by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, June 7.
- Some Hopeful News About the Future of the World’s Corals (“Much has been learned about heat-resistant corals in the last decade. Village by village and beach by beach, reef restoration is progressing.”)
- Climate change threatens banana exports, key to the Latin American economy (“A study indicates that rising temperatures threaten 60% of the area suitable for growing the tropical fruit”)
- Putin is an open book. U.S. leaders have refused to read it. (“Putin’s resentments and revenge aspirations are largely ignored in the West.”)
- Russia responds to Trump-Musk feud with jokes, jibes and job offers
- Trump’s Patience With Putin Leaves Senate Sanctions Push on Hold (Why the f*** is Trump patient with Putin???)
- Russian drones and missiles target Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv, killing 3, officials say
- Trump Says Xi to Restart Rare Earth Flows, Sets Date for Talks
- Trump’s China Gambit Belies Rocky Road Ahead on Tariff Deals
- Buyer With Ties to Chinese Communist Party Got V.I.P. Treatment at Trump Crypto Dinner (Wonder if Glenn Youngkin is cool with this. If this happened with Joe Biden or Kamala Harris, you know Youngkin would be on Twitter BLASTING them as commies, etc.)
- State Department considers giving $500 million to the new Gaza Humanitarian Foundation
- Parents in Gaza Are Running Out of Ways to Feed Their Children (“A Times article last year described two families struggling to keep their children alive in Gaza. Now, as Israeli restrictions keep out most aid, that’s even harder.”)
- America the Fortress (“Trump is using travel bans to keep some people out—and additional means to make sure others don’t want to even visit.”)
- We Are Not the Nation We Thought We Were (“We must see through our myths about ourselves if we are ever to aspire again to greatness”)
- Los Angeles ICE raids spark protests, fear, outrage. ‘Our community is under attack’
- SEIU president injured and detained during ICE operations in downtown LA, mayor says (ICE is OUT OF CONTROL.)
- Kilmar Abrego Garcia, wrongly deported to El Salvador, is back in the U.S. to face smuggling charges (“Now, after months of delay and secrecy, they’re bringing him back, not to correct their error but to prosecute him. This shows that they were playing games with the court all along”)
- U.S. Returns Abrego Garcia From El Salvador to Face Criminal Charges
- Kilmar Abrego Garcia Was Never Coming Back. Then He Did. (“His return doesn’t mean he can go free. But it does mean the administration has changed course.”)
- Trump presses Fed chief Powell to cut interest rate by full point despite strong jobs report (There’s no way the Fed will do that or should do that.)
- They are not good at this (“Nearly five months into Trump’s new reign of error, his administration’s mistakes are multiplying.”)
- Supreme Court allows DOGE to access Social Security data (“This is a sad day for our democracy and a scary day for millions of people…This ruling will enable President Trump and DOGE’s affiliates to steal Americans’ private and personal data.”)
- DOGE Is on a Recruiting Spree (“While Elon Musk and Donald Trump post through their breakup, DOGE shows no signs of slowing down—and potential recruits are being told they can make up to $195,000 a year.”)
- The ugliest part of the week wasn’t the Musk-Trump breakup (“The biggest news came from the unassuming wonks at the Congressional Budget Office.”)
- Musk and Trump are enemies made for each other – united in their ability to trash their own brands (“What one did to Twitter and Tesla, the other is doing to the United States of America. Their feud is revealing a fatal flaw in the Maga project”)
- Trump Has Options to Punish Musk Even if His Federal Contracts Continue (“The president could tighten federal oversight of the tech titan’s businesses, even if heavy reliance by the Pentagon and NASA on them makes terminating Mr. Musk’s contracts less feasible.”)
- The Alarming Part of the Musk-Trump Dispute (“At the height of the juvenile flame war on Thursday between the world’s richest man and its most powerful one, Donald Trump posted a barely veiled threat on his website Truth Social.”)
- Musk floats ‘The American Party’ after Trump tiff
- Musk already lost his war against Trump (“Polling shows that Republicans are almost 12 times more likely to side with the president than Elon Musk.”)
- Wake Up and Smell the Corruption (“Oh, and anyone suggesting that Democrats should reach out to Musk is a fool. Yes, he’s currently Trump’s enemy, but he’s evil, and his brand is toxic. Better to see if there is anyone left in the G.O.P. who is finally ready to take a stand on behalf of democracy and law. But don’t get your hopes up.”)
- Why Trump probably can’t cut Musk loose (“If America wants a space program, it needs SpaceX.”)
- The Real Reason for the Trump-Musk Feud is Uglier Than You Think (“Strip away the ego contest, and what you really see here is a competition about how to screw over poor and working people more effectively.”)
- Inside the Trump-Musk Breakup (“The president tried to give his billionaire benefactor a dignified exit. It didn’t work.”)
- Democrats vow to leave “lunatic” Musk politically homeless (Lunatic and fascist – don’t forget that he’s a fascist.)
