Thread: President Joe Biden

^^
I thing he should not run again and enjoy being am ex-president for a while, because if he runs and wins he will bever get much of a chance to be a living ex-president IMO.

• Biden to hold first state dinner for France's Macron, Jon Batiste to perform

Musician Jon Batiste is on tap to perform at President Joe Biden's first White House state dinner on Thursday that will highlight long-standing ties between the United States and France and honor President Emmanuel Macron.

"An artist who transcends generations, Jon Batiste's music inspires and brings people together," said Vanessa Valdivia, a spokesperson for first lady Jill Biden, whose office is overseeing dinner preparations.

"We're thrilled to have him perform at the White House for the first state dinner of the Biden-Harris administration," Valdivia said.

The black-tie dinner for Macron will be part of what is shaping up to be a busy social season at the White House. The Bidens' granddaughter Naomi was married on the South Lawn earlier this month. And first lady Jill Biden was set on Monday to unveil the White House decorations that will be viewed by thousands of holiday visitors over the next month.

The Bidens are returning Sunday from Nantucket, where they spent Thanksgiving with family.

Batiste will be adding White House entertainer to an already long list of roles, including recording artist, bandleader, musical director, film composer, museum creative director and scion of New Orleans musical royalty.

He won five Grammy Awards this year, including for album of the year for "We Are." During the awards show in April, Batiste ended his dance-filled performance of "Freedom" by jumping up on Billie Eilish's table.

Batiste, 36, most recently was bandleader and musical director of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," leaving the broadcast after a seven-year run.

Batiste composed music, consulted on and arranged songs for Pixar's animated film "Soul." He won a Golden Globe for the music alongside Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross of Nine Inch Nails. The trio also earned the Academy Award for best original score. For their work on "Soul," Batiste, Reznor and Ross won the Grammy for best score soundtrack for visual media.

• Biden urges lawmakers to stop rail strike, avoid government shutdown

`The economy's at risk': Biden urges Congress to stop rail strike, fund government

Meeting for the first time with congressional leaders since the midterm elections, President Joe Biden urged lawmakers to intervene in a labor dispute between unions and operators of the nation's freight railroads and complete other items on a hefty to-do list before leaving town for the holidays.

"There's a lot to do, including resolving the train strike," Biden said in brief remarks before the news media was ushered out. "It’s not an easy call but I think we have to do it. The economy’s at risk."

Biden wants lawmakers to adopt before a Dec. 9 strike deadline an agreement brokered by the White House in September between labor union leaders and rail operators. Four of the 12 rail unions have voted to reject the five-year agreement, leaving Congress as the last option to avert a system shutdown.

Lawmakers also face a Dec. 16 deadline to agree on a 2023 budget before the expiration of a temporary funding measure that would lead to a partial government shutdown.

Biden has asked Congress to include in the funding package more than $37 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine and $9.25 billion for a possible winter surge of COVID-19.

“We’re going to work together to fund, I hope, work together to fund the government, COVID and the war in Ukraine," he said.

It was the first meeting between Biden and congressional leaders since the mid-term elections. Democrats fared better than expected but the president must still contend next year with a GOP-run House intent on setting its own priorities and using its investigative authority to hold the administration accountable.

Still, Biden said the group could find "areas of common ground."

“The American people want us to work together,” he said.

There's bipartisan support for legislation to codify the right to gay and interracial marriage, a measure that could be sent to Biden's desk by the end of the week.

Democrats also hope to pass before the end of the year legislation to clarify how presidential Electoral College votes are tallied and challenged, aiming to prevent confusion that helped foment the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021.

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• Jill Biden Unveils White House Christmas Decorations 2022

This year’s holiday theme at the White House is “We the People.”

The holiday season is in full swing at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

First lady Dr. Jill Biden just revealed this year’s Christmas decorations at the White House, sharing photos of the festive decor on Instagram.

“For this year’s holidays at the White House, we hope to capture the spirit embodied in the very idea of America: We the People,” she wrote in her Instagram post.

