'Together there is nothing we cannot do'

In his first opportunity to outline his foreign policy agenda to Europe since taking office, President Biden addressed a virtual version of the international gathering on foreign affairs and defense—the Munich Security Conference—today. "I speak to you today as President of the United States at the very start of my administration," he said. "I'm sending a clear message to the world—America is back." He then proceeded to lay out his foreign policy plans, of which working alongside the U.S.'s European partners and the NATO alliance are the centerpiece.

• — Competing with China. Biden said the U.S. and its allies in Europe need to fight against China's expanding autocratic influence, adding that the U.S. and its European partners can "own the race of the future" by working together. "Historians will examine and write about this moment. It's an inflection point. And I believe with every ounce of my being that democracy must prevail," he said.
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• — Confronting Russia. The president also spoke of Russia as a key adversary that threatens the freedom of its own people. He said the West must stand up for Russian dissenters and Ukraine, and stand against hacking and other Russian tools. "The challenges with Russia may be different than the ones with China, but they're just as real," he added.
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• — Let's cooperate. Earlier today, Biden participated virtually in the G7 COVID-19 meeting with world leaders and announced that the U.S. would contribute $4 billion to COVAX, an international program that aims to get coronavirus vaccines to low- and middle-income countries that have been cut out of the vaccine race. The U.S. will also officially re-enter the Paris climate accords today. —CBS News

Attiah: The end of Texas exceptionalism?

"This week, wrapped in multiple blankets and layers, I could only laugh at my past faith in Texas' supposedly mighty grid. A winter storm might have been the precipitating event that left millions of Texans struggling without power in record-low temperatures. But what really has brought my home state to its knees is a chilling mix of unfettered deregulation, partisan gaslighting, and leadership failure." —Karen Attiah in The Washington Post

Karen Attiah is the global opinions editor at The Washington Post, writing on international affairs and social issues.

MORE: Power comes back for most in Texas, but other problems pile up —NBC News

Cuomo's fall from grace

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo was hailed as a hero last spring, when he managed his state through a brutal wave of COVID-19 cases early in the coronavirus pandemic. Now, he's facing an investigation by the FBI and the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York for his administration's handling of nursing homes during the pandemic—and an attempt by fellow Democrats to strip him of his emergency powers. The fallout is connected to an advisory issued last March, which said nursing homes could not deny residents for being coronavirus positive. His administration is accused of undercounting and withholding data on the deaths that occurred within nursing homes as a result of the policy. —Insider

MORE: N.Y. Republicans call for Cuomo impeachment in wake of federal nursing home probe —New York Daily News

The next partisan battle: Redistricting

Democrats and Republicans are gearing up for another national political battle with huge stakes: the once-a-decade process of redistricting. Though Democrats hold power in Washington, Republicans have the redistricting advantage at the statehouse level and are poised to use redistricting alone to flip the half-dozen seats needed to regain control of the U.S. House. The biggest immediate concern is a delay until September in the release of Census data due to the coronavirus pandemic. Some good government groups are worried the delay could lead to more extreme gerrymandering, since it would leave little time for legal challenges to make their way through the courts before the 2022 midterm elections. —Reuters

MORE: Pennsylvania's awful plan to gerrymander judgeships —Bloomberg

NYT Ed Board: Burmese resisters deserve the world's support

"What is happening in Myanmar is not about one woman, nor even about the myriad complex problems the country faces. It is about an election that was stolen by men in embroidered epaulets with a history of treating the country as a personal fief. The Burmese in their millions have bravely demonstrated that they do not want to be ruled by a corrupt, arbitrary, abusive, and incompetent military. In this, they deserve the world's full support." —The New York Times

MORE: Japan, U.S., India, Australia call for return of democracy in Myanmar —Reuters

Focus on the Middle East

President Biden took a major foreign policy step yesterday, backing away from his predecessor's effort to restore United Nations sanctions on Iran. At the same time, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told European foreign ministers in a call that the U.S. would join them in seeking to restore the 2015 nuclear accord with Iran, which he called "a key achievement of multilateral diplomacy." —The New York Times

• — Israel. On Wednesday, Biden spoke by phone with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel for the first time since taking office. The two spoke about Iran and strengthening the U.S.-Israeli relationship. Biden said he hopes to strengthen the two nations' partnership on "defense cooperation," indicating that it is critical to work together on "regional security issues" such as Iran. —Politico
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• — Iraq. The Biden Administration has vowed that there will be consequences for those behind the deadly rocket attack earlier this week in northern Iraq. The attack in the city of Irbil in the Kurdistan region killed one civilian contractor and injured nine others, including a U.S. service member. The Pentagon also opened the door to the possibility of sending more American troops to the Middle East as part of a newly expanded NATO training mission to support Iraqi forces and ensure that ISIS does not rise again. —CNBC
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• — Egypt. Biden faces an early test in Egypt. The country is a long-time U.S. partner and the recipient of substantial U.S. military assistance. But President Abdel Fattah el Sisi, the former military commander who seized power in 2014, has become increasingly authoritarian. Biden's administration expressed concern about Sisi’s human rights record this week, even as the State Department announced the sale of nearly $200 million of weapons to Cairo—the first substantial arms transfer to the Middle East in Biden's term. —ABC News

