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State Democrats celebrate new maternal health care laws
Del. Destiny LeVere Bolling (D–Henrico) — and more than a dozen of her Democratic colleagues — took the stage Monday outside a Portsmouth preschool, with a tent shielding a crowd of about 100 people from the midday sun. “Tomorrow, July 1, moms, babies and families across the commonwealth will begin to feel the benefit of maternal health policies that fundamentally transform how Virginia supports mothers, babies, and families,” said LeVere Bolling. The crowd fanned their faces with handouts on the package legislation, which Democrats called “the momnibus.” . . . The bills are Democrats' answer to disparities in maternal mortality, a long waitlist for subsidized child care, and access to health care.
Coyner: Free college courses? In Virginia, it's the law
Two years ago, I carried a bill that passed with strong bipartisan support to open more doors for Virginia’s high school students. The law makes every course in the Virginia Passport and Uniform Certificate of General Studies programs free for high school students when taken through our community college system — whether in person at their local high school or online. Why? Because every student deserves a real pathway to college or a career that doesn’t come with crushing debt. Because families should have access to meaningful courses that count toward a degree without wondering if they can afford them.
Youngkin ignores assembly on vetoes as budget takes effect
Virginia will have a new budget on Tuesday, but it won’t include money to pay for wider access to weight loss drugs, hire nursing home staff under Medicaid or prevent the state from issuing contracts that allow vendors to pocket a portion of any savings they find. Those three provisions were among 37 line-items that Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed in the revised budget that the General Assembly adopted in late February.
Whyte: Virginia could set a new standard for responsible gambling
Last session, the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate introduced companion bills to legalize and license online gaming, commonly referred to as iGaming. Virginia was among several states contemplating similar measures amidst a dramatic rise in consumer popularity in states with legalized iGaming — and to establish a clear regulatory framework for an activity that is already occurring in Virginia, largely through illegal and unregulated operators.
Former campaign treasurer for Kaine and Warner admits to embezzlement
A former campaign treasurer for Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark R. Warner of Virginia and other Democrats pleaded guilty this week to embezzling more than $840,000 in political contributions to finance a trip to Italy, a private suite for an Elton John concert, a chartered yacht tour and other luxury expenses. Katherine M. Buchanan, 59, was the campaign treasurer for the two senators and former U.S. representative Stephanie Murphy of Florida and held the same job at several political-action committees supporting the three Democrats’ electoral efforts. She pleaded guilty Monday to embezzling funds from those entities and evading taxes.
Heaphy: What the University of Virginia Should Have Done
On Friday, Jim Ryan stood on the lawn of Carr’s Hill, the residence of the president of the University of Virginia, alone in the center of a crowd of supporters. He offered brief remarks about his inability to fight the forces arrayed against him, including the Trump administration. No one stood alongside him — it was just the university president, Mr. Ryan, explaining why he had made the difficult decision to quit. The moment perfectly illustrated how Mr. Ryan was abandoned by the same people who were supposed to protect the university.
GOP nominee for lieutenant governor recalls meeting Ronald Reagan in Lynchburg
John Reid, the long-time conservative talk radio show host in Richmond who is now the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, had a feature on his show called “Reid on the Road” where he would take his listeners on journeys across the state. On one of his trips, Reid did a live show from the Craddock Terry Hotel in downtown Lynchburg where he reminisced about his visits to Liberty University. One of his best memories was from 45 years ago when he was only 9 years old and got to meet former California Gov. Ronald Reagan who was running for president, Reid recalled in an interview with The News & Advance.
With a big British backer, a Southside Virginia mine reopens
A $3.6 billion London-based investment firm has brought a Southside Virginia mine back to life — and with it, a processing plant that will secure a U.S.-based supply chain of critical minerals. The Atlantic Strategic Minerals mine straddling the Dinwiddie-Sussex county line has resumed producing ilmenite and zircon, from what the company believes is the richest deposit of zircon around. Both minerals are mainly imported now, but a new focus on ensuring that supplies of such critical minerals aren’t interrupted by political conflict makes what Dominic Raab, the former deputy prime minister of Great Britain and head of global affairs at Appian Capital Advisory LLP, calls “a strong business case.”
Will protecting abortion access get Democratic voters to the polls? Spanberger thinks so.
Once again, maintaining abortion access has become the hallmark of Democratic campaigns in Virginia this election cycle. After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Virginia is now the only state in the South with abortion access beyond 12 weeks. The Democrats running for statewide office want to keep it that way. It dominated the conversation when the candidates visited Charlottesville Tuesday on their eight-day, 40-plus-stop bus tour across the commonwealth.
Democrats’ pick to replace Rep. Connolly wants to carry forward his legacy
In the crowded primary to replace Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Virginia) in Congress, there was only one Democrat who could claim much of a link to the late longtime congressman: Fairfax County Supervisor James R. Walkinshaw. As the popular lawmaker’s chief of staff for a decade, Walkinshaw, 42, had long been seen as a likely successor in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District — even well before Connolly’s death opened up this seat in the D.C. suburbs. With support from Connolly and the broad political coalition he had built across Fairfax, Walkinshaw managed to win almost 60 percent of the vote in Saturday’s election against nine other candidates. . . . The Sept. 9 special election will pit Walkinshaw against Stewart Whitson, a lawyer at a conservative think tank whom Republicans picked as their nominee Saturday.