BloggeRhythms

According to Timothy Cama @thehill.com: The Obama administration has made the first of its promised payments to the United Nations’ controversial climate change fund. A $500 million payment was made by the U.S.on Monday to the South Korea-based Green Climate Fund."

A State Department official said: “Today, the United States provided a $500m grant to the Green Climate Fund. This grant is the first step toward meeting the president’s commitment of $3bn to the GCF, and shows that the United States stands squarely behind our international climate commitments.” 

While the half-billion check was still clearing, Alex Sosnowski, Senior Meteorologist @AccuWeather.com, wrote about a storm which will begin to strengthen Sunday night, with a rate of snow perhaps “heavy enough to make for slippery conditions in the mid-Atlantic, before dry air sweeps in.”

While the best setup for a nor'easter with heavy snow will be farther to the northeast, the rate of snow is likely to ramp up significantly near New York City during Sunday night. 

AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Bernie Rayno said: “If the storm develops to its full potential, then a blizzard could evolve in part of New England."  

“Since the storm will be strengthening while impacting New England, it could bring heavy snow, increasing wind and building seas with worsening travel conditions. 

“The bulk of the storm will affect New England Sunday night into early Monday, when road surface temperatures will be at their lowest.”

So, it looks like Mother Nature didn't know that payment had been received and went on performing as usual.

 

Staying on the subject of money, at 10:18 this morning the national debt stood at $19,155,499,849,543.20. On Jan. 20, 2009, when Obama was inaugurated, the total debt of the federal government was $10,626,877,048,913.08. That's a whopping $8.5 trillion increase in only 7 1/2 years. 

However, the huge burden on American taxpayers apparently isn’t enough for the POTUS. Because despite the miserable state to which he’s sunk the economy, he wants another increase in his retirement package.  

Morgan Chalfant @FoxNews.com, writes: “In his budget requests for fiscal years 2016 and 2017, Obama proposed hikes in the appropriations for expenditures of former presidents, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service published Wednesday.” 

“The Former Presidents Act, specifies that Obama’s 2017 budget proposes a nearly 18 percent hike in appropriations for expenditures of former presidents. He successfully requested an increase in such appropriations for fiscal year 2016. 

“The President’s FY2017 budget request seeks $3,865,000 in appropriations for expenditures for former Presidents, an increase of $588,000 (17.9%) from the FY2016 appropriation level. The increase in requested appropriations for FY2017 anticipates President Barack Obama’s transition from incumbent to former President,” the report reads. 

“For FY2016, President Obama requested and received appropriations of $3,277,000 for expenditures for former Presidents–an increase of $25,000 from FY2015 appropriated levels.” 

The Former Presidents Act, enacted in 1958, provides living former presidents with a pension, office staff and support, funds for travel, Secret Service protection, and mailing privileges. It also provides benefits for presidential spouses. Currently, former presidents are awarded a pension equal to the salary of cabinet secretaries, which totaled $203,700 for the 2015 calendar year and was boosted by $2,000 for the current calendar year.  

Reader, RebelDave, commented: “According to Fox Business.com the average American salary - medium salaries - common jobs is $51,939. Give them that and see how they like it.” 

Bringing us to today’s update on Bill Clinton’s wife. 

On Wednesday, Richard Pollock, Reporter @dailycaller.com wrote: “Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is facing an “uprising” in the national security establishment prompted by long-standing anger about her cavalier handling of classified materials and government secrets. 

“As Clinton’s case progresses, it appears the probe is being directed by intelligence and national security law enforcement authorities rather than civilian agencies subject to political influence, according to a Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF) investigation. 

“There are currently at least four national security investigations, including those by the FBI, Department of Justice, and the inspectors general for the Department of State and the Intelligence Community. 

Tom Fitton,  president of the nonprofit government watchdog Judicial Watch said: “The way I’m reading this is that there’s this uprising in the national security bureaucracies to prosecute Mrs. Clinton.” Judicial Watch itself, “is preparing to depose top Clinton aides and possibly her as well, in litigation stemming from the State Department’s maladroit handling of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.” 

“There’s just this kind of ‘just-the-facts approach’ out of the national security establishment on this,” Fitton told The DCNF. “I don’t see Mrs. Clinton escaping prosecution here.” 

Ultimately, the national security division (NSD) at the Justice Department will decide whether or not to recommend to Attorney General Loretta Lynch Clinton or any of her aides be indicted. 

Virtually all former Justice Department and U.S. Attorneys interviewed by The DCNF described the division, which was created by President George W. Bush in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, as the least politicized division in the department. The little-known division is made up of prosecutors who have backgrounds in military affairs, intelligence, anti-terrorism and espionage. There are no political appointees among the 400 employees working in the division. 

According to Kenneth Wainstein, the assistant attorney general who established the division in 2006: “They are straight arrows, a mission-focused kind of approach. They focus on how those agents achieve that mission, whether it’s stopping terrorism or stopping spies. When they walk into their office, they park their politics at the door.” 

Another former senior Justice Department official from the “W” Bush years said, “None of the prosecutors in the National Security Division are going to approach this with a political perspective. They certainly are not going to be worried about it in terms of partisan politics.”

Getting to specifics, “In a Feb. 8, 2009, email, Donald Reid, Clinton’s senior coordinator for security infrastructure in the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security, dourly reported Clinton and Cheryl Mills, her chief of staff, were “dedicated BB (Blackberry) addicts.” He also said Clinton didn’t use her official government desktop computer because she was “hooked” on Blackberrys during her 2008 presidential campaign. 

“The NSA’s response in an Information Assurance Directive told Clinton to “shut up,” according to the emails. Clinton and her aides were subsequently forbidden from using their Blackberrys in the SCIF office. 

“The intensity of anger among intelligence community figures became clear when Gen. Michael T. Flynn, former defense intelligence agency director under Obama, told The DCNF in a Feb. 2 interview that “someone who does this is completely irresponsible, but totally unaccountable and shows a streak of arrogance to the American public that is unworthy of anyone thinking they can run for President of the United States.” 

“This is unbelievable,” Flynn added. “I don’t think anybody should be talking about her being potentially the next President of the United States.” 

Which leads right into the continuing question: Joe Biden, Jerry Brown, and Starbuck’s chairman and CEO, Howard Schultz, are you guys reading this?    

That’s it for today folks.    

Adios