Monday, February 18, 2013
House and Senate Democrats held At a joint press conference in the House Briefing Room House and Senate Democrats criticized Republican whose bills institute roadblocks and obstacles to voting for hundreds of thousands of Virginia citizens they said. Bipartisan election reform bills that addressed the massive lines and hours of long waits that many Virginia [...]
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
On January 24 McDonnell was expected to make a personal appearance in Roanoke to garner support for his transportation package but his airplane was grounded due to high winds. He spoke over a cell phone and PA system. McDonnell’s transportation package eliminates the 17.5 cent gas tax and increases the sales tax to 5.8%. The [...]
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Tuesday, January 22, 2013
On a party-line vote Monday, Virginia state Senate Republicans passed a redistricting measure that places Democrat Sen. Creigh Deeds and Emmett Hanger, an Augusta County Republican in the same district . It also realigns other Senate districts including Roanoke’s 21st held by Democrat John Edwards. It sets up a possible loss of Democratic seats in [...]
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Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Former state Senator William B. Hopkins Sr., a Franklin County native and veteran Roanoke lawyer died Tuesday at the age of 90. He was retired from his law firm where he was a partner at Martin, Hopkins & Lemon. In 1959 Hopkins defeated Earl Fitzpatrick, Bev Fitzpatrick’s uncle in a primary . He became a [...]
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Tuesday, December 4, 2012
As in past legislative sessions Roanoke City Council is pushing for state funding for passenger rail service between Lynchburg and Roanoke. City manager Chris Morrill stressed that the city needs rail service to satisfy industries that are eyeing Roanoke’s accessibility. To make Roanoke’s multi-year dream come true the Commonwealth will have to unearth a dedicated [...]
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Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Richmond, VA — Yesterday the Virginia Senate voted to reject a conference report on the Virginia budget due to Senate Democrats’ refusal to allow Governor Bob McDonnell and Republicans to pass the cost of extending the Metro line to Dulles Airport on to Virginia families and potentially endanger the future of the project altogether. “Let [...]
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Tuesday, April 17, 2012
RICHMOND— Governor Bob McDonnell sent a letter yesterday to Senator Richard Saslaw and Senate Democrats urging them to pass a budget in today’s General Assembly special session meeting, reminding them of the ramifications on state government of failure to pass a budget bill and that negotiators had already met most of their budget demands in [...]
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Monday, March 26, 2012
The tension in Richmond for the most part did not openly carry over to Friday’s 2012 legislative breakfast though one could here inklings of it if listening closely. The breakfast is held annually by the Roanoke Valley Chamber of Commerce. On the dais were senators Ralph Smith and John Edwards and delegates Nick Rush, Greg [...]
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Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Ten days prior to the end of the 2012 legislative session the budget fell off a cliff. The Senate rejected both the House and Senate versions of the two-year budget. The 20-20 split in the Senate has kept Democrats on the sidelines and off of key committees that once held back legislation they deemed extreme. [...]
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Wednesday, March 7, 2012
“THEY HAD TO VIOLATE THE RULES TO VIOLATE THE RULES” Valerie Garner interviews Senator John Edwards about what the heck is going on in Richmond. With national attention on ultrasounds that turned Governor Bob McDonnell’s VP aspiration from Vice President to Vaginal Probe a gift dropped in the Republicans laps. The Senate Democrats rejected even their [...]
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012
RICHMOND – Earlier today, the Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) held a press conference calling on the Senate to pass a budget immediately because of fears that local governments will not be able to “craft a local budget with accuracy.” From 2001 to 2008, the General Assembly missed its scheduled budget deadline five out of [...]
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012
RICHMOND (March 6, 2012)–The Virginia Association of Counties called on state senators to meet their constitutional obligation by passing a budget that serves the needs of the Commonwealth’s citizens. VACo held a press conference Tuesday and urged Virginia senators to engage in meaningful dialogue that would lead to the passage of a FY 2012-2014 state [...]
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