Thursday News: Climate Emergency as 2018 Was Fourth-Hottest Year on Record; “House Intel Democrats Just Restarted and Supercharged the Trump-Russia Probe”; “Blackface, Rape Allegations: What the Hell Comes Next in Virginia?”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, February 7.

• 2018 was the fourth-hottest year on record, NASA and NOAA report (Disastrous. We must start phasing out fossil fuels immediately – and as quickly as possible. Time for a “Green New Deal,” for starters; also need to put a hefty price on carbon pollution, the revenues from which can be returned to people…e.g., “revenue neutral.”)
• Theresa May Is Off to Brussels for Brexit Talks, but She’s Not Feeling the Love
• House Republicans reveal how they’ll attack the growing popularity of a Green New Deal (House Republicans are enemies of a livable planet.)
• Concern about climate change among conservative Republicans hits highest level ever (To read the survey, click here: “Most registered voters (74%) think global warming is happening, including 98% of liberal Democrats, 85% of moderate/conservative Democrats and 70% of liberal/moderate Republicans. Only 42% of conservative Republicans think global warming is happening, but that reflects an increase of five percentage points since October 2017.”)
• Trump Loves the New Nafta. Congress Doesn’t.
• The Battle Over Trump’s Tax Return Begins
• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Releases Green New Deal Outline
• ‘Too hot to handle’: Pelosi predicts GOP won’t trigger another shutdown (“The House speaker discusses Trump’s border wall, impeachment and the 2020 presidential campaign in an exclusive interview with POLITICO.”)
• New Trump rules make it easier for U.S. gun makers to sell overseas (“Manufacturers will no longer need State Department licenses to sell dozens of weapons overseas.” Appalling as always with the Trump administration.)
• House Intel Democrats Just Restarted and Supercharged the Trump-Russia Probe (“Armed with subpoena power, Schiff will look at whether anyone connected to Trump was at risk of being co-opted by a foreign power—and that’s going to have an expansive scope.”)
• Trump’s Speech Did Create Unity—Within the MAGA Media (“Conservative outlets were upset when the president caved on his demands for a wall. But they can’t afford to stay mad when he’s on national TV owning the libs.”)
• Trump’s Big Speech Failed at Every Level
• Trump blasts Schiff as ‘political hack’ over new investigation (Translation: Trump is very, very worried.)
• The House of Representatives Is Under New Management. They Aren’t Wasting Any Time. (“Democrats hold hearings on oversight, climate change, and gun violence.”)
• Consumer Protection Bureau Cripples New Rules for Payday Loans
• This Altered Photo Of Women Lawmakers In KKK Hoods Is Spreading And Twitter Is Refusing To Stop It (“Twitter’s own policy states that it doesn’t allow ‘symbols historically associated with hate groups.'”)
• Trump Ally Tries To Remove Parkland Fathers From Gun Violence Hearing (Wow.)
• Klobuchar Is Set to Campaign for President, but a Reputation for Mistreating Staff Has Reportedly Made It Hard to Find Someone to Lead It (Yep, I’ve heard that Klobuchar is not fun to work for…)
• The cascading blackface and sexual assault scandals roiling Virginia politics, explained (And here’s what’s easy to forget given how much has happened in the last nine days or so: “The firestorm started with a Virginia abortion bill, House Bill 2491, that would roll back some of the state’s requirements on abortion, including a 24-hour waiting period and a requirement that second-trimester abortions take place in a hospital.”)
• A Racial Reckoning for Democratic Leaders in Virginia
• Ralph Northam must resign
• The Entire Democratic Leadership in Virginia Is Imploding
• A Complicated Racial History Underpins Politics In Virginia
• Editorial: Facts in short supply during abortion debate (“The General Assembly should be a place where truth is valued in the legislative process, and it’s a shame in this case those facts got in the way of Republicans spinning a yarn for voters.”)
• Blackface, Rape Allegations: What the Hell Comes Next in Virginia? (“The Commonwealth is giving us a lesson in just how batshit politics and politicians can be.”)
• “This Is How You Talk About Race”: Democrats Can’t Fix the Heinous Mess They’ve Created in Virginia, but They Sure Can Learn from It (“Maybe Northam resigns, but only after Fairfax or Herring resigns, allowing Northam to appoint a replacement—hopefully a woman!—before he walks the plank himself. But maybe that’s a fever dream.”)
