Category: Politics
-
The Budget Do-Over: A Game of Chicken?
by Jock Yellott Speaking off-the-cuff at a Charlottesville/Albemarle Bar Association lunch on April 18, 2024, Senator Creigh Deeds offered some pointed remarks about Governor Youngkin. The Governor and the General Assembly had just the day before agreed to scrap the budget and the Governor’s proposed amendments and start over from scratch in May, averting a…
-
State Legislatures Control Budgets — Virginia’s More Than Most
by David J. Toscano For over a month, Virginia’s legislature and governor have been embroiled in a “two scorpions in a bottle” fight over the new biennial budget, which must be passed by June 30, 2024, to fund the government. Last Wednesday, each of them loosened the cork in the carafe. After Assembly-initiated discussions with…
-
Diamonds Aren’t Forever
by Jon Baliles The entire saga of the development of the Diamond District project in Richmond has come full circle in the last 18 months, as Mayor Levar Stoney, desperate for an economic development win after the failure of his Navy Hill boondoggle and two failed casino referendums, has rounded the bases trying to get…
-
New Novel: Midnight’s Broken Toll
by Joe Fitzgerald All politics is personal. So it’s an open question why Mickey MacNamara runs for the state Senate. Is it to win the job or to hurt the man who holds the seat? The incumbent had a hand in the failures of Mickey’s father; Mickey has the time and resources to try and…
-
The Cost of Not Voting
by Joe Fitzgerald If I were a more articulate man, I could explain what sorry shape the governments of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County are in right now. Rational people have little doubt about the county. The biggest government expense, the school system, is currently being run by people who do not know what they are…
-
Can the Governor Veto RGGI?
by Dick Hall-Sizemore One of Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s top priorities has been to extricate the Commonwealth from participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). One of the top priorities of the Democrat-controlled General Assembly has been ensuring that the Commonwealth participates in RGGI. For those readers unfamiliar with the purposes of RGGI and how…
-
Governor’s Budget Transformed
by Dick Hall-Sizemore In my almost 50 years of working around, and following, the General Assembly, I do not think I have ever seen the legislature take apart a governor’s budget bill to the extent that this General Assembly just demolished Gov. Youngkin’s budget. The change that had the most impact was the jettisoning of…
-
Anti-Trump, Anti-Biden Votes in Super Tuesday Primaries: Will They Sway the November Election?
by Ken Reid Depending on what media you watch and read, the Super Tuesday primary results are the death knell for either presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump or for incumbent Democrat Joe Biden, who is likely to be renominated, too. Both candidates had sizable votes against them in their respective primaries. I am not a…
-
Virginia Dems Have Their Panties in a Twist
by Kerry Dougherty This is what triggers Virginia Democrats today: There was an exchange at the Virginia Capitol between Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears, who presides over the State Senate, and Sen. Danica Roem of Prince William County. Roem identifies as a woman, although Roem was born a man. The politically correct crowd insists that failing…
-
Must Be an Election Year: Kaine’s Staff Is Answering the Phone!
by Scott Dreyer Life is full of surprises, and I got one today when I called the Roanoke office of US Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA)… and a real voice picked up! The receptionist was friendly and professional as I requested the senator help block the proposed Kroger buy-out of Albertson’s. I then asked her why…
-
Partisan Poison: Va Dems Quash a Bill to Protect School Kids
by Kerry Dougherty How exactly is Virginia’s General Assembly celebrating Black History Month? By killing a bill to protect children in public school lavatories, introduced by Del. A.C. Cordoza of Hampton. Cordoza is an African-American. And a Republican. He was famously denied membership in the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus when he was elected in 2022.…
-
A Traditional Conservative Issues Warning
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Liz Cheney was in Richmond Saturday night delivering her warning about Donald Trump. Cheney represented Wyoming in the U.S House of Representatives and held the No. 3 leadership position in the Republican caucus. She served on the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. Her speech…
-
Nasty Social Media Message Attacks Virginia’s Speaker of the House
by Kerry Dougherty Great. Just what embattled Virginia Republicans need now: an ugly social media post attacking the new speaker of the House of Delegates over a crime he committed and did time for almost 30 years ago. It’s no secret that Portsmouth Democrat Don Scott was convicted on drug charges in 1994 and served…
-
The Speaker Rules
by Dick Hall-Sizemore The Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates is widely regarded as the second-most powerful figure, after the Governor, in Virginia state government. Speaker Don Scott (D-Portsmouth), elevated to the position this session after only two terms in the House, has let the power go to his head. Rather than acting like…
-
Swallow the Money, Part 3 of 3
by Joe Fitzgerald VPAP and CFReports let you go from “How about that?” to “Oh, my God!” in 5.2 seconds. They’re attractive to the kind of nerds who used to go through the encyclopedia or the World Almanac. Yes, I did. Why do you ask? One local PAC became a subject for a dive into…