Saturday News: “Americans are pretending that the pandemic is over. It certainly is not.”; “Trump says chokeholds sound ‘innocent and perfect’ and compares himself to Lincoln”; “Biden’s VP list narrows: Warren, Harris, Susan Rice, others”; VA05 GOP Convention Today

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, June 13.

How to water pic.twitter.com/1wCzqAlvMq

— Sarah Cooper (@sarahcpr) June 13, 2020

• April’s Historic Economic Plunge Points to Steep Climb for the World Economy (“Fresh figures show deep damage to business and household incomes that is likely to delay a complete recovery”)
• World Bank: Recession Is The Deepest In Decades
• From ‘beautiful letters’ to ‘a dark nightmare’: How Trump’s North Korea gamble went bust (“Now that the deal has collapsed, some experts expect North Korea to do something provocative in the fall to punish Trump during the political campaign.”)
• Boris Johnson’s week from hell (“Dire economic data, rebellious allies and sustained criticism made for a week the British prime minister will want to forget.”)
• North Korea Slams South Korea as Push for Nuclear Talks Stalls
• India records biggest single-day jump in coronavirus cases
• Russia’s coronavirus cases pass 520,000
• Coronavirus 2nd Wave? Nope, The U.S. Is Still Stuck In The 1st One
• The Virus Will Win (“Americans are pretending that the pandemic is over. It certainly is not.”)
• Three weeks after Memorial Day, the coronavirus is surging dangerously in states that opened quickly
• Fauci says second wave is ‘not inevitable’ as coronavirus cases climb in some states
• “Totally predictable”: State reopenings have backfired (“’We managed to disrupt our economy [and] skyrocket unemployment, and we didn’t control the damn virus,’ one scientist says.”)
• Some states hit pause, others press on amid spike in virus
• When Donald Trump tried to stage a coup: Was June 1 the turning point? (“Last week our president tried to send the Army into America’s streets. Aides pushed back, but it was a close call”)
• Trump’s Use of the Military Does Not Create the “Appearance” of Abuse. It Is Abuse.
• Trump’s Actions Rattle the Military World: ‘I Can’t Support the Man’ (The main thing is for the military not to follow illegal and/or unconstitutional orders. Also, if the “president” is mentally unfit for office, which Trump clearly is, the military should be very careful about listening to him.)
• ‘He just doesn’t get it’: has Trump been left behind by America’s awakening on racism? (“The killing of George Floyd has been a turning point for for everyone but the president – who has seldom been so isolated from his own party and the public”)
• Trump says he’ll leave office peacefully if he loses in November
• Trump says he’ll ‘go on and do other things’ if he loses in November (If not, security can escort him out, just like an unruly guest at one of his awful properties.)
• Could Trump Try to Steal the 2020 Election?(“Two lawyers fighting to make voting accessible during a historic pandemic weigh the odds that the president goes rogue—and then ‘we’re really in uncharted territory.'”)
• We’re Living Through a Historic Surge of Freedom—and Trump and His GOP Hate It (“It’s not just Trump. It’s never just Trump. It’s the party Trump took over because so many of its members had made that racist road by walking it before he came along.”)
• Pence says he didn’t accompany Trump to St. John’s Church “out of an abundance of caution”
• Nancy Pelosi knows the public is on her side
• Former Defense Secretary Gates: Pushing Away Peaceful Protesters Was ‘A Bad Mistake’
• Republicans and Trump want a Jacksonville convention party. Some locals are worried about the area’s health.
• To Overturn Trump, We Need to Overturn White Supremacy (“For that to happen, some monuments — and the historical myths they supported — are going to have to come down.”)
• Racism Doesn’t Blink (“The public performance of white supremacy is key to upholding it.”)
• Trump’s reckless endangerment problem (“The president is happy to jeopardize his followers’ health, but not his own pocketbook.”)
• CDC issues new covid-19 guidelines at a time of protests and rallies
• Top Pentagon policy nominee has a history of Islamophobic and offensive comments (Automatic elimination.)
• Survivors of KKK’s Ax Handle Attack Appalled at Trump Speech (“The president plans to speak at the RNC on the anniversary of a racist rampage in Jacksonville, Florida.”)
• Trump changes date of Tulsa rally scheduled for Juneteenth
• Trump: “The concept of chokehold sounds so innocent, so perfect”
• Trump says chokeholds sound ‘innocent and perfect’ and compares himself to Lincoln (“President calls plan for Juneteenth rally ‘a celebration’ despite its location in Tulsa, known for massacre of African Americans”)
• Trump Goes After George Floyd Protesters and Lincoln’s ‘Questionable’ Legacy in Bizarre Fox News Interview
• White House divide on Floyd response, as some push Trump for tougher tactics
• Michael Flynn Writes Column Confirming He Is Definitely Insane
• NASCAR is finally standing up to its racist fans. Here’s why that matters.
• America Is Already Different Than It Was Two Weeks Ago
• Voter turnout soared in Georgia despite massive primary day problems (“Democrats cast close to a million votes in the Senate primary, more than triple the number in the 2016 primary.” Wow!)
• Bolton rips Trump: ‘Getting reelected was the only thing that mattered’ (“The former national security adviser also argues in a new memoir that Trump took a series of actions that might warrant impeachment.”)
• It Appears Republicans and Democrats Were Both Justified in Worrying About John Bolton’s Book
• Pandemic deepens economic pain at Trump’s company, already suffering from a tarnished brand
