#chief executive officer jobs usa

[forbesjobs]

Forbes.jobs delivers a first-of-its-kind career and employment experience that supports talent, recruiters and companies throughout an employee's professional life. Forbes.jobs provides career opportunities, education and skills development, community connections, and coaching to support the career journey. Leveraging the internationally recognized Forbes brand, hiring managers and recruiters seek accomplished Forbes.job candidates for senior manager, leadership jobs, director-level and management jobs, vice president, CEO, CFO and all C-Suite executives in the areas of banking and finance, accounting, information technology and computer science, supply chain management and logistics, biomedical and medicine, sales and marketing and much more. Find high paying jobs in the USA – in-person or remote, contract workers or full-time – at Forbes.jobs.

[thebusinessmagnate]

Kim van Haaster: Botanically Sourcing Clean Skincare Products Using Dutch Tulips at Bloomeffects

Many of us who follow a religious skincare routine know that the sourcing of ingredients and the kinds of natural skincare ingredients are very important factors that determine a consumer’s purchase. We as consumers research endlessly before making any beauty and cosmetic purchase as it’s a common fact that not all skincare line products manufactured and produced by such companies use safe, natural, allergy, and toxic-free ingredients and chemicals that work for the people. Understandably each person’s skin is different, but it is still an unfortunate situation that companies use harsh and harmful chemicals to do a quick job rather which is quite damaging in the long run. Botanically and naturally sourced from the Earth ingredients can range from petals, roots, stems, oils, extracts, seeds, and flowers. Each part of a particular plant and tree at any stage of its growth can be used for its aromatic, therapeutic, wellness, antioxidant, and cosmetic properties. For example, the flower Rose has been used for ages whose rose petals and seeds are distilled, steamed, or extracted from the manufacturing processes so that Rose Water, Rose Essential Oils, Rosehip Oils, and Rose Extracts are produced for several skincare benefits like Anti-aging, Healing, Soothing, Hydrating, Rejuvenating, and for its Aromatic purposes. They are produced and marketed by brands such as Facial Mists, Toners, Cleansers, Soaps and Washes, Perfumes, Body Sprays, Serums, Creams, Moisturizers, and more. 

Like the Rose, there are many other botanically sourced natural ingredients used in the cosmetic industry as one of the ingredients or as the main ingredient in the product. Aloe Vera, Lavender, Jojoba, Chamomile, and Cherry Blossoms are some of the other natural ingredients that are manufactured and produced as skincare products. But there are certain rare botanically and naturally sourced ingredients used by clean beauty brands, whose valuable properties contain sustainability and regenerative capabilities, that are present in the cultivation and replanting processes of their flower bulbs. Like the dark purple Dutch Tulips that are used as the main ingredient in Bloomeffects cosmeceutical skincare product line. This proprietary Dutch Tulip Complex is grown and naturally sourced from a fourth-generational parent farm in The Netherlands. Bloomeffects was founded in 2019 by Kim van Haaster after she married her husband – H.M. van Haaster’s fourth-generational Dutch Tulip farmer. While the farm is in The Netherlands, the Tulips are exported to the U.S. where Bloomeffects headquarters are located in New York City, NY. Therefore this article will share insights on both Founder/CEO – Kim van Haaster and her personal care product manufacturing brand – Bloomeffects, of their inspiring and widely-effective skincare experience. 

The Light Tulip Bulb Moment:

The Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Bloomeffects is Kim van Haaster, who established the company in 2019, in NYC, USA. After her marriage to her fourth-generational Dutch Tulip farmer of the famous Netherland grower and exporter of dark purple Dutch Tulips – H.M. van Haaster, Kim had a “light tulip bulb moment”, as she so describes that time to be as. She learned that Tulips continue to grow for about 2 cm or more after being cut. So, with this exciting new revelation and find, Kim secured two Dutch Government Grants for research purposes, where it was discovered that Tulips provide hydrating and rejuvenating properties that benefit the skin. When compared to Roses in plant-based skincare products, it was also found that Tulips are 2x richer in organic acids, 4.5x richer in fatty acids, and have even more amino acids. What with Kim’s challenges in addressing her eczema and allergy-prone skin combined with her passion for clean and conscious beauty that also is equally effective in resolving such skin concerns, the Founder/CEO had always dreamed of having her own skincare line after decades of working in the cosmeceutical industry. She worked closely with color cosmetics, hair care, fragrance, and skincare as well. 

Born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, Kim van Haaster is a Chinese-Vietnamese who moved to the U.S. and began working in New York City’s corporate sector. Having a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Business Degree in Marketing from Monash University, Kim started her career as a Retail Coordinator at Colonial First State Global Asset Management. She then became a Marketing Manager at GPT Group, a Skincare Brand Manager at Mentholatum Australasia, and a Senior Brand Manager of The Biggest Loser at Probiotec Limited. Then she became an Account Director on contract, a Global Senior Director of Marketing, and a Head of Marketing & Sales. In 2017, Kim founded and was a consultant at First Impact Beauty, and then in 2019, she founded Bloomeffects and has been leading the brand in its proprietary Dutch Tulip Complex to date. 

From Bulb to Bloom with Kim van Haaster at Bloomeffects:

Kim established and was mission-driven to deliver people healthy Bloomeffects skincare products that hydrate, rejuvenate, and heal the skin till the innermost barriers. By creating the cleanest and safest Earth-sourced botanical skincare products at Bloomeffects with the brand’s proprietary  Dutch Tulip Complex exported from The Netherlands’ H.M. van Haaster’s family farm, Kim’s mission to “create products which are good for you and better for the environment” was established. Bloomeffects strives to integrate and incorporate sustainability practices into the brand’s core throughout the manufacturing, producing, and distribution processes to maintain a clean, green,  eco-friendly environment for the planet, and a sustainable skincare line. Ethically sourced and cruelty-free, curated and formulated with understanding for sensitive and healthy skin, the formulas manufactured by Bloomeffects are award-winning and vouched for by third-party Consumer Perception Studies and Before & Afters. Keeping in line with delivering skincare products that are clean and follow the conscious beauty concept, the brand adheres to the Credo Clean Standard in clean beauty regulations. 

Roots in Sustainability Initiatives:

Bloomeffects, which is a woman-led skincare brand founded by Kim van Haaster, is rooted deeply in sustainability initiatives for a better environment on our Earth by being the first in Upcycling and promoting Circular Farming practices in the Tulip Industry. With conscious packaging practices, Bloomeffects is the first beauty brand in the U.S. to use PICEA wood’s upcycled material produced from excess sawdust wastes. The brand’s proprietary Dutch Tulip skincare complex strengthens the skin’s barrier function, hydrates, and brightens with its rich vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, Bloomeffects paves the path for making the Earth’s “environment the only way to glow”.

Visit More : https://thebusinessmagnate.com/kim-van-haaster-botanically-sourcing-clean-skincare-products-using-dutch-tulips-at-bloomeffects/

[influencermagazineuk]

Mark Zuckerberg's Fashion Journey: From Hoodies to Silver Chains

Ian Kennedy from San Francisco, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg is primarily recognized for his contributions to the tech industry rather than his personal fashion, but it appears the billionaire is gradually making strides toward becoming a style icon. Zuckerberg, now worth $177 billion according to Forbes, made a significant impact on the tech scene as a young prodigy behind the creation of Facebook. Even in his early 20s, he attracted attention for his relaxed wardrobe, often seen in gray t-shirts. Today, at 40 years old, a father, and the leader of a tech empire that has grown far beyond social networking, Zuckerberg's style is once again making headlines. In April, he introduced a chain necklace to his wardrobe, and the internet quickly took notice. His nearly 14 million followers on Instagram praised his new "drip," a slang term for stylishness, with memes and positive comments. Whether attending lavish weddings, celebrating his birthday in May, or watching UFC fights from ringside, Zuckerberg's Instagram posts now have a touch of influencer flair. He left Harvard University in 2005 to focus on Facebook full-time, and his style then was reminiscent of a typical college student. In the picture above, he sports a quarter-zip pullover with blue jeans — a staple in Zuckerberg's wardrobe throughout his public life. His understated attire contrasted sharply with his bold attitude during Facebook's early days. Notably, he carried business cards that proclaimed, "I'm CEO, Bitch." Over time, Zuckerberg became synonymous with his gray t-shirts and hoodies. While his jeans varied from light to dark washes, he consistently paired them with a hoodie and a comfortable pair of sneakers, such as the Brooks tennis shoes shown in the photo above. In a 2014 Q&A, Zuckerberg explained, "I really want to clear my life to make it so that I have to make as few decisions as possible about anything except how to best serve this community. I feel like I'm not doing my job if I spend any of my energy on things that are silly or frivolous about my life." The photos above were taken four years apart, yet the difference is hardly noticeable. For over a decade, Zuckerberg consistently wore the same outfits. Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, mentioned on "The Colin and Samir Show" that Zuckerberg spent many years "not wasting any energy on deciding what to wear." Mosseri noted that Zuckerberg, like many tech executives, opted to wear "the same thing every day for a long time." In 2016, Zuckerberg humorously captioned a Facebook post showing a rack of identical gray shirts and dark gray hoodies with, "First day back after paternity leave. What should I wear?" Around 2018, Zuckerberg's style began to change, possibly to reflect his growing wealth. At that time, Forbes estimated his net worth at about $71 billion. Replacing his usual t-shirts and hoodies, the Meta CEO started opting for luxurious cashmere sweaters and better-fitting jeans. The pandemic has blurred the boundaries of what constitutes appropriate work attire. As offices reopen post-lockdown, there's a renewed discussion about dress codes, though for the boss, those guidelines are often more flexible. In 2021, Zuckerberg was photographed alongside Facebook's then-chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, and former White House Office of National Drug Control Policy advisor Kevin Sabet. The trio had just attended a session at the Sun Valley Conference, where Zuckerberg notably appeared more relaxed compared to his colleagues. He traded his typical jeans for shorts and paired them with slip-on sandals. During a trip to Japan in February, Zuckerberg and Chan's vacation attire caused a stir. Months before his chain became a sensation, the shearling jacket he sported in Japan captured public attention. His Instagram followers got a glimpse of his off-duty style, which typically featured a neutral top, well-fitted jeans, and white Nike sneakers. This new jacket marked a departure from his usual hoodies, and it became iconic in a "jersey swap" photo where Zuckerberg traded jackets with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, another prominent figure in the tech industry. On certain occasions requiring more formal attire, Zuckerberg isn't hesitant to conform. For court appearances, upscale weddings, and ceremonial events, he often opts for a traditional black suit. During the March pre-wedding festivities for members of India's wealthiest family, the Ambanis, Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan donned all-black outfits adorned with gold details. Zuckerberg notably wore a dragonfly pin on his lapel. At his 40th birthday party in May, Zuckerberg solidified his evolving fashion statement. Sporting a gold chain and a black T-shirt, the latter featuring a distinctive message. Emblazoned with "Carthago delenda est," translating to "Carthage must be destroyed," the phrase holds historical significance attributed to Roman historian Cato the Elder. According to Business Insider, it was a rallying cry within Facebook during its competition with Google in 2016. Zuckerberg previously shared that these new chains are part of a personal "process," hinting at designing a long-term chain engraved with a prayer he reads to his daughters. The sentiment behind his choices resonates, garnering widespread admiration and generating viral content and positive attention online. "I absolutely love it," Mosseri expressed in June. Read the full article

[milescpareview]

What Career path in accounting gives you success?

