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brooklynite

brooklynite's Journal
brooklynite's Journal
February 27, 2020

Coca-Cola could be in tight supply of artificial sweetener for diet and zero-sugar drinks

Source: CNN

Coca-Cola says coronavirus has disrupted its supply chain, and artificial sweeteners from China could be in shorter supply if the outbreak continues to spread.

Production and exports have been delayed for Coke's suppliers of sugar alternatives used in the company's diet and zero-sugar drinks, Coca-Cola disclosed Monday as part of its annual report.

"We have initiated contingency supply plans and do not foresee a short-term impact due to these delays," Coca-Cola wrote in the filing. "However, we may see tighter supplies of some of these ingredients in the longer term should production or export operations in China deteriorate."

The primary artificial sweeteners Coca-Cola (KO) uses in its products include aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sucralose, saccharin, cyclamate and steviol gylcosides. In its annual report, Coca-Cola indicated that it considered sucralose — the sugar substitute better known as Splenda and used in products such as Powerade Zero and Diet Coke with Splenda — a "critical raw material" sourced from suppliers in the US and China.


Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/25/business/coca-cola-coronavirus-artificial-sweeteners/index.html
February 27, 2020

Michael Bloomberg's Campaign Sought Andrew Yang's Backing, Floated Vice- Presidential Slot

Wall Street Journal

Michael Bloomberg’s presidential campaign has made overtures to Democrat Andrew Yang, courting the former candidate’s endorsement and floating the possibility of Mr. Yang becoming his running mate, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

Aides to the former New York City mayor reached out to discuss ways the two entrepreneurs-turned-politicians could work together as Mr. Bloomberg seeks the Democratic nomination, these people said.
February 27, 2020

Pence Will Control All Coronavirus Messaging From Health Officials

Source: New York Times

WASHINGTON — The White House moved on Thursday to tighten control of coronavirus messaging by government health officials and scientists, directing them to coordinate all statements and public appearance with the office of Vice President Mike Pence, according to several officials familiar with the new approach.

President Trump announced Wednesday evening that Mr. Pence would coordinate the government’s response to the public health threat even as he played down the immediate danger from the virus that is spreading rapidly across the globe. Mr. Pence was scheduled to lead a meeting of the government’s coronavirus task force on Thursday.

Officials insist the goal is not to control the content of what subject-matter experts and other officials are saying, but to make sure their efforts are being coordinated, after days of confusion with various administration officials showing up on television.

Mr. Pence said Thursday that he had selected Dr. Deborah L. Birx, the director of the United States effort to combat H.I.V. and AIDS, to serve as the Coronavirus Response Coordinator for the White House, enlisting an experienced scientist and physician to manage the response to the potential spread of the virus.


Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/27/us/politics/us-coronavirus-pence.html



Why does the truth need to be vetted?
February 27, 2020

The Nordic Social Democratic Republics have been around for 50+ years...

If I search, will I find videos by Sanders in the 70s and 80s trumpeting the accomplishments of them and their leaders?

February 27, 2020

Sanders adviser floats $300 billion plan to give jobs to all Americans

The Hill

A senior adviser to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, said a Sanders administration could begin with a $300 billion federal jobs guarantee before pushing for universal health care, one of the Vermont senator’s signature issues.

Stephanie Kelton, who has served as a senior economic adviser to Sanders since his 2016 presidential campaign, told reporters on the sidelines of a National Association for Business Economics meeting that such a program made sense as a first step, Reuters reported.

“I like very much the idea of getting a safeguard in place right away because, like most people, I worry about what happens when the next downturn comes,” she said.

Such a program, Kelton said, would allow Sanders to tackle federal student debt, which would increase economic growth, after which trillions could be allocated to pay for programs such as "Medicare for All" and the Green New Deal.
February 27, 2020

Iran's vice president has contracted coronavirus, state media says

Source: The Hill

Masoumeh Ebtekar, Iran’s Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, has contracted the coronavirus, CBS reported Thursday, citing Iranian state media.

Ebtekar, who served as an English-language spokesperson for Iran during the 1979 hostage crisis after Iranian protesters seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran, is reportedly exhibiting only mild symptoms and has not been hospitalized. Ebtekar is the fourth Iranian senior official to contract it.

The nation has seen one of the highest number of coronavirus cases both in the Middle East and in any country outside China, with 254 confirmed cases nationwide and at least 26 deaths. Earlier this week, Tehran announced Iraj Harirchi, the top Iranian official responsible for dealing with the virus, had also contracted it.

