Sidebar: OrangeVerse (LXV)

As I mentioned in Friday's OrangeVerse, the president spent time during his July 4th speech recognizing some American heroes and honoring different American flags with relevance to the heroic acts or the times during which the acts occured. Here are his comments.

The Civil War

Few heroes remind us of these truths more than William Carney, who escaped slavery to become a Union soldier in the Civil War, which was a very big, big deal at the time.

On the front lines of battle he saw a comrade struck down by enemy fire while carrying the Stars and Stripes. And Sergeant Carney dove to the ground to keep the flag from touching the mud. He didn't want to have it touch the ground. He didn't want to have it touch the mud. He wanted it to be perfect.

He raised it high above the field and was shot four times. They thought he was gone, but he kept moving forward. He loved our country. He loved our flag before he returned to camp and announced, "Boys, the old flag never touched the ground."

And he became the first African American to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. He got the Congressional Medal of Honor, and he was the first African American, and he was some man. They've written stories about him. He was something special.

The Vietnam War

With us tonight to celebrate this forward march of freedom is another Medal of Honor recipient, Colonel Paris Davis, whose courage won eternal glory in Vietnam. He helped lead a surprise attack on 100 enemy combatants. They said he was finished. His whole group was finished, and despite multiple life-threatening wounds saved the lives of his fellow soldiers.

And this evening he stands to salute the only flag of its kind, the one that was draped over the casket of President Abraham Lincoln in Independence Hall. Thank you very much, Greg.

He looks better than I do. He looks great, and he's brave. Because of heroes like these, our flag will always be a symbol of liberty and justice for all. Colonel Davis, thank you very much. Great man. Great man. Thank you.

The Wild Wild West

American grit, boldness and daring forged heroes like Davy Crockett, Wyatt Earp, Annie Oakley, Teddy Roosevelt and the legend of the Wild West, Buffalo Bill Cody.

These were great, powerful people whose incredible grandchildren happen to be with us tonight, and they stand alongside one of the first American flags ever to fly over our expanding nation. It was carried West just as Lewis and Clark began their journey in 1803.

Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you very much. Great to have you. Great to have you to honor this audacious and indomitable soul of America.

Historic American Flags

We also have the first flag ever to fly over one of the greatest architectural feats of all time, a thing called the Brooklyn Bridge, one of the most beautiful bridges anywhere in the world built a long time ago.

To its right, the banner that flew atop our flagship after America's Navy sank the Spanish fleet to the bottom of the Manila Bay, one of the greatest naval victories in history. Much like our recent victory by sinking the entire Iranian Navy, 159 ships to the bottom of the sea, all done in just a moment's time. Happened very quickly. We have the greatest military anywhere in the world.

And next to it, we also have the flag that was given to that immortable, just a fantastic immortal Rough Rider, the one and only, and I was at the museum the other day at its opening, Theodore Roosevelt, when he returned triumphant from Cuba, printed with the words, "Welcome home, Colonel Roosevelt." It was a victory of San Juan Hill. He was a great gentleman.

The Attack on Pearl Harbor 

Ken Schubring was 19 years old when he survived the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. After enemy planes sank ships like the USS Arizona, he resolved that he would help America strike back and win. He wanted them to strike back and win.

Flying B-29s in the Pacific, Ken fought from the first day to the very last. He was in the war right from the first day, and he went to the last day, and all the way to the enemy's... And he went to the last day and all the way to the enemy's unconditional surrender. We got an unconditional surrender. He was there at 104 years old and looking really good. Captain Schubring is here tonight and he is saluting the flag that went down with the Arizona at Pearl Harbor, but was raised back up with the help of some unbelievable American patriots. It's a symbol of American defiance, please. Thank you Captain. Thank you, Captain.

Great job. Thank you very much. You have very good genes. That's his son. His son's going to be around a long time. Thank you very much, Captain. 

World War II 

On D-Day in World War II, Navy Lieutenant Arthur Rose commanded 36 landing craft as part of the largest naval armada in history. Recalling that site he wrote home to his parents. What a country we are at 107 years old. Lieutenant Rose is here to salute one of our nation's most prized possessions. The flag that flew aboard the first landing craft on D-Day and led the first Americans onto the beaches of Normandy to liberate Europe and defeat Nazi fascism forever. Lieutenant Rose, you are an inspiration to this beautiful crowd and we thank you very much. Amazing man. 107. It's 107. 

On Iwo Jima in the Pacific, the Marines faced some of the most brutal combat in the history of warfare. They shed their blood for every inch of mountain that they reached. And when they reached the summit and raised the Stars and Stripes for all to see, it was so special to everybody there. Everybody there and everybody watching. They couldn't believe it. It wasn't supposed to happen. With us today is one of the last survivors of that battle, 101-year-old Marine Corporal Don Graves.

And he's here to salute that famous flag he saw rise in the glory of Iwo Jima 81 years ago and you've all seen that flag many times.

The War on Communism 

Tonight, we proudly thank veterans of the war on communism, including Marine Corporal Pat Finn and Private First Class Rudy Meekins, who fought at the famed Battle of Chosen Reservoir in Korea. That was a rough one. Thank you. Pat fought in hand-to-hand combat with the enemy.

He had five against him and he was one. And as you can see, he's around to talk about it. And Rudy was wounded four times but never stopped shooting and he never stopped moving forward. And also with us is veteran Sonny Ray, who fought heroically against an enemy force 10 times his unit's size and earned a tremendously deserved Silver Star. 

