Biden's senility is affecting his presidential briefings -report

 By Monica Showalter

Joe Biden has some kind of senility which has gotten obvious in the wake of his first debate this season with President Trump.

Some 75% of the public thinks so, saying he's 'too old' to become president again.

But when one thinks of the consequences of a senile president, the typical warning that comes to mind is the 3:00 a.m. phone call indicating an international crisis. A senile president isn't going to understand what's going on.

But it's worse than that, and Politico describes what is happening in Biden's day-to-day presidency.

During meetings with aides who are putting together formal briefings they’ll deliver to Biden, some senior officials have at times gone to great lengths to curate the information being presented in an effort to avoid provoking a negative reaction.

“It’s like, ‘You can’t include that, that will set him off,’ or ‘Put that in, he likes that,’” said one senior administration official. “It’s a Rorschach test, not a briefing. Because he is not a pleasant person to be around when he’s being briefed. It’s very difficult, and people are scared shitless of him.”

The official said, “He doesn’t take advice from anyone other than those few top aides, and it becomes a perfect storm because he just gets more and more isolated from their efforts to control it.”

 

And this is not the only aspect of it. Writer Alex Thompson pointed out on his Twitter that he too was getting this kind of information from sources in a piece he wrote for Axios last year:

In public, President Biden likes to whisper to make a point. In private, he's prone to yelling.

• Behind closed doors, Biden has such a quick-trigger temper that some aides try to avoid meeting alone with him. Some take a colleague, almost as a shield against a solo blast.
• The president's admonitions include: "God dammit, how the f**k don't you know this?!," "Don't f**king bullsh*t me!" and "Get the f**k out of here!" — according to current and former Biden aides who have witnessed and been on the receiving end of such outbursts.

Why it matters: The private eruptions paint a more complicated picture of Biden as a manager and president than his carefully cultivated image as a kindly uncle who loves Aviator sunglasses and ice cream.

• Some Biden aides think the president would be better off occasionally displaying his temper in public as a way to assuage voter concerns that the 80-year-old president is disengaged and too old for the office.

Zoom in: Senior and lower-level aides alike can be in Biden's line of fire. "No one is safe," said one administration official.

Obviously, this guy is out of control, and the natural response is to avoid giving him the hard facts about anything to avoid his irrational rages. Rages of this kind are characteristic of some kinds of mental deterioration.

According to the U.K. Alzheimer's Society, noted because some outside observers think Biden shows signs of this particular condition:

  As a person’s dementia progresses, they may sometimes behave in ways that are physically or verbally aggressive.

...and...

Aggressive behaviour may be:

• verbal – for example, swearing, screaming, shouting or making threats
• physical – for example, hitting, pinching, scratching, hair-pulling, biting or throwing things.

Some people assume that aggressive behaviour is a symptom of dementia itself. This can be true, but it’s more likely that there is another cause. It’s important to see beyond the behaviour and think about what may be causing it. Reasons for the person’s behaviour could include:

• difficulties to do with dementia – for example, memory loss, language or orientation problems
• their mental and physical health – for example, they may have pain or discomfort that they are unable to communicate
• the amount and type of contact they have with another person or other people
• their physical surroundings – for example, if the room is too dark the person may become confused and distressed because they can’t work out where they are
• a sense of being out of control, frustration with the way others are behaving, or a feeling that they’re not being listened to or understood
• frustration and confusion at not being able to do things, or at not being able to make sense of what is happening around them.

Which is not hard to imagine Biden may be experiencing as he screams at his very loyal longtime staff. It must be awful for all sides.

Thing is, it's awful-est of all to us, the American people. Someone with that condition should be in care, not executing the most powerful job in the world.

Staff keep information from him, telling him only what he likes to hear. He can't even make good decisions without all the facts, yet staff feels a need to keep him calm and themselves protected.

That's no way to run a country. That sounds like one of those strange situations in 16th or17th century Spain where the monarch was incapacitated. Spain went from the richest and most powerful country in the world to a nation that fell apart and skidded into irrelevance quite suddenly after a string of those. It sounds like the Kremlin during the late Leonid Brezhnev or Konstantin Chernenko era, or Russia when Boris Yeltsin was incapacitated.