“As our country gathers for the holidays, traditions may vary, but our shared American values — a belief in possibility, optimism, and unity — endure each season,” she continued. “Room by room, visitors will be reminded of what brings us together during the holidays, and throughout the year.”

Each decorated area of the White House offers a different take on the “We the People” theme.

The East Wing focuses on honor of remembrance and includes Christmas trees with gold stars engraved with the names of fallen service members.

The East Colonnade has a reflective, peaceful feel, lined with white winter trees and handmade animals that evoke “the feelings of peace and tranquility after the first snowfall,” the White House said in a release.

The Vermeil Room, meanwhile, explores the theme of “Kindness & Gratitude” and includes a tribute to the nonprofit organization Operation Gratitude, which delivers care packages to troops, first responders and military families.

Jill Biden’s White House Christmas Decorations 2022: Photos – Hollywood Life

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• Biden heading to Boston at the same time at William and Kate's visit: President will be in fundraiser while Prince and Princess of Wales attend star-studded awards bash - so will they meet?

President Joe Biden will reportedly be in Boston on Friday - the same day the Prince and Princess of Wales host their glitzy Earthshot Prize in that city.

The White House wouldn't say whether or not a meeting is on the agenda.

'I don't have anything to share on the President's travel,' press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at her press briefing on Monday.

William and Kate will be in Boston on Wednesday for a three-day trip that includes Friday's awards ceremony, which honors innovators who are addressing climate change and environmental concerns - a top issue for the Prince of Wales.

The Prince and Princess of Wales will be in Boston on Wednesday for a three-day trip - above the couple is seen together last month at a visit to an outdoor market in Belfast

Biden, too, has made climate issues at top domestic priority. One of his first acts as president was to return America to the Paris Climate Accords after Donald Trump removed the country from the environmental pact.

President Biden has met William and Kate before. He and first lady Jill Biden joined a reception with them and the rest of the royal family - including the late Queen and the then-Prince Charles in June 2021 when England hosted a G7 meeting.

The Boston trip is the first overseas trip for the Prince and Princess of Wales since the death of the Queen and since they were given their new titles.

Billie Eilish, Annie Lennox and actor Rami Malik will lead the line up for the awards ceremony, where five winners will be given $1. 2 million each in prize money.

Actresses Catherine O'Hara and Shailene Woodley also will present awards. BBC's Clara Amfo and actor Daniel Dae Kim will co-host.

It will take place at Boston's MGM Music Hall and include video narrated by naturalist David Attenborough and actress Cate Blanchett.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...tes-visit.html

Originally Posted by S Landreth

Meeting for the first time with congressional leaders since the midterm elections, President Joe Biden urged lawmakers to intervene in a labor dispute between unions and operators of the nation's freight railroads

Why ?

Those struggles has to be settled between the two parties.

Kind of obvious.

President Biden is trying to bring the two sides together.

By writing an "agreement" into law ?

Workers have one way of getting their wishes/demands met.

Government intervention sabotages that

yep,......trying to bring the two sides together

Originally Posted by helge

Why ?

It’s what a good leader does.....

Lead

• Congressional leaders vow to consider bill to avoid rail strike

Congress this week is poised to consider a bill to avert a national rail shutdown, Democratic and Republican lawmakers said Tuesday after a meeting at the White House.

Driving the news: "All four of us agreed we've got to resolve this rail shutdown as quickly as possible and that we would work together on doing it," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said after the meeting.

• "Tomorrow morning, we will have a bill on the floor," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said after the meeting, which also included GOP House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
• "I don’t like going against the ability of unions to strike, but weighing the equities, we must avoid a strike," Pelosi said.
• "Leader McConnell and I agreed we'd try to get it done ASAP," Schumer added.

The big picture: President Biden on Monday called on Congress to pass legislation forcing railroad workers to accept the labor contract that the White House brokered in September "to avert a potentially crippling national rail shutdown."

• "As a proud pro-labor President, I am reluctant to override the ratification procedures and the views of those who voted against the agreement," the president said in a statement.
• "But in this case — where the economic impact of a shutdown would hurt millions of other working people and families — I believe Congress must use its powers to adopt this deal."

