Notations On Our World: ON @POTUS & Other Thoughts

As we are going to press,  President Obama is holding a news conference on the aftermath of the US-Asean summit he hosted in our home state of California at Rancho Mirage.   

The President was  reflecting upon the state of the Republican Primary and how he laments how the GOP candidates is denying climate change.  He is also underscoring how the World is sceptical about the rhetoric.     He's noting that Donald Trump will not President because it is not a reality show--he is implicitly noting the fact that you have to know your facts.   He reflected upon his view and belief of the faith of the American People. 

Beyond the Shores of the United States, we received reports of the former President of France, Nicholas Sarkozy, has been placed under investigation for campaign finance violations.   We will continue to assess this as Mr. Sarkozy plots a comeback strategy in France.

Notations From the Grid: An Another Interesting & Challenging Day On the Virtual Beat on the US Presidential Campaign

As we have been assessing our World today, we have been witness to a very heated debate on the US Presidential Campaign.      What we got from the Washington Post captured it all--and this is as Donald Trump this morning was feeding another interesting conspiracy theory on Justice Scalia's Death by noting the unusual circumstances behind his death.     This is as we reviewed reports this morning that he had a history of heart problems and was deemed too weak to have surgery for a shoulder injury recently.       We also seeing reports that there are questions about the Trump ground game in South Carolina as Jeb Bush (who deployed his Brother the former President), Marco Rubio (who has been on an aggressive fundraising effort) and Ted Cruz seem to have a superior ground game.   The problem with this is that Trump has confounded the sceptics before.

Here is the Washington Post Snapshot that works to capture all sides:

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In which Donald Trump threatens to sue, again

