Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Thursday, April 16. Also, here’s a fun bit of video from last night’s Arlington Young Democrats County Board debate…more later.

*Congress Has Made Undermining Energy And Environmental Laws The Focus Of Its First 100 Days

*Vatican Announces Major Summit On Climate Change

*Iran bill unlikely to scuttle deal

*Obama’s pivot on trade could mean war with his base

*Indisputable proof that Republicans are warriors for the aristocracy (“GOP contenders are pretending to care about inequality. But it’s all for show – and Congress is about to prove it”)

*Chris Christie’s dangerous Social Security demagoguery: Cloaking the plutocrats’ agenda in populist rhetoric

*Jeb Bush to speak at Liberty University’s May 9 commencement (So much for “JEB” being a “moderate,” not that that was ever true.)

*Governor perfect on vetoes, but splits with assembly on drones and electronic surveillance

*Watchdog group’s report critical of General Assembly on transparency

*Governor McAuliffe: Climate change, rising sea levels also endanger economy

*Lawmakers reject many of McAuliffe’s amendments, but his vetoes survive (“Privacy rights vs. public safety issues prompt debate, and an ethics measure hits a snag.”)

*Reconvene update: House in recess, ethics pending, day care and surveillance votes

*Ethics reform delays Virginia General Assembly again

*State kills 460 contract, wants money back from contractor

*E-mails: Long tried to block Fairfax activist from police commission (“E-mails obtained by community group show resistance to a citizen review board and anxiety over Geer case.”)

*Portsmouth dysfunction on display once again

*State ready to commit more money to Virginia Beach for light rail

*Area Senate candidates off to brisk start in fundraising (“Former Del. Bill Janis, who hopes to succeed retiring Sen. Walter A. Stosch, R-Henrico, reported $123,000 in contributions in the year’s first quarter, and an ending balance of $107,584.”)

*Fairfax County police spokesman charged with possessing child porn (Ugh.)

*Why are Portsmouth officials out? It depends on who’s talking

*Capitals start playoffs badly with a 4-1 defeat in Game 1 vs. Islanders

*Breezy and mild today, but showers are possible tonight

Click on the image to “embiggen.” As for UMW, how about they just divest from planet-killing fossil fuels instead of acting like a bunch of goons towards their own students, especially when those students are on the right side of history?

( – promoted by lowkell)

Eight years ago, I got the phone call that no parent in America imagines ever getting. “I’ve been shot,” my daughter told me. Emily was in French class that spring day at Virginia Tech, and had just been shot in the head by a young man who legally bought firearms and ammunition in Virginia despite the fact that seemingly everyone who knew him knew he was dangerously mentally ill.

I was one of the lucky ones that day. My daughter survived. Thirty-two other families had to bury their loved ones, denied even the chance to say goodbye.

Many in the commonwealth wondered if April 16, 2007, would be a turning point. Would this be the moment that our legislators finally rejected the National Rifle Association’s fatal prescription and supported common-sense gun reforms?

Sadly, the immediate change we were hoping for did not come. But today, as the legislature weighs in on Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s vetoes of three noxious pieces of legislation, it is clear that gun violence prevention has become a winning issue in Virginia.

McAuliffe was one of three statewide candidates who swept to victory in the November 2013 elections while publicly and proudly embracing a platform calling for tougher gun laws (along with Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring). A few years ago, it would have been unfathomable for a Virginia gubernatorial candidate to announce at a televised debate, “I don’t care what grade I got from the NRA,” but that’s exactly what McAuliffe did. And he won.

Now he’s backing up the promises he made during his campaign. The bills the governor formally vetoed would have allowed loaded shotguns and rifles to be transported in vehicles, regardless of local laws; prevented Virginia law enforcement from sharing information about our state’s concealed handgun permit holders with certain other states; and forced local law enforcement to provide a certification or denial for the transfer of a machine gun within 60 days. These bills were all designed to be handouts to the gun lobby, and none of them had anything to do with improving public safety. In fact, they would have done just the opposite.

Championing gun violence prevention is now the political high ground in our rapidly changing commonwealth. And it’s not just McAuliffe stepping up. On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, when approximately 500 Virginia residents gathered at the state Capitol to conduct a vigil for those killed by guns, our featured speaker was Attorney General Herring. Del. Kenneth Plum, who was first elected to the House in 1982, told us it was the biggest rally he’s ever seen at the Capitol. Attendance at the annual vigil has grown significantly in recent years.

The General Assembly is now starting to get the message: Virginia voters are tired of lawmaking in the interest of gun industry profit, no matter the cost to public safety.

The NRA will not be getting any gifts this year. And it’s not just the governor’s veto pen that’s making an impact. Those who would oppose gun violence prevention could only stand by and watch, for example, as the Republican-controlled Senate voted to kill legislation to allow guns in K-12 schools.

When then-gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe debated opponent Ken Cuccinelli at Virginia Tech in October 2013, he declared, “I never want to see another Newtown or Aurora or Virginia Tech ever again.”

