Saturday News: “Strike on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet HQ ‘killed and wounded dozens'”; “‘It will save lives’: Biden and Harris launch federal gun control prevention office”; Far-Right GOP “Clowns” Like Bob Good “are sowing mass dysfunction”; Ophelia Makes Landfall

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, September 23.

• Arctic Lakes Are Carbon Banks. What Happens When They Heat Up?
• A climate scientist on how to recognize the new climate change denial
• The Climate Ambition Summit Was Notably Unambitious, Advocates Say (Massive failure.)
• Strike on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet HQ ‘killed and wounded dozens’ (“Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces said the attack left dozens dead and injured ‘including the senior leadership of the fleet’”)
• U.S. will send Ukraine ATACMS long-range missiles for the first time
• Zelensky Had a Bizarre and Frustrating Trip to the U.S. (“It must be warming Putin’s heart.”)
• Ukraine war: US to give Kyiv long-range ATACMS missiles – media reports
• Europe Pledged Ammunition for Ukraine. Providing It Is Another Challenge.
• Poland’s spat with Ukraine angered many in Europe, and was a gift for Putin (Poland’s ruling party is r
• Zelensky visit shows McCarthy walks ‘thin line’ on Ukraine aid
• Fields Fortified by Russia Become Pivotal to Ukraine’s Counteroffensive (“Ukrainian forces try to expand successful breach of defensive line near the village of Verbove”)
• Exclusive: Biden aides in talks with Vietnam for arms deal that could irk China
• Power, influence and scandal: Rupert Murdoch’s long lasting legacy in the U.K.
• Only 22% of Britons trust Sunak on climate, finds Guardian poll (Should be zero percent.)
• Canada’s explosive claims against India put US in a pinch
• Lachlan Murdoch ‘doubling down’ on right-wing strategy with Tony Abbott’s nomination to Fox board, say critics (Fox is most definitely NOT a news network, it’s 24/7/365 far-right propaganda. Oh, and it’s Glenn Youngkin’s safe space.)
• Rupert Murdoch’s out at Fox, but the damage to democracy lives on
• Brazil’s Top Court Rejects Attempt to Thwart Indigenous Land Claims
• Feds urged by Biden to widen use of “social cost” on climate change
• Biden’s Next Big Climate Decision (“The liquefied-natural-gas buildout—and fossil-fuel exports—challenge progress on global warming.”)
• UAW, Stellantis Remain at Odds Over Battery Jobs, Pay Parity
• Biden to join the picket line in UAW strike
• UAW widens strike against GM and Stellantis but not Ford
• GM, Stellantis dealers and customers face dwindling parts as UAW strike expands
• Tropical Storm Ophelia makes landfall in North Carolina and will now trek up the East Coast
• ‘It will save lives’: Biden and Harris launch federal gun control prevention office (“Vice-president to lead office tasked with coordinating mental and physical health services and exploring executive actions”)
• Why Biden’s latest gun violence initiative has activists optimistic
• Revelations of Clarence Thomas’s Koch links stoke supreme court reform calls (“Senate judiciary panel member Whitehouse says ‘Oh, my’ after report links justice to hard-right Koch network”)
• Kagan says ‘good faith disagreements’ holding up ethics code (Nothing is “good faith” when it comes to corrupt scumbags like Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, etc.)
• Of Course Clarence Thomas Was Cozy With the Kochs
• WSJ POLL: Americans Don’t Want Another Impeachment Fight
• The federal government is headed into a shutdown. What does it mean, who’s hit and what’s next?
• Schumer in talks with McConnell as shutdown fears grow: ‘We may now have to go first’
• Democrat rips McCarthy for pulling Ukraine funding: ‘All he does is say yes’
• Katherine Clark names the Democrats’ price to save Kevin McCarthy
• White House Preparing For Government Shutdown As House Republicans Lack A Viable Endgame For Funding (“The White House has directed federal agencies to get ready for a shutdown after House Republicans left town for the weekend with no viable plan.”)
• The Wrecking-Ball Caucus: How the Far Right Brought Washington to Its Knees (“Far-right Republicans are sowing mass dysfunction, and spoiling for a shutdown, an impeachment, a House coup and a military blockade.”)
• In a leaderless House, the ‘clowns’ stumble toward a shutdown
• The House Is a Mess. And Matt Gaetz Is Loving It.
