If you're in Springfield around 3 PM today, you might want to check this out. Obviously, there's no love lost between Janet Oleszek and Sen. Ken Cuccinelli, so this certainly could be interesting to watch.
Greetings,Please attend Ken Cuccinelli's Town Hall meeting this Saturday, February 16, 2008, at 1:00 PM at the Centreville Library at 14200 Saint Germain Drive, Centreville, or at 3:00 PM in Springfield at the Pohick Library on Old Keene Mill Road.
On February 5, Marc Fisher wrote "Just a few months back, while still on the campaign trail, Sen. Ken Cuccinelli (R-Fairfax) was eager to talk about transportation, taxes, schools and development - meaty issues that nicely turned voters' attention away from his reputation as the Virginia Senate's leading voice for conservative social policy.
... He won reelection..but now he's back among friends who appreciate and relish the real Ken Cuccinelli. "I come to you as the only conservative on the Senate side from Northern Virginia," Cuccinelli told a meeting of the Family Foundation, the lobby that fights in Richmond against abortion, no-fault divorce, embryonic stem cell research and pornography. The crowd responded with warm applause, leading the senator to quip "I can't get this in Fairfax."
Cuccinelli told the friendly audience that he was here to stand tall on "abortion bills and the fight over the homosexual agenda," a phrase he used five times in a 10-minute talk...
Tomorrow is your first opportunity (and perhaps your last) during this legislative session to publicly ask Ken questions about legislation he has introduced, such as SB332 relating to concealed handgun permits and access to personal information of permittees, or the mean spirited SB339, allowing an employer to fire an employee if that employee doesn't speak English at the workplace. You may also recall that Ken voted against rail to Dulles again this session. No doubt you have questions of your own.
I plan on attending the 3:00 session. Hope to see you there!
Cheers,
Janet
Here is the content from the constuient letter Chuck just sent out Thursday....
We are now at crossover in the General Assembly. It is the time when all bills which passed in the House of Delegates are handed over to the Senate for action. This does not include the biennium budget on which the House Appropriations Committee must complete its work. The Senate has also handed over their bills to us and the House will now consider legislation that passed in the Senate.To date, I can claim some victories with my legislation. The Fire Safe Cigarettes bill coupled with Delegate Cosgrove's bill was adopted by the House. It calls for the manufacture and sale of cigarettes with paper that will not start fires if inadvertently left burning unattended.
Another bill which replaces the words "mental retardation" with "intellectual disabilities", heavily supported by the mental health community, was passed out of the House with a re-enactment clause which means it will have to be passed once more in 2009. A companion bill from the Senate will soon be considered by the House. It is different in that it contains an implementation date of July l, 2009, which I would have preferred on my bill. I'm certain that the Senate will amend my bill so that it conforms with their bill, and we will reach a successful compromise.
Two other bills of mine passed after being rolled into bills sponsored by Republicans. Both bills address problems with Virginia law which became apparent after the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech in April of last year. One bill will close gaps in the system which allowed people who have been involuntarily commited for mental heath reasons to still purchase guns. The other bill will improve the process for ordering involuntary mental health treatment by allowing more information to be considered in court hearings.
A major disappointment was the defeat of my bill to close the gun show loophole. The loophole refers to the fact that private vendors, unlike licensed firearm dealers, do not have to conduct a criminal background check when selling a firearm. Two other bills which would have banned guns in public libraries and daycare centers were not even considered. The subcommittee listened to my presentation on these bills and would not even make a motion whether to report them to the full committee or to kill them, effectively killing the bills without a vote. Another bill which I submitted would have required a joint study by Senators and Delegates of the current laws on purchasing, possessing and transporting firearms with the goal of recommending legislation for 2009. The Rules Committee chose to not even allow this bill to be added to the agenda.
All in all, there were pocket vetoes of five of my bills by committee chairs. I believe that every bill submitted by a Delegate ought to be heard. Many other bills by other delegates suffered the same fate. I am not deterred by these setbacks however, and I continue to fight hard for your interests in Richmond.
I also want to hear from you and find out what your questions and concerns are. On Saturday February 16th at the Sully District Government Center, I will be conducting a town hall meeting from 1:00 to 2:30 pm. I hope you can make it.
Sincerely,
Chuck Caputo