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Trump’s pick to lead mine safety agency advances amid Democratic concerns
The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (or HELP) Committee voted to approve seven of President Trump’s nominees to lead federal agencies. This includes the nomination of Wayne Palmer to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration, or MSHA. All 12 Republicans on the HELP committee voted to approve the nominees at a meeting on Thursday May 22, and all 11 Democrats voted no, including Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, who said he opposed how the votes were rushed, without hearings. “I just feel like you shouldn’t be afraid to make your case to your committee, at a hearing, and especially make it in view of the public,” Kaine said on a press call just before the committee vote. “So the public can also understand what’s going on.”
Spanberger talks affordability, abortion, guns and right-to-work in Norfolk
Welcomed by about 200 people chanting her name, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger took the stage Friday afternoon at a downtown Norfolk restaurant in her Democratic bid to become Virginia’s first woman governor. The theme for her appearance at Brothers Restaurant was making the Commonwealth more affordable. “I hear from people who are impacted by the challenges we are facing in affordability here in the Commonwealth,” Spanberger said, “whether it’s at the pharmacy counter, the grocery store, when they get their energy bill or on the housing market.”
Senators, Including Kaine, Visit Canada, Seeking a Reset Amid Trump’s Provocations
A bipartisan group of senators on Friday arrived in Ottawa seeking to stabilize the United States’ relationship with Canada, determined to mend a once-tight alliance that President Trump has tested in recent months with tariffs and tough talk. Sporting lapel pins of the American and Canadian flags and red and white friendship bracelets, the group — four Democrats and a lone Republican — met with Prime Minister Mark Carney and senior Canadian officials in a bid to defuse the tension that has built up in recent months after economic pressure and political rhetoric from Mr. Trump that many Canadians have viewed as both destabilizing and deeply insulting.
Virginia War Memorial plans 12-hour marathon reading of fallen soldiers’ names for Memorial Day commemoration
The Virginia War Memorial is preparing a unique tribute to fallen service members this Memorial Day with a marathon reading of nearly 12,000 names of Virginians killed or missing in action. "Veterans Day is all about those that serve. Memorial Day is specifically oriented around honoring those that have died in service to the nation," Ben King, operations manager of the Virginia War Memorial, said.
Hundreds protest Trump crypto-themed Lowes Island golf club dinner
President Donald J. Trump's May 22 dinner at his Lowes Island golf club with 220 crypto currency investors who paid a combined $148 million to dine with him was hard to digest for the roughly 300 protesters outside the club. As men wearing tuxedos and women in dinner gowns entered the Trump National Golf Club, protesters screamed at them that the dinner was a pay-to-play scheme. They said Trump was trading access and political favors for hundreds of millions of dollars.
Loudoun supervisor wants more information on ICE detainees
According to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had issued 120 immigration detainers as of May 13, for people arrested and held at the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center this year, and 65 have been picked up by ICE after being released. But ICE and the LCSO haven't revealed their names or information about where they're being held. Last year, ICE picked up 97 of the 232 inmates it issued detainers for at the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center, according to LCSO.
Suffolk School Board approves changes to transgender student policies
In a narrow vote Thursday, the Suffolk School Board approved policy changes for transgender and nonbinary students to align with model policies introduced by Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2023. Beginning in July, students must use pronouns that align with their gender assigned at birth unless a parent submits a written request. School employees cannot be compelled to use a student’s preferred pronouns.
DHS agents show up unannounced at Albemarle County school campus
Students, teachers and parents were alarmed when local and federal law enforcement rolled up to Albemarle County’s Lambs Lane school campus Tuesday morning, unannounced and unexpected. According to police, however, there was never any cause for concern: Local and federal agents were simply using an athletic field for training purposes; they had simply forgotten to alert the school division due to a scheduling error.
Rep. Rob Wittman explains vote to tighten Medicaid eligibility
The US House of Representatives narrowly voted 215–214 to pass legislation that puts restrictions on who will be eligible for Medicaid coverage. Republican Rep. Rob Wittman (1st District) voted in support of the bill, promising that it protects vulnerable people and ensures the government-funded insurance program will be sustainable for people who are in need in the future. The legislation, which Republicans have coined the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” is at the centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s domestic agenda. The House tax and spending bill would extend tax cuts passed in 2017, remove taxes on tips, provide deductions for state and local taxes, lift the nation’s debt limit by $4 trillion and end clean energy tax breaks.
Newport News bus incident: Legal precedent could be set for school lawsuits
A win in court for the Newport News School Board could set the standard for future personal injury cases involving schools across the commonwealth. Earlier this month, the state Supreme Court ruled the school division cannot be held liable after an autistic child was allegedly abused on a school bus in 2022. In a unanimous 7-0 decision, the state Supreme Court ruled the Newport News school division has sovereign immunity, meaning it cannot be held legally responsible in this case.