Eight years after our state’s unforgettable tragedy, the governor is far from alone. Citizens in the commonwealth overwhelmingly support evidence-based policies like background checks on all gun sales and ensuring that dangerous individuals, like domestic abusers, don’t have access to firearms. However, some members of the General Assembly seem to be a little slow in understanding this new reality. I suspect that many of them are likely to get a wake-up call when voters head to the polls this November.

Lori Haas is the Virginia state director for the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, and was appointed to serve on the Virginia State Crime Commission by Governor McAuliffe in 2014. Contact her atLHAAS@csgv.org

In “honor” of his departure from the Virginia House of Delegates, here are some “highlights” and links to the illustrious career of Del. David Ramadan (Far-right “R”; pictured with the possibly even MORE far-right-wing Sen. Dick Black). Enjoy? 😉

*Loudoun Republicans Double-Down on Divisive, Anti-Gay Agenda (“Delegates David Ramadan and Tag Greason voted against an openly gay candidate for a General District Court Judgeship. Mr. Tracy Thorne-Begland, the Chief Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney in the City of Richmond and a decorated Navy veteran, had been nominated by a Republican Delegate…Ramadan and Greason made no public comments to explain their decisions; they simply voted with a majority of their Republican colleagues against his nomination.”)

*Loudoun Republicans Revealed Themselves in the 2012 General Assembly Session (Noted that Ramadan voted for an extreme “personhood” bill, the infamous “transvaginal ultrasound” bill,  repeal of Virginia’s “One Handgun A Month” law, an onerous and utterly unnecessary voter ID law, etc.

*DPVA: Ramadan’s Record: Speaks for Itself (Ramadan’s “record speaks for itself, but it says that he is focused on an extreme ideological agenda mush like Ken Cuccinelli and his right-wing counterparts-not practical solutions to problems facing our Commonwealth.”)

*DPVA: Byron and Ramadan Should Come Clean on Gifts (“Following the pattern of Ken Cuccinelli and Bob McDonnell, The News & Advance reported this morning that fifteen-year Delegate Kathy Byron and two-year Delegate David Ramadan failed to disclose their travel to Taiwan in 2012”)

*Video: Corrupt Del. David Ramadan Doubles Down on His Lame Excuses

*Video: John Bell for Delegate Hits David Ramadan’s Extreme Agenda

*Del. David Ramadan: Extreme, Egregious, Yet Somehow Holding Down an Obama District (Ramadan “has been eviscerated by the Too Conservative crew for being a ‘shameless self promoter’ and ‘egomaniac extraordinaire,’ for employing ‘disgusting, disturbing tactics,’ and for being ‘unfit for public office.’)

*Video: Del. David Ramadan Speaks to VCDL Membership, Vows Absolutely No Gun Laws

*Del. David Ramadan (Far-Right “R”) Files Bill to Cancel In-State Tuition for DACA Students

All this extremism and nuttiness is particularly sad, because Ramadan’s district (the 87th) is an Obama/Kaine/McAuliffe/Northam/Herring district that should either be represented by a Democrat, or at WORST a moderate Republican (if there are any of those left). Yet instead, the 87th got a far-right loon like David Ramadan. Frankly, that’s what happens when “federal election” Democrats stay home in “odd-year” elections. If and when that stops, so will the phenomenon of right-wing Republicans holding otherwise “blue” districts in this state. Until then, expect more David Ramadans…ugh.

From Rep. Don Beyer's office: 

April 15, 2015 (Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Representative Don Beyer, member of the Joint Economic Committee (JEC), released the following statement on the JEC's new report that African Americans continue to face economic challenges and are nearly three times as likely as white Americans to live in poverty.

“This report documents persistent economic barriers African Americans face, even as the rest of the country recovers from the worst financial downturn since the Great Depression,” said Rep. Beyer “If we are to meet the challenge of the promise of equality in America we need to address these inequities in employment, income, wealth, housing and education through policies designed for inclusive prosperity. In our commitment to a new American economy, to inclusive prosperity that lifts up all Americans, let us be ever mindful of the decisions we make that can change the economic condition of black Americans for generations to come.”

Beyer joined Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Ranking Democrat on the JEC, and Congressman G. K. Butterfield (D-NC), Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) at a press conference to discuss the report, which reveals that African Americans continue to face disproportionately high rates of poverty, unemployment and long-term unemployment as well as significantly lower incomes and slower wealth accumulation than white households. When examining various measures to determine economic well-being, the report finds black Americans lag far behind the white population.  

Included in the report’s key findings:

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Wednesday, April 15. Also, check out Marco Rubio demonstrating yet again that he’s a candidate of the past, NOT the future.

*Fossil Fuels Just Lost the Race Against Renewables (Time for Virginia to go all-out in the race for the multi-trillion-dollar clean energy economy of the 21st century. If we don’t, we lose.)

