Bacon's Rebellion

  • Democrats Dominate Energy Discussions With GOP MIA

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    Clean Virginia Director Brennan Gilmore and Sen. Schuyler VanValkenberg, D-Henrico.

    By Steve Haner,

    “The energy bills are…” shouts the emcee on the stage. “Too damn high” comes the immediate response from a crowded meeting room in the east end of Richmond October 16. 

    That call and response mantra constantly punctuated a long and creative presentation on Virginia’s energy dilemma from the point of view of the activist group Clean Virginia. The point of view varies greatly from the Thomas Jefferson Institute’s views on why electricity prices have been rising in Virginia and are likely to rise even more.  

    The rising cost of living and the pinch it creates on Virginia’s families and businesses is arguably the political issue in this 2025 election season that has the broadest impact. Everybody needs electricity. 

    As the campaign season comes to its close, Democrats have spent far more time talking about rising energy costs than have most Republican candidates. Politics like nature abhors a vacuum. Rising energy prices and the wave of data center electricity demand have created another of those “giant sucking sounds” that concern voters, rightly. 

    Clean Virginia, Virginia’s largest non-party, non-corporate campaign donor, is using its rallies to shape voter opinions for November and the legislative agenda for the coming 2026 General Assembly.   

    Argue with Clean Virginia’s interpretation and recommendations as much as you want (and we do), the event itself – one of four across the state this month – was a clever show, packed with punchy progressive messaging that was clearly being enjoyed by the audience of mostly young activists. The tee shirts with the slogan were tempting, because Thomas Jefferson Institute agrees bills are higher than they should be.  

    (more…)

  • “No Kings” Demonstrations in Virginia

    Posted on

    by

    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    by Dick Hall-Sizemore

    Demonstrators in Richmond Photo credit: Richmond Times Dispatch

    Thousands of Virginians participated in “No Kings” demonstrations yesterday to protest actions of the Trump administration.

    Crowd-size estimates are always tricky to judge.  Organizers tend to exaggerate turnout; police departments have begun to shy away from providing estimates; often, press reports do not identify the source of the estimates. With those caveats in mind, here is a sampling of crowd sizes around the Commonwealth (if the report identified the source of the estimate, it is noted in the comments):

    Richmond—The Capitol Police estimated 3,500-4,000 in attendance. The organizers claimed more than 14,000 participated. The difference may be a result of different venues. The demonstration started in Capitol Square, where the Capitol Police were on duty, and proceeded up Broad St. to Monroe Park at VCU. 

    Hampton Roads—Virginia Beach:  3,000 (organizers); Williamsburg: 5,000 (organizers)

    Charlottesville—“at least 10,000” (organizers)

    Roanoke—“over 2,000”

    Staunton—1,700

    Fredericksburg—“More than 2,000”

    Demonstrations were also scheduled in Norfolk, Chesapeake, Newport News, Fairfax, and other localities, but press reports were not available this afternoon.

    There was no violence reported nor any arrests. Demonstrators in Staunton recited the Pledge of Allegiance and sang the Star-Spangled Banner.

    In anticipation of the demonstrations, Gov. Glenn Youngkin had put the Virginia National Guard on “state active duty conducting training.” It is not clear what such status entails, although reportedly “a task force made up of a ‘Quick Reaction Force’ and ‘Ready Reaction Force’ are set to be staged outside of Richmond on Friday, including a ‘Non-Lethal Weapons Platoon.’ Presumably, other National Guard troops placed on active duty during the weekend were to report to their readiness centers (they are no longer called armories) where weekend training is usually held.  Since there was not much

    National Guardsmen picking up trash near White House. Photo credit: Fox 5 Washington, D.C.

    for them to do, perhaps the Governor could have had them be useful by picking up trash when the demonstrations were over as was the case in D.C. earlier this year.

