by Lowell
Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, March 1.
- Postpone Brexit? Maybe Get a Do-Over? The Negotiations Enter a High-Stakes Game-Theory Stage
- North Korea contradicts Trump on the reason a summit deal fell apart (You know how bad it is when we’re not sure who has LESS credibility – North Korea or the U.S. “president”)
- Trump got played by Kim Jong Un — again (“Today the verdict is in. Trump’s approach has failed, and Pyongyang is happily reaping the rewards…Kim can continue improving his country’s nuclear and missile capabilities, benefit from an ever-eroding sanctions regime and enjoy his elevated status as a newly respected member of the international community.”)
- The Hanoi summit failure exposes Trump’s weak diplomacy
- Netanyahu Indictment Closer as Israeli Prosecutor Seeks Charges
- Michael Cohen’s revelations advance Trump’s inevitable reckoning
- Michael Cohen’s testimony reminds us that Trump’s investigations are far from over
- After Cohen, Republicans Are Now Trump’s Fixers (“G.O.P. lawmakers who started by making excuses for the president’s most repulsive personal traits have now moved on to bedrock principles. They are headed for a reckoning.”)
- Trump Ordered Officials to Give Jared Kushner a Security Clearance (It’s bonkers that Kushner has a high-level security clearance. Of course, someone like Donald Trump would *NEVER* get a security clearance if he weren’t “president”)
- Trump demanded top-secret security clearance for Jared Kushner last year despite concerns of John Kelly and intelligence officials
- Trump learns the limits of personal power, at home and beyond (“Analysis: It may have been one of the worst weeks of Trump’s presidency, concentrated in just a few harrowing days.”)
- For Kushner, Nepotism Is Official White House Policy
- Donald Trump Went to Vietnam, and Michael Cohen Made It Hell (“On a humiliating twenty-four hours for the President.”)
- As questions loom about Jared Kushner’s security clearance, House committee says White House not cooperating in probe
- Trump’s a racist conman – and that’s the brand America bought (Not sure I’d say “America bought” it, as Hillary Clinton won millions more votes thatn Trump did. Still, wayyyyy too many Americans bought Trump’s corruption, bigotry, etc, etc., and that’s horrifying.)
- GOP bristles over plan to shift military funding to border wall (Who cares if they “bristle” – do something, or get the f*** out of the way and let someone else do the job.)
- GOP senators fuming over Trump comments on Warmbier (Who cares if they’re “fuming”…same comment as previous item.)
- Republicans’ Race to the Bottom (“The absurdity of denying Trump’s bigotry.”)
- Trump CFO Weisselberg emerges as key person of interest for Dems
- Why Allen Weisselberg, Trump’s Money Man, Could Face Scrutiny Next
- Trump Aide, Thomas Protégé Confirmed for Top Circuit Court (The damage to the courts could end up being the worst of all the massive damage Trump, McConnell, etc. will end up doing to this country.)
- Former coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler is new EPA administrator (This is wayyyy beyond parody.)
- After Cohen’s testimony, how much longer can Ivanka Trump play dumb? (“She’s not innocent, naive or ditzy: Cohen put Ivanka Trump right in the middle of the Moscow negotiations” Like father, like daughter. And sons of course.)
- The worst-ever Black History Month has come to a close. I hope. (That was a rough, rough month, no doubt.)
- House Democrats explode in recriminations as liberals lash out at moderates (That’s a horrible headline by the WaPo. It’s not an issue of “moderates” – whatever that means – and “liberals,” it’s an issue of a few House Dems worried about reelection in their “purple” districts.)
- Republicans’ Extreme Abortion Rhetoric Isn’t Just Wrong, It’s Dangerous
- For the 2020 elections, Republicans are trying to insert anti-abortion talking points into mainstream outlets (“A recent vote on the so-called Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act seems designed to play into Republicans’ 2020 strategy” Very much so.)
- Ex-federal prosecutor: Cohen’s talks with New York prosecutors ‘would send chills down my spine’ (“Former federal prosecutor Gene Rossi said Thursday that Michael Cohen’s comments claiming that the Southern District of New York is investigating a previously undisclosed crime related to President Trump ‘would send chills down’ his spine.”)
- Trump’s presidency turns into the art of the no deal
- The Electoral College Is the Greatest Threat to Our Democracy (“It has not stood the test of time.” Also, the idea that every state, no matter how tiny – or massive – in population, gets the same number of U.S. Senators. That’s completely nonsensical and a massive advantage to white, rural, conservative, “red” America.)
- At Least Trump Didn’t Hand Over a Chunk of Alaska to Show His Awesome Dealmaking Prowess (“The nuclear summit with North Korea has collapsed without a deal.”)
