USS Fitzgerald - and Appointees

So the President, who has consistently Tweeted his thoughts, even after the White House Press Staff has stated that 45's Tweets are "official Presidential statements," has now stated that "I am being investigated for firing the FBI Director by the man who told me to fire the FBI Director!  Witch Hunt"  Hunh.
   Yesterday afternoon in Colorado, but early Saturday morning in the sea off Japan, a Phillipine  container ship collided with the USS Fitzgerald, a 505-foot US Navy missile destroyer.  It looks like the container ship has some buckling of the port bow, but a large section on the starboard of the Fitzgerald was crushed, and the hull is breached under the waterline.  The bilge pumps have been running continuously since the collision, but the ship is listing due to water weight.  The Commanding Officer was air-lifted off the ship and is receiving treatment in Japan.  Multiple sailors are injured, but we have no list of the men, or their injuries.  Two other sailors have been air-lifted from the ship.  The worst part is that seven sailors are missing.  So far, none have been found.  I think that one of my biggest problems with this is that the President of the United States, the Commander in Chief, did not say a word about this yesterday - it wasn't until 1 hour ago (almost 18 hours after the accident) that he decided to mention it - on Twitter, of course - "Thoughts and prayers with the sailors of USS Fitzgerald and their families. Thank you to our Japanese allies for their assistance."
   The Japanese Navy has sent one of their ships to aid and support the USS Fitzgerald, along with two tug boats to help guide and support the stricken vessel.  Another US destroyer is on it's way to assist the ship, also.  But one of the biggest problems is that there could be no calls for assistance to the US Japanese Ambassador, nor to the US Navy Secretary - because neither one currently exists.  The positions exist in the government ranks, but no one has been named or nominated to fill those two positions by the current President.  So the US Navy families must just sit on their hands and wait for reports to be vetted and finally released to the world at large.  This stinks for any military family, period.
   Before 45 became President by taking his Oath of Office on 20 January 2017, he was aware that he needed to appoint 558 people for key positions that require the confirmation of the US Senate.  To date, 42  positions have been confirmed.  He has nominated 94 others, and has stated that he wants, but not actually nominated, 7 others.  415 key positions have not been mentioned by the President, and all offices are empty, because he has not yet seen fit to nominate people.  More details on this may be found at:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/trump-administration-appointee-tracker/database/

   If you dislike the sitting President, and have an outrageous sense of humor, I suggest you visit Randy Rainbow's page on Facebook - and especially watch and enjoy his music videos...
 

Forty-fifth Day of "45"

I apologize for continuing to write about the circus peanut... but he and his associates just continue to make stupid headlines in the news.  Yesterday cheeto cheeks decided that President Obama had placed wire taps in Trump Tower in New York City to spy on him and his Presidential campaign, and he sent out three bellicose Tweets about it.  This morning, in the forty-fifth day of his Presidency, he again had a Tweet fit, stating that the Obama administration abused its authority during the 2016 campaign, having wiretaps placed on the telephones in Trump Tower.  He also threw out a quote from a meeting that Obama had with then-Russian President Medvedev (referring to a proposed missile defense system) - before the 2012 election - "Tell Vladimir that after the election I'll have more flexibility."  (If you know your Russian history, then you know that Dmitri Medvedev was Putin's hand-picked successor to the Russian Presidency.)
   The White House has now asked the US Congress to examine the Obama administration as a part of it's ongoing probe into Russia's influence of the 2016 Presidential election.  White House spokesman Sean Sphincter stated today that neither the President nor administration officials would speak about this allegation until Congress has completed its investigation - which means no one in the White House will have to explain 45's accusations.  Sphincter said in a statement, "Reports concerning potentially politically motivated investigations immediately ahead of the 2016 election are very troubling."
   An Obama spokesman denied the charge, saying it was "a cardinal rule" that no White House official interfered with independent Justice Department investigations.  Under US law, a federal court would have to have found that the target of the surveillance is an "agent of a foreign power" in order to approve a warrant authorizing any electronic surveillance of Trump Tower.  Today, on NBC's Meet the Press, former Director of Intelligence James Clapper, who left the office at the end of Obama's term, said, "There was no such wiretap activity mounted against the president-elect at the time as a candidate or against his campaign."
   This ridiculous plot was first mentioned by radio and TV host Mark Levin, who broadcast that Obama used "police state" tactics to monitor 45's campaign.  Then Steve Bannon's Breitbart news jumped on the bandwagon.  Now 45 has convinced himself that it's a huge conspiracy....
   Author Stephen King had a great Tweet back, in response to the tiny-handed tangerine tyrant: "Obama tapped Trump's phones IN PERSON! Went in wearing a ConEd coverall.  Michelle stood guard while O spliced the lines.  SAD!"  Then he sent out: "Not only did Obama tap Trump's phones, he stole the strawberry ice cream from the mess locker."  And, later: "Trump should know OBAMA NEVER LEFT THE WHITE HOUSE! He's in the closet!  HE HAS SCISSORS!"
    Most people watching this play out agree that 45 is just trying to deflect attention from, and interest in, the investigation into his ties (and his associates connections to, and meetings with) to the Russians - before and during the campaign, and after the election before the inauguration.  It's a huge ball of worms that must be carefully untangled!