  • Jeanine’s Memes

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A cartoon depicting a politician sitting at a desk with paperwork, speaking to a woman, addressing voters' concerns with the comment about answering difficult questions after being hired.

    View more memes at The Bull Elephant

  • UVA’s Weldon Cooper Backpedals on Economic Gloom Yet Again

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    By Steve Haner,

    In April, economic prognosticators at the University of Virginia published a prediction that Virginia would lose 32,000 jobs during 2025. The Al Gore-like jeremiad was promptly adopted by Virginia Democrats who used it in speeches and advertising to claim Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin and his chosen successor, Winsome Earle-Sears, were mismanaging the economy.

    As the negative ad blitz was reaching its peak near Labor Day, the same deep thinkers at the same once-trusted Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service issued a follow up that quietly adjusted that prediction downward, this time asserting the state’s end of year employment numbers would reflect an 11,700 decrease from the end of 2024. The Democrats kept using the more worrisome but discredited larger number.

    A new report just popped up and now the prediction is that Virginia will lose just 1,800 jobs this calendar year. The trendline alone makes that also shaky. To try to keep you from noticing, the authors introduced and overused the word “stagnation” to describe the situation Virginia faces as all states absorb the headwinds from the new tariff regime and federal spending reductions. The new headline is their claim the state’s unemployment level will reach 4.8% next year, a jump from the 4.6% they predicted in the August report.

    That gave the Democrat Abigail Spanberger’s campaign and the Democratic mudslingers at Blue Virginia enough ammunition to issue another condemnation of Youngkin’s economic leadership, with plenty of side references to President Trump’s tariff regime and reductions in the federal workforce. But given that the initial predicted job losses were nothing but an in-kind campaign contribution masquerading as research, this unemployment projection should also be taken with skepticism.

    (more…)

  • Bacon Meme of the Week

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A grumpy-looking cat with a humorous caption stating 'My favorite vegetable? BACON.'

  • UVa to Trump: No Thanks

    Posted on

    by

    Dick Hall-Sizemore

    by Dick Hall-Sizemore

    UVa faculty and student demonstrate against proposed federal compact Photo Credit: VPM

    The University of Virginia has declined to sign the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” proposed by the Trump administration.

    In exchange for agreeing to a long list of terms, institutions signing the contract were offered “allowance for increased overhead payments where feasible, substantial and meaningful federal grants, and other federal partnerships.”  (The terms of the compact are discussed at length here.)

    In his letter to the Secretary of Education, Interim President Paul Mahoney stated that the institution agreed with many of the principles outlined in the compact and that UVA “leads in several of these areas and is committed to continuous improvement in all of them.”  However, with regard to receiving favored treatment on grants in exchange for agreeing to the compact, he stated, “We seek no special treatment in exchange for our pursuit of those foundational goals. The integrity of science and other academic work requires merit-based assessment of research and scholarship. A contractual arrangement predicating assessment on anything other than merit will undermine the integrity of vital, sometimes lifesaving, research and further erode confidence in American higher education.”

    The administration had originally extended this opportunity to eight other institutions, in addition to UVA: the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Brown University, Darthmouth University, Vanderbilt University, the University of Arizona, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Southern California, and the University of Texas at Austin. 

    UVA joins MIT, Brown, Penn, and USC in rejecting the compact so far. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Trump administration has now invited Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Kansas and Arizona State University to a meeting to discuss the compact.

  • Loudoun County Public Schools Are Abusing Students’ Free-Speech Rights

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    A large group of people holding signs and banners at a protest, advocating to restore girls only and boys only locker rooms, showers, and bathrooms, while opposing Policy 8040.
     Loudoun County parents rally against Policy 8040; photo credit: Suzanne Satterfield

    by Stephanie Lundquist-Arora
    Republished with permission from IWFeatures

    Last week, a federal judge ruled that Loudoun County Public Schools’ (LCPS) leadership must delay the suspensions of male students who asserted their discomfort about a female student being in the boys’ locker room at Stone Bridge High School.

