Thursday, January 14, 2021

Investor pressure on companies including Enbridge, BP boosted climate disclosures in 2020
By Bloomberg
Wednesday, January 13, 2021

Image: Enbridge

Companies are more than twice as likely to report climate risk data when investors actively pressure them to do so, according to a leading climate-disclosure platform.

More than 1,000 companies were asked by investors to disclose their impact on forests, climate change and water security last year, as part of an annual campaign by the nonprofit CDP. The response rate rose to 20 per cent in 2020 after lingering around 15 per cent for the previous three years, it said in a report released on Tuesday.

The 206 companies that disclosed new information to CDP after investor pressure include Enbridge Inc., Pernod Ricard SA and Nestle SA. They produce a combined 670 million metric tons of direct CO2 emissions, almost the same as Germany’s entire national fossil-fuel emissions.

“With business resilience and adaptation to systemic risks exposed by the global public health crisis, the tide is rapidly turning against companies not taking note of investor demand for disclosure,” said Emily Kreps, global director of capital markets at CDP.

Investors need companies to report data that show how vulnerable they are to climate change, and what they are doing to address it, in order to help them understand financial risks they are undertaking. In 2020, 108 institutional investors with a combined $12 trillion in assets asked companies to disclose data to CDP, which saw a particularly strong response from those based in Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and Japan.

The campaign struggled to succeed in Oceania, where just eight per cent of companies engaged by investors ended up disclosing. The report cited failures by the Australian government — which had to deal with some of the worst wildfires and droughts in the nation’s history last year — to create a political and business environment that incentivizes companies to act on climate.

On a global level, many of the biggest names continue to resist demands to disclose their information to CDP. Amazon.com, BP plc, Facebook Inc. and Royal Dutch Shell plc have all faced calls from the campaign for four years in a row, and they still don’t disclose the full scope of their impact on the platform.

© 2021 Bloomberg L.P.

Enbridge rejects Michigan's demand to shut down oil pipeline
By The Canadian Press
Tuesday, January 12, 2021

Image: Enbridge

Enbridge said Tuesday it would defy Michigan's demand to shut down an oil pipeline that runs through a channel linking two of the Great Lakes, contending that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's decision was based on bad information and political posturing.

The Democratic governor in November moved to revoke a 1953 state easement that allowed part of the Canadian company's Line 5 to be placed along the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac. Saying Enbridge had repeatedly violated the terms and put the lakes at risk, Whitmer gave the company 180 days – until May 12 – to turn off the flow.

Enbridge filed a federal lawsuit challenging the order shortly after it was issued. Vern Yu, president for liquids pipelines, gave a point-by-point-response to the state's termination notice in a letter Tuesday and said it wouldn't close Line 5

“Our dual pipelines in the straits are safe, fit for service and in full compliance with the federal safety standards that govern them,'' Yu said.

Mike Koby, vice-president of U.S. operations for the Calgary-based company, said Whitmer had overstepped her authority. Enbridge has “no intention of shutting down the pipelines based on these unspecified allegations,'' Koby said in an interview.

A message seeking comment was sent to Whitmer’s office.

Line 5 is part of Enbridge's Lakehead network, which carries oil and liquids used in propane from western Canada to refineries in the U.S. and Ontario. The pipeline moves about 23 million gallons (87 million litres) daily between Superior, Wis., and Sarnia, Ont., traversing parts of northern Michigan and Wisconsin.

The underwater section beneath the Straits of Mackinac, which connects Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, is divided into two pipes that Enbridge says are in good shape and have never leaked.

Whitmer, however, agrees with environmentalists, Native American tribes and other critics who contend they're vulnerable to a catastrophic spill.

Enbridge reached an agreement with then-Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican, in 2018 to replace the underwater portion with a new pipe that would be housed in a tunnel to be drilled beneath the straits.

The company is seeking state and federal permits for the $500 million project, which is not affected by the shutdown order.

Whitmer's order said granting the easement in a busy shipping lane vulnerable to anchor strikes was a mistake and Enbridge had made things worse, repeatedly violating a requirement that the pipelines rest on the lake bed or have other supports at least every 75 feet (22 metres).

The company also has failed to ensure that protective coating hasn't worn off and has allowed the pipes to bend excessively in some places, the order said.

In his response, Yu said problems with pipeline supports and coating had been fixed years ago and that Enbridge had taken numerous steps to prevent contact with vessel anchors after one was dragged over the pipelines in April 2018.

