by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, May 19.
- Is the COP30 climate summit already in crisis, with six months to go? (“Mounting concerns about Brazil’s approach to the COP30 climate summit have observers asking whether the meeting will be able to tackle the difficult choices involved in curbing emissions”)
- Methane Emissions From Warming Wetlands Are Exacerbating Climate Change
- The U.S. Under Trump: Alone in Its Climate Denial (Beyond disgraceful.)
- Trump set to implore Putin to end the ‘bloodbath’ in Ukraine in high-stakes phone call (“Ahead of the much anticipated call, leaders from Britain, France, Germany and Italy said they spoke Sunday with Trump, after Russia and Ukraine remained far apart in direct talks last week.”)
- Trump to speak to Putin and Zelenskyy about Ukraine ceasefire
- Having Trump’s ear is the new frontline in the Russia-Ukraine war (“Unclear what US president can achieve after direct talks between Russia and Ukraine ended without conclusion” Most likely, Trump will make things worse.)
- China-US Tariff Truce Prompts Some Nations to Shift Tactics
- China smashes rooftop solar installation record, as emissions fall despite demand growth
- Romanian Centrist Beats Far-Right and Tusk Ally Wins in Poland
- Nicusor Dan Beats George Simion in Romana’s Presidential Election
- EU leaders relieved after centrist Dan wins Romanian presidency
- Poland set for knife-edge presidential runoff as far right surges (This is really bad.)
- Rubio says there “may be more coming soon” amid Afrikaner refugee resettlement controversy
- South Africa’s President to Challenge Trump on Afrikaner Refugees
- Van Hollen: The U.S. Is ‘Complicit’ in Starving the People of Gaza
- Israel Announced a New Invasion of Gaza. Is It Bluffing? (“After warning of a ground operation, Israel has bombarded Gaza but has yet to start a big advance. The threat may be an attempt to force Hamas to compromise.”)
- Netanyahu vows Israel will ‘take control of all’ of Gaza but says famine must be avoided
- Israel says it will allow ‘basic’ amounts of food into Gaza as military offensive intensifies
- The fall of Assad’s informant state leaves Syria riven by betrayals (“Neighbors and colleagues reported on each other everywhere. Now, Syrians are shadowed by the question of who among them had contributed to the regime’s tyranny.”)
- The UK and the EU will announce new deals and renew ties, 5 years after Brexit
- Trump’s acceptance of Qatar jet gift is ‘definition of corruption’, senator says
- Rand Paul says Trump’s Qatar jet plan could undermine the wins from his Middle East swing
- Trump’s New Qatari Jet Would Be Just Like the Statue of Liberty, Obviously (“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to fly for free.”)
- Trump’s new border wall will threaten wildlife in an area where few people pass (Pure evil.)
- ‘An economic fallacy’: Rand Paul doesn’t see the benefits of tariffs
- Trump’s tariffs may mean Walmart shoppers pay more, his treasury chief acknowledges
- ‘It’s Real Y’all’: People Are Sharing Their Tariff Receipts, And My Wallet Is Not Ready For What’s Coming
- Bessent warns tariffs will return to ‘Liberation Day’ rates if negotiations aren’t in good faith
- The argument’s over: Americans pay for tariffs
- ‘Sell America’ Is Back as Moody’s Pushes 30-Year Yield to 5%
- Cooking the books? Fears Trump could target statisticians if data disappoints (“Proposed rule change could pave way for president to fire economists whose figures prove politically inconvenient” That would be a disaster.)
- Trump orders the government to stop enforcing rules he doesn’t like (That is, it should go without saying, NOT how things are supposed to work! “Critics say the administration is breaking the law and sidestepping the rulemaking process that presidents of both parties have long followed.” Note the wimpy/pathetic “critics say” formulation by the WaPo?)
- Breaking Down Trump’s Entanglements With Crypto (“Sector has been one of the biggest winners in the president’s second term”)
- RFK Jr. is laundering Christian right views as MAHA (“Christian conservatives know they have a branding problem with women”)
- Chairman Trump’s Cultural Revolution (“Trump and his most rabid followers are motivated by visceral feelings like prejudice, anger, hate, insecurity and fear, not analytical thought.”)
- Voters want Dems to stand up to Trump, not self-flagellate (“Sorry, Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson.”)
