Tuesday News: “Slow the Testing Down Please”; “80% of Covid-19 cases in the US went undetected in March?”; “The Night Trump Stopped Trying”; “9 things to watch on a huge primary day for Democrats”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, June 23.

• Large Countries Are Lifting Lockdowns Even As Virus Cases Continue To Rise
• In 2020′s biggest energy deal, six global firms strike $20 billion agreement with Abu Dhabi state oil giant
• Trump Says China Deal ‘Fully Intact’ After Navarro Roils Markets
• Dow futures rise nearly 300 points after Peter Navarro clarifies that U.S.-China trade deal is not over
• America now finally meets the bare minimum for coronavirus testing (“The US is finally reporting 500,000 coronavirus tests a day — but many states are still falling short.”)
• Trump aides consider a CDC overhaul as virus cases surge (“With Trump under fire for his handling of the outbreak, his advisers are eyeing the federal bureaucracy for other culprits ahead of the election.”)
• Study suggests 80% of Covid-19 cases in the US went undetected in March (“A new study suggests that as many as 8.7 million Americans came down with coronavirus in March, but more than 80% of them were never diagnosed.”)
• CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta: ‘We Are Right Back To Square One’ On Flattening The Curve
• End of lockdown, Memorial Day add up to increase in coronavirus cases, experts say (“Florida, Oregon, Texas and Arizona are among the states where case numbers are spiking.” So, so stupid.)
• Trump Suspends Visas Allowing Hundreds of Thousands of Foreigners to Work in the U.S. (“The move is fiercely opposed by business leaders, who say it will block their ability to recruit critically needed workers from countries overseas”)
• Bolton’s book suggests Trump corruption runs deep. Worse? Republicans don’t care.
• Trump pays a price for his pandemic denial (“The President must face the prospect that his mismanagement of the pandemic is becoming a millstone his campaign may not be able to shake off”)
• Trump attacks mail-in voting with new series of false claims (See how The Guardian did it? They used the word “false” right in the headline, as every media outlet should when the thing in question is actually, ya know, FALSE! This really isn’t rocket science.)
• Trump’s language is racist. Period. (Jennifer Rubin nails it)
• Secret Service tells press to leave White House grounds in highly unusual move
• Trump Rails Against Mail Voting. His Aides Have Embraced It
• Mike Pence and his wife Karen voted by mail in April from a mansion they haven’t lived in for four years
• With unsubstantiated claim, Trump sows doubt on US election (How about “With FALSE claim?” Why the bullshit, weasel word “unsubstantiated?”)
• Trump falsely accuses Obama of treason in latest unfounded attack on his predecessor (And another weak word – “unfounded” – instead of “FALSE”)
• D.C. police, protesters skirmish over removal of tents near White House
• Americans Need to Know the Truth About William Barr’s Friday Night Massacre. We Can’t Afford to Wait
• Three Plausible—And Troubling—Reasons Why Barr Tried to Force Berman Out
• After Trump fires Manhattan U.S. attorney, some Senate Republicans respond with a shrug (Disgraceful as always.)
• White House admits Trump was involved in firing of top US attorney after Trump claimed he wasn’t
• Scoop: House Judiciary prepares to subpoena Attorney General Bill Barr
• Attorney General Barr, Berman at Odds Over Letter Criticizing New York City Mayor
• There is no earthly reason this nation should be defiled by Confederate statues
• U.S. Army Soldier Charged With Terrorism Offenses For Planning Deadly Ambush On Service Members In His Unit
• Trump increasingly preoccupied with defending his physical and mental health
• The Night Trump Stopped Trying (“The image-conscious president has given voters a new way to see him.”)
• Two Trump campaign staffers who attended Tulsa rally test positive for coronavirus
• Trump wanted a packed house in Tulsa and street violence outside — 0 for 2
• A harsh lesson for Trump in Tulsa: He can’t beat the virus, and even his followers know it (“In a two-thirds-empty arena, the dispirited president had no magic. His shtick isn’t working and he knows it” It was always a cringe-inducing shtick; what on earth was/is its appeal?)
• Brexit Leader Allowed To Attend Trump Rally With A ‘National Interest’ Travel Ban Waiver (WTF???)
• Trump’s anger over Tulsa rally underscores growing problems within his campaign
• Trump’s Rally Was a ‘Disaster.’ But It Wasn’t Even His Biggest One. (“No one thought that the event in Tulsa was a success. But the bigger problem may be the fundraising numbers that came in right before.”)
• After Trump’s dismal return rally, finger pointing, blame game intensifies
• Trump faced a moment of truth in Tulsa. He chose the low road.
• “Brad Really S—t the Bed Saturday Night”: After Tulsa Catastrophe, Parscale—And Kushner—Is at the Top of Trump’s Hit List
• Senate Democrats threaten to block GOP police bill
• Top Trump fundraiser sought to cash in on valuable 3M masks
• The Debate Over Biden’s VP Pick Is Full Of Half-Truths And Misleading Arguments (“… the real case that’s being made is that Biden should pick a Black woman because it’s the just, moral and right thing to do — electoral considerations aside.”)
• 11 times Trump’s offensive comments were ‘just a joke’ (What they all have in common: none of them are remotely funny)
• The Supreme Court May Be Tired of Bill Barr (“The attorney general seems unstoppable in all but one important venue.”)
