Waste.

Link. Explain to me the difference, crony capitalism vs. crony government.

Strib image. Crony NCAA?

Nice seeming ladies. Big money.

Yet another live-and-let-live story about respect for the humanity of another human being transcending slavish knee-jerk bigotry.

Parental bad decision making can be vexingly stupid, but can by proper effort of others be corrected; PiPress link.

Let the woman get her degree, let her be happy. Why in the world not?

Sorensen has a current post on how "Responsible Science Policy Coalition (RSPC) " is as responsible as polluters wanting off the hook for their mischief; i.e., not very responsible at all.

It is an extended post, bolstered with excerpting of source material, well worth the time to read - online here.

Stagnation stinks.

The Atlantic, mid-item:

Equally frustrating for the Democrats I spoke to is that this is not at all the case for House Republicans. Unlike Democrats, for example, Republicans term-limit their committee chairmen, making it possible for young and talented members to take over powerful committees early in their tenure. As Murphy, the former representative, pointed out, Paul Ryan is a good case study in the benefits of this policy: Ryan was only 41 when he took over the Budget Committee, a position that allowed him to build a national profile and attract attention from party leaders. Less than five years later, he gaveled in as speaker of the House.

“The Republican rules when it comes to term limits for chairmen is just how we view leadership,” National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) Spokesman Matt Gorman told me. “It encourages younger members to step up so we don’t see the stagnation we’ve seen on the other side.”

For those liking equations: Pelosi + Hoyer = Stagnation

Any questions?

Here's one: Why might Keith Ellison have concluded there is more fun and actual chance to affect policy as Minnesota Attorney General than under Pelosi + Hoyer?

Likely Ellison might publicly speak with delicacy, but the fact that he moved is what speaks candidly.

Right of center to middle of the road slaves to big money are not the answer to a better nation.

Look at Bernie's agenda. Look at Pelosi. The DC situation is a bad joke. Bluest of blue dogs grumble and sign a letter saying, "She's not our favorite," while she's probably just fine, but the play is for the district, and little else. Others fawn. Ocasio-Cortez with the biggest paycheck of her life and better benefits than from bartending, in line, so go figure. Indeed, in line, ticket punched with a vengeance by going public on MSNBC to kiss Pelosi's ring. It is sickening. Committee seniority is something the Republicans, of all people, have reformed.

The party of It's Hillary's Turn, is a sick party. Stating truth again: Right of center to middle of the road slaves to big money are not the answer to a better nation. There are no two ways about it. You can put Pelosi between joyous Al and joyous Mark in that picture and it is the exact same image. Al must be happy to be out of that bullshit.

Last thing, a video worth watching, about an indirect way to torpedo progressive aims, without saying that's the motive, while serving the interests of those wanting to fire such a torpedo, Pelosi, apparently, included. End of story.

_________UPDATE___________
On reflection, perhaps a "for example" line or two about that "torpedo" thing might be helpful. SINGLE PAYER. How's that, example-wise?

Single payer will cost more to implement in terms of government revenue-spending, where to attain efficiencies the medical-industrial complex gets reined in and the profiteering insurance leeches get put out of the main part of their cash-cow loop. For those liking equations:

SINGLE PAYER = [Govt. spending increase] = [substantial TOTAL spending decrease below private insurance payments (including obscene profiteering) per the Romneycare=Obamacare status quo]
and:
[SINGLE PAYER federal pharma pricing power] = [decrease in pharma gouging of you and me, compare negotiated pricing as is now the case with the "socialized medicine" practice of the VA]

However, to implement SINGLE PAYER the two Pelosi policies discussed in that video would have to not be in place; so putting them in place serves to indirectly - sneakily - hamstrings SINGLE PAYER, end of that example. A result done with weasel ways, not directly addressing the desires and needs of the public vs. the power and control of DC by evil big money interests; a/k/a control of Pelosi and folks, by etc.

Last, that image above: Joyous Al, or "Standing here on terms I accepted but which merit no false smile-along, what am I doing here;" i.e., Al having an early learning experience not out of line with his quick acceptance of leaving the Senate on #METOO thrown stuff, as an exit in a potentially helpful way, overall; with exiting being not wholly uncordial to Al's integrity and mental health. He and DC were a strange match from day one. He's honest, that being one fit-in difficulty.

__________FURTHER UPDATE__________
2020, "Biden's Turn?" Say it ain't so, Joe.

_________FURTHER UPDATE___________
Back to Pelosi, Digby is positive.

Pelosi. Hoyer too? So much for CHANGE. [However, don't miss this post's UPDATE, for hopeful info]

Here, reporting one toe-the-line; here, reporting another, mentioning Hoyer.

It looks like a done deal.

