by Lowell
Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, August 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 oil markets tuning out Trump’s “Truths”; Trump’s Asia pullback boosting China and North Korea; “Trump Effectively Just Told Iran to Get a Nuclear Weapon”; Natalie Harp’s intimate letters to Trump – vomit; Michael Cohen’s sycophancy; Scott Bessent’s gaslighting; etc.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS (Climate crisis, Trump risks China blowback with plan to choke Iran’s economy; Harry and Meghan head back to UK; “The Taliban have built a system for enslaving women in Afghanistan”; etc.)
- Lobsters and acidic seas: can shellfish help neutralise one of the greatest threats to the ocean? (“Crustaceans are the subject of tests to see if alkalis added to seawater, so it absorbs more CO2, harm marine life. But Trump’s halt to funding threatens to scupper the research”)
- El Niño warming set to be ‘strongest in living memory’, says UK’s Met Office (“Scientists say the growing El Niño weather pattern is an “unprecedented event” and means 2027 is likely to be the world’s hottest year on record.”)
- “Prices have doubled”: Farmers turn to wind and solar to make fertiliser, and change dialogue about renewables (This is in Australia, but presumably the case all over the world.)
- Extreme Heat Waves Fuel Political Tensions in Europe (“At the limits of adaptation, governments face a choice: point fingers, or seize the moment for transformational change.”)
- Solar buoyed Europe’s grid amid record-breaking heat and drought this summer
- NATO member Romania scrambles F-16 fighter jets to destroy drone near critical European gas project
- Russia’s missile tests around disputed islands anger Japan
- Ukraine Planned to Swarm Moscow Airports With AI-Guided Drones (“The stalled operation, code-named ‘M&Ms,’ sought to isolate Russian elites and force Vladimir Putin to negotiate a truce.”)
- The US Does Not Understand Air Power, Does Ukraine? (“The Wildberries Campaign And The Fallacy Of Signalling”)
- North Korea boosts support for Russia to include drone operators, Ukraine says
- Trump Risks China Blowback With Plan to Choke Iran’s Economy
- Trump’s Asia pullback is a gift to China and North Korea (“The reduction of American military might in the region sacrifices decades of U.S. dominance”)
- China’s Solar Buildout Hampers Bird Diversity (“Adding nature-friendly rules to the country’s photovoltaic policies could create safer spaces for the animals, a new study finds.”)
- Spike in ‘Dark’ Oil Tankers in Gulf Raises Risk of Catastrophic Spills
- Ships passing through Hormuz hover in single digits, data shows
- Oil markets are tuning out Trump’s “truths”
- Donald Trump Effectively Just Told Iran to Get a Nuclear Weapon (“He may also have blurted out classified information about North Korea.”)
- Trump increasingly lashing out at allies as victory in Iran war proves elusive (“Unable to force Tehran’s surrender, President Donald Trump appears to be taking his frustration out on Oman and other U.S. partners in greater measure.” Appalling.)
- USS Lincoln heads home after extended deployment to the Middle East
- Iran vows ‘devastating’ response as US threatens toughest ever economic hit
- Trump warns of ‘economic D-Day’ against Iran, but Tehran is well acquainted with sanctions
- How much could Trump’s ‘economic D-Day’ hurt Iran?
- Sean Hannity covers Iran war for the first time in weeks, complains Trump isn’t getting “credit” for it (Hannity continues to be one of the worst people in America, as has been the case for decades.)
- The Message Behind Trump’s Threats of ‘Economic Warfare’ Against Iran (“President Trump’s warnings of an “economic D-Day” carry a clear signal to Iran that he does not want to go back to war.”)
- Israel re-establishes closed West Bank settlement, defying growing international protests (If Kamala Harris were president, she’d be pushing back against this.)
- Israeli settler attacks shift focus to West Bank areas under direct Palestinian rule (“Report says violence is moving from Israeli-controlled areas to those earmarked for a future Palestinian state”)
- The Taliban have built a system for enslaving women in Afghanistan (“Five years on, the regime’s chokehold has left Afghan women with almost nothing, but many are still bravely fighting for their freedom” Letting the Taliban back into power was a huge mistake by Joe Biden. I didn’t understand it at the time, and I don’t understand it now.)
- Canada Considers U.S. Trade Deal as Deadline Nears
- What happened to Harry and Meghan’s American dream? (“But while Harry and Meghan enjoyed some success in showbusiness, their Hollywood reign proved short-lived and California has greeted news of their departure back to the UK with a shrug.”)
