Notations From the Grid (Special Africa Edition): @POTUS to fund Mugabe, says diplomat

This is the latest out of Zimbabwe as it is in the midst of a profound Economic Crisis as Robert Mugabe Clings on to power:



Trump to fund Mugabe, says diplomat: The US has announced plans to increase its funding levels to Zimbabwe, particularly in the health sector - despite a diplomatic tiff between Washington and Harare. This was revealed by the US ambassador to Zimbabwe Harry Thomas Jr at the close of the just ended Harare International Festival of the Arts (HIFA).

Notations From the Grid: On #ComeyFiring; #Iran & Other Thoughts....

Rod Rosenstein, The US Deputy Attorney General                       

As Thursday dawns, there was some very interesting developments in the aftermath of the firing of the FBI Director.    Mr. Comey wrote a note to the FBI rank and file noting that a US President could fire an FBI Director--and he accepted that.      However, the uproar is bound to continue especially as our team just picked up reports (first reported by the Washington Post and released by us on our Twitter Feed by Haaretz) that the Deputy Attorney General of the United States threatened to resign over the manner in which the Firing was handled.     The New York Times just released an open letter to the Deputy Attorney General that is available by clicking on here.

Beyond the shores of the United States, there is the on-going election campaign in Iran.  Our team picked up a recent campaign infomercial  broadcast on Iranian State Television as President Rouhani admitted shortcomings--but noted some very interesting facts.   He spoke out forcefully for the rights of women, was forceful in protecting the Environment and underscored it is imperative to create a sense of hope and optimism for all (the conversation is in Farsi):

The opening scenes was also telling as it began as President Rouhani made an appearance at Tehran University on the occasion of University Student Day.   The attacks on him were telling in terms of the disappointments and the true realities faced by Iranians.    In the aftermath of the Comey Firing, we could not help but wonder what would President Trump's reaction have been if he was faced with a similar circumstance....

Notations On Our World (Special Mid-Week Edition): On #ComeyFiring; @kittyhawkcorp & Other Thoughts...

As all know by now, the FBI Director was fired by President Trump.   It has been in the headlines and our team was keeping tabs on it over Twitter since yesterday.    The President himself has been tweeting as he called out  "Crying Chuck Scuhmmer" and lying Richard Blummenthal.    Our team found it of special interest how the so-called case was developed that led to the President dismissing the FBI Director.   Reporting from US Media indicates that the FBI Director found out about it through news reports (right as we broke the story here on our Twitter Feed).  Fox News has been at the forefront of noting how the firing was "overdue" (Tucker Carlson", how Comey was an embarrassment, (Sean Hannity" and the more conservative media (including Red State and others).   We also understand that the President's "Body Man" delivered the letter to the FBI Headquarters in Washington.    This is as the investigation into Michael Flynn is continuing as a number of his associates have apparently been subpoenaed.     

The White House sent out the Principal Deputy White House Press Secretary, Sara Huckabee Sanders, to push the Trump Administration talking point that the FBI Director had lost the confidence of the rank and file last night.   She was on CBS News Red & Blue program last night noting that she had just received messages from numerous FBI rank and file officers noting how Director Comey had lost the trust and confidence and it was time for new leadership.  She also noted that a "President Hillary would have fired him".    What must be noted, though, is that The FBI Director does serve at the Pleasure of the President and can be dismissed without cause.    It is bound to be a very interesting White House Daily Press Briefing today--although our team is not certain what will be achieved in 30 minutes.  

As we went to press, we are seeing the Vice President, Mike Pence, defending the President and noting how "grateful" he was for the President's decision as he has once again has been tasked with "explaining away" the President's actions.   He noted about how the country needs to move "past the politics of the past year"--yet he seems not to address that the President contributed to the very difficult politics today.    As our team was assessing overnight developments, we picked up this from the Twitter Feed of the +The New York Times Eric Lipton that was telling about the state of affairs right now : 

  

As we went to press here, there is live coverage of the Secretary of State meeting the Russian Foreign Minister which is very interesting as the Russian Foreign Minister is also scheduled to see the President later on today.     In the meantime, there is a new President in South Korea, China continues its' ascendancy with "Belt and Road,", Iran is continuing a very vibrant President Campaign as the UK continues its' election campaign that may see a radical redrawing of the political landscape as "Brexit" begins.   And more importantly, Larry Page's flying car, Kitt Hawk, will be on Sale later on this year!! :)

Never a dull moment.....