As candidates, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris promised an administration that looks like America. But theyre facing increasing pressure from interest groups that worry Biden and Harris wont follow through and deliver a historically diverse Cabinet and staff.

In 2020, the bar for diversity has been raised well beyond the seven women and 10 nonwhite officials in President Barack Obamas first Cabinet, write POLITICOs Megan Cassella, Laura Barrn-Lpez and Alice Miranda Ollstein. So far, Bidens core White House team, including his chief of staff and key advisers, will be mostly white and male, and its not clear how many of his top picks for his Cabinet will be women or people of color though the Biden-Harris team says the administrations diversity will be clear once the transition process is complete.

Biden has announced several historic picks, including the first female Treasury Secretary nominee, Janet Yellen; Avril Haines, who would be the first female director of national intelligence; and Neera Tanden, who would be the first woman of color to lead the Office of Management and Budget. This week, Biden also announced the first senior White House communications team comprised entirely of women. But while the transition team touted the announcement, a debate has bubbled up about how groundbreaking the move really is. Some observers have pointed out that women have held prominent positions on President Donald Trumps communications team as well. Others worry not enough women will end up in higher-level decision-making roles, like Cabinet positions.

The push for diversity and the limited number of top-tier slots is creating conflict. For example, the United States has never had a female Defense secretary, and many women in national security have strongly come out in favor of Michle Flournoy, a former Defense Department official in the Clinton and Obama administrations. At the same time, members of the Congressional Black Caucus have been pressing Biden to appoint the first Black Defense secretary.

We asked a group of women how pioneering the Biden-Harris picks so far have actually been and what kinds of choices Biden would have to make to have a truly diverse administration. Here are some highlights:

The importance of visibility: Joe Biden is an older white man and will draw upon the social networks that he has to make decisions about his Cabinet positions and other appointments. To a certain extent, then, we should expect his cabinet picks to be reflective of this reality. I do, however, think it is important that women like Karine Jean-Pierre and Symone Sanders [two new members of the senior communications team] are in those positions because we have not seen Black women on our televisions and in our homes delivering important missives from the White House to the public on a regular basis. I think its also going to improve the ability of Black and other minority-serving news outlets to have access to the executive office. Niambi Michele Carter, associate professor of political science at Howard University and author of American While Black: African Americans, Immigration, and the Limits of Citizenship

The incoming Biden-Harris administration knows that personnel is policy, that having women, people of color and LGBTQ people at the table improves not just our government but also its policies for the people the administration serves. I am encouraged by the early announcements including two queer women of color among the historic all-female White House communications senior staff and I hope to see more women and marginalized people in top-tier positions so we can repair the damage of the last administrations havoc on our rights. Jennifer Fiore, senior vice president for communications and marketing at the Human Rights Campaign

The pressure is really on President-Elect Biden I think because as a nation we are more aware of the need for diversity than ever. He already smashed a formerly impenetrable glass ceiling by naming Kamala Harris his vice president, but most Americans want more than that. The all-female communications staff is good, but it is also a bit stereotypical that women excel in that field. ... If the Biden-Harris administration is to make good on its promise to appoint a cabinet that looks like America it must be considering qualified candidates of Native American ancestry, LGBTQ and non-binary individuals. I think that the criticism of a too-white Cabinet is positive because the administration is not complete yet, and it signals that there will be dissatisfaction until it is more diverse still. Nichola Gutgold, professor of communication arts and sciences at Pennsylvania State University and author of Still Paving the Way for Madam President

Bidens victory would not have been possible without the efforts of people of color, especially women of color, in key states. It is important that he acknowledge that these underrepresented communities are heard by appointing people whose backgrounds and actions show an understanding of and care for how policy issues affect these groups and affirming that they deserve to be descriptively represented in how our government leads and functions. Christabel Cruz, director of NEW Leadership at the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University

MORE TRANSITION NEWS -- What a Joe Biden Cabinet Pick Might Mean for Native Americansand Democrats, via POLITICO Magazine ... The California Air Quality Guru Who Taught Business to Love the Environment, via POLITICO Magazine ... Biden unveils diverse economic team as challenges to economy grow, via POLITICO ... The quiet frontrunner: How Biden landed on Yellen for Treasury secretary, via POLITICO

-- Inside the unlikely return of Jen Psaki, via POLITICO ... The Mastermind Behind Bidens No-Drama Approach to Trump, via The Atlantic ... Harris taps Tina Flournoy as chief of staff, via POLITICO ... New candidates for Agriculture secretary emerge as Biden faces pushback on Heitkamp, via POLITICO

Happy Friday, and welcome back to Women Rule. Today is National Cookie Day! Many thanks to Elizabeth Ralph, who is off today but contributed items to the newsletter. Send tips and feedback to [emailprotected].

MARK YOUR CALENDARS -- Join us on Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 10 a.m. for the Women Rule event Powering Forward: The Year Ahead. Well talk to the women who have provided steady leadership and vision during a tumultuous year from Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to Black Lives Matter founder Alicia Garza and discuss how they are looking to set the course in Washington, corporate America and activism in 2021. Register and see the awesome lineup here.

NEW WOMEN RULE PODCAST -- This week on the podcast, Anna talks to Elizabeth and POLITICO editor Carrie Budoff Brown about the strange year weve all lived through from the presidential election to the global pandemic the year ahead and what all of it means for women. Listen here.

WOMEN AT THE TABLE -- Nasdaq proposes listing standards for boardroom diversity, by Kellie Mejdrich: Nasdaq has proposed new listing standards to require greater diversity on public company boards of directors and more disclosures related to the subject, according to an SEC filing on Tuesday by the stock exchange. After a phase-in period, the proposal would eventually require most companies listed with Nasdaq to have at least two board directors who self-identify as having diverse backgrounds: one female, another either an underrepresented minority or LGBTQ+, the exchange said in a news release.

Nasdaq's move comes amid pressure from investors and advocates for more information on companies related to environmental, social, and governance issues. The exchange said in its proposal that was part of why it is seeking the changes. Nasdaq believes that the heightened focus on corporate board diversity by companies, investors, corporate governance organizations, and legislators demonstrates that investor confidence is enhanced when boardrooms are comprised of more than one demographic group, the exchange wrote. Nasdaq has also observed recent calls from SEC commissioners and investors for companies to provide more transparency regarding board diversity. ...

Companies that cannot meet the new board member and reporting standards will face potential delisting, although that consequence can be avoided if they disclose why they aren't meeting the diversity objectives or if they nominate additional diverse candidates to their board to satisfy the requirements. POLITICO

PANDEMIC LATEST -- Vaccines are on the way. What does that mean for pregnant people? by Chelsea Cirruzzo: Jaely Turner describes herself as covid-conscious and pro-vaccine. She and her young son are up-to-date on all of their shots. Turner wants to keep it that way. But, as the United States inches closer to making a coronavirus vaccine available to the public, Turner says she wont be rushing out the door to get it for herself. Thats because the Virginia-based doula is 10 weeks pregnant. I just have concerns about the safety of the vaccine long term and especially for myself as a pregnant and soon-to-be nursing woman, she says. I just am unsure of what the implications would be for me. And until she gets answers to her questions, she says, I feel inclined to wait it out until Im done nursing. ...

None of the three companies that say theyve developed effective coronavirus vaccines enrolled pregnant or breastfeeding people in their clinical trials. And that means initial guidance on who should get vaccinated likely wont include pregnant people, public health experts say. Pregnant people have long been typically left out of major vaccine trials because of concerns that the women and their fetuses might face increased risk. That protocol has come into question in recent years as experts increasingly make the argument that leaving them out of trials puts them at greater risk. The Lily

-- Pregnant health care workers a question for early Covid-19 immunization, via The 19th

ON THE HILL -- Incoming GOP congresswoman to take aim at AOC with conservative squad, by Evan Semones: An incoming congresswoman on Sunday promised a conservative answer to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs socialist squad after a record number of Republican women were elected to serve in the House. Rep-elect Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) floated the idea during an interview on CNNs State of the Union, saying a natural alliance is occurring among members of the new freshman class of Republicans.

I think what youre going to see is a group of individuals who are going to serve as a counterbalance to the values of the socialist squad, Malliotakis told CNNs Dana Bash. We dont believe we should be dismantling the economy. We dont believe we should be destroying free market principles. We dont believe in Green New Deal. We dont believe in packing the courts. POLITICO

-- "House Democrats elect DeLauro as next House Appropriations chair," via POLITICO ... McMorris Rodgers will make history as first woman at top of Energy and Commerce, via POLITICO

PHOTO OF THE WEEK: President-elect Joe Biden formally announced former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen as his pick to become the next Treasury secretary at the Queen Theater on Dec. 1, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. If confirmed, she would be the first woman to lead the department. | Alex Wong/Getty Images

IN HEALTH -- Eight months into the pandemic, this womens health clinic in rural Texas struggles to meet demand for care, by Shannon Najmabadi: Women come from more than one hundred miles away to Building 35 in a red brick public housing project in rural Brown County, a housing unit turned health clinic where virtually every item, even the beige exam tables, is donated. The clinic is walk-in only no appointments a better bet for patients with unreliable transportation or unpredictable schedules. Without federal funds, Midway Family Planning in Central Texas would have shut its doors long ago, its director says, as state budget cuts dried up family planning dollars from the Gulf Coast to the Texas Panhandle. Instead, the nonprofit clinic has endured as a small health care lifeline, where low-income and uninsured Texans far from busy cities with many doctors can get free or low-cost contraceptives, cancer screenings and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases.

This is what womens health care looks like in the rural heart of Texas, a state routinely ranked among the worst nationwide in health care access and where three-quarters of counties lack enough medical professionals. Lawmakers have increased funding for womens health in recent years, but there remain large swaths of the state where medical professionals are scarce and reliable internet is spotty and the gap between these health care have-nots and their urban counterparts has widened during the coronavirus pandemic.

