Monday, August 4, 2025

Good Morning! On this day in 1753, George Washington became a Master Mason, the final and highest honor in Freemasonry. He was just 21 years old at the time and had not yet accepted his military commission.

Two lawmakers from the Commonwealth have introduced a bill that would force ICE agents to take off their masks and identify themselves. Read the latest in Top Stories. In Around Virginia, the fate of a space shuttle is up in the air.

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Prostitution Arrests

Five men were charged last week with solicitation of prostitution in Washington County.

Authorities said the operation was aimed at identifying victims of exploitation and protecting them from predators.

The arrests resulted from a joint investigation between the state police and the sheriff’s office.

Following a separate investigation, regional authorities in Altavista charged nine men with solicitation of prostitution. Reducing the demand for commercial sex “is just one part of attacking sex trafficking in our communities,” Campbell County Sheriff Whit Clark said.

Bill Seeks to Unmask ICE

Virginia’s two Democratic U.S. Senators introduced draft legislation that would require U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to work without face coverings and with their agency affiliation visible.

“We should not have armed, masked, and unidentified individuals prowling around neighborhoods and snatching people off the street,” Sen. Mark Warner said.

“They should definitely be identified,” Sen. Tim Kaine added. “Because otherwise, is this a law enforcement person or is this a kidnapper?” Kaine pointed to an incident this year in Charlottesville, where ICE officers were videotaped wearing plain clothing and not wearing insignia.

“ICE strongly condemns the impersonation of its law enforcement officers or agents,” a statement from the Department of Homeland Security said. ICE recently launched a campaign to hire 14,000 immigration agents.

NTSB Investigation Wraps Up

The National Transportation Safety Board held three days of hearings to explore what caused January’s air disaster over the Potomac River. All 67 people aboard both aircraft were killed when an Army helicopter collided with an American Airlines jet.

Testimony revealed that the Army Black Hawk was flying higher than its pilots thought—perhaps because of a faulty altimeter—and that the commercial plane’s pilots were never warned there was a helicopter on a collision path with their jet.

One expert suggested the disaster was a result of years of mismanagement on the part of aviation authorities.

“I don’t think this accident occurred that night,” Clark Allen, the airport’s operations manager, said. “It was a combination over many years that I think that built up to that evening.”

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➤ Danville: City Councilman Lee Vogler, who was set on fire in an apparent personal attack at his place of business last week, “faces multiple surgeries, an extended hospital stay, and months—if not years—of rehabilitation,” his employer said. (Details)

➤ Chantilly: As part of the recently passed Big Beautiful Bill, NASA must select a vehicle that has flown astronauts into space to be moved to a museum in Houston—presumably the Space Shuttle Discovery, currently housed at the Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center. (Details)

➤ Richmond: Former Virginia governor and current Virginia Commonwealth University faculty member L. Douglas Wilder, 94, filed a federal lawsuit against VCU’s president, alleging the school conducted investigations “in retaliation for his protected speech and public criticism.” (More)

➤ Fairfax: The George Mason University Board of Visitors approved a 1.5% salary increase for President Gregory Washington even as the school faces multiple federal investigations of its hiring and DEI policies. (More)

➤ Washington, D.C.: The federal Department of Education gave five Virginia school districts until Aug. 15 to respond to its demands that they base their bathroom and locker room policies on a student’s biological sex and not gender identity. (Details)

➤ Virginia Beach: The city is considering plans to build two new garages near the oceanfront to increase parking. (More)

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➤ Virginia Tech and Old Dominion have agreed to cancel four of the seven football games the teams had contracted to play in the coming years. The Hokies will now pay the Monarchs $2.87 million for the three remaining games in Blacksburg in 2025, 2026, and 2030. (Details)

➤ NASCAR legend Ricky Rudd will speak at the Chesapeake Sports Club’s luncheon on Aug. 11. Ticket prices range from $25 to $40. (Register Here)

➤ UVA will host its first-ever preseason men’s basketball exhibition game on Oct. 24 when the Cavaliers welcome the Villanova Wildcats. (Details)

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➤ The Virginia Business Ready Sites Program will provide $40 million in grants to help prepare 13 locations for future business development. (Details)

➤ Homes.com owner CoStar, based in Arlington, sued Zillow.com for allegedly using more than 46,000 copyrighted photos without permission. (More)

➤ Mars, the global food company with headquarters in McLean, said it will invest $2 billion into its U.S. manufacturing business by the end of 2026. (Details)

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➤ A former Methodist church donated $16,400 to the National Center for Healthy Veterans in Altavista. The Court Street United Methodist church raised the money through an estate sale after it closed down last month. (Details)

➤ UVA Health is the first provider in the state to use a new technology that can repair failing blood vessels without surgery, which helps patients recover more quickly. (More)

➤ A pair of gardening groups teamed up to launch a butterfly house at Pleasant Grove Park in Palmyra to teach about the importance of the insects. (Details)

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