by Lowell
Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, January 3.
- Blast furnace’ conditions forecast for Australia’s wildfires this weekend
- Mr. Prime Minister, Your Country Is Burning (“In Australia, the distraction of Scott Morrison’s ill-timed Hawaii vacation risks crowding out serious policy discussion about climate.”)
- Australia Is Committing Climate Suicide (“As record fires rage, the country’s leaders seem intent on sending it to its doom.”)
- Trump takes massive gamble with killing of Iranian commander
- “A more dangerous world:” Iran killing triggers global alarm
- 2020 Dems warn of escalation in Middle East after Soleimani killing
- ‘Dangerous escalation’ and ‘severe revenge’: The world responds to the US killing of Iran’s top general
- Iran vows revenge after U.S. drone strike kills elite force commander (This is not going to be good at all.)
- Trump needs to find a diplomatic exit from the Middle East hole he dug for himself
- Iran Loses Its Indispensable Man
- Esper: U.S. could ‘take pre-emptive action’ if Iran prepares fresh attacks
- Killing Iran’s Qassem Suleimani changes the game in the Middle East
- The Death of Qasem Suleimani Will Lead to Violence in the Region, Chaos in Iraq
- Attack on US Embassy in Iraq shows Trump is failing. He walked into Iran’s trap.
- Ten Strategists on What U.S.-Iran Escalation Means for Markets
- Qassem Suleimani’s death threatens to open grisly new chapter in Middle East (“Killing of powerful Iranian general will have far-reaching consequences for Trump”)
- Trump Is Clueless on Iran and North Korea (“Two of the world’s most perilous hot spots are about to catch fire, and Trump has no strategy for dousing the flames.”)
- Iran foreign minister warns killing of general is ‘extremely dangerous and foolish escalation’
- Top Senate Democrat Received No Advance Notice Of U.S. Strike On Iran General
- Ghosn might not be as safe in Lebanon as he thought
- Our Poll Finds A Majority Of Americans Think The Evidence Supports Trump’s Removal (“…in the latest installment of our survey with Ipsos, where we use Ipsos’s KnowledgePanel to poll the same group of respondents every two weeks, a majority (57 percent) of Americans said they think Trump committed an impeachable offense.”)
- Emails Reveal “Clear Direction From POTUS” on Ukraine Scandal
- Robert Mueller’s Secret Memos, Part 3: The Documents The Justice Department Didn’t Want Congress To See
- Manafort Said Hannity Served as His Trump-Backchannel: Docs
- The President* Is Guilty as Hell
- Republicans call for overturning Roe v. Wade in Supreme Court filing (“As the election year starts, over 200 lawmakers are taking an ideological stand against abortion.”)
- Man Who Gutted Voting Rights Act Says Americans ‘Take Democracy for Granted’
- Susan Collins sounds like she’s covering for Trump
- Sorry, Trump. Most Americans don’t like you. (“The public has not bought into Trump’s lies”)
- Trump Covering Up Scheme to Use Justice Department to Punish CNN
- Trump backpedals on vaping. Sad!
- The U.S. attorney’s office must resolve the McCabe case once and for all
- Democrats Enter 2020 Awash in Cash and Brace for Long Primary Fight
- Donors flock to top four in Democratic race as Trump amasses financial firepower
- Money matters — and it’s changing the Democratic primary
- Ascendant Bernie Sanders turns his focus to Joe Biden as Iowa nears
- Julián Castro Never Really Found His Base
- Julián Castro: progressive champion’s exit thins Democratic field’s diversity
- Klobuchar posts personal-best $11.4 million fundraising quarter
- Can Amy Klobuchar pull off a February surprise? (“The Minnesota Democrat is on many voters’ shortlist but not at the top. She says she’s the one who can beat Trump.”)
