Friday News: “Harris decries Trump’s ‘proposals of surrender’ as Zelenskyy visits White House”; “Trump Would Totally Demolish Economy With His Plans, Says New Report”; As Recently as 2020, Vance Said Trump “Thoroughly Failed”; “X blocks links to hacked JD Vance dossier”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, September 27.

• Column: Desperate for good news about climate change? Consider the pace of clean energy growth
• ‘You could single-handedly push it to extinction’: how social media is putting our rarest wildlife at risk
• New solar cells break efficiency record – and could supercharge how we get energy from the Sun (“Current commercially available solar panels convert about 20-22% of sunlight into electrical power. However, new research published in Nature has shown that future solar panels could reach efficiencies as high as 34% by exploiting a new technology called tandem solar cells. The research demonstrates a record power conversion efficiency for tandem solar cells.”)
• Chart: Solar power keeps beating expectations (“Energy forecasters have long underestimated the speed at which solar power is growing around the world. It’s not the first time that’s happened.”)
• Trump says he will meet Zelensky despite campaign criticism (Trump would be a DISASTER for Ukraine.)
• Harris Meets With Zelensky, Anticipating a Handover of Global Crises
• Zelenskyy visits Washington as election year divide grows over Ukraine war
• Video: Vice President Harris Refers to Trump-Vance-Putin Plan for Ukraine’s Surrender As ‘Dangerous and Unacceptable’ (“History has shown us: If we allow aggressors like Putin to take land with impunity, they keep going.”)
• Harris decries Trump’s ‘proposals of surrender’ as Zelenskyy visits White House
• Putin draws a nuclear red line for the West
• 3 key Senate Republicans missed Zelensky meeting (VERY disturbing for the future, if Republicans take control of the US Senate!)
• As the Ukraine war enters a critical period, the EU moves ahead without the US
• Hungarian PM Orban’s aide sparks outrage with Soviet invasion comment (“A top aide of Prime Minister Viktor Orban has triggered outrage by suggesting that Hungary would have fared better by not resisting the 1956 Soviet invasion, in comments that were also critical of Ukraine’s efforts today to push back Russian forces.” Trump LOVES Orban, remember…)
• China’s Newest Nuclear Submarine Sank, Setting Back Its Military Modernization
• ‘Asian NATO’ Backer Ishiba to Become Japan PM as Race Jolts Yen
• Lebanon fears Gaza-like carnage as Israel ramps up airstrikes across the country
• How Israel’s Spies Got Blindsided by Hamas but Still Hit Hezbollah Hard (“After dismissing signs of the looming Oct. 7 attacks, Israel now has the enemy it prepared for.”)
• Lebanon ceasefire hopes fade as Netanyahu issues contradictory statements
• ‘Rape me, not my daughter’ – women tell BBC of sexual violence in Sudan’s civil war (“The BBC hears horrific accounts of rape from women trapped in the conflict between the army and the RSF.” Sudan deserves a LOT more coverage than it’s been getting!)
• As famine ravages Sudan, the UN can’t get food to starving millions (Horrifying.)
• Poverty Soars Past 50% in Argentina as Milei Austerity Hits Hard
• Belgian PM and king blast Pope Francis for church’s sex abuse cover-up legacy in blistering welcome
• Revealed: the US government-funded ‘private social network’ attacking pesticide critics (What. The. F***???)
• Why Ballot Measures Are Democracy’s Last Line of Defense (“Increasingly, citizens are turning to direct democracy to restore rights stripped away by gerrymandered legislatures and right-wing courts.”)
• Ron Wyden unveils plan to overhaul and expand the “power hungry” Supreme Court
• Sweeping bill to overhaul Supreme Court would add six justices
• Jack Smith files evidence in Trump 2020 election subversion case (“Smith’s office confirmed Thursday afternoon that prosecutors sent U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan the information in advance of a 5 p.m. deadline she set…It’s now up to Chutkan to determine whether and when to release the filing — or a redacted version — to the public.”)
