It was a busy week for news here in Arlington.
ARLnow.com was the first to report on two developments in the on-going saga of the Lyon Park gun store, we were the first to report on this piece of local election news that was later picked up by the Associated Press, and we were the first to report on today’s bomb threat and evacuation at Bishop O’Connell High School.
Thumbs Up to Republican Voters
On Tuesday news broke that some Arlington precincts were running out of pre-printed Republican ballots. Only time will tell if Tuesday’s primary results in Arlington mean Democrat enthusiasm is down and Republican enthusiasm is up, or that Democrats crossed over to vote for the candidate they most wanted to run against their likely nominee — Hillary Clinton. We do know that statewide Virginia Republican Primary results smashed previous records.
By Mary Rouleau
We have seen mounting evidence and substantial reporting about the growing income and wealth (net worth) gaps nationally. These gaps have become a key theme in this year’s Presidential election. They have also been picked up more and more in local coverage.
If enacted into law, a bill that now has passed both houses of the Virginia legislature would enable Richmond politicians and bureaucrats to censor APS teachers’ decisions regarding what books to assign in APS classrooms.
Background
The weekend is here and so is the opportunity to discuss any issue of local interest.
One request this week: to allow those who want to discuss everything else that’s happening around Arlington to do so, please take all discussion of the proposed Lyon Park gun store to our latest article about it.
Donald Trump is the clear favorite in Virginia’s March 1 Republican Presidential primary. His candidacy seriously undermines Republican prospects to carry Virginia in the fall.
Background
The Virginia General Assembly is considering a bill to grant police and sheriff’s departments virtually unlimited latitude to refuse to release the names of its officers via Freedom of Information Act requests.
Senate Bill 552 passed the Senate on a 25-15, bi-partisan vote. It would classify all officers names as personnel records, exempting them from mandatory disclosure. By all accounts, it is the most sweeping measure of its kind in the country.
By: Alan Howze
Last night, the County government and Arlington Public Schools held a joint community forum on how to improve snow removal. No doubt, there was a wide range of suggestions, and with global warming contributing to more frequent mega-snows it is good to see that County leadership recognizes that its approach to snow removal needs to adapt.
Fairfax, Prince William and Stafford counties have all decided to close schools on March 1 while voters go to the polls in the contentious presidential primary.
Arlington has no such plans.
The weekend is here — and it’s expected to be a warm one for mid-February.
It’s going to be warm enough that one might even forget we started the week with a significant snow and ice storm. Or that another storm — rain with some snow possibly mixed in — is in the works for next week.
By: Delegate Alfonso Lopez
Over the past several years, Democrats have won every Virginia statewide elected office.
While most members of the general public are not paying attention, Virginia legislators are trying to restore the old ways of doing business. Senate Bill 692 passed by the Virginia Senate on February 15 would water down even the overly-modest government ethics reforms enacted in 2015.
What Virginia did in 2015
