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After WaPo Article on Potomac Yard Arena Assumptions of $75 Parking, $731-Per-Night Hotel Rooms, etc. Sen. Louise Lucas Says She’s “flabbergasted” at This “bad deal for Virginia”

By
lowkell
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6

After reading this new WaPo article on the “rosy” assumptions behind Glenn Youngkin’s deal with Ted Leonsis for a new arena in Potomac Yard, I couldn’t agree more with Sen. Louise Lucas on this:

“I am flabbergasted about the [information] that continues to surface as proof that the Glenn-Dome at Potomac Yard is a bad deal for Virginia. No-brainer and anybody with 2 cents worth of common sense would agree.”

What Sen. Lucas is referring to is stuff like this:

  • “the financing plan assumes thousands of fans will pay $75 for parking, the teams’ owner will host 53 more events annually in Alexandria than it did last year at its current D.C. arena, and a new luxury hotel will book rooms at a ‘historically unprecedented’ rate of $731 a night.“
  • “Those forecasts require the state to collect $75 per parking space during sports games and concerts — far more than parking generally costs in the region — and $30 to $50 for other events.”
  • “Monumental also projected that its 2,200 underground spaces would be filled before fans park elsewhere, despite there being more affordable lots that exist nearby.”
  • “To get to 221 events, Monumental projected that it would host 133 concerts and other events annually beyond NBA and NHL games at the new arena. But of the eight comparable arenas, only Madison Square Garden in Manhattan — ‘an iconic venue in the nation’s largest market’ — hosted that many last year, according to MuniCap.”

Does any of that seem reasonable to you? (if so, what are you smoking? LOL) And the problem, of course, is that “Under the terms of the agreement, taxpayers in Virginia and Alexandria would be on the hook if revenue were too low to cover the debt.”  Why would lawmakers sign on to this? Got me…

Friends of Chesterfield Praises Central Virginia Delegation for Opposition to Dominion’s Proposed Gas Plant

By
Blue Virginia
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5

See below for a press release from Friends of Chesterfield praising “nine area legislators for releasing a statement in opposition to the methane-fired power plant proposed by Dominion Energy for Chesterfield County.” Bottom line: utilities like Dominion Energy should be focused on energy efficiency (the cheapest “form” of energy and “biggest bang for the buck”) and CLEAN/CHEAP energy – solar, wind, etc. – rather than locking in decades of extensive, dirty fossil fuel-generated power.

Friends of Chesterfield Praises Central Virginia Delegation for Opposition to Dominion’s Proposed Gas Plant

CHESTERFIELD, VA – Friends of Chesterfield County praised nine area legislators for releasing a statement in opposition to the methane-fired power plant proposed by Dominion Energy for Chesterfield County. 

Senators Hashmi (D – Chesterfield), Bagby (D – Richmond) and Aird (D – Henrico) as well as Delegates Gardner (D – Chesterfield), Jones (D – Richmond), McQuinn (D – Henrico), Carr (D – Richmond), Cousins (D – Richmond), and Willett (D – Henrico) issued a joint statement raising objections to Dominion’s project, citing concerns over air pollution, environmental justice and climate impacts inconsistent with state law: 

“…Dominion Energy’s current pursuit of permits to build a new gas-fired power plant in Chesterfield County undermines the state’s transition to clean and renewable energy. Dominion Energy .. must take a prominent leadership role in the transition to clean, affordable, and reliable energy for the millions of Virginians it serves.”

Formed last year in response to the project,Friends of Chesterfield has organized multiple community events focused on educating the community surrounding the proposed plant about potential health, financial and environmental impacts.

“Hundreds of community members have raised concerns  about toxic air pollution and rising power bills since learning of Dominion’s plans for yet another  power plant in Chesterfield County,” said Jason Woodby, a founding member of Friends of Chesterfield and high school science teacher in the county. Residents in the area have lived next door to Dominion’s coal-fired power plant, the Chesterfield Power Station, for nearly 80 years. “It is reassuring to know that our state representatives have heard our concerns.”

