President Trump, French President Macron Hold Joint Press Conference
French President Emmanuel Macron is at the White House on Tuesday where he is set to join President Trump for a day of meetings followed by a joint news conference on his second day in Washington for his official state visit.
During a brief meeting with Macron after their Oval Office remarks, Mr. Trump called North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un "very open and very honorable." Looking ahead to the eventual meeting between the U.S. and North Korea, Mr. Trump said the North Koreans have said they want the summit to happen "very soon." Mr. Trump also touted the economy, low unemployment and trade during his second meeting with Macron. He said the two had engaged in "substantive" talks on Iran. Mr. Trump teased they "may have an agreement [on Iran] between the two of us soon."
Mike Pompeo Advances Out of Committee with Favorable Recommendation
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a late pivot on Monday evening, approved the confirmation of Mike Pompeo to be the next secretary of state. The final committee vote was 11-9.
According to Senate rules, only senators who are in the room can be counted, meaning they had a 10-10 tie since Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., was not present (he was giving a eulogy in Georgia). The official vote then was held up while committee members debated how to deal with the impasse. Faced with the possibility of waiting until 11 p.m., when Sen. Isakson could arrive to vote in person, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., agreed to change his vote from “no” to “present”.
Also, minutes before the vote, Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky, changed his opinion and declared his support for Pompeo.
Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the majority leader, intends to begin debate on Mike Pompeo’s nomination as soon as Wednesday, with a final vote expected before senators leave Friday for a weeklong recess.Pompeo needs 50 votes from the Senate to be confirmed as the next Secretary of State.Most observers expect the Senate, where Republicans hold a 51-49 advantage, to officially confirm Pompeo because three Democrats have already said they’ll vote for Trump’s pick.
Man Arrested After Toronto Van Attack Charged With 10 Counts of First-Degree Murder
Alek Minassian is accused of steering a white rental van down a packed Toronto street killing 10 people and leaving 15 others injured. He allegedly drove for nearly a mile early Monday afternoon along Yonge Street, north of midtown Toronto, sometimes veering onto the sidewalk. Earlier this morning, Alek Minassian was charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder and 13 counts of attempted murder. His bail hearing is set for May 10.
So far, Alek Minassian is not being called a terrorist. "There would appear to be no national security connection," Canada's Minister of Public Safety Ralph Goodale said. He was unknown to Toronto authorities before the van incident, Police Chief Saunders said, noting: "There's nothing we have ... on him right now."
Before the attack, Minassian lauded an American mass killer on his Facebook account. "All hail the Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!" Elliot Rodger killed six people and injured 14 others in a stabbing, shooting and vehicle-ramming attack in 2014 near the UC Santa Barbara campus.
14 States Hit Record-Low Unemployment
Fourteen states have set new records for low unemployment rates in the last year, nearly a decade after the recession put millions of Americans out of work. The 14 states include: Hawaii, which is the lowest in the nation, Idaho, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Oregon, Wisconsin, California, Colorado, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Tennessee and North Dakota.
Such a tight job market means businesses are competing for workers, rather than workers competing for scare jobs. Wages have risen only slowly in recent months. The average hourly earnings of nonfarm employees stood at $26.82 in March 2018, up from $26.11 in March 2017.
San Francisco Mayor Tired of ‘Enabling’ Homeless Population
Each night, around 3,500 people are sleeping on San Francisco’s streets, according to data from the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing.
San Francisco Mayor Mark Farrell is promising an aggressive crackdown on homeless encampments in the city’s Mission District. Mayor Farrell told the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday that the city has gone from being compassionate towards the homeless population to enabling them. When it comes to tent camps, Farrell said, “We have moved as a city from a position of compassion to enabling (unacceptable) street behavior, and as mayor I don’t stand for that.” Farrell went on to say, “Enough is enough. We have offered services time and time again and gotten many off the street, but there is a resistant population that remains, and their tents have to go.”
As in the past, city crisis teams will fan out to parts of the Mission east of South Van Ness Avenue and roughly between 14th and 20th streets to try to coax an estimated 100 tent dwellers into San Francisco’s network of shelter programs. The people that choose to stay behind, Mayor Farrell has said, will not be shown the same compassion and their tents will be removed in the coming week. “The tents are a public safety hazard for the people living in them, and for the residents of San Francisco, and they are gone,” Mayor Farrell added.
State Dinner
President Trump tonight will host French President Emmanuel Macron at the White House, marking the first state visit since Trump took office last year.
This year, the state dinner guest list was whittled to around 120 people, down from highs of 350 or so people who attended previous bipartisan and media-filled dinners featuring celebrities and pop icons like Beyoncé. The White House said that the Washington National Opera will perform this year instead.
Typically, the leadership of the opposing party is invited to a state dinner, but the Trumps threw out that tradition as they also shunned journalists, who in previous administrations received a handful of invitations — not surprising for a president who derides the “fake news” media.
The White House chef, Cristeta Comerford, prepared a menu of rack of lamb and jambalaya, with herbs from the South Lawn. Dessert is a nectarine tart with White House honey. The meal will be served with American wines, a move that the White House says is meant to “embody the historic friendship” between the two countries.
The White House is keeping this detail under wraps — the designer of Melania Trump’s gown will be released on Tuesday as the dinner approaches.
Along with 1,200 cherry blossoms in the Cross Hall, the State Dining Room will be decorated with white sweet peas and white lilacs. There will be subtle hints at bipartisanship in the décor: Along with 1,200 Obama-inspired cherry blossom branches to decorate the Cross Hall, Mrs. Trump will use china from the George W. Bush and Clinton White Houses.
Mail Time!
• I don't believe that all the left hate Trump. There is probably only a handful. The rest are brainless sheep that are easily controlled by their puppet masters. That's why they can whip up a mob so quickly, signs and all.
• Hi, Mr. O! After I watched your podcast yesterday, I have a question and I would like you to answer it!! Do you think will have a civil war in this country between the white premises and all the other groups you have mentioned yesterday??? I love this great country and I hate to see it going downhill!!!!
• Great show tonight, Bill. Always interesting and informative. Along last the title of your new book! 'Killing the SS', looking forward to reading it. I don't remember ever hearing about what happened after the war and what happened to those that participated in all the atrocities took place in Germany.
Word of the Day: Chuffiness |
