Welcome Steve Haner to Bacon’s Rebellion

I’m pleased to announce that Stephen D. Haner is joining the ranks of Bacon’s Rebellion contributors. An occasional guest columnist in the past, he will become a more regular presence on the blog.

Steve brings a unique perspective to public policy in Virginia. He started his career as a journalist. When I first met him at the Roanoke Times in the early ’80s, he was a dogged reporter covering the Roanoke County board of supervisors in. He moved on to partisan politics as a Republican Party operative, worked in the Attorney General’s Office, and rounded out his career as a lobbyist, most notably for Huntington Ingalls (owner of Newport News Shipbuilding). In other words, he has observed Virginia sausage making from both the inside and the outside and has few illusions about the process.

Winding down his lobbying practice, Steve has the freedom now to proffer opinions that he once considered prudent to keep to himself. I, for one, look forward to reading what he has to say now that the manacles are off.

— JAB