Tonight, they salute one of the very first 50-star flags to fly above the field of battle. This was about the beginning of the 50. And right next to it is one of the last flags from Checkpoint Charlie, very famous place on the Berlin Wall, where American freedom finally brought communism crashing down to an end. Thank you so much. You are really very special.

Thank you. Thank you very much. The Stars and Stripes cast the hammer and sickle into oblivion before and we will do it again if necessary. I don't think it's going to be necessary. I think people have learned. They've learned what to do and how to handle it and we are going to handle it very well. So, gentlemen, I want to thank you very much. Amazing people. Amazing men. Thank you. How about that, huh? Isn't that great? What an honor it is to be with them. Think of it, 107. That's up there, but hopefully, he's got 20 good years left. Through the generations, Americans have never stopped striving to lift humanity to new heights.

Flight and Space 

In 1903, the Wright Brothers from Ohio fulfilled the age-old dream of mankind to fly. That's right. They're from Ohio. Great state. And within 66 years of inventing the airplane, Americans planted our flag on the moon. Just three months ago, we sent American astronauts back to the far side of the moon, and this time, they flew further from Earth than anyone has ever flown before. And here they are. So, tonight we're joined by that crew of NASA, Artemis. You know the crew, everybody. Artemis II and everybody watched. Isn't that amazing? They became very famous. Everybody watched. I was watching, I don't know what it was, that one got the attention of everybody.

And along with the last man to walk on the moon, Apollo 17 astronaut Jack Schmidt. Thank you, Jack. You look like you could be with them, Jack. You look very good. You look very good, Jack. Thank you very much. What a job. Everybody was watching. I was with a group of people that normally wouldn't be watching and we're having a big dinner and they all said, "We want to turn on. We want to watch Artemis II." A lot of people said, "What is that?" By the end of the evening they knew it was amazing. And along with Jared, where is Jared? He's so great. He's running NASA. What a job he's done. So, I want to thank you all. Thank you very much. Great job.

So, these champions of flight stand this evening beside the flag flown on the Wright Brothers' airplane piloted by Orville Wright. It's the exact flag. Very historic. And they are honored to be here. They told me today they were really amazed to be here with that flag. That's a very special flag if you're in the world of flying aircraft. So, congratulations to everybody. Fantastic job. Very proud of you. And I have a special gift for these patriots this morning on America's 250th birthday. A new flag was flown above the United States Capitol. And tonight I presented to you to soon be planted by American astronauts on their upcoming return to the moon.

And in addition to that, I gave them and all of the great heroes that you saw up on stage tonight and a few others that couldn't quite make the stage. I gave them a very special medal from the White House. So, it's an honor.

Families of the Fallen 

We are honored to be joined by 11 Gold Star family members, the Gold Star Family. That is one of the great tributes. It's one of the great honors.

A tough honor. There's nothing tougher than that, but these are amazing people. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Come on up. They went through a lot. Thank you very much. And that special person is looking up there and looking down at mom and dad, husband, wife, but they're looking down with great pride. You know that. You know that. And we want to thank you for being here. Thank you very much. And we have medals for you backstage. I brought them. I thought I'd be handing them out about two hours ago, three hours ago, but we're going to be backstage and we have beautiful medals for you, for your family from the White House. Thank you very much everybody. We love you.

The Star-Spangled Banner 

In 1944, a mother and her daughter huddled in their house in Nazi-occupied Belgium and prayed desperately for their country to be freed. They wanted freed. As they waited, they found scraps of fabric and stitched together a homemade American flag. It's beautiful, but homemade. On the day they were finally liberated, and that's what the word is, liberated. They gave it to an American soldier as a gift. 

Little did they know that that soldier's great-grandfather was none other than the author of our Star-Spangled Banner, Francis Scott Key. And tonight, the next generation of the Key family is with us. Thank you very much, please. Thank you. Major Kyle Key has spent 23 years in the US Army, highly respected. And this evening he proudly salutes the old flag that was made by the Belgian woman so beautifully and who knew that America means hope and freedom.

What do you think of his team's approach to his America at 250 speech, to have the historic flags on display and to attach them to specific people or teams of people?  I think it's one of the better things they've put together, in part because it kept his rambling and the famous 'weave' to a minimuim on a night when it was importatn to do that. 

Oh sure, it's possible that the bobbing and weaving was limited by the lateness of the hour, the size of the crowd after the weather delay, and the fact that almost everyone there was more interested in the fireworks than the speech, but that he and his handlers rose to the occasion is a good thing.  

TGIF 4/1/22

Lots of 'week' stuff for you tonight, for people and corporations - because they're people too, of course. 

I'd have to say President Biden had a good week, Oh sure, there's still fallout from him not using his inside voice saying that Putin needs to be removed from power, but there was another good jobs report. And we know that presidents (and their daughters) create jobs. The latest figures? 

U.S. employers added 431,000 jobs in March on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Labor Department said Friday. The figure was just shy of forecasts, and there was an upward revision of 95,000 for the previous two months of this year.

The unemployment rate was 3.6 percent, down from 3.8 percent a month earlier and just a touch higher than its levels right before the pandemic.

We'll have to see what the pundits do with this news in the classrooms on Sunday. 

Speaking of pundits and the media and whatnot, I'm confident in saying that both Fox News and CBS News had bad weeks. 