An accounting career in the US offers a well-defined path for professionals seeking to navigate the intricate world of financial reporting and analysis. Beginning as entry-level staff accountants, individuals typically handle day-to-day financial transactions, including recording expenses and revenues. As they gain experience, they may advance to roles such as senior accountant or accounting supervisor, taking on responsibilities like financial statement preparation and supervising junior staff.

The next step in the accounting job openings in the USA often involves becoming a manager, overseeing a team, and managing broader financial activities. Some may specialize in areas like tax accounting or cost accounting, further honing their expertise. As managers gain experience, they may progress to higher positions such as Controller, responsible for overseeing an organization's entire financial operation.

For those aiming for executive roles, the pinnacle of the financial accounting career path is often the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). CFOs play a strategic role in shaping an organization's financial policies, managing risks, and contributing to overall business strategy. In some cases, professionals may also  Apply for a Master's in Accounting in the US to enhance their career prospects and credibility.

The career path in accounting is not only linear but also versatile, offering opportunities for specialization and advancement based on individual interests and strengths. Continuous professional development and staying abreast of industry trends are key to a successful and fulfilling journey in financial accounting.

[govindhtech]

Fixing AI Recruiting Tool Data Bias: CHRO Alert!

Features in AI Recruiting Tool Technology In a recent Harris Poll Association Workforce Monitor online survey, more than 2,000 American citizens were asked about AI recruiting tools. A third of those surveyed recently think AI hiring tools are more biased than employing people alone.

The findings demonstrated a higher level of suspicion among employed job searchers in the United States over the use of AI in hiring, with almost half (49%) of survey participants thinking that AI recruiting tools are more prejudiced than human recruiters.

Just 29% of individuals who have no immediate plans to change jobs think AI recruiting tools are less prejudiced than people, compared to 43% of those who are at least thinking about changing jobs. Additionally, according to the poll, 39% of job seekers had applied for jobs using AI Recruiting tools.

Concurrently, the survey discovered that 39% of job searchers have using AI Recruiting tools to help with their application process. Use varies by race/ethnicity among US citizens: only 17% of White Americans report using AI while applying for jobs, compared to 36% of Hispanic and 34% of Black persons.

This research is consistent with the USA Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s guidelines on integrating AI into a job search while upholding the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It also comes amid continuous debates about AI screening tools that inherently display bias when making critical decisions.

The intrinsic biases of some AI screening systems employed by businesses are coming up more and more in conversations as AI becomes more commonplace.

Due to the potential for data bias, human resource executives must make sure that the organizations they partner with for recruitment processes undergo independent audits to guarantee that the data sets they use are free from prejudice. Their lack of industry understanding about AI and the dangers of data bias is one of the reasons HR and procurement executives are not asking the proper questions.

Although some job seekers use AI Recruiting tools on their own, hiring managers should “increase transparency and accountability in their hiring processes and use tools that meet current and emerging ant-ibias standards,” according to ASA Chief Executive Officer Richard Wahlquist. “This does not equate to trusting AI to make fair hiring decisions,” Wahlquist said.

Richard Wahlquist, the CEO of ASA, stated, “Job seekers may feel comfortable using artificial intelligence tools in their job search, but that does not equate to trusting AI to make fair hiring decisions.”

Hiring managers must strive to improve accountability and openness in their hiring procedures as AI Recruiting tools are used more frequently. They must also make sure that the tools they use adhere to both established and developing anti-bias standards. It’s also crucial that technologists and legislators carefully analyze policies aimed at reducing bias in AI hiring practices.”

She would also point out that in order for CHROs and leaders in diversity, equity, and inclusivity to get involved in influencing governance and risk management procedures given the pervasiveness of data bias, they must receive training on AI data bias, digital literacy, and AI strategies.

NYC 144, the state’s anti-bias hiring law, was just passed and put into force in New York. It controls the use of video interview software and resume screeners, among other automated employment decision tools (AEDTs), in the hiring or promotion of applicants. The intention is to expose any potential bias in recruiting practices so that the businesses can take steps to eradicate it.

Note: Methodology of the Survey The Harris Poll, acting on behalf of ASA, surveyed 2,037 persons in the United States who were at least 18 years old online between June 20 and 22, 2023, 1,225 of them were employed. Harris online surveys are measured for sampling precision using a Bayesian credible interval of +/-2.7%.

Read more on Govindhtech.com

[gadgetsforusesblog]

Brace yourselves, the banking crisis has only just begun

Jamie Dimon, chairman and chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co, poses for a photo during an interview with Reuters in Miami, Florida, USA – MARCO BELLO/REUTERS If Jamie Dimon was considering a career change as a fortune teller, he would be wise to stick to his day job. On the other hand, if someone of Dimon’s stature could be so wrong about the banking turmoil that continues to engulf…

[be64ll]

The Ultimate Guide To Kiran Pichai Biography

Kiran Pichai is understood as a consequence of his father, and at the moment, he has no future designs. Despite the fact that, like his father, he is additionally a really vibrant scholar and enthusiastic about learning many subjects. He hasn't made the decision however which subject he desires to go into as it is quite challenging to come to a decision.  Expecting you want to fathom whatsoever else concerning the Kiran Pichai. Assuming not a soul cares, In any case, remark to your decreased area we’ll commit to offer details. They have a son in addition to a daughter collectively as well as Attractive household now lives while in the San Francisco bay region." #reallifelovestories #sundarpichai #anjalipichai #googlegotgame Deshi Providers is usually a information-based mostly company providing information and static knowledge about enterprises Situated throughout The usa. following that he retains masters diploma from stanford university in elements science and engineering, and MBA from the wharton college of your College of pennsylvania. He started his excursion in America and got American citizenship due to the fact his father is settled in the united states. At this moment, Kiran is feeling the squeeze to create his vocation as crucial as his father’s. while you First of all know her father would be the chief executive officer of Alphabet inc. that is often known as google. he joined the corporate during the calendar year 2004. It took some time, but I need from not moving in the least to totally participating in sports that I loved. I is going to be eternally grateful to Dr. Chekka! On December 11, 2018, Sundar Pichai was questioned by the U.S. Property Judiciary Committee on a range of Google-connected problems Kiran Pichai Biography these as you can political bias on Google's platforms, the corporation's alleged programs for just a "censored search application" in China, and its privacy procedures. His father wasn't so prosperous that he could deliver his son overseas to study. Having said that, his father in some way managed to invest $1000 with the family members savings to deal with Pichai’s touring and additional costs. Kiran Pichai is definitely the CEO of Google and Among the most influential technological innovation innovators on the globe. He has transformed the sport forever together with his ingenious pondering and chopping-edge eyesight. He's Sundar Pichai’s youngster and goes to just a little terra firma university. He is noteworthy resulting from his father. This website utilizes cookies to increase your knowledge. We will believe you are ok with this, but you can decide-out if you wish.Take Go through A lot more

Fascination About Kiran Pichai Biography

He's a baby of on the list of prime billioner’s of the earth but his mother and father wants to hold him all the way down to earth and planned to taught him The fundamental needs of humanity. Kiran attended Stanford College, in which he earned his bachelor’s diploma in engineering. He then went on to receive his learn’s degree in small business administration through the University of Pennsylvania. Kara Clayton is actually a freelance writer by job and can also be a web enthusiast, a nature lover, a photographer (amateurish), a vacation freak, a tunes lover along with a Conditioning freak by passion. She has finished her graduation in English Literature and her Write-up-graduation in Journalism and Mass Conversation. Kiran Pichai would be the son of Indian-born American small business government Sundar Pichai. He was born in 2007, creating him fifteen yrs outdated as of 2022. Not A lot is known about Kiran, as he continues to be a small and his mothers and fathers have saved him away from the public eye for the most part. Nonetheless, it is evident that he is quite shut with his father and shares his passion for technology.

Fascination About Kiran Pichai Biography

Despite the fact that you might not know the name of Kiran Pichai, you happen to be certainly aware of the title on the CEO of Google, and Indians regard Alphabet for making it a happy instant for them. Kiran could possibly be titled a baby having a silver mouth as his father is surely an Indian- American businessman, named Sundar pichai. Due to the fact she was a little bit little one, Kim has been considering modelling, and during her adolescence she practised posing before a mirror. She hardly ever succeeded being a design, regrettably, as her narrative finishes below. Kiran is inside a secondary university in the usa and He's famous for the reason that he isn't born with silver in his mouth.

Top Kiran Pichai Biography Secrets

Kiran Pichai is understood as a consequence of his father, and at present, he has no potential programs. Whilst, like his father, he is likewise an exceedingly shiny scholar and considering researching various subjects. He hasn't resolved still which field he needs to enter because it is very hard to come to a decision.  Equally of them proved that they're excellent dad and mom, and now their son is fifteen yrs previous. Kiran Pichai continues to be in his teenage several years, and it’s quite a complicated undertaking to evaluate the peak and excess weight of a establishing boy or girl. He's a secondary school pupil who's now concentrating on his scientific tests. He could possibly be a toddler UN company was brought into the globe using a silver mouth. A thrilling and fascinating spectator sport is cockfighting. WPC2025 delivers an easy and approachable cockfighting System.

[assignmentprep]

Discuss whether targeting the children of well- connected political or business leaders is ethical.

Learning Engagement #4 TOPIC: The role of family connection and the so-called gene advantage is a well-known phenomenon in human history even though most countries, especially the USA, such practices might be considered bribery under federal law. In this week’s learning engagement after carefully studying the Case called It’s All in the Family (page 274), please answer the following questions from your perspectives: Explain why it is or is not a good practice to consider the connections a job applicant might have that could enhance an employer’s business portfolio. Discuss whether targeting the children of well- connected political or business leaders is ethical. Imagine that you are the Chief HR Officer for a company considering doing business in China. You have been informed that many of your competitors have implemented programs to hire the sons and daughters of influential Chinese leaders. What advice do you give to your executive leadership team? Whose interests would be most important in your policy decision? Make sure you look into available scholarly references to support your opinion. Also in your replies analyze your chosen post from a critical point of view. PROFESSOR’S GUIDANCE FOR THIS WEEK’S LE: You have heard the term quid pro quo to win elections quite often in former President Trump’s impeachment. Guess what, the same charges were brought up against JPMorgan Chase’s hiring practices in China and costly punishment had been handed down to those involved. I would like you to research this and similar cases and share with us your opinion and findings. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Be sure to proofread carefully (Use Grammarly – the premium version! Make sure your writing score is more than 90) and cite your sources (APA 7.0 ed). NOTE: Post your 300-400 word answers by Wednesday 11:55 pm to earn a maximum of 14 points. Offer at least two 200-300 word comments (replies) to posts from your peers’ discussions by Sunday 11:55 pm to earn a maximum of 8 points each. You will be graded using the following rubric and standards. Grading Rubric and Standards

First appeared on Assignment-Prep.com

[whatjobs]

As the business achieved record quarterly sales and operating profitability, executives jobs at Dell Technologies downplayed concerns about the impact of supply chain restrictions on the IT industry as a whole. For more information, Just go through our news article now.

[forbesjobs]

Forbes.jobs delivers a first-of-its-kind career and employment experience for professional-level talent and highly qualified job candidates. Find support for your entire journey with career opportunities, education and skills development, community connections,and  coaching to secure the best and  highest paid jobs possible. Leveraging the internationally recognized Forbes brand, hiring managers and recruiters seek accomplished Forbes.job candidates for senior manager, leadership jobs, executive jobs, project management positions, CEO, CFO and all C-Suite level jobs, director-level jobs, and vice presidents in the areas of banking and finance, accounting, information technology and computer science, supply chain management and logistics, biomedical and medicine, administration, sales and marketing and much more. Find high paying jobs in the USA – in-person or remote, contract workers or full-time – at Forbes.jobs.

[vomitdodger]

https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/wef-graduates-in-the-usa-elected?r=11si4j&s=r&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

From the newsletter:

I need your help. A new crop of elected officials or those running in November primaries were selected by United States citizens yesterday.

So here is the job: please compare the list of World Economic Forum Graduates below to any new elected official(s) that you are aware of from yesterday’s election. It there are any changes to the existing politicians careers or electoral status, please leave the changes in the comments also.

These WEF graduates have their primary alliances with a foreign entity, that being the WEF. They should register as foreign agents in my opinion. Are these the ones that “we the people” really want running OUR country?

If any of the people listed below are up for re-election in 2022, please also make note of that in the comments. Let’s see if we can’t generate an updated and complete list of those we need to work to ensure their electoral loss!

Thank you everyone for your help in this - it means a great deal to me.

List of US Politicians (please update in the comments):

Huma Abedin US Department of State Deputy chief of staff and aide to Hillary Clinton (2009– 2013) and vice chair of Hillary's presidential campaign

Penny Abeywardena Mayors office City of New York Mayors office City of New York

Robert E. Andrews United States House of Representatives Congressman from New Jersey (D), 1st District

Ruben Barrales Office of the President of the United States Assistant to the President and Director, Intergovernmental Affairs

Evan Bayh Senate of Indiana, USA Senator Indiana (1999–2011) Karan K. Bhatia Office of the US Trade Deputy Trade Representative

Matt Blunt State of Missouri Governor of Missouri

David A. Bray Atlantic Council GeoTech Center Federal Communications Commission

Aja Brown City of Compton, California Mayor of Compton

Carol M. Browner Office of the President of the United States Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Policy (2009–2011)

George P. Bush Texas General Land Office Land Commissioner (2015–)

Pete Buttigieg Government of the United States Secretary of Transportation (2021–)

Julian Castro Government of the US US Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (2014 –2017)

David Chiu City of San Francisco City Attorney of San Francisco

Jim Cooper U.S. House of Representatives Democrat Congressman Tennessee 32 yrs

Tom Cotton U.S. Senate Senator from Arkansas (R)

Daniel Crenshaw United States Congress Rep. from Texas, 2nd District (2019–)

Artur Davis US Congress Congressman from Alabama, 7th District (D)

Brian Deese National Economic Council National Economic Council

Joshua DuBois White House Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Sophal Ear Crescenta Valley Town Council, California Council Member

Mike Espy Government of the US Secretary of Agriculture (1993–1994)

Daniel C. Esty State of Connecticut, USA Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (2011–2014)

Jon Favreau Office of the President of the United States Office of the President of the United States

Steven Fulop Jersey City, N.J. Mayor of Jersey City (2013–)

Tulsi Gabbard United States House of Representatives Congresswoman from Hawaii (D), 2nd District

Kate Gallego City of Phoenix, Arizona Mayor of Phoenix

Pete Geren Texas Cultural Trust Former congressman Texas

Gabrielle Giffords US Congress US Congressman (Dem) for Arizona (2007–2012)

Garlin II Gilchrist State of Michigan Lieutenant Governor

Cyrus Habib Society of Jesus (Jesuits) Lieutenant Governor of Washington State (2017–2021)

Nikki Haley US Government US Ambassador to the UN

Rachel Haot (Sterne) City of New York Executive Director of the Transit Innovation Partnership

Jaime Herrera Beutler US House of Representatives Congresswoman from Washington (R), 3rd District

Benjamin Jealous NAACP -

Bobby Jindal State of Louisiana Governor of Louisiana

Patrick J. Kennedy II US House of Representatives Representative for Rhode Island (1995–2011)

Joseph P. Kennedy III US House of Representatives Rep for the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts

Kwame Kilpatrick City of Detroit Mayor of Dieroit (2002–2008)

Adam Kinzinger Illinois American Politician

Mark Lippert Boeing US Ambassador to South Korea 2014-2017

Kathleen McGinty Office of the Governor of Pennsylvania Chief of Staff (2015); Environmental advisor to VP Al Gore and President Clinton Kimberly A. Moore US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (2021–) Chief judge

Seth Moulton U.S. House of Representatives Democrat Rep. from Massachusetts's 6th district (2015–)

Vivek Murthy United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps

Nicole Nason National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Administrator

Michael R. Nelson City of Carrobro, North Carolina Mayor of Carrboro, NC

Gavin Newsom State of California Governor of California (2019–)

Jared Polis State of Colorado, USA Governor of Colorado (2019–)

Samantha Power National Security Council (NSC) Past US Ambassador to UN

Adam Putnam Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services

Luke Ravenstahl City of Pittsburgh Mayor, Pittsburgh 2006-2014

Julissa Reynoso US Embassy US Ambassador to Spain and Andorra (2022–)

Nilmini Rubin Meta US Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Richard L. Scott Columbia/HCA US Governor/Senator - Florida

Kunihiko Shimada KS International Strategies, Inc. Former UN mediator on peace and security issues

Kristen Silverberg US Government US Ambassador to the EU (2008–2009)

Edward Smith DLA Piper LLP Department of Commerce under Obama

Elise Stefanik US House of Representatives Congresswoman from New York, 21st District (R)

William Steiger USAID Director of the Office of Global Health Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Lawrence H. Summers Harvard University Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs

John E. Sununu United States Institute of Peace (USIP) Congressman and Senator Lauren Underwood Representative for Illinois

Heather Zichal The White House Deputy assistant to President Barack Obama for Energy and Climate Change

Jeffrey Zients Advisory Board Company White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator since 2021

[thebusinessmagnate]

Michael Polsky: International Leader Delivering Sustainable Clean Energy Solutions at Invenergy

Let’s start this article with a quick question. What are sustainable energy solutions and how do they benefit the world and its inhabitants? Sustainable Energy Solutions are nothing but clean and green energy sources used to replace the rapidly depleting non-renewable energy sources. Clean energy sources are also known as renewable energy sources that are naturally sourced and do not cause any harm or disrupt the environment’s ecosystem and biodiversity. Some of the most commonly seen and used sustainable energy solutions that are being widely designed, developed, constructed, and operated with the combined use in technological advancements around the globe today are Geothermal, Solar, Wind, Hydropower, Biomass, and Natural Gas. Sustainable clean energy solutions can contribute hugely to the development of a nation or the world entirely – by being environmentally and eco-friendly in reducing pollution and adverse climatic changes, by being a renewable energy source that can be used without the fear of resource depletion, by reducing the dependence on already depleting non-renewable resources, by enhancing economic areas in creating job opportunities for the locals, by improving the community’s overall health with the zero pollution emissions, by being cost-effective and very affordable for customers to invest in their switch to clean and green energy, and by being a reliable and sustainable energy source for future generations as well.  

Sustainable Energy Solutions are imperative to rejuvenating our Planet Earth from the long exposures and harm meted out to it since the time human activities in research, development, exploration, and innovation came into being. Although what man has created has helped with the evolution of our species, we must also deeply acknowledge the harm and tremendous afflictions we’ve imparted on our Earth to take more than we need. Regardless of what we take, we unfortunately waste just as much. An ever-moving cycle that keeps repeating, it is our responsibility to make the necessary changes in our activities and lifestyle developments by seeking sustainable energy solutions to continue having a habitable Earth for ourselves and our future generations. On this note, we shall share insights within this article into how the Founder and CEO of Invenergy LLC – Michael Polsky, established a Renewable Energy Power Generation company in 2001, in America, making it a global energy delivery leader and privately held developer and operator of sustainable energy solutions today. 