• Biden and Harris unveil measure to tackle gun violence amid Trump clash (“Executive order aims to crack down on conversion devices and 3D guns as Harris and Trump spar on campaign trail”)
• Fox News logo overlaying image of voting booth
  On crime, energy production, inflation, and the border, Fox is telling its audience: Don’t believe the data (Fox is EVIL.)
• ICYMI: Biden’s Record Speaks for Itself – “a fair assessment of his domestic record over four years would give him high marks” (“…on the merits…Biden’s four-year term compares favorably with any four- or eight-year presidency over the past few decades.”)
• Trump Would Totally Demolish Economy With His Plans, Says New Report
• Harris to accuse Trump of ‘playing political games’ with immigration in border visit
• Kamala Harris’s Campaign Thinks She Can Win on the Economy. Here’s How.
• Harris is visiting Arizona. But her campaign is prioritizing the Rust Belt.
• Kamala Harris Holds Razor-Thin Lead Across Swing States in Tight 2024 Race
• Fox News Poll: Harris is ahead of Trump by 3 points in Georgia
• For young men who grew up in the Trump era, the 2024 election is about one big thing (“In two focus groups with skeptical young male voters, virtually everyone described their vote as based more about backing or opposing Trump than anything about Harris.”)
• Why Kamala Harris Has Won Me Over (By retired Army General Stanley McChrystal)
• Ex-Kansas GOP senator backs Harris (“Former Kansas Republican Sen. Nancy Kassebaum (R-Kan.) is endorsing Vice President Harris in the 2024 presidential election, stating the White House contest ‘presents a stark choice that is not easy for any of us.'”)
• Trump fatigue has set: Post-election disruption plans suggests the pressure is getting to MAGA
• Jews and Catholics warn against Trump’s latest loyalty test for religious voters
• RFK Jr.’s tour with Jordan Peterson: “Make America Healthy Again” shows why “alt medicine” went MAGA (If you see a “Make America Healthy Again” sign in someone’s yard, you know that person is batsh** crazy!)
• Democratic leaders add 3 House races to donor watch list
• JD Vance, in 2020 messages, said Trump ‘thoroughly failed to deliver’ (“In previously undisclosed messages from 2020, Vance said Donald Trump had not fulfilled his agenda and predicted he would lose to Joe Biden.”)
• Read the JD Vance Dossier
• Journalist Banned From X After Publishing JD Vance Dossier
• X blocks links to hacked JD Vance dossier
• Trump launches a new business venture during his campaign: $100,000 watches
• MAGA Means Never Having to Say You’re Sorry (“The GOP wants to be consequence-free.”)
• I Feel Compelled to Point Out That Donald Trump Sounds Absolutely Insane (“Enter: The Venezuelan takeover…of the real estate market…in the Denver suburbs…”)
• Is There a Method to Donald Trump’s Madness?
• GOP gay adult film controversy reveals the chaos brewing behind Project 2025 (“MAGA may toss a top anti-LGBTQ activist over past behavior — yet their ranks remain full of cranks and conmen”)
• Trump Media shareholder UAV dumped nearly 11 million shares
• Appeals panel signals skepticism over NY civil fraud case against Trump
• Harris-backed filibuster change would ‘break’ the Senate, McConnell says (No other democracy has this crap, by the way. Also, f*** McConnell in so many ways!)
• The Best Way to Keep Congress From Getting Things Done (“If the filibuster did not exist, it is hard to believe that anyone would invent it.”)
• Tim Walz will hold a fundraiser in JD Vance’s Ohio hometown
• Newsmax and Smartmatic settle 2020 election defamation case on eve of trial
• House Democrats likely to force action on measure formally reprimanding Clay Higgins
• Hochul examining dormant power to remove a New York City mayor
• How Eric Adams Swaggered Into a Corruption Indictment
• Eric Adams Should Resign Immediately (Yes, or Hochul should remove him.)
• The real Eric Adams scandal: Is this guy the best NYC had to offer?
• As Adams’s Fate Hangs in the Balance, Cuomo Waits in the Shadows (Hell no!)