The voting public is right to demand a president of sound mind and body. While I don't doubt that Biden and his greedy family entourage will try to continue to cling to power all through the election, voters know it's up to them to make a decision if the Bidens won't.

The reports coming out suggest a headless country without a functional leader.

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/07/joe_biden_s_senility_is_affecting_his_presidential_briefings_report.html

"Major Victory For American Energy": Judge Blocks Biden's Pause On LNG Export Licenses

 A federal court halted President Biden's war on America's energy independence by reversing a temporary moratorium on permitting new licenses for liquified natural gas (LNG) exports. This is a major blow to radical climate warriors in the White House ahead of the November presidential elections. 

Late Monday, US District Judge James D. Cain Jr. in Louisiana ruled in favor of Louisiana and 15 other red states that had challenged the "temporary pause" on new LNG export licenses. Donald Trump appointed Judge Cain, who wrote that the pause "is completely without reason or logic and is perhaps the epiphany of ideocracy." 

The White House announced in January that the Energy Department would temporarily stop approving new LNG export licenses to assess the impact of shipments on global warming.  

Patrick Morrisey, the attorney general of West Virginia, called Cain's ruling "a big win for the country's energy industry and the millions of jobs it supports."

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said the DoE's halt on new licenses sparked a lot of uncertainty in her state, with tens of billions of dollars in infrastructure in question. She called yesterday's decision "a major victory for American energy."

The ruling means DoE must restart its permit approval process soon. However, it's unclear when this will happen.

In a note in early February, Matt Egan and Brent Bennett of RealClear Wire wrote that the president's politically motivated actions mainly targeted "Texas and Louisiana, red states that account for the bulk of US LNG exports." Some have speculated that Biden's action could have been a move to retaliate against red states that opposed open southern borders. 

A separate report from the Washington Free Beacon said Biden's Climate Czar, John Podesta, ultimately pushed the decision. 

Here's more from RealClear Wire's Larry Behrens about Podesta's LNG attack:

As a well-known climate warrior, it makes sense Podesta would be pushing for policies against American energy interests. Yet at the same time, Podesta's brother, Tony, one of DC's most well-connected mega lobbyists, has financial connections to foreign LNG companies, including one with links to a Russian oligarch. It is concerning to see the Podesta family standing to profit from a policy priority of the White House who employs another Podesta. Foreign companies, including Russia, are clear beneficiaries Biden's LNG attack. It should be raising questions about potential conflicts of interest and profit motives at the White House.

Meanwhile, Angelo Fernández Hernández, a White House spokesman, told the Washington Post, "We are disappointed in today's ruling. We remain committed to informing our decisions with the best available economic and environmental analysis, underpinned by sound science."

The move by radical climate warriors in the White House to dent America's energy independence comes as US LNG exports have doubled over the last four years.

https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/major-victory-american-energy-judge-blocks-bidens-pause-lng-export-licenses

'Biden Announces Five Actions To Address Extreme Weather In US'

 by T J Muscaro via The Epoch Times,

President Joe Biden spoke to the nation from the Emergency Operations Center in Washington, on July 2, and announced five new actions to “address extreme weather, including heat and other hazards.”

“Extreme weather events don’t just affect people’s lives, they also cost money,” he said. “They hurt the economy, and they have a significant negative psychological effect on people.

“Last year, the largest weather related disasters cost over—get this—$90 billion in damages in America.”

Calling attention to the “nearly 2.5 million people” displaced in 2023 due to weather-related disasters, the president emphasized the threat extreme weather poses to transportation systems, power grids, farms, fisheries, and forests.

Extreme Heat

President Biden said the Department of Labor is proposing a new rule that, once finalized, will “establish the nation’s first-ever federal safety standard for excessive heat in the workplace.”

He said it would reduce heat injuries, illnesses, and deaths for more than 36 million in the workforce, including workers in the construction, postal, and manufacturing sectors.

The proposed rule would require employers to identify heat hazards, develop emergency response plans related to conditions affecting the head, and provide training to employees and supervisors on the signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses. Employers would also be required to create rest breaks, provide shade and water, and allow new workers to acclimatize themselves to the heat.

