Pod Virginia

IN THE NEWS: Following The Money: Democrats raised more money overall, but Republicans have more cash on hand heading into the final weeks of election season. They also have the support of Governor Glenn Youngkin, whose PAC has given more than $700,000 to help incumbent Republican Senator Siobhan Dunnavant. Thomas and Michael talk about where the money is going--or not going--and what strategies m...

Friend of the pod Lauren Burke of BURKEFILE and Black Virginia News joins Michael to discuss clips from Virginia House and Senate candidates at Roland Martin's Town Hall. From early voting to assault weapons to book bans and the potential removal of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from Virginia's curriculum, the comments cover the range of topics that might sway November's election--especially those o...

IN THE NEWS: Early turnout has been strongest in competitive Senate races in Newport News and Loudoun County as well as House races in Prince William County and Petersburg--and these early numbers could suggest a changing Republican strategy. Virginia was the first state in the country to remove minor traffic violations as a reason to stop motorists, a law aimed at cracking down on racial profilin...

Pod Virginia favorites David Ramadan and Sam Shirazi joins Michael to discuss the competitive races in the upcoming elections, which will decide the fate of both the state House and Senate. The races include: Russet Perry vs Juan Pablo Segura in SD31 Monty Mason vs Danny Diggs in SD24 Kara Durant vs Joel Griffin vs Monica Gary in SD27 Emily Brewer vs Clint Jenkins SD17 Susanna Gibson vs David Owen...

IN THE NEWS: A coalition of payday lenders is challenging the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which was set up in a way to make sure its funding source is protected from Congress. Now consumer advocates here in Virginia who have worked against payday loans, car title loans and high-interest online loans, they’re worried about what might happen if the court rules agai...

This week, Michael is joined by Dr. Stephen Farnsworth, co-author of a chapter in The New Dominion: The Twentieth-Century Elections That Shaped Modern Virginia. They discuss the 1981 election of Chuck Robb for Virginia's Governor--how Robb escaped the legacy of the Byrd Machine and President Johnson's Great Society, pushing the Democratic message to a more centrist line that would hold for the nex...

IN THE NEWS: Thomas and Aaryan discuss the fight over the funding for Samuels Library, where a local Catholic group has called for books featuring LGBTQ+ people to be banned and for ties to be cut with the American Library Association. Delegate Dave LaRock launches a write-in campaign for Senate District 1, calling Republican nominee Tommy French a "Democrat." A new poll from the University of Mar...

This week, Michael and Thomas are joined by Bob Brink, former Chairman of Virginia's State Board of Elections, to discuss the ERIC system-- the Electronic Registration Information Center, which allowed neighboring states to share voter registration information with each other and help prevent voter fraud. Governor Youngkin has pulled Virginia out of ERIC, so what does that mean for elections going...

IN THE NEWS: Thomas and Michael discuss the top competitive races in the upcoming election, where Democrats are largely out-fundraising their Republican opponents. The races include: Russet Perry vs Juan Pablo Segura in Senate District 31, Monty Mason vs Danny Diggs in Senate District 24, Susanna Gibson vs David Owen in House District 57, Michael Feggans vs Karen Greenhalgh in House District 97, K...

This week, communications and marketing expert Eileen Cassidy Rivera joins Michael to talk about her new book: Hard Talk: Confessions of an Accidental Marketing and Communications Professional. She discusses the growing importance of marketing and communications specialists for government contractors--providing insights into the coroporate side of conversations with journalists and media. Hard Tal...

IN THE NEWS: Virginia is not doing a great job of attracting new people. In fact, data from state agencies and the US Postal Service show the state is losing more people than it's gaining. Most of those leaving are young adults and families who are getting priced out of the state. A new poll from Founder's Insights shows Virginia voters are, like always, most interested in the economy. This year,...

This week, Michael is joined by Professors John Milliken and Mark Rozell of George Mason University, editors of The New Dominion: The Twentieth-Century Elections That Shaped Modern Virginia. They discuss six statewide elections that shaped Virginia politics, how they shaped (and were shaped by) the state's culture, economy, and demographics, and what lessons we might be able to learn from those tr...