Between the lines: It increasingly seemed negotiations between the freight rail companies and their unions weren't moving. And if both sides don't reach a deal by Dec. 9, rail workers could strike — an economically devastating move that could cost an estimated $2 billion a day.

• Previously, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said they would prefer both sides to work this out themselves, as the Washington Post reported.
• Congressional Democrats had been waiting on White House guidance before acting, WaPo also reported.
• Some rail workers had been lobbying members of Congress for a few days of paid sick leave, which isn't included in the Biden-brokered deal. The president shut down any ideas about that addition in his statement.
• "Some in Congress want to modify the deal to either improve it for labor or for management. However well-intentioned, any changes would risk delay and a debilitating shutdown, " Biden said. "The agreement was reached in good faith by both sides."

The other side: Some progressive lawmakers signaled their opposition to the bill after the White House meeting on Tuesday, including Reps. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.).

• "Every worker deserves paid sick leave," Bush wrote in a tweet.
• "I will not support a deal that does not provide our rail workers with the paid sick leave they need and deserve," she said.
• "Listen, I can’t in good conscience vote for a bill that doesn’t give rail workers the paid leave they deserve," Bowman also wrote on Twitter.

The intrigue: In his statement, Biden noted that he's been pushing for a federal paid leave policy for the past two years. "Every other developed country in the world has such protections for its workers," he said.

Flashback: Congress last stepped in to avoid a rail strike in 1992. Six senators voted against the move, including then-Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, a reporter at the White House briefing on Monday noted, because the dynamic favored workers.

Biden discusses jobs and manufacturing at Michigan computer chip plant

• Biden in Michigan: US won't be 'held hostage' in chips supply

President Joe Biden visited a semiconductor chip manufacturer near Bay City on Tuesday afternoon, touting federal taxpayer investments in manufacturing to move supply chains to the United States and pursue an energy future with fewer carbon emissions.

Biden toured SK Siltron CSS, a U.S. subsidiary of the Korean SK Group conglomerate, which announced last year that it would invest more than $300 million in a new site in Bay County's Monitor Township to manufacture materials for semiconductors used in electric vehicles, creating an estimated 150 jobs. The project is also supported by nearly $6 million in state incentives.

The visit comes around four months after Biden approved the CHIPS and Science Act, which funds more than $52 billion in subsidies and $24 billion in tax credits for companies to make chips in the U.S., including $2 billion set aside for legacy chips used in vehicles.

Biden championed that legislation as reversing the country's past mistakes when U.S. plants closed and opened in other countries.

"We invented the chip in America, then we got lazy," Biden said. "Federal investment helped reduce the cost of creating the market and hired its entire industry that America led, as a result. ... Then something happened. American manufacturing, the backbone of our economy, got hollowed out. Companies began to move jobs overseas, instead of products overseas, because it was cheaper for them."

Hailing SK's investment in Michigan as a "game changer," Biden said investments by his administration will restore what was: "We're going to be the supply chain. The difference is going to be we're going to make that supply chain available to the rest of the world, but we're not going to be held hostage anymore."

The president visited SK Siltron with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and U.S. Reps. Dan Kildee of Flint Township and Elissa Slotkin of Lansing, Bay County Executive Jim Barcia, Saginaw Mayor Brenda Moore and Midland Mayor Maureen Donker.

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• White House to host second democracy summit in March

The White House announced Tuesday it will host a second summit on democracy next year, following up on efforts to push back on authoritarianism and present a united front among democratic nations.

“As President Biden has said, we know democracy remains the best tool humankind has to unleash our collective potential and deliver our security and prosperity for all,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One. “That’s why he’s made strengthening democracy a cornerstone of both his domestic and international agenda.”

The second democracy summit will take place March 29 and March 30. Costa Rica, the Netherlands, Zambia and South Korea will act as co-hosts, Jean-Pierre said. Government leaders and private sector officials from many of the attending countries will take part in the summit.

