David Sherfinski
Articles by David Sherfinski
Supreme Court weighs appeal to concealed-carry gun laws
The Supreme Court on Friday will consider whether to wade into the escalating legal brawl over whether people have a constitutional right to carry a firearm outside of the home, as gun rights advocates push the high court to settle how far the Second Amendment goes in protecting the right to bear arms. Published April 17, 2014
Michael Bloomberg charts $50M challenge to NRA: ‘Got to make them afraid’
Former New York City Mayor Michael I. Bloomberg is planning to spend $50 million this year to promote gun control and target Democrats and Republicans alike on the issue, saying he hopes to provide a counterweight to the well-funded gun lobby. Published April 16, 2014
McAuliffe’s PAC off to fast start, with $254,000 raised in two weeks
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe's political action committee has collected more than $250,000 in two weeks, far outpacing his most recent predecessor's state leadership PAC and easily topping totals for other leadership PACs in state government for the first three months of the year. Published April 15, 2014
Virginia Republican Bob Marshall stands by remarks that raise eyebrows
Delegate Robert G. Marshall has said that disabled children can be God's vengeance against women who have had abortions. He has described incest as sometimes voluntary, and he has questioned the sexuality of a Supreme Court justice who has favored marriage equality. Published April 10, 2014
Obama urged to enforce ban on importing military-style firearms
About 80 House members wrote a letter to President Obama Wednesday urging him to renew the enforcement of a federal prohibition on the import of military-style, semiautomatic firearms. Published April 9, 2014
Va. Senate approves Medicaid expansion, but budget stands no chance in House
The Virginia Senate sent a dead-on-arrival two-year budget to the House of Delegates on Tuesday with a provision to effectively expand Medicaid coverage in Virginia, even as a new poll shows Democrats might not have the groundswell of support on the issue that they're claiming. Published April 8, 2014
GOP’s Comstock cast ‘08 Democrat ballot as part of ‘Operation Chaos’
Delegate Barbara Comstock's congressional campaign attempted to stiff-arm reports Monday that she voted for Barack Obama in Virginia's 2008 Democratic primary by claiming it was part of a conservative bid to affect the Democratic presidential primaries six years ago. Published April 7, 2014
Conflict trumps compromise in Virginia’s Medicaid expansion debate
Advocates of Medicaid expansion in Virginia say the budget impasse gripping Richmond this year isn't terribly novel, even in a city that prides itself on genteel compromise in contrast to the rancor of Washington. Published April 6, 2014
Reps. to Boehner, Pelosi: Take gun riders out of appropriations process
More than 100 members of Congress have signed a letter sent to House Speaker John A. Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi urging them to ensure the House Appropriations Committee does not include provisions in spending bills for the next fiscal year that the members say hinder research into the causes of gun violence and the enforcement of gun laws. Published April 4, 2014
Five former Virginia AGs want case against ex-governor Bob McDonnell dismissed
Five former Virginia attorneys general — three Democrats and two Republicans — said in a proposed court filing that corruption counts against former Gov. Bob McDonnell should be dismissed and that Justice Department attorneys overreached in bringing criminal charges for his indiscretions. Published April 3, 2014
Virginia’s ‘East Sea’ textbook bill a nod to Korean Americans
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe this week signed into law a bill that will recognize the Sea of Japan as the East Sea in state textbooks, penning a new chapter in the commonwealth's recent history of wading into sensitive geopolitical debates. Published April 3, 2014
GOP denies McAuliffe offered ‘deal’ for Medicaid support
GOP leaders on Tuesday flatly denied ever discussing the possibility of tax relief in exchange for reconsidering their opposition to a Medicaid expansion proposal supported by Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who claimed last week that House Republicans had already rebuffed such a proposal a month ago. Published April 1, 2014
Satisfied with report on son’s death, Deeds presses for mental health reform
Virginia state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds vowed Monday to press forward on the issue of mental health reform after an investigator probing the suicide of his son resigned and accused state officials of interfering with his work. Published March 31, 2014
Virginia voters not sold on Medicaid as a top priority, poll shows
Just 4 percent of Virginia voters think the top priority of Gov. Terry McAuliffe and the General Assembly should be Medicaid — an issue that has paralyzed the budget process and forced a special session of the Legislature amid speculation about an unprecedented state government shutdown. Published March 26, 2014
Virginia GOP bashes Democrats’ absence
As they sent over their $96 billion spending plan to a vacant chamber Tuesday evening, House Republicans accused Democrats of abdicating their responsibility to pass a timely budget, after the Senate had left town at the end of the first day of a special session convened this week to hammer out a deal. Published March 26, 2014
McAuliffe on Medicaid expansion: ‘I and I alone will take responsibility’
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe says he will take responsibility for the cost of expanding Medicaid coverage. Published March 24, 2014
Virginia special session: McAuliffe put to test on budget, Medicaid
Va. Gov. Terry McAuliffe appears as bullish as ever heading into a special session that opens Monday, but Republicans are just as determined to decouple the items and deal with Medicaid in a separate special session. Published March 23, 2014
Eric Holder pressed for Lois Lerner interview details by Issa, Jordan
Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee are pressing the Department of Justice for more information about contact government lawyers reportedly made with Lois Lerner, the former IRS employee at the center of the scandal over the IRS's targeting of tea party groups for special scrutiny. Published March 21, 2014
Most oppose Obamacare, but opponents want politicians to make it work
Opposition to Obamacare remains near an all-time high but a majority of its opponents want to see politicians try to make the law work, a new survey shows. Published March 21, 2014
U.S. officials on Putin’s list mock his sanctions on travel and banks
Sens. John McCain and Dan Coats joked that their vacation plans for Siberia are off after they found themselves on a list of nine U.S. officials and lawmakers hit with sanctions Thursday by Russia, in a tit-for-tat retaliation that signaled an escalation in the diplomatic battle over Ukraine. Published March 20, 2014