muh joo muh joo muh joo muh joo muh joo
She's not really needed
VP Certification is now only ceremonial
''
Biden Signs Electoral Count Reform Act Into Law
By Mac Brower January 3, 2023
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Thursday, Dec. 29, 2022, President Joe Biden signed S. 4573, a bipartisan bill to reform the antiquated Electoral Count Act (ECA), into law. The bill was included in the omnibus spending package to fund the federal government this year.
S.4573, the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, is designed to reform the process by which Congress counts Electoral College votes to avoid a repeat of the events of Jan. 6, 2021. The law Clarifies that the role of the vice president is purely ceremonial,
Raises the threshold for members of Congress to initiate objections to electoral results to one-fifth of each chamber,
Ensures there is one conclusive slate of electors from each state
And outlines a process for expedited court review of election results.
In September, the Senate Rules Committee additionally amended the law to
Make U.S. Supreme Court review of any federal litigation over the certification of state electors discretionary rather than mandatory,
Ensure the judicial review procedure provided in the act doesn’t exclude litigation in other state and federal courts
And clarify the language around certification of electors to specify that during the counting of electoral college votes, Congress must treat the electors certified by a state and modified by any state or federal court relief as conclusive.
Reforming the ECA is seen as a critical step to preventing another event like the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, then-President Donald Trump and his supporters exploited the ECA to fuel his attempts to overturn the results. The ambiguity around the vice president’s role under the ECA fueled the pressure campaign on then-Vice President Mike Pence to reject valid electoral college votes and the ECA’s counting procedures inspired Trump supporters to pressure Republican members of Congress to object to the electoral votes of several states.
https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/biden-signs-electoral-count-reform-act-into-law/
How would that be a "critical" story?
U.S. Navy Increasingly Turning to Commercial Tankers for At-Sea Refueling Operations
Mike Schuler December 3, 2024
The U.S. Navy is increasingly relying on consolidated cargo operations (CONSOL) with commercial tankers to support its global fleet, marking a strategic shift in the service’s fleet refueling operations.
Last month, the Overseas Shipholding Group’s tanker Overseas Mykonos transferred fuel to the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), becoming the first commercial tanker to fuel a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in decades.
The shift gained momentum when the commercial tanker Stena Polaris conducted a similar operation with the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) on November 26, 2024, while supporting U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa operations.
Naval expert Sal Mercogliano explains: “They re-started CONSOLs back in 2015 and have been doing them on and off since then… However, refueling of carriers from commercial tankers has not been done in a long time. It requires the carrier to send over a rig to the tanker and some other modifications to be able to pump to the carrier.”
CONSOL operations using commercial tankers have become particularly crucial since the closure of the Navy’s Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in Hawaii.
Earlier this year, the M/T Stena Polaris, an ice-class tanker operated by Crowley Government Services and chartered to Military Sealift Command, completed a 145-day mission providing underway fueling to MSC vessels. During this mission, it spent 96 days delivering diesel and jet fuel to U.S. Navy ships in the Red Sea region.
During this year’s RIMPAC 2024, the MSC-contracted commercial tankers Overseas Mykonos and Allied Pacific conducted 17 separate CONSOL operations, delivering over two million gallons of fuel to MSC’s fleet replenishment oiler USNS Pecos (T-AO 197), the dry cargo/ammunition ship USNS Washington Chambers (T-AKE 11), and the New Zealand Navy’s Polar-class sustainment vessel HMNZS Aotearoa (A11).
At-sea refueling operations are complex undertakings. Ships like Pecos and Washington Chambers must use their equipment to receive rather than deliver fuel, maintaining a precise distance of 160–200 feet between vessels. Though these operations take 7–8 hours to complete and present significant challenges, they allow MSC’s Combat Logistics Force ships to remain on station and continue their vital refueling missions. The commercial tankers must also be specially outfitted and trained for the operations.