He had a day. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) How does a presidential candidate follow up the weekend when he renewed his party's "existential crisis"? If you're Donald Trump, you begin the day with a tweetstorm that accuses Jeb Bush of leaning on his "mommy" and brother, andsay he and Ted Cruz aren't electable -- again throwing in, as an aside, that Cruz might not even be eligible to run for president at all. That's before most people have had their breakfast. To top off the morning, you imply that former President George W. Bush, campaigning for his brother in South Carolina today, may be sorry he ever stepped back into the political spotlight. You hold an event where you go nuclear on Ted Cruz,warning your audience that Cruz is a "liar" and "nuts." You threaten legal action against the Texas senator. And you hint at a third-party run if the GOP doesn't intervene on your behalf and somehow get rid of Cruz spots like "Supreme Trust" (below), one of a pair of new attack ads today hitting Trump on abortion. (VIDEO) Supreme Trust | Ted Cruz TV Ad Then you release a lengthy statement making both threats even more explicit. That statement starts out this way: Ted Cruz is a totally unstable individual. He is the single biggest liar I’ve ever come across, in politics or otherwise, and I have seen some of the best of them.  and closes with a section that begins like this: One of the ways I can fight back is to bring a lawsuit against him relative to the fact that he was born in Canada and therefore cannot be President. If he doesn’t take down his false ads and retract his lies, I will do so immediately. Additionally, the RNC should intervene and if they don’t they are in default of their pledge to me. That would be the pledge Donald Trump signed last summer ruling out a third-party run -- with an asterisk the size of South Carolina: he would abide by that agreement... as long as he felt he'd been treated fairly by the Republican Party.  All that was a lot to fit in by lunchtime; afterwards, many candidates might have been tempted to call it a day. Then again, most candidates would not have hinted that they might abandon their party four days before its first Southern primary. Donald Trump is not most candidates. So instead, he held a freewheeling press conference that began with these words: "We're going to have a little fun." At this point in the campaign, if you are a Republican official, that line from the party's presidential front-runner is enough to bring on a cold sweat and an eye twitch. After a chaotic weekend debate, all eyes were back on Trump today. (AP Photo/Rainier Ehrhardt) What was important about this afternoon wasn't so much what was said at the press conference (when Trump called Cruz “a very unstable guy” and urging reporters to question the senator’s Christianity: “I have never seen anybody that lied as much as Ted Cruz. He goes around saying he’s a Christian. I don’t know. You’re going to have to really study that.”) It's what wasn't said -- or at least, what got drowned out by Trump's holiday moves: everything else. The rest of the field was once again pushed to the sidelines. The two senators in the race -- Cruz and Marco Rubio -- had a chance to grab the spotlight, with Senate Republicans on the front lines of the fight to deny President Obama the chance to fill a Supreme Court seat. They didn't. Not thrilled. (AP Photo/John Bazemore) Cruz did get in a few hits of his own today: He unleashed those new anti-Trump ads. He called Trump's sister Maryanne Trump Barry, a judge, a "radical pro-abortion extremist." But if an attack falls in the news cycle and no one hears it, did it really happen? Today was Monday. For the Republican Party, a weekend probably never felt quite so far away. Back in the spotlight. REUTERS/Rainier Ehrhardt Chris Cillizza thinks Senate Republicans made a big mistake on the Scalia Supreme Court opening: "Refusing to even take part in the process — even though that process could have easily yielded the GOP’s desired result — hands Obama and Senate Democrats a political cudgel to bash the GOP. It’s an unforced error by Senate Republicans that will be difficult to mop up. And one that could cost them at the ballot box in November.  More weekend fallout from that time Donald Trump scratched at old GOP wounds on live television by pushing a debate over the Bush doctrine, and essentially forcing his GOP rivals to rally around it.  A reminder that Trump's claim that he "predicted Osama bin Laden" previously drew four Pinnochios. Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.) called Trump a "truther" for his criticism of former President Bush's record on fighting terrorism, and on Iraq. At his press conference today, Trump doubled down on his critique of the argument that "President Bush kept us safe after 9/11": That was like saying the opposing team "scored 19 runs in the first inning, but after that we played pretty well," he said. South Carolina has traditionally come through for the Bushes -- but nationally, there's some data to suggest Trump's critique of the 43rd president may not cost him as much as some of his opponents might assume: Republicans like George W. Bush. They don’t love him.  Hitting South Carolina mailboxes: And then there's this (from Ted Cruz's senior communications adviser) Will Clinton's firewall hold? (Alex Holt for The Washington Post) HILLARY CLINTON'S WESTERN FIREWALL may be showingsome cracks, report David Weigel and John Wagner: Until quite recently, Clinton's campaign saw Nevada as a chance for a face-saving victory after a long-expected defeat in New Hampshire. But that defeat turned into a trouncing, and now, the Sanders campaign is trying to prove that she can be beaten anywhere. Nevada, where he is facing off against organized labor leaders and a Latino-heavy electorate, has become the first test. Clinton's hopes rested on her overwhelming advantage among voters of color - part of a "firewall" her aides have claimed in many states that follow overwhelmingly white Iowa and New Hampshire on the electoral calendar. Sanders, however, is betting that his appeal among young and working-class voters, revealed so dramatically in New Hampshire, is now strong enough to transcend race. Nevada is a chance to disprove "this firewall fantasy that the Clinton campaign has put out there," said Jeff Weaver, Sanders's campaign manager. "If we do well, it destroys that myth." Twelve Sanders campaign offices have mushroomed across the state, say Weigel and Wagner, and the Vermont senator is outspending Clinton in TV ads by roughly two to one, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "Those ads, which began in November, now feature the Latina politician Lucy Flores explaining why only Sanders can fix the country. More than a hundred paid staffers have hit the ground, aided by Latino pro-Sanders groups from as far away as Los Angeles. On Sunday, Sanders even wound up in the same black Las Vegas church as Clinton, sitting at the opposite end of the first pew." "...Clinton's performance in Nevada's 2008 caucuses taught her campaign two crucial lessons heading into this year's race.Her win of the popular vote revealed an advantage against Barack Obama among Latinos and Las Vegas union workers - an advantage that they anticipated would grow even stronger against Sanders. And her loss of the delegate count, despite the popular win, revealed an organizational weakness and strategic shortcoming that her aides vowed to correct this time around." (And they know the problem firsthand: Robby Mook, who ran her Nevada effort in 2008, is now her campaign manager.) The Sanders team says they have numbers suggesting that both young and working-class Latinos are warming to Sanders.The Clinton team's latest bid to downplay expectations was the claim that Nevada -- a state where, in 2008, less than 70 percent of Democratic caucus-goers were white -- is now "a state that is 80 percent white voters," which looked a lot like a pre-emptive bid to undercut the idea that a strong showing by Sanders might indicate he was making inroads with voting blocs beyond his progressive white base. That talking point drew immediate pushback from reporters -- and even Clinton herself. "Well, you know, that's not me," she said, when Jon Ralston asked her about the claim. (VIDEO) ClintonTease Two more stories today highlight the idea that the Sanders generational advantage could be nearly as much of a factor as Clinton's current edge among non-white voters: Buzzfeed reports that black lawmakers and their staffers are spliitting over Sanders. So is the family of Eric Garner, the Staten Island man killed by police in 2014; his mother is planning to campaign for Hillary Clinton. His daughter, for Bernie Sanders. Another Nevada headache for Clinton: She's now getting hit on immigration from both the left and the right. The new Spanish-language ad "Hillary's Wall" uses Bush-era clips of Hillary Clinton saying she opposed "illegal immigration" and voted for a border fence -- then starts quick-cutting between footage of Clinton and Donald Trump. The spot, funded by the conservative American Crossroads, launched over the weekend. It's just a small buy -- mid-five figures. For now. American Crossroads: "Hillary's Wall" ABOUT THE OTHER CLINTON... Sometimes he says things. (Alex Holt for The Washington Post) Still another Clinton headache will be with her long after Nevada: Bill Clinton keeps going rogue on the campaign trail,reports Abby D. Phillip. In his post-White House years, Clinton has become a coveted Democratic surrogate. But when it comes to his wife’s campaigns, something else can happen: He seems to lose it. It was true in this crucial nominating state in 2008, where Hillary Clinton lost badly to Barack Obama. And it’s been true this month, when the former president has reemerged as a potent but unpredictable advocate who sometimes helps his wife’s cause — and sometimes doesn’t.

