See below for some video, tweets, etc. from (late) last night as the Virginia General Assembly went into overtime, while reaching a budget deal, passing a minimum wage increase, providing drivers licenses for all, etc, etc. Of course, that’s only a very small sampling of what Democrats accomplished this past session, and not *everything* was positive (e.g., the fatally flawed redistricting amendment, unfortunately, was rammed through, largely thanks to Republicans and a few highly confused – or something – Democrats, including Sen. Dick Saslaw, Sen. Louise Lucas, Del. Schuyler VanValkenburg, etc.). Still, overall, this was an historic session, with highly significant – and in many cases, highly progressive – legislation passed in just about every area imaginable.
So…thanks to Democratic legislators, who assumed the majority and overwhelmingly – with a few exceptions, which I’m sure we’ll get more into after session is 100% over and we’ve had time to digest things – lived up to (and, in some cases, surpassed) expectations. Congratulations to Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn and her entire leadership team, including committee chairs, and the rank-and-file as well. A bunch of these folks are *really* talented and impressive, including ones that I’d never seen shine in previous sessions, before Democrats took charge.
As for Senate Majority Leader Saslaw, let’s just say he’s a complicated guy, with some *very* strong points – for instance, he really did seem to squeeze as much as could be squeezed out of his very narrow (21-19), relatively conservative majority in the State Senate – and then some really weak points, such as when he loses his cool and starts spouting off, as he did about the redistricting amendment and also his obnoxious, classless uncalled-for last night about Speaker Filler-Corn. But…that’s Dick Saslaw for you – certainly a skilled and experienced – going back to the Stone Age or whatever, lol – legislator, but also can be cringeworthy, embarrassing, obnoxious, etc.
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