Saturday News: “Donald Trump and the Iran Crisis”; “ICE believes it will never face accountability again”; “JD Vance refers to Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla as ‘José’”; “‘Gay Blood” and the VA Governor’s Race”; Hashmi’s Rise “From the classroom to the campaign trail”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, June 21.

• Future Climate Means No More Breakfast (“A new study shows the devastating impact of climate change on crop yields by 2100.”)
• Scientists’ Letter Urges Brazil’s President Lula to Reject New Amazon and Offshore Drilling (“The urgent message was delivered to Brazilian officials during annual U.N. climate talks in Bonn, Germany, and includes new warnings about an Amazon rainforest tipping point.”)
• Shifting World Order Threatens to Expand the Nuclear-Arms Club (“Wars in Ukraine and Iran, and rising doubts about the reliability of the U.S., are making countries around the world wonder if having their own nukes is the key to survival.”)
• Current heatwave ‘likely to kill almost 600 people in England and Wales’ (“Surge in deaths would not be occurring without human-caused global heating, scientists say as analysis published”)
• ‘All of Ukraine is ours’ — Putin on Russia’s territorial ambitions in Ukraine (Completely unhinged.)
• Banned from home for 40 years: deportations are Russia’s latest move to ‘cleanse’ Ukraine
• 32 nations but only one man matters – Nato’s summit is all about Trump (“Higher defence spending will top the agenda when members of the Western alliance gather in The Hague.” Good that Trump’s in The Hague…just not at the right building! LOL)
• Trump says Gabbard was ‘wrong’ about Iran and Israeli strikes could be ‘very hard to stop’
• From ‘evacuate Tehran’ to ‘two weeks’: Behind Trump’s shift on Iran
• An Iran Deal in Two Weeks? Hard to Achieve, Even if Trump Really Wants One.
• The Donald Trump–Tucker Carlson Schism and the End of “America First” (“As the president seriously considers joining Israel in its war against Iran, and flip-flopping on his isolationist brand, his relationship with his most steadfast media ally has devolved into acrimony. It’s emblematic of a larger divide in the House of MAGA.”)
• Israel says it killed top Iran commander during attacks by both sides (“Calling his killing a “major achievement for Israeli intelligence and the Air Force”, Katz said in a statement that Izadi had financed and armed the Palestinian militant group Hamas ahead of its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, which triggered the war in Gaza.”)
• Israel and Iran launch new attacks as Tehran says it will not negotiate nuclear programme while under threat (“Israel’s foreign minister says its strikes have delayed Iran’s potential to develop a nuclear weapon by ‘at least two or three years’”)
• Iran FM warns US involvement in conflict would be ‘very dangerous’ as Israel targets commanders
• The Crucial Window Of Diplomacy To Prevent A U.S. War With Iran
• Donald Trump and the Iran Crisis (“It’s not easy to trust the President to make an optimal decision. For one thing, he is suspicious of nearly every source of information save his own instincts.”)
• The World Waits With Bated Breath to See Which Donald Trump Will Be in Charge Next Week
• Sheltering in a Bunker, Iran’s Supreme Leader Names Potential Successors (“Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has picked replacements in case his military commanders are killed, and has named senior clerics to replace him should he, too, be slain.”)
• As Iran and Israel Battle, the Rest of the Mideast Fears What’s Next
• Ireland shuts last coal plant, becomes 15th coal-free country in Europe
• As Trump shuts out migrants, Spain opens its doors and fuels economic growth (“Defying the anti-immigrant trend in the U.S., Spain is reaping economic benefits by granting citizenship to tens of thousands of newly-arrived workers.” Smart – because overwhelmingly, immigration is a POSITIVE thing!)
• Kari Lake follows through on Trump order, axes most of Voice of America’s staff
• Trump gripes he won’t get Nobel Peace Prize ’no matter what‘ as global conflicts persist
• The Fate of the World Is Now in Donald Trump’s Hands. Gulp. (“The president is no principled pacifist. He’s capable of anything with Iran, from peacemaking to nuking (but hey, just a small nuke).”)
• U.S., EU Near Deal on Non-Tariff Trade Irritants
• ‘A good day’: Detained U.S. citizen said agents bragged after arresting dozens at Home Depot
• ‘Justice Will Prevail,’ Mahmoud Khalil Says as He Goes Free on Bail (Will it, though?)
• Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil released after months in detention (There’s absolutely no reason to have held him for months.)
• Trump says Harvard has acted ‘appropriately’ and deal could soon be announced (WTF does *that* mean?)
• ICE believes it will never face accountability again (“The Trump administration is letting an unaccountable secret police form at the heart of our democracy.”)
• ICE Agent or Just Some Person? (“There’s a dress code to help you make that determination.”)
• Federal judge blocks Trump effort to keep Harvard from hosting foreign students
• Stephen Miller’s Fingerprints Are on Everything in Trump’s Second Term (That is REALLY disturbing.)
• Trump ‘looking at’ immigration relief for farm workers after resuming ICE raids on them (“‘We can’t put the farms out of business,’ Trump said June 20 in discussing his immigration enforcement efforts.”)
