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10:47 p.m.
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The President is coming to GMU on Friday to speak about health insurance reform, and the event is open to the public. President Obama to Discuss Health Insurance Reform in Fairfax, Virginia WASHINGTON, DC - On the morning of Friday, March 19, 2010 President Obama will deliver remarks on health insurance reform in Fairfax, Virginia at George Mason University’s Patriot Center. This event is free ...
Leesburg Tomorrow - 5:48 p.m.
This address is now being used as the Blue Virginia archive. To read the active Blue Virginia site, please click here . Thanks. ...
Blue Virginia - 3:09 p.m. - 2 clicks 
Please join Hosts John Bell, Rob Dugger & Joan Huffer (Host Committee Still in Formation) For a Cocktail Reception with Special Guest Congressman Bob Filner Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Benefiting Krystal Ball Democratic Candidate for Congress VA-1 Tuesday, March 16, 2010 6:30pm – 8:30pm The Home of Rob Dugger & Joan Huffer 10 Wolfe Street Alexandria, Virginia...
The Farm Team - 8:20 a.m. - 5 clicks
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy As long as she restricts herself to speech, Virginia Thomas will be okay. But if her work with the Tea Party puts her in a situation where she has a financial stake in a case before the Supreme Court, Justice Thomas will need to recuse himself or he will become a target for impeachment. I have a feeling tha...
The Richmonder - 7:40 a.m. - 7 clicks
Guest post by Timothy J. Early The National Telecommunications & Information Administration has awarded $21.5 million in broadband stimulus projects in southern Virginia. Although these projects are directed specifically at connecting Virginia Tech campuses and bringing broadband to public schools in Blacksburg, Bedford and six counties in the Appalachian region of Virginia, one report [...]...
Vivian J. Paige - 6:38 a.m. - 3 clicks
As a number of articles have noted, GOP political advisors have been lauding the McDonnell/ Cuccinelli strategy of campaigning: pretend to be a moderate - even if one is a radical far right extremist - and avoid social issues if possible until after elected. Then the faux moderate can show his or her real colors. In the race for the 2 nd Congressional District of Virginia, the currentl...
Michael in Norfolk - 5:39 a.m. - 4 clicks
During the last 24 hours the news has spread like wildfire that Ken Cuccinelli has once again proven that he deserves to be associated with the extreme right wing fringe. During an interview he gave between the time he was elected Virginia’s Attorney General in November and was sworn into office in January, Cuccinelli appears to have publicly admitted he’s a member of the “birther” movement by cla...
Left of the Hill - 4:59 a.m. - 4 clicks
In the lead up to last November's elections in Virginia, I warned people as to just how crazy Ken " Cooch " Cuccinelli is if one has followed his career in the Virginia General Assembly. Moreover, he provides a wonderful window into the mindset of his backers at The Family Foundation and similar far right entities in Virginia. Having just a little over a week ago set a firestorm by his...
