With a major new report on climate change coming this week, here is Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signing California’s landmark legislation last fall on Treasure Island in
San Francisco Bay in this NWN video.
** Incidentally, welcome to the Hotel California.
** HILLARY’S STEPFATHER-IN-LAW DIES. The Democratic presidential frontrunner had earlier today postponed her scheduled weekend trip to New Hampshire on account of the serious illness of her husband’s stepfather, Richard Kelley. He has, sadly, just passed away. Richard Kelley married the former president’s late mother, Virginia Kelley, and by the various accounts brought a modicum of happiness to her somewhat challenging life. Bill Clinton was close to his stepfather, who remained an integral part of the Clintons’ lives after his mother passed away during his first term in the White House. He was 91. Richard Kelley was a Little Rock food broker who met Bill Clinton’s mom at a racetrack and married her while “the youngest ex-governor in American history,” as Clinton self-deprecatingly styled himself in those days, ran to regain the Arkansas governorship in 1982.
** OIL HITS A FOUR-WEEK HIGH. Crude oil prices have further moved up to around $58 per barrel. The theory that Saudi Arabia is keeping prices substantially lower as part of an overarching strategy to pressure Iran now looks very flawed. The Saudis have actually cut their oil production. And there are signs they want to work with Iran to stabilize the region.
** SILICON VALLEY COMEBACK. Silicon Valley is coming back strong, according to the report for 2007 of Joint Venture Silicon Valley. The region south of San Francisco added over 30,000 jobs last year, by far the best performance since dot-com crash of 2001. Part of the turnaround is due to Web 2.0. But much of it is due to the emergence of greentech. Venture capital investment in new energy and environmental technologies is up nearly 1000% over the past two years.
** HILLARY NEW HAMPSHIRE TRIP POSTPONED. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, who just had a very successful trip to Iowa last weekend, has posponed this coming weekend’s trip to New Hampshire. Her stepfather-in-law is reportedly very ill. She reportedly hasn’t been to the Granite State for years. Clinton leads there in a new private poll for the Democratic presidential primary.
** PATAKI HOLDS BACK. Former New York Governor George Pataki, a potential Republican presidential candidate, told backers in New Hampshire that he will hang back a few months to see how the presidential field takes shape before making a decision about a candidacy. While you never want to say never, with the acceleration of the race, that is probably tantamount to a demurral.
** TERROR WAR SLANG. Noted military blogger and Gulf War vet Austin Bay has compiled contemporary military slang. It’s some amusing and clever stuff.
** SCHWARZENEGGER WEBCAST AT 11:30 AM. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger holds a press conference today to discuss his comprehensive health care proposal, viewable via this link.
** MCCAIN HOUSE WHIPS. Senator John McCain announced a team of a half-dozen Republican members of Congress to serve as his whips to build congressional support. They are Michigan’s Fred Upton, Alabama’s Spencer Bachus, Arizona’s John Shadegg, Illinois’ John Shimkus and Mark Kirk, and California’s Dan Lungren.
Lungren is a long-time favorite of conservative Republicans in California. The amiable former state attorney general of California was the 1998 Republican nominee for governor of California. He ran a staunchly conservative race and lost to Democrat Gray Davis.
** GIULIANI IN CALIFORNIA. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani is in California today raising money in the southland. He’ll be back in state next month for a keynote address to the California Republican Convention and a few days of campaigning.
** ONE WAY FOR BIDEN TO BREAK THROUGH THE CLUTTER. With eye-raising, provocative commentary on his leading opponents, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards.
** FAST TRACKING THE EARLY CALIFORNIA PRIMARY. State Senator Ron Calderon’s aide Rocky Rushing says the senator’s bill for an early California presidential primary is moving on to a fast track with action in the Senate Rules Committee this week. It could move to the state Assembly by next week. Democratic and Republican leaders there say they back the bill.
** GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE SUMMIT LATER THIS YEAR? With a major new report on climate change coming at the end of the week from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, support is growing for new United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon of South Korea to call a special summit later this year to break the impasse on the issue. The report from top scientists around the world will show a a 90% probability that climate change is due to manmade greenhouse gases.
** BIDEN ANNOUNCES FOR PRESIDENT. U.S. Senator Joe Biden of Delaware announced this morning that he is running for the Democratic presidential nomination. The knowledgeable chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee was first elected to the Senate in 1972. He enters the race as a decided underdog, albeit one with plenty of seasoning. An earlier run for the 1988 nomination ended in disarray, with the revelation that he was using lines from then British Labor Party leader Neil Kinnock without attribution.
