by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Wednesday, December 24 (one of the darkest/weirdest Christmas Eves in U.S. history, certainly since 1941 or the Civil War).
- ‘This is the Costco of energy, man!’: author Bill McKibben on the promise of renewables (“The activist and author of Here Comes the Sun discusses rapid advances in solar and wind power and how the US ceded leadership in the sector to its main rival”)
- “This has to change:” Flurry of late orders breaks wind drought and gives global turbine giants hope for 2026
- How MAGA Changed the World in 2025, and What Comes Next (“Across the U.S., UK, Europe, and Canada, Donald Trump and his allies worked tirelessly to supercharge climate denial, boost fossil fuels, and foment political chaos.” A force for evil, in other words.)
- A Massive, Chinese-Backed Port in Peru Could Push the Amazon Rainforest Over the Edge (“The ultra-sophisticated port north of Lima will revolutionize global trade, but it’s already sparking destructive new routes through the world’s most climate-critical ecosystem.” UGH!)
- What does climate change look like? This year’s hurricane season is one example
- Christmas in Ukraine Nears With Power Grid in Crisis (“Moscow has launched far more drones and missiles, leaving energy supplies at a tipping point.”)
- Ukraine and US Seek Land Compromise for Peace Deal With Putin
- US and Ukraine reach consensus on key issues aimed at ending the war but territorial disputes remain
- Zelensky says Ukrainian withdrawal from the East possible in latest peace plan
- Three killed in Moscow car explosion, say Russian authorities (“‘Explosive device’ was triggered when police approached a suspicious person, say officials”)
- The U.S. Offered Putin’s Closest Ally Sanctions Relief—and a Weight-Loss Drug (“Trump’s envoy bonded with Belarusian dictator over Zepbound and obtained the release of hundreds of prisoners”)
- Israel’s covert activities in Syria seek to thwart its new government
- Rare footage from trial of Chinese general who defied Tiananmen crackdown order leaked online
- US bars five Europeans it says pressured tech firms to censor American viewpoints online
- Former EU commissioner and activists barred from US in attack on European tech regulators
- At least 6 among victims of Mexican Navy plane crash off the coast of Texas
- ICE documents reveal plan to hold 80,000 immigrants in warehouses
- Stephen Miller Cites Children of Immigrants as a Problem (Miller is a FASCIST for sure.)
- Trump’s Immigration Nightmare: It Is Happening Here (“With astonishing speed, the administration has toppled the most cherished pillars of a free society. And the experts agree: It’s all going to get much, much worse.”)
- The Supreme Court just handed Trump a rare — and very significant — loss
- Supreme Court Upholds Block to Trump’s Chicago Military Takeover
- Supreme Court rejects Trump’s bid to deploy National Guard in Illinois
- Supreme Court blocks National Guard deployment to Chicago in defeat for Trump (“The court said the president’s authority to deploy the National Guard for law enforcement purposes likely only applies in ‘exceptional’ circumstances.”)
- Supreme Court keeps Trump’s National Guard deployment blocked in the Chicago area, for now (The “for now” part is troubling.)
- ICE Detains Woman Whose Lawyer Insists Is US Citizen. DHS Says She Isn’t
- Trump-appointed judge: DHS must restore disaster grants to Democratic states
- Chasing an Economic Boom, White House Dismisses Risks of A.I.
- American Economy Keeps Powering Ahead, Defying Dire Predictions
- Whoever Trump Picks, the Next Fed Chair Won’t Be Independent
- U.S. murders on pace for largest one-year drop on record
- Trump Is Suddenly Looking a Lot Smaller (“The president is no longer dominating his party or the country in the way he once did.”)
- ‘It’s perpetuated this news cycle’: Frustration mounts in Trump’s orbit about messaging on latest Epstein documents
- Trump, Epstein, and the Women (“The Epstein files are a vast trove of documents and will take time to absorb, but Trump made his attitude about women clear long ago.”)
- Newly released Epstein files include references to Donald Trump
- What to Know About the Latest Release of Documents From the Epstein Files
- Pro-Trump Influencers Stay Conspicuously Quiet About the Files
- Some Epstein file redactions are being undone with hacks (“Un-redacted text from released documents began circulating on social media on Monday evening”)
- Scoop: Trump administration expects Epstein files release could last another week
- Epstein letter to Larry Nassar is fake, Justice Department says
- The Epstein Files Only Get Worse (“The Epstein Files Only Get Worse”)
- Epstein Files Appease Almost No One as Delays Drag Into Holidays
- House Republicans Aren’t Having Any Fun (“They’re blaming their leader, House Speaker Mike Johnson.”)
- The internal dispute that could derail the GOP’s 2026 agenda (“With the midterms around the corner, top Republican voices are clashing about the prospects for another reconciliation bill”)
- Lessons from 2025 (“First, most politicians do not lead. They follow…Second, Republicans care not one bit about their own constituents…Third, the Supreme Court is beyond public shaming…Fourth, winning requires moving public opinion to further the cause of democracy…Fifth, “electability” is a pundit-created myth…Sixth, religious appeals do not work with White Christian nationalists…Seventh, moderate Republicans are nonexistent…Eighth, no lie is too ridiculous for MAGA cultists to reject…Ninth, Americans may have voted for Trump, but they overwhelmingly reject what he is doing. ..Tenth, the public is the key to saving democracy”)
- 12 Artists Who Showed Some Spine in 2025 (“In a year when too many of our pop culture favorites let us down, these creative people were willing to take a stand (and pull no punches)”)
- Where the national redistricting fight is heading in 2026 (“At least two major states are expected to try to enact new congressional maps — and a looming Supreme Court decision could open the door for more to enter the fray.”)
- 3 policy heavyweights endangered by redistricting (One of them is Rep. Rob Wittman of VA01. But the idea that this clown is a “policy heavyweight” is kinda laughable.)
- I am The Post’s ‘federal government whisperer.’ It’s been brutal. (“One reporter’s effort to show how President Donald Trump was transforming government brought her 1,168 new sources — and nearly broke her.”)
- Department of Veterans Affairs quietly implements abortion ban
- Is Susie Wiles an innocent bystander in Trump’s White House? (“As chief of staff, she has stifled her temptation to intervene time and time again”)
- How Did DOGE Disrupt So Much While Saving So Little? (“The group’s biggest claims were largely incorrect, a New York Times analysis found. And its many smaller cuts added up to few savings.” The media needs to focus on the COSTS of DOGE, which were enormous, including many people around the world dying.)
- Trump, 79, Delivers Deranged Threat to TV Networks in Yuletide Meltdown (“The president spent the first few minutes of Christmas Eve saying a popular TV host should be ‘put to sleep, NOW.'”)
- Democrats divided over how to retake House, Senate majorities
- Megyn Kelly Escalates Feud with Bari Weiss: ‘More Truth Coming’
- Bari Weiss’s 60 Minutes Stumble Follows Private Rejection From Megyn Kelly (“Before she stoked outrage by shelving a 60 Minutes segment about a notorious El Salvador prison, Weiss spent weeks lobbying Megyn Kelly to participate in a debate on feminism with Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper, to no avail.”)
- A ‘60 Minutes’ Report Was Pulled Off the Air. Now It’s on the Internet.
Bari Weiss yanking a 60 Minutes story is censorship by oligarchy- Ben Sasse, ex-Republican senator, says he has terminal pancreatic cancer (“Sasse, who is 53 and voted to impeach Trump, says he has ‘metastasized, stage-four pancreatic cancer’” Ugh, awful.)
- Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-VA11), Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA08), Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA10), etc. Demand Answers from OPM as Trump Workforce Purge Triggers Federal Retirement Backlog (“OPM’s retirement inventory has grown to more than 48,000 pending applications”)
- Virginia political analyst Sam Shirazi explains the redistricting amendment process (“Virginia voters may have the chance to vote on a constitutional amendment on congressional redistricting as early as April.”)
- Virginia’s budget will change before it’s adopted. Here’s what the total operating budget of just under $200 billion includes.
- Target 7: Governor-elect Spanberger talks priorities in 2026
- Governor-Elect Abigail Spanberger Announces Del. Mark Sickles as Her Secretary of Finance Appointment (Among other things, Sickles has served as Vice Chair of the House Appropriations Committee; also, “Sickles is one of five [actually more than that] openly LGBT people serving in the Virginia General Assembly”)
- Spanberger taps Del. Sickles to be Secretary of Finance
- Governor-Elect Spanberger Announces Secretary of Administration Appointment -Traci J. Deshazor (“The Secretary of Administration is entrusted with overseeing critical functions in our Commonwealth — from making sure Virginians can exercise their right to vote to supporting the Virginians who have chosen to serve their neighbors across state government.”)
- Appointments of two key cabinet roles will trigger another special election in House District 17
- Conservation group sues EPA over PFAS contamination in Virginia waterways
- Affordable housing projects in Virginia get boost with $150M in financing
- U-Va.’s next president once touted DEI. Now it’s causing some backlash. (“Some conservatives criticized the Republican-led board for picking as its next president someone who has overseen diversity, equity and inclusion policies.”)
- Guest commentary: Spanberger can act decisively at UVa — without overreach
- Man found dead in median of Fairfax County Parkway (“The circumstances surrounding the man’s death are not yet known.”)
- Police are investigating rainbow crosswalk vandalized with slurs in Virginia Beach’s ViBe District
- Lynchburg Humane Society builds affordable care clinic as veterinary costs rise nationwide
- CWG Live: Sunny and breezy today, cloudy Christmas Day; watching Friday wintry mix
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