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PAGE 8 | JANUARY 6 - 12, 2022
A Penny for Your Thoughts
News of Greater Falls Church By Supervisor Penny Gross
It’s been exactly a year since the unprecedented and horrific assault on the United States Capitol, perpetrated by Donald Trump’s supporters and others bent on preventing Congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election results. It’s been almost six years since the Washington Post published a series of editorials that warned about the “bullying demagogue” who eventually would become the 45th president of the United States. The violence the editors feared played out on live television, worldwide, on January 6, 2021, following a course that began years earlier. During the 2016 campaign, Mr. Trump espoused force as the best way to meet challenges, whether immigration, public safety, or relationships with our allies. A recent Washington Post-University of Maryland poll of 1100 people revealed that nearly one-third of respondents said that violence against the government sometimes is justified. Sixty percent thought that Mr. Trump bears a great deal of the blame for the January 6 attack. On that same question, not surprisingly, 92 percent of Democrats blamed Trump, but only 27 percent of Republicans agreed. Similar results were reported in a September 2021 poll of 2000 residents in five Intermountain West states – Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming – commissioned by the Frank Church Institute at Boise State University (FCI/BSU). I worked on Capitol Hill for nearly two decades, and served on the FCI Board. The FCI/ BSU poll indicated that 58 percent of respondents overall said that political violence is not justified in a democracy; the better solution is the ballot box. Accounting by state, those responses ranged from a high of 62 percent in Idaho to 47 percent in Wyoming. More Republicans than Democrats said that political violence is justified in a democracy when you believe that the government is not acting in the best interests of the people, although “best interests” was not defined. In the same survey, more than half (56 percent) had confidence that the federal government would act in their best interests, and even fewer had confidence in the U. S. Congress. More than 70 percent of adults in the five states said the actions of the January
6 mob were not justified. Respondents also said that Mr. Trump was most responsible for violence at the Capitol. More than half the respondents also said that it is likely that the U.S. would experience violence, similar to the events of January 6, in the future. The two surveys are separated by time and geography, but a basic shared theme is the future of our democracy. One of the Washington Post editorials warned that Mr. Trump’s “contempt for constitutional norms might reveal the nation’s two-century-old experiment in checks and balances to be more fragile than we knew.” Another posited that “A President Trump could, unilaterally, change this country to its core.” Both comments were prescient: democracy is more fragile than many expected, and the nation has been changed – by lies, denigration, scapegoating, and conspiracy theories, from elected leaders and their followers. So now what? Can our democracy be strengthened and saved? If so, whose responsibility is it? The answer to the first, I hope, is yes. The answer to the second is all of us. Whether elected official or ordinary citizen, if we truly treasure the democratic ideals that built and sustained this nation, we must do everything necessary to continue this great experiment – the only one of its kind in the world. The Declaration of Independence was a gutsy move by the nation’s founders, but it is the Constitution that provides the framework for governance. It is broad, as it should be, and its various amendments (only 12 in the past 120 years) have broadened it. The nation’s founders recognized that independence and governance are not a “winner take all” equation, but that promoting the common good requires compromise, sometimes a lot of it. Fortunately, last year’s violent attempt to strangle that ideal failed. Whether Democrat, Republican, independent, or unaffiliated, we all must work to ensure that there is no next attempt, violent or non-violent. The future of our nation depends on it. Penny Gross is the Mason District Supervisor, in the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. She may be emailed at mason@fairfaxcounty.gov.
C i t y o f Fa l l s C h u r c h
C RI M E R E PO RT Week of Dec. 27, 2021 — Jan. 2, 2022
arrested for Driving Under the Influence and Refusal.
Driving Under the Influence, Leesburg Pike, Dec 28, 1:21 AM, a male, 29, of Falls Church, VA, was arrested for Driving Under the Influence. Fraud, Van Buren St, Dec 29, 9:04 AM, an incident of fraud was reported.
Driving Under the Influence, W Broad St, Jan 1, 1:25 AM, a white male, 20, of Falls Church, VA, was arrested for Driving Under the Influence, Underage Possession of Alcohol, Underage Possession of Marijuana Products and Open Container.
