Tuesday News: Biden “says Russian leader’s ‘back is against the wall’ and warns of severe consequences of any [chemical weapons] attack”; “How White Victimhood Fuels Republican Politics”; “Ketanji Brown Jackson shows why she was nominated”; “Setting new timetable in Virginia election lawsuit, judge rips state for legal ‘mess’”

by Lowell

Here are a few new world, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, March 22.

• “Stupid investment”: UN chief slams coal and Australia in extraordinary climate speech
• Covid infection associated with a greater chance of Type 2 diabetes, review of patient records show
• What happened to the world’s ozone hole? (“Back in the 1990s, the hole in the planet’s ozone layer was a pressing global crisis – if we had ignored it, today there would be several.”)
• 500 Researchers Ask Universities to Reject Fossil-Fuel Cash
• Bitcoin Miners Want to Recast Themselves as Eco-Friendly (Good luck with that.)
• China crash is ‘unprecedented’ given Boeing 737′s stellar safety record, says aviation analyst
• Wallets, IDs but no survivors found in China Eastern crash
• China Jet’s Nosedive From 29,000 Feet Baffles Crash Specialists
• Cold War 2.0? The Global Economic Impact of Sanctions Against Russia
• Biden heads to Europe in an effort to bolster the Western alliance
• Putin’s back against the wall in Ukraine – Biden
• Biden warns Putin’s ‘back is against the wall,’ could use chemical weapons
• Putin’s endgame: Will it be stalemate, nuclear war — or regime change in Moscow? (“Putin is a ‘rational actor,’ says scholar Matthew Schmidt — but he still might use nuclear weapons to avoid defeat”)
• Russia Intensifies Air and Sea Attacks; West Fears Next Step
• Russia Halts WWII Peace Talks With Japan Over Ukraine Stance
• U.S. Sending Soviet Air Defense Systems It Secretly Acquired to Ukraine
• Russia says Biden’s ‘war criminal’ claim has put relations ‘on the verge of rupture’ (First of all, it’s Putin’s invasion of Ukraine that has put relations “on the verge of rupture.” Second, Putin is absolutely a war criminal, based on HIS OWN ACTIONS.)
• EU Support Grows for Russia Oil Ban Over Ukraine War
• As Mariupol Is Bombed and Besieged, Those Trapped Fight to Survive
• The Smaller Bombs That Could Turn Ukraine Into a Nuclear War Zone
• How Ukraine’s Outgunned Air Force Is Beating Back Russian Jets
• Ukraine retakes key Kyiv suburb; battle for Mariupol rages
• The West underestimated Ukraine’s bravery. Now, it’s underestimating Russia’s brutality.
• In the ruins of Retroville: blast rips shopping mall to shreds as war closes in on Kyiv (“The largest attack to hit the capital since the invasion began targeted a brand new shopping centre, leaving at least eight dead”)
• ‘Clear sign’ Putin is weighing up use of chemical weapons in Ukraine, says Biden (“US president says Russian leader’s ‘back is against the wall’ and warns of severe consequences of any such attack”)
• Russian attack on Kharkiv kills Holocaust survivor, 96 (“Boris Romanchenko died after rocket hit building where he lived in Ukrainian city”)
• Kremlin TV Just Declared War on… Arnold Schwarzenegger
• Who is Russia’s top field commander in Ukraine? The US isn’t sure.
• Zelensky says Mariupol is being ‘reduced to ashes’
• 
  Chechnya’s losses in Ukraine may be leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s undoing (“Analysis: Putin’s ally needs to show enemies at home and abroad his strength, but needs his forces intact to prop up his brutal rule”)
• Russia bans Facebook and Instagram under ‘extremism’ law
• The Russians were hunting us down: the war on journalism in Mariupol (“A reporter describes life under siege in the Ukrainian city and why it was so important to break the silence”)
• Ukraine Update: Germany Backs ‘Marshall Plan’ for Reconstruction
• Putin’s Holy Man Pushed for the ‘Eradication’ of Ukraine (“Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill appears to be just as bloodthirsty as Vladimir Putin himself.” Evil.)
• Why Can’t the West Admit That Ukraine Is Winning?
• Javelin missiles are helping Ukraine wreak havoc on Russian troops, experts say
• Moscow’s claim about firing hypersonic missiles could be more hype, experts say
• Oil Thirst Is Forcing Biden to Pivot U.S. Back to Saudi Arabia
• Jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny found guilty of fraud, state media reports (This “trial” was a complete farce, totally illegitimate.)
• Amid War Crimes in Ukraine, American Right Wingers Are Applauding Russia
• Trump Casts Himself As Champion Of Ukraine, Despite Once Saying Aid Made U.S. A ‘Sucker’ (Trump is Putin’s lapdog.)
• Biden warns Russian cyberattacks ‘coming’
• Five years after the genocide against the Rohingya, horrors go on in Myanmar
• Powell Is Ready to Back Half-Point Hike in May If Necessary
• Biden pushes new normal amid worries over next covid surge
• How the next pandemic surge will be different (“The same: The brutal math of exponential growth. Different: Our pandemic fatigue is worse than ever.”)
• 10 Fox figures who recklessly promoted ivermectin as an effective COVID-19 treatment
• Can Congress Stop Louis DeJoy’s Plan to Buy a Fleet of Gas-Guzzling Trucks?
• Poll: Hispanics aren’t flocking to the GOP, but Democrats still have problems
• The media can’t let Republicans evade their responsibility for enabling Trump’s extortion of Ukraine (“The GOP betrayed Ukraine by failing to hold Trump accountable.”)