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), “serious occupational heat-related illnesses and injuries become more frequent, especially in workplaces where unacclimatized workers are performing strenuous work” when the heat index is as low as 80°F. According to the NWS heat index calculator, that heat index could be when the air temperature is as low as 78.6°F with 60 percent relative humidity.

The Department of Health and Human Services and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported that approximately 2,302 heat-related deaths occurred in the United States in 2023.

“Already, tens of millions of Americans are under heat warnings from record shattering temperatures,” President Biden said.

“Last month here in DC, the temperature went to 100 degrees; In Phoenix, Arizona, 112 degrees; In Las Vegas, 111 degrees. Above normal temperatures also are expected for much of the country in July, especially in central and eastern United States.”

He said his administration would convene the first ever “White House Summer on extreme heat” to bring together state, local, tribal, and territorial leaders, as well as international partners in an effort to protect communities and workers from extreme weather.

New FEMA, EPA Actions

Aside from the heat, the president called out other types of extreme weather, such as Hurricane Beryl, currently in the southern Caribbean, saying it was “the earliest time ever a dangerous category five hurricane has been recorded in American history.”

He announced two new actions involving FEMA.

Once finalized, a new rule will require FEMA to factor the effects of future flooding into every federally funded construction project.

FEMA is also announcing nearly $1 billion in grants for more than 650 projects nationwide intended to help communities protect against natural disasters such as extreme heat, storms, and flooding.

President Biden emphasized these grants would advance his “Justice 40 Initiative,” which aims to deliver 40 percent of overall benefits, such as clean transit, clean energy, and climate investments, to “the poor communities always left behind.”

In addition, he announced that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would be releasing a new report showing continued impacts of climate change on the environment and the health of the American people.

https://www.zerohedge.com/weather/biden-announces-five-actions-address-extreme-weather-us

Citgo Parent Sale Hearing Delayed as Special Master Weighs Bids

 

• US federal judge Stark moves hearing to September 19
• Special master will announce winning bidder by July 31

A federal judge pushed back a hearing for the sale of Citgo Petroleum Corp.’s parent company, giving a court-appointed special master more time to evaluate bids for control of one of the largest oil refiners in the US.

Judge Leonard Stark moved the hearing to September 19 after the special master, Robert Pincus, asked for the additional time to ensure the winning bid maximizes the company’s value. The hearing was previously set for July 15.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-02/citgo-parent-sale-hearing-delayed-as-special-master-weighs-bids

Biden Admin Deliberately Flying Previously-Deported Illegal Aliens Back Into The US

 by Eric Lundrum via American Greatness,

A new report claims that the Biden Administration has deliberately been flying illegal aliens into the United States after they had already been deported during the Trump Administration.

According to the Washington Free Beacon, internal memos and interviews with staff at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) suggest that the Biden Administration has been running a secret program to fly previously-deported Cameroonians back into the country, after their asylum claims were previously denied.

The Cameroonian program was initiated in response to a report by Human Rights Watch in February of 2022, complaining about roughly 80 to 90 Cameroonians who had been deported between 2019 and 2021, when Donald Trump was President.

Despite their asylum claims all being rejected as invalid, many of them have since been transported back into the country in an unprecedented effort to purposefully bring more illegals onto American soil.

“Gutting deportations isn’t enough for the Biden administration, so now they’re apparently bringing back previously deported illegal aliens,” said Jon Feere, a former ICE official and director of investigations at the Center for Immigration Studies.

“These are people who have already had their cases closed, one way or another, and they’ve been returned home.”

The agency memos reveal that ICE officials have been working with nonprofit organizations to locate the deported Cameroonians so they can be brought back to the U.S. One example includes an email correspondence from Fatma Marouf, director of the Immigrant Rights Clinic at Texas A&M University, who informed ICE officials of the impending arrival of one such illegal, who flew into Dulles Airport in Virginia, near Washington D.C

“These individuals were deported by the order of a court after they were afforded all due process rights,” said Tom Blank, former chief of staff for ICE.

“For DHS to arbitrarily reverse court orders to satisfy complaints from an activist group makes a joke out of the entire legal immigration process. It looks like outside activist groups now run the DHS immigration process instead of the courts.”

