Thursday News: “From a ‘wake’ to ‘Mardi Gras’: With Harris, the Democratic convention is a hot ticket”; Trump’s Campaign Manager “Swift Boated” John Kerry, Now Trying to Do the Same to Tim Walz; “Vance Makes Bizarre Attempt to Storm Harris’ Empty Plane”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, August 8.

• Repeating climate denial claims makes them seem more credible, Australian-led study finds (“Even those who are concerned about climate crisis were influenced by false claims, showing how ‘insidious’ repetition is, researcher says”)
• How life-threatening are heat waves going to be with global warming?
• Hottest ocean temperatures in 400 years an ‘existential threat’ to the Great Barrier Reef, researchers find (“Researchers say coral analysis shows recent extreme temperatures would not have happened without greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels”)
• Ditching factory farming can help prevent another pandemic (Factory farms are bad for the environment, for human health, for animals, etc, etc. Don’t buy from them.)
• Russian official in the Kursk region says fighting continues in Ukraine incursion
• Steve Rosenberg: Kursk incursion won’t turn Russians against war
• Russia Declares Emergency in Border Region After Ukraine Assault
• Sinwar Power Grab Cements Hamas-Iran Ties (Sinwar is evil.)
• Scoop: Israel told U.S. Hezbollah will pay “disproportionate price” if attack hits civilians
• The Toll of 10 Months of Simmering Conflict on the Israel-Lebanon Border (“Satellite data shows the devastation “)
• Walz has history with China – it’s more hawkish than critics claim
• Walz’s decades of China experience are an asset, not a liability
• ‘A climate of terror’: Maduro cracks down on Venezuelans protesting contested election win (“After apparent efforts to steal the election, the president sent forces to round people up in ‘Operation knock-knock’”)
• Roadblocks set up as police search for separatist Carles Puigdemont after his return to Barcelona – Europe live (“Spain’s supreme court upheld arrest warrant despite amnesty law offered by country’s PM in May”)
• Yunus lands in Bangladesh to lead caretaker government
• Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna canceled after Austrian police say foiled terror plot targeted shows
• Austria says main suspect in Taylor Swift concert plot backed Islamic State
• Death toll for birds hitting buildings may be over 1 billion a year in US – report (Horrific/disaster. FIX THIS!)
• As inflation fury lingers, politicians join customers in pushing companies to cut prices
• Abortions exceed pre-Roe numbers as telehealth access grows
• 31% of Republicans say vaccines are more dangerous than diseases they prevent (So, 31% of Republicans are complete imbeciles.)
• Senate Democrats begin onslaught against GOP opponents
• Majority of Americans say democracy is on the ballot this fall but differ on threat, AP poll finds
• How Trump’s “Mass Deportation” Plan Would Ruin America (“It would be brutal, costly, and likely illegal.”)
• At the Center of the Right-Wing Revival? Hating Immigrants (White nationalism.)
• Delayed publication of Heritage president’s book reflects Project 2025 shell game
• Trump took a private flight with Project 2025 leader in 2022
• Trump complains about campaign as advisers try to focus on attacking Harris
• Biden “not confident” Trump will accept 2024 election results (“President Biden said he is “not confident at all” that there will be a peaceful transfer of power in January 2025 if former President Donald Trump is defeated.”)
• Historian Timothy Ryback on Kamala Harris’ rise: “If only Germans had had such an alternative”
• Trump can’t take a joke. Democrats need to use that.
• Trump’s meltdown during Harris-Walz rally sounds alarm: Will family get him help or just ‘cash his checks?’
• How the Harris surge scrambled Trump’s battle plan
• Trump keeps losing his train of thought. Cognitive experts have theories about why
• What’s the Meaning of Trump’s ‘Kamabla’ Nickname? Unclear! (“Is he calling Harris ‘blah’? Referencing Obama? Just being racist?”)
• Trump, Off The Campaign Trail, Comes Up With New Puerile Insult For Harris: ‘Kamabla’
• Donald Trump, Who Has Been Likened to Hitler by His Own Running Mate, Claims Tim Walz as VP Pick Is “Insulting to Jewish People” (“Trump has also baselessly asserted that Kamala Harris, who is married to a Jewish man, “doesn’t like Jewish people.””)
• Trump Says He’ll Focus on Issues. His Allies Are Not Holding Their Breath. (At “best,” Trump will spew lies about immigration, crime, etc.)
• Trump complains about campaign as advisers try to focus on attacking Harris
• J.D. Vance Awkwardly Retreats After Bizarre Attempt to Storm Harris’ Empty Plane
• Harris Rides Momentum in Midwest as Vance Eyes Air Force Two
• Voters like Tim Walz a lot more than JD Vance, new poll suggests
• It’s getting worse for JD Vance
• Harris, Walz and Democrats’ Joyful Campaign
• I Was at the Harris-Walz Philadelphia Rally. My Ears Are Still Ringing.
• The Walz-Vance Inversion (“Both candidates seek to appeal to swing voters as well as their party’s base—but they do so in totally opposite ways.”)
• Far-right online attacks against Tim Walz focus on conspiracy theory (Completely deranged.)