From the rural Panhandle to the U.S.-Mexico border, financial pressures and safety concerns have shuttered doctors offices, inundated health departments and pushed people living on slim margins into ever more precarious living situations. Some clinics have seen their office visits plummet, leaving experts to wonder if women are missing opportunities to catch potential health problems before they need serious treatment. Elsewhere, safety net providers like Midway have scrambled to see patients traveling further to get time-sensitive care, like birth control. The Texas Tribune

AROUND THE WORLD -- Because Shes a Girl: Lockdown Exposes Gender Gap in U.K. Sports, via The New York Times ... In Japan, more people died from suicide last month than from Covid in all of 2020. And women have been impacted most, via CNN ... Saudi Arabia has dragged its imprisoned female activists back into court. How will Biden respond? via The Washington Post

WOMEN AT WORK -- Black women dont get much startup funding. These founders are trying to change that, by Jazmin Goodwin: Although Black women are the fastest-growing group of female entrepreneurs in the United States, theyve long been slighted by startup investors and significantly under-funded. But in spite of the obstacles they face, these founders are forging ahead and continuing to thrive in their businesses. In fact, the number of Black women who have raised over $1 million in funding has more than doubled since 2018, according to ProjectDiane, a biennial report released Wednesday. The report, which tracks publicly-announced funding of Black and Latinx women-founded businesses, is compiled by digitalundivided, a nonprofit focused on supporting entrepreneurial women of color. It uses data from Crunchbase and Pitchbook to track crowdfunding, angel, seed and venture round investments. Its possible the data doesn't include some founders who are not listed in those databases or didn't disclose funding publicly.

According to ProjectDiane, at the start of 2018, just 34 Black women had raised $1 million or more in outside investments for their businesses. But now, in data tracked through August 2020, more than 90 Black women have hit or exceeded that level. The numbers of Latinx women who've reached that milestone also grew quickly, although they remain incredibly underrepresented in VC circles, too. Still, its an impressive upswing that could signal a shift in a startup landscape largely dominated by White men.

This milestone comes amid a backdrop of protests against systemic racism and an unprecedented push to support and buy from Black-owned businesses. Founders and advocates are hoping to build upon that momentum, but also wonder if the support being shown to Black-owned businesses, let alone those founded by Black women, is here to stay. CNN Business

-- Group Seeking Equality for Women in Tech Raises $11 Million, via The New York Times ... Has Anything Changed for Black Women at Work? via Harvard Business Review

HISTORY DEPT. -- In 1968, IBM fired Lynn Conway for being transgender. She finally got an apology, by Sydney Page: When Lynn Conway started her career as a computer scientist at IBM in 1964, she quickly became known within the company for her raw talent, working on a team to produce technologies that would shape how advanced computers operate. But Conway was riddled with anxiety and depression as she tried to shield her transgender identity while living as a man. At the time, she was 30 years old and married with two children. Four years later, Conway decided to begin her medical gender affirmation journey. When IBMs corporate management team heard of Conways intentions, the chief executive at the time, Thomas J. Watson Jr., quietly fired her.

Conway, now 82, says she was crushed but that she ultimately understood. You cant change what happened, and in fact, if you look at what happened from all perspectives, it pretty much was the only thing that could have happened, said Conway. When you connect the dots, you see it as a sign of the times. Fifty-two years later, IBM has formally apologized to Conway. IBM is a very different company than it was back then, said Conway from her home in Michigan, where she lives with her husband, Charles Rogers, who is also a professional engineer.

Last month, the company invited Conway to attend a virtual meeting with its employees. I wanted to say to you here today, Lynn, for that experience in our company 52 years ago and all the hardships that followed, I am truly sorry, said Diane Gherson, IBMs senior vice president of human resources, at the event. Were here today not only to celebrate you as a world-renowned innovator and IBM alum, but also to learn from you; and by doing so, create a more inclusive workplace and society, she continued. Conway says the apology and decades-delayed acknowledgment of her work was freeing, and that it provided her with a long-sought sense of closure. The Lily

NEW RULES -- I stopped trying to control my body: the women who gave up grooming in 2020, via The Guardian

BOOK CLUB -- Why Cant Women Be Serial Killers, Too? by Amy Silverberg: Chelsea G. Summerss debut, A Certain Hunger, opens in a hotel bar not unlike other hotel bars. They all look the same, Dorothy, a middle-aged food critic and our antiheroine, tells us. Hotel bars smell like class privilege, desperation and hope. Anti might be too weak of a prefix to describe this heroine: Shes more of an outright villain, a red-haired seductress in leagues culinary, homicidal traditionally dominated by men. As a woman psychopath, the white tiger of human psychological deviance, Dorothy says, I am a wonder, and I relish your awe.

The man who approaches Dorothy in this particular hotel bar meets a violent and frankly grotesque end, and what follows is one of the most uniquely fun and campily gory books in my recent memory. Its apt that Dorothy once worked at a magazine called Noir, because A Certain Hunger has the voice of a hard-boiled detective novel, as if metaphor-happy Raymond Chandler handed the reins over to the sexed-up femme fatale and really let her fly.

Is the voice inviting? Sure, as inviting as a kidnapper holding a knife to your throat and threatening, Dont move until Ive finished my story. The descriptions of violence and gourmet cuisine are so visceral that I felt alternatingly hungry and sick to my stomach. The writer Janet Fitch says the authors ultimate goal is to give readers a pleasurable inner conflict, wanting to turn the pages faster while also lingering on each beautifully written sentence. With Summerss writing, I kept rereading sentences only as a double take, whispering to myself, Man, this lady is screwed up which is, Id argue, its own kind of pleasure. The New York Times

IN CULTURE -- Why These Women Are Crossing the Country By Motorcycle, via Cond Nast Traveler ... The Dangerous Blind Spot of The Undoing, via The Atlantic ... My Life in Different Decades, via The New Yorker ... Big Mouths Missy Finds Her Voice, via Vulture

VIDEO -- Congress is running out of time to do its job

WISDOM OF THE WEEK -- Iris Wilbur Glick, Vice President of Public Policy & External Affairs at the Greater Louisville Inc., The Metro Chamber of Commerce and Women in Government Relations 2020 Excellence in Advocacy for a Women Serving Women Campaign awardee: I often think of how I would handle a situation or take on a challenge if I could park any fears to the side. Over time, that perspective has strengthened my self-confidence in my abilities and helped me seize important opportunities for growth and advancement. What I have learned is that kind of assurance, paired with an eagerness for taking initiative, is necessary to reach the next level, especially since the kind of leadership roles I have sought were not achieved by me waiting to be told what to do. Connect with Iris here.

The rest is here:
Will the Biden administration really look like America? - Politico

'We continue to advocate, theres a lot of discussions being had,' said Ross Romano during today's announcement with Minister of Transportation Caroline Mulroney

No less than four Ontario government cabinet ministers, including Sault MPP and Minister of Colleges and Universities Ross Romano, announced a Transportation Plan for Northern Ontario via Zoom Thursday.

What could be described as awork in progress, the plan includes more than 60 actions, including improvements to rest areas, expanding bus service and going ahead with highway widening projects on Highways 17 and 11, along with actions to make further progress on plans for passenger rail service in northern Ontario.

Four-laning, or even widening, of Highway 17 east and north of the city is something Sault and area residents have wanted for years, and though some progress has been made, more is needed.

So does the plan include that?

That is a conversation certainly thats been had, and continues to be had. Wherever we can, we want to do anything in our power to support making our highways and roads safer, Romano said, replying to SooToday.

We continue to advocate, theres a lot of discussions being had.

Romano was joined Thursday by Caroline Mulroney, Minister of Transportation; Greg Rickford, Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines; and Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

Today is about a plan, replied Rickford, speaking to SooToday as a follow up to Romanos comment.

Part of the problem weve had across northern Ontario for the previous 15 years is...frankly, weve had a highway, when it comes to twinning, thats been built by ad hocery, driven by political ideology or some interest in the prospects of politics. Its high time we just got a plan. And that plan has been put in place so that we can start to make sense to the people of northern Ontario that this highway, particularly 11 and 17, is a safe highway, and the most pressing and most substantial parts of it are twinned.

I dont think theres any question that if you give this government an opportunity over the next decade, well see to it that significant parts of this road (is twinned), and Ive often felt the entire stretch at some point needs to be twinned. Nobody disputes that. You take a look at the map of across Canada, its the only section of the country where there is no twinned highway, so were going to continue to make sure that this is guided by plans, guided by safety sequencing, Rickford said.

It (the plan announced Thursday) will evolve as we do more consultation, as we gather more feedback and questions like yours (regarding Highway 17 four-laning) are exactly to the point. Thisll be an opportunity to feed those kinds of needs into future action items in the plan, said Mulroney, also in reply to SooToday.

Another element of the northern transportation plan that will be coming after todays announcement is were going to be putting together a task force of local transportation experts, Indigenous leaders, municipal leaders who can speak directly to the needs that theyre seeing on the ground that they need to be reflected in future versions of this plan.

Its a living document, Mulroney said.

As for parent company Genesee & Wyomings plans to stop Huron Central Railways short line freight rail operations eight days from now, Mulroney was asked by reporters what plans the province has to invest in rail infrastructure to keep the HCR running between the Sault and Sudbury, its operations crucial to local industries such as Algoma Steel.

In September, Genesee & Wyoming stated it needs $44 million from the senior levels of government to upgrade the line, Dec. 18 being the last day of business for the line if that financial aid doesnt come through (with a local stakeholder committee working to keep the lines operations alive).

Im well aware of the challenges theyre facing, Mulroney said, stating she and Romano had met with HCR pre-pandemic.

Were continuing through MTO and my office to discuss the challenges theyre facing and Im trying to understand how we can support them...I know theres a tight timeline so were continuing to monitor the situation. We are aware this has important implications for Ross riding and for the region.