The folks at Fox hired Caitlyn Jenner, saying in a press release

Caitlyn's story is an inspiration to us all. She is a trailblazer in the LGBTQ+ community and her illustrious career spans a variety of fields that will be a tremendous asset for our audience.

That's quite a contrast with how the network's shows covered Jenner when her Vanity Fair cover hit the Internet, but as we know, times change and opinions evolve. Well, some do; - it'll be fun to see what happens if Jenner and Tucker Carlson get together for a chat.

For their part, CBS decided to hire former Trump guy Mick Mulvaney. Reaction, as they say was swift. Vanity Fair's Charlotte Klein noted that "the backlash is rooted in a litany of stains on Mulvaney’s track record that hang over whatever analysis or expertise CBS is now paying him to provide." 

Also not impressed? CBS staffers who are "embarrassed" and "baffled" at the decision, and Stephen Colbert, who was more vocal in making Mulvaney '"welcome."

I for one can't wait to hear Mulvaney's trenchant and objective political analysis, given his calling COVID-19 a media "hoax," telling everyone to "get over it" after Trump extorted Ukraine for political gain, and predicting Trump would accept his 2020 loss gracefully. Is Mick Mulvaney psychic? Get this man to Vegas! He's Nostradumbass.

Obviously, I'm just joking, but why would the Tiffany network's venerable news division put this craven toady-to-a-tyrant on their payroll?

Because the Rs are going to win the midterms, Stephen, you silly goose.

Who else had a week? Jared Kushner, the WhatsApp-wielding son-in-law of the former president. Rep. Elaine Luria (D-NC) said "it was really valuable" that he talked with the January 6th Committee, for six hours or so. Not sure whether he had a good week or a bad one, since it was the Biden administration's refusal to extend executive privilege to him that allowed his testimony, but since he did testify, and Ivanka will as well, I'll give them both a luke-warm good week.

Moving away from the luke warm power couple, let's give a red-hot good week recognition to corporate profits! According to an Axios article, 

...Companies complained loudly about rising costs for raw materials and labor for most of 2021, but data released yesterday...show they passed those costs along — and then some. For the full year 2021, pre-tax profits rose 25% to roughly $2.81 trillion, handily outpacing the 7% rise in consumer prices over the same stretch. (Emphasis added.)

And to lobbyists! The Washington Post tells us

The lobbying industry had a record year in 2021, taking in $3.7 billion in revenue as companies, associations and other organizations pressed Congress and the Biden administration over trillions of dollars in new pandemic spending... (Emphasis added.)

And to stock buybacks! Here's what the folks at The Street have to say on that.

...buybacks reduce a company's shares outstanding, pushing its profit-per-share figure higher. Buybacks also can signal that a company has strong finances...So perhaps it’s no great surprise that companies are ratcheting up buybacks this year, after a record total in 2021. (Emphasis added.)

And don't forget dividends! From an Insider Monkey article a while back, we learned that

In the United States, common dividends in 2021 increased to $78.6 billion, up 89.7% from $41.4 billion in 2020. Higher earnings, sales, and improving margins have enabled companies to start returning shareholder wealth...(Emphasis added.)

All that red hotness has me feeling all patriotic and everything, which is why I have to say that our astronaut Mark Vande Hei had a good week, for sure. He's returned safely to Earth, along with a couple of Russian cosmonauts. after spending 355 days in space, an American record for a single trip. The head of Russia's space agency had seemingly threatened to leave him behind because our response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, so him getting back in one piece was welcomed news. 

Hillary Clinton had a teeny little bit of a bad week, after she was fined $8000 by the Federal Elections Commission for funding the Steele dossier back in 2016. The DNC was fined $105,000 as well. The fines resulted from a 2018 lawsuit filed by the Coolidge Reagan Foundation, a 501 (c)3 organization with the flimsiest website I've ever seen for this type of group. I'd be surprised if they could even pay for the filing fee for the lawsuit. 

And speaking of lawyers, I'm giving a giant good week to folks involved in teaching law to students at the University of North Carolina. First-year law student Jess Errico filed for an extension on a project for her Research, Reasoning, Writing and Advocacy course, so she and her classmates could watch the Tarheels play the 'Dook' Blue Devils in the Final Four. A 'court' of eight professors and the associate dean for academic affairs granted her request - and added a day, on the hope that the Tarheels end up playing for the championship.

I love everything about this!  Except, of course for all the people who think this is some sort of miscarriage of justice, or that the professors should be fired, and all the rest. That's a whole lot of bad week, self-inflicted misery right there.  

TGIF, everyone. And Go, Blue Devils! Beat Carolina!

TGIF 2/19/21

Time to get this week into the books, starting with the bad week list.

Can we agree that Sen. Rafael Edward 'Ted' Cruz (R-TX), he of 'the vacation that spawned a hashtag industry,' belongs at the top of the list?  

You can find any number of links to articles referencing his really bad idea to run off to Cancun for a $300/night quickie vacation with his wife and kids, in the middle of a pandemic and a major weather event impacting his constituents across the Lone Star State.  Just know that having the police help make sure you get to the airport, lying that you were just dropping off your daughters in another country while they were on a school break, lying that you immediately knew it was wrong, lying about having a return flight booked, the next day, and having your wife's 'hey, come and join us in Cancun" text messages be made public is probably the new dictionary definition of a bad week. 

And those hashtags? Here are a few: #FledTed #FlyinCruz #CancunCruz and #CancunCruz -feel free to use them on social media. 