IN THE NEWS: Governor Glenn Youngkin is now considering a secret backroom deal worked out by a small handful of senior members of the money committees. The long-awaited budget amendments are several months late for a fiscal year that started three months ago. Part of the reason for the delay was because Republicans were insisting on permanent tax cuts. In the end, they settled for rebates. One of...

On this week's live-to-tape game show, Michael sits down with Delegate Alfonso Lopez, Delegate Marcus Simon, and Alexandria Assistant City Manager Sarah Taylor to get their takes on the latest in Richmond--from the budget special session to the FBI headquarters and spouses running for office. Learn more at http://linktr.ee/JacklegMedia

IN THE NEWS: Virginia is getting a huge infusion of cash from Uncle Sam to help expand broadband coverage to underserved parts of the state -- especially areas where speeds are less than 25 megabits per second. Thanks to a program created by the Inflation Reduction Act, Virginia is getting $1.5 billion for broadband expansion Governor Glenn Youngkin wants Virginia to leave the Regional Greenhouse...

Check out Michael's presentation on the Byrd Machine in Virginia on C-SPAN 2 this Friday, September 1st at 8:45 PM EST Laura Goren and Rodrigo Soto of the Commonwealth Institute join Michael to discuss the latest details on Virginia's budget crisis--while meetings have been happening in secret, we're getting a few details about the compromise. Those include: potentially no permanent tax cuts, pote...

IN THE NEWS: Eleven senators are retiring. Five won't be returning because they lost the primary. Three senators are in hotly competitive races and might lose in November. Keep in mind that the Senate has only 40 members. That means we’re expecting to see a turnover of 40 to 50 percent in the Senate. One out of four elections this November has no challenger, candidates running unopposed. Most of t...

Dr. Mahmut Cengiz, Assistant Professor at George Mason's Schar School, joins Thomas and Michael to discuss the causes and effects of the fentanyl crisis in Virginia, how Glenn Youngkin's has handled the crisis, and how Virginia could move forward to help the lives of those affected. Learn more at http://linktr.ee/JacklegMedia

IN THE NEWS: When he ran for governor, candidate Glenn Youngkin was secretly recorded talking about why he couldn't say more about abortion. Now, a candidate for the House of Delegates is explaining why a secretly recorded audio clip reveals he supports a 100 percent ban on abortion. What's going on with these secretly recorded audio conversations, and what are the journalistic ethics around repor...

Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw joins Michael for a broad-ranging interview on his time in the General Assembly--from his origins in the 1980s, through his time as Majority Leader, and advice for the next generation of Assembly members. Along the day, he discusses the changing tactics and politics in the legislature, as well as things he might've done differently in hindsight--such as support f...

IN THE NEWS: But 10 percent of Democrats in a recent poll by the Wilder School at VCU say they would prefer Republicans control the House. What's going on there? In the last decade, the population of people over the age of 55 who are incarcerated in Virginia has doubled, increasing from 7 percent to 14 percent. Advocates say that's because of over-policing of vulnerably populations, as well as the...

Vishal Agraharkar of the ACLU of Virginia joins the show to discuss a new lawsuit aimed at restoring voting rights to Virginians convicted of felonies. As a requirement for re-entry into the Union after the Civil War, Virginia was required to pass th Readmission Act of 1870. In an effort to prevent former Confederate states from disenfranchsing Black people, the Readmission Act prohibits Virginia...

IN THE NEWS: Child poverty numbers are about to spike with the expiration of a whole host of programs--the child tax credit, food stamp benefits, rent-relief program, and even some Medicaid eligibility. Solutions to the child poverty problem could be solved with the record surplus money that's now at issue in the ongoing budget impasse, but lawmakers are still considering whether they want to spen...

Atif Qarni, former Sec. of Education under Governor Ralph Northam, joins the show to discuss Governor Youngkin's latest model policies for how Virginia school systems should treat transgender students. He compares the policies to the 2021 policies that developed in his office under the Northam Administration--including where the new policies are lacking and the false narratives around parents' rig...

IN THE NEWS: Democrats have an edge in fundraising overall, but Republicans are heading into the November election with more cash on hand for House of Delegates races. The latest round of campaign finance disclosures saw a record amount of campaign cash for an off-year election, and we're just getting started. Virginia once had a big advantage over Maryland in landing the new FBI because of its pr...