Beltway Insider: Biden’s Laundry List, Pardons and More, Trump Cabinet Shakeup, Syria, Notre Dame

Details: Category: Beltway Insider; Published on Sunday, 08 December 2024 09:37; Written by Janet Walker

President Biden, who vowed after the November election to continue the work until the end of his presidency, is confronted, in the seven weeks remaining, with a myriad of unfinished business from pardons to student loan forgiveness.

The President's job approval rating, according to the website fivethirtyeight.com for the period ending December 8, 2024, decreased by 0.8% to 37.3% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness remained consistent at 56.1% of those polled. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.

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Biden Mulls Preemptive Pardons

President Biden, who leaves office on January 25, 2025, shocked many this week by pardoning his son, Hunter Biden, who had plead guilty in a Los Angeles, California, federal court, to all counts in a nine-count indictment, including three felony tax offenses and six misdemeanor tax offenses. He was scheduled for sentencing on December 16, 2024.

A president has the authority to issue pardons and commutation of sentences has he sees fit, and most presidents issue hundreds each year. President Biden has issued only 26, which is comparatively small against the number of pardons his predecessors have given.

According to the Department of Justice, Office of Pardon Attorney, over the last five presidencies Biden has issued the least and would need to issues 174 additional pardons before the end of his term to be near the average. Former President Bill Clinton, at the end of his second term, issues the most pardons at 343, and a total of 450 over two terms, followed by President Barack Obama, at the end of his second term with 190 pardons, President George W. Bush, at the end of his second term, issued 170 pardons, and former President Trump issued 144 at the end of his first term. President Jimmy Carter issued the most pardons at 534 during his single term in office.

Biden to date has issued 26 pardons, and of course the most controversial has been the pardon of his son. He is not the only president to pardon a family member. Former President Bill Clinton, in January 2001, issued a presidential pardon for his half-brother Roger Clinton, Jr., for a 1985 cocaine possession and tracking conviction, but not before he had spent time in prison.

Preemptive Pardons

President Biden is considering issuing preemptive pardons for many "official and allies" who are potential targets of the incoming administration after members of Trumps inner circle and those aligned to his cause have vocally stated he will target after he returns to office for the way in which he alleges the judicial system was weaponized to discredit and destroy him.

Trump has stated that "Democrats, in his dark fantasy of election fraud — "will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again." It would be foolish to dismiss such promises as mere bluster, Bloomberg reported.

While the extent of the White House deliberations, and President Biden's involvement, are mere speculation at this point, and largely up to the White House lawyers. However, the possibility of preemptive pardons to end the incoming administrations attempts to weaponize the judicial system to validate his dark fantasy of election theft and persecution for business fraud are ongoing and are needed to stop this revenge driven baseless retaliation.

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What Biden Needs to do Before He leaves Office

With seven weeks in office, Biden has a laundry list of items that needs his immediate attention. Summarizing three of the most critical issues, Student Loan Forgiveness, Arming Ukraine, and Fortify Environmental protections, which must be done as the incoming administration has announced plans, and tapped the unequipped and unprepared, in his quid pro quo pay for placement cabinet, as leaders, which will result in egregious, irreparable damage to the people and to the European continent.

Student Loan Forgiveness

As Biden mulls preemptive pardons, Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona should forgive or pardon the millions who invested heavily in their futures, and the American dream, investing in an education that failed to deliver, leaving them burdened with impossible debt and crippled by mitigating factors outside of their control.

The Biden Administration is working on a "new provision would define hardship as "likely to impair the borrower's ability to fully repay the Federal government" or "renders the costs of enforcing the full amount of the debt"—or, in other words, if the department determines that the borrower will most likely default on the loan, they'll wipe it out," Newsweek reported.

As his term trickles down to weeks, many who invested their hope in his SAVE program are hoping for the fulfillment of his promise.

Fortify Environment Protections

The Biden Administration must fortify environmental protections has the next administration has vowed to "drill, drill, drill," on Day 1. As Trump is the devil we know, we already understand his environmental policies will be destructive for the climate, the people, and the land, but for a boon for the billionaire.

"One thing that the Trump administration could do is […] rapidly increase oil, natural gas and coal production on federal lands. They can also call on Congress to repeal the Antiquities Act, which was used to establish national monuments where mineral and oil and gas extraction can occur," Murray, [Brian Murray, director of the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability at Duke University,] said. "I will cut your energy prices in half within 12 months," Trump said during a rally in Detroit on Oct. 18," NPR.com reported.

The Paris Climate Accord is also on Trump chopping block. A Day One Executive Order has been prepared that will remove the United States from participation. The $8 billion annual price tag paid by the United States, as part of the agreement, could be picked up by any of the more than 800 private citizen billionaires in the United States to keep the U.S. on track to meet the climate goals.

Arm Ukraine

Providing the Ukraine with enough weaponry and munitions to sustain themselves over the next two years, is critical not only for the people of the Ukraine, but more importantly the people of the European Continent. Trump has made is position on the war in Ukraine widely known, and while he believes world peace is achievable on Day one, it is not likely.

The idea of succeeding lands to achieve peace only benefits Russia and sets a dangerous precedent as Russia President Vladimir Putin, looks to recapture the strength and land mass of pre-1991 Russia, before the Soviet Union was dissolved in the first wave of democracy that destroyed Communism in Europe.