“The neighborhood where Dominion proposes to construct this gas plant is a textbook definition of an overburdened environmental justice community, with a majority of people of color and 37% of households living below the poverty line,” noted Aliya Farooq, also a founding member of Friends of Chesterfield County.. “Given the significant potential for harm to the community, we urge the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors to deny Dominion Energy’s zoning application to move forward with the gas plant.”

Dominion Energy filed its zoning application for the gas plant with the county on January 31, and the project is currently under review by the county planning department. The Chesterfield Board of Supervisors is expected to hear the zoning case this summer.  

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Friends of Chesterfield is a community-based group in Chesterfield County dedicated to bringing residents together around the issues that impact our lives.  Currently, we are focused on organizing opposition to Dominion Energy’s proposed gas-fired plant because it will raise electric bills and emit toxic air pollutants, impacting the health and wellbeing of Chesterfield residents.

VPAP’s 2024 Virginia General Assembly “Batting Averages”…Presented with the Usual Slew of Caveats

By
lowkell
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3

Courtesy of VPAP, it’s “batting average” time for the 2024 Virginia General Assembly. See below for screenshots and highlights. First, though, see here for the usual caveats, including:

  • These numbers can be *highly* misleading if you look at them the wrong way, or if you fail to present the numbers with explanation, important context, etc.
  • Also, as Cindy Cunningham explained back in 2019, “There are many, many ways that a legislator might end up with a low ‘batting average’ on the VPAP scorecard. The legislator might, in fact, put in lots of ill-conceived bills–ideas that haven’t really been thought through very well, poorly designed plays.”
  • Or, “a legislator might also end up with a low score by putting in lots of controversial or partisan bills.”
  • “On the flip side, a sure way to get a high score is to put in a lot of relatively sleepy little bills–clean up some badly-worded or vague section of the code, solve some minor local problem, be the patron of one of the many, many bills that are voted through unanimously – ‘in the uncontested block.’”
  • “…a legislator may get a high score for having a good sense of what can or cannot pass, for working hard with stakeholders and other legislators before and during the process to tweak the language so that it will have as little opposition as possible, for being willing to amend on the fly as needed. Think of this as playing good, smart, fundamentally sound baseball.”
  • “But just like a win-loss record is a poor measure of how your pitcher did, and how ‘advanced sabermetrics’ are far more revealing, this VPAP ‘batting average’ is a poor metric for how our legislators did.”
  • Also worth looking at, along with the % of patroned bills passed, is how many bills each legislator put in, and how many total bills passed. Thus, clearly having a 100% batting average is not nearly the same thing if you patroned one or two bills that passed versus, let’s say, 40-50 bills, of which perhaps half or two-thirds passed. And again, one really needs to look at how complex, “significant,” etc. each bill is, as well as how much time/effort was required of the patron to get it passed, how much help they had in doing so, etc.
  • This year, we saw House Democrats kill a LOT of Republicans’ bills, many of which were far right, extreme, crazy, etc. And Senate Democrats killed almost all right-wingnut, anti-environment, etc. bills by Republicans. So keep that in mind as you look at the “batting averages.”
  • Finally, it’s important to keep in mind that different members of the General Assembly have different roles. Thus, someone in leadership might spend a big chunk of their time…well, leading! As opposed, that is, to worrying as much about their own bills. Or maybe they try to do both. But regardless, the point is, again we’re somewhat comparing apples/oranges/bananas here.
  • With all those caveats, there’s an argument that, perhaps, “batting averages” and statistics like the following aren’t even worth presenting. Or maybe they’re worse than nothing, as they could be misleading? I’d argue that, yes, that’s all true, if you just take the “batting averages” alone, and don’t do some serious “advanced sabermetrics,” as Cindy notes. In short, I’d use the following numbers to *start* a conversation, most definitely not to *end* it. With that…here are the numbers, with a few things that jumped out at me (above each graphic)…

