| Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... |
by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, September 21. Today’s biggest developments and headlines include the climate crisis (always at the top of these news highlights because it’s existential and should be a massive story every single day)…plus lots more…see below.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
- ‘Planetary boundaries’ necessary for flourishing of life have been massively breached, scientists warn (“New report shows key indicators of Earth’s health are ‘outside the safe operating space’ as climate disaster looms”)
- ‘Jaw-dropping’ El Niño bursts through temperature record months before peak
- Tropics will be among last places to benefit if global greenhouse gas emissions cut to net zero
- The AI doomsday fear hidden in self-improving AI
- Healthcare in Africa ‘under growing strain’ after US withdrawal from aid programs, report warns
- Messy, troubled, unpredictable: Diplomats describe a world in turmoil as UN opens annual meeting
- Trump’s bizarre social media blitz leaves world guessing ahead of UN address
- Trump set to press Zelenskyy at UN to agree energy ceasefire with Russia (HELL NO.)
- Zelenskiy and US spy chief Ratcliffe meet in Ireland, sources say
- Lithuania ready to ‘fight back’ but has evacuation plans in face of Russia threats, PM tells BBC
- With Time on His Side, Xi Seeks to Extend Truce With Trump (“Facing an American president constrained by war and politics, China’s leader may seek to lock in a tactical truce while he shores up a fragile economy at home.”)
- Trump, Xi seek trade stability and deals, but AI, tariffs and Iran loom large. What to watch
- China’s Xi expected to press Trump to halt Taiwan arms sales under 1982 agreement (“China regularly describes the issue of Taiwan, which Beijing views as its own territory, as its most sensitive and important diplomatic issue and has repeatedly called for arms sales to stop.”)
- In Trump, Xi Sees ‘Rare Window’ to Convince Taiwan That Resistance Is Futile (“Beijing is courting Taiwan’s opposition—and quietly helped stage its leader’s landmark visit to the mainland—to pull the island into its orbit”)
- Saudi Arabia Spent Months Trying to Bypass Hormuz. Now There’s No Way Around It. (“With its Red Sea bypass route disrupted by attacks, the world’s oil kingpin is returning to the waterway it was trying to avoid in the first place.”)
- U.S. Proposes $5 Billion to Kickstart Fund to Rebuild Gulf Energy Sites
- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warns US over escalation, and other Mideast developments
- Iran must stop arming Houthis in Yemen, G7 says ahead of UN General Assembly
- Saudi Arabia Running Tests to Resume East-West Oil Pipeline
- Republican support for Trump’s handling of war in Iran shows cracks in new CNN poll
- U.S. military leaders divided over action against the Houthis
- Iran ready to reopen Strait of Hormuz if US eases military pressure and lifts blockade
- Burnham leaves door open to ‘rejoin EU’ pledge (“The U.K. PM’s comments are a major shift in rhetoric from the days of predecessor Keir Starmer.”)
- Grief, trauma and solidarity as South African running club mourns member killed in wave of femicides (“A week after Elizabeth ‘Tsontso’ Moselakgomo’s body was found, runners took part in a morning run to honour her name and demand more protection”)
- Trump, Greenland, Denmark to sign deal in bid to end Arctic standoff
- US to open two new military bases in Greenland, sources say
NATIONAL NEWS
- Man Shot by ICE Agent Says His Car Was Struck Twice Before He Was Shot (“A Venezuelan immigrant, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, was shot in Austin, Texas, on Sunday after a traffic stop. The shooting prompted calls from local officials for a transparent investigation.”)
- ICE Shot a DoorDash Driver in the Back in Austin (“Rather than getting him medical help, they carted him off to an ICE detention complex—and the bullet is still in his back.” Absolute EVIL!)
- Immigrants with final deportation orders disappear from ICE detainee locator (“The change will make it harder for many families and attorneys to determine where an immigrant is being held after being taken into ICE custody.” That’s WILDLY unacceptable!)
- The Northern Passage (“ICE is targeting Haitians with new intensity. Now some are fleeing the United States for Canada.”)
- Disgraced ICE Barbie Goon Handed Top Fraud Job (“A judge found Karen Evans deliberately deleted evidence—she is now leading DHS’s fraud-fighting operation.” INSANE!)