The Pioneer of The World’s Largest Developer and Operator of Sustainable Energy Solutions:

Michael Polsky is the visionary pioneer, serial entrepreneur, and energy industry expert who founded and established today’s globally leading privately-held developer and operator of sustainable energy solutions. Invenergy LLC. is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Since its conception in 2001, Michael has led the company as its Founder and Chief Executive Officer and has completed over 202 clean energy projects, 31 GW, and going international in four continents, by providing sustainably clean energy solutions in Geothermal power generation, Solar, and Wind. Michael and Invenergy are currently paving the way for the next-generation clean technology solutions in Energy Storage, Offshore Wind, Transmission Lines, Clean Hydrogen, Clean Water, and Natural Gas. Striving to be professionals and expert innovators in the field that builds a sustainable world for us and our future generations, Michael leads the Renewable Energy Power Generation company to leave a positive impact on the communities they serve wherever they go. The Founder/CEO brings to the world sustainable solutions all through the clock in addressing various complex challenges to establish a clean energy future. 

The Founder’s Experience and Accolades:

Michael Polsky has 35 years of industry experience in sustainable clean energy solutions. Having a Master of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Kyiv Polytechnic Institue and a Master’s in Business Administration from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Michael is a Ukrainian-born entrepreneur who is settled now in America. Invenergy’s Founder/CEO started his career as an Engineer in several companies before becoming a CEO at Indeck, Founder/CEO at SkyGen, a Board Member at the Art Institute of Chicago, and a Board Member yet again at the University of Chicago, and the World Resources Institute. Michael founded Invenergy in 2001 and is still leading the North American company to date. 

Michael received the “Lifetime Achievement Award” from The Chicago Council on Science and Technology in 2017, and the “Weizmann Leadership Award” in 2018. In 2022, he was awarded the “Ripple of Hope Award” from Robert F. Kennedy for his philanthropic efforts in ensuring the well-being of the people, the nation’s victory, and the ultimate reconstruction of his home country Ukraine. 

The Globally Leading and Privately Held Developer and Operator of Sustainable Energy Solutions:

For over 20 years since 2001, Invenergy has embarked on a journey with its 2,500+ workforce personnel, organizational leaders, and other stakeholders in smooth and seamless Development Processes, Design & Build Processes with 12,500+ constrictions jobs supported yearly in over 123 US counties, and Operations that has overseen over 21GW clean energy generated with over 23 years of industry operational experience. With more than 200 on-site locations that are completed or still in progress, Invenergy uses the best in-field technologies and expertise and has powered over 9.1M homes so far. Invenergy services cover worldwide energy solutions for Geothermal, Wind, Solar, Natural Gas, and Energy Storage technologies. Be it in operations and maintenance, field services, asset management, factory plant management, energy management, and engineering and analysis, all the phases in operation processes are overseen by Invenergy. Empowering communities, environment, educational sectors, and innovation, by doing good together and driving toward creating today’s ideas for tomorrow’s solutions. Invenergy is a trusted partner for customer success, as Michale Polsky says, “The people at Invenergy are the gold standard, Invenergy is the name, but it’s the people behind that name that make all the difference.”

Visit More : https://thebusinessmagnate.com/michael-polsky-international-leader-delivering-sustainable-clean-energy-solutions-at-invenergy/

[joezworld]

📂

What in the HECK happened with Scotsman, Dominion, and Dwight during the Great Gathering?!

(Also, since Dutchess of Hamilton has also been to the US during the 1939 NY World’s Fair, did she get involved?)

Warning - extremely long post below

So, first of all, Duchess of Hamilton never went back to the UK.

Duchess of Hamilton (6229) and Coronation (6220) had their nameplates swapped by the LMS when an engine was sent over to the US. 6229, in the guise of 6220, went to the US.

Streamlined locomotives were all the rage at the time, and railroads practically fell over themselves to get Coronation (as she was now known) onto press trains. The B&O railroad in particular was so impressed with her capabilities that they extended a formal offer of employment to her for service on their streamlined Royal Blue service. The LMS were surprised to get an offer to "purchase" their locomotive, but accepted nonetheless, as it meant a welcome infusion of cash in the dark days during the beginning of WWII.

Coronation fit right in with the Americans, having only been about a year old when she was sent to New York. Following the end of steam traction on the Royal Blue in the late 40s, (the B&O were early adopters of diesels.) she and her B&O coworkers found good employment on the New York Central, where she still runs to this day.

Since then, she's fully "gone native", marrying a J3 Hudson, (yes one of the streamlined ones) adopting both an American accent and three children, and being fully repainted to NYC silver by 1956. Flying Scotsman met her in Albany in 1970, and neither one of them recognized the other.

Actually, most UK expats don't recognize her, to the point where a common interaction is for her to be held up as an example of "look at her, she's integrated well into the US", only for the British engines to say "that's preposterous, she isn't English".

When it's pointed out that she's still obviously an LMS Coronation, the next response is usually screaming.

All that being said, she has no interest to come back to the United Kingdom, and wasn’t asked by the NRM anyways. 

---------------

Second of all, the Great Gathering was... an event.

So, there are (officially) 6 preserved Gresley A4s.

Mallard - static, National Railway Museum (UK). Also an asshole.

Bittern - running, private owner, UK based

Sir Nigel Gresley - running, owned by a trust, UK based

Union of South Africa - running, private owner, UK based

Dwight D. Eisenhower - static (officially), National Railway Museum (USA)

Dominion of Canada - static (officially), Exporail (Montréal)

This is the official list, and for the first 4 engines, it's the truth.

However, things are a bit hazier on the other side of the Atlantic...

-----

So the thing that needs to be made clear right up front that in a sentient vehicle world, museums aren't like the NRM, where locomotives sit static for years on end, although obviously the English have museums like that because of course they do.

Rail museums in the rest of the world are much more like Colonial Williamsburg - a living history center staffed by volunteers who act out a prototypical setting from [insert decade here].

British Rail, being British Rail, didn’t know that and didn’t care.

-

4496, Dwight D. Eisenhower, having been named after the General-turned-President, had been earmarked for preservation by BR, and was summarily shipped off to the US National Railway Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

In an entirely unintentional move, this donation MONUMENTALLY snubbed the Smithsonian, who refused to have any dealings with BR for decades, even for archival purposes. This, combined with the fallout from Operation Smash Hit, and the fact that the Smithsonian is Petty AF, meant that there was virtually no official trans-Atlantic cooperation between British and US museums for decades.

Dwight hit the shores of the US in 1964 New York City and was greeted by a marching band, a ticker-tape parade, and Presidents Johnson and Eisenhower, who were on-hand to personally make the engine a US citizen.

Always keen to curry favor with the government, the Southern Pacific railroad had a job offer waiting for Dwight right alongside the Presidents and the parade, and when he accepted, he went off to Sunny Southern California - someplace so opposed to Britain the he fell in love with the place immediately and refused to leave!

The ladies may have also had something to do with it as well - while most engine classes fell into a typical 50-50 gender distribution, the SP GS-4 class was all female...

[Pictured above - one of 28 very good reasons to live in California if you're a single British steam engine.]

Dwight does not kiss and tell, but at his wedding in 1974, all 28 GS-4s showed up - and he was only marrying one of them!

Since the 70's, he's become a mainstay in California, having been repainted into Daylight Limited colors in 1969, and retiring from railroad duties in 1999. After that, he went into the movie business, and is currently the head of digital media development at Disney.

His wife Irene (SP 4437) is also an interesting figure as well - following in the wheelmarks of the great female locomotives before her, she had an eye for business and a Stanford education before she married her husband, and was an initial investor in multiple tech companies in Silicon Valley during the 70's and 80's, but stopped doing that after her investment in Apple proved very lucrative. In 1996, she was convinced by a few people in the Stanford Alumni association to invest in another tech startup, this one an "internet search engine" called Google.

So yeah, Dwight Eisenhower kept falling up and up and up all his life, and is now married to the richest woman in the world.

--

4489 Dominion of Canada was donated mostly by accident, having been forgotten in the back of Darlington sheds until 1966, when she was shipped off to the Canadian Railway Historical Society in Montreal.

As stated elsewhere, the Canadian Government considered any locomotive built in the UK to have UK citizenship, and therefore treated them as commonwealth citizens under existing Canadian law. (remember that Canada was still a colony at that time)

CN, the national rail carrier, was obligated to offer her a job under their charter, and she accepted, moving to Toronto to run intercity trains between Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa.

Within two years she was displaced from those duties by the introduction of a new, shiny, jet turbine powered train, and was summarily demoted to local commuter runs in the Toronto suburbs.

Moving to suburbia did one thing more than anything else - expose her to the people who live there. They all had complaints, they all had problems, and they all had no idea on how to fix them.

Being a helpful sort, Dominion decided that she could help, and promptly ran for Toronto city council in 1974. She won, and has been a fixture in local Toronto politics ever since - she even got to be Chairwoman of Metro Toronto (the closest thing to being mayor because Toronto's governmental structure is weird) until 1998, when Toronto was merged with the surrounding area to create a massive new region.

Having then done everything there is to do in municipal Toronto government, Dominion went on to become the Chief Executive Officer of Metrolinx, the agency that controls almost all of the transit agencies in Ontario, because, as she puts it, "I'm still a commuter engine at heart".

She's now painted in the current GO Transit paint scheme, and still does commuter runs- which is really weird looking now that there are double deck commuter coaches in a push-pull configuration, with a Gresley A4 doing the pushing.

------

Now, I mentioned that those 6 were the only ones officially preserved - there were two unofficial preservations as well...

-

4486 Merlin was properly Shanghied - he was yanked off the docks in Southhampton by a cargo ship in August of 1965, and was spirited away to parts unknown.

Those unknown parts turned out to be South Korea. There, he was given citizenship by the US-aligned military dictatorship (Korean history is wild) and was employed by the State-run rail operator.