The allegation about bending appears to have been based on the state's flawed reading of data that could have been cleared up if officials hadn't refused to discuss technical issues over the past two years, he said.

The governor's notice is actually based on inaccurate and outdated information that ignores the current condition of the dual pipelines'' that federal regulators have described as safe, Koby said. He accused the state of bias, adding that “for the governor this is a political issue, pure and simple.''

© 2021 The Canadian Press

Environmental group concerned about native grasslands in southern Alberta
By The Canadian Press
Thursday, January 14, 2021,

Sage grouse in Milk River Natural Area Image: Alberta Wilderness Association

An environmental group says it is opposed to the proposed sale of oil and natural gas rights in the Milk River Natural Area and other native grasslands in southern Alberta.

The United Conservative government is holding an auction, which closed at noon Wednesday.

The Alberta Wilderness Association said in a letter to the province earlier this week that it has long been interested in conservation of native grasslands. It noted that less than half of native cover remains in Alberta's Grasslands Natural Region and it is highly fragmented.

“We want to make sure they will not be disturbing any native grasslands,'' Grace Wark, conservation specialist with the group, said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

Wark said the group is concerned about any development within the Milk River Natural Area because it contains grasslands that are home to threatened populations of swift fox and the greater short-horned lizard.

Alberta Energy said in a statement that the auction was a regular posting of available oil and gas leases and noted there have been no changes in government policy related to those leases.

“As is stated in the public offering document, since this lease lies beneath a natural area, established under the Public Lands Act, surface access is not permitted, nor is any other development within the natural area,'' said the statement.

“This is not unusual as there are a variety of ways that producers can develop reservoirs without disturbing the land above them, such as directional or horizontal drilling.''

Wark said that's still a concern, because the entire area consists of intact native prairie and species-at-risk habitat.

Even horizontal drilling, she said, could damage the grasslands around the Milk River Natural Area.

Wark said there are four other proposed leases outside that area that have native prairie and those parcels don't have any additional restrictions.

“All of this is a red flag for us because we want to make sure if new wells are going in, that they are happening on top of existing disturbance and that they are not continuing to fragment what little native grasslands we have left here in Alberta.''

Some of those four parcels contain endangered northern fescue grasslands.

When native grasslands get fragmented, it can disrupt life-cycle requirements for the animals that live there, Wark said. It can also interrupt migration for birds.

Alberta Energy added that obtaining a lease doesn't guarantee exploration or development.

“It's only gives a proponent rights in that subsurface panel – which they can produce only after and if they get all of the requisite regulatory approvals and surface rights access,'' said the statement. “All proposed projects continue to be subject to rigorous review by the Alberta Energy Regulator, and subject to Alberta's land-use policies, including regional plans.''

© 2021 The Canadian Press

Tower of London 'queen' raven missing, believed dead
Updated / Thursday, 14 Jan 2021 10:04

Legend has it that the Tower must maintain six ravens or else the tower and the kingdom will fall

The Tower of London's "queen" raven is missing and feared dead, but her master says there are still seven ravens in residence preventing the fall of the kingdom.

Raven Merlina, described as "free-spirited", has not been seen at the Tower for several weeks, and was first realised to be missing before Christmas when the ravens were being put to bed.

Legend has it that if the ravens ever leave the Tower of London, both the Tower and the kingdom will suffer, but Yeoman Warder Chris Skaife, Ravenmaster at the Tower, has put minds at rest.

Chris Skaife, pictured in October 2020, feeding the ravens

"Just before Christmas, before we went into the lockdown, we were putting the ravens to bed, and she didn't come back.

"Now Merlina is a free-spirited raven that has been known to leave the Tower precincts on many occasion, but I'm her buddy, and so she normally comes back to us, but this time she didn't so I do fear that she is not with us anymore," he told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme.

He added: "Obviously as the Ravenmaster, my concern is looking after the kingdom.

"Should the ravens leave the Tower of London will crumble to dust, and great harm will befall the kingdom.

"Of course that is myth and legend.

"But we do have seven ravens here at the Tower of London, six by royal decree and of course I still have a spare one, so we're OK at the moment."

Charles II is thought to have been the first to insist that the ravens of the Tower be protected after he was warned that the crown and the Tower itself would fall if they left.

In a statement, the Tower of London said: "We have some really unhappy news to share.

