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General Assembly 2010
Losing My Religion
By C. Douglas Smith
From Legis-Link, the weekly newsletter of the Virginia Interfaith Center
 Fox News icon Glenn Beck is comparing congregations that work for social justice to bastions of communism, and he is telling viewers who attend those churches to leave. Holding up a swastika and a soviet flag, Beck recently ranted on Fox News that houses of faith preaching justice are like Nazis.
I don’t know Glenn Beck personally, and I only occasionally hear him on AM radio, but I am saddened that he wants to split congregations along the lines of those who care for the poor and those who think helping others is really not their job. Of course he has no theological or scriptural basis for his position, choosing instead to characterize everyone who uses the phrase “economic justice” as anti-American. I could not disagree more.
. >> Sign up for our newsletter and read more of Doug's article.
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Last Week
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Political Headlines from Va. Press Assoc.
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Democrats gain support for health-care plan
WASHINGTON—Democrats picked up support yesterday for their health-care overhaul from some important quarters—a congressman who had opposed the bill, an influential anti-abortion lawmaker and a coalition of Catholic nuns—but they still appeared to be short of the number needed to pass the legislation in the House of Representatives. House Democratic leaders were buoyed by the backing of Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich, D-Ohio, who had voted against the bill in November, and of Rep. Dale…
McDonnell fulfills two campaign promises
Following an arduous legislative session, Gov. Bob McDonnell left Richmond yesterday to knock off two campaign promises, snipping a ribbon that wrapped a rest stop and signing legislation for college partnership lab schools. At the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education, McDonnell signed the first of his three legislative education reforms, a bill to link public colleges and universities with local public school systems.
Virginia congressional delegation split as health-care vote nears
As the latest version of President Barack Obama’s health-care reform package nears a vote in Congress, Virginia’s five House Republicans are uniformly against the proposal, while the state’s six Democrats, perhaps wary of midterm elections this fall, appear less united in support of the bill. Virginia Democrats have expressed concerns about the Senate bill making its way through the House, raising objections to its impact on Medicare and rural health-care providers and to deal-making…
Cuccinelli cites risk of health-care maneuver
Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli says Washington risks a legal battle with the states should congressional Democrats approve health-care reform with an obscure parliamentary maneuver. Referring to the possibility that the House would make a final decision without voting up or down on the Senate bill, Cuccinelli yesterday wrote Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.: “Should you employ the deem-and-pass tactic, you expose any act which may pass to yet another constitutional challenge.“
Jeff’s Notes - In politics, the victor gets the appointments
Times-Dispatch Columnist Jeff Schapiro says Gov. Bob McDonnell is busy finding jobs in his administration for Republican operatives and conservative activists.
Cuccinelli challenges “deem and pass” in letter to Pelosi
In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is questioning the Constitutionality of an obscure legislative maneuver to get health care reform passed without taking a flat vote on the legislation. Dubbed "deem and pass" the process is essentially a way for House Democrats to avoid taking recorded votes on the Senate health care bill. The idea was hatched to help bring fence-sitters into the fold by offering them political cover for approving health care. Republicans…
Cuccinelli tells Pelosi Democratic approach may be unconstitutional
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli says the method congressional Democrats are considering to push through health-care reform may be unconstitutional.
Cuccinelli sits down for eggs with Virginia Peninsula business leaders…
Virginia Attorney Ken Cuccinelli is hitting Hampton Roads next week to sit down with the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce for an "eggs and issues" breakfast. The morning meal on Friday March 26 is something of a meet and greet for local business gurus to pick the brain of the state's new top lawyer - who is already stirring up national headlines. Cuccinelli, you'll recall, kicked up a firestorm on Virginia campuses and within the gay-rights community for his read on the ability of state supported…
Obama’s health care plan picks up support
President Barack Obama’s much-challenged health care overhaul gained traction Wednesday as a liberal lawmaker became the first to switch his opposition and Catholic nuns declared their support in an unusual public break with the bishops.