• From a ‘wake’ to ‘Mardi Gras’: With Harris, the Democratic convention is a hot ticket
• ‘We’re not going back’: thousands rally for Harris and Walz in Wisconsin and Michigan (“Detroit rally draws 15,000 people and high energy despite Gaza protesters and medical incidents from summer heat”)
• “Weird” Is a Rebuke to Republican Dominance Politics (“The Democrats’ new favorite attack line has less to do with their opponents’ distance from the norm than with their desired level of control.”)
• JD Vance Is on a Stalker Tour of Swing States (Such a weird, creepy dude.)
• Despite new criticism, Trump told Walz in 2020 he was ‘very happy’ with his handling of George Floyd protests
• Tim Walz’s normal dad energy is causing MAGA to come unglued (“Walz is the opposite of weird: Kamala Harris’ running mate shows masculinity can be about love and not hate”)
• Tim Walz’s personal story spotlights IVF. That could be a problem for Republicans. (“Walz is framing IVF as an issue that affects men, too.”)
• Tim Walz’s Sudden Rise in the Democratic Party Was No Accident
• Gov. Tim Walz doesn’t own a single stock
• Right-wing media push old debunked smear of Walz’s military record despite his 24 years of service
• J.D. Vance’s New Attack on Tim Walz Proves Irony Is Dead
• Vance reopens line of attack into Walz’s military record as two veterans now vie to be vice president
• BREAKING: The New York Times helps JD Vance Swiftboat Tim Walz (Note that Trump’s campaign manager, Chris LaCivita, was the leader in “Swift Boating” John Kerry in 2004.)
• The Right-Wing Attacks On Tim Walz Are Weird
• MAGA media figures launch desperate — and weird — attacks on Harris vice presidential pick Tim Walz
• What’s behind Trump and Vance’s “stolen valor” attack on military vet Walz
• Harris Shuts Down Trumpian ‘Lock Him Up’ Chants
• ‘If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that’: Harris fires back at Gaza protesters at rally (If you’re concerned about Gaza and the Palestinians, you should be 100% focused on defeating Trump, because he’d be a DISASTER for everything you care about.)
• Former Republican congressmen endorse Harris (Former Reps. Denver Riggleman and Christopher Shays.)
• Harris, Walz rally seeking to build momentum in Blue Wall states with Michigan, Wisconsin stops
• Electoral College Rating Changes: GA Back to Toss-up, MN/NH Better for Democrats
• Why the Harris Walz Camo Hat Is Becoming a Status Symbol for Liberals
• Pelosi on Biden: ‘We did not have a campaign that was on the path to victory’ (Yep, that was obvious. For those who were urging – sometimes in hyperbolic language – Biden to not be replaced on the ticked by Harris were really not seeing that???)
• Elon Musk Told Advertisers to “Go F— Yourself.” Now He’s Mad They Listened.
• Elon Musk’s Daughter Says He ‘Relentlessly Harassed’ Her (“Vivian Jenna Wilson continues to lay into her estranged father publicly.”)
• Elon Musk’s X accused of bias after pro-Harris accounts labeled as ‘spam’ (Obviously Musk is biased; the guy’s a fascist, after all.)
• Former aides of John McCain throw support to Democratic Senate candidate Ruben Gallego
• Georgia Election Board Passes Rule That Could Delay Election Certification (WTF??? Not acceptable.)
• Audio: Kaine For Virginia Campaign Launches New Radio Ad Campaign To Reach Diverse Coalition Of Virginians (“The ads highlight how Senator Kaine is delivering for Virginia”)
• Kaine and Warner applaud Senate’s passage of legislation that will affect Chesapeake Bay
• Youngkin orders certification that election security measures are taken (Our elections are *extremely* secure; this is just playing into Trump’s insanity and lies.)
• Virginia’s top elections official says she’s confident about the accuracy of results (“In a rare interview ahead of the presidential election, Commissioner of Elections Susan Beals responds to concerns about voter fraud.”)
• Schapiro: Youngkin should be careful what he wishes for (“Youngkin doesn’t seem to appreciate that without all those federal jobs, Virginia’s economy really would be — to borrow one of his fact-challenged flourishes from the 2021 campaign — ‘in the ditch.'”)
• ICYMI: Glenn Youngkin Embraces Extreme Trump-Vance Agenda With Devastating Consequences for Virginians (“With a net worth of $400 million, Glenn Youngkin doesn’t have any concept of what it is like to not only lose a job, healthcare, and benefits”)
• Virginia Faith Leaders: Voter Protections Strengthen Our Democracy; Congress Should Pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act (Note: these bills are being blocked by Republicans, highlighting the need to elect Democratic majorities)
• Youngkin declines to remove controversial GMU board member (Youngkin has gone all-out MAGA/Trumpist.)
• Virginia Lottery generates a record-breaking $934 million for K-12 public education
• State education department hosts Chesterfield County town hall on phones in schools
• Editorial: Recovery school can help teens fighting addiction get back on track (“Hampton Roads communities are right to pursue the creation of a recovery school for students struggling with addiction.”)
• Former Virginia First Lady Roxane Gilmore has died, family says (R.I.P.)
• Virginia Beach’s Atlantic Avenue overhaul includes plans to remove trolley lanes, add bicycle path
• Tropical Storm Debby has its sights on the Commonwealth
• D.C.-area forecast: Debby brings showers today and heavy rain on Friday