Virginia state Sen. Dick Black won't seek re-election

State Sen. Dick Black (R) announced Wednesday he will not seek re-election in this year's 13th Senate District contest.

Black, known as one of the most conservative lawmakers in General Assembly, has served in the Senate since 2012, winning election in 2011. He served in the House of Delegates from 1998 to 2006.

"I have dedicated my life to public service, whether it was wearing a uniform or serving in elected office," Black said in a prepared statement. "My family has made many sacrifices throughout the years in order for me to serve, and I am grateful for their support and the support of voters. I have been blessed with 16 beautiful grandchildren and it has been harder and harder to find the time to spend with them as my district has grown to over quarter of a million of people."

The 13th Senate District covers portions of Ashburn, western Loudoun County and parts of Prince William County.

Democratic state Del. John Bell (87th) announced in late 2018 that he is seeking the 13th Senate District seat. Also planning to vie for the Democratic nomination are Lucero Wiley and Jasmine Moawad-Barrientos.

Black said he's proud of what he's accomplished over his legislative career. He was named "Legislator of the Year" by the Family Foundation and the National Right to Work foundation.

A retired Marine, combat veteran and Purple Heart recipient, Black, 74, has been a frequent news maker over the years, including recently for his unwavering support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is viewed by most analysts as a dictator whose administration has murdered thousands of its own citizens during the civil war that sparked in 2011.


https://www.loudountimes.com/news/virginia-state-sen-dick-black-won-t-seek-re-election/article_ef9ea190-0e87-11e9-8e23-afbcb8990a6d.html

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Trump supporter arrested at Elizabeth Warren campaign event in Iowa

A Minnesota man was arrested Saturday on suspicion of disorderly conduct at a Warren campaign event in Storm Lake, Iowa, according to the Des Moines Register.

Randall J. Thom, 58, attempted to assault some in the crowd as Warren greeted people outside the venue, police said.

Thom, of Lakefield, Minn., is an enthusiastic supporter of President Trump who has been at many of his campaign and postcampaign rallies.



http://www.startribune.com/d-c-briefly/503951682/

Sanders campaign staffer who ignored harassment complaints resigns as new Dem's chief of staff

Bill Velazquez, chief of staff to freshman Rep. Jesús ‘Chuy’ Garcia (D-Ill.), resigned after one day on the job after an explosive New York Times report said he mishandled sexual misconduct claims while he worked on Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) presidential campaign.

Fabiola Rodriguez-Ciampoli, Garcia’s communications director, said the resignation was accepted Friday.

They both agreed that the recent media stories that involved Bill had become a distraction from the work the Congressman needs to do for the people of Illinois’ 4th Congressional District, and from the work Bill was brought in to do,” she said in a statement to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Garcia’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill.

The Times reported that Velazquez, a manager on the Latino outreach team on Sanders's campaign, laughed off a staffer’s claim that a supervisor ran his hands through her hair in a “sexual way” while the two were traveling together.

“I bet you would have liked it if he were younger,” Velazquez reportedly told Giulianna Di Lauro when she recounted the incident.


https://thehill.com/homenews/house/423978-sanders-campaign-staffer-who-ignored-harassment-complaints-resigns-as-new-dems?rnd=1546648279

Virginia Democrats fired up for 2019 election.

Iowa Democrats fill events to the rafters with 13 months left before the 2020 caucuses

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — People stood in parking lots, jostled into front yards and packed into the rafters to witness Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s inaugural appearances here in the first presidential caucus state.

It was part of a trend: In December, the liberal group Progress Iowa doubled the size of its annual meeting from four years ago, with 300 activists eager to participate. In October, Iowa Democrats sold out their 1,500-seat dinner in Des Moines, which featured another potential contender, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey.

The Iowa caucuses remain 13 months away, but a pent-up demand for change in the White House is tangible among Democrats eager for the 2020 campaign to start in earnest. The throngs of voters bombarding events in Iowa are testament to something fearful for Republicans: The huge tide of Democratic voters who powered the party’s 2018 gains have not lost interest as attention turns to the 2020 presidential race.

“I’ve never been to a rally, but I wanted to for a long time,” said Dan Elliott, as he waited in the ornate Orpheum Theatre lobby in Sioux City for Warren to speak Saturday morning. “I’m surprised by the energy here. The lines are longer than people expected.”

