Welcome to today’s edition of the Dogwood Daily. We’ve got a round-up of all of today’s Virginia news coming right up. And if you’re a fan (or even if you’re not!), please forward to every friend in your contacts (yes, every single one) and tell them to subscribe here.
But First…
The second Democratic primary debates have arrived. Tonight’s debate, which will be headlined by progressive Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, begins at 8 p.m. EST and airs on CNN.
If following along on social media is more your speed, The Dogwood will also have live coverage of the two hour debate on Twitter and Instagram.
5 Things you need to know today
- Democratic Delegate protests Trump’s speech at Jamestown – While many of his fellow Democrats opted to boycott President Trump’s appearance at today’s celebration of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, Del. Ibraheem Samirah (D-Fairfax) protested by interrupting President Trump’s speech. Samirah said “Mr. President, you can’t send us back, Virginia is our home!” while holding signs that read “Deport Hate” and “Reunite My Family.” – The Dogwood
- Virginia’s Board of Education considering measure to pressure lawmakers on school funding – The Virginia Board of Education is considering a recommendation that would establish minimum funding requirements for a state budget item used to help at-risk students. The move is intended to pressure the General Assembly to increase education spending, which has cratered since the recession more than a decade ago. Among the Board’s priorities are increased funding for at-risk students, class size reduction funding and raises for teachers at high-poverty schools. – The Virginia Mercury
- Virginia Board of Education votes to limit the use of seclusion and restraint – Virginia’s Board of Education also voted last week to approve regulations limiting the use of seclusion and restraint of students in public schools, including a complete ban on the use of prone restraint, which occurs when a child is held face-down on the ground. The measure will now go to Gov. Ralph Northam for approval and will then go through at least one additional round of public comments. – WCVE News
- Black and Latino college graduates struggle with ‘unsustainable’ debt – Black and Latino college graduates may struggle with more student loan debt than their white counterparts, according to a new report from the Center for Responsible Lending and the NAACP. The report highlighted the structural inequalities and “broad societal discrimination” that forces students of color to take out loans, which can result in them accumulating “high levels of unsustainable debt.” – The Virginia Mercury
- Voter registration is up in Virginia – More than 111,000 new voters have registered to vote this year, according to new data from the Virginia Public Access Project. That is 67% more new voters than at the same time in 2015, the last time all 140 seats of the General Assembly were on the ballot. The plurality of the new registered voters are young people, as nearly 46,000 of the new registrations came from voters between the ages of 18-25. University of Mary Washington political scientist Stephen Farnsworth said the uptick bodes well for Democrats, as “younger people vote 60-40 for Democrats.” – WAMU
From the Gram