Obviously, short line rail in northern Ontario is critical, its important, this is critical infrastructure and we want to make sure that we keep our short line rail operators and we make sure they're competitive, Romano said, adding the provinces plan includes sustaining short line rail operations in northern Ontario.

Romano drew attention to recent provincial Connecting Links funding which led to Black Road widening and work performed on Trunk Road.

There wasnt even a sidewalk on the side of the road (Black Road) and youre walking along a single lane of traffic with transports buzzing by you that are traveling across this country, and for that link we were able to secure three million dollars, the maximum allowable amount under Connecting Links funding for the Black Road expansion...and then we got three million dollars for the Trunk Road expansion, Romano said, thanking Mulroney and her Ministry for those investments.

Right now the focal point in terms of the current here and now announcements is that six million dollars worth of Connecting Links funding that youve seen over the last few years, Romano said.

Go here to read the rest:
Highway 17, Huron Central Railway discussed as part of northern transportation plan - SooToday

Were all fundamentally the same. We want quiet enjoyment, mobility, access to technology, an education that wont turn us into indentured servants, and the opportunity to find a job that isnt overly dreadful. We want to live reasonably well in the time we have. And were not afraid to work hard to earn that living. But we also want serious men and women in power making good decisions. We want to feel theres still a semblance of justice and decorum in the country and that were being represented. We all generally agree on this no matter our ethnicity or our politics, but even Democrats dont agree on Joe Biden.

Were facing social entropy, an economic prison, federal dysfunction, continued pandemic, people chosen not for their skill but for their capacity to be inoffensive, and endless identity strife. Biden didnt create these things, but he rode them to power. And his transition choices are making us wonder whether theyre firmly on the docket for the next four years. We wonder whether hes deliberately and unnecessarilytrolling the rightand mollifying the left with his cabinet picks instead of choosing people who will do the best job possible.

It seems like Bidens still campaigning at full velocity, not for the presidency but for influence over an increasingly divisive Democratic party no longer united by the threat of a second Trump Administration. And no matter who comes out on top in that struggle, we worry that the country will not be governed well (or at all) and that most Americans will continue to suffer. At this point, those of us who voted for Biden have to answer a hard question. Our real vote was actually not Trump. But what did we votefor? Whatever it is, were about to get it.

We knew this would happen. It always does when threats external to the polis are finally neutralized and the aristocrats turn back to their internecine rivalries and power games. Its a pattern that unfolds in every political culture to the extent that its almost a given. Only, in our present situation, the nobles, at least on the left, are ideologically-driven identity groups, each convinced that their time has now come and that Biden owes them royal favors.

They might be right. But the president-elect has no doubt already discovered that one cant be all things to all people all the time. Hes inevitably making some happy, while others feel rejected and betrayed. As a philosophy student once said to me in Prague, In Europe, weve always known: not everyone can be a cheerleader. Not everyone gets picked for the squad. Not everyone gets paid (or paid off) for ones efforts. Not everyone gets appointed consul, even if Incitatus just got the job. Some kids end up going home, dying their hair black, and practicing viola on game nights. Others have to wait until they can try out again. Still others wind up unjustly short-changed forever, whether they have it coming it or not. It all depends. Ask Alexander Vindman. Then ask Michael Cohen. Then ask Michael Flynn.

But the American people knowjust as Biden must knowthe extent to which social inequality and ethnicity play into every political decision such that the issue of racism remains influential in the United States. For all of Trumps offensive campaign race-baiting, Biden has been the primary beneficiary. The political and social divisions in America have recently made a lot of people money and put others in the poorhousea new mode of class mobility that giveth livelihoods and taketh them away, depending on who gets called out and by whom. One could look at that and reasonably argue that those forces would inevitably elevate any Democratic candidate following a Republican administration like Trumps. But not without incurring certain political obligations.

Playing on social perceptions of race and class will probably keep benefitting people until the country calms down and focuses on other ways of making itself miserable. TheOverton Windowkeeps shifting. In four years, well still be screaming about race. But whos making money off that screaming and whether theyre doing it from under a bridge, from Capitol Hill, or from a podium in a newly built University of California lecture hall remains an open question.

No one seriously doubts the fact that race and class have always been conflated in the American political imagination, but issues of racial identity have become so fraught in recent years, especially during Trumps tenure, that we often see politicians speak of one in terms of the other. For example, Marco Rubiorecently describedBidens cabinet picks as people who went to Ivy League schools, have strong resumes, attend all the right conferences & will be polite & orderly caretakers of Americas decline." He doesnt mention the transition teams intense focus on the skin color of potential nominees, but theres a strong anti-political-correctness subtext to his language verging on a dog whistle.

At a recent press conference, Biden promised significant diversity in high profile positions, while refusing to give specifics or names. Still, regarding the positions of secretary of state, treasury secretary, defense secretary, and attorney general, CNNquotesan anonymous source familiar with the transition discussions admitting that They're absolutely not going to have the top four Cabinet positions be white. Absolutely not. That would be anathema.

Many Republicans must feel less than delighted about admissions like this. But as the same CNN article notes, The bar to meet both the ideological and diversity goals is high. And Biden's concerns about plucking too many Democratic members from the Housenow that his party has a more narrow majorityhave complicated the conundrum. Its no doubt very difficult to placate the implacable, especially when theyve got a political hook in you and feel that they were instrumental in your rise to power. Itll be entertaining to watch what happens. Itll be less entertaining to see it happen in a way that results in further national disintegration.

Originally posted here:
Not Everybody Can be a Cheerleader - Splice Today

National Review

Attorney General William Barr has known about investigations into Hunter Bidens business and financial dealings since at least spring, but tried to conceal the investigations from the public during the presidential election, according to a new report.One investigation surfaced this week after federal investigators served Hunter Biden with a subpoena seeking financial information in connection with a criminal tax investigation by the U.S. attorneys office in Delaware, according to the Wall Street Journal.Federal prosecutors in Manhattan also scrutinized Bidens business and financial dealings in connection with a broader international financial investigation that has been ongoing for a year, according to the Journal. While Biden is implicated in that investigation, he was not a specific target for criminal prosecution.Neither investigation implicates President-elect Joe Biden."I learned yesterday for the first time that the U.S. Attorney's Office in Delaware advised my legal counsel, also yesterday, that they are investigating my tax affairs," Hunter Biden said in a statement Wednesday. "I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors."Barr did not budge under pressure from Congressional Republicans who pressed him for more information into the investigations. Investigators worked to keep the cases out of the public eye ahead of the November election, in line with Justice Department guidelines, concerned about the impact their work could have on its outcome, sources told the Journal.Trump on Thursday criticized the Fake News Media, the FBI and the DOJ in a tweet, asking why they did not report the Biden matter BEFORE the Election.In the weeks before the election, a number of Republicans issued calls to investigate Hunter Biden, particularly after a Republican Senate investigation in September released a report on the younger Bidens finances and overseas business interests.Ranking member of the House Judiciary panel Representative Jim Jordan (R., Ohio) wrote to Federal Bureau of Investigation director Christopher Wray asking what the FBI had done to investigate the explosive report.A number of Republicans in Congress pressed Barr on October 19 to appoint a special counsel to investigate Hunter Biden and his father, demanding that Barr issue a response within five days.Investigators began looking into Hunter Biden following reports of suspicious activity filed by a bank that handled foreign transactions related to him, according to the Journal.Biden previously sat on the board of Ukranian gas company Burisma Holdings, where he made $50,000 per month for his work until April 2019. He also served as an advisor to China CEFC Energy Co. to the companys dealings in Europe and the Middle East.in 2017 he was a shareholder in a venture with the Chinese company while it looked to gain a foothold in the U.S.. That joint venture never took off, but the Senate Republican report found that an entity linked to CEFC paid Biden's law firm millions of dollars for legal and advisory work.The Manhattan U.S. attorney's office began investigating CEFC's activity as part of a corruption case that resulted in the conviction of a former Hong Kong official in 2018. The official was charged with bribing African officials for CEFC's benefit. The company was not charged.President-elect Biden said in a statement Wednesday after news of the tax investigation broke that he is proud of his son, who has fought through difficult challenges, including the vicious personal attacks of recent months, only to emerge stronger.

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Mother killed in crash one month after 12-year-old son gunned down - Yahoo News

