Latest news with #DonScott
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Rep. Don Scott to discuss threats to Medicaid in Norfolk
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia House Speaker Don Scott will join other advocates for reproductive freedom in Norfolk on Friday to speak about the threat to Medicaid. The stop at the Slover Library is the final stop of a statewide tour called 'Protect our Medicaid.' The goal of the tour, according to a release, is to raise awareness of the threat cuts to Medicaid could have on Virginia families. Those with the Protect our Medicaid group said the federal cuts to Medicaid under the Trump Administration's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' could cause over 250,000 Virginians to lose their healthcare, with nearly 47,000 veterans alone in the state covered by Medicaid. The bill includes a proposed $625 million cut in Medicaid — which could cause 7.6 million people nationwide to lose health coverage in less than a decade, according to budget analysis. A release from the group states that Medicaid is the largest source of funding for home care in the United States, with home care for older adults and people with disabilities rising across the country. GOP bill raises fears of major reduction in home care for seniors, disabled The discussion will address how cuts to both Medicaid and Planned Parenthood can impact the Hampton Roads regional economy and how it will harm Virginia families. The Protect our Medicaid tour is expected to be held in the third floor at the Slover Library starting at 11 a.m. Continue to check for updates. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Don Scott, Sen. Louise Lucas to speak during Virginia State University Commencement
PETERSBURG, Va. (WAVY) – Virginia Speaker of the House Don Scott and Virginia Senator Louise Lucas are set to speak during Virginia State University's (VSU) Spring 2025 Commencements. The university expects to confer 650 degrees Saturday, May 17, across two ceremonies. The first ceremony will take place at 8:30 a.m. and Scott will deliver the keynote address. The second ceremony will take place at 1:30 p.m., with Sen. Lucas as the guest speaker. The university says both ceremonies will be viewable via live stream on both the university's YouTube and Facebook pages. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Virginia House Speaker Scott joins national Democratic campaign board
Del. Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, thanks supporters after being elected speaker of the House at the Virginia State Capitol on Jan. 10, 2024. (Photo by Nathaniel Cline/Virginia Mercury) Virginia House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, is joining the board of directors of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC), the national party's state-level strategy arm, just as Virginia enters one of its most consequential election years in recent memory. The DLCC will draw on Scott's experience — alongside that of six other new board members from around the country — to help shape its plans to support state legislative races this year and beyond. With all 100 seats in Virginia's House of Delegates seats and the state's entire executive branch up for election this year, DLCC President Heather Williams emphasized that 'all eyes are on Virginia.' Speaking by phone on Friday, Scott described the commonwealth as both an 'incubator for democracy' and a 'bellwether for the rest of the country.' Virginia holds its gubernatorial elections the year after each presidential contest, which offers national observers a fresh barometer on public sentiment. This year, Democrats are framing the races as a referendum on President Donald Trump and his influence over the Republican Party. But Scott stressed that all elections are also inherently local. Each House race will also revolve around hallmark issues for Virginia Democrats — including advancing three constitutional amendments on voting rights, reproductive freedom and marriage equality — alongside regional issues like infrastructure and the economy. 'People are really concerned about kitchen-table issues,' Scott said. His appointment to the DLCC's board of directors comes on the heels of the organization announcing a seven figure investment in Virginia's elections this year. The state is one of several battlegrounds identified in the organization's 2025-2026 Target Map, which also includes North Carolina, Georgia, and Arizona. The committee aims to help Democrats flip legislatures or build stronger democratic bases. Others joining Scott on the DLCC board include legislative leaders from California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon and Wisconsin. 'Our board members represent some of the sharpest minds in politics, and I'm excited to partner with them to build our plan for victory for cycles to come,' DLCC president Williams said in a recent statement. While the DLCC's core mission has always been state legislature races, this year the group also plans to boost the eventual Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor. While the state Senate — where Democrats hold a slim majority — is not on the ballot, the next lieutenant governor could play a key role in breaking future ties. As the DLCC falls under the Democratic National Committee umbrella, the overarching organization has also recently announced a funding focus to help boost state elections. DNC chair Ken Martin announced last month that the organization will transfer more than $1 million per month to its state and territorial parties over the next four years. 'When we organize everywhere to compete everywhere, we can win anywhere,' he said on a press call during the announcement. 'The role of political parties is to build infrastructure everywhere.' That infusion comes as Democrats are running candidates in all 100 House districts. Some are incumbents or former candidates returning for a rematch in competitive districts; others are fresh faces stepping up through recruitment efforts. Much of that recruitment has been led by Dr. Fergie Reid Jr., whose father, Dr. William 'Fergie' Reid Sr., became the first Black elected official in Virginia after Reconstruction. Reid Jr., a retired physician, has spent the past decade working to ensure Democrats contest every district — from the safest blue districts to the reddest red — to help build a base and spark party enthusiasm. 'Dad turned 100 a few weeks ago. There are 100 districts in the state house,' Reid recently told The Mercury. 'My goal is not to let what happened in 2021 happen again, especially on Dad's 100th year when he's watching. He's been calling me every night to make sure that we get in 100 districts.' Meanwhile, Scott, the first Black House speaker in Virginia history, hopes to share what his home state has learned with Democrats in other states. In 2023, Scott helped his party claw back its majority in the House of Delegates, which set the stage for his ascension to speaker. 'The number one thing that we've learned is that we have to meet people where they are,' Scott said. 'Most people are trying to figure out how they put food on the table, how they afford the things that they need, whether they have good schools for their kids, and whether it's safe to live in the community, and that's what we've been focused on.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Miscommunication' cited as House speaker denied entry into VB school
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — State House of Delegates Speaker Don Scott (D-Portsmouth) said he was scheduled to speak to students in the Legal Studies Academy at First Colonial High School in Virginia Beach Wednesday morning, but it never happened. He called being denied entry into the school 'a slap in the face,' while the city's school division characterized what happened as a 'miscommunication.' Scott said he was denied entry into the school, where he said he had agreed about two weeks ago to speak to Legal Studies Academy students about what it takes to be a lawyer. He said just before he headed to the school, he was told he couldn't come because he wasn't properly vetted and because parents were not aware he would be coming. 'I was like, that's crazy,' Scott said. 'Like, they would never do that to the governor, the attorney general or the lieutenant governor or any of them, probably the Virginia Beach delegate they serve in that area. 'It's funny, I'm the first Black speaker in a 405-year history of Virginia. I think I've been vetted. And the fact that they would not allow me to be there, I think, is a slap in the face, not only to me, but also to all Virginians. In a statement from Virginia Beach City Public Schools, it said, without referring to Scott by name, that 'a miscommunication occurred this morning between our school officials about a potential guest speaker for the Legal Studies Academy at First Colonial High School. Virginia Beach City Public Schools values its relationships with all our school partners, including elected officials, and consistently welcomes them into our schools. We are actively working to resolve the concern.' 10 On Your Side will let you know if the speaking event at First Colonial is rescheduled. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Washington Post
05-02-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Virginia speaker names bipartisan committee to study Trump's attacks on federal workforce
RICHMOND — Virginia House Speaker Don Scott (D-Portsmouth) has formed a special bipartisan committee of lawmakers to study the impact of President Donald Trump's attacks on the federal workforce and federal spending, which are an especially major component of the state's economy. 'We need to take the politics out of this thing and have a responsible, deliberate, sober conversation about what this really means to Virginians,' Scott said Tuesday night in an interview with The Washington Post. He cited Trump's intention to slash the federal workforce, shutter agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Department of Education and move workers away from the Washington, D.C., region.