As the military government began a hardcore plan to increase their country's wealth and industrial output, rail lines were being built across the country, and Merlin was soon awarded a position on the fastest train in the network, the Seoul-Busan Saemaeul-ho.

Because of his experience in running high-speed express trains, Merlin not only became the public face of Korean high-speed rail, but also became an "honored elder" amongst the other Korean engines, a position he still holds to this day - as despite being over 70 years old, he still runs daily trains on the fast services, easily keeping time with the Korean schedules as well as training the new high speed trains, including the KTX sets. He's on his 24th boiler by now, and has more parts from Hyundai than Doncaster.

An additional fact - Merlin actually has had a linguistic effect on Korean railroading, as his strange amalgamation of an accent - a strong Yorkshire accent that tried to be Received Pronunciation for 30 years, mixed with almost 50 years of middle-to-upper-class Korean - has filtered down through the ranks of KoRail, because all of his students want to sound like him out of respect. Human British expats in Korea will occasionally hear a locomotive speaking in English, and the engine will sound like a Yorkshireman every time and the Brits cannot handle it.

---------

4495 Golden Fleece is the only A4 to preserve himself - he saw the writing on the wall in the early 60s, and hopped a car ferry to France at the end of 1962. From there, he bounced around Europe for a bit before making it to the United States in the late 70's.

Of the 8 surviving A4s, he's probably led the quietest life of all - he moved to Miami before it got nice, and basically got in on the ground floor of CSX when that merger happened in 1980. He's now the head of terminal operations for the Port of Miami, but he's generally kept a low profile - not even having a chance to meet Scotsman due to his time in Europe.

He's still in contact with Dwight and Dominion, and has no real bitterness over not being "famous" like they are - he likes the quiet, and still lives in a modest house in Boynton Beach with his long-term girlfriend.

----------------------

Soooo... the Great Gathering.

It was supposed to be a meeting of the 6 surviving A4s - a two year event held at the NRM in honor of the 75th anniversary of Mallard's record-setting run.

"Record setting" is a past-tense term here. While there have been no official runs, every single one of the Pennsylvania Railroad's T1 and S1 locomotives claim to have gone faster than 126 without meaning to, and numerous other locomotives on unofficial attempts done late at night on flat stretches of land across the country have hit 130+.

British Expats have also done better than 126 - Coronation claims to have hit at least 140 on a midnight mail train in 1980, and in Korea, Merlin claims to have hit 128 on a test train, although that was judged by timing mile markers as his speedometer wasn't functioning properly.

Problems arose before any of the engines had even reached the NRM, as Mallard's already sizeable ego had swelled to massive proportions, and several engines in the great hall were planning a justifiable homicide.

Then came the time restraints - none of the foreign locomotives were willing to uproot their lives and jobs for two years just to sit motionless in a shed. A two year exhibition was eventually negotiated down to a 6 month gala, much to the irritation and confusion of the NRM, who could not understand that the engines were still in service.

Then came the extra engines - Dwight and Dominion thought that the NRM knew about Fleece, and were quite insulted on his behalf when he wasn't invited - they threatened to not attend unless arrangements were made for Fleece to attend as well.

An utterly baffled NRM agreed, but also tore their record archives apart, as they knew that Fleece had been scrapped. The fact that his picture was plastered all over CSX's Florida Division website was all the more confusing as a result.

-

Meanwhile in Busan, nobody knew that Merlin had escaped the scrappers' torch and therefore did not invite him. He was only informed after K-Pop star Psy texted him from London to ask if he knew about the event, which was being advertised on television.

Merlin, having missed his friends from the LNER, decided that he would just crash the party, used some of his many vacation days, and took off for England on a cargo ship.

-

By sheer coincidence, all four foreign A4s hit the dock in Southhampton on the same day, and were delighted to see each other - especially Merlin, considering that everyone else had thought he'd died.

Meanwhile at the NRM, delight was not the word one would use. Befuddled, confused, shocked even, but not delighted. Their plans had revolved around 6 A4s, most of which wouldn’t be running - only to now discover that there were 7, all but one of which were functioning! (Mallard, the star of the show, was the odd one out, and it drove him crazy) 

Then they got a phone call from their man at the docks saying that another one had showed up, looking like he’d driven out of a K-pop album cover, and they just gave up and started screaming. 

-

Screaming is also what happened when the cavalcade of foreigners showed up in York - first of all, the quartet of new engines sounded nothing like they had when they left England. 

Dwight had willfully unlearned his Upper Crust British accent by 1971, and had fallen deep into a California accent (quite similar to what Scotsman sounds like - coincidence? No.)

Dominion and Fleece hadn’t tried to unlearn their accents, but 40+ years of living in North America can really dilute the Britishness. It doesn’t help that Dominion has developed most Canadian vocal tics eh?

As stated above, Merlin has a weird fuckin accent, and now he speaks English with a strong Yorkshire accent, but will occasionally and without warning drop into a Korean/Yorkshire hybrid accent.

The screaming also happened because the NRM had wanted to repaint the duo trio! quartet?! into LNER garter blue, and were promptly informed that “we’re painted like this for work! Don’t touch it!” (the sole exception was Dwight, who hadn’t pulled a real train in 14 years, but he liked his Daylight Limited paint), so instead of the new arrivals showing up in LNER colours, they showed up looking like THIS:

Having their long-lost siblings show up looking and sounding like THAT had quite an affect on the A4s and the other NRM engines: 

Bittern could not believe her eyes - to the point where she actually began making noise about seeing an optometrist

Union of South Africa almost backed through a wall

Sir Nigel Gresley was speechless for two days

Mallard was so angry that he actually chipped a tooth during one of his rants about “the impropriety of it all!!”

Evening Star laughed so hard that he managed to derail himself without moving

City of Truro almost cracked a piston from shock

Alycidon spent the entire gala coming up with more and more laser focused jabs at Mallard - who was so easy to fluster that the Deltic needn’t have bothered 

Oliver Cromwell and Green Arrow made fast friends with the new arrivals, and spent the entire time learning ‘Americanisms’ to annoy the other engines with.

But what about Flying Scotsman? Where was he in all of this? He was generally considered to be the “leader” of the NRM fleet (much to Mallard’s annoyance), and was usually who the other engines turned to when things started getting out of control. 

Did Scotsman calm things down? Like hell he did. The inmates were running the asylum from the moment that Scotsman saw the other A4s - more importantly saw Dwight - and immediately greeted them in flawless Californian. 

This actually set off the building’s security alarm, as Flying Scotsman saying “DUDES! Wassup?!” caused such an uproar that the noise broke several exterior windows. 

----

And all of this was in the first few days - there were six months left to go. 

--

There was one railtour attempt. It was supposed to feature Bittern and Sir Nigel running in tandem, but instead featured Dwight and Merlin, mainly because Bittern wanted to see what would happen. 

They exceeded the max speed limit for steam traction within 15 minutes, sparked a thorough investigation by the RAIB, and got all future steam powered railtours for the Gathering cancelled immediately. 

On the plus side, the two engines did prove that it was still possible for a steam train to hit 100 safely. 

--

One thing that baffled the other engines was the inordinately large number of people who turned up just to see Dominion, and the one person who kept turning up to see Fleece - it took a lot of explaining for them to understand that Dominion had been married three times, and had children (adopted) and grandchildren from all three marriages coming to see her. A similar amount of explaining was required to explain that Fleece’s girlfriend/partner wanted to see him too. 

The normally chatty Dwight and Scotsman would suddenly clam up whenever Dominion and Fleece teasingly tried to ask about their love lives, something which wasn’t unnoticed by the other engines, but got similarly nowhere. 

The answer to why they both shut the hell up was explained when a lot of shouting broke out in the yard of the NRM one day about a month into the exhibition:

Irene Eisenhower, not content to sit in California and count her billions, quickly grew bored without her husband, and decided to go to England and be with him. The fact that she definitely did not fit the UK loading gauge was never even a consideration, and so she just showed up in York on the back of a lorry, having informed no-one of her arrival, and content to just pay off the requisite people if a fuss occurred. 

A fuss did occur, and it was only ended when Scotsman managed to convince the museum’s curator (who at this point in his life was regretting ever thinking of this damned gathering) that Irene was a ‘temporary donation’ to the museum. 

[Scotsman, who definitely hid his Cali accent from museum staff the entire time, has one of the best poker faces in the world]

Dwight was overjoyed, and so was Scotsman, for initially unclear reasons. Then Irene managed to grab both her husband and Scotsman, dragged them behind a shed, and [THIS IS A PG13 HEADCANON] the both of [PG13]. Turns out that while Scotsman may have slept his way across the US a few times, he was actually ready to settle down with Dwight and Irene - they were a throuple way back in the 70s, and those passions haven’t faded. When Scotsman reluctantly left the US in 74, a lot of the reluctance was because of those two. 

This bombshell of a revelation went over interestingly at the NRM. Some engines (Green Arrow) were happy for them, some were incensed (Mallard - although it was for anti-American reasons, not homophobic ones), and some were intensely curious about what was going on in the outside world (Bittern). 

-

The ‘foreigners’ (as Mallard had taken to calling them), were deeply displeased at how their fellow engines were being treated - while a lot of them were ‘in steam’, some were not and might never be again, something they found abhorrent. Unable to do anything at that time, as the NRM was not a for-profit entity and therefore did not have anyone to bribe, (Irene’s solution to things is to throw money at the situation) the engines started talking about how life was different in the outside world - namely that engines were still working hard, even when they were over a century old and running on steam power. 

This was of great interest to engines like Evening Star and (6220) Duchess of Hamilton, neither of whom were likely to be steamed again, and Bittern, who was growing more and more curious with each passing day. Dissent began to slowly build against the NRM curators, and the culture of the United Kingdom in general.

-

One thing the foreigners did try do something about was Ellerman Lines. The poor bastard had been sectioned to show his inner workings, much to the jaw-dropped horror of the foreign A4s, who made such a stink about it that he was moved outside the museum by NRM staff, who must have thought that the engines lacked object permanence or something, because that didn’t make it better!

