Just in case you missed the latest unhinged rantings/ravings by 2013 Virginia GOP nominee for Lt. Governor E.W. Jackson. Enjoy (?).

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Sunday, July 12. Also check out David Letterman’s Top 10 list on Donald Trump.

*‘Hillarynomics’: A sneak preview (“The candidate’s first major econ speech on Monday zeroes in on middle-class wages; goes after corporations, the 1%, and Uber.”)

*Donald Trump: ‘Take back the heart of our country’ (“Illegal immigrants, the Mexican government, Macy’s, NBC and fellow GOP candidate Jeb Bush were among the targets of his scorn in an Arizona speech.”)

*Compromise on Greece eludes Europeans

*White House contenders Trump, Bush in virtual dead heat: Reuters/Ipsos poll

*Can Hillary Clinton lead the Keystone army? (“The Democratic candidates are fighting for the support of an army of liberal green activists.”)

*Bernie Sanders Parrots the NRA (“The left’s favorite presidential candidate parrots gun nuts and even voted to protect gun manufacturers from lawsuits.”)

*GOP must destroy Donald Trump before he destroys them. It may already be too late (“Trump is the latest Joseph McCarthy or George Wallace. The GOP must excise the poison. History says they won’t”)

*America is ready for socialism! Massive majorities back Bernie Sanders on the issues – and disdain Donald Trump

*Kaine: The twofold mission for Congress

*Brink: Landmark anniversaries for the nation’s safety net (“As the Older Americans Act enters its second half century, its mission of improving the lives of our nation’s older adults faces significant challenges.”)

*Va. Republican Party offers ‘Hillary Clinton Press Lasso’ (Lovely.)

*Schapiro: McDonnell’s options for avoiding prison fading fast

*Dynamic Dominion would explore race relations

*What denying Medicaid expansion looks like

*More than 1,000 see ex-President Carter at Costco

*McDonnell supporters urge donations to his legal defense

*Chesapeake homeowners get six months to connect to city services

*Is a casino in Va.’s future now that the Pamunkey have U.S. recognition?

*Amid rapid change, Sons of Confederate Veterans will regroup in Richmond

*Hard feelings over school boundaries prompt alleged assault in Virginia

*Election workers resign in protest of Botetourt registrar’s ouster

*Espinosa hits a key three-run homer to lead the Nats over the O’s

*D.C. area forecast: A sunny and shower-free Sunday, before daily storm chances return

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Saturday, July 11. Also see President Obama’s weekly address, in which he “discusses a new rule announced by his Administration to make it easier for communities to implement the Fair Housing Act.”

*Psychologists Shielded U.S. Torture Efforts, Report Finds (Anyone who participated in torturing, authorizing torture or abetting it needs to face charges and posssibly jail time for war crimes.)

*Marco Rubio vows he’ll take away women’s right to choose ‘at home and around the world’ (Disgusting, but so Republican.)

*After defiance, Greece poised to accept austerity

*Blame John Boehner for the House GOP’s Confederate flag fiasco

*Don’t believe Mr. Boehner’s latest phony excuse on immigration

*FBI: Breakdown in background check system allowed Dylann Roof to buy gun

*Reddit’s Faction of Racist Trolls Celebrates CEO Ellen Pao’s Resignation

*Pat Buchanan warns of another Civil War: The time of mass right-wing civil disobedience is at hand (This guy has always been a racist, anti-Semite, etc. The questiona are, why has the media accepted him as legitimate, and why has he had such a large following in the Republican Party?)

*Scott Walker Poised To Give Payday Lenders Radical New Powers To Prey On The Poor (Another reason to despise this guy.)

*Court rejects ex-Va. Gov. McDonnell’s bid to have convictions thrown out

*Editorial: Bob McDonnell’s conviction stands (“The decision also delivers a warning – not that any further warning was needed – to Virginia’s political class. The commonwealth’s casual culture of the gift is no longer acceptable, and those who sustain it could be writing themselves a ticket to prison.” Tommy Norment? Bill Howell? Dick Saslaw? You guys paying attention here?)

*Roanoke Democratic chair Charles Withers reportedly plans to resign

*Why does Virginia have a road named after Jefferson Davis? (Answer: It shouldn’t.)

*Small business customers targeted in Dominion Virginia Power scam, officials say

*I-95 express lanes continue to rake in the money, ringing up $15 million in the second quarter

*McAuliffe rips toll deal, announces relief for Portsmouth motorists

*VA official: South Hampton Roads veterans care center ‘high priority’

*Contractors say data breach hurts hiring for Navy work in Hampton Roads

*Orioles beat Nats 3-2 as Roark gives up 9th-inning home run to Schoop

*D.C. area forecast: Rain focuses D.C. and south this morning, then drying; Quite sunny on Sunday

( – promoted by lowkell)

Several news outlets throughout Virginia are reporting that Danville City Councilmember Larry Campbell and his family are being threatened by some group over his pursuit in removing the Confederate flag from the Sutherlin Mansion.  Two other Virginians have been cited as having been threatened by the group as well.

It is incredibly disturbing and saddening to think that intimidation is blooming within the southern portion of Virginia.  I am dismayed that rather than writing a letter to the editor, staging a protest, starting a petition or launching a campaign that a group would instead threaten a person and their family.  The fact that a group of people believed that these tactics would not only work, but were preferable against all other options suggests that some small faction of society has lost their ability to reason.  The absence of logic and respect is astounding.

