wellesley College to Deliver 2017 Commencement Address

Former Presidential Candidate, Global Champion for Women, and Iconic Leader of Our Time Selected to Speak by Class of 2017

Wellesley, Mass.—Hillary Rodham Clinton ’69 will address the members of the Wellesley College Class of 2017 and an international audience of their family and friends at Wellesley’s 139th commencement exercises on Friday, May 26, at 10:30 am. Unlike many other colleges and universities, Wellesley’s commencement speaker selection process is driven by its students.

“Secretary Clinton’s decision to come to Wellesley is profoundly inspiring to all of us at the College. As Wellesley students, we arrive here believing in a future that respects women’s potential and accomplishment, but as graduating seniors, and at this moment in history, we look to Secretary Clinton, our sister, as someone who will inspire us to make that future now,” said Casey Butler ’17, co-president of the senior class. Amal Cheema ’17, also co-president, added, “She is the best person to represent who we have become at Wellesley and who we strive to be in the world. Her tireless push for progress embodies the spirit—and the courage—we seek in breaking down barriers and shattering glass ceilings of all kinds.”

Read more >>>>

For Hillary Clinton's Supporters - A Reason to Rejoice: A New Book Coming this Fall

Much gossip has circulated over the past several weeks about what Hillary Clinton will do next. Mayor of New York City? TV talk show host? All of that is idle speculation. Here is something definitive that should gladden the hearts of her loyal supporters.

AP NewsBreak: Clinton will reflect on 2016 race in new book

By HILLEL ITALIE

Feb. 1, 2017 

• 

FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016, file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary... Read more

NEW YORK (AP) — Hillary Clinton has a lot of plans for 2017, including some reflections on her stunning loss last fall to Donald Trump.
The former secretary of state, senator and first lady is working on a book of personal essays that will come out this fall, Simon & Schuster told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The book, still untitled, is structured around hundreds of favorite quotations that have inspired her. The publisher said Clinton will use the quotes to "tell stories from her life, up to and including her experiences in the 2016 presidential campaign" and into her thoughts on the future.
Read more >>>>

This welcome news implies that we must, or awhile, abide with Hillary retreating to her attic to compose.  We can weather that knowing that a book tour will assuredly be in the offing. Her re-signing with the Harry Walker Agency and other scheduled upcoming speeches are good news indeed!

#WatchThis Space: Arctic Activity

The United States has four coasts subject to the perils presented by climate change: the Atlantic, the Pacific, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Arctic. As a nation with land above the Arctic Circle, we belong to the Arctic Council.

When she was secretary of state, Hillary Clinton participated regularly in Arctic Council summits hosted by a variety of the eight member nations. This was one. I have bolded the list of member states.

Hillary Clinton and Delegation Wheels Up from Greenland

May 12, 2011

Lisa Murkowski  was nice enough to post this picture on her Facebook page along with this comment about an hour ago.

Lisa Murkowski

Heading home from the Arctic Council in Nuuk, Greenland. But wanted to share a picture: with the Ministers of the eight Arctic nations in attendance, as well as Secretary Clinton and Secretary Salazar.

Here is a fact sheet released by the State Department about the Arctic Council meeting results.

Secretary Clinton Signs the Arctic Search and Rescue Agreement with Other Arctic Nations

Fact Sheet

Office of the Spokesman

Washington, DC

May 12, 2011

---

On May 12, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton joined representatives of the other seven Member States of the Arctic Council (Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, and Sweden) in signing an Agreement on Cooperation on Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR) in the Arctic (Agreement). The Agreement is the first legally-binding instrument negotiated under the auspices of the Arctic Council. It coordinates life-saving international maritime and aeronautical SAR coverage and response among the Arctic States across an area of about 13 million square miles in the Arctic.
As Arctic sea ice coverage decreases, ship-borne activities are increasing significantly in the Arctic. Flight traffic is also on the rise as new polar aviation routes cross the Arctic air space in several directions. As human presence and activities in the Arctic expand, the potential for accidents increases as well. Limited rescue resources, challenging weather conditions, and the remoteness of the area render SAR operations difficult in the Arctic, making coordination among the Arctic nations imperative. The SAR Agreement will improve search and rescue response in the Arctic by committing all Parties to coordinate appropriate assistance to those in distress and to cooperate with each other in undertaking SAR operations. For each Party, the Agreement defines an area of the Arctic in which it will have lead responsibility in organizing responses to SAR incidents, both large and small. Parties to the Agreement commit to provide SAR assistance regardless of the nationality or status of persons who may need it.
Read more >>>>

(See more like this here>>>>)

It is immediately apparent why there is a need for this council. Russia is a player.
After Hillary left the State Department, she launched a series of  speaking engagements. One of these was in Canada.

