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WASHINGTON, Sept. 5, 2008 – Dominion Resources has a simple philosophy when it comes to supporting its employees who serve part-time in the military: “Whatever it takes, for as long as it takes.” That philosophy has led to a companywide culture of support for the military and also earned Dominion the 2008 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. Dominion, with headquarters in Richmond, Va., is one of 15 companies receiving the award, which recognizes employers who provide exceptional support to employees serving in the National Guard or Reserve. Dominion has many programs to support its employees who are...

A man is under arrest in Washington after an improvised explosive device, a rifle and some ammunition were allegedly found in his jeep, Capitol Police said Friday. The man stopped to ask police for directions near the Capitol building at about 11 a.m. EDT Friday, at the intersection of 2nd and Independence Avenue Southeast, according to Capitol Police spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider. The officer responding noticed a rifle case on the car seat and inspected the jeep, discovering the IED, rifle and ammunition. A canine unit was enlisted to help.

Dear William & Mary Community, As you know, earlier today the Board of Visitors offered me the presidency of the College of William & Mary, without “interim” in the title. I have accepted and am deeply moved by the Board’s confidence in me and by the enormous support that has come my way from all corners of the William & Mary community over the last six and a half months. We share a marvelous institution. I will do my level best for W&M. We are in this together, however, and the College needs the commitment of us all to move...

U.S. Rep. Virgil H. Goode Jr. wants to end what he calls the nation’s “anchor baby situation” — and he’s willing to amend the U.S. Constitution if that’s what it takes. In a Wednesday debate in Danville, Goode — a vocal foe of illegal immigration — repeatedly denounced the policy that guarantees American citizenship to anyone born in the United States. “The anchor baby situation is a magnet for illegals to come to our country,” Goode said. “I’m opposed to that.”

The state headquarters of Barack Obama’s campaign sent out a list Thursday of nearly 50 Virginians, including three from Lynchburg, who it said were Republi-cans supporting the Democratic presidential candidate. The Obama staffers failed to check closely enough with Steve Bozeman, whose name was on the list. Bozeman said he plans to vote for John McCain, Obama’s Republican opponent. “No one got my permission” to list his name among Obama supporters, said Bozeman, a retired Marine and Vietnam veteran who led the Pledge of Allegiance at Obama’s Lynchburg rally Aug. 20. “I was honored to do that,” Bozeman said. “Unfortunately,...

Campaigning in Virginia today, Biden accidentally demoted Palin from governor to lieutenant governor. "And the other thing I heard, I heard a very -- by the way, I mean this sincerely -- a very strong and a very good political speech from a lieutenant governor of Alaska, who I think is going to be very formidable, very formidable... But I was equally impressed by what I didn’t hear, what I didn’t hear in the speech."

MANASSAS, VA — Joe Biden’s had a lot of praise for Alaska Governor Sarah Palin — maybe too much praise. He’s said all day that Palin did “a good job” in her convention speech last night, and calling her a tough debate opponent, he seems to be raising expectations for her debate performance next month. But he can also sounds a bit patronizing. At a sparsely attended discussion at George Mason’s Prince WIlliam County campus, Biden went a step further in at the same time praising and denigrating Palin — demoting his Republican rival in remarks about last night’s big...

MANASSAS, VA — Joe Biden’s had a lot of praise for Alaska Governor Sarah Palin — maybe too much praise. He’s said all day that Palin did “a good job” in her convention speech last night, and calling her a tough debate opponent, he seems to be raising expectations for her debate performance next month. But he can also sounds a bit patronizing. At a sparsely attended discussion at George Mason’s Prince WIlliam County campus, Biden went a step further in at the same time praising and denigrating Palin — demoting his Republican rival in remarks about last night’s big...