Michael in Norfolk - Mon 6:08 p.m. - 4 clicks
Former Gov. (and former Attorney General) Gerald Baliles refutes Ken Cuccinelli's legal reasoning on whether Virginia colleges and universities can protect gay students, professors, etc. from discrimination. The Attorney General’s opinion, in my judgment, erroneously attempts to place colleges and universities into the same category as “local governments,” and therefore, subject to the Dillo...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 6 clicks
It's a shocker, I know, but once again it looks like the U.S. Senate - aka, "the place where good legislation goes to die" - is holding up a common-sense reform that already passed the House of Representatives by a wide margin. Courtesy of Matthew Yglesias , here's the current state of play on efforts to reform student loans. SAFRA, the Democrats’ long-standing and excellent plan to stop g...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
Cross-posted from The Green Miles Dozens of activists with the Alliance for Appalachia visited Sen. Jim Webb's office this week, asking him to join their efforts to end mountaintop removal coal mining. The Virginians pictured here were part of a much larger group from across America that was lobbying for change this week on Capitol Hill (more details in the great video at the bottom o...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 4 clicks
Krystal Ball tweets : Now that's impressive: Every. Single. Delegate. So, with that -- Krystal picking up 1/3 of the committed delegates she needs to win, with Robinson picking up zero - is the race for the 1st CD Democratic nomination between Krystal Ball and Scott Robinson already over? After today's rout of Robinson, it certainly could be. Here's Marc Broklawski's take . While there...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
I may just make this a regular feature of Blue Virginia: "It's not just crazy, it's 1st CD (Republican? Tea Party?) candidate (well, maybe) Catherine Crabill Crazy!!!" Here's the latest from her Facebook page , in reaction to this article in today's Washington Post ("Boycott urged for Muslim imam's prayer in Virginia House"). Take it away - far, far away! - Catherine "Bullet Box" Crabill!...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
What a concept, a Democrat from the "Democratic wing of the Democratic Party!" Thank you David Englin, for speaking the truth about this piece-o'-crap budget. Budgets are moral documents that express our values as a Commonwealth and determine whom we lift up and whom we leave out. While the final version of the budget is less bad than the initial House version, I still cannot justify supporting...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
As I wrote on Saturday , Krystal Ball swept 1st CD caucuses this weekend in Stafford County and Fredericksburg, demolishing Scott Robinson and making his candidacy for the Democratic nomination a longshot at best. Now, Scott Robinson is reacting with class, restraint, and poise. Whoops, wrong Scott Robinson! Ha. Actually, this is how the real 1st CD candidate Scott Robinson is reacting. Thi...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
Thanks to Tom Whipple for the Sunday "Clips." 1. BIAS DISPUTE KNOCKS MCDONNELL OFF STRIDE 2. HOUSE, SENATE REACH BUDGET DEAL AFTER MIDNIGHT 4. VIRGINIA LAWMAKERS REACH AGREEMENT ON BUDGET 8. GENERAL ASSEMBLY WRAP-UP: WHAT PASSED, WHAT FAILED 17. VIRGINIA HOUSE AGREES TO FORFEIT OVERTIME PAY; SENATE TO ACCEPT PAY 18. A ONE-MAN WINDOW INTO LAWMAKING 19. MCCLELLAN’S PREGNANCY BELIEVED T...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
Eric Byler is interviewed by a Charlottesville TV station on Saturday, March 13, in Charlottesville on Coffee Party National Kick-off Day. According to the Coffee Party USA website , there were more than 350 coffee party meetings in 44 states on Saturday. In addition, there are now 159,000 fans on the Coffee Party Facebook page , compared to 111,991 fans for the largest Tea Party Fa...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
The quote of the day goes to Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw (D-Fairfax). Check this out. "We've had four snowstorms and $4 billion in budget cuts," McDonnell told a small group of legislators who had been dispatched to his ceremonial quarters on the third floor of the state Capitol to inform him that the assembly was ready to adjourn. Senate Majority Leader Richard L. Saslaw, D-Fairfax, ...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
Democratic Party of Virginia Executive Director David Mills writes about Ken Cuccinelli's "apparent comments in support of Virginia pursuing legal challenges to federal laws based on questioning President Obama's birth certificate." Unlike Republican leaders, Virginians are more concerned with their jobs and their children's schools than with pursuing conspiracy theories and a narrow so...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 4 clicks
Once again, Ken Cuccinelli demonstrates why: a) many of us think he's batshit crazy; b) why Democratic activists worked so hard to prevent him from becoming Attorney General of Virginia; c) why he's a complete and utter embarrassment to our Commonwealth; and d) politically speaking, why he's the "gift that keeps on giving" for Democrats. This time, thanks to a great scoop by NLS , C...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 2 clicks
Well, it's been over a year since I started Blue Virginia, and I'm still blogging. Overall, I've enjoyed it, except for one thing: I'm really tired of the Blogger platform. Problems with Blogger include: people tell me it's difficult to leave comments; there's no "more" button, which means the front-page posts take up too much space; there are no community features at all; the default coding is n...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
Thanks to Tom Whipple for the Monday "Clips." 1. MCDONNELL SHOWS SOME SUCCESSES IN FIRST LEGISLATIVE SESSIONS 2. LAWMAKERS APPROVE TWO-YEAR, $70 BILLION BUDGET 3. ASSEMBLY APPROVES TWO-YEAR, $70 BILLION VA BUDGET 4. STATE KEEPS CCCA OPEN 5. HOUSE, SENATE PASS VIRGINIA'S TWO-YEAR SPENDING PLAN 9. STATE WILL DIP INTO PENSION FUND, REPAY WITH 7.5% INTEREST 11. LEGISLATORS LEAVE TOWN, MC...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
This past Thursday, former Assistant Secretary of Education, Diane Ravitch, laid into "charter schools" and "No Child Left Behind" on the Diane Rehm Show . This is a timely and topical subject here in Virginia, as Bob McDonnell's education agenda relies heavily on the "charter school" concept. In contrast to McDonnell and his ideological approach to education (and everything else, for that matte...
