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Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears hoped winning the Republican nomination for governor of Virginia last month would help her party move past a primary season defined by lurid sex scandals and a boiling MAGA turf war. Instead, Earle-Sears is wrapping up her first month as nominee with a major campaign shake-up — and the GOP brand is facing an unprecedented losing streak. On Thursday, Earle-Sears asked her campaign manager, Will Archer, to step aside. A pastor by trade, Archer had never managed a campaign or participated in politics before. When campaign finance filings published this week showed Democrat Abigail Spanberger outraising Earle-Sears by 2-to-1, Republican leaders finally convinced their candidate it was time to part with her inexperienced staffer. Campaign finance filings published this week showed Democrat Abigail Spanberger outraising Earle-Sears by 2-to-1. Earle-Sears’ campaign reshuffle comes at a moment when Virginia’s Republicans are trying, and failing, to convince voters they’re still a functional party. That’s proving a lot harder than Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Earle-Sears planned, because the state GOP just can’t seem to stop embarrassing itself in public. Some fumbles have been especially striking. After nearly a decade topping the ranks of CNBC’s Top States for Business, Virginia just lost its coveted first place spot to neighboring North Carolina. It’s a ranking Youngkin takes seriously, to the point that he made attracting new businesses and defending the state’s ranking a key element of his 2021 campaign strategy. Safeguarding Virginia’s economic miracle was supposed to be Youngkin’s defining legacy. Good luck selling Virginians on the GOP’s know-how today, when local magazines publish discount sections for laid-off federal workers and rural communities across the state brace for sweeping hospital and clinic closures. Far from being the governor who brightened Virginia’s economic flame, Youngkin is now permanently tarred in voters’ minds by his defense of President Donald Trump’s unpopular federal job cuts. It’s a reputation toxic enough to drag down his entire party. Republicans are starting to see voters’ skepticism in their dwindling pool of political contributions. Spanberger’s $10.7 million in donations this quarter is nearly double Earle-Sears’ own $5.9 million haul. Those fundraising shortfalls cost Archer his job this week, but swapping out campaign staff won’t suddenly make Republican policies popular. And the numbers get even worse the deeper you go. The campaign for lieutenant governor is also proving to be an absolute disaster for the GOP. In that race, scandal-plagued Republican nominee John Reid has seemingly given up fundraising at all. Reid raised only about $440,000 last quarter and only has $163,082 on hand, compared to Democratic nominee state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi’s $3.4 million. Hashmi also has nearly 10 times as much cash on hand as Reid. At a time in the campaign when Republicans should be putting Democrats on the defensive, the GOP’s top two candidates are scrambling to keep the lights on. Virginians are getting a free preview of the mismanagement, disorder and chaos that would dominate an Earle-Sears administration. Virginia’s Democrats would like to make sure every voter gets a good, long look at Republicans’ political circus, and they’ve just got a huge assist from the Democratic National Committee. On July 15, DNC Chairman Ken Martin announced a $1.5 million contribution to Democratic Party of Virginia, a notable sum for the national party to invest in an off-year state race and a sign of confidence in the party’s chances in November. That money will build campaign infrastructure and hire staff in key legislative districts, ultimately allowing Democrats to reach more voters more effectively. Republicans’ problems are multiplied by the fact that Democrats are competing in every House of Delegates district this year, forcing cash-strapped Republicans to spend more money on more races for longer than anyone budgeted. At their current fundraising levels, GOP officials will soon need to make tough choices about where to cut back — just as the DNC’s $1.5 million cash infusion hits Democratic campaign accounts. While Democrats prepare to embark on a summer spending spree, Earle-Sears’ campaign is busy fending off accusations from a top MAGA official that her campaign is a “clown car” skidding towards disaster. Spanberger and Democrats have leapt into the lead by making this year’s election a referendum on competence. Virginia’s dysfunctional Republicans don’t stand a chance. Max Burns Max Burns is a Democratic strategist and founder of Third Degree Strategies. Find him on X, @themaxburns. Read More

