by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Sunday, December 8.
- Younger people at greater risk of heat-related deaths this century – study (“New research estimates a 32% increase in deaths of people under 35 if greenhouse gases not radically cut”)
- How many species could go extinct from climate change? It depends on how hot it gets.
- US announces nearly $1 billion more in longer-term weapons support for Ukraine
- Trump Returns to World Stage in Paris With Ukraine on Agenda
- Two wars changed Syria’s fortune. What comes next is impossible to know (“Two wars changed Syria’s fortune. What comes next is impossible to know”)
- Assad regime collapses as Syrian rebels seize control of Damascus
- Bashar al-Assad reported to have fled Syria as rebels say they have captured Damascus
- As Assad’s power crumbles, Turkey, Iran and Russia disagree on way forward for Syria
- End of Assad rule will reshape region’s balance of power
- Assad regime falls in Syria as rebels in Damascus claim victory on state TV (“The whereabouts of President Bashar al-Assad, whose family had ruled Syria for over five decades, remain unknown.”)
- In the Syrian Regime’s Hour of Need, Its Patron Iran Makes an Exit
- Who Are the Rebels and Their Backers? (“The main rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, is an offshoot of the Nusra Front, a onetime affiliate of al Qaeda, and is funded by Turkey.”)
- In Syria, the Assads leave a bitter legacy after a half-century of repressive rule
- End of Assad’s Rule Threatens Power Vacuum in Syria
- Syrian government falls to fast-moving rebels, ending 50 years of iron rule by the Assad family (Why use the word “iron” instead of “corrupt,” “brutal,” etc? The media is so bizarre.)
- Sweeping rebel advance resurrects U.S. fears of Islamist takeover
- Trump’s return may be a boon for Netanyahu, but challenges abound in a changed Middle East
- South Korean parliament tables vote to impeach president
- South Korean prosecutors detain ex-defense chief over martial law imposition
- South Korea martial law fallout deepens as prosecutors close in on president, ex-defense minister (This is exactly what should have happened – but didn’t – in the United States after 1/6/21!)
- A Sidelined Sitting President: South Korea’s Leader Won’t Run the Country (“The ruling party and prime minister will handle state affairs, not Yoon Suk Yeol after he briefly imposed martial law. The opposition calls the arrangement illegal.”)
- Notre-Dame: World leaders join Macron for cathedral reopening
- ‘Good man, this one’: Trump praises Prince William as they sit down for talks (“William joins other world leaders in Paris for the ceremonial reopening of the world-famous cathedral.”)
- McConnell takes indirect swipe at Trump on America’s role in the world (“America will not be made great again by those who are content to manage our decline”)
- The Fed is on course to cut interest rates in December, but what happens next is anyone’s guess
- Clean Energy Industry Questions a New PJM Proposal That Could Move Fossil Fuel Projects to the Front of the Interconnection Queue
- Pam Bondi will face an ethics quagmire as attorney general
- I Took the Test RFK Jr. Is Using to Determine Who Should Work at His Health Department (“We are extremely doomed.”)
- What Will Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy Accomplish with Doge? (“Two political newcomers have arrived to slash big government, but so far the project seems less revolutionary than advertised.”)
- “Creating a parallel state”: Elon and Vivek hope to test presidential and private powers
- Now Is the Time for Courage (“One month after the election of Donald Trump I feel more certain about who he is and what he aims to achieve but less certain about who stands in opposition to him. Trump is an aspiring dictator who aims to aggregate his power to reward his friends and punish his enemies…Donald Trump has not yet taken office. The abuses of his administration have not yet begun. It is going to get worse, much worse. We need to stand up an opposition not for a month or two but for four years or more. To do that, we cannot allow ourselves or our leaders to be too tired. We must insist they have courage or get out of the way.”)
- Where is the fierce urgency of now? (“Why are so many behaving like the battle to defeat Trumpism is lost before he has even taken office?”)
- Democrats inch toward the anger phase of their election loss
- Democratic governors (and 2028 hopefuls) gather to chart path under a Trump administration
- ‘It’s like Game of Thrones’: Inside the jockeying for Trump administration jobs
- Want a Job in the Trump Administration? Be Prepared for the Loyalty Test.
- How Trump’s transition could end up hamstringing his agenda (“The president-elect’s advisers haven’t yet begun meeting with federal agencies, despite signing an agreement late last month allowing them to do so.”)
- GOP rifts open over Trump agenda as legislative landmines await new Congress
- UnitedHealthcare Parent Company CEO Decries Media Coverage of Brian Thompson Slaying in Leaked Video (“The health system needs a company like UnitedHealth Group”)
- UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting latest: Suspect’s backpack had Monopoly money: Sources
- What the Murder of the UnitedHealthcare C.E.O. Means to America
- Supreme Court term-limits amendment proposed by Sens. Manchin, Welch (“The long-shot proposal by Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vermont) and outgoing Sen. Joe Manchin III (I-West Virginia) would impose 18-year term limits on new justices.”)
- Congrats to CNN for Lowest-Rated Week in Decades (Well deserved! LOL)
- Video: Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA11) Says “[Trump] and his family are walking conflicts of interest”; “Musk is the original American oligarch…a troubled individual…has no business serving in ANY administration.”
- Did Trump Drain Democrats’ Energy? These Races Will Be the First Test. (“As Democrats try to fire up their fatigued base, two contests for the Virginia legislature will serve as the first measure of partisan enthusiasm since Donald J. Trump’s victory.”)
- Schapiro: Virginia’s first Black Republican to run for governor? It’s not Earle-Sears
- Youngkin: Jordanians ‘crashed’ Quantico. Feds: It was an Amazon delivery. (“Glenn Youngkin says a box truck of illegal immigrants stormed Quantico, Virginia. In reality, the two men making a delivery didn’t understand they had to stop off at a check-in station.”)
- Commentary: Prisoner brutality is catching fire in Virginia
- Commentary: Judge’s ruling on Roanoke’s gun law a victory for common sense
- Watson seeks dismissal of fraud charges in Blacksburg Town Council election
- Chris Runion to seek fourth term in Virginia House
- D.C. area forecast and updates: Warming up today before a wet Monday morning (“More rain likely Tuesday night and Wednesday.”)
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