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The State Senate voted 21-19 on Tuesday to pass an amended version of legislation mandating that women seeking abortions in Virginia first undergo an otherwise medically unnecessary ultrasound procedure. Critics called the original version of the legislation, which had mandated an invasive transvaginal ultrasound be performed, “state rape.” State Sen. Janet Howell, D-Fairfax, called the…
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The Richmond Circuit Court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit brought by six Virginia residents that sought to have the court draw Virginia’s congressional districts for the upcoming elections. The court found that the 2012 General Assembly had the power to draw new congressional districts, and therefore, the plaintiffs’ suit had to be dismissed.
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Six Republicans joined Senate Democrats in effectively voting down legislation that would define “personhood” at conception and could in turn outlaw all abortions and some forms of FDA-approved birth control. A 24-14 Senate vote returned the bill to a Senate committee for consideration in the 2013 General Assembly session. The vote was another defeat for…
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By the time it adjourns in early March the General Assembly will have considered more than 2,500 bills and resolutions. About half will have passed. News sources will have focused on a dozen high priority issues that include restrictions on abortions, expanding gun rights, limiting access to voting, telling the schools what they must do,…
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Washington and Lee University’s 2012 Mock Republican Convention awarded its nomination to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney on Saturday. The Indiana delegation put Romney over the top by awarding all 46 of its delegates to him, touching off a flag-waving celebration in the University’s Warner Center. Following the nomination of Romney, the convention’s tri-chairs announced…
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On Friday, a federal court dismissed a lawsuit brought by six Virginia residents that sought to have the court draw Virginia’s congressional districts for the upcoming November elections. Among other reasons, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia dismissed the case based on its finding that the recent actions of the…
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We are near the crossover of the 2012 session. The session has moved by rapidly though many of the big issues remain unresolved. We are no closer on a budget compromise today than we were when the session started. We are still looking at a budget that makes deep cuts in human services, underfunds K-12…
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Both the House of Delegates and the Senate have now passed new restrictions on voting in Virginia that will almost certainly be signed by Gov. Robert McDonnell. SB 1 and HB 9 require voters to show identification at the polls and those without ID must cast a provisional ballot. SB1 passed the Senate today on…
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The Virginia General Assembly may be about to repeat an unfortunate chapter of its history by passing bills that will have the effect of suppressing voter participation. Although the bills are justified by the proponents as preventing voter fraud, no examples of voter wrongdoing have been shown. At the turn of the 20th century Virginians…
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The Supreme Court of Virginia on Tuesday denied a writ of prohibition and declined to grant an immediate appeal of a Circuit Court of the City of Richmond decision that refused to dismiss a challenge to the authority of the General Assembly to draw new congressional district lines. In its order, the Supreme Court said…
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