On Saturday we launched a brand new grassroots initiative with the unveiling of our Regional Engagement Teams!  Our goal is to have a Regional Engagement Team, or RET, in all of the major regions throughout Virginia, and we need your help.  If you signed up for a position on Saturday, we cannot thank you enough for volunteering your time and effort to fight for our principles. If you did not get the chance to join a RET, don’t worry! All the information about our RETs and the various positions available can be found online at www.familyfoundation.org/grassroots/. 

Thank you so much to everyone involved with Saturday’s Grassroots Activism Project!  We had such a great turnout, and we loved seeing each and every one of you.  For those of you who were unable to attend, we missed you, but there is still time to get involved! 

Not only did we launch our new Regional Engagement Teams but we also spread the news about our weekly Team Timothy prayer meetings. This is an open opportunity to join us at our office in Richmond every Tuesday for intercessory prayer!  We hope to see you or have you join in via conference call. Please email us here for more information!

Everyone has something to contribute to the cause of defending the family in Virginia, and we hope you find your place with us.

Now is the time for engagement, and this is your chance.  It is so encouraging to witness everyone’s passion for our principles, and we cannot wait to see the amazing things all of you are going to do within your communities.

This week our salesman-in-chief Governor Terry McAuliffe touted that Virginia was once again named a Top 10 state for business by Site Selection magazine, coming in at number six.  This is apparently a good thing, even prestigious.  Given that Virginia had been dropping like a rock in nearly every similar business ranking since he took office, it’s not surprising the Governor’s press office tried to make a big deal out of this one.

In his press release, the Governor said, “We are working every day to build a new Virginia economy that works for everyone, and moving back into the top 10 in Site Selection’s prestigious Prosperity Cup ranking is evidence that those efforts are paying off.”

Pretty boiler plate stuff.

What was interesting, however, was what wasn’t mentioned in the Governor’s press release, given that in nearly every speech he’s made he’s been sure to mention how terrible things are in our neighbor state to the south, North Carolina, because its legislature dared attempt to protect the privacy of women and children in public restrooms.  He’s demeaned and demonized the Tar Heel state, and ridiculed efforts to protect women and children here in Virginia.  He’s attacked efforts to defend religious liberty while he’s also made sure his efforts to increase the number of abortions in Virginia has been front and center in his messaging about making Virginia more “open” for the kinds of businesses that care about such things.   Yet in this press release, not a peep.

Odd.

At least until you look at the actual Site Selection rankings and low and behold what state do you find at the top of the list?  Well, it ain’t Terry McAuliffe’s Virginia.

You guessed it, the top state in the nation for business according to Site Selection would be North Carolina.

Amazingly, despite the media-driven, leftist hysteria generated by the now famous HB 2, businesses are still moving to North Carolina, apparently at a higher rate than the Old Dominion.   Perhaps public policies like low tax rates actually do matter to intelligent business owners despite state Senator Dick Saslaw’s remarkable claim made during session that he didn’t know of a single business that ever made a decision about where to locate based on the tax rate.

Umm, okay. 

Anyway, if we’ve learned anything from the HB 2 debacle it is this: the narrative wins out over reality every single time.  Reality tells us that North Carolina is doing just fine, better even than Virginia.  But my guess is that if you asked most lawmakers or your average citizen they’d be convinced otherwise. 

U.S. Senator Tim Kaine announced he plans to oppose confirming Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court to fill the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s vacant seat. Likewise, Virginia’s other Senator, Mark Warner, issued a statement earlier this week that he also plans to oppose Gorsuch’s confirmation.

Both cite Gorsuch’s refusal to claim support for abortion “rights” as their reason for opposing this highly qualified jurist – and notably – one for whom members of their party unanimously confirmed to join the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in 2006.

CLICK HERE to urge Senators Kaine and Warner to do the sensible thing, and confirm Judge Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court!

According to Kaine, “After meeting with Judge Gorsuch and reviewing his testimony and past decisions, I’ve observed that he has repeatedly taken an activist approach to cases involving a woman’s right to make her own decisions about her health.” Presumably, Sen. Kaine is referencing Gorsuch’s majority opinion in the Hobby Lobbycase (which was soon after affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court) where the courts held that Hobby Lobby had the right, consistent with its religious liberty, to provide health insurance to its employees that excluded coverage for abortion-inducing drugs.

Sen. Warner said, “Despite his impressive academic credentials, Judge Gorsuch’s record and evasive responses – even refusing to answer questions regarding his views of cases like Roe v. Wade and Citizens United – do not give me confidence that he possesses a judicial philosophy that will serve the American public well.” 

Virginia Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine portray themselves as "moderates," with the help of a friendly media.  But their voting records and rhetoric have become more and more out of touch as their party lurches to the extreme left.  Now, both are taking their cues from Planned Parenthood and the ACLU by opposing Gorsuch.

Both Senators need to hear from real Virginians like you that their vote against Gorsuch is a vote against Virginia.  It's a vote against the Constitution.  It's a vote against freedom.

Contact both Senators now and urge them to confirm Neil Gorsuch for the Court!