Bacon's Rebellion

  • Spanberger Making Enemies All Over Virginia

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A fantasy scene depicting a giant warrior woman in armor wielding a shield and spear, towering over a smaller man attempting to attack her with a slingshot in a desert landscape.
    Rocovich versus Spanberger. Image credit: Chapt GPT

    by Kerry Dougherty

    Last week, after it was announced that Gov. Abigail Spanberger was meddling in Virginia Tech governance by summarily firing the beloved rector of Virginia Tech, former Rep. Scott Taylor posed a question on X:

    Is there any group that the new governor of Virginia hasn’t pissed off?

    “Furries,” I replied.

    “The NOVA Wine Mom Club,” another chimed in.

    “Criminal illegal aliens,” added another.

    It appears that the latest group of Virginians Spanberger has infuriated is a big one: the 167,799 Virginia Tech alums living in Virginia.

    Without warning, and many are saying without cause, the governor announced that Tech’s rector, John G. Rocovich, was sacked for violating that board of visitor’s code of ethics.

    “Your conduct has violated the Code of Conduct for Commonwealth Appointees to Boards, Authorities, & Commissions, the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors’ Code of Ethics, and the governing statues requiring board members to act in accordance with the best interests of Virginia Tech,” Spanberger wrote in a brief letter – three sentences long – that did not elaborate.

    Madam, you’ll have to do better than that. Rocovich is not going down without a fight. On Friday, he announced that he was not resigning and would stay in his position, although his name has been removed from the Tech Board of Visitor’s website. Continue reading.

  • Rocovich Responds

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    to his firing as Virginia Tech rector by Governor Abigail Spanberger.

    A letter discussing the resignation of a member of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors, addressing political interference and independence concerns regarding the Governor's office.

    Source: (18) Patrick Bowers on X: “GO OFF ROC! Take a seat @SpanbergerForVA https://t.co/HaU97nyo8d” / X

  • Congress Is Grilling the Right School Superintendent — I know Firsthand

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Aaron Spence shows how public-school bureaucrats dismiss parental rights and push indoctrination.

    A group of people at a public meeting, with two individuals in the foreground holding a sign that reads 'NO PORN IN OUR SCHOOLS'. In the background, a screen displays various images, and the meeting participants are seated in a semicircle.

    by Victoria Manning

    Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) Superintendent Aaron Spence has been summoned to speak before the Congressional Committee on Education and Workforce on June 10. The topic is “Superintendents Breaking Trust in America’s Schools.”

    I know first-hand that Congress picked the perfect person to question on the topic.

    As an elected member of the Virginia Beach School Board for eight years—more than six of them during Aaron Spence’s tenure as our district’s superintendent—I witnessed his leadership up close. I sat in the minority on the board the entire time, which meant I had little sway over decisions. I was outvoted but refused to be silenced. I spoke up to expose what was really happening inside the district.

    Spence was the reason I ran for office in 2016 after he implemented regulations I found harmful for my children. After he refused to meet with me as a parent to hear my concerns, it solidified my determination to run for school board and make a positive impact. I detailed my experiences with Spence during my two terms on the school board in my book Behind the Wall of Government Schools. He left for LCPS during my second term in office where he continues to be embroiled in controversy.

    (more…)

  • Jeanine’s Memes

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    James A. Bacon

    A young man expressing his desire for free education, housing, healthcare, and food to an older career counselor, who responds with an unexpected suggestion about prison, in a humorous cartoon style.

    See more memes at The Bull Elephant.

  • The Many Ways to Measure Virginia’s Electricity Poverty

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    by Steve Haner

    EIA tally of Virginia’s electricity generation and imports, 1990-2024. Compiled by David Tucker.

    Is Virginia really the number one importer of electricity, the state most dependent upon others to keep the lights on and the servers humming? Yes and no.