Hillary Clinton to Canadians: Watch Putin in the Arctic as well as in Europe

March 19, 2014

Speaking to the Montreal Board of Trade last night, Hillary Clinton warned the audience of increased Russian activity in the Arctic and hung responsibility for another Cold War on Vladimir Putin’s doorknob.
As Secretary of State,  Hillary was an active participant in the Arctic Council and repeatedly echoed the message that we are an Arctic nation.  The concerns she voiced in Canada are as much an issue for the U.S. as they are for Canada.
Along with the disquiet she expressed regarding Russia’s activities in the north came further comments about recent activities in Europe.
Read more >>>>

In light of the above, this is of some concern or should be to all the member nations including ours.

Putin's Russia in biggest Arctic military push since Soviet fall

Russian servicemen of the Northern Fleet's Arctic mechanised infantry brigade participate in a military drill on riding reindeer and dog sleds near the settlement of Lovozero outside Murmansk, Russia January 23, 2017. Picture taken January 23, 2017. Lev Fedoseyev/Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation/Handout via REUTERS

By Andrew Osborn | MURMANSK, Russia

The nuclear icebreaker Lenin, the pride and joy of the Soviet Union's Arctic great game, lies at perpetual anchor in the frigid water here. A relic of the Cold War, it is now a museum.
But nearly three decades after the Lenin was taken out of service to be turned into a visitor attraction, Russia is again on the march in the Arctic and building new nuclear icebreakers.
It is part of a push to firm Moscow's hand in the High North as it vies for dominance with traditional rivals Canada, the United States, and Norway as well as newcomer China.
SNIP
Grigory Stratiy, deputy governor of the Murmansk Region, told Reuters there was strong interest in sea route from Asian nations however and that new icebreakers would allow for year-round navigation in the 2020s.
"Whatever the weather, the Northern Sea Route will be needed. Its use will definitely grow," said Stratiy, who said Russia was keen to attract foreign investment to the Arctic.
When asked about his country's military build-up, he smiled.
"There's no reason to be afraid I can reassure you," he said, saying it was driven only by a need to modernize.
"Russia has never had any aggressive aims and won't have them. We are very friendly people."
Read more >>>>

Anyone thinking that Putin is playing nice friendly reindeer games up there is, of course, deluded despite the "peaceful and cooperative nature of the Arctic Region" as stated on the State Department page.  We should never trust Putin, as Hillary warned, especially when his military is involved. So this military build up is one thing to watch.

It's nice to have ice breakers available when you need them, and the Russians were very helpful the time the whales were trapped under the ice as portrayed in that Drew Barrymore movie. Those missile installations, though. No wonder we sent troops to Norway.

The North Sea Route concept, characterized in the article as a mini Suez Canal, is an obvious business venture, but of course the real target is oil. Drilling in the Arctic is an enterprise popular with Republicans.

Lastly, how the hell did "newcomer China" get into this competition? It has no land above the Arctic Circle. Or does it?  Is it building synthetic islands up there, too?

The new administration has a dangerously narrow view of China's adversarial scope. It goes beyond trans-Pacific trade and artificial islands to expand its continental limit in the South China Sea and East China Sea. China has invested in significant "development" enterprises in Africa centered largely on resource extraction with tandem infrastructure upgrades benefiting their ability to move products for shipment and not benefiting local residents or their farms or businesses in any way. I don't think I have ever heard Donald Trump say the word "Africa."  At the very least, China's presence in the Arctic deserves a question.

As for Russia, and its military push, we always to well to heed the warnings of Hillary Clinton.