- Academic who accused Jason Arday of plagiarism suspended by his university (“Researcher Nathan Cofnas previously claimed Black people would hold few high-profile positions in a meritocracy”)
NATIONAL NEWS (Trump regime “building the excuse now” about non-citizens supposedly voting; Bessent’s gaslighting failure; US economy ringing alarm bells; Trump just lies and lies; Navy might rename aircraft carrier slated to honor Black war hero…for draft dodger Trump; Natalie Harp’s intimate diaries – what a freak!; Michael Cohen’s pathetic sycophancy; etc.)
- Homeland Security Made a Big Claim About Noncitizen Voting. Now It Can’t Prove It. (Shocker.)
- They’re Building The Excuse Now (“On Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced a Department of Commerce “report” that claims more than 24,000 noncitizens illegally voted in the 2020 election. That sounds bad, right? At least, until you hear the response. Lauren Groh-Wargo, the president and CEO of Fair Fight, put it like this: “This is a bald-faced lie.””)
- Experts slam Trump’s unusual new census report as a ‘hijack by the White House’
- ICE begins deporting Haitians who lost TPS back to homeland (EVIL!)
- ICE gloves reveal how Trump’s revenge agenda is failing (“The president’s deportation agenda has failed in the courts. Now he’s trying to cheat the system”)
- Why Treasury Secretary Bessent’s moves to calm the bond market haven’t worked so far
- Scott Bessent Fails to Gaslight the Market (“What doth it profit a man if he sell his soul and can’t even manipulate the 30-year?”)
- ‘Rearranging deckchairs on the Titanic’: Bonds erase the impact of Treasury’s intervention
- Scott Bessent and the Art of the Treasury Tightrope
- America’s capital crunch: Soaring debt collides with AI spending spree
- Fed and Treasury appear at odds when it comes to the markets (“While the Federal Reserve chairman wants to give markets more room to respond to the economy, Treasury’s intervention signals that there are limits to how much market-driven movement Washington is willing to tolerate.”)
- Why the US economy is ringing alarm bells
- ‘Starve the beast’? The $40tn cost of Republicans’ false promises to cut spending (“The enormous US debt under Trump will hobble the next Democratic administration – just as the GOP planned” Raise taxes BIG TIME on the super-rich and big corporations!)
- Voting rights experts skeptical over Trump pledge of 1,000 election monitors (“Department of Justice plan raises questions over its ability to recruit so many people – and what they would do”)
- Trump Boasts of Declassifying Secrets, but Withholds Key Election Files From Public (“Even as the White House claims to be focused on transparency, it has ignored a congressional requirement to disclose a report on foreign meddling in the 2024 election.”)
- Under Trump, Protected Wild Horses Are Going to Slaughter (DISGUSTING!)
- In Year 2 of Trump’s funding grab, Congress fights back
- The Only Truth About Trump’s America Is That Everything Is a Lie (“Our government is braindead. If they get their way, we’re next.”)
- Investigators examining foes of Trump seek interviews related to Mar-a-Lago search, AP sources say
- Exclusive: Navy weighs renaming carrier slated to honor Black war hero, potentially switching it to Trump
- Navy discusses renaming aircraft carrier after Trump instead of heroic Black sailor —
- Pastors at TPUSA summit push Christian nationalism amid Islamophobia (“Several far-right speakers at this week’s Turning Point USA pastors summit called for Christians to take control of society and enlist in a crusade against Muslims.”)
- Natalie Harp Should Concern Everyone—I Should Know, I Once Had Her Job (“When I ran President Obama’s socials, I treated that work as needing checks and restraint at every point of the process. Its absence in the Trump White House is scary.”)
- Natalie Harp’s Intimate Letters to Trump Revealed in Full (Insane person.)
- Ex-CIA Officer: Natalie Harp Is an Intelligence Nightmare
- Sycophancy in stereo as former Trump hater Michael Cohen loses his nerve (“Fawning, deferential, oleaginous – this was the Untruth and Reconciliation Commission as Trump called in to 77 WABC”)
- A thirsty Michael Cohen tries to get back into Trump’s good graces (Pathetic, disgraceful, shameful, etc.)
- Donald Trump and Michael Cohen bury the hatchet
- In a Big Year for Progressives, Here’s Why These Moderates Won Their Primaries (In Virginia, no DSA or left-wing candidates won US House primaries.)