Notations On Our World: On the Eve of a New Week w/thoughts on #Sclia; #Afghanistan, #Israel & Other Thoughts

It has been quite a weekend as the US Political scene again got transformed with the sudden death of Justice Scalia.   It reminded us of the classic First Monday in October which we hope all enjoy a clip of it  here:



The film depicts the central role the United States Supreme Court plays in the life of the United States as underscored by the current caseload before it.  It also underscores that the Justices of the Supreme Court are indeed human.     We hope all enjoy the clips available on YouTube as we await determinations from the White House.  As we went to press, we received an update from the White House noting that the President will await the return of the US Senate before nominating a replacement.  This is also as the Daily Update here in #Outsiders reported Senator Cruz' intentions to filibuster any nomination by the President.


What will be fascinating to watch is the moves by the President.   The President has the power of recess appointment which will allow a 9th Justice to take office.   However, it will problematic especially in light of the setback The President had with the members of the National Labor Relations Board.   It will be fascinating to be witness to.   The challenge took central stage in the latest Republican debate as well. The Daily Update also noted what Senator Cruz plans to do if President Obama nominates a successor.  

Beyond the shores of the United States, the wars in Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq rage on. Afghanistan has not been as "evident' lately.  However, what the Afghanistan Analyst Network reported on the latest from the UN on civilian causalities underscores the profound challenges before the current Afghan President and President Obama:

Here are the recent updates from the Afghanistan Analysts Network. The Bloodiest Year Yet: UN reports on civilian casualties in 2015 By Kate Clark on Feb 14, 2016 11:02 pm 2015 was the worst year for civilians in the Afghan conflict since UNAMA started systematically documenting casualties in 2009. Its annual report looking at the protection of civilians in 2015 found the trend towards more casualties in 2015 particularly marked for women and children. For women, IEDs are now the second biggest killer, with increased […] Read in browser »

New Troops are being readied for Afghanistan.   Although we understand that the ceiling of 9,800 Troops will not be breached, new Troops are slated to be sent forth.    We will continue to assess over the ensuing days and weeks.

As we also went to press with this edition of "Notations" we received this from #Israel on some what we consider very interesting development on the ongoing friction between the European Union and Israel with some interesting implications: 

Cabint communique Israel and the European Union have agreed to put their relations back on track. EU HRVP Mogherini has come out strongly against BDS and against economic sanctions against Israel, which is a step in the right direction. (Communicated by by the Prime Minister's Media Advisor) Israel Cabinet meeting. Reuters archive photo. At the weekly Cabinet meeting today, (Sunday, 14 February 2016): 1. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks: "Last night, Avigdor 'Yanush' Ben-Gal, an Israeli hero, passed away. Yanush was a child Holocaust survivor from Poland who grew up to became an IDF Major-General. As commander of the 7th Brigade in the Yom Kippur War, he – along with his brave soldiers – blocked the Syrian attack on the Golan Heights and saved the State of Israel. Three weeks later Yanush and his soldiers were at the gates of Damascus. I knew him as an extraordinarily inspirational and level-headed commander; he was courageous, wise and unpretentious. Even though he was aware of his uniqueness as a commander, he was not arrogant. He knew how to give precise orders on the battlefield. I knew him after the war and after my brother fell because they fought together, shoulder-to-shoulder, on the Golan Heights and afterwards when my brother served on the Golan Heights. This personal connection strengthened over the years. When Yanush fell gravely ill he showed the same courage and quiet he roism. He was an exemplary human being. The Jewish People have lost one of its greatest fighters. May his memory be blessed. Israel and the European Union have agreed to put relations between us back on track. In the conversation I had over the weekend with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, I heard from her that the EU is opposed to any boycott of Israel, and about their action regarding product labeling, she defined it as non-binding and said that it does not reflect their position regarding the final borders of the State of Israel, which can be determined – that is what she said – in direct negotiations between the sides. Israel, as a representative of democratic values, is entitled to receive support from Europe and not just criticism, and I think that this step is welcome. Of course, this is not to say that there will not be friction. There are things that we do not agree on. Neither is this to say that there will not be friction with specific countries within the EU, just as there are countries, more than a few, that also support our position. But the fact that the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy has come out strongly against BDS and against economic sanctions against Israel, is – of course – a step in the right direction.