Blue Virginia - Mon 4:46 p.m. - 3 clicks
I would not have believed it if someone had predicted it in November of last year, but license plates supporting Planned Parenthood might just be coming to Virginia. For the past few months, the Assembly has been wrestling with establishing a license plate to balance the " Choose Life" plate approved last year. In the course of the sausage making, funding from sales of the plates was originall...
Leesburg Tomorrow - Mon 3:22 p.m. - 4 clicks
See this Virginia Division of Legislative Services document that describes some of the major legislative actions taken by the General Assembly during the regular session of 2010....
FairfaxBlue - Mon 1:36 p.m.
Each Monday morning during the men's college basketball regular season, SLANTblog will publish its new Virginia Top Five. For the third consecutive season this feature will attempt to rank what seems at the moment to be the best five teams from among the 14 Division I programs in the Commonwealth. Only games against Division I opponents are counted in won/loss re...
SLANTblog - Mon 10:48 a.m. - 5 clicks
Here in Virginia we currently have a governor who refuses to continue the tradition set by former governors of issuing an executive that bans discrimination in the state workforce based upon sexual orientation and an attorney general who wrote a letter to Virginia's colleges saying they shouldn't have rules that prevent discrimination based upon sexual orientation. This unfortunately means that Vi...
Left of the Hill - Mon 10:26 a.m. - 4 clicks
The possibility of raising taxes is one that politicians generally try to avoid discussing because they don't want what they say about the topic to be taken out of context and used against them in the next election. The Virginia Organizing Project (VOP), however, held a series of "bake sales for the budget" last Thursday to help prove that many Virginians would be willing to pay a little more i...
Left of the Hill - Mon 9:27 a.m. - 3 clicks
Employment non-discrimination laws based upon sexual orientation continue to be all over the news in Virginia and it was heartening to see the Richmond Times Dispatch basically call The Family Foundation a liar (which is indeed the case) by name. The Family Foundation, like most of the homophobic Christianist organization, whines incessantly that gays should not have "special rights (of co...
Michael in Norfolk - Mon 6:07 a.m. - 9 clicks
After a long series of negotiations on the state budget, it appears as though a compromised has been reached. In regards to education funding, which was one of the major disagreements between the House and Senate, it appears as though the final budget will look a little closer to the Senate's version. It's still not too great though as there will be $293 million in cuts, which come at a time wh...
Left of the Hill - Mon 5:00 a.m. - 3 clicks
House of Delegates moves toward Senate’s position on K-12 education, public safety and health and human resources RICHMOND- The Virginia General Assembly adjourned today following passage of a 2010-2012 biennial budget that reflects many priorities of the Senate Democratic Caucus. While unwelcome cuts were required, the Democratic-led Senate prevented the devastating and job-eliminating cut...