Overall, in the 2024 General Assembly, 46% of introduced bills ended up passing – up slightly from 43% last year and 40% in 2022, but down from 57% in 2021. By party, House Republicans passed 26% of their introduced bills, while House Democrats passed 53%. Senate Republicans passed 40% of their introduced bills – compared to 63% for Senate Democrats.  Male delegates passed 37% of their introduced bills vs. 51% for female delegates. And male Senators passed 53% of their introduced bills vs. 55% for female Senators.  Delegates with just 0-4 years of seniority passed just 37% of their introduced bills while those with 11-15 years of seniority passed 53% of their introduced bills. You can slice and dice these numbers any way you’d like, so play around with it on VPAP if you’re so inclined.

There’s tons of information here, but a few things that jumped out at me were (in no particular order):

  • Not surprisingly, some of the most extreme/MAGA and non-serious State Senators –  insurrectionist John McGuire (2/15), Glen Sturtevant (who’s morphed from being a relatively “moderate” Republican to a male version of Amanda Chase – 3/20), hard-right Tammy Mulchi (1/6) and Mark Peake (3/21), etc. – had the lowest “batting averages” – all under 20%. Pitiful. By the way, John McGuire went 1/12 last year in the House of Delegates, making him a godawful 3/27 combined over the past two years. Great, huh? Definitely worth a promotion to the US House? LOL
  • On the other hand, the highest “batting averages” in the State Senate were almost all Democrats – Mamie Locke (21/25, or 84%); Scott Surovell (27/33, or 82%); Russet Perry (12/15, or 80%); Barbara Favola (23/29, or 79%); Aaron Rouse (19/24, or 79%); Lamont Bagby (16/21, or 76%); Adam Ebbin (19/25, or 76%). Nice job!
  • In the House of Delegates, the worst “batting averages” were pretty much all far-right/MAGA Republicans, with some of the worst being Tom Garrett (0/24); Phillip Scott (0/20); Mark Earley (0/17); Tim Griffin (0/16); Nick Freitas (1/13); Wendell Walker (2/25); AC Cordoza (3/29); etc. Note that Freitas went 0/16 last year, making him 1/29 over the past two years – pretty close to completely worthless as a legislator, whether Republicans or Democrats are in charge – but he sure does like bloviating on the House floor!
  • Overwhelmingly, the highest “batting averages” in the House of Delegates were Democrats – Michelle Maldonado (24/28, or 86%); Atoosa Reaser (9/11, or 82%); Katrina Callsen (11/14, or 79%); Sam Rasoul (16/21, or 76%); Jeion Ward (6/8, or 75%); etc. The lowest-scoring Dems were mostly first-year delegates (e.g., Josh Thomas went 3/16, Mary Martinez went 5/21, Karen Keys-Gamarra went 5/17, Amy Laufer went 4/13), although other first-year delegates like Atoosa Reaser (9/11) and Katrina Callsen (11/14) – as noted above – did VERY well. So…not sure what the low scores were all about in those cases.

So what jumps out for you in these statistics?

Thursday News: “This ‘election’ won’t kickstart any change in Russia – but a defeat for Putin in Ukraine can”; Immigration Surge “could allow the job market to keep booming without stoking inflation”; “The special counsel was unfair to Biden and his transcript proves it”

By
lowkell
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23

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, March 14.

Video: Sen. Mark Warner on Grave Dangers to the 2024 Elections; the Supreme Court Undermining Its Legitimacy Through Extreme Rulings and Lack of Ethics Code; the Failure of Social Media Companies to Rein in Disinformation and Hate Speech; etc.

