Thursday News: “The Great American Tax Heist”; “Trump celebrates tax bill with very creepy, cult-like cabinet meeting”; “Obama’s Lesson for Virginia”

by Lowell

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, December 21.

• Donald Trump’s Holiday Gift to America: A Fundamental Crisis (“Deck the halls with an assault on the principles, norms, and purpose of democratic governance.”)
• Blow: The Great American Tax Heist
• Editorial: Congress Refuses to Do Right by Children’s Health Care
• The Real Coup Plot Is Trump’s (“The president and his allies are overthrowing the rule of law and the truth.”)
• You Cannot Be Too Cynical About the Republican Tax Bill (“The speed with which it passed is a problem, but the law itself is much worse.”)
• Will the Tax Bill Finally Defeat the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
• The Republicans’ “Win” on Taxes Is a Loss for American Democracy
• The Republican Tax Bill and Mitch McConnell’s Wonderful, Terrible Year
• 6 Reasons for Progressives to Stop Worrying and Love the GOP Tax Scam (“It will help Democrats take back power…And when Democrats take back power, this bill will make it easier for them to pass large expansions of the welfare state.”)
• No, the Media Has Not Been Unfair to the GOP Tax Bill (“In reality, the mainstream media’s emphasis on the bill’s distributional implications — and the way it prioritizes corporate cuts over middle-class ones — was a direct response to the Republican Party’s ‘outright dishonesty’ on both these points.”)
• The Only Way Paul Ryan Wins Is if Millions of Americans Lose (“The GOP Tax Bill is the culmination of a dark, dangerous dream.”)
• This Administration Is a Plague, and It Might Just Release One (“A godawful tax bill and a bizarre celebration.”)
• With 2 days to keep the government open, no one seems to know what’s going on
• GOP rushed to pass tax bill, but likely won’t fund Children’s Health Insurance Program until 2018 (“1.9 million children could lose health coverage in January with continued inaction” Gotta love how the sociopathic Republicans are demanding that children’s health coverage be PAID FOR, while running up $1.5 TRILLION more in red ink to give a huge tax cut to corporations and rich people. Can they get any lower?)
• Trump celebrates tax bill with very creepy, cult-like cabinet meeting (“Maybe a good solid prayer and they’ll be honest, Ben, is that possible?” Doing his Kim Jong-un imitation?)
• The age of betrayal is back (“The tax bill forgets the forgotten.”)
• A win for the wealthy, the entitled and the irresponsible (“The just-passed Republican tax bill will be seen as an ignominious moment for the GOP.”)
• Editorial: Tax cut bill creates a $1.5 trillion problem
• The True Lesson of the Tax Bill: This Country Is for Rich People
• Democrats inadvertently aided GOP tax bill efforts by refusing to play hardball (“After Democrats cut a deal with Trump to avert a shutdown, the GOP said they were given ample time to pass tax cuts”)
• The Goals Of The GOP’s Anti-Mueller Campaign And Their Likelihood For Success
• Misinformer of the Year: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg (“Facebook’s ‘personalized newspaper’ became a global clearinghouse for misinformation”)
• Deportations Are Down Under Trump, But Arrests of Non-Criminal Immigrants Surge
• New York Times decides Glenn Thrush “does not deserve to be fired” over sexual misconduct (Hmmmmm.)
• Republican Control of the Senate Hangs by a Thread (“A series of freak circumstances could change the course of politics in 2018.”)
• Cochran’s future in the Senate in doubt (“The Appropriations Committee chairman hasn’t presided over a hearing in months, and speculation is growing he will resign in January.”)
• It’s Trump’s economy now (“Republicans’ political fortunes are likely to rise or fall based on the impact of the tax bill.”)
• Gutierrez, Dems worry leaders may cave in ‘Dreamer’ talks
• Broken health care pledge tests Collins-McConnell relationship (Collins got completely played here, it appears.)
• House Republicans quietly investigate perceived corruption at DOJ, FBI (“The group was born out of frustration over the Justice Department’s refusal to explain how it used a disputed dossier.”
  WTF?)
• Political winners and losers from the Trump tax-cut bill
• Has Trump Persuaded Orrin Hatch to Block Mitt Romney’s Senate Bid? (“The longtime Utah senator had promised this term would be his last, and told friends he planned on retiring. But after the president’s intervention, he may be changing his mind.”)
• Sen. Warner cautions Trump against meddling in Mueller probe
• Sen. Mark Warner criticizes ‘irresponsible and reckless’ attacks on special counsel Robert Mueller
• Obama’s Lesson for Virginia (Jamelle Bouie: “When it comes to expanding Medicaid, Gov.-elect Ralph Northam shouldn’t bother with bipartisanship.”)
• Will Ralph Northam Break His Campaign Pledge to Expand Medicaid? (“400,000 Virginians are waiting for him to follow through.”)
• After 94th District recount, judges rule it’s a tie (Superb reporting by Reema Amin, by the way – great job!)
• Schapiro: Chaos over House control reflects the divided Virginia
• The one-vote Democratic victory that ended a GOP majority in Va. is now a tie
• Virginia elections board to pick random winner in tied House race: ‘They put two names in, somebody shakes it up, and they pull it’
• Recount winner Shelly Simonds on “Morning Joe”: “2017 was a whole different ballgame”
• Failed Va. congressional candidate accused of fraud (“Shaun Brown, a Democrat, has been charged in a 2012 scheme involving a federally funded school nutrition program.”)
• A day of reckoning for Charlottesville, at last (“The departures of two top police commanders suggest lessons have been learned.”)
• Recount confirms Democrat Dawn Adams’ victory over Loupassi in Richmond-area House of Delegates seat (Of course it did; she had way too big a lead to be impacted by a recount.)
• Editorial: A conservative student group gets the business at UVa
• Bellamy ouster effort expected to cost Charlottesville for legal fees
• Charlottesville gives Fourth Street honorific title of Heather Heyer Way
• New Portsmouth sheriff has the right to fire who he chooses; it’s the Virginia way
• A sunny day gives way to a showery weekend before the next Arctic blast