New coalition aims to keep Virginians covered as Medicaid rules tighten - Virginia Mercury

By Lisa Held and Rebekah Alvey • October 21, 2026 West Virginia residents describe the impact of the past two years of the Trump administration on the food system. Read the full article →

FILE - Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger delivers her State of the Commonwealth address before a joint session of the Virignia General Assembly at the Capitol, Jan. 19, 2026, in Richmond, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File) (Steve Helber, Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)Governor Abigail Spanberger on Tuesday announced the creation of the Virginia United Coalition, bringing together 32 organizations from across the Commonwealth to help Virginians navigate the cuts imposed by H. R. 1 - the “One Big Beautiful Bill”. The full release from Abigail Spanberger’s Office can be read in full below:Recommended VideosThe consequences of President Trump’s law will reverberate across patients, families, healthcare professionals, providers, and communities. Because of these widespread negative impacts, more than 300,000 Virginians covered by Medicaid are at risk of losing their healthcare. Since June 2025, SNAP participation has declined in the Commonwealth by more than 150,000 people.

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A powerful storm swept across Southern California on Thursday, bringing heavy rain, hail, damaging winds, flooding and even a dusting of snow in some mountain areas. In Victorville, strong winds sent trash, dirt and other debris swirling through the air, startling drivers. Jolina Broady captured video of the conditions while stopped at a traffic light. "This was the most intense, scary thing I've seen in person in regards to wind," Broady told Eyewitness News. Video showed bushes being torn apart as debris filled the air. A trash can was launched airborne, and tree limbs were blown across a roadway. "It was strong enough to tear things apart. Trees were getting ripped out, the fences were gone," Broady said. "I don't know what it was that it was tearing through, but you could just see it in the air and pieces everywhere. "In Hollywood, several vehicles were crushed when a tree fell during the storm. Across the region, residents also reported heavy hail and rain. Heavy downpours flooded some neighborhoods and underpasses, leaving drivers stranded. "The water started coming over the hood, and my car stalled.

Because I follow Stewart Brand — writer, futurist, cool cat — on social media, I saw this announcement: “All my work online for a guaranteed 100 years. It’s a new service being offered by WordPress. I think it’s great.”It’s true. For $38,000, WordPress is offering a stepped-down version of digital immortality, “A FULL CENTURY [their emphasis] ensuring that what you create today remains accessible for the future.” Their plan includes LOCKSS — Lots of Copies Keeps Stuff Safe — technology, which “stores all of your data in at least three separately mirrored data centers to ensure access and redundancy in the event of failures or disasters.”On the one hand it’s great to see this homage to Brand, the founder of the Whole Earth Catalog and woolgatherer extraordinaire. On the other hand — a website that lasts 100 years? Really? When best-selling books by computer geniuses, such as “If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies,” are predicting the AI apocalypse in (checks watch) two or three years? Online critics dunking on WordPress have noted that domain names can be registered for only 10 years, or, per one headline: “This assumes …

It’s precisely this scenario that is sending Europe into a panic as it watches a similar situation unfold in Ukraine. Earlier this month, Ukraine was caught by surprise with internet speed restrictions on Starlink and Starshield, its military-grade satellite communications provider. This significantly impaired the ability of Ukrainian drones to operate. Get College TownA weekly newsletter packed with insights about higher ed from Globe journalist Hilary Burns. Enter EmailSince the night of Oct. 13, when Ukrainian military units first started experiencing communication issues, the crisis has unfolded like a dark comedy routine. President Trump said he didn’t cause the outage. Musk pointed the finger back to Washington. (Reports in the Wall Street Journal and other outlets have attributed the restrictions to Musk, who first consulted with the Trump administration. Then, the Journal reports, Trump called Musk and asked him to restore it.) The controversy highlights a new reality for global security: Musk is part of a small but growing number of tech titans who have privatized key parts of national security by developing commercial technologies essential to modern warfare.