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This is a very sad and very big story:
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) — Tornadoes and severe weather were blamed for several deaths and injuries across parts of the Midwest and the South as a storm system caused significant damage at a candle factory in Kentucky, an Amazon facility in Illinois, a nursing home in Arkansas, and numerous homes and buildings.
Many people were feared dead at the factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, where Gov. Andy Beshear called the situation “tragic” at a news conference Saturday morning.
“There were about 110 people in it at the time that the tornado hit it,” Beshear said. “We believe we’ll lose at least dozens of those individuals. It’s very hard, really tough, and we’re praying for each and every one of those families.”
Police in Edwardsville, Illinois, confirmed fatalities at an Amazon facility where the roof was ripped off the building and a wall about the length of a football field collapsed. At least 100 emergency vehicles had descended upon the warehouse about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of St. Louis.
For all the latest news all the time, check out the 24/7 website the Walking Duck.
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The Washington Post and New York Times both have essential reading pieces on the central political and economic drama for the nation and for Team Biden – the connection between facts on the ground, Biden administration policies, and Biden administration rhetoric.
The president and his advisers are quintupling down on four notions:
1. The positive aspects of the economy now outweigh the costs of inflation.
2. Inflation is reducing because of current administration policies.
3. Inflation will reduce even further and faster if Build Back Better is passed.
4. The American people would agree with all this if the Dominant Media would stop its doom-‘n’-gloom focus on the wrong things.
This Times’ graph tells all:
White House officials say they have no plans to shift Mr. Biden’s messaging on economic issues, even as poll after poll shows his approval ratings in decline and voter worry over inflation swamping all other views of the economy. Their strategy remains focused on stressing the administration’s work to spread vaccinations and end the pandemic without further lockdowns, cheering the nation’s progress in economic growth and promising that Mr. Biden’s policies will bring down prices for oil, food and consumer goods.
The bottomest of lines: No amount of Anita Dunn memos, Janet Yellen prebuttals, or Ron-Klain-as-Ross-Perot-and-Brian-Fallon-with-some-charts Internet videos is going to change the reality that inflation is really bad and not ending anytime soon – or the reality that the Dominant Media’s agreement with Mitch McConnell on these issues is not ending anytime soon.
Speaking of Ron Klain…a Friday White House pool report had this regarding the group headed to Delaware with the First Couple:
Traveling with the President and the First Lady on Marine One:
· Ron Klain, Assistant to the President & Chief of Staff
Mr. Klain is not a regular on these weekend jaunts.
Hmmmmm…..
Sounds like someone could be working on material to include in an upcoming memo to his boss.
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As you can read about in this Associated Press dispatch, America’s Secretary of State, Mr. Blinken, and his G7 counterparts are going all Liverpudlian this weekend to talk about What Is To Be Done about Vladimir Putin.
The Washington Post has a broad and strong overview over the leverage-no-leverage situation, leding thusly:
President Biden faces a dilemma as the United States prepares for European security negotiations with Moscow amid the threat of a new Ukraine invasion: How much should Washington accommodate Russian President Vladimir Putin — and would any plausible concessions be enough for him to stand down?
Meanwhile (that is one of the all-time great journalism words), Marc Thiessen makes the most persuasive case possible that Biden’s current policy amounts to dangerous appeasement.
The bottomest of lines: The next major step is Putin’s, which, to state the obvious, is not a great place for President Biden to be in.
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Essential reading: The New York Times on the U.S. and Israel grappling over the Iranian nuclear program.
The bottomest of lines: If this were easy, it would have been solved long ago, and/but Team Biden feels very fortunate they are not dealing with the tsuris of Bibi right now.
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Quick Notes ®
* President Biden’s appearance on Fallon Friday night: No news, no hard questions, no big errors, no impact on anything.
* Political pundit H.R. Clinton thinks Donald Trump will re-seek the presidency in 2024 – and that the stakes will therefore be sky high.
* RIP, Mike.
Stipulate that it is a worst practice to ever get any satisfaction or delight from what appears on social media, but a point of personal privilege if I might this morning.
In looking at Brian Wilson’s Twitter account on the sad passing of a Monkeys legend, I noticed that Mr. Wilson follows me on Twitter.
Then I noticed he only follows 101 people in total on the platform.
And look in whose company I am:
This shocking development does not necessarily mean I can die happy when the time comes, but I can have a very delightful Saturday.
I wish you the same.
As for Mr. Wilson, I feel obliged to issue a musical warning about any potential unfollowing:
If you should ever leave me
Though life would still go on, believe me
The world could show nothing to me
So what good would living do me
God only knows what I'd be without you