by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, October 30. Just five days until the election, three more days (including today) of early voting!
- AI Is Pushing Climate Goals Out of Reach, New Reports Say (“Without a big increase in investment in renewable energy globally, humanity will not limit global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius, but much of the data center boom is powered by fossil fuels.”)
- Bill Gates’ climate pivot fuels a fierce debate (“Some scientists — including some of the best-known figures in the climate field — say the memo risks framing climate action as a rival to poverty alleviation…’Climate change is not a separate bucket'”)
- Prices fall sharply in September quarter as renewables surge, batteries displace gas in evening peaks (This is in Australia, specifically, but it’s important because it could and should happen almost anywhere, really.)
- Trump nominee at U.S. export bank withdraws amid scrutiny of Russia ties
- Rare earth stocks rally as China delays export controls after Trump-Xi meeting
- Trump and Xi, Hoping to Tone Down Trade War, Agree to 1-Year Truce (“After a series of attempts to de-escalate the trade war, President Trump and Xi Jinping agreed to a truce that rolls back many contentious retaliatory measures.”)
- Five key takeaways from Donald Trump’s meeting with Xi Jinping
- Trump-Xi meeting: US president says rare earths deal and tariff cut agreed
- Trump cuts tariffs on Chinese imports after meeting with Xi (“The president said the imports would now be subject to a 47 percent tariff, down 10 percentage points. In return, Beijing agreed to delay restrictions on rare earth minerals for a year and buy American soybeans.”)
- ‘Amazing meeting’: Trump touts progress on multiple fronts with China after meeting Xi (The media shouldn’t take Trump’s word on ANYTHING – EVER.)
- Trump-Xi meeting wraps up in less than two hours
- Trump-Xi summit results in US lowering tariffs and China easing rare earth restrictions
- Trump gives South Korea permission to build nuclear-powered submarine (“Trump’s decision to allow South Korea to build a nuclear-powered submarine will admit Seoul to a small club of nations possessing such vessels”)
- Geert Wilders’s Party for Freedom Loses Seats in Dutch Election (“A center-left party was poised to become the country’s largest political party, according to exit polls. The anti-immigrant Party for Freedom, led by Mr. Wilders, was expected to lose 12 seats.”)
- Centrist liberals head for shock victory in Dutch election, exit poll says
- Centrist D66 party makes huge gains in Dutch election
- Dozens dead in ‘total devastation’ left behind by Hurricane Melissa
- Senate passes resolution that would repeal Trump’s tariffs on Canada
- Opinion | Why we’re forcing Senate votes on Trump’s tariffs (By Sen. Tim Kaine and Sen. Rand Paul)
- Pete Hegseth says U.S. carried out another strike on alleged drug boat in Pacific Ocean, killing 4 people
- Democrats blast “indefensible” exclusion from briefing on boat attacks
- Trump administration cuts Democrats out of a briefing on US military strikes, top Senate Dem says
- Big Oil’s Three-Decade Plot to Kill America’s Clean Energy Revolution
- Shock Video Shows ICE Agent Assaulting Woman Who Asked If He’s A Good Christian
- Wife of British journalist ‘abducted by ICE’ speaks out: ‘We’re being kept in the dark’ (“Soumaya Hamdi says she has barely spoken to Sami Hamdi since he was taken over his pro-Palestinian advocacy”)
- Trump DOJ Indicts Congressional Candidate for Protesting ICE
- Harrisonburg teen posts video of mother’s arrest by ICE: ‘She’s not a criminal’
- How We Lost the Trade War (“Tariff uncertainty may be waning, but the damage will persist”)
- The Fed Resisted Trump. Good. (“Another Federal Reserve meeting, another loss for President Trump. And we should all be grateful for that. — A few hours ago, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 10 to 2 to reduce interest rates by just .25 percent, disregarding Mr. Trump’s regular exhortations”)
- 1984, Idiocracy version (“Trump is like Big Brother if Big Brother were an incompetent buffoon.”)
- What Trump Doesn’t Understand About Nuclear War (“The contours of World War III are visible in numerous conflicts. The president of the United States is not ready.”)
- Trump Is Very Confused About Nuclear Weapons (“The president says he wants to resume nuclear testing but doesn’t seem to know why.”)
- Trump orders Pentagon to begin testing nuclear weapons ‘immediately’
- Trump Asks Pentagon To Immediately Resume Testing U.S. Nuclear Weapons
- Trump directs Pentagon to test nuclear weapons for first time since 1992
- Revealed: Pentagon orders states’ national guards to form ‘quick reaction forces’ for ‘crowd control’ (Ominous.)
- Obamacare Prices Become Public, Highlighting Big Increases
- Government shutdown could lead to $14B in lost GDP, CBO reports
- Farm-state Republicans finally reach their breaking point
- Food banks brace as people face federal aid stoppage: ‘We cannot meet the gap’
- Trump purposefully halting SNAP benefits, “weaponizing hunger,” Democrats allege
- John Thune says he will engage ‘pretty soon’ with Democrats about ending shutdown (Hey, no rush or anything! /snark)
- Exclusive: White House finds 11th-hour shutdown workaround to pay troops — for now
- Consequences of shutdown are rapidly getting worse
- Senate GOP, Democrats looking for ‘off-ramp’ to end shutdown next week
- UPDATE: Trump’s crypto pardon delivers immediate payback
- Binance Boosted Trump Family’s Crypto Company Ahead of Pardon for Its Billionaire Founder (“Giant crypto exchange facilitated $2 billion purchase of World Liberty’s stablecoin and built its technology; clemency for Changpeng Zhao surprised some in administration” WILDLY corrupt; would be a MASSIVE scandal in any other administration, lead to impeachment hearings, etc.!)
- Trump news at a glance: president’s effort to sue his own DoJ is ‘absurd’ and ‘frivolous’, expert says
- Trump calls Jack Smith a ‘criminal’ who should be in prison in latest attack on his perceived foes
- Most Americans oppose East Wing demolition for Trump ballroom, poll finds
- It Sure Looks Like Kash Patel Used the FBI’s Jet to Go on a Date (Who in their right mind would go on a date with Kash Patel???)
- ADL removes ‘Protect Civil Rights’ from website as it narrows its mission amid right-wing attacks (Pathetic.)
- How Newsom has capitalized on anger with Trump in California ballot fight
- Charges Dropped: Tennessee authorities dismiss charges against man who posted Trump meme
- British newspaper spoke to the wrong DeBlasio, not an ‘imposter’
- NYC Mayor’s Race: Mamdani 43%, Cuomo 33%, Sliwa 14%, Undecided 6%, Quinnipiac University New York City Poll Finds; Stark Generational Divide Among NYC’s Likely Voters
- There’s a Good Identity Politics—and Then There’s Karine Jean-Pierre (“Her book tour has been a train wreck. You can’t just brush off legit tough questions by asserting your identities. There’s a broader lesson here for Democrats.”)
- National Guard orders in DC extended through February 2026
- Menhaden management board votes to reduce 2026 catch quota for entire East Coast (“Conservation groups believe the move doesn’t go far enough, fisheries say it goes too far…The initial proposal for the cap reductions was set at 50%, which fishermen and advocates for the menhaden fisheries said would devastate the industry. A second proposal would have ramped up the reductions over three years, starting at 20% in 2026 and gradually increasing it up to the 50% limit that some studies suggest is needed to protect the striped bass population.”)
- Exclusive | Senator Warner Talks Trump, Shutdown, and Democracy in Crisis (“Nothing in politics is normal at this point, right? Even beyond the government shutdown. Laws, norms, and barriers are broken every day. Like the slow-boiling frog, and I’m hugely concerned because I don’t know how some of this stuff gets put back together again with future administrations, Democrat or other.” This is a SUPERB interview – great job by RVA Mag and co-publisher Landon Shroder on this!)
- Sen. Mark Warner blasts Trump administration over partisan security briefing
- Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA10) and Ranking Member Robert Garcia Investigate Trump Administration’s Truth Social and X Private Messages and Records (“The requests followed reporting that a recent Truth Social post by President Trump addressed to Attorney General Pam Bondi was intended to be a private message”)
- Williams: The GOP power grab leaves Virginia Democrats with no choice
- [UPDATE: Day #3] Virginia General Assembly Meets for Possible New Redistricting Amendment (This is happening, of course, because Republicans – at Trump’s behest – have been busy gerrymandering Democrats out of existence in the “red” states)
- Virginia House Advances Democratic Plan to Counter GOP Gerrymandering
- Here’s the redistricting plan Virginia Democrats want voters to approve
- Va. Democrats advance redistricting plan as GOP launches legal challenge (“Despite Republicans’ attempts to throw up roadblocks, a constitutional amendment on redistricting passes the Virginia House and heads next to the state Senate.”)
- Virginia House approves constitutional amendment to allow redistricting
- House of Delegates approves redistricting amendment
- House of Delegates passes redistricting amendment
- Virginia Democrats propose constitutional amendment to counter nationwide gerrymandering
- Virginia’s redistricting effort clears its first legislative hurdle (“The constitutional amendment to redraw Virginia’s congressional maps passed Virginia’s House of Delegates on Wednesday. Next stop: the state Senate.”)
- October has been a month full of surprises in Virginia politics
- Video: Earle-Sears Stands By Her Support of Trump’s/Musk’s DOGE Cuts, Downplays and Dismisses the Devastating Reality of Losing a Job
- Jay Jones highlights inaction from Jason Miyares on Trump, SNAP
- Va. Democrats urge Miyares to join suit over SNAP benefits
- Editorial: State program will provide needed assistance to hungry Virginians (This problem was caused by Trump and Congressional Republicans, cheered on by boot-licking MAGAs like Youngkin.)
- Records dispute Jones’ claim he raised $500K in 24 hours after debate (The donations are listed on VPAP, just with a delay – which could be normal? – of a couple weeks?)
- He’s gay, Republican and running for statewide office. It’s complicated. (Another “mainstream media” article that totally whitewashes John Reid.)
- Hashmi says universities need protection from political interference
- Statewide candidates sidelined from the campaign trail by special session
- If Democrats win governorship and the House, Virginia would be only Southern state painted blue. Here are some other ways we’d be different. (“From abortion to right-to-work laws, Virginia could be an outlier, not just regionally but nationally.”)
- Money, message and momentum define the 89th District race in Chesapeake (“Democrat Kacey Carnegie and Republican Mike Lamonea offer sharply different visions in one of Virginia’s most competitive House races, with control of the chamber on the line.”)
- State senators challenge UVA on capitulation to Trump DOJ on DEI
- Police arrested a Forest man Tuesday on the charge of making a threat of death or bodily injury against Del. Wendell Walker (WILDLY unacceptable.)
- Teacher says ‘truth’ will emerge in suit against Fairfax Schools over assisted abortions claims (There’s TONS of evidence that she made all this crap up.)
- Suspect indicted in fiery attack on Danville city councilor (This guy needs to be locked up the rest of his life, for sure.)
- CWG Live updates: Rain exits by afternoon, winds howl tomorrow (“Windy but dry on Halloween before a good-looking weekend.”)
