(I just tweeted: “Only 4-6 #Virginia Sen. GOPers for @BobMcDonnell’s transpo bill means McD needs 15-17 Dems (out of 20). Better hold out on #Medicaid, Dems!!” – promoted by lowkell)
Here are a few Virginia (and national) news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, February 23. Also, check out President Obama’s weekly address, in which he urges Congressional Republicans to stop threatening the economy and to fix “sequestration” by passing a balanced plan of revenues and spending cuts.
*Top Dems Reject House GOP’s Violence Against Women Act: ‘Simply Unacceptable’ (“Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the author of VAWA, derided the legislation as ‘partisan’ and said it omits critical measures designed to protect vulnerable populations like Native Americans, immigrants and the gay and lesbian community.”)
*Kaine says he’s optimistic for sequester deal (We’ll see…)
*Get back to work on military matters (“Absent agreement in Congress next week on federal budget cuts, Hampton Roads will be forced into an austerity mode it hasn’t seen in decades.”)
*Rick Scott bows to reality in Medicaid decision (If freakin’ Rick Freakin’ Scott can do it, then Transvaginal Bob can too! LOL)
*McAuliffe a factor in House transportation vote (T-Mac’s campaign must have calculated that this will help him politically, positioning him as a “reasonable” “centrist” in contrast to far-right-wing Cuckoo. I sure hope his campaign is right, that’s all I can say!)
*Speaker to delegates: road vote won’t cost you re-election (Let me get this straight: Democrats are handing Bob McDonnell a “legacy” by providing crucial votes for a mediocre-at-best transportation plan, and in return they won’t even be helped politically in November? Wow, that sounds…[fill in your own snarky adjective here]!)
*Is the proposed Medicaid panel constitutional?
*Senate Adjourns Without Voting on Highways Bill
*Senate postpones transportation vote; Democrats seek agreement on Medicaid (“‘There’s some dissatisfaction with the transportation plan anyway, so it’s key that we have that Medicaid expansion’ agreement, said Sen. Janet Howell, D-Fairfax County, a Senate budget negotiator.”)
*State budget negotiators working on Medicaid compromise
*House of Delegates passes transportation compromise
*Va. transportation plan clears House, stalls in Senate (“…several senators said the governor had agreed Thursday night to go along with the Medicaid compromise to pave the way for the transportation bill.”)
*House District #43 (The latest in NLS’ continuing series on Virginia HoD districts…)
*Some GOP delegates favor over-the-counter birth control
*Gun initiatives short of what’s necessary
*General Assembly toughens penalties for straw gun purchasers (That’s fine, but it’s also wildly inadequate to what is needed.)
*Conferees reach tentative deal on statewide school division funds
*Senator Warner encourages Chesapeake City Council to ‘reconsider’ rezoning
*Two Va. congressional offices evacuated due to suspicious letters
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