Friday News: “Fresh Rescue Efforts Under Way at Ukraine’s Azovstal Steel Plant”; “Esper book details Trump rage at Pence and proposal to hit Mexico with missiles”; “The Death of Roe Is Going to Tear America Apart”; “Early in-person voting begins in Virginia” For 6/21 Primaries

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, May 6.

🚨EXCLUSIVE Hillary Clinton on leaked draft opinion: “This opinion is dark…And it is not just about a woman’s right to choose, it is about much more than that…Once you allow this kind of extreme power to take hold, you have no idea who they will come for next” @cbseveningnews pic.twitter.com/tAIoxNvIGv

— Norah O’Donnell 🇺🇸 (@NorahODonnell) May 5, 2022

• It’s Not Too Late to Stop Mass Extinction in the Ocean (“New research offers hope, but the ultimate fate of marine life hinges on our behavior.”)
• The horrific bird flu that’s wiped out 36 million chickens and turkeys, explained (“Bird flu currently poses little threat to humans, but it’s hell for the birds.”)
• Hellish COVID Variants Are Cracking the Code to Our Immunity (“The speed of mutations has reached a new height, and the subvariants breaking out around the world now are the most transmissible yet.”)
• Amid Ukraine’s ruins, Russia is rebuilding totalitarianism
• Fresh Rescue Efforts Under Way at Ukraine’s Azovstal Steel Plant
• Ukraine says Russian efforts to take territory are confined
• Inside Ukraine’s Besieged Azovstal Steel Plant: Siphoning Fuel, Singing Songs and Surviving the Night
• U.S. intel helped Ukraine sink Russian flagship Moskva, officials say
• Mariupol mayor’s office: Video shows conditions in Russian ‘filtration camp’ (“Displaced Ukrainians from Mariupol were allegedly threatened by Russian soldiers with torture and executions at the filtration camp.”)
• Ukraine Launches Offensive Against Russia in Northeast
• Russian oligarch’s $300 million yacht seized by Fiji on behalf of U.S.
• US intelligence helping Ukraine kill Russian generals, report says
• Russians wreak havoc on Ukrainian farms, mining fields and stealing equipment
• EU tweaks Russia oil sanctions plan in bid to win over reluctant states – sources
• Germany to send seven self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine
• The Information War in Ukraine Is Far From Over
• The AP Interview: Belarus admits Russia’s war ‘drags on’
• Defenders inside Ukrainian steel mill refuse to surrender
• Mariupol steelworks civilian rescue bid under way
• EXCLUSIVE CIA chief told Bolsonaro government not to mess with Brazil election, sources say
• Israel searches for attackers who killed 3 in mass stabbing
• UK Conservatives lose London strongholds, in blow to Johnson
• Boris Johnson’s Woes Seen in Election Loss of Posh London District for First Time Ever
• Facebook Deliberately Caused Havoc in Australia to Influence New Law, Whistleblowers Say
• Congress fires its first warning shot on Biden’s Iran deal
• Jill Biden heads to Romania and Slovakia to show support for NATO and Ukraine
• Xi Jinping sends warning to anyone who questions China’s zero-Covid policy
• FDA puts strict limits on Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine (“The FDA said in a statement that the change is being made because of the risk of a rare and dangerous clotting condition called thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS) after receiving the vaccine.”)
• Millions retired early during the pandemic. Many are now returning to work, new data shows
• U.S. Job Growth Was Sturdy in April, Economists Forecast
• Dow, S&P 500 Slide More Than 3% as Investors Reassess Fed Comments
• US hiring was likely strong again in April despite inflation
• Roe established abortion rights. 20 years later, Casey paved the way for restrictions (“The 5-4 decision of Planned Parenthood v. Casey upheld Roe in 1992 but paved the way for more restrictions on abortion access.”)
• Where Americans Stand On Abortion, In 5 Charts(“How polls ask about support varies, but the vast majority of respondents — somewhere between 85 and 90 percent, according to most polls — think abortion should be legal in at least some circumstances.)
• Justice Alito Cited a Few Cromwellian Nightmares In His Draft Opinion
• Alito’s draft ruling on abortion is a warning to LGBTQ Americans
• Liberals are right to panic about what will follow Roe’s demise (“If anything, we aren’t panicked enough about what the right has planned.”)