“The key advantage of taking fuel from a tanker versus a terminal is mobility,” explained Capt. Keith Walzak, Pecos’s civil service master, in August. “Using a fuel terminal requires us to leave contested areas and travel to wherever the terminal is, which takes time. When we return to a terminal, we can receive stores, both for us and the ships we are servicing.”
The implementation of CONSOLs during RIMPAC 2024 required careful preparation. Allied Pacific began its preparations in April with equipment fitting for CONSOL operations, followed by comprehensive training both in-port and at-sea.
CONSOLs with commercial tankers may not be limited to U.S. Navy ships. In July 2024, the MSC-charted tanker Badlands Trader conducted training with Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force oiler JS Hamana off Kyushu, performing simulated CONSOL replenishment. The training followed a similar exercise from October 2023.
Both the Overseas Mykonos and Stena Polaris also participate in the U.S. Maritime Administration’s Tanker Security Program, which establishes a fleet of 10 active, commercially-viable, and privately-owned U.S.-flag product tankers available to meet national defense and other Department of Defense requirements.
https://gcaptain.com/u-s-navy-increasingly-turning-to-commercial-tankers-for-at-sea-refueling-operations/
China Bans Export of Key Minerals to U.S. as Trade Frictions Escalate
Reuters December 3, 2024
Dec 3 (Reuters) – China has banned exports to the United States of items related to the minerals gallium, germanium and antimony that have potential military applications, it said on Tuesday, a day after Washington’s latest crackdown on China’s chip sector.
A commerce ministry directive on dual-use items with both military and civilian applications cited national security concerns. The order, which takes immediate effect, also requires stricter review of end-usage for graphite items shipped to the U.S..
“In principle, the export of gallium, germanium, antimony, and superhard materials to the United States shall not be permitted,” the commerce ministry said.
The curbs strengthen enforcement of existing limits on exports of the critical minerals that Beijing began rolling out last year, but apply only to the U.S. market, in the latest escalation of trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies ahead of President-elect Donald Trump taking office.
Chinese customs data show there have been no shipments of wrought and unwrought germanium or gallium to the U.S. this year through October, although it was the fourth and fifth-largest market for the minerals, respectively, a year earlier.
Gallium and germanium are used in semiconductors, while germanium is also used in infrared technology, fiber optic cables and solar cells.
Similarly, China’s overall October shipments of antimony products plunged by 97% from September after Beijing’s move to limit its exports took effect.
China accounted last year for 48% of globally mined antimony, which is used in ammunition, infrared missiles, nuclear weapons and night-vision goggles, as well as in batteries and photovoltaic equipment.
This year, China has accounted for 59.2% of refined germanium output and 98.8% of refined gallium production, according to consultancy Project Blue.
“The move is a considerable escalation of tensions in supply chains where access to raw material units is already tight in the West,” said Project Blue co-founder Jack Bedder.
Prices of antimony trioxide in Rotterdam had soared by 228% since the beginning of the year to $39,000 a metric ton on Nov. 28, data from information provider Argus showed.
“Everyone will dig in their backyard to find antimony. Many countries will try to find antimony deposits,” said a minor metals trader in Europe, declining to be named.
China’s announcement comes after Washington launched its third crackdown in three years on China’s semiconductor industry on Monday, curbing exports to 140 companies, including chip equipment maker Naura Technology Group 002371.SZ.
Trump, whose first White House term was marked by a bitter trade war with China, has said he will implement 10% tariffs on Chinese goods and threatened 60% tariffs on Chinese imports during his presidential campaign.
“It comes as no surprise that China has responded to the increasing restrictions by American authorities, current and imminent, with its own restrictions on the supply of these strategic minerals,” said Peter Arkell, chairman of the Global Mining Association of China.
“It’s a trade war that has no winners,” he said.
Separately, several Chinese industry groups called on Tuesday for their members to buy domestically made semiconductors, with one saying U.S. chips were no longer safe and reliable.
https://gcaptain.com/china-bans-export-of-key-minerals-to-u-s-as-trade-frictions-escalate/
Sacrificing Rachel Madcow to Mauna Loa seems like a good start
Bad kimchi