by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, April 18.
- EU Parliament backs overhaul of Europe’s biggest climate policy (“The European Parliament on Tuesday approved sweeping reforms to make EU climate change policies more ambitious, including an upgrade of the bloc’s carbon market that is set to hike the cost of polluting in Europe.”)
- Putin visits two regions in Ukraine, Russia presses assault on Bakhmut
- West prepares for Putin to use ‘whatever tools he’s got left’ in Ukraine (“Officials ready for nuclear threats and cyber-attacks as part of Russian response to predicted counter-offensive”)
- US journalist arrested in Russia appears in court
- Putin visits Russian troops in occupied Ukraine
- Vladimir Kara-Murza’s last statement to Russian court: A reckoning will come (Hopefully.)
- Vladimir Kara-Murza, and Russia, should live in freedom
- FBI Investigating Ex-Navy Noncommissioned Officer Linked to Pro-Russia Social-Media Account
- Pro-Russia propagandist unmasked as New Jersey tropical fish seller
- F.B.I. Arrests Two on Charges Tied to Chinese Police Outpost in New York
- China’s Economy Rebounds After Covid Isolation
- Egypt nearly supplied rockets to Russia, agreed to arm Ukraine instead, leak shows
- Brazil’s welcome of Russian minister prompts U.S. blowback (Completely unacceptable.)
- Tunisian police detain Ennahda leader Ghannouchi, evacuate party headquarters
- After American’s Killing in Syria, F.B.I. Builds War Crimes Case Against Top Officials
- Clinton optimistic about power sharing in Northern Ireland after DUP talks
- Sudanese Army Rejects Call for Humanitarian Cease-Fire
- Rival armed forces intensify battle for control of Sudan as civilian death toll rises
- Iran cracks down to reimpose strict dress code
- Facing brutal climate math, US bets billions on direct air capture
- What if Walmart Turned Its Parking Lots Into Solar Farms?
- Joint Chiefs shuffle: Biden’s top contenders to replace Trump’s military leaders
- House GOP puts on united front as conflict brews behind the scenes (“After 100 days in control, House Republicans have not reached consensus on how they will handle a vote on raising the debt ceiling.”)
- Kevin McCarthy Offers Tough Talk in Lieu of Actual Debt-Limit Plan (“With entitlement ‘reforms’ off the table and Republicans divided on defense spending, the Speaker has little to propose and no way to enact it.”)
- Kevin McCarthy To Wall Street: Be Afraid (If the U.S. defaults, it will be 100% the fault of Kevin McCarthy and his band of House Republican extremists.)
- The US economy could depend on McCarthy corralling his extremist Republican troops
- ‘Reckless’: Schumer calls out McCarthy over debt limit plan
- Plutocratic Power and Its Perils (“I still believe that the concentration of wealth at the top is undermining democracy. But it isn’t a simple story of plutocratic rule. It is, instead, a story in which the attempts of the superrich to get what they want have unleashed forces that may destroy America as we know it. And it’s terrifying.”)
- Yes in Our Backyards (“It’s time progressives like me learned to love the green building boom.”)
- The Impunity of Clarence Thomas (“This is all to say that the United States is a nation of laws, and not men, if you are an ordinary citizen. However, with a little money and a little power — or at least a seat on the Supreme Court — the law becomes less of a directive and more of a suggestion.”)
- Senate Dems weighing a Clarence Thomas invite to future Supreme Court ethics hearing
- Clarence Thomas’s explanations fail the laugh test
- Red State Voters Support Anti-Trans Laws. Their Lawmakers Are Delivering.
- The MAGA litigation explosion: The rule of law isn’t comatose yet
- Two-thirds say Congress shouldn’t interfere with Trump legal probes: poll
- Let’s all stop pretending anyone but Trump will be the GOP presidential nominee (“GOP voters don’t want ‘generational change’ and ‘moving forward.’ Being MAGA means bitterly clinging to the past”)
- Trump urges Murdoch to embrace false 2020 election claims in Dominion trial
- Why settling the Dominion lawsuit is so imperative for Fox News
- Fox News and Dominion trial kicks off with opening statements in defamation suit
- Dominion’s history-making defamation trial against Fox News over 2020 election lies kicks off in Delaware
- What Dominion Has to Prove in Its Case Against Fox News
- GOP governor says he’s urged Fox News to break out of its ‘echo chamber’
- Here’s Why You Likely Won’t See Images of Fox News Stars Entering Court
- DeSantisland Tries Its Hand at Out-Trumping Trump (“A super PAC backing the Florida governor highlighted the ex-president’s legal woes as well as his stance on gun control.”)
