FamilyFoundationBlog.com

While The Family Foundation focuses primarily on the General Assembly and local issues, the “health care reform” debate and the proposals at its center are of seminal importance in our country’s history:

Do we go down the road of the failed European socialist model of static economies and statism or sustain what remains of the free-market system that has served this country for more than 225 years and created the most prosperous society ever known to man?

Do we put the brakes on this leftward move and truly begin to reform health care, one without coerced taxpayer funding for abortion, coerced insurance coverage of abortion and the coercion of medical professionals to perform procedures against their consciences (from the side that believes in “choice”)?

Do we begin to unshackle aspects of our economy that have been taken over and severely regulated by government and restore the free-market roots that created unprecedented economic freedom, upward mobility and prosperity?

With so many important issues at stake which can fundamentallychange forever our values, heritage, culture, and the inheritance from our Founders and succeeding generations of patriots, making your voice heard is more crucial than ever. Accordingly, we encourage you to attend the summer town hall meetings your U.S. Representative and Virginia’s U.S. Senators have or will schedule. Stay informed, ask them questions and get their answers to your concerns on these critical issues.

Here are a list of thetown hall meetings made public at this point, but these schedules are fluid. Check with your Congressman’s office (click here for House member and here for senator) to confirm times and locations of any public meeting.

Thanks to our friends at Americans For Prosperity and Tertium Quids for supplying much of the following information:

Senator Jim Webb
No meetings scheduled at this time. Senator Webb left Sunday on a two-week, five-nation tour of Asia to “explore opportunities to advance U.S. interests in Burma and the region.”

Senator Mark Warner
He is still scheduling his meetings and will be post them on his Web site (here).

5th District Rep. Tom Perriello
Congressman Perriello scheduled 21 public events called, “Tom In Your Town.” The ones that remain are:

Charlottesville
August 11, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Charlottesville High-MLK Performing Arts Center, 1400 Melbourne Road.

Fluvanna County
August 17, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Fluvanna County School Board Office, 14455 James Madison Highway.

Charlotte County
August 18, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., 250 LeGrande Avenue, Charlotte Court House.

Lunenburg County
August 19, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Kenbridge Community Center Auditorium,
511 E. 5th Avenue.

Nelson County
August 20, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m., The Nelson Center, 8445 Thomas Nelson Highway, Lovingston.

Mecklenburg County
August 21, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Mecklenburg County School Board Office, 175 Mayfield Drive, Boydton.

Brunswick County
August 22, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m., Tiger Express, 137 West Hicks Street, Lawrenceville.

Buckingham County
August 24, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Buckingham Middle School (auditorium), 1184 High School Road.

Prince Edward County
August 25, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Prince Edward Middle School (cafeteria), 35 Eagle Drive, Farmville.

Cumberland County
August 26, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Cumberland Restaurant, 1465 Anderson Highway.

Albemarle County
August 27, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Victory Hall, 401 Valley Street, Scottsville.

Campbell County
August 28, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Campbell County Technical Center, 194 Dennis Riddle Drive, Rustburg.

Franklin County
August 29, 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., The Franklin Center for Advanced Learning, 50 Claiborne Avenue, Rocky Mount.

Appomattox County
August 31, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., Appomattox Community Center, 220 Community Lane.

“Tom in Your Town” works like this: Come by anytime during the time period and sign in. Meetings are on a first-come, first-served basis. After the constituent meets with the congressman, one of the staff members will be there to follow up with any concerns. All are welcome.

9th District Rep. Rick Boucher
Dublin  Tuesday, August 18, 9:00 a.m., Edwards Hall, New River Valley Community College.

Abingdon Thursday, August 20, 9:00 a.m., Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center.

2nd District Rep. Glenn Nye
Rep. Nye’s office told Americans For Prosperity that he “won’t be available next week, but there should be some planned in the future.” Once scheduled, they should be available on the Events Page of his Web site (here):

1st District Rep. Rob Whitman
No public meetings are scheduled at this time, but one is planned for Fredericksburg and one for Newport News.

8th District Rep. Jim Moran
Reston Tuesday, August 25, with former Democrat National Committee Chairman and presidential candidate Howard Dean, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m., at South Lakes High School (auditorium), 11400 South Lakes Drive. Doors open at 6:00.

11th District Rep. Gerry Connolly
No meetings are scheduled at this time but, according to his staff, a meeting may be held in late August or early September.

10th District Rep. Frank Wolf
A meeting is planned for early September, but no details are yet available.

There was barely enough time yesterday to post Thursday’s News Stand, so I omitted the commentary. However, a few of the articles merit mention and further comment.

Foremost was the Richmond Times-Dispatch article that quoted our president, Victoria Cobb, about the incredibly important ruling from the U.S. 4th  Circuit Court of Appeals that upheld Virginia’s law banning partial birth infanticide. The Washington Post and Daily Press also reported on this most significant judicial decision.

The court’s 6-5 vote puts into focus the maxim that elections matter. The 4th Circuit once was the country’s most reliably conservative (i.e., constitutionally sound) court. But a retirement or two, a feel good appointment of liberal Judge Roger Gregory by President George W. Bush in the first days of his presidency (when he was all about “reaching out”) — and enthusiastically supported by then-Senator George Allen — followed by his inability to overcome a liberal Senate blockade of subsequent appointments, has made for a closely divided court. Think President Obama will nominate a conservative to this court? Not a chance — and he will have plenty of them. The court has a few vacancies.

The one confirmation to the 4th Circuit won by President Bush was that of Judge Steven Agee. A former delegate and Virginia Supreme Court Justice, who once ran for the Republican nomination for attorney general as a “moderate,” he was a compromise choice of Democrat Senator Jim Webb and President Bush after his original choices were shot down by the new Democrat majority in 2007. Thankfully, Judge Agee voted in the majority.

Here’s the breakdown of the vote (click here for the opinions):

Majority: Judge Niemeyer, who wrote the opinion, in which Chief Judge Williams and Judges Wilkinson, Shedd, Duncan, and Agee joined. Judge Wilkinson wrote a separate concurring opinion (see exerpt here).

Minority: Judge Michael, who wrote the dissent, in which Judges Motz, Traxler, King, and Gregory joined.

In other news, a political shocker: Delegate Kristin Amundson (D-44, Fairfax) surprised everyone with a post-re-nomination withdrawal. Even though the 44th usually goes blue, Republican Jay McConnville is proving to be a solid candidate. Furthermore, a lefty independent is in the mix. With its success in recent Northern Virginia special elections, could this be a surprise GOP pickup?

Finally, the Washington Post, of all papers, has followed up on Republican complaints about Governor Tim Kaine’s lack of travel and expenses transparency while working his second job as Democrat National Committee Chairman. While he initially said he would only perform those duties on nights and weekends, the Post uncovered that seven of nine days he has travelled, and reported, are weekdays. The governor also previously said anyone who wants to know where he’s been only has to ask. People have, through FOIA requests, and no answers are forthcoming. Also, he now says the DNC will pick up the costs of his security detail. But why were we taxpayers ever paying for these political trips?