Kaine addresses lawmakers on budget shortfall

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] Everything is on the table, Gov. Tim Kaine told state legislators today as the two sides began to address a projected billion-dollar shortfall in the current biennial state budget. “The need to engage in a third major round of budget reductions will mean, by necessity, that all programs — including…

Augusta, Staunton, Waynesboro Dems Paint the Valley Blue

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] Creigh Deeds remembered being asked to save the date on his schedule. “David Bottenfield said we needed to mark off this date, the 16th of August, for Paint the Valley Blue, that we were going to have a little picnic at the Frontier Culture Museum,” Deeds said at last night’s…

The Clean City

AFP

Fear and Loathing in Staunton column by Chris Graham [email protected] Wanna know what has me riled up about Friday’s convictions in the Staunton Scopes Trial? No, it ain’t about protecting people’s rights to access porn. Stauntonians can still get their fix on Comcast or satellite TV or the Internet … Uh, wait. Check that part…

Poll numbers, even parsed, not looking good in Fifth, Sixth

Chris Graham

Analysis by Chris Graham [email protected] On first glance, it’s pretty damning. Democrat Sam Rasoul in the Sixth District is trailing Republican Bob Goodlatte by a 2-1 margin, and it’s worse than that for Tom Perriello over in the Fifth, which is surprising given the recent decision of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to put its…

Poll Update: Obama up nationally, all even in Va., Warner has huge lead

Chris Graham

Analysis by Chris Graham [email protected] Barack Obama has a healthy six-point lead in the latest Gallup daily tracking poll, and a Survey USA poll has the race between Obama and John McCain in Virginia all square. Meanwhile, Mark Warner continues to enjoy a huge lead over Jim Gilmore in the battle of ex-governors running for…

Fact and fiction on oil in the Sixth

Chris Graham

Story by Chris Graham [email protected] It sounds good when Bob Goodlatte puts the numbers in front of us. Virginia has 57 million barrels of recoverable oil and more than 300 billion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas on the waters off its outer continental shelf. That’s a lot of dadgum oil and natural gas, right?…

The purveyor of second chances

Chris Graham

Story by Edward Tutwiler “I think I should have no other mortal wants, if I could always have plenty of music. It seems to infuse strength into my limbs and ideas into my brain. Life seems to go on without effort, when I am filled with music.” – George Eliot Looking backwards on missed opportunities…