Taxation and Economic Policies: These will punish businesses, consumers, and taxpayers, reversing economic gains under prior leadership.
HB919 (Firearms and Ammunition Sales Tax):
Sponsored by Del. Vivian Watts (D). Imposes an 11% sales tax on guns and ammo. Infringes on Second Amendment rights and added burdens on lawful owners.
HB1094 (Expanded Retail Sales Tax):
Sponsored by Del. Vivian Watts (D). Applies sales tax to various services, deliveries, and digital goods. Broadly hikes costs for everyday purchases, including online shopping, harming affordability and tourism.
Local Sales Tax Hikes (Bills in Both Chambers, e.g., HB/SB variants):
Allow localities to increase sales taxes for specific purposes. Dubbed the "anti-affordability party" move, directly contradicting Dem claims of lowering prices.
Business Tax Increases (Multiple Bills):
Target small and large businesses with rate hikes or new investment income taxes. Punishes job creators and chases out businesses attracted under previous policies.
HB1 (Minimum Wage Increase):
Sponsored by Del. Jeion Ward (D). Raises the state minimum wage.
Prices entry-level workers out of jobs, exacerbating affordability issues.
HB5 (Paid Sick Leave):
Sponsored by Del. Kelly Convirs-Fowler (D). Mandates paid sick leave with civil penalties for non-compliance. Adds regulatory burdens on employers, seen as part of a broader "cultural revolution."
Redistricting and Voting Access: These are major flashpoints, with Republicans accusing Democrats of rigging elections for permanent power.
HJ4 (Constitutional Amendment on Redistricting):
Sponsored by Del. Rodney Willett (D). Allows mid-decade redistricting. Advanced quickly in both chambers. A "blatant power grab" to redraw maps favoring Democrats (potentially 10D-1R congressional seats), diminishing conservative voices.
HJ2 (Constitutional Amendment on Right to Vote):
Sponsored by Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker (D). Part of efforts to "expand voting rights" in ways that could facilitate fraud, like weaker verification.
SB57 (ERIC Membership):
Sponsored by Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg (D). Requires staying in the multistate voter roll system. Maintains potentially inaccurate rolls, aiding fraud.
SB58 (Absentee Ballot Deadlines):
Sponsored by Sen. Barbara Favola (D). Extends receipt deadlines for absentees and provisionals. Makes fraud easier by loosening timelines; Dems blocked GOP bills to shorten early voting (e.g., SB46, SB298).
HB44 (Campaign Finance Portal):
Sponsored by Del. Paul Krizek (D). Creates a state-run transparency portal. While less controversial, fits into broader "election oversight" changes seen as optional or biased.
Unnamed Bill on ICE Near Polls:
Prohibits ICE enforcement within 40 feet of polling places.
Explicitly enables "illegal aliens voting," attacking election integrity.
Gun Control and Public Safety: Second Amendment violations and soft-on-crime measures.
Assault Weapons Ban (Multiple Bills):
Ban "assault" firearms and high-capacity magazines.
Penalizes lawful owners while ignoring crime roots; applies to all semi-automatic pistols and rifles, drew large protests at Lobby Day.
Sentence Reductions for Violent Crimes:
Reduce penalties for certain offenses. Leads to more crime by releasing violent offenders early.
Social and Cultural Issues: These are criticized as ideological overreaches.
HJ1 (Reproductive Freedom Amendment):
Sponsored by Leader Charniele Herring (D). Protects abortion and contraception rights. Allows "abortion to birth," locking in extreme policies.
HB6 (Right to Contraception):
Sponsored by Del. Cia Price (D). Codifies access to contraception.
Tied to broader reproductive agenda seen as excessive.
HJ3 (Marriage Equality Amendment):
Sponsored by Del. Mark Sickles (D). Affirms same-sex marriage. Part of LGBTQ+ mandates, viewed as cultural imposition.
DEI Mandates and Board Purges:
Reinstate Diversity, Equity, Inclusion programs; remove GOP appointees from boards like UVA's. Prioritizes "ideological conformity" over merit and is unconstitutional.
