4/28/2023

My Dear Friend & POTUS, JRB,

            First good news of the day comes from Reuters “The Norwegian central bank excluded 2 oil & gas companies from its $1.4-trillion wealth fund, the world's largest, citing ethical concerns over their ties to the Myanmar military.” The pressure is on Gen. Min Aung Hlaing to make some changes.

            Second good news of the day comes from CSM. They wrote about how Colombian President Gustavo Petro is getting rival gangs to sit down to peace talks in the city of Buenaventura, a longtime crossroads of criminal violence & it’s working! He says, “we sow love, [if] we dialogue from our differences and finally we manage to understand each other.” WINTA!

            Third good news of the day comes from all over the internet about your conversation with the kids who came to the WH for Take Your Child to Work Day. I appreciated your comments about how you like your job because you get to meet so many different people. That’s what I like about my job, too. Just yesterday, I met the cutest little 4-year-old who came to work with his mom. His smile made my day!

            The troubling news of the day from the WP is that you might “have so thoroughly alienated the senator, [Joe Manchin (JM3)], that he jumps into the 2024 presidential race as an independent.” He’s mad because your “administration has unilaterally overridden the concessions made to gain his support (for the Inflation Reduction Act.… by) waving a magic wand & declaring a free-trade agreement with Japan where none exists.” Please make peace with JM3.

            We could all be in big trouble if he runs! As David Brooks opines, POTUS 45 (P45) promotes “amoral realism… an ethos that deadens the soul under the reign of the ego.” I hope this rape trial P45 is involved in helps change some people’s minds about his desirability as a candidate.

            BYBS,