GlobeNewswire

2020 SIM Connect Live - Powered by HMG Strategy Join the top CIOs and technology executives from around the world as we explore the CIO's role in fostering radical business innovation and cultural change on the road to 2021 and beyond. WESTPORT, Conn., Dec. 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HMG Strategy, the world's 1 digital platform for connecting technology executives to reimagine the enterprise and reshape the business world, will host the 2020 SIM Connect Live conference for the first time ever on December 15. With 40 chapters across the U.S. and around the world, the Society for Information Management (SIM) is the worlds premier networking organization for IT leaders. The event has already generated more than 500 registrants from around the world with technology executives continuing to flood in to join the event. Click here to learn more about the event and to register.HMG Strategy has produced more than 100 digital events since March, bringing together the worlds most distinguished and innovative technology leaders to discuss the most pressing leadership, strategic, cultural, technological and career challenges facing technology executives now and into the future.HMG Strategy President and CEO Hunter Muller and SIM International CEO Mark Taylor will lead an engaging discussion throughout the event on matters critical to enterprise success and career ascent. Topics technology leaders will be discussing at the event include fostering radical business innovation and cultural change across the organization, preparing your company to grow and thrive into 2021 and beyond, and how to cultivate digital innovation securely.We are incredibly excited for the opportunity to host the 2020 SIM Connect Live conference, said Hunter Muller, President and CEO of HMG Strategy. We work closely with SIM leaders from all over the U.S. every day and their experiences provide invaluable insight into the top leadership challenges that technology executives are facing and the future of the industry. This is a cant-miss event.Notable technology executives speaking at the 2020 SIM Connect Live conference on December 15 include: * Julia Anderson, Global CIO, Smithfield Foods * Dr. David Bray, Inaugural Director, Global GeoTech Center & Commission, Atlantic Council * Wayne Bulmahn, Chief Information Officer/Security Officer, UNITE HERE HEALTH * Chris Gates, Group CIO and SVP Hosting Services, Allstate * Melissa Hohauser, SVP, IT Director, Servicing and Ops, TCF Bank * Jeanette Horan, Experienced Board Member and Strategic Advisor * Rodney Kenyon, GVP, Global Oracle Applications Support, Rimini Street * Susan Malisch, VP & CIO, Loyola University Chicago * Quintin McGrath, Senior Managing Director, Technology Management & Enablement, Global Technology Services, Deloitte * Mark Polansky, Senior Partner, Technology Officers Practice, Korn Ferry * John Repko, EVP & CIO, AIG * Rafael A. Sanchez, CIO, Feld Entertainment, Inc. * Marcus Session, President, SIM Tampa Bay; VP of IT Services, Tampa International Airport * Scott Strickland, EVP & CIO, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts * Mark Taylor, CEO, Society for Information Management Valued partners for the 2020 SIM Connect Live on December 12 will include Appian, Aryaka, Darktrace, Forescout Technologies, Globant, Obsidian, PagerDuty, Rimini Street, the Society for Information Management, Sonatype, Tessian, and Tanium.To learn more about 2020 SIM Connect Live and to register for the event, click here.To learn more about HMG Strategys upcoming CIO & CISO summits, click here.UPCOMING WEBINARS & DIGITAL ROUNDTABLESHMG Strategy has also received exceptional interest in its webinars through the strength of the 400,000+ technology executives in its community and the quality of the content it delivers. HMG Strategy has scheduled multiple 30-to-60-minute webinars over the next few months with an arsenal of innovative technology companies such as Citrix, Darktrace, HCL Technologies, Ivanti, Moveworks, Nutanix, Okta, OutSystems, PagerDuty, RangeForce, RingCentral, UiPath, Zoom, Zscaler, and Zylo.On December 16th, HMG Strategy will host two separate webinars powered by Zoom. The first, Forward Thinking on the Future Digital Workplace, which kicks off at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT, will focus on how CIOs and technology executives must focus on what the future of work will look like and how they can best position their companies and team members to remain engaged and productive for the long haul.To learn more about this webinar and to register for the event, click here.At 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT that same day, HMG Strategy will also host a webinar powered by Zoom entitled Protecting the Hybrid Enterprise. In this event, which is tailored for CISOs and security leaders, top security executives will share the steps theyre taking to protect the enterprise as their organizations shift to hybrid work models. These issues include security associated with remote staff bringing unsecured personal devices into the office as well as securing data properly as employees repeatedly transition between in-office and remote workspaces.To learn more about this webinar and to register for the event, click here.Click here to view HMG Strategys complete calendar of upcoming and on-demand webinars.Connecting Enterprise Technology Buyers with the Right VendorsIn the absence of large, national conferences or trade shows, CIOs and technology executives are seeking new ways to connect with their peers and find new business partners to help them drive innovation that can enable their companies to survive and grow.Meanwhile, sales and marketing professionals at enterprise technology companies are looking for successful ways to engage with senior technology leaders and target accounts. HMG Strategy has harmonized these interests by creating the HMG Marketplace.HMG Strategys high-powered Marketplace transforms the time-consuming request-for-information (RFI) process for CIOs and other technology buyers. Now, technology buyers can indicate the types of technologies and services theyre currently interested in and be matched with a prospective provider to make the connection.The HMG Marketplace essentially serves as a reference center to connect the right technology buyers with the right technology providers at the right time, said Hunter Muller, President and CEO of HMG Strategy. By filling out a short needs assessment survey, CIO, CTOs and other technology executives are connected with executive leaders and subject matter experts from technology companies to have focused, relevant discussions.Charter members that are actively participating in the HMG Marketplace include Appian, Aryaka, Darktrace, Forescout Technologies, Globant, Ivanti, Obsidian Security, PagerDuty, Slack, Sonatype, Tanium and Tessian.Its challenging for all of us that we cant all be together at these events, says Nicole Eagan, Chief Strategy & AI Officer at Darktrace. But the next best thing is being able to connect through the Marketplace. Were committed that you wont be meeting with a salesperson youll be meeting with myself and the Darktrace executive team. Youve got CIOs and CISOs who will attend these meetings and we would love the opportunity to catch up and strategize together.How it WorksAfter attending an HMG Strategy Executive Leadership Summit, an attendee is redirected to the HMG Marketplace, where they are prompted to fill out a short needs analysis survey to indicate their current technology needs. From there, an HMG Strategy customer relationship specialist evaluates the survey information and schedules a meeting between the technology buyer and the most suitable technology partner in the Marketplace based on the buyers interests.While in the Marketplace, the technology buyer is presented with a menu of options to choose from, including an option to view customer testimonials for that vendor and the business problem that was addressed. Sponsor partners receive highly qualified leads because of the strength of relationships inherent in the HMG network combined with the specific technology or service interest indicated by the buyer.The HMG Marketplace offers multiple benefits to both technology buyers and vendors: * Precision matching of buyer needs with vendor capabilities -- Enterprise buyers can fill out a short needs analysis survey that is used by HMG Strategys Customer Relationship Management team to identify the vendor thats best suited to address their requirements. * Accelerates the sales process for both buyers and sellers - Buyers and sellers quickly identify one another through the needs analysis process and associated reference materials * Ensures Quality Discussions CIOs, CTOs, CISOs and other technology buyers are qualified based on their true interest and by a set of characteristics (size, industry, types of technology/service interests, spend parameters, etc.). Buyers are paired with technology suppliers based on their domains and areas of expertise to avoid wasting time * Drives Higher Conversion and Close Rates for Providers The HMG Marketplace accelerates high-quality deal flow in challenging times and enables technology providers to lower their customer acquisition costsTo learn more about the HMG Marketplace and explore the digital assets that are available there, click here.About HMG StrategyHMG Strategy is the world's leading digital platform for connecting technology executives to reimagine the enterprise and reshape the business world. Our regional and virtual CIO and CISO Executive Leadership Series, authored books and Digital Resource Center deliver unique, peer-driven research from CIOs, CISOs, CTOs and technology executives on leadership, innovation, transformation and career ascent. HMG Strategy also produces the HMG Security Innovation Accelerator Panel, a new webinar series thats designed to connect enterprise CISOs and security leaders with the most innovative cybersecurity companies from across the world.The HMG Strategy global network consists of over 400,000 senior IT executives, industry experts and world-class thought leaders.To learn more about the 7 Pillars of Trust for HMG Strategy's unique business model, click here.HMG Strategy: Your 1 Trusted Digital Platform Connecting Technology Executives to Reimagine the Enterprise and Reshape the Business World.A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/17779d3e-a481-401f-a61f-464e73eeb43f CONTACT: Tom Hoffman 203-221-2702 TomHoffman@hmgstrategy.com

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This post is sponsored and contributed by a Patch Brand Partner. The views expressed in this post are the author's own.

It can often be difficult to know when is the right time to update your home in New Jersey. Deciding if and when to renovate comes down to two points: making improvements for comfort and upgrading to get ready for a sale.

Whether you're getting ready to sell or plan on living in your home for another ten years, it pays to do smart renovations and upgrades. But where do you start? Focus on these areas when you're planning to remodel:

Here are the top 5 projects that can boost the value of your home:

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1. Exterior Updates

Upgrades to the exterior can improve your home's curbside appeal to potential buyers. You can enhance the outside of your home with these projects:

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To increase home resale value call a HomeAdvisor remodel contractor in New Jersey.

2. Increase Interior Space to Add Value

Expanding usable living space is a good way to boost the value of your home. You can add space by finishing the basement to use as a family or fitness room, playroom for the kids, or as an office.

3. Refinish Wood Flooring

Today's flooring trend is all about wood. But if you don't take care of your wood floors they can make your home look out of date and uncared for. Refinishing your wood flooring is an easy way to brighten up your home and add value. For this project, consider hiring an experienced professional to do the job right. You can expect to pay around $1,800 to hire a flooring contractor.

4. Give Kitchen Cabinets a Makeover

If a full remodel isn't in your budget, you can still give your kitchen a makeover by refacing the cabinets. Using the existing cabinets and frame, doors and drawers can be updated without being replaced. For an average cost of about $7,400 your kitchen can go from boring to an exciting new look that appeals to buyers.

5. Add a Fireplace

A smart remodel is to add a fireplace to your home. When you put your home on the market, prospective buyers will love the charm and warmth that a fireplace adds to any room. Depending on the size and style of fireplace you want, expect to pay around $2,100 for this home addition.

It's easy to boost the resale value of your home with smart projects. For help call a HomeAdvisor remodeling contractor in New Jersey.

This Patch article is sponsored by HomeAdvisor.

This post is sponsored and contributed by a Patch Brand Partner. The views expressed in this post are the author's own.

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How New Jersey Homeowners Can Boost The Value Of Their Home - Patch.com

Vermonters have spoken and Im so humbled to earn your support once again.

Your faith and trust in me is the greatest honor of my life and I will continue to work every single day to make the lives of Vermonters better, our economy stronger and our state more affordable for families and businesses.

As you know, were facing some of the greatest challenges of our lifetime. This global pandemic has impacted all of us in so many ways. Our way of life has been disrupted, theres a lot of uncertainty and far too many lives and livelihoods have been lost.

Im proud of how Vermonters have stepped up and met the moment. Its because of you your hard work, your compassion for others and your commitment to community that Vermont has led the nation.

But, as Ive said many times, we cannot let our guard down. And as we enter the winter months, we must remain vigilant. If we do, Im confident well continue to lead the nation and more importantly, keep our loved ones safe, our kids in school and emerge from this pandemic faster and stronger than any other state.

