by Lowell
Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Sunday, October 7.
- Brazilians vote in tense presidential race led by right-winger (“Front-runner Jair Bolsonaro, who some call a tropical Trump, has surged in opinion polls in the past week. Brazil is split over what cost to its democracy it may pay if it chooses Bolsonaro, a long-time congressman who has repeatedly praised the 1964-85 military regime but now vows to stick strongly to democratic ideals.”)
- Turkey concludes Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi killed by ‘murder’ team, sources say (If that’s the case, we should slap serious sanctions on Saudi Arabia.)
- The Supreme Court’s legitimacy crisis is here (“Brett Kavanaugh’s Senate confirmation will likely turn many Americans against the Court itself.” Yep, I now have no faith in the Supreme Court whatsoever.)
- The Supreme Court Is Now a Partisan Institution (“Kavanaugh’s confirmation means Trump controls all three branches of government. There’s only one check left on the president.”)
- Confirming Kavanaugh: A Triumph for Conservatives, but a Blow to the Court’s Image
- Brett Kavanaugh and the G.O.P.’s Bargain with Trump (“Once the Senate Republicans decided to countenance demagoguery, one step led to another.”)
- Accused Sexual Assaulter Confirmed to Supreme Court
- Susan Collins Is the Worst Kind of Maverick (“She votes with the most right-wing members of her party, even while attempting to occupy some imaginary moral high ground.”)
- Lindsey Graham Is the Saddest Story in Washington (“His fight for Brett Kavanaugh completed his transformation into Donald Trump’s slobbering manservant.” Lindsey Graham is just appalling.)
- Kavanaugh sworn in as Supreme Court justice after divided Senate votes for confirmation (A dark, dark day for the Supreme Court and for the country.)
- How Kavanaugh Will Change The Supreme Court (“…every available measure, and the entries on his résumé, indicate that Kavanaugh will be conservative, and perhaps very much so.”)
- Republicans don’t care what you think (“Republicans lost the argument, but they ultimately had the votes.”)
- It’s official: Brett Kavanaugh just became the least popular Supreme Court justice in modern history (“The incredibly narrow vote underscores how partisan his confirmation is.”)
- With Kavanaugh confirmed, impeachment could follow. Here’s how.
- The Kavanaugh court is the one conservatives have worked decades to build (Horrifying.)
- ‘Rock bottom’: Supreme Court fight reveals a country on the brink (“’This is the second most divided time in our history, and I’m worried about the legitimacy of the court,’ conservative commentator William J. Bennett said, comparing the current moment to the breakdowns that preceded the Civil War.”)
- We need careful, restrained justices on the Supreme Court (“The legitimacy of the high court is at stake.”)
- Susan Collins’s Declaration of Cowardice (“Her speech was the opposite of Republican Margaret Chase Smith’s brave rebuke to Joseph McCarthy.”)
- SNL tries — and fails — to find humor in Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation (“The cold open of a lackluster episode focused on Republican Senators partying in the GOP locker room.” There’s nothing funny about it.)
- Anger vs. elation: Parties scrap for Kavanaugh edge in midterms (“‘Anger always lasts longer than happiness,’ says one top Democratic pollster.”)
- Trump, GOP aim to weaponize Kavanaugh vote ahead of November (Of course they do.)
- Former Yale Law School Dean: Kavanaugh’s confirmation an ‘American tragedy’
- Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation isn’t democracy. It’s a judicial coup (“Mitch McConnell and his ilk must be delighted: they’ve waged a decades-long campaign to stack the courts with conservative ideologues”)
- Trump’s First Annual Budget Deficit Will Be the Widest Since 2012 (Republicans have exploded the deficit/dbt with their massive tax cuts for rich people and big corporations. Where’s the “Tea Party” now? Oh right, there’s a white Republican in the White House now.)
- Collins and Kavanaugh: The Post-Truth Republican Party (“The senator knew the conservative base would disbelieve her or not care what she said.”)
- Kavanaugh’s Confirmation Shows Republicans’ Brutal Politics (They are ruthless. Democrats need to be just as tough.)
- Kavanaugh’s Victory Is a Loss for America (“In a country with already-shaky institutions, a blatantly partisan Supreme Court is the last thing anyone needs.”)
- Trump says those who made ‘false statements’ about Kavanaugh ‘should be held liable’
- With Kavanaugh confirmed, nearly a quarter of SCOTUS has been accused of sexual misconduct (Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh should start the Accused Sexual Abusers Caucus of the Supreme Court)
- Susan Collins’s Brett Kavanaugh Speech Was the Final Nail in the Coffin for Her Political Identity (“It was completely detached from any kind of empirical reality—and smarmy to boot.”)
- Brett Kavanaugh Is Proof Republicans Will Never Hold The Elite Accountable
- Melania Trump doesn’t really care what U think about her offensive African safari outfit (“I wish people would focus on what I do, not what I wear.” Yep, I can see why she married Donald.)
- Kaine Denounces U.S. Senate Confirmation of Kavanaugh
- Is UVa’s Miller Center seeing a meltdown? (“Will Hitchcock, a professor of history and policy, resigned an appointment with the center in June, but said the Short appointment was only the latest example of a debate between historians and policymakers about the center’s role.”)
- After Va. Jewish community center vandalized, Stewart tweets about Kavanaugh while Kaine calls the graffiti ‘insidious’
- The Republican Party’s wrong turn in Virginia (“Laughably misleading campaign ads attack improvements to Northern Virginia’s transportation network.” When you see a Comstock TV ad, just remember, it’s totally, WILDLY false. For instance, when she says she is an “independent voice,” remember that she’s the exact opposite, voting 98% with Trump. Also, when you see her ads on I-66 tolls, etc, those are wildly false as well regarding Jennifer Wexton’s record on this issue. Not even sure why these false ads are allowed to run on the public airwaves.)
- Schapiro: With difficult hand on Kavanaugh, Stewart, others play cards they’re dealt
- Gordon C. Morse: The future must blend both Virginias (The problem is, just like with America as a whole, the “red” and “blue” parts, the rural and urban/suburban parts, are moving further and further apart politically.)
- Bob McNab: Region’s economy is improving — finally — but challenges remain
- Editorial: First the good news, on region’s economy
- REACTION: Northern Virginia Politicians “Shocked,” “Terribly Saddened” by Swastikas Drawn on Jewish Community Center in Fairfax
- CASEY: Is bandwagon building for widening Interstate 81? (Widening highways is definitely not the way to go.)
- Opinion/Editorial: Ex-chief’s continued salary raises questions
- Five years after voters rejected a meals tax, Chesterfield finding other ways to pay for eight new schools, finish 2013 bond referendum projects
- Humid 80s through midweek, then tropical showers?
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