Join LeeDems on a road trip to Richmond Wednesday, February 15th to show our appreciation for the Democratic Delegates and Senators to the Virginia General Assembly (Lee District elected officials – click here; state wide directory, click here). Don’t just tell our Democrats that you’re glad they are in Richmond for us, show them by going there. The repressive Republican majority in both bodies in the General Assembly is pushing Virginia back decades, and to the degree that our Democrats can fight for all Virginians they have, from school funding to voting rights. It’s not a coincidence that on February 15, 1799 the first US printed ballots were authorized in Pennsylvania.

Thanks to Democratic House Caucus Chair, Mark Sickles, for help in arrangements.

• RSVP REQUIRED, click here.
• Share on Facebook, click here.

We’ll gather together to carpool, and we’ll meet at 7:45 in Kingstowne in the parking lot near King Street Blues (see map, click here).

snap with your smartphone

COST: 1) lunch; don’t plan on separate checks cash is easiest in a large group, and 2) gas/parking – suggested contribution from passengers (cash to drivers) $15/person.

• 7:45 am – assemble to carpool
• leave promptly at 8:00 am for Richmond (details and information provided for drivers)
• 10:00 am – tour of the newly renovated Capitol
• visit the House and Senate galleries
• lunch near Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA) headquarters
• visit DPVA headquarters
• visit Obama VA headquarters
• visit Kaine for VA headquarters
• leave for NoVA
• 6:30 pm – estimated return time

Resources for the trip:

• about the Virginia General Assembly, click here
• virtual tour of the Capitol, click here
• pictures of the Obama VA office opening, click here
• video of the Kaine for VA HQ opening, click here

If you’d like the “Obama sings Al Green” for a ringtone, click here for the MP3 file (small, 145k) or snap the QR code [via BarackObama.com/ringtone].

President Obama was inspired to sing a bit of Al Green during a recent campaign stop at the Apollo Theater (story, click here; YouTube video, click here).

Sunday, February 26, 2012   11:00 am – 1:00 pm

Vespucci Restaurant (10579 Fairfax Blvd, Fairfax, VA 22030; map, click here). Additional parking is available in the business lot next door on the left side (east) of Vespucci’s.

• RSVP by ordering your tickets on ActBlue, click here.
• Flier, click here.
• Share on Facebook, click here.

John Sturdivant Award, honoring a member of the labor community for his/her commitment to Democratic ideals and values.

11th CD Community Service Awards, honoring three Democrats from the respective jurisdictions of the 11th Congressional District (Fairfax County, Fairfax City, and Prince William County) for community service:

• The Joseph V. Gartlan Award, Fairfax County – Linda Byrne,
• The Deloris Hampton Award, Prince William County – Fred Parish, and
• The Frederick W. Silverthorne Award, Fairfax City – TBA.

Questions, more Info contact George Burke, Chair (chair@11thDistrictDemocrats.org).

Mobile LIS access is available directly from the link http://leg1.state.va.us/lispda.htm,  or just snap the QR code here.

The 2012 session convened January 11th for the ‘long’ session.

Regular Session
The General Assembly meets annually, beginning on the second Wednesday in January, for 60 days in even-numbered years and for 30 days in odd-numbered years, with an option to extend annual sessions for a maximum of 30 days.

Special Sessions
The Governor may call a special session when it is deemed necessary or advisable, and must do so when petitioned by two-thirds of the members of both houses.

Reconvened Sessions
A reconvened session is held on the sixth Wednesday after adjournment of each regular or special session for the purpose of considering governor’s recommendations and vetoed legislation.

Lee District General Assembly Members

See our Lee District Senators and Delegates information on LeeDems.org, click here; their legislative information and 2012 bills from Richmond Sunlight:

• Senators
  • George Barker, Adam Ebbin, Toddy Puller, and Dick Saslaw
• Delegates
  • Mark Sickles, Scott Surovell, and Vivian Watts

About the General Assembly

The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members, and an upper house, the Senate of Virginia, with 40 members. More from the official website, click here.

Official Legislative Information

Bills, daily calendar, minutes, statistics, etc., click here.

For 26 years David Bailey Associates have published what all the General Assembly members are familiar with, the ‘Red Book’. It is an excellent comprehensive directory of General Assembly members and their contact information. It is available as a PDF (free), click here.

