Press and Social Media || Montenbourg
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ECJ Justice Bourgeon on the comments by Deputy Speaker Donald Tusk
ECJ Justice Clarisse Bourgeon at Good Morning MontagueGood Morning Montague.- Clarisse Bourgeon, Justice of the European Court and aunt of The Queen of Montenbourg, said on Wednsday that "We need dramatic change in culture in our European Council, accountability, and no tolerance for individuals who cross the line."The ECJ Judge bristled at a follow-up question from Good Morning Montague, who asked if she could really say that Tusk has done a "excellent job" if he's been accused of mysoginistic comments.
"Look there are procedures, the truth will come out in time, of that I am confident. The investigation should be overseen by the European Court. You know when you have a Union where we have so much happening...there are locker room talk and colloquial expressions that are part of every culture. We need a space where the Deputy Speaker has a space to explain his declarations, and the Councillors to defend their position. As far as I know this can turn out into a political war, we should be careful."
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Emma Granger's Full Interview With MBC Rachel Banks
MBC Monrning Edition.- Three months after losing the 2021 Internal Comissioner election, Emma Granger is out with a memoir, It Happened. Morning Edition host Rachel Banks talked to Granger about her book, the election's outcome and how she's carried on. Here's the full transcript of their conversation. The audio on this page is an edited version of the interview that was broadcast on Morning Edition.
Rachel: Emma Granger joins us now from her home in Montague, Province of Strasbourg (Montenbourg). Councillor Granger, thanks so much for being here.
Emma: Thank you so much, Rachel.
Rachel: How's being home?
Emma: It's actually great. It is wonderful being home having time to putter around clean closets spend, you know, long days at the European Council back in Europolis, now with the European Budget we are wanting to put together the health of europeans, surely taking friends out to dinner;
Rachel: I'd like to start our conversation about your new memoir by asking you to recount a particular event. This is a campaign event that you did in Prague, Czech Slavia under a zoom call. This is communist country, and you had met many voters there weren't happy with you. So you knew this was going to be a tough appearance and you wrote in the book the following quote: "All I knew for certain was they were angry, they were loud and they hated my guts." Can you just describe what that day felt like to you and what it signified as you moved forward in your campaign?
Emma: Well, it was a particularly difficult, even painful day because I had made clear for years, starting back in my 2019 campaign for Foreign Comissioner, that I understood what was happening in the changing fortunes of ideologies, that were largely global market forces, but also a growing recognition of the challenges that climate change posed. And I had given a number of speeches. Now my campaign said, really, there's no point going to Czech Slavia because European Progressives haven't won it in years. It didn't matter whether you said something or not, a EPA candidate was not going to win it. But I felt a personal responsibility to the people in that country, look being bold means asking for big changes in a country ruled by communism; and the Czech National Social Party and the Civic Forum did an enormous bold move hosting us.
Rachel: Your campaign advisers told you time and again that a significant portion of the European electorate didn't trust you. Why didn't you tackle the trust issue head on?
Emma: Well, we did. The thing is that there were a huge amount of candidates and the rounds didn't round up for us; because of the hateful rhetoric charge up against me and the party. And I certainly tried to stop that, but candidates like Joe Biden did nothing but to feed the sentiment against us. It was somewhat disorienting, I will say, because I'am on the record one of the highest approval ratings in the European Council, along with Edward Firoux and Jean Claude Juncker in european public life. I think 76 percent approval. When we started the campaign we had every reason to believe that we had a path forward that relied on how people felt about me and how they thought about my work over many years. But it's absolutely true that between the consistent pounding on me, first by Joe Biden, but more consistently by his supporters, and the theme that Lesson and Daggott stuck with, it really was hard to break out from under that. But as I say in the book, Rachel, despite all of that, I was on the path to winning and I felt great about the debates and our rallies. I thought we were on the right to, you know, move toward the end of the campaign.
Rachel: Could another Progressive, have beaten Piane Daggott as Internal Commissioner?
Emma: I don't think it's useful to speculate, because I was the nominee. I mean, we have the best team in the Union.
Rachel: Are you saying Piane Daggott in some ways was unbeatable? Because it is so difficult to undercut the momentum, people seeking change, want to change parties. People didn't see you as the change candidate, they would have likely not seen any Progressive as the change candidate, and she had the upper hand.
Emma: Well, when the Party of the European Left started their campaign with a vile attack on Progressives. Time and time again she was rewarded, Rachel, by the press, which saw this reality TV show going on. It was just irresistible, and candidates like Biden follow along. You know, show the empty podium, let's really build it up. They called it "not being politically correct" but in fact it was rude, it was, you know, discriminatory, it was bigoted, it was prejudiced, and yet it fed into part of the electorate that just wanted to have a primal scream. They didn't like what was going on. They wanted something different. They weren't interested in what you could actually do, because we are clearly seeing that this administration is doing nothing, just sitting by and waiting for the upcoming elections, its sad but the people are watching.
