Author: Uriah Kiser

Just weeks after former Rep. Abigail Spanberger left the U.S. House for good, she strolled onto the floor of a different political chamber: the Virginia House of Delegates, reports the Associated Press. The three-term congresswoman, now vying to be the state’s next governor, rubbed elbows with fellow Democrats and held someone’s baby at her hip, a not-so-subtle reminder that statewide elections are looming in the commonwealth this year.

That voice-activated device in your home is always listening, and for families with young children, it’s raising questions about how easy it is for those devices to make purchases. Virginia legislators were looking to rein in those devices Monday morning, WVTF Radio reports.

Matt Mullin’s three-year-old daughter Grace loves Paw Patrol and Baby Shark.

But when Grace asked her family’s voice-activated Amazon Alexa to play her favorite song, her father said it did something else.

A house subcommittee has effectively killed a bill from Delegate Josh Thomas (D-Prince William) that would have required social media platforms to get parental consent before allowing kids under 18 to use so-called “addictive feeds” on their platforms, WRIC-TV reports.

“Now with the rise of AI (artificial intelligence) and algorithms, we are getting much more content exposed to our children that they did not sign up for,” said Thomas.

Members of the General Assembly are once again debating firearms, WVTF Radio reports. 

The House of Delegates will soon be debating a bill that limits the sale of assault-style weapons to 21 or older. It’s a bill that was introduced by Senator Saddam Salim, a Democrat from Fairfax County. His bill passed the Senate Monday afternoon.

Virginia’s Democratic delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives is urging President Donald Trump to either revise or revoke his executive order implementing a hiring freeze for the federal workforce, specifically citing medical care for veterans, reports the Center Square.

Reps. Jennifer McClellan, Bobby Scott, Don Beyer, Gerry Connolly, Suhas Subramanyam and Eugene Vindman say Trump’s executive action specifically adversely affects the veterans’ community.