Tuesday (4/14) News: “Trump creates ‘beyond absurd’ situation at global finance talks”; Vance “risks becoming face of two Trump foreign policy failures”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, April 14. Just one week until the April 21 referendum on the new redistricting amendment; have you voted (YES!) yet and reminded your friends to do the same?

• ‘Without them there is no life’: the race to understand the mysterious world of fungi
• Don’t mention the climate: Trump creates ‘beyond absurd’ situation at global finance talks (“Developing countries face possible shelving of crucial green action plan at IMF and World Bank spring meetings”)
• ‘Suddenly, boom, it’s completely warm’: summers are getting longer – especially in Sydney, study finds (“Researchers examined trends in 10 global cities, with Sydney’s summer growing at two-and-a-half times the average”)
• Are we heading for ‘super El Niño’ – and what could we expect? (“Experts say climate pattern could supercharge extreme weather events and push temperatures to record highs”)
• Norway Reopens Annual Whale Hunt Despite Pressure to End Commercial Whaling (Absolutely APPALLING; disgraceful by Norway.)
• The Internet’s Most Powerful Archiving Tool Is in Peril (“As major news outlets cut off the Wayback Machine, journalists and advocacy groups are rallying to protect the Internet Archive’s vast collection of web pages.” More bad news.)
• Meta Is Warned That Facial Recognition Glasses Will Arm Sexual Predators
• Iran war leads to biggest jump in global energy inflation in at least 25 years
• Oil falls as IEA predicts ‘demand destruction will spread’ and hopes for fresh Iran talks grow
• Trump’s Latest Oil Blockade Brings Bigger Economic Risks (“Oil markets shrugged it off, but the effort to hurt Iran could provoke retaliation that inflicts more damage on energy assets and the global economy”)
• US-Sanctioned Tanker Tests Trump Blockade With Hormuz Exit
• Efforts underway for second round of US-Iran talks as Strait of Hormuz showdown endures
• Donald Trump’s blockade of Hormuz is a dangerous gamble (“It further undermines international law and could lead to new fighting”)
• Saudi Arabia Is Pressing U.S. to Drop Its Hormuz Blockade (“Gulf energy exporters worry Iran could escalate and close the Bab al-Mandeb, the main exit route for bottlenecked Persian Gulf oil”)
• Trump Is Facing an Increasingly Defiant World (“The Iran standoff shows the mistake the president and his team make in acting as if the world is full of passive characters.”)
• U.S. Is Negotiating an Iran Deal That Would Buy Time, Again (Trump never should have torn up the Iran nuclear deal to begin with!!!)
• Peace with Iran hinges on nuclear compromise, and the sides are miles apart
• Rubio to host Israeli, Lebanese ambassadors for talks amid ceasefire effort
• JD Vance had a vision for the world. Trump is wrecking it. (“The vice president’s disastrous week reveals that he’s in a trap of his own making.”)
• Vance’s bad week: vice-president risks becoming face of two Trump foreign policy failures (“Orbán is out in Hungary and talks have failed to end the war in Iran – ill-fated road trip has been setback for Maga aims”)
• Trump and MAGA Embraced Orban. Now, They’re Worried by His Loss in Hungary’s Election.
• Trump’s Humiliation in Orbán Defeat Stunner Is Only Just Beginning (“For Viktor Orbán’s epic loss in Hungary to have real meaning in America, Democrats and liberals need to proclaim themselves part of the global anti-authoritarian movement.”)
• Orban’s Fall Is an Astounding Achievement
• There’s a Message for MAGA in Viktor Orbán’s Defeat (“Trump and Vance chose to go all in on Hungary, and now they share in the loss.”)
• JD Vance Seems to Ruin Everything He Touches
• Vance ‘sad Orbán lost’ but says US will work with new Magyar government in Hungary (Vance is a complete and utter douchebag.)
• Meloni slams ‘unacceptable’ Trump comments on Pope Leo (“Trump’s attacks left many right-wing politicians under pressure to defend the pope, as many of their voters have a strong attachment to Catholic tradition.”)
• US military says it killed two people in another boat strike in eastern Pacific (These strikes are almost certainly crimes, and everyone involved should be prosecuted if that’s the case.)
