Storm Recovery: President Biden was in Florida surveying storm damage from Hurricane Milton yesterday and announced that an additional $600 million is being allocated to strengthen Florida’s electric grid after the storm damage. At the same time, Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said he will block any effort by the Biden Administration to bring back Congress in the immediate future so it can approve additional funding for FEMA to use in storm relief in Florida, Georgia, The Carolinas, Tennessee and Virginia. FEMA has provided $9 billion so far to help fund the recovery from Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton.
Armed militia: The Washington Post reported that over the weekend FEMA operations in parts of North Carolina had to be suspended because members of an armed militia were threatening members of the North Carolina National Guard who were helping in storm recovery. The sheriff of Ashe County, North Carolina, posted on Facebook that threats had occurred in some counties. Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance have been spreading lies about FEMA and the aid it provides to storm victims. Some of their followers have become outraged at FEMA as a result.
Liz Cheney: Republican Former Congresswoman Liz Cheney on NBC’s “Meet the Press” yesterday issued new warnings about Donald Trump’s intent to act illegally and be a dictator if he’s returned to the White House. Cheney, along with her father former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney have said they will not vote for Trump and endorsed Kamala Harris for President. Liz Cheney said Trump has been hurting victims of the recent hurricanes by telling lies about government aid that’s being distributed in the hopes that the victims will become angry and not accept help from the from the government.
Gen. Milley: Retired Gen. Mark A. Milley who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Trump Administration warns that Donald Trump is a “fascist to the core” and “the most dangerous person to this country.” The comments are in the new book “War” written by Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward. Woodward reports that after Trump started lashing out at Milley, the general started receiving death threats and the military installed bulletproof glass and other protective features at Milley’s home.
Missile defense: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has authorized the deployment of an anti-missile defense system and a crew of about 100 U.S. military personnel to Israel to help bolster Israel’s air defenses following Iran’s latest missile attacks against Israel. The Pentagon said that the action underscores the United States’ “ironclad commitment to the defense of Israel, and to defend Americans in Israel, from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran.” The additional equipment and manpower is part of steps the U.S. military has taken in recent months to support the defense of Israel and protect Americans from attacks by Iran and Iranian-aligned militias.
Economics: Two professors from MIT and one from the University of Chicago are sharing this year’s Nobel Prize in Economics. The award to Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson of MIT and James Robinson of the University of Chicago was announced today by the Nobel Prize Committee. They conducted studies of how institutions are formed and affect poverty. They said that countries that have developed institutions, uphold the rule of law and respect property rights have prospered, while dictatorships that destroy institutions have failed economically.
Cover photo: Gen. Mark Milley. Photo by Monica King.