Biden in December 2021 hosted the first Summit for Democracy, which focused on strengthening democracy, defending against authoritarianism, fighting corruption and promoting human rights.

The first summit led to more than 700 commitments intended to strengthen and safeguard democracy.

Biden has made protecting democracy a running theme of his time in the White House as well as his 2016 campaign. He has given multiple speeches warning against election deniers within the U.S. and pushing back against former President Trump’s baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen and fraudulent.

_____________

• Progressives cool on finding an alternative to Biden

Progressives have cooled on the idea of finding a new leader to seek the party’s presidential nomination in 2024, marveling at the successes of the midterms and crediting President Biden for once again surpassing expectations.

The outcome is not perfect. Democrats will soon be in the House minority and will struggle to advance some of their legislative goals with the GOP in control.

But the strong performance in the Senate — where liberals gained an ally in Sen.-elect John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and kept their majority — and slim losses in the lower chamber have also restored their confidence in Biden’s durability while quieting talk about a replacement.

“I think what the midterms did accomplish is they silenced that,” said Cooper Teboe, a progressive Democratic strategist and adviser to a pro-Biden political action committee. “Even if Biden was running for reelection, I think we could have seen a few people run against him. But now, I think he’s got a clear field.”

Fears of a November wipeout had left progressives talking privately about who might replace Biden. Some had talked about a desire for a younger candidate than Biden, who is 80.

Prominent progressives, including Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), along with newer national possibilities like California’s Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D), were often discussed enthusiastically among those desiring a more liberal choice at the top of the ticket.

But after averting a red wave, some of the same figures who were previously antsy have lavished praise on Biden.

“I don’t know how he and his team have managed to do it, but during two years of the stress of the presidency, he actually seems more on it than he did during the campaign,” Teboe said. “He seems way more put together now.”

Newsom explicitly has said he won’t run for president in 2024, and Khanna, who has made useful connections in several early primary states, has given the president fresh credit for his achievements.

Sen. Ed Markey (Mass.), one of the most progressive Democratic senators, last week told WCVB5, a Boston-based ABC affiliate, that “if Joe Biden wants to run, I think we should all rally behind him.”

In the House, the leadership in the Congressional Progressive Caucus seems less willing to offer an alternative slate or even engage in speculation that Biden won’t seek reelection.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), the caucus’s leader, admitted to being skeptical of Biden early on — even going as far as to say he wasn’t her “first or second choice” during the 2020 Democratic primary. She’s now pledged to support his reelection campaign if he formally launches one, telling Politico: “I believe he should run for another term and finish this agenda we laid out.”

The statement was a clear indication of the mood change on the left, where leading up to Nov. 8, progressives were growing frustrated over the party’s divided message focus. Now talk has shifted.

“What you saw particularly from the Biden administration and the rest of the Democratic Party is that there was a great deal of enthusiasm to support progressive policies leading up to the midterm elections,” said John Paul Mejia, national spokesman for the grassroots-led Sunrise Movement.

“Regardless of whether Biden is the nominee in 2024 or not, he has a responsibility as the leader of this country, who recognizes that democracy is tanking and crippling right now, to be able to buy in social trust from young people who will be the protagonists of saving it,” he said. “And I think the way he’s able to do that is by waging progressive policies.”

The White House has taken a victory lap over what it views as ample accomplishments. Nearly every major legislative push from the Biden administration has had an economic component, aides and allies point out, which ultimately helped voters swing blue in many critical areas.

“Despite the narrowest congressional majorities ever, President Biden and congressional Democrats have delivered the biggest climate change package in history, empowered Medicare to negotiate lower drug costs with Big Pharma, stopped multinational corporations from gaming the federal tax code to pay no income taxes, and brought manufacturing jobs back to America, and given economic opportunity to student borrowers,” Andrew Bates, a White House spokesperson, told The Hill on Monday.

“The American people affirmed that agenda when they voted this month, including through record youth turnout,” Bates added.

