Wednesday Clutter: Brutal Cold, Michael Bloomberg and Howard Schultz, the Possible end of Roe, NCIS: New Orleans, WWE, Pink Floyd, and more
Conan O'Brien Visits the Samuel Adams Brewery

Thursday Clutter: Sarah Sanders, Trump, Mitch McConnell, Coca-Cola, Tom Brady, Roger Goodell, Twilight Zone, Dixie Chicks, and more

Hi everyone,

Welcome back!  How's your week going?  We're all doing well here at the moment, particularly since January is almost over.  I will admit that my excitement for going outside later is, shall we say, not high.  BDH and Little Buddha point out that least we don't live in the Midwest, and  I'll be fine as long as I wear enough layers.  Five should do, right?  They just smile when I ask questions like that.  Fortunately, they also make terrific coffee.  There's a fresh pot on the table, so help yourself to a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Thursday Clutter.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said with a straight face yesterday that, "God wanted Donald Trump to become president." It's a desperate appeal to Trump's hypocritical evangelical supporters to stay with him, since everyone else is leaving, but Sanders actually ended up insulting both them and her boss.   According to Sanders, even with God's support, Trump still lost the popular vote by 3 million and needed help from Russia to get him over the finish line.  Was God that weak, or is Trump that inept?  This show has officially jumped the shark, and it's time to take it off the schedule.  Reboots are all the rage these days, and we're betting bringing back Barack Obama would bring huge ratings.

Sarah Sanders January 31 2019Any higher power could have come up with a better choice than this.  (pic via variety.com)

Donald Trump is owned by Russia, which drives his attacks on the intelligence community when they point out Russia's interference in American affairs, and the best the GOP can do is have a couple of senators say, "I wish he wouldn't do that."  This country has been abandoned by the Republican Party who is fine with having a foreign agent in the White House, because, hey, tax cuts for the top 1%!

On a related note, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell came out of his cave to attack a Democratic bill that would make voting easier. McConnell and the GOP know they lose when more people participate in democracy.

Sounds like Mick Mulvaney already wants a new gig after just about six weeks of being Trump's acting chief of staff.

At this point, it seems clear that the only reason Howard Schultz would run for president as an independent is because he doesn't have the courage to compete in the Republican primary.  An out-of-touch billionaire who wants the White House handed to him?  Pass.

The Federal Reserve announced it will slow down its scheduled interest rate hikes due to increasing global uncertainty. We're just happy our savings account now earns enough in monthly interest to buy a cup of coffee again.

The list of Facebook's scandals is a mile long, and growing, but they still had a strong fourth quarter. Mark Zuckerberg and company likely don't see any reason why they should change course, so it's on regulators to force them to do a better job of respecting privacy and being a better corporate citizen.

A new report says Coca-Cola has been lobbying the Centers for Disease Control to try to block any negative focus on sodas and other sugary drinks. Not too surprising.  Coke and the other soda companies have long tried to distract consumers with empty gestures in support of anti-obesity programs and by claiming that their products can be part of a balanced diet.  The truth is that sugar is addictive and it contributes to weight gain and other health problems.

With the Super Bowl just three days away, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft says he's open to giving Tom Brady a contract extension. Let's see, the guy's brought you to three straight Super Bowls, and you currently have no back-up, so, yeah, that seems like an easy choice.  The real question may be if the two sides can agree on the length of a new deal.  Brady will be 42 years old when his current contract expires, and he's said many times that he wants to play until he's 45.  Will the team agree to those three years?  Ahh, we'll start worrying about this in four days.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell finally had his Super Bowl press conference on Wednesday and said a whole lot of nothing as usual.  It's no accident that Goodell has been MIA with the media this year.  Nothing positive ever happens for the league when he speaks.  His job is to grow the nearly $20 billion annual revenue pie for the owners and not let anything get in the way of that.

Jordan Peele's much-anticipated Twilight Zone reboot will debut on CBS All Access on April 1.  That seems appropriate.

Former SNL star Fred Armisen is doing a music-comedy tour later this year.  Armisen, who is currently (among other things) the bandleader for Late Night with Seth Meyers, is an accomplished musician, and this could be entertaining.

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  Here are the Dixie Chicks to close things out with, "Long Time Gone, " for today's, "Song of the Day."

Thanks for stopping by, everyone.  It was great to see you, as always.  BDH and Little Buddha say you're invited to come back tonight and watch A Million Little Things with us if you like.  For those who can't make it, the recap will be up tomorrow.  In any case, enjoy the rest of your day, stay warm, and we'll see you all back here again for more coffee soon.  Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.

 

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