* Anniversary of the Citizens United Decision
* Sickles, McKay, Barker, Puller, Ebbin Legislative Town Hall
* Supervisor McKay Open House
* Ryan McElveen’s Chinese New Year Celebration
* LeeDems Welcome and Volunteer Thank You Party
* Anniversary Roe v. Wade

details below …

SATURDAY, JANUARY 21

Citizens United
Citizens United v Federal Election Commission, 130 S.Ct. 876 (2010), was a landmark decision on January 21, 2010 by the United States Supreme Court holding that corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be limited under the First Amendment. President Obama said that the decision “gives the special interests and their lobbyists even more power in Washington — while undermining the influence of average Americans who make small contributions to support their preferred candidates.” More about Citizens United, click here.

10 am

Sickles, McKay, Barker, Puller, Ebbin Legislative Town Hall
Saturday, January 21, 2012 10-noon, Thompson Center (6090 Kingstowne Village Pkwy, Alexandria, VA 22315; map, click here).

1 pm

Supervisor McKay Open House
Saturday, January 21, 2012 1-3 pm at the Franconia Governmental Center (6121 Franconia Road, Alexandria, VA 22310; map, click here). Flier, click here.

2:30 pm

Ryan McElveen’s Chinese New Year Celebration
Celebrate the Year of the Dragon with Fairfax County new At-Large School Board Member, Ryan McElveen, Saturday January 21, 2012 2:30-4:30 pm. Chinese buffet and libations at Uncle Liu’s Hot Pot in Merrifield (2974 Gallows Rd., Falls Church, VA 22306; map, click here) next to the Great Wall Supermarket. Suggested donation is $25. RSVP, click here.

7:00 pm

LeeDems Welcome and Volunteer Thank You Party
Lee District Dems want to welcome all Democrats and thank our volunteers with a party on Saturday, January 21, 2012 7-10 pm at the Island Creek Community Center (7550 Thomas Grant Drive, Alexandria, VA 22315; map, click here). Join us for food, fun, drinks, and Dems. RSVP, click here. Share on Facebook, click here. Flier, click here.

SUNDAY, JANUARY 22

Anniversary Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (decided January 22, 1973), was a landmark although controversial decision by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of abortion. The Court decided that a right to privacy under the due process clause in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution extends to a woman’s decision to have an abortion, but that right must be balanced against the state’s two legitimate interests for regulating abortions: protecting prenatal life and protecting the mother’s health. Saying that these state interests become stronger over the course of a pregnancy, the Court resolved this balancing test by tying state regulation of abortion to the mother’s current trimester of pregnancy.

New Republican congressional remap plan sprinting through Assembly now under total GOP rule (Washington Post, January 12, 2012).

Redistricting is conducted the year after every decennial census; it is a requirement of the U.S. Constitution, the Virginia Constitution, and the Code of Virginia; however, after the results of the 2011 General Election giving the GOP complete control of in Virginia (Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, Virginia Senate, and Virginia House of Delegates), the Virginia GOP opted to unconstitutionally delay passage of Congressional redistricting until the new body convened on January 11th. Passage of the GOP preferred map will likely be on the Governor’s desk as soon as the end of next week. The redistricting plan must still be reviewed by the US Department of Justice for compliance in time for June primaries.

The 2012 campaign is heating up, but President Obama has always emphasized that this is about more than an election. This movement is built on the idea that one voice can change a community, and Dr. King used his voice to speak on behalf of every American.

Saturday, January 14, 2012 noon – 3 pm
Starbucks at Mount Vernon Plaza (7696 J Richmond Highway, Alexandria, VA 22306; map, click here). We will be meeting in front of the Starbucks located across the street from the Shoppers Food Warehouse.

• Contact: Susan Johnson (susan.o.johnson@gmail.com, (703) 409-2433; filling in for Yasmeen).
• RSVP on MyBO, click here.

First lady Michelle Obama will appear at Hayfield Secondary Friday, along with the cast of the Nickelodeon show iCarly, in an event for military families.

Obama and the actors will answer questions and screen a new episode of the show, which follows a teenage girl and the web show she produces. In the episode, “iMeet the First Lady,” main character Carly (played by Miranda Cosgrove) is supported by her friends during her father’s deployment in the military.

Students only, no parents.

from the Patch