Friday News: “Liz Truss’s fall is a warning to populists everywhere”; “Vote GOP! We’ll fix the economy by making the rest of life worse, too!”; “US Weighs Security Reviews for Musk Deals, Including Twitter Buy”; Youngkin Spreads “False claim that CDC would require covid vaccines for kids”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, October 21.

• Once Cheap, Wind and Solar Prices Are Up 34%. What’s the Outlook? (“Renewable energy costs are rising along with those of all electricity sources—but the Inflation Reduction Act sets the stage for prices to decline again.”)
• Asia’s energy supply looks secure — even as Europe scrambles
• As Inflation Pummels Europe, Leaders Shudder
• Russia could be about to withdraw its troops from another part of Ukraine
• Putin’s war crimes victims are joining forces — and they want him behind bars
• A $1 trillion question for the West: How to rebuild a shattered Ukraine
• Opinion: Putin’s former admirers are thinking twice
• Ukraine poised for crucial blow to Putin in battle for Kherson
• The lessons of the Cuban missile crisis are lost on Putin
• Ukrainian police complete exhumation of largest mass grave in de-occupied Lyman
• Zelenskiy calls on West to warn Russian not to blow up dam
• Iran sent troops to Crimea to help Russia use Iranian-made drones, Biden admin officials say
• Kevin McCarthy’s ugly new Ukraine threats should prod Democrats to act
• Russian threats revive old nuclear fears in central Europe
• General who led Syrian bombing is new face of Russian war (Pure evil, war criminal, etc.)
• Race for British prime minister is on (again) after Liz Truss quits
• Liz Truss’s demise, and other economic lessons from Europe
• Liz Truss’s fall is a warning to populists everywhere
• After a Storm, Britain’s Economy Finds Itself Rudderless
• Why Yet Another UK Prime Minister Resigned (“Conservative Liz Truss’s short tenure was defined by economic chaos, an invigorated opposition, and a mounting legitimacy crisis.”)
• U.K.’s Truss Doomed by Tax Plan, High Borrowing Costs
• The Ruination of Britain (This is what happens when you put right wingers in charge. Also, Brexit was a massive, self-inflicted disaster that the UK might never recover from.)
• What Happened to Liz Truss Can’t Happen Here (“The prime minister’s downfall shows that British democracy is still working. American dysfunction is far worse.”)
• Boris Johnson eyes comeback bid as UK Tories pick new leader
• Candidates to be new PM race to gather support of Tory MPs
• What the chaotic end of Liz Truss’ short rule means for Britain’s future
• Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak lead race to be UK’s next prime minister
• The big reveal: Xi set to introduce China’s next standing committee
• As leaders meet, Chinese hope for end to ‘zero-COVID’ limits
• Italy Meloni: Far-right leader poised to govern despite Putin row
• Republicans’ inflation plan: Tax cuts that’d make Liz Truss blush
• Covid-19 Vaccines Should Be Among Regular Immunizations, CDC Advisers Say (“The addition of the Covid-19 shots to the lists wouldn’t mean the CDC would require them. Rather, the CDC would be recommending people get the shots as a regular part of their vaccinations against long-running infectious diseases.”)
• False claim that CDC would require covid vaccines for kids goes viral (“‘This is an all new level of dangerous misinformation,’ says former top health official” And Glenn Youngkin is spreading it!)
• Coronavirus tally: CDC corrects false claim it will mandate COVID vaccine for school children, saying that’s up to states
• Student-Loan Forgiveness Program Clears Hurdle as Judge Rejects GOP Bid to Block It
• Barrett denies emergency bid to block Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan
• Investigation of leaked Roe v. Wade reversal sucked into the Supreme Court’s vortex of secrecy
• Why Harvesting Solar Energy Is a Win for America’s Farmers (“Agrivoltaics reduce emissions, save water, and may even boost crop yields.”)
• Will Gas Prices Doom Democracy?
• There Is a Way to Make America Safe for Democracy (“If it were up to majorities of Americans — and if, more important, the American political system more easily allowed majorities to express their will — then Congress would have already strengthened the Voting Rights Act, codified abortion rights into law and protected the civil rights of L.G.B.T.Q. Americans. Even the legislative victories most Americans rightfully admire — like the Civil Rights Act of 1964 — were only possible with a supermajority of lawmakers assembled in the wake of a presidential assassination.”)
• Please, media, stop pitting abortion against inflation — Republicans suck on both issues (“Republicans have no ideas on how to fix the economy — and what they are planning will only make things worse”)
• Vote GOP! We’ll fix the economy by making the rest of life worse, too!
• What’s in the so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill that could impact the whole country
• Five investigations House Republicans are plotting if they win majority
• Republicans plan to torpedo key Biden policies as polls predict midterm victory
• The ‘election-denier trifecta’: alarm over Trumpists’ efforts to win key posts
• The inside threat to American elections (“One Georgia election official posted a greeting to ‘fellow insurrectionists.’ One in Nevada said that Trump won in 2020.”)
• ‘Gaffes’ aside, I once assumed GOP goodwill on race. I was wrong. (Why would anyone ever have assumed that? So weird.)
• Ahead of Midterms, Disinformation Is Even More Intractable (This, by the NY Times – of course – is a classic of how NOT to write a headline. In fact, that “disinformation” is coming about 100% from Republicans/the right wing, yet the headline doesn’t say so!)
