Across Virginia

(Va. ABC photo)

All Virginia ABC stores will resume normal operating hours on Tuesday. The state liquor outlets had operated on reduced schedules since late January, the result of COVID-related staffing difficulties. All stores will again open at 10:00 each day, except for those that normally open later on Sundays.

NEWS RELEASE:– Beginning Tuesday, March 1, all 396 Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) stores will return to normal operating hours.

All stores will open by 10 a.m. every day, apart from some stores which regularly open later on Sundays. Store closing times, which were not part of the month-long adjustment, will remain the same. Closing times vary by store.

“With COVID-19 case numbers once again falling in Virginia, we are now able to return to our normal operating hours,” said Travis Hill, chief executive officer of Virginia ABC. “We truly appreciate our retail team’s dedication and flexibility throughout this pandemic, and we look forward to serving our customers with expanded hours soon.”

All ABC stores have been observing reduced hours since Jan. 24, opening daily at noon in response to increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases making staffing difficult.

As an alternative to in-store shopping, customers can place orders online at www.abc.virginia.gov for curbside pickup or home delivery in nearly all areas of the commonwealth.

ABC continues to monitor information regarding COVID-19. Future decisions related to ABC store operations will be made based on the best information available to ABC and implemented on a case-by-case basis.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement:

“For more than 70 years, we have avoided large-scale war in Europe. With his illegal invasion of Ukraine, Vladimir Putin has tragically brought decades of general peace to an end. Now the U.S. and our NATO allies must stand united and resolute against Putin’s efforts to renew the Russian empire at the expense of the Ukrainian people. “President Biden has already imposed an initial tranche of sanctions, and it is now time for us to up the pain level for the Russian government. We should also continue to bolster the defenses of our NATO allies while exploring how we can further help the Ukrainian people in their time of need.

“While there is still an opportunity for Russia to reverse course, we can no longer hold out hope that this standoff will be resolved peacefully. Therefore, we must all, on both sides of the aisle and both sides of the Atlantic, work together to demonstrate to Putin that this aggression will not be allowed to go unpunished.

“What is happening in Ukraine is a tragedy not only for Ukraine, but for the Russian people as well. They will pay a steep cost for Putin’s reckless ambition, in blood and in economic harm.”

 

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) and the Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), released the following statement after President Putin announced military operations against Ukraine and Russian missiles and artillery reportedly struck cities across the country:

“Putin’s decision to attack Ukraine is an unacceptable affront to Ukraine’s sovereignty and to democracies everywhere. This is a crisis of Putin’s own making. The United States and the international community have offered Putin every opportunity to de-escalate diplomatically. Instead, he chose a path of conflict, risking the lives of citizens in both Ukraine and Russia.

“America’s commitment to Ukraine is absolute and has the steadfast, bipartisan support of Congress. Make no mistake: Russia’s aggression will continue to have significant consequences, including through additional crippling economic sanctions.”

In January, Senator Kaine helped introduce the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022, critical legislation to impose crippling sanctions on the Russian banking sector and senior military and government officials if President Putin escalates hostile action in or against Ukraine.

From Govenor Youngkin’s Twitter: Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is an assault on a sovereign nation and will have devastating consequences for Ukrainian citizens. This senseless, unprovoked attack undermines democracy worldwide and we must hold Russia accountable. And we pray for the Ukrainian people and for peace.

Despite the perceived move to the right with the election of a Republican statewide ticket including the first GOP governor in 8 years – and a party takeover in the House of Delegates – Virginia is still a “purple” state on many issues. That’s what the latest Wason Center survey of 701 registered voters during a recent 2-week period seemed to indicate.

A strong majority of survey respondents support teaching how racism continues to impact society and oppose bans on teaching critical race theory; almost 60 percent said to spend budget surpluses on education, public safety and other services, rather than provide tax cuts or rebates. Another strong  majority said climate change should be a top priority. Rebecca Bromley-Trujillo is research director for the Wason Center at Christopher Newport University:

(Wason Release) NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – As the 2022 General Assembly debates new laws and the state budget, Virginia voters support cutting the 2.5% grocery tax either by total repeal or granting a low-income tax credit, and they would spend the state budget surplus on education, public safety and social services, rather than return it to taxpayers, according to a survey by the Wason Center for Civic Leadership at Christopher Newport University. Also, voters would require some professions to be vaccinated against COVID-19, but not students; favor action on climate change; oppose banning Critical Race Theory from schools; and oppose restoring restrictions on abortion.

