Friday News: “Hurricane Otis and the World We Live in Now”; “How likely is a US-Iran escalation in the Middle East?”; New Speaker “wants to make America a Christian theocracy”; “G.O.P. Goes Full-on Extremist”; “Virginia’s legislative contests may be the most important races in 2023”

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, October 27.

• Peak fossil fuel demand is coming, IEA chief Birol says — and China will be key
• Solar will dominate grids around the world – even without ambitious new climate policies (“Solar energy combined with storage is expected to become the cheapest option for generating electricity in nearly all regions worldwide by 2030.”)
• China warns against ’empty slogans’ at COP28 climate talks
• Arming Ukraine is cheap compared to the far higher price of Russian victory
• German prosecutors handed evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine
• US Deploys Fresh Sanctions Targeting Hamas’ Fundraising Efforts
• Gaza Hospitals, Shelters Cut Services as Fuel Runs Short
• Israel’s Army Is Ready to Invade Gaza. Its Divided Government May Not Be.
• The ‘impossible choices’ facing Palestinians in Gaza
• Release of hostages requires ceasefire, Hamas official says
• A barrage and a midair explosion: What visual evidence shows about the Gaza hospital blast (“Videos analyzed by The Post reveal that rockets were launched from Gaza in the direction of the hospital 44 seconds before an explosion there” Pretty much everyone who’s looked at this has concluded that it was a rocket fired from “fighters in Gaza” – not from Israel)
• U.S., Qatar to revisit Doha’s ties to Hamas after Gaza hostage crisis
• Israel Latest: Iran Says Hamas Wants an Immediate Ceasefire
• U.S. strikes Iran-linked sites in Syria after attacks on American troops
• Biden wants a 2-state solution for Israeli-Palestinian peace. Is it still possible?
• Israeli military conducts “targeted raids” inside Gaza for second straight night
• Opinion: How likely is a US-Iran escalation in the Middle East?
• Iran Warns the US Won’t Be Spared If Israel-Hamas War Spreads
• Broken Lebanon cannot afford war between Hezbollah and Israel
• Israel’s Gaza raid is likely prep for a bigger invasion (“The US is warning about the difficulties of an invasion while preparing for a broader conflict.”)
• S Korea court upholds gay sex ban in the military
• Clean up and damage assessments begin after Hurricane Otis rips through (“Category 5 storm struck Acapulco and leveled homes, hotels and cut off communications as military called in to help with aid efforts”)
• Hurricane Otis and the World We Live in Now (“The unexpected Category 5 storm is just the latest in a series of unprecedented climate disasters this year.”)
• Why Li Keqiang’s death is dangerous for Xi Jinping (“The beloved leader represents a way of potentially governing China with very different priorities.”)
• Li Keqiang: Ex-Chinese premier sidelined by Xi dies (“Once tipped as the country’s leader, Li Keqiang has died less than a year after stepping down as premier.”)
• New Treasury Department Analysis Finds the U.S. Economy Outpacing Other Advanced Countries on Economic Growth, Labor Market Strength, and Inflation Reduction
• More mass shootings like the one in Maine? Supreme Court will soon consider unleashing the violence (“A case made to appeal to Clarence Thomas and Sam Alito may end mental health and domestic violence gun restrictions” Yikes.)
• The case of Clarence Thomas’s motor home gets curiouser and curiouser (“On ethics, the Supreme Court justice has lost the benefit of the doubt.”)
• ‘Get the right cases to the supreme court’: inside Charles Koch’s network
• Trumpism Is Running the House
• Republican radicalization takes its toll (“MAGA extremism seeps into the entire GOP.”)
• The G.O.P. Goes Full-on Extremist
• Election Denial, “Sexual Anarchy,” Noah’s Ark: All the Mike Johnson Details We Regret to Inform You Of (This guy’s completely unhinged.)
• Speaker Who?: The Rise of a G.O.P. Nobody in Trump’s House
• Mike Johnson’s Long Flirtation With Christian Nationalism (“The new speaker has a lengthy association with far-right activism.”)
• Mike Johnson Hates America, But He Believes He Can Save It (“We’re living in a completely amoral society.” Johnson’s deranged.)
• ‘It’s The F**king Weapons’: Democrat Gives New GOP Speaker Blunt Fact-Check On Guns (“Rep. Mike Johnson had made a wild claim about the true cause of mass shootings — and his critics aren’t buying it.”)
• GOP’s pick of Speaker Johnson puts new spotlight on election denialism (It’s not just denialism; Johnson actually worked to OVERTURN the 2020 election, and with it, our democracy!)
• How Mike Johnson’s denial of Trump’s 2020 loss helped pave his path to power
• House GOP’s internal honeymoon starts to crumble
• Speaker Johnson on shootings: “Problem is the human heart, not guns” (Nope; in fact, the “human heart” is the same across the world, the big difference is the availability of assault weapons.)