The majority of Iranian cases are concentrated in the city of Qom, a holy city south of Tehran, but last week health ministry official Minou Mohrez said “It’s possible that it exists in all cities in Iran.”

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/484943-irans-vice-president-has-contracted-coronavirus-state-media-says

February 27, 2020

Buttigieg plots risky delegate strategy to survive Super Tuesday

Politico

Despite a brutal Super Tuesday map unlikely to hand him any statewide wins, the former South Bend mayor is looking to reinforce his claim as a Democratic alternative to Bernie Sanders by racking up delegates in individual congressional districts on Super Tuesday. It’s a national version of Buttigieg’s path to first place in Iowa’s state delegate race — crossing the viability threshold everywhere, pending a recount — which Buttigieg hopes to replicate on Tuesday, when 14 states weigh in on the Democratic primary, despite a splintered field and limited resources.

Buttigieg’s campaign said in a memo that its objective on March 3 is to “minimize” Sanders’ margins and maximize “delegate accumulation by [congressional] district, not states.” Anticipating a drawn-out primary process, Buttigieg is looking to survive deeper into the calendar, making it to mid-March contests in the Midwest that might provide more opportunities for him.

Buttigieg is focusing on selected districts in smaller media markets throughout the country to rack up delegates, from Austin, Texas and its suburbs to San Diego, northern Maine, and other locales where Democrats flipped House seats in 2018. But it’s a risky strategy to maintain momentum, and that risk is born out of necessity.

Buttigieg doesn’t have the money to compete more broadly across the 14 Super Tuesday states, like Bernie Sanders and especially Mike Bloomberg, nor is he expected to set up Super Tuesday by finishing strongly on Saturday in South Carolina, where he’s struggled to gain any traction among voters of color. He’s not wading into more favorable demographic territory, like Joe Biden in the other Southern states coming up. And he’s not getting the benefit of home-state primaries on March 3 like Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren.

But a candidate can still “run up the score with district-level delegates, especially when there are still so many candidates up and kicking,” said Ace Smith, a California-based Democratic strategist who works for Kamala Harris. Smith noted that the strategy has sustained successful presidential campaigns in the past: “It’s the Dukakis strategy,” he said, referencing the 1988 Democratic primary.
February 27, 2020

Cops repeatedly called on Bernie backers

Politico

The night before the Nevada caucuses, the chairman of the state’s Democratic Party called police after several supporters of Bernie Sanders gathered outside his home at 11 p.m. with a bullhorn to issue a warning about the next day’s election.


At least three other times in recent days, Estrada led a group of Sanders supporters who gathered late at night outside the homes of Democratic Party officials and California lawmakers, including those of Secretary of State Alex Padilla and state Democratic Party Chairman Rusty Hicks. Police were called at least twice.


The incident and three others in recent days come at a time when some Democrats and rival campaigns say Sanders’ supporters are engaged in harassment and bullying, both online and in person. His opponents have increasingly highlighted examples and argued that Sanders has allowed a toxic culture to fester among his fans. The conduct could complicate Sanders' efforts to unite the party as he’s established himself as the frontrunner for the nomination.


https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/26/cops-called-bernie-backers-protest-117782
February 27, 2020

UVA Center for Politics: The Sanders Tax

The Vermont senator’s campaign of course argues that he would expand the Democratic electorate, as Sanders’ pollster told the Washington Post’s Greg Sargent. Meanwhile, there are reasons to think that the Sanders path is built on a goal, expanding youth participation, that has historically been very difficult to achieve, as David Broockman and Joshua Kalla argued in Vox. Additionally, Sanders does not seem to have as much appeal to white voters with a four-year college degree as some other Democrats.

In our view, we think a Sanders nomination would tilt the election more toward Trump, to the point where the ratings would reflect him as something of a favorite. However, we would not put Trump over 270 electoral votes in our ratings, at least not initially and based on the information we have now.

But these ratings changes would force Democrats to sweep the two Toss-ups, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, and also hang onto the Leans Democratic states, specifically Michigan, that if Sanders proves to be weak will be very much in play.

Here’s what we’re thinking we would do. Map 2 shows hypothetical revised ratings. To be clear, these are not changes we are making to our ratings now, but if Sanders seems to grab ahold of the nomination in the coming weeks, we likely will make most if not all of them.



http://centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/articles/the-sanders-tax/

Profile Information

Name: Chris Bastian
Gender: Male
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Home country: USA
Member since: 2002
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