We are using the power of our diplomacy to better protect the U.S. and the world from health threats.
The @StateDept's new Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy is leading the charge so the world is prepared to prevent, detect, and respond to infectious diseases. pic.twitter.com/YprRLv0wYd
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) November 13, 2023
Weekly U.S. COVID update:
– New cases: 162,568 est.
– Average: 171,297 (-2,213)
– States reporting: 50/50
– In hospital: 12,820 (-133)
– In ICU: 1,526 (-16)
– New deaths: 1,214
– Average: 1,407 (-93)1/5
— BNO News (@BNOFeed) November 14, 2023
US COVID markers show declines or stable trends
Levels of the HV.1 subvariant, part of the Omicron EG.5 family, were most common and continue to rise.https://t.co/C5hNHw9cxb
Photo: NIAID/Flickr cc pic.twitter.com/5pjLRPASqK
— CIDRAP (@CIDRAP) November 13, 2023
On The Road – Mike in Oly – Hiking Long Island, WA, Part 1
Mike in Oly
I was fortunate to end the summer with a rare and special hiking opportunity. The Wings Over Willapa festival was going on and this year they set up a day to ferry folks over to Long Island, which has a few trails and campgrounds, but is only accessible by boat. My husband Skookum in Oly and I had long wanted to explore the trails on this island but had never put in the work to rent kayaks or a boat to get there so we jumped at this chance to see it. There is a grove of ancient 1000+ year old western red cedars there that we wanted to check out.
We arrived with about 50 other people early that Saturday morning. As we got there it started raining. We knew ahead of time it would be wet and brought rain gear, but I was not prepared for it to be gusting as well. As we waited four turn to be ferried over on the small barge we were quickly drenched from head to toe. Once off the boat and into the woodland it was much calmer, altho still soggy. Happily two hours into our day the rain slacked off and we had a drippy but drier trip thru the island.
The cedar grove is a 3 mile hike into the heart of the island. The trail was a former logging road and was well maintained, wide and clear right up to the grove, then it was a narrow walkway around a loop to see the trees. Gentle rolling hills the entire way. Everything was covered in dense, lush undergrowth. Most of the island had been logged over the years and large swaths of the forest was less than 30-40 years old. But still lovely. At one point along the way we could hear flying squirrels calling from the deep woods. Sadly we did not get to see any. We did see a few chipmunks, and heard a few chickadees, jays and kinglets, but there was overall not much wildlife about.
The grove itself was amazing. The trees were massive, with some having an 8-9 foot diameter, and they towered over the forest. Huge ancient stumps were scattered about that had been cut in the early part of the last century and they gave a glimpse into the ancient forest that had once been here.
We had our lunch at the grove (thankfully packed in plastic bags and kept dry) and then made our way back out again. A quick boat ride and we were back to the car. It was a bit more mileage than I am used to – just shy of 8 miles total for the day – and I was exhausted and quite sore and beaten when I made it home.. It was such a treat and even though it was rough and trying, it was also fun, as great company and incredible scenery makes it all better. Photography conditions were not ideal, but here’s what I came home with. Hope you enjoy them.
The edge of the island overlooking the salt marsh. It was a gray and gloomy day.
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Cold Grey Pre-Dawn Open Thread: Among the Reasons the MAGA Caucus Is (Especially) Angry Right Now
A “Party of losers”? Dysfunction in Michigan, broke in Arizona, alienated in Georgia, the GOP is plagued by MAGA incompetence, infighting and a feckless national party leadership who don’t know how or won’t rebuke Nazi rhetoric by their Dear Leader.
Yup.https://t.co/st3IALhosA— Michael Steele (@MichaelSteele) November 14, 2023
Y’all remember Michael Steele, ‘Chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) from 2009 until 2011’ ?
Per the Washington Post, ‘National Republicans fear the cash crunch could hamper field operations in key swing states come 2024’ [unpaywalled gift link]:
In Arizona, the state GOP chairman has been begging the Republican National Committee for a financial bailout. Michigan party officials have gotten into physical fights as their finances have dipped into the red. And in Georgia, the state party is in a standoff with the Republican governor and saddled with legal fees for alternate electors put forward in 2020.
In each of these 2024 battlegrounds, election denial and grass-roots fervor for former president Donald Trump have rocked the Republican apparatus. Now, the state parties are plagued by infighting, struggling to raise money and sometimes to cover legal costs stemming from Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 defeat — threatening to hamper GOP organizing capabilities in next year’s presidential election.
