Wednesday News: Hurricane Maria Was Far More Deadly Than We Knew; Maybe “Ambien Tweeting” Helps Explain Trump Too?; Virginia Senate FINALLY Ready to Expand Medicaid?

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Wednesday, May 30.

• Politicians push for July election as Italy seeks exit from crisis
• Italy’s Populist Allies Make Eleventh-Hour Push for Power
• Italy’s Political Crisis Is Rattling Europe. Here’s What You Need to Know.
• China says will protect interests from ‘reckless’ U.S. trade threats
• Both sides preparing as if US-North Korea summit is a go
• The North Korea Summit Might Actually Work (“Despite John Bolton. And despite Donald Trump.”)
• CIA Concludes North Korea Won’t Give Up Its Nuclear Weapons
• Trump blows up G7 agenda (“US president’s ‘America First’ stance, not for first time, disrupts international diplomatic norms.” As long as Trump is “president,” the US is basically a bizarre outlier in the world.)
• Study finds that Hurricane Maria killed thousands more than the government claims. Media need to do better for Puerto Rico. (“Harvard study finds actual death toll is at least 72 times higher than the official count”)
• The True Scope of the Disaster in Puerto Rico (“A new survey of the island’s residents finds a much higher death toll from Hurricane Maria than previously reported—putting it on par with one of the worst natural disasters in recent American history.”)
• The Case of the Missing Immigrant Children (“The confusion about which children were among that fifteen hundred has obscured a basic truth: it is a bad thing when children are legally lost in America, with no one clearly accountable.”)
• FBI was right to deploy informant, senior GOP lawmaker says
• Elect the Trump Resistance (“Vote for a Democrat — any Democrat!”)
• Trump bragged about classified Syria skirmish at fundraiser (And his supporters don’t care. Can you imagine if Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton had done this???)
• Mike Pompeo to Huddle With Anti-Semite’s Envoy (“State Department officials are ‘fucking disgusted’ by Pompeo’s decision to meet with the foreign minister from Hungary’s Putin-friendly, Jew-baiting, Islamophobic regime.”)
• GOP Rep. Trey Gowdy Contradicts Trump On ‘Informant’ Claim (“I am even more convinced that the FBI did exactly what my fellow citizens would want them to do when they got the information they got”)
• The White House Official Trump Says Doesn’t Exist (“Meet Matthew Pottinger, the former journalist who became the president’s top Asia hand.”)
• Trump Aides Brutally Turn on Each Other in War on Leaks
• Trump goads crowd at his rally into gleefully comparing some immigrants to animals (This is our “president” – a racist, xenophobe, demagogue, and all-around scumbag.)
• Trump’s not a liar. He’s a madman. (“He believes the things he says. So what do we call them?” Like if you actually BELIEVE insane/false shit like climate science is a “hoax” or that “millions of illegals voted,” what does that make you?)
• The ‘Roseanne’ saga mirrors the Trump story. Let’s hope they end the same. (Both are horrible people.)
• ABC canceled Roseanne’s show over a racist tweet. Her feed’s been full of racism and conspiracy theories for a decade. (“A semi-complete history of Roseanne Barr’s racist and conspiratorial tweets.”)
• Roseanne Gets A Brutal Wakeup Call As Tweeters Mock Her Ambien Defense (“Does Ambien unlock latent racism?” One of Ambien’s side effects, apparently> Not!)
• Roseanne cancelled: ABC scraps sitcom after star’s ‘abhorrent’ tweets (“Network pulls Barr’s revived show and condemns racist tweets towards ex-Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett” Repulsive.)
• ‘Roseanne’ Is Gone, but the Culture That Gave Her a Show Isn’t
• Far-right immediately jumps to defend Roseanne after her show was canceled for racist tweet (“Some turn a blind eye, while others pledge to support whoever gives her another show.”)
• The Memo: ‘Roseanne’ storm revives debate over Trump (Americans basically elected Roseanne Barr to the White House. Shuddderrrr.)
• Lesson from the Roseanne debacle: Stop hiring hateful nutjobs
• CNN contributor explains how racism like Roseanne’s helped propel Trump: She ‘was alt-right before we knew what alt-right was’ (Bingo.)
• Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens resigns amid scandal and felony charge (“Greitens faced a felony charge and possible impeachment.”)
• Democratic Candidate Who Criticized Israel Faces Charges of Anti-Semitism (Good article overall, although the headline should have had the word “FALSE” in it – as in “False Charges By a Wildly Irresponsible/Pathetic Republican Party”)
• This former CIA officer thinks she can beat Rep. Dave Brat
• Shak Hill’s Staff Pledges Money to Democrats if Comstock Wins
• Editorial: Garrett’s legacy (and what comes next) (“Democratic nominee Leslie Cockburn might have been better off against a wounded Garrett than whomever Republicans decide to field in his place. It all depends on who controls the 5th District Republican Committee. If the 6th District Republican Committee had its way, Cynthia Dunbar might have been the party’s nominee, but the larger electorate of a party convention thought better of that…”)
• Rep. Garrett’s departure scrambles Virginia congressional race (“Democrats see the open seat as an advantage in a conservative district.” I’d argue that we were better off with a weakened Garrett, but it also depends who Republicans choose as their nominee.)
• Va. Senate appears primed to expand Medicaid in Wednesday vote (“Sen. Thomas K. Norment Jr., regarded as a master tactician, was outmaneuvered by a fellow Republican in an attempt to thwart the expansion.” He was actually outmaneuvered by two Democrats – Dick Saslaw and George Barker – plus two Republicans – Frank Wagner and Emmett Hanger. Not sure why the ComPost article headline doesn’t mention that.)
• Decisive Medicaid battle looms Wednesday in Virginia Senate
• State Sens. Bill Stanley, Bryce Reeves, among those interested in open congressional seat
• Cathcart: Why business leaders should ask Northam to shut down pipelines
• Virginian-Pilot sold to Tronc, parent company of the Daily Press (Virginia’s corporate media continues its sad decline…)
• After more than a century, Norfolk family sells The Virginian-Pilot for $34 million
• Editorial: New owner, new era for The Pilot
• Stoney grants Monument Avenue Commission extension on final report, originally due by end of May
• Gov. Northam holds signing ceremony for new child safety seat law
• Remaining warm and muggy, with shower chances on the rise again