Immigration and Environment
Limits on ICE/Local Police Cooperation:
Cut off local law enforcement from working with ICE.
Shields "criminal aliens," enabling more crime and fraud. More public arrests to spur interference from anti-ICE protestors.
Housing Subsidies for Undocumented Immigrants:
Provide aid for housing. "Vote-buying" to secure electoral advantages.
Gas-Powered Equipment Ban:
Ban gas mowers/leaf blowers, tax electric alternatives. Hypocritical "climate" policy infringing on freedoms.
Cardinal News
Here’s what the new govenror had to say in her first speech to the legislature.
Virginia Democrats are raising taxes left and right. Here are some taxes they're looking to pass: -corporate welfare tax -gun tax -delivery driver tax -investment income tax -event tax -electric gardening equipment tax -gym tax -dog grooming tax -home repair tax -vehicle repair…
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Virginia Scope
Gov. Abigail Spanberger, for the first time, seemed put her full support behind Virginia Democrats and their effort to allow for mid-decade congressional redistricting.
Here is a link to the Committee Hearing where the Democrats found out, through their lawyer on the committee, that § 30-13 was in fact still a valid, enforceable law, despite claiming otherwise.
View post on X →There's a clever floor substitute to the enabling legislation for the redistricting amendment on LIS now that adds a provision that the only venue (for related lawsuits, incl. moving those underway) is the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond (presumably a friendly court).
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WVTF
Courthouses across Virginia have been the scene of arrests made by federal immigration officials. But members of the Virginia General Assembly are hoping to crack down on that.
Washington Free Beacon
Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D., Va.) has appointed two Qatari lobbyists to serve on George Mason University’s board of visitors, a Washington Free Beacon review has found.
insidehighered.com
Gov. Spanberger appointed 27 board members and signaled future governance changes. The new AG ousted campus lawyers and defended in-state tuition for undocumented students. And state lawmakers are pushing for more.
The Cavalier Daily
While the majority of Spanberger’s nominees have made contributions to Spanberger herself and other Democrats in recent election cycles, at least five have donated to Republican-affiliated candidates or organizations in the past.
Responding to Gov. Spanberger’s day one EOs, Border Czar @RealTomHoman shreds the false argument used by democrats. New pod with @HolmesJosh, @ComfortablySmug, @MichaelDuncan and @JohnAshbrook is streaming now - link in replies.
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Jewish Insider
Moran, a former longtime congressman now lobbying for Qatar, has an extensive record of using antisemitic tropes and hostility to Israel
dailycaller.com
Dem Virginia state Sen. L. Louise Lucas ripped into fellow party Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner over redistricting, declaring Saturday she didn’t need advice “
12onyourside.com
Virginia’s new attorney general is out with a stern warning about federal pressure on the commonwealth coming from The White House.
Cardinal News
Democrats in the General Assembly have made threats against the state-run military college in Lexington since VMI’s board of visitors voted to oust its first black superintendent.
Cardinal News
Pawpaws are a green-skinned, jelly-bean-shaped fruit with a yellow custardy center that’s packed with nutrients and tastes like a combination of mango, apple, banana and pina colada.
DOJ's lawsuit against VA's election commissioner points out a registration duplication rate of 33.2% in 2024 -- compared to the national average of 12.7%, among other eyebrow-raising stats. See complaint here:
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Washington Examiner
Abigail Spanberger ran as a centrist, but since taking office as Virginia's governor, she's showing her true colors.
aflegal.org
America First Legal (AFL) has filed a federal civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, calling for an immediate investigation […]
The Richmonder
The county has 30 days to respond to the proposed facility.
The Richmonder
ReEstablish Richmond offers all newcomers education, which includes in-person group services to develop skills.
The Babylon Bee
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Democratic lawmakers once again called on the Department of Justice to reign in ICE officers, fearful that mass deportations will make illegals afraid to vote.
WHRO Public Media
Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace will produce two types of cruise missiles at the plant, its largest outside of Norway.
