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New citizens exult as Schwarzenegger headlines Mount Vernon Naturalization Ceremony
A crowd of 100 new citizens from 95 different countries was indeed pumped up Friday as former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, an actor and former bodybuilder, delivered the keynote address at George Washington’s Mount Vernon during a Fourth of July naturalization ceremony. Employees of the hallowed estate estimated about 1,000 attendees were on hand for the festivities, with members of the public joining media members and families of new citizens.
Virginia Has Become a Hotbed for Immigration Arrests
The pace of immigration arrests has shot up across the country under the second Trump term, but few places have seen a spike quite as sharp as in Virginia. Arrests in the state by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are up more than 350 percent since 2024, one of the steepest increases in the country. This outpaces the growth in ICE arrests in Democratic-run states like California and New York and Republican-controlled states like Florida and Texas.
What we know about Youngkin's latest and last appointments to UVa's board
On June 27, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced four new appointments to the University of Virginia’s governing Board of Visitors. Should his latest nominees receive approval from the General Assembly, the Republican governor will have appointed all members of the 17-person body. The board is responsible for the school’s long-term planning, budgets, policies and, most pertinent today, selecting the president of the university — a post that will soon be vacant. Under pressure from the Trump administration Department of Justice, Jim Ryan tendered his resignation as ninth president of the state’s flagship university on the same day Youngkin announced his new board appointments.
Democrats and Republicans were out on the Virginia campaign trail
With four months until Election Day in Virginia, the campaigns for statewide office are heating up. Both parties are projecting a message of unity, but the ways they’ve sought to demonstrate unity amongst themselves has varied. Immediately after June’s primaries, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger embarked on an eight-day bus tour across the state, where she was joined at stops by Ghazala Hashmi and Jay Jones, the nominees for lieutenant governor and attorney general. Meanwhile, Republican candidates Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, Attorney General Jason Miyares and conservative radio host John Reid — who have been the presumptive nominees for months — appeared together for the first time Tuesday night.
A dive into the Board of Visitors’ political donations
The Board of Visitors will soon begin the process of selecting an interim president and conducting a national search for a new president in the wake of former University President Jim Ryan’s resignation which came under pressure from the Department of Justice. As the Board searches for a new president, viewpoint diversity is likely to be a topic on their mind. As the University’s corporate governing body, the Board is composed of 17 voting members, most of which are alumni of the University, appointed by the governor of Virginia for four-year terms. As of July 1, all voting Board members were appointed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R).
Warner, Kaine say Trump admin 'illegally' withholding $108 million from Virginia schools
U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine are demanding the Trump Administration release $108 million in federal funding earmarked for Virginia’s K-12 schools, accusing the administration of deliberately withholding money that Congress approved to support teacher training, after-school programs, mental health resources and more. The Trump administration has accused states and schools of using federal education grants earmarked for immigrants’ children and low-income students to help fund “a radical leftwing agenda.”
AG Miyares backs veteran’s fight for disability benefits
Fairfax County resident and veteran John P. Sopko, 83, retired with a disability that began in 1972. However, when he requested reimbursement of real estate taxes, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors denied him. Now, Sopko has a high-level ally: Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, who filed an amicus brief last week in a lawsuit, Sopko v. Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, that the veteran filed against the Board of Supervisors. . . . In a statement, Miyares said he filed the brief to “defend the constitutional rights of disabled veterans in Virginia after Fairfax County refused to honor property tax exemptions promised to them under the Virginia Constitution.” “Fairfax County is trying to rewrite the rules, citing failed legislation and exploiting legal loopholes to deny a disabled veteran what the Constitution guarantees,” Miyares said.
Complaint alleges 3 Jewish students were kicked out of Virginia school
A new complaint filed with the Virginia Attorney General’s office alleges three students were kicked out of their school in Herndon. Their parents allege it happened after their children--all under the age of 11-- were subjected to antisemitic bullying. The complaint, filed with the AG's Human Rights Division, in one case shows students standing around a drawing of someone who looks an awful lot like Adolf Hitler.
Geologists uncover new evidence from ancient asteroid that hit the Chesapeake Bay
About 35 million years ago, Hampton Roads was underwater, with the coastline dozens of miles west toward Richmond. Dinosaurs were long gone, but the ocean teemed with marine creatures such as ancient whales, sharks and sea stars. That is until one unfortunate day, when life across what’s now southeastern Virginia was obliterated within seconds.