• House Republicans eye long-term funding without deal yet to avert shutdown
• Judge overseeing case to remove Trump from ballot agrees to order banning threats and intimidation
• Jack Smith adds war crimes prosecutor — his deputy from the Hague — to special counsel team
• Video: Ahead of RNC Debate, Biden-Harris 2024 Announces New Latino Ad, “La Diferencia” (“Republicans talk a lot of game, but Joe Biden actually delivers for Latinos”)
• Donald Trump Is Not of Two Minds About Abortion
• Judge asked to decide if Trump property valuations were fraud or “genius” (Definitely fraud.)
• Former White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson says Trump is “dangerous for the country”
• Nebraska Mother Gets Prison For Giving Abortion Pills To Pregnant Daughter
• Bob Menendez’s indictment highlights: Gold bars and wads of cash
• Does Robert Menendez Have Enough Teflon to Survive Again? (Hopefully not.)
• Gold Bullion and Halal Meat: Inside the Menendez Investigation
• Democrats need to shove Menendez off the stage
• Menendez resists Democrats’ mounting calls to resign
• ‘This is horrifying’: Top New Jersey Democrats call on Bob Menendez to resign after his second indictment (Agreed; he should resign immediately.)
• Andy Kim tells Menendez to resign
• Menendez steps down as Foreign Relations chairman after indictment
• New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy Calls On Sen. Robert Menendez To Resign
• Jann Wenner’s Biographer: “He Revealed the Ugly Truth of Rolling Stone” (“Sticky Fingers author Joe Hagan says Wenner built the rock magazine ‘for and about white men.'”)
• New York Times writer draws ire for blaming Biden’s economy for $78 airport meal (“After David Brooks posted a photo of his burger and whiskey, many pointed out the cost of the drink probably pushed up the tab” Brooks is abysmal.)
• What makes Elon Musk tick? I spent months following the same people as him to find out who fuels his curious worldview (The guy’s bonkers.)
• Steve Bannon calls Fox News “TV for stupid people” (Bannon: “Their entire thing is to drill you with Republican talking points to dumb you down and follow Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, McCarthy, everything.”)
• North Carolina Republicans Just Passed a Massive Power Grab to Seize Control of Elections (“A new law could give the GOP legislature the ability to overturn results and cut early voting in Democratic areas.” Insane and VERY dangerous.)
• Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson switches to Republican Party (Utterly ridiculous.)
• How Texas became the new “homebase” for white nationalist and neo-Nazi groups
• Q&A: How the Wolves’ Return Enhances Biodiversity (“In Yellowstone National Park, the reintroduction of the gray wolf in the 1990s has helped reduce an exploding elk population, which in turn helped save plants along streams and rivers, which provide habitat for migrating birds, building materials for beavers, and dam ponds for fish and frogs.”)
• Sen. Tim Kaine Warns of Shutdown impact on Virginia; Federal agencies begin preparing for partial shutdown
• VA Early Voting Starts TODAY: “Every seat in the Virginia General Assembly is crucial, and your vote is vital to curb GOP extremism.” (Early voting “increases turnout, banks votes, and frees up GOTV resources to focus on turning out other Democratic voters.”)
• Statement by the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) on the First Day of Early Voting for the Virginia Legislative Elections (“If Democrats lose both chambers, millions of people will have their fundamental rights… taken away under Youngkin’s rule.”)
• Everytown for Gun Safety Announce >$1.5 Million Investment in Virginia, New Round of Endorsements and Polling (“The vast majority of Virginia voters say gun violence is an important issue when voting”)
• FOIA Friday: Loudoun sex assault report and more police roster withholdings
• Flip and Defend-A-District Friday: Volume XIV (Sen. Jennifer Boysko, Phil Hernandez, Robyn Lady, Jimmy Bierman) (“Early voting is underway. The future of Virginia could very well be determined by just a handful of votes, especially in battleground districts. Every vote counts.”)
• Mental health pilot program for Virginia schools shows early results
• Democrat Nadarius Clark Rips (White) Republican Opponent – “darkening my skin, my opponent is making it very clear that a vote for [me] is a vote for a black man” (Disgusting, but nothing new with the VA GOP – the same party that in 2021 sent out mailers with violent racist imagery, grotesque anti-Semitism, etc.)
• Youngkin declares state of emergency ahead of Tropical Storm Ophelia
• Harry Jackson, Fairfax candidate, sued over fake porn actor account (“A Fairfax County mother filed a lawsuit alleging that a school board candidate used her name and photo to pose as a failed porn actress online.”)
• Richmond schools aim to counter learning loss with extra instruction
• Tropical Storm Ophelia just below hurricane strength as it heads toward Hampton Roads
• D.C.-area forecast: Wet and windy today, with flooding risks