Biden's team of advisors must supply Ukraine with an extensive surplus and continue to permit long-range ATACM's or Air Tactile Missile System's to stop Putin from advancing and to advance a cease-fire, which can only be achieved if Ukraine captures more Russian territory.

Trump Cabinet Shake-up

President-elect Trump is already experiencing a shake-up in his proposed cabinet picks. While President-Trump continues to exhibit "support" for Defense Secretary pick Pete Hegseth, a former veteran and Fox News anchor who has is/is not an admitted alcoholic, sources close to the president-elect have stated if Hegseth is out, former GOP presidential candidate and Florida governor Ron DeSantis is his next choice.

Trump can not even gain the support of his GOP allies, as Hegseth will need congressional approval. "We absolutely cannot have a secretary of defense that gets drunk on a regular basis," Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) said on Tuesday, as Hegseth met with Republicans on the Hill and sought to calm concerns about his viability as a nominee. "I got to know that he's got that problem licked. That it's not a problem anymore. I've seen public statements to that effect, and if he reassures me that's the case, then I'm satisfied with it," The Washington Post reported.

It would not be the first time a candidate has been rejected for his alleged drinking and womanizing issues. The late Senator John Tower, (R-TX), was grilled by his colleagues and finally rejected for the same issues. As addicts deal with one day at a time, and we understand alcohol is a disease, the overarching possibility of a flare-up due to stress or mitigating PTSD issues is very real and the position calls for someone with a more even-tempered personality, someone not prone to even the hint of relapse.

Pick to Lead DEA Withdraws

Hillsborough County, Florida, Sheriff Chad Chronister, whom President-elect Trump had tapped to lead the Drug Enforcement Agency, said on social media Tuesday that "as the gravity of this very important responsibility set in, I've concluded that I must respectfully withdraw from consideration," The Washington Post reported.

Trump has denied the choice to withdrawn him from consideration was Chronister's and pushed back on the Sheriff's statement stating, in typical Trump fashion, that the choice was his and not the veteran law enforcement officer's.

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Syria Leader Flees Country, Government Falls

Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has reportedly fled his country, after Syrian rebels, who have fought against the regime for 13 years, breeched the city. Although his location cannot be verified, sources and allies included Russian government have confirmed the al-Assad government has fallen.

"As a result of negotiations between B. Assad and a number of participants in the armed conflict on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, he decided to resign from the presidency and left the country, giving instructions for a peaceful transfer of power. "Russia did not participate in these negotiations," the ministry said," Reuters reported.

The nation has been at war since the Arab Spring uprising in 2011, which spread across 17 nations in the middle east and resulted in repeated governments falling. The Syrian leader maintained his stronghold on the people and nation and fought against the rebels, deploying chemical agent in 2013 in two opposition-controlled areas of Damacus, killing at least 1700 citizens, and injuring 3600.

The Siege of Aleppo was another battle that raged for nearly five years, as al-Assad fought against the U.S. funded rebels. The once bustling city of 2.5 million is now reminiscent of Gaza, a land demolished from war, shelled out buildings, with the most vulnerable suffering as the two groups, Syrian rebels and Assad's military forces, joined by Russian military forces, Iranian backed Hezbollah and neighboring Jihadist, deemed all inhabitant's expendable.

The fall of the al-Assad government punctuates the end of Arab Spring, an uprising originating from a people tried of totalitarian rule, wanting a freer more democratic lifestyle.

Coronavirus Total

The CDC has recommended every person from age six months, including senior citizens should receive at least one shot of an updated COVID-19 vaccine, annually. The death toll from Covid-19 has dramatically decreased, as has transmission of the virus. Even as confirmed new cases continue each week, fewer are dying from the newer variants.

For the seven days ending December 8, 2024, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases reported by The World Health Organization increased by 106,289 confirmed cases totaling 776,947,553. The total worldwide death toll increased by 1,525 to 7,076,993 deaths. The United States has stopped providing Covid data to the World Health Organization. (Data updated November 24, 2024, from The World Health Organization).

Notre Dame Reopens after Fire

The Cathedral of Notre Dame, one of the oldest monuments in the capital city of Paris, France, reopened this weekend in a reverent and spectacular ceremony after a 2019 fire shocked the world, devastating Parisians who saw the falling of the famed spire as an overwhelming loss.

The fire overtook global coverage, and was broadcast worldwide, a symbolic foreshadowing of events to come. French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to rebuild, and with an estimate of $200M, private citizens worldwide, corporations, and the French government united to rebuild the Gothic Medieval church, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1991.

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Through a determined effort, and meticulous planning, the restoration was unveiled this weekend in a standing room only ceremony that welcomed current and former Heads of State, religious leaders, politicians, global leaders of Business and industry, and paid tribute to the men and women who assisted in making this day possible, from the initial first responders to the architects' builders, masons and stonecutters.

First Lady Jill Biden attended, as did President-elect Donald Trump, Great Britain's Prince William and European Heads of state were in attendance. Other's included Congo's President Denis Sassou Nguesso and his wife, and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, outgoing French Prime Minister Michel Barnier, his wife, and former French President Francois Hollande and his wife, French Billionaire François-Henri Pinault and his wife, actress Salma Hayek were also in attendance as was Trump advisor and billionaire, Elon Musk. More than 1500 guests were invited to the ceremony marking the grand re-opening of the more than 800-year-old cathedral.

For more information on President Joe Biden: Whitehouse.gov.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and the International Federation of Journalists.