    The go-to source of data on the electricity industry (and other energy industries) is the federal Energy Information Agency, or EIA. EIA data shows Virginia had the dubious distinction in 2024 of being the state with the widest disparity between the amount of electricity produced within its borders and the amount electricity used by its consumers, a shortage of 35 million megawatt hours (MWh).

    As noted in yesterday’s post on the gas plant lawsuit, as a percentage of total electricity sales, five other states and the District of Columbia had even larger electricity deficits. Virginia being number 7 out of 51 on a percentage basis is hardly good news, either.

    The quick assumption (and I made it, too) is that those data indicate that Virginia imported 35 million MWh in 2024, but the EIA data shows our full import total in 2024 was 45 million MWh. When you look at the EIA full tally of imports, California is the state with the largest volume of electricity brought in from other locations (including Mexico in California’s case).

    But the political narrative that we are the largest importer is deeply embedded now, without any nuance. Perhaps the nuance doesn’t matter. Virginia was the most dependent on imports to serve Virginia residents, but not the largest importer.  

    As you will read below, that deep deficit is more than three decades old. Virginia remains electricity poor and the gap is probably wider now than in 2024.

    (more…)

  • Social Breakdown Update

    Posted on

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    James A. Bacon

    Virginia’s homicide rate is down, thankfully, but do you, as an ordinary citizen feel any safer?

  • Bacon Meme of the Week

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    James A. Bacon

    A large stack of crispy bacon with text stating that the average person eats bacon 18 times a year, followed by a statement encouraging people to eat more.

  • Thankful for Virginia’s SOL Exams

    Posted on

    by

    Todd Truitt

    Transparency and Accountability Where Local Systems Fell Short

    by Todd Truitt

    My guest commentary this week in the Richmond Times-Dispatch expresses thankfulness for Virginia’s Standards of Learning (SOL) tests. Before statewide testing, local assessments often masked poor performance and hid achievement gaps from parents and policymakers. The SOLs brought essential transparency and continue to keep struggling kids visible and schools accountable.

    You can read the full OpEd here.

    Key points from the commentary:

    • Districts cannot serve as their own judges of success — statewide standardized testing is essential to provide honest, comparable information to the general public.
    • Standardized tests provide a clear, external check that more subjective alternatives cannot reliably match.
    • True educational equity requires honest measurement of achievement gaps to better target resources.

    Virginia is currently updating its SOLs with more rigorous content standards (adopted in recent years), new aligned assessments, and higher cut scores for proficiency — demonstrating a continued commitment to raising expectations and using objective measures to drive improvement.

    This perspective aligns with recent developments in higher education. Just this week, more than 1,000 University of California STEM faculty (as of the publishing of this article) signed an open letter urging reinstatement of SAT/ACT math scores for STEM admissions, citing severe preparation gaps and the need for reliable readiness measures amid grade inflation. Yale similarly reinstated standardized testing requirements this week, recognizing their predictive value for student success.

    (more…)

  • Nobody Home

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    sherlockj

    Nobody Home

    by James C. Sherlock

    Last week, I conducted a short field survey in Virginia Beach of four businesses registered with the federal government to bill Medicaid as providers of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) (i.e., autism) services.  

    Each is headquartered in Lakewood, NJ.  

    Lakewood is, of course, the location of the Medical Facilities of America DBA LifeWorks Rehab, Virginia’s infamous and largest nursing home chain. So, I looked there for ABA chains with Virginia locations and visited four located in Virginia Beach.

    Many ABA chains offer physical centers. The largest are owned by private equity.  

    Not these. These four offices are virtual.

    There was nobody from those Lakewood companies at either of the two addresses where the four companies listed their Virginia Beach offices.  

    The four have similar characteristics:

    • There are no “centers.” One of the Virginia Beach locations is a mail drop. The other three are at a single location, serving as clients of an international company that advertises “compliance” services.  
    • There is no Virginia Beach phone number.
    • The phone numbers they provided in the NPI registration are answering services.  
    • There is no company representation at the local addresses.  
    • Most are not registered with the Virginia State Corporation Commission.
    • Websites are where they do business. Again, no phone numbers are listed. They have automated chat systems.

