Friday News: U.S. Strikes Syria Following Chemical Weapons Use; “The Bad, the Worse and the Ugly”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, April 7.

• U.S. strikes Syrian military airfield (“In first direct assault on Assad’s government, U.S. military launches 59 cruise missiles” The question is, what’s the long-term plan? Also, Trump should start letting in Syrian refugees “bigly,” ASAP!)
• The United States has officially attacked Syria (“It’s the first intentional US bombing of Bashar al-Assad’s forces.”)
• Russia accuses U.S. of using ‘far-fetched pretext’ for airstrikes, pulls out of air-safety pact in Syria (“The Russian Foreign Ministry called for an immediate meeting of the United Nations Security Council after President Vladi­mir Putin declared the U.S. attack a violation of international law. Russia also said it was pulling out of an agreement meant to minimize the risk of in-flight incidents between U.S. and Russian aircraft operating over Syria.”)
• What comes next after U.S. missile strikes in Syria? (“The U.S. military started preparing options for a strike against the Assad regime years ago. But the risks of widening the conflict are much greater today.”)
• Trump enforces the ‘red line’ on chemical weapons (“After saying Syria was his responsibility, the president took action. But he will still have to make tough military choices.”)
• Hillary Clinton Says Russia Used Hacking ‘to Great Effect’ in Her Defeat
• Sen. Mark Warner On Russia Probe: ‘This Is An Awful Lot Of Coincidences’
• Sen. Mark Warner: No Evidence To Support Trump’s Political Snooping Claims
• French foreign minister: The world can’t fight climate change without the U.S. (“It is time to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and seize new economic opportunities in the process.”)
• A president who launches missiles into Syria is a president these GOP Trump skeptics can get behind
• In Battle for Trump’s Heart and Mind, It’s Bannon vs. Kushner (I’m not a big Kushner fan, but I’ll take him any day over white nationalist wacko Bannon.)
• For Trump, Strike Carries Risks, and Opportunities
• Paul Ryan 2013: Syrian strikes would look weak. Paul Ryan 2017: Assad must be held accountable. (That’s Lyin’ Ryan for ya. Also, for Ryan and his ilk, it’s cool when a white, Republican president does it. It is NOT cool when a black, Democratic president wants to do it.)
• Russia and Iran Condemn U.S. Strikes in Syria (“Moscow said that Syria’s leader had not used chemical weapons and that the U.S. operation would hurt the Kremlin’s relations with Washington.”)
• The Grim Logic Behind Syria’s Chemical Weapons Attack (“Yet, rather than an inexplicable act, analysts say, it is part of a carefully calculated strategy of escalating attacks against civilians.”)
• The Bad, the Worse and the Ugly (“So Trumpist governance in practice so far is turning out to be just Republican governance with (much) worse management. Which brings me back to the original question: Does the appalling character of the man on top matter? I think it does…what Trumpism has brought is a new sense of empowerment to the ugliest aspects of American politics…the big question about Trumpism — bigger, arguably, than the legislative agenda — is whether unapologetic ugliness is a winning political strategy.”)
• The Sexual Harassment Crisis Is Bigger Than Just Bill O’Reilly (“Although pulling advertisements from O’Reilly’s program is a good first step, the problem of sexual harassment at Fox News is not singular to O’Reilly. If advertisers are serious about confronting sexual harassment, they must stop financially supporting a company that has shown little desire to resolve its toxic culture of harassment.”)
• Eyewitness says Syrian military anticipated U.S. raid
• Frustration mounts, careers jeopardized over Obamacare failure (“House Republicans are no closer to passing legislation to repeal the Democratic health care law.”)
• Investors rein in their Trump-fueled optimism (“Markets are starting to question whether Trump can secure a sweeping tax overhaul or other boosts to the economy.”)
• Let the Filibuster Burn! (“Dry your tears, Democrats. In fact, cross your fingers that the Senate nukes the legislative filibuster, too.” “The ugly truth of the legislative filibuster is that, far more than being a tool for deliberation, its obstructive power has been put to the service of injustice.”)
• Stop Pretending Neil Gorsuch Will Be Your Friend (“This charade ended in November.”)
• Some of Trump’s biggest supporters are furious about his strikes in Syria (“The alt-right, anti-interventionist Trump supporters are not happy with the president.”)
• “The Most Dangerous Justice Department in Decades” (“Trump’s threat to civil rights is worse than you think.”)
• Psychologist Philip Zimbardo of the Stanford Prison Experiment: Donald Trump is an “unconstrained, unbridled present hedonist”
• REVEALED: Former SNL cast member says ‘moron’ Trump ‘struggled to read’ script during rehearsal
• Sanders Champions Perriello, Progressive Values at Fairfax Rally
• Gillespie seeks ban on personal use of campaign funds and slower ‘revolving door’ (“Enron Ed” has Z-E-R-O credibility on anything to do with ethics. Total joke.)
• Bernie Sanders lends star power to Perriello’s bid for Virginia governor (“Former presidential hopeful casts bid as a first step in moral battle against President Trump.”)
• Gov. McAuliffe keeps a perfect veto record (“During his four years in office, McAuliffe has vetoed a total of 111 bills – more than any of his predecessors. None of them have been overturned, Susan Swecker, chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Virginia, noted.”)
• Governor McAuliffe signs two victims’ rights bills
• Editorial: Why does Trump want to cut transportation in rural areas?
• Virginia pipelines will be subject to Department of Environment Quality water-quality review
• Editorial: Paying for life in faster lane (“Who’s in favor of doing away with traffic jams on the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel? Raise your hands! Now, who wants to pay for it? Hmmm, fewer hands then, weren’t there?”)
• Editorial: All-day kindergarten is worth the price
• Editorial: UVa’s affirmative action for rich people
• Fairfax Connector workers threaten to strike as early as Monday
• Roof damage reported in DC; possible tornado in Virginia
• Cool and windy today, cold tonight, then turning warmer this weekend