Fairfax voters this week overwhelmingly elected Democrat James Walkinshaw to succeed the late Gerry Connolly in Congress in Virginia’s 11th district. Walkinshaw, who was sworn in on Wednesday, takes over for his mentor during a particularly tumultuous time for Northern Virginia. Congressman Walkinshaw joined the show to discuss the 51,000 civilian federal workers who live in the district, a potential regional recession, and the possibility of a federal shutdown.
He also spoke about his first piece of legislation, which would require the president to get congressional approval before cutting or dismantling federal agencies. Walkinshaw said the executive branch is wielding too much power.
“I think we, in Congress, have to reassert our constitutional authorities, especially with respect to the operations of the federal government and the way dollars that are appropriated are spent.”
He said the White House also needs to implement the programs Congress funds. Plus, Walkinshaw weighed in on Virginia’s upcoming statewide elections.
The House Oversight Committee advanced a series of bills this week that threaten to further undermine D.C.’s autonomy, including legislation replacing the locally elected D.C. attorney general with a presidential appointee, allowing youth 14 years or older to be tried for certain offenses, and ending cashless bail in the District. Introduced amendments also called for revoking the city’s ban on right turns on red and prohibiting automatic traffic enforcement cameras.
Also, this week, the federal takeover of D.C. police expired. Ward 6 D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen took the mic to discuss what comes next and why he believes the legislation would make the District less safe.
Allen also spoke about the upcoming second RFK stadium vote. The council is expected to greenlight an agreement next week that brings the Washington Commanders back to the District. D.C. is planning to commit upwards of $1 billion in public funds, as well as an additional $1 billion in tax breaks.
Allen said he’s still negotiating final changes to the deal, including those around affordable housing and environmental safeguards. The Council needs the commitments on paper, he said.
“That’s how you make this a success. That’s the vision actually delivers to ensure it does for our city what all the promises are. Unless you have it in writing, it’s not going to happen,” Allen said.
Councilmember Allen initially was opposed to public funding for a new stadium, but is expected to vote in favor of the final deal.
Sorting political fact from fiction, and having fun while we’re at it. Join us for our weekly review of the politics, policies, and personalities of the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia.
Produced by Matt Blitz
Guests
Margaret Barthel, WAMU’s Northern Virginia reporter
James Walkinshaw, U.S. Representative, Virginia’s 11th Congressional District
Charles Allen, Ward 6 D.C. Councilmember
The post The Politics Hour: Virginia’s newly elected U.S. Rep. James Walkinshaw and D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen appeared first on WAMU.
Published Date : 2025-09-12 16:51:00
Source : wamu.org
