–These are frightening times. In the wake of the recent insurrection at the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the House of Representatives launched impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump for the second time during his presidency. His first impeachment occurred on Dec. 18, 2019, when the House brought charges against him for alleged abuse of power and obstruction of Congress for allegedly enlisting the help of foreign nations in the 2020 election, and the Senate subsequently acquitted him of these charges. This time he was charged with allegedly orchestrating the insurrection at the Capitol building on Jan. 6, when a joint session of Congress was working to affirm the Electoral College ballots in favor of President-elect Joe Biden. Six people were killed, and a number of others were wounded during the fray. The matter now goes to the Senate, where he faces a trial, which Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said will not begin until Jan. 19, Trump’s last day in office. Of course the lawmakers are quibbling about that, and there already are rumors that more armed attacks will be coming during the week leading up to President-elect Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20. The security for that event already is forming as the halls of the Capitol building look like a war zone because so many members of the National Guard are sleeping there. The word is that Trump will be leaving Washington on the same day Biden is inaugurated, and because he will still be president until Biden is sworn in, the “nuclear football” will be in his possession. These are the satchels containing the codes to launch a nuclear attack from whenever POTUS is away from the command center known as the White House Situation Room. The football always is carried by an aide-de-camp. Apparently there is another “football” in Washington, and as soon as Biden becomes president, Trump’s codes are deactivated, and the codes in Biden’s “football” become active. We can only hope that the aides-de-camp for both Trump and Biden are sure-handed so they don’t fumble their respective “footballs.” If that happened, there would be no instant replay.
–For the first time in 68 years the federal government has executed a woman. Lisa Montgomery, 52, died from lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Ind., last Wednesday. She had been on death row since 2008 for the 2004 murder of a woman who was eight months pregnant. Montgomery removed the fetus because she wanted to adopt it. Montgomery’s attorneys attempted to have her sentence changed to life in prison without parole because they said she was suffering from severe mental illness. But the Supreme Court denied the appeal.
–Nobody can accuse President-elect Joe Biden of being stingy with the government’s money. In a speech last Thursday Biden revealed a $1.9 trillion Covid relief plan that includes an extra $1,400 to everyone who recently received a $600 stimulus check. That would mean a total relief payment of $2,000, which was on the table befores someone axed it. It will be interesting to see whether or not he can get that approved. Among other things he wants to do is increase the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, obtain $170 billion for K-12 schools and colleges and universities, allocate $50 billion for Covid-19 testing, and extend the moratoriums on evictions and foreclosures until the end of September. Pretty awesome if he can pull it off.
— The inauguration of President elect Joe Biden is just a few days away, and there will be some entertainment on the program. Of course the main purpose of the event is the swearing in of Biden as the 46th president of the United States, and the ceremony is set to begin at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. Even if you didn’t vote for Biden, you should make it a point to tune in just long enough to hear the National Anthem performed because it will be absolutely spectacular featuring the incredible talent of Lady Gaga. Talk about a voice. Wow!
PONDER THIS: If space is a vacuum, who changes the bags? ~ George Carlin
