UPDATE: As expected, all of the voting rights bills have been defeated. UPDATE 2: Also as expected, the repeal of the "marriage" amendment has been defeated. The vote was 6-1 against, with Norfolk Del. Algie Howell the only one in favor of letting the bill go to the full committee. UPDATE 3: Tracy Thorne-Begland was … Continue reading On the GA docket today
My latest op-ed, title above, appeared in The Virginian-Pilot Thursday. The report (pdf) which sparked my interest was prepared for the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association. In my research, some of which appeared in my op-ed last week, I was struck by the fact that Virginia ranks 48th in per capita Medicaid spending while being … Continue reading ICYMI: The clear benefits of expanding Medicaid
In his State of the Commonwealth address Wednesday night, Governor Bob McDonnell touted his record of restoring rights to those convicted of non-violent felonies and called for a process to automatically restore those rights. From his prepared remarks: While we have significantly improved and fast-tracked the restoration of civil rights process, it's still an executive … Continue reading The face of voting rights legislation
On the eve of the opening of the General Assembly session, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Tuesday his plan for providing funds for transportation. Grabbing the headlines was the plan to eliminate the gas tax and replace it with an .8 cent increase in the sales tax. Both taxes are regressive, meaning they hit the folks … Continue reading McDonnell introduces transportation proposal
Many people do not know who the abolitionists were or what they did. They were a small group of people who were determined to eliminate slavery from the United States. PBS is presenting a 3 part mini series starting tonight based on two of them: Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison. These two men came … Continue reading The few that changed all our lives.- The Abolitionist
The debate on uranium mining in Virginia is destined to be a part of the General Assembly session, which opens Wednesday. The Virginian-Pilot had a front page story today about it. Included with the story is a list of the Hampton Roads lawmakers and their stances on lifting the ban, as follows: Against mining Undecided … Continue reading Uranium debate coming
My latest op-ed, title above, appeared in The Virginian-Pilot Thursday. The recent release of a report on Virginia's fiscal health, one of six states reviewed by the State Budget Crisis Task Force, starkly lays out the challenges that the state faces going forward. Perhaps the most important piece of the review came in the summary … Continue reading ICYMI: Virginia’s many budget challenges
Ten of Virginia's 11 members of the U. S. House of Representatives voted no on the fiscal cliff bill last night. Only Gerry Connolly (D-11) voted in favor. https://twitter.com/GerryConnolly/status/286337010283724801 It's really not a surprise. The early details contained enough for Republicans and Democrats alike to agree that this was not a good bill. (And the … Continue reading 10 of 11 Virginia representatives vote no
Or, if you prefer, one step forward, two steps back. My latest op-ed, title above, appeared in The Virginian-Pilot Thursday. I was appalled to read that Norfolk has decided to no longer release records of its bar task force, citing an exemption allowed in Virginia's Freedom of Information Act. That we don't even know what … Continue reading Norfolk’s growing lack of transparency
Watching a little TV this morning, I heard the umpteenth example of just how dumb some of the media "experts" are. The host was relaying a story about a dinner at the White House. It was just after Gerald Ford had become president and he and Betty invited their long time friends, Tip O'Neill and … Continue reading The dumbing down of America
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 