A group of family members, survivors and first responders shared their thoughts about 9/11 while visiting the nearly completed Pentagon Memorial here on Aug. 28. Pentagon Memorial Fund manager Jim Laychak visits the Pentagon Memorial, Aug. 28, 2008. Laychak lost his younger brother, David, an Army civilian employee, during the terrorist attack on the Pentagon. The $22 million memorial, Laychak said, is a culmination of years of effort and hard work. “It is a great feeling of pride and accomplishment. Everybody has worked together on this over the past five and a half years,” he said. Tom Heidenberger, 62, lost...

For the first time in more than five years, a prominent Palestinian Arab activist, Sami Al-Arian, is free from jail. His respite from jail may not last long: The former college professor faces a second round of criminal charges in his lengthy legal battle with federal prosecutors. Al-Arian had been in government custody since he was charged with being the leader in America of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad more than five years ago. He was not convicted at trial, although he subsequently pleaded guilty to lending aid to that group and received a sentence of 57 months. Al-Arian's incarceration has...

The Henry County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a man who attempted to rob Harder’s Pharmacy in Bassett on Saturday morning. A white male, with his face partially covered, entered the store on Fairystone Park Highway at about 10 a.m. and demanded that the pharmacist give him all the OxyContin and pain pills in the store, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office. The pharmacist pulled a handgun and the would-be robber ran out of the store and got into the passenger seat of a vehicle parked across the street, authorities said. The driver then pulled out and...

Staunch Allies, Tested by Adversity McCain Relies on a Cadre of Fellow POWs to Help Get Message Across By John Wagner and Anita Kumar Washington Post Staff Writers Wednesday, September 3, 2008; Page A24 ST. PAUL, Minn., Sept. 2 -- When the roll call reaches Maryland on Wednesday night, a convention delegate with a special bond with John McCain is scheduled to step forward to announce the state's 37 votes. Everett Alvarez Jr. of Potomac was a prisoner of war with McCain in the same camp in North Vietnam, where they came to know each other during their final year...

This Labor Day Weekend was different in Olney. It seemed that we got more waves and honks than other Saturdays. Maybe our supporters were buoyed by our troops’ successes in Iraq, maybe it was McCain’s announcement of Sarah (In 2012) Palin as his VP, maybe they were just glad to see us on the corner while so many were thinking only off a 3 day weekend. No matter, it was a very good day to be supporting our troops. The list of 11 patriots taking time out from the holidays to support our troops were once again, 3 WWII Legionnaires...

Ike Pappas, a longtime CBS newsman who reported the shooting death of presidential assassin Lee Harvey Oswald on the radio as it was happening, has died at age 75. Pappas died Sunday in a hospital in Arlington, Virginia, of complications of heart disease, his family said. Pappas was among the reporters at the Dallas police station waiting for Oswald to be moved two days after President Kennedy was assassinated. Pappas had just asked him, "You have anything to say in your defense?" when a shot rang out. "Oswald has been shot!" Pappas said on the air, adding, "Mass confusion here,...

FREE REPUBLICNASCAR THREAD CHEVY ROCK & ROLL 400 Welcome all to the Sprint Cup race atRichmond International Raceway (Click on the Pics, Graphics, & Links for related news & info.) Current Cup driver standings RIR Offers to Host Busch/Edwards Demolition Derby Track Schedule for the CHEVY ROCK & ROLL 400 "One Last Race to Make The Chase" The Chevy Rock & Roll 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, September 6 marks the final race before the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Once the checkered flag drops, only the top 12 drivers in...

A registrar drew fire for pointing out possible effects of students' registering to vote. A Montgomery County official's attempt to outline state elections law for thousands of Virginia Tech students this week prompted a swift reaction from Barack Obama campaign officials, who worried the statement could have a "chilling effect" on a massive registration effort now under way. Montgomery County Registrar Randy Wertz said he wrote the news release, distributed through the county's Web site, amid concerns that the hundreds of Tech students registering to vote using their Blacksburg addresses would essentially change their permanent address. That, he wrote, could...

