SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M. ET:

NOT A TRUMP HOTEL – FROM BLOOMBERG:   The first thing you’ll see when you walk into Eaton Workshop, a hotel opening in late spring 2018 in Washington, is a custom-commissioned video art installation by AJ Schnack, shown on a series of vintage-style television screens. All day long, it’ll broadcast a montage of footage from the presidential elections of 2012 and 2016 that’s built around one pointed question: How did our country get where it is today?  It’s not a subtle statement, and it’s not meant to be.  In Trump’s Washington, Eaton is planting a clear flag as a haven for Democrats. It’s the world’s first politically motivated hotel, the flagship for a global brand that’s built around social activism and community engagement. And it comes with a pedigree: As the daughter of Ka Shui Lo, the creator and executive chairman of Hong Kong-based Langham Hospitality Group Ltd., founder Katherine Lo knows a thing or two about luxury hotels and world-class service.  Avoid when in Washington.

BIDEN IN THE STARS – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:   Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden told an NBC audience Monday that he wouldn’t worry much about a potential 2020 matchup against President Trump because he’s “Middle-class Joe.”  A hypothetical election showdown between Mr. Biden, 77, and Mr. Trump was laid before a “Megyn Kelly Today” audience to start the week when the former vice president said blue-collar voters “love” him more than the president. He said that while he is still unsure about future plans, his connection with middle-class voters is not in doubt.  “You’ve already run twice and lost,” Ms. Kelly said. “You’d have to promise that it would be one term only. And the blue-collar Rust Belters who you’d need to get elected already love [President] Donald Trump.”  “They love me more, but you’re right — all the first part is correct,” Mr. Biden replied, The Washington Free Beacon reported. “I understand the Rust Belt. Donald Trump has no notion what those people are going through.  “They call me ‘Middle-class Joe,’” Mr. Biden continued.  Strange, I've never heard anyone call him "Middle-class Joe."  Not when he was vice president under "Grab Every Million Obama." 

IMMIGRATION TO LONDON – FROM THE DAILY MAIL:   More than six in ten babies born in London hospitals have foreign mothers who are either immigrants or visiting from abroad, official figures show.  The evidence of the impact of immigration on the NHS was revealed in a breakdown of hospital records for last year published by the Office for National Statistics.  It comes amid concerns about the effects of fast-rising population levels and the cost to the public of health tourism. It also comes as the Health Service faces a shortfall of 3,500 midwives.  In one London hospital nearly four out of five births were to mothers born abroad, and in two others the figure was over 70 per cent.  Legal immigration is fine, but let's be clear about its effects.  It eventually changes a nation, for better or worse.  If the immigrants wish to be part of the nation, and absorb its culture and ideals, the nation is helped.  If they want to tear down the nation and replace it, the result can be catastrophic.

November 13, 2017