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by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise (economic, environmental, etc.) for Sunday, June 28. Also, check out the following to videos – the first of former President Joe Biden ripping into “corrupt” “loser” Donald Trump; the second of Paul Krugman ripping into pure evil Elon Musk, and also wondering why Americans – including investors in SpaceX – aren’t far more outraged about his heinous behavior, incompetence, buffoonery, etc.
INTERNATIONAL
- France records 1,000 excess deaths during record-breaking heatwave
- Unease deepens in Russia as Ukraine steps up long-range strikes (“Experts said Vladimir Putin was unlikely to change course despite worsening fuel shortages and a sharp decline in the stock market.”)
- Ukrainian strike sets fire to an oil refinery in southern Russia
- Trump again threatens Iran with annihilation as Kuwait and Bahrain report attacks
- U.S. and Iran Trade More Strikes, Testing Truce (“U.S. forces carried out more airstrikes on Iran, calling them a retaliation for an attack on an oil tanker. Iran’s military later said it had attacked American targets in Bahrain and Kuwait.”)
- U.S. launches fresh Iran strikes as Trump threatens to “complete the job” (If the “job” isn’t “completed,” then why is Trump not just “completing” it? He keeps lying and contradicting himself.)
- Trump news at a glance: America wins ‘either way’, Vance claims amid shaky ceasefire with Iran (“Vice-president JD Vance says US holds all the cards in conflict with Iran” Every word Vance says is a lie.)
- Bahrain condemns Iranian tit-for-tat drone attack as ‘flagrant threat’
- Donald Trump threatens to annihilate Iran after crossfire over Hormuz (Is this Upside Down Groundhog Day or what?)
- Vance vs. Rubio: Iran Edition (“The two are pursuing different approaches to one of the world’s most intractable diplomatic issues.”)
- Israel damaged heritage sites across south Lebanon, minister says
- Israel’s Vance problem is bigger than JD Vance (“Vice President JD Vance has become the face of a Washington that no longer treats Israel as the exception to ‘America First.'”)
- The Openness That Powered Germany’s Economy Is Now Its Biggest Weakness (“The country that once led the world in exports has been stuck in neutral since before the Covid-19 pandemic.”)
- 10 Years After Brexit, the Dismal Verdict Is In
- Serbian President Vucic says he will resign within weeks (“Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Saturday he would resign within weeks and the country will hold early presidential and parliamentary elections, following 18 months of anti-government protests.”)
- As Trump Cut a Billion-Dollar Mining Deal, His Sons Stand to Profit (“An agreement between the U.S. and Kazakhstan has given a group of American investors access to one of the world’s largest untapped reserves of tungsten.” MASSIVE corruption, unlike anything we’ve ever seen before in our country. Where’s the outrage?)
- Kazakh Leader Deepens U.S. Ties, Saying Trump Was ‘Sent From Heaven’ (He’s right, except he meant to say “From Hell” instead of “From Heaven.”)
- Meet 3 members of Albania’s ‘Flamingo Revolution’ trying to torpedo a Kushner-linked development
- Tens of thousands march in the first Budapest Pride since Viktor Orbán was voted out
- Venezuela earthquake death toll rises to 1,430; U.S. to send additional aid
- Venezuela’s Machado Plans Quick Return Amid Quake Response
- Venezuelan earthquakes test Trump’s new western hemisphere policy after gutting of USAID
- Venezuela’s Government Is Accused of Politicizing Quake Relief
- U.S. Officials Are Said to Be Frustrated With Exiled Opposition Leader’s Call for Help
NATIONAL
- Anti-ICE organizers shift focus to defend democracy from Trump assault
- Trump nominates former Oklahoma trooper Lance Schroyer to be ICE director (These f’ers keep claiming they only want to deport “criminal illegal aliens,” but that is NOT what they’re doing – instead, they’re mostly deporting people who are here working, raising their families, not committing crimes, etc.)
- Trump allows dairy farms a path for migrant labor, upsetting anti-immigration camp
- The Court That Will Believe Absolutely Anything Is ‘Race-Neutral’ (“The majority gives Trump yet more license to discriminate.”)
- Supreme Court’s blockbuster week will put Trump’s power to the test (Nightmare.)
- Kevin Warsh Invokes Alan Greenspan to Shrink the Fed—and Strengthen Its Chair
- With time running out, Trump digs in on changing midterm election rules (“Fearing a Democratic takeover of Congress, the president has spent months trying to alter how the midterms will be conducted, but obstacles keep cropping up.”)
- Postmaster general’s remarks on mail ballots stoke fears among voting rights advocates (Those fears should be by ALL Americans, not just by “voting rights advocates.”)
- Millions dropped ObamaCare plans after subsidies ended (Horrible.)
