This is from Ray McGovern at INFORMATION CLEARING HOUSE:
Interviewed by Mrs. Clinton Monday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi eagerly rose to the bait when Clinton spoke of "her concerns that the outgoing commander-in-chief was compromised by the Kremlin". Setting the stage, Clinton expressed the hope that "we’ll find out who he [Trump] is beholden to, "who pulls his strings".
Clinton added ominously: "I would love to see his phone records to see whether he was talking to Putin the day that the insurgents invaded our Capitol". She then asked Pelosi if the nation needs "a 9/11-type commission to investigate and report everything they can pull together."
Pelosi agreed on the need for such a commission, and proceeded to burnish her own anti-Putin credentials:
"As I said to him [Trump] in that picture with my blue suit … pointing rudely at him, ‘With you Mr. President, all roads lead to Putin.’’ Pelosi conceded that she does not know ‘what Putin has on him politically, financially, or personally, but what happened last week was a gift to Putin."
Putin’s Useful Idiots?
Pelosi added, "And these people, unbeknownst to them, they are Putin puppets. They were doing Putin’s business when they did that at the incitement of an insurrection by the president … so, yes, we should have a 9/11 commission and there is strong support in the Congress for that."
What leaps out of this Clinton-Pelosi pas de deux is who is leading the dance. Clinton hints broadly (not, of course, for the first time) that Putin is pulling Trump’s strings. It is Clinton who voices suspicion that Trump and Putin were somehow coordinating on the phone on Jan. 6; and it is she who suggests that "a 9/11-type commission" might be needed.
Due largely to the captive "mainstream" media, ‘Russia Russia Russia’ has proved to be the gift that keeps giving for the Democrats. Are there limits to the degree of credence Americans will give to corporate media spinning all the sins attributed to Russian President Putin? Why the insinuation that he may be partly to blame for the violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6?
Ky e-mailed noting that article and wondering if I could link to it?
I sure can, Ky. And I am sorry if I was not clear earlier. Due to Joe Lauria's lies about convicted pedophile Scott Ritter, I am not linking to CONSORTIUM and I made that clear here. What is it, three arrests, four arrests, for trying to hook up with underage girls? They can have him on their payroll, I do not think he adds anything of value, but whatever. My problem is when they lie about his public arrest record, public trial and public conviction -- felony conviction -- and claim that the media walked away from him because of a false smear started by the Bully Boy Bush regime. You want to employ a pedophile, do so. But you lie about who he is and what he was arrested and convicted for? No, I am not steering traffic to you. I will not put young females at risk.
My problems are with Mr. Ritter and Mr. Lauria. I do not have a problem with Mr. McGovern. Ky said I had not highlighted him in a while and he is probably right. But remember that the last half of December, every day, I was highlighting the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. That happened while I was in college and I do believe that We The People have every right to know the truth about that assassination.
If Mr. McGovern had an article during that time, I did not highlight it but I did not highlight anyone during that time unless they were discussing the assassination.
There are days, actually, when I think I should just make this site, however much longer it exists, just about the assassination of J.F.K. But, Ky, I will continue to highlight Mr. McGovern and you can always e-mail like you did this time if you want to be sure I do not overlook one of his columns by accident.
This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"
Thursday, January 21, 2021. Bombings slam Baghdad, US media gushes over Joe Biden.
This morning, Baghdad is slammed with bombings "in a busy commercial area near Baghdad’s al-Tayaran Square."