McDonnell signs college lab school legislation
At University of Virginia, governor says laboratory schools hosted by colleges and universities will be an important option in educating the state’s children.
McDonnell cuts green ribbon at Dinwiddie rest area
In what he called an important moment for people with “large families or small bladders,“ Gov. Bob McDonnell this morning cut a green ribbon at a formerly closed rest stop along Interstate 85 in Dinwiddie County.
Va police chiefs seek veto of guns-in-bars bill
Virginia’s police chiefs are asking Gov. Bob McDonnell to veto legislation that would allow people to carry concealed handguns into bars, calling it a “recipe for disaster.“
State Department: No deal to stop genocide resolution
A congressional resolution that would recognize Ottoman era killings of Armenians as genocide could go forward despite opposition from the Obama administration.
Irish Catholic McDonnell has a busy St. Patrick’s Day - including a White House visit…
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has a busy St. Patrick's Day, that will see him talking with politics students at the University of Virginia and rubbing elbows with President Barack Obama. McDonnell, an Irish Catholic who attended Notre Dame and still pulls heavily for the Fightin' Irish - might need to check his 40 yard dash time as he sprints around the state with a breakneck schedule. McDonnell starts the day in Dinwiddie where he'll cut the ribbon on the reopening of a rest stop that was one of the…
Senate poised to clear jobs bill
WASHINGTON—The Senate today is taking up a temporary tax break for companies that hire unemployed workers. The legislation contains about $18 billion in tax breaks and a $20 billion infusion of cash into highway and transit programs. It would exempt businesses hiring the unemployed from the 6.2 percent Social Security payroll tax through December and give employers an additional $1,000 credit if new workers stay on the job a full year. The Social Security trust funds would be reimbursed for…
Lobby for law, gay-rights group urges college leaders
Keeping pressure on state leaders over what they see as Virginia’s weak anti-bias protections, gay-rights group Equality Virginia is calling on college and university leadership to join their push for a change in state law.
Lobby for law, gay-right group urges college leaders
Keeping pressure on state leaders over what they see as Virginia’s weak anti-bias protections, gay-rights group Equality Virginia is calling on college and university leadership to join their push for a change in state law.
Reid: Wife, daughter recovering from N.Va. crash
WASHINGTON—Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says his wife and daughter are recovering at home after a violent highway crash last week. Landra Reid, 69, the senator’s wife of 50 years, suffered a broken neck, back and nose in the crash but was stabilized after surgery. Reid said the couple’s daughter, Lana Barringer, 49, suffered relatively minor injuries but is seeing a neurologist this week.
Lobby for law, gay-rights group urges college leaders
Keeping pressure on state leaders over what they see as Virginia’s weak anti-bias protections, gay-rights group Equality Virginia is calling on college and university leadership to join their push for a change in state law.
HAMPTON ROADS BLOG: Session Coda
It was the most miserable General Assembly session in memory, but it could have been worse.
Prince William fourth quarter job growth slows
But county unemployment rate stays lower than nation’s.
O’Brien to run again for state Senate
Republican seeks his old seat
Cuccinelli: ‘We gotta have proof’ that Obama is U.S. citizen
Story by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, fresh off the controversy that he generated with his letter to Virginia public colleges and universities earlier this month advising them against going too far in policies protecting gays and lesbians from discrimination on campus, is back in the hot seat again, this time over comments from late [...]
McDonnell’s new backyard: Henrico County
Henrico residents made a strong showing at Gov. Bob McDonnell’s inaugural events, ranking third in attendees behind the Republican’s two stomping grounds — Fairfax County and Virginia Beach.
Cuccinelli and McDonnell continue to grab national spotlight…..
Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and Gov. Bob McDonnell ran on the same GOP ticket last fall, but the national spotlight appears to be testing that relationship. Some undated audio of Cuccinelli talking about President Barack Obama'sU.S. citizenship hit the Internet cycle this week, with folks suggesting that Cuccinelli could be linked to the "birther" movement that desperately wants to see Obama's birth certificate. On Monday, POLITICOfolks pushed McDonnell and Cuccinelli on the audio tape…
Va. Democrat on federal health care watch lists….
