Category: Corruption and Scandals
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Blackface Scandal: The Case for and Against Northam
There is plenty of evidence in the McGuire Woods report on the Northam/Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) blackface scandal to confirm whatever prejudices and preconceptions you had beforehand. If you believe that Governor Ralph Northam was not one of the figures in the infamous EVMS school yearbook photo, there are plausible though inconclusive arguments to…
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Corruption Allegations Mar Fairfax County Board Race
I’m shocked, shocked to find that there’s gambling going on here. Long time residents of Fairfax County will hardly be shocked to hear the news of a Fairfax County Supervisor being accused of unsavory business dealings with a land developer. Jeff McKay has been Lee District supervisor since 2007. He is currently vying for the…
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Barbara Favola Makes Disingenuous Statements about Dominion Funding
A clarification has been added to the end of this article. Setup. Barbara Favola is the Democratic State Senator from Virginia’s 31st district. That district is centered in Arlington but includes areas of Fairfax and Loudoun Counties as well. Favola is a politician-for-life having served on the Arlington County Board from 1997 through 2012 and…
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More Great Moments in Virginia Governance
Front Royal hanky panky. The Commonwealth Attorney of Warren County has asked to convene a special grand jury to probe “possible criminal activity” by the former executive director, Jennifer McDonald, of the Front Royal-Warren County Economic Development Authority, reports the Northern Virginia Daily. The request follows the Tuesday filing of a $17.6 million lawsuit by the…
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Ralph Northam and the Sins of His Fathers
Liberals and progressives routinely accuse conservatives of being racist. But conservatives can’t match liberals and progressives for their all-consuming obsession with race. The latest example is an article in Spectator USA delving into the ancestry of Governor Ralph Northam, highlighting the fact that his ancestors owned at least 84 slaves. Author J. Arthur Bloom does…
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Who Is Leah Dozier Walker?
Leah Dozier Walker burst into public view a few days ago when she wrote a letter expressing her upset with Virginia First Lady Pam Northam for inviting Walker’s daughter and two other African-American girls, on a tour of Senate pages in the Governor’s Mansion, to hold a cotton boll and imagine what it would have…
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Fairfax Dons Mantle of Victimhood. It Does Not Fit.
About a month ago Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax came under a barrage of criticism after being accused of sexual assault by two seemingly credible women. Elected Democratic officials across Virginia called for his immediate resignation. He said, wait just a minute, let’s not rush to judgment. Give me a “full, fair, independent, impartial, and non-political…
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Should Northam Resign… or Just Submit?
It is fascinating to see how the demand that “Governor Ralph Northam must resign” mantra is morphing into “Northam must pay penance by adopting Leftist causes.” Specifically, he needs to shut down the Atlantic Coast Pipeline’s proposed compressor station in Buckingham County. Civil rights activist Rev. William J. Barber II, who is accompanying former Vice…
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More Ralph-Northam Hypocrisy from the Left
Two weeks ago Ibraheem Samirah, a second-generation Palestinian running for an open seat in the 86th district of the House of Delegates, joined other Democrats in calling for the resignation of Governor Ralph Northam for appearing in black face in 1984. Now, it turns out, Samirah has to answer for some intemperate remarks he made…
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Race, Hypocrisy and Bare-Knuckle Politics
A group calling itself Virginia Black Politicos rallied near the Governor’s Mansion yesterday and called for the resignation of Governor Ralph Northam. Prominent among the speakers was Charlottesville City Council member Wes Bellamy, who, according to WVIR TV, said it was time for the governor to step down so that Virginians can heal. “What will…
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Northam’s Apology Tour: Reconciling with the Left
I’ve been somewhat sympathetic to Governor Ralph Northam during his blackface ordeal, arguing (a) that we should not reach a judgment until all the facts were in, and (b) that we should not judge a man solely upon the basis of an act committed 35 years ago but upon his lifetime’s work. Well, all the…
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Ralph Northam Panders to Save His Own Skin
by Hans Bader It’s unsavory for a politician to try to buy forgiveness from those he has offended with taxpayer dollars. But that is what Virginia Governor Ralph Northam is doing. In an interview with the Washington Post, he announced plans to spend more money on government programs like “affordable housing” in the name of…
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The Politics of Empty Symbolism
Every day gets crazier here in Virginia. The politics of symbolism have taken over, and real problems requiring careful analysis and sustained attention go neglected. For an example of a festering problem with real-world consequences for African-Americans, read the previous post by Richard Hall-Sizemore. An electronic health records system would improve the quality of medical…
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Mob Justice for Justin Fairfax
Wow, that was fast. One day Justin Fairfax was measuring the drapes for the Governor’s Mansion, now the grandees of the Virginia Democratic Party say he should step down as Lieutenant Governor. The sexual-assault charges against him are serious and his accusers deserve to be heard. But can we give it just a little bit…
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Virginia’s Two-Faced Democrats
A very bad week. One can only assume that Virginia’s Democratic Party is very happy to see this week draw to a close. The Democratic Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General are facing deep scrutiny over revelations that came to light this week. While the specifics of each scandal remain hazy the sudden evaporation of moral…