    There are perhaps hundreds of similarly situated ABA service providers statewide.

    What could go wrong?

    (more…)

  • When You Fire the Rector of a Virginia University…

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    James A. Bacon

    Shouldn’t you at least explain why?

    Official letter from the Commonwealth of Virginia Office of the Governor notifying John G. Roccovich of his removal from the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors, dated May 27, 2026.

    John Rocovich, a prominent Roanoke attorney, has served two terms on the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors, twice as rector. Violating the Code of Conduct and Code of Ethics are serious charges. Aren’t he and the public owed an explanation? — JAB

  • From FOIA Fight to Felony Embezzlement Charges

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Restoration News holds Essex County (VA) School Board member accountable as grand jury indicts board member, superintendent, and finance director.

    A pile of hundred dollar bills with a pair of handcuffs and cash secured inside.

    by Victoria Manning

    An investigation by Restoration News has led to direct accountability for elected officials. When Essex School Board member Garlyn Bundy failed to produce documents requested by Restoration News under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), we took her to court and won. Now a grand jury has issued indictments against Bundy for destruction of public records and embezzlement. Former school employees, including the past superintendent and director of finance, have also been indicted.

    Potentially years in prisons on felony charges

    Essex County Commonwealth’s Attorney James Sitton confirmed with Restoration News that Essex School Board member Garlyn Bundy has been indicted on charges of embezzlement of government funds. These charges under code 18.2-112 are a class 4 felony punishable by “imprisonment of not less than two years nor more than 10 years.”

    Sitton also confirmed that former Essex Schools Superintendent Dr. Harry Thomas and former director of finance Elizabeth Franklin were also indicted for embezzlement of government funds. Franklin has an additional indictment of concealing a felony under code 18.2-462.

    Authorities served the trio on May 27 and will appear for arraignment on June 3.

    During the FOIA hearing against Bundy in April, Restoration News Attorney Tim Anderson questioned her about why she didn’t produce the requested documents. She ultimately admitted that she had destroyed the documents.

    (more…)

  • GOP No Longer the Party of Ronald Reagan

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    James A. Bacon

    Former Republican Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling writes on The Republican Standard that the Trumpification of the Republican Party nationally and Virginia is complete.

    He writes: Recent primary elections in several states have clearly shown that the Grand Old Party as we once knew it is stone cold dead.

    The GOP is no longer the party of Ronald Reagan. Not even close. The GOP has been totally redefined in the image of Donald Trump.

    Read the whole thing.

  • VPM: Your Philanthropic Dollars at Work

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Modern building under construction next to a commercial storefront, with traffic lights visible.
    VPMs new headquarters building in downtown Richmond. Image credit; VPM

    The following missive comes from an email blast distributed by an unidentified “whistle blower” at Virginia Public Media unhappy about public radio’s priorities. I have not vetted this story, and readers should be sensitive to the fact VPM might offer a very different spin, but the allegations seem plausible enough to examine more closely. — JAB

    VPM, central Virginia’s PBS and NPR member, is spending $80 million of the public’s (FCC spectrum auction) money on a shiny new downtown campus when most of downtown Richmond, including the vacated Richmond Times-Dispatch newsroom, is available for cheap. We already have too much unused square footage here in No. Chesterfield. As an insider, I know you will hear no shortage of PR this year about investing in downtown and the public, etc. I remind you still that this is as much as $80 million blown, without a second thought, during the worst funding crisis in PBS+NPR history.

    VPM is laying off reporters and starving journalism. Ben Paviour, Focal Point VA, forcing out Craig Carper, EP Roberta Oster and others who call bullshit on management. Docking unused vacation days. Reducing full-time-equivalents, to fund management spending and ridiculous overhead.