- Trump remains silent on DeSantis’ six-week abortion ban
- DeSantis, in Latest Volley Against Disney, Suggests Punitive Steps
- DeSantis’s Thuggish Threats Against Disney
- DeSantis says lawmakers will reassert control of Reedy Creek, jokes about building prison (That’s supposed to be a “joke?” DeSantis is a psychopath and a fascist.)
- Disney announces LGBTQ event night at its California resort immediately after DeSantis threats
- ‘Stop the Steal’ Organizer Apologizes After Being Accused of Asking Teen Boys for D*ck Pics
- The Far Right Is Roiled by an Underage-Sex Scandal
- Rep. Paul Gosar promotes pro-Hitler and Holocaust-denying site after it praised him for attacking “Jewish warmongers”
- 5 takeaways from Jim Jordan’s NYC hearing into Alvin Bragg and crime (Anything “Gym” Jordan is involved with is a complete farce.)
- GOP Rep. George Santos of New York announces re-election bid
- Dianne Feinstein Is Becoming a Big Liability—And Republicans Know It (“The 89-year-old senator, who has been on medical leave since February, is giving Mitch McConnell and Co power to block Joe Biden’s court nominees by refusing to step down.”)
- Republicans reject Feinstein committee swap, putting Democrats in a bind (She needs to resign, immediately.)
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Soon to Announce White House Run, Sows Doubts About Vaccines (He’s a total nutjob.)
- Creationist Theme Park Pal Charged with Child Sex Abuse—Again
- The Violent Fantasy Behind the Texas Governor’s Pardon Demand
- Judge Who Could Shift N.Y.’s Highest Court Left Sails Through Hearing
- 84-Year-Old Is Charged in Shooting of Black Teenager Who Went to Wrong House
- Teenager went to multiple houses asking for help after homeowner shot him
- Saratoga County woman killed after turning into wrong driveway (“Kaylin Gillis of Saratoga County was shot Saturday evening; a 65-year-old stands charged with second-degree murder”)
- FBI investigating GOP Oklahoma officials caught on tape talking about lynching Black people, murdering newspaper reporters
- Oklahoma officials accused of talk of killing journalists
- Video: Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA07) Says She “support[s] giving the Ukrainians anything they need to win this war, and that includes F-16s” (“…the Ukrainians are doing the hard work of fighting, they are an incredibly motivated military force, very talented.”)
- Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-VA04) Demands Answers from AdvanSix Hopewell About Repeated Toxic Chemical Releases (“The cancer mortality rate is almost double the state average, and the rate of hospitalization for asthma is three times the norm”)
- Reproductive rights are at risk in the 2023 Virginia legislative elections
- 1Q2023 Virginia Campaign Finance Numbers Start Coming In; Here Are Some Highlights
- Virginia election officials change process for removing dead people from voter rolls
- 12 Virginia Delegates are hoping to move to the state Senate
- Commentary: Virginia must resist efforts to roll back voting rights
- As state revenues soften, Youngkin expects plenty of money for tax cuts
- Virginia tries to save salamander with lineage dating back to ice age
- Forest service issues MVP permit — environmentalists will sue
- Commentary: The Va. Tech tragedy sparked reform. More is needed
- VA House of Delegates 2nd District Candidate Adele McClure Announces She Raised $79k in 1Q23; Also Lists 100+ Endorsements
- Virginia corrections supervisor promoted after alleged choking incident
- Roanoke council members say Priddy’s audit comments politically motivated
- Richmond one step closer to eliminating parking minimums
- Unchecked: Richmond Public Schools fire safety in ‘trouble’ mode
- Snapshot of Richmond Public Schools’ fire safety inspections
- Fairfax grand jury declines to indict officer who killed man near Tysons
- D.C.-area forecast: Bright and breezy today; heating up into the 80s later this week
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