Good morning everyone.
The first black Senator in Georgia. Raphael Warnock. He has beaten Republican Kelly Loeffler. It will be read as a rejection of Trump. A rejection of Trump trying to steal the Georgia election by trying to bully officials through his well publicized hour long phone call to “I just want to find 11,780 votes”. Scandalous. Verging on criminal. It’s because of how he behaved, and Politico just called it a “Republican implosion”.
It’s honestly being received as great news in Europe already. People see a chance at a return to normal politics in America. And that’s a rejection of Trump lies and misinformation and a return to some kind of decency.
And Georgia now is a swing state. Who would have thought. And Rev. Warnocks mother used to pick someone else’s cotton in the 50’s. Yesterday she voted to pick her son as a Senator. What a great story for black minority rights, and equality.
Still to come…As I write this the other Senate runoff in Georgia is too close to call. Ossoff (D) vs Perdue (R). The Dems need both to control the Senate.
Good write through in The Washington Post.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/perdue-ossoff-loeffler-warnock-georgia-senate/2021/01/05/7d7b5afe-4f5d-11eb-83e3-322644d82356_story.html
By the way this is noteworthy, Republican lawyer Cleta Mitchell who advised President Trump during his Saturday phone call with Georgia’s secretary of state in an effort to overturn the election, resigned on Tuesday as a partner in the Washington office of the law firm Foley & Lardner.
The law firm on Monday issued a statement saying it was “concerned by” her role in the call. The firm noted that as a matter of policy, its attorneys do not represent “any parties seeking to contest the results of the election.”
She certainly was playing a large role in trying to help Trump over turn a free and fair vote. Bad advice.
Demos in Washington featuring groups like The Proud Boys today. The National Guard is deployed. The President stoking false hopes of over throwing an election may have blood on his hands if this goes bad.
On Capital Hill the electoral vote confirmed by Courts takes place. Trump is saying his V.P. Pence could over turn the vote. But Constitutional experts say Pence has no power to over throw the election. But, it will be a big watch at 1pm est live on many networks.
AFGHANISTAN
A bloody rhythm of violence almost daily in Afghanistan. There has been the usual car bombs and attacks on military bases and buses and targets in Kabul. A disturbing number of targeted killings on officials and journalists and human rights reps.
The Taliban are largely controlled by Pakistan’s intelligence network. They hit and run and regroup in Pakistans Northern Frontier.
Peace talks are beginning again in Qatar. But if the Taliban don’t bring down the level of violence why should talks be underway at all?
On Back Story podcast we talked to the former Canadian Ambassador to Kabul, and also the current Afghan Ambassador to London. It’s an eye opening segment.
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/afghanistan-and-the-taliban/id1512445640?i=1000495709697
COVID19
Long haul. Long because in Britain officials are signalling lock down restrictions now in place could last until Spring! And while vaccines promise relief over the summer, we could find ourselves facing restrictions again next winter. It’s daunting. But necessary.
For more read this piece in the Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2021/jan/06/uk-covid-live-boris-johnson-parliament-vote-new-lockdown-latest-updates
Watch South Africa. The Covid19 variant there is under the watchful eyes of scientists worried it has already outpaced new vaccines because of mutations.
The UK variant has gone through 22 mutations and it’s a race to get vaccines administered and reduce the number of hosts for the virus to mutate further, which it will no doubt do.
Was the virus a naturally occurring virus spread or…a lab escape? This is a serious question. On Back Story two experts disagree. One a former Ass. Secretary of Defense in The U.S. Andy Weber, says he thinks it may well be a lab escape in Wuhan where the scientists were experimenting with something called ‘gain of function’.
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/pandemic-cover-up/id1512445640?i=1000500407211
and The Covid numbers are record in America. In Los Angeles ICU’s overwhelmed.
And the Grammys postponed now from Jan 31. to March 14. Lot’s of debate in The U.S. about the slow pace of vaccine rollouts.
HONG KONG
China leans on freedom. Police swooped in and arrested dozens of democracy activists in Hong Kong over night. A disturbing trend by China. Free speech and opposition is being strangled in Hong Kong.
News outlets searched. Homes raided. Even law offices.
BBC News is good on this with a quick summary:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-55555299
And that’s your Jan. 6 News Letter. The news is changing rapidly today. On watching Georgia and Washington.
I recommend you don’t follow right wing fringe media sites. Read plenty and read often of main stream newspapers where the agenda is truth. And there is balance. So important.