Whitewater - Freshmen at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater have always spent their first few days on campus learning college survival - how to join the karate club, cheer like a Warhawk and find English 101. But this year’s orientation added a grim new lesson: how to take out a campus shooter with a book or a backpack. The school is one of about 500 around the country that have purchased “Shots Fired on Campus,” a new video training program with tactics for surviving a mass-casualty shooting. It’s the latest strategy for college officials who are preparing for the worst in...

Islamic leaders tied by federal investigators to the radical Muslim Brotherhood in America – including one under active investigation for alleged terror-financing – have recently donated to Sen. Barack Obama's campaign for president, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by WND. Jamal M. Barzinji earlier this year gave Obama $1,000, a gift that records show has not been returned. Other Democratic candidates, including Rep. Jim Moran, have refunded donations from Barzinji since federal agents raided his Virginia home and offices in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Obama's top Muslim adviser resigned earlier this month over controversy surrounding his...

The American Issues Project today wraps up its first phase of a televisionadvertising and issue campaign, which called into question the longstandingrelationship between Barack Obama and unrepentant 1960’s domestic terrorist,William Ayers. “American Issues Project clearly has struck a nerve inside theObama campaign, but even more important is the reaction of the American people,who are starting to question why Sen. Obama would have such a closerelationship with an unrepentant domestic terrorist,” said Ed Martin, AmericanIssues Project president. The heavy-handed response of the Obama campaign definitely misfired. The more the Obama campaign has tried to bully the ad off the air with...

Islamic leaders tied by federal investigators to the radical Muslim Brotherhood in America – including one under active investigation for alleged terror-financing – have recently donated to Sen. Barack Obama's campaign for president, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by WND. Jamal M. Barzinji earlier this year gave Obama $1,000, a gift that records show has not been returned. Other Democratic candidates, including Rep. Jim Moran, have refunded donations from Barzinji since federal agents raided his Virginia home and offices in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Obama's top Muslim adviser resigned earlier this month over controversy surrounding his...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 29, 2008 – Starting a business requires cold, hard cash and moral support, both of which are now available to military spouses through a Virginia-based organization. “Military Spouse Business Association will help military spouses with the tangibles of financial and business resources and the intangibles of motivation, encouragement, support and recognition,” said Lanette Lepper, a co-founder of the organization, and a military spouse who owns her own business. The other co-founders, Joanna Williamson and Rebecca Poynter, share the same backgrounds as military spouses and small-business owners. Their idea to create the Military Spouse Business Association stemmed from...

Islamic leaders tied by federal investigators to the radical Muslim Brotherhood in America – including one under active investigation for alleged terror-financing – have recently donated to Sen. Barack Obama's campaign for president, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by WND. Jamal M. Barzinji earlier this year gave Obama $1,000, a gift that records show has not been returned. Other Democratic candidates, including Rep. Jim Moran, have refunded donations from Barzinji since federal agents raided his Virginia home and offices in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Obama's top Muslim adviser resigned earlier this month over controversy surrounding his...

22 August 2008, Elder Street and Georgia Avenue, Washington, DC Honor Roll: Satin Patriot, BufordP, Trooprally (Mr. & Mrs), kburi, PleaDeal, 3-D JOY, Tom the Red hunter, Lurker Bill, USN Retired, Fraxinus, GunsAreOK The New Second Baptist Church was conducting a Fish Fry in their Parking Lot on Friday Night. BufordP checking the line Devon from Oklahoma stopped by to chat with Kburi. He is a Medic that will be transferring to FT Hood Tom the Red Hunter shows his cornbread and fish that he purchased from the church 3-DJoy Plea Deal has cookies! Satin Patriot USN Retired & Satin...