Biden rejects both the Bush policy for Iraq and a rapid withdrawal, instead saying that Iraq should be “federalized” with Kurds, Shiites, and Sunnis given “breathing space in their own territories” and a sharing of oil revenues. He would have a phased withdrawal of US combat troops and major reconstruction aid. Biden would convene a regional security conference which would include Iran and insist that all parties concur in the power-sharing arrangement and respect Iraq’s sovereignty. “Iraq,” he says, “risks becoming what it was not before the war: a haven for radical fundamentalists.”
** Monitor computer memory prices on a daily basis. Prices are stable.
** Track global and national energy prices in near real time via Bloomberg. Crude oil prices are around $55 to $56 per barrel.
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I think the Saudis are behaving in a very interesting manner per reports in the press…bashing Iran, but at the same time holding meetings w/Iran on settling regional conflicts (lebanon Iraq and Palestinian), talking about a more cooperative/coordinated Islamic courts relationship between Iran (Shia) and their courts (Sunni), and then there were those reported meetings with Israelis in London
this past fall.(Sunday London Times)..and the Saudi Peace Plan that was floated several years back and went nowhere due to all the terrorist bombings inflicted on Israel in recent years is reportedly back for discussion as we begin the “Quartet” negotiations this week that hopefully will jumpstart a 2 state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict…Nope,
I think the Saudi’s are very interesting at the moment!
My question is ..are they perhaps our means of “engaging” with Iran over conflict …without seeming that we are engaging with Iran? hence, Bush can continue to huff and puff about Iran looking all hawkish etc…
OR
Are the Saudi’s who see themselves as the leaders of the Muslim world and the protectors of Mecca and other holy sites just so sick of the President making the region a mess they have decided to take matters into their own hands? ..or is perhaps a little of both behind all these actions?…
Thus far I am pleasantly surprised by the Saudis….
There is something going on.
After meeting with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Iran, the Russian security advisor met with Prince Bandar in Saudi Arabia.
CADTS,
On Hagel:
I just hoping that he will run!
The reason I have high hopes is that all these pundits keep saying he is going to run…Mike Murphy said it on Tucker (but Mr. Bradley said I have to watch out for his intel so I am not totally relying on Mr. Murphy) BUT the HardBall people pundits last Saturday ALL agreed he was running and one said he is doing a book deal for the spring and that what everyone does publish a book and then announce they are running for president !
Mr. Bradley: After meeting with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Iran, the Russian security advisor met with Prince Bandar in Saudi Arabia
I saw that too Mr. Bradley!
And the Russians are behind this deal also:
a proposal “by Mohamed ElBaradei, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Under this proposal, Iran would suspend uranium enrichment while the US would hold off pushing punitive measures. The ultimate settlement would involve Iran’s abiding by the non-proliferation treaty and the dropping by the US not only of international sanctions but of bilateral ones as well.”
Your right Mr. Bradley something is going on!…
Russia is also telling the North Koreans that they cannot count on their backing in THAT nuclear stand-off.
So, since we like Russians as much as anyone but know that nothing comes without a price these days, what is Putin getting?
Even just as interesting The Moscow Times is reporting that :
President Vladimir Putin will visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan next month, the Kremlin said Tuesday, for a trip likely to focus on oil and gas, arms sales and terrorism.
The trip, from Feb. 11 to 13, will be the first to those countries by a Russian leader since tsarist times, and it underscores Putin’s love for globetrotting. Last week he visited India, and over the past year he also has paid state visits to South Africa, Algeria, Germany and Finland.”
Our standing is low in the world now he is on the march….and I think this is also a sign that the Saudi’s are putting some distance between us and them so that the critism that they are in are pocket is somewhat lessed…
None of this is good for the US…let’s all be very careful about our next pick for President….
I think I shall try to get hold of that NATO report on the Natural Gas Opec…just in case the issue becomes relevant…at some point
Well, this is gonna impact the Governor’s race in 2010 for damn sure…enjoy kids.
Newsom was having an affair with his Deputy Chief of Staff’s/reelection manager’s wife…doooh.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/01/31/BAGM3NSFGQ7.DTL
Do the Russians fancy themselves as some kind of intermediary in Middle Eastern affairs?
Doesn’t seem in keeping with the historical Russian attitude…thoughts?
Meanwhile, Antonio Villaraigosa’s LA schools plan is in tatters.
Hmmm …
You know, you are an extremely smart person, but you write these kinds of things and I go, huh?