- Republicans who held 33 hearings on Benghazi complain that Cohen’s testimony was a waste of time (“Republicans spent much of Wednesday’s Oversight Committee hearing wishing they were talking about something more useful — like Her Emails?”)
- Trump administration tells Congress that being transgender is like having a disease (Actually, the “disease” is the Trump administration. A highly virulent one at that.)
- Meet The White House’s New Chief Climate Change Skeptic (Ugh, stop using the word “skeptic!” These people are D-E-N-I-E-R-S.)
- Jay Inslee, Washington Governor and Climate Advocate, Enters 2020 Race
- Gov. Jay Inslee on why climate change is central to his campaign to be president (“Washington’s governor dishes on the Green New Deal, the filibuster, and more.”)
- Republicans Say the Quiet Parts Out Loud, Volume Infinity (“Former Maine Governor Paul LePage suggests scrapping the Electoral College will mean white people don’t have a ‘say.'”)
- Warner: ‘Modern capitalism is under assault’ (“If we look at whatever economic theories are being offered by the increasingly not mainstream but extreme, extreme version of both political parties, it scares the hell out of me…Modern American capitalism, with its short-term focus and its frankly non-focus on human capital, is not working for enough folks” “Warner said ‘at least half’ of his party’s presidential candidates ‘have a different economic theory of the case’ from him, with many increasingly believing ‘that top-down redistribution is the only answer.'”)
- Warner urges help for states that expanded Medicaid late — like Va.
- The shutdown is over. But not everyone has gotten back pay.
- Sen. Kaine weighs in on Trump’s talks with Kim Jong-Un
- Rep. Wexton gave campaign donation linked to Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to charity
- Editorial: How can Northam move forward? Here are 3 ways (#1: “Undoubtedly, the most obvious one would be to intervene somehow to prevent Dominion Energy from putting a natural gas compressor station in Union Hill, an African-American community in Buckingham County that sits along the intended path of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline”)
- Video: Sen. Kaine Calls for “Free and Fair Elections,” “Bread and Justice” for Venezuela; Strongly Opposes Military Intervention or Threats
- Good intentions, bad timing put first lady in tight spot on mansion tour
- Virginia’s First Lady Apologizes for Handing Cotton to Black Students on Tour
- Virginia State Senate Chap Petersen Says WaPo Blew the Pam Northam “Cotton Samples” Story, Engaged in “Character Assassination” (“What they reported re the First Lady singling out certain youths simply did not happen.”)
- Heckuva way to end Black History Month, Pam Northam
- MVP asks state board to discontinue process aimed at stopping pipeline construction (Of course they do.)
- Statement on the State Water Control Board’s Legal Authority to Revoke the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s Section 401 Certification
- Amid federal criminal probe and a state lawsuit, why hasn’t the Virginia DEQ stopped work on Mountain Valley Pipeline?
- State Water Control Board to hold Mountain Valley Pipeline meeting (“The State Water Control Board will hold an important meeting on the Mountain Valley Pipeline Friday in Richmond. Board members are considering whether to revoke a key permit, following reports of excessive runoff and erosion.”)
- Former Del. Rich Anderson (Right-Wing Republican) Announces He’s Baaaack…to Challenge Del. Hala Ayala (D-HD51)
- Former delegate Rich Anderson announces bid for Virginia’s 51st District (“Anderson, a Republican, hopes to return to the post he lost in 2017”)
- Attorney announces candidacy for Roanoke County prosecutor (“Dirk Padgett, 57, vowed to bring a new energy to that office and to ramp up the pursuit of drug dealers, child predators and others who prey on the community.”)
- About a dozen trees cut, dumped into Potomac River at Trump golf club in Virginia (Just like Dan Snyder.)
- Amazon seeks ‘good neighbor’ image in Arlington, but opponents aren’t impressed (The WaPo really should try to get a handle on what percentage of people support Amazon coming to Arlington and what percent oppose it.)
- Virginia EMT who spewed racist remarks cleared by Department of Health (Bizarre.)
- Henrico School Board approves budget plan without raises for all teachers
- Bryce Harper May Already Be Past His Prime (Interesting theory…I guess we’ll find out.)
- Bryce Harper agrees to deal with Philadelphia Phillies (“Outfielder Bryce Harper agreed to a record-setting 13-year, $330 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, completing a protracted, four-month journey through free agency and officially ending his seven-year tenure with the Washington Nationals, the franchise that drafted and developed him, brought him to the majors as a teenager in 2012 and watched him blossom into one of baseball’s biggest superstars.”)
- D.C.-area forecast: Early snow and wintry mix gives way to drizzle; more storminess this weekend
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