Thursday, May 22, 2025

Good Morning! On this day in 1865, Jefferson Davis was locked up at Fort Monroe. The former president of the Confederacy had been captured in Georgia earlier in the month after fleeing Richmond in April. He was held for 720 days before his release.

The Commonwealth has lost a voice in Congress. In Top Stories, The Virginia Flyover remembers the late Representative Gerry Connolly.

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Don't feel like reading the national edition of The Flyover? Tune in to The Flyover Podcast! New episodes drop daily—watch on YouTube or listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, all in under 15 minutes.

Congressman Dies After Cancer Fight

Rep. Gerry Connolly, a Democrat representing Virginia's Congressional District 11, has died.

The 75-year-old Connolly had served in the House of Representatives since 2009. Shortly after he was elected to a ninth term last year, he announced he'd been diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus and would begin chemotherapy.

Despite that diagnosis, Connolly took on the job as top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, a role he stepped back from last month due to his declining health.

In his final act in Congress earlier this week, Connolly co-sponsored the bipartisan Esophageal Cancer Awareness Act with Republican James Comer.

Antisemitism Campaign Kicks Off

Gov. Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order aimed at cracking down on antisemitism in Virginia. A commission established by the governor reported 554 incidents in the state in the last year.

As part of the directive, Youngkin ordered public schools and universities to update their codes of conduct to clearly define antisemitism and develop policies to prevent it.

"No one should be unsafe in the classroom or on campus or feel targeted because of their religion or heritage," Youngkin announced.

The order also establishes a working group led by the Secretary of Education that is to "design a comprehensive reporting and tracking mechanism for alleged incidents of antisemitism and other anti-religious bigotry" and issue a report by Sept. 1.

Holiday Weekend Travel

According to AAA, an estimated 1.23 million Virginians are expected to travel 50 miles or more over the upcoming holiday weekend. The group expects that more than 100,000 Virginians will board a plane, with the rest driving.

While that number represents a 2.5% increase over last year, it's the smallest percentage jump since 2016.

Drivers can expect lower gas prices than they paid in 2024. The tracking firm GasBuddy reported that a gallon of gas now averages less than $3 in the Commonwealth, 43 cents lower than this time last year.

To help clear the way for holiday drivers, the Department of Transportation will shut down most work zones starting tomorrow and not reopen them until noon on Tuesday, May 27.

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➤ Statewide: Glenn Youngkin signed a joint letter with 19 other Republican governors declaring their support for President Trump's "One, Big, Beautiful Bill," the spending and tax package that's under consideration in Congress. (Details)

➤ Virginia Beach: Fire investigators are looking into a blaze that gutted a tattoo shop yesterday. No injuries were reported. (More)

➤ Colonial Heights: The Virginia Department of Health substantiated five additional complaints at the troubled Colonial Heights Rehabilitation and Nursing Center after an inspection in March. Last year, police charged more than a dozen employees at the facility with crimes relating to elder abuse. (Details)

➤ Isle of Wight: A tractor-trailer hauling 44,000 pounds of ham overturned yesterday while the driver was trying to avoid a two-car accident on the road in front of him. All three drivers were hospitalized. (More)

➤ Alexandria: The Waterfront Commission provided updates on its $145 million project to mitigate the flooding in Old Town that happens dozens of times each year. (Details)

➤ Blacksburg: The city's Volunteer Rescue Squad earned the Governor's Award for Outstanding Emergency Medical Services Agency. This is National EMS Week. (More)

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➤ UVA took on Boston College in the ACC baseball tournament. (Click for Details)

➤ Virginia Tech was eliminated from the ACC baseball tournament after a 6-1 loss to No. 5 seed Clemson. (Details)

➤ VMI, seeded No. 8 in the Southern Conference baseball tournament, was knocked out by Western Carolina 15-1. (Box Score)

➤ The future of college sports will be driven by name, image, and likeness policies. Sign up for NIL Wire and stay informed.

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➤ Iridium Communications said it will spend $13 million to expand its Fairfax County headquarters and hire 117 new associates. (Details)

➤ The new owners of Big Lots announced plans to open six new stores in Virginia. The struggling retailer is working to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. (More)

➤ Freight company Pitt Ohio opened a 37-door, cross-dock maritime terminal 10 miles from the Port of Norfolk. (Details)

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➤ The Commonwealth's three active casinos generated $78.8 million in adjusted gross revenue last month, according to the Virginia Lottery. The casinos paid $14.2 million in taxes. (Details)

➤ The Library of Virginia will host two free book talks—on June 12 and July 9—featuring authors who've written about Revolution-era history. (More)

➤ The Washington County Sheriff's Office will host a three-and-a-half-hour driving tour to raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital on June 7. (Details)

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