Monday News: Myanmar Coup; “Dozens of former Bush officials leave Republican Party, calling it ‘Trump cult'”; “An Emboldened Extremist Wing Flexes Its Power in a Leaderless G.O.P.”; “What the next generation of editors need to tell their political reporters”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, February 1.

• Myanmar military says it is taking control of the country
• Myanmar military takes control of country after detaining Aung San Suu Kyi
• Navalny, WHO and Thunberg among nominees for Nobel Peace Prize (All excellent choices!)
• Kushner, Berkowitz nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for Israel deals (Uhhh…no.)
• We can escape a zero-sum struggle between Iran and Saudi Arabia – if we act now
• Scottish Parliament to hold vote on Unexplained Wealth Order into Donald Trump’s finances
• The Risk of Nuclear Cataclysm Is Increasing (“The U.S. and Russia have kept their last remaining nuclear treaty from lapsing, but an arms race in tactical nukes makes it hard to celebrate.”)
• Alexei Navalny protests: Moscow in lockdown as police detain thousands (“Riot police and national guard troops close central metro stations and block off streets”)
• EU To Get 9 Million More AstraZeneca Doses After Supply Row
• Norway’s trillion-dollar wealth fund sold the last of its investments in fossil fuel companies (“Norway’s decision was an economic one, but it’s still a step in the right direction on climate change.”)
• Joe Biden and the climate crisis: What a difference two weeks makes (“Biden’s blitz on climate policy is impressive — but what it really reveals is a broad American consensus”)
• Trump left U.S. democracy in shambles. Biden has to build it back.
• Republicans’ blundering attempt at bipartisanship
• An Emboldened Extremist Wing Flexes Its Power in a Leaderless G.O.P.
• Opinion: Republicans should police their own. Then we can talk about unity.
• 77 Days: Trump’s Campaign to Subvert the Election
• Opinion: Democrats are faced with a choice. Protect the filibuster or protect democracy.
• Biden faces dilemma over Republican offer on Covid rescue plan (“Biden may have to choose between bipartisanship and shock treatment for the economic and health crises”)
• Biden invites GOP senators to White House for relief talks
• ‘They should negotiate’: Sen. Schumer pushes back on GOP offer to slash COVID relief package to $600B
• Republicans’ Miserly Stimulus Plan Is More Band-Aid Than Economic Treatment
• Why Biden Should Tell These Republicans Offering a COVID Relief Deal to Stuff It
• Biden’s push for stimulus checks sparks income eligibility debate
• Ten G.O.P. senators sketch out their own proposed relief bill in a letter to Biden.
• Biden reverses Trump last-minute attempt to freeze $27.4 billion of programs
• Trump didn’t see Harriet Tubman as a hero. He was wrong, and the $20 bill will say so.
• Something went terribly wrong with Trump’s defense
• Trump Names Two Members of Impeachment Defense Team
• Trump’s legal team exited after he insisted impeachment defense focus on false claims of election fraud
• How Trump Unleashed a Domestic Terrorism Movement—And What Experts Say Must Be Done to Defeat It (“He tells them what to do. He tells them why they’re angry.”)
• Trump stocks new PAC with tens of millions as he bids to retain control of GOP
• Exclusive: Dozens of former Bush officials leave Republican Party, calling it ‘Trump cult’
• GameStop signals a new, destabilizing collision between social media and the real world
• Growing extremist threats put more pressure on Biden (Weird way to frame it, as “pressure on Biden” as opposed to “a threat to America” or “pressure on FBI, etc. to deal with it.”)
• GOP Rep. Kinzinger starts PAC to challenge party’s embrace of Trump
• Forget Trump. McConnell and the Senate GOP Are on Trial. (“Biden won’t be played the way Obama was. The country’s needs are urgent and if McConnell doesn’t move soon to signal real cooperation from at least 10 Republicans, it’s game over.”)
• Spurred By The Capitol Riot, Thousands Of Republicans Drop Their Party (It needs to be in the millions.)
• Trump May Be Gone, But He Left Plenty of Lackeys Behind. Here Are Some of the Worst. (“Kellyanne Conway, US Air Force Academy’s Board of Visitors”; “Andrew Giuliani, United States Holocaust Memorial Council”; “John Lott, Senior adviser for research and statistics in the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs”; “Corey Lewandowski, Defense Business Board”; etc.)
• The Gerrymander Battles Loom, as G.O.P. Looks to Press Its Advantage (“With new census results coming, Republicans control redistricting in key states, while Democrats prepare for legal challenges and look to redraw some maps of their own.”)
• The Race to Dismantle Trump’s Immigration Policies (“Trump transformed immigration through hundreds of quiet measures. Before they can be reversed, they have to be uncovered.”)
• After Trump, the crisis: White America at the historical crossroads (“Historian David Roediger on the choice facing white Americans: Social democracy, or follow Trump into the abyss”)
• Disproportionate number of current and former military personnel arrested in Capitol attack, CNN analysis shows
• What the next generation of editors need to tell their political reporters (“First of all, we’re going to rebrand you. Effective today, you are no longer political reporters (and editors); you are government reporters (and editors). That’s an important distinction, because it frees you to cover what is happening in Washington in the context of whether it is serving the people well, rather than which party is winning.”)
• After the Attack (“Jan. 6 was a terrifying day for members of Congress. Weeks later, they are dealing with the trauma.”)
• Gun sales on the rise amid pandemic uncertainty, Biden’s vow for gun reform
• Survey Says: Never Tweet
• 21 Men Accuse Lincoln Project Co-Founder of Online Harassment
• Lincoln Project disavows co-founder John Weaver after allegations he made unsolicited sexual overtures to young men
• ‘She is weighing us down’: Georgia GOP cringes at Marjorie Taylor Greene spectacle
• If Marjorie Taylor Greene Isn’t Beyond the Pale, Who Is? (“There’s still time for Republican leaders to reject Q.”)
• Black Power: Now or Never (“Population shifts mean more political might for relatively fewer people.”)
• Video: Former Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-VA10) Says There’s “No Room” In the GOP For “Kooks” like Marjorie Greene (“If I were in office, I would be running to the microphone to denounce her.”)
• Former Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-VA05) Muses About Running Statewide On a “Country First” Ticket (Riggleman reacts to Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R)’s launch of his “Country First” movement to “cast aside the conspiracy theories and the rage…turn back from the edge of darkness”)
• One year after Clean Economy Act’s passage, solar land use tensions linger
• Editorial: How much does Virginia want everyone online?
• Virginia courts could consider a defendant’s autism diagnoses under proposed law
• After 7 weeks, only 7% of Virginians have received even a single vaccine dose
• Sunday (1/31) Virginia Data on COVID-19 Finds +2,558 Confirmed/Probable Cases (to 504,779), +72 Hospitalizations (to 21,409), +15 Deaths (to 6,464)
• Video: Del. Cia Price, Del. Patrick Hope Slam Far-Right/Extremist Del. Dave LaRock’s “Dangerous,” “False Information” COVID Vaccine Bill, Which Is Then Voted Down 18-3 (Del. Patrick Hope: “I just want to make that crystal clear, that this COVID vaccine is safe and effective”)
• Video: VA House of Delegates General Laws Committee Debates, Reports Out Marijuana Legalization Bill on 14-6 Vote
• Chesterfield’s youngest are returning to school Tuesday, two months earlier than originally recommended (“Come Tuesday morning, nearly 14,000 of Chesterfield County Public Schools’ youngest learners will be back in a classroom five days a week.”)
• Region gets first significant snowfall of the season
• Snow showers at times into Tuesday, then turning milder