Virginia should be grateful that Councilmember Larry Campbell has not allowed these threats to alter his course.  By continuing to stand for and pursue what he believes in he not only discourages such behavior but also illustrates true leadership.

Links:   GoDanRiver

WDBJ 7

Here are a few excerpts from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit opinion in the Bob McDonnell corruption case. A correct one, IMHO, as I always saw quid-pro-quo corruption here. Now, Virginia needs to toughen up its almost non-existent ethics laws so that crap that’s “legal” right now becomes illegal. Of course, that would crimp the style of “legalized corruption” people such as Bill “ALEC” Howell, Tommy Norment Dick Saslaw, etc., but too bad.

*”Appellant appeals his convictions, alleging a multitude of errors…Upon consideration of each of Appellant’s contentions, we conclude that the jury’s verdict must stand and that the district court’s judgment should be affirmed.”

*”The jury also found Mrs. McDonnell guilty of eight counts of corruption and one count of obstruction of an official proceeding. The jury found her not guilty of three counts of corruption and one count of making a false statement. Her appeal is not at issue here, as it is pursued separately.”

*”Appellant contends that he was entitled to a trial separate from the trial of Mrs. McDonnell…Appellant simply failed to provide adequate justification for his claim that a severance was warranted. He was not entitled to an ex parte examination of his evidence; he was not entitled to deferral of the district court’s ruling. Accordingly, we affirm the denial of Appellant’s motion to sever.”

*”Appellant has thus failed to show that the court’s ‘official act’ instructions, taken as a whole, were anything less than a ‘fair and accurate statement of law.'”

*”In sum, we are satisfied that the court properly instructed the jury on the ‘quid pro quo’ requirement of the charged offenses. Accordingly, we reject Appellant’s claim of instructional error in that respect.”

*”In the first place, we reject Appellant’s contention that the Government’s evidence cannot satisfy the ‘official act’ requirement.” *”Critically, the Government’s evidence demonstrated a close relationship between Appellant’s official acts and the money, loans, gifts, and favors provided by Williams to Appellant and Mrs. McDonnell.”

*”The temporal relationship between the ‘quids’ and ‘quos’ — the gifts, payments, loans, and favors and the official acts — constitute compelling evidence of corrupt intent.”

*”Throughout the two years during which Appellant was performing the official acts alleged, Williams lavished Appellant with shopping sprees, money, loans, golf outings, and vacations…Appellant and Williams did not know each other until after Appellant was elected Governor.”

*”This evidence established that Appellant received money, loans, favors, and gifts from Williams in exchange for official acts to help Williams secure independent testing of Anatabloc. In light of the foregoing, the jury could readily infer that there were multiple quid pro quo payments, and that Appellant acted in the absence of good faith and with the necessary corrupt intent.”

*”Appellant has thereby failed to sustain his heavy burden of showing that the Government’s evidence was inadequate.”

Significantly, the jury found the necessary corrupt intent despite being instructed extensively on Appellant’s “good faith” defense and hearing from an array of witnesses who testified to Appellant’s honesty, integrity, respect for the law, and good character. The jury was instructed not only that “if a defendant believed in good faith that he or she was acting properly . . . there would be no crime,” but also that “evidence of good character alone may create a reasonable doubt as to a defendant’s guilt.” See J.A. 7692, 7694. Appellant’s character witnesses included cabinet members from his time as Governor of Virginia, as well as longtime friends such as Father Timothy R. Scully, a Catholic priest and University of Notre Dame professor who met Appellant in 1972 when they became college roommates.

*”Appellant received a fair trial and was duly convicted by a jury of his fellow Virginians. We have no cause to undo what has been done. The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.“

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, July 10.

*Greece’s Economy Is a Lesson for Republicans in the U.S. (“The point is that if you really worry that the U.S. might turn into Greece, you should focus your concern on America’s right. Because if the right gets its way on economic policy – slashing spending while blocking any offsetting monetary easing – it will, in effect, bring the policies behind the Greek disaster to America.”)

*Greek crisis: Alexis Tsipras urges MPs to back bailout plan – live updates

*Markets toast Greek bid to clinch debt deal

*22.1 million compromised by OPM breaches

*Protesters want Trump’s name removed from D.C. building (Time for all the construction workers to walk out.)

*Unbridled capitalism is the ‘dung of the devil’, says Pope Francis (“The pontiff condemns the impoverishment of developing countries by the world economic order and apologised for the church’s treatment of native Americans”)

*Donald Trump is Democrats’ greatest gift: Why his buffoonish politics threaten to bring down his entire party

*Hillary Clinton’s push on gun control marks a shift in presidential politics

*Bernie Sanders gets a boisterous welcome in Arlington

*Actually, Sanctuary Cities Are Safer (“Here’s why all the vitriol we’re hearing right now is misguided.”)

*Our view: Here’s who should back Gilmore for president (“Based on his record and the damage he did the Republican brand in Virginia, there’s one group who ought to be taking to Twitter in the next few weeks to talk up Gilmore at every opportunity. That would be Democrats.”)

*Virginia Senate is up for grabs, and Virginia Beach race will play a part

*Herring: Tunnel toll late fees can’t be used to pad operator’s revenue

*Sons of Confederate Veterans join court battle over license plates

*Study says power bills could fall thanks to new federal rules

*Overdue recognition for the Pamunkey

*Ex-Loudoun sheriff’s deputy charged with stealing asset forfeiture money

*McAuliffe teases budget surplus, warns of sequestration

*Change the Washington football team’s insulting name

*D.C. area forecast: Less rain and lower humidity, but still fairly typical July weather