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Article content Deflated by the resounding November defeat, the left now believes it can magically rebound by destroying President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees. Recommended Videos Many of Trump’s picks are well outside the usual Washington, D.C./New York political, media and corporate nexus. But that is precisely the point — to insert reformers into a bloated, incompetent and weaponized government who are not part of it. Trump’s nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel, is already drawing severe criticism. His furious enemies cannot go after his resume, since he has spent a lifetime in private, congressional and executive billets, both in investigations and intelligence. Instead, they claim he is too vindictive and does not reflect the ethos of the FBI. But what will Patel not do as the new director? He will not serially lie under oath to federal investigators as did interim FBI Director Andrew McCabe, a current Patel critic. He will not forge an FBI court affidavit, as did convicted felon and agency lawyer Kevin Clinesmith. He will not claim amnesia 245 times under congressional oath to evade embarrassing admissions as did former director James Comey. He will not partner with a foreign national to collect dirt and subvert a presidential campaign as the FBI did with Christopher Steele in 2016. He will not use the FBI to draft social media to suppress news unfavourable to a presidential candidate on the eve of an election. He would not have suppressed FBI knowledge that Hunter Biden’s laptop was genuine — to allow the lie to spread that it was “Russian disinformation” on the eve of the 2020 election. He will not raid the home of an ex-president with SWAT teams, surveil Catholics, monitor parents at school board meetings or go after pro-life peaceful protesters. Decorated combat veteran Pete Hegseth is another controversial nominee for secretary of defence. What will Hegseth likely not do? Go AWOL without notifying the president of a serious medical procedure as did current Secretary Lloyd Austin? Install race and gender criteria for promotion and mandate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion training? Insinuate falsely that cabals of white supremacists had infiltrated the military? Oversee the scramble from Kabul that saw $50 billion in U.S. military equipment abandoned to Taliban terrorists? Watch passively as a Chinese spy balloon traversed the continental United States for a week? Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. may earn the most Democratic hits, given his former liberal credentials. But what will RFK also not do as HHS secretary? Oversee his agencies circumventing U.S. law by transferring money to communist China to help it produce lethal gain-of-function viruses of the COVID-19 sort — in the manner of Dr. Fauci? Organize scientists to go after critics of mandatory masking and defame them? Give pharmaceutical companies near-lifetime exemptions from legal jeopardy for rushing into production mRNA vaccines not traditionally vetted and tested? Leave office to monetize his HHS expertise and thus make millions from the pharmaceutical companies? Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence, former congressional representative and military veteran Tulsi Gabbard will soon be defamed in congressional hearings. But what has Gabbard not done? Joined “51 former intelligence authorities” to lie on the eve of the 2020 election that Hunter Biden’s laptop “had all the hallmarks” of a Russian information/disinformation operation” — to swing the election to incumbent Joe Biden? Lied under congressional oath like former DNI James Clapper, who claimed he only gave the “least untruthful answer” in congressional testimony? Encourage the FBI to monitor a presidential campaign in efforts to discredit it — like former CIA Director John Brennan, who lied not once but twice under oath? Fail to foresee the American meltdown in Kabul, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel or the Houthis’ takeover of the Red Sea? We are going to hear some outrageous things in the upcoming congressional confirmation hearings. However, one thing we will not hear about is the crimes, deceptions, and utter incompetence of prior and current government grandees. The current crew prompted the sick and tired American people to demand different people. Voters want novel approaches to reform a government they not only no longer trust but also now deeply fear.
