The Days Leading to the Inauguration

Wednesday was the last good weather day.  We took advantage of it and did the 32 mile loop that goes through the University.  It was a cool,  but glorious day.  Jim and I both believe we're making progress on getting strength back in the legs.

Here are a few gratuitous pictures of humming birds to lighten the moods of those of us who are teetering on the edge of the slough of despond.

This is a female, who has been  successfully defending the feeder today.  Look closely at the end of her beak, her tongue is out just a bit.

Today we are under a winter storm warning.  So far the skies are just ominous with wind.  It's befitting the day.  
I am still incredulous about the complete and utter abdication by the Republicans of their responsibilities to vet the cabinet nominees.  Ethics breaches that are worse than those that tanked appointments in previous administrations are just glossed over. 

• Mick Mulvaney, Trump’s pick to head the White House Office of Management and Budget, had failed to pay over $15,000 in taxes for a household employee. 
• Wilbur Ross, the billionaire private equity investor who is Trump’s pick for secretary of commerce, opened his confirmation hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee by admitting that, unbeknownst to him, one of his “dozen or so” household workers was an undocumented immigrant. Ross stated that he fired the employee of seven years after finding out their status in December.
• Tom Price, Trump’s pick to run the Department of Health and Human Services, owns stock in drug companies, medical device companies and biotech.  He has introduced legislation that has benefited these entities.  Somehow this is not a breach of ethics.
• Steven T. Mnuchin, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s pick to be Treasury secretary, failed to disclose nearly $100 million of his assets on Senate Finance Committee disclosure documents and forgot to mention his role as a director of an investment fund located in a tax haven.

The enabler in chief, by refusing to release tax returns or divest, has created an environment where rules no longer apply for the wealthy.  Republicans didn't need to gut the Office of Congressional Ethics, they're just ignoring it as well as the Office of Government Ethics.  Nothing good will come of this.

I'm sure you've all read the text of the inaugural speech by now.  It was predictably awful.  We didn't watch it, a person can only tolerate so much.  Twitter reports that the White House pages regarding climate change, LGBT rights and civil rights have been taken down.  So, in my current state of depression, I leave you with this, which I think sums it up nicely.