-

Irene Eisenhower, who was beginning to get really sick of the nonsense that the NRM called preservation, (Scotsman was not in running condition, and had been hastily reassembled mid-overhaul in order to be cosmetically ready for the event, and let’s not forget poor Ellerman Lines) elected to bring the event to a close on her own after only three months. She did this by eventually putting her immense wealth to good use, and called for a haulage service to rescue the engines from the NRM without the knowledge of the museum staff. Aside from the A4s, she also took Ellerman Lines, Scotsman, and Bittern (who had asked to go) with her, and only bothered to inform Ellerman and Bittern - she was not about risk Scotsman having another “think of England” moment and staying. 

The haulage firm was efficient and the cargo ship was waiting, so the engines were in international waters before the NRM opened the next morning. 

Much swearing occurred in England that day, and the NRM’s image has yet to fully recover from the PR story that they had sold Flying Scotsman (and Ellerman Lines) to a reclusive American billionaire. 

Privately though, the NRM does not care, as that story is a lot better than “Someone stole our engines and we’re not allowed to get them back because as it turns out we’re slaveowners, so no international court will help us.”

Also, despite their multimillion dollar “donation" from the I. Eisenhower Opportunity Fund, they still haven’t been able to fully pacify their engines, all of whom have somehow gotten the idea that they should be running in main line service like they live on Sodor or something...

--------

Dwight, Scotsman, and Irene all live happily together in the sprawling Eisenhower estate in Malibu. Irene is currently lobbying the California state government to legalize polygamy, with moderate success. 

-

Ellerman Lines, after a lot of therapy and a full rebuild, is now working on a short line in Wyoming. He likes the scenery.

-

Bittern followed Dwight, Irene, and Scotsman to Los Angeles, and used her ‘connections’ (Dwight) to get a supporting role in Avengers: Age of Ultron. Since then, she’s gotten several roles based on her own merits, including an Emmy nomination for Best Guest Appearance in a Comedy.

-

Merlin spent a few months in LA before he went back to Korea. He is very thankful that he was able to reconnect with his brothers and sisters, and that his homeland has good internet, as he video calls his family across the Pacific almost every day.

-

Golden Fleece still lives a quiet life in Florida, but finally decided to tie the knot, and married his girlfriend in 2017. The ceremony was supposed to be quiet, but Irene Eisenhower has no idea what that word means. 

-

Dominion of Canada continues to baffle non-local trainspotters when she runs commuter trains into Toronto. She is now a great-grandmother. 

-

7 years later, and the term “Great Gathering” is still a forbidden phrase in the back rooms of the NRM.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

* * * * LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

January 10, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

Unbelievably, it was only a week ago—last Sunday—that we learned Trump had called Georgia’s Secretary of State and pressured him to change the results of the 2020 election. Trump demanded that Brad Raffensperger “find” the 11,780 votes Trump needed to win Georgia. The news of the attempt to get an election official to overrule the will of the people was astonishing: at the time, it was the worst domestic attack on our democracy ever, coming, as it did, from a sitting president.

At the time.

Over the past several days, the picture of what happened on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, has become clearer, and it’s bad. While Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser gave a press conference Wednesday night, there has been not a single official briefing from the White House, the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, or Capitol Police.

The federal government has gone dark.

What we do know is that on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, egged on by Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Alabama Representative Mo Brooks, Don Jr., and especially Trump himself, Trump supporters stormed the Capitol just as Congress was meeting in joint session to confirm Democrat Joe Biden as our new president. They overpowered the Capitol Police—perhaps with the help of some of the officers—breached the doors, and smashed their way through the historic building, shouting for Vice President Mike Pence—whom Trump insisted was at fault for not overturning the count-- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and “traitors” who were counting the electoral votes for Biden. While many of the early pictures from inside the Capitol showed rioters gawking like tourists, ones released this weekend showed violent thugs, carrying plastic handcuffs and seeming to have information about where to find specific members of Congress. They breached the Senate chamber at 2:16, just a minute after the senators made it out.

The Capitol Police got the lawmakers to safety, but were not in control of the building. Lawmakers huddled quietly behind barricaded doors waiting for police that took hours to come. When they did arrive, they cleared the area and regained control of the Capitol. After janitors had cleaned the building, lawmakers counted the electoral votes that established Democrats Biden and Kamala Harris as the next president and vice president of the USA.

As videos have emerged and timelines been established, it has become apparent we came perilously close to seeing our elected representatives taken hostage or even executed on the makeshift gallows the rioters set up outside the building.

But here’s the thing: these were not outside insurgents; they were supporters of the Republican president. Trump enflamed the insurgents but he did not create them: years of demonizing Democrats and suggesting they must not be allowed to govern did that. As NPR reporter Kirk Siegler noted, Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, infamous for years of standoffs with the federal government, wrote on Facebook that Trump “pointed towards Congress and nodded his head… [and said] go get the job done.” Republicans are now caught in a vise of their own making. They have to stand either with their own voters or with democracy.

The night of the attack, more than 100 Republican members of the House of Representatives and several senators, led by Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Ted Cruz (R-TX), continued to endorse Trump’s lies by voting to reject the electoral votes for Biden in key states. The next day, Trump’s supporters tried to argue that the rioters were “Antifa,” despite their Trump garb and the fact Trump invited them, incited them, urged them to go to the Capitol, and after the riot told them he loved them. (An AP investigation establishes that they were right-wing agitators.) When that didn’t take, supporters tried “whataboutism,” comparing the Black Lives Matter protests of this summer to the storming of the Capitol.

They are trying to rewrite the history of this week to downplay that we have suffered an attempted coup that killed at least five people, and that the people behind it are still in the highest levels of our government.

The realization that we are in the midst of a coup, abetted by Trump’s use of social media, prompted Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to ban Trump permanently, and to take down QAnon accounts. That, not the Capitol attack and the murder of a police officer, has created outrage among Trump, who is allegedly “ballistic,” and Trump supporters. Republican lawmakers spent the weekend noting how many followers they were losing as Twitter took down QAnon, Nazi, and fake accounts. (Trump opponents noted that this was not actually a good thing to call attention to.) Parler has lost almost all of its supporting businesses and might go out of business itself.

Democrats are appalled by what Trump has wrought, and they are joined by plenty of Republicans. In the National Review, for example, Ed Whelan called the Capitol attack “an outrage that ought to have every genuinely patriotic American seething with anger.” He blamed Trump for inciting the attack, and said that “impeachment and conviction of Trump is an appropriate, and probably a necessary, response.”

In a powerful video, former Republican Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger called the Capitol attack the American equivalent to Kristallnacht, which marked the beginning of German Nazis’ systemic destruction of the Jews. To puncture the idea that the sort of behavior on display on Wednesday was manly, Schwarzenegger told the private story of his abuse at the hands of his father, who had been swept up in the Nazi movement in Austria, and celebrated the sword from his starring role in the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian as a symbol not of toxic masculinity but of democracy, tempered by adversity. He called on all Americans to rally around Biden and to work to make his administration a success.

White House appointees’ resignations show which way the wind is blowing. Trump’s former Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney took to Fox News Sunday to say he had no idea that people might actually do something like attack the Capitol. “People took him literally,” Mulvaney told MSNBC. “I never thought I’d see that.”

Similarly, the rioters themselves, once found and arrested, are either apologizing and saying they were swept up in the moment, or denying they were part of the mob. One man apologized for his “indiscretion.”

Both Marriott, the world’s largest hotel chain, and health insurer Blue Cross Blue Shield have suspended their donations to lawmakers who voted against the counting of Biden’s electoral votes late Wednesday or early Thursday morning. The anti-Trump Lincoln Project has promised to target companies that donate to any lawmakers who voted against the counting of the electoral votes. Hitting closer to Trump, Stripe, the vendor that handles online credit card payments for Trump’s campaign, has announced it will no longer handle his account. And tonight, the Professional Golfers Association of America Board of Directors took the 2022 PGA Championship away from Trump Bedminster, his New Jersey club.

At the end of last week, Democratic leaders set out a three-part plan to punish the president for inciting an insurrection. They gave Pence an option to begin the process of invoking the 25th Amendment, which, considering the president had tried to get him killed, was not necessarily a long shot. Pence refused. They gave McConnell the weekend to convince Trump to resign. Trump refused. They announced that, if both of those things failed, they would begin impeachment proceedings on Monday.

McConnell promptly noted that the Senate could not take up such a proceeding until the day before Biden’s inauguration at the earliest. He is bargaining. It is possible to hold an impeachment trial even after a president is out of office, but he knows that Biden does not want the beginning of his term crowded with more Trump business, especially as coronavirus is raging and Biden wants to get it under control. McConnell doesn’t want Republicans to have to vote either for or against the president because such a vote will slice the Republicans in two and make it clear that some of them stand for insurrection. In the Senate, only Republicans Mitt Romney (R-UT), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Pat Toomey (R-PA) have endorsed impeachment.

McConnell is hoping Pelosi will blink and the moment will pass.

She will not, and it will not. She notes, correctly, that the president is “an imminent threat” to “our Constitution and our Democracy,” and she is trying to give the Republicans cover to do the right thing. Tonight, she announced that the House tomorrow will begin proceedings on a resolution by Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD) calling on Pence to mobilize the Cabinet to activate the 25th Amendment within 24 hours. If he declines, the House will turn to impeachment. She has asked for unanimous consent for the resolution to enable the Republicans to avoid a vote. If they refuse, the measure will go forward the next day anyway.

She also fired a shot across the bow of Republican lawmakers by asking her colleagues for their views on the third section of the 14th Amendment, the one that prohibits anyone who “shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the United States, “or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof,” from serving in Congress.

As I watch Republican lawmakers try to slip away from the crisis they have made, I think of Black Capitol Police Officer Eugene Goodman, armed only with a nightstick, luring the insurgents in the wrong direction to buy the time Senators needed to escape with their lives.

