Sunday (5/17) News: “Xi Jinping Was Only Humoring Trump”; Trump’s “staggeringly corrupt,” “possibly very dangerous” IRS lawsuit

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Sunday, May 17. Also, check out the SNL “cold open” last night – the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein pays a visit to Donald Trump, lol.

• Coal pollution is significantly reducing the output of solar panels, major study finds
• WHO declares Ebola outbreak in DR Congo a global health emergency
• World Health Organization Must Prioritize Workers, Experts Say (“After Trump stopped funding the WHO, the agency retreated even more from occupational safety and health programs, putting millions of workers at risk as the planet warms, advocates contend. They hope its leaders change that when they meet next week.”)
• Large-scale Ukrainian drone attack kills three in Moscow region, says Russia
• China Will Host Putin, Days After Trump’s Visit (“The Russian leader will go to Beijing on Tuesday for talks with President Xi Jinping. The Kremlin said he had watched President Trump’s visit closely.”)
• Trump Calls Xi a ‘Friend.’ But He Left China Without Any Breakthroughs. (Reality check: in no way/shape/form are Xi and Trump “friends”; utterly absurd.)
• Trump Makes a High Risk Move to Win Over Xi (“The president said a potential arms deal for Taiwan was a ‘very good negotiating chip’ in talks with Beijing. His words raise questions about the reliability of U.S. support.”)
• Xi Jinping Was Only Humoring Trump (“In Beijing, a lame-duck president personified the decline of American power.”)
• The foreign fighters who helped topple Assad — and why China worries about them (“These elite fighters were not from Syria. They were Uyghurs — a largely Muslim ethnic minority long persecuted in China. And when the offensive kicked off one night in November 2024, they went to work.”)
• It may not feel like it, but hope is on the horizon: Trump, Netanyahu and Putin’s powers appear to be waning (“Plummeting approval ratings for these three poisonous comrades-in-arms show voters are demoralised and tiring of forever wars – the west could soon breathe again” Or not?)
• US, Iran Stall on Hormuz Reopening as Oil Supplies Tighten
• The War in Iran Is Crippling One of the World’s Wealthiest Nations (“Iranian attacks have paralyzed Qatar’s vital gas exports and are stalling the tourism and business pivots that were intended to anchor its future growth.”)
• USS Ford returns home after 11-month deployment supporting the Iran war and Maduro’s capture
• As global crises multiply, scores of US diplomats say they have been forced out
• Poll: Israel is dividing Republicans, too
• Extremist Jewish settlers eye Gaza, seek to expel Palestinians from enclave (“After years on the political fringes, support for making the war-torn Palestinian enclave into a Jewish community is gaining support across Israel.”)
• Kevin Warsh comes into the Fed facing a big ‘family fight’ over cutting interest rates
• U.S. Debt Is Now Bigger Than the Economy. That’s Not the Real Problem.
• Farmers growing desperate amid rising energy and fertilizer prices (They voted heavily for Trump – and now they’re suffering because of it.)
• For Trump, Soaring Prices Test Voters’ Finances and Patience
• The Oil Shock Is Causing a $45 Billion Rupture in the Economy (“A wartime price surge is slamming consumers while boosting investors.”)
• In the US South, an appeals court leans farther right than the Supreme Court (“The 5th Circuit’s rulings have gone beyond what even the Supreme Court will permit, including twice on the abortion pill.”)
• The Great Political Realignment of 2026 (“it’s absolutely clear that Democrats are far more determined to turn out and far more engaged because they are far more — to go to what we were saying about Platner — persuaded that this is the time to put a check on Trump. Whereas Republicans, except for the hard-core MAGA base, are really pretty disillusioned, particularly swing voters who didn’t expect what they got on prices, didn’t expect what they got in Iran, and didn’t expect even what he’s done on immigration.”)
• Can the Democrats Take Back the Senate? (“Can the Democrats Take Back the Senate?”)
• Suing His Own IRS? Creating a $1.8 Billion Slush Fund? What the Hell Is Trump Trying to Pull? (“Whatever it is, it’s staggeringly corrupt, and possibly very dangerous.”)
