In expanding the U.S. Navy’s fleet to 355 ships, Virginia’s largest industrial employer, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), will construct two more Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers.
Virginia Records 6.5 Percent Gain In Population Since 2010
Virginia has gained over half a million residents since 2010, coming in at 19th with state population increases over the last eight years.
Lee County School District Still Pushing To Arm Teachers Amid Lack Of Security Funding
Lee County’s concerns and possible legal challenges of being the state’s first district to vote to arm teachers may rise to one of the Commonwealth’s most talked about issues in 2019.
Battle Against Governor Northam’s Tax Hike Set To Kick Off 2019 General Assembly Session
“This ain’t your granddaddy’s Democratic Party,” Delegate Tim Hugo said, adding that “we’re one heart attack away from a leftist liberal takeover of the General Assembly.”
Virginia State Senator Richard ‘Dick’ Black Announces He Will Not Seek Re-Election In 2019
Ending 50 years in public service, one of the Virginia General Assembly’s most conservative legislators will be retiring after four terms in the House of Delegates and two terms in the State Senate.
U.S. Cheese Horde Could Send More Virginia Dairy Farms Into Bankruptcy
Even though Virginia’s dairy industry plays an important role in the state economy, during the first half of 2018, dairy farms in the Commonwealth closed at a rate of more than one per week.
Lawmaker Files Bill to Repeal Virginia’s Right to Work Law
Legislators will vote on repealing Right to Work during the 2019 session, beginning next month. Carter’s bill is one of several union-friendly measures lawmakers will consider.
Terry McAuliffe ‘Obviously Looking at’ 2020 Presidential Run
Former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe said he was “obviously looking at” a 2020 presidential run during a Sunday morning appearance on CNN’s State of the Union.
“I’m not going to announce right now. I’m obviously looking at it,” said McAuliffe to host Dana Bash, who remarked he sounded like a candidate during an earlier part of the segment criticizing President Trump.
“I’ve got time. I’ve got a lot of great relationships. I have 40 years of working for this party. I have plenty of friends in many states, so I don’t have to rush into this.”
As a close ally of Bill and Hillary Clinton, McAuliffe was considered a top contender to become Hillary’s running mate for Vice President, before she ultimately selected Virginia Senator Tim Kaine.
Following Clinton’s defeat in 2016, McAuliffe became the subject of widespread speculation that he might inherit much of Clinton’s donor network, national allies and campaign infrastructure. As a close Clinton confidant, observers noted that McAuliffe was well-positioned to win the support of a network he helped create.
McAuliffe served as co-chairman of Bill Clinton’s 1996 campaign and chairman of Hillary Clinton’s 2008 campaign. During that time, he raised hundreds of millions of dollars for the Clintons, and ultimately faced an ethical controversy when he personally guaranteed the couple’s $1.35 million mortgage for the home they bought in Chappaqua, New York, following Bill’s departure from the White House.
In 2004, McAuliffe became one of five board members of the Clinton foundation.
McAuliffe also used the interview to criticize President Trump, calling him an “angry, emotional, unstable man” and remarking that the president’s criticism of Democratic leaders for the deaths of two children at the southern border was “the lowest act I’ve ever seen any president [sic] in the history of our country.”
If McAuliffe announces his candidacy, he would join a crowded field of more than a dozen declared or potential candidates.
Virginia House Democrats Accept $50,000 From Coal Mining Company
Democrats are routing politically problematic corporate coal contributions to candidates through their caucus account, even as members tell their constituents they won’t take that money. This makes coal the caucus’s largest corporate donor of 2018.
Dem. Candidate Dan Helmer Backs Govt. Surveillance of all Ammo Sales
Helmer: Track every ammunition purchase in a government database to identify mass shooters.