If pre-convention polls are to be believed, John McCain enters the convention poised to pull in a greater percentage of the Jewish vote than any Republican candidate in the past two decades. There are many possible explanations — his long record on Israel, his image as an independent political moderate, lingering concerns about Barack Obama — but one factor is certainly the ties that his campaign has cultivated with important Jewish Republicans and moderates alike. The Forward takes a look at the Republicans who have helped McCain make it to the spotlight in Minneapolis, and who hope to take him...

Three news items: 1) John McCain has picked a running mate and may announce/leak the choice tonight. 2) McCain has admitted he is computer "illiterate." Both of which make it unlikely that he will be much swayed by ... 3) "The Directors" of the conservative site Red State have endorsed Rep. Eric Cantor (Va.) as the best choice for VP. Why Cantor? "While a young man, Cantor has served in federal office twice as long as Barack Obama -- and was a member of leadership when Obama was still in Springfield. In that short time, he has established himself as...

After dissing Russia last week, the moonbats (BELOW) had a Sit-In in support of Georgia this Saturday, complete with posters. The posters above and behind the moonbats say: (LEFT SIDE) "RUSSIA, Hands Off Poland, Ukraine, Baltic States" (CENTER) "Russia, Out of Georgia, Now". Another sign to the right, but out of site of the moonbats but in clear view of the cars that pass by, says: "Russia, Make Vodka, Not War, Now". That idea is courtesy of FReeper \/\/ayne. Also, the white hatted moonbat, 4th from left, isn't holding her regular "Hands Off Iran" sign. Any one for herding cats?...

The Fayetteville Observer reads a few tea leaves in the veepstakes and suggests that Eric Cantor may become the dark-horse finalist for John McCain’s running-mate. Cantor has not yet appeared on the convention schedule, which would seem strange for such a dynamic member of the House GOP’s leadership. He also represents a Virginia district, which could prove crucial to holding the state for the Republicans in November: Rep. Robin Hayes is predicting that Sen. John McCain will pick Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia as his running mate. “It sure looks like a great possibility to me,” Hayes said Wednesday. “Eric...

Kathleen Sebelius, Governor of KansasGrade: C+ Delivery as flat as Kansas and no apparent training on a teleprompter ... offered a mild-mannered, monotone attack on John McCain ... and some general platitudes about Barry and change. Mark Warner, former Virginia Governor, current Senate candidateGrade: D Lost the audience early and never got them back ... [made] brief, passable efforts to paint John McCain as four more years of George Bush ... were confusing, his specifics irritatingly vague ... style bland, and his speech [was] meandering. Ted Strickland, Governor of OhioGrade: B+ Finally (FINALLY) got the crowd going with some snappy,...

Romney is so talented. But two very rich guy Republicans do present problems. Lieberman is a dear man, but would be a disaster. His support for the war in Iraq and for a muscular defense makes him seem moderate. But on everything else he is an orthodox liberal. He has voted against all our good judges, for taxes, and even for partial-birth abortion. That puts him to the left of Joe Biden! John Kyl would be a great pick – a hero to conservatives — except that he’s from Arizona. Sarah Palin is appealing but too inexperienced. Vitiates the argument...

In 1862, when some of Abraham Lincoln's political allies, furious over the losses at Shiloh, demanded the removal of Ulysses S. Grant from the leadership of the Army of the Tennessee, the first Republican President responded with unequivocal fervor. "I can't spare this man," Lincoln said. "He fights." What John McCain requires in a Vice Presidential choice today is an individual who exhibits the best qualities of an intelligent political fighter. He needs a hard worker – a loyal, principled leader – an individual whose reputation is above reproach. And we are convinced that in this case, the right choice...

A Virginian didn’t make it onto the Democratic ticket this year, but there’s still a chance one will land a spot with the Republicans. With presidential candidate John McCain expected to name his choice this weekend, U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor of Henrico County continues to be mentioned as a possible running mate. Cantor is in his fourth House term, representing a district that stretches north and west from the Richmond suburbs and includes much of the state’s Piedmont region. It is a Republican stronghold, with more than 61 percent of its voters backing President Bush in 2004. A Richmond native,...