- On Holding Elon Musk Accountable (“Why aren’t we talking more about DOGE?”)
- Zuckerberg Urges Meta to Explore Working With Polymarket and Kalshi (“Mr. Zuckerberg’s plans for Arena, a prediction markets app that Meta is building, also include appealing to 18- to 34-year-old users.” Of course…)
- Beware the Purging of General Donahue
- Housing Should Not Be Held Hostage to Voter Suppression (“President Trump demands passage of the SAVE Act before signing the Housing bill”)
- White House Secretly Swayed Board Meant to Stop Civil Service Politicization
- Rats, Leaks and Broken Elevators: Repair Backlog Plagues Federal Buildings
- Two years after their last debate, Biden jabs at Trump: ‘What a loser’
- The UFC match plot: how a far-right group tried to assassinate Trump at his own event (Yep, a FAR-RIGHT group!)
- The Great American State Fair Isn’t Very Great (“A dizzying showcase on the National Mall has Abraham Lincoln holograms, free Frosties, and a lot of Donald Trump.” Pathetic.)
- Maher challenges Vance on Trump election fraud claims: ‘That s— has to stop’
- Bill Maher Gets Played by JD Vance on ‘Real Time,’ Admits He May Vote Republican in 2028 (Maher is awful.)
- Is the next Mamdani in Michigan?
- The Extremely Online Senate Race Testing Democrats’ Midterm Strategy (“In 2026, winning an election might mean winning the most attention online.” Or not? Didn’t work for Jack Schlossberg or George Conway.)
- Will the Mamdani effect make 2028 the year of the leftwing president? (“The mayor hopes to ‘write a new chapter in the party’s history’ – and recent democratic socialist wins prove he might be able to do it”)
- US Rep. Julia Letlow, endorsed by Trump, wins the GOP primary for Senate in Louisiana
- Chaos Came to CBS News. What’s in Store for CNN? (“The tech scion David Ellison is close to completing a merger that would put the legacy broadcaster and the 24-hour cable news network under the same roof.”)
- California’s landmark anti-plastics law sparks anger as 17 states move to sue (“Ambitious plan to phase out single-use plastic opposed by chemicals industry – while green groups say law too timid” “The law, which was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2022 but only took effect in May, requires plastic and packaging companies to use less single-use plastic, and ensure by 2032 that all packaging is either recyclable or compostable. The big idea is to incentivize producers of plastics to consider the end of their products’ life in order to create better, more sustainable bottles, containers and wrappings. Under the new rules, plastic producers have to cut single-use plastic, increase recycling rates, and pay $5bn to remedy harms from plastic pollution.”))
- Colorado’s Primary for Governor Pivots to Trump and Who Will Fight Him (“Tuesday’s Democratic primary is likely to decide the next governor. Senator Michael Bennet, once seen as a lock, is in a fight with Attorney General Phil Weiser.”)
- ‘Not puff pieces and kid gloves’: why Bari Weiss is hiring British journalists at CBS News (“Editor-in-chief has developed network of UK thinkers she believes reject what she regards as overly ‘woke’ consensus”)
- A Reflecting Pool that has long enticed visitors now gains police scrutiny under Trump (The police should be looking into those who vandalized the Reflecting Pool – namely Trump, his pool guy, etc!)
- Who Is Natalie Harp? Trump’s Most Ardent Aide, Explained (“Trump’s ‘human printer’ has reportedly unnerved colleagues.”)
VIRGINIA
- Sen. Mark Warner speaks in Louisa County alongside 5th District candidate Tom Perriello
- Video: Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-VA11) Says “Leon Black also has been accused of sexual abuse by multiple Epstein survivors, and he paid some of those survivors to sign NDAs.” (Also: “it is crystal clear that Todd Blanche and the Department of Justice broke the law”)
- With budget amendments, Spanberger and General Assembly Democrats appear to have achieved peace (“The most significant amendment might be the one that would allow the state to accept the Loudoun County home of former President James Monroe as a state park.”)
- After budget impasse, business as usual for Virginia Democrats, analysts say
- Editorial: Budget deal avoids shutdown, won’t resolve big issues
- Hashmi calls for detailed review of Next Era Energy-Dominion Energy merger (Absolutely!)
- Fairfax Co. asks Va. keep Potomac River off drought declaration to protect drinking water (In fact, there’s no good reason for people to be watering their lawns durin a severe drought.)
- Update: Volunteers clean up site of illegal dumping in Augusta County
- DC-area forecast: A few scattered showers and a storm today. Heat wave coming. (“The heart of the heat wave is with us Wednesday through Friday. Highs look like the mid-90s to near 100 Wednesday, and upper 90s to low 100s Thursday and Friday. With high humidity, we could be talking dangerous afternoon heat indexes peaking near or above 110.”)