July 18, 2025, 5:11 PM EDT / Updated July 18, 2025, 7:28 PM EDT By Steve Benen As the public first learned of The Wall Street Journal’s report on Donald Trump’s alleged 2003 birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein, the president responded with unsubtle threats. “President Trump will be suing The Wall Street Journal, NewsCorp, and Mr. Murdoch, shortly,” he wrote online, referring to himself in the third person for reasons unknown. The Republican added soon after, “The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein. These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures. I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and now I’m going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper.” It seems he wasn’t kidding. CNBC reported: President Donald Trump on Friday followed through on his threat to sue media mogul Rupert Murdoch after his Wall Street Journal published an article saying that Trump sent Jeffrey Epstein a ‘bawdy’ letter for Epstein’s 50th birthday. Court records show that Trump filed a lawsuit alleging libel against Murdoch, the Journal’s publisher, Dow Jones, and the reporters who wrote the article in federal court for the Southern District of Florida. The civil lawsuit, which was filed in the Southern District of Florida, comes a day after Trump referred to the Journal as a “disgusting and filthy rag.” The suit seeks a jury trial and a judgment of at least $10 billion. The listed defendants are the Journal’s parent company, News Corp.; its publisher, Dow Jones; the two Journal reporters who wrote Wednesday’s story; and News Corp. owner Rupert Murdoch and News Corp. CEO Robert Thomson. NBC News said Dow Jones, News Corp. and the two reporters did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In a post on Truth Social on Friday evening, Trump wrote in part: “We have just filed a POWERHOUSE Lawsuit against everyone involved in publishing the false, malicious, defamatory, FAKE NEWS ‘article’ in the useless ‘rag’ that is, The Wall Street Journal. … I hope Rupert and his “friends” are looking forward to the many hours of depositions and testimonies they will have to provide in this case.” The move has become a familiar one for the incumbent president, who has, in recent years, also filed civil lawsuits against CBS News, ABC News, The Des Moines Register and CNN. It also comes two months after Trump told a reporter with the Journal that he considers the newspaper to be “rotten,” to have “truly gone to hell” and to be “really bad for this country.” Thursday’s report, however, appears to have taken the president’s contempt for the WSJ to a new level. The Journal advanced the controversy with a new report on a 2003 birthday album, collected by former Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, which reportedly included a highly provocative letter bearing Trump’s name and signature. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. Steve Benen Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MSNBC political contributor. He’s also the bestselling author of “Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans’ War on the Recent Past.” Read More

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Hawkins wins National Merit Auburn Scholarship July 20, 2025 Share this Post Hawkins wins National Merit Auburn Scholarship July 20, 2025 Share this Post Thomas Hawkins, a recent graduate of McIntosh High, has been awarded a National Merit Auburn University Scholarship. Hawkins will study for a probable career in Civil Engineering.  Officials of each sponsor college selected their scholarship winners from among the Finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program who will attend their institution. College-sponsored awards provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the scholarship. This year, 146 colleges and universities are sponsoring more than 3,700 Merit Scholarship awards. Sponsor colleges include 74 private and 72 public institutions located in 42 states and the District of Columbia. Subscribe to Our Newsletter Read More

Bennett’s Mill builds VR video game July 20, 2025 Share this Post Bennett’s Mill builds VR video game July 20, 2025 Share this Post A team from Bennett’s Mill Middle designed a virtual reality game in a competition sponsored by the Emory Healthcare Sports Performance And Research Center (SPARC).  The competing quartet was Leah Hill, Maxwell Davenport, Philip Henderson and Kaden Jawwaad. The Broncos were awarded two VR headsets and access to Unity software.  Teams were tasked with examining a real-world problem and designing games focused on health impact, research and understanding, creativity and innovation, and documentation of process. Emory SPARC utilizes VR games to assess student’s physical recovery from injuries and identify specific weaknesses in their form or technique that may be impeding their recovery.  The judges were impressed by the performance of the students.  “The creativity, thoughtfulness, and technical innovation your teams demonstrated blew us away. We were deeply impressed by the ways students explored the clinical potential of VR in healthcare, from injury rehabilitation and mental health to accessibility and patient care.” Subscribe to Our Newsletter Read More

Kedron Elementary students were honored for their cursive writing prowess with a John Hancock Banner and Proficiency Ribbon.  Recognizing that cursive writing strengthens student confidence, connects learners to history, and supports essential cognitive development, the Georgia Department of Education honors schools that demonstrate excellence in cursive instruction through the John Hancock Award.  The award celebrates elementary, middle, and high schools that go above and beyond in teaching cursive writing – a skill that builds fine motor strength, enhances literacy, and allows students to engage meaningfully with historical texts in their original form. As part of Georgia’s English Language Arts standards, cursive writing plays a vital role in preparing students for academic success and lifelong learning.  The schools where 90% of students can write their name in cursive receive the John Hancock Banner and Proficiency Ribbon. Schools where 90% of students can write both their name and the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution in cursive are awarded the John Hancock Banner and Ribbon of Distinction. “As Georgia’s State School Superintendent and a former classroom teacher, I firmly believe learning cursive is more than just a writing skill – it’s a connection to history, critical thinking, and personal expression,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “In an age of digital communication, the ability to read and write in cursive remains essential. It allows students to engage with foundational documents, develop fine motor skills, and write with individuality and fluency. Cursive writing builds cognitive connections that support literacy and learning across subjects. That’s why Georgia has preserved and prioritized cursive instruction as part of a well-rounded education. We’re committed to developing students who are not only college- and career-ready but also confident in their ability to read, write, and think for themselves.” Read More