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Cabinet pick to ‘change the trajectory of the commonwealth’
Kay Coles James, Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin’s new secretary of the commonwealth, is a staunch conservative with an unconventional origin story in Virginia. James was born in Portsmouth, grew up in public housing with a family she has described as “dysfunctional” and was eventually raised by her aunt and uncle. As a seventh grader, she was […]
Thousands of Afghan refugees still living in temporary housing on Virginia military bases
More than 5,000 evacuees from Afghanistan are still living on military bases in Virginia, as they await paperwork or housing to start their new lives in the United States. They are among the 29,000 Afghanis who are in limbo at seven different military installations across the country, according to a count from the Department of […]
Youngkin promises to ‘slash regulations’ on day one for business growth
Virginia Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin promised business leaders Friday he would slash “job-killing regulations” and implement policies to “start winning big time” in the race to lure businesses and jobs to the region — laying out educational choice, diverse energy investments and lower taxes as top agenda items in his early days in office. Youngkin’s remarks […]
Domestic ship operators question offshore wind project’s use of foreign ship
A group of American ship operators filed a complaint this week against a foreign vessel working on Virginia’s new offshore wind development project — a move motivated by concern, it says, that the offshore wind industry might not stay true to its promise to buoy American workers. The Offshore Marine Service Association, a trade group, […]
Offshore wind industry leaders ask Congress to back long-term plans to increase production
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is making a significant push for new offshore wind development to meet ambitious climate goals, but industry leaders say they also need long-term commitments and support from Congress to reach their potential. Leaders of the burgeoning U.S. offshore wind industry called on Congress to invest in renewables at a hearing […]
Biden banks on offshore wind to help curb climate change
WASHINGTON — Two wind turbines, each as tall as the Washington Monument, stand sentinel 27 miles off the coast of Virginia, the nation’s first offshore wind installation in federal waters. The pilot project began producing power last October but it is just the beginning for an industry poised for massive growth over the next decade. […]
Cuccinelli vows federal agents ‘will not back away’ from violent protests
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration’s number two at the Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday defended federal law enforcement officers’ intervention in protests in Portland, Oregon, and other cities this summer. Characterizing some of the protests as “mob rule,” Acting Deputy Homeland Security Secretary Ken Cuccinelli told lawmakers that federal agents could exert force in […]
Vaccine makers deny political pressure in race for safe, effective shot
Leaders of the companies working on some of the top candidates for COVID-19 vaccines predict they should have shots available by early 2021, but said they will rely on the federal government to determine how to distribute them. The heads of five biopharmaceutical companies with promising vaccine candidates told members of Congress Tuesday that they […]
Advocates warn environmental rollbacks threaten Va. minority communities
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is suspending key environmental reviews during the pandemic that critics warn could further harm poor and minority neighborhoods in Virginia and around the country. Lawmakers and activists say the administration’s actions — meant to boost the lagging economy — could have disproportionate effects on minority communities that live near pipeline […]
Governors warn Congress more federal help is needed to avoid COVID-19 resurgence
WASHINGTON — The federal government needs to assist states with a national strategy for distribution of COVID-19 tests and medical equipment or risk a second surge of the disease, Democratic governors told lawmakers Tuesday on Capitol Hill. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis asked Congress for more federal help as states try […]
Kaine to Fauci: ‘The death rate … is unacceptable, isn’t it?’
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine on Tuesday warned that the U.S. response to COVID-19 is lagging as he pressed top Trump administration health officials to learn lessons from other nations when it comes to combating the pandemic. “The death rate in the United States — especially when compared with other nations — is unacceptable, […]
‘That blew everything up’: Universities get aid they can’t share with DACA students
WASHINGTON — Colleges and universities across the country are getting emergency federal aid for COVID-19, but some of the most vulnerable students won’t be eligible for assistance. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has said the emergency grants — part of the $2 trillion coronavirus relief act that Congress approved last month — can’t go to undocumented […]