>CADTS :
Do the Russians fancy themselves as some kind of intermediary in Middle Eastern affairs?
Doesn’t seem in keeping with the historical Russian attitude…thoughts?
OH
MY
GAWD!
This is the year, as I reported in an item earlier, that Russia and China move more to the fore as great powers.
Hmm, that’s probably at least a column.
The US has shot a lot of its bolt as the only big power in the world. Our power is diminishing.
So, I will make this easier by prefacing what seems to be a smiple f9*&ing question.
The traditional role of the Russians — communist or otherwise — has NEVER been to act as a diplomatic go-between in a region like the Middle East. Their relationship with the Saudis hasn’t exactly been exceptional (historicaly speaking) and I ask the simple f90*()&(&*ing: why, they are meeting with Prince Bandar (arguably the 2nd most powerful person in the entire f9&*)&ign kingdom? They see the U.S. losing strength/prestige/authority in the region by the day because of Iraq and it makes me wonder.
And since I have been told I don’t know what the f*(&*&) I am talking about in this region — by you and others — Ithe logical question is to wonder if the Russians are trying to act as a world power again and becomes intermediaries in developing peace in the Middle East. Thereby returning to a semi-superpower status, etc. etc.
Now, how hard is that for you to understand…really.
Maybe I will just make the question simpler: why are the Russians meeting with Bandar? What are they selling? Are they saying hello?Exchanging bortsch recipes? Or laughing about how f9*&)ing stupid our President is.
Cause while you view my opinions as though spoken of the village idiot I would imagine they aren’t asking about having the Saudis increase import of f9*&*&)*ing Stoli vodka into the kingdom????
So, can someone without a wise-ass attitude answer my simple question.
Oh, and from what I have seen, Antonio is a bigger prima donna than Gavin — although not by much.
Boy, 2010 is gonna be fun…can’t wait for that!!!!
Mr. Bradley :This is the year, as I reported in an item earlier, that Russia and China move more to the fore as great powers.
Hmm, that’s probably at least a column.
The US has shot a lot of its bolt as the only big power in the world. Our power is diminishing.”
So true, Mr. Bradley …so true…I have my “world clock” on my Treo set to Brussels…It’s 8:49 there now…it would be lovely to be on my way to work in Brussels..
Not that this is on the subject whatsoever but I am wondering if Microsoft is becoming (or already has become)the AT&T of the new century.
What I mean is, because AT&T got so fat and lazy because of a nearly 50 year monopoly on US communications, innovative thought gave way to stifling corporate lethargy and bureaucracy. And, accordingly, the company went to hell in a handbasket in the 80’s which was partly due to the court-ordered breakup of the monopoly in the 1970’s.
I ask this question because I just read this article in the Chron about Microsoft Vista…apparently so many of the features that are on Vista have been on Mac OS for quite awhile. Its like the U.S. automotive industry playing catchup with the Japanese after they launch the first sub-compact car during the height of the 70’s oil crisis…they always seem behind the curve.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2007/01/31/financial/f212827S73.DTL
Actually…don’t bother responding Bill…I suspect it will just irritate me even more.
So, any thoughts on the Gavin thing…
That’s right, Barbara, Russia is reasserting itself as a great power again.
Yes, CADTS, Russia is reasserting itself as a great power again.
What do I think about the Gavin Newsom situation? I know what I think about it. I’m thinking about what I’m saying about it.
Short form. This is as disastrous or not as he wants it to be.
I have read the Newsom link…but don’t understand how it could be a disaster or hurt his political career…
people fall in love and have affairs all the time …sometimes one or even both of the partners are married…it certainly happens to many people in private life and as we see (Rudy/Judy/Donna, Rockefeller, Newt etc) politicians too…everyone undertsands this…
Love is like democracy ….it is very messy sometimes…
The Soviets were major players in mideast diplomacy, through their various surrogates (like the Syrians and at one time the Egyptians). The Russians are feeling their oats and reasserting that their are players on the big stage of diplomacy.
I will be looking among the various Presidential aspirants as to what their stance is toward how to deal with what Bill notes is the trend of “Russia and China mov[ing] more to the fore as great powers”. Are we close to the end of the era where the U.S. is dubbed the sole remaining superpower?
NWN, incidentally, passed 22,000 comments sometime yesterday.
If Newsom and Villaraigosa manage to self-immolate, I guess that would help clear the field for something like a Westly/Garamendi race. (Which, notwithstanding the fact that I like Garamendi a lot, I suspect Westly would win handily.)