- The Mid-Atlantic’s electric grid operator is taking steps to rein in data center demand
- Why this year’s Medicare-for-all debate is different (“Democrats never resolved their health care war, but they may have found a way around it.”)
- As midterms near, swing-state Democrats are not afraid to criticize their own party
- Democrats Need Third-Party Help to Win Senate Majority (“Democrats’ path to victory could require independent candidates peeling away conservative votes in several states.”)
- GOP’s Senate map gets shakier as Texas, Iowa become toss-ups
- Website behind widely shared fake election polls run by 21-year-old (“Exclusive: Rahil Prakash tells the Guardian: ‘I wanted to see if fake polls could penetrate the ecosystem that easily’”)
- Progressive wins special election to fill Swalwell’s California House seat (“Support over Israel has become an unexpected focal point in the race with Wahab opposing unconditional aid to Israel and deeming the events unfolding in Gaza a ‘genocide.'”)
- Trump seeks to boost Darline Graham in South Carolina homestretch (Darline Graham is basically an utterly moronic version of her brother.)
- Seattle Times sports columnist resigns over spiked trans athlete story
- Republican Mike Rogers backs Michigan data center moratorium
VIRGINIA NEWS (VA05 added to “Red to Blue”; Miyares hired by far-right-extremist “Freedom Foundation”; damage to Head Start in Virginia; etc.)
- Virginia lawmakers demand answers after man says ICE officers assaulted him
- After Poll Finds VA05 Race a Tossup, DCCC Adds Tom Perriello to Its “Coveted ‘Red to Blue’ Program (“A corrupt and scandal-plagued incumbent in McGuire, a strong challenger in Perriello, and favorable national environment for Democrats will put Virginia’s 5th Congressional District in play come November.”)
- Democrats target Tom Perriello, offer resources to flip Fifth District seat
- Taylor opposes NextEra-Dominion deal, calls on Wittman to sell shares
- House Democrat: Rein in data centers without losing tech race to China (“The reality is, if we want to grow and develop some of these emerging technologies like AI and others, we will need more data storage and data centers as a part of that. What we don’t need is data centers to be steamrolling communities and being put in places that don’t want them.”)
- Freedom Foundation adds legal firepower, hires former Virginia AG Jason Miyares and veteran litigator A.J. Ferate (As SEIU explains, “The Freedom Foundation (aka Opt Out Today) is an extremist political project of a group of right-wing billionaires who see workers’ collective bargaining rights and the political power they create through their union as a threat to their profits and the continued accumulation of their wealth.”)
- Video, Highlights: Experts on Public Utilities Regulation Argue Proposed NextEra-Dominion Merger Should Provide BENEFITS to Virginians, Not Just “Do No Harm”… (Also, the process should probably be extended beyond 180 days)
- Environmental groups question $67B energy merger as governor steps in
- After eastern groundwater report detailed aquifer concerns, Va. lawmakers consider policy shifts (“Possible solutions to low water levels include SWIFT water injections, though the method hasn’t been widely tested.”)
- Feds’ proposal to alter Head Start could ‘dismantle’ program in Virginia, parents and advocates say (“HHS plans to eliminate Head Start’s classroom ratios and group-size limits, reduce requirements for serving children with disabilities and multilingual learners and cap administrative spending for the program”)
- Pope & Schapiro: Revenue, refunds and race-based scholarships
- How do Virginia agencies use tech to hire workers?
- Va. health dept. improves nursing home inspection backlog, reforms sanction criteria for facilities
- Virginia SCC to hold public hearing on NextEra Energy transmission line
- Virginia has a new climate office. It’s at George Mason University. Here’s what it does. (“The researchers running the office plan to partner with Virginia Tech and other state universities, and to work with state agencies and business groups, partly those in agriculture.”)
- ‘The Black Belt of Virginia’ details untold African American history (“Author Jeff Bennett, a Danville native, writes about the Black history that he didn’t learn in school.”)
- Even during an industry-wide staffing shortage, this Virginia prison logged dozens of employee separations
- Special prosecutor: Martinsville investigation is ‘trudging along’ as interviews bring more details
- Editorial: Don’t hold your breath awaiting a pro team in Hampton Roads (“For such a project to work, it must be beneficial to the region and not a giveaway to those with pockets deep enough to own professional sports franchises.”)
- Fairfax County firefighters come home after assisting Colombia earthquake victims (Thank you!)
- Norfolk studies how changes to I-264 ramps could reconnect downtown
- DC-area forecast: Fairly bright and less humid today. Rain late tonight into Saturday.