• Before Mike Johnson Was Speaker, He Was Blaming Abortion for School Shootings
• Here’s Why Mike Johnson Is More Dangerous Than Donald Trump (The former president only cares about himself. The new Speaker of the House actually wants to make America a Christian theocracy”)
• Mike Johnson Is a Right-Wing Fever Dream Come to Life
• Mike Johnson pushed the ‘Big Lie.’ But Biden world sees thornier issues ahead.
• Mike Johnson’s conspiracy theories about ‘illegals’ mark a new GOP low
• Republican Speaker Nominee Mike Johnson Has a Plan to Avoid a November Shutdown
• New House Speaker Thinks Creationist Museum Is ‘Pointing People To The Truth’ (Bonkers.)
• Trump Prosecutors Fani Willis and Jack Smith Have Been Keeping Their Distance. That Might Soon Change.
• Prosecutors Withdraw Second Subpoena in Trump Fund-Raising Inquiry
• Trump rakes in millions at MAGA-studded Mar-a-Lago fundraiser
• At Least 6 Trump Codefendants Have Been in Plea Talks With Georgia Prosecutors: Report
• Democrats eye rare procedural move to defeat Tuberville military holds
• Donald Trump Jr. goes after Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in Iowa appearance
• Moms for Liberty chair who pushed for removal of an Anne Frank book went on network that attacks “seditious Jews” (Not surprised at all.)
• Larry Elder drops out of 2024 GOP primary, backs Trump
• Rep. Dean Phillips will challenge Biden in Democratic presidential race: “This is an election about the future” (Ridiculous.)
• Biden’s Primary Challenger Was Once a No-Chill Biden Fan Boy (“Before Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) launched his bid to unseat Joe Biden, he privately couldn’t get enough of the president.”)
• Everything Elon Musk Broke in the Year He’s Owned Twitter
• ‘Musk destroyed all that’: Twitter’s business is flailing after a year of Elon (“Advertisers are spending less, regulators are circling, staff is at less than 50% of what it used to be and user numbers are down”)
• New York Republicans Offer Motion to Expel George Santos From Congress
• Judge throws out Georgia’s redistricting, orders new political maps
• Maine passed a law to try to prevent mass shootings. Some say more is needed after Lewiston killings
• Maine’s loose gun laws come under scrutiny after deadly shootings
• Family Reveals Suspected Gunman’s Link to Maine Massacre Sites
• Fearful Maine residents stay in homes a second night as police and FBI hunt shooting suspect
• Over 24 hours after deadliest U.S. mass shooting of 2023, Maine suspect at large
• Numerous verified X accounts are claiming that the Maine mass shootings were a “false flag” (At this point, of course, “verified” simply means you paid for it.)
• Rep. Jared Golden reverses on assault weapons ban
• Republicans have ruled Wisconsin for a decade – but a court decision could change that
• Virginia to consider Metro’s funding request to address projected $750 million shortfall
• Video: Sen. Mark Warner Says He’ll Give New Speaker Mike Johnson “the benefit of the doubt,” but He Doesn’t Have “a lot of hope” Given Johnson’s Far-Right Views, Apparent Loyalty to Trump (Sen. Warner also comments on Israel/Gaza and other topics…)
• Dominion’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure program has zero sign-ups
• Pope & Schapiro: Early voting, turnout projections, and casino backers
• Video: REPRO Rising Virginia Launches $140k Voter Outreach Campaign Leading Up to Election Day (“Right now, you have a chance to use your voice to protect reproductive freedom in Virginia”)
• Take the Opposite of This Hard-Right Group’s Virginia Ratings To Know Who To Vote For…and Who NOT To Vote For
• Campaigns are spending millions on TV ads this election cycle
• Youngkin orders probe of eligible voters’ removal from rolls
• Virginia Republicans Look to Neutralize Abortion as an Election Issue
• If you’re not voting early, what are you even doing?
• Virginia’s legislative contests may be the most important races in 2023
• Will Voters Buy Youngkin’s 15-Week Abortion-Ban Gambit?
• Arab American group that backed Biden, Va. Dems, to disband over Gaza stance (Just a reminder that Trump would be a DISASTER in every way, including for Muslims, Arabs, you name it…)
• FOIA Friday: Lynchburg City Council discord revealed and Miyares withholds UVa. shooting report
• Fairfax Dems Condemn “in the strongest possible terms” the “Outrageous” Decision by a Right-Wing Judge to Disqualify Dem-Endorsed School Board Candidate “in the middle of an election” (Fairfax Dems are now being forced to run a write-in campaign for Marcia St. John-Cunning)
• VRE plans new weekend service, fare increases next year
• New report gives James River a ‘B’ for overall health
• Campaign signs paid for with undisclosed contributions point to challenge with enforcing campaign finance laws
• SUV driven by Colonial Williamsburg president strikes William & Mary student, police say
• Charlottesville’s Lee statue meets its end, in a 2,250-degree furnace
• D.C.-area forecast: Continued record warmth possible into the weekend