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Until now, Ms Weinstein has been the US firm’s vice president and managing director in the UK and Ireland, having previously worked at Unilever. She said her focus will be on “unlocking AI-powered growth for everyone”, calling the current AI boom a “pivotal” time for the tech giant. Google has joined many of its rivals in launching a string of high-profile generative AI products in recent times, led by the firm’s generative AI-powered assistant, Gemini. “Europe, the Middle East and Africa is an amazingly diverse and varied region, but the enormous growth opportunity that AI can create is universal,” she said. “My focus will be on unlocking that AI-powered growth for everyone – users, businesses, partners and governments across every part of the region. “I’m excited to be stepping into this role at a pivotal time, in a company where I’ve spent the last ten years and leading a region where I’ve spent much of my life.” Google employs more than 29,000 people across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with 56 offices across 35 countries in those regions working on many of the firm’s largest products, including its search engine, the Android mobile operating system and its Chrome web browser. Its AI research arm, at Google DeepMind, is also led from London. Philipp Schindler, Google senior vice president and chief business officer, said: “This is the AI era and we are only just beginning to see its transformative impact on business and society. “In such a pivotal moment for technology, I’m thrilled we’ve appointed a visionary leader to be our President of Google EMEA. “Debbie brings a track record of unlocking growth that benefits everyone, alongside the passion and focus needed to help our customers succeed, as we bring the best of Google’s Gemini-era to everyone across EMEA.”Trump offers a public show of support for Pete Hegseth, his embattled nominee to lead the Pentagon
Apartment building where viral video fueled Trump's claims about city likely will close next yearNew California Sen. Adam Schiff wants to be more than a Trump antagonistUS shoppers were out in force for "Black Friday," with preliminary data showing strong online sales despite inflation nerves prompting retailers in the world's biggest economy to come up with ever more deals. As markets and consumers eye possible turbulence during the transition from President Joe Biden to Donald Trump, there are hopes that the year's biggest shopping season -- stretching from Thanksgiving to Christmas -- will be a bonanza. The National Retail Federation (NRF) said a record 183.4 million people are planning to shop over the weekend, ticking up from 182 million last year and 18.1 million higher than 2019, before the Covid pandemic derailed the global economy. Adobe Analytics said US consumers had spent $7.9 billion online as of Friday afternoon, an increase of 8.2 percent over last year, with a projected final tally between $10.7 and $11 billion -- an e-commerce record for Black Friday. The so-called "Black Friday" discounts day originated as a single day when shoppers poured -- sometimes stampeded -- into malls in search of incredible deals, but is now accompanied by "Small Business Saturday" and "Cyber Monday." While inflation has been largely tamed from its post-Covid spike, Americans remain wary, with consumer prices still significantly elevated above their pre-pandemic levels. Beatrice Judon, a shopper "over 75" years old, described the situation as "challenging." "We hope things get better," she told AFP after a trip to a department store in the US capital. "We just have to wait and see." Holiday shoppers in 2024 are "even more preoccupied and very focused around value and discounts," said Vivek Pandya, leading insights analyst at Adobe Digital Insights. Discontent with high costs was seen as one of the main reasons Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential election this month. Target CEO Brian Cornell told analysts earlier this month that after a lengthy period of inflation, "consumers tell us their budgets remain stretched." "They're becoming increasingly resourceful in their shopping behaviors, waiting to buy until (the) last moment of need, focusing on deals and then stocking up when they find them," he said. "It's pretty expensive to live in America in general," said Tyler Austin, 25, who was out shopping Friday in downtown Washington for clothes "to upgrade the wardrobe." Despite the negative perceptions of the economy, the NRF has projected holiday spending to grow between 2.5 and 3.5 percent over last year, to as much as $989 billion over the two-month period. President Joe Biden did his part to support the US economy on Black Friday by visiting a bookshop on the Massachusetts island of Nantucket, where he is currently on holiday with his family. The inflationary environment has weighed especially heavily on households with lower incomes, with banks pointing to rising charge-off rates as an indicator of increased stress. But budget-conscious retailer Burlington Stores is seeing some of the strongest sales in low-income zip codes, said Chief Executive Michael O'Sullivan. "Maybe for the first time since 2021, it looks like their real incomes are finally edging up," O'Sullivan said on a conference call this week. Wall Street stocks closed higher during the shortened trading session on Friday with the Dow and S&P 500 indexes both hitting fresh records. Thanksgiving, which is always the fourth Thursday in November, falls on its latest possible date in 2024. As a result, retailers are pivoting to a shopping season with five fewer days than last year, which analysts say may be responsible for the outsized early sales. While Black Friday deals are often targeted at people living in the United States, they also draw tourists and bargain-hunters from abroad. "We came mostly for the experience but we've also found some very good deals," Mario Clemente, a tourist from the Mexican city of Guadalajara told AFP during a trip to a shopping mall in Los Angeles. "Compared to Mexico, it's much cheaper to come here, even when you add the hotel and the flight," he said.