*Obama Yields, Allowing Congress Say on Iran Nuclear Deal

*Catholic Bishops, Nuns Voice Support For Obama’s Iran Deal, Ask Congress To Back Off

*Obama removes Cuba from list of terror sponsors

*Republicans push for a permanent aristocracy (“A bill to end the estate tax is the ultimate perversion of the tea party movement.”)

*The True Cost of Gun Violence: A Mother Jones Investigation

*Schapiro: Taking back the legislature one vote at a time (“But to Democrats such as [Ferguson] Reid, its successor in Virginia is the Republican-authored voter ID law. It requires that a voter produce a photo identity card before going into the polling booth. Democrats say it’s designed to discourage their voters: minorities, seniors and the young.”)

*State Board of Elections decertifies voting machines

*Judge denies Morrissey’s injunction to stop ballot production

*Morrissey to seek Va. Senate seat as an independent

*Virginia General Assembly veto session begins Wednesday (“Issues of ethics regulation and privacy measures will be debated Wednesday as Virginia’s General Assembly gathers in Richmond for a scheduled one-day session to consider vetoes and amendments.”)

*Police surveillance data high on agenda for Va. legislators’ veto session

*McAuliffe amendment glitch appears to put a $100 lifetime limit on gifts (That’s fine, make it zero!)

*Governor, energy companies say they want more lenient clean power plan (To the contrary, we should be pushing ahead FASTER than the very mild, easily achievable Clean Power Plan goals. Dominion et al are just whining…)

*Breaking News-Delegate Ramadan Not Running for Re-election (Good riddance to this far right winger. Now, we need to elect Democrat Jack Tiwari in his place!)

*Del. David Ramadan, vocal critic of Dulles Greenway tolls, to call it quits

*Edmunds: Virginia shouldn’t be “a little bit gruesome,” either

*Report criticizes lack of transparency in Richmond (“Among the problems found by Transparency Virginia: House of Delegates committees and subcommittees didn’t have recorded votes on 76 percent of the bills they killed.”)

*The outrageous death of a Fairfax County jail inmate (Agreed, and I can’t even imagine anyone defending this.)

*Portsmouth’s city attorney, manager fired by council

*After 27 years in office, Newport News’ Circuit Court Clerk stepping down

*Warming up to the 70s today, but on track for more rain tomorow

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  Today, the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, including a number of provisions Kaine helped negotiate, was unanimously passed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 19-0.  The bipartisan legislation would set up a constructive and deliberate process for Congressional review of a final nuclear agreement with Iran that touches upon statutory sanctions enacted by Congress. Under the compromise approved today, after a final deal is reached between Iran and P5+1 negotiators and submitted to Congress, Congress would have 30 days to hold hearings and either approve, disapprove, or take no action on giving Iran relief from Congressionally-imposed sanctions.

“I’m pro-diplomacy, and I see positives in the framework [agreement]. But I have also been strongly pro the need for congressional approval,” Kaine said in his opening comments. “There’s been some suggestion that, if you think Congress needs to approve this, you’re anti-diplomacy. That’s ridiculous. There’s even been some suggestion that, if you think Congress needs to approve this, you’re pro-war. That’s offensive. …  I actually think that congressional approval, in this instance under the framework that is now before us, is necessary, helpful and what the American public demands and deserves.”

“It’s necessary,” Kaine continued, “because, at the core, this is a negotiation about what must Iran do to get out from under a congressional sanctions regime, so Congress will be involved. It’s helpful because, since Congress will be involved, the only question is, will that involvement be helpful and orderly, or will it be under free-for-all rules? Much better for us, much better for the Administration, much better for the P5+1, much better for Iran – we’re asking to make concessions, big concessions – for them to see a process that is orderly and constructive.”

In closing, Kaine noted the fact that Americans, in Virginia and across the country, overwhelmingly support Congress having a role in this process.

“Why do my constituents and yours want a deal to have to be approved by Congress? It’s not out of disrespect for the President, and it’s not because they love Congress. … They are so concerned about the magnitude of this deal that they’ll feel more comfortable if both the executive and the legislature take a look and say this is in the best interests of the nation. This is why people get a second opinion if they hear from a doctor something that they don’t like. The American public knows this is big. They feel more comfortable if it’s both the executive and the legislature reviewing it.”

As an original cosponsor of the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, Kaine worked closely with Senators Corker, Menendez, Graham and others for months to produce the most constructive process possible for Congress to engage on a nuclear deal with Iran. Today, Corker thanked Kaine for his efforts and said he is “someone who understands truly the role of the United States Congress and issues of this significance, and has been a stalwart to articulate more clearly than anyone else why it’s important for us to take the role.”

Kaine, a strong supporter of diplomatic negotiations with Iran, recently praised the framework agreementannounced by Secretary of State John Kerry on April 2, calling it a “positive step for diplomacy and efforts to peacefully limit Iran’s nuclear program.”