The Farm Team - Sun 7:26 p.m. - 3 clicks
As I am almost every Sunday (and some Mondays as well), I will be in the studio for tonight's Inside Scoop. On tonight's show, which airs on Channel 10 in Fairfax starting at 6:30, Dr. Sam Hancock will be having a discussion with "H.E. Shankar P. Sharma, Ambassador, Embassy of Nepall: and Larry J. Silverman, Esq., an Environmental Attorney. Here's part of the show's discription that Dr. Sam sent o...
Left of the Hill - Sun 12:09 p.m.
Some of Virginia's leading political pundits quoted by the Richmond Times Dispatch seem to believe that this past weeks media circus over the Virginia GOP's anti-gay jihad led by Christian Talibanista Ken Cuccinelli will have lasting damage on both Bob McDonnell and the Republican Party of Virginia. Obviously, some of us will do are best to help that prediction come true. As I have s...
Michael in Norfolk - Sun 10:49 a.m.
It has become fashionable in certain circles to adorn blogs and other websites with historic flags of the past and then wave those flags at rallies at other Americans as an implicit threat of armed action. Whether it be the Gadsden flag or the Battle Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia, right-wing activists and Tea Baggers have rushed to adopt the symbols of these historic flags to further...
The Richmonder - Sat 5:27 p.m.
I have stated on a number of occasions that in my opinion Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is certifiably insane. He is utterly unable to disconnect his religious extremist fantasies from objective reality and hopefully will, sooner or later, do something so off the wall that he finds himself impeached and thrown out of office. In an effort to stop worldwide mockery of the Commonwea...
Michael in Norfolk - Sat 3:46 p.m. - 4 clicks
In the 1st Congressional District, Democrats are going to be selecting their nominee at a convention in May. While there is still a fair amount of time left before the convention, the caucuses to select delegates to the convention have already started and it appears as though Krystal Ball is off to a great start. According to Marc Broklawski , the former chair of the Stafford County Democratic Co...
Left of the Hill - Sat 3:46 p.m. - 6 clicks
Twenty-eight Virginians met this afternoon in Richmond, Virginia at a local coffee shop named "Savor" to discuss politics in a civil manner and look for a way forward in solving their country's problems. The mood was generally upbeat, but participants expressed concern about the negative tone politics have taken in recent years, and in particular during the health care reform debate. Par...
The Richmonder - Sat 3:20 p.m. - 5 clicks
To my surprise, the Virginia Pilot has another main page editorial raising hell about Virginia's anti-gay bigotry and the failure of Bob "Taliban Bob" McDonnell and GOP members of the Virginia General Assembly to push for legislation that would bring Virginia into the 21st century in terms of gay rights. The result has been that Virginia remains a very an anti-gay state and now is literall...
Michael in Norfolk - Sat 5:01 a.m. - 6 clicks
Nearly a year ago the boyfriend bought a weekend package at a B&B (the Royal Rose Inn - pictured above) in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware at a silent auction at Equality Virginia's Commonwealth Dinner. Since the package is about to expire, we are driving up this morning for the weekend. The weather forecast sucks, but then it sucks here as well, so if one must endure a rainy weekend, we ...
Michael in Norfolk - Sat 4:48 a.m. - 4 clicks
With all of the political maneuvering by Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell in the wake of Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's directive to Virginia public colleges and universities to rescind non- discrimination policies that included sexual orientation as an enumerated class - including the Governor's Executive Directive 1 (2010) issued yesterday - would think the situation could not get...
Michael in Norfolk - Fri 8:24 p.m. - 6 clicks
My postseason projections for Virginia's best five college basketball teams are here at the Fan District Hub. Along with brief scouting reports, I've got three teams in the NCAA tournament and two in the NIT. ...
SLANTblog - Fri 12:35 p.m. - 3 clicks
In all the bluster over civil rights and budget fights , it is nice to see something good come out of the Virginia General Assembly for a change. In this case, an agreement to rein in the massive overcharging of citizens who take out car title loans . It would put a one-year limit on the loans, set up a maximum interest rate and require the lenders to be licensed. Currently the lenders are un...
