Pod Virginia

IN THE NEWS:

Virginia is getting a huge infusion of cash from Uncle Sam to help expand broadband coverage to underserved parts of the state -- especially areas where speeds are less than 25 megabits per second. Thanks to a program created by the Inflation Reduction Act, Virginia is getting $1.5 billion for broadband expansion

Governor Glenn Youngkin wants Virginia to leave the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and he's already removed Virginia from the Electronic Registration Center. One has to do with the environment, and the other is about elections. David Becker at the Center for Election Innovation and Research tells me the multi-state compact known as ERIC has helped Virginia though Republican administrations and Democratic administrations.

Richmond is getting a first look at new plans for a proposed casino from Churchill Downs and Urban One. Voters will have to approve of the casino proposal in November, which is why the developers are taking this opportunity to unveil the new name and brand identity.

At the Watercooler: Bobby Scott's Cookout, plus turnover at Virginia's Parole Board.

TRIVIA: James Monroe has two non-consecutive terms as governor. Why did he resign as governor?

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Check out Michael's presentation on the Byrd Machine in Virginia on C-SPAN 2 this Friday, September 1st at 8:45 PM EST

Laura Goren and Rodrigo Soto of the Commonwealth Institute join Michael to discuss the latest details on Virginia's budget crisis--while meetings have been happening in secret, we're getting a few details about the compromise. Those include: potentially no permanent tax cuts, potential additional funding for education, potentially removing the age limit on military retirement, potential one-time rebates for Virginians, and a potential return of the sales tax holiday. Again, all of this is what we expect to be in the version of the deal that goes to the Governor's desk, but only time will tell.

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IN THE NEWS:

Eleven senators are retiring. Five won't be returning because they lost the primary. Three senators are in hotly competitive races and might lose in November. Keep in mind that the Senate has only 40 members. That means we’re expecting to see a turnover of 40 to 50 percent in the Senate.

One out of four elections this November has no challenger, candidates running unopposed. Most of those are incumbents, but the list of unchallenged elections includes people who aren't even in the General Assembly yet.

Dulles International Airport will be the site for like the largest renewable energy project ever developed at a U.S. airport with solar panels and electric vehicles. When all those solar panels are up and operational, Dominion Energy expects they will power 37,000 homes and businesses by 2026.

At the Watercooler: AG Jason Miyares seems to believe local school boards are required to adopt the Governor's model policies, and Michael's presentation on the Byrd Machine will be on C-SPAN this Friday, September 1 at 8:30 PM.

TRIVIA: When was the last time a Governor of Virginia became POTUS?

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Dr. Mahmut Cengiz, Assistant Professor at George Mason's Schar School, joins Thomas and Michael to discuss the causes and effects of the fentanyl crisis in Virginia, how Glenn Youngkin's has handled the crisis, and how Virginia could move forward to help the lives of those affected.


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IN THE NEWS:

When he ran for governor, candidate Glenn Youngkin was secretly recorded talking about why he couldn't say more about abortion. Now, a candidate for the House of Delegates is explaining why a secretly recorded audio clip reveals he supports a 100 percent ban on abortion. What's going on with these secretly recorded audio conversations, and what are the journalistic ethics around reporting on the findings?

Last month, the state Department of Education released model policies for school divisions across Virginia relating to transgender students. The model policies suggest that parents should have the final say about names, pronouns and bathrooms – not the students. Now the Spotsylvania School Board is the first to adopt those new model policies.

Will voters in Richmond have a ballot question on a new casino this November? The question is working its way through the courts even now.

At the Watercooler: Democrat Trudy Berry had all the paperwork she needed to run in Mecklenburg, but a clerical error is leaving her out of the race--and she's wondering why the State Board of Elections denied her appeal when similar issues were successfully appealed in the past. Plus, local elected officials are frustrated by the lack of a state budget.

TRIVIA: How many incumbents are running unopposed in Virginia this year?

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Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw joins Michael for a broad-ranging interview on his time in the General Assembly--from his origins in the 1980s, through his time as Majority Leader, and advice for the next generation of Assembly members. Along the day, he discusses the changing tactics and politics in the legislature, as well as things he might've done differently in hindsight--such as support for the recent redistricting commission.

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Sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Addiction Recovery Alliance of Virginia

IN THE NEWS:

But 10 percent of Democrats in a recent poll by the Wilder School at VCU say they would prefer Republicans control the House. What's going on there?

In the last decade, the population of people over the age of 55 who are incarcerated in Virginia has doubled, increasing from 7 percent to 14 percent. Advocates say that's because of over-policing of vulnerably populations, as well as the abolition of parole back in the 90s.

Of the dozen races where Republicans are targeting Democrats running for the House of Delegates, only two so far are races where Republicans are raising the issue of abortion rights — House District 97 in Virginia Beach and House District 82 in Petersburg. What's behind the gap on the topic of abortion, and how do the political conversations intersect with the real stories of Virginians?

At the Watercooler: The money committees are set to meet in the coming weeks...but there are still no budget amendments, and it's looking less likely as time goes on.

TRIVIA: What's the name of the famous mountain that Harry Byrd climbed every year for his birthday?

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Vishal Agraharkar of the ACLU of Virginia joins the show to discuss a new lawsuit aimed at restoring voting rights to Virginians convicted of felonies. As a requirement for re-entry into the Union after the Civil War, Virginia was required to pass th Readmission Act of 1870. In an effort to prevent former Confederate states from disenfranchsing Black people, the Readmission Act prohibits Virginia from depriving citizens of the right to vote, except as punishment for crimes that are "now felonies at common law."

Common-law felonies at the time included crimes like murder, but didn't include felonies introduced after 1870, including many drug-related crimes. But Virginia still strips the right to vote from all people convicted of felonies. Agraharkar walks us through the ACLU's lawsuit, which seeks to overturn that precedent, restore voting rights to Virginians convicted of non-common-law felonies, and protect that right to vote going forward.

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Sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Addiction Recovery Alliance of Virginia

IN THE NEWS:

Child poverty numbers are about to spike with the expiration of a whole host of programs--the child tax credit, food stamp benefits, rent-relief program, and even some Medicaid eligibility. Solutions to the child poverty problem could be solved with the record surplus money that's now at issue in the ongoing budget impasse, but lawmakers are still considering whether they want to spend it on tax cuts instead.

This election will feature a record number of female candidates and a record number of Black candidates for the state Senate– 28 female candidates and 17 Black candidates. And it brings to mind questions on the nature of descriptive and substantive representation, as well as how that representation might look in House and Senate leadership.

In December, Governor Glenn Youngkin will unveil his legacy budget, which means state agencies are already hard at work crafting the next two-year budget. Meanwhile the budget amendments that were supposed to be in place a month ago are still caught up in a disagreement between House Republicans and Senate Democrats. When the latest financial projections were released last month, Governor Glenn Youngkin was hopeful they could break the logjam--but Democrats say his projections are "voodoo economics."

At the Watercooler: The fight for state Senate leadership might be drawing key Democratic attention from November's races. Plus, concerns that Democratic caucus chair Charniele Herring has allegedly not shared fundraised money with the caucus.

TRIVIA: What Virginia newspaper added NIMBY to the vernacular?

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Atif Qarni, former Sec. of Education under Governor Ralph Northam, joins the show to discuss Governor Youngkin's latest model policies for how Virginia school systems should treat transgender students. He compares the policies to the 2021 policies that developed in his office under the Northam Administration--including where the new policies are lacking and the false narratives around parents' rights.

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