Category: Politics

Local and regional politics.

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Wake-Up Call: Geoffrey Skelley

Geoffrey Skelley

This week WPVC’s Sunday Morning Wake-up Call host Rick Moore talks with University of Virginia Media Relations Coordinator & Associate Editor at Sabato’s Crystal Ball, Geoff Skelley about the 2016 US Federal Election.

Geoffrey Skelley is the media relations coordinator for the University of Virginia Center for Politics and associate editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball, the Center’s nonpartisan newsletter on American campaigns and elections. As a political analyst, Geoffrey has been quoted or cited in numerous print and online publications, such as the New York Times, Politico, Newsweek, and Huffington Post, among others, and does frequent radio and television interviews with local, national, and international media organizations. He also speaks to organizations around Charlottesville and Virginia on a regular basis, giving presentations at the Federal Executive Institute in Charlottesville and to groups like the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. Geoffrey has been with the Center since 2011.

A native of Harrisonburg, Virginia, Geoffrey received an M.A. in Political Science (with a focus on the European Union) from James Madison University in 2011, and is a graduate of the University of Virginia, receiving a B.A. in History in 2009. Beyond the Center and his love for American politics, Geoffrey closely follows developments in international affairs, sports, and music.

The Sunday Morning Wake-Up Call is heard on WPVC 94.7 Sunday mornings at 11:00 a.m.

Founded by Jeff Lenert and Rod Howard WPVC 94.7 FM serves up a mix of progressive talk radio during the day and EDM during the evening hours. If you are interested in volunteering with the station you can apply here.

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Wake-Up Call: Harriet Kuhr

Harriet Kuhr

This week WPVC’s Sunday Morning Wake-up Call host Rick Moore talks with International Rescue Committee Executive Director for Charlottesville Harriet Kuhr about the IRC, its mission, history, process and the current politics of refugee settlement since the Paris attacks.

Harriet Kuhr joined the IRC in Atlanta in 2004 as manager of the program that helps resettled refugees find employment. In 2006, she became the manager of resettlement services, eventually overseeing a staff of some 20 case managers, employment coordinators and logistics specialists. She has been executive director of the IRC in Charlottesville since April 2010.

Her prior work experience includes more than 20 years working in the field of international cultural exchange. She is a graduate of the University of Virginia.

The Sunday Morning Wake-Up Call is heard on WPVC 94.7 Sunday mornings at 11:00 a.m.

Founded by Jeff Lenert and Rod Howard WPVC 94.7 FM serves up a mix of progressive talk radio during the day and EDM during the evening hours. If you are interested in volunteering with the station you can apply here.

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Wake-Up Call: Carolyn Engelhard

Carolyn Engelhard

This Sunday Carolyn Engelhard joins Rick to talk about the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Ms. Engelhard talks about the latest ACA enrollment numbers, who is still not insured and the politics of Medicaid expansion. The Kentucky Governer’s plan to reduce Medicaid expansion and how it will affect 400,000 Kentucky residents is also examined.

Carolyn Engelhard is the Director, Health Policy Program, Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. Ms. Engelhard also writes for The Hill, a widely read policy/political source for staffers on The Hill in Washington DC. Her most recent story We Are All on the Government Dole talks about the government’s role in providing health care.

WPVC 94.7 is a FM radio station serving the Charlottesville area. Founded by Jeff Lenert and Rod Howard the station plans to serve up a mix of progressive talk radio during the day and hip-hop music during the evening hours. If you are interested in becoming a producer with The Sunday Morning Wake-up Call, or in volunteering in general, you can contact the station here.

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Update on the Supreme Court

Dahlia Lithwick speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesville.

In this podcast, Slate Magazine senior editor Dahlia Lithwick recaps highlights from the Supreme Court’s last term, previews the new term, and talks about current big themes.

Dahlia Lithwick is a senior editor at Slate Magzine, and in that capacity, writes the Supreme Court Dispatches and Jurisprudence columns. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Harper’s, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and Commentary, among other places. She won a 2013 National Magazine Award for her columns on the Affordable Care Act.

Lithwick has been twice awarded an Online Journalism Award for her legal commentary and was the first online journalist invited to be on the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press. Ms. Lithwick has testified before Congress about access to justice in the era of the Roberts Court. She has appeared on CNN, ABC, The Colbert Report, and is a frequent guest on The Rachel Maddow Show. Ms. Lithwick earned her BA from Yale University and her JD degree from Stanford University. She is currently working on a book about the four women justices of the United States Supreme Court.

Ms. Lithwick spoke at the Friday November 13, 2015 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The meeting was held at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by SSV President Bob McGrath.

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State Candidates Forum

Candidates for the contested Virginia Senate District 17, (Ned Gallaway (D)) House District 25, (Angela Lynn (D)) and the Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney (Denise Lunsford (D), Tobert Tracci (R)) participated in a forum sponsored by the Senior Statesmen of Virginia.

Delegate Steve Landes (R) and Senator Bryce Reeves (R) both responded that they have scheduling conflicts due to prior commitments and will be unable to attend the forum.

Candidates Speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesville

The candidates spoke at the Wednesday, September 9, 2015 meeting of the Senior Statesmen. The meeting was held at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by Bob Gibson, executive director of the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership.

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Local Candidates Forum

Candidates for the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors and Charlottesville City Council gave their views on many of the issues and priorities for the County and City.

City of Charlottesville candidates speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. The event was moderated by WINA’s Chris Callahan.