Sticking with Cruz, but taking a different tack, we have Donny Jr. He blasted the calls for Cruz to resign, saying that senators work in Washington passing laws and stuff, they're not really needed in their states and, you know, who doesn't need a vacation?  He also slammed those who attacked Cruz but gave "their Democratic governors" a pass as they violated their own executive orders and shut their states down. A bunch of people from 'left' Twitter pounced on Donny for not knowing that Texas hasn't had a Democratic governor in years - but that's not what he said or what he meant. He was talking about 

• Gavin Newsom (D-CA) who went maskless to a restaurant to celebrate a lobbyist's birthday, violating his own pandemic rules. Newsom is facing a likely recall vote in the coming weeks, in part because of that dinner. 
• He was talking about the husband of Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) trying to get his boat in the water before Memorial Day, while the Gov was asking people to stay away from the lakes to reduce COVID spread. Whitmer eventually said her husband was joking, but no one was laughing. 
• He was talking about my Sonofa Gov heading down to Georgia to be celebrated, maskless and in violation of his own 'unnecessary travel' restrictions. 

I love a little righteous indignation as much as the next person, but be sure you understand what's being said before attacking - even before attacking someone named Trump. 

On the good week side of the ledger? Well, President Biden told the G7 that 

I am sending a clear message to the world, America is back. The transatlantic alliance is back and we are not looking backward we are looking forward together.

His message was well-received, at least by British PM Boris Johnson, who said "As you've seen and heard earlier, America is unreservedly back as the leader of the free world, and that is a fantastic thing." I'd agree with that. 

How about the 'tip war' going on in Cincinnati? Xavier and University of Cincinnati alums have raised over $34,000 for restaurant workers by ridiculously over-tipping on their bills. It started with a $1000 tip from a Xavier alum, which was topped by the $1001 offered by a UC alum, and it just keeps going. 

You've surely heard by now that NASA's Perseverance rover made it safely to Mars, after a months-long, nearly 300,000,000-mile journey. If you're interested you can follow the giant SUV-sized rover on Twitter. 

And there was good news out of Texas, even amidst all the trouble. An Austin man helped rescue over 100 stranded drivers; World Central Kitchen, founded by chef Jose Andres, has partnered with Houston restaurants  to provide over 2000 meals for folks impacted by the power outages. And, AOC, the Queens progressive, set up a website to raise money for 12 Texas organizations; her supporters chipped in $2M within 24 hours.

A restaurant owner in Chicago has been buying up all the tamales he can get from food trucks, which are struggling during the pandemic and the brutal cold weather. He uses his dozens and dozens of tamales to stock 'Love Fridges' - community refrigerators that folks in need can tap for meals as needed. Others are donated to homeless shelters. 

There's all kinds of good news out there; we just have to condition ourselves to look for it. 

TGIF, everyone.

TGIF 10/18/19

Remember when the president said he liked having 'acting' officials in his administration?

Here's what he said in an interview this past spring: “I like acting because I can move so quickly. It gives me more flexibility.” 

Mick Mulvaney, the president's acting Chief of Staff  and the guy who said on camera that there was a quid pro quo with Ukraine and the aid that Congress had appropriated for them might be experiencing some of Trump's famous 'flexibility' soon. I don't know what the rest of you think, but if you're the guy who blew the president's defense in an impeachment inquiry, it might make sense to keep a close eye on a certain Twitter feed and to watch for fast-moving buses.

Rick Perry, the guy who got to be head of a department he wanted to eliminate, has decided he's had enough fun and will be leaving by the end of the year. The official announcement was kind of a let-down, since it had been reported a couple of weeks ago that he was going to be making this move. Perry's time in the Trump administration will be remembered for "freedom gas" as well as for helping to advance our energy dominance, and of course for his role in the Ukraine mess. And speaking of that mess, Perry missed a subpoena deadline this week.

Also not having a good week? Joe Biden. Everyone - experts and amateurs like me included - said he lost the debate this week, and of course, he and his son Hunter are under almost continuous deflecting attacks by the president and his minions. And now, there's a report out that flags were raised back in 2015 that Hunter's job on the Burisma board was a concern, and that it sent the wrong message to Ukraine on why rooting out corruption was important. That Biden doesn't recognize this - or refuses to recognize it - and that it's going to drag down his campaign and the Democrats as a whole, is both sad and inexcusable.

And finally, I've said this before and I'll keep saying it as many times as I have to. Hillary Clinton, sit down. And please, stay out of the fray. We don't need you interjecting yourself into the 2020 campaign. Go sell books or something.

And on the good side of the ledger?

NASA finally was able to have an all-female space walk, after solving the wardrobe problem that delayed it a while back. Flight Engineers Christina Koch and Jessica Meir spent over seven hours replacing a device that helps distribute solar power to the space station, and also got a jump on some other work.

And former Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch had a good week, it seems, by testifying before Congress in defiance of the State Department (and the White House). Kudos to her for appearing and for shedding light on the damage being done at State by Rudy Giuliani and others who are making a royal mess of things. And kudos as well to Gordon Sondland, our ambassador to the European Union, who also testified this week.

Here's hoping others will come forward and share what they know about what the heck is going on in the White House.

TGIF, everyone.

