Wednesday News: Takeaways, Winners/Losers from Tuesday Debate Night; “On health care, there are 3 types of Democrats running for president”; “The Democrats Finally Debated the Green New Deal”; “Can Someone Please Vote CNN Off the Stage?”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Wednesday, July 31.

• China, U.S. Conclude Shanghai Talks Without Signaling Progress (“Little progress evident from talks after three-month break”)
• Landmark US-Russia arms control treaty poised for final blow
• Trump administration will again waive nuclear sanctions on Iran
• The Trump administration’s new policy again shows its contempt for Central Americans
• Fed Looks Locked In for Quarter-Point Cut: Decision Day Guide (Seems like a bad move.)
• Fearing defections, Trump and McConnell crank up pressure on budget vote(“The majority leader warned Republicans that they can’t leave town until the budget deadlines and debt ceiling are addressed.”)
• This is the Republican Party’s most ignoble hour
• Warren and Delaney had a good night. CNN had a terrible one. (“At the top of Tuesday’s Democratic debate, CNN wasted 25 minutes by, among other things, playing the national anthem, taking a commercial, reciting the rules and introducing the candidates. It was time that should have been spent questioning candidates, and worse, pushed the debate into overtime beyond the 2½-hour mark. Likewise, spending valuable minutes asking candidates to explain why they are electable does nothing to enlighten voters about the views of these candidates. One has to wonder who made these bizarre choices and why.”)
• Evolution or revolution? Democrats’ ideological divisions broke into the open in their Detroit brawl
• Deep divisions on health care separate liberals and moderates
• CNN’s Debate Questions Were for Losers (“Highlights of an all-night attack ad.”)
• On health care, there are 3 types of Democrats running for president (“There are essentially three perspectives from Democrats: 1) the ones who want to blow up the whole system for universal single-payer, 2) the ones who worry about the disruption of a single-payer system and its ensuing political fallout, and 3) those who try to split the difference, speaking instead to values like universal coverage.”)
• Warren and Sanders face fierce challenges by moderates during tense debate
• Democratic Centrists Strike Back in the Second Debate
• Sanders and Warren Battle Accusations of ‘Fairy Tale’ Promises as Intraparty Rift Flares
• Democratic Debate 2019: Progressives take center stage in heated exchanges
• Sanders and Warren got crushed on health care, finally
• Elizabeth Warren’s Big Night (“The senator’s plea that voters set aside their fears and back the candidate they believe in helped her stand out on a crowded stage.”)
• 5 key takeaways from the Democratic debate: The major battle lines of night 1 (“Warren, Sanders defend the progressive agenda…Health care takes center stage once again…Candidates address Trump, recent racial controversies head on…O’Rourke tries to regain his footing, Buttigieg takes aim at Trump, GOP”)
• Democrats brawl over ‘Medicare for All’ during debate
• John Delaney Had One Good Point on Medicare for All (“Moving the whole country to public insurance could result in two tiers of health care. In fact, it did in Brazil.”)
• Pete Buttigieg quotes scripture to attack Republicans on minimum wage
• Can Someone Please Vote CNN Off the Stage? (“The Democratic debate on Tuesday night failed to showcase important issues because its moderators were too busy showcasing themselves.”)
• 7 takeaways from the Democratic debate’s first night (“Warren and Sanders swat away their critics…No daylight between Warren and Sanders…’Dark psychic force’…Seeking a middle ground on health care…Arguments for reparations…Trying to make moments…Ideological split on decriminalizing the border”)
• Second Democratic Debate Will Pit the Lefties Vs. the Single-Digit Wonders
• John Delaney, CNN’s smirking secret weapon
• America deserves a debate between Joe Biden and his main progressive critics(“Elizabeth Warren versus John Delaney is not the drama we’ve been craving.”)
• ‘Joe Biden needs to atone’: Ex-veep braces for debate pile-on (“The former vice president’s crime-fighting record was once a signature strength. In the current Democratic Party, it might be a liability.”)
• It’s Bernie and Warren Against the World (“In the first night of the second debate, the top progressives got a feel for what would come in a general election matchup with Trump. And Republicans got some clips to use.”)