• Gaming Out Line of Succession Scenarios (“Gov. Northam resigns. Lt. Governor Fairfax becomes Governor. Senate President pro tempore Steve Newman (R-Lynchburg) discharges the duties of Lt. Governor until the Governor (Fairfax) appoints a new Lt. Governor. A special election is held in November 2019 to fill the remainder of the Lt. Gov term. Lt. Gov. Fairfax resigns. Senate President pro Tempore Steve Newman (R-Lynchburg) discharges the duties of Lt. Governor until the Governor (Northam) appoints a new Lt. Governor. A special election is held in November 2019 to fill the remainder of the Lt. Gov term.”)
• Rep. Bobby Scott learned of sexual assault allegation against Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax a year ago from the accuser: Aides
• Sources: Lt. Gov. Fairfax hangs up on Mayor Stoney in a call meant to ‘clear the air’
• Editorial: 20 questions for Virginia
• Mark Herring, 2nd in line for Virginia governor, admits dressing in blackface at college party
• Racial Gerrymander Defender Next in Line if Va. Dems Go (If Herring were to resign, the Republican-controlled General Assembly would choose a replacement. That, in short, would completely change the AG’s office…for the much, much more conservative and much, much worse.)
• The Surreality Continues in Virginia as Herring Issues Statement of Regrets re Blackface
• Attorney General Mark Herring’s full statement: ‘ I had a callous and inexcusable lack of awareness’
• Analysts: Northam, Fairfax, Herring scandals could have ripple effects in November elections
• Fairfax’s peril deepens as accuser comes forward with graphic account of alleged sexual assault (“’I have never done anything like what she suggests,’ said Fairfax”; “Asked if he feels Fairfax should resign, Stoney said: ‘I think our leaders should do what’s in the best interest of the commonwealth of Virginia. I’ll leave it at that.'”)
• Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax Issues Statement, NBC Breaking News Re: Fairfax Using “Profane Language” in “Private Meeting Monday Night”
• Justin Fairfax Accuser Vanessa Tyson Issues Statement: “I am telling the truth. I have no political motive. I am a proud Democrat”
• Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax’s staff denies NBC report he used profanity to describe his accuser
• Woman who accused Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of sexual assault tells her side of the story
• Virginia’s three leaders engulfed in turmoil, with Herring disclosure from college days
• Democrats duck for cover as Virginia scandals pile up
• Audio: “WTF Virginia?” on the “Unpresidented” Podcast with John Aravosis, Cliff Schecter and Me
• On a political roll, Virginia Democrats now awash in scandal
• Senator Chafin stays on panel as his sister interviews for Virginia Supreme Court judgeship (“Puckett resigned largely because of his daughter’s judgeship. Senate Republicans had balked at backing Puckett’s daughter, Martha Ketron, for a full six-year appointment to a juvenile court judgeship in Southwest Virginia, saying they opposed giving judicial appointments to family members of sitting legislators. Puckett’s resignation produced a federal corruption investigation in which no criminal charges were filed.”)
• The definitive timeline: The week of scandals that rocked Virginia. Here’s how we got here.
• Northam scandal spawns ‘Plaid Pants’ theory; origin of blackface photo still unclear
• Finance secretary: Northam administration ‘working toward a plan for normalcy of government’
• Virginia General Assembly bans holding cellphones while driving
• No, a Virginia principal didn’t expel students for wearing a crucifix (“Pants on Fire” for this whopper that an apparently fictional “Mamasai Mamakusa, a school principal in Richmond, VA” supposedly “expelled students for wearing crucifixes.” This says a great deal about the people consuming this bigoted “meme”…)
• Massie: Opponents distort the ERA
• Opinion/Editorial: Crucial redistricting reform is needed now
• Editorial: Rebranding the best-kept secret in Virginia
• Va. Capitol Police sergeant placed on leave after antifa group posts allegation about him (“Virginia Capitol Police announced Wednesday that it had placed a sergeant on leave after local activists published allegations that he ‘has an affinity’ for symbols associated with white supremacists. In a news release, the Virginia Division of Capitol Police said Sgt. Robert A. Stamm is on paid administrative leave pending a review of possible violation of department policy.”)
• Waynesboro’s Jennifer Lewis to run for 20th House District seat (Very red district, but go Jennifer!)
• Albemarle supervisors OK rural zoning changes
• Mild and damp today, briefly warmer Friday, then back to the winter chill