It's a Brand New Day

I'm sitting at my desk contemplating the televised launch of a group of American astronauts into space. Based on an article in the Washington Post, it would go something like this:

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Lockheed Martin/Kennedy Space Center launchpad, brought to you by WeatherTech in conjunction with Under Armour. I'm Buzz Lightyear, an animatron brought to you by Disney/Pixar.

We're here today to celebrate the launch of the all new Bud Light/ScotTissue rocket which will send our astronauts sponsored by Doritos Space Blast - a flavor that's out of this world - zooming into space in their Tommy Hilfiger uniforms and their new night vision/3d capable/5G GoPro helmets from Ralph Lauren Space.

We'll be tracking everything on our Quicken Loans launch metrics dashboard tracker; you can download that app, as well as the Kushner Companies astronaut voice tracker app, in the Apple Store and Google Play. 

Joining me now on the Boeing anchor desk designed by our friends at EA Sports are former astronaut and true American hero John Glenn, appearing holographically thanks to VNTANA from Arlington National Cemetery, and Jim Bridenstine, our NASA/Linked in Administrator.

With about 20 minutes left on the Omega launch countdown timer, let's get this party started! Thanks to Carls Jr for this delicious spread you see here, and to our friends at Dunkin Donuts for the SpaceJava extra bold roast coffee the actual humans here are enjoying today. So, Senator Glenn, I'd like to ask you...

Yep, that's right: Bridenstine is thinking we need a little more NASCAR in our NASA.

The constant creep of corporate America into all aspects of everyday life - from the Allstate Sugar Bowl to Minute Maid Park - may soon conquer a new frontier.

The final frontier.

 Apparently, he's asking for NASA to look into opportunities to sell the naming rights to rocket

Is it possible for NASA to offset some of its costs by selling the naming rights to its spacecraft, or the naming rights to its rockets? I'm telling you there is interest in that right now. The question is: Is it possible? The answer is I don't know, but we want somebody to give us advice on whether it is.

Or, maybe having the astronauts featured in commercials or on cereal boxes, like other 'celebrity athletes.'

I'd like to see kids growing up, instead of maybe wanting to be like a professional sports star, I'd like to see them grow up wanting to be a NASA astronaut or a NASA scientist. I'd like to see, maybe one day, NASA astronauts on the cover of a cereal box, embedded into the American culture.

Some of this, certainly, comes from the Trump Administration's pro-corporation/pro-privatization fetish, as we've seen with expanding corporate access to federal lands, and efforts to privatize the VA and other programs, including potentially ending direct funding for the International Space Station, something Congress is not happy about  - so much so that senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and former astronaut Bill Nelson (D-FL) were in complete agreement on the issue.

And, this is not the first time this final frontier marketing stuff has come up. As noted in the WaPo article,

In 1993, a Georgia company called Space Marketing proposed putting a billboard in space so big that it would be visible from Earth. But the plan was met with disapproval form some in Congress, who derided the idea, saying space was a commons that should stay free of advertising. 

 Edward J. Markey, then a Massachusetts congressman, lamented the possibility of children wishing "upon a falling billboard."

"Every sunrise and sunset would beam down the logo of Coke or GM or the Marlboro Man," he said. That would turn our morning and evening skies, often a source of inspiration and comfort, into the moral equivalent of the side of a bus." 

Yeah, but can't you see it?? A Heinz ketchup commercial, with 'Anticipation' in the background, as we wait for the sweet red blob to fall from space and land, a perfect 10, on a 100% all-American  hamburger somewhere in the heartland? Talk about #MAGA!

Of course, there's always a chance that Congress will change their collective mind - especially if we let our elected officials show their own brand loyalty.

 

Space:The Economic Military Scientific Frontier

I confess I was almost certain My Sweet Baboo was kidding when he told me the president was going to create a sixth branch of the military.

Sadly, he was not. Monday, the president told us that he wants a Space Force (Force, not Farce, although...)

At a meeting with the National Space Council, after doing his usual "I Love Me" speech (economy great, numbers great, I'm great, womenblackhispanic employment great) and after hammering home his lies on immigration (including the Dems not cooperating because they aren't being invited to the discussion and their ideas aren't being considered) there was this:

You take a look at the death and destruction that's been caused by people coming into this country, without going through a process. We want a merit-based immigration so that Boeing and Lockheed and all of the people - Grumman - all of the people that are here today, the heads of every company, so that you can hire people on a merit-based -- you know they're coming in -- they're people that came on merit, not on a lottery, or not people that snuck across the border. And they could be murderers and thieves and so much else.

So yes, the president just promised business leaders in the aerospace and defense industries to just sit tight and they'd be able to not hire Americans and instead hire all the smart or meritoriously endowed immigrants, #MAGA #winning and all that jazz, but I digress.

And, you know, just a great group of other executives are here from the top companies. And it's patriots like you that are the reason why America was first in flight, first to the moon, and why America will always be first in space.

You know, before I got here, it wasn't looking so good. Before we came in, I will tell you, they didn't have such big plans for space. Now they have plans. And it's great not only in terms of jobs and everything else; it's great for the psyche of our country.

Which is taking a beating from every ally except Israel, and every trading partner bar none, and every religious demographic bar none, and a majority of reasonable people everywhere who think beyond their own pocketbooks, so yes, our psyche is bigly important. And then he babbled about 1776 economic statistics before getting back on track, or whatever.

I want to also say that when it comes to space, too often, for too many years, our dreams of exploration and discovery were really squandered by politics and bureaucracy, and we knocked that out. So important for our psyche (Where are you? Where is she? Our psyche?)