These revelations further prove the extent to which the Biden Administration is willing to go in order to completely reverse the immigration policies of the Trump Administration. From his first day in office, Biden rescinded numerous immigration policies that secured the border, including a halt to construction of the border wall and ending Title 42 and the “Remain in Mexico” policy. Biden pledged on the campaign trail in 2020 that he would open the border and give free, taxpayer-funded benefits to illegals, including health care, housing, and education. New concerns have arisen over illegals being registered to vote shortly after arriving, which will most likely lead to an increase in voter fraud in key swing states in the upcoming presidential election.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/biden-admin-deliberately-flying-previously-deported-illegal-aliens-back-us

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Gene Therapy — Not all patients are candidates

 The FDA's recent expanded approval

opens in a new tab or window of delandistrogene moxeparvovec (Elevidys) widened access to the gene therapy to include ambulatory and non-ambulatory Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients ages 4 and older with a confirmed DMD mutation.

In June 2024, the FDA converted its previous accelerated approvalopens in a new tab or window to traditional approval for ambulatory Duchenne patients ages 4 and up, and granted accelerated approval for non-ambulatory Duchenne patients in that age group.

Expanded approval came even though the treatment failed to meet its primary endpoint in a phase III trial. Despite this, "the FDA found the observations regarding the secondary endpoints and exploratory endpoints to be compelling and to indicate clinical benefit compared to placebo," the agency said in a statementopens in a new tab or window. "These endpoints include improvements in time to rise from the floor, 10-meter walk/run, time to ascend four steps, and creatine kinase levels."

In Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a DMD mutation leads to a lack of dystrophin protein, causing muscle weakness and atrophy.

"Delandistrogene moxeparvovec was engineered to retain the essential components of the DMD gene -- the largest gene in the body -- while also making it small enough to fit into an adeno-associated viral vector for delivery to muscle," Jerry Mendell, MD, an advisor to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and Sarepta Therapeutics, told MedPage Today.

The treatment is administered in a single intravenous dose. The vector enters the muscle cell nucleus and releases the genetic material -- the promoter and the delandistrogene moxeparvovec transgene, said Mendell. This forms a stable circle of DNA, or episome, used to generate the mRNA which is then translated into micro-dystrophin protein, smaller but more functional than the dystrophin produced with DMD mutations. The protein ultimately localizes to the muscle cell membrane.

"In studies of more than 200 Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients, muscle biopsy analyses have confirmed that treatment with delandistrogene moxeparvovec leads to expression of micro-dystrophin in skeletal muscle," Mendell noted. "In addition, functional outcomes support that delandistrogene moxeparvovec modifies the trajectory of Duchenne, demonstrating a treatment benefit that is clinically meaningful."

Not all Duchenne patients are candidates for delandistrogene moxeparvovec, based on their adeno-associated virus (AAV) antibody status and their mutation, Kevin Flanigan, MD, of Nationwide Children's Hospital, emphasized. The treatment is contraindicatedopens in a new tab or window in patients with any deletion in exon 8 and/or exon 9 in the DMD gene.

"It is important to be mindful of the risks to patients -- particularly the minimal information [available] about risks to larger, older boys -- as well as the limitations to understanding the efficacy and durability of this treatment," Flanigan told MedPage Today.

"We make certain to counsel parents that not all children may respond equally," he continued. "For the moment, we are likely to prioritize treatment in younger boys, where efficacy and safety data are more complete. We encourage all sites who intend to deliver the vector to understand the significant follow-up and monitoring requirements needed to ensure patient safety."

Screening and Monitoring

In a recent review published in Pediatric Neurologyopens in a new tab or window, Mendell and co-authors summarized practical considerations before and after delandistrogene moxeparvovec administration.

Before infusion, the group recommended screening for anti-AAV rhesus isolate serotype 74 total binding antibody titers less than 1:400; ensuring up-to-date vaccinations and avoiding vaccine co-administration with infusion; checking liver function and postponing infusion if liver disease or any infection is present; and starting additional corticosteroids 1 day pre-infusion for patients already on corticosteroids.

