Food Bank bracing for shortages

AFP

The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank is expecting to lose more than 2 million pounds of food in the coming months – about 10 percent of its supply. Within the last 60 days the Food Bank received word from food manufacturers that it would be receiving significantly less donated food due to advancements in technology…

William Browning: A key to rural economic growth – increased availability of broadband services

Chris Graham

Many of Virginia’s rural communities still lack access to high-speed wireless Internet service, including right here in the Shenandoah Valley and parts of western and southwestern Virginia. While our political leaders continue to discuss, debate, and attempt to reach a workable solution on how to create more quality jobs and jumpstart our economy, it is…

Remarks by Obama, Al-Maliki at joint press conference

AFP

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Please have a seat.  Good afternoon, everyone. When I took office, nearly 150,000 American troops were deployed in Iraq, and I pledged to end this war, responsibly.  Today, only several thousand troops remain there, and more are coming home every day. This is a season of homecomings, and military families across America are…

Margot Dorfman: Big business tax holidays are bad for small business, bad for America

AFP

If small business owners decided to stop paying our fair share of taxes, we’d be sent to jail. Big business tax dodgers want Congress to reward them with a tax holiday. The U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce strongly opposes legislation in Congress that would reward U.S. multinational corporations with massive, unwarranted tax discounts to bring…

Warner introduces bills pushing tech start-ups

Chris Graham

U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today introduced bipartisan legislation that would update regulatory and tax policies to encourage entrepreneurs and innovators to launch new companies, creating jobs and broadening economic opportunities. Today’s initiative builds upon bipartisan legislation Senator Warner introduced last week that is designed to make it easier for growing companies to access…

Webb, Warner announce $200M for economic development

Chris Graham

Sens. Jim Webb and Mark Warner today announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce National Institute of Standards and Technology will invest $212,800 in GENEDGE ALLIANCE, a statewide manufacturing support program based at Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville, Virginia.  Both Senators have consistently supported federal funding in Congress for the program, which supports industrial…