With pressure mounting in Washington to secure a vote in the House of Representatives on health care reform, folks are starting to count heads and votes trying to see where the vote is headed. And making the top five list up at the Washington Post is Virginia Rep. Tom Perriello who has voted consistently with the Democrats on major, controversial issues, but might have his eyes on the rear view mirror right now as Republican challengers line up to take him on. As Chris Cillizzapoints out, Perriello…
Va gov to give $100K in inaugural funds to charity
Gov. Bob McDonnell is planning to donate more than $100,000 from his inaugural committee to charity.
China plans film to mark Communist Party birthday
HONG KONG—After its successful propaganda movie to mark 60 years of communist rule, China’s leading state-run studio is working on a follow-up timed to coincide with next year’s 90th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party. Filmmakers are drafting the script and choosing locations for “The Founding of a Party,“ China Film Group spokesman Weng Li told The Associated Press in a telephone interview today.
McCain, Palin to campaign together in Arizona
PHOENIX—John McCain and Sarah Palin are scheduled to campaign together in Arizona next week for the first time since they conceded the presidential election in Phoenix in 2008. Palin and McCain will be at a rally and picnic in Tucson on March 26, followed the next day by a rally in the Phoenix suburb of Mesa. McCain and Palin have had a couple of public appearances together, including a dinner in Washington, but the Tucson and Phoenix events are their first return to the stump.
Egyptian president said to be recovering well from surgery
BERLIN—The German hospital where Hosni Mubarak had surgery this month says Egypt’s president is recovering well, but offered no details on when he would be released. The 81-year-old Mubarak had his gall bladder removed at the clinic earlier this month but has not made any public statements or been seen. Heidelberg University Hospital said today that “Mr. Mubarak is recovering well.“
Iran reducing cultural relations with Britain
TEHRAN, Iran—Iran says the country plans to reduce its cultural relations with Britain, an indication of the deteriorating relations between the two countries. Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said today that there will be changes in the realm of “education and universities.“ Iran has not sent students on Iranian scholarships to Britain in past years.
McDonnell claims an 80% success rate in assembly session
Gov. Bob McDonnell is claiming an 80 percent success rate in his first legislative session. With the budget crisis resolved, he now will turn to other substantial challenges facing his administration. The new Republican chief executive said the General Assembly session fulfilled his top priorities—balancing the budget without a tax increase; job-creation initiatives; and reforms in education.
Governor to donate $100,000 in inaugural funds to charity
Gov. Bob McDonnell plans to donate more than $100,000 from his inaugural committee to charity after raising more than the $1.5 million goal. The committee raised $1.9 million from 1,554 donors and spent $1.6 million on inaugural events for the state’s first Republican governor in eight years, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonpartisan watchdog of money in politics.
McDonnell signs emergency legislation overhauling VITA
Gov. Bob McDonnell now is directly responsible for fixing a problem he inherited: Virginia’s troubled information-technology bureaucracy and its fractious dealings with contractor Northrop Grumman. McDonnell announced yesterday that he has signed into law legislation that immediately empowers him to hire and fire the head of the Virginia Information Technologies Agency.
McDonnell claims an 80% success rate in assembly
Gov. Bob McDonnell is claiming an 80 percent success rate in his first legislative session. With the budget crisis resolved, he now will turn to other substantial challenges facing his administration.
McDonnell to donate $100,000 in inaugural funds to charity
Gov. Bob McDonnell plans to donate more than $100,000 from his inaugural committee to charity after raising more than the $1.5 million goal. The committee raised $1.9 million from 1,554 donors and spent $1.6 million on inaugural events for the state’s first Republican governor in eight years, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonpartisan watchdog of money in politics.
