by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, August 9.
- Why insurers worry the world could soon become uninsurable
- Scientists launch coordinated response to Trump’s attempt to wipe credible climate research off the record
- America Is Living in a Climate-Denial Fantasy (“On climate, the U.S. and the rest of the planet are now in ‘completely separate worlds.'”)
- Revealed: How the Meat Industry Uses Environmental Groups to Make Beef Seem Climate-Friendly (Beef is a disaster in every way – global warming, health, animal welfare, water usage, you name it. Ditch it.)
- Human connection to nature has declined 60% in 200 years, study finds (“Prof Miles Richardson says people risk ‘extinction of experience’ in the natural world without new policies”)
- Tech giants look to low-carbon cement to curb their huge climate impact (“Cement startups Sublime Systems and Brimstone both announced new partnerships with data-center developers and operators—even as federal funding dries up.”)
- Despicable: Very Effectively Done (“Trump Hands Putin A Win-Win Scenario, Which Was Always The Plan”)
- Trump gauges Europe’s reaction to Putin’s ceasefire offer (“The White House has held multiple calls in recent days with Ukraine and its European allies to discuss the plan, a White House official said.”)
- Zelensky says Ukraine will ‘not give up land,’ ahead of Trump-Putin summit in Alaska
- Putin Tells U.S. He’ll Halt War in Exchange for Eastern Ukraine (Absolutely unacceptable.)
- Trump, Putin meeting set for next week in Alaska
- Putin needles U.S. by giving Trump envoy an award meant for CIA official whose son died fighting for Russia
- Trump to Meet Putin in Alaska as Kyiv Rejects Land Giveaway
- Zelenskyy rejects formally ceding Ukrainian territory, says Kyiv must be part of any negotiations
- Ukraine will not give up land, Zelensky says as Trump plans to meet Putin
- Trump’s Bullying of India Is Straight From Xi’s Playbook
- So, About Those Big Trade Deals (“If you read the fine print, the ‘concessions’ from America’s trade partners don’t add up to much.”)
- Trump expands use of tariffs to reach national security goals
- What’s Really Driving Netanyahu’s Decisions (“A conversation with Yair Rosenberg about the hard-line Israeli faction that has long wanted to resettle Gaza”)
- White House envoy Witkoff meets Qatari prime minister to discuss plan to end Gaza war
- Israel’s Gaza policy is viciously cruel — and strategically disastrous (“Through starving Gaza, and potentially reocuppying it, Netanyahu has brutalized Palestinians and harmed his own country’s interests.”)
- Plans to take Gaza City are met with defiance from war-weary Palestinians and anger by many Israelis
- Israel rejects international criticism of Gaza City takeover plan
- Trump gives Israel tacit green light on Gaza takeover (There’s NO WAY Biden or Harris would have done that.)
- Trump announces peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia (“The deal between the South Caucasus rivals – assuming it holds – would be a significant accomplishment for the Trump administration that is sure to rattle Moscow, which sees the region as within its sphere of influence.”)
- Brazil’s president signs environmental ‘devastation bill’ but vetoes key articles (“Campaigners had urged Lula to veto the bill entirely, but many have welcomed his alterations”)
- Bolsonaro supporters pray for Trump rescue as coup plot trial verdict nears (“Far-right ex-president’s devotees pin hopes on pressure campaign but tariffs and sanctions appear likely to fail”)
- This segment exemplifies how Fox feeds garbage anti-immigrant slop to its audience (“A recent appearance by Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin illustrates how the network pushes bad ‘worst of the worst’ data”)
- Dreamers Face ‘Greatest Threat’ Yet in Trump Immigrant Crackdown (“The DACA program has survived years of political siege—but recent arrests have dreamers shocked and worried.”)
- Trump Just Shrugs as Kennedy Undermines His Vaccine Legacy (“President Trump’s laissez-faire approach is notable, given that the development of the Covid vaccine was seen as one of his first term’s most notable achievements.”)
- The Race to Find a Measles Treatment as Infections Surge (“Vaccine was so effective the disease was considered eliminated in the U.S., but resurgence of outbreaks spurs need for drugs”)
- Cars, coffee and clothing are poised to get pricier with new tariffs
- Supreme Court approval rating sinks to a new low, poll finds. What caused shift? (“The U.S. Supreme Court’s approval rating has sunk to an all-time low, dropping below 40% for the first time ever, according to a new Gallup poll. The decline was driven by record-low shares of Democrats and independents expressing support for the high court. At the same time, Republican support has ticked upward, resulting in the largest partisan gap on record.”
- Trump’s Team Expands Search for Fed Chair, Adding New Names to List (“The president’s advisers are reviewing new contenders, including former St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Marc Sumerlin, a former George W. Bush adviser”)
- Trump’s Fed pick has envisioned a major overhaul of the central bank
- Atmospheric Rivers May be Diminishing on the West Coast and Surging in the East, Study Finds (“Over a 20-year period, atmospheric rivers could double the amount of rain falling on part of the Southeast, the researchers found.”)
- Trump’s Energy Chief, a Former Fracking CEO, Aims to Tinker With Key Climate Reports (Evil.)
