Friday News: “Climate tipping points could topple like dominoes, warn scientists”; “Bibi Is Trump and the Israeli Change Coalition Is Biden”; “Watch What’s Happening in Red States”; “Sinema and Manchin’s Nihilistic Bipartisanship”; “Tuesday could be a wild primary night” (Polls Open In <100 Hours)

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, June 4.  Just one more weekend to get out the vote for candidates in this upcoming Tuesday’s Democratic statewide primaries, Democratic *and* Republican local primaries. Polls open in <100 hours.

• The Effects of the Climate Crisis Are Complex and Interconnected. One Is That It’s Getting Deathly Hot. (“The results of a new study have shaken even people who have been marinating in the data while the planet parboils.” Ditch. Fossil. Fuels. ASAP.)
• Arctic sea ice thinning twice as fast as thought, study finds (“Less ice means more global heating, a vicious cycle that also leaves the region open to new oil extraction”)
• Climate tipping points could topple like dominoes, warn scientists (“Analysis shows significant risk of cascading events even at 2C of heating, with severe long-term effects”)
• World’s largest offshore wind farm developer to recover, reuse or recycle turbine blades
• How China Beat the U.S. to Become World’s Undisputed Solar Champion (“China went all in on solar manufacturing and now produces three-quarters of the world’s supply”)
• Zombie Fires in the Arctic Are an Environmental Time Bomb
• European finance ministers say deal to stop global tax abuse is ‘within reach’
• The populist right is still robust. The left should not be complacent.
• Biden’s trying to crack down on international corruption. Let’s hope it works this time.
• Roman Protasevich: Belarus journalist’s confession was forced – family says
• Hong Kong’s Tiananmen Square Vigil Is Banned As Authorities Arrest Organizers
• Bibi Is Trump and the Israeli Change Coalition Is Biden
• This is what putting country over party looks like (“Israel provides the United States a model for a pro-democracy coalition.”)
• The new Israeli government should turn the page on Netanyahu’s destructive approach to Washington
• Israel’s Potential Post-Netanyahu Government, Explained (“Six essential insights about what just happened in Israel and what it means for the country’s future” This is fascinating.)
• Israel may finally get a new government — and a fresh start with Biden
• A Historic Moment for Israeli Arabs, but With a Question Mark (“An Arab party’s decision to join a right-leaning Israeli government would be an important, if uncertain, step toward inclusion rather than perpetual opposition.”)
• Israel Could Be About to Get the World’s Weirdest Government (“The new prime minister would be to the right of Bibi, but it’s still good news.”)
• ‘They are hair on fire’: Biden admin mulling cyber attacks against Russian hackers
• A scientist adventurer and China’s ‘Bat Woman’ are under scrutiny as coronavirus lab-leak theory gets another look
• EU, U.K. Open First Antitrust Probe Into Facebook (Good, break it up!)
• As U.S. troops begin pullout and reduce airstrikes, Afghan war enters more brutal phase
• Anthony Fauci urges China to release medical records of Wuhan lab workers
• Chaos in the Andes (“Hopes for a sustained democratic rebirth in Peru and elsewhere have waned.”)
• Are Workers Staying on Sidelines? Economists Will Look to Jobs Report.
• May jobs data expected to be strong, and could add to Fed debate on tapering bond buying (“Economists expect 671,000 jobs were added in May, more than double the disappointing 266,000 added in April.” Of course, economists were badly wrong on April, so we’ll see…)
• Positive new data builds expectations for a whopper number for Friday’s closely watched jobs report
• Millions Of Women Haven’t Rejoined The Workforce — And May Not Anytime Soon
• Exclusive: U.S. to give ransomware hacks similar priority as terrorism
• Inside Clean Energy: Yes, We Can Electrify Almost Everything. Here’s What That Looks Like.
