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Manouchehri: A smarter, more efficient defense budget starts in Virginia
Growing up in an Iranian-immigrant household shaped by service and sacrifice, we never took our opportunities for granted. My parents believed in hard work, giving back, and reminded me often: public service requires commitment and sacrifice. Today, I have the privilege of leading MetroStar, a Reston-based, venture-backed AI-enabled services company focused on digital modernization for the federal government — including the Department of Defense and intelligence community. Our work sits at the intersection of national security and innovation. It’s here, in Virginia, where we believe the future of cost-effective, software-defined defense begins.
Virginia Senate panel says no to Cuccinelli, other Youngkin college appointees
A key state Senate panel has refused to confirm all eight of Gov. Glenn Youngkin‘s latest appointments to college and university boards, including former Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli to the University of Virginia board of visitors. The Senate Privileges and Elections committee voted down Youngkin appointees to the boards of UVA, Virginia Military Institute and George Mason University by an 8-4 party-line vote.
Spanberger in Norfolk announces plan to lower Virginia energy costs
Democratic nominee for Virginia governor, former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, made a stop in Norfolk Monday. Spanberger unveiled another pillar of her plan she says will make Virginia more affordable, specifically when it comes to energy bills. She visited the home of a Norfolk resident who recently made her home more energy efficient. Some of the changes include new windows and solar panels on the roof.
New system for using credit cards to ride Metro earns Virginia leaders’ praise
New tech allowing Metro users to pay their fare by tapping debit or credit cards is receiving good grades from local leaders. At a meeting last week, representatives on the Metropolitan Washington Area Transit Authority (WMATA) board of directors said the new “Tap-Ride-Go” initiative will benefit both regular and infrequent users of the regional system. “The acceptance of this program already has been hugely successful. The numbers are well beyond the expectation we had,” said Virginia representative Paul Smedberg at a Thursday meeting of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC).
Rise in Virginia deportation orders sparks concern from lawmakers, community
Virginia is now one of the top five states in the country experiencing a dramatic increase in immigration enforcement, with more than 2,000 individuals receiving deportation orders in March alone. Over 300 of those cases originated in the Richmond region, according to newly released federal data. The sharp uptick comes as part of a nationwide directive from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who has instructed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to triple daily arrests, aiming for a quota of 3,000 per day.
Yancey: Who does the unrest in Los Angeles hurt most politically? Here’s what history and polls tell us about Va.
The president federalizes the state’s National Guard — and then sends in the regular U.S. military to an American city to deal with a crisis. This action comes against the backdrop of a governor’s race in Virginia. The year was 1957, when President Dwight Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne to Little Rock, Arkansas, to enforce the integration of Little Rock Central High School. In Virginia that year, Republican Ted Dalton of Radford was mounting the second of his two gubernatorial campaigns that challenged the iron grip of Sen. Harry Byrd’s political machine on Virginia. Four years before, Dalton had come closer to winning than any Republican ever had in Virginia. Come 1957, Dalton was trying again. He was thought to be doing well — there was no real polling in those days — but then came the Little Rock crisis that September.
N. Va. leaders: More funding is not guaranteed for proposed Metro improvement plan
Northern Virginia political leaders at the local and state levels seem to have a firm dollar figure associated with the proposal to improve Metro service across the region. There remains a question, however, regarding whether they’ll be able to come up with the funding. The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) is preparing to adopt a resolution on July 17 acknowledging that Virginia will need to commit an additional $153 million in fiscal year 2027 to implement operational upgrades and keep the transit system on track.
Feds respond to Virginia lawmakers’ privacy concerns about airports’ facial recognition screening
Identification screening technology that launched during the pandemic to reduce airport check-in times has helped improve security and travelers’ experiences, but carries a privacy concern stemming from the capture and storage of passengers’ photos. Virginia lawmakers, privacy advocates and others have questioned how images of citizens are used and stored, and how peoples’ rights are being protected.
Truitt: How Va. Democrats can reclaim the education issue
In 2021, Republican Glenn Youngkin was able to flip the K-12 education issue to pull off a victory by focusing on parents. This year, Democratic nominee Abigail Spanberger should learn from 2021 by embracing higher educational standards to reclaim the education issue. As has been shown nationally, typical Democratic proposals for higher teacher pay and increased funding alone are not sufficient. In fact, those were major planks of Terry McAuliffe’s 2021 education platform.
Israel, Palestinian Tensions Overflow in Loudoun Board Room, Prompting Warning from Chairwoman
Tensions between Loudoun community members supporting Israel and those supporting Palestine have been increasing since the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by the terrorist group, Hamas. [Last] week, those tensions boiled over during a Board of Supervisors’ meeting, drawing a warning from County Chair Phyllis J. Randall (D-At Large). Since the attack and in response to the war in Gaza that has displaced millions of residents, some community members have called on supervisors to divest any business interests in companies that support Israel and called for them to condemn the continuing attacks by Israel in Gaza.