As well as thanking you, I want to thank my entire team, who have been instrumental in leading the states response from my staff and cabinet, to our health experts and the dedicated public servants throughout state government. Theyve worked incredibly hard on the front lines of this fight for more than eight months. Each one of them has my deepest respect and appreciation, and Im fortunate to have them by my side as we begin another term.

I ran for governor because I believe Vermont can build a stronger and more diverse economy, be more affordable for families and businesses, and create more opportunities for our kids. And I believe the best way to have the resources to take care of those in need, protect our environment and address climate change is to grow the economy in all 251 communities and all 14 counties in Vermont not just in a few.

On my very first day in office, almost four years ago, I signed an executive order outlining my strategic goals to grow the economy, make Vermont more affordable, and protect the most vulnerable. And while weve made progress, I know there is still so much more to do.

I want to assure you, even as we face and fight this virus, these priorities will be just as important during my next term as they were in my first, and they will continue to guide my team as we rebuild and recover from the pandemic.

But perhaps even more importantly, we must heal our country because we simply cannot go on like this.

Our nation is hurting, not just from COVID-19, but because of another virus that has infected the hearts and minds of too many Americans: That of hate, fear and division.

We must confront this with the same force and energy were putting toward the coronavirus. And heres how: First, lets be better, kinder and more understanding; lets listen to and learn from one another; and lets prioritize our common humanity, our love of family and our concern for their health and welfare.

Right now, were seeing a political system that defines anyone you disagree with as the enemy. The truth is, disagreeing about taxes, fees, regulations and programs, or which candidate to support these things dont make us enemies. A healthy democracy requires passionate debate, but it needs to be civil.

When they become nasty, personal and, even worse, violent, thats when our real enemies those who dont believe in core American values gain ground. Because they use the distraction to fan the embers of hate, fear and division.

Weve got to rise above them to move America forward. All of us moderates, conservatives, and liberals; Republicans, independents, and Democrats can succeed if we work together.

Dont misunderstand me. Im not saying to avoid heated debate because as I said, debate is healthy. But in order to solve problems and help people, we must find common ground and then work from there.

Just as Vermont has been a leader in our response to the pandemic, I believe we can lead the way in this regard as well.

We can be better role models and treat everyone with the dignity and respect they deserve, especially when we disagree. We can prove that our strength is in the diversity of our people and opinions and show that by listening to and learning from each other, we can achieve equal rights, equal justice, equal opportunity and a more perfect union.

So today even though we dont know the outcome of many races as Vermonters and as Americans, lets come together and rise above the hate, fear and division so we can emerge from this difficult time in our history as a stronger, more united, and more compassionate nation than ever before.

Thank you again for your faith and trust in me. Ill continue to do my very best for all Vermonters.

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FORMER NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER, AUTHOR, SENIOR FELLOW AT STANFORD, GEN. H.R. MCMASTER:

In this episode ofIntelligence Matters, host Michael Morell interviews General H.R. McMaster. A Senior Fellow at both Stanford Universitys Hoover Institution and its Graduate School of Business. A career U.S. Army officer and National Security Adviser to President Trump, he is also the author of his newly released book titled Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World. General McMaster passes along advice on how the next president should handle relations with North Koreas Kim Jong-un, gives his insights on the effectiveness of our handling of Russia, and shares his passion for helping those in Venezuela.

HIGHLIGHTS:

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INTELLIGENCE MATTERS: GUEST GEN. H.R. MCMASTER

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PRODUCER: ARIANA FREEMAN

MICHAEL MORRELL: General McMaster, welcome to Intelligence Matters. It is an honor to have you on the show.

GEN. MCMASTER: Hey Michael, the honors mine is great to be with you.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Let me start with a couple of points for our listeners. First, I want to congratulate you on your new book, Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World. Ive read it. Its terrific. I think its a must read for anyone interested in national security. And I actually see it as a reference book for understanding the key issues. And I see myself pulling it down off the shelf from time to time. When Im thinking about something, I want to have to talk about something, when Im writing something. I think its a very important contribution to the literature on the threats and challenges we face as a nation. So thank you. Thank you very much for writing it.

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, Michael, thanks so much. I mean it, somebody with your background, experience and knowledge to to endorse it like that. That means a lot to me that you judge it to have been worthwhile. Thank you.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Second, having you with us to talk about your book is a perfect way for us to kick off what is for us, going to be a new series on the key national security issues facing the United States. The series, which were going to work very hard to be nonpartisan, will run between the election and the inauguration. And finally, I should mention to my listeners that this episode is going to run the day after the election, but that you and I are taping it the Friday before the election. So you and I have no idea whats going to happen on Election Day. So people should just know that as theyre as theyre listening to our conversation. And I think thats actually a good thing for our conversation, because what I want to do at the end of the day is get your sense of what is going to face the president who is sworn in on January 20th, no matter who that person happens to be.

MICHAEL MORRELL: H.R. before we get to the individual issues that I want to walk through with you, Id love to ask you why you decided to write the book that you did. You obviously could have written a very different kind of book. And Im sure that there were publishers who were encouraging you to do that. But you chose not to do that. You chose to write a very serious look at the threats and challenges that face us as a nation. Why did you take the route that you did?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, Michael, thank you. I served in the Army for thirty four years. So as I transitioned to what is my only second career in my adult life, I made out probably quite predictably, a mission statement for myself. And that was in my second career to try to deepen our understanding of the most crucial challenges we face as a way to better inform the American people about foreign policy and national security issues, and with the hope that if we learn more about these challenges that we face, we can demand better. Demand a better foreign policy from our elected leaders. But then also, I hope that the book and the work that Im doing around the book will help bring Americans back together. Right. Because I dont think any of these issues should be partisan in nature. What Im hoping for is that a deeper understanding of these challenges we face. And I think what should be our common commitment to try to build a better future for generations to come will help bring our country back together, at least around foreign policy and national security issues.

MICHAEL MORRELL: H.R., what are the main themes of the book? What do you want readers to walk away remembering?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, what are the themes that runs through the book is this idea of strategic narcissism. I think this is one of the reasons why our competence, our ability to compete, at least in the post-Cold War period, has been significantly diminished. And by strategic narcissism, I mean, our tendency to define the world only in relation to us and then to assume that what we decide to do or decide not to do is decisive to achieving a favorable outcome. And of course, you know, Michael, with your long experience with intelligence, this is flawed because its self-referential and it doesnt acknowledge, you know, the degree to which others have agency and influence and authorship over the future. So the book is then an argument, an argument for cultivating with my friend and great historian Zachary Shore has termed strategic empathy. And this is an effort, an effort to understand better what drives and constrains the other. Especially adversaries, rivals and enemies and what drives and constrains the other often times is ideology and emotion and aspirations. So the theme in the book that also is important is an effort to understand how the recent past produced the present as the first step in making a projection into the future. So the book is an argument for the understanding of history and appreciation for the complex causality of events and a focus on understanding these crucial challenges were facing from the perspective from the perspective of others.

MICHAEL MORRELL: You know, thats one of the thats one of the main jobs of the intelligence community. Right? Is to is to give our decision makers the point of view of the other guy. The guy sitting across the table from you, the guy sitting across the battlefield from you. But whats the other guy thinking? What are his constraints? What are his interests? And thats extraordinarily important. Right?

GEN. MCMASTER: Of course, its not a new idea. It goes back to Sun Tzu, but I think its we started to neglect the importance of this, especially in the post-Cold War period, a period that I describe as a period of over optimism. Over optimism that led to complacency and a bit of hubris. And this over optimism was in large measure a set up, I think a set of for significant disappointments in the two thousands disappointments, of course, associated with the mass murder attacks of September 11th, 2001, but also the unanticipated length and difficulty of wars in Afghanistan and in Iraq and, of course, followed by a financial crisis. And so I think it was in the two thousands that this emotional impetus behind our foreign policy shifted from overoptimism to pessimism and from maybe a tendency to under appreciate the risks and costs of action, to a tendency to underappreciate the risks and costs of inaction. And I think that strategic narcissism is the cause, really, in both cases.

MICHAEL MORRELL: You know, the other thing that strikes me when you talk about the importance of history is I always thought sitting in deputies meetings that it would have been incredibly valuable to actually take a few minutes and every deputies meetings or principals meetings to talk about the history of the issue, just to review how you got from point A to point B, and we never did that in multiple administrations in which I served, but I always thought that that would have been really valuable.

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, Michael, youre absolutely right about that. Ill tell you, one of the one of the great gifts I had, I think before earlier my career was the opportunity to read things, study and write history. And the first book I wrote was Dereliction of Duty, which is a story about how and why Vietnam became an American war.

And one of the lessons I learned from the study of that history was that it was important to understand problems and challenges holistically before leaping into action. When I came in as national security adviser, I did my best to at least avoid making the same mistakes and we put in place a principle small group framing session. I know thats a mouthful, but as we developed these strategies for the most crucial challenges we were facing, we began with this framing session that was organized around a five page paper that included only really the description of the challenge. How we got to where we are, a bit of the history of it, and then an inventory of our vital interests that were at stake, view of that challenge through the lens of those vital interests and draft overarching goals and more specific objectives, followed by assumptions.

Assumptions about the degree to which we and like-minded partners have agency or influence over this challenge. Then an inventory of obstacles to progress and opportunities that we could exploit. And thats it. Then we had a discussion about the nature of the challenge. First, the policy coordinating committee, which, you know, are the real workers who are going to work on this project. Theyre listening in. So theyre getting, theyre hearing at the cabinet level, a discussion about the nature of the problem and then a refinement of it. Once that part of the meeting was done, then we shifted to a discussion of what are your ideas? How do we integrate the elements of national power and efforts of like-minded partners to overcome these obstacles and exploit these opportunities? Then they got to hear the Treasury secretary say what we have. We have economic and financial tools available. But those ought to be combined with diplomacy and maybe law enforcement efforts. And then you get this rich discussion that then the policy coordinating committee can really run with. So I think that, I hope thats a process that will be sustained. I dont think my successor hung onto it. It will have to be resurrected at some point if it is deemed as useful by a future national security adviser.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Im Michael Morrell today, we have with us H.R. McMaster, a Senior Fellow at both Stanford Universitys Hoover Institution and its Graduate School of Business. A career U.S. Army officer and national security adviser to President Trump. OK, so what Id love to do is go through the individual issues. And what Id like to do is just throw one out, get you to frame it. Whats the threat or challenge that we face? Whats the history? How did we get here? Whats our interest thats at stake? And how do you think we as a nation need to go about dealing with it? Lets start with the big one. Lets start with the big enchilada, China.