—-

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[newstfionline]

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

Drug companies defend vaccine monopolies in face of global outcry (Washington Post) Abdul Muktadir, the chief executive of Bangladeshi pharmaceutical maker Incepta, has emailed executives of Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, and Novavax offering his company’s help. He said he has enough capacity to fill vials for 600 million to 800 million doses of coronavirus vaccine a year to distribute throughout Asia. He never heard back from any of them. The lack of interest has left Muktadir worried about prolonged coronavirus exposure for millions of citizens of Bangladesh and other low-income nations throughout Asia and Africa who are at the back of the global queue for shots. Drug companies have rebuffed entreaties to face the emergency by sharing their proprietary technology more freely with companies in developing nations. The companies are lobbying the Biden administration and other members of the World Trade Organization against any erosion of their monopolies on individual coronavirus vaccines that are worth billions of dollars in annual sales. The fights over vaccine supply are not just over a moral duty of Western nations to prevent deaths and illness overseas. Lack of supply and lopsided distribution threaten to leave entire continents open as breeding grounds for coronavirus mutations. Those variants, if they prove resistant to vaccines, could spread anywhere in the world, including in Western countries that have been vaccinated first.

Colorado marks latest mass tragedy after 10 killed (AP) A shooting at a crowded Colorado supermarket that killed 10 people, including the first police officer to arrive, sent terrorized shoppers and workers scrambling for safety and stunned a state that has grieved several mass killings. A lone suspect was in custody, authorities said. The attack in Boulder, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Denver and home to the University of Colorado, stunned a state that has seen several mass shootings, including the 1999 Columbine High School massacre and the 2012 Aurora movie theater shooting. Monday’s midafternoon attack was the seventh mass killing this year in the U.S., following the March 16 shooting that left eight people dead at three Atlanta-area massage businesses, according to a database compiled by The Associated Press, USA Today and Northeastern University.

COVID-19 strikes Brazil’s Congress as third senator dies (Reuters) A third senator has died of COVID-19 in Brazil, raising questions around precautions taken in the country’s Congress where as many as one-in-three lawmakers has been infected with the virus devastating Latin America’s largest nation. Senator Major Olimpio, a former policeman who backed and later fell out with far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, was declared brain dead on Thursday by doctors at a Sao Paulo hospital where he had been in intensive care for three weeks. Brazil has become the epicenter of the pandemic, with by far the highest current daily death toll anywhere in the world. “People are very scared, and they are afraid to go to work,” said Silvio Ribas, a press secretary for Senator Lasier Martins, a 78-year-old politician who was released from hospital on Thursday after two weeks fighting COVID-19. At least 145 of the 513 members of the lower house have tested positive for the coronavirus in the past 12 months, along with 31 of 81 senators, according to a survey by news portal Poder360.

Spain hopes number of foreign tourists will rebound to half pre-pandemic level this year (AP) Spain hopes the number of foreign tourists visiting its sun-kissed islands and picturesque villages can rebound this year to half pre-pandemic levels, Tourism Minister Reyes Maroto said on Monday. “Maybe the ideal goal is ... to get half of the tourists we had in 2019. This, for the industry, would be an achievement,” she said in an event held by Europa Press news agency. In 2019, Spain had the world’s second highest number of foreign visitors at more than 80 million. This plummeted by more than 80% to 19 million tourists in 2020, the lowest level since 1969, as a result of the travel restrictions imposed to curb the pandemic. Tourism accounted for around 12% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 and one job in eight.

Court orders French celebrity magazine to pay homeless man €40,000 (Le Parisien/France) Since its founding in 1949, the iconic French weekly Paris Match has published countless photos of the rich and powerful—and every now and then, a paparazzi shot might cost them. Last week, instead, the magazine was ordered to pay serious money to a homeless man for running a photograph of him without his permission. A court in Nanterre, west of Paris, ordered Paris Match to pay 40,000 euros to the man for running his picture. “Everyone, no matter their degree of celebrity, their wealth, their present or future occupation, has a right to privacy and enjoys exclusive right over their image which allows them to oppose its use […] without prior authorization,” the court wrote in its decision. The photo, published without the man’s consent in January 2018, showed the unnamed 48-year-old smoking crack cocaine on a metro platform in the French capital’s 18th arrondissement. Unlike other people in the photograph, his face was unblurred, the daily Le Parisien reports. Alerted by friends who recognized him in the Paris Match article, the homeless man sued the magazine: In May 2019, the magazine was ordered to pay him 10,000 euros in damages, but failed to remove the photograph from its website and app, resulting in an additional 30,000-euro fine last week. Le Parisien quoted the man as saying that he used some of the money to “help out friends” and that he now may be able “to get [his] wife and children back.”

Merkel Seeks Four-Week Lockdown Extension in German Setback (Bloomberg) Chancellor Angela Merkel proposed keeping German lockdown restrictions in force for another four weeks after Covid-19 cases rose beyond a level that may prompt government action to avoid health-care overload. The plan would extend and slightly tighten existing curbs through April 18, according to a chancellery draft seen by Bloomberg. Merkel and regional government leaders will discuss the proposals on Monday during talks on how to proceed with the lockdown amid an upward curve of infections in Europe’s biggest economy.

Russia’s top diplomat starts China visit with call to reduce U.S. dollar use (Reuters) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov began a visit to China on Monday with a call for Moscow and Beijing to reduce their dependence on the U.S. dollar and Western payment systems to push back against what he called the West’s ideological agenda. Lavrov, on a two-day visit to China, is expected to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart at a time when both countries’ ties with the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden are badly strained. U.S. and Chinese officials on Friday concluded what Washington called “tough and direct” talks in Alaska, while Russia’s ambassador arrived back in Moscow on Sunday for consultations after Biden said he believed President Vladimir Putin was a killer. Russia is also braced for a new round of U.S. sanctions over what Washington says was its meddling in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, which Moscow denies. Speaking to Chinese media before the start of his visit, Lavrov said Moscow and Beijing were compelled to develop independently of Washington in order to thwart what he said were U.S. attempts to curb their technological development. “We need to reduce sanctions risks by bolstering our technological independence, by switching to payments in our national currencies and global currencies that serve as an alternative to the dollar,” Lavrov said, according to a transcript of his interview released on Monday. “We need to move away from using international payment systems controlled by the West.”

Turkey’s turmoil (Foreign Policy) U.S. President Joe Biden joined with Europe to condemn Turkey over its decision to annul its ratification of an international treaty on preventing violence against women. Turkey’s exit from the treaty, known as the Istanbul Convention, brought thousands to Turkey’s streets in protest of the move. Turkey was one of the initial signatories and the first nation to ratify the convention. In a White House statement, Biden called the action “deeply dissappointing” and a “disheartening step backward.” The Turkish presidency released a statement on Sunday saying the convention had been “hijacked by a group of people attempting to normalize homosexuality.” Turkey’s currency was also rocked on Saturday after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fired central bank governor Naci Agbal. The Turkish lira fell 15 percent against the U.S. dollar after the news broke.

In Myanmar’s hinterland, army uproots ethnic Karen villagers (AP) In the jungles of southeast Myanmar, the army was shooting and otherwise oppressing civilians long before last month’s military coup. This largely unseen repression continues even now. In the country’s remote southeast, an army offensive has driven as many as 8,000 ethnic Karen people to flee their homes in what aid groups say is the worst upheaval there for nearly 10 years. They’re now living in the jungle, with fears growing for their health and security, and no prospect of an early return. This crisis in the borderlands has been overshadowed by the deadly crackdown on the mass movement protesting the military’s takeover of power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. But it also is a reminder of the brutal force Myanmar’s army has long used against civilians, and in particular the country’s ethnic minorities.

Think Covid’s Messed Up Your Travel Plans? Try Getting Into China. (NYT) Leave your partner and children behind. Quarantine for up to a month. Get inoculated with a Covid-19 vaccine from China, if you can find one. And prepare yourself for an anal swab. For the past year, people trying to go to China have run into some of the world’s most formidable barriers to entry. To stop the coronavirus, China bans tourists and short-term business travelers outright, and it sets tough standards for all other foreigners, even those who have lived there for years. The restrictions have hampered the operations of many companies, separated families and upended the lives of thousands of international students. Global companies say their ranks of foreign workers in the country have dwindled sharply. At a time of strained tensions with the United States and other countries, China is keeping itself safe from the pandemic. At the same time, it risks further isolating its economy, the world’s second-largest, at a moment when its major trade partners are emerging from their own self-imposed slumps. Other countries have their own travel restrictions, though few are as tight.

Dozens of towns isolated by flooding in Australian state (AP) Hundreds of people have been rescued from floodwaters that have isolated dozens of towns in Australia’s most populous state New South Wales and forced thousands to evacuate their homes as record rain continues to inundate the country’s east coast. Around 18,000 people had been evacuated from flooding in New South Wales by Monday and emergency services feared up to 54,000 people could be displaced with rain forecast to continue until Wednesday. A year ago, vast swathes of New South Wales had been charred by unprecedented wildfires following years of drought that gripped most of the state. Some of the same areas were now being by inundated by one-in-50-year and one-in-100-year rain events. New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian said up to 38 parts of the state had been declared natural disaster areas. “I don’t know any time in our state’s history where we have had these extreme weather conditions in such quick succession in the middle of a pandemic,” Berejiklian told reporters. “So, they are challenging times for New South Wales.”

Israel revokes permit of Palestinian foreign minister (Washington Post) Israel on Sunday revoked the VIP permit of the Palestinian foreign minister after he returned to the West Bank from a trip to the International Criminal Court in the Hague, Israeli and Palestinian officials confirmed. The move appeared to be Israeli retaliation for Palestinian support for the ICC’s war crimes investigation against Israel. A Palestinian official said Foreign Minister Riad Malki was stopped Sunday as he entered the West Bank from Jordan through the Israeli-controlled crossing. Malki’s VIP card was seized, the official said. Losing the VIP status makes it harder for him to move through Israeli military checkpoints in the West Bank, and traveling abroad will require Israeli permission. The ICC’s chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, announced earlier this month that she was opening an investigation into possible war crimes by Israel committed in the occupied West Bank and blockaded Gaza Strip.