"Our much-loved raven Merlina has not been seen at the Tower for several weeks, and her continued absence indicates to us that she may have sadly passed away.

"Though it isn't unusual for our ravens to roam outside the walls, free-spirited Merlina has previously always returned to the Tower and to the Ravenmaster and his team, with whom she shared a wonderfully close bond.

"We now have seven ravens here at the Tower, one more than the required six, so we don't have any immediate plans to fill Merlina's vacancy.

"However in time we hope that a new chick from our breeding programme will be up to the formidable challenge of continuing her legacy.

"Since joining us in 2007, Merlina was our undisputed ruler of the roost, Queen of the Tower Ravens.

"She will be greatly missed by her fellow ravens, the Ravenmaster, and all of us in the Tower community."

Australia to kill US pigeon that crossed Pacific

Published

But officials say the pigeon, which has been named Joe, poses a "direct biosecurity risk" to Australia's bird population and poultry industry.

The bird will be caught and euthanised.

Melbourne resident Kevin Celli-Bird says he found the pigeon in his back garden on 26 December.

"He was pretty emaciated so I crushed up a dry biscuit and left it out there for him," he told the AP news agency.

Some internet research led Mr Celli-Bird to discover that the bird, which is registered to an owner in Alabama, was last seen during a pigeon race in the western US state of Oregon.

But after news of Joe's appearance made headlines in Australia, Mr Celli-Bird was contacted by officials concerned about the threat of infection.

The pigeon has not yet been caught, but the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment says it will have to be put down because of the danger of infection to local birds.

"Regardless of its origin, any domesticated bird that has not met import health status and testing requirements is not permitted to remain in Australia," a department spokesperson said in a statement.

"The only possible outcome to manage the biosecurity risk is humane destruction of the bird."

It is not clear how the bird managed to make the 8,000-mile journey from the west coast of the US to southern Australia, but officials believe he is likely to have hitchhiked on board a cargo vessel.

While it is possible to legally bring pigeons into Australia, the process is difficult and can cost tens of thousands of dollars, and none have been legally imported from the US in over a decade.

Joe the pigeon is not the first animal to face trouble from Australia's strict animal import laws.

Upset by veterans who stormed the Capitol, these vets decided to clean up trash the mob left on the streets of D.C.

By Sydney Page
Jan. 14, 2021 at 4:00 a.m. MST

When Capitol Hill was in chaos on Jan. 6, David Smith was there.

Smith, 40, was distributing hand-warmers to homeless people nearby when the siege started. He watched in disbelief as a menacing mob stormed the U.S. Capitol.

“It was pretty gut wrenching to see,” said Smith, who retired less than a month ago after serving in the Navy for 13 years.

As a veteran, he was especially horrified, he said, to learn that his fellow vets participated in the insurrection, including Jake Angeli, also known as the “QAnon Shaman,” and Ashli Babbitt, who was shot and killed in the Capitol.

“That was a dagger to the heart,” said Smith, who was a combat medic in Afghanistan. “Just because you served in the military doesn’t give you impunity to storm the Capitol building.”

On his commute home to Germantown, Md., Smith spotted remnants of Wednesday’s riot strewn around the streets. Trash littered Pennsylvania Avenue and adjacent areas, and signs and stickers with racist and fascist symbols and messages were “all over the place,” he recalled.

Smith decided he wanted to do something about it, calling on a group of fellow veterans and volunteers to do a thorough sweep of the area around the Capitol and downtown D.C. Beyond ridding the area of hateful markings, Smith hoped to reinforce that the veterans who participated in the siege do not represent them all.

Veterans and other volunteers spent two hours picking up trash and scraping off hateful stickers and signs plastered to beams and buildings around the Capitol and downtown D.C. (Ben Peifer)

Smith arranged the cleanup operation on social media through an organization he started in June called Continue to Serve. His goal is to create a community of veterans who stand up for justice and equality.

“We want to empower like-minded veterans to get busy in activism and community service,” he said.

Veterans and other volunteers spent two hours Sunday picking up trash and scraping off hateful stickers and signs plastered to beams and buildings around the Capitol and downtown. (Ben Peifer)

Smith said he was driven to create Continue to Serve in response to the racial unrest following the death of George Floyd.

“When I saw Lafayette Square get cleared, I broke into tears. I couldn’t believe this was happening in America, and that [law enforcement] would attack peaceful protesters,” he said.