• Pete Buttigieg had the most important answer at the Democratic debate (“So far, I’ve found Buttigieg’s campaign underwhelming on policy. But where he’s clearly leading the field is his emphasis on structural reform. Buttigieg isn’t the only candidate with good ideas on this score — Elizabeth Warren and Jay Inslee have been strong on this too — but he’s the only candidate who consistently prioritizes the issue.”)
• CNN Debate Moderators Used Conservative Framing To Grill Democrats (“Questions on everything from health care to immigration put liberal ideas on the defensive.”)
• The Democrats Finally Debated the Green New Deal (“There were 12 minutes of climate discussion Tuesday night.” Not nearly enough time; we need at least one debate 100% dedicated to the climate crisis.)
• Elizabeth Warren Summed Up the Democratic Debate in 9 Seconds
• Everyone Hates CNN’s Debate Format
• The Wildest Moments From the Second Democratic Debate, Night 1
• Was Joe Biden Really the Winner of Tuesday’s Debate?
• The Liz and Bernie show: Progressive duo shows us why they’re electable (“Warren and Sanders lay waste to moderate foes, and to the false dichotomy between ‘electable’ and progressive”)
• Attack of the Mini-Bidens (“How many also-rans does it take to impersonate the front-runner?”)
• 3 winners and 4 losers from the first night of the July Democratic debates (“Winner: Elizabeth Warren…Winner: John Delaney…Winner: the Republican Party…Loser: the policy needs of black voters…Loser: CNN…Loser: Beto O’Rourke…Loser: foreign policy”)
• ABC, CBS, NBC repeated Trump’s evidence-free claim about his 9/11 response on social media
• Democrats tried to win over working-class voters. But they ignored their biggest worry.
• Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, Marooned Together on Fantasy Island (“These two progressives are in a bold — but awfully risky — place.”)
• Winners and Losers of the Democratic Debate
• Democrats Can Win by Running Against Trump’s Racism (“It’s the right thing to do — both morally and electorally.”)
• Trump pick Scalia becomes 2020 target for labor unions
• How the internet spawned 21st-century fascism
• Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA10) Calls for Impeachment Inquiry
• Rep. Wexton, Del. Holmes Norton call for an impeachment inquiry against Trump (“‘I cannot sit idly by while the pillars of our democracy are chipped away,’ Wexton said.”)
• Trump signs Rep. Ben Cline’s LEGION Act into law
• Del. David Toscano: The Jamestown Commemoration And The Fight Of Our Lives
• Stop Making the Hateful Feel Comfortable: On Democratic Lawmakers’ Attendance at Trump’s Jamestown Commemoration Speech
• Video: Virginia Legislative Black Caucus’ “400 Years of African-American Evolution” Ceremony; Del. Samirah Protests Trump’s Jamestown Speech [UPDATED]
• Video, Photos, Tweets from Historic Jamestown, Virginia (Trump’s presence besmirches Virginia’s and America’s history)
• Trump interrupted by state delegate’s protest at Jamestown as black lawmakers boycott president’s appearance
• Democratic lawmakers remember arrival of first African slaves at event to counter Jamestown festivities
• Trump stays ‘on script’ at Jamestown event but Democratic delegate does not
• Ibraheem S. Samirah: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
• “Beyond Charlottesville”: Terry McAuliffe’s Alibi Tour
• Jamestown event marks 400-year history of democracy in Western Hemisphere
• A new tick plus a new disease equals a double threat to Virginia cattle
• Early education efforts will pay dividends
• Pipeline vital for current and future customers of Roanoke Gas, company says (Uh huh.)
• FERC: Southgate pipeline would have ‘some adverse impacts’ that could be reduced
• Virginia’s senators create legislation to transfer Fort Monroe coastal land to park service
• Virginia is in the fast lane. Maryland, not so much. (“In suburban Virginia, construction crews are busy expanding the express-lane network, which will not end congestion for most drivers but will keep it from getting unimaginably worse. In suburban Maryland, politicians are taking potshots at a plan that would position the region — and some of the nation’s most congested roads — for the future.”)
• Blacksburg’s Steppin’ Out denies booths to several, including pro-gun group and Montgomery Dems
• Ann Ridgeway Poised to Take #HD30 From Incompetent Nick Freitas!
• More than 100 guns taken from cars this year in Richmond, police say
• Temperatures a bit lower, storm chances higher today into the weekend