History, Tradition, & the 250th Anniversary of Independence
"Ambition must be made to counteract ambition. The interest of the man, must be connected with the constitutional rights of the place. It may be a reflection on human nature, that such devices should be necessary to control the abuses of government. But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature?" James Madison in Federalist 51 Human Nature and the Constitution - onlinecoursesblog.hillsdale.edu
prageru.com
At the age of 19, the Marquis de Lafayette crossed the Atlantic and joined General Washington’s Continental Army. Inspired by the promise of liberty made…
City Journal
With the nation’s anniversary approaching, can Americans find enough common ground to overcome their polarization?
Cardinal News
The monument lists the names of the 70 Franklin County-born members of the U.S. Colored Troops whom it honors.
Cardinal News
The first mobile museum was so popular that the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission has added a second.
LoudounNow.com
The effort to establish President James Monroe’s Loudoun County home, Oak Hill, as a state park resumed today with a hearing before the Senate’s Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources Committee.
The Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Liberty
YouTube
americanthinker.com
In the Revolutionary era, brave and patriotic pastors took seriously the Bible’s emphasis on morality and individual liberty.
Justices Unanimously Hold That Restitution Under Victim Act Is Part of the Punishment By Cully Stimson
The debate conducted at the Virginia Military Institute over the question of whether “the U.S. is experiencing a constitutional crisis” on October 1st, 2025.
Don Smith was raised in Richmond and attended UVA. His mother was born in a cabin outside of Lexington, Virginia--a cabin her grandfather, a veteran of the 14th Virginia Calvary, built after the Civil War.
Thomas J., “Stonewall” Jackson, was unique in many ways.
He came from a disadvantaged background. He lost his parents in his childhood and was raised by an indifferent uncle. He was dirt-poor. He represents the vast majority of Virginians in the 1900s, who had to work hard just to stay alive. He was not a “First Family of Virginia” Cavalier.
He was a self-made man. Jackson was ranked at the very bottom of his class when he entered West Point. He was one of the worst-performing students in his plebe class. Yet, through sheer will and incredibly hard work, he eventually graduated near the top of his class, especially in mathematics. While teaching at VMI, he invested wisely and made himself into a relatively prosperous man. He did not inherit huge plantations or sums of wealth.
His battlefield exploits were extraordinary. Stonewall Jackson was, and still is, one of America’s most accomplished battlefield generals. This is from the cover of Rebel Yell, a biography of Jackson written by S.C. Gwynne. Gwynne was a bureau chief and senior editor for Time magazine, and a Pulitzer Prize finalist:
In April 1862 Jackson was merely another Confederate general fighting for what seemed to be an increasingly desperate cause. By June he had engineered perhaps the greatest military campaign in American history and was one of the most famous men in the Western world. Jackson’s strategic innovations shattered the conventional wisdom of how war was waged: he was so far ahead of his time that his techniques would be studied generations in the future.”
During World War II, George Patton told Eisenhower that he wanted to be Ike’s Stonewall Jackson. Marine hero Chesty Puller carried a biography of Stonewall with him. Garnet Wolsey, who later commanded the British Army in the late 19th century, interviewed Jackson n 1862, and later wrote this about him: ”With such a leader men would go anywhere, and face any amount of difficulties; and for myself, I believe that, inspired by the presence of such a man, I should be perfectly insensible to fatigue, and reckon upon success as a moral certainty.”
His support for African-Americans, given the times he lived in, was extraordinary. Jackson founded, funded and operated a Sunday School for slaves, at a time when (a) it was illegal to help slaves learn to read and write in Virginia and (b) many whites remembered the deadly Nat Turner raid in the 1830s. Prominent Lexington citizens threatened Jackson with legal action if he kept the school open---and Jackson refused! He put himself and his family at personal, financial and professional risk for African-Americans. Jackson’s Civil War service was, first and foremost, for Virginia. Personally, Jackson opposed secession. But he was loyal to his state---Virginia was, in his mind and heart, his country.
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