He promptly posted “a long diatribe about veterans needing to stand up” on a D.C. Reddit page.

Messages expressing similar sentiments from fellow veterans in D.C., Maryland and Virginia poured in. A small group decided to collectively attend Black Lives Matter protests, with the aim of providing a sense of security for demonstrators, while supplying medical and logistical support.

“We just want to get out there and amplify and support their voices in order to ensure that we are sticking to our oath, which is to defend the Constitution, thereby ensuring the rights of all our citizens,” Smith said, adding that he and other veterans at times acted as a mediator between police and protesters over the summer to ensure they felt safe while marching.

Hans Palmer, 35, a Marine Corps veteran, came across the Continue to Serve team at Black Lives Matter Plaza last July.

“They were wearing ‘Vets for BLM’ shirts, and I said, ‘Hey, I’m a veteran,’” Palmer recalled. He asked to join them.

Last June, Smith started Continue to Serve with the goal of creating a community of veterans who support social justice. (Ben Peifer)

“We’re not all conservative, and that’s a stereotype I really want to erase,” Palmer, who served in the Marine Corps for six years, said. “We need real systemic change in this country, and I think that grass-roots, on the street, direct action, is the way to go.”

Beyond supporting social justice and honoring their oath to protect the Constitution, Continue to Serve hopes to ensure that like-minded veterans know they’re not alone, Smith said.

“I want our organization to be diverse; I don’t want it to be singular in thought,” said Smith, who grew up in what he called a “hyper conservative” family. “I just want social progress, and it seems to me that these are ideals that all people should want.”

Ashley Carothers, 34, an Air Force veteran who got involved with Continue to Serve in the summer, agreed. She is also deeply disturbed by the siege.

“To see veterans and active duty members partaking in attacking the Capitol was just appalling,” she said. MAGICK 101 “The oath is something that’s ingrained in you. There is nothing that undoes that oath; you continue those values through your entire life.”

Although she left the military in 2013, Carothers has vowed to continue serving the country through activism and volunteer efforts.

Since the summer, Continue to Serve has grown into a community of 45 veterans, most of whom live nearby. A few others from around the country have also stumbled upon the group on social media, and despite being at a distance, they’ve asked to join.

That includes Lindsay Rousseau, 40, a veteran based in Los Angeles, who connected with Smith in August. Since then, Rousseau has been working remotely on research and logistics with Continue to Serve.

“We are letting people know that veterans are not a homogenous group,” Rousseau said. “We really take to heart that we swore an oath to the Constitution, we did not swear an oath to a person.”

Although Rosseau couldn’t be at the Capitol cleanup herself, she was happy to see dozens of fellow veterans banding together, she said.

Smith is now focused on growing Continue to Serve, hoping to host monthly gatherings, including more cleanups, food drives, and other events to bring the veteran community together.

“We want this country that we fought for to be the place it’s meant to be,” he said.

Witches to GOP: If you summon a demon, have a plan to banish it

The events of Jan. 6 prove without a doubt the GOP is incapable of controlling what it unleashed with Trump.

Trump supporters participate in a rally Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. As Congress prepared to affirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory, thousands of people gathered to show their support for President Donald Trump and his baseless claims of election fraud. The president addressed the rally on the Ellipse, just south of the White House. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

January 8, 2021

Heather Greene

(RNS) — There is a saying in the modern witchcraft community: “If you plan to summon a demon, you best be able to banish it.” The concept is meant very literally. Spirits of all kinds can be unpredictable and demons even more so.

If a witch, or anyone for that matter, wants to work with a spirit entity, they should first gather the skills and the magical tools needed to not only summon the spirit but also to banish it should it become unruly.

Republican leaders would have been wise to heed this magical advice five years ago when they invited Donald J. Trump to be their party leader and candidate for the U.S. presidency. They made this decision, despite warnings from within their own ranks and without. They did this despite the candidate’s personal and professional reputation. They did this despite his combative and violent campaign rhetoric.

If not before, the events of Jan. 6 prove without a doubt the GOP was not prepared to banish what it had unleashed. In a prophetic statement in 2016, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) famously said, “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed … and we will deserve it.”

“If you plan to summon a demon, you best be able to banish it.”

“Don’t bite off more than you can chew.”

“Be careful what you wish for.”

The common related idioms go on. Here is another one.

“If you play with fire, you just might get burned.”