Indeed, young voters helped Democrats win in a variety of close races, further bolstering the president’s credentials as a unifier of different constituencies. That pitch helped fuel Biden’s first presidential bid and got cautious progressives on board.

“Progressivism is coded in youth,” said Mejia. “The ability for Biden to mobilize young people was on those progressive impulses that he really acted upon in the weeks leading up to the midterms.”

“Who has the best ability to mobilize young people? Who will continue doing this? Who has shown a capability of doing this? That’s how I’m reading some of the simmering noise.”

Moderates who had embraced Biden more fully from the onset have expressed delight that the early chatter about progressive alternatives has subsided, at least for now.

“Those calls died down because Bidenism proved to be a winning strategy during the midterms and he was the most successful president, legislatively, of our generation,” said Jonathan Kott, who served as an adviser to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.).

“I don’t think those calls pick up again, because President Biden is the only Democrat who can win in 2024,” he said.

Should he run again, Biden’s message may sound strikingly similar to his first one. That is particularly likely now that former President Trump has announced a new presidential bid, a scenario that many in the party have publicly and privately hoped would materialize.

“He beat Trump once and can do it again as affirmed by [the] 2022 election,” said Larry Cohen, an activist leader and close ally of top congressional progressives, including Jayapal and Sanders.

Progressives, like other Democrats, are now watching the clock. If Biden announces, those who have entertained exploratory phases are likely to continue their work, but with a different focus. They could shift their efforts to aid his reelection bid or to build a longer-term foundation for future runs themselves.

“I think they continue doing it,” Teboe, the progressive Democratic strategist, said, referencing some of the early legwork. “I think they just push their time horizon from ’24 to ’28.”

The rosier-than-expected outcome has afforded Biden time, some in the party believe. He’s unlikely to announce a reelection campaign before the Georgia runoff election on Dec. 6, when Democrats could pick up another crucial Senate seat, further cementing their control of the upper chamber and allowing even more negotiating room on contentious legislation.

An additional Senate seat also would give Democrats a bigger boost in a swing state that Biden worked to flip blue in 2020, providing a case for the longevity of his personal brand and political strategy.

“I don’t think he’s in any rush to announce,” Kott said. “It turns out good governance is a winning message.

Originally Posted by helge

Why?

Because he’s a leader

• House passes bill to avert rail strike

The House passed a bill on Wednesday to avert a railway strike, taking the first major step in avoiding a walkout of workers that would have drastic effects on the U.S. economy as it heads into the holiday season.

The chamber passed the resolution in a 290-137 vote, sending it to the Senate for consideration just over one week out from the Dec. 9 strike deadline. Seventy-nine Republicans supported the measure, and eight Democrats voted “no.”

Lawmakers are now set to vote on a separate measure that would give rail workers seven days of paid sick leave per year, addressing a chief concern unions and progressives had with the agreement.

President Biden on Monday called on Congress to intervene in the impasse that had union leaders and rail workers at odds and brought the U.S. closer and closer to a rail strike, which threatened to cripple the economy and ravage supply chains.

He huddled with the top four congressional leaders at the White House on Tuesday in part to discuss how Congress could help avert the strike.

Shortly after Biden’s plea, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said the House would consider such a measure. Congress has the authority to intervene in rail labor disputes in accordance with a 1926 law, titled the Railway Labor Act, as a way to prevent disturbances in interstate commerce.

The resolution passed on Wednesday was a tentative agreement negotiated by the two largest rail unions in September with help from the Biden administration. It provides workers with 24 percent raises over five years and allows them to take time off for medical appointments without being penalized, a key sticking point.

During debate on the House floor Wednesday, Pelosi underscored the dangers that would come with a rail strike.

“Let me be clear: A nationwide rail shutdown would be catastrophic,” she said. “A shutdown would grind our economy to a halt, and every family would feel the strain.”

“Time is of the essence. We must act now,” she added.

• Biden vows protections for Nevada’s Spirit Mountain

President Biden on Wednesday committed his administration to protecting a Nevada mountain and the surrounding landscape, but stopped short of the national monument designation desired by advocates.