"Deal." Is that the proper terminology? You decide. First linked item:

The Buffalo News first reported Higgins’ reversal on Pelosi. Just days before, Higgins had signed onto a letter opposing her, and he told POLITICO repeatedly in an interview that he wouldn’t back Pelosi “under any circumstances.”

But Pelosi is winning now, so circumstances apparently have changed enough for Higgins to reconsider his recent fervent opposition to her.

“For years, Congressman Higgins has been an extraordinary leader on the issue of achieving quality, affordable health care for all Americans. His Medicare buy-in proposal is central to this debate, as we work to build on the Affordable Care Act,” Pelosi said in a statement released shortly after news of Higgins' volte-face.

“We are looking forward to working together to lower the cost of health care for hard-working families and raise their paychecks by building infrastructure of America, which is also an important issue to Congressman Higgins.”

Higgins is the latest Pelosi critic to make a dramatic change in direction.

Second linked item:

[... D]evelopments buoyed Pelosi as she fights to repel a small group of dissidents inside the Democratic caucus who want to force a leadership shake-up after 16 years with the Californian at the helm.

One was Rep. Marcia L. Fudge (D-Ohio), who left Washington last week planning to take the Thanksgiving holiday to ponder a run against Pelosi for speaker. But her dalliance ended Tuesday. Fudge said she would support Pelosi after the minority leader agreed to make Fudge chairman of a resurrected subcommittee on elections and pledged that “the most loyal voting bloc in the Democratic Party, black women, will have a seat at the decision-making table.”

“I am now confident that we will move forward together,” Fudge said in a statement. “I now join my colleagues in support of the leadership team of Pelosi, Hoyer and Clyburn.”

If awaiting progress, keep waiting. If wanting to see pork for support, keep watching Pelosi. Single payer is DOA with this status quo. Beyond being a talking point for some, it will be more pork for the insurers, a/k/a "improving the ACA." If any part of "Affordable Care Act" will ring false, bet on the "affordable" part. Bloodsucker insurance will continue to rejoice and prosper. "Keep America Great Still" might be their slogan.

"Better than Paul Ryan" is cold comfort. Sub-zero. Polar. Frozen ice cold.

No climate change indications, in our esteemed U.S. of A. House of Representatives internal climate. And that does not suggest much good for 2020. Gillibrand and Cory Booker; Biden; oh my. Plunging again over a precipice. Flat "Clinton Learning Curve." Many ways to say it, but stow forever, CHANGE. CHANGE ain't gonna be, for now. Sad.

Then notice too; the links: The message being brought to you by WaPo and Politico.

Pay your taxes while the rich skate. Receive no CHANGE for your dollar bill.

___________UPDATE___________
Is there hope? Perhaps there is. Bernie gets an op-ed published, WaPo; (cumulative but a good outlet, CommonDreams). Each listing an agenda for moving forward:

Increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour and indexing it to median wage growth thereafter. The current federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is a starvation wage that must be increased to a living wage — at least $15 an hour. This would give more than 40 million Americans a raise and would generate more than $100 billion in higher wages throughout the country.

A path toward Medicare-for-all. The Medicare-for-all bill widely supported in the Senate has a four-year phase-in period on the way to guaranteeing health care for every man, woman and child. Over the first year, it would lower the Medicare eligibility age from 65 to 55, cover dental, hearing and vision care for seniors, provide health care to every young person in the United States and lower the cost of prescription drugs.

Bold action to combat climate change. The report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has made it clear we have just 12 years to substantially cut the amount of carbon in our atmosphere, or our planet will suffer irreversible damage. Congress must pass legislation that shifts our energy system away from fossil fuels and toward energy efficiency and renewable energy. We can lead the planet in combating climate change and, in the process, create millions of good paying jobs.

Fixing our broken criminal-justice system. We must end the absurdity of the United States having more people in jail than any other country on Earth. We must invest in jobs and education for our young people, not more jails and incarceration.

Comprehensive immigration reform. The American people want to protect the young people in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and to move toward comprehensive immigration reform for the more than 11 million people in our country who are undocumented. And that’s exactly what we should do.

Progressive tax reform. At a time of massive and growing inequality in both income and wealth, Congress must pass legislation which requires wealthy people and large corporations to begin paying their fair share of taxes. It is unacceptable that there are large, extremely profitable corporations in this country that do not pay a nickel in federal income taxes.

A $1 trillion infrastructure plan. Every day, Americans drive to work on potholed roads and crumbling bridges, and ride in overcrowded buses and subways. Children struggle to concentrate in overcrowded classrooms. Workers are unable to find affordable housing. The structures that most Americans don’t see are also in disrepair — from spotty broadband and an outdated electric grid, to toxic drinking water and dilapidated levees and dams. Congress should pass a $1 trillion infrastructure plan to address these needs while creating up to 15 million good-paying jobs in the process.