Remember the final scene in Steven Spielberg’s film “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981), in which the Nazis open the ark of the covenant in search of power? Indiana Jones, of course, knows to look away from the ark. The Nazis do not. When the top is lifted off, spirits and demons and all the world’s evils exit the ark and incinerate the villains.

The GOP saw in Trump the best ticket to power. They opened the ark, and now the demons are out.

“Raiders of the Lost Ark,” of course, is fiction, and the demons return to the ark after they are done with their show of strength. Reality is not quite as neat. These demons are not the kind that go away with a simple sprinkle of salt, a burning of cleansing herbs or a good, loud shout of “Go Away!” They won’t politely go back into hiding after the storming of a few federal buildings, and they won’t easily fade after Trump’s tenure in office is over.

In reality, Trump was just the catalyst and ringleader. Most of these demons have long been banging on the spirit board from the other side, or lurking in an ark that we, as Americans, have neglected to acknowledge. The GOP was unprepared, and so were we.

In magical work, there are ways to prepare. In “The Witch’s Book of Spirits,” author and modern witch Devin Hunter suggests taking stringent steps to prevent disaster. He recommends always casting a full circle of magical protection until you know what type of spirit you have summoned. In the book “Spirit Speak,” author and witch Ivo Dominguez Jr. stresses the importance of knowing one’s limits before engaging in such work.

This is one of the many ethical and moral guideposts lurking in modern witchcraft, most of which apply to daily life and have versions outside of magical rhetoric. In general, personal responsibility and the full considerations of consequences are paramount.

As we move past the devastating events of Jan. 6, we must all be mindful that spirits, real and metaphorical, are always knocking inside each of us, in the world and beyond. Therefore, whether you work with spirits or not, consider heeding the advice of your local witches. If you plan to summon a demon, you best be prepared to banish it.

(Heather Greene, M.A. is an acquisitions consultant, freelance editor and journalist and author of the book “Bell, Book, and Camera: A Critical History of Witches in American Film and Television.” The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Religion News Service.)

VIKINGS DID NOT SACK THE CAPITOL

Heathens condemn storming of Capitol after Norse religious symbols appear amid mob

Lea Svendsen, a heathen author, said it was 'heartbreaking' to see her articles of faith at the center of the violence.

Jake Angeli, center, better known as the “QAnon Shaman,” and other supporters of President Donald Trump are confronted by Capitol Police officers outside the Senate Chamber inside the Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

January 8, 2021

Emily McFarlan Miller

(RNS) — The flags emblazoned with “Jesus 2020” and the cross, the most easily recognizable symbol of Christianity, were hard to miss amid the mob of President Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol grounds and, eventually, the building itself.

But they weren’t the only religious symbols that appeared during the siege Wednesday (Jan. 6) in Washington, D.C.

Some have pointed out the tattoos sported by one of the most prominently photographed rioters — a shirtless man wearing fur and horns and red, white and blue face paint.

The man, since identified by multiple media outlets as Jake Angeli, better known as the “QAnon Shaman” or “Q Shaman,” is covered in several tattoos, among which are symbols associated with heathenry, or Norse paganism.

Lea Svendsen, a heathen author, said it was “heartbreaking” to see her articles of faith at the center of the violence.

“We don’t want to make people uncomfortable,” Svendsen told RNS. “We don’t want them to feel unsafe, because we’re allies, we are here for them, we’re part of the community, we’re neighbors.”

Angeli, whose real name is Jacob Anthony Chansley, was arrested Saturday and charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, according to the Washington Post.

He is a vocal supporter of conspiracy theories associated with QAnon, an elaborate conspiracy theory whose adherents are devoted to President Donald Trump, and he’s a fixture at right-wing political rallies in Arizona, according to Reuters.

Angeli has also shared a “mishmash” of religious sentiments on his Facebook page, which since seems to have disappeared, according to The Wild Hunt. The Pagan website pointed out posts filled with “Pagan imagery,” mixed in with “affirmations of Christianity,” as well as a description of himself as a “shamanic practitioner and energetic healer.”

His tattoos include a number of Heathen symbols, including three interlocking triangles called a valknut; Mjölnir, Thor’s hammer; and a tree The Wild Hunt noted may represent Yggdrasil, the sacred tree in Norse cosmology.

