Tuesday News: Walker Drops Out; Pope Francis Arrives; Virginia Rural Hospitals Under Strain

Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Tuesday, September 22. Also check out that PolitiFact rating of "true" to a statement by the President/CEO of Augusta Health that "about half of rural hospitals operate in the red in Virginia." To combat this, it's time for the Virginia General Assembly to allow hospitals to access available funds to offset the financial strain hospitals have been put under due to federal and state policy decisions, and by doing so to allow more Virginians to have access to quality health care. *Pope Francis arrives Tuesday. Leave your car at home and add extra time to your trip. *In word and deed, Pope Francis brings message of change to U.S. *Republicans in Congress Are Going to Hate What Pope Francis Has to Say. Here's Why.(Give 'em hell, Pope Francis!) *The GOP's absurd anti-Pope crusade: The bizarre spectacle of Republicans turning on a religious leader (Frighteningly, today's GOP has morphed into a bizarre, extreme, outlier party akin to the John Birch Society and a far-right European party like UKIP) *No soft landing as Chinese President Xi begins state visit *Scott Walker, once a GOP contender, makes surprise exit (Good riddance.) *Wisconsin's Walker exits '16 race with harsh words for Trump (The problem is, it's not just Trump...it's Carson, Fiorina, Huckabee, etc, and also their SUPPORTERS.) *U.S. sees opportunity for military gains against ISIS in Syria *It's up to voters to reject Trump and Carson's bigotry *Republicans pander to anti-Muslim bigotry *Republicans stoke the fire of Islamophobia *Prejudice on display in the Republican campaign for president *Editorial: The pope counters false gods (Again, I'm surprised to hear this coming from the RTD editorial page.) *Activists disrupt Gov. Terry McAuliffe speech to protest pipeline ("We came here today because the governor continues to tout a 'New Virginia Economy' based on more fracking and more gas pipelines. But there is nothing new about an economic system based on extraction and exploitation of land, people, and natural resources. How will fracked gas traveling through Virginia in massive pipelines benefit Appalachia? It won't. It will benefit Dominion and EQT, not Virginians, or anyone else in the Appalachian region.") *Rigell leads the chorus on offshore drilling, but not all businesses sing along (Offshore drilling is the exact opposite direction we should be going: Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.) *Democratic lawmakers in Va. and Md. urge passage of a clean budget *Disturbing propensity for secrecy ("Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Co. have repeatedly understated the legal authority that administration officials possess to fulfill the spirit and the letter of Virginia's open-records laws. Unfortunately, even the Supreme Court of Virginia appears to be following that lead.") *In Virginia, more than 1 in 4 are obese *Virginia hospitals consider options without Medicaid expansion *Parties in 3rd District case clash over posting of plans ("The parties in the lawsuit that will lead to new boundaries for Virginia's 3rd Congressional District are now fighting over whether proposed fixes for the district should be made public on a state government website.") *U.S. Labor secretary hails Buz and Ned's wage hike *Harry Reid to speak at UVa on Saturday *400 gallons of oil spills; some gets into Dan River (Reminder: when solar "spills" it's simply known as a sunny day.) *Loudoun officials fill seat left vacant after supervisor's arrest, resignation ("The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors appointed James 'Jim' Bonfils as interim Broad Run District supervisor. The seat was vacated by Shawn M. Williams, who resigned after an arrest.") *Robert E. Simon Jr., real estate visionary and creator of Reston, dies at 101 *Larry Altenburg Endorses Bill Euille for Mayor *D.C. area forecast: Gradual clearing today and sunny tomorrow, chance of rain starts Friday Video: Ben Carson keeps talking, keeps making no sense whatsoever (0.00 / 0) [delete comment] Keep in mind while you're listening to this rambling word salad what Carson said on Meet the Press Sunday: "I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that." Now what on earth is he babbling about? Stupidest brain surgeon in human history? Or is he just bonkers? Or both? Follow me on Twitter. Follow Blue Virginia on Facebook and Twitter. by: lowkell @ Tue Sep 22, 2015 at 11:06:31 AM EDT [ Reply ] Video: Senate Democrats Unveil Broad Vision for Cleaner Energy Future (0.00 / 0) [delete comment] Meanwhile, Republicans are doing what? Denying climate science like Exxon has done for years, as the brilliant InsideClimate News series has exposed? Huge contrast on this one between the two parties, and only one (hint: it's the Democratic Party) is right. Follow me on Twitter. Follow Blue Virginia on Facebook and Twitter. by: lowkell @ Tue Sep 22, 2015 at 11:13:57 AM EDT [ Reply ] Sen. Tim Kaine on vote against 20-week abortion ban: "Nothing in my Catholic faith suggests that I should support legislation that violates the Constitution" (0.00 / 0) [delete comment] KAINE STATEMENT ON VOTE AGAINST FEDERAL ABORTION BANWASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today after voting against a 20-week federal abortion ban: "The Republicans attempted to use the forthcoming Papal visit to force a vote on a 20-week federal abortion ban that has already been struck down by numerous federal courts as unconstitutional. Because it violates the 14th Amendment and 40 years of Supreme Court precedent, I voted against it. Nothing in my Catholic faith suggests that I should support legislation that violates the Constitution. In fact, I take an oath as a Senator to support the Constitution, 'so help me God.' Instead of using the Papal visit as just another political opportunity, I encourage my Republican colleagues to do what I and my Democratic colleagues plan to do this week. Truly listen to him." Follow me on Twitter. Follow Blue Virginia on Facebook and Twitter. by: lowkell @ Tue Sep 22, 2015 at 11:54:07 AM EDT [ Reply ] Jerry Kilgore, 2005 loser to Tim Kaine, joins loser Eric Cantor (0.00 / 0) [delete comment] and other Virginia losers (e.g., John Hager, who ran for Governor in 2001 but lost the Republican nomination to Virginia's then Attorney General Mark Earley) in endorsing "JEB" Bush. In Virginia, Jeb Bush has picked up another key supporter: Jerry Kilgore, the former attorney general, who was serving as Walker's Virginia finance chairman. Kilgore signed on with Bush on Tuesday."I am honored to join Gov. Bush's leadership team in Virginia.  Gov Bush is the reform candidate that the country needs at this point in our history," Kilgore said in a statement provided by the Bush campaign. "His strong record of positive reforms in Florida gives certainty to the leadership he will provide as our President. His positive message is one that will resonate with Virginians." What. Ever.P.S. With regard to Hager, the WaPo notes, "Hager's son, Henry, is married to Bush's niece, Jenna Bush Hager, daughter of George W. Bush." Follow me on Twitter. Follow Blue Virginia on Facebook and Twitter. by: lowkell @ Tue Sep 22, 2015 at 12:18:18 PM EDT [ Reply ] Video: Marco Rubio falsely claims that women "pushed into abortions" for fetal tissue profits (0.00 / 0) [delete comment] No evidence, of course, just wild-eyed claims, and this guy's running for PRESIDENT?!? Follow me on Twitter. Follow Blue Virginia on Facebook and Twitter. by: lowkell @ Tue Sep 22, 2015 at 13:51:38 PM EDT [ Reply ] Your daily dose of EW Jackson bigotry, insanity (0.00 / 0) [delete comment]