Driving Under the Influence, S Maple Ave, Dec 29, 11:46 PM, a male, 30, of Arlington, VA, was
Drunk in Public, W Broad St, Jan 1, 2:01 AM, a female, 21, of Falls Church, VA, was arrested
for Drunk In Public. Driving Under the Influence, W Broad St, Jan 2, 2:47 AM, a female, 40, of Arlington, VA, was arrested for Driving Under the Influence.
www.FCNP.com
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Senator Dick Saslaw’s
Richmond Report This past weekend we welcomed the year 2022 with open arms and the hope for better days ahead. Once again, Mother Nature took control with a powerful snowstorm that followed balmy weather that started the New Year. Due to the volume of precipitation, the number of wrecks, and the intensity of the storm, VDOT could not do its job effectively. This comes as no consolation for thousands of travelers trying to get ahead of the weather by driving directly into the bullseye of the storm. It was a brutal start of the year. Is there any doubt climate change is affecting our planet? The Covid-19 pandemic is surging with its highly transmissible Omicron variant. To date, Virginia has seen more than 1.1 million cases and sadly lost more than 15,000 individuals. More than 78% of adults in the Commonwealth are vaccinated against the virus and more than two million have received a booster shot. Additionally, 50%+ of 5 to 17-year-olds are vaccinated. Despite the contagiousness of the new variant, deaths from the virus are still well below peak numbers in February and March 2021. January 6, 2021 marks the infamous anniversary of a heinous attack on our democracy. Mob violence inspired by the loser of the presidential election, perpetrated a barbaric assault at the US Capitol. This brutal attack threatened the Vice President, members of Congress, as well as resulted in numerous deaths of Capitol Police that were beaten and outnumbered until reinforcements were sent to reclaim the Capitol. Rising to its Constitutional duty, Congress was able to certify the election of President Joe Biden. Last November 2, Virginians cast their ballots in races for the Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, and House of Delegates. On January 15, Glenn Youngkin, Winsome Sears, and Jason Myares will take their oaths of office at the Virginia Capitol. By contrast, this inauguration will follow tradition with members from both sides of the aisle escorting the governor-elect to the ceremony. It will be a seamless transition of power from Governor Northam and his Administration. Once again, Virginia, the cradle of democracy will show the nation what the founding fathers envisioned with fair elections. The year 2022 marks the enactment of additional laws here in the Commonwealth and in the
35th District. The minimum wage in Virginia increased to $11/hour on January 1 thanks to work by Democrats in the VA House and Senate. The rate will increase again on January 1, 2023 to $12/hour. Beginning Jan. 1, 2022 through Jan. 1, 2025 car insurance liability policies will cover more in cases of bodily injury or death. Liability insurance will now cover $30,000 when one person is injured or killed instead of $25,000. In cases involving two people, coverage goes from $50,000 to $60,000. Starting January 1, Fairfax County and the City of Alexandria began to impose a 5-cent tax per disposable plastic bag used at retail establishments and grocery stores. This nation uses 100 billion plastic bags a year, each of which takes 1,000 years to degrade in a landfill. The environmental toll is severe and the solution is easy… reusable and durable bags as well as easilyrecyclable paper bags. The tax starts April 1 in the City of Falls Church. Looking ahead to the upcoming General Assembly, nurturing our economic comeback and keeping Virginia the best place to do business remain top priorities of mine. The health and well-being of businesses directly correlates to putting food on the table for Virginians. Covid-19 has certainly left its mark on the workplace demonstrating a need to revisit paid leave for working families, worker’s compensation guidelines, and worker protections. Key elements of public education will be front and center in 2022. The workforce of the future will require different skills and certifications and is likely to morph due to a shrinking pool of workers. I remain steadfast in providing the support needed to fill that critical pipeline that best positions Virginians. It is widely rumored attempts may be made to roll back some of the progress made in areas of the environment, women’s reproductive rights, and the election process. Virginia has taken great strides enabling voter participation and ensuring safe and secure elections in the previous legislative sessions. I will lead the fight to protect these past legislative gains. I am sure there will be no shortage of hot button issues during session. As Majority Leader, I will do my part to ensure a civil and democratic review of the things that matter most to Virginians.
