Free Republic

A southwest Virginia lawmaker has filed a bill that would allow a Confederate battle flag to again be displayed on state-issued license plates. Senator Charles W. Carrico Sr. told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that his constituents believe Gov. Terry McAuliffe went too far when he moved to have the plates phased out. The Grayson County Republican says he represents his district "first and foremost." ...

The governor’s race in Kentucky may have given the GOP its most satisfying victory of Election Night 2015, but the maintenance of the status quo in Virginia may be the most meaningful. Outside groups poured into the Commonwealth in an attempt to gain Democratic governor Terry McAuliffe more leverage, including the SEIU and Michael Bloomberg’s gun-control activists, who spent more than $2 million on statehouse races. They came up empty, and in the process called into serious question the direction of the Democratic Party and the strategy of its presidential frontrunner: Republicans held onto the Virginia Senate in fiercely contested...

The National Rifle Association was victorious in Virginia last night after billionaire Michael Bloomberg and other outside gun control advocates attempted to influence local Senate elections.  BREAKING: #NRA-backed candidates retain control of #Virginia Senate #ElectionDay #2A— NRA (@NRA) November 4, 2015 As Matt has already noted, this means long time Clinton ally and Democrat Governor Terry McAuliffe will be forced to work with a Republican majority until the end of his term. Last month, McAuliffe issued a series of gun control executive orders after failing to get legislation passed by Republicans. After two failed attempts at getting some gun control measures passed,...

Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s prospects of retaking control of the Virginia Senate dimmed Tuesday night as Republicans won a Richmond district that Democrats called key to their plan for flipping the upper chamber. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Glen Sturtevant, a Richmond school board member, defeated Democrat Dan Gecker, a Chesterfield County supervisor in the race to replace Sen. John C. Watkins (Powhatan), who is retiring. “Well it’s a shame. We did the best we could,” Senate Minority Leader Richard L. Saslaw (D-Fairfax) said. Tuesday’s election results will ultimately determine McAuliffe (D) has any legislative leverage or political momentum heading...

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D.) wants to make sure that “Virginia is Hillary Clinton territory,” so he brought her out to Terry McAuliffe territory.The perennial Clinton insider and prolific fundraiser won the 2013 gubernatorial election by about 55,000 votes out of more than 2 million cast; he won Alexandria, a city of 150,000, with more than 70 percent of the vote, giving him a 20,000-vote edge. The Washington, D.C., suburbs in Northern Virginia have almost singlehandedly transformed Virginia from a deep red state to a swing state in the past two decades and if Hillary Clinton wants to mimic President...

Thursday afternoon Michael Bloomberg's anti-gun advocacy group Everytown for America held a small rally in Washington D.C. in front of the Capitol Building in an effort to shame Congress into passing gun control legislation. Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe spoke at the event and brought his armed body guard with him. Terry McAuliffe Shows Up With Armed Body Guard at Anti-Gun EventA few things. First off, McAuliffe's claim that people "can be armed" while we were standing on the Capitol grounds in Washington D.C. is false. It is nearly impossible for law abiding civilians to be legally armed in Washington D.C....

Hoping to start a bloody "race war," a black, gay, in-your-face Obama-supporting former TV reporter horrified Southwest Virginia TV viewers yesterday when he stalked and coolly murdered two white former TV station colleagues and wounded a white interview subject during a live broadcast.

Hours after the shooting deaths of two Roanoke reporters on live television, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe called for more gun control. […] “It goes back to what I’ve talked about for a long time,” McAuliffe said. “There are too many guns in the hands of people who should not have guns.” …

Breaking.

Bryce Williams reportedly shoots reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward live on air in Moneta, Virginia, posts video of the attack online, and then shoots himself

Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe (D) stated, “there are too many guns in the hands of people who should not have guns. This is why I’ve long advocated for background checks” in an interview on the shooting of a reporter and a cameraman on Washington DC’s WTOP radio, portions of which were broadcast on Wednesday’s “CNN Newsroom.”