Iowans cited a slew of reasons for their eagerness to begin the lengthy nomination process to settle on a leader to go up against President Trump. There were the tax cuts that one voter called “a waste of time and money;” the trade war with China depressing demand for exports and hurting farmers; the hostility toward immigrants, a labor pool heavily used on Iowa farms; the rolling back of environmental regulations that impact Iowa’s rivers; a foreign-policy approach changing the country’s status in the world; and the general chaos and lack of civility in the White House.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/iowa-democrats-fill-events-to-the-rafters-with-13-months-left-before-the-2020-caucuses/2019/01/05/18b5a63a-1128-11e9-84fc-d58c33d6c8c7_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.e7559fc183fa

Allegheny County voters will fill Reschenthaler's Pa. Senate seat in an April special election

Some Allegheny County voters will return to the polls in April to fill the state Senate seat vacated by U.S. Congressman Guy Reschenthaler.

Soon-to-be-former Pennsylvania Lieutenant Gov. Mike Stack tweeted Friday afternoon that he had asked the Senate Secretary “to draft a writ setting the Special Election to fill the vacant 37th Senate District seat for April 2, 2019.” Stack said counties will be served the writ on Monday.

The 37th district encompasses parts of Allegheny County including Bethel Park, Moon Township, Mt. Lebanon, and Sewickley, as well as Peters Township in Washington County. Reschenthaler, a Republican who won the race to represent Pennsylvania’s new 14th Congressional District on Nov. 6, represented the district for three years.

Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor is the presiding officer of the state Senate and calls special elections to fill vacant seats in that chamber.

Department of State spokesperson Wanda Murren previously said a writ of election “must be issued within 10 days of the date the vacancy occurs.” Reschenthaler submitted his resignation Monday, Stack’s office confirmed by email.

“The special election can be held no less than 60 days from the time the writ is issued,” Murren added.


https://theincline.com/2019/01/04/allegheny-county-voters-will-fill-reschenthalers-pa-senate-seat-in-an-april-special-election/

NYS Senate Dems say thanks, but no thanks to Simcha Felder's return to Democratic conference

As they prepare to take over the majority, state Senate Democrats say Brooklyn Sen. Simcha Felder will not be welcomed back into their conference.

“New Yorkers elected the largest Democratic Majority in memory consisting of candidates who ran on a robust progressive agenda and proudly sought election as members of our conference,” Senate Democratic spokesman Mike Murphy said. “As such, we have decided to remain a 39-member majority.”

While Felder won’t be part of the conference that will dictate the chamber’s agenda, Murphy added that “of course, we will work with all senators, including Senator Felder, to advance legislation that will help New York state prosper.”

Despite being a registered Democrat, Felder the past several years caucused with the Senate Republicans, who controlled the chamber.
He remained the swing vote for the Republicans after a separate group of eight breakaway Dems broke its leadership coalition with the GOP in April to rejoin the Democratic fold.


https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-pol-felder-stewart-cousins-senate-20181230-story.html

Rep. Jennifer Wexton Flies Trans Pride Flag Outside Her Capitol Hill Office

The 116th Congress is making history for its unprecedented representation of minority groups. And one new legislator is proudly displaying her commitment to inclusion.

After Thursday’s swearing-in ceremony, Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.) hung a transgender pride flag outside her office next to the official Virginia state flag.

The newly minted congresswoman from the state’s 10th District told Washingtonian that the flag is a personal show of solidarity because she’s an aunt to a transgender kid.

“The trans community has been under attack,” she said. “I wanted to show my solidarity because we are talking about my friends and family.”


https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/rep-jennifer-wexton-flies-trans-prideflag-outside-her-capitol-hill-office_us_5c2f6436e4b05c88b7087b1a?ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000067

New Dem committee chair summons Kirstjen Nielsen to testify about 'outright lies'

The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee is calling DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen to appear before the panel — having only done so once since she took the office.

Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Johnson (D-MS) said Nielsen’s latest presentation on the president’s proposed border wall with Mexico is “yet another example of the misinformation and outright lies the Trump Administration has used to make the case for the President’s boondoggle border wall, defend the government shutdown, and distract the American people from a border policy so flawed that children have died in Department of Homeland Security custody.”

Johnson added that he, as chairman of the committee tasked with DHS oversight, intends to use that power to call her to testify before the panel.

“In your year-long tenure, you have testified before the committee only once,” the chairman wrote. “Another appearance is overdue.”


https://www.rawstory.com/2019/01/new-dem-committee-chair-summons-kirstjen-nielsen-testify-outright-lies-scathing-letter/#.XDBXElZ_g7k.twitter