GEN. MCMASTER: I think China is a great example of strategic narcissism at work, and especially this assumption that we clung to for too long, that China, having been welcomed into the international order, would play by the rules, would liberalize its economy, and as it prospered, it would liberalize its form of government. Of course, thats not true. Thats not true because we undervalue the degree to which emotions and ideology drive and constrain the Chinese Communist Party. And what I would argue in battlegrounds is that the party is driven mainly by fear, fear of losing its exclusive grip on power and an associated ambition. The ambition to achieve national rejuvenation for China to take center stage in the world again after the tragedy, as they portrayed as the century of humiliation. It is that combination of fear and aspiration that is driving the partys effort to extend and tighten its exclusive grip on power internally.

This is why there are over a million people in concentration camps in Xinjiang and theres a campaign of cultural genocide ongoing.

This is why the party is extending their repressive arm to Hong Kong and perfecting their technologically enabled Orwellian surveillance police state. This is what were seeing and then what is even more troubling, I think, is the parties now effort to export its authoritarian mercantilist model.

Through a number of strategies that aim to create servile relationships with countries and then ultimately through economic means, as well as the growth in the Peoples Liberation Armys capabilities to establish areas of privacy across the new Pacific region that exclude the United States and then it challenged the United States in the free world globally. If China succeeds, I mean, our world will be less free, less prosperous and less safe. So the stakes are high and its past time for us to recognize the need to compete effectively against this this very integrated and pernicious form of aggression that the parties engaged in.

MICHAEL MORRELL: What would an effective China strategy look like to you?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, I think the Trump administration, if it gets credit for anything, should get credit for a fundamental shift in our policy toward China. One that was long overdue and one that I think is fundamentally sound and this is the idea that we have to compete. And it was under the strategy of of cooperation and engagement that the Chinese Communist Party was emboldened. Competition doesnt need to lead to confrontation. In fact, quite the opposite. And I think we have returned to arenas of competition involving countering more effectively Chinas campaign of sustained industrial espionage against us, countering a range of Chinas unfair trade and economic practices, doing so in large measure through effective international cooperation, for example, establishing better standards for infrastructure investment internationally, the law enforcement actions and investigations that have gone on against APT10.

The main hacking arm of the Chinese Communist Party, I think have been very effective as well, combined with sanctions and other actions against the aggressive arms of the party. But really, I think the most important thing for us to do, and I argue this in a chapter battlegrounds entitled Turning Weakness into Strength is to take what the Chinese Communist Party sees as sources of weakness potentially for them and turn those into our greatest strengths. What does the party fear? The party fears that the people, the Chinese people, might want to have a say in how theyre governed so we should strengthen our democratic processes. The party fears rule of law. We should strengthen rule of law in the United States and with countries that are working to strengthen rule of law in their countries, the party fears freedom of press, freedom of the expression. We need to strengthen our authoritative sources of information and recognize that investigative journalism is a great counter to some of these pernicious strategies that the parties are pursuing. So I think that part of it is defensive, but part of it is more introspective and trying to maintain our competitive advantages.

MICHAEL MORRELL: This is Intelligence Matters. Im Michael Morrell. Were talking with former national security adviser H.R. McMaster. So Russia, how do you think about Russia?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, Russia is a significant threat to us because Putin again, is examining the assumptions of previous policies. Putin is not going to become like the Grinch on Christmas Eve. Right, his heart is not going to get too big as the size gets bigger and hes not going to decide, OK, well maybe the future of Russia does lie more with the West and treat the United States and Europe and others differently. Putin is driven by a sense of honor lost after the breakup of the Soviet Union. He is also driven by this associated desire to restore Russia to national greatness. Hes also cognizant, though, of the fact that he cannot compete with this on our own terms. And so what his theory of victory is, is to drag us all down and then to be the last man standing and the means that hes using to do this. I describe the Chinese approach of cooption, coercion and concealment. And I use alliteration in the Russian chapters as well.

It is a campaign of disruption, disinformation and denial to try to disrupt us, to disrupt our effective governance, to disrupt us economically and to use economic coercion when he can, such as he has done in Europe effectively from time to time and with energy dependence. Then to deny even his most egregious acts, especially the sustained campaign of cyber enabled information warfare against us, which is designed to polarize us, to pit us against each other, to reduce our confidence in who we are as a people and in our democratic institutions and principles and processes. Russia is a dangerous threat for for these reasons. And the best way to counter the first step is to pull the curtain back on this activity, to educate ourselves about it, to be less susceptible to Russian information, to not be our own worst enemies, as I think both political parties in many instances have because they compromise and they compromised our principles to score some partisan political points and in doing so, make themselves vulnerable to Russian disinformation and propaganda.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Then what about raising the cost to him of doing this? Is that an option here in terms of deterring him?

GEN. MCMASTER: Absolutely. This is what I advocated for in battlegrounds is that we have to impose costs on the Kremlin, on Putin, that exceed those that he factors in at the beginning of his decision making process. It was my last day really in an Oval Office meeting, it was the day that President Trump decided to impose significant costs on Russia in response to the attempted poisoning, murder of Sergei Skripal and his daughter with with a banned military grade nerve agent and an act that put thousands of UK citizens at risk. And it was at that on that occasion that we expelled you over 60 undeclared intelligence agents that hits Putin where it matters. Because these are agents that were critical to his sustained campaign of subversion against us. And we impose significant costs, additional costs on Russia through sanctions and other actions, the closing of the San Francisco consulate, as you know, Michael, was a major intelligence collection platform for the Russians here in Silicon Valley and the Bay Area. So, that was significant and I think that sent a strong message. Now, after Navalnys poisoning, Id like to see us do the same thing, you know, and as hes infiltrating more little green men now into Belarus and as he continues to enable the serial episodes of mass homicide, that is the Syrian civil war, to support Hawthornes way perpetuating violence in Libya.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Im Michael Morell. Were talking with H.R. McMaster, Former National Security Adviser to President Trump and author of the just published book Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World. By the way, if you missed any of todays show, you can listen to it as a podcast. Just search Intelligence Matters wherever you get your podcasts. Lets talk about North Korea. Give us your sense on North Korea?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, thanks, Michael. Of course, its important for us to recognize going in right that North Korea is the only communist hereditary dictatorship in the world. And it is the nature of the Kim family regime that we have to take into account when were considering the danger that the regime poses to the world if it does possess the most destructive weapons on Earth. The Kim family regime is driven mainly by this drive to remain in power. It is, of course, known as the hermit kingdom. It is a gulag state that fears any kind of opening to the world. And it is a regime that across now three generations of dictators has been committed to unifying the Korean peninsula under the so-called red banner. And I think as we look at North Koreas pursuit of the most destructive weapons on Earth, we have to be at least open to the possibility that it wants those weapons to coerce the United States off the peninsula as the first step in the forcible reunification of the peninsula. And, of course, that would that would be the form of a destructive war.

GEN. MCMASTER: Its also important, I think, for us to recognize that it is highly unlikely that North Korea wants nuclear weapons just to deter us. North Korea already had a very significant deterrence capability with its conventional weapons. And the fact that its so many thousands of artillery pieces are within the range of of Seoul, South Korea. And then also, I think its important to recognize that every act of aggression on the Korean peninsula since the North invaded the South in June of 1950 has been initiated by the north. The other aspect of this problem, Michael, that is very important to consider is that if North Korea gets the weapon is recognized as a as a nuclear power, like who doesnt get one after that? Right. This Japan starts to have conversation with South Korea. By the way, North Korea never met a weapon it didnt try to sell to somebody excluding its nuclear program until the Israeli Defense Force bombed that facility in 2007. So its very dangerous. I think its dangerous as well because of the ideology that drives this regime. Its a warped ideology. This is the Zushi ideology which has turned deprivation into a sign of virtue and racial superiority. And the North Korean people have gone through generations of brainwashing. So this is a big problem, Michael. I think that the approach that is in place now, the strategy of maximum pressure, its the best course of action. I think we have to test the thesis that maximum pressure can convince Kim Jong un that he is safer without the weapons than he is with them. I think it will be important for whoever is sworn in on January 20th that they recognize that we should not repeat the failed pattern of previous efforts, not allow North Korea to draw us into negotiations with an act of aggression and with the demands of big payoff up front just for the privilege of talking with them. To not again, engage in long, drawn out negotiations that delivers a weak agreement that he immediately breaks again.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Youve said something here that I think is really important, because I think the conventional wisdom is that he wants these weapons for deterrence. Right. That hes worried about us attacking him. But youre arguing that its more than that. That this gets to the heart of what North Korea has always wanted, which is to reunify the peninsula, which I think is a really important point here that changes how you think about how you have to deal with him?

GEN. MCMASTER: This is an argument, Michael, for strategic empathy. Right? To view these complex challenges from the perspective of the other and unless you do that, youre susceptible to mirror imaging. And, of course, my research for the book, Dereliction of Duty, you know that sensitized me to this. It was in the run up to the Vietnam War where some of those who were planning the Vietnam strategy development, the strategy actually referred to the reasonable man theory of English common law and assumed that Ho Chi Minh would respond as the theoretical reasonable man. Would respond without taking into consideration the role that culture and ideology played in driving and constraining the North Vietnamese leadership.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Do you think at the end of the day its possible to convince him that he would be better off, that he would be more secure without these weapons?