Even though the gunman is still on the loose, The New York Post’s Bart Hubbuch wasted no time in exploiting the murders of reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward for political purposes. Hubbuch blamed the shootings on the NRA and then, quite bizarrely championed New York’s strict gun control claws. The reason this is bizarre is because Bedford County, where the murders took place, is much safer than New York City, where crime is on the rise.

Former WDBJ employee Vester Lee Flanagan has been identified by multiple news outlets as the man responsible for the deaths of 24-year-old reporter Alison Parker and 27-year-old Adam Ward. Flanagan who, according to one report by WTVR used the on air name of Bryce Williams, was fired from the TV station two years ago. On Wednesday, a Twitter account linked to a man named Bryce Williams posted first person video of the shooting online. Within minutes, Twitter took down the account. According to his LinkedIn, Williams worked at WDBJ from March 2012- February 2013.

Suspect called 'difficult to work with' Police in Moneta, Virginia, said a shooter fired at a WDBJ-TV media crew in the middle of their live shot at Bridgewater Plaza, killing the cameraman and correspondent and fleeing the scene. Multiple outlets reported the suspect shot himself, but police haven’t yet confirmed. The Associated Press, citing police, released the suspect’s name as Vester Lee Flanagan II, age 41, of Roanoke. But he went by another name while working as a reporter at that station, as well as ones in North Carolina and Texas: Brice Williams. Officials with the ATF and FBI are...

The gunman who shot and killed a Virginia TV crew was a man dressed all in black. Cameraman Adam Ward captured the man approaching as he fired at him and reporter Alison Parker. The shooter has not yet been identified. According to the station manager Jeffrey A. Marks, it appears that the cameraman was shot first, and Parker was shot while running away.

<p>According to a former WDBJ employee, Vester L. Flanagan — the man authorities say they’re seeking in connection with Wednesday’s fatal shooting of two journliasts — worked at WDBJ as a reporter about a year using the on-air name Bryce Williams.</p>

A news crew for a CBS affiliate in Virginia was gunned down during a live report near the Bedford County-Franklin County line in Moneta early Wednesday morning, law enforcement officials said. Police and emergency services were on the scene, which remains active. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is also involved in the investigation. WDBJ7 reporter Allison Parker, 24, and cameraman Adam Ward, 27, were killed by an unidentified assailant who approached the pair as they were filming an interview at the Bridgewater Plaza and fired in their direction as many as eight times. Footage of the shooting aired...

A gunman killed a reporter and videographer for a CBS affiliate in Virginia in a shooting that was broadcast live Wednesday morning. Alison Parker and Adam Ward, a reporter and cameraman for CBS Roanoke affiliate WDBJ-TV, died in the shooting, Parker's mother confirmed to CBS News. WDBJ-TV reports that deputies from Franklin County and Bedford County were on the scene. The shooting happened at Bridgewater Plaza in Moneta, Virginia.

Democratic Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is facing scrutiny after reports surfaced that he boarded a state-owned aircraft to travel to a recent U2 concert also attended by Bill and Hillary Clinton. Super PAC America Rising filed a series of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests with the office of the Virginia governor asking for documents related to McAuliffe’s travel and schedule since he assumed the governorship in January 2014. […] Last week, reports surfaced that McAuliffe paid for a state-owned aircraft to transport him to a U2 concert on July 31 at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, a trip...

The Democratic Governors Association is looking to give its members a greater say in drawing congressional boundaries during the 2020 redistricting process. The group announced Tuesday that Virginia Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe and EMILY’s List President Stephanie Schriock would lead fundraising and other efforts in a new initiative aimed at helping Democrats in 18 targeted states. McAuliffe, a major fundraiser who is close friends with Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton, said the initiative “is about ensuring more Democratic governors can be at the table in 2020 to prevent the kind of far-right gerrymandering we saw in 2010.” …