• Fmr. government watchdog says Trump stock trades are ‘completely unprecedented’
• Trump’s National Prayer Event Features Speakers Who Smeared Catholicism, Islam
• TPUSA’s “Make Heaven Crowded” revival tour is a disaster (“Charlie Kirk’s death did not inspire the national spiritual awakening that was promised”)
• Ballroom security money nixed by Senate parliamentarian
• Stephen Colbert’s Late Show Cancellation and the Fall of CBS
• Platner’s Energy Plan Prioritizes Lowering Costs and Taking on Big Oil and the ‘Oligarchy’ (Good.)
• On Sullivan Planning Board, Platner Voted to Pump the Brakes on Solar (“The Democratic Senate candidate from Maine voted to pursue a moratorium on all but rooftop solar projects while the town developed permitting rules. He says that’s compatible with his calls for energy-permitting reform.” Bad.)
• Bill Cassidy’s fall is a warning sign for other Trump enemies (“Sen. Bill Cassidy’s (R-La.) primary loss is a massive warning sign for any Republicans who’ve provoked the president’s wrath — like Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie.”)
• Trump Flexes Hold on G.O.P., Even as It Braces for Midterm Backlash (“The defeat of Senator Bill Cassidy showed President Trump’s party dominance, but Republicans are bracing for a potential backlash to his presidency in November.”)
• Trump sent a message by targeting Bill Cassidy. In defeat, Cassidy delivered one back (“Let me just set the record straight: Our country is not about one individual. It is about the welfare of all Americans and it is about our Constitution,” Cassidy said. “And if someone doesn’t understand that and attempts to control others through using the levers of power, they’re about serving themselves. They’re not about serving us. And that person is not qualified to be a leader.”
• 7 Republicans Voted to Convict Trump. Most Are No Longer in Office. (“Senator Bill Cassidy’s defeat means no more than two of them will be left in Congress next year.”)
• Cassidy Loses His Primary in Louisiana, as Trump Vanquishes Another G.O.P. Foe (“Senator Bill Cassidy, a two-term Republican who voted to convict President Trump in his 2021 impeachment trial, could not muster enough votes to continue to a runoff next month.”)
• Sen. Bill Cassidy’s defeat shows the price of dissent in Trump’s Republican Party
• Live results: Letlow, Fleming move on to Senate GOP runoff in Louisiana
• Jeffrey Epstein Hijacks ‘SNL’ in Twisted Trump Cold Open (“The notorious sex trafficker served as the president’s Ghost of Christmas Past.”)
• Workers racing to turn reflecting pool blue for Trump may be at risk, union warns (“Union representative concerned about safety as workers rush to finish repainting DC pool before 250th celebrations”)
• Virginia’s new House map is dead. Democrats think they can still flip these seats.
• Photos, Video: In Richmond, Hundreds of Virginians March in Support of Reproductive Freedom Amendment to State Constitution (“…our personal healthcare decisions should be made in exam rooms with our doctors – not in hearing rooms with politicians”)
• New Virginia law banning `assault firearms’ prompts quick lawsuits from gun-rights groups
• Days to go, and Spanberger has some 50 bills still to consider
• Williams: Spanberger, with her veto, turns her back on workers
• “If I had sponsored the assault weapons ban, would he have asked for my deportation, too?” (“I think politicians have gotten too comfortable swearing in public but f*** this guy [Rep. Andrew Clyde – R, GA]”)
• Editorial: Virginia must build on efforts to retain talented young people (“It’s incumbent upon commonwealth leaders to commit more energy to ensuring that talented young college graduates remain here.”)
• Sen. Lucas says she still doesn’t know why the feds raided her businesses
• Norfolk: Sen. Louise Lucas Speaks at Forum
• After 11 months at sea, and several trips across the ocean, Ford strike group returns
• Staunton: Millionaires win again, while everyday taxpayers get screwed
• CWG Live updates: May heat wave through Wednesday, when storms are possible