by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, April 13.
- Oil price tops $100 a barrel after peace talks fail and Trump orders blockade
- Oil jumps more than 7% to above $102 ahead of US blockade on Iran
- Iran war could plunge 32 million into poverty, says United Nations (“‘Development in reverse’ taking place involving rising energy and food costs and weaker economic growth”)
- Trump Attacks Pope Leo as Too Liberal and ‘Weak on Crime’ (Can you even IMAGINE the outraged reaction if a DEMOCRATIC president had attacked the Pope like this??? But since it’s Trump, his cultists will just brush it off, and the “mainstream media” won’t care either, because they are de facto pro-Trump and anti-democracy.)
- ‘This Man Is Not Well’: Critics Damn Trump After ‘Unhinged’ Late-Night Attack On Pope (Trump is COMPLETELY deranged.)
- The Iran War Showed a New Side of Pope Leo (“Don’t call him the quiet pope anymore.” I like this guy A LOT!)
- Pope Leo says he does not fear Trump, citing Gospel as he pushes back in feud over Iran war (Calling what’s happening here a “feud” is journalistic malpractice of the first order. Same on AP, if they have any shame…)
- Pope Leo Hits Back at Trump’s Unhinged Meltdown With a Message of Defiance (“Pope Leo XIV says he had no fear of the Trump administration.”)
- Trump pitches Iran blockade as boon to U.S. oil
- Iran Counters Looming U.S. Blockade With Warning on Ports (“Tehran said no port in the Persian Gulf or the Sea of Oman would be safe if its ports are threatened, after Trump confirmed that a blockade would take effect at 10 a.m. ET.”)
- The world’s worst dealmaker screws up the Iran negotiations (“Forget the ‘Art of the Deal’ myth.”)
- Trump says US will blockade strait of Hormuz after Iran peace talks fail (“Iran warns move would breach ceasefire as US president also repeats threats to strike critical infrastructure”)
- Trump news at a glance: president renews threat to Iranian power plants and bridges after talks fail (The military needs to disobey these orders, if given, as they would constitute war crimes for sure.)
- Why Trump is threatening to blockade a strait that Iran is already blockading
- Gen. Wesley Clark: Iran has the advantage over US in negotiations
- How Trump Just Proved He Is History’s Most Powerful Idiot (“He sent three stooges to botch talking peace, then went to UFC. He’s blockading a blockade. No one in history comes close to this idiocy.”)
- UK Not Supporting Trump’s Planned Hormuz Blockade, Starmer Says
- Israelis Don’t Feel Much Like Victors in War With Iran (“The regime in Iran has not changed and the nuclear and missile threats have not been eliminated, leaving many Israelis to wonder what this was all for.”)
- Vance, Putin … Zelenskyy: The losers and winners of Hungary’s seismic election (“Here who’s fuming at the result — and who’s breathing a sigh of relief.”)
- Election Result Removes Ukraine’s Biggest Nemesis in Europe
- The Axis of Autocracy Loses a Wheel (“Hungarians stand up for democracy”)
- Katya Adler: Jubilation in Budapest will be felt in Europe but leaves Moscow cold
- Orbán era swept away by Péter Magyar’s Hungary election landslide (Having a supermajority means they can change the constitution from what Orban did to it.)
- ‘Hungary has chosen Europe’: EU leaders jubilant after Péter Magyar’s victory over Orbán (“Congratulations pour in from across EU, with leaders from Spain, Poland, France, Britain, Denmark, Romania, Sweden and beyond hailing a new chapter”)
- Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán is ejected after 16 years in a European electoral earthquake (Major loss for Trump, Vance, Putin, Netanyahu, etc.)
- Magyar says his government will work for a ‘free, European’ Hungary in break with Orbán era (“Tisza leader thanks voters in Facebook post and says his administration will be ‘well-functioning and compassionate’”)
- Hungary Just Ousted the Unoustable (“Viktor Orbán had support from Moscow and Washington, but not from his own people.” And by “Washington,” they mean TRUMP!)
- Viktor Orbán, the European Union’s only autocrat, has fallen.
- Illiberalism Is Not Inevitable (“If Viktor Orbán can lose, then his Russian and American admirers can lose too.”)
- In Hungary, Orbán’s loss shows how populism can run out of road (Calling Orban’s corruption, authoritarianism, etc. “populism” means that the word “populism” has no meaning whatsoever. Or maybe it’s just the “mainstream” media being stupid as usual.)
- Election loss for Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán has ripple effects for Trump, US conservatives
- Orbán’s Defeat Shows What Trump’s Opponents Keep Doing Wrong (“The Hungarian election was a setback for MAGA. But the winner’s campaign should be a wake-up call for Trump’s opponents.”)
- Hungarians look to changed future after pro-EU Magyar’s election landslide
- Sudden GOP infighting explodes over bipartisan immigration reform bill (“Under Salazar’s plan, those in the country illegally prior to 2021 — and who do not have criminal records — would have to pay $7,000 in restitution and any back taxes owed and would also not be eligible for welfare programs, but they would get a new legal status. The bill itself would not provide them a path to citizenship.”)
- Trump Says Gas Prices Might Not Drop By Midterms, Underscoring G.O.P. Peril
- Donald Trump Is a Loser (“Five ways he is proving it”)
- America’s New Tax Mantra: ‘The IRS Isn’t Going to Catch Me’ (“The battered Internal Revenue Service shed thousands of enforcement employees—and more taxpayers appear eager to cheat” So, so, so bad.)
- ‘It’s all we have to run on’: GOP looks to tout tax cuts as war overtakes Hill agenda (What a pathetic party.)
- A year later, we are just starting to understand how DOGE worked (“Depositions offer insight into what Elon Musk’s group was up to. Members describe a club-like atmosphere in which they slashed agencies with little oversight.” If/when Democrats come back into power, every one of these motherf8*%ers needs to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.)
- The 2026 Races Giving Democrats New Hope in the South
- AOC wrestles with left-wing Dems as 2028 decision looms (“One liberal strategist told Axios that AOC has ‘lamented that the left was not there for her, that they are never pleased.'” Of course the far left will never be pleased and never really be there for Democrats, it’s just who they are…)
- Eric Swalwell quits California governor race after sexual assault allegations (Good riddance; now resign from Congress, IMMEDIATELY!)
- How Did California Democrats Let Eric Swalwell Get This Far, Anyway? (“They surely knew about his misconduct ages ago. And more broadly, California Democrats aren’t doing their party any favors.” Any others behaving like this in Congress should be named/shamed/ousted/etc.)
- Sen. Mark Warner says he’ll “take a look” at Trump funding request for Iran war
- Sen. Warner on Trump’s plan to blockade the Strait of Hormuz: ‘I have no idea… how he’s going to get it reopened’
- Kaine says Trump leaving Iran nuclear deal ‘one of the worst’ foreign policy decisions by American president
- Video: On “This Week,” Sen. Tim Kaine Says Trump Tearing Up Iran Nuclear Deal Was “one of the worst [foreign policy] decisions…ever made by an American president” (Sen. Mark Warner: “unfortunately the regime is if anything filled with more radicals than before.”)
- Video: Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-VA07) Says “The accusations [against Eric Swalwell] are absolutely heinous…his admissions betraying his family are deplorable…So [he] needs to resign.”
- Video: Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-VA11) Says Trump Is “unhinged…out of control & he should be removed from office” (Also: Eric Swalwell “should exit the California governor’s race and he should resign from Congress…It’s disgusting.”)
- Virginia congressional candidates navigate looming fork in the campaign trail
- Hakeem Jeffries stumps in Henrico for vote yes redistricting campaign
- How do MAGAs get away with outright lying in TV ads? (This is the type of article the “mainstream” media in Virginia SHOULD BE writing, but never do and probably never will…)
- In 1958, the Virginia Supreme Court invalidated a referendum result. Could it do so again with redistricting? (Hard to believe it will do that, especially if the referendum passes by a solid margin.)
- If Virginia’s redistricting amendment fails, it wouldn’t be the first
- A governor’s bill review can mean a working Saturday — and pizza (The deadline for the governor to take action on legislation is 11:59 pm TODAY, by the way…)
- Spanberger joins other governors in push for PJM to prioritize ratepayer protections
- Farm workers in Virginia now must be paid a minimum wage
- 10 Virginia hospitals listed as ‘at risk,’ but what does that really mean?
- Lt. Gov. Hashmi announces statewide lecture series linking literature and politics
- Here’s what Hampton Roads legislators passed this session.
- 8 shot at Virginia Beach Oceanfront Saturday night
- CWG Live: Heating up this week, with record warmth possible (“Highs could top 80 today and have a shot at 90 tomorrow. It’ll be even hotter Wednesday and Thursday.”)