By
lowkell
-
9

See below for video of a fascinating interview with Sen. Mark Warner by the Center for American Progress yesterday, on the Murthy v. Missouri case, which Sen. Warner says “might be the most impactful Supreme Court case you haven’t heard of yet…this case could have HUGE ramifications for the future of communication between the government and Big Tech.” A few highlights from the interview include Sen. Warner saying the following:

  • “In a way, I was actually surprised that other public figures didn’t weigh in more formatively. This case, which was generated by far-right attorneys general, is trying to stop the voluntary communications between the social media platforms and entities like the FBI or NSA or CISA, and in a realm where those kind of conversations in the past have always been voluntary, particularly when it comes to the questions around foreign election interference, I think it is really really troubling the implications of this case and god forbid if it would actually be upheld by the Supreme Court.”
  • “This [Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election] was not some benign effort of Russia to…float some memes or put forward some bots; it was a organized effort by the Russian spy services…to meaningfully infiltrate our system to pit Americans against Americans…It was very very powerful and I would urge people as they think about this case…and it really caught both the American government and the social media companies off guard.”
  • “The real-world consequences…we’re seeing them play out right now, because after July 5th of last year, even though there was a stay put in place, there have been no communications…the voluntary communications where if we were to see a foreign malign actor trying to interfere in our elections or if Facebook were to see evidence of that kind of activity, in the past we would share that information – it made us better prepared in 2018, better prepared in 2020…unfortunately…we are now in March of 24, months away from our next national election, and I feel we are less prepared today for the 24 elections than we were at the corresponding time in the 20 elections, partially due to this case, partially due to the fact that there are a greater number of Americans who don’t trust anything in our electoral system, partially due as well to the fact that countries like Russia but also China, Iran and others have a a much higher interest in interfering in our elections…and then you have this whole new scale of tools that can be brought to bear with AI.“
  • “Unfortunately, we’ve seen a company like Twitter that was fairly forward leaning on some of these issues, obviously under Musk completely retreat from the space. We’ve seen Facebook as well cut back on some of their efforts. I think the same with with Google and YouTube…”
  • “I think we can catch up. But I think one of the things that’s taken place beyond the direct election interference, we have seen the whole tenor of conversation of what is kind of within the bounds of traditional politics greatly expand…it’s called expanding the Overton Window, where…often times race baited, anti Semitic kind of the things that were beyond the bounds, now the social media companies allowing more and more, oftentimes violating their own terms of service. And the…far right has bullied them into not even adhering to their own terms of service, which by people participating on their platforms were supposed to be agreeing to abide by those terms of service, and the platforms are not enforcing those. So we are behind. I think my committee and others need to do a better job of putting the public on notice, and we will be holding hearings in a public setting. I’m trying privately and publicly to force the Biden Administration to raise the focus on this; I’d like to know who in the administrations is in charge of election protection overall – I don’t think I know that right now.”
  • “The AI tools which can bring this level of manipulation  through deep fakes, both video and audio; we’ve already seen the voice deep fake of Biden in New Hampshire in terms of a robocall. We need an immediate response mechanism, because with AI tools, this can happen at a speed and scale that frankly I’m not sure we’re fully prepared for… The notion that we couldn’t do this or wouldn’t be able to do this on a timely and voluntary cooperation basis is just stunning to me, and again goes back to your initial question of why I filed the amicus brief. This is a big big deal, and people across the political spectrum who want our elections to maintain their independence ought to be concerned.”
  • “AI tools – and we’re starting to see these already as they roll out – can have, you see something or hear something and if seeing and hearing is supposed to be the old way…we validate stuff, seeing and hearing is no longer the validation tool, because the AI tools will get so good, so quickly that if there’s not that watermarking that indicates to a consumer, no this is altered content, you could have real chaos.”
  • “When the courts get so far out of the mainstream…when the political debate goes so far out of the mainstream…that is a a cauldron of pretty potent forces.”
  • “The Supreme Court in particular, at the end of the day, as a non-elected body, has to rely on trust that it’s going to play down the middle, that it’s going to be fair and impartial. And taking what had been settled…around the right to choose and overthrowing that with the Dobbs decision, I think went a bit to the heart of that trust. On top of that, the fact that the court has failed to put in place a set of ethics requirements...some of the reports at least about Judge Thomas’s level of of gifts and favors received…I think the court needs to be self-aware enough that each of these actions all become cumulative when you add them all together. And it undermines the trust the people have in the court.  There have been conservative courts, there have been liberal courts, and you could argue in many ways we’ve had a  conservative court almost since President President Reagan. But it still had legitimacy. But when it goes beyond, when it throws out a Roe v Wade with the Dobbs decision, when it has members of the Court appearing to take gifts that don’t pass the smell test, when you’ve got a justice in Justice Thomas, who at least appears is willing to recuse himself on some of the cases involving President Trump’s efforts to overthrow the 2020 elections, when it appears again fairly obvious that his wife was actively engaged in those activities, that the cumulative effect of all that I think really undermines the Court’s legitimacy in many ways. And I think that is bad news, because when that trust is lost, it can’t be replaced overnight; even if the the court suddenly became less conservative and became more moderate…once you lose this kind of faith, it is a currency that cannot be quickly restored.”

