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Krizek and Ebbin: As gaming explodes, lack of oversight puts Virginia at risk
Nearly a decade ago, Virginia became the first state to establish a framework that legalized and regulated fantasy sports. Since then, fantasy sports and other forms of gaming have proliferated amid a marketplace that has continually evolved. Virginia’s once-innovative regulatory model, unfortunately, is now outdated and fails to provide the clarity, fairness and accountability that Virginians deserve. The solution is simple. Virginia needs to establish and empower a single, self-funding agency to protect consumers and ensure operators comply with legal requirements for responsible play.
Yancey: If manufacturing grows, those new jobs probably won’t be where the old ones were. What that means for Va.
Detroit is a real place but also a mythical one. It’s a city that lives in the American imagination as a symbol of the nation’s manufacturing prowess. The name “Detroit” serves as a kind of cultural shorthand — so when President Donald Trump, speaking recently about American automakers making cars in Canada, said, “I’d rather make them in Detroit,” he might have been speaking literally or he might have been speaking metaphorically. For his purposes, he might be just as happy to see those cars built in the actual Detroit, or somewhere else in the United States — both would satisfy his goal of reshoring American manufacturing jobs. Or would it?
Spanberger is poised to win big in Virginia. But national Democrats could drag her down.
Six months out from November, Virginia Democrats believe the governor’s race is Abigail Spanberger’s to lose. There’s a risk the former member of Congress could get bogged down by national malaise toward the Democratic Party, and her margins could end up being tight because of the negative Democratic brand. But Democrats are hopeful that Spanberger can overcome that national dynamic. She flipped a competitive district in 2018 that stretches into rural south central Virginia and she benefits from the unpopular actions of President Donald Trump. ... Spanberger enjoys strong name recognition and is far out-fundraising her opponent, a candidate who even some fellow Republicans are wincing about.
FBI shows up at Charlottesville public defender’s home unannounced after ICE raid
It was before 7 a.m. on the Friday before Memorial Day weekend when the wife of Charlottesville public defender Donald Bellah, asleep inside the couple's rural Albemarle County residence, was awakened by two FBI agents. They told her they wanted to speak with her husband. Around that same time, other agents were arriving at other lawyers' homes. "There was no attempt to contact any one of us other than just showing up at our houses at the same time," Bellah told The Daily Progress. "I'm angry; it was intending to intimidate us."
Virginia free health clinics strategize survival after state, federal funding cuts
Amid federal and state funding cuts, freezes and delayed payments, the outlook is grim for free clinics in Virginia that have had to trim or halt some services, but there is hope, Health Brigade executive director Karen Legato said Thursday evening. “Care is resistance,” she reiterated during a speech outside of the clinic’s Thompson Street location in Richmond. Having first opened in 1970 as the Fan Free Clinic, what is now known as Health Brigade was the first free clinic established in Virginia. It is one of about 70 free clinics currently in the state that provide care to uninsured or underinsured people.
Virginia probe into Black communities’ displacement surges forward with infusion of funds
As more states reckon with the history of Black land loss, the Virginia General Assembly has been taking a rare, state-sanctioned approach: formally examining how the creation or expansion of public university campuses has displaced Black communities. A 19-member legislative commission met last month, its first convening since a mandatory hiatus during the 2025 legislative session was lifted. Enacted last year, the commission received an additional $200,000 in the state budget signed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin in May, a major bump from the $28,760 it was initially allocated. As it prepares to enter its second year, the group is poised to deliver Virginia’s only known comprehensive statewide examination to date of how public universities displaced Black communities — and what forms of redress may be appropriate.
Warren County Sheriff Rejects DHS ‘Sanctuary’ Label
A recent report by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has sparked sharp criticism from local law enforcement after erroneously labeling Warren County, Virginia, as a “sanctuary jurisdiction”—a classification typically reserved for local governments that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. Sheriff Crystal Cline is at the center of the response, demanding an immediate correction and public retraction of what she calls a “baseless mischaracterization” of her county and her office’s policies. ... Responding to Sheriff Cline’s objections, Russell Hott, Field Office Director for ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Washington, issued a written apology, clarifying that the local ICE field office was not responsible for the inaccurate designation.
Trump student visa halt could hurt regional economy
About 5% of the approximately 1.1 million international college students studying abroad in the U.S. are doing so in D.C., Maryland or Virginia. The Trump administration is halting student visa interviews and revoking visas for Chinese students amid a political pressure campaign against colleges and universities and a broader immigration crackdown. A big drop in international students could hurt college town economies, some of which are already struggling due to lower enrollment.
UVa students, faculty demand lawmakers deny Cuccinelli seat on board
History repeats itself. As occurred with his predecessor Bert Ellis, Ken Cuccinelli now faces vocal opposition to his appointment to the University of Virginia’s governing Board of Visitors. On Wednesday, 17 student-led organizations, along with the executive committee of the American Association of University Professors at UVa, signed a letter addressed to the entire Virginia General Assembly saying Cuccinelli should not sit on the board given his “track record of undermining the rights and safety of marginalized groups.”
Jerrauld Jones, pioneering legislator and judge from Norfolk, dies
Jerrauld Jones of Norfolk, a judge, former state legislator and state department head who set multiple civil rights milestones during his career, died Saturday at age 70, according to a statement from his family. His son, Jay Jones, also a former Norfolk state legislator, is currently seeking the Democratic nomination for attorney general. The Jones family has a long history of pioneering civil rights work as lawyers.