• The U.S. should swear off drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge once and for all
• States that fall well below vaccinating 70% of adults are ‘sitting ducks’ for an outbreak, expert warns (“The director of the CDC said that there is no magic target for herd immunity, but that she thinks getting to 70% would go a long way toward protecting the community.”)
• The big test of America’s great reopening is coming up
• There are two kinds of GOP attacks on democracy — and one is much worse (“Democratic campaigns can overcome some, but not all, of the Republican Party’s efforts to disenfranchise voters.”)
• How to get to yes on voting rights reform (“Democrats can’t just rely on H.R. 1. They need a better strategy.”)
• Germany faced its horrible past. Can we do the same?
• U.S. Finds No Evidence of Alien Technology in Flying Objects, but Can’t Rule It Out, Either(“A new report concedes that much about the observed phenomena remains difficult to explain, including their acceleration, as well as ability to change direction and submerge.”)
• Biden offers major change to tax proposal in effort to secure infrastructure deal with Republicans
• Biden can’t quit infrastructure talks and progressives are losing their minds
• Exclusive: Biden opposes a presidential commission for Jan. 6
• Biden wants to ‘pressure’ Congress on voting rights. If only he could.
• Sinema and Manchin’s Nihilistic Bipartisanship (They are so awful.)
• Manchin offers little comfort to frustrated Democrats
• The Groupthink That Produced the Lab-Leak Failure Should Scare Liberals
• Trump’s Justice Department went on a media-eavesdropping blitz (Will there be any consequences?)
• Jim Crow is Back Because John Roberts Let It Happen (Yep, to Roberts’ eternal disgrace.)
• After 2-Year Legal Fight, Ex-Trump Aide Will Testify On Russia Investigation (“Don McGahn, who served as former President Donald Trump’s first White House counsel and was a key witness for investigators during the Russia probe, is set to testify Friday before the House Judiciary Committee. McGahn will sit down for a transcribed interview behind closed doors more than two years after the Democratic-led panel subpoenaed him for testimony about the Russia investigation and Trump’s possible obstruction of justice.”)
• Tom Hanks: All Americans Should Learn About the Tulsa Race Massacre (Yes, and all Americans should learn about the entirety of American history, good/bad/indifferent.)
• Congress Has Entered the Denial and Bargaining Stages Simultaneously
• Watch What’s Happening in Red States (“In states where Republicans control the legislature, American life is rapidly changing.” The lesson: NEVER EVER put Republicans in charge of your state!!!)
• The Capitol Rioters Won (“Although some Republican leaders deplored their violence, most have come to support the rioters’ claim that Trump’s defeat meant the election was inherently illegitimate.”)
• How Much Do Americans Really Care About Bipartisanship?
• The FBI is investigating Louis DeJoy. So maybe it’s time for him to go. (“Even if he’s cleared of wrongdoing, the Postal Service deserves a better leader.”)
• FBI investigating Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in connection with past political fundraising (How on earth is DeJoy still Postmaster General, and why hasn’t he been arrested yet for various crimes he almost certainly committed?)
• Dems breathe sigh of relief after New Mexico blowout(“Rep.-elect Melanie Stansbury’s 24-point win Tuesday has Democrats feeling more optimistic about their fragile House majority.”)
• Donald Trump’s Parting Gift to Washington Was a Party of Shitposters (Ted Cruz – a huge Glenn Youngkin supporter, btw – is one of the worse “shitposters”)
• National Review Confirms ‘Startling’ Report On Trump’s Current Grasp Of Reality (“The former president reportedly believes he’s returning to the White House this summer… and that’s not all.”)
• We Can’t Dismiss the Restoration of Captain Crazypants or Ignore Him and Hope He’ll Go Away
• Michael Flynn, and Trump’s lasting elevation of the fringe
• In pro-Trump speech, Pence says he doesn’t know if they’ll ‘ever see eye-to-eye’ on Jan. 6 Capitol attack (So, let’s see: Trump incited a mob to kill a bunch of people, including Pence, while Pence didn’t want to be killed, so they don’t “see eye-to-eye” on that one. LOL!)