It's going to be important monetarily and militarily. But so important for right up here (pointing to his 'wherever' -- you know, where the blood comes out) - the psyche. We don't want China and Russia and other countries leading us. We've always led - we've gone way far afield for decades now, having to do with our subject today. We're going to be the leader by far. We're behind you a thousand percent. 

 Our "vital interest in space lost out" he told them to special interests -- "except, of course, for the senators and congressmen here," of course. But the times, they are a-changing.

My administration is reclaiming America's heritage as the world's greatest space-faring nation. The essence of the American character is to explore new horizons and to tame new frontiers (like mail order steak, and for-profit education). But our destiny beyond the Earth, is not only a matter of national identify, but a matter of national security. So important for our military. So important. And people don't talk about it. 

No - not so much. But again, the times they are a-changing, bigly.

When it comes to defending America, it is not enough to merely have an American presence in space. We must have American dominance in space. So important.

Very importantly, I'm hereby directing the Department of Defense and Pentagon to eemeediately begin the process necessary to establish a space force as the sixth brand of the armed forces.  That's a big statement (like my hands, right? Like my hands?) So big.

 We are going to have the Air Force and we are going to have the Space Force - separate but equal. It is going to be something. So important. (dare I say bigly?) General Dunford, if you would carry that assignment out, I would be very greatly honored, also. Where's General Dunford? General? (Bueller? Anyone?) Got it? 

And from a corner of the room, "(oh crap...) We got it!"

Let's go get it, General (loud bursts of orgiastic glee, described as 'applause' in the official transcript, can be heard in the room). But that's the importance that we give it. We're going to have the Space Force!

After that it got really boring, as he went back to doling out opportunity to those immigrant-hiring American patriots, as paraphrased below:

•  we're going back to the moon, but it's about jobs and the economy, and establishing a long-term presence on the moon, and an eventual mission to Mars (it's not just about flags and footprints). Got it?
• rich guys love their 'rockets' and can't wait to launch them and we'll be happy to give them the real estate to do that, they love their rockets, it's all good as long as the rocket is launched by a rich American, har har har.
• there'll be timetables and they'll be aggressive and we'll charge cheap rent for you to use government facilities and let me tell you about the regulations, right? There'll be almost none, I tell you, because record regulation-cutting leads to record-setting profits. They can be really big when no regulations go uncut. 
• we'll be in charge of space traffic management, but don't get too carried away with regulations, again, because (and I quote) "We have regulation. We have a lot of regulation. We have good regulation."
• congested conditions in orbit?  Yeah, we're going to take care of that too.

And then he went back to lofty stuff, about the first astronauts who walked on the moon., and their fearless bounding and impossible doing.

This is a very important day. This is a very important gathering. A new generation of young people seeks to challenge -- really challenge hard - to get their talent and their skills to work (provided there'll be jobs left over after all those meritorious immigrants are hired). And now we're giving them a forum and a platform from which they can put that genius to work.

But fear not, American workers -- you'll be needed to weld things and work metal and build stuff - rockets and spaceships. And there was more, eve loftier stuff.

Once more, we will launch intrepid souls blazing through the sky (hopefully riding a rich man's rocket or something)  and soaring into the heavens.. And once more, we will proudly lead humanity - and that's what it is, humanity -- beyond the Earth and into those forbidden skies, but they will not be forbidden for long.. 

What you're doing has been incredible, but it will be even more incredible - far more incredible - because we are giving you a platform, the likes of which nobody has ever been given before. 

(then I saw her face and) I'm a big believer. 

You will go out there and you will take that frontier (move on it like a bitch and grab it by the asteroid, as it were) which is largely unknown by man or woman, and you will learn everything there is to know about it. And what you're doing is so important - remember - economically, militarily, scientifically.  In every way, there is no place like space.

There is no place like space... 

There is no place like space...

There is no place like space... 

OrangeVerse XI: To Infinity + Beyond (part 2)

Picking up where we left off on our new space program Executive Order.

Deeply
Our vice president cares
very deeply about space policy and
for good reason - space
exploration is not only 
essential to our character
as a nation
but our economy
and our great
nation's security.

  Without Space?

Our travels beyond the Earth

propel scientific discoveries that

improve our lives

in countless ways here

right here at home

powering vast new industry 

spurring incredible new technology

providing the space security 

we need to protect

the American people.

And security is going to be a very big factor

with respect to space

and space exploration. At some point

in the future we're going

to look back and say

how did we do it 

without space?

Private People

The council will 

also draw the expertise

of other White House offices

as well as insights from

scientists

innovators

and business leaders...

Many business leaders

that want to

be a part of this.

I think the privatization of certain

aspects is going to play

a very crucial role,

don't you think?

And the Vice President, 

myself,

and a few others

are going to pick some

private people

to be on the board.

I will say 

that's not easy

because everybody wants

to be on this board.

People you wouldn't have believed

loved what we're doing

so much they want to

Yearning

The human soul

yearns

for discovery...

Our journey into space

will not only make us 

stronger

and more prosperous

but will unite us

behind grand ambitions

and bring us

all closer together.

Wouldn't that

be nice?

Can you believe

that space

is going to do that?

Signing

America will 

think big

once again.

Important Words;

Think Big.

We haven't been thinking

so big for along time

but we're 

thinking big again

as a country.

We will inspire millions 

of children to carry

on this proud tradition

of American space leadership 

- and they're excited...

we are now going to sign

an executive order...

