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Coldjoint, these people are beyond reason. You can have them.

Sorry, Mr. President. You can't fire the Fed chairman
By John O'Neill Jan 10, 2019

As the political and economic pressure on Nicolás Maduro mounts, Venezuela's president believes there is one person he can rely on - Vladimir Putin.

The Kremlin has accused the opposition leader Juan Guaidó of an "illegal attempt to seize power", backed by the United States. Moscow says it will do "everything required" to support Nicolás Maduro as Venezuela's "legitimate president".

But Russia's appetite for protecting relations with Caracas may be more limited than its rhetoric suggests.

Moscow has long been a key ally of President Maduro, and Hugo Chávez before him - as fierce critics of Washington, right in America's backyard.

"The relationship is symbolically important. It's about saying 'we're not alone, there are others who are very critical of the US and Western policy'," explains Andrei Kortunov of the Russian International Affairs Council.

That's partly why Moscow has expanded co-operation with Caracas in recent years - increasing arms sales, extending credit and even flying in two bombers last December in a show of support.

Its backing for Nicolás Maduro in the current crisis is also fuelled by a horror of popular uprisings, particularly those supported openly by the West.

"Unpopular social policies, an impoverished population and economic crisis - against a background of battling the whole world and corrupt… politicians. Guess which country this refers to?" independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta wondered this week.

It was drawing the parallels with Russia that it believes the Kremlin sees - and fears - in Caracas.

Moscow also has money at stake. It has sunk significant amounts into backing Nicolás Maduro, much of that in loans it stands to lose if he is forced from office.

The full extent of Russia's exposure isn't clear.

Analysts talk of $17bn (£13bn), mostly dished out in credit to the Maduro government. But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to put a figure on it when questioned by journalists earlier this week.

He was even more tight-lipped on whether Russia worried about losing that investment. "I won't respond to that," Mr Peskov said.

Venezuela sits on the largest proven oil reserves in the world.

"When we sent weapons, no-one thought of collecting the debt. What was really in mind, I think, was access to the oil wells, to production," argues Carnegie Centre economist Andrei Movchan.

Russia's state-owned firm, Rosneft, now has stakes in multiple projects in Venezuela and has issued significant loans to the country's oil giant, PDVSA.

"Venezuela was in a bad shape, so it was easy to agree terms," Mr Movchan says.

But whilst state television programmes here have been blasting headlines, slamming the US "intervening in the affairs of a sovereign state", others have been questioning the wisdom of Russia's own Venezuela policy.

"Venezuela is a black hole for Russia, where billions of dollars have been sunk… and the effect is zero," analyst Mikhail Krutikin told Kommersant newspaper. He talked of "utter incompetence and squandering."

"It's a very unfortunate situation," Andrei Kortunov says. "We knew this was coming, so I wonder what the fall-back position is of those who invested there, but I don't see it."

Russia is now advocating political negotiations in Venezuela, with international mediation. It presents the opposition, and the US, as intransigent for continuing to call for fresh elections.

Meanwhile, with no sign of imminent mass defection by the military, reports have emerged suggesting Moscow may be upping its support for Nicolás Maduro.

As fresh US sanctions were imposed on Caracas this week, Novaya Gazeta suggested that Russia had helped fly Venezuelan gold from storage in the Russian Central Bank for sale in Dubai.

The paper's sources claimed over $1bn in cash was then taken on to Caracas. The Central Bank chairwoman said that did not "correspond to reality".

There have also been reports that Moscow has deployed private military contractors, possibly as protection for President Maduro.

The Kremlin has rebutted that, too, though Mr Maduro himself was simply evasive. "I'm not making any comment," he told Russian reporters this week.

The foreign ministry pledge to do "everything" to back Nicolás Maduro does seem to have limits.

"I don't think Russia would defend Maduro militarily. We are for a political settlement," argues retired Lieutenant-General Evgeny Buzhinsky. He describes those bombers sent to Caracas last year as simply "symbolic".

"It would be madness for Russia to try to intervene with force," Andrei Movchan agrees. "Venezuela is not Syria. The Chinese are there and the Americans are much closer."

At least in public, Russia has settled for condemning US pressure, calling for dialogue - and waiting. Perhaps it is hoping its ally can weather the storm.

As one tabloid newspaper here argued, opposition rallies on Wednesday were smaller than expected.

"They held the decisive protest - and then they called the next one," Komsomolskaya Pravda joked, suggesting "something went wrong".

Another paper, though, is convinced President Maduro's days in office are numbered, suggesting the Kremlin should simply offer "its friend" political asylum.

"The long, cold Moscow winter is not ideal of course for Maduro, used to palm trees and a year-round average of 25C," Moskovsky Komsomolets reasoned.

"But it's still better than a warm prison cell in Caracas."

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam has apologised after his 1984 student yearbook page emerged, showing a photo featuring men in racist costumes.

"I am deeply sorry for the decision I made to appear as I did in this photo and for the hurt that decision caused then and now," he said in a statement.

Black politicians in Virginia called the image "disgusting" and Republicans urged the Democrat to resign.

The picture showed a man in blackface and another man in Ku Klux Klan robes.

It appeared on a page with other photos of Mr Northam, who was aged about 25 at the time, as well as personal details about him.

