Boris Johnson Delighted With His First Phone Call With Biden

Prior to calling the head of the British Conservative Party, Biden had held talks with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson shared his joy after speaking to the new US president, Joe Biden, on Twitter Saturday, expressing hope to deepen cooperation towards a "green, sustainable recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic".

Johnson was among the first heads of state and government to be called by Biden after taking office, and the first European leader to speak to the new president over the phone.

"Great to speak to President Joe Biden this evening,” Johnson wrote.

Great to speak to President @JoeBiden this evening. I look forward to deepening the longstanding alliance between our two countries as we drive a green and sustainable recovery from COVID-19. pic.twitter.com/Y4P3G74PPz

— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 23, 2021

Johnson congratulated Biden on his inauguration and "the two leaders looked forward to deepening the close alliance between our nations", said the statement from Downing Street.

UK prime minister "warmly welcomed" Biden's decision to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement, as well as the World Health Organization.

"They also discussed the benefits of a potential free trade deal between our two countries, and the Prime Minister reiterated his intention to resolve existing trade issues as soon as possible", the statement read.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden participates in the final 2020 U.S. presidential campaign debate with U.S. President Donald Trump, in the Curb Event Center at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S., October 22, 2020.

© REUTERS / JONATHAN ERNST

'Pragmatic' Joe Biden Will Work Closely With Boris Johnson, Says Potential Administration Pick

Biden took office as president of the US on January 20 in an unprecedentedly high-security ceremony, since, in order to preserve law and order at the high-profile gathering, as many as 25,000 National Guard troops and numerous control points were put in place. The authorities also moved to restrict public access to the inauguration due to the still-raging pandemic, namely to the National Mall, which this time saw 200,000 small US state and city flags installed instead of a live audience there.

On Inauguration Day, Biden signed several executive orders including one on the US rejoining the Paris climate accord. The decision reverses former US President Donald Trump's move to abandon the treaty in 2017.

https://sputniknews.com/world/202101231081860628-boris-johnson-delighted-with-his-first-phone-call-with-biden/

California Refuses To Disclose COVID-19 Data Used To Drive Lockdowns

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) promised months ago that the state's COVID-19 policy decisions would be driven by transparent data that would be shared with the public.

Now, his administration is refusing to disclose key information used to determine when lockdown orders are implemented or rescinded - and has denied a public records request filed with the California Health and Human Services (CHHS) Agency on May 28 by the Center for American Liberty (CAL) seeking both the data and science behind the state's lockdown decisions, according to Fox News.

State health officials now say they rely on a 'very complex set of measurements that would confuse and potentially mislead the public,' AP reports.

In short, California says you're too stupid to understand their rationale for mandating thousands of businesses into financial ruin through what appear to be arbitrary and unscientific decisions. To wit, at least two California judges have struck down the state's draconian mandates over lack of scientific evidence to support lockdowns and restaurant restrictions.

Not only that, according to SFGATE, there's growing speculation that California's ban on outdoor dining may have contributed to the state's COVID-19 surge. Not the best of optics as as a GOP effort to recall Newsom continues to gain momentum.

According to CAL executive director Mark Trammel, the Golden State won't answer why, for example, they won't answer why indoor religious services are strictly forbidden while other venues where people gather are just fine.

"If it’s safe enough to go to a marijuana dispensary or Macy’s or Costco that same standard should apply to parishioners in our congregation they should be able to sep in pews and wear a mask," Trammel told Fox News in a recent interview.

Dr. Lee Riley, chairman of UC Berkeley's School of Public Health infectious disease division thinks the state's lack of transparency is troubling.

"There is more uncertainty created by NOT releasing the data that only the state has access to," he told the Associated Press in an email.

More via AP:

Newsom, a Democrat, imposed the nation’s first statewide shutdown in March. His administration developed reopening plans that included benchmarks for virus data such as per capita infection rates that counties needed to meet to relax restrictions.

It released data models state officials use to project whether infections, hospitalizations and deaths are likely to rise or fall.

As cases surged after Thanksgiving, Newsom tore up his playbook. Rather than a county-by-county approach, he created five regions and established a single measurement — ICU capacity — as the determination for whether a region was placed under a stay-at-home order.

https://www.zerohedge.com/covid-19/california-refuses-disclose-covid-19-data-used-drive-lockdowns