And people are very 

excited... and 

I can tell you

I'm very excited

about it. 

Buzz Aldrin

(Infinity -  and beyond!)

This is infinity here.

It could be infinity

We don't

really know.

But it could be.

It has to be something

but it could be

infinity,

right?

OrangeVerse X: To Infinity + Beyond (part 1)

On Friday, the president signed another Executive Order, his 39th if my count is correct.

We are reminded that he was not going to do all that many of these, but it does get him in front of the cameras, and there's nowhere else he'd rather be. It gets Mike Pence in front of cameras, too -- since he's the Introducer-in-Chief, and, not for nothing, it gives the @TrumpDraws Twitter account something to do. Let's look in on the festivities.

Open Wide

The future of

American space leadership

we're going to lead

again. It's been 

a long time. 

It's over

25 years

and we're opening up

and we are going to be

leading again like

we've never led before. 

Frontierus Interruptus

We are a nation

of pioneers and the next

great American frontier is space.

And we never completed

-- we started but we never completed. 

We stopped.

But now we start again.

And we have

tremendous spirit and

we're going to have tremendous spirit

from the private sector--

maybe in particular

from the private sector.

Oh Look, There's Wilbur
We're also joined
by our great Secretary of Commerce
Wilbur Ross.
who spent the morning
negotiating
trade deals with South Korea.

And I think

we're going to make a 

good deal

right?

I think so.

That's what the

word is. 

And good for both 

countries.

National Space Council

Today we're taking

a crucial step

to secure America's future

in space

by reviving the

National Space Council

after it was - has been

dormant

almost 25 years

if you can believe it.

The Pence Promise

Vice President Pence promised

that our administration -

because Mike is very into space

would revive the National Space Council... 

we're keeping that promise. 

Feel very strongly

about it. I've felt

strongly about it for 

a long time.

I used to say

before doing what I did -

I used to say

what happened?

Why aren't we moving

forward?

Wondering on Wednesday (v82)

What's there to wonder about, this Wednesday?  Plenty, it seems.

Seven years of voting to repeal the Affordable Care Act, at least 87 million bucks wasted in the process, and now, finally, the Republicans are going to vote on a replacement product, the American Health Care Act, something that seems to have much less 'care' than its predecessor.  It's almost hard to believe that, with all of that practice, this AHCA actually has a chance of not even making it out of the House. Speaker Paul Ryan has solidly connected the bill to the White House, and engaged the Deal Maker to twist arms, even as Republicans in his shop and in the Senate are dropping this entirely in Ryan's lap. I wonder, will Ryan and Trump be able to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat tomorrow? And if they do, how will the darn bill ever get through the Senate?

Trump's 'skinny budget', the little one presidents release in advance of the big one that comes out in May, dropped last Thursday. The budget, we were told by Mick Mulvaney, was an #AmericaFirst budget, representing the priorities of the #AmericaFirst candidate who became the #AmericaFirst president. Trump's priorities, like his true beliefs, have been in question all along, but the budget is based on what he said on the campaign trail, so maybe this is what he believes. Even better, his budget outline is dollar neutral: what new spending he adds, his new take-aways negate - and that should make some people happy, at least, What I'm wondering about, though, is why Trump is negating his own budget?

That's right. Trump, who cut $200M from NASA's budget, signed a bill that would increase NASA's budget by that exact same amount, because it's all about jobs, I guess. But is that really our goal with NASA? Is that really why we want to go to Mars, to create jobs in Florida and Texas?  I really have to wonder about that.

Speaking of Trump and jobs, Ivanka Trump has a new job. Well, not a job, per se; it's something unofficial that has her working, for free we're told, in the West Wing, with a security clearance and 'government devices' which I think means she won't need to use her own personal phone for Instagram and Twitter. (Is that really what it means, I wonder?)

She's turning over her personal business to family members of her husband, who does have an official job in the White House, just as she and her father 'turned over' the family business to Don Jr. and Eric. It's all very conflicting and confusing, but I wonder what she's actually going to be doing? Is she Daughter-in-Chief? Wife-of-the-Special-Advisor? Is she supposed to be helping with policy? Helping her father look presidential? Or maybe she's helping save tax dollars?

That's right -- maybe her new role in the White House is a way to cut costs for the Secret Service! You see, the Secret Service asked for an extra $60,000,000 to cover costs of protecting the Trump family, Trump Tower, Trump himself, President in waiting Mike Pence, and "other visiting heads of state" which appears to be a reference to Trump's propensity for hanging out at places other than the White House when he's entertaining foreigners. If Ivanka is in the White House, we won't have to pay separately to keep her secure, right?

Interestingly, the #AmericaFirst Office of Management and Budget turned down the Secret Service request for funding. So here I am, back to wondering what Trump really believes in, and what his priorities are, if protecting his own family isn't among them?

Are You Ready, America?

In less than 30 minutes, we'll hear from the "American Carnage"president as he addresses a joint session of Congress for the first time.

In preparation for the big event, the president reportedly suggested (again) that the recent actions against Jewish Community Centers and Jewish cemeteries could be 'false flags' - actions taken by the opposition to make him look bad or something. In this case, it could be Democrats, or it might be Jewish organizations themselves.  Or, of course, there's at least a chance that maybe it's actually anti-Semites.