Avi Kwa Ame, or Spirit Mountain, is a sacred site to the Indigenous people of the Yuman language group, and environmentalists have also called for a national monument designation, which would prevent development on about 450,000 acres around the mountain.

Speaking at the White House Tribal Nations Summit Wednesday, Biden did not announce a formal designation, despite initial reports that he would make the second such announcement of his presidency. Formal protections for the area would make it the largest acreage protected under the Biden presidency so far.

“When it comes to Spirit Mountain and the surrounding ridges and canyons in Southern Nevada, I’m dedicated to protecting this sacred place that’s crucial to the creation story of so many tribes that are here with us today,” the president said. An Interior Department official confirmed to The Hill this did not constitute a designation.

“Avi Kwa Ame holds deep spiritual and historic significance to the Native people who have stewarded these lands since time immemorial,” said Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Indigenous Cabinet secretary. “I am thrilled that President Biden is committed to protecting this sacred place, and honor the many years of work of the Tribes and local community to safeguard the integrity of the historic and cultural landscape and the many objects of significance within it.”

The push to protect Avi Kwa Ame has led to atypical friction between environmentalists and the renewable energy sector. Last December, the Bureau of Land Management signaled it will not authorize a proposed wind farm in the Mojave Desert that would have overlapped with the proposed monument.

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) is among the voices calling for a formal designation, saying in a statement Wednesday, “The land within Avi Kwa Ame is sacred to 12 Tribal nations, includes critical habitat for a wide range of wildlife, provides world-class outdoor recreation opportunities, and contains some of the most stunning landscapes in Nevada. I look forward to celebrating the official designation of Nevada’s next national monument.”

In October, Biden named Colorado’s Camp Hale the first national monument of his presidency, after previously invoking the Antiquities Act to restore national monument status to three sites that saw their status rolled back under the Trump administration.

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• National Christmas Tree blazes to life with Biden lighting

“Five, four, three, two, one!” and the towering National Christmas Tree blazed with bright color Wednesday evening as President Joe Biden marked a century-old American tradition leading the lighting near the White House.

The president, joined by first lady Jill Biden and host LL Cool J, led the festive crowd braving damp, chilly weather in a countdown before the tree was illuminated.

Biden delivered brief remarks on American unity and promise, concluding exuberantly as Jill Biden blew a kiss, “From the Biden family to you, Merry Christmas, America!”

The tradition dates back to 1923 when President Calvin Coolidge walked from the White House to the Ellipse to light a 48-foot fir tree decorated with 2,500 electric bulbs in red, white and green, as a local choir and a quartet from the U.S. Marine Band performed. The lighting ceremony has been carried out year after year—drawing thousands to Washington—with a few exceptions during times of war and national tragedy.

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• Biden steps up the jabs against Trump

President Biden is taking on his former rival Donald Trump, seeking to frame the 2024 presidential election as a contest between them before he announces whether he will actually seek reelection.

Since the midterm elections, when Democrats were able to hold off an expected Republican wave to retain the Senate, a more confident Biden has poked Trump and Republicans regularly.

The swipes have been particularly noteworthy in recent days as speculation mounts over whether Biden, bolstered by those midterm successes himself, will seek another term.

Trump-backed candidates lost in a number of races, and Democrats believe they benefit from Trump’s influence on the GOP.

“It feels like one of the takeaways from the midterms is that creating a binary choice between he and Trump is beneficial for President Biden,” said Democratic strategist Joel Payne. “It appears that the White House is going to continue to be bullish whenever Trump creates an opportunity for contrast.

“I think any White House is going to become more proactive as they gear up for reelection,” Payne said. “Feels like it’s on schedule for this White House to adjust.”

During the annual turkey pardon at the White House’s pre-Thanksgiving ceremony, Biden took on Trump and Republicans during lighthearted comments.

“There’s no ballot stuffing, there’s no ‘fowl’ play,” Biden quipped. “The only ‘red wave’ this season is going to be if our German shepherd Commander knocks over the cranberry sauce on our table.”