• Judge Blocks Trump’s Tying of Transportation Funds to Immigration Enforcement
• JD Vance attacks Newsom and LA mayor while misnaming senator arrested by the FBI
• Vance refers to Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla as ‘José’ while defending Trump’s use of National Guard in LA (There’s something seriously wrong with JD Vance.)
• So, has anything actually gotten more expensive because of Trump’s tariffs?
• ‘RFK Jr is a disaster’: Staff describe chaos in ‘anti-science’ regime (“Officials in US health agencies fear ‘people will get sick’ as programmes are slashed and scientists are fired under the constant surveillance of Doge”)
• Top Pentagon spy pick rejected by White House
• Trump administration makes sweeping changes to ObamaCare, ends ‘Dreamer’ coverage (Inexcusable.)
• Trump news at a glance: Day of environmental setbacks across US after judicial and executive decisions
• A potent heat dome will send temperatures into the triple digits
• Treasured Public Lands on the Auction Block in Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ (Yes, and please stop calling it that – in fact, it’s a big UGLY, CRUEL, DANGEROUS bill!)
• The many ugly polls on Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ (The media is really hopeless…they just use whatever framing/language Trump wants them to use. Pathetic.)
• Trump’s budget bill faces “nightmare scenario,” Hawley warns (“Hawley has been the loudest GOP voice fighting against Medicaid cuts. He was shocked and angered by the Senate going even further than the House to find Medicaid savings. House leadership’s concerns could help his case.”)
• Medicaid Work Requirements Have Mostly Failed. The GOP Is Still Pushing Them.
• How the Senate megabill could backfire on conservatives (“The leader of South Carolina’s hospital association said a cost-saver in the bill would force the state to consider Medicaid expansion.”)
• Former Clinton campaign chief on Democrats: ‘We’re leaderless, we’re messageless, we’re agendaless’ (Hard to argue with that.)
• The Myth of the Gen Z Red Wave (“The best available evidence suggests that the youth-vote shift in 2024 was more a one-off event than an ideological realignment.”)
• Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law in public schools blocked by federal appeals court
• Letter to FBI from shooting suspect made wild claims about Klobuchar and Walz, sources say (Total nutjob.)
• MAGA Madman Blames Tim Walz for His Murderous Rampage
• Ohio man arrested in investigation into GOP Rep. Max Miller being ‘run off the road’ (“Rocky River, Ohio, police said on Friday that Westlake, Ohio, resident Feras S. Hamdan, 36, voluntarily turned himself in after the Rocky River Municipal Court issued an arrest warrant for aggravated menacing.”)
• After 35 years as a Post journalist, I’ve decided it’s time for a change (Colbert King continues the exodus of excellent people from the Bezos Post.)
• Warner joins Kaine in pushing Trump to come clean on what’s going on with Iran
• Senators Mark Warner, Tim Kaine Decry GOP Plan’s Devastating Impact on Rural Virginian Communities: “We refuse to stand by while Republicans gamble with Virginians’ lives.”
• With the “Firehouse Primary” Coming Up Soon (6/28), Here Are the VA11 Democratic Candidates’ Positions on Some Major Issues
• Walkinshaw’s frontrunner status sparks debate over fairness in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District Primary
• Democrats, Republicans schedule candidate forums in 11th Congressional District race
• Winsome Earle-Sears, John Reid speak to each other for first time in weeks (One big happy family! LOL)
• Fear of “gay blood” and “confused minds”: Virginia Republican touts support from anti-gay preachers (“Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears is hoping anti-LGBTQ+ clergy can help her become Virginia’s first female governor”)
• Same-sex marriage key topic in first stop of VA Democrats’ ‘Worst of Winsome Tour’
• Video: Elected Leaders, Virginians Call Out Winsome Earle-Sears’ Extreme Record of Opposing Reproductive Rights, Same-Sex Marriage (Earle-Sears “won’t fight for Virginians, she’ll just push her extreme agenda forward”)
• Audio: On WAMU, Newly Minted VA Dem LG Nominee Ghazala Hashmi Says “I see myself fighting for [John Reid’s] rights even though he has abdicated any responsibility in supporting the critical and essential rights of all Virginians” (She also stresses that her first campaign’s tagline was “Ghazala Hashmi is an American name!”)
• The Politics Hour: Democratic nominee for Virginia Lieutenant Governor Ghazala Hashmi on her primary win
• From the classroom to the campaign trail: Ghazala Hashmi’s rise
• Virginia hospitals could lose more than $2 billion annually under latest version of Trump budget
• Solar Regulations Go Into Effect in Virginia (“Years in the making, regulations governing large-scale solar projects in Virginia have been finalized and went into effect Wednesday, June 18. These regulations establish standards for mitigation when a solar project causes significant impacts to farms and trees.”)
• Virginia’s Women’s Summit 2025: Bringing Joy and Power in the Times of Uncertainty
• Youngkin orders assessment of federal sexual assault prevention programs in VA National Guard
• UVa alumni clash over President Jim Ryan’s record
• Power still out in parts of Northern Virginia 24 hours after storms
• Since 1772, a dam has controlled the Rapidan River. Now, residents debate whether to remove it.
• Ex-Sentara employee admitted filming people in Chesapeake medical facility’s restroom for years, documents say
• CWG Live updates: Heat arrives today, becomes potentially dangerous early week