ALERT: SB 1487 action needed today

If you've been following the saga of Norfolk Treasurer Anthony Burfoot, then you know that some serious change needs to be made to the laws in Virginia which allow him to stay in office while appealing his felony convictions. A house bill addressing the situation - automatic suspension from office upon conviction - was discussed …

On being an elector in 2016

This has been an interesting year to be a member of the Electoral College. As with everything that I do, I spent a significant amount of time researching our role. Of course, had Hillary Clinton won the election, all that research would have gone to waste 🙂 I've written a couple of op-eds (1, 2) …

The times, they are a-changin’

To say I was floored by the election results last week would be an understatement. Only in the last 24 hours have I truly been able to articulate why I am so devastated by Hillary Clinton's loss. My first reactions were simply to how this affected me personally. But as I have gotten out of …

The state of the race

It's been really difficult to watch this election cycle. In all honesty, November 8 can't get here soon enough. And that's saying something, given how much of a political junkie I've been. Because I'm literally swamped all the time, I get most of my news through Twitter. Which, it seems, is where most of the …

Catching up

It's been a while since I posted anything about my columns in The Virginian-Pilot - mainly because it's been a while since I wrote anything! I see the last post I did was in May 2015! It hasn't been that long since I wrote anything but life kinda got busy. And then when I tried …

Burfoot is toast

The shocking indictment (pdf) and surprise guilty plea of Norfolk developer Ronnie Boone virtually guarantees that Anthony Burfoot, current Norfolk Treasurer and former council member, is going to jail. Burfoot's trial is scheduled to start on November 7. Wanna bet he pleads out before then? In exchange, of course, for identifying and giving dirt on …

A day to remember

September 6 has been a bittersweet day for me for a very long time. My father, about whom I've written in the past (like here and here) died on September 6, 1973. I remain grateful for all that Daddy taught me, even though our time on this earth was so short. One year later, on …

How cool is it …

... to have the VP nominee from Virginia? 🙂 I was peppered with questions about our very own Tim Kaine when I was in Philly for the Democratic National Convention. Having first met him when he was mayor of Richmond (a white guy chosen by the black majority council), I was more than happy to …

Norfolk Ward 1 special election TOMORROW

If you live in Ward 1 in Norfolk (green area on attached map), there is a special election tomorrow, Tuesday, August 23. There will be just one name on the ballot - Martin Thomas, Jr. - but there is a write-in candidate. The polls will be open normal hours and ballots are cast at your …

Hayes 77th winner, Mullin draws challenger in 93rd

Cliff Hayes was the winner in the firehouse primary for the 77th House of Delegates district yesterday. By a margin of 556 to 469 - told y'all, every vote counts - Hayes defeated a well-organized LeOtis Williams. As of this writing, Hayes will not face opposition in the November election. Per the writ, candidates have …