    America First Legal’s Ian Prior, one of the plaintiffs’ lawyers, told IW Features, “We are pleased that the Court granted the preliminary injunction and that the suspensions and findings against our clients will not go onto their permanent record while we litigate this case to a successful conclusion.”

    In May 2025, a female student who claimed to be transgender entered the boys’ locker room and recorded the boys on her phone. In the video recording, three boys questioned why there was a girl in the boys’ locker room. One of them said, “Why is there a girl? I’m so uncomfortable, there is a girl. A female bro. Get out of here.”

    LCPS’s Title IX Office “investigated” the incident. Rather than taking issue with the fact that a female student recorded 15-year-old boys in their own locker room––which is illegal––the “investigation” found that the boys violated Title IX by vocalizing their discomfort.

    (more…)

  • Former UVA Health Leaders Accused of “Hostile Takeover” in Bombshell Federal Lawsuit

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    Exterior view of a modern hospital building at dusk with illuminated windows and a clear sky.
    UVa Hospital

    A newly filed federal lawsuit accuses former leaders of the University of Virginia Health System of orchestrating a coordinated campaign of corruption, fraud, and retaliation – even comparing the institution’s leadership to a criminal enterprise. It is alleged that as a result of this behavior, multiple patients died.

    Filed on October 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia, the lawsuit brings sweeping allegations under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). The plaintiffs — four former UVA physicians and the families of two deceased patients — claim that high-ranking officials at UVA Health engaged in repeated illegal conduct to enhance their careers and financial standing at the expense of staff and patient safety.

    “This case arises out of a hostile takeover of a revered medical system,” the lawsuit begins, “by a cadre of individuals determined to maximize revenues and rankings, thereby inflating their own career prospects and financial gain, through concerted, repeated, and consistent illegal acts.”

    (more…)

  • AG Debate: Miyares v. Jones

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by Chris Saxman

    Debate winner:

    Attorney General Jason Miyares who prosecuted a strong case against Jay Jones but also was able to present himself as a statesman.

    Outstanding performance.

    Circumstances and Jay Jones:

    Former Delegate Jay Jones gave a strong performance given the circumstances.

    The problem for Jones is the circumstances. But he reassured his base that he will go after Trump and that might be enough in this election.

    Win or lose this election, Attorney General Jason Miyares came across as a statesman.

    Strong, competent, and effective.

    Frankly? Miyares was gubernatorial last night.

    Unreported story — post-debate claims

    (more…)

  • Spanberger, Hashmi Have Massive Leads in Campaign Funds

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    By Steve Haner,

    Total funding of Virginia’s major party candidates for Governor. For 2025 it is complete through September 30, with many weeks more to go. Source: VPAP, citing Virginia Board of Elections data.

    Two of the three Republicans running for statewide office in Virginia this year are being crushed in the fundraising contest.  Only Jason Miyares, the incumbent Republican candidate for Attorney General, has raised more funds than his Democratic opponent, Jay Jones. 

    All campaigns had a deadline of Wednesday night to report on their donations and expenses for the month of September.  The two big events that have added some suspense to the election, the gubernatorial candidate debate and the stories about Democrat Jones’ texts threatening violence, were still in the future when the books closed.

    With a billionaire Republican president in office and a near-billionaire Republican finishing his tenure in our Governor’s Mansion, one might expect at least a level financial playing field.  Between the two, they know who to call.   It is not the case that the candidate with the most money always wins, but there are few examples in recent history of candidates overcoming funding gaps this deep. 

    Democrat candidate for Governor Abigail Spanberger reported donations and in-kind support totaling $12.6 million in September (the link is to the Virginia Public Access Project’s overnight compilation).  Republican Winsome Earle-Sears reported a very healthy $9 million, with the biggest difference being she received less in in-kind campaign support than Spanberger did.  Television ads and mailers paid for by non-candidate committees still have impact.