Medved: No place for populism

"As today's GOP seeks rejuvenating leadership in a post-Trump era, an aimless drift toward angry and outdated populism remains a conspicuous danger. Viability as a dynamic opposition party requires recognition that the term 'conservative populist' remains, as always, a glaring contradiction in terms." —Michael Medved in USA Today

Michael Medved is a member of USA Today's Board of Contributors and hosts a daily, syndicated talk radio show.

MORE: Former North Carolina Supreme Court judge leaves Republican Party after 45 years —Newsweek

Because of zero accountability from Texas lawmakers, every Texan is one natural disaster away from being homeless. 

It's true because I am now one of them.

Which is unbelievable to say. But it's true. Because ERCOT and Centerpoint shut off our power in our apartment complex, the third-floor neighbor's apartment pipe burst and flooded the second-floor neighbor's and my apartments. It is unlivable. As water gushed out as if barrel-sized showers were tossed over the balcony, my neighbors and I gathered our belongings in drenched clothes and went to our cars in 14-degree weather on Tuesday.

My plan was to stay at a hotel, but here in Kingwood, the rooms were all rented out. It was unsafe to drive, and I called Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church, asking for shelter. Because I had a bird and a dog, they never gave us a definite answer. They didn't know if we could, and they pretty much alluded we could not. So, "no one will be turned away"—well, we were. Perhaps we were meant to, I don't know, but I wasn't about to abandon my pets. They are my babies. I tried Gallery Furniture too, but they will not take pets. And in Kingwood, the shelters are sparse and filled. I called St. Martha's Church in Kingwood—no answer.

So we slept in the car. I prayed all night thinking about all these children, terrified, freezing, hungry, confused.

The next day, I went to the Stay America hotel for my reservation. The clerk said they OVERBOOKED and that those checked in extended their stay. So they canceled my reservation. I asked if I could at least use the bathroom, as I'd been in my car for over 12 hours. She said, "No. They're not working, and we don't have enough water. And I can't rent you a dirty room due to COVID, and my maid is not coming in."

If it wasn't for my apartment complex allowing me to stay in one of the models, I'd be living in my car. I'm using public WiFi in the office because the model doesn't have any.

Then to see Ted Cruz board a plane. Or Rick Perry tell me and others in the Houston Chronicle that I am not a Texan if I don't freeze for freedom from the government, after he went to Moscow in 2018 as energy czar for the Trump Administration, knowing what Russia did to Ukraine? No power?

It made me so angry.

That glorious colorful metaphor excuse, "Vote for me, I'm not a Democrat," or "Blame the government," when Republicans run the state of Texas, infuriated me. If you're a Texas statesman, and your pipes did not burst, if you did not sleep in a shelter, if your home did not flood, if you didn't get generators, food, and blankets to children (the U.S. government DID!), if you didn't brave the frigid temperatures like your constituents, then you are not fit for office at any level.

Your job is to stay and experience what your community deals with, and not for the photo op, but because you truly care!

They don't. And neither did Donald Trump. Where is he helping Texans after conning seniors out of their savings to contest a legitimate election?

This crap has got to stop. I don't care if you are a Republican or Democrat. I'm an independent, and I have no problem voting anyone out that does not deserve to be there. All they do is whine about Democrats to brainwash Texans—lawmakers do not want Texans to SUE their government or ERCOT or Centerpoint for shutting off our power after we PAID FOR IT. Their plan of rolling blackouts FAILED. They had 10 years to secure things...improve NORMAL demands. They opted for culture warfare and blaming Democrats. Well, they run the state, and the blame is with them. So what do they do? HIDE.

It takes ONE DISASTER to render you homeless. And it doesn't matter if you're Republican or Democrat. If anything, 14-degree weather sobers up your brain fast. Reality check: Those in charge abandoned Texans.

Hold them accountable, and if they do not resign, challenge them. They don't get it.

Send the message so they do.

If you receive this email, it's a miracle because public WiFi in Kingwood is a target for cybercriminals...but that's another story. I'm just grateful I have heat in one of the model apartments. No stove to cook on or to boil water, but I'll take it. Otherwise, if the power goes out again, it's back to the car! Gas is scarce now too. And all grocery stores close by 4 p.m. Food is down to nonperishables.

No child or family should be starving or freezing when this could have been prevented. An act of God will blow away the BS really quick! —Tracy D., Texas

The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.