Labor Day 2017: North Korea Crisis; #SaveDACA; “Workers need better pay and benefits”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Labor Day 2017.

• North Korea defies predictions — again — with early reach of weapons milestone
• South Koreans wonder why Trump is attacking an ally after North Korea’s nuclear test (Among other things, he’s an incompetent imbecile.)
• Trump is expected to phase out DACA program, although decision is not finalized (It’s long past time for Congress to finally pass comprehensive immigration reform.)
• Republicans Could Protect Dreamers If They Wanted To. But Will They?
• North Korea’s Test of Nuclear Bomb Amplifies a Global Crisis (“The test was seen as a major embarrassment for President Xi Jinping of China, and President Trump’s response might have opened a new rift with South Korea. After the blast, the Trump administration spoke twice with Japan’s leader; it also warned of a ‘massive military response’ if the United States or its allies were threatened.”)
• The Latest: China urges North Korea not to launch missile
• Blow: In Defense of the Truth (“Trump is quite literally overwhelming our human capacities with his mendacity. It is not only hard to imagine that any person could lie this much — let alone the leader of the free world — it is also impossible for us to keep pace…I vacillate between rage and sorrow that our country has come to such a pass. And yet, what is done is done. America made a colossal mistake, and it cannot be easily undone.”)
• Krugman: Why Can’t We Get Cities Right? (“Harvey was an epic disaster. And it was a disaster brought on, in large part, by bad policy. As many have pointed out, what made Houston so vulnerable to flooding was rampant, unregulated development. Put it this way: Greater Houston still has less than a third as many people as greater New York, but it covers roughly the same area, and probably has a smaller percentage of land that hasn’t been paved or built on…One thing is clear: How we manage urban land is a really important issue, with huge impacts on American lives.”)
• The Offensive Ambitions of North Korea’s Nuclear Program (“Despite its swift progress, the Trump administration can still contain its terrifying ascent.”)
• The Meaning of North Korea’s Nuclear Test (“With each new one, it learns from its mistakes.”)
• Sanders single-payer bill poses dilemma for 2020 Dem hopefuls
• Exclusive: Read the Inauguration Day letter Obama left for Trump
• Republican Party Autopsy Author Goes Off On GOP As Trump’s DACA Decision Nears (“’Those in Republican leadership who have enabled his behavior by standing silent or making excuses for him deserve the reckoning that will eventually come for the GOP,’ Sally Bradshaw, a longtime adviser to Jeb Bush, told BuzzFeed News.”)
• American workers will catch on to Trump’s con (“He campaigned as a populist, but his policies are traditional trickle-down economics, only meaner.” I’m not as optimistic that they’ll catch on to the con, but I hope EJ Dionne is right and I’m wrong.)
• Lawrence Summers: It’s time to balance the power between workers and employers (“Why have wages remained so flat? In part, it’s because unions have diminished.”)
• Juan Williams: Trump’s empty economic boasts
• Sanders: Trump ending DACA would be ‘one of the ugliest and cruelest decisions ever made by a president’
• Trump’s EPA attacks AP reporter in personal terms (Craaazy.)
• Trump: Maybe we’ll end all trade with countries that trade with North Korea. Everyone: Huh? (“That would mean ending all US trade with China and causing major economic turmoil.”)
• Meet the Anti-Union Crusader in Charge of Rolling Back Regulations at Trump’s Labor Department
• Walter Becker, Co-Founder of Steely Dan, Dies at 67 (RIP)
• Officials on East Coast cast wary eye on Hurricane Irma
• Virginia contest a referendum and bellwether in age of Trump (Again, Trump IS a “narcissistic maniac” – does anyone seriously debate that? – and a “dangerous” man – ditto.)
• David Broder: Workers need better pay and benefits
• Changing trail design could jeopardize entire I-66 widening project (Sorry, but you guys need to do it right or don’t do it at all. And this is NOT right.)
• In Virginia, some question gang taskforce’s partnership with immigration officials
• Editorial: And now, election season
• For Virginia, the healing properties of football help bring community together
• Supervisors allot extra time for public to speak on rally (“This week’s Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting will provide extra time for the public to speak about the deadly Unite the Right rally, if they wish.”)
• Former principal sues Martinsville, claiming reverse discrimination
• Summer warmth to start this week, then turning decidedly fall-like