State Legislating In The Shadow Of A Trump Presidency

In the weeks that followed the election of Donald J. Trump, a number of state legislators around the country wondered aloud whether the new president was perhaps so enigmatic and unpredictable that he actually would not do what he promised to do during the course of the fall campaign. And others hoped that he might actually follow through on his promise that “all citizens will have really good health care.” They were dramatically wrong on all counts.  Trump has done exactly what he promised to do – with startling speed, audacious assertiveness, and with little apparent concern about the real impacts, not only of his tweets, but, more importantly, his policies. This presents significant peril for our constituents, but also unprecedented political opportunities for the upcoming elections. The first test electorally will be November 2017, and Virginia will be at the center of it all. All statewide offices are up for election, as well as 100 seats in the Virginia House of Delegates. [Read more…]