GEN. MCMASTER: I do think its possible, and the reason I think its possible because weve never really put maximum pressure on the north. And so we have this opportunity now thanks really to the tremendous work by Ambassador Nikki Haley when she was at the U.N. As you know, Michael, these U.N. Security Council sanctions on North Korea are unprecedented and reach. The key now, though, is to enforce them. Of course, the key country that needs to enforce them is China. And I think if China doesnt enforce them, if China continues to be complicit with illicit financial flows into and out of the country, to continue to provide energy and other materials to the north that are limited by these sanctions. Then I think its time for us to consider secondary sanctions and maybe on Chinese financial institutions.

GEN. MCMASTER: I think as we see the smuggling of coal and the transshipment of coal and oil and fuel, I think that under Article two, I think the president could use Article two authority to interdict those ships. As you know, Michael, this is something we cant really talk about. There are other means of putting pressure on the north. I think that we havent done it yet. I think we have to at least test the thesis because the alternatives are so bleak of either accepting North Korea as a nuclear power and coping with that threat or a war. Right. That would be very costly, I think its worth pursuing.

MICHAEL MORRELL: We still have more to discuss with General McMaster and well be right back with our final segment.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Were back with more intelligence matters, Im Michael Morrell. Our guest is H.R. McMaster, Senior Fellow at both Stanford Universitys Hoover Institution and its Graduate School of Business. So, sir, let me ask you about another tough one, Iran.

GEN. MCMASTER: On Iran, what I tell the story of in Battlegrounds, Michael, is we have to view the problem of Iran with two fundamental considerations foremost in our minds. The first is the ideology of the revolution and how that drives Iranian leadership and the Iranian leadership is the Supreme Leader and the Guardian Council and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps. We have this fantasy I think that the reformers, the Republicans, within Iraq are going to prevail. They lost, the revolutionaries are in charge. The hardliners are in charge. And whenever they put this forward, the shop window of Minister Zarif, their Foreign Minister or President Rouhani, thats all youre getting is the shop window. That ideology is it drives the Iranian regime to continue its four decade long proxy war against the Great Satan, the United States, the little Satan, Israel, the Arab monarchies and the West broadly. And so we have to consider the ideology of the regime and and this 40 year long proxy war.

GEN. MCMASTER: What I argue for in the book is to force the Iranian regime to make a choice. You can either be treated like a normal nation or you can continue to wage this proxy war, to support terrorist organizations and keep the Middle East enmeshed in this perpetual state of sectarian civil war. The choice is yours, and to impose that choice, I think what we should not do is lift the arms embargo to the regime. What we should not do is lift any of the sanctions. In fact, we should impose the costs on the regime to constrain the resources they have available to continue their proxy wars against us, but then also ultimately maybe to convince the Iranian people. That they ought to have a government in place and Im not talking about like a 2003 regime change, but a government in place that shifts away from its permanent hostility to the United States, Israel and the West. I think thats the only path that I see forward. I think our policies ought to aim to effect that change in the regimes permanent hostility. And until it does any agreement with them, it cant be trusted and any agreement with them that allows them to escape. Making that choice like the Iran nuclear deal did, I think is to our disadvantage.

MICHAEL MORRELL: So you dont see the regime changing policy on its own. Do you think that has to be forced internally by the Iranian people? Is that fair?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, Michael, I think on Iran, its important to keep two considerations in mind in crafting a strategy toward Iran. First of all, that its the ideology of the regime that drives their hostile behavior toward us. And we have to recognize that its the Supreme Leader, its the Guardian Council, its Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, who are in charge. Right. There was a struggle, you know, across the history of Iran since the revolution in 1979 between the Republicans and the revolutionaries. Hey, the revolutionaries won. And and we have to recognize that the second consideration is that this regime has waged a four decade long proxy war against the Great Satan, us, the little Satan, Israel, the Arab monarchies and the West generally. We have to craft our strategy in recognition of this regimes permanent hostility to us. Of course, I think the best way to approach it in the title of the chapter in Battlegrounds is forcing a choice, forcing the regime to make a choice of either being a responsible nation and then being treated as such or suffering the consequences. And this is why I think its very important to keep the arms embargo in place. I think its very important to keep the sanctions in place on the regime to, in the short term, reduce the resources it has available to wage this proxy war and in the long term, hopefully convince the Iranian people to demand a change in the nature of the government such that it ceases as permanent hostility.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Okay, Islamic extremism, its waned a bit in the threat, but its still there. From West Africa, to the Middle East, to South Asia, to Southeast Asia. How do you think about that problem long term?

GEN. MCMASTER: I think the reason that we havent had another attack on the scale of the most devastating terrorist attack in history of September 11th, 2001, is our tremendous intelligence professionals, our diplomats, our military whos been engaged against this threat from jihadist terrorist organizations since 9/11. What Im concerned about, Michael, is that these groups, I think are more dangerous today than they were maybe even on September 10th, 2001. And thats because, of course, those who committed the mass murder attacks against us on 9/11 were the mujahideen alumni of the resistance to the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Well, now the al-Qaida alumni, the ISIS alumni, the Lashkar-e-Taiba alumni are orders of magnitude greater and they have access to more and more destructive capabilities. And the reason weve been safe is because weve been engaged and now we have this narrative of ending endless wars and disengaging. Well, I think what Americans need to know is that we are engaged so we can enable others to bear the brunt of this fight. I mean, this disengagement from Afghanistan, I think is a tragedy. The way that weve gone about this, I think we should recognize the sacrifices of our longest war and in particular that 10 of our courageous servicemen, soldiers, gave their lives for our country, our security this year. But we have to also recognize that 30 Afghan soldiers and police a day die defending the freedoms that theyve enjoyed since the defeat of the Taliban in 2001 a removal of the Taliban from power. So I think that we need to make a sustained argument to the American people for engagement with this problem of jihadist terrorism. Because if we dont, Michael, well go back to 1998. Remember when we after the embassy bombings, we fired a few cruise missiles and called it a day. Right, that didnt work out.

MICHAEL MORRELL: The last issue I want to ask you about is Venezuela, which I know you care about. My understanding is that when you arrived at the White House, you were going over the issues and you kind of stumbled on Venezuela and said, hey, you know whats going on there? That doesnt look like were paying attention to this, talk about Venezuela and why its important?

GEN. MCMASTER: Well, its immensely important because this is a humanitarian catastrophe in Venezuela. Its a humanitarian catastrophe thats brought on by an authoritarian regime that is denying the Venezuelan people a say in how theyre governed. When we looked at the problem and the nature of the Maduro regime and the Chavista movement, we concluded that this was, again, a corrupt government that is using criminalized patronage networks to effect control of its people. It uses these motorcycle gangs and militias to overwhelm any kind of opposition. It ended the Constitution. So we said whats should our goal be? Our goal should be to work with others, to work with like-minded countries, to effect a restoration of constitutional rule in Venezuela. And to do that, we felt as if we had to pursue three objectives. One of those objectives would be to try to strengthen the opposition. Right. To help the opposition come together. I think you saw that with the rise of Bolsonaro. You know, who was really from the people. You know, hes not a member of the Caracas Polo Club, for example. I think hes somebody who can gain some traction with those who have been disadvantaged now so significantly under Chvez, and now Maduro.

GEN. MCMASTER: The second objective would be for the people to be able to attribute their grievances back to the government, not to blame the Yankees, you know, for example. And the third related to that would be to try to galvanize really popular support for restoration of constitutional government. I think the measures we put in place were sound. Of course, they have proven inadequate. And I think we thought that economic sanctions would maybe have a significant effect. But the reason they havent had a bigger effect is theres a huge black market, illicit economy thats run by Maduro. He uses that to sustain this criminalized patronage network and these gangs of thugs who really prevent any real opposition from gaining traction. But I think Im proud of what we did in this period of time. We worked very closely with partners, especially in the Western Hemisphere, Mexico, under the foreign minister of the great Luis Videgaray, who was a wonderful partner, took a leading role in much of the work that we did. We tryd to get the Organization of American States and others to do more. But it was really the community of like-minded nations Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Panama, Argentina. We worked very closely together on this problem and I think remain committed to trying to effect a restoration of constitutional government in Venezuela.

MICHAEL MORRELL: Youve been fantastic with your time. I just want to ask you two more questions, we have a couple of minutes left, so well need to be quick here.

MICHAEL MORRELL: The first is that in order to deal with all of these problems that youve talked about, you know, we need a healthy national security toolkit. Healthy diplomacy, healthy intelligence capabilities, healthy military capabilities. Whats your assessment sort of overall of where we are with our national security toolkit?

GEN. MCMASTER: I think were in good shape thanks to the extremely dedicated civil servants and military professionals, intelligence professionals who we have across our government. But I think what is needed more than anything is a higher degree of what I argue in Battlegrounds is, strategic competence, and thats the ability to integrate the elements of national power so that theyre applied in a way that are synergistic. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. I think at times we get it right, but most often we get it wrong. And our approach to these complex problems is fragmented. Its inconsistent. Its as I mentioned, you know, based on flawed assumptions about the nature of the problem. I think what I would like to see as well these days is even more of a concerted effort to foster multinational cooperation as I write in Battlegrounds. I mean, none of these problems are solvable by any one country. So its very important for us to create the right venues for us to come together. Not only to work on a discrete issue or event together, but really to think about these complex challenges. To frame them together and then to apply our competitive advantages between our like minded countries. So that we do have a synergistic effect and and so that we can build a better future for generations to come.

MICHAEL MORRELL: The last question, I think anybody whos listened to the podcast up to this point is going to think, wow, that is a hard, tough list. I wonder at the end of the day, if youre optimistic or if you are pessimistic that were going to get this right going forward.