Trump's Immigration Ban Prompts a Tweet from Hillary Clinton

With hundreds of passengers stranded in custody and protests erupting at international airports across the United States, Hillary Clinton made her position clear with a tweet about Trump's dangerous and unfair ban on immigrants from seven countries.  The ban extends to holders of green cards, who are legal residents of the U.S., and those who hold valid visas issued before the ban was in place.  A federal judge has struck down the ban, however the folks being held have not been released from custody since the ruling does not go that far.

Hillary Clinton ‏@HillaryClinton

I stand with the people gathered across the country tonight defending our values & our Constitution. This is not who we are.

Hillary Clinton: On the Town!

This Day in History

The morning after the inauguration of the least popular incoming president in modern history, millions boarded all manner of transportation to head to their nearest (or dearest) Women's March. Many flew or took trains or buses to Washington, DC for the march there. Others went to cities near them.

The numbers are not in yet but there are estimates - almost all of which exceeded expectations.  Washington, DC expected 200,000. Estimates are that a half a million showed up. In New York City, the crowd was so large that for hours the march could not move appreciably for lack of space. The same thing happened in Chicago where organizers transformed the march into a rally - no space for people to march! Reports are that the same thing occurred in Los Angeles.

Portland ME police estimated this to be the largest demonstration they had ever encountered. Boston organizers think 150,000 attended there. People tweeted pictures of crowds in Denver, Nashville, Asheville, Atlanta, Sioux City, Phoenix, of a human chain across the Golden Gate Bridge. Across the nation they marched - in the rain in Los Angeles and the Bay Area, and in the snow in Boise and Anchorage.

There were marches and demonstrations in all 50 states and on every continent, including Antarctica. Look at this map!



Here are a few of my favorite images from the day starting with a sea of pink pussyhats in the nation's capital.


Paris put its message in lights.

The Brits displayed their characteristic reserve. They had the best signs.


My favorite Brit marched and spoke in New York and declared herself a New Yorker.

Helen Mirren posted “this is amazing!” (Instagram / @helenmirren

A human traffic jam in Los Angeles.

A human chain across the Golden Gate Bridge.

In blinding snow in Anchorage.

In Boise.

Antarctica!

Some awesome folks!

They weren't all Democrats!  Ana Navarro posted this selfie!
A note from a flight attendant who had to work to a passenger who was attending.

The human traffic jam on NY's 5th Avenue that lasted for hours.

In Detroit.
 
 New York City.

This woman tweeted that she wasn't ovary-acting.

 How bad is it?

One guy we know brought his best friend along for his first day as a private citizen.


His predecessor tweeted her support.

Hillary Clinton ‏@HillaryClinton

Thanks for standing, speaking & marching for our values @womensmarch. Important as ever. I truly believe we're always Stronger Together.

Hillary Clinton ‏@HillaryClinton
'Hope Not Fear' Indeed. And what a beautiful piece by Louisa Cannell. #womensmarch

Hillary Clinton ‏@HillaryClinton

I stand w/ Nora Harren, a 17-year from Boise, ID, & every person marching for our values today. Onward! #WomensMarch

There are many more wonderful images of the day here and here.

Here is a report on estimated numbers and the size and scope. These numbers are expected to be revised upwards.



On the sidelines, this day, Donald Trump attended the National Prayer Breakfast and visited CIA HQ in Langley, VA to tell them what a yuge inauguration he had (it looked like a million - a million-and-a-half people to the guy who saw imaginary thousands in Jersey City celebrating the fall of the towers) and how spectacular the weather had been (it rained - George W. Bush struggled with a plastic poncho).  Later his Press Sec stormed into the White House press room to scold the media for telling the truth about the paltry attendance yesterday. He said this was the largest inauguration ever. Period. He took no questions and left in a huff.

The rest of the country and the free world was busy having a lovely Saturday all together.  No incidents, no arrests, and according to actress Ally Sheedy, a patrol officer told her how wonderful everyone looked.  Madonna dropped the F-bomb twice and they cheered. Everyone was included - babies in strollers and seniors in wheelchairs. It was a great day in history!

Oh! And THIS!