Sometimes, the OK hand gesture just means you’re OK.
Northam Vetoes Two Immigration Bills, Including One That Would Ban Sanctuary Cities
Governor Ralph Northam vetoed bills set to curb the creation of sanctuary cities in Virginia and require correctional facilities officials to notify federal immigration authorities when undocumented immigrants are released from custody.
Del. John McGuire Helps Vietnam Vet Fly American Flag After Years-Long Battle With HOA
A nearly two-decade story over the right to fly an American Flag in a neighborhood in Central Virginia has now come to a happy ending after an area lawmaker teamed up with a veteran Marine homeowner to ensure that the “Stars and Stripes” can hang high over Henrico County.
WRIC reports that in 1999, the Wyndham Homeowner’s Association (HOA) told resident Richard Oulton the 25-foot flagpole on his property that flew an American flag violated the neighborhood’s by-laws. The rules only allowed flags to be flown on a six-foot pole attached to the house.
Oulton, a Marine veteran, flew the flag to honor the “749 Marines that [he] served with” in the 1st Battalion 9th Marines who were killed in action during the Vietnam War. Due to the high casualty rate, the battalion earned the nickname of “The Walking Dead.”
At the time, the HOA was controlled by the developer, but recently, there has been a change of management and is now run by the homeowners themselves.
In the 2000 General Assembly session, then-State Senator Bill Bolling (R-Hanover) sponsored the “Wyndham Flag Bill” to make the developer attempting to ban the American flag as a “visual nuisance” illegal. The bill passed unanimously and was later signed by Governor Jim Gilmore (R).
The statute provided that no HOA can prohibit a homeowner from flying a flag unless they disclose it at the time of sale. However, a judge ruled that the law did not apply to Oulton’s case, ordering him to remove the flagpole and the flag by March 1, 2003.
“I’m standing in my front yard being told my American flag is a visual nuisance and I can’t fly it in support of the troops in Iraq. I think it’s horrible but I have to comply,” he said in 2003 interview.
Nearly two decades later, Oulton received reinforcements in the likes of Delegate John McGuire (R-Goochland), a former Navy SEAL, to help him solve the issue and allow him to honor his fallen brethren by flying the American flag outside his home.
“The one thing that unites us in this country is that American flag,” said Delegate McGuire. “And when I heard about that I was like we got to get that American flag up.”
Since last year, moving through two appeals, the duo has been working with the Wyndham HOA to let Oulton resurrect his flag pole.
Interestingly enough, the Republican lawmaker was able to help secure the deal without having to propose any new laws, statutes, or ordinances.
“They asked us to poll our neighbors and we pulled (sic) all of the neighbors that were adjacent, nine houses and was 100 percent support,” explained Oulton.
“The Wyndham Foundation has always permitted Mr. Oulton to fly the American flag. The only special approval needed was for the size and location of the flagpole in question,” the association’s president said in a statement according to CNN.
“Mr. Oulton made the original request 18 years ago, which was managed by the developer-controlled board. The request was then denied, and no further request was submitted by Mr. Oulton until late Fall 2018. The Wyndham Foundation Homeowner’s Association has since been working diligently with Mr. Oulton to come to a resolution that is in the best interest of the resident and the community. We are happy that we were able to help Mr. Oulton get his flagpole.”
Delegate McGuire said, “When I went to Richard [Oulton] to tell him that he would get his flagpole, he had tears in his eyes.”
Speaking about the flag he will fly, which flew at his bunker in Vietnam, Oulton explained, “It’s one memory I’ve kept. It’s very important to me. It’s kind of a tattered now, but lot of memories.”
The new flagpole has been erected at Oulton’s home in Wyndham and he his planning to raise “Old Glory” for the first time at a ceremony on April 27, where his wife, Ava, says they are trying to limit the event to veterans, but are still expecting hundreds of people to attend.
Supreme Court May Reject Racial Gerrymandering Challenge In Virginia Redistricting Case
If the questions regarding standing are resolved and the court takes the case, a ruling may not be handed down until May or even June, which could cause major interference in the legislative primary elections set for June 12.
City Of Richmond Denies FOIA Request After Extraordinary Overtime Pay For City Employees
After Henrico and Chesterfield counties released their overtime pay figures via an FOIA request, the City of Richmond refused to do so, even after one DPU employee was paid for almost 1,900 hours of overtime in 2017.
Northam Vetoes GOP-Led Bills To Require Legislative Supermajority For Climate Change Initiatives
Requiring a two-thirds vote in the General Assembly to participate in cap-and-trade and other climate change mitigation initiatives “violates the Virginia Constitution and would significantly undercut efforts,” Governor Northam says.
Did ‘#MeToo’ Forget About Justin Fairfax?
It is quite interesting that while the calls for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax to resign are continuing, the protests that have blanketed Gov. Ralph Northam’s reputation for racist photos have been absent for Fairfax’s sexual assault and rape allegations.
Gruesome MS-13 Attack In Northern Virginia Could Give Life To Bill Banning Sanctuary Cities
As transnational gangs like MS-13 continue to plague the Northern Virginia area with horrific crimes, it is not legislation like banning sanctuary cities that “have negative impacts on public safety,” which Governor Northam says, but the fact that there are none.
SCOTUS To Consider Virginia’s Redistricting Impasse Monday
The U.S. Supreme Court will consider the fate of the Commonwealth’s legislative map, which could again change the potential outcome of the 2019 elections following the unveil of the new map drawn by the court-appointed special master.
Trump Veto’s Congress’ Rebuke Of National Emergency Declaration
Bucking back at the Republican-controlled Senate that voted to reject the national emergency declaration to secure funding to construct hundreds of miles of wall at the southern border, President Donald Trump issued his first-ever veto on Friday. Flanked by Attorney General William Barr and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, the commander in chief added that Congress’ rebuke “would put countless Americans in danger.”
The U.S. Senate blocked the president’s emergency declaration in a 59-41 vote on Thursday afternoon, with 12 Republicans joining the minority Democratic bloc.
“The Democrat-sponsored resolution would terminate vital border security operations by revoking the national emergency issued last month,” the president said in his remarks. “It is definitely a national emergency. Rarely have we had such a national emergency.”
Trump said he vetoed the “reckless resolution” because Congress’ action was a “vote to deny the crisis on the southern border” and was a “vote against reality.”
“It’s against reality. It is a tremendous national emergency. It is a tremendous crisis,” the president added.
Although lawmakers, including some Republicans, have criticized President Trump’s use of his national emergency powers to gather nearly $8 billion in funding from pockets of federal money dedicated to other projects, the Department of Justice led by recently-confirmed Attorney General Barr, set forth a robust defense of the president’s authority to do so in a letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) earlier this month, CNN reports.
“The President acted well within his discretion in declaring a national emergency concerning the southern border,” wrote Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd, laying forth a legal basis for the proclamation under the National Emergencies Act and additional statutory authorities.
“The President’s emergency Proclamation reasonably described the current situation as an ongoing ‘border security and humanitarian crisis,'” he added. “The crisis at the border…may qualify as an emergency even though it, too, is not entirely new.”
The resolution will now be sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives, but House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23), a staunch Trump ally, has reiterated that Congress’ lower chamber will not muster the two-thirds vote necessary to overturn the president’s veto.