Saturday News: Antarctic Ice Shelf Cracking Up as Climate Denier About to Become President; “Most Extreme Party Coalition Since the Civil War”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, January 7. Also check out President Obama previewing his “farewell address” to the nation.

• Putin ordered effort to undermine faith in election and help Trump win, U.S. says (I would ask everyone, particularly Republicans, to imagine the following scenario: a) Hillary Clinton lost the popular vote by nearly 3 million but won the Electoral College; b) today’s Washington Post top story headline read, “Putin ordered effort to undermine faith in election and help CLINTON win, U.S. says.” How do you think Republicans would be reacting if that were the scenario?)
• Putin Ordered a Campaign of Leaks and Propaganda to Help Trump, Report Says (“Broad Effort Seen to Sow Distrust in U.S. Democratic System” And it worked.)
• The crack in this Antarctic ice shelf just grew by 11 miles. A dramatic break could be imminent. (Fortunately, Donald Trump’s incoming administration is 100% on top of the global warming crisis. Oh wait…of course they’re not! Ugh, we are f***ed.)
• Trump’s Attack-Dog Strategy Has Limits (“Mr. Trump’s strategy of intimidation did not prove effective in his effort to minimize intelligence assessments about Russia.” True, but he’s not President yet. As of January 20, things could deteriorate fast.)
• Giving Mr. Trump’s Nominees a Pass (“Some of Mr. Trump’s wealthy nominees are trying to do an end-run around federal conflict of interest rules.” Republicans in Congress should not allow this, but of course they will, as they are slimeballs themselves and also terrified of Trump.)
• A resurrected House rule lets Congress go open season on civil servants (“They can bring the pay of any federal employee to as low as $1.” Guess who voted for this — that’s right, our old friend Barbara Comstock, who misrepresents tens of thousands of Federal employees in Virginia’s 10th CD. Hate to say “I told you so,” but 10th CD voters clearly should have elected LuAnn Bennett, not destroy-the-Federal-civil-service loon Comstock.)
• Members of Congress are learning to play Trump’s ethical blame game (“They’re shouting down the opposition, bullying the accuser and pinning it on the media.”)
• Obamacare’s fate rests on a GOP that is growing skittish about repealing it (“Four Republican senators now say the party should wait for a replacement before repealing the Affordable Care Act. Will the party’s base accept that?”)
• Despite the cost, Hill Republicans embrace building border wall (My god…the stupid, it burns.)
• Mexicans make it clear once again how they feel about paying for Trump’s ‘Great Wall’ (“Former president Vicente Fox dubbed Trump’s wall a ‘racist monument.'” Fox is 100% correct.)
• Donald Trump’s glorious victory for anti-intellectualism: “Drain the swamp” just meant the eggheads (“For many Trump supporters, the wealthiest cabinet ever is no problem — as long as he gets rid of the smart people”)
• The Most Extreme Party Coalition Since the Civil War (“The GOP of 2017 is more radical than conservative, and the outlook is bleak.” There’s nothing really “conservative” about these guys, at least not in the traditional sense of the word.)
• Obama’s Climate Legacy Will Be Harder to Undo Than Trump Thinks (Let’s hope.)
• Republicans face the obvious on Obamacare: Their replacement will be worse (Also that this is NOT what the large majority of Americans want.)
• President Obama cancels dangerous testing in the Atlantic (“The Obama administration just denied all pending seismic permits in the Atlantic.” Excellent news if you care about whales, dolphins, etc.)
• Yes, Donald Trump’s voters may be confused and in pain — but no, they don’t deserve our empathy (“Some Trump voters may well feel traumatized by historic and economic change. But that’s no reason to forgive them”)
• The huge challenge of covering Trump fairly (“How should journalists react to his lies? Should we even call them lies?” Short answer: yes, obviously, call them lies right in the headline.)
• Jeff Sessions’s actions alone are disqualifying (“What matters is his record as a senator, and it’s not pretty.”)
• Before Florida Shooting, Guns in Checked Bags Raised Few Concerns
• Robust Growth in Wages Is Seen as Fiscal Turning Point (Thank you President Obama!)
• Conway to CNN’s Cuomo: Trump is not sheltering Russia ‘and don’t you say that again’ (Spoken like a true authoritarian, anti-democracy extremist.)
• Fox Attempts To Downplay Report On Russian Hacking By Falsely Blaming Podesta’s Password (Fox is not journalism or “news,” it’s right-wing propaganda, end of story.)
• Ex-CIA chief on Trump’s distrust in intel: ‘I’ve never seen anything like this’ (America has never seen anything like a corrupt maniac like Trump as President. I really don’t see how this is going to end well, do you?)
• Trump berates his ‘Apprentice’ replacement Schwarzenegger (Trump, the guy who will soon be President, is mentally unbalanced. Anyone who supported him or voted for him is responsible for the disaster about to unfold.)
• Anderson Cooper stunned by Trump’s ‘stupid TV show’ tweets: He is ‘such a raw nerve of emotion’
• Biden To Democrats Objecting To Electoral College Results: ‘It Is Over’
• N.J. aunt of Ft. Lauderdale airport shooting suspect: ‘He lost his mind’ in Iraq (So why did he have access to guns???)
• Editorial: Reeves is right to go after dirty tricksters (Agreed; it appears that Jill Vogel and her husband really did engage in dirty tricks.)
• Kaine, McAuliffe, Scott, McEachin to rally Virginians in Richmond to save healthcare
• Bobby Scott: What Virginians will lose with ACA repeal
• Ex-Biden chief of staff joins race for Va. lieutenant governor (Things getting more and more interesting on the Democratic side of the Virginia 2017 races for Governor and Lt. Governor.)
• Franklin Graham Blasts Virginia Governor’s Abortion Veto Threat (As a general rule of thumb, doing the exact opposite of what Franklin Graham believes is a good move. LOL)
• Virginia’s latest attempt to marginalize minorities (I’m posting this as an example of a WILDLY irresponsible headline by the corporate media — this isn’t “Virginia’s” attempt, it’s one nutjob, “Sideshow Bob” Marshall, and this bill is going nowhere.)
• Editorial: Bob Marshall’s name game (“Before we get to the main point we want to talk about, we must ask: Umm, do we really have a problem here that requires government regulation?” No.)
• Virginia county approves massive natural gas compressor over community outrage (“The project is part of a 600-mile long pipeline that will reach from Pennsylvania to North Carolina.” None of this is acceptable.)
• Shadplank: Republican legislature holding out on major bills (“With a Democratic governor in the final year of his term, a General Assembly controlled by the GOP is likely to be playing a waiting game this year, hoping that the November election will bring a Republican to the governor’s mansion, at least some lobbyists say.” Agreed, I anticipate a very quiet session this year.)
• Lawmakers to weigh enhancing jail oversight, boosting mental health treatment of inmates
• More solar options could emerge from General Assembly session (“In November, 18 major companies signed a letter to Virginia lawmakers and the State Corporation Commission that called for more renewable energy options in the state, which has lagged behind neighbors such as North Carolina in solar development and is seen as largely closed to competition from non-utility providers looking to sell renewable electricity to business and residential customers.”)
• Editorial: Charles Colgan set example for both parties (He certainly did in terms of his civility…)
• GOP Del. Dudenhefer won’t seek reelection in purple Virginia district (“Both parties will probably push to capture his Prince William seat, which has been hotly contested in the past.” Go Josh King!)
• Holmberg: Jones left Richmond a much better city
• Norfolk gets $200K federal grant to plan future of waterfront
• Governor’s office advises Virginians ‘take action now’ to prepare for winter storm
• Live blog: Snow in Hampton Roads (Snow-related road closings, power outages, travel delays)
• 4 inch-plus snowfall still on track for Richmond area on Saturday
• Snow causes travel troubles today, and it’s very cold throughout the weekend