This Saturday, members of the so-called “Alt Right” will descend on Charlottesville to bring attention to their vision of white nationalism, racism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and supposed cultural superiority. Though there has been inflammatory rhetoric on social media, few know exactly how many will actually appear or how they plan to behave. But one thing is clear—the nation will be watching us, and our responsibility to speak truth and love to their messages of hate and division is stronger than ever before. That means so many things. It means nonviolence if confronted with violence or efforts to incite violence. It means respect for police who are just trying to do their jobs and protect citizens exercising their rights. It means unity in the face of division. It means confronting, in a pastoral way, those whose views differ from ours and who would impose their values and worldview on us. And it means joining and supporting our friends and neighbors in a disciplined, respectful, nonviolent response. [Read more…]
Virginians Dodge Another Health Care Bullet From Washington
While Virginians can rest a little easier today as the latest Republican assault on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been defeated, challenges remain, and could find their way into the next General Assembly session.
Since Donald Trump’s inauguration as President in January, Virginians have been dodging bullets from Washington, D.C., as the White House and Republicans in the U.S. House and Senate propose policy after policy, which, if enacted, would dramatically impact our citizens, particularly those who are most disadvantaged.
Many citizens have focused intently on the Russia probe, Trump’s tweets, his travel ban, his treatment of our allies, his boorish behavior, his attacks on his own Attorney General, on transgender military personnel, and even his not-so-subtle efforts to undermine the 1st Amendment. But while we are justifiably concerned about all of these issues, Virginians and our economic security are put even more at risk from other policies that Trump and his allies are advocating, particularly in the health care arena. Virginia Republicans, from Ed Gillespie to members of the House of Delegates, have either fully embraced these hurtful policies, or have tacitly done so by remaining silent. [Read more…]
Independence Day—Charlottesville’s Test and Challenge
Every July 4, my family and I attend the naturalization ceremony at Monticello. It’s among the most inspiring events of the year, as new citizens from a wide variety of nations and cultures take their oaths to become Americans, and commit to protect this nation from all foes, whether foreign or domestic. It is a day that we take stock of our values—freedom, equality, diversity, inclusiveness, opportunity—and what makes us a special nation that serves as a beacon of hope across this globe.
Juxtapose this against the challenge we face as a community in the coming weeks, as hate groups hope to stamp a negative imprint on the city that we love. It is a serious challenge, though not as serious as those our forebearers faced when they created a new nation, or President Lincoln when he fought to save the Union, or Dr. King when he marshaled an army of nonviolent activists in the service of equality and opportunity. But it is a challenge nonetheless to who we are today as a community, and how we will present ourselves—both to those who seek to provoke and to those in the outside world simply looking for yet another example of the chaos, discord, and thoughtlessness in a country seemingly engulfed by it. [Read more…]
“Trumpcare” Part Two – cutting Virginians’ health care to fund tax breaks for the wealthy
Donald Trump had it right when he described health care in the United States with the phrase, “It’s complicated.” And now Republicans at both national and state levels are discovering how complicated it is.
President Obama’s significant legislative achievement, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), has survived a number of legal challenges and been the law of the land since 2010. It made major changes in a healthcare industry that represents 18 percent of the GNP, providing substantial benefits to a wide variety of Americans, including thousands of Virginians. The percentage of Americans with health insurance has risen dramatically. The law allows families to cover their children on their health insurance plans through age 26, and prevents insurance companies from discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions. ACA established certain “essential health benefits” that must be included in all insurance plans, and provided an incentive for states to include more people in their Medicaid programs. It established a mechanism by which working families could purchase health insurance on “insurance exchanges” and receive tax subsidies to assist them in doing so.
Trumpcare threatens to undo many of these provisions, and, in the process, provide a major tax break to the wealthiest people in the United States; the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says that the Senate bill cuts taxes by $1 trillion over 10 years, with one-third of that amount going to the 100 wealthiest families in America. This is not “repeal and replace;” rather, it is an example of “cut and redistribute.” [Read more…]
This Is What Unity Looks Like
On Saturday evening, I was honored to join hundreds of Democrats at the Unity Rally/JJ Dinner in Richmond to celebrate our statewide candidate team and their primary challengers, to introduce Attorney General Mark Herring, and to speak to the House Democratic efforts. I was back in Richmond as Democratic Leader and as your candidate for Delegate because of the support I received from so many of you in this community. I want to thank each of you for participating in the Democratic primary last Tuesday. Throughout this race, we remained focused on positive initiatives, discussing what we have accomplished and what we can do in Richmond to improve our Commonwealth and communities.
Tom Perriello has been especially eloquent in discussing the importance of unity and encouraging his supporters to engage this fall for the Democratic candidates. He is 100 percent behind the Democratic ticket and we can look forward to seeing him throughout the state this fall campaigning for our team and helping us with the House of Delegates elections. [Read more…]
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