Lowering the price of prescription drugs. Americans pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs because, unlike other countries, the United States doesn’t directly regulate the price of medicine. The House should pass legislation to require Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices and allow patients, pharmacists and wholesalers to purchase low-cost prescription drugs from Canada and other countries. It should also pass legislation to make sure that Americans don’t pay more for prescription drugs than citizens do in other major countries.

Making public colleges and universities tuition-free and substantially reducing student debt. In a highly competitive global economy, we must have the best-educated workers in the world. Every young person in America, regardless of income, must have the opportunity to receive the education they need to get a decent job and make it into the middle class. The House should pass the College for All Act to make public colleges and universities tuition-free and substantially reduce student debt.

Expanding Social Security. When 1 out of 5 seniors is trying to get by on less than $13,500 a year, we must expand Social Security so that every American can retire with dignity and security. The House should pass legislation to expand Social Security benefits and extend its solvency for the next 60 years by requiring that the wealthiest Americans — those making more than $250,000 a year — pay their fair share of Social Security taxes.

[bolding in original] The Thursday, November 22, 2018 [Thanksgiving Day] CommonDreams item adds:

The Thanksgiving op-ed from Sanders comes a week before the independent senator will deliver the keynote address at a "gathering" of national and international progressive leaders in his home state of Vermont.

The event, coordinated by The Sanders Institute, founded by Jane Sanders, "will convene 250 leading progressive minds to envision – and to actualize – a better future for our country and the world. Reaching across generations and embracing the inherent synergies across the progressive platform, participants will discuss and debate our nation’s most pressing issues and offer innovative solutions."

Following up on that hat tip info:

https://sandersinstitutegathering.org/

https://sandersinstitutegathering.org/speakers/

https://sandersinstitutegathering.org/contact/

Let us hope the event draws well and that progress arises from the effort. Some encouraging YouTube posting may arise; given a three-day event. Expect it.

Readers are urged to check those three links.

__________FURTHER UPDATE__________
The event page

https://sandersinstitutegathering.org/event/

states:

Set in Burlington Vermont, the core intent of the Sanders Institute Gathering is to share replicable policies, develop actionable steps, establish ongoing networks and articulate a progressive vision.

About the event
THE GATHERING
BURLINGTON, VT + November 29 - December 1, 2018

Economic, environmental, racial and social justice issues will be threaded throughout the conference as we discuss the climate crisis, healthcare, housing, democracy, foreign policy, criminal justice, labor issues and more.

The Gathering is an informative, issue-oriented, idea-focused, movement-building conference focused on developing bold, progressive solutions. Following the event, we will be sharing the speeches, interviews, conversations and sessions in a variety of formats.

"Sharing [...] in a variety of formats," suggests YouTube posting amid other coverage. Sponsorship is noted, and the three day agenda times and topics are presented. Event accommodations info is also given. The Institute itself:

https://www.sandersinstitute.com/about/mission-statement

____________FURTHER UPDATE____________
Back to the main belief; same old stuff; Young Turks. Thom Hartman. Truth, as ugly as it is. Same old Pelosi. Opposition from the right wing of the Democratic Party; Pelosi's wing; but trying to make bluest corporate boot-licking Blue Dogs the top dogs. And when Nancy wins, one house ruled by the same people who made a big thing about passing Romneycare. The Republicans are a bit more honest about being owned by money, yet the ownership credentials are there . . .

Another video. This entire pattern is effectively saying the midterms were survived, now tell the progressives they can go home, adults are in control. Single finger salute. They hated the uppity attitude while it flourished and want it dead. That is Pelosi. And the fiction that she is too liberal for some Democrats is a sick joke. Ocasio-Cortez signing onto the Pelosi agenda is worrisome. Backing Nancy against the insurgency. Get real. Howard Dean and Hillary Clinton, Onward Together, is not a train I missed but one I'd shudder about being on. 2020 will be four more Trump years unless some folks wise up; but, perhaps they do not care; scratch beneath the surface and perhaps Trump's okay. But when the "us or Trump" posturing has an "us" that is really no different, why care? Pelosi, Paul Ryan, opposite sides, same coin? The Bernie gathering is soon, but what tangible successes can be expected from it?

AND - Pelosi and Hoyer STILL. Not even a new second fiddle. Absolute disrespect is a hard pill to swallow.

Face of the future? Or would more/different be best? And that 18-34 age bloc, the heavily Democratic voting folks, where are they?

Image from independent story, here.

The face of progress is absent. The face of youth is absent. The face of same old is apparent. The midterm result may prove an anomaly, given appearances.

The face of Stauber? Absent, but in a way, quite present.

Leah Phifer would have won. Identity politics aside, that is.

Am I the only one seeing the image as if some low level commissar reaches a podium, assured of his level. Intending to hold it, damn the consequences.

