Thursday News: “Pope Leo takes aim at climate change sceptics”; “Trump Is Steadily Pushing the Republic Toward the Edge of Oblivion”; “Federal Workers Are Being Told to Blame Democrats for the Shutdown”; “Senate confirms Hung Cao as Navy’s No. 2 civilian”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, October 2.

• ‘Listen to the cry of the Earth’: Pope Leo takes aim at climate change sceptics (“Pontiff laments that some ‘ridicule those who speak of global warming’, days after Trump’s claims of ‘con job’”)
• Jane Goodall, Eminent Primatologist Who Chronicled the Lives of Chimps, Dies at 91
• Listen to Jane Goodall’s final — and urgent — message (“We’re an animal like all the others. But we depend on it for clean air, water, food, clothing — everything.” “And yet — ‘We’re destroying the planet,’ she said.”)
• The High Stakes of the U.N. Climate Talks
• U.S. to Provide Ukraine With Intelligence for Missile Strikes Deep Inside Russia (“President Trump has approved sharing targeting data with Ukrainians as the administration weighs sending powerful weapons.” DO IT!)
• US to give Ukraine intelligence on long-range energy targets in Russia (“The United States is also asking NATO allies to provide similar support, two U.S. officials said.” Give Ukraine Tomahawks and anything/everything else it needs – NOW!)
• EU to Propose Doubling Tariff Rate on Steel Imports to 50%
• Four injured in stabbing and car ramming attack on Yom Kippur at synagogue in Manchester, UK police say
• Activists say Israeli navy has begun intercepting a Gaza-bound aid flotilla
• Welcome to Portland, Where Trump’s Fever Dream Is America’s New Nightmare (“The president’s dark fantasy about ‘war ravaged’ Portland is a grim warning for America” In no way/shape/form is Portland “war ravaged”; Trump is INSANE.)
• Trump Advisor Says ICE Will Be at Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Amid MAGA Meltdown
• Drones, Helicopters, Hundreds of Arrests: Trump’s Immigration Crackdown in Chicago So Far
• Immigration judge denies Kilmar Abrego García’s request to reopen case (“The judge found ‘insufficient evidence’ to show that the Trump administration would send Abrego to Uganda, according to a copy of the decision reviewed by The Washington Pos”)
• There’s a New Lawsuit Against “Kavanaugh Stops.” It’s Absolutely Devastating.
• The Supreme Court Will Do Four Things This Term That Tell You Everything You Need to Know
• US Supreme Court expands its ’emergency’ docket – and Trump’s power
• Judge William Young’s ruling against Rubio and Noem is a lesson for all in the Trump era
• U.S. companies shed 32,000 jobs in September in latest sign of labor market weakness
• Axios Vibes: Grocery price pain rises, in warning sign for Trump and GOP
• Did the Supreme Court Only Defer Lisa Cook’s Removal from the Federal Reserve to Protect Their Wallets? (“At least Trump won’t be happy. It’s the little victories.”)
• Fed’s Independence Remains at Risk Despite Temporary Legal Victory
• Pope intervenes in US abortion debate by raising what it really means to be pro-life
• Trump Is Steadily Pushing the Republic Toward the Edge of Oblivion (“The administration has entered its most anti-Constitutional phase yet. We must call a regime that’s a danger to our way of life what it is.”)
• The Four Horsemen of the Trump Apocalypse Are Here (“Trump’s version features coercion, corrupt oligarchs, racism, and fear and the destruction of our planet.”)
• An Autocracy of Dunces (“How stone-faced generals, Wall Street pushback, and a government shutdown may save America’s quickly declining democracy”)
• Most Americans Think the Country’s Divisions Cannot Be Overcome, Poll Says
• Why Trump’s purge of ‘negative’ national park signs includes climate change
• Democrats Shouldn’t Compromise with Russell Vought to End the Shutdown (“With so much at stake, a conventional legislative battle over the budget isn’t going to work this time.”)
• The government shutdown is a slow-boil political crisis (“Democrats might have catastrophically overestimated their leverage, but if the shutdown drags on, Trump and the GOP could suffer”)
• Trump uses government shutdown to dole out firings and political punishment
• DOE ends billions in clean-energy awards following Vought tweet
• Trump Cuts Funding to 16 Blue States That Didn’t Vote for Him
• Trump targets states that voted for Harris in shutdown fight
• Federal Workers Are Being Told to Blame Democrats for the Shutdown (“Workers at one agency were given unhinged, partisan language to use when setting out-of-office replies.”)
• Government shutdown layoffs to occur ‘very soon,’ White House warns
• Democratic leaders hold firm in face of mass firing threat: ‘Cruelty is the point’
• Public Citizen files Hatch Act complaint against Small Business Administration for ‘highly partisan post’ on homepage
• What this government shutdown could cost
• Donald Trump Hits GOP With Ominous New Order Over Shutdown Drama (“The president issued his edict via a Truth Social post made on Wednesday night.” Unhinged.)
• How the Government Shutdown Will End (“Either way, an extremely long shutdown is likely”)
• How Democrats Backed Themselves Into a Shutdown (“Democrats surrendered a spending fight in March—and it all but foretold the October shutdown.”)
• National Parks Are Staying Open During the Government Shutdown, Putting Visitors and Resources at Risk (“The last shutdown left parks across the country in disarray, with protected resources vandalized, iconic species attacked and bathrooms overflowing with waste. Park service veterans warn this time could be worse.”)
• Another Shutdown Casualty: Medicare Telehealth Coverage
• Vought: Mass firings will begin ‘in a day or two’ (This guy is pure evil.)
• Trump Admin Tells Furloughed Workers To Set OOO Message Blaming Democrats For Shutdown (“One health department employee said the directions seemed to be “coercing” subordinates into political activity.” MASSIVE violation of the Hatch Act, also just wildly unethical, illegal and disgusting behavior as always by the Trump administration.)
• Shutdown | Congressional Republicans ‘had every tool at their disposal to avoid’
• How John Thune sees the shutdown ending (“The Senate majority leader told POLITICO what a Democratic capitulation might look like.” F*** John Thune.)
• Hakeem Jeffries is seizing on the shutdown fight to raise his national profile
• We asked 1,000 Americans who they blame for the shutdown (How about the “mainstream media” cut their “both sides”/false equivalence b.s. and start informing the public that REPUBLICANS CONTROL ALL BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT so the shutdown is on them?)
• These Democrats Voted With Republicans Against a Shutdown
• ‘Dangerous Cities,’ the Military, Trump and the Founding Fathers (“The armed services have long sought to preserve a nonpartisan military, a core principle that President Trump’s language this week was in tension with.”
• The road to Nuremberg | Hegseth, Trump lecture generals on being too fat, ‘woke’
• Female veterans slam Hegseth’s questioning of their combat fitness
• Hegseth escalates war on leakers with lie detector tests and nondisclosure agreements
• Senate confirms Hung Cao as Navy’s No. 2 civilian (Absolutely appalling; this guy’s a far-right extremist and total nutjob.)
• Justice Department fires prosecutor falsely tied to Comey case in social media post
• Trump’s YouTube Settlement Will Fund Golden White House Ballroom (MASSIVELY corrupt!)
• Google joins presidential bribe club (“It’s a ‘settlement.’ WINK WINK.”)
• White House Asks Colleges to Sign Sweeping Agreement to Get Funding Advantage
• Vance downplays Trump post of Jeffries in sombrero: ‘I think it’s funny’ (Vance is horrible.)
• ‘A righteous fight’: Democrats hold fast on healthcare but also use shutdown to pummel Trump
• Vance uses false claims to pin shutdown blame on Democrats as White House warns of layoffs (“Vice-president falsely says Democrats calling for billions for ‘healthcare for illegal aliens’ as funding deadlock continues”)
• Government shutdown leaves federal workers ‘on edge’ as Trump eyes more job cuts
• FBI’s Kash Patel attacks ADL as ‘extreme group functioning like a terrorist organization’ (Patel is completely deranged as usual.)
• FBI cuts ties with Anti-Defamation League, FBI director says
• White House fires much of the National Council on the Humanities (Illegal?)
• Mike Johnson Caught on Camera Admitting Trump Is ‘Unwell’
• Jane Fonda relaunches free speech group started by her father during the McCarthy era
• Why Trump’s 2020 election loss lives on in the Georgia governor’s race (” Warring factions at odds over his failed effort to overturn the outcome are renewing their rivalries in a major midterm contest”)
• Conservative appellate Judge Maria Lazar launches bid for open Wisconsin state Supreme Court seat
• Elon Musk becomes first person with net worth of $500bn (There is absolutely no good reason for any one person to have this much money.)
• Press Release: Tim Kaine Addresses Senate on Republican Government Shutdown Concerns
• Video: Sen. Mark Warner Says He Wants the Shutdown To End Quickly, But the Federal Workers He’s Talked To “feel like at some point you’ve just got to draw the line” (After yesterday’s “demeaning and belittling” speeches by Trump and Hegseth, Sen. Warner says he’s hopeful the US military will not “bend the knee” or “take unconstitutional orders”)
• VA Dems Blast Republicans for Shutting Down the Government: “Trump and his rubber-stamp Republicans have chosen to hurt Virginia families instead of working across the aisle”
• Virginia lawmakers react to federal government shutdown (If it’s a day ending in the letter “y,” that means pathological liar Glenn Youngkin is WILDLY lying again.
• Attorney and Civil Rights Advocate Adele Stichel Announces Run for Congress in Virginia’s Fifth District (Stichel joins two other Dems in the race to take on insurrectionist/far-right-extremist Rep. John McGuire (R) in this deep-red district)
• 4 Democrats have announced as candidates for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District (“The four Democrats face a primary contest to determine who will challenge incumbent Republican Rep. John McGuire for the seat in November 2026.”)
• Fifth District race | Adele Stichel joins suddenly crowded Democratic primary field (“I’m a progressive journalist sitting, as I write this, literally six miles from the district line, but go ahead, keep us out of the loop – are guys named Mike Pruitt and Paul Riley.”)
• Fired State Department official from Alexandria enters 8th Congressional District race (“Michael Duffin, a former State Department official who was terminated in July, announced on Wednesday his campaign for the Democratic nomination in Virginia’s 8th Congressional District, joining a growing primary field that includes a former Alexandria city councilman.”)
• GOP Senate hopeful voted to require transvaginal ultrasound before abortion in Virginia (“Virginia Republican state Sen. Bryce Reeves is running to challenge Democratic incumbent U.S. Sen. Mark Warner in 2026.”)
• How the government shutdown could disrupt Virginia daily life
• Virginia 2025 Poll: Spanberger Holds 10-Point Lead over Earle-Sears for Governor
• New Emerson College Poll of 2025 VA Governor’s Race: Spanberger 52%-Earle-Sears 42%; Early Vote So Far Spanberger 60%-Earle-Sears 38% (Youngkin’s approval at 46%-41%; Trump at 42%-54%; tpp issues the economy, education, healthcare, democracy, housing affordability)
• Earle-Sears didn’t cause the shutdown, but she and the GOP will likely bear most of the blame for it (“The timing of this crisis adds more difficulty for Earle-Sears and her ticketmates by forcing the GOP to do damage control on the fly while the shutdown worsens economic chaos through weeks of early voting, writes columnist Bob Lewis.”)
• DPVA Press Release: “NEW: Social Media Account Linked to John Reid Engaged with Slave Fetish And Nazi Porn Accounts” (“New Report Details The ‘Disturbing Imagery’ In The Social Media Account That Led Gov. Youngkin To Call On John Reid To Drop His Campaign For Lieutenant Governor “)
• Reid’s tenure as registered foreign agent faces fresh scrutiny in LG bid (“The GOP nominee says he did media, not lobbying, and wasn’t assigned to Saudi or Fiji accounts; Qorvis stresses compliance with federal law” “Reid’s campaign declined to answer nearly 30 detailed questions The Mercury sent about his duties, clients and any Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) filings during his Qorvis years.”))
• UVA’s top political prognosticator on November’s election and the mid-terms (“Sabato is betting most voters will favor Democrat Abigail Spanberger for governor, because they dislike Donald Trump.”)
• Editorial: Laws, inspections aim to raise quality of Virginia nursing home care
• Some Hampton Roads parks are impacted by government shutdown
• Virginia Tech to close living communities focused on Africana studies, LGBTQ+
• The Shenandoah Valley spawns a rare competitive race — and charges that an incumbent used his office to help himself. But did he? (“Democrat Andrew Payton is mounting a strong challenge to Republican incumbent Tony Wilt, making this year’s House District 34 perhaps the most competitive there in four decades. However, two charges Payton is making against Wilt don’t hold up to scrutiny.”)
• No sign of political cloud over George Mason in Youngkin visit (Weird.)
• Virginia Beach ordered to pay damages to Black police officer who says he was wrongly demoted
• Northumberland County is considering an appointed school board. Could Virginia see more?
• Fluvanna County considers another gas-burning power plant (Terrible idea.)
• Ex Virginia legislature candidate Susanna Gibson, who made online sex vids, arrested for domestic violence
• CWG Live updates: Our upgrade to first class fall weather continues