The Wide Globe of News

It is spinning both fast and slow today....

Apr 27, 2022

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The first paragraph of David Ignatius’ column, the sourcing for which is never explained in the piece:

Russian President Vladimir Putin protested to Kremlin visitors Monday that his adversaries were trying to “win on the battlefield” and “destroy Russia from within.” For once, he wasn’t just being paranoid.

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From the morning edition of Punchbowl News, in an item on the attempts by Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer to find consensus on a legislative package to lower gas prices, with language that makes it seem comically unlikely that the Democratic majorities on Capitol Hill will pass much of anything beyond the “essential” stuff (and maybe not even all of that) :

Top Democrats would love to get a [gas] bill through Congress by Memorial Day. But several Democrats privately admitted that timeline seems out of reach. Congress is also aiming to pass Covid preparedness funding, a Ukraine aid package and begin the process of passing a massive technology innovation bill in the next few weeks. Finding something on gas prices that can get the support of 60 senators will be exceedingly difficult as well. Republicans generally believe there should be more oil exploration and production.

Also: The immigration crisis on the Mexican border is still very much unresolved, despite the release of a new Biden administration plan. Stay tuned for more….

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Dr. Caplan, as quoted in the New York Times, makes a pretty darn compelling reason that President Biden should at least consider joining Dr. Fauci in skipping the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday:

Everyone has a different risk tolerance, and experts say it is important not to judge other people’s choices. But the president, being the president, has an obligation to the public to not get sick, said Dr. Arthur Caplan, director of N.Y.U. Langone’s Division of Medical Ethics. He said Mr. Biden should not attend the dinner, ticking off the reasons in an email.
“He is high risk and occupies a very high office at a time of war,” Dr. Caplan wrote, adding, “He must be hypersafe. The correspondents’ dinner is highly optional. With the V.P. sick, he really needs to protect himself. His office imposes a duty of precaution.”

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