- Cartels may be able to target witnesses after major court hack
- Justice Dept. Abruptly Escalates Pressure Campaign on a Trump Adversary (“Letitia James, New York’s attorney general and a longtime nemesis of the president, is being investigated in two separate inquiries, in a remarkable use of executive power to pursue a foe.” The NY Times goes with the word “remarkable” instead of “authoritarian,” “thuggish” or whatever. Because that’s how that paper rolls…constantly normalizing, minimizing, whitewashing, sanewashing, etc. Trump’s illegal, unconstitutional, unAmerican behavior.)
- Trump escalates his racist attacks on Black Americans (“Failure to connect his comments to our worsening democratic crisis is an act of complicity”)
- Mark Zuckerberg’s unbelievably bleak AI vision (“We were promised flying cars. We got Instagram brain rot.” Zuck sucks.)
- Trump Is Removing I.R.S. Chief 2 Months After He Was Confirmed (“Billy Long, a former Republican congressman, will no longer serve as the tax agency’s head. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will oversee the agency as acting commissioner.” WTF?)
- When will the IRS kick off tax season? IRS walks back its commissioner’s dire prediction
- 7 states most likely to follow Texas in redistricting
- Texas Is the Dry Run for the GOP’s Dismantling of Electoral Democracy
- Newsom says special election on California redistricting planned for November
- ‘We are running from nothing’: Texas Democrats join California allies in Sacramento
- Democrats investigate FBI effort to “hunt down” Texas legislators
- Judge blocks Beto O’Rourke from financially supporting Texas Democrats who left the state (“Tarrant County District Judge Megan Fahey granted Paxton’s request for a temporary injunction…Fahey, a Republican, was appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott in 2019 and has twice been reelected to the bench.”)
- Texas attorney general sues to remove 13 absent Democrats from office
- Smithsonian restores Trump to impeachment display in American history museum
- Trump administration seeking $1 billion settlement from UCLA
- Trump Administration Threatens to Take Over Harvard’s Patents
- Suspect and Officer Are Dead After Shooting Outside C.D.C. in Atlanta (“The gunman fired at the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention because he blamed the Covid vaccine for his maladies, an official said.”)
- Jim Lovell, Apollo 13 commander, dies aged 97 (“Nasa hails Lovell for saving 1970 moon mission from ‘potential tragedy’ and safely returning crew to Earth”)
- President Trump taps federal law enforcement agencies to police Washington, D.C.
- ‘Disproportionate’ and ‘extreme’: DC officials protest Trump’s policing incursion (“The mayor and the majority of the city council have still not commented on the move.”)
- Warner critical of Netanyahu plan to occupy Gaza: ‘Dangerous and counterproductive’
- Sen. Mark Warner, Sen. Tim Kaine: “The news that Virginians who rely on health care coverage from the marketplace could see their premiums jump by more than 20% next year is deeply troubling.” (Warner and Kaine say this is an “entirely-avoidable increase,” blame “President Trump and congressional Republicans”)
- Video: Rep. Suhas Subramanaym (D-VA10) Says “Whatever the case is [Epstein, Jobs Numbers, FBI and DoJ Politicization/Firings, etc.], this president is all about protecting himself and not standing up for the American people.”
- Spanberger’s K-12 plan calls for boosting funding, modernizing tests
- NEW: In Portsmouth, Abigail Spanberger – Alongside Her Ticketmates, Sen. Louise Lucas, Parents, Educators, etc. – Announces “Strengthening Virginia Schools Plan” (“The strength of Virginia’s schools is personal for me, just as it is to parents across the Commonwealth..”)
- MAGA Jason Miyares Refuses to Agree to Virginia State Bar Debate, Questioning the Nonpartisan Bar’s Fairness (“…it is increasingly clear that Miyares will do anything but talk about his own record”)
- Attorney general candidates Jay Jones, Jason Miyares engage in debate over debates (“WJLA is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which sees itself as a competitor for viewers on the right to Fox News, so, it’s reasonable as to why Jones wouldn’t want to submit himself to a debate in the lions’ den.”)
- Lawsuit filed by Virginia NAACP against Youngkin regarding FOIA violation ordered to lower court
- Virginia LG nominee rebukes antisemitic comments from top state Democratic lawmaker (“Democrat Ghazala Hashmi: ‘As a Muslim, I know what it feels like when an entire community is scapegoated for the actions of a few’”)
- Top Democrats Smear Palestinian-American Politician for Criticizing Zionism (The word “smear” in this headline is absurd – Kaine, Spanberger and Hashmi absolutely did NOT do that.)
- Lanternflies are swarming Virginia, threatening its $8B wine industry (“The colorful insects are draining nutrients from grape vines, stunting their growth and grossing out winery visitors.”)
- Controversial Northern Virginia data center project nixed by state judge
- Former Martinsville city manager calls termination ‘retaliatory’ for EEOC complaint (“Aretha Ferrell-Benavides said her termination stemmed from her efforts to challenge outdated practices, not from misconduct.”)
- CWG Live updates: Low-humidity warmth this weekend gives way to muggy heat next week