• How the pro-Trump outrage sausage is made
• Transgender Health Protections Reversed By Trump Administration (Pure maliciousness.)
• Trump administration rolls back Obama-era transgender health care protections
• A debunked conspiracy theory about Black Lives Matter, ActBlue, and Democrats can be traced to far-right message boards
• The Violent Extremist Threat That’s Growing During Nationwide Protests (“As Donald Trump warns of antifa, far-right extremists linked to the Boogaloo movement have been repeatedly charged with attacks.” Wait, so AmanDUH Chase and neo-Confederate Corey Stewart were 180-degrees off? Shocking.)
• Black candidates and political groups see a surge of support amid US protests
• ‘Trump thought I was a secretary’: Fiona Hill on the president, Putin and populism
• Trump pledged to bring back coal. Like everything under him, it collapsed instead.
• Biden hits Senate Republicans over relief bill: ‘They’re so damn stupid’
• Amid Protests, Majorities Across Racial and Ethnic Groups Express Support for the Black Lives Matter Movement
• Biden says Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic was ‘almost criminal’ (Delete the word “almost”)
• Biden’s VP list narrows: Warren, Harris, Susan Rice, others (“The campaign’s list includes several black women, including Harris and Rice. Advisers have also looked closely at Florida Rep. Val Demings and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, both of whom are black, and New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Latina.”)
• Tight polls put GOP on edge in Texas (“Biden’s campaign says it intends to compete in Texas, where the state Democratic Party has become one of the largest in the nation. Texas’s fast-changing demographics have hastened its move from solidly red state to purple battleground.”)
• Instead of ‘defund’ the police, imagine a broader role for them with public health (“Successful models exist for taking a public health approach to violence prevention.”)
• Fired Florida scientist builds coronavirus site showing far more cases than state reports
• Cuomo signs historic 50-a repeal bill, making N.Y. police disciplinary records public after decades of secrecy
• How Cable News Is Talking About The Protests — And Why It Matters
• ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ loses Disney, T-Mobile ads after host’s Black Lives Matter comments (There’s no excuse for anyone to advertise on this white supremacist, authoritarian show.)
• Tucker Carlson ad boycott causes headaches for Fox News (Reminder: Fox is not “news,” it’s far-right propaganda and relentless misinformation.)
• Kaine introduces a bill to help education institutions access federal funding
• The Republican congressman who could get booted for officiating a gay wedding (“First-term Rep. Denver Riggleman of Virginia faces potential ouster on Saturday at a drive-thru party convention.”)
• Pre-Primary Campaign Finance Numbers for VA01, VA02, VA05, VA07, VA10, VA11
• “I’ve confirmed that GOP congressional candidates [Nick Freitas] and Bob Good have both failed to file the correct paperwork with” VA Dept. of Elections
• Statements from Chairman Melvin Adams and Rep. Tom Garrett on today’s 5th district convention
• Audio: VA07 GOP Candidate Claims People Who Support Removing Confederate Statues Have a “fundamental dislike of America…it’s about perpetuating grievance”
• Northam said he wouldn’t send Virginia’s National Guard to DC ‘for a photo-op’ after seeing other guardsmen ‘militarized’
• Mountain Valley Pipeline Claims Project 92% Complete, Expects “Full In-Service” by “Early 2021.” Don’t Hold Your Breath.
• BREAKING: SCC Extends Utility Disconnection Ban Until August Legislative Session
• Loving v. Virginia Anniversary Highlights Need to Update Acts of Assembly
• Northern Virginia reaches next phase of reopening, allowing indoor dining as coronavirus cases drop
• Friday (6/12) Virginia Data on COVID-19 Finds +564 Confirmed/Probable Cases (to 53,211), +85 Hospitalizations (to 5,445), +14 Deaths (to 1,534) From Yesterday)
• Virginia AG Mark Herring Files Motion in Robert E. Lee Statue Case (Motion asks “that any further proceedings be conducted on the record, with at least twelve hours of notice, and with the option of having a court reporter present.”)
• Virginia AG objects to another closed hearing on injunction preventing Lee statue from coming down (“Lawyer for man blocking removal of statue calls on governor to protect it, cites rumor about its destruction”)
• UVA COVID-19 Model’s 6/12 Update: “For the moment, we can exhale; “Nevertheless, uncertainties remain,” with “several possible paths forward for Virginia”
• Mask, ventilator supply company started by political consultants sues Virginia bank, alleging reputational harm (“Blue Flame is suing Chain Bridge Bank over the bank’s warning that the company could be fraudulent”)
• Fairfax NAACP Blasts Sen. Chap Petersen’s “lack of empathy…for the plight of people of color throughout history,” Calls for Dems to Reprimand Petersen and Demand Apology
• Rodney Robinson column: No more Confederate school names or mascots
• RPD: Four guns seized, multiple people detained and one arrested after confrontation at Lee statue early Friday
• Along historic Richmond street, residents grapple with Confederate legacy
• After days of protests, Alexandria considers police review board (“Council member calls for accountability, but police chief worries about board’s effect.”)
• For weeks, thousands have protested police brutality in Hampton Roads. What are they fighting for?
• What Loudoun County schools plan to do next school year
• A stretch of cooler conditions and little if any humidity has arrived (That’s a really poorly written headline.)