Jake Angeli, a supporter of President Donald Trump, speaks at a rally outside the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

It’s unclear whether Angeli adheres to heathenism or has merely appropriated the symbols. In a blog post, Jason Mankey, editor of Patheos’ Pagan channel, acknowledged that some pagans have stumbled into QAnon conspiracy theories online, where discussions about aromatherapy and herbalism can devolve into baseless fears about microchipped vaccines.

But it’s also the case that Norse iconography and religion have been widely appropriated by white supremacists — who were also seen among the mob in photos and video captured Wednesday inside the Capitol — since Nazis seized on them as part of the history and culture of an imagined master race, Svendsen said.

That’s not what those symbols stand for, according to Ethan Stark of Heathens Against Hate.

Mjölnir in particular is the “most recognized and widely used” symbol of heathenry, Stark said. It likely was adopted in response to crosses worn by many Christians as Norse cultures converted to Christianity, he said, and has become popular again as many people have rediscovered Norse religions. But its widespread use among white supremacists has caused confusion.

The Anti-Defamation League notes that the symbol must be judged in context, and “one should never assume that the Thor’s Hammer appearing by itself necessarily denotes racism or white supremacy.”

Heathens Against Hate and others also took issue with Angeli’s horned headdress.

“As a devotee of the Horned God, I’m especially sickened by Angeli’s perversion of the horns,” Mankey wrote.

“For me those horns represent oneness with the Earth, the pursuit of knowledge, and the liberation of the oppressed. The sickened MAGA crowd that stormed the Capitol building shares none of those values, and I hope Angeli is soon brought to justice, gets the mental health assistance he most obviously needs, and is then sent away to rot in jail for twenty years.”

Several individuals and organizations have pointed out that the headdress resembled a Sioux war bonnet.

“The greater victim of appropriation is the #FirstNations #Sioux, whose sacred headdress reserved for warrior men of particular merit, is being worn by the vile and undeserving,” Heathens Against Hate tweeted.

The organization is one of several that was quick to speak out against Wednesday’s riot at the Capitol and any association with paganism or heathenry.

The Troth, an international heathen organization, noted that “several of those who have been most visible in these events have also been bearing symbols many of us hold very dear and even sacred” in a statement published online Wednesday. It condemned the violence and the misinformation and rhetoric that fueled it.

“Tonight, we join with faith leaders from around the globe in a prayer for peace to settle over the United States and that a calm and orderly transition of power continues,” it said at the time.

It’s important to speak up, Svendsen said, because she doesn’t want anyone — especially people of color or LGBTQ people — to feel uncomfortable around her as a visible heathen who wears those symbols as articles of faith. To her, white supremacy is the antithesis of her beliefs.

“The very notion of excluding others based on how they appear or what their ethnic background is or what their philosophical background is, is counter to what the myths themselves teach us,” Svendsen said.

She pointed out that those myths are full of stories about Odin, chief among the Norse gods, and his pursuit of wisdom, wherever it may come from.

“He wants to learn everything he can about the world in order to protect it, and it doesn’t make sense to have a god who’s going to be all about wisdom while excluding 99.9% of the wisdom that’s out there,” she said.

“So it’s very much a problem that’s been ongoing, and, unfortunately, this is not the first time. It’s not the last time.”

RNS

NEWS

US crisis: President Trump

blames his lawyer, Giuliani

for impeachment

President Donald Trump has blamed his lawyer, Rude Giuliani for his second impeachment on Wednesday, according to CNN

The President has also told people to stop paying for the lawyer’s legal fees, according to the news network quoting a source.

CNN reports that though Trump’s aides were not clear if the President was serious about his instructions given he’s lashing out at nearly everyone after the events of his second impeachment.

Trump, who is US 45th President, became the first among them all to be impeached twice when the House of Representatives confirmed his impeachment on Wednesday, a week after he was accused of inciting his supporters to launch a deadly attack on US Capitol.

Trump was impeached by the House on a single charge of incitement of insurrection.

The attack was said to be the outgoing President’s push to stop the certification of Joe Biden by the Congress.

And the CNN reports that Trump has been blaming his longtime personal lawyer and many others for the predicament he now finds himself in.

The lawyer, who is expected to play a role in Trump’s impeachment defense, is said to have been left out of most conversations thus far.

One White House adviser told CNN that “everybody’s angry at everyone” inside the White House, with the President being upset because he thinks people are not defending him enough.

“He’s in self-pity mode,” the source said, with Trump complaining he’s been under siege for five years and he views this latest impeachment as a continuation of that.”

