Saturday News: “The summer from hell was just a warning”; “Resilient U.S. Economy Defies Expectations”; “What responsible media coverage in the Trump era would look like”; “Youngkin’s Political Future Hinges on Banning Abortion” as He Funds “Anti-Choice Extremists”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, September 2.

• How bad is climate change for polar bears? Study has answers.
• Scientists Find Success With New Direct Ocean Carbon Capture Technology
• Don’t you dare rake your leaves this fall (“Stop mowing your lawn so often and let it stay shaggy. Don’t rake and bag your leaves this fall. Quit deadheading flowers and cutting back dead stalks. This creates refuges for insects. If your neighbors ask why you’ve let your yard go, tell them you’re saving the planet — for bugs and humans.” And definitely do NOT use leaf blowers or spray pesticides on your lawn or…!)
• Global wildlife trafficking on the rise, aided by drug cartels (Horrible.)
• Russia’s Vast Fortifications in Ukraine, Visualized
• This Part of Ukraine’s Counteroffensive Is Pressing Forward, With Little Western Help (“Ukraine has retaken a handful of villages in the eastern Donetsk region, but the West is questioning Kyiv’s decision to attack on multiple axes.”)
• Exclusive: US to send depleted-uranium munitions to Ukraine (“The Biden administration will for the first time send controversial armor-piercing munitions containing depleted uranium to Ukraine, according to a document seen by Reuters and separately confirmed by two U.S. officials.”)
• Ukrainian counteroffensive has made ‘notable’ progress in south over past three days, US says (“White House spokesman John Kirby also said reports quoting anonymous US officials criticising Ukrainian effort were ‘not helpful’”)
• Putin influencers profiting from war propaganda
• Yevgeny Prigozhin’s dead, but is Putin’s authority strengthened after plane crash?
• A Brutal Path Forward for Ukraine, Village by Village (“As Ukraine pushes slowly forward in its counteroffensive, it’s relying heavily on the effort of hundreds of small-scale assault groups.”)
• As Taiwan’s government races to counter China, most people aren’t worried about war
• Pope starts Mongolia visit by praising the country’s religious freedom dating back to Genghis Khan
• Aditya-L1: India successfully launches its first mission to the Sun
• Macron looks on as France’s Africa policy crumbles
• Why Did a Drug Gang Kill 43 Students? Text Messages Hold Clues. (“The Mexican police and others secretly colluded with a cartel that kidnapped 43 students. Wiretaps show just how much the authorities helped the gang.” Utterly horrifying.)
• “War on Mexico”: Republicans ramp up calls for military action as they blast Democrats as warmongers (“The ‘isolationist’ GOP of 2023 may love to call the Democrats warmongers, but just listen to them on Mexico”)
• EU economics chief says Europe is gripped by a ‘double crisis’ — but it can avoid a recession
• King Charles Is Clueless. The Monarchy Is in Deep Trouble (“King Charles’ first year as monarch has been distinguished by a total lack of energy and engagement. If ‘steady as she goes’ is his mantra, it’s time for real institutional change.”)
• Sputtering Europe and Jittery China Add Bull Case for US Stocks
• Possibility of arrest grows for Bolsonaro over jewellery scandal (“Friends and foes of Brazil’s former president believe it is only a matter of time before he is detained”)
• US pro-Israel groups in bitter feud over Netanyahu’s far-right government (“Hardline Aipac – condemned for unquestioning support of PM – calls liberal rival J Street ‘grave threat’ to Israel’s security” AIPAC is a disgrace to Judaism, to Israel, etc.)
• It seems like everyone has Covid-19. Here’s why this wave is probably worse than official data suggests
• Despite clear signals that Hurricane Idalia was influenced by climate change, less than 2% of TV news coverage made the link (“Over more than 46 hours of combined broadcast and cable news coverage of the storm, climate change was mentioned only 12 times” Appalling.)
• The summer from hell was just a warning
• Biden touts job numbers: ‘People are coming off the sidelines’
• U.S. employers added a solid 187,000 jobs in August in sign of a still-resilient labor market
• The US economy still seems to be avoiding a recession (“The US added 187,000 jobs over the last month. It’s more than expected.”)
• Resilient U.S. Economy Defies Expectations
• From strikes to new union contracts, Labor Day’s organizing roots are especially strong this year
• DOE announces $15.5B to support electric vehicle transition, grow domestic battery manufacturing
• What responsible media coverage in the Trump era would look like
• The sleeper legal fight that could define 2024: Is Trump even eligible to run?
• Trump Phone Interview Was So Odd People Wrongly Thought It Was AI (“Trump sounded so odd during a phone interview that aired on fringe-right channel Real America’s Voice on Thursday night”)
• Trump Is Top Choice for Nearly 60% of GOP Voters (“Donald Trump has expanded his dominating lead for the Republican presidential nomination, a new Wall Street Journal poll shows, as GOP primary voters overwhelmingly see his four criminal cases as lacking merit.” This party is a deranged cult.)
• Right-wing media attack Biden’s efforts to lower Medicare prescription costs
• Video: Excellent Advice to Democrats From Rachel Bitecofer – “what we want to do is…number one, we don’t want to be defensive…we want to do a counter offense” (Also, of course, Democrats need to communicate, don’t just sit their silently while Republicans say/do crazy and/or false stuff!)
• McCarthy says he won’t open impeachment inquiry without House vote
• Marjorie Taylor Greene: Impeach Biden Now or I’ll Shut Down the Government (“The far-right lawmaker has tacked on yet another absurd ultimatum to the House GOP’s wishlist, only adding to Kevin McCarthy’s headaches.”)
