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Protecting American treasures deserves federal commitment
President Donald Trump’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year calls for $163 billion in spending cuts across a variety of non-military programs. It would slash a whopping $1.2 billion from the National Park Service and programs it oversees — including national historic sites. With that kind of money on the cutting board, a proposal to cut $158 million from the park service’s Historic Preservation Fund might sound unimportant. Make no mistake: Such a deep cut would effectively spell the end of a vital source of money that has been essential to preserving history in Virginia and in other states and on tribal lands across the country.
Yancey: Both parties face challenges this year in Virginia. Here are some of the big ones.
We now have a Democratic statewide ticket to go along with the Republican ticket that was already in place. We think of general election campaigns as the “fall” campaign but, with early voting, the first votes will be cast in what is still officially summer. Early voting begins Sept. 19, so three months from today it will already be underway. Every campaign faces challenges, some bigger than others. Here are 10 challenges in this year’s campaign, four unique to each party and two that confront both parties.
Virginia Beach sheriff’s deputy who claimed he was fired for political reasons has been rehired
A deputy who alleged in a 2022 federal lawsuit against former Sheriff Ken Stolle that he was fired for political reasons has returned to duty. William “Dave” Fowler was rehired in April by Sheriff Rocky Holcomb, according to department spokeswoman Toni Guagenti. Holcomb became sheriff in September 2023, after Stolle stepped down. He won a special election last year and is running for reelection in November. “MDII Fowler applied for a deputy position with the VBSO like any job applicant,” Guagenti said in an email to The Pilot. “He followed all the applicant procedures, including taking a written exam, a physical and a background check.”
How Black Lung Came Roaring Back to Coal Country
Denver Brock and his son Aundra used to spend early mornings hunting rabbits in the wooded highlands of Harlan County, Ky. But they don’t get out there much these days. They both get too breathless trying to follow the baying hounds. Instead, they tend a large garden alongside Denver Brock’s home. Even that can prove difficult, requiring them to work slowly and take frequent breaks. “You get so dizzy,” Denver Brock said, “you can’t hardly stand up.” The Brocks followed a long family tradition when they became Appalachian coal miners. For it, they both now have coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, a debilitating disease characterized by masses and scarred tissue in the chest, and better known by its colloquial name: black lung.
Lieutenant governor candidates clash over the future of education in Virginia
With the statewide tickets for both the Democrats and Republicans set, the candidates for each party are wasting no time in pivoting to what they're focused on in the November general election. On the Democratic side, gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger leads the ticket and is joined by Tuesday's primary winners Ghazala Hashmi for lieutenant governor, and Jay Jones for attorney general. There was no need for a primary on the Republican side whose ticket consists of Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, John Reid for lieutenant governor, and Attorney General Jason Miyares running for re-election. Reid spoke to the media Wednesday outside Falling Creek Middle School in Chesterfield where he said he wanted to highlight education on day one as it was a concern he'd been hearing from parents around the state.
In Virginia and New Jersey governor’s races, Democrats reprise a 2018 roadmap for opposing Trump 2.0
Abigail Spanberger opened her general election bid for Virginia governor Wednesday using her high school alma mater near Richmond. “I grew up walking the halls of Tucker High School,” the former congresswoman says as she walks past a bank of lockers in her first ad since securing the Democratic nomination. Later, she notes her experience as a CIA case officer, then in the halls of Congress as a tough-minded, get-things-done lawmaker. The same kind of message is echoing in New Jersey from Rep. Mikie Sherrill, as she also makes a bid for governor. Both women are selling themselves as Democrats who can rise above the rancor of Donald Trump’s Washington.
Virginia Democrats coalesce as primary election sets statewide ticket. Will Republicans?
Virginia Democrats solidified their statewide ticket Tuesday, voting for state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi as the nominee for lieutenant governor and former Del. Jay Jones as the nominee for attorney general in the state’s primary elections. Before the lieutenant governor’s primary had been called, Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger issued her congratulations, calling Hashmi a “proven leader.” With the stage set for Virginia’s bellwether election, Spanberger, Hashmi and Jones put out a joint statement Wednesday emphasizing their unified campaign. ... That’s a markedly different strategy from Virginia Republicans, who have had a set statewide ticket since April but have thus far been going it alone.
Virginia workers rally for heat stress protections
The last thing Jason Parker remembers after working a shift removing compressor bearings for NASA in 90-degree heat is a chill down his spine. "My friend's wife found me lying on the floor of my house, and I have no memory of getting there," the Virginia State Building & Construction Trades Council president said at a press conference Wednesday. "That's how insidious this thing is." Parker joined labor and climate change activists on a warm day in Virginia to urge the state to adopt standards for workers at risk of heat stress.
Styrofoam containers will soon be banned in Virginia
Your food and drink orders in Virginia may start to look a little different. Starting July 1, large food vendors across the state will no longer be allowed to use single-use expanded polystyrene, a plastic foam material commonly referred to by the brand name Styrofoam. That includes plates, cups, bowls, trays and hinged containers. State lawmakers passed the ban four years ago, following the lead of others such as Maryland, New York and Washington, D.C. Implementation was delayed. Gov. Glenn Youngkin tried unsuccessfully to push it further through a proposed budget amendment earlier this year.
Democrats, including Va. senators, raise war powers concerns as Trump mulls Iran strike
Senate Democrats are increasingly concerned that President Donald Trump is considering striking Iran without seeking authorization from Congress — or even filling them in on his plans. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Virginia) is mounting a last-ditch push to force a vote as soon as next week to restrain Trump from attacking Iran without Congress’s approval. Other Senate Democrats say the White House has not briefed them on its plans for a potential strike. And some are warning that the situation reminds them of President George W. Bush’s push to invade Iraq more than two decades ago. “If this president wants to completely ignore the intelligence community, we are playing [on] dangerous ground,” Sen. Mark R. Warner (Virginia), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told reporters. “This is exactly the way we got ourselves into Iraq.”