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Chesley: Paucity of details on immigration arrests highlights Youngkin’s pattern of misstatements
Gov. Glenn Youngkin, when it comes to culture war issues including immigration, rarely misses a chance to stretch – or even obliterate – the truth. The governor’s office noted this month that more than 2,500 people arrested by the Virginia Homeland Security Task Force for being in the country illegally were “violent criminals.” Then Youngkin, in a news conference July 2 about the state-federal entity, added: “Two-thousand five-hundred violent criminals who are here illegally — MS-13 members, Tren de Aragua, others, international violent gang members.”
Yancey: Election? What election? Most of our local offices are unopposed this year.
Nine weeks from today, the first votes will be cast in Virginia’s 2025 elections. With early voting, we can no longer call these “fall elections” because the voting actually begins in what are technically the last days of summer. While anything other than a presidential election is often considered an “off-year” election, this is actually one of the busiest election cycles Virginia has. This year we’ll not only elect a governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general, we’ll also pick 100 members of the House of Delegates, plus lots of local offices — some (but not all) boards of supervisors, city councils, town councils, school boards and the so-called “constitutional offices” of commonwealth’s attorney, sheriff, commissioner of revenue and treasurer.
Tweak campaign finance law to boost accountability in Va.
For years, Virginia has largely operated under the premise that everyone who runs for public office in the state is a fine, upstanding citizen who meticulously and accurately reports all campaign contributions and explains precisely where the money went. It’s Virginia, after all, where honor and integrity course through the veins of our distinguished, selfless leaders. Well, maybe. But a bit of salient advice from the late Ronald Reagan also pops to mind: “Trust but verify.” Three years ago, the General Assembly wisely passed a bill to add a layer of verification to all that trust. From now on, all candidates for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general will have their campaign finances reports audited by an independent firm ...
Earle-Sears’ campaign manager leaves post
In a shakeup in Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears‘ bid to be Virginia’s next governor, her campaign manager has lost his post. The campaign will announce a replacement for campaign manager Will Archer in the days to come, said general consultant Mark Harris. “We are at the very beginning of this campaign. We have only spent about 5% or less of our total media budget talking to voters. We are at the very beginning of this fight,” Harris told reporters on Thursday.
Virginia Supreme Court upholds denial of Dulles Greenway toll increase
Toll rates on the Dulles Greenway will remain the same. In a July 17 ruling, the Virginia State Supreme Court denied an appeal by the the Greenway operator, TRIP II, short for Toll Road Investors Partnership II, to raise rates. TRIP II is a subsidiary of an Australian company that owns the 14-mile, privately-owned toll road from Leesburg to Dulles International Airport in Sterling. It sought to reverse a State Corporation Commission denial of a rate increase in September.
Nuclear power company celebrates expansion with $50M investment, 500 new jobs
Framatome officially unveiled its newly expanded facility on Mill Ridge Road with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday morning, signaling both a bold investment in the future of nuclear power and a commitment to the Lynchburg community. ... Framatome’s North American President and CEO Tony Robinson said the ribbon cutting is not just opening a new facility but a testament to the shared vision and commitment to nuclear energy and its unwavering commitment to Lynchburg and Virginia. The upgraded site is part of Framatome’s broader $50 million investment to expand capacity, modernize its facilities and add up to 500 new jobs in Central Virginia.
Hundreds of Richmond residents participate in nationwide ‘Good Trouble’ protest
The sound of car horns honking and people shouting filled the air as Richmonders took their activism to the streets yet again, this time hoping to get into some “good trouble.” “Good trouble is saying what you mean and what you feel,” said one of the demonstrators, Jane Ward. Hundreds were scattered on medians on Monument Avenue between Lombardy Street and Willow Lawn. It’s just one of 1,600 Good Trouble protests that began nationwide on Thursday. The phrase was dubbed by the late Congressman John Lewis, who encouraged people to get into “good trouble” to fight for justice and equality. Thursday marked the fifth anniversary of his passing.
Hashmi: For Va., drop in business rankings a wakeup call
CNBC’s latest “Top States for Business” report shows Virginia tumbling from the top spot to fourth place — our worst ranking since 2018. The primary culprit? Sharp federal workforce reductions that have hit the commonwealth disproportionately hard, and that will have long-term impacts on Virginia’s entire economy. With over 144,000 federal jobs in the commonwealth — and nearly 300,000 positions when federal contractors and commuters from D.C. and Maryland are included — Virginia feels every cut firsthand. Experts have warned that this federal downsizing could cost the state up to 32,000 jobs this year alone, dragging Virginia’s GDP and tax revenue into negative territory.
State agencies leaving Monroe Building will scatter across Richmond
When state government employees leave the James Monroe Building next year, they will disperse to about a dozen different office spaces downtown and outside Richmond. The Department of General Services, which manages real estate for the Virginia government, recently agreed to leases with landlords of local office buildings. The 29-story Monroe building is considered no longer functional — employees have gotten stuck in elevators and restrooms are not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. State leaders expect the tower to be vacant by next spring. The new homes won’t be permanent. Eventually, state leaders plan to move government employees to a yet-to-be-built office at 1401 E. Broad St.
Yancey: Spanberger has more than three times the cash as Earle-Sears, a possible unprecedented financial advantage
Two and a half months before voting begins to pick Virginia’s next governor, Democrat Abigail Spanberer has more than three times as much campaign cash as Republican Winsome Earle-Sears — an advantage that may be unprecedented in modern times. Spanberger’s financial dominance is part of a larger pattern emerging in the 2025 campaign, in which Democrats are building big cash leads in many races that ought to be competitive. In the lieutenant governor’s race, Democrat Ghazala Hashmi has almost eight times as much cash on hand as Republican John Reid — even after spending money to win last month’s primary.