• Stare decisis is essential to social stability. The court doesn’t care. (“The Supreme Court is blind to the havoc overturning Roe’s precedent will have.”)
• The right-wing justices think they are unaccountable. Wrong.
• Jewish Leaders: Banning Abortion is ‘Absolutely’ a Violation of Religious Freedom
• John Roberts calls Supreme Court leak ‘absolutely appalling’ (Roberts is FAR more concerned with the leak in this case than with the actual substance. Roberts is ALSO more concerned with this, than with the fact that Clarence Thomas is married to an insurrectionist, that Brett Kavanaugh has MAJOR ethical concerns, that Neil Gorsuch sits in a STOLEN seat, etc. In sum, John Roberts is a f’ing douchebag.)
• How the leak might have happened
• Putting Together the Pieces on The Campaign to Stop Roberts
• Abortion has been treated as a fringe issue by Democrats for decades. This is the result. (“The likely fall of Roe will roll back access for millions. It will also strike at the heart of American democracy.”)
• Louisiana Republicans Want to Charge People Who Undergo Abortions With Homicide (“They’re not stopping at just overturning Roe.”)
• Hillary Clinton on what happens if Roe v. Wade is overturned: “You have no idea who they will come for next”
• Conservatives: We’re All Trying to Find the Guy Who Leaked This (“People don’t always act rationally. Maybe the leaker was a liberal who was not thinking very clearly. But the fact pattern on its surface hardly supports the right’s putative certainty that the leaker came from the left. If a bank employee stole a small amount of money from the safe and then, a few days later, there was a huge robbery from the same safe, who would be your first suspect?”)
• After years of excusing violence against abortion providers, right-wing media fearmonger about post-Roe left-wing violence
• What Choice Does Biden Have? (“With the impending evisceration of Roe v. Wade, partisanship is the only course for a President in our broken system.”)
• Hillary Clinton Has Ominous Warning About What’s Next If Roe v. Wade Is Overturned (“This opinion is dark. It is incredibly dangerous and it is not just about a woman’s right to choose. It is about much more than that.”)
• The Death of Roe Is Going to Tear America Apart
• With Roe likely to fall, Senate Republicans weigh nationwide abortion restrictions
• Sen. Collins voices opposition to Democratic legislation that would create statutory right to abortion (But she is VERY “concerned,” with her brow firmly furrowed! LOL)
• Susan Collins Says No to Democrats’ Abortion-Rights Bill Because It Contains Too Many Abortion Rights (“The Maine lawmaker continues to insist she is pro-choice, however.”)
• The Supreme Court Has Been Leaking for Years
• After Roe: 9 legal experts on what rights the Supreme Court might target next (“Does Justice Alito’s draft opinion hint at future rollbacks on marriage equality, birth control, and other issues?” Yep.)
• A New Milestone in the Sundering of America
• Trump Proposed Launching Missiles Into Mexico to ‘Destroy the Drug Labs,’ Esper Says (Insane.)
• Esper: Stephen Miller called for a “quarter-million troops” to respond to migrant caravan (Also insane.)
• I warned national guard of possible coup, Trump defense secretary says (“Mark Esper writes in new memoir of how worried he was that Trump would try to use US military to hold on to power”)
• Esper book details Trump rage at Pence and proposal to hit Mexico with missiles
• Defamation lawsuit over Trump rape claim by writer E. Jean Carroll set to resume discovery, lawyers say
• Democrats can learn from WWE as they fight against Trump and Republicans
• Justice Department Launches Comprehensive Environmental Justice Strategy
• Why J.D. Vance’s crude nationalism still might not be the GOP’s future
• Dana Milbank: Republicans’ 2023 agenda: Hunter Biden, Hunter Biden, Hunter Biden
• Democrats are mad. Maybe Biden is catching up. (“The president needs to align with the fiery mood of his voters.”)
• Police instructors with far-right ties are training hundreds of cops
• ‘Dancing Monkey’ Lindsey Graham Performs For Trump In ‘Extraordinary’ New Audio
• Fox’s Brian Kilmeade: “I don’t know why you’d give” a pregnant woman an “important” job
• Karine Jean-Pierre to become White House press secretary, the first Black and out LGBTQ person in the role
• Why a secretive tech billionaire is bankrolling J.D. Vance (“Behold the ugly nexus of reactionary capitalism and right-wing nationalism.”)
• Latest primaries show the insurrectionist spirit thriving in the GOP
• In Ohio Senate Race, Democrats Pin Their Hopes on the Suburbs
• Ron DeSantis Is Persona Non Grata at a Holocaust Memorial
• Youngest congressman defiant after naked tape leak
• GOP Candidate Suggests He’ll Tear-Gas ‘Liberal Media’ in New Campaign Ad
• Lin Wood Turns On ‘Audit’ Group He Backed After It Finds No Election Fraud
• GOP State Rep. Filmed Repeatedly Screaming ‘Murderers’ At Pro-Choice Activists (Completely unhinged.)
• New “Bipartisan Index” Finds Rep. Spanberger (D-VA07) #5 In U.S. House, Rep. Luria (D-VA02) #26, Rep. Bob Good (R-VA05) #431 (Fifth-LEAST Bipartisan House Member) (Sen. Warner #35 and Sen. Kaine #50 in the Senate)
• Two Republican newcomers face off in primary for Rep. Bobby Scott’s 3rd Congressional District seat
• Lawmakers call on Justice Dept. to reopen fatal Park Police shooting case
• Virginia is One Vote Away: Supreme Court Again Proves that “States Matter.” (Former VA House Dem Leader David Toscano: “Our House of Delegates is clearly ready to pass a draconian bill and Governor Youngkin would likely sign it.”)
• Guest editorial: Guidera is talking, but is she listening?
• Schapiro: Abortion debate has both Va. parties retooling
• Should state regulators consider the societal cost?
• Pope & Schapiro: The state of abortion and abortion politics in Virginia
• Gov. Youngkin’s Secretary of Health and His Anti-Abortion Record (“Littel was previously a lawyer for the Heritage Foundation, an organization dedicated to implementing an extreme far-right agenda”)
• [UPDATED] Boeing to Move Corporate HQ to Arlington – One of the “Bluest” Places in Virginia (Boeing previously made major investments in Arlington – as did Nestle and Amazon – during the McAuliffe and Northam administrations…)
• Boeing Plans to Relocate Its Headquarters to Virginia From Chicago
• BREAKING: Arlington landing Boeing corporate headquarters
• Boeing Plans to Move Headquarters to Arlington, Va., From Chicago (“Aerospace giant’s move to Washington, D.C., area would bring senior executives closer to federal decision makers”)
• Early in-person voting begins in Virginia
• Virginia 10-Day New COVID-19 Cases Down 91% Compared to 1/19; Hospitalizations Down to 210 From ~4,000 in January
• Youngkin tightens remote work policies for Virginia state employees
• Youngkin plans to end most remote work for state employees (“Move marks a major shift for workers after more than two years of permissive work-from-home policies”)
• Youngkin wants state workers to return to offices under policy effective July 5
• $100M facility at Lambert’s Point Docks to bring hundreds of jobs to Norfolk as offshore wind industry emerges, developer says
• Dominion asks to halt ratepayer charge for carbon market
• Dominion asks for $9 increase to customer bills
• Del. Simon Mulls Richmond Leadership Slot (“If he accepts his election when the Richmond legislature is reconvened later this month primarily to hammer out unresolved budget issues with the governor, Simon will foreclose at least temporarily on his aspirations to seek election to the state senate next year. He instead would go for reelection to a fifth term as delegate from the 53rd district.”)
• Squire running for 55th District Democratic nomination (“Over the course of Friday, Squire plans to drive through the entire district, meeting with voters in Louisa County, Zion’s Crossroads, Scottsville, Hollymead, Afton and ending with a small rally in Crozet in the evening. Albemarle County Board of Supervisors Chair Donna Price also announced this week that she is running as a Democrat for the 55th District seat.”)
• Richmond employees speak against mayor’s stricter collective bargaining proposal
• Former Norfolk State football player from Virginia Beach says he was sexually assaulted and hazed by teammates
• D.C.-area forecast: Rain’s ahead, and it’s rather raw this weekend