    (more…)

  • Two Bullets for Todd Gilbert

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    When Jay Jones texted his hideous thoughts three years ago, he reflected a widespread enchantment with political violence, says John Reid, Republican candidate for lieutenant governor. Does anyone really think Jones has changed his mind?

    Listen to the latest Oinkonomics podcast.

    Jim Bacon: Good morning, everybody. I’m Jim Bacon, and this is the Oinkonomics podcast. My interview today is with a very special guest, John Reid, Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor. In a previous life, John hosted Richmond’s top talk show on WRVA radio and brought me on as a regular guest. I never imagined I’d be interviewing him. Aha! the worm has turned! I’m the one asking the questions today. Welcome to Oinkonomics, John.

    John Reid: Thank you. I appreciate it. I’m very curious as to how this will go, Jim.

    Bacon: There’s so many things we could talk about, but the top-of-mind story for absolutely everyone concerns the text messages that Attorney General candidate Jay Jones sent in 2022 to Republican delegate Carrie Coiner. “Three people, two bullets,” Jones said. “Gilbert, Hitler, and Pol Pot. Gilbert gets bullets to the head.” He went on to describe Gilbert as “evil,” then referring to his young sons, Jones said the House Minority Leader was raising “two little fascists.” And then he wished Gilbert’s wife, Jennifer, could watch them die so, by feeling others’ pain, she could ”move” on policy.

    It’s only fair to note that Jones has since apologized for the text, declaring that he was, quote, “embarrassed, ashamed, and sorry.” However, it’s not clear exactly what he was ashamed of. The media has not pressed for details.

    I’d like to dissect the texts on three levels. First, what do they tell us about Jay Jones? Second, what does the response of Virginia Democrats, especially your opponent, Ghazala Hashmi, tell us about them? And third, in light of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, what do the Jones texts and responses to them tell us about the deranged state of mind in a segment of America’s left?

    (more…)

  • Spanberger Dodges Debate Questions

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    The Democrat candidate for governor refused to answer important questions despite multiple follow-ups by moderators.

    A woman speaking in front of a backdrop featuring car-related graphics and financial symbols, discussing car taxes in Virginia.
    Image credit: Restoration News

    by Victoria Manning

    Virginia gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger dodged difficult questions from reporters on hot topics all year. Given multiple opportunities to answer direct and follow up questions during a debate, she still refused to give provide answers to Virginians. Her answers appeared designed to serve professional campaign consultants and focus groups over the voters of Virginia. She came off as unprepared to answer difficult questions, indicating a lack of leadership.

    Here are Abigail Spanberger’s top dodges from her debate with Republican candidate Winsome Earle-Sears. Note: some answers reduced for brevity, full answers available at this link. Warning: Full answers include indecipherable word salad.

    The Car Tax

    Question to Spanberger: Will you make a commitment to end the car tax and where will you find the money?

    Answer: My husband “wrote a paper in high school about the hated car tax.”

    Follow up question: How would you come up with over $3 billion to fund the tax cut?

    Answer: I’ll bring people together because it requires a constitutional amendment to change it.

    (more…)

  • Ditch the School, Take the Vacay

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    by Kerry Dougherty

    I read this post on X the other day. It was posted by a school principal.

    I wanted to argue. Instead, I reminisced about one of the happiest days of my life.

    Here it is:

    One morning, in the spring of my junior year, my dad offered to drive me to school. I usually walked the mile or so to my high school, so I eagerly accepted.

    Once in the passenger seat my father looked at me with an impish smile: “What would you rather do today, go to school or watch the ponies run at Monmouth Park?”

    Are you serious? I screamed.

    “Let’s go,” he said. “If we hurry we can catch the morning workouts.”

    Then he added: “We’ll stop and call Mom when we’re almost there and let her deal with the school.”

    That seemed like an excellent idea. It‘s always easier to say you’re sorry than ask permission.