- Musk Gets Silent Treatment as Trump Considers Cutting Contracts
- Tesla already had big problems. Then Musk went to battle with Trump
- Trump asks aides if they think Musk’s behavior could be related to alleged drug use, source says
- Who holds the cards in Trump vs. Musk? Trump, but …
- How Fox News, Trump’s biggest media ally, has handled his feud with Elon Musk
- Why Bannon Is Tearing Off Musk’s Face in MAGA Death Match
- Fight! Watching Two Rich Maniacs Like Trump and Musk Feud Is Schadenfreude Perfection
- Money can’t buy him love: Republicans give Elon Musk the cold shoulder
- 5 winners from the Trump-Musk breakup (“Democrats have had a miserable start to 2025, but the Musk-Trump feud is undoubtedly good news for the time being.”)
- It Would Be So Funny If Trump Nationalized Elon Musk’s Companies (Biden should have done that, actually.)
- The Polling on Elon Musk Is a Warning for Republicans (“In the most recent Economist/YouGov Poll, 76 percent of Republicans viewed Musk favorably, compared to just 18 percent who viewed him unfavorably. A late April New York Times/Siena College poll placed his favorability rating among Republicans at 77 percent.”)
- MAGA Faithful Shrug Off the Trump-Musk Dust-Up
- Trump can bar The Associated Press from some White House events for now, appeals court rules (Two Trump-appointed judges – UGH)
- Appeals court hands AP an incremental loss in its attempt to regain its access to Trump events
- The latest personnel purge at the FBI adds to a destabilizing problem
- Trans Troops, Facing a Deadline, Opt to Stay and Fight the Ban
- Kash Patel claims ‘breakthrough’ in Fauci COVID origins probe (Unhinged.)
- Former federal inmate pardoned by Trump tapped as Bureau of Prisons deputy director
- Pam Bondi Accused of Ethics Breaches by Dozens of Florida Attorneys, Judges, and Law Professors
- Johnson gives Dems extra House Intel seat to get Stefanik back on
- Newsom floats withholding federal taxes as Trump threatens California (“His comments came amid reports Trump is weighing ‘large-scale’ funding cancellations for the Golden State.”)
- Rep. Mary Miller faces bipartisan fury over “ignorant” Sikh comment (“Even some Republicans are expressing disgust at Miller, a right-wing hardliner who has cultivated a reputation for making inflammatory comments.”)
- Exclusive: ADL chief compares student protesters to ISIS and al-Qaeda in address to Republican officials (“Jonathan Greenblatt also said protests against Israel were driven by ‘same kind of nihilists’ who participated in Black Lives Matter” Wait, what? People who participated in “Black Lives Matter” were “nihlists?” How’s that exactly?)
- Sen. Eric Schmitt employs staffer linked to campaign video with Nazi imagery (“Nathan Hochman was fired from Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign for promoting Nazi imagery. Now he works for a GOP senator.”)
- Proud Boys Leaders Sue U.S. Over Jan. 6 Prosecutions (“Lawsuit seeks $100 million in damages after their conviction, imprisonment for roles in Capitol attack” That lawsuit should be laughed out of course.)
- Proud Boys’ $100 Million Lawsuit Puts Trump In A Lose-Lose Position
- Trump nominates former Youngkin chief of staff for trade post
- Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia discusses the effect of Trump’s tariffs on the economy
- Blue Virginia Interview: VA11 Dem Candidate Leo Martinez Says “I already had to leave from one country, see one democracy destroyed; I can’t let that happen and just watch it from the living room in my house”
- Video: Six of the VA11 Dem Candidates Spoke for About 1 Minute Each at the Fairfax City Dems Meeting Last Night (“The ‘firehouse primary’ to select a nominee is scheduled for 6/28, just 22 days from now.”)
- Spanberger rolls out housing affordability plan
- Spanberger talks campaign finance, Trump v. Musk, and Pride Month during Henrico stop
- Spanberger pushes housing policy at new development in Henrico County
- Abigail Spanberger Announces Plan to Lower Virginians’ Housing Costs, Continues Focus on Making Virginia More Affordable (“Virginians deserve real, thoughtful solutions from their Governor — solutions that will deliver results they can see in their bank accounts.”)
- One Day Ahead of the 60th Anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut, Remember Winsome Earle-Sears Has an Extreme Record Attacking Reproductive Rights (“Sears voted against the Right to Contraception Act leaving the door open to extreme restrictions on contraception and birth control in Virginia”)
- Commentary: How Virginia Democrats can reclaim the education issue
- Attorney general candidate Shannon Taylor would challenge Trump’s executive orders
- With 11 Days to Go Until the 6/17 VA Dem Primary, the AG Candidates (Jay Jones and Shannon Taylor) Are Up with Dueling Ads
- Group attacks Stoney for taking money from donors who give to other Democrats
- Top deputy in Norfolk FBI office ousted over ties to so-called deep state (“Deep state” should be in air quotes.)
- Inmates report more violence at Virginia’s maximum-security prisons
- Hampton Roads jobless claims up this year, but economists say region faring better than Northern Virginia
- Naval Weapons Station Yorktown, Dominion Energy Virginia Sign Agreement to Explore New Power Sources Including a Small Modular Reactor
- Longtime Chesapeake deputy city manager retires, former police chief hired
- Harrisonburg: Immigrants rounded up by ICE were covered in dirt, appeared scared
- CWG Live updates: Occasional showers and storms to dodge this weekend