- Fox News personalities repeatedly campaigned for Trump and Republicans in 2019
- Pragmatic projection sees solar power nearly tripling in roaring 2020s
- 2020: A Year of Pipeline Court Fights, with One Lawsuit Headed to the Supreme Court (“One case headed to the U.S. Supreme Court takes a closer look at whether parts of the Appalachian Trail are off-limits to fossil fuel infrastructure and may determine the fate of two multi-billion-dollar pipelines. A defeat there, the industry argues, would severely limit its ability to get natural gas from the Marcellus shale to East Coast cities and export terminals. Another case weighs state sovereignty against pipeline interests and could have implications nationwide. Meanwhile, a question of potentially greater significance looms: Can pipeline companies continue to justify taking private land as the public benefits of fossil fuel pipelines are increasingly questioned and the risks they pose to the environment and climate increase?”)
- Where Is the Green New Deal Headed in 2020? (“For Democrats, support for the Green New Deal has become a central tenet. Nearly every major Democratic presidential candidate has endorsed it in some form—even moderates like Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar who are reluctant to give a fulsome embrace to the rapid phase-out of fossil fuels. All Democratic presidential contenders now have goals aligned with the science to bring fossil fuel emissions to net zero by mid-century, far beyond the ambition of the Obama administration.”)
- What Would Happen if Virginia Joined the Transportation and Climate Initiative?
- Congressman Connolly Wants to Use An Old Tool to Enforce Congressional Subpoenas
- There Are Now Two Announced Democratic Candidates to Take on Right-Wingnut Rep. Rob Wittman (R-VA01)
- Editorial: Looking ahead to the politics of 2020
- New Virginia Bills Introduced on Ranked-Choice Voting, Voter-Nominated Primaries, Project Labor Agreements, Housing Discrimination, Minimum Wages, THC-A Oil, Child Labor on Tobacco Farms, etc.
- What Virginia lawmakers might change about your commute
- New Bills Challenge Scope of Dominion’s Power
- Democrats will weigh free community college, transparency measures, among other education initiatives
- Va. Democrats are pushing for criminal justice reform, and Republicans are excited and anxious as session nears (“Reinstating parole, marijuana decriminalization and reducing youth incarceration are just a few of the criminal justice issues Democrats are eager to tackle when they take control of the Virginia General Assembly next week.”)
- Resolutions Supporting Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act, Urging Rejection of Redistricting Amendment Pass the Alexandria Dems’ Resolution Committee
- Senator Surovell and Delegate Hope Introduce Bill Prohibiting Conversion Therapy Practices.
- Governor Northam Signs Sweeping Executive Actions to Expand Opportunities for Virginians with Disabilities
- No, Northam will not cut off power, kill Virginians who refuse to give up guns (PolitiFact: “We rate the Facebook post Pants on Fire!”)
- These hospitals are giving their employees relief from Virginia’s dismal minimum wage
- Report Predicts What Virginia Economy, Housing Market Will Look Like In 2020
- Chesterfield Passes on “2nd Amendment Sanctuary” Movement, For Now
- Virginia Democrats now have the power and responsibility to fix gerrymandering (Nope, wrong.)
- Blue Ridge Caucus: Sen. Suetterlein pushes for transparency on last-minute donations prior to General Assembly sessions
- Watchdog group asks General Assembly to continue improvements on transparency
- Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Says Office Won’t Prosecute Simple Marijuana Possession (“The new commonwealth’s attorney in Fairfax County is asking judges to drop all charges of simple marijuana possession. Northern Virginia Bureau Reporter Drew Wilder was in the courtroom today when a veteran judge said he’s never seen anything like this.”)
- Having My Day in Court: Dramatic First Day Under New Fairfax Commonwealth’s Attorney
- Prosecutors won’t pursue marijuana possession charges in Fairfax, Arlington counties
- Carter reports death threats over proposed legislation
- Editorial: Celebrate our region’s parks
- Editorial: To curb gun violence in Richmond, the need for solutions persists
- Times-Dispatch building in downtown Richmond sold; newspaper to remain as tenant
- Video, Photos: As Iconic Clarendon Ballroom Closes, Here Are Some Virginia Democratic Political Memories…Tim Kaine, Barack Obama, Michael J. Fox, Wes Clark, Jim Webb, will.i.am, Terry McAuliffe…
- Periods of rain today and Saturday, ahead of sunnier but blustery conditions Sunday
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