• The Eric Adams Indictment Is Laden With Irony (Yeah, he’s “tough on crime” – except his own crime spree!)
• New York officials call on Mayor Eric Adams to resign after indictment
• From ‘House Mouse’ to Big Shot: Rise and Fall of Eric Adams (“‘He was not a real cop,’ said a retired NYC Transit Police officer who was as real as they come.”)
• Here Are The Wildest Parts Of New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ Federal Indictment (“The city’s mayor allegedly pressured the fire department to allow a building funded by the Turkish government to open despite flaws.”)
• Fox News suddenly changes its tune after Eric Adams indictment unsealed (“Fox claimed it was an act of retaliation from Biden’s DOJ, but that conspiracy theory took a hit after the indictment was unsealed”)
• Rudy Giuliani Hits Rock Bottom for the 967,345th Time (“He won’t be practicing law in DC anytime soon.”)
• North Carolina removes 747,000 from voter rolls, citing ineligibility
• Trump ally Matt Gaetz says House Ethics panel issued subpoena for him in sex, drug probe
• Hurricane Helene brings life-threatening conditions as it moves from Florida to Georgia
• In the ‘Fightin’ Ninth,’ Baker seeks to end Griffith’s 13-year tenure
• Video: At “Republicans for Harris” Event in Alexandria, Denver Riggleman, Barbara Comstock and Olivia Troye Show What True Patriotism Is – Defending Our Democracy Against the Mortal Threat from MAGA, Trump (Putting “Country Over Party” sums it up well.)
• Some Virginia Republicans are backing Harris in this year’s election (“The presidential campaign of Kamala Harris is picking up some Republican support in Virginia. Two former members of Virginia’s congressional delegation are now endorsing the vice president.”)
• Video, Photos: At World Contraception Day Event, VA07 Dem Nominee Eugene Vindman Calls MAGA Assault on Women’s Reproductive Rights “extremism at its worst and an existential threat to fundamental freedoms…I spent 25 years in uniform defending” (Other speakers include Del. Candi King, Del. Briana Sewell, Jamie Lockhart, etc.)
• New Emerson College Poll of VA: Harris Up 52%-44%; Kaine Up 51%-41%; Youngkin at Just 44%-34% Approval (Lower Than Previous Governors)
• Pope & Schapiro: Presidential polling, the race for mayor in Richmond, and a citizenship test
• Editorial: New civics initiative aims to improve Virginians’ understanding of government (“Too many Americans know too little about our system of government. A Virginia nonprofit is working to change that.”)
• Virginia’s new accountability system: A chance to lead in educational equity
• Northern Virginia counselors challenge Virginia’s ban on conversion therapy
• Family Foundation challenges Va. law that bans conversion therapy on minors (The Family Foundation is a far-right Christian fundamentalist group.)
• Religious counselors sue to overturn Virginia’s ban on conversion therapy for minors
• Investing in Virginia’s public lands (“The 2022 Virginia Outdoors Survey revealed that an overwhelming 9 in 10 Virginians believe public funds should be allocated to acquire land and prevent the loss of natural areas.”)
• Commentary: University boards are becoming partisan tools. It must stop (That’s Youngkin’s fault.)
• After vetoing similar legislation earlier this year, the Youngkin administration is launching a green bank to fund clean energy initiatives
• Virginia attorney general says new version of skill game still illegal
• Del. Rasoul declines to run for lieutenant governor in 2025
• AAA poll: Most Virginia drivers don’t know it’s illegal to drive slow in the left lane
• Hanover County votes to deny 1,500-acre solar development
• The political drama on Lynchburg City Council is making the city look bad
• More Loudoun Co. English learners making progress toward proficiency, county says
• Fairfax County deputy fired after allegedly punching handcuffed man
• Central Virginia braces for Helene, floodwaters already pouring in
• Gusty, rainy Friday ahead as Hurricane Helene largely avoids Hampton Roads
• D.C.-area forecast: Numerous showers and storms today thanks to Helene (“A strong storm is possible, but mainly south. We’ll continue with off-and-on rain chances through Tuesday.”)