Through two years of blogging, I’ve been content to cover the action in the General Assembly from afar, supplementing the daily newspaper coverage with e-mail correspondence, Web research and occasional interviews. One topic that I did research in depth was the package of land-use reforms submitted by the House of Delegates leadership. Some readers were skeptical of the legislation’s merits. One anonymous blogger goaded me via his comments to attend the subcommittee meeting of Counties, Cities and Towns when the legislation would be introduced, to witness for myself what kind of greeting the bills would receive. “See you in House Room C,” he signed off.
OK, I said, I’ll go. And go I did. And when I got to the General Assembly Building just before 3 p.m., a sign on House Room C said that the hearing had been canceled. Grrr. Thanks a lot, Anonymous, that was a great tip! I’m so glad I reserved my one trek to the 2007 session for this awe-inspiring occasion!
Well, the schedule posted in the General Assembly building mentioned that the House Republican Caucus also would convene at 3 p.m. If the big dogs in the House weren’t presenting the landmark legislation to the sub-committee, I figured they might be talking about transportation, land use or something interesting in the caucus. The receptionist said the caucus should be open to the public unless it went into executive session. So, I zipped on over to the Patrick Henry Building, grabbed a seat and watched quietly as a large number of middle-aged men in dark suits and gray hair filed into the room. Eventually, I caught the eye of House Speaker William J. Howell, who, after a brief but friendly chat, informed me that the caucus was closed to the public. Double grrrr.
Bottom line for the afternoon: Your correspondent uncovered no earth-shaking revelations regarding the more momentous debates of this year’s session. But I did get button-holed by two officers with the Harrisonburg fire department eager to tell their story. An alarming increase in novelty cigarette lighters is putting innocent Virginia children at risk for setting themselves, their homes and their schools on fire. I will blog that story very shortly — and you’ll have read it here first, a world exclusive for Bacon’s Rebellion.