The White House also proactively put out “talking points” for “chatting with your uncle at Thanksgiving.”

In those points, the White House dubbed Republicans in Congress “EXTREME,” pointing to laws banning abortion in the wake of the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade and GOP calls to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act.

The White House has argued that the GOP-proposed repeal could mean Americans lose expanded health care benefits the law provides, while Republicans have been particularly critical of the law’s increased funding to the IRS and the corporate tax increases.

The White House also took on Trump when aides launched a new webpage highlighting “the Biden Harris record” on the same night Trump announced he was running for reelection.

Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright said the president’s latest tack against Trump and Republicans is smart.

“I don’t think it’s a bad thing for the current president to remind folks that Donald Trump, in all his ways, not only is he still the leader of the Republican Party, but the things that come along with Donald Trump, including cuddling and playing footsie with a white supremacist and white nationalists, is still reality and that continues to make him an ongoing and present danger to democracy as we know it,” Seawright said.

Biden’s swipes, he continued, are also “a friendly reminder to those who identify as independent voters or independent thinkers of what decision they’re going to have to make in the election if Donald Trump is the Republican nominee.”

“It’s critically important for Democrats to continue to highlight who we will be up against, not just in the 2024 election, but in the everyday hustle and bustle of politics,” he added.

In a news conference following Election Day earlier this month, Biden discussed how the red wave “didn’t happen.” He also talked about his aim to keep Trump from becoming president again when asked how other world leaders should view this moment for America.

“We just have to demonstrate that he will not take power … if does run,” Biden said. “I’m making sure he — under legitimate efforts of our Constitution — does not become the next president again.”

While the White House typically doesn’t weigh in on Trump’s machinations —even when pressed by the media to do so — White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre did comment on Trump’s meeting with white nationalist Nick Fuentes in Florida this past weekend.

“I’m not going to respond to everything that happens with the former president but this, this is something that’s important that we speak very clearly about and we speak very forcefully about,” Jean-Pierre said on Monday.

“When you say things like this, when you do not speak out against these kinds of poisonous and dangerous kind of remarks or representation, if you will, that is also incredibly dangerous within itself,” she added.

Last weekend, Biden reacted to the Fuentes meeting with a slight jab at Trump.

“You don’t want to know what I think,” he told reporters asking what he thought of the meeting.

The president’s uptick in jabs directed at Trump comes as the former president has lost some support and influence within the Republican Party, with lawmakers and officials holding off on endorsing his latest White House bid.

“I think that President Biden understands that Trump is wounded and is facing a lot of pressure from inside of his own party, never mind the Democrats,” a Biden ally said. “When your enemy is flailing, let them flail and Biden understands that and I think is making sure that Democrats are paying attention.”

Biden’s jabs are politically motivated, the source argued, and are another way to energize the Democratic base and put the spotlight on Trump’s recent issues.

“Stirring the pot, keeping Democrats engaged and chuckling, and being amused by Trump’s foibles and his challenges and his legal challenges particular—I think those are politically intended,” the ally said.

President Biden greets French President Macron

President Joe Biden's approval rating is sitting at 40% as the wait continues for the announcement on his plans for the 2024 election.

Biden has said it's his 'intention' to run for a second term but that he wouldn't make a final decision until the new year.

But his approval rating in this new Reuters/Ipsos poll is up 3 percentage points from 37% in a Nov. 21-22 poll. In this week's poll 55% disapprove of his presidency.

The president's approval rating has been all over the map during his two years in office as voters praised him for his handling of the COVID pandemic but then turned on him when record-high inflation increased the cost of living.

In this latest poll, Biden was boosted by greater approval from Democrats, who are celebrating the fact the party did better than expected in the 2022 midterm election.

Biden's approval rating recovers to 40% as he weighs 2024 plans

Wow, impressive.

^some better numbers below

Originally Posted by S Landreth

Remarks by President Biden and President Emmanuel Macron of France at Arrival Ceremony

Biden:

As Allies in NATO, together with our European Union and the G7 and partners around the world, France and the United States are facing down Vladimir Putin’s grasping ambition for conquest and Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine, which has once more shattered peace on the continent of Europe.