 

Sen. Mark Warner, Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA07) Applaud U.S. House Vote to Force Divestiture of TikTok From Chinese-Owned Parent Company

By
lowkell
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6

See below for statements from Sen. Mark Warner, Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA07), and others as they are available, on today’s passage by the U.S. House of legislation “to require that TikTok sever ties with its parent company, ByteDance, in order to continue to operate in the United States.”

WARNER, RUBIO APPLAUD HOUSE PASSAGE OF BILL TO PROTECT AMERICANS FROM FOREIGN ADVERSARY CONTROLLED APPLICATIONS INCLUDING TIKTOK 

WASHINGTON – Today, after the House voted 352-65 to pass the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Vice Chairman Marco Rubio (R-FL) issued the following statement: 

“We are united in our concern about the national security threat posed by TikTok – a platform with enormous power to influence and divide Americans whose parent company ByteDance remains legally required to do the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party. We were encouraged by today’s strong bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives, and look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law.”

******************

Spanberger Statement on U.S. House Vote to Force Divestiture of TikTok From Chinese-Owned Parent Company

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger today released the following statement after voting with a bipartisan majority of the U.S. House of Representatives to require that TikTok sever ties with its parent company, ByteDance, in order to continue to operate in the United States.

“As a former intelligence officer and current Member of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, I’ve long been aware of the national security threats posed by ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok and the risks to American users. The U.S. intelligence community has consistently warned that TikTok is a tool within control of the Chinese government — and the Chinese Communist Party is capable of using the app to undermine democratic elections, weaponize propaganda, and stifle free speech across the globe.

“As a Chinese-owned company, TikTok’s parent company ByteDance is required to comply with the Chinese Communist Party’s surveillance demands — and it is required to comply with requests to turn over user data. TikTok’s ability to be exploited by the CCP’s influence and espionage campaigns is a serious threat.

“This bill is not an outright ban. If TikTok is going to be on the phones of Americans, then Congress must work to remove the influence of the Chinese Communist Party from the app — as this bill does through a forced divestiture. As lawmakers, we have a responsibility to protect the data of the American people and keep our country safe online.”

Donald Trump’s Extreme Agenda Is a Huge Electoral Problem – And It’s Not Going Away

By
Blue Virginia
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2

From the Biden campaign:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 13, 2024

Donald Trump’s Extreme Agenda Is a Huge Electoral Problem – And It’s Not Going Away

Trump was hit particularly hard in the Atlanta suburbs where his extreme agenda is particularly toxic, continuing his trend of losing in the places and with the voters who will decide this election

Donald Trump put up a weak showing in battleground Georgia last night, losing over 77,000 votes to the ghost of Nikki Haley, despite Haley not ever campaigning or running ads in the state. These results show real weakness for Trump in the Republican coalition. Trump looked particularly weak in the Atlanta suburbs, including in DeKalb County where Haley got 40% of the vote, Cobb County where she received 23% of the vote, and Fulton County where she got 38%. As a reminder, President Biden defeated Donald Trump in Georgia by 11,800 votes in 2020.