But many people close to the President view the current situation as different than his first impeachment.

“His actions led to here, no one else,” the White House adviser said, adding, “He instigated a mob to charge on the Capitol building to stop the certification, he’s not going to find a lot of sympathetic Republicans.”

Donald Trump Has Instructed His Staff Not To Pay Rudy Giuliani’s Legal Fees
BY : CAMERON FREW ON : 14 JAN 2021

PA Images

Donald Trump has asked his staff not to pay Rudy Giuliani’s legal fees in the wake of his second impeachment.

The outgoing POTUS is the first president in US history to be impeached twice by the House, charged with ‘incitement of insurrection’ after last week’s deadly siege on the Capitol.

Trump’s relationship with colleagues and other aides has reportedly become increasingly fragile, including his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani.

PA Images

As reported by The Washington Post and The New York Times, Trump is refusing to pay the former NYC mayor. He also told aides that all reimbursement requests from Giuliani, whether it be for travel or other expenses, must go through Trump personally.

The president had earlier been ‘offended’ by Giuliani reportedly requesting $20,000 for his work pedalling conspiracy theories and other baseless electoral fraud claims after the election, something the attorney has denied. ‘The arrangement is, we’ll work it out at the end,’ he said.

While ‘everybody’s angry at everyone’ inside the White House at the moment, federal officials have also reportedly been blocking Giuliani’s calls to Trump. The president has also ‘privately expressed concern’ at some of Giuliani’s actions, as per The Post.

PA Images

In addition to Giuliani, Trump is reportedly ‘lashing out at everyone’, going into ‘self-pity’ mode as more Republican lawmakers and officials distance themselves from him.

Among his top resentments are Vice President Mike Pence, Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, Senior Adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner, Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien, and Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. One senior administration official said, ‘The president is pretty wound up. No one is out there.’

Support from the GOP is in far less abundance compared to Trump’s first impeachment, with one unnamed White House adviser saying, ‘His actions led to here, no one else. He instigated a mob to charge on the Capitol building to stop the certification; he’s not going to find a lot of sympathetic Republicans.’

THE MAN THEY COULD NOT HANG

PA Images

CNN’s Pamela Brown also said, ‘Even those who have defended the president fiercely all these years are saying privately that no one else got him here but himself; the reason why he was impeached twice was his fault and no one else’s.’

Another source cited his permanent Twitter ban to be adding to his isolation, telling CNN, ‘He’s been holed up in the residence, that’s never a good thing. He’s by himself, not a lot of people to bounce ideas off of – whenever that happens he goes to his worst instinct. Now that Twitter isn’t available, God only knows what the outlet will be.’

Trump’s impeachment will next move to the Senate, where it will require a two-thirds vote to convict.

Late-night TV

reacts to Trump impeachment

Jimmy Fallon, James Corden, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel and Seth Meyers react to the second impeachment of President Donald Trump.

Trump impeached again by House for 'incitement of insurrection'

Updated: 2021-01-14 14:01:00 KST

The U.S. House of Representatives passed on Wednesday, by the vote of 232 to 197, an impeachment article against President Donald Trump on the charge of "incitement of insurrection" over the storming of the U.S. Capitol last week.

Ten House Republicans broke ranks to vote for impeachment.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signed the enforcement of the article, adding that she signs it sadly and with a heart broken over with what it means for the U.S.

"Today, in a bipartisan way, the House demonstrated that no one is above the law, not even the President of the United States, that Donald Trump is a clear and present danger to our country."

Trump, who became the first president in U.S. history to be impeached twice by the House, released a video on Twitter on the same day, condemning the earlier violence at the Capitol.
There was no mention of the impeachment.

"I want to be very clear. I unequivocally condemn the violence that we saw last week, violence and vandalism have absolutely no place in our country and no place in our movement."

The impeachment article now goes to the Senate, which requires a two-thirds majority to convict the president.

At least 17 Republicans in the 100-member chamber need to join the Democrats in order for Trump to be convicted.

The Senate's Republican majority leader, Mitch McConnell says the chamber is set to open a regular session next Tuesday, which is just one day before Joe Biden's inauguration.
This means the trial would proceed after Trump leaves office.

If he is convicted after leaving the White House, there would be a vote on banning him from running for office again.

Yoon Jung-min, Arirang News. Reporter : yoonjm@arirang.com

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