Leesburg Tomorrow - Fri 11:43 a.m. - 3 clicks
Barbara Saunders, candidate for the Norfolk council seat in Ward 1, will have a campaign kickoff this coming Sunday, March 14. The event begins at 1pm and will be held at Ocean View Baptist Church. More details are available in the flier (pdf). ...
Vivian J. Paige - Fri 7:48 a.m. - 4 clicks
I wanted to update you on a critical issue currently before the General Assembly. But before I begin, I want to assure you that the Senate Democrats are fully engaged in resolving the budget negotiation with the House of Delegates in a way that protects jobs, K-12 education, public safety and our most vulnerable citizens. [...]...
The Farm Team - Thu 1:24 p.m. - 6 clicks
In reaction to Ken Cuccinelli's letter to the colleges and universities in Virginia saying that they shouldn't have rules that prevent discrimination based solely on sexual orientation, approximately 150 students participated in a rally at VCU and then marched to the state capital. From what I've been told by people who were at the event, the crowd was filled with a wide variety of students who we...
Left of the Hill - Thu 12:03 p.m. - 5 clicks
The Farm Team Invites You To Our April 2010 Statewide Meeting in Lynchburg, VA April 16-17, 2010 AGENDA Friday, April 16th 3-5 PM Registration at [...]...
The Farm Team - Thu 10:50 a.m. - 8 clicks
Throughout the 2009 campaigns I had numerous conversations with progressive activists who were worried about what would happen if Bob McDonnell and Ken Cuccinelli were elected to office. We had a lot of concerns of about their economic policies, but were even more worried about how they could send Virginia so far backwards by trying to push their extreme right wing social agenda on the Commonwealt...
Left of the Hill - Thu 4:47 a.m. - 5 clicks
It took just under a week, but today Governor Bob McDonnell found a way to save face in his executive branch. Virginia, unlike some other states I could mention (cough, South Carolina, cough), is not used to being a national laughingstock. But after news of the Cuccinelli letter broke over the weekend, McDonnell rightly [...] ...
The 28th Amendment - Wed 10:08 p.m. - 6 clicks
We are happy to give credit where credit is due. Governor Bob McDonnell, with the support of Lt. Governor Bill Bolling, issued Executive Directive One , re-affirming the position taken by Governors Kaine and Warner, that Virginia hires the best talent regardless of whether that employee is gay or straight. read more ...
Virginia Young Democrats Blog - Wed 4:46 p.m. - 8 clicks
March 9, 2010: The House and Senate Conferees are currently in negotiations to try to resolve the differences between the House and Senate budgets by Saturday, March 13th. In short, the House is identifying what fees increases they can support in a final budget and the Senate is [...]...
The Farm Team - Wed 3:09 p.m. - 9 clicks
Dear Virginia Activist, I thought you should be made aware of the budget cut that the House of Delegates is proposing: a 31% cut in funding to domestic violence and sexual assault programs. This cut will obviously have a drastic negative affect to families already in precarious situations. Between now and Saturday the conferees are meeting [...]...
The Farm Team - Wed 3:09 p.m. - 7 clicks
— 4th Annual JJ Breakfast — March 20, 2010 Calling all VaDWC Members The Virginia Democratic Women’s Caucus Jefferson Jackson Weekend Kick-Off Breakfast Saturday March 20, 2010 8:00 am The Hilton Garden Inn, Richmond, Virginia Speakers are Delegate Betsy Carr and Delegate Charniele Herring Keynote by Delegate Eileen Filler-Corn click here Sponsorship Levels purchase tickets ...
The Farm Team - Wed 2:43 p.m. - 3 clicks
Plenty of people cynically dismiss politicians of every stripe by saying they’re all alike. Why vote? they ask mockingly, it only encourages ‘em. Elections prove all politicians aren’t the same. Virginians who were too bored to bother with 2009’s statewide elections are already being taken to school by the two of the Republicans who were sworn in two months ago. Yes, for better or worse, G...
