Virginia Politics Blog Archive: Virginia Tech massacre

Deeds Calls Relative of Virginia Tech Victim

Creigh Deeds is reaching out to families of the Virginia Tech shooting, some of whom actively opposed him in his three-way Democrat primary against Brian Moran and Terry McAuliffe, because of his stance on guns. This morning, he called Omar Samaha, whose sister, Reema, was killed in the April 2007 shootings. "Creigh and Omar spoke this morning and had a good, friendly conversation,'' said Mo Elleithee, Deeds spokesman. "As with all the families of the Virginia Tech tragedy, Creigh intends to have an open door and continued dialogue with him." Samaha and Colin Goddard, a victim who survived the shooting (and was in the room when shooter Seung Hui Cho killed himself), issued an open letter opposing Deeds hours before the polls opened in June. Deeds has voted repeatedly against closing a loophole that allows some private vendors at gun shows to make sales without background checks -- a change...

McDonnell Shift on One-Gun-a-Month

Maybe Creigh Deeds' campaign should send a copy of this story by my colleague Freddy Kunkle, filed this weekend from Virginia's biggest gun show, to former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder. Why? Because in the story, Republican Bob McDonnell says his position on Virginia's law limiting handgun purchases to one a month has changed. He voted for it in the legislature; now he says it should be repealed. That law was a signature achievement of Wilder's. That Deeds opposed it--and McDonnell supported it--was one reason Wilder withheld his endorsement from Deeds during the 2005 race for attorney general between the two....

Statement From Gov. Kaine on the Recovery of Cho's Records

RICHMOND - Governor Timothy M. Kaine released the following statement today on the recovery of the Cook Counseling Center records of Seung Hui Cho: "During the course of the investigation in the aftermath of the shootings at Virginia Tech, it was learned that Seung Hui Cho's counseling file from the Cook Counseling Center on the Virginia Tech campus could not be found. The file has now been recovered from the home of a former employee who left the counseling center a number of months before the shooting. There is an investigation under way to determine how the file was removed from the Cook Counseling Center. "The file was recovered in connection with a pending civil suit, and while I cannot comment on the circumstances of its recovery, we feel it is imperative that the file be made public as quickly as possible. The panel that conducted the review under my...

Former Top Cop Endorses Warner

W. Gerald Massengill, a retired Virginia State Police superintendent appointed by former Republican Gov. James S. Gilmore III, today endorsed Democrat Mark R. Warner for U.S. Senate. Massengill, best known for heading the panel that reviewed the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre, was joined by five other law enforcement officials from around the state for a news conference in Richmond with Warner. A self-described Republican who spent 37 years in the state police force, Massengill was appointed superintendent in 2000 and served until 2003. That meant he served under Gilmore and Warner, who was governor from 2002 to 2006....

Politicians Get Ready for Shad Planking Wednesday

Politicians from around the state will flock to tiny Wakefield on Wednesday for the 60th annual Shad Planking, a longtime Virginia tradition where politicians come to see and be seen. Speakers include U.S. Senate candidates, Republicans James S. Gilmore III and Robert G. Marshall, and Democrat Mark R. Warner. It may the only time the three men share a stage before a Republican nominee is picked next month. Democrat Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, who is running for governor next year, and his potential rival, Del. Brian J. Moran, both sent their staffs to Wakefield today to help Warner's team set up....

Bell Will Not Run For Attorney General

Del. Robert B. Bell (R-Charlottesville) said this afternoon that he will not run for state attorney general in 2009. He said his wife is pregnant so the timing is not right for him to launch a statewide campaign. Bell, elected in 2001, had been gearing up for a run for more than a year. As of Dec. 31, Bell had raised $300,000, giving him an early advantage in the money race....

Older Entries in This Category »

Edwards Proposes "Gun Show Loophole" Compromise, Sandhya Somashekhar , January 28, 2008

Winners & Losers, Tim Craig , January 18, 2008

Text of Kaine Speech, Steve Fehr , January 9, 2008

McDonnell Unveils Legislative Agenda, Sandhya Somashekhar , January 8, 2008

Virginia Notebook: Election Day Questions, Tim Craig , October 24, 2007