He rolled back legislation from the Obama administration that would have required folks over at Social Security to report mental-illness disability recipients to the federal background check folks. Because, while we are constantly told by Republicans that we don't have a gun problem, we have a mental health problem, nothing says let's ignore both problems like refusing to link them together and maybe preventing a problem person from having access to a gun which could be used to cause a serious problem for innocent people. This bill he signed behind closed doors, rather than having one of his patented signing opportunities.

He also, in the spirit of deregulation, signed a bill that tells NASA how to encourage women to participate in programs like those offered by NASA (I've written about this one before).

And, it seems, he suggested that the buck in fact stops someplace other than with him when it comes to Americans being killed on military missions.

We have so much to look forward to, tonight.  Are you ready, America?

Wondering on Wednesday (v76)

How's everyone doing tonight, you all OK? Anyone other than me wondering about stuff, like how to get my arms around what the new Administration and Congress are up to?

Like, where does the $15B or so it will take to build The Wall on our southern border come from, while we're waiting for some point in time, when we convince or coerce Mexico to pay for it somehow? I saw someone in one of the Texas border towns talking to a reporter tonight, he thinks The Wall is dumb but he's more than happy to work on it and make a ton of money while we figure all the back-end payment deals out behind the scenes.

Or, when the country is at almost full employment now, by the most commonly used measure, and at "way more better employment than we've been in many years" by the other number that makes things look worse, where on earth are the people going to come from who will build The Wall? See, we have the massive infrastructure program that's coming and we have the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines coming, and we have The Wall, and we have all of the manufacturing jobs that are coming back... I wonder, who will work on all of this stuff?

Oh wait - maybe I have the answer already. I wonder, will all of the people who are currently employed working on implementing regulations, managing regulations, auditing regulations, trying to find ways to pay for regulations and the like, end up working on The Wall once the Administration removes 75% of our current regulations? I mean that's more than handful of million people right there who are apt to be at risk of losing their jobs once the regs are gone.

Heck, I may be one of them, who knows.  I wonder if I should start getting myself shovel-ready?

And speaking of regulations, here's another thing I wonder about: you'd think that maybe Congress would be thinking about what regulations they want to save, rather than focusing on putting more rules and laws into place, or no?

Seems that's a no. For example, here's a bill passed by the House already that's just chomping at the bit waiting for Senate approval: meet HR 321, the Inspiring the Next Space Pioneers, Innovators, Researchers, and Explorers (INSPIRE) Women Act, and which, given my understanding of our need to get rid of unnecessary regulations and to reduce government spending, is totally unnecessary.

What does this bill do? Let's take a look:

Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the (NASA) Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a plan for how NASA can best facilitate and support both current and retired astronauts, scientists, engineers, and innovators, to engage with K-12 female STEM students and inspire the next generation of women to consider participating in the fields of science, technology engineering, and mathematics and to pursue careers in aerospace. This plan shall -

(1) report on existing activities with current and retired NASA astronauts, scientists, engineers, and innovators; (2) identify how NASA can best leverage existing authorities to facilitate and support current and retired astronaut, scientist, engineer, and innovator participation in NASA outreach efforts: (3) propose and describe a program specific to retired astronauts, scientists, engineers, and innovators; and (4) identify any additional authorities necessary to institute such a program. 

OK - lots of science-ey and astronaut-ey and engineer-ey and innovator-ey stuff in there, and it all sounds good. But what does it really mean?

• NASA, tell us what you're already doing with current and retired folks to get people interested in aerospace careers; 
• figure out how you can do more to get current and retired folks to do outreach with school-age females already participating in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, programs in school, and inspire them to think about participating in STEM fields and get involved in aerospace careers. 
• Document the plan you come up with, and
• tell us anything else we need to know to help implement a plan. 

You might be thinking, what's making her wonder about this particular bill? Doesn't she think women belong in the STEM or aerospace careers?  Of course I think women with an interest in STEM careers should absolutely be encouraged to participate. A friend's daughter interned with NASA, and now works at the Goddard Space Flight Center, which I think is really cool. And it makes for some really great presents for her little sister, I have to say. 

And, speaking of the Goddard Space Flight Center, according to HR 321, NASA already runs the Summer Institute in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Research (SISTER) program there,

designed to increase awareness of, and provide an opportunity for, female middle school students to be exposed to and explore non-traditional career fields with Goddard Space Flight Center women engineers, mathematicians, scientists, technicians, and researchers. 

And then, there's NASA GIRLS and NASA BOYS,

virtual mentoring programs using commercially available video chat programs to pair NASA mentors with young students anywhere in the country. (The programs) give young students the opportunity to interact and learn from real engineers, scientists, and technologists.

And then, there's the Aspire to Inspire (A2I) program, which

engages young girls to present science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) career opportunities through the real lives and jobs of early career women at NASA.

All of these programs already in place sound a lot like this bill is telling NASA to do. Which makes me wonder, why do we need HR 321 to tell NASA to come up with stuff like they've already come up with?

In the overall scheme of things, this is not that big a deal - but all of these not-that-big-a-deals add up. And it makes me wonder if our elected officials (who may or may not have benefited from any government-directed mentoring programs before pursuing their chosen career), have any idea what it means to stop passing unnecessary rules and regulations, whether they impact our bloated federal bureaucracy or our businesses, in advance of getting rid of the ones we already have?

And, finally, I wonder how much fun the president will have tweeting at all of these unnecessary rules and regulations passed by his own party if they keep this stuff up. That'll be a hoot, don't you think?