Noth Carolina Rep. Robin Hayes is predicting that Sen. John McCain will pick Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia as his running mate. “It sure looks like a great possibility to me,” Hayes said. “Eric is a tremendous friend, incredibly bright young man. He has wonderful credentials, and I think would be a very good, complementary candidate to John McCain.” Hayes made his comments during and after a meeting with educators at Jack Britt High School. Rumors about Cantor have been spreading in recent weeks and began to grow stronger on Tuesday, Hayes said. Several media outlets are reporting that Cantor...

OK, SO HE'S only one of five Virginians mentioned as possibilities for a national ticket in this year's presidential election. But it's still a kick for Rep. Eric Cantor to be on John McCain's VP list--at least until Friday. Indeed, his three teenage children "think it's cool," Cantor acknowledged last week during a stop at The Free Lance-Star. A fourth-term congressman from the Richmond area whose district includes Culpeper, Orange and Louisa counties and parts of Spotsylvania and Caroline counties, Cantor would bring undeniable strengths to the ticket. A conservative from a swing state in the South (and the only...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9e8i4vT6Ms

posted by John Nichols on 08/27/2008 @ 01:28am Email Print Share Buzzflash del.icio.us Digg Facebook Newsvine Reddit What is this? Take Action Comments (1) Subscribe Now Text SizeAAAHere is a footnote, and nothing more than that, from the 2008 Democratic National Convention. We're finally done with all that speculation about former Virginia Governor Mark Warner becoming a national political player. Sure, Warner drew a bad card when Democratic National Convention organizers scheduled the keynote address on the same night as Hillary Clinton's address to the convention. But the Virginian, who this year is likely to win a Senate seat, failed...

Eric Cantor is a relentless and confident debater. He has proven during his interviews with Chris Matthews, Laura Ingraham, and CNN's John Roberts that he can masterfully defend conservative positions without even blinking an eye. He can also effectively attack his opponents when prompted. Cantor would be a thorn in the Obama Campaign's side. In regards to who would do the least amount of damage to the ticket, Pawlenty and Cantor seem to hold an advantage over Romney with little elaboration necessary. Mitt Romney has the reputation of being a flip-flopper. His pro-choice positions of yesteryear are still bothersome to...

So now we know the Democratic ticket: Obama-Biden. We have been promised John McCain's running mate on Friday the 29th. With Joe Biden as the matchup, who among the plausible candidates should McCain take? And who is helped/hurt by the Biden pick? Personally, I think I would disregard at least some of my own prior checklist and take Eric Cantor. Cantor's young (but not too young), smart, conservative, telegenic, and from an important state that is a must-win for McCain (although Virginia seems less important with the news that Obama has suspended his TV ad campaign there, and there's less...

Rep. Eric I. Cantor, R-7th, appearing in Denver with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, says Sen. Barack Obama and his running mate show a lack of judgment. "We’ve got a serious problem of judgment" because of the Democrats’ unwillingness to drill for oil and because of their willingness to engage with Iran, Cantor said. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., D-Del. "was the pick" for Obama’s running mate "because of his foreign policy experience," Cantor said. "On Iran, Joe Biden has been wrong. He has pursued a policy of engagement with a terrorist-sponsoring regime." Romney and Cantor, both who have been...

Hundreds of colleges across the nation have purchased a training program that teaches professors and students not to take campus threats lying down but to fight back with any "improvised weapon," from a backpack to a laptop computer.