- Democrat says ICE blocked her oversight visit to country’s largest detention camp (“Veronica Escobar tells Guardian she was prevented from speaking to detainees at much-criticized Texas facility” TOTALLY uancceptable!)
- How Trump Has Cracked Down on Dissent Since the Killing of Charlie Kirk
- Proposed diesel export ban pits GOP senators against each other (LOL)
- The Washington press corps needs to boycott White House events (“CNN, MS Now and Politico accurately call last week’s sudden lockout ‘a direct assault on the first amendment’. That’s right”)
- The Press Is Not the Root of Trump’s Problems (“He’s in a predicament of his own creation.” The press has actually whitewashed, sanewashed and normalized Trump for YEARS!)
- Trump Has Repeatedly Weighed Moving Entire Press Corps Out of White House (“President raised the matter as recently as last month. Senior official says Trump has no plans to relocate the White House press corps.”)
- After Years as the Star of Must-See TV, Trump Faces the Sting of Cancellation (“A boycott of the White House press pool by the major networks deprives the president of the oxygen of screen time. But he is still finding ways to get on the air.”)
- Press Finally Shows Some Solidarity After Trump White House Ban
- Trump inaudible during TV blackout: What the press pool does (Inaudible Trump is the best Trump! LOL)
- TV networks call Trump’s bluff, pull pool coverage of president in response to CNN ban (“Trump can’t breathe without seeing himself on TV.”)
- Days After Press Ban, White House Launches ‘Trump TV’ — A 24/7 Clip Show (WTF???)
- Trump TV Immediately Flops in Embarrassing Numbers Disaster
- White House shredded for promoting its own news app after Trump’s media ban: ‘State run media’
- Major US outlets boycott shared Trump coverage in protest at media ban
- Trump approval falls to record low of 32% as high costs bite, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds
- Donald Trump’s Poll Numbers Sink To A Place They’ve Never Been Before
- The Road to a Democratic Majority Runs Through the Middle of America (“The biggest political story of 2026 isn’t the socialist surge. It’s the motley crew of military veterans, pastors, former Republicans, and independents putting red America in play for Democrats”)
- ‘We’re gonna get crushed’: Republicans privately say they’re doomed in the midterms (“As the elections get closer and the political environment gets worse, Republicans are freaking out that their losses in November could be much worse than GOP leaders are acknowledging.”)
- GOP Money vs. $5 Gas: What Will Matter More in the Midterms?
- Senate GOP eyes exit plan as trail calls
- GOP’s war for eyeballs
- Brendan Carr was a member of a rogue Alcoholics Anonymous group some labeled a ‘cult’
- Appeals court revives GOP gerrymander in Missouri that Supreme Court killed off twice
- Appeals court reinstates GOP House map in Missouri for November election
- The FBI Anti-Corruption Squad Was Circling Susan Collins — Until Trump Got in the Way
- Susan Collins’s Luck May Be Running Out
- George W. Bush and Cornyn Leave Out Paxton as They Raise Cash for Senate Candidates
- In Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed’s candidacy has split the Jewish community (“The Democratic Senate nominee’s views on Israel and comments after a synagogue attack prompted a public debate among Jewish voters” Understandable, but we need that seat in order to take back the US Senate, and the Republican candidate is horrible, so there’s really no option.)
- Many Democrats Are Avoiding Kamala Harris. Abdul El-Sayed Is Welcoming Her.
- Done! Paramount Settles Antitrust Suit, Set To Seal Deal For Warner Bros. Discovery
- Paramount Reaches Deal to Clear Way to Create News and Media Giant (“By resolving a lawsuit filed by a group of states, the media mogul David Ellison removed the last major hurdle he faced in buying Warner Bros. Discovery.”)
- Mamdani hosts Trump at Gracie Mansion as unlikely rapport continues (“The two leaders have traded insults but forged an unusually cordial personal relationship, with regular calls and texts” Weird.)
- Trump meets with Mamdani at NYC’s Gracie Mansion after favorite socialist text buddy ‘invited’ him
- Grand jury finds no evidence of criminal wrongdoing in Nolan Wells’ death
- Trump’s plan to militarize proposed arch raises new legal and safety concerns (“Aviation safety experts worry about the prospect of drones stored so close to National Airport, while preservationists say a review process can’t go forward now.”)