France and the United States are once again defending the democratic values and universal human rights which are the heart of both our nations.

Macron:

We are both honored and moved, Mr. President, to be here with you today at the White House — honored and moved, like you said, Mr. President, because our two nations are sisters in their fight for freedom.

France, from the beginnings of American independence, the inception of your country — and the United States in the life sacrifice from the trenches of the Somme to the beaches of Normandy.

Accordingly, we bear a duty to this shared history. As war returns to the European soil following Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and in light of the multiple crises our nations and our societies face, we need to become brothers in arms once more.

This spirit of fraternity must enable us to build an agenda of ambition and hope, as our two countries share the same faith in freedom, in democratic values, in empowerment through education and work, and in progress through science and knowledge.

Our democracies on both sides of the ocean are being shaken by the same doubts as to our ability to be sufficiently strong and effective when it comes to the challenges we share — those of the climate, geopolitics, and technology. They’re in doubt in the face of relativism, hate speech, false information, and today’s fears.

United today by the same determination and the same strength of mind. Together, we need to find a path to offer a possible future for our children — one of prosperity, justice, and ecology.

Together, we need to work to rebuild the unity of our societies through respect and recognition — the only means to eradicate hate.

Together, we need to frame new world balances to bring peace and build a renewed, more equitable partnership with the Global South.

Our new frontiers are there, and it is our shared responsibility to respond to this. And to that effect, the United States and France — the strongest allies — are there, because our relationship is rooted in centuries.

It is our shared destiny to respond to those challenges together — true to our history, clear sighted of our world, and determined to generate hope.

Long live the friendship between the United States and France.

praised France's welcoming of Ukrainian refugees.

It would be appreciated if the European nations could praise the USA for the same thing. Too preoccupied with selling guns n gas I suppose.

Originally Posted by sabang

It would be appreciated if the European nations could praise the USA for the same thing. Too preoccupied with selling guns n gas I suppose.

Macron is a no mark. Joe pats him gently on the head for being a good boy.

Biden may be lacking in the media presentation stakes, but tiny Macron can lick ass with the best of them. (What submarine deal)?

Originally Posted by Switch

Macron is a no mark. Joe pats him gently on the head for being a good boy.

And he doesn't even have to lift his arm.

Originally Posted by sabang

It would be appreciated if the European nations could praise the USA for the same thing.

They might want to stay close to home. It’s not like they will not be going back after the Ukrainians push the Russians out.

Originally Posted by sabang

It would be appreciated if the European nations could praise the USA for the same thing. Too preoccupied with selling guns n gas I suppose.

The reason there are fewer refugees in the US during this war is because they want to stay closer to home. I would bet that there are more Ukrainian refugees in the US than Europe from the previous time that Russia had a special military operation in Ukraine.

Originally Posted by pickel

The reason there are fewer refugees in the US during this war is because they want to stay closer to home. I would bet that there are more Ukrainian refugees in the US than Europe from the previous time that Russia had a special military operation in Ukraine.

Do you mean the first 'war' when the Russians annexed the Crimea, or the current 'war' where they end up getting owned?

Originally Posted by helge

Why?

Leaders lead.

Senate passes legislation to avert a rail shutdown

The Senate on Thursday passed legislation to avert a rail shutdown following a grave warning from President Joe Biden about the economic danger posed by a strike.

The House passed the tentative rail agreement on Wednesday. The measure can now be sent to the president to be signed into law. The vote came after pressure had mounted on lawmakers to act swiftly. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said earlier on Thursday that the Senate “cannot leave until we get the job done.” The final vote in the Senate was 80 to 15.

Without congressional action, a rail strike could have become a reality as early as December 9, causing shortages, spiking prices and halting factory production. It could also have disrupted commuter rail services for up to seven million travelers a day and the transportation of 6,300 carloads of food and farm products a day, among other items, according to a collection of business groups.

Biden signs rail agreement into law, thwarting strike