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by Lowell
Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, October 28.
- France Capitulates on Brexit Delay as Boris Johnson Heads for Key Election Vote
- EU Leaders Grant UK Brexit Extension Until Jan. 31 (“The decision comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson prepares for a general election vote in the House Commons.”)
- Fernandez Wins in Argentina as Voters Rebuff Macri’s Austerity (“While voters rejected the austerity of Macri’s government, the outcome was tighter than expected.”)
- Pelosi says Trump notified Russians of Baghdadi raid before telling congressional leaders
- Trump’s Syria Troop Withdrawal Complicated Plans for al-Baghdadi Raid
- Baghdadi is Dead, But ISIS Remains Emboldened Since Trump’s Drawdown (“Turkey’s offensive against the Kurds has allowed ISIS fighters to escape and regroup.”)
- Trump says Islamic State leader Baghdadi blew himself up as U.S. troops closed in
- Trump on Baghdadi raid: “Bin Laden was big but this was bigger” (Imbecile and egomaniac as usual.)
- Baghdadi Is Dead. The War on Terror Will Create Another.
- Situation Room: 2 photos capture vastly different presidents
- Baghdadi’s death underscores what we’ve lost by abandoning Syria’s Kurds
- Trump Turns Baghdadi’s Killing Into a Reality Show
- Trump’s Press Conference Announcing the Death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Is Peak Trump (“At President Trump’s press conference announcing the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, he brought everything he had: dehumanizing enemies, claims of upstaging Obama, and celebrating violence like it only existed on TV .”)
- Trump’s Baghdadi press conference shows how he ruins even his best moments (“Trump could’ve just given his Baghdadi remarks and walked away. He didn’t — and made a mess.”)
- Analysis: Raid Was a Victory Built on Factors Trump Derides (“President Trump cast the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State, as validation of his disengagement strategy in Syria. But it required intelligence agencies and allies he has spurned.”)
- Al-Baghdadi Is Dead. The Story Doesn’t End Here. (“President Trump boasts of defeating the Islamic State. He’s only showing how ignorant he is.”)
- Baghdadi’s Death Doesn’t Mean What Trump Thinks It Does (“The ISIS leader’s killing is a moment of military triumph that the president has cheapened and politicized.”)
- Doubts over Trump’s dramatic account of Baghdadi raid (“Footage relayed to US situation room was only overhead surveillance and had no audio”)
- ‘It feels like a horror movie’: Republicans feel anxious and adrift defending Trump (So stop defending the indefensible, then!)
- Northern California wildfires force nearly 200,000 people to evacuate (This is the climate crisis, but also other environmental problems that humans exacerbate.)
- The Most Pressing Issue for Our Next President Isn’t Medicare (“Climate change threatens the well-being of the planet and everyone who lives on it. The next president can save more lives and better improve human health by slowing climate change than by improving health insurance. The wounded state of American democracy is also more pressing. If it doesn’t get fixed, any expansion of health insurance could be reversed in a few years anyway. If the political system can be shored up — by guaranteeing voting rights, regulating campaign donations and granting statehood to Washington, D.C., and potentially Puerto Rico, among other things — every other national problem will become easier to address.” Agreed 100%; my top two issues, by far, are the climate crisis and saving our democracy, because without those two things we’re screwed on everything else.)
- Trump’s madness is not enough to doom him in 2020 (“Yes, the public seems ready to throw Trump out of office. But will Democrats make that easy or hard?”)
- Trump’s Black College Spectacle (“He was honored on the issue of criminal justice, where his record is shameful.” Bizarre.)
- Trump met with sustained boos when introduced at Game 5 of the World Series
- Republicans escalate their strategy of voter suppression
- John Conyers, longest serving black congressman, dies at 90
- Rep. Katie Hill to resign amid allegations of inappropriate relationships with staffers
- Democrats confront the prospect of a long primary (“The dynamics of the race could prevent any one candidate from seizing insurmountable momentum from the early nominating states.”)
- Ukrainian Oligarch Seethed About ‘Overlord’ Biden for Years (“Dmytro Firtash’s lawyers say his team had to investigate Joe Biden to defend their client. One expert says Biden pushed reforms that cost the oligarch up to $400 million per year.”)
- Joe Biden defends his son Hunter’s Ukraine dealings, answers for his gaffes in 60 Minutes interview
- Biden says Trump is ‘an idiot’ for calling Russian election interference a ‘hoax’
- Kamala Harris: “Of course” it’s different to run for president as a black woman
- Warren’s Wealth Tax Isn’t The Slam Dunk Progressives Want It To Be (“From a practical perspective, several experts told me that if the goal is to squeeze more tax revenue out of the rich, there is lower-hanging fruit politicians can go after.”)
- Will Virginia’s center hold in its elections? (“Mr. Hugo’s record, hostile to gun control and abortion rights, is at odds with the views of many Virginians, a large majority of whom support both…The political problem for Republicans, and the main reason they are at risk of losing their narrow majorities in both chambers of the state legislature, is that most Virginians disagree with such positions.”)
- Prediction: It will be another ‘health care election’
- With 9 Days to Go Until the Election, Sen. Kamala Harris Campaigns for Virginia Democrats
- Photos: Sen. Amy Klobuchar Campaigns for Virginia Democrats
- With 9 Days to Go Until Virginia Votes, CNU Prof. Rachel Bitecofer Urges Dems to Bring in “Big Name Closers” Like the Obamas to “Juice Turnout,” Boost Enthusiasm in Hampton Roads, etc.
- Will Higher Interest Lead to Higher Turnout on Election Day?
- A once-in-a-generation reboot election heightens stakes in Va. House, Senate races (“Bob Lewis covered Virginia government and politics for 20 years for The Associated Press. Now retired from a public relations career at McGuireWoods, he is a columnist for the Virginia Mercury.”)
- Schools, foster care and abortion at center of Hampton-Poquoson delegate race
- Second solar farm plan approved in Chesterfield
- A tie and lot drawing in 2017 kept the GOP in power in Richmond. This year, Simonds-Yancey could be key again.
- Five ways health care is (and isn’t) shaping debate in this year’s General Assembly election
- Editorial: Will the next legislature find a way to preserve gerrymandering? (I’m all for redistricting reform, as long as we get it right, and don’t do crazy things like give the right-wing state Supreme Court the ultimate say in district lines. Why on earth would we do that?)
- ‘Haven’t seen a year quite like this’: Inside epic battles for school board seats in Northern Virginia (OK, first of all Fairfax isn’t “left-leaning,” that’s completely moronic. Second, this article is ridiculously “both sides” and false equivalency. Yuck.)
- Video: On Infamous Extremist Laura Ingraham’s Show Last Night, Fairfax and Loudoun GOP Candidates for Commonwealth’s Attorney Rant About George Soros, Criminal Justice Reform
- Editorial: An overdue tribute to Virginia’s memorable women
- King tide equals high tide in Norfolk. These maps by ODU show what they look like in 2100.
- Richmond City Council 5th District candidates Q&A (“Seven candidates are seeking to replace Councilman Parker Agelasto in a special election for the 5th District seat on the Richmond City Council.”)
- Nationals stay cold in 7-1 World Series Game 5 loss, as Astros push them to brink
- Nice, dry weather to start and end week, but potentially rainy around Halloween