Top donors according to Inaugural Committee reports
McDonnell to give $100,000 in inaugural funds to charity
Gov. Bob McDonnell plans to donate more than $100,000 from his inaugural committee to charity after raising more than the $1.5 million goal. The committee raised $1.9 million from 1,554 donors and spent $1.6 million on inaugural events for the state’s first Republican governor in eight years, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, a nonpartisan watchdog of money in politics.
McDonnell pleased with session; eyes roads, higher education
Gov. Bob McDonnell is claiming an 80 percent success rate in his first legislative session. With the budget crisis resolved he’ll now turn to other substantial challenges facing his administration. The new Republican chief executive said the General Assembly session fulfilled his top priorities—balancing the budget without a tax increase, job-creation initiatives and reforms in education.
Shad Plank Live, Thursday at 11:General Assembly highlights, lowlights, bright lights and dim bulbs
Join Daily Press political writer Kimball Payne and I Thursday at 11 and help us decipher and evaluate the just-ended General Assembly session.
VCU provost leaving post April 1
Stephen Gottfredson will leave his post as Virginia Commonwealth University’s provost and vice president for academic affairs on April 1. No reason was given for Gottfredson’s departure from the university’s top academic post, which he has held since July 2004. VCU President Michael Rao, in an e-mail message to the VCU community, said that during the next year Gottfredson will assist the university with reaccreditation, strategic planning and the development of an interdisciplinary…
Bob Goodlatte: Balancing the federal budget
Column by Bob Goodlatte
www.house.gov/goodlatte
It is no secret that the American people are facing a very tough economic climate. Families and small businesses are cutting back on expenses. As economic uncertainty continues, many across our nation are looking to the government for leadership during this difficult time.
In these challenging economic times it is even more [...]
McDonnell now has control over VITA
Gov. Bob McDonnell now has full control of Virginia’s troubled computer bureaucracy.
Obama seeks to reassure seniors on health care
With a fresh sense of urgency, President Barack Obama sought to reassure seniors Monday about health care legislation approaching a final vote in Congress, pledging it would make preventive care cost-free and close a gap in Medicare prescription drug coverage.
McDonnell now has control over VITA
Gov. Bob McDonnell now has full control of Virginia’s troubled computer bureaucracy.
Grade the General Assembly
Well, They're finished. They agreed on a budget. They agreed to let people to carry concealed weapons into bars, so long as they don't drink. They didn't open the door to buying more than one handgun a month (though some would say they meant to). And they didn't agree to issue lifetime concealed carry permits They agreed to increase the speed limits on interstates, but didn't repeal a ban on radar detectors in cars. They did require car title lenders to be licensed, but won't allow no-excuse absentee…
McDonnell now has control over VITA
The governor has signed into law legislation giving the chief executive the power to hire and fire the head of the troubled Virginia Information Technologies Agency.
Baliles challenges Cuccinelli on schools and discrimination
Former Gov. Gerald Baliles served as attorney general before assuming the state's top office, and he's taking issue with Ken Cuccinelli, who cited a Baliles legal opinion from 1982 when Cuccinelli wrote colleges and universities about discrimination protection based on "sexual orientation." Baliles, a Democrat, says that the state's current top lawyer cites the 1982 opinion "somewhat conveniently" and "erroneously attempts to place colleges and universities into the same category as 'local' governments.'…
Baliles challenges Cuccinelli on schools and discrimination
Former Gov. Gerald Baliles served as attorney general before assuming the state's top office, and he's taking issue with Ken Cuccinelli, who cited a Baliles legal opinion from 1982 when Cuccinelli wrote colleges and universities about discrimination protection based on "sexual orientation." Baliles, a Democrat, says that the state's current top lawyer cites the 1982 opinion "somewhat conveniently" and "erroneously attempts to place colleges and universities into the same category as 'local' governments.'…
FOI council helps public with open government act
It won’t get any easier this year for the public to scrutinize the voting records of General Assembly members, but that’s not because Del. Mark L. Keam, D-Fairfax, and 19 other new legislators didn’t try.
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Public News Service (National)
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