    Here’s what I remember about that memorable hooky day: I ate breakfast with my dad by the  sparkling glass window in the clubhouse at Monmouth Park. There were white linen tablecloths, fine china, cinnamon rolls and a spectacular view of the track and the horses.

    After breakfast we wandered down to the paddock and talked to some of the jockeys and trainers, getting a close look at the thoroughbreds. The jumpy, the docile, the limpy.

    Dad bought me my own copy of The Racing Form that morning and we each grabbed a couple of tip sheets from the touts. Continue reading.

  • Who Owns the Statues?

    Posted on

    by

    James A. Bacon

    And who controls their fates?

    A bronze statue of a seated man in a suit, partially covered in colorful paint, set against a gray stone background.
    The defaced statue of Matthew Fontaine Maury in Richmond before it was moved.

    by Patricia N. Saffran and Ann McLean

    LA’s Monuments Exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, which opens this month, is being funded to desecrate figures from American history. As a result, culture battles are heating up over whether or not to send magnificent Confederate Beaux Arts monuments to Los Angeles. It appears that some museum and city officials in a number of cities have deprived the public, who don’t want their local historic statues sent to the LA show, of having their say.

    The public opposes the exhibition’s controversial display of some graffiti-laden and damaged Confederate sculptures along with modern works satirizing the South. The concern is that negative renderings of some of the sculptures will only serve to stir up racial animus and animosity toward historical works still standing in urban centers. 

    The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation (SVBF), on behalf of concerned citizens, filed a request for an emergency injunction June 27 against the city of Richmond to prevent previously removed Monument Avenue Beaux Arts monuments and cannons from being sent the LA exhibition. A number of the monuments were vandalized after the Charleston shooting event of 2015 and more memorials were attacked and removed in the aftermath of the 2020 riots. The exhibition condemned Southerners in a press release as “white supremacists” for putting up funerary monuments well after the Civil War even though the North put up funerary monuments of their own. 

    The LA Monuments show ignores basic facts about the aftermath of the Civil War. Having a good death in 1800s was very important, meaning if possible, being surrounded family and friends when passing as Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson experienced. Since that was impossible on the battlefield, being given a decent burial became meaningful. This period saw new developments in embalming techniques that allowed the dead whenever possible to be transported back to their homes for burial, thus the need for numerous funerary monuments mostly organized by grieving widows. Since over 600,000 died in the war, the extreme grief was felt by both sides and given tribute by monuments and statues even later when grandparents and relatives died. 

    (more…)

  • If Trump’s Foibles are Election Fodder, Why Not His Wins?

    Posted on

    by

    Steve Haner

    By Derrick Max, 

    When I wrote recently that “Virginia’s elections should be about Virginia’s future, not a referendum on President Trump,” I meant it. For months, liberals have tried to nationalize Virginia election – forgoing discussions about schools, taxes, energy, the Youngkin record — focusing instead on endless attacks on Donald Trump. And as the president of a conservative think tank that has criticized the President on tariffs and other issues, it is not that I believe the President is not fair game. What I believe, however, is that the primary focus in a race for governor should be on state issues.     

    But politics has a funny way of cutting both ways. When national events affirm the conservative principles of strength, moral clarity, and results, those moments can reshape Virginia’s election. The recent release of Israeli hostages to their families and President Trump’s announced peace framework in the Middle East offer just such a moment.  

    This week, more than any other, reveals a global seriousness and moral leadership that contrasts sharply with the chaos and incoherent mental struggles of President Biden over the last four years. This week could reshape the way Virginia voters now view leadership nationally and here at home. 

    Trump’s diplomatic breakthrough isn’t just a foreign policy success; it’s a reminder that strength and clarity work. Voters who have grown weary of weakness abroad and moral confusion at home may see a different kind of leadership emerging, one that rewards courage and conviction – and stands against appeasement in both foreign wars and domestic cultural disputes. 

    (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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