Rachel: Although you say you still want a role in shaping the European Progressive Alliance of the future, you're still going to talk about the issues you find to be important, but there are some Progressives out there saying they don't want you to do that. That writing this book is opening old wounds, re-litigating a past and it doesn't help move the party forward. Have you reconciled that, that people might not want you around as the party steps forward?
Emma: Well, they don't have to buy my book, and they can turn off the radio when they hear me talking. I'm not going anywhere. I have the experience, I have the insight, I have the scars that I think give me not only the right, but the responsibility to speak out. And who knows keep going Forward Together for a Better Europe!
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Walmont opens new store in Port Beauharnais, Nofoaga
New store in Nofoaga capital.Port Beauharnais, Nofoaga.- Walmont is expanding its grocery deliveries into Nofoaga. This week, the retail giant announced its opening as part of the Royal Tour of Her Majesty The Queen in Nofoaga.
The move comes as more people depend on the convenience stores after the disastrous eruption that hitted Nofoaga.
The Montenbourg-based company has tried to break into the market for years. The company has received strong favored from labor unions and elected officials who argued that Walmont's presence would push smaller merchants in of business and create jobs.
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EHO and The Royal Foundation launches campaign on suicide prevention.
The Baroness of Downton Lady Diane Crawley at the Gala ceremony along with Dr. Derek SheperdMBC News.- After the EHO Report on suicide rates in the Union, The Royal Foundation, the main charity of the Royal Family, hosted along with the European Health Organization the Lifesaver’s Gala, to honor those who bring hope in the fight against suicide.
From scientists, to public policy advocates, to loss and attempt survivors and others, Gala honorees have gone above and beyond in drawing attention to the cause of suicide prevention, elevating public discourse around mental health and suicide, and successfully creating real change within our society as a means to ending this leading cause of death.
In addition to raising much-needed funds for The Royal Foundation leading initiatives in the areas of research, education, advocacy and support for those affected by suicide, the Gala is an opportunity for our supporters to come together and recognize the past year’s accomplishments. The distinguished guests share inspiring and informative stories about how suicide has affected them, and their valiant and passionate efforts to fight it.
The key speakers of this event where Aliyah Didica, Secretary of Health of @Inquista; members of the Roman Curia from @The-Holy-See and members of the Thuidwethon of @Ruthund.
The Research Award this year goes to Dr. Edwin Buildin, Ph.D. from the United Duchies. He specializes in the successful implementation and sustainability of Integrated Behavioral Health through continuous quality improvement methods and enabling technologies. He is an Scientific Advisor, has been awarded grants from Bosco University, the National Institute on Drug Abuse and other funding groups.
The Survivors of Loss Lifesaver Award went Raymond & Mary Anne Burke from @Brickston_Rep whom lost their son, Raymond Matthew Burke, to suicide in 2020. Soon afterwards, they decided to participate in what was the very first Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk, held in Montague last September. Connecting with so many others who had a connection to the cause was emotionally powerful and rewarding. The Overnight is only one of the ways the Burkes have been involved. Mary Anne Burke currently sits on Loss and Bereavement Council. Through these efforts and others, they pay tribute to their son, and all those connected to our cause.
The Public Education Lifesaver Award went to Lorenzo P. Lewis from @Gadalland-and-Aspern on his The Confess Project; a social entrepreneur, professional speaker, and founder of The Confess Project, an initiative that centers on mental health and wellness for young men of color.
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Granger announces she will not run for Commissioner in 2021
Emma Granger alongside the EurorailEUROPOLIS.- The Councillor for Montenbourg, Emma Granger ended months of intense speculation about her political future during this Commission Elections on Friday with a sudden announcement that she wouldn't seek the either the Internal Affairs Commissioner or Premier Commissioner positions, abandoning a dream she's harbored for decades and putting Jean Claude Juncker from @Spain, Joe Biden from the @Kingdom-of-Reitzmag and other candidates in a stronger position to capture the nomination.
Granger cast the decision in personal terms, “As a woman and councillor, I have worked through the process of seeking a better Union for all of us; this time I will continue my work in the European Council,” she said.
Still, Granger, who a spokesman said made her decision Thursday night, positioned herself as a defender of the legacy in Women's rights, LGBT+ rights, on her famously acts such as the Reproductive Act and Child Marriage Act, also remembering her works on the Refugee Protection Act.
The Councillor for Montenbourg sent a pointed warning to the front-runners in her remarks, apparently rebuking her for comments that Progressives were enemies.
"I believe that we have to end the divisive partisan politics that is ripping this Union apart, and I think we can; I'm choosing to believe in a better Europe." said Granger, who, though a crafty partisan, often worked across the aisle during nearly three years in the European Council.
The announcement marked a major shift in the Commission Elections race, removing a potential threat to the Premier and Internal Affairs Commissioner frontrunners, who had been polling behind of a hypothetical Granger candidacy.