With the first Presidential trip in the books, we just witnessed a master class in statesmanship from Biden.
Sure, it’s easy to say the bar was set low by Trump, but let’s take a look at some of what was accomplished.
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First, and perhaps most importantly, Biden gave a full-throated, unequivocal statement of support for Article 5 and the collective defense of our NATO partners.
He also publicly committed to the defend Ukraine’s interests against further Russian incursions.
He and the other world leaders came to an agreement on a *massive* vaccine sharing plan — at least 870 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine from G7 countries to help ease the worldwide pandemic.
He was tougher on China than any POTUS we’ve seen in at least the last 20 years — both securing support in countering what has been an aggressive Chinese power-grab (via their Belt and Road initiative) and helping prevent China from driving a wedge between the US and our allies.
There was real and significant progress made on climate change, with the G7 leaders pledging to cut collective emissions in half by 2030.
Is it enough? Probably not, but it’s a start.
Biden — again, publicly — put Putin on notice and set clear boundaries for what the United States wouldn’t accept going forward, particularly in the cyber arena.
Putin was also warned in person that Russia would face devastating consequences if Navalny dies.
Rarely are first foreign trips this successful. Biden’s experience and genuine personality won the day (week?).
Our allies like us again, and our adversaries know the United States is back.
But hey, go ahead and keep sharing that clip of him stumbling over his words. <end>
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There was also never a possibility for Pence to “send the results back” to the states — that Trump/Flynn/Powell crock of shit came entirely too close to getting Pence killed.
Lies are always dangerous, but particularly so coming from people who had/have power.
At first, I thought maybe the QAnon cult would realize they’re being scammed after literally none of “Q’s” predictions came true.
Then, they started counting flags on a stage, seeing signs in clouds, and using Trump’s verbal flubs as “evidence” and I knew it was hopeless.
I think it’s also important to set realistic expectations for the American people.
There are things we can do quickly. Expanded background checks, mandatory waiting periods, closing gun show loopholes, etc.
An assault weapons ban is more complicated. 1/x
There is approximately a zero percent chance a 50/50 Senate that includes Manchin and Sinema would ever be able to pass an assault weapons ban.
It’s also not clear how helpful an assault weapons ban would ultimately be. If you use Clinton’s ban as a reference: 2/X
A ban would likely encompass semiautomatic firearms and/or high-capacity (over 10 rounds) magazines.
It would also almost certainly—as Clinton’s did—include a grandfather clause that would exempt the millions of weapons and magazines that are already in circulation. 3/X
“Then, in 1987, Trump visited Moscow and St Petersburg for the first time. Shvets said he was fed KGB talking points and flattered by KGB operatives who floated the idea that he should go into politics.” 2/X
Shortly after, Trump began considering running for POTUS one day.
“For the KGB, it was a charm offensive. They had collected a lot of information on his personality so they knew who he was personally. The feeling was that he was extremely vulnerable intellectually, and psychologically, and he was prone to flattery.” 3/X
Early this morning, we successfully intercepted a ballistic missile in space with another missile fired from a destroyer in the middle of the ocean.
This is a big deal for the Missile Defense Agency, and the Aegis BMD.
1/4
The Aegis is a sea-based midcourse defense system and part of our broader, layered missile defense strategy. This means that the Aegis system targets missiles after their initial boost phase and before reentry into Earth’s atmosphere.
Here’s a very simple graphic of that. 2/4
This test is interesting, because intercepting a ballistic missile is hard, and this gives us more options.
You may have heard of THAAD and/or Patriot missile defense systems. These are designed to intercept later in the flight path (during the ‘terminal’ or re-entry phase) 3/4