• Right-wing media flipped out over Kamala Harris’ Memorial Day weekend tweet, and mainstream news outlets took the bait — again (“After years of fake outrage during the Obama administration, it seems mainstream media haven’t learned anything.” They never learn, possibly incapable of learning.)
• This Undercover Operative Says She Recruited the Proud Boys for the GOP
• MyPillow Guy’s Bizarre New Lawsuit Invokes Sci-Fi and RICO
• Ron Johnson is still weighing whether to run for a third senate term next year, but says he’s ‘panicked’ for the nation (Maybe he should move to Russia and run there.)
• Facebook Plans to End Hands-Off Approach to Politicians’ Posts (It’s about f’ing time!)
• Facebook to end a longtime exception made for politicians who break its rules (“Facebook plans to announce Friday that it will no longer automatically give politicians a pass when they break the company’s hate speech rules, a major reversal after years of criticism that it was too deferential to powerful figures during the Trump presidency.” Duh. Also how about people who engage in climate science denial, COVID denial, etc?)
• A Former Treasury Official Was Sentenced To 6 Months In Prison For Giving Documents To BuzzFeed News
• F. Lee Bailey, defense lawyer for OJ Simpson and Patty Hearst, dies at 87
• Giuliani and Prosecutors Agree on Former Judge to Review Seized Materials
• U-Va. is investing $100 million in saving democracy. Can it make a difference?
• Steve Bannon Says The Big Lie Will Be a “Litmus Test” for the GOP; Will Jen Kiggans Admit Joe Biden Won the Election? (“Jen Kiggans hasn’t acknowledged the truth that Joe Biden won the presidential election and Republicans’ ‘litmus test’ of propagating The Big Lie makes clear why.”)
• With 17 Va. House incumbents being challenged, Tuesday could be a wild primary night
• McAuliffe still has fundraising lead among Democratic field
• FWIW Virginia: The Primary Preview Edition (“McAuliffe has strongly benefitted from a divided field, with the main alternatives, Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy and Sen. Jennifer McClellan splitting resources and votes”)
• Virginia Commits to Reducing Polluted Runoff from State Lands to Advance Chesapeake Bay Restoration
• McAuliffe, Lopez, and Filler-Corn Talk Small Business at Columbia Pike Pie Shop
• New Reports Show Virginia House Democrats Continuing To Grow Their Fundraising Advantage (“As Republicans fall further behind and continue parroting Donald Trump’s far-right extremism, they’re only growing further out of touch with Virginians”)
• Editorial: Make mental health a priority in Virginia (“Putting mental health front and center in Virginia means pushing for reform and funding to better the system and improving outcomes.”)
• VA Legislative Black Caucus Urges Adoption of the Recommendations in the VMI Special Report (“For too long these issues have gone ignored or swept under the rug”)
• Adams and Elliott face off for the Democratic nomination in House District 68
• What’s With the Scary Ads About Threats To Your Power Service? (Basically, they are Dominion-funded propaganda. Ignore.)
• Thursday (6/3) Virginia Data on COVID-19: Hospitalizations, 10-Day New COVID Cases Near Lowest Points Since Start of Pandemic
• Virginia Shifts Focus to Mobile, Nimble Vaccinations
• Richmond Police Chief Speaks: One Year After Protests Rocked Richmond
• Virginia Beach included in one of the nation’s largest extreme heat studies
• Virginia port harbor expansion funding is part of Biden’s proposed budget
• Editorial: VMI report questions: Why does institute get a ‘rape exemption’ in state law?
• In the past month, Black residents of Richmond accounted for more than 70% of the city’s COVID cases
• VCU expels Delta Chi, finding fraternity responsible for violations surrounding the death of a student
• Virginia Tech football player accused of murder appears in court; victim died of blunt force trauma
• D.C.-area forecast: A few strong storms (again) possible today before a drier weekend