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.