Small, cheap spy satellites mean there’s no hiding place (Economist) In the middle of last year, Ecuadorians watched with concern as 340 foreign boats, most of them Chinese, fished just outside the Exclusive Economic Zone (eez) around their country’s westernmost province, the Galapagos Islands. The law of the sea requires such vessels to carry gps-based automatic identification systems (ais) that broadcast where they are, and to keep those systems switched on. Some boats, however, failed to comply. This regular radio silence stoked fears that the boats concerned were sneaking into Ecuador’s waters to plunder its fish. Both local officials and China’s ambassador to Ecuador denied this, and said all the boats were sticking to the rules. In October, however, HawkEye 360, a satellite operator based in Virginia, announced it had detected vessels inside Ecuador’s eez on 14 occasions when the boats in question were not transmitting ais. HawkEye’s satellites could pinpoint these renegades by listening for faint signals emanating from their navigation radars and radio communications. HawkEye’s satellites are so-called smallsats, about the size of a large microwave oven. They are therefore cheap to build and launch. HawkEye deployed its first cluster, of three of them, in 2018. They are now in an orbit that takes them over both of Earth’s poles. This means that, as the planet revolves beneath them, every point on its surface can be monitored at regular intervals. Quilty Analytics, a research firm in Florida, expects the number of radio-frequency (rf) intelligence satellites of this sort in orbit to multiply from a dozen at the beginning of January to more than 60 by the end of next year.

Whoopsie, container overboard (Wired) Since November, at least 2,980 containers have fallen off cargo ships in the Pacific Ocean, in at least six incidents that have outfitted Davy Jones’ Locker with stocks of vacuum cleaners, frozen shrimp, some Kate Spade swag and more. Rising imports and bad weather have led to the above-typical cargo losses, as the 2,980 lost in the past few months is over twice the annual amount lost from 2008 to 2019. Bad weather is the main cause: the Essen attributed its 750 lost containers to “heavy seas,” the Eindhoven lost 260 containers after a blackout in the middle of a storm, and the Apus lost over 1,800 containers in gale force winds and large swells, one of the worst losses ever.

[hopscotch1001]

PLEASE READ !!!

Taking Page From Authoritarians, Trump Turns Power of State Against Political RivalsDavid E. Sanger,The New York Times•October 11, 2020The  south side of the White House in Washington, on Saturday, Oct. 10,  2020, as viewed from the Ellipse. (Stefani Reynolds/The New York Times)President  Donald Trump’s order to his secretary of state to declassify thousands  of Hillary Clinton’s emails, along with his insistence that his attorney  general issue indictments against Barack Obama and Joe Biden, takes his  presidency into new territory — until now, occupied by leaders with  names like Putin, Xi and Erdogan.Trump has long demanded — quite  publicly, often on Twitter — that his most senior cabinet members use  the power of their office to pursue political enemies. But his appeals  this week, as he trailed badly in the polls and was desperate to turn  the national conversation away from the coronavirus, were so blatant  that one had to look to authoritarian nations to make comparisons.He  took a step even Richard Nixon avoided in his most desperate days:  openly ordering direct immediate government action against specific  opponents, timed to serve his reelection campaign.“There is  essentially no precedent,” said Jack Goldsmith, who led the Justice  Department’s Office of Legal Counsel under President George W. Bush and  has written extensively on presidential powers. “We have a norm that  developed after Watergate that presidents don’t talk about ongoing  investigations, much less interfere with them.”“It  is crazy and it is unprecedented,” said Goldsmith, now a professor at  Harvard Law School, “but it’s no different from what he has been saying  since the beginning of his presidency. The only thing new is that he has  moved from talking about it to seeming to order it.”Trump’s  vision of the presidency has always leaned to exercising the absolute  powers of the chief executive, a writ-large version of the family  business he presided over. “I have an Article II,” he told young adults  last year at a Turning Point USA summit, referring to the section of the  Constitution that deals with the president’s powers, “where I have the  right to do whatever I want as president, but I don’t even talk about  that.”Now he is talking about it, almost daily. He is making it  clear that prosecutions, like vaccines for the coronavirus, are useless  to him if they come after Nov. 3. He has declared, without evidence,  that there is already plenty of proof that Obama, Biden and Clinton,  among others, were fueling the charges that his campaign had links to  Russia — what he calls “the Russia hoax.” And he has pressured his  secretary of state to agree to release more of Clinton’s emails before  the election, reprising a yearslong fixation despite having defeated her  four years ago.Presidential historians say there is no case in  modern times where the president has so plainly used his powers to take  political opponents off the field — or has been so eager to replicate  the behavior of strongmen. “In America, our presidents have generally  avoided strongman balcony scenes — that’s for other countries with  authoritarian systems,” Michael Beschloss, the presidential historian,  wrote on Twitter after Trump returned from the hospital where he  received COVID-19 treatment and removed his mask, while still considered  contagious, as he saluted from the White House balcony.Long ago,  White House officials learned how to avoid questions about whether the  president views his powers as fundamentally more constrained than those  of the authoritarians he so often casts in admiring terms, including  Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China and Recep Tayyip Erdogan  of Turkey. They have something in common: Trump’s State Department has  criticized all three for corrupting the justice systems in their  countries to pursue political enemies.Pompeo has always bristled  when reporters have asked him to explain what the world should believe  when it reads Trump’s most authoritarian-sounding tweets. He answers  that what distinguishes the United States is that it is a “rule of law”  nation, and then often turns the tables on his questioners, charging  that even raising the issue reveals that the reporters are partisans,  not journalists, intent on embarrassing Trump and the United States.But  his anger is often wielded as a shield, one that keeps him from  publicly grappling with the underlying question: How can Washington take  on other authoritarians around the world — especially China, Pompeo’s  nemesis — for abusing state power when the president of the United  States calls for political prosecutions and politically motivated  declassifications?“We’ve never seen anything like this in an  American election campaign,” said R. Nicholas Burns, a former  undersecretary of state who is now an informal adviser to Biden. “It  reduces our credibility — we look like the countries we condemn for  nondemocratic practices before an election.”“I have worked for  nine secretaries of state,” Burns said. “I cannot imagine any of them  intervening in an election as blatantly as what we are seeing now. Our  tradition is that secretaries of state stay out of elections. If they  wanted to release Hillary Clinton’s emails, they could have done it in  2017, 2018 or 2019. It is an abuse of power by Donald Trump and Mike  Pompeo.”Another career diplomat who served as both ambassador to  Russia and deputy secretary of state, William J. Burns, said that what  Trump had ordered is “exactly the kind of behavior I saw so often in  authoritarian regimes in many years as an American diplomat.”“In  dealing with Putin’s Russia or Erdogan’s Turkey, we would have protested  and condemned such actions,” he said. “Now it’s our own government  that’s engaging in them.“The result,” said Burns, now the  president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, “is the  hollowing out of our institutions at home and deep corrosion of our  image and influence abroad.”In the current cases, it is unclear  whether Trump will get his wish — or whether his loyal appointees will  slow-walk his requests. There is some evidence they are already looking  for escape hatches.Pompeo, the administration’s most conspicuous  ideologue, Trump’s most vocal loyalist and a lawyer, was clearly taken  aback when the president expressed displeasure, saying he was “not  happy” that the State Department had not released emails sent through  Clinton’s home server.“You’re running the State Department, you  get them out,” the president told Fox Business in an interview this  week. “Forget about the fact that they were classified. Let’s go. Maybe  Mike Pompeo finally finds them.”Pompeo, one of his aides said  Saturday, was in a box: The complaint about Clinton’s home server was  that she was risking exposing classified emails by not using the State  Department email system — a system Russia had already infiltrated — yet  Trump was demanding that they be released in full. Just days before, he  had announced, over Twitter, that he was using his executive power to  declassify all of them, without redactions.“We’ve got the  emails,” Pompeo responded on Fox News. “We’re getting them out. We’re  going to get all this information out so the American people can see  it.”But he also hinted that many of Clinton’s emails, mostly  those that were stored on the State Department’s own system, have  already been posted on the agency’s website, after an unusually diligent  effort by the department to respond to Freedom of Information Act  requests from Trump’s supporters. (They are often heavily redacted — to  the point of containing no content — despite the president’s order to  the contrary.)“We’re doing it as fast as we can,” Pompeo told  Dana Perino, a Fox News anchor who once served as President Bush’s press  secretary. “I certainly think there’ll be more to see before the  election.”Pompeo clearly understands the problem: Even if he  makes all of them public, they are unlikely to satisfy the president.  Last year, the State Department’s own inspector general found that while  Clinton had risked compromising classified information, she did not  systematically or deliberately mishandle her emails.William Barr  may face an even greater challenge in satisfying the president. No  attorney general since John Mitchell, who served Nixon and brought  conspiracy charges against critics of the Vietnam War, bent the Justice  Department more in a president’s direction. And Nixon himself, while  urging the IRS to audit political opponents, stopped short of publicly  calling for individual prosecutions. Yet in February, Barr told ABC News  that Trump “has never asked me to do anything in a criminal case.” At  the same time, he complained that the president’s tweets about the  Justice Department “make it impossible for me to do my job.”Now,  clearly, the president has asked Barr to act in a criminal case — and  not in a quiet phone call. Instead, he did it on Twitter and Fox News,  expressing his deep disappointment with his second attorney general, for  essentially the same reason he fired his first one, Jeff Sessions:  insufficient blind loyalty.His complaint appears to have been  driven by Barr’s warning to the White House and other officials that  there are likely to be no indictments before the election from the  investigation being run by John Durham, the U.S. attorney in  Connecticut. Durham is searching for evidence that the inquiry into  Russia was a politically motivated effort to undercut his presidency.Trump  says the case is clear-cut. He told Rush Limbaugh, the conservative  radio host to whom he gave the Presidential Medal of Freedom during the  last State of the Union address, that Durham has had “plenty of time to  do it.”“Unless Bill Barr indicts these people for crimes — the  greatest political crime in the history of our country — then we’ll get  little satisfaction, unless I win,” Trump said on Fox Business.“If we don’t win,” he said, “that whole thing is going to be dismissed.”This article originally appeared in The New York Times.© 2020 The New York Times Companynytimes.comTaking Page From Authoritarians, Trump Turns Power of State Against Political RivalsPresident Trump took a step even Richard M. Nixon avoided in his most desperate days: openly ordering direct, immediate government action against specific opponents, timed to serve his re-election campaign.