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A compilation of newspaper articles
about state government and politics.
VaNews - February 28, 2013
Compiled by Sue Lindsey
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
$100 FEE FOR HYBRIDS FUELS CRITICISM OF ROADS PLAN
A $100 tariff tacked onto hybrid and alternative-fuel vehicles in the recently passed state transportation bill is going over like an unleaded balloon. And it’s not only the eco-friendly and economically minded owners of the vehicles who have expressed disapproval.
BILLS MAKE VA. GOVERNMENT LESS VISIBLE, SOME WORRY
Government transparency is a popular phrase with politicians, even if their actions don't always match the rhetoric. Consider this: While legislators at the General Assembly ostensibly did the people's business this winter in Richmond, many of their bills effectively restricted the right to obtain government records.
DEPARTMENT FUNDING DISPUTE LEADS TO LEGISLATION
In a relatively surprising development, Greensville County Administration has petitioned the General Assembly for authority to leave the joint service of the Emporia-Greensville Department of Social Services. County Administrator David Whittington requested the legislation late in this General Assembly session. He testified before a committee and legislation was introduced by Del. Roslyn Tyler, 75th District.
STATE ELECTIONS
BOLLING'S LAST STAND
He lacks Tim Kaine's charm, Bob McDonnell's hair, Mark Warner's wealth, Terry McAuliffe's national connections and Ken Cuccinelli's flair for sparking headlines. His biggest personality quirk is that he recently joined Weight Watchers. He lost 45 pounds and has a canned joke about it: "Just doing my part to reduce the size of government." His idea of a fun weekend getaway is a night at his Wintergreen condo. He doesn't ski, though — "Oh no," he says, laughing. "I'm not that active."
SUSAN B. ANTHONY LIST, NATIONAL ABORTION OPPONENT, PLEDGES $1.5 MILLION TO CUCCINELLI
The Susan B. Anthony List, a national organization that opposes abortion, will announce Thursday that it is pledging at least $1.5 million to the Republican gubernatorial campaign of Ken Cuccinelli in Virginia "It's an easy call," Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Washington-based group, said in an Associated Press interview Wednesday. "This is hands-down the most important election in the country right now."
CUCCINELLI ON SEQUESTRATION AND LIBERAL VA. NEWSPAPERS
As the sequester blame game boomerangs across the country and here in Virginia where defense cuts could be economically devastating, Democrats and Republicans are pointing fingers and calling each other bad actors in the drama over the looming federal spending sickle. Virginia Democrats Wednesday tried to tar Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, the Republican nominee for governor, as a Johnny-come-lately on the subject, saying he's offered little more than vague bromides.
VIRGINIA DEMS MOCK KEN CUCCINELLI'S ANTI-SEQUESTRATION STANCE
Virginia Democrats attacked Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli on Wednesday for jumping onto the anti-sequestration side at the last minute. Cuccinelli on Tuesday came out against the $1.2 trillion in defense and domestic spending cuts -- known in Washington as sequestration -- that are scheduled to go into effect Friday. The Republican governor candidate called on Congress to take actions to avert the crisis.
WISCONSIN GOV. SCOTT WALKER TO HEADLINE FUNDRAISER FOR CUCCINELLI NEXT MONTH
Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli is importing some GOP star power for a fundraiser next month. Cuccinelli announced on his Facebook page Wednesday that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker will headline a private reception and dinner with the attorney general March 15 in Virginia Beach.
VA. POLITICIANS WOO BERETTA AS MARYLAND WEIGHS GUN CRACKDOWN
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley are in a seemingly never-ending battle to lure — or keep — jobs and companies on their side of the Potomac River. And it seems that Pete Snyder, a Republican running this year for lieutenant governor in Virginia, is catching on quickly.
STATE GOVERNMENT
GRAYSON PRISON TO OPEN THIS FALL
It’s finally official. A long-dormant state prison in Grayson County is set to open in October, after the Virginia General Assembly approved a revised $87.4 billion spending plan that includes a total of $18 million to open the River North Correctional Center near Independence.
CONGRESS
WARNER: SEQUESTER THE “MOST STUPID OF ALL OPTIONS”
In light of the looming sequestration, Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., underscored his willingness to work on entitlement reform – given that Republicans in Congress agree to raise revenue through closing tax loopholes and tax increases for the wealthy. “I’m all for believing that we’re going to do entitlement reform, but we’ve got to do more revenues as well, as opposed to going through those stupidest of all cuts,” Warner told talk-show host Joe Scarborough on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” today.
FEUDING CONGRESS COULD LEARN FROM VA. TRANSPORTATION DEAL, KAINE SAYS
n his first speech before the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, Sen. Timothy M. Kaine, D-Va., used the state’s new transportation deal as a blueprint for how Congress could reach a compromise to avert sequestration through a balanced approach of cutting spending and increasing revenue. “Saturday in Richmond, 90 miles from here, four days ago, a Republican governor and a Republican legislature decided to do something to benefit the economy, and they did,” Kaine said, referring to the transportation deal that cleared the state Senate on the last day of the General Assembly session.
IN FIRST SENATE SPEECH, KAINE SAYS CONGRESS SHOULD FOLLOW EXAMPLE OF VA. DEAL
Sen. Timothy M. Kaine (D-Va.) delivered his maiden floor speech Wednesday, warning his colleagues of the dangers of looming budget cuts and suggesting Congress could follow the dealmaking example just set by Virginia’s General Assembly. Kaine’s address was a rite of passage for every freshman senator but, as he referenced several times, the circumstances were less than ideal; Kaine took to the floor just two days before the sequester is due to hit, triggering automatic reductions in defense and domestic spending.
KAINE SAYS VA. TRANSPORTATION BILL IS MODEL FOR FEDERAL BUDGET COMPROMISE
In his first speech on the floor of the Senate Wednesday, Tim Kaine said the recent passage of a transportation bill in the Virginia General Assembly is a model Washington should follow. While it’s not a “precise analog as to what we’re wrestling with here, it’s pretty close,” Kaine said.
KAINE ON SEQUESTER: “WE ARE DRIFTING TOWARD SOMETHING THAT IS VERY BAD”
U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., delivered his first speech on the floor of the United States Senate today and described some of the effects his home state could suffer if automatic, across-the-board federal spending cuts begin as scheduled on Friday. Kaine spent part of last week visiting defense installations, contractors and other facilities that would be affected by the looming sequestration cuts — including a Feb. 20 stop at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salem.