and Justin Malcolm (WALL STREET JOURNAL) report, "Twin suicide bombings ripped through a crowded marketplace in Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 32 people and wounding at least 75 others in the first such attack in Iraq’s capital in more than two years." The writers insist that "the explosions shattered a period of relative calm." It hasn't been relatively calm in Iraq but it does provide cover for your outlet that's ignored the ongoing violence -- especially the violence aimed at the protesters -- when shocked readers see the story. As XINHUA points out, "sporadic deadly incidents still occur in the war-ravaged country as IS remnants have since melted into urban areas or deserts and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians" Samya Kullab and Qassim Abdul-Zahra (AP) note, "Blood smeared the floors of the busy market amid piles of clothes and shoes as survivors took stock of the disarray in the aftermath." The first bomb helped draw the crowd, the second one then went off. Martin Chulov (GUARDIAN) explains, "The interior ministry said the first bomber had claimed he was ill and when crowds gathered to help, he detonated his bomb." Aqeel Najm, Jomana Karadsheh, Kareem Khadder and Tamara Qiblawi (CNN) add:
ALJAZEERA's Abdelfattah Fayed states, "The injured were rushed to the nearby hospitals. Local reports suggest that the number of fatalities will rise as the large number of those injured are in very critical condition." Ramadan Al Sherbini (GULF NEWS) notes, "Photos carried by Iraqi media showed bodies lying on the ground in the aftermath of the attack." XINHUA reports:
Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit on Thursday condemned in the strongest terms the twin suicide bombings at a crowded commercial area in Iraq's capital Baghdad.
"That terrorist attack is a heinous act that came at a very important time. It undoubtedly aimed to hinder Iraq's efforts to restore the country's security and stability and achieve the aspired economic reform," Aboul-Gheit said.
MIDDLE EAST MONITOR offers this context, "The latest bombings come just days after the government unanimously voted to postpone the country's general elections to October this year. They were scheduled for 6 June. Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi had pledged to hold early elections after taking office last year, to appease anti-government protesters demanding a reform of the country's political system and an end to rampant corruption and poor public services."
Among the many hideous moments on US TV yesterday? The efforts to turn Bully Boy Bush into someone worthy of admiration. The War Criminal is beloved by those who whore for corporations. Hannibal Khoury Tweets:
Corporate whores are happy. They spent yesterday ooh-ing and ahh-ing over aged debutante Joe Biden's coming out party. The rest of the world? Not so much. Kooky | Destroyer of Mayo notes:
Palestine is not celebrating today Venezuela is not celebrating today Iran is not celebrating today Syria is not celebrating today Iraq is not celebrating today Cuba is not celebrating today Bolivia is not celebrating today Yemen is not celebrating today
Chile is not celebrating today Afghanistan is not celebrating today Honduras is not celebrating today
I'm not letting liberals enjoy this. There is nothing to enjoy, only the continuation of capitalist terror and hegemony
Also a preemptive response to liberals finding this: I'm Syrian, ask me about the Obama years
Yeah the new president is a war criminal who has terrorized the places I listed. Take your smart comments to other places
Joseph Kishore (WSWS) reports of the inauguration:
President Joseph Biden’s inaugural address yesterday was significant above all for its banality. Amidst an unprecedented political, social and economic crisis of the entire capitalist order, Biden delivered remarks filled with cliches, incoherent non sequiturs and the emptiest of abstractions.
One would not, of course, expect Biden to deliver a socialist speech. He is a capitalist politician assuming the position of “commander-in-chief” of the most powerful imperialist country. However, in the tradition of American politics, the inaugural address of the incoming president used to be an occasion for speaking in some form to the political situation and the policy of the incoming administration.
[. . .]
The poverty of Biden’s remarks is not just an intellectual failure. He knows full well that any hint at a significant shift in policy would spark a sell-off on the markets. As it was, the markets rose during his speech. In the minds of the political establishment and the media, this is the main factor in concluding that the speech was a great success. They were all somewhat richer at its conclusion than at its beginning.
Moreover, the political representatives of the ruling class, and particularly the Democratic Party, are acutely aware of the fact that any serious examination of reality—including the political and social forces behind the rise of fascism in America and the bipartisan policies that have produced the catastrophic spread of the pandemic—risks a social and political explosion that will threaten the entire capitalist order.
Biden’s appeal to “unity” is, ultimately, a desperate effort to cover over a massive social chasm. This chasm does not separate the Democrats from the Republicans, who, whatever their differences, both represent the same oligarchy. It is the unbridgeable division between the capitalist ruling elite, on the one hand, and the working class, on the other. It is the fear of the open eruption of this conflict that drives Biden to his abstractions.
ADDED: Glenn Greenwald Tweeted:
The following sites updated:
