by Lowell
Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, April 5.
- Facebook: ‘Malicious actors’ used its tools to discover identities and collect data on a massive global scale
- Exclusive: Mueller’s team questioning Russian oligarchs
- Witness in Mueller Inquiry Who Advises U.A.E. Ruler Also Has Ties to Russia (Shocker, huh?)
- Mark Zuckerberg refuses to step down or fire staff over Facebook ‘mistakes’
- ‘You Hate America!’: How the ‘Caravan’ Story Exploded on the Right
- Trump thinks he has nothing to lose in a trade war with China. He’s wrong. (“Beijing has set its sights on industries that could hurt Trump’s political base.”)
- Here’s How the Trade Fight Could Threaten Manufacturing
- White House Tries to Tamp Down Trade War Fears as China Retaliates
- Trump’s easy campaign vows collide with complex reality (“The president has returned to the gut-level basics that got him elected. But the policies he called easy fixes have created a backlash among allies, frustrating supporters and threatening the pocketbooks of communities that backed him.”)
- The ‘caravan’ of migrants is not a threat. But Trump would rather ignore real crises. (This is a classic example of how the right-wing media works to spread misinformation, propaganda, fear, etc.)
- Zuckerberg Says Balancing Facebook’s Business and Community Is ‘Quite Easy (If Zuckerberg actually believes that, he is deeply delusional.)
- U.S. plans to sanction Russian oligarchs this week: sources
- The Head-Spinning Possibilities in Arizona if John McCain Leaves the Senate
- Dangerous, growing, yet unnoticed: the rise of America’s white gangs (“White gangs are less covered by the media, and less punished – even though 53% of gang members in Mississippi are white”)
- Jeff Sessions Wants to Impose Quotas on Immigration Judges. Here’s Why That’s a Bad Idea. (“They could make the backlog of cases even worse.”)
- The Memo: Kelly said to be losing influence with Trump
- Former Trump adviser Boris Epshteyn defends Sinclair in new ‘must-run’ segment (Sinclair “news” shows – like on WJLA 7 – are “must NOT watch!”)
- This Fox News interview was surprisingly tough on Scott Pruitt (“The network grilled the EPA administrator on one of his many alleged ethical violations.”)
- If The President* Thinks He’s Out of the Woods, He’s More Delusional Than I Thought (“He probably feels vindicated by today’s Washington Post scoop, because he doesn’t understand anything.”)
- Editorial: The True Damage of Trump’s ‘Fake News’
- Trump’s Irrational Border Plan (“The decision to send National Guard troops to America’s southern border is rooted in xenophobia.” Bingo.)
- The Administration Is Rushing to Turn Trump’s Latest Immigration Tweets Into a Real Policy (They manufacture a fake crisis and then use it as an excuse to militarize the border with Mexico…)
- Here is why Mueller’s move on Trump is the beginning of the endgame
- 50 Years After His Assassination, We Are No Closer to Realizing MLK’s Most Radical Dream
- NRATV on shooting: YouTube brought on “a lot of hatred” by “starting to censor content” (Yep, that’s the NRA for ya.)
- O’Reilly desperately wanted to keep his sexual harassment settlements secret. Now we know why.
- GOP rep: ‘I still believe there is a deal to be had’ on DACA (Sure, Scott Taylor COULD be right if we didn’t have a xenophobic nutjob in the White House. But we do, so he isn’t.)
- New Chinese tariffs could hurt Virginia farmers
- A trade war may be coming to Virginia
- Judge dismisses suit against RPV
- Regulators raise constitutional questions about new law on utility rates (“The State Corporation Commission issued a ruling Monday raising the possibility that a new utility-backed law may unfairly disadvantage out-of-state renewable projects in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s commerce clause.” That would be hilarious.)
- Editorial: Gas tax floor will add needed revenue (“WE URGE Gov. Ralph Northam to sign the regional gasoline-tax legislation sitting on his desk that would generate much-needed new revenue for transportation in the Fredericksburg area.”)
- The woman who got fired for flipping off President Trump just sued her former employer
- Virginia’s Unhappy Hour (The far-right Wall Street Journal editorial page claims “The restrictions on drink specials violate the First Amendment.”
- Tim Kaine talks gun policy at Blacksburg forum
- For Kaine, a thought-provoking visit to a familiar, favorite spot
- Va. congressional candidate asks Lynchburg prosecutor to investigate rival’s filing for primary
- Northam orders upgrade of DEQ amid criticism from pipeline opponents (Wayyyy too little, wayyy too late. #FAIL #THEYTHINKWEAREIDIOTS)
- Robert E. Gay Sr. column: Proposed Virginia DEQ forest biomass regulation must reflect carbon reality (Nope. Cutting down trees to produce electricity is completely bonkers. See here for more on that topic.)
- Virginia raises larceny threshold for the first time since 1980 (That was pretty much the only half-decent bill passed this session.)
- Proposed mental health court fills a needed gap
- Gov. Northam signs Richmond school facilities bill
- VCU dean accused of harassment by Wilder says he has been placed on leave, claims VCU is afraid of former governor (“A Virginia Commonwealth University dean accused of harassment by former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder says he was removed from his post this week not because the charges are true, but because top administrators were afraid ‘Wilder would make up unfounded and false claims of racism'”)
- Sunny but cool and breezy today while a weekend wintry mix looms