Trump’s underperformance with swing voters last night comes on the heels of other weak performances for Trump among similar demographics in early primary states:

  • In Michigan, Trump underperformed in suburban areas like Oakland and Washtenaw counties near Detroit, and Ottawa and Kent counties near Grand Rapids.
  • In South Carolina, Haley beat Trump in three suburban and college areas by double digits.
  • In North Carolina, Haley overperformed in Durham, Mecklenburg, Orange, and Wake counties – key suburban areas; that puts the state in play in November.
  • In Virginia, Haley won DC suburbs that are similar to key suburban areas across the battleground states – Fairfax, Alexandria, and Arlington.
  • In Minnesota, Haley overperformed in the Minneapolis suburbs and outright won Denver County in Colorado.
  • NBC News exit polls had Trump losing moderates by 30 points in North Carolina and 38 points in Virginia.
  • CNN exit polling shows Trump losing by 16 points with independent voters in Virginia.

In response to this embarrassment for Donald Trump, Biden-Harris 2024 Communications Director and Atlanta native Michael Tyler released the following statement:

“Trump spent the day Nikki Haley dropped out of the race mocking Haley’s voters. What he doesn’t get is that the joke is on him: Haley’s voters continue to make it crystal clear that Donald Trump is not building a coalition that can win in November. Suburban, moderate, and independent voters are rejecting Trump’s divisive rhetoric and extreme policies. And it’s no surprise – Donald Trump is running on the same extreme MAGA agenda that has cost Republicans election after election: threatening democracy,  overturning Roe, passing a national abortion ban, repealing the Affordable Care Act, and cutting Medicare and Social Security.

“President Biden, on the other hand, is focused on coalition-building and being a president for all Americans. Every day until November the president and our campaign will reach out to all voters who support preserving American democracy, standing up for the rule of law, and treating each other with decency, dignity, and respect.”

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Paid for by Biden for President

Wednesday News: “Hur’s testimony undermines some key GOP claims on Biden”; “Top NAACP Boss Warns of ‘Nazism Part Two’ if Trump Is Elected”; “Adjudicated Rapist Who Attempted A Coup On Jan. 6, Clinches GOP Nomination”; “Yoon makes history, confirmed as Western District judge”

By
lowkell
-
23

by Lowell

Here are a few international, national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Wednesday, March 13.

ICYMI: Virginia Democrats Wrapped Up 2024 Legislative Session With Major Accomplishments

By
Blue Virginia
-
2

From the DLCC:

ICYMI: Virginia Democrats Wrapped Up 2024 Legislative Session With Major Accomplishments

WASHINGTON —  The 2024 Virginia legislative session ended over the weekend, and the progress made by the new fully controlled Democratic majority in the legislature was on full display. Virginia Democrats passed a progressive slate of bills, including strengthening schools and the economy, bolstering reproductive rights, and improving gun safety. Democrats also killed dangerous GOP bills that would have undermined voting access and threatened reproductive freedom.

This legislative session shows that elections have consequences. Democrats are delivering on their promise to fight to help Virginia communities succeed.  In November, after investing over $2.2 million to win both chambers, the DLCC and our partners won majorities in both legislative chambers in Virginia, protecting reproductive rights for millions of Virginians and giving Democrats full legislative control in a key political battleground state. Now, the Democratic agenda for both majorities stands in stark contrast to Republicans’ MAGA extremism – including their plan to pass an abortion ban – and illustrates the full effects of what happens when Democrats lead the state legislature.