SLANTblog - Wed 1:25 p.m. - 9 clicks
I recently wrote a post about how Sen. Jeff Merkley spoke out about how Sen. Jim Bunning (R - KY) was taking advantage of an arcaine Senate rule that allowed him to block legislation that would help the working class even though he was the only one who objected. While I focused at the time on how Bunning's actions would mean unemployment benefits that wouldn't be able to get to those who so desp...
Left of the Hill - Wed 12:07 p.m. - 7 clicks
The Farm Team is pleased to announce its endorsement and full support of Mayor Joan Foster for re-election for Mayor of Lynchburg. http://www2.newsadvance.com/lna/news/local/article/foster_to ...
The Farm Team - Wed 7:48 a.m. - 8 clicks
Education is definitely receiving a lot of attention down in Richmond, as it should because there are some members of the General Assembly and the Executive Branch who want to balance the state budget on the back of students. One of the issues that was addressed on the floor of the Senate today was a proposal to take funds away from public schools in order to fund charter schools. Now I believe th...
Left of the Hill - Wed 7:48 a.m. - 6 clicks
Jon Stewart poked fun last night at Virginia’s Governor, Bob McDonnell and Attorney General, Ken Cuccinelli. UPDATE: The Governor has issued Executive Directive #1 (pdf) on discrimination. From the accompanying email: While the separation of powers doctrine precludes the Governor from changing the Virginia Human Rights Act via Executive Order, he wants to be clear [...] ...
Vivian J. Paige - Wed 6:20 a.m. - 4 clicks
In the wake of devastating blows being delivered to Pat Herrity in the way of GOP loses right in the heart of the district he represents, it appears as though Keith Fimian is trying to gain some momentum in the Republican primary for Congress in Virginia’s 11th District. In a poll that was just done by Fimian’s pollster, the numbers are made to appear as though Fimian is actually leading Democra...
Left of the Hill - Wed 5:06 a.m. - 5 clicks
Of the most current personalities of the powerful angry-throwback wing of the Republican Party, who's most likely to become the next cable news talk-show superstar? Until last week Gov. Bob McDonnell was Virginia's most obvious/likely entry in that contest. His direct connection to the rather eccentric Rev. Pat Robertson gave him a leg-up. Now, it seems, the buttoned-down McDonnell has been upsta...
SLANTblog - Mar 9 - 12 clicks
Richmond, Va.—Speaking from the harem of his residence to assembled members of the Virginia parliament, Ayatollah Ali Cuccinelli declared it his uncompromising order that all homosexuals be prevented from taking up residence here. The Supreme Leader made clear the divinely-inspired nature of his message. “It is in my legal opinion and the instruction of Almighty [...] ...
The 28th Amendment - Mar 9 - 12 clicks
In yet another example of why the priorities of the Senate's budget must make it into the final bill instead of those laid out in the budget passed by the Republican controlled House of Delegates, Sen. Janet Howell spoke on the floor of the Senate about how the different budgets would impact public safety. ...
Left of the Hill - Mar 9 - 9 clicks
Come May 4, the residents of Newport News will elect a new mayor. Joe Frank, who was the city’s first elected mayor in 1996, has decided to step down. Some say the reason is that Frank could no longer count to four: the seven member council has a relatively new coalition of four and Frank [...] ...
Vivian J. Paige - Mar 9 - 9 clicks
Any interested users of Facebook may want to wander over to the page of the Virginia Attorney General, Ken Cuccinelli II, and leave their love and warmest regards for him. In the 72 hours since news of the Cuccinelli letter was revealed, here are some of the choice words that Virginians have for him: “Is Cuccinelli [...] ...
The 28th Amendment - Mar 8 - 7 clicks
Thousands will be Called to Participate & Others May Sign Up on Connolly’s Website Congressman Gerry Connolly will hold his sixth Telephone Town Hall Meeting for constituents of the 11th Congressional District of Virginia on Tuesday, March 9, 2010, beginning at 8:40 p.m. Thousands of residents of Fairfax County, Prince William County and Fairfax City will receive calls in the minutes pr...
FairfaxBlue - Mar 8 - 7 clicks