Post-infusion, they advised weekly monitoring for liver function tests (3 months), troponin-I (4 weeks), and platelets (2 weeks). They also recommended maintenance of the corticosteroid regimen for at least 60 days post-infusion, unless earlier tapering is indicated.

In 2024, an expert panel led by Craig Zaidman, MD, of the Washington University in St. Louis, published a paper in the Journal of Neuromuscular Diseasesopens in a new tab or window about managing adverse events after delandistrogene moxeparvovec treatment, including vomiting, acute liver injury, myocarditis, and immune-mediated myositis (IMM).

The panel suggested laboratory tests 1 month prior to infusion, and again within 1-3 days of infusion, to establish a patient's baseline health status and evaluate liver and heart function.

Vomiting was the most frequent treatment-related adverse event reported in clinical studies, which raised concerns about the ability to tolerate the oral corticosteroids used to suppress responses to the viral capsid. Parenteral steroid administration may be necessary, the panelists noted. All patients with elevated liver enzymes require more frequent lab monitoring and, in moderate or severe cases, increased corticosteroids and additional evaluation, they added.

Increases in troponin I also were reported, and the panel considered several scenarios. An asymptomatic patient with mildly elevated troponin I could be evaluated in-person and have more frequent lab monitoring, they suggested. Symptomatic patients should be hospitalized, receive intravenous corticosteroids, a cardiology consultation, and consideration for intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG).

Presentation of IMM was variable, including rapidly progressive axial, appendicular, and respiratory weakness; bulbar weakness; and swelling related to angioedema. A patient with possible IMM should be hospitalized, 67% of the panel suggested, and baseline lab collection should be repeated within 2 to 5 days (92% of the panel). Patients with swallowing or chewing difficulty, especially bulbar weakness, should have a swallow study (67%) and neuromuscular strength assessment (92%). An echocardiogram and electrocardiogram should be done. An increase in corticosteroids should be tried and, if rapid improvement does not occur, adding plasmapheresis, IVIG, or other targeted immunosuppressive therapy should be considered.

The panel convened before the FDA approved delandistrogene moxeparvovec and the report was based on experiences until October 2022. "These findings, based on clinical trial experience and individual health care provider experience, address the limited data available regarding management of safety issues arising post-delandistrogene moxeparvovec administration," the panelists acknowledged.

Disclosures

Delandistrogene moxeparvovec studies were funded by Sarepta Therapeutics.

Mendell reported relationships with Sarepta and was a co-inventor of AAVrh74.MHCK7.micro-dys technology. Nationwide Children's Hospital holds the patent for the vector.

Zaidman reported relationships with Sarepta, Optum Therapeutics, Biogen, and Novartis.

https://www.medpagetoday.com/spotlight/dmd/110906

'Colorado now has the worst outbreak of bird flu among dairy cattle in the country'

 Colorado’s outbreak of bird flu among dairy cattle is now the worst in the country, with more cases in the past month than any other state, according to the latest state and federal data.

As of Monday evening, Colorado had identified 26 herds with cases of avian influenza. Of those, 22 were identified within the past month and the herds are still in quarantine. Four other cases were identified earlier and quarantines have since been lifted.

All affected herds are in the northeastern part of the state.

The rapid and still largely mysterious spread in Colorado — hardly a leading dairy state — contributes to growing concerns that U.S. health authorities are not doing enough to contain the virus. While the threat currently to humans is generally very low, infectious disease experts worry that the longer the virus spreads unchecked through animals, the greater the chances become that it will mutate to become more dangerous to people.

Dr. Maggie Baldwin, the state veterinarian, said Colorado agriculture and health officials are working closely with dairies to identify cases of the virus and to try to prevent its spread.

“This is just a virus that likes to hang around,” she said. “It’s really hard to mitigate once it’s in a sustained population. … I think if we all implement really strong biosecurity we absolutely can prevent the spread, but it’s in a really close geographic region.”

Colorado’s nation-leading numbers

Colorado’s recent cases far exceed those in any other state — Iowa and Idaho are the only other states to record double-digit case totals in the past month, with 12 and 10, respectively.

Colorado’s case total since bird flu was first identified in dairy cattle this spring places the state second nationally, behind only Idaho and one ahead of Michigan. But Colorado ranks far lower in dairy production than those states — the state was 13th in the country for milk production in 2023, according to federal data.