Albemarle County candidates speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesville.

The candidates spoke at the Wednesday, August 12, 2015 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The meeting was held at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by senior reporter for 1070 WINA News Radio Chris Callahan. Chris has been with the station for 41 years and was honored in 2014 by the Associated Press Broadcasters for the Best News Operation of the Year.

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Help Prevent a War on Iran!

Gareth Porter

At a public forum held in Charlottesville, Virginia, Gareth Porter spoke on the significance of the Iran deal as proposed by the Obama administration.

Gareth Porter, is an independent investigative journalist and historian who specializes in U.S. national security policy. He is the author of Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare, and the winner of the Gellhorn Prize for journalism in 2012 for exposing lies and propaganda about the Afghanistan War. Porter spent two weeks in Vienna covering the final round of negotiations and is now writing the definitive account of how the U.S. and Iran finally reached agreement.

Mr. Porter spoke on August 5, 2015 at The Haven on Market Street in Charlottesville. David Swanson introduced the event.

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Albemarle County: Growth vs. No Growth

Tim Hulbert and Tom Olivier present very different views as to the direction our community should take. Listen as they discuss the likely consequences of their positions on the physical environment, taxpayers, local businesses and job seekers.

Grant Tate, Tom Olivier and Tim Hulbert Speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesville.

Tim Hulbert has been president and CEO of the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce since March 2001. The Charlottesville Regional Chamber has more than 1,100 members and affiliates that together employ more than 45,000 people in the Greater Charlottesville region. Their estimated annual payrolls exceed $1.75 billion. Tim is a native of upstate New York and a graduate of Manhattan College. Prior to coming to the Charlottesville Regional Chamber, he held a similar position with the Rensselaer County, New York Regional Chamber of Commerce. He also held a variety of positions in New York state government, including in the transportation field.

Tom Olivier currently is president of Advocates for a Sustainable Albemarle Population (ASAP). He grew up in New Orleans and moved to Albemarle County in 1981. Tom holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Tulane University and a Ph.D. in biological anthropology from Duke University. Tom has done genetics research on mammalian populations in Africa, Australia and the Caribbean. He is a member of Albemarle County’s Natural Heritage Committee and past chair of the Piedmont Group of the Sierra Club. Tom and his wife, Wren, now raise sheep on their farm in Albemarle County, Virginia.

The debate took place at the Wednesday, March 11, 2015 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The meeting was held at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by CEO and Managing Partner of the bridge ltd, Grant Tate. SSV President Bob McGrath introduced the program.

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Charlottesville Considers Increased Meals Tax

The City of Charlottesville is considering a 1% increase in the tax restaurants charge their patrons. Listen as WTJU’s Lewis Reining and Charlotte Paxton discuss the issue with Charlottesville Tomorrow journalist Sean Tubbs.

The excerpt you are about to hear was taken from the Monday February 23, 2015 edition of WTJU’s Soundboad.

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Action 2020: Celebration and Looking Ahead

Billie Campbell speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesvile.

Over ten years have passed since the groundbreaking 2020 Plan: Aging in Community was finalized. Action 2020 is an initiative to create a challenging, but doable, 5-year action plan to achieve the goals of the 2020 Plan.

Billie Campbell is the senior program manager for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) and executive director of TJPDC Corporation, TJPDC’s companion nonprofit. She has been with the TJPDC since 1999, when she changed careers from structural engineering. She has a wide-ranging role at the TJPDC, managing a variety of projects, heading TJPDC’s housing program, and carrying out management and administrative functions for the regional agency. She has been actively involved in efforts to make our region age-friendly. She has been a leader in the Livable for a Lifetime (L4L) initiative since its inception in 2006 to promote amenities for ease, comfort and hospitality in homes and communities, and is a member of the Chamber’s Aging in Place Business Round Table. She holds a Master of Public Administration from George Mason University.

Ms. Campbell spoke at the Wednesday, February 11, 2015 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The meeting was held at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by SSV Past President Sue Liberman.

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Town Hall Meeting Considers US 29 Alternatives

Several hundred people attended the meeting held at Sutherland Middle School in Albemarle County Thursday.

Several hundred Charlottesville and Albemarle County residents turned up Thursday evening for a town hall meeting to discuss alternatives to the construction of a grade separated interchange at the intersection of Rio Road and US 29 in Albemarle County. The meeting was sponsored by Albemarle County Supervisor Ken Boyd and Smart29.

The meeting was held at Sutherland Middle School on January 29, 2015 and was hosted by Supervisor Boyd. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience.

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Bridging the Gap: Listening to People You Don’t Want to Hear

Dr. Grant Tate speaking at the Senior Center in Charlottesville.

In this podcast, you’ll learn how to identify and overcome the gaps between different points of view in public and private discourse. The session was facilitated by Dr. Grant Tate, CEO/Managing Partner of the bridge ltd, a Charlottesville consulting company that helps leaders make difficult decisions. He is the founder of three small companies and was co-founder of the New Mexico Technical Innovation Center and the Connecticut Venture Center, organizations formed to help formulate and grow entrepreneurial companies. Before starting the bridge ltd, Grant was an executive at IBM where he led a software development lab, introduced new products and managed reorganization of a hi-tech division.

Dr. Tate spoke at the Wednesday, January 14, 2015 meeting of the Senior Statesmen of Virginia. The meeting was held at the Senior Center in Charlottesville. Following the presentation, questions were taken from the audience. The program was moderated by SSV Board Member Terry Cooper.