“There has been an emphasis on ideological cleansing instead of electioneering,” said John Watson, the Georgia GOP chairman from 2017 to 2019. “If those new entrants to the party want to argue the earth is flat and the election is stolen, those are counterproductive to winning elections.”
State parties are typically critical in election years for mobilizing volunteers and running get-out-the-vote efforts, and they can collect larger checks or buy cheaper airtime than other groups. Those functions are now in doubt as the fissures fuel finger-pointing and competition for donor dollars. Even as more experienced leaders have taken the reins in some cases, they are struggling to undo some of the damage from MAGA-aligned predecessors and deal with continued pressure from the movement.
The transformation in these key states is the result of a coordinated movement, sometimes called the “Precinct Strategy.” Former Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon and other MAGA influencers have promoted the effort in the past three years to slot election deniers into local party positions and demand new leadership. In local and state parties across the country, operatives and local officials say the makeup of state party leadership has changed…
As one senior Republican who spoke on the condition of anonymity to be candid put it, for anyone seen as out of step with the MAGA movement, “they will not work with you; you’re the devil.”…
Arizona: ‘We desperately need to keep the lights on’
In January, Jeff DeWit was elected Arizona state GOP chairman as a consensus choice who could bridge the party’s internal divisions between pro-Trump, election-denying activists and more-traditional conservatives, given his record of winning a statewide race in 2014 for treasurer and his early support of Trump’s first presidential run. He inherited a party in disarray from the previous chair, Kelli Ward, a MAGA firebrand who led efforts to overturn Trump’s 2020 loss in the state and has since decamped to a boat in the Caribbean.DeWit has repeatedly asked national Republican groups for financial support that largely has not come. His appeals to the RNC began in February and have extended through mid-September, including to national and regional staffers and directly to RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, according to people familiar with the discussions, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose private conversations…
Wee Hours Open Thread
Rather than counting sheep so everyone who wants to can fall asleep, I’ll start you off with another question, which you can absolutely ignore and instead talk about whatever you please.
The weather is getting colder, at least for most of us. What’s your favorite cold-weather comfort food?
And a bonus late-night Henry. He looks a little sad.
Open thread.
I Don’t Know How To Go About This
Some of you may have heard that Zandar of well, here and the eponymous Zandar Versus The Stupid, has passed. The only thing I know is a comment on his own blog from someone who states he is his father. Other than that, I know nothing. I don’t know what to say because I have no real confirmation, but I know you all have been talking about it in the comments. I asked over twitter and got no real info. So hopefully we will know more soon and hopefully be proven wrong or give them a proper sendoff.
War for Ukraine Day 629: A Brief(ish) Tuesday Night Update
(Image by NEIVANMADE)
The House managed to pass this whacked out two part continuing resolution that keeps part of the government open until the middle of January and the rest open until the beginning of February. I am amazed it passed. Anyhow, the House GOP majority now has two different hostages to ransom or kill at the beginning of 2024. What did not pass was any supplemental funding for Ukraine or Israel. Soon the remaining $1 billion from the last Ukraine aid bill will run out and with it the Biden administration’s ability to resource Ukraine’s defense against Putin’s genocidal re-invasion.
Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump. (emphasis mine)
War for Ukraine Day 629: A Brief(ish) Tuesday Night UpdatePost + Comments (16)
Tuesday Night Open Thread: Government Shutdown Temporarily Averted
House lawmakers are poised to pass new Speaker Mike Johnson’s bill to avert a government shutdown, punting the GOP's spending fight to the next Speaker https://t.co/HFUMWqR5Z4
— Dana Houle (@DanaHoule) November 14, 2023
Democrats just voted to keep America open and avert another republican shutdown. The government will now stay open until the next republican crisis. pic.twitter.com/oWJV5saqM3
— Bill Pascrell, Jr. 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@BillPascrell) November 14, 2023
Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies. Per CBS News:
The House on Tuesday passed a two-step plan from Speaker Mike Johnson to fund federal agencies into the new year, sending the legislation to the Senate days before the approaching deadline to avert a government shutdown.
The short-term measure cleared the House in a 336 to 95 vote. Known as a continuing resolution, it received substantial support from House Democrats, who helped ensure its passage over the objections of dozens of Republicans. The bill is the first major piece of legislation the House has approved since Johnson became speaker.
The plan, which Johnson unveiled Saturday, extends federal funding at current levels for one group of agencies and programs through Jan. 19, and a second batch through Feb. 2. Johnson argued the extension will allow lawmakers to avoid a massive end-of-year spending bill while negotiations over spending levels continue…
Tuesday Night Open Thread: Government Shutdown Temporarily AvertedPost + Comments (65)