A Flourish map

There are slightly more than 100 dairy herds in Colorado, meaning the bird flu outbreak has now hit one-quarter of all herds in the state. On a per-cow basis, Colorado’s outbreak is roughly three times worse than Idaho’s, which has approximately 667,000 dairy cattle compared with 201,000 in Colorado.

Baldwin suggested that Colorado’s efforts at disease detection may be reflected in the state’s high numbers. She said the state has put in a lot of work getting information to dairy producers, as well as industry associations and veterinarians.

“We’re trying to really encourage early diagnostics, early reporting and really good symptom monitoring,” she said, “and I think the relationships that we’ve established in the state have allowed for producers to feel like they can come to us when they have a problem.”

Baldwin said most cattle that are infected with bird flu are recovering from the disease — though she doesn’t have exact numbers, she has not heard reports of unusual mortality rates. But farmers are suffering from lost production during infection periods, and she said some cattle may not return to full milk production.

“The more that we’re seeing our producers be affected by this, I think the more seriously they’re taking it and saying, ‘We really want to do what we can to stop this and to be good neighbors,’” Baldwin said.

How bird flu is spreading

Bird flu, as the name suggests, is not something that usually infects cattle, and the initial “spillover” infections were believed to have been caused by wild birds hanging around dairy farms in the Texas panhandle.

Its subsequent spread to dozens of herds in at least 12 states was initially blamed on the movement of cows from farm to farm. Federal agriculture officials clamped down on this movement by requiring animals moving across state lines to be tested.

But, as the outbreak has persisted, a more complicated picture of spread has emerged.

Baldwin said some of the affected cattle in Colorado are in what are known as “closed herds” — meaning there is no movement of cattle in and out, making it impossible for the virus to have spread to that herd through the introduction of an infected cow. U.S. agriculture officials found something similar with several herds in Michigan.

Focus has now turned to the potential for what is called fomite transmission, in which the virus hitches a ride on an inanimate object. In this case, workers or veterinarians moving between herds could inadvertently be carrying the virus on their clothing or on equipment as they travel from farm to farm.

Baldwin said the state is working with dairy operators on detailed biosecurity plans for their dairies. This includes lots of personal protective equipment — not just masks, goggles and face shields for workers, but also booties and coveralls that can be thrown away before leaving a farm. It also includes plans for cleaning vehicle tires or other pieces of equipment leaving the dairy.

Hundreds of people monitored

No human cases of bird flu arising from exposure to infected cattle have been identified in Colorado. But state and local health officials have monitored hundreds of dairy workers after possible exposure to the virus.

Following federal guidance, the state is only testing people who have flu-like symptoms. Scott Bookman, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s senior director for public health readiness and response, said the state has tested fewer than a dozen people. All those tests have come back negative.

Cows exit the milking stalls of a dairy near Fort Morgan on June 17, 2021. (Eric Lubbers, The Colorado Sun)

Given that only three people nationally have tested positive for a case of bird flu believed to have come from exposure to infected dairy cattle — one in Texas and two in Michigan, all of whom had minor symptoms — Bookman defended the state’s testing approach.

“There just isn’t any reason on any evidence at this point to be doing any broader type of asymptomatic testing,” he said.

Elizabeth Carlton, an epidemiologist at the Colorado School of Public Health, agreed that the risk to the general public right now is low. Systems designed to detect upticks in flu infections through hospital data and wastewater testing have not sounded any alarms. Pasteurized milk — what is sold in grocery stores — is safe to drink, though raw milk may not be.

“Where we need to ramp up the level of concern in the population is when we see those dairy farm workers get infected and spread it to their families,” she said.

Still, she said, now is the time for public health agencies to make sure their testing and disease-monitoring systems are running smoothly, so that they can detect if the current bird flu outbreaks in livestock evolve into a threat to humans.

“As a general person right now, I don’t think the level of concern should be that high,” she said. “But for public health, for people working in the field of infectious disease, this is exactly what we need to be working on right now.”

https://coloradosun.com/2024/07/02/colorado-bird-flu-dairy-cattle/