Rep. Eric Cantor (Va.), rumored to be on the shortlist of John McCain’s vice presidential candidates, is conspicuously absent from a complete list of speakers at the Republican National Convention. The list, sent to reporters under the header “Republican National Convention Announces Full Program,” includes the names of all other individuals believed to be on Sen. McCain’s (Ariz.) shortlist. Cantor was asked earlier this month to undergo the formal vetting process by the McCain campaign and served as one of his most vocal supporters in the House of Representatives. Rob Collins, a spokesman for Cantor, did not comment directly on...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 25, 2008 – Fifteen minutes before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack at the Pentagon, two sisters, both Defense Department employees, sat in the building’s five-sided center courtyard to talk about their family’s newest development. “We discussed her daughter’s first day in kindergarten,” said Kathy Dillaber, recalling the conversation with her “baby sister,” 41-year-old Patricia Mickley. As they spoke, the sisters watched an airplane streak above the open-air courtyard, and their discussion shifted to early reports that morning about a pair of planes crashing in New York City. About 10 minutes later they walked together toward their...

ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, Va., Aug. 25, 2008 – It started as a leap of faith, but more than 10 million steps later, a 10-man relay team arrived here, at what the memorial run’s organizer called the most sacred place in America. Shannon Cleary, center, kisses her mother, Marianne Cleary, Aug. 24, 2008, during the last few moments of Run for the Fallen, a memorial run in memory of Cleary's brother, Army 1st Lt. Michael Cleary. Jack Flanagan, Marianne’s grandson, also participated in the last day of the living memorial that began June 14, outside the gates of Fort Irwin,...

Tuskegee Airman dies in Virginia Growing up, Lt. Col. Howard Lee Baugh knew he wanted to fly airplanes. For years, he was told he couldn't because of his race. But when the Army began accepting applications from blacks who wanted to join, he jumped at the chance. The Petersburg native enlisted in 1942 and was part of the original Tuskegee Airmen, a fighter group consisting entirely of black men who trained at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. The first time he was in a plane, he was the one flying. By the time he retired, Lt. Col. Baugh logged more...

First John McCain enlisted the support of the country's only Jewish vice presidential nominee, Joe Lieberman, who ran on the Democratic ticket in 2000. Now he might tap a Jewish vice presidential choice of his own: Eric Cantor. The 45-year-old fourth-term congressman from Virginia has emerged as a serious - if still long-shot - candidate for the VP job in recent days, though the McCain campaign wouldn't confirm reports that Cantor has made the short list. Cantor, the House of Representative's chief deputy minority whip, is known as a rising star in the Republican party with a talent for fund-raising....

Gov Kaine, on Fox New Sunday, claimed that Virginia (his state) borders Delaware - on the Eastern Shore. It does not. Maryland gets in the way of that border.

KANSAS CITY — A date in 2009 has been set for former Southwest Michigan Congressman Mark Siljander to stand trial on charges in connection with an alleged international terrorism ring. U.S. District Judge Nanette Laughrey, of the Western District of Missouri, signed an order last month setting a trial date of Nov. 2, 2009, for Siljander and other defendants in the case involving the Islamic American Relief Agency. Siljander was indicated in January on charges of money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. The government alleges the agency used stolen money to pay Siljander for lobbying efforts and that Siljander...

Supporter -- Yesterday, a right-wing smear group launched a full-fledge attack against Barack, pulling in every baseless lie and re-hashed false assertion in their playbook. Not only that -- it turns out the ad may be illegal. Campaign finance experts are weighing in about violations of election law. And the ad is so ridiculous that CNN and even Fox News have both refused to run it. This is exactly the kind of politics Barack is running to change. Unfortunately, some TV stations in Virginia are running the ad right now. Contact stations in Virginia and tell them this kind...

Andrea Mitchell said at the opening of the show that both Kaine and Bayh were told by the Obama campaign that they were not the V-P. She also intimated that it would be Biden and that Biden had yet to be told no.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh and Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine have been told by Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's campaign they will not be his vice presidential choice, NBC News reported on Friday quoting sources.

But Does His Flight To Denver Have A Springfield Layover? Governor Tim Kaine is not at the Governor's Mansion, instead, according to the Associated Press, he is in Washington, D.C., visiting George Washington University. Kaine is scheduled to leave tonight for the Democratic National Convention in Denver.