Because of Democratic victories, one of the first bills passed and signed into law from this new session codified marriage rights for same-sex couples into law, a proposal which had previously been blocked by Republicans in the legislature.

The following Democratic bills were among those sent to Gov Youngkin’s desk.

  • HB 1 would raise the minimum wage to $13.50 starting in 2025, and $15 by 2026.
  • HB 2 would ban assault weapons.
  • HB 819 would require health insurance companies to provide coverage for contraception for all plans in VA.
  • HB 519 would ban the Board of Medicine from taking disciplinary actions against doctors who provide abortion care.
  • HB 187 would fund education and gives teachers the support they need with pay raises.
  • HB 174 codifies marriage rights for same-sex couples into law.

Meanwhile, the Virginia Democratic majority killed the following GOP bills:

  • HB 404 would have denied any state funds to hospitals that provide and refer patients to abortion care.
  • HB44 would have cut the number of days voters can vote early in-person from 45 days to 30 days.

Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams issued the following statement:

“The progress made by Virginia legislative Democrats this session is exactly why the DLCC and our partners worked tirelessly to deliver the majority in November. Elections matter. If Republicans had won last November, we would be talking today about a newly imposed abortion ban taking away rights from millions. Instead, Democrats have placed bill after bill on the Governor’s desk to move the commonwealth forward and secure progress for their constituents.

“This is a concrete example of how state legislative Democrats lead – they keep GOP extremism in check and focus on strengthening reproductive rights, gun safety, and economic security. Building on our recent wins in Virginia, the DLCC has the most expansive target map to date in 2024 so we can continue building Democratic power across the country.”

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) is the official Democratic Party committee dedicated to winning America’s state legislatures and building state infrastructure. Over the last decade, we have fought cycle-over-cycle to gain a dozen new legislative chamber majorities and we are leading the effort to bring national attention and investment to our ballot level. State legislatures are the building blocks of our democracy and have the closest connections to Americans’ day-to-day lives. From protecting fundamental freedoms and voting rights to growing the middle class, the DLCC and state legislators are moving the Democratic agenda forward and shaping the future of this country.

NEW AD: Virginia Mom Calls on Governor Youngkin to Sign the Right to Contraception Act

By
Blue Virginia
-
1

From Americans for Contraception:

NEW AD: Virginia Mom Calls on Governor Youngkin to Sign the Right to Contraception Act
RICHMOND, Va. – In a powerful new ad running statewide on OTT, Ann, a Virginia mom of twins, calls on Governor Glenn Youngkin to sign the Right to Contraception Act, which passed both chambers of the General Assembly and currently awaits his signature.

The landmark legislation, which is patroned by Senator Ghazala Hashmi (D-Chesterfield) and Delegate Marcia “Cia” Price (D-Newport News), would codify the right to contraception in Virginia – including the right to use condoms, the pill, and IUDs.

The Americans for Contraception ad, aimed at raising awareness and rallying public support, highlights the critical importance of protecting personal freedoms and ensuring access to contraception for all Virginians.

Speaking from her experience and concern as a parent, Ann shares her support for the legislation and the difference it can make in Virginians’ lives.

“As a parent, you worry about your child’s future. That’s why I was glad to see the Virginia legislature pass the Right to Contraception Act,” she says in the advertisement, underscoring the bipartisan backing for contraceptive access.

The ad then calls on Governor Youngkin to demonstrate his commitment to Virginia’s health and freedom by signing the bill. “Tell Governor Youngkin it’s time to break with his party and do the right thing,” implores Ann, highlighting the urgent need for leadership to protect reproductive freedoms.

Click here to watch the Ad “Ann’s Plea”:
 
Recent polling shows that Right to Contraception legislation is supported by eight out of ten voters, including Democrats (94%), Independents (76%), and Republicans (68%). It resonates equally with various genders, ages, and racial groups.

Americans for Contraception is also running a digital ad calling on Governor Youngkin to sign the bill. The ads began March 10.

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