Is Donald Trump losing total control of Republicans? The answer is, absolutely.
A couple of days ago, Republican Rep Lauren Boebert completely defied President Donald Trump. She refused to take her name off the Epstein discharge petition. In the past, she did anything he asked.
U.S. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), and Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) joined Boebert as the only Republicans signing the petition, which needed 218 signatures to force a vote.
All signs show that this vote will occur on Tuesday.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said the battle over the release of the Epstein files has sent President Donald Trump “over the edge” and accused him of putting her life in danger after he publicly withdrew his support for the Georgia Congresswoman.
Greene, standard-bearer of the MAGA movement and formerly strong supporter of the president, said in a post on X Friday night that it was “astonishing really how hard he’s fighting to stop the Epstein files from coming out that he actually goes to this level.”
The White House press secretary touts Donald Trump as the “most transparent and accessible president” in American history, citing his constant engagement with the media and practice of including reporters at government events. But in the past few days, Trump has been uncharacteristically reticent around journalists. It seems clear that he’s rattled by the Jeffrey Epstein crisis — the rare political issue that he can’t talk his way out of without alienating his base.
It was a decade ago when I took my first European river cruise. I remember previously gazing at the top-rated river cruises and saw that Tauck was #1 with 5 stars. Uniworld was #2 with 4.5 stars, #3 AMA Waterways with 4, #4 Avalon with 3 and #5 Viking River Cruises with 3. I went with Tauck, and the experience was memorable. Viking ships were considered then to be mediocre. This was 2015, and Viking launched its first ocean ship that year, the Viking Star. Still operates, mostly in the Mediterranean.
.jpg)
- First established by Torstein Hagen in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1997. He was financed by oligarchs.
- He is still Chairman and CEO at the age of 82.
- Here is what I said on 21November2024:
- How has Viking suddenly become #1 in almost all areas of cruising? Cruise Critic gives five reasons for first-timers.
- Is fairly inclusive. One fare covers beer, wine, soda at every meal, at least one shore excursion for each port, all meals, thermal spa facilities, WiFi and entertainment.
- Has in-depth tours.
- While ships are pretty, practicality reigns. Close to where you sit will be an outlet.
- You've got a choice, but not too much choice. No casino, no children under 18 and big cabins.
- Food is excellent with variety aplenty.
- Manfredi is their Italian restaurant.
- Chef's Table has five course menus.
- Buffet has a lot, even sushi.
According to Google AI:
- Viking: Operates a fleet of 100 ships across its river, ocean, and expedition categories, all under the single "Viking" brand.
- Carnival Corporation & plc: This parent company is the world's largest cruise operator and has a combined fleet of over 90 vessels (specifically 93 as of March 2025) across its nine different brands, which include Carnival Cruise Line, Princess, Holland America, and Cunard, Seabourn, among others.
Los Angeles (October 21, 2025) – Viking® (www.viking.com) (NYSE: VIK) today announced the naming of its nine newest river ships—including the company’s 100th ship—during a simultaneous ceremony in Basel, Switzerland. Of the nine new river ships, the Viking Annar, the Viking Dagur, the Viking Eldir and the Viking Honir will sail Viking’s most popular itineraries along the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers. The Viking Nerthus, the Viking Gyda and the Viking Tonle sail the Seine, Douro and Mekong rivers, respectively. The two other new ships named today—the Viking Thoth and the Viking Amun—sail the Nile River. The ceremony also marked a major milestone—Viking now has more than 100 ships across its award-winning river, ocean and expedition fleet, more than any other cruise line.
The naming of Viking’s newest river ships follows a string of recent accolades for the company. Viking was rated #1 for Oceans and #1 for Rivers by Condé Nast Traveler for the fifth year in a row in the 2025 Readers’ Choice Awards. Viking is also rated a “World’s Best” by Travel + Leisure—no other travel company has simultaneously received such honors by both publications. Viking was also recognized in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best Cruise Lines rankings as Best Luxury Line, Best Line for Couples and Best Line in the Mediterranean for the fourth consecutive year. Viking’s ocean ships continue to be rated and “Recommended” as part of the Forbes Travel Guide Star Awards, an annual independent evaluation for luxury travel brands. Additionally, Viking received seven awards across its ocean, river and expedition categories in the Cruise Critic 2024 Best in Cruise Awards.
I indicated at the top that Viking Cruise Line is now #1, and it is in both number of ships and honors. However, the company's name changed from Viking Cruises to only Viking. There are three divisions: River Cruises, Ocean Cruises and Expeditions.
We took a Viking Christmas river cruise last winter. It was only okay, but the problem was me, not Viking. I could not sleep. This began on our 39-day Norwegian cruise from Seattle to Southampton, and continued on the Viking. It was also not a real Christmas cruise because those Christmas markets did not begin to open until the trip was nearly ending.
- We begin Honolulu, spend a few days in Las Vegas, a few more in Denver, then fly to Memphis to catch an American Cruise Line ship to New Orleans.
- We then fly to New York for the Viking cruise.
- From Toronto, another 13-day journey, but on Canadian VIA and Rocky Mountaineer trains to Vancouver.
- Finally, fly home to Honolulu.
-
Comments
Post a Comment