• MAGA allies say Trump is going soft on deportations
• Troy Edgar, Noem’s No. 2, returns as DHS deputy secretary (“The White House on Monday withdrew his nomination to serve as ambassador to El Salvador.”)
• Minnesota authorities investigate arrest by ICE of a Hmong American man as a possible kidnapping
• The real cost of the war with Iran (“The U.S. has been spending up to $2 billion every day on the war with Iran. But that’s just military expenditure. What’s the real, long-term economic toll?”)
• Transcript: Trump’s America Is Deeply Unwell, and It’s Time to Say So (“As Trump reveals his unfitness in stark new ways, a political theorist argues that our election of this man to the presidency twice should prompt deep introspection about what we’ve become.”)
• Trump’s federal workforce changes cost the economy more than $165.6B, analysis finds (“The Partnership for Public Service report includes the costs of the deferred resignation program, severance pay for laid-off civil servants and federal employees who were on paid administrative leave while their firings were challenged in court.”)
• Why Worry? The Less We Know, the Safer Trump Seems: Lessons Not Learned from Past Financial Crises
• Trump angered some ardent supporters with AI image appearing to depict him as Jesus (“The president was accused of ‘blasphemy’ by evangelical Christians who have been his more ardent supporters.”)
• Trump’s Christ-like image is filled with sloppy symbolism (“As so often happens when an image is poorly made and overwrought, it conveyed more meanings than the artist — or whoever fed prompts into the AI generator — intended”)
• Lambasting Pope Leo, Trump risks alienating conservative Catholics
• Trump’s incredible shrinking tent
• Trump’s God Complex (“Losing allies, sniping at the Pope, depicting himself as Jesus: Trump is playing on tilt.”)
• Donald Trump’s pivot to blasphemy (“Attacking the pope and posing as Jesus — even religious conservatives are mad this time.”)
• Staunch Trump Supporters Are Now Asking if He’s the Antichrist (“The Iran war and a series of social media posts, including one depicting Trump as Jesus Christ, have some conservative commentators and fans suspecting the president may be the antichrist.”)
• Republicans Were Relieved Trump Deleted an Image of Himself as Jesus (“But they had fewer issues with Trump’s rants against Pope Leo. ‘There’s only one Jesus,’ Sen. Josh Hawley said. ‘So, you know, best to stick with that.'”)
• Jesus Trump Deletes Pic Of Himself Healing Sick Because MAGA Is No Fun Anymore (“Oh great, now Trump isn’t even Jesus? This dictator for life thing isn’t working out AT ALL.”)
• Correction: Trump Says AI ‘Jesus’ Post Was ‘Me As a Doctor’ (Pathological liar.)
• Trump’s Explanation for an Image of Himself as Jesus: ‘I Thought It Was Me as a Doctor’ (Trump will never take personal responsibility for ANYTHING he does!)
• How an Image Depicting Trump as Christ Sparked a Backlash on the Religious Right (They never should have voted for this scumbag – the antithesis of Jesus Christ – in the first place!)
• Trump quietly deleted the blasphemous post depicting him as Jesus
• The Parable of the President (“Donald Trump’s criticism of Pope Leo XIV reveals that to him, religion is primarily about power, not morality.”)
• Trump’s Erratic Behavior and Extreme Comments Revive Mental Health Debate (“As the president threatens to wipe out Iran and attacks the pope, even some former allies and advisers are questioning whether he has grown increasingly unbalanced, describing him as “lunatic” and “clearly insane.””)
• Trump Is About to Drop a “Nuclear Weapon” on Trans Youth Health Care (“How a report led by a right-wing pundit laid the groundwork for upending gender-affirming treatment”)
• Whistleblower says Trump officials thought USAID did ‘just abortions,’ asked for ‘Barney-style’ slides before gutting agency, per new book (Thesed people are all EVIL; their illegal, unconstitutional actions were heinous, are causing the deaths of millions, and should result in severe punishment.)
• Judge tosses Trump’s lawsuit against WSJ over Epstein letter
• ‘Dark Money’ Kingpin Leonard Leo Revamps Operation Ahead of Midterms (This guy is uttelry heinous.)
• Dozens arrested as protesters demand Schumer and Gillibrand block sale of bombs to Israel (Why are they protesting Democrats, who are in the minority and can’t really do shit, and not Republicans, who control all three branches of the federal government???)