He did not elaborate on which costume he was wearing, but said he appeared in a photograph that was "clearly racist and offensive".

Mr Northam was elected governor of Virginia in November 2017.

Mr Northam's yearbook page, which came from the paediatric neurologist's time at Eastern Virginia Medical School, was first published by conservative website Big League Politics.

The Virginian-Pilot newspaper tweeted a picture of the page which it said it obtained from the medical school library.

An official from the medical school verified the photo and told the Huffington Post it came from a "student-produced publication".

The page, which features Mr Northam's full name and photos of the future doctor and politician, also included a quote from a Willie Nelson song that read: "There are more old drunks than old doctors in this world so I think I'll have another beer."

"This behaviour is not in keeping with who I am today and the values I have fought for throughout my career in the military, in medicine, and in public service," the governor said in a statement after the image was made public.

"But I want to be clear, I understand how this decision shakes Virginians' faith in that commitment."

He continued: "I recognise that it will take time and serious effort to heal the damage this conduct has caused. I am ready to do that important work.

"The first step is to offer my sincerest apology and to state my absolute commitment to living up to the expectations Virginians set for me when they elected me to be their governor."

Mr Northam later released a video statement via Twitter in which he said he was "deeply sorry" for the offence the image had caused.

"I accept responsibility for my past actions and I am ready to do the hard work of regaining your trust," he said.

Before he was elected governor, Mr Northam served for a decade as a Virginia state legislator.

His responsibilities as governor include implementing state laws, restoring voting rights for individuals who have had them withdrawn and issuing pardons.

In 2017, Mr Northam told the New York Times he had voted for Republican George W Bush in his presidential campaigns years earlier, saying that his decision was "wrong".

The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, which comprises African Americans elected to the Virginia General Assembly, said it was "still processing what we have seen about the governor" but described the images as "disgusting, reprehensible and offensive".

"These pictures rip off the scabs of an excruciatingly painful history and are a piercing reminder of this nation's sins. Those who would excuse the pictures are just as culpable," it said in a statement.

The photo also prompted a swift backlash from conservatives, including Jack Wilson, the chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, who called on Mr Northam to step down.

"Racism has no place in Virginia," he said in a statement. "These pictures are wholly inappropriate. If Governor Northam appeared in blackface or dressed in a KKK robe, he should resign immediately."

Calls for his resignation also came from four Democratic candidates for president - Senators Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris and Cory Booker, and Texan mayor Julian Castro.

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is considering a presidential run in 2020, also called for Mr Northam to resign.

The Ku Klux Klan is one of the oldest and most infamous hate groups in the US, and has targeted African Americans, Jews, Catholics and immigrants, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups.

The group has a long history, with KKK membership peaking in the 1920s.

The judge overseeing the criminal case against ex-Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone says she is considering a gagging order on both him and the prosecution.

Judge Amy Berman Jackson said the case was "a criminal proceeding and not a public relations campaign".

Mr Stone has been charged on seven counts by special counsel Robert Mueller, including witness tampering and lying to Congress.

He denies any wrongdoing and has made frequent jibes against Mr Mueller.

Mr Stone, 66, a longstanding ally of the president, has previously vowed to resist any gagging order, saying on Tuesday: "I will fight and the deep state is in panic mode."

Mr Mueller is overseeing an investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and whether Donald Trump's campaign conspired with Moscow. President Trump denies collusion, calling the investigation "a witch hunt", and the Kremlin denies any meddling.

At a court hearing in Washington on Friday, Judge Jackson cited a number of "extrajudicial statements by the defendant". She said that if a gagging order was imposed, Mr Stone would still be able to talk to the media about issues not connected to the case.

She asked both sides to respond to the possible order by 8 February.

The charges against Mr Stone are linked to an alleged Russian-led hack into the emails of Democratic Party officials. The information contained in the emails was released by Wikileaks during the 2016 campaign.

Since his arrest, Mr Stone has given a string of media interviews.

He has been highly critical of his arrest, describing it as political theatrics.

"To storm my house with greater force than was used to take down (Osama) bin Laden or El Chapo or Pablo Escobar, to terrorise my wife and my dogs, is unconscionable," he told reporters.

He has accused Mr Mueller of running a politically motivated "inquisition".

In an interview with Reuters, Mr Stone dismissed the charges as "process crimes" with no intentional lies. He said any failure to disclose emails or texts had been an "honest mistake".

In a phone interview with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on his radio programme Infowars, Mr Stone said he intended to "fight for my life".

"There's no circumstance under which I would plead guilty to these charges. There's no circumstance under which I would bear false witness to the president," he said.

What are the charges?
The special counsel has accused Mr Stone of attempting to obstruct the investigation into Russian meddling by:

Lying to the House Intelligence Committee about what transpired between him and Wikileaks

Lying to the committee about records of his interactions with Wikileaks
Witness tampering, by trying to keep his Wikileaks intermediary from telling the truth to Congress

The indictment does not say Mr Stone committed any criminal activity during the election.

After his arrest he was released on $250,000 (£189,000) bail and with restrictions allowing him to travel only for court appearances in Florida, Washington DC and New York.

If Builder read that he is probably asleep.

I spent the day in Malcolm X text

He’s going on the stump for the hoodwearer, Northam.

Obama stumped for Northam.