Budget surplus: A majority of Virginia voters (59%) prefer spending the state budget surplus on education, public safety and social services, rather than providing tax cuts or tax rebates (38%).

Grocery tax: Voters overwhelmingly support cutting the 2.5% grocery tax, either by a total repeal (47%) or by giving low-income Virginians a tax credit (25%), while 24% of voters say keep the tax in place.

Critical Race Theory: Voters support teaching how racism continues to impact American society (63% to 33%) and oppose a ban on the teaching of Critical Race Theory in public schools (57% to 35%).

Masks and vaccine mandates: Virginia voters support vaccine mandates for first responders (58%), teachers (57%) and medical providers (61%), while opposing mandates for elementary students (55%) and middle school students (51%). On masks in schools, voters say health data should be used to determine mask requirements (56%) versus leaving the decision to parents (41%).

Police in schools: Voters strongly support stationing a police officer in every school (70%).

Abortion: A plurality oppose a 24-hour waiting period before a woman can have an abortion (49% to 44%), while a majority oppose requiring an ultrasound (57% to 36%) and a ban on abortions at 6 weeks (58% to 33%).

Environment and energy: A majority of voters say climate change is already affecting Virginia and should be a top priority (34%) or a medium priority (32%) for the governor and General Assembly; 22% say it should be a low priority and 11% say not a priority at all. Voters support the state participating in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative carbon cap-and-trade program (67% to 26%) and the Virginia Clean Economy Act (67% to 28%), a law requiring Virginia electric utilities to generate 100% of their power from renewable sources by 2050.

“It’s not surprising to see many Virginia voters say climate change should be a priority for their state government,” said Rebecca Bromley-Trujillo, Research Director of the Wason Center. “Sea level rise, harm to ecosystems and extreme weather largely accord with scientists’ expectations of climate effects here.”

The results of this survey are based on interviews of 701 Virginia registered voters, Jan. 26-Feb. 15, 2022. The margin of error is 4.2%. The full report is attached and online at https://cnu.edu/wasoncenter/ .

ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP) – Police say a man stole an ambulance near a Maryland hospital early Friday and drove it to northern Virginia, where he was taken into custody.

WTOP-FM reports that Montgomery County Police Officer Casandra Tressler said the carjacking took place around 2:45 a.m. near Adventist Shady Grove Medical Center in Rockville. Montgomery County police and Virginia State Police say the man drove the ambulance to Virginia.

Virginia State Police stopped the ambulance on state Route 110 before the exit to Interstate 395, near the Pentagon. The man has been taken to Arlington County’s jail.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Auto parts retailer and distributor AutoZone will establish a new distribution and import facility in Virginia, creating over 350 new jobs. That’s according to a news release issued Friday by Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office.

The company will invest $185.2 million to establish the 800,000-square-foot facility east of Richmond in New Kent County that will serve as its East Coast distribution hub.

The Memphis, Tennessee-headquartered company’s project is expected to create 352 full-time jobs, at an unspecified pay rate. Former Gov. Ralph Northam approved a $2.5 million grant to assist New Kent County with the project, which is also eligible for other incentives.

Photo: Virginia DOF

It may not feel especially warm, dry or windy right now, but we are nearing the most dangerous time of year for Virginia wildfires. Debris burning is the state’s number-one cause of wildfires, and more than half of such fires in Virginia occur during the spring. So now through April 30th, outdoor burning is prohibited before 4:00 pm each day if the fire is within 300 feet of woodlands. brush or fields with dry grass. WIFR’s Evan Jones has more:

(Va. ABC photo)

Virginia state liquor stores are facing supply shortages on a scale never seen before, but its leader tells us you should see many of those bare shelves filling up again by April. Even in a normal year, the holidays can be so busy for Virginia’s ABC stores that the system will run out of some items, but this time around, it happened on a much greater scale, and replenishing those supplies has been particularly challenging. Officials say the system was out of 250 separate products earlier this winter, and as of  February 14, that number was little changed at 246. WFIR’s Evan Jones has more:

A state official says a deputy Virginia attorney general has resigned after The Washington Post raised questions about social media comments the newspaper reported she made about the 2020 election, the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection and other matters. The Post reported it had obtained screenshots of the posts by Monique Miles, authenticated them with people who interacted with her, and shared them with the office of Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares. A Miyares spokeswoman confirmed Miles’ resignation and said Miyares had not been aware of the posts. Miles couldn’t immediately be reached by The Associated Press for comment. But she told The Post the comments had been shared to stir up controversy.