Uranium One. A question about ownership changes and payment arrangements. You and I surely do not know whether wrongful quid pro quo existed. Questioning it all is valid.

[UPDATE: In retrospect, this post needs an initial context, that being Strib carrying an NYT item: "Trump wanted to order Justice Department to prosecute James Comey, Hillary Clinton -- Donald McGahn, then the White House counsel, rejected the president's request, according to two people familiar with the conversation in the spring." Story: By Michael S. Schmidt and Maggie Haberman New York Times - November 21, 2018 — 5:23am; which item seems to minimize substance and suggest a Nixonian motive to Trump; with the balance of the post suggesting there is more substance to things than the Strib/NYT item acknowledges, and that an investigation might be merited and could prove fruitful.]


Websearch. News, CNN reporting carried, The Hill, and Reuters.

Background: Earlier NYT report. Wikipedia, here, here, and here.

Most intriguing, The Hill item, "FBI’s 37 secret pages of memos about Russia, Clintons and Uranium One," bearing the disclaimer:

By John Solomon, opinion contributor — 10/01/18 05:45 PM EDT The views expressed by contributors are their own and not the view of The Hill

We publish, not our responsibility, seems overly lawyerly, but also a declaration of the perception of a mine field being involved.

Smoke?

Fire?

We can only guess. "37 secret pages" as a headline lead suggests itself as the opinion of whoever publishes such a headline.

One Wikipedia sentence:

On June 29, 2010 Renaissance Capital, a Russian investment bank with ties to the Kremlin and which was promoting Uranium One stock, paid Bill Clinton $500,000 for a speech in Moscow shortly after the Rosatom acquisition of Uranium One was announced.[14][15]

[footnoted text, linking omitted]
14. Becker, Jo; McIntire, Mike (April 23, 2015). "Cash Flowed to Clinton Foundation Amid Russian Uranium Deal". The New York Times.

15. Campbell, Colin; Engel, Pamela (April 23, 2015). "The Clinton Foundation received millions from investors as Putin took over 20% of US uranium deposits". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved August 31, 2016.

Amid any speculation, half a mil is half a mil; and that seems a fact hard to dispute. But that's only one sentence, a public one, so what's in the secret 37? Why secret? What happened? The question seems bigger than the Saudi Consulate killing in Turkey; in going more toward U.S. politician trustworthiness rather than government policy; although those two dimensions do overlap, each instance.

The obvious websearch - obama russian russia speaking fees -- returns different lead items than an equally obvious websearch = obama russian speaking fees -- give it a try with any other search engine.

What is interesting is since leaving the White House, Obama gets mention (without any Russian speaking fees showing in the search return list) here, here and here; four hundred grand being four hundred grand; and I'd not pay it for Obama but Wall Street allegedly did. Wall Street where nobody went into the slammer for what happened, Sept. 2008 - Lehman Brothers, onward.

____________UPDATE____________
Free Republic republishing has a comment thread, including one reader's list:

Here is a list of 11 questionable items forming a chain of events:

1. September of 2005: Canadian Frank Giustra visits Kazakhstan with Bill Clinton. Days later, his company UrAsia wins a major uranium deal with the country.

2. 2006: Giustra donates $31 million to the Clinton Foundation.

3. February 2007: UrAsia merges with Uranium One and expands into the U.S..

4. June 2008: Russian atomic agency Rosatom begins talks to acquire Uranium One.

5. 2008 to 2010: Uranium One and UrAsia investors donate $8.65 million to Clinton Foundation.

6. June 2009: Rosatom acquires 17% of Uranium One.

7. 2010 to 2011: Millions more donated by Uranium One investors to Clinton Foundation.

8. June 2010: Rosatom requests Committee on Foreign Investment (of which the State Department is a member and its approval is needed) to approve a majority ownership in Uranium One, PROMISING NOT TO PURCHASE 100% of it, NOR TAKE IT PRIVATE.

9. June 2010: Bill Clinton receives $500,000 to speak at a conference held by the Russian investment bank involved in the Rosatom transactions.

10. October 2010: Committee APPROVES Rosatom's request to ACQUIRE A MAJORITY SHARE in Uranium One.

11. January 2013: Rosatom PURCHASES REMAINDER of Uranium One and takes it PRIVATE!.

[bolding in original] NOTE: Nothing in that list was fact checked, nor second sourced. Interested readers may try that exercise.


FURTHER: FBI, "The Vault."
https://vault.fbi.gov/

This "Valult" search. This item. Readers can go from there.

FURTHER: Tyler Durden at Zero Hedge, dated Oct. 2 (the day after The Hill published per opening paragraph of this post).

RT, posted/edited days after The Hill item.

All I know is what I read on the web. That's knowing what's said. Not necessarily what's true.

End of post.

ACTUALLY, ONE MORE: NBC, Dec. 21, 2017.

End of post.