Michael Pope

Alexandria

Reporter at Virginia Public Radio

Host at The Virginia Press Room

author of the #ByrdMachine, reporter for Virginia Public Radio, host of the Virginia Press Room podcast

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Articles

Will the Republican statewide ticket appear together this election cycle?

2 days ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

It's been more than a month since the Republican Party officially nominated all three of their statewide candidates. The party’s candidate for governor does not appear to have plans for a unity event any time soon. Back in April, the Republican Party locked in their statewide ticket: Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, John Reid for lieutenant governor and Jason Miyares for attorney general. But the candidates have yet to appear on stage together.
Will the Republican statewide ticket appear together this election cycle?

2 days ago | wmra.org | Michael Pope

It's been more than a month since the Republican Party officially nominated all three of their statewide candidates. The party’s candidate for governor does not appear to have plans for a unity event any time soon. Back in April, the Republican Party locked in their statewide ticket: Winsome Earle-Sears for governor, John Reid for lieutenant governor and Jason Miyares for attorney general. But the candidates have yet to appear on stage together.
The late Congressman Gerry Connolly gets one more legislative victory

4 days ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

Governor Glenn Youngkin has set a special election on September 9th to fill the seat open due to the death of Gerry Connolly. The news comes on a day when the House is considering one final bill from the late congressman. Congressman Gerry Connolly is having one final victory in the House of Representatives this week with the approval of the Gerry Connolly Esophageal Cancer Awareness Act.
DHS "sanctuary jurisdictions" list including Virginia localities has vanished

5 days ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

Last week, the United States Department of Homeland Security published a list of 33 sanctuary cities in Virginia. The list has now disappeared. So much for the list of 20 counties and 13 cities in Virginia that the Trump administration declared are “sanctuary jurisdictions.” Over the weekend, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security removed that page from its website.
Virginia localities puzzled by inclusion on federal "sanctuary cities" list

1 week ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

The Department of Homeland Security is identifying 20 counties and 13 cities in Virginia they call “sanctuary jurisdictions.”To understand the list of 33 sanctuary cities in Virginia, perhaps it’s best to focus on one county that is NOT on the list: Loudoun County in Northern Virginia. Freddy Mejia at the Commonwealth Institute says this is the example used to strong-arm local law-enforcement officials to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
President Trump signs tire plant legislation from Virginia Congressman Morgan Griffith

1 week ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

Congressman Morgan Griffith is celebrating a win for the rubber tire manufacturing businesses in Virginia. Environmentalists are worried about the consequences. Virginia has more than 3,000 employees who work in the rubber tire manufacturing business. That’s according to Census records.
A casino proposal in Northern Virginia is a hot topic on the campaign trail this year

1 week ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

Special interests are hoping to strike it rich next year in Richmond. It's a shifting political landscape for a proposed Tysons Corner casino. The closer you live to a proposed casino site in Fairfax County, the more likely you are to oppose it. That’s how Delegate Holly Seibold of Vienna explains her opposition to the proposed entertainment district in Tysons Corner featuring a casino. “The constituents in my district would like their voices heard loud and clear," Seibold says.
Jenkins pardon evokes a noteworthy corruption case from Virginia's past

1 week ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

President Donald Trump has issued a pardon to Culpeper Sheriff Scott Jenkins. It's not the first time convictions for corruption have been set aside. Almost a decade ago, former Governor Bob McDonnell was convicted of corruption after he took expensive gifts from a wealthy businessman. That conviction was eventually overturned by the United States Supreme Court, which set a new standard for what was needed to prove a quid pro quo.
Youngkin will leave office with a record number of vetoes

1 week ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

Governor Glenn Youngkin will leave office next year with at least one distinction among his predecessors. More than 400 vetoes. That's not just breaking a record. It's demolishing it. Governor Glenn Youngkin has vetoed more bills than any other governor in Virginia history, and it's not even close. By way of contrast, when Tim Kaine was governor, he had to deal with an opposition party that controlled the General Assembly, and he had only 40 vetoes.
LG candidates clash over casinos and skill games

2 weeks ago | wvtf.org | Michael Pope

Casino gambling and convenience store slot-style machines are becoming a flashpoint in the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor. The politics of gambling are taking center stage in the hotly contested Democratic primary for lieutenant governor, which has six candidates. During a recent televised debate, the candidates clashed over casinos and skill games – the slot-machine style games in convenience stores and truck stops.