• Fringe Republicans are not the problem. It’s the party’s mainstream. (“The whole party is off the rails.”)
• How to defeat the MAGA cult: Build a coalition that transcends party
• No, actions to restrict Russia’s social media access haven’t decreased right-wing engagement or inauthentic behavior
• Confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson, for all the Black women whose talents went untapped
• High History and Low Politics at Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Confirmation (“Far-right voices appeared determined to use the hearing for their pursuits in the culture war and their own political ambitions.”)
• Republicans to roll dice by grilling Jackson over child-pornography sentencing decisions
• Republicans made Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation hearing about Brett Kavanaugh (Crazy)
• Republicans Use Day 1 of Ketanji Brown Jackson Hearing to Complain Dems Were Mean to Brett Kavanaugh (“At no point did conservative lawmakers note that the reason Kavanaugh was harshly judged probably had to do with the fact that he’d been credibly accused of sexual assault.”)
• GOP prepares to play hard ball with Ketanji Brown Jackson
• The two phoniest words you’ll hear during Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation (“Be warned: When Republicans invoke ‘judicial philosophy,’ they’re pulling a con.”)
• Echoing Conservative Grievances, Blackburn Miscasts Jackson’s Views
• READ: Ketanji Brown Jackson’s opening statement at her Supreme Court confirmation hearing
• Ketanji Brown Jackson shows why she was nominated (She is very, very impressive…the antithesis of Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.)
• For These Republicans, Supreme Court Hearings Are an Irresistible Opportunity
• Ted Cruz told Ketanji Brown Jackson that Bushrod Washington was not ‘controversial.’ He was an enslaver.
• The collapse of Supreme Court consensus
• Democratic centrists want to say politics is simple. They’re wrong. (“There’s no button marked ‘moderate’ you can push that will win you elections.”)
• Koch Industries’ campaign donations questioned after company’s decision to remain in Russia
• Former Trump personal assistant appears before Jan. 6 committee
• Stop Waiting for Trump to Get Convicted (“The chances that the criminal cases against the former president will be successful are slim to none, and that will only embolden him and his followers. … Attorney General Merrick Garland is not going to save democracy.”)
• How White Victimhood Fuels Republican Politics
• Last year’s staff turnover was the House’s worst in decades, data shows
• Why Early Senate And Governor Polls Have Plenty To Tell Us About November
• Vulnerable Democrats eye GOP transit mask repeal
• The fallout from Texas’ voter suppression push is exactly what we expected
• After Young’s death, Alaska’s political world braces for a sea change and an elections marathon
• Ex-wife accuses top Missouri GOP Senate candidate of abuse
• White Supremacist Couple Accused of Slaying Black Vet at a Gas Station
• The Kremlin is celebrating Fox Nation host Lara Logan’s pro-Russian propaganda
• Extremism “Being Rewarded” in VA-02 Republican Primary
• Far-Right, “Big Lie”/”Stop the Steal” Sen. Amanda Chase Is “Deeply Troubled and Devastated” at Youngkin’s “Travesty” Appointment of Susan Beals as VA Elections Commissioner (Chase very upset that Beals “denied any election irregularities and did not support a resolution calling for a full forensic audit”)
• Ex-colleagues praise Youngkin’s elections commissioner (“Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin has tapped a former local elections official and ex-aide to a far-right-wing state senator to serve as Virginia’s elections commissioner. The move sparked criticism Monday from both Democrats and the GOP senator, while former colleagues of the nominee, Susan Beals, defended her as highly qualified.”)
• Youngkin appoints Susan Beals as Virginia’s new elections commissioner (“’I am committed to promoting and supporting secure, accurate, open and fair elections in the Commonwealth of Virginia,’ Beals said in her statement.”)
• Governor Youngkin’s pick to run elections in Virginia is already proving controversial
• Setting new timetable in Virginia election lawsuit, judge rips state for legal ‘mess’
• Virginia drops workplace COVID safety measures (Really dumb.)
• Virginia 10-Day New COVID-19 Cases Down 96% Compared to 1/19; Hospitalizations Down to 408 From ~4,000 in January
• VDH: Omicron variant detected in low levels in Virginia
• Youngkin signs Carolina Squat ban
• Norfolk City Council Member Andria McClellan (D) Announces Candidacy in SD21
• Judge grants Richmond permission to hold second casino referendum
• Editorial: This is a choice (“Every shooting — every senseless murder, every malicious wounding, every mourning community — offers us an opportunity to prevent the next one.”)
• Sierra Jenkins: A bright light put out too soon (“The affable young Virginian-Pilot reporter’s death sent shock waves around the country.”)
• Downtown Norfolk shooting that killed 2 and injured 3 stemmed from fight over a spilled drink, police chief says
• Demotion for Fairfax Co. police commander over handling of suicides by recruit, wife
• How a ‘garden club housewife’ saved a Northern Virginia bald eagle refuge
• D.C.-area forecast: Cloudier but comfortable today, rising rain chances tomorrow