• Proud Boy convicted of helping spearhead Capitol attack ties Jan. 6 sentence record with 18 years (“Ethan Nordean was one of five members convicted of spearheading an attack on the U.S. Capitol to try to prevent the peaceful transfer of power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden after the 2020 presidential election.”)
• A Proud Boy pleaded for leniency from a judge, then yelled ‘Trump won’ on his way out
• For All Rudy’s Troubles, There’s Much More Still There
• Rudy Giuliani and six other co-conspirators plead not guilty in Georgia election subversion case
• Giuliani hits new low with Georgia indictment
• A good week for the rule of law: With democracy in crisis, courts are doing their job (“Rudy’s smackdown was more than symbolic: America’s courts are holding the line as the place where truth matters”)
• A New Rudy Scandal: FBI Agent Says Giuliani Was Co-opted by Russian Intelligence
• Biden says he’ll meet DeSantis on Florida trip, DeSantis’ spokesman suggests not
• DeSantis will not meet with Biden in Florida on Saturday
• A 15-year-old shakes up New Hampshire with tough questions for Ron DeSantis and other 2024 hopefuls (“Quinn Mitchell has a jarring encounter with DeSantis and his super PAC supporters as he soaks up the 2024 election on the ground in his home state.”)
• If Mitch McConnell Goes, the Senate Could Get Very Scary (“MAGA madness could overtake both chambers of Congress”)
• Mitch McConnell’s Leadership Is Suddenly at Risk. Let the “Game of Johns” Begin.
• Kentucky’s governor won’t commit to appointing Republican if McConnell resigns
• Mitch McConnell May Be Experiencing Small Seizures, Doctors Suggest
• Ohio police release video of fatal shooting of pregnant Black woman
• The front page of UNC’s Daily Tar Heel was a gut punch. Here’s the story behind it
• Maui’s neglected grasslands caused Lahaina fire to grow with deadly speed
• Elon Musk again undermines X CEO Linda Yaccarino, reinforcing why advertisers can’t trust her promises about addressing hate speech (“After the Anti-Defamation League spoke with X’s new CEO about hate speech, Musk boosts anti-ADL posts from an antisemite he reinstated to the platform” Musk appears to be an anti-Semite, as well as a fascist in general.)
• Nevada’s primary debacle has some GOP campaigns threatening to write-off the state
• West Virginia Poll: Justice has edge in Senate race; Moore Capito out ahead in race for governor
• Euthanasia rates across U.S. animal shelters reach 3-year high (“Animal intakes at both public and private shelters across the country are expected to reach a 3-year high this year, and adoptions or returns to owners are not keeping pace” ADOPT, DON’T SHOP!)
• Jimmy Buffett, musical ‘mayor of Margaritaville,’ dies at 76
• Herb Jones to challenge Wittman again, but second Democrat may join race (“Leslie Chambers Mehta, an attorney who serves as chief of staff and counsel to the CEO of the Richmond Metropolitan Transportation Authority, confirmed that she is considering running for the party nomination to challenge Wittman.”)
• HuffPo: Glenn Youngkin “funding extremists [who] will vote to enact a VA abortion ban” – If We Don’t Stop Him! (Norm Ornstein – “Youngkin is no moderate, contrary to the WaPo’s coverage” (which is an ongoing disgrace))
• Virginia’s ‘Moderate’ GOP Governor Is Quietly Funding Anti-Choice Extremists
• Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Political Future Hinges on Banning Abortion (“If the Virginia governor wants to be a GOP presidential contender, he needs his party to win this year’s state legislature elections. If not, he’s toast.” “Youngkin is just the next DeSantis—overhyped, appeals to donors and media, but zero reason to believe he has popular appeal”)
• Former VA Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling (R) on Youngkin Dept. of Education’s Delay in Releasing Test Scores: “This is what you do when the results of performance tests are not what you want.” (In 2022, Youngkin dishonestly/obnoxiously blamed Dems for a drop in test scores. Now that he’s in charge? Silence and evasion.)
• Some students see danger in Youngkin’s policies on transgender students (“…the move to allow school staff to share information with unsupportive parents is particularly concerning to LGBTQ advocates. “)
• Flip and Defend-A-District Friday: Volume XI (Del. Michelle Maldonado, Karen Keys-Gamarra, Alex Askew, Amy Laufer, Kimberly Moran)
• We can use the free market to lower energy costs — so why is Glenn Youngkin fighting it?
• Flood of VA candidate ads expected after Labor Day
• Virginia Beach and Outer Banks see slowdown in summer tourism; Williamsburg sees growth
• Casino developers ask Richmond voters for a second chance, promising new jobs and tax revenue
• Schapiro: Spinning a lot of tunes, perhaps winning a few votes
• Youngkin appoints anti-critical race theory campaign staffer to VCU Board of Visitors The Commonwealth Times (“Dadabhoy has received backlash on social media for tweets expressing her anti-critical race theory views, saying it has ‘no place in our schools.'”)
• At risk from rising seas, Norfolk, Virginia, plans massive, controversial floodwall
• Flowers crowd out protests in Richmond’s newly reopened Lee circle (“The former site of the Robert E. Lee statue on Richmond’s Monument Avenue has been closed for more than two years. It finally reopened, but some feel shut out.”)
• D.C.-area forecast: Warm up starts today, with a blast of heat arriving Sunday