- Heeding the Warnings (“We must avoid normalcy bias, expand our imagination, and both recognize and confront the fascistic danger of the Trump regime”)
- Big Donald Is Watching You: Sliding into autocracy under Trump 2.0 (“A giant banner featuring Donald Trump’s photo just went up at the front of the Department of Agriculture. A military parade is being planned for his birthday, which coincides with the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. His cabinet members shower him with praise every time they have a meeting. These are not the kinds of things that normally happen in the United States. It’s more in line with how autocratic leaders display their power in oppressive nations like North Korea and Iran to constantly remind people who’s in charge. But now that it’s starting to happen here, we have to acknowledge it and recognize it as a sign that America is sliding into autocracy.”)
- Trump the Grifter (“The framers of the Constitution were trying to prevent exactly this sort of corruption.”)
- The Stark Math on the GOP Tax Plan: It Doesn’t Cut the Deficit (Quite the contrary!)
- Trump’s tax and immigration bill clears hurdle after late-night vote
- Attack of the Sadistic Zombies (“The GOP budget is incredibly cruel — and that’s the point”)
- Key House committee advances Trump agenda bill after appeasing conservatives
- US health groups vow to fight GOP cuts to Medicaid and Obamacare (“Cuts worth $880bn could leave 13 million Americans without insurance in proposal that has divided Republicans”)
- Trump Shares QAnon Meme, Call for Military Tribunal of Obama (“Trump continues to amplify extreme content on Truth Social” SICK.)
- The MAGA war on PBS was never about money
- Former President Joe Biden diagnosed with prostate cancer
- Former President Joe Biden diagnosed with aggressive form of prostate cancer
- Obamas react to Biden cancer diagnosis
- Biden diagnosed with ‘aggressive form’ of prostate cancer
- The Website Where Lawyers Mock ‘Yellow-Bellied’ Firms Bowing to Trump
- Jeanine Pirro’s 10 most astounding quotes (She is deranged.)
- Trump Demands ‘Major’ Investigation Into Beyoncé and Springsteen Appearances in Late-Night Rant (“The Boss has been speaking out against Trump during his ‘Land of Hope & Dreams’ tour.”)
- FBI: Car Bombing Outside California Reproductive Health Care Clinic Was “Terrorism”
- FBI links California fertility clinic bombing to anti-natalist ideology (There’s a big difference between anti-natalism and wanting to murder people, which is evil.)
- Video: Sen. Tim Kaine Says Virginians Are NOT Talking to Him About What Joe Biden Should Have Done in 2024, They “are talking to me about can you get rid of the Trump economic chaos,” etc. (Sen. Kaine also talks about Trump’s Middle East trip, Iran, Israel-Gaza, Russia-Ukraine, etc.)
- Video: Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-VA04) Says “I have honestly not had time to think about Joe Biden,” Because “I am focused on…the harm that President Trump is doing right now” (“I am hearing from even people who support President Trump that they are concerned”)
- Trump-Musk, Ben Cline, want to knock 262K Virginians off healthcare rolls
- Virginia Safe Routes to School programs see future funding in jeopardy (“A major change to how Virginia program facilitators may request grant money and use it has left them unsure if they’ll be able to grow their outreach efforts in the near future.”)
- Trump’s attack on offshore wind is hurting Virginia. Why aren’t Republican leaders fighting for us? (The answer to this question is glaringly obvious: Youngkin wants to be president – or US Senator or whatever – in the party of Trump, while Miyares probably wants to be in the Trump administration if/when he loses in November, so both have to curry favor with Trump. Plus, both are probably MAGA “true believers” at this point anyway…)
- For data center sustainability in Virginia, state regulation is a must
- From Gambling to Garbage, Coal Country Mines for the Next Big Thing (“As President Trump pledges to revive ‘beautiful’ coal, Virginia’s coal counties have largely moved on to new ventures. But who stands to benefit?”)
- Report Highlights Community Pushback Stalling $64 Billion in Data Center Development Nationwide (“In Virginia, the globe’s largest concentration of data centers, and nationally, local opposition has coalesced into a powerful, bipartisan force.”)
- New Virginia clean slate law will create high demand for legal aid, experts say
- Virginia’s outmigration trend may be shifting again
- Williams: The J6 shame to fame tour – next stop, Monument Avenue?
- UVa professor defends academic freedom amid Trump attacks at Final Exercises
- CWG Live updates: Unusually cool for late May this week