Va. Dems blame Trump, Republicans for rising prices

August 11, 2026

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There’s such a thing as “the world’s oldest ham”—and it can be found (where else?) in Smithfield.

Below, I share how Republican economic policies are playing out in two of Virginia’s most competitive congressional races.

And, a forthcoming book explores how unions are portrayed in pop culture.

Want to get in touch, or have stories you want me to cover? Reply to this email or reach out to me directly at michaeloconnor@couriernewsroom.com.

Michael O’Connor

Reporter, Dogwood

President Donald Trump attends a meeting to sign an executive order about vaccines, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

It’s no secret that economic issues and corruption in Washington are shaping up to be key themes in the upcoming midterm elections.

Today, House Majority Forward released an ad attacking US Rep. Rob Wittman, the Republican incumbent in Virginia’s 1st Congressional District, on the issue of congressional stock trading.

His opponent, Democrat Shannon Taylor, has also criticized Wittman for trading stocks while in office and for the amount of wealth he’s accumulated since getting elected in 2007.

This week, Taylor criticized Wittman on another economic issue: the congressman’s support for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, legislation that cut taxes for the wealthy and slashed the social safety net.

According to a report by Cameron Thompson at WTVR, Wittman said the legislation benefits everybody.

Taylor pushed back, noting the way the legislation is putting pressure on rural hospitals and has led to tens of thousands of Virginians no longer receiving food assistance.

As US offshore wind disappears, a generation of workers, including ones in Virginia, is left behind, reports Ajani Stella at Inside Climate News.

The union representing Transportation Security Administration workers sued the federal government over a plan to privatize airport security, accusing the agency of developing and marketing the plan in secret, reports Whitney Curry Wimbish and Zachary Groz at The American Prospect.

The anti-union Freedom Foundation more than doubled its budget from 2021 to 2024, according to a report by Matthew Cunningham-Cook at the Center for Media and Democracy.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) agents patrol around the Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Va., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce)

The Trump administration’s crackdown on immigrants continues to rear its ugly head in Virginia.

Politico’s Eric Bazail-Eimil has an in-depth look at the proceedings of an immigration court in Annandale,including reporting on the treatment of a seven-year-old boy named Moises.

“Prepare yourself to speak on your behalf,” a judge told Moises, Politico reports.

And social media posts have caught the brazen acts of federal immigration agents in Virginia, including one in which a gun is drawn in Falls Church.

(wangdong/YouTube)

Virginia Capital combines a focus on labor issues with a love of culture.

So I was excited to learn that a new anthology slated for publication next year will combine both.

The book is called “So Long, Dental Plan” Unions, Labor Relations and Class Struggle…As Seen On TV, and it includes chapters on The Simpsons, The Sopranos, and Battlestar Galactica.

Next year seems like a long way off, but I’ll be excited to check this one out.