Chris Graham | Do the right thing, Tim

Chris Graham

I get that the flap over Gov. Tim Kaine’s travel schedules got going because Republicans didn’t have anything better to do with their time this summer. But the wild swing by GOP chair Pat Mullins has connected solidly and sent the political baseball uncomfortably toward the cheap seats in deep left-center, uncomfortably, that is, for…

Letter | It’s time to do something about poverty other than study it

Chris Graham

We read news reports that Gov. Tim Kaine appointed Arlington State Del. David Englin to yet another commission to study poverty in Virginia. While we certainly welcome that the governor’s and the General Assembly’s desire to measure the extent of poverty in Arlington and Virginia, we’re puzzled by the call to “study” what census data…

Kaine announces expanded opportunities for microbusiness loans

AFP

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine on Thursday announced that the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) will provide three Regional Service Providers (RSP) with up to $108,000 each for their microenterprise efforts through the agency’s Virginia Enterprise Initiative (VEI) program. The organizations – ECDC Enterprise Development Group (Arlington), New Visions New Ventures (Richmond), and…

Desperate times call for desperate measures

Chris Graham

You don’t have to win the national championship every week, football coach Lou Holtz says. You only have to be the best team in the stadium on Saturday. Terry McAuliffe is clinging to that right now. The same SurveyUSA poll that Creigh Deeds’ campaign manager is citing as evidence that the Bath County state senator…

Kaine announces actions on Renew Virginia

AFP

Gov. Tim Kaine announced action on Tuesday on several pieces of legislation related to his Renew Virginia green initiative, including a series of amendments to bills included in the package. – SB 1248 – Northam This bill originally implemented the number one recommendation of the Climate Change Commission: the establishment of a mandatory energy efficiency…

‘Choose Life’ plates get Kaine’s approval

Chris Graham

Interesting political move, Gov. Kaine. “Virginia has a longstanding program that allows individuals to customize their state-issued license plates for a fee. Subject to certain Department of Motor Vehicle regulations to prohibit obscenity or other impropriety, Virginians have the ability to purchase vanity plates that specify a combination of letters and numbers of their choosing….

Kaine proposes increased aid for displaced workers

Chris Graham

Gov. Tim Kaine is proposing amendments to legislation on unemployment passed this year by the Virginia General Assembly that would expand unemployment elgibility to workers in training and workers seeking part-time work and would expand eligibility across the board for an additional 13 weeks. “As we work to get our economy back on track, it’s…

Stimulating conversation

Chris Graham

Stimulus is everywhere – from City Hall to the State Capitol to the boardroom to the ‘Net. Gov. Tim Kaine today announced the launch of an overhauled Stimulus.Virginia.Gov web portal into the ins and outs regarding the money being invested in Virginia from the $700 billion-plus American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Virginia is getting just…