VIRGINIA NEWS
- Virginia lawmakers’ air safety bill would reduce flights at Reagan National
- No CNN, No Cameras: Sen. Mark Warner on the Crises Confronting Washington
- US Senate Q&A: Bert Mizusawa, Mark Warner
- Virginia’s Senate race is taking place outside the national spotlight (Yet another “mainstream” media article that basically whitewashes far-right-extremist Bert Mizusawa – for instance, see Audio: Favorite for the VA GOP’s 2026 U.S. Senate Nomination, Bert Mizusawa, Pushes Unconstitutional Third Trump Term and Wants Taxpayers to Fund Trump’s Corrupt Ballroom and Video: Frontrunner for 2026 VA GOP U.S. Senate Nomination Calls Birthright Citizenship “a post-Civil War loophole”, etc. It’s really a sickness with the “mainstream” media.)
- Virginia Early Voting Started This Past Friday; Now at 34,512 Votes Cast, Heavily in BLUE Jurisdictions, and Up From 10,401 at the Same Point in the 2022 Midterms (Also, from Chaz Nuttycombe: “Good start for Perriello’s underdog campaign.”)
- New Dem “Internal” Poll for VA01: Incumbent Rep. Rob Wittman (R) “is stuck under 50% in the head-to-head – a flashing warning sign that voters in this rapidly Democratic-trending district are ready for change”
- Internal poll shows a tight race between Wittman and Taylor (The link to the poll is incorrect on this post; the actual link is here.)
- Drastically different donor portfolios funding 6th District campaigns (“Macy has raised almost a quarter-million dollars more than Cline, which Alex Keena, an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Political Science, says is somewhat unusual.”)
- New Census figures show stagnating income growth in Virginia
- Virginia’s Constitution should reflect the reality of same-sex couples’ lives
- Readers had questions about this year’s ballot. Here are some answers. (“We asked readers what they wanted to know. Most of these inquiries are about the three proposed constitutional amendments Virginians are voting on.”)
- Spanberger explains why she’s voting ‘yes’ on Virginia ballot questions
- ICYMI: Advocacy Groups Denounce Dominion Energy’s $3.67 Million Political Spending Spree As Virginia Considers $67 Billion Acquisition by NextEra Energy (“Dominion’s unprecedented off-year spending spree isn’t political, it’s clearly meant to influence policy.”)
- AG asks SCC to restart Dominion-NextEra merger review clock
- ‘A different deal on the table’: AG Jay Jones asks SCC to reset the clock on Dominion-NextEra merger (“Because the companies’ supplemental filing pitching extended customer bill credits and other perks was submitted the first business day after the deadline to file as an intervenor in the case, Jones said, it ‘raises serious notice concerns.'”)
- Survey finds that more than half of Virginia families with children face food insecurity (“Hunger has increased since last year and fewer people are donating to food banks, managers say.” This article really softpedals the Trump administration’s and Republican-controlled Congress’ responsibility for this disaster.)
- Virginia food banks say lines at food pantries are back (“If you’re facing hunger, you can call 2-1-1, or text FOOD or CONNECT to 247-211, or visit 211 Virginia.”)
- Could Virginia’s new law allowing 1% sales tax for school construction need a fix? (“47 localities ask voters to implement tax”)
- Police, Flock representatives discuss future of cameras in Fairfax
- Virginia sought search warrants in Florida in the Natural Bridge Zoo case involving Asha the elephant; an unidentified prosecutor said no (“A Florida document says a prosecutor there found the Virginia request “insufficient” but does not elaborate. No one is saying, either, although it’s unusual for one state not to recognize another state’s warrants.”)
- Editorial: Coal dust study finally poised to begin in Norfolk, Newport News (“Let’s hope this new study provides data that will enable effective relief for the health problems that plague the people in Norfolk and Newport News.”)
- Avula calls for review of Flock Safety contract in Instagram video (Correct English would be “In Instagram video, Avula calls for…”)
- Augusta County sheriff defends .005 percent success rate of Flock cameras
- Nor’easter likely to bring major flooding to Hampton Roads this week (“There could be 2-3 feet of flooding Wednesday and into Thursday during high tide as the Hampton Roads region is hit by a nor’easter.”)
- DC-area forecast: Cool and wet as fall begins; nicer late week