• Trump’s Arizona trip: Failed wall, failed COVID testing and a failed presidency (“Trump heads to Arizona to brag about a nonexistent wall, ignore the worsening pandemic and save a doomed senator”)
• Race to face McConnell hurtles toward unpredictable finish (“State Rep. Charles Booker is still considered the underdog in Tuesday’s primary against Amy McGrath, the party favorite.”)
• While national voices claim ‘voter suppression,’ Kentucky on pace for record voter turnout
• Tuesday’s Primaries: Races To Watch And Live Results (Kentucky: Senate (Democratic) — McGrath vs. Booker; New York: 16th Congressional District (Democratic) — Engel vs. Bowman; Virginia: 2nd Congressional District (Republican) — Luria vs. Taylor… Round 2?)
• 9 things to watch on a huge primary day for Democrats (“Amy McGrath and Eliot Engel face liberal challengers, but final results won’t be known for at least a week.”)
• NY Democrats brace for primary night stunners (If you’re bracing for/expecting something, how is it a “stunner?” LOL)
• The Republican convention is gearing up to be a disaster
• Seattle plans to dismantle occupied protest zone after shootings
• $50 Million Prime Impact Fund Launches to Invest in Early-Stage Cleantech (“The fund screens startups for gigaton-level carbon-reduction potential.”)
• Advocates seek solar on all new houses in ten states (Also, any new home should have to meet stringent energy efficiency standards, starting ASAP)
• What’s next for coal country? (“Coal communities in Appalachia and Wyoming are vital revenue engines for huge portions of the rural U.S., and they face devastation with little time to adjust to new realities.”)
• VA nonprofits hold virtual Town Hall with Senators Kaine and Warner, ask for more comprehensive COVID-19 relief legislation
• Sen. Kaine calls for colleagues to ‘rise to the occasion’ for police reform
• Virginia’s Congressional Delegation Should Oppose Islamophobic Legislation Like HR 7183
• Virginia Primary Day 2020 Preview: What to Look Out For Tuesday
• Virginia GOP taps Marine veteran to take on Rep. Jennifer Wexton (“Wexton’s was one of three GOP seats Democrats flipped in the state in 2018”)
• Virginia primary voters head to the polls amid coronavirus (“As of Monday morning, statewide, Democrats had requested 118,181 ballots and returned 65,734, and Republicans had requested 58,939 and returned 26,937, according to data from the Virginia Department of Elections.”)
• Virginia prosecutor regrets ‘hateful tone’ toward Northam over monuments (Disgusting.)
• VA Dems Passes Resolutions Package 1,469-233; Includes Support for Climate Action, Universal Basic Income, Combating Racism, Rejecting Virginia Redistricting Amendment, etc.
• Virginia Women’s Summit 2020: A Climate & Clean Energy Conversation (live blogged)
• Virginia primary elections are Tuesday. Here’s what you need to know. (“There are contested races for U.S. Senate and in every congressional district in Hampton Roads.”)
• After a string of losses, Virginia Republicans wrestle with hard right’s influence (Wow, the media actually said “hard right” – which is what this actually is – in a headline? Miracle.)
• Thanks to Democrats, Virginia Soon Home To New Policies To Fight Racial Inequities
• Rasoul to urge release of police video in shooting cases
• Monday (6/22) Virginia Data on COVID-19 Finds +471 Confirmed/Probable Cases (to 58,465), +29 Hospitalizations (to 5,869), +9 Deaths (to 1,620) From Yesterday
• Number of coronavirus tests given surpasses 555,000 in Virginia, percentage of positive tests drops to 6.5%
• Hospitality industry sees encouraging signs after spring decimated by COVID-19
• ‘Can’t explain the about-face’: Reversal on nursing home disclosures lead to bipartisan questioning (Very weird.)
• Northam’s case for removing Lee statue was devised by a lawyer descended from slaves (“Rita Davis, the first woman to serve as legal counsel to a Virginia governor, walked by Lee’s tomb every day as a college student.”)
• Groups Across Virginia Call For the Denial of Gas Plant Permit That Threatens Charles City County Water Supply
• Tell FERC: No Special Favors for Dominion’s Fracked-Gas Atlantic Coast Pipeline
• Is the Atlantic Coast Pipeline still needed? Another legal challenge to project heads to court. (Uh, it never *was* needed; why accept Dominion’s false framing that it ever was?)
• Students of Robert E. Lee High in Fairfax County call for name change
• Editorial: New Beach manager to shoulder a heavy workload
• Editorial, June 23, 2020: Keep Lee Circle a place for peace
• Mayor seeks legal path to immediately remove Confederate statues, after council members raise concerns
• Demonstrators defy Lee ground ban, set up ‘Reclamation Square’ encampment outside Richmond City Hall
• How ‘Defunding The Police’ Is Translating Into Policy In Richmond
• After Another Night of Unrest in Richmond, Mayor Stoney Outlines Public Safety Revisions
• With vote, Richmond City Council clears way for solicitation of Public Safety Building property
• Two Years Later, Charlottesville’s Police Civilian Review Board Hasn’t Even Met
• Loudoun County parents protest proposed school reopening plan (“The plan would offer students two days of in-person instruction a week, mixed with three days of distance learning. It is contingent on several factors.”)
• Norfolk’s Confederate Monument is all but gone from downtown. Now what?
• Hot, humid and stormy, but nicer weather arrives tomorrow