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FARM FIGHT
Two Virginians were among the 60 federal lawmakers appointed last week to hash out a final compromise on the Farm Bill.
Reps. Bob Goodlatte, a Republican, and Robert Scott, a Democrat, were named to the conference committee to work out an agreement $300 billion measure.
At the committee's first meeting Thursday, Goodlatte, the top Republican on the House Agriculture Committee, urged his colleagues to work quickly to find middle ground on the first new Farm Bill in six years.
"Weeks ago farmers began planting their crops without any idea of what policy, if any, would be in place when they pull their crops out of the ground," he said. "And we've yet to resolve the uncertainty that inaction on the Farm Bill has caused them."
President Bush has asked Congress to send him a new Farm Bill by April 18, when the current bill expires, or else extend the existing bill for one year.
SECOND CHANCE
Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., applauded President Bush's signing Wednesday of the Second Chance Act. The bill aims to reduce repeat criminal offenses and help former inmates transition to life after prison.
The bill would allocate $360 million towards a range of programs, including mental health counseling, academic and vocational education, and substance abuse treatment.
"Every American should applaud this effort to reduce repetitive crime in our country," Webb said.
CANTOR AND CARTER
Rep. Eric Cantor, the only Jewish Republican in the U.S. House, condemned Thursday former President Jimmy Carter's plans to meet with an exiled Hamas leader in Syria later this month.
Cantor, of Virginia, called on Carter to cancel meetings with Khaled Mashal, saying it could be "misconstrued in the region as a sign of legitimacy for Hamas terrorism."
"It is shocking that a former president of the United States would sit down and speak with a terrorist kingpin like Khaled Mashal," Cantor said.
Mashal has claimed responsibility for numerous deadly attacks on Israeli civilians and called for the destruction of Israel.
HALLOWED GROUND
A trail connecting several important historical sites in Virginia and other states would receive national distinction under a Senate bill passed Thursday.
The bill sponsored by Sen. John Warner, R-Va., would designate as a National Heritage area a 175-mile corridor through Virginia and three states along U.S. Route 15.
"No area in America could possibly be more deserving of this status than the corridor affectionately known as The Journey Through Hallowed Ground," Warner said in a statement.
The area encompasses eight presidential homes or sites, including Monticello, 15 National Historic Landmarks, 47 historic districts and the largest collection of Civil War battlefields in America, including sites in Gettysburg, Pa. and Manassas, Va., according to Warner's office.
--Neil Simon
Two Virginians were among the 60 federal lawmakers appointed last week to hash out a final compromise on the Farm Bill.
Reps. Bob Goodlatte, a Republican, and Robert Scott, a Democrat, were named to the conference committee to work out an agreement $300 billion measure.
At the committee's first meeting Thursday, Goodlatte, the top Republican on the House Agriculture Committee, urged his colleagues to work quickly to find middle ground on the first new Farm Bill in six years.
"Weeks ago farmers began planting their crops without any idea of what policy, if any, would be in place when they pull their crops out of the ground," he said. "And we've yet to resolve the uncertainty that inaction on the Farm Bill has caused them."
President Bush has asked Congress to send him a new Farm Bill by April 18, when the current bill expires, or else extend the existing bill for one year.
SECOND CHANCE
Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., applauded President Bush's signing Wednesday of the Second Chance Act. The bill aims to reduce repeat criminal offenses and help former inmates transition to life after prison.
The bill would allocate $360 million towards a range of programs, including mental health counseling, academic and vocational education, and substance abuse treatment.
"Every American should applaud this effort to reduce repetitive crime in our country," Webb said.
CANTOR AND CARTER
Rep. Eric Cantor, the only Jewish Republican in the U.S. House, condemned Thursday former President Jimmy Carter's plans to meet with an exiled Hamas leader in Syria later this month.
Cantor, of Virginia, called on Carter to cancel meetings with Khaled Mashal, saying it could be "misconstrued in the region as a sign of legitimacy for Hamas terrorism."
"It is shocking that a former president of the United States would sit down and speak with a terrorist kingpin like Khaled Mashal," Cantor said.
Mashal has claimed responsibility for numerous deadly attacks on Israeli civilians and called for the destruction of Israel.
HALLOWED GROUND
A trail connecting several important historical sites in Virginia and other states would receive national distinction under a Senate bill passed Thursday.
The bill sponsored by Sen. John Warner, R-Va., would designate as a National Heritage area a 175-mile corridor through Virginia and three states along U.S. Route 15.
"No area in America could possibly be more deserving of this status than the corridor affectionately known as The Journey Through Hallowed Ground," Warner said in a statement.
The area encompasses eight presidential homes or sites, including Monticello, 15 National Historic Landmarks, 47 historic districts and the largest collection of Civil War battlefields in America, including sites in Gettysburg, Pa. and Manassas, Va., according to Warner's office.
--Neil Simon