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A day after deadlocking once again on the $85 billion spending plan for the 2012-2014 biennium, a sudden break by Democratic State Sen. Chuck Colgan from what had been unified Democratic Party opposition to the state budget led to its passage on Wednesday. Colgan, D-Prince William, told reporters after the 21-19 vote in the Senate…
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State Senate Democrats voted Tuesday against the state budget conference report because they said it did not properly address funding for projects in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. “The issue here is the lack of transportation funding in two different regions of the state,” said State Sen. Janet Howell (D-Fairfax). “Rail to Dulles will be…
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Second in a series Tim Kaine had thought, like a lot of us did, that his political career was over. In January 2010, Kaine finished up his term as governor of Virginia, and looked out a landscape in Virginia politics that featured two Democrats, Jim Webb and Mark Warner, representing the Commonwealth in the United…
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Ahead of tomorrow’s crucial vote on the Commonwealth’s Fiscal Year 2012-14 budget, House Republicans emphasized the importance of quickly passing Virginia’s biennial budget. House and Senate Budget conferees agreed to the conference report on the $85 billion budget before the Easter Holiday and localities, agencies and schools across the Commonwealth are waiting for final passage…
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And it’s not that hard for me to admit, actually. And no, I won’t be voting for Mitt Romney, or a third-party candidate, or sitting out the election altogether. But still, I wish I could vote for another candidate for president this November. My first choice would be Mark Warner, a close second Hillary Clinton,…
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Fourth in a four-part series A popular governor, an even more popular United States senator, Mark Warner is on everybody’s short list as a top contender for president in 2016. Warner himself, though, thinks that his time to make a run for the White House may have passed. “I didn’t know when I didn’t run…
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After the Virginia budget stalled in Richmond, I was asked by Republican leaders to serve on the budget conference committee to take a leadership position in making the tough choices. While we can certainly point to irresponsible spending by national Democrats over the years, we have to honestly admit that Republicans have missed opportunities to…
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Second in a four-part series Mark Warner ran for the Senate in 2008 as a “radical centrist” who could get Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill to find common ground and work together. The last three-plus years have been trying the patience of the Virginia Democrat. But Warner has hope – a glimmer, at least…
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The ongoing state budget stalemate is going to continue to be ongoing until Democrats on one side and Republicans on the other come to the realization that somebody needs to be the grownup. And yes, it’s both sides that need to come to that realization. The nonsense that you hear from Richmond from Democrats blaming…
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First in a four-part series It was a seasonal early-spring Tuesday on Capitol Hill. Cherry blossoms were already in bloom after a warmer-than-normal late winter. There was a certain energy in the air with thousands of people gathering in locations surrounding the Capitol related to the then-ongoing arguments before the Supreme Court on the constitutionality…
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