GEN. MCMASTER: Michael, Im optimistic about it. Im optimistic about it even as we emerge from this triple crisis. Of the pandemic, the recession associated with it and the divides in our society, laid bare by George Floyds murder and the protests and civil unrest that followed it. I think whats great about our democracy is we are self-correcting. The American people have a say in how theyre governed. They can demand better. And the reason I wrote Battlegrounds is I think if the American people understand these challenges, they will demand a better foreign policy from from our elected leaders. You know, our founders knew that our democracy was going to require continuous nurturing. Its still true today. And I believe that we do have significant problems at home. But we also have to confront these challenges abroad because we know from the COVID-19 pandemic that problems that develop abroad can only be dealt with at an exorbitant price once they reach our shores. So the argument of battlegrounds is an argument for sustained engagement with the world.

MICHAEL MORRELL: The book is Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World. The author is H.R. McMaster. General, thank you very much for joining us today.

GEN. MCMASTER: Michael, thank you for the privilege of being with you. And thanks for your service.

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HR McMaster weighs in on North Korea, Russia - WSGW

Former Vice President Joe Biden wrapped up his campaign swing through the Midwest with a socially distant speech in front of just a few dozen people in an airport hanger in Milwaukee, a few hours after President Donald Trump stopped in the battleground state.Biden remarked on the rising number of COVID-19 cases nationally and in Wisconsin specifically, which is facing one of the fastest-growing outbreaks of COVID-19 in the country, and repeated many familiar criticisms of Trump's handling of the pandemic throughout his remarks.

"I know it's hard. More than 225,000 people, I think it's 229[,000] as I speak, have already lost their lives to COVID-19. Two thousand here in Wisconsin. Six hundred here in Milwaukee County. This week, Wisconsin, like other states, set a new record for daily cases. Hospitals are running short on beds. Just had to open a field hospital. That's what we're facing," he said.

"Donald Trump waved the white flag, surrendered to the virus," he continued. "But the American people don't give up. We don't give in. Unlike Donald Trump, we're not gonna surrender to this virus. We are simply not going to surrender."

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden gives a fist bump to Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., as he arrives to speak at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport on Oct. 30, 2020, in Milwaukee.

Biden also went after Trump on trade, calling his policy "a disaster" that "decimated" the Wisconsin dairy industry.The candidate said his campaign is taking a different approach to Wisconsin than Hillary Clinton did in 2016.

"For a whole lot of reasons, not all of which were her fault, we ended up not taking it too seriously. We thought it was different," Biden said, adding, "I've been here a lot."

This marks Biden's third trip to Wisconsin since the Democratic National Convention, making it his fourth-most-visited state, behind Pennsylvania, Michigan and Florida.

Unlike Biden's drive-in rallies on Friday, his remarks in Wisconsin were given in an open-air airport hangar. The event was held at least partially outdoors on a near-freezing Wisconsin evening.

"I'll tell you what, they told me it's gonna be indoors. You're a hardy bunch in Milwaukee," Biden said.

-ABC News' John Verhovek, Beatrice Peterson and Molly Nagle

Continued here:
Election 2020 updates: Trump ends long day rushing through final rally in Minnesota - ABC News

West Norfolk officials have expressed their frustration over the governments plans to introduce a second national lockdown this week.

The proposed new national restrictions will be debated and voted on by MPs on Wednesday.

If approved, the country will be asked to stay at home from Thursday to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus amid rising national cases.

North West Norfolk MP James Wild supported the introduction of the local Covid alert tiered system as the best alternative to a national lockdown.

He said he will be reviewing the evidence and reflecting on constituents views on both sides of the debate ahead of the vote.

Mr Wild said: While it protected the NHS and saved lives, I know how painful and costly the first lockdown was for peoples wellbeing and our economy.

The prime minster and the cabinet have now been advised that due to increasing transmission rates across the country there is a serious risk the NHS will be overwhelmed within weeks.

I am very conscious of the incredible sacrifices people and businesses across North West Norfolk have made to try and control this virus.

Leader of West Norfolk Council Brian Long said he would have liked to see the local tier measures make a difference before a national lockdown was introduced.

I am frustrated we have gone to a national lockdown but I appreciate it has to happen, Mr Long said.

West Norfolk has been doing pretty well but with numbers starting to increase the additional measures reiterate the governments message to get the numbers down.

The council leader emphasised the bottom line behind the lockdown is protecting people from the virus.

And he is confident local businesses will continue to receive the support they need to survive through the governments rescue package.

Boris Johnson announced on Saturday that the furlough scheme will be reintroduced as part of the lockdown measures in which employees will receive 80 per cent of their regular wages.

West Norfolks infection rate as of October 29 stood at 87.9 cases per 100,000 people, after the number of new cases rose from 70 to 133 in the space of a week.

And two new cases were confirmed at Springwood High School today, increasing the total number of cases recorded at the Queensway site since the start of the new academic year to five.

Labour councillor Jo Rust believes the lockdown should have been implemented earlier due to the increase in the transmission rate and number of deaths.

Sir Keir Starmer asked for a circuit breaker weeks ago. It could have been combined with half term which would have taken the pressure off for families, Mrs Rust said.

As it is, we are facing a hard winter of lockdown with no certainty itll actually end on December 2nd.

Mrs Rust believes schools should be shut down with improved IT equipment for home schooling.

The latest lockdown will be less stringent than in March as schools and universities would be able to stay open.

Mrs Rust added: Im glad that the 80 per cent furlough scheme has been retained. However, 80 per cent of a low wage when rents, mortgages and all other costs remain the same is going to push many more families to breaking point.

We saw how many families were struggling to feed their children over half term. As a matter or urgency the government needs to increase its support provision for local councils like our own so we can provide the additional assistance our community will need.

Were facing challenges with how well safely accommodate our rough sleepers, theres an increase in food bank use and the eviction moratorium is over. The government must act now.

West Norfolk councillor Sandra Squire, leader of the Independents at the county council, echoed these sentiments and stated many businesses will not be able to survive the winter months.

She added: I think its a situation where youre damned if you do and damned if you dont. For areas with low infection rates it must seem that theyre almost being punished for what goes on elsewhere.

It concerns me that the last lockdown took weeks to have an affect and that was when schools were closed.

Vulnerable people are being told to limit contact with other people and not go to work if they cant work from home, but they should still send their children to school. There are no easy answers really.

All non-essential retail, entertainment venues and personal care facilities will be forced to close.

Having recently been supported through the governments Culture Recovery Fund, Hunstantons Princess Theatre now faces another setback like many others.

Proprietor Brian Hallard said: We are going to have to worry about it on December 2 because there is nothing we can do right now.

There have been mixed messages. Michael Gove is saying something, then someone else is saying something else.

I will be getting on with maintenance work because there is not a lot else we can do right now.

Swaffham landlord Rob Bartram of the Red Lion pub welcomed the furlough scheme being extended but said there was miscommunication over pub takeaways.

The Market Place site will continue to offer its rooms out to key workers and lorry drivers as they did during the previous lockdown.

Mr Bartram said: Our last electric bills were 6,500. How are we going to survive? I do not know but I personally think we will be alright. I am seeing that some wet-let pubs are giving it up.

Both Mr Bartram and Neal Durose of the White Hart in Lynn believe the decision to allow students to return to schools and universities proved costly.

Mr Bartram said: People are going to be naive and pathetic if they think this will be over by December. The figures are going through the roof through youngsters all over the country.

I am prepared for no family Christmas this year.

Mr Durose added: If Im completely honest, it hasnt come as much of a surprise. It was always going to be obvious that no matter what measure were put in place, the spike in cases was inevitable once the schools and colleges went back.

I know some people will disagree with me but the statistics dont lie. The pubs reopen on July 4: no spike in cases. Eat Out to Help Out throughout August: not many cases. September, the education sector resumes and cases rose exponentially.

You were always going to be safer in the pub than the supermarket but you cant change whats been placed on us.

We are determined to survive and come out the other side stronger and ready to welcome everyone back with open arms.

The Duck Inn at Stanhoe has pledged to offer its services for free throughout November to anyone who needs support.

And the White Hart in Swaffham will also continue to support the vulnerable through its Hart to Homes meal delivery service.

A social media post by the pub said: "From Wednesday night we will close our doors, until then we are very much open for business

"We will miss you all and give our heartfelt thanks for the support you have given us since we reopened."

Elsewhere, it will be business as usual on the pitch for Kings Lynn Town FC as elite sport, including the National League, will be able to continue.

Golf clubs have been lobbying to remain open for members to be able to play during lockdown as they believe it can be done safely as a form of exercise.

Graham Cocker, secretary of Fakenham Golf Club, said: If you can exercise in a park with one person, you can do it on a golf course because you are not going to come up against anyone else through 10 minute intervals.

He said it would be a shame for members not to be able to play having already paid their annual fees. Greenkeepers will continue to maintain the golf course regardless of cost.

Alive West Norfolk has announced its sites will close from the end of the day on Wednesday until further notice in line with government guidance.

A statement says Alive West Norfolk has collected November membership and courses fees already and will also collect payments from those who usually pay their direct debit on the 15th.

December direct debit payments will then not be collected when the sites reopen.

Alive swimming pools will not be closing in December as it stands according to the statement as would normally be the case in normal circumstances for annual maintenance.

The Alive statement added: "We understand it is extremely frustrating that leisure venues are having to close again but the safety and welfare of our customers and staff is paramount. We would like to thank you all for adhering to our Covid processes so well since we returned in July which has kept our sites extremely safe."

Meanwhile, national papers reported this weekend that Prince William had coronavirus while staying in April with the Duchess of Cambridge and his three young children at Anmer Hall, on the Sandringham Estate.

It was reported that he did not want publicity onthe matter as it came shortly after his father, Prince Charles, and PM Boris Johnson had announced they had it and feared he would be stoking public fears of the virus.

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Mixed emotions over national lockdown as local businesses offer help - Lynn News