    As you will see in its 990 public filings, VPM is paying its top two executives, J. Swain and S. Humble, a half a million dollars each. They live big, town and country. On the public’s money.

    (more…)

  • Gas Plant Approval’s Appeal Tests VCEA, Environmental Justice Law

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    by Steve Haner

    The appeal is focused on Dominion’s Chesterfield gas plant, but this larger plant planned for Cumberland County is also targeted for denial. (Dominion image.)

    The ongoing fight over the future of natural gas power generation in Virginia has now moved to the Virginia Supreme Court, with environmental activists asking that court to reverse the State Corporation Commission’s (SCC) decision from six months ago approving a new gas project in Chesterfield County.  

    The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the lead plaintiff. The petition it filed this week raises the same claims about how the SCC had erred that were used in a failed motion for reconsideration. The main allegation is that the environmental effects will be unduly detrimental to black Chesterfield residents who live near the proposed plant location, in violation of the Virginia Environmental Justice Act. 

    The petition also tests two key provisions of the 2020 Virginia Clean Economy Act, which was intended by its authors to prevent exactly the kind of electrical generation plant Dominion Energy Virginia wants to build. If the high court agrees with the plaintiffs and overturns the SCC, other Virginia gas plant proposals in the pipeline will also face rejection.   

    The opponents are challenging the SCC’s finding that because the plant is necessary to maintain system reliability for Dominion’s 2.7 million customers, that qualifies it for cost recovery through a rate adjustment clause. The VCEA from the beginning allowed the SCC to approve construction of additional gas generation if needed to maintain reliability.  

    (more…)

  • Virginia Is One Month Away from a Government Shutdown

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Virginia Democrats hold both branches of the General Assembly and the Executive Mansion — and still can’t govern effectively.

    Three individuals at a podium discussing the Virginia Government Shutdown, with a blue background and a Virginia state flag in view.

    by Shaun Kenney

    Virginia still doesn’t have a budget.

    Instead of working on a budget, Senate Democratic leadership is now openly threatening a government shutdown unless they get what they want. Governor Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) is unapologetic on the vetoes — even going so far as to claim that the leadership of the Democratic-controlled General Assembly simply isn’t used to female leadership, per Dwayne Yancey over at Cardinal News:

    Just as she repeated the phrase “the devil’s in the details” later in our interview, the governor’s power to propose amendments — and her intention to use it — was a theme Spanberger returned to several times during our interview. She also said that some legislators have told her privately that some of the conflict between the General Assembly and the new governor could be due to resentment on the part of some legislators at having to deal with a woman in the role of chief executive for the first time.

    Interesting to me is that Yancey’s conversation seemed to be more confessional than homily, so we should be looking forward to a real glimpse of just where Spanberger is after bankrupting her political capital in pursuit of unconstitutional gerrymandering. If there is a centrist in Spanberger, now is the time to lay down a marker.

    In the meantime, Senate Democrats don’t appear to be in any rush to compromise. Neither do House Democrats, where Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, is playing a similar game with a more reasonable approach.

    Then there is Governor Spanberger’s perspective, which to date has either not been considered by the General Assembly or she simply hasn’t shared her thoughts (or been invited to share them).

    (more…)

Now Available

Book cover of 'Dust Mites: A Second American Revolution' by James A. Bacon, featuring astronauts planting a flag with a blue and white emblem on a lunar landscape, with Earth visible in the background.
For sale on Amazon.com

The year: 2075. The American colonies on the Moon are getting restless under Washington’s tyrannical rule….

This second edition of “Dust Mites” has a snazzy new cover, includes helpful lunar maps, and is 5,000 words tighter than the original. The sequel, “Trogs,” is scheduled for publication this summer.

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Bacon’s Rebellion is Virginia’s leading politically non-aligned portal for news, opinions and analysis about state, regional and local public policy. Read more about us here.

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