• Cook Political Report shifts 4 Senate races toward Democrats (In general, who cares what Cook says about anything; also, they do this stuff for clicks and attention.)
• Tony Gonzales, a Texas Congressman, Says He Will Resign (“The third term Republican lawmaker is accused of coercing a staff member into a sexual relationship.”)
• The whisper network that caught up to Eric Swalwell (“Warnings about the lawmaker had long circulated privately. Then a handful of women and online creators pushed them into public view, forcing California’s political establishment to reckon with how far he got.”)
• Swalwell to resign from Congress
• Eric Swalwell’s exit adds fresh uncertainty to California governor’s race (“Swalwell, who ended his campaign amid sexual misconduct allegations, was among the top-polling Democrats in a contest that has long lacked a clear front-runner.”)
• Pride Flag Can Fly at Stonewall After Trump Administration Reversal (“The settlement ends a symbolic attack on the L.G.B.T.Q. rights movement and deals a blow to the administration’s assault on diversity initiatives.”)
• A Few Thoughts on a Possible Olivia Troye Candidacy in (the New) VA07; For Instance, Could She Pass the “Jim Webb Test”? (In short, can a former Republican (or even Trump White House official) explain, articulately and convincingly, why they’re now a Democrat?)
• Virginia voters already chose fair maps. Now Washington money wants a do-over. (I’m including a link to this horrendous, dishonest crap by Jason Miyares and Eric Cantor simply to say: 1) always do the opposite of anything these right wingnuts have to say; 2) note that they do NOT mention the millions of $$$ for the NO campaign from far-right-extremist Peter Thiel?; 3) this isn’t about a “do-over,” it’s about fighting back against Trump trying to rig the US House maps in his favor, and everyone knows that, including Miyares and Cantor…)
• Early voting points to an edge for Virginia Democrats trying to enact a US House map that could flip four seats
• ‘Dark money’ is fueling both sides of Virginia’s redistricting campaign (Literal “both sides” reporting by the Cardinal News – LOL.)
• New poll data suggests Democrats might be able to win four Republican-held congressional seats in Virginia without redistricting (“Calculations by data journalist G. Elliott Morris show that President Trump’s disapproval rate exceeds his approval rate in 134 Republican-held House districts. Four of those are in Virginia.”)
• Sam Shirazi: “Nearly 69K early votes cast this weekend in Virginia; 925K early votes right now; 6 more days left” (This weekend highlighted the “importance of satellites and weekend voting” – for Democrats)
• “The ‘Trolley Problem’ and Why I Voted YES on the Virginia Redistricting Referendum” (“President Trump’s brazen attempt to fix the upcoming midterms has put… Democrats in a quandary” – but the answer is clear; VOTE YES!)
• Podcast: #TeamAFP talks referendum, decline of Virginia media on ‘Street Knowledge’
• Gov. Spanberger Proposes Amendments to Protect Workers & Support Employers (“…my amendments are about making sure that when these laws take effect, they work — for workers, for businesses, and for the localities and the Commonwealth that will implement them.”)
• Advocates praise Spanberger for signing new gun laws
• Gov. Spanberger Proposes Amendments to Keep Virginians Safe (Includes bills on future sales of assault weapons, working with ICE, officers covering their faces, a legal retail market for marijuana, etc.)
• Spanberger wants to delay the start date of recreational marijuana sales
• BREAKING: Governor Spanberger Does *Not* Sign Tax Bills the General Assembly *Never Passed* (“In this case, the volume of misinformation — spread across social media and repeated in press coverage — made a clarification necessary”)
• Virginia tax revenues remain strong, despite economic headwinds
• School superintendent: Education funding falls short in rural Virginia
• Virginia codifies membership into ERIC with Spanberger’s signature
• Growing pains: Rising diesel, fertilizer costs spurred by Iran war impact Va. farmers (“Fertilizer prices have risen 40% percent in recent weeks, industry experts say, straining growers’ already-tight profit margins.”)
• Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi Announces Launch of Literature & Government Lecture Series Tour Across Virginia (“[M]y hope is that this tour becomes a space for much-needed community conversations and connection.”)
• Who’s running the U.S. Attorney’s office in Virginia’s Eastern District?
• CWG Live: Summer preview starts today; record heat possible tomorrow and Thursday