• A high school student’s mural angers parents over what they say are hidden messages (These parents are suffering from some sort of mass psychosis?)
• Hawley is right that there’s a masculinity crisis. It’s inside the GOP.
• Prosecutors detail Oath Keepers’ mounting frustration with Trump as Jan. 6 approached
• Exclusive: Trump adviser Kash Patel has appeared before grand jury in Mar-a-Lago document probe
• Loeffler, Cipollone testify to grand jury in Georgia
• Loeffler’s texts post-2020 election go public, raising new investigative questions
• Lindsey Graham must testify in 2020 election investigation, court rules
• US Weighs Security Reviews for Musk Deals, Including Twitter Buy
• Twitter, Musk Talks Warm Up as Buyout Closing Deadline Nears
• Musk said he will cut nearly 75 percent of Twitter’s staff if he takes control (“The impact of such layoffs would likely be felt immediately by millions of users and would put them at risk of hacks and exposure to offensive material such as child pornography, insiders said.”)
• Documents detail plans to gut Twitter’s workforce
• Right-wing media call Democrats extreme on abortion while mainstream media suggest their positions are out of touch
• How Tucker Carlson sanitizes the GOP’s extremists
• One America News is spoon-feeding its viewers Russian propaganda about the war in Ukraine
• TikTok Parent ByteDance Planned To Use TikTok To Monitor The Physical Location Of Specific American Citizens
• ‘Bless His Heart’: Jeb Bush Responds to Trump’s False Allegation About His Father’s Handling of Government Documents (Very weak, as usual, from “JEB!”)
• InsiderAdvantage/FOX 29 poll: Fetterman, Oz neck and neck as Shapiro’s lead over Mastriano narrows
• In North Carolina Senate Race, Global Warming Is On The Back Burner. Do Voters Even Care?
• Alaska’s Independents Have Something to Say to the Rest of the Country (“The state’s independents seem poised to swing dramatically toward the Democrats. And that could be bad news for Republicans in the Lower 48.”)
• Conspiracy Group Leader Boasts of Helping GOP Governor Candidate’s Campaign (“Stand Up Michigan’s leader loves the demon sperm doc and Capitol rioters. She also claims tight ties to a GOP governor candidate, new audio shows”)
• The ‘most important person’ on Kari Lake’s campaign mocked Native Americans in racist tweet
• Steve Bannon: Former Trump strategist facing jail time in contempt case
• Newsmax Bans Lara Logan After She Goes Full QAnon, Spews Blood Libel on Network
• Anti-‘woke’ school board candidate facing furious backlash for suggesting that all Nazis weren’t bad
• Kevin Spacey found not liable in sex abuse suit brought by Anthony Rapp
• Parler was jubilant about Kanye West buying it. Then the problems started.
• Sen. Mark Warner Sends Letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Questions Company’s Collection of Individuals’ Health Information Without User Consent (Sen. Warner: “I am troubled by the recent revelation that the Meta Pixel was installed on a number of hospital websites”)
• Daniel Smith, one of the last children of enslaved Americans, dies at 90 (RIP)
• Climate Change Is a National Security Issue, Tim Kaine Says (Big time!)
• Graphics, Analysis: TargetSmart Finds Virginia Early Vote at 56.7% Democratic-28.7% Republican (Compared to 54.3% D-31.7% R at This Point in 2020) (Early voting totals are down from 2020 and up from 2018, which isn’t surprising for a variety of reasons.)
• Following the Funds: Luria, Kiggans and PACs spend big in pivotal congressional race
• Pro-Israel Groups Rally Behind Embattled Democratic Ally in Virginia (“Democratic Rep. Elaine Luria is widely seen as one of Israel’s most ardent supporters. AIPAC and Democratic Majority for Israel are spending big to help her win one of the country’s tightest races”)
• Video: Rep. Elaine Luria Releases 15th TV Ad of Cycle, Highlights Her Independent Voice and Bipartisan Record in Congress
• GOP’s Cao opposes Ukraine aid in debate with Wexton (This guy is a disaster.)
• Cao, Wexton Meet in Third and Final Debate in Virginia’s 10th Congressional District
• Youngkin on new transgender policies: ‘It’s the law’ (No, guidelines are not “the law.” Youngkin is VERY confused.)
• There’s Something in the Water in Virginia. Before You Say ‘Yuck,’ Wait. (“A crucial aquifer is running low, so officials are pumping in treated sewage. It’s an increasingly common strategy as heavy demand and climate change strain water supplies.”)
• Virginia joins multistate investigation into major banks’ net-zero commitments (WTF?)
• Monkeypox cases are almost gone in Virginia
• Board of Education delays review of history, social sciences standards again
• Potential class-action suit seeks overtime pay for Virginia General Assembly aides
• Voter Guide: Southwest & Southside Virginia
• Herndon Voters Sent Incorrect Voting Information by Youngkin Administration (“Instead of gallivanting across the country for election conspiracy theorists, Governor Youngkin should be in the state he was elected to serve”)
• Voters in Northern Virginia towns receive notices with incorrect voting location
• Editorial: Honoring Missy Elliott can inspire future generations to dream big
• Thanking bus drivers, seeking more: Chesapeake schools tackling a critical shortage, and they aren’t alone
• Alexandria guaranteed income program will provide $500 a month for 2 years
• ‘This is not a home’: What life in a motel is like for this Richmond family
• D.C.-area forecast: Warmer, sunny end to the workweek