Friday News: “You Can’t Break Up With Me, Trump Tells Kim Jong-un, I Broke Up With You!”; “Trump threatens to deport NFL players who defy him”; Perriello Says “Turn the Tables on Health Care”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, May 25.

• Trump’s decision to cancel summit renews fears of destabilization
• Trump wanted to cancel North Korea summit before Kim Jong Un could (“The president was caught between Pompeo and Bolton, say multiple officials.”)
• Trump Cancels Summit, North Korean Leaders Leave Door Open For Talks
• Trump’s risky breakup letter to Kim Jong Un (“South Korea’s reaction is another wild card for Trump. The pre-summit diplomacy was managed by President Moon Jae-in and his intelligence advisers. And just two days before Trump’s abrupt withdrawal, Moon had been in Washington arguing for diplomacy.”)
• Collapse of Trump-Kim summit threatens to deepen U.S.-China rift
• North Korea Summit Ended Like It Started: With a Quick, Chaotic Call by Trump
• The real reason Trump’s North Korea summit failed (“Trump’s goal — getting rid of North Korea’s nukes — was always impossible. Time to try something new.”)
• Trump’s Head-Snapping Reversals Shake Allies at Home and Abroad
• You Can’t Break Up With Me, Trump Tells Kim Jong-un, I Broke Up With You! (“President Mean Girl gives the Supreme Leader a high school burn.”)
• President Trump Is a Better Dealbreaker Than Dealmaker (“His blown-up North Korea summit proves it.”)
• The North Korea Summit Was a Trumpian Fantasy from the Get-Go
• Kristof: Trump’s Relationship With North Korea Just Got More Dangerous
• How Trump Got Outplayed on North Korea
• Trump’s Reckoning Arrives (“The president’s unpredictability once worked to his advantage—but now, it is producing a mounting list of foreign-policy failures.”)
• The email Roger Stone didn’t want anyone to see (“Please ask Assange for any State or HRC e-mail from August 10 to August 30.”)
• Roger Stone Sought Information on Clinton From Assange, Emails Show
• McConnell Says He Supports Mueller Investigation
• McConnell says he backs Mueller probe after classified briefing
• GOP nearing end game on immigration votes (“Two more Republicans and six Democrats signed their name Thursday to a discharge petition, leaving supporters just five signatures short of being able to bypass Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and force a series of votes to protect hundreds of thousands of young, undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S.”)
• House Dems request information from EPA on Pruitt’s legal fund
• Donald Trump threatens to deport NFL players who defy him — and that’s just the beginning (“Trump’s racist attacks have a deeper meaning: The ultimate goal is not NFL players but crushing all dissent”)
• NFL players reportedly already discussing new forms of protest after national anthem rule
• Seattle Seahawks player: Trump is ‘an idiot’ for saying protesting NFL players ‘shouldn’t be in the country’ (Yep. Also an authoritarian thug. And a racist.)
• The NFL Tries to Push Protest Out of Sight (We should all just push the NFL out of sight.)
• Trump’s Handling Of North Korea Has Been One Of The Few Things Americans Liked About His Presidency (“Scrapping the summit could have some political downsides.”)
• Trump’s next economic threat: Surging gas prices (“A huge jump in driving costs in recent months is likely to fuel a wave of economic anger across the nation — just in time for the midterm elections.”)
• It’s Time for Democrats to Turn the Tables on Health Care (“I lost my seat in Congress after voting for the Affordable Care Act. Democrats should run hard on protecting it this fall.” I would run hard on nailing Republicans for their ACA sabotage and accompanying premium hikes.)
• Perez infuriates liberals with Cuomo endorsement (“The DNC chairman pits himself against Deputy Chairman Keith Ellison by intervening in the Democratic primary for New York governor.”)
• Morgan Freeman has been accused of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct by 8 women
• Concerned by Trump, Some Republicans Quietly Align With Democrats
• Assange’s refuge in Ecuadorian embassy ‘in jeopardy’
• California Republican said it’s OK to not sell homes to gays — and it backfired immediately (“U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher‘s tough re-election bid may have just gotten tougher.”)
• President* Trump Is Ready to Pull the Whole Temple Down on His Head (“The FBI, the Justice Department, the rule of law—it’ll all be among the wreckage.”)
• Harvey Weinstein set to turn himself in on sex crime charges in New York
• Rachel Dolezal, who posed as a black woman, charged with welfare fraud (What a bizarre human being.)
• Trump 2020 campaign manager fuels bogus story about Facebook censoring conservatives (“Here’s how and why Brad Parscale’s accusations don’t add up.”)
• Tim Kaine: It’s a ‘Big Problem’ If Trump Blindsided South Korea by Scrapping Summit
• Fellow Democrats target Wexton over corporate money in House primary
• Rosenstein deputy named US attorney in Virginia
• Former Navy commander targets former SEAL for Virginia’s 2nd District
• Leo Woodberry: New push for environmental justice in South
• Rep. Tom Garrett affirms he will continue reelection bid in Virginia
• White supremacists behind violent Charlottesville rally face lawsuit with major implications
• Atlantic Coast Pipeline to Sideline 100 Miles of Construction in Virginia and West Virginia (“Builders of the controversial Atlantic Coast pipeline told federal authorities they will delay construction along 21 miles in West Virginia and 79 miles in Virginia until the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) issues a revised ‘incidental take statement,’ which limits the number of threatened or endangered species that might be accidentally killed or harmed during development activities.”)
• With quiet formality, Metro continues another year of late-night service cuts
• Dedicated funding law sidelines half of the Metro board (“Nonvoting Metro board members were barred from participation in Thursday’s meeting, the first time alternates have been sidelined as part of restrictions tied to Virginia’s commitment to provide its share of dedicated funding for the agency.”)
• Northam names Virginia’s new public schools chief (“James Lane, who leads Chesterfield County’s schools, was appointed state superintendent of public instruction Thursday by Gov. Ralph Northam (D).”)
• ‘The best county in the country:’ Randall delivers State of the County address
• Virginia Beach CEO admits his “small business” was a secret puppet of a larger firm (“He faces up to five years in prison when sentenced Aug 29. in U.S. District Court in Norfolk. Naim also will be required to pay $479,641 in restitution…Former state Del. Ron Villanueva previously served as vice president and president of SEK, and in an interview last year he said he joined the firm the same year Naim admitted hiring the consultant: 2005…Villanueva, a Republican, has multiple ties to ADS and Hillier. Over the span of nine years, ADS was his second-biggest corporate campaign donor and Hillier was his top private contributor.”)
• Williams: Richmond is renaming a school honoring a Confederate general. In considering others, it must avoid the slippery slope.
• Editorial: Seattle creates an opportunity for Roanoke
• Sunny Friday ahead of a muggier holiday weekend with scattered showers and storms possible