by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, November 20.
- The U.S. Is Ceding Climate Leadership to Authoritarian States
- Why the Time Has Finally Come for Geothermal Energy (“It used to be that drawing heat from deep in the Earth was practical only in geyser-filled places such as Iceland. But new approaches may have us on the cusp of an energy revolution.”)
- Turkey set to host COP31 climate summit, Australia to lead government talks
- World’s richest nations are pulling back from global development efforts, study shows
- White House’s Ukraine Peace Plan Draws Pushback (“European officials said Kyiv must approve any plan and that the war must not end with a Ukrainian capitulation.”)
- Zelenskyy to meet US army secretary after American and Russian officials draft plan to end war (“The draft plan, reportedly developed by Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and Kremlin adviser Kirill Dmitriev, would force draconian measures on Ukraine” 100% unacceptable; non-starter.)
- US military officials in Ukraine amid reports of draft Russia peace plan
- Scoop: Trump plan asks Ukraine to cede additional territory for security guarantee
- Trump’s 28-point Ukraine peace plan catches Congress off guard
- Parsing Trump’s Ukraine peace plan
- China Is Priming Its People and the World for a New Pressure Campaign on Taiwan
- Trump shrugged off Khashoggi’s killing. This is a new low (“Jamal Khashoggi was dismembered in a Saudi consulate. The president says ‘things happen’” Trump is just a heinous individual with ZERO moral compass.)
- The US-Saudi relationship is too big to fail…for now
- Trump’s Self-Damning Response to a Legitimate Question (“The president scolded a reporter for ’embarrassing’ Mohammed bin Salman. But MBS seemed less aggrieved than Trump.”)
- Saudi Arabia gained more than the U.S. from MBS’s D.C. visit (“The crown prince gets F-35s, new security status and legitimacy in exchange for promised investment.”)
- Saudi Prince Mohammed is being lavished with praise by Trump. It’s clear why (“Autocrats like Prince Mohammed are eager to benefit from Trump’s brazen effort to use the presidency to enrich himself and his family”)
- The Worst Humanitarian Crisis in the World Is Going Mostly Ignored (Why do some humanitarian crises get so much more media attention than others? Is there any logical/rational reason why?)
- Shelter and food in desperately short supply as Gaza braces for harsh winter
- Top military lawyer raised legal concerns about boat strikes (“The lawyer at U.S. Southern Command, which oversees the operations against alleged drug-smuggling boats near Venezuela, disagreed that the strikes are legal and was overruled, according to six sources.” They’re 100% most definitely ILLEGAL.)
- French conservatives are inching towards a pact with Le Pen that could enable a far-right takeover of the country (That would be DISASTROUS.)
- Jailhouse shock: Brazil coup monger Bolsonaro finally faces life behind bars (This should have happened to Trump. Why the F*** didn’t it???)
- Judge Boasberg to resume criminal contempt inquiry into Trump officials involved in Alien Enemies Act deportation flights
- Judge Boasberg says “justice requires” him to continue contempt inquiry into Trump admin
- Donald Trump Moves To Gut Endangered Species Protections. Again.
- The September jobs report is finally coming out Thursday. Here’s what it is expected to show (“The report is forecast to show a gain of 50,000 jobs in the public and private sectors, up from the initially reported 22,000 in August but still indicative of a soft labor market.”)
- Labor Department confirms cancellation of October jobs report
- The Vibecession Deepens (“And even I am somewhat surprised”)
- Electric car sales drive record quarter for cleantech investments
- Trump’s ‘affordability’ efforts are a mess of absurdity and magical thinking (“After Republicans were trounced in this month’s votes, the administration has launched a slapdash, ill-conceived campaign”)
- Social Security scraps plan to limit disability benefits after uproar
- As health insurance premiums soar, pressure on Republicans mounts
- House Dems demand Johnson hold ACA vote
- House moves to repeal controversial ‘Arctic Frost’ provision that allows GOP senators to seek $500,000 payouts
- House unanimously rebukes Thune on data seizure payouts
- A split at the top: Why Thune and Johnson are at odds this week (“The two men meet regularly and enjoy a good rapport, but the Speaker and Senate Majority Leader have found themselves caught up in intraparty drama.”)
- GOP senators warn Bondi not to slow-walk release of Epstein files
- President Signs Bill on Release of Epstein Files (“Mr. Trump announced on social media that he had signed the legislation, but the release of all the files is not guaranteed.”)
- The Trump Steamroller Is Broken (“Infighting. Bad polls. Party divisions. Midterm fears. It’s all back.”)
- The lame duck dictatorship (“Trump is fighting his ‘war within’ on multiple fronts and losing them all.”)
- ‘Democrats are going to come to regret this’: After Epstein vote, Trump ready to attack
- The latest Epstein emails reveal the powerful people who sought his counsel
- How Trump reversed course on the Epstein files as his administration faces lingering suspicion about their release
- The Justice Department Simply Can’t Be Trusted with the Epstein Files Transparency Act
- The Day Republicans Beat Trump (“Nothing like the Epstein-files loss has ever happened to him”)
- Trump mulling executive order to block state AI laws (The president can’t block state laws.)
Larry Ellison discussed axing CNN hosts with White House in takeover bid talks- The DOJ’s big screwups, briefly explained (“Basic lawyering mistakes are impeding Trump’s agenda.” So they’re malevolent, but also incompetent?)
- Trump Loyalist Admits Grand Jury Never Saw Final Comey Indictment (“Grand jurors have to vote on indictments to approve them, but a prosecutor told the judge in the case that only the foreperson formally approved the second charging document, a move that could cripple the case.”)
- Comey case hanging by a thread as judge squeezes DOJ over Halligan’s handling
- Why Lindsey Halligan, Trump loyalist turned U.S. Attorney, is in trouble (“The former insurance lawyer submitted a grand jury indictment that most grand jurors never saw.”)
- ‘Unforgivable’: Trump’s ‘piggy’ insult is stoking more outrage than usual (“The clip of the US president on Air Force One last Friday has taken off without much help from the media itself”)
- Trump administration makes major changes to a report it commissioned on FEMA reforms, AP sources say
- Noem at odds with Trump-appointed panel over future of FEMA
- Trump defense of Tucker Carlson interview with Nick Fuentes sparks chatter in GOP Jewish circles
- House Devolves Into Lawmakers Just Voting To Punish Each Other (“They’re about to bring up their fourth resolution this week to condemn another one of their colleagues. Good work, Congress!”)
- Scoop: House members want to make it harder to censure each other
- Americans Show Consensus on Many Democracy-Related Matters (That’s really dumb; in fact, if you vote for Trump, you are against Democracy.)
- Trump and Vance not invited to Dick Cheney’s funeral, but all four living former vice presidents attending
- Trump Says He Will Meet With Mamdani Friday at the White House
- Summers Will Not Finish Semester of Teaching as Harvard Investigates Epstein Ties (Total slimeball.)
- US Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida indicted on charges of stealing $5M in disaster funds
- Ex-Van Drew staffer staged fake attack, writing ‘Trump Whore’ across her stomach and alleging men held her down and cut her body (Bizarre.)
- How Right-Wing Superstar Riley Gaines Built an Anti-Trans Empire (“The swimmer tied a trans woman for fifth. The MAGA industrial complex took care of the rest.”)
- Video: After Trump Defends Saudi Crown Prince, Sen. Tim Kaine Introduces Resolution “to honor the life and the absolutely gruesome death of the journalist…and Virginia resident, Jamal Khashoggi” (Senate Republicans promptly block the resolution, because…of course they do.)
- Video: Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-VA07) – “You’ve heard about Trump and Zelesnkyy’s call, but have you heard about the call between Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince?” (“Vindman Demands President Trump Release Transcript of 2019 Call with Mohammed bin Salman Following Murder of Jamal Khashoggi”)
- Two Virginia congressional races are tightening: Not the ones out my way (Just because Cook Political or whoever changes their ratings doesn’t mean the races are actually tightening, but anyways. As for VA06 or VA05, they’re both red districts, but if Dems redistrict next spring, then VA05 almost certainly will become competitive, maybe VA06 as well, depending how aggressive Dems want to be.)
- Ben Cline now claims he supported the release of Epstein files all along (Cline is dishonest to an almost laughable level. Except it’s not funny.)
- Group pushing Don Beyer, for some reason, on Farmville Detention Center (“From the letter that was sent to Beyer, and made public, this week, it seems that the group thinks Beyer, a Democrat in the minority party in the House, has more power than he does, which ain’t much.” Also, Farmville is faaaar from Beyer’s district. So…yeah, no idea why they’d focus on Beyer for this.)
- Macy raises $350,000 for congressional bid in 24 hours (“For comparison, that’s almost as much as Rep. Ben Cline has on hand. It’s also almost twice as much as Shannon Taylor raised when she entered the 1st District race, which is considered a competitive district.”)
- 2026 Virginia congressional races could determine control of the US House (“Virginia Democrats could pick up two or four Republican-held districts next year, depending on district maps.”)
- 11 of Winsome Earle-Sears’, John Reid’s and Jason Miyares’ Biggest FAILS of the 2025 Virginia Election (Earle-Sears never breaking from Trump OR being endorsed by Trump; Earle-Sears’ bizarre debate performance; “I AM SPEAKING”; “LET’S KEEP A GOOD THING GOING!” etc.)
- With shutdown over, Virginia job outlook cloudier than ever (“When the federal government shutdown ended last week after 43 days, economists and public policymakers looked forward to clarity from the return of reliable government statistics about jobs in Virginia. Wrong.”)
- Virginia lawmaker says new military fitness standards are ‘misogynistic’
- Demand grows at Virginia food banks amidst federal cuts
- Virginia legislators consider licensing to purchase firearms
- 5 ways to measure whether the Spanberger administration succeeds (These five items are pretty much all things that a governor – ANY governor – has minimal if any control over. Economic growth is almost 100% a national issue. The amount of power Virginia imports? Again, very little a governor can do about that. How many people move into or out of Virginia? Again, a governor has basically nothing to do with that. Housing availability? Now THAT could be helped by legislation, but not overnight or anything…could take years to see significant results from any policy changes.)
- Right-to-work repeal remains an issue between Democrats
- Virginia Jewish leaders scrutinize Spanberger’s engagement in education appointments (“The Virginia governor-elect wants to play a role in picking UVA’s new president and will be filling numerous board vacancies at the state’s public universities”)
- Gambling interests are investing heavily in Virginia’s legislative process
- A modest proposal for AI data centers: Invest in small and local solar projects (“Purchasing Virginia solar renewable energy credits (SRECs) will enable data centers to support communities, lower peak energy demand, and reduce the tax burden, writes guest columnist Anthony Smith.”)
- Hampton Roads cities plagued by flooding ask state to commit $250 million
- Avian flu is killing vultures in Southwest Virginia. This is a ‘new phenomenon,’ Tech expert says, but may not represent wider spread
- Editorial: $50 million gift to Norfolk State marks latest game-changing donation (“Billionaire MacKenzie Scott’s philanthropy will benefit future generations of students at Norfolk State and Hampton University.”)
- UVa shooter’s mentor won’t say if he called police after being told of deadly plans
- Trial reveals new details about the man who killed three football players at UVA
- VCU, Richmond pilot “left-turn hardening” to reduce pedestrian fatalities